Ingenious Inkling

Thursday Link Love

Another week of blogland discoveries:

• 8 Practices to get Still & Calm (I need to spend more time working on my brain in 2021).
• Shepherd's Pie Soup is going onto the menu rotation 
• Different Types of Self-Care
• Hearty & Quick Chicken Noodle Soup
• Couldn't the world use more Pom Poms
• Spicy Tuna Crispy Rice looks so good ... a celebration of texture and flavors
• how cute are these Mini Pecan Pie Cookies
• a DIY for Air Dry Clay Ornaments
• Death by Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
• printable holiday wrapping paper (in case you have a last minute need)
• Sopapilla Cheesecake
• Dot Art Mandala (shown)
• Dutch Almond Bars

Have a tremendous Thursday.

Choose to Shine

I had no idea that crafty friend Heather had opened an adorable Sticker Store on Etsy called Spotted Gum.  Of course once I discovered her there I had to add some to my crafting inventory.

This card is made from a Sticker Sheet called New Year Who Dis ... I just love the colors.

 

I matted the larger square stickers in black and then added lots of the smaller stickers ... and I finished with some Rose Gold Sequins to bring in what I hope for all of us will be a much better new year.

I took my inspiration from the lovely celebration photo at TIME OUT Challenges.

 

 

I'm also linking-up at the Simon Says Stamp Celebrate Challenge.

More Washi Wonderland

I told you I would come back and re-visit the current Sketch at CAS(E)this Sketch for a few more cards (you can see my first group of cards here).

 

 

I thought this floral tape reminded me of RBG's Collar, so I used my new Ink Road Stamps RBG Stamps.

 

 

I stamped the collar and crown on the gel press printed corner.

 

Next I used some Coffee Cup Washi with a sentiment from STAMPlorations Literary Caffeine-ations and another Gel Press print.

 

 

And my final card today is all about Sunshine & Rainbows.

 

I combined rainbow washi tape with striped Doodlebug Baby Girl Stripes Washi with sentiment & sun from Concord & 9th Brighter Days.

I love how easy and fun these cards have been to make.

Imagine all the people ...

I did some Black Friday Shopping at Dies R Us and picked-up a few new dies from Birch Press including this Mini Snowflake Frame Layer Set. 

I die cut the top and bottom layers from white cardstock and the middle layer from my favorite silver mirror chipboard (the inside of a Puffs with Vicks and Lotion Tissue Box).  I added a piece of Eyelet Outlet Snowflake Bling to the center.

 

 

I attached the snowflake to a BoBunny Winter Wonderland paper covered card base.  

The inspiration for all of that snow comes from this week's Cupcake Inspiration Challenge (where I am thrilled to be one of last week's winners).

 

 

I paired my snowflake with a vintage wood mount stamp from 2005 by Peddler's Pack and a scattering of silver sequins.

 

 

I'm linking this card at the Dies R Us Winter Wonderland Challenge and the Heart 2 Heart Challenge Peace on Earth.

 

Walking in a Washi Wonderland

When I saw the current layout at CAS(E) this Sketch! it just screamed - go play with your washi tape.  So that's what I did this afternoon making five very fun, quick and mailable designs.  The Sketch Challenge is open extra long, so I'm pretty sure I'll make another batch before it's done.

 

 

I had my husband vote on his favorite from today's cards, and this is the one he picked (I love it too) ... because seriously, who doesn't love Cats in Hats.

 

I also used a thin black & white washi tape with a  bit of one of my Gel Press Tags for the top corner.  The sentiment is from Taylored Expressions Simple Strips Meow.

 

Next I thought Doodlebug Band-Aid Washi Tape would be perfect for a Get Well Card ... I paired it with some coordinating Polka Dot Washi and another corner of the same Gel Press Print.

 

 

The sentiment is from Words to the Rescue - Get Well by Art Gone Wild (2012).

 

Next up is gorgeous Alexandra Renke Coffee Cup Washi paired with a corner of her gorgeous paper.

 

 

The beautiful sentiment is from Essentials by Ellen Better Days Ahead.

 

Then I moved on to more Party Animals for a fun Birthday Card.  I paired it with a lime green washi tape to pull out the color and added a couple of paper strips too.

 

 

The sentiment is from My Favorite Things Anything But Basic Birthday.

 

And I finished with Washi Tape that had encouraging words with another Gel Press print corner.

 

Sentiment is My Favorite Things Bitty Thanks & Gratitude.

Now do you want to go play with your Washi Tape ... if you do, let me know, so I can come admire your creations.

Five Favorite Holiday Cards - 2020

Since Lauren & I started Jingle Belles in 2010, I've been recapping my five favorite Christmas cards of the year (you can find 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 & 2019 here) ... I always enjoy revisiting my creations for the year.

Here are my favorites in no particular order:

 

1.  This card I made for the Jingle Belles Earth Day prompt pretty much sums-up 2020.  The background was stamped with an empty toilet paper roll (and brought back the panic of seriously not finding any toilet paper in our town except for a 120 roll commercial package that we're still working our way through)  ... and Taylored Expressions Big Grumpy who sums-up how many have felt for most of 2020.

