Ingenious Inkling

More Pinkfresh Create & Connect

Our second class at Pinkfresh Create & Connect featured Peony Fantasy taught by Channin Pelletier.

I really love the dimension from stenciling the blooms, as well as the unique way of layering the detailed circle frame die cut.

 

 

She also had us splattered with watered down black ink which produced soft grey splatter.

She's heavy with her ink blending (like I am) and used some bold color combinations.  This time we did stenciled gold embossed images, which is perfect for this weeks Shopping Our Stash Challenge - Make Mine a