 

 

2.  I had so much fun creating this vintage collage for our Vintage prompt at Jingle Belles ... I love when all of those tucked away bits and bobs finally find their way onto a card ... especially trading stamps that remind me of my Grandma and the photo slide that reminds me of watching vacation slides in my Gran & Papa's basement.

 

 

 

3.  I love how striking this Gina K. Designs white snowflake turned out against the tone-on-tone Holiday Tapestry stamped background.

 

 

4. The We Three Kings Prompt at Jingle Belles inspired We Three Reinbeer ... for me, the googly eyes make this card.

 

 

5. 2020 was the year I had more fun playing with Alcohol Inks ... I love the wonderful inky background of this card combined with the contrast of the white stamped images.

 

As always, hard to pick favorites, but also fun re-visiting all the holiday cards I made (and gave) this year.  Remember, if you'd like to have lots of holiday cards ready when December rolls around, you can join us for our 11th year of Jingle Belles Mayhem beginning January 1st

Sending A Smile

The current #staycraftywithhero Challenge is to CASE one of the Hero Arts designers. 

 

 

Of course I had to choose my friend Seeka (aka SkyPaperScissors), although her precise clean & simple style is a bit challenging for me to emulate.  I chose one of her gorgeous watercolor designs for my inspiration.

 

 

I stamped one of the few Hero Arts Background stamps I have (the retired Leaf and Floral Background) in white pigment ink and embossed with detail white embossing powder.  Next I pulled out my Jane Davenport Layer Cake Paint in Teal & Blue and painted my background. 

Then I tried splattering with purple, but I used the wrong brush and the splatters were too big, so I went back in with more water and blended.  When I was done, I gave it a generous spray of Hero Arts White Iridescent Shimmer Spray for allover sparkle.

 

 

 

Next I took on another technique that I struggle with (I'm just not much of a precision glue girl) - stacking die cuts.  You can see my Smile from the Stamp & Cuts Smile Set wasn't quite perfect, but I managed to accomplish it, so I left it matte rather than pushing my luck adding embossing powder to the top like Seeka did.  Instead I added some Hero Arts Clear Enamel Dots together with a sentiment (achieved with some surgery) from my March 2018 Hero Arts Kit.

 

I love sending smiles across the miles.  Thanks Seeka for your amazingly talented inspiration.

Hangin' with My Winter Gnomies

Have you checked out all of the fun new Gnome Stickers at {a vintage girl} & her daughter?  Today's card features the adorable Winter Gnomes (and remember if you use my Discount Code SMILYNSTEF at checkout you get 10% off your entire order).

 

 

I started my card by spraying white cardstock with Avery Elle Clear Shimmer Spray and then embossing with the Sizzix 3D Impressions Winter Snowflakes Embossing folder (having your paper slightly damp can give you a more detailed embossed texture. 

Next I die cut my rectangle using the fabulous Crimped Frame Die from The Greetery, which is perfect for the current Let's Squash It! Challenge Theme.

 

 

 

Next I positioned the embossed panel on a kraft card base using the current Freshly Made Sketches Layout ... it's hard to capture how gorgeous that clear shimmer is.

 

 

 

I lined up three of the cute little Winter Gnomies and finished with the perfect sentiment from the new Typewriter Phrases Stickers in Kraft (they also come in white).

 

Love how those cute gnomes looks on that shimmery snowflake embossed texture.

 

Thursday Link Love

Another week of skipping through blogland:

• I love Chunky Applesauce, but I can't find it any more ... so would like to try making my own
• how lovely are photographs of Snowflakes
• A Quick Guide to Recipe Substitutions (even more important now that I'm limiting trips to the store)
• Brown Butter Chai Crinkle Cookies
• Clever Street Art makes me smile
• I love Creamy Grits
• I want one of these Tiny Embroidered Necklace Pendants (shown)
• Candied Orange Peel (dipped in Dark Chocolate)
• I need to focus more on Staying Hydrated
• Chicken Ramen looks tummy-warming ... and French Onion Soup is another personal favorite
• Bookshelves are magical (great book gift ideas too)
• Biscuit & Gravy Egg Bake sounds perfect for Christmas

Happy Thursday!

Rose Stem Love & Hugs

There's a new December Challenge at A Blog Named Hero.

 

It's hard to pick my "FAVORITE" card of the year, but I knew if I went to Laura Basson's Blog, I could surely find a top pick.  I decided on this lovely card she made for STAMPtember.

 

I grabbed my 5/8" square punch and went to my scrap bin and started punching away.  I'm sure Laura likely gave a lot of thought to the colors she used ... me, not so much (just not how I create).  I didn't even realize until I photographed the card that my lime green cardstock was actually textured ... oh well, adds some visual interest.

I also didn't really think through what size grid I would end-up with using a 5/8" punch, and it turned out a bit smaller than I envisioned in my mind, so I matted it with black cardstock and used a larger card base, so my white frame is larger than Laura's.

 

The only Hero Arts floral that would work with my scale was the Hero Florals Rose Stem ... and of course I don't have a coordinating die, so I had to do some old school fussy cutting.  I used the sentiment from the same set and finished with those wonderful clear enamel dots from Hero Arts.

I had a lot of fun trying to channel my inner Laura (seriously, don't we all want to be her when our crafty selves grow up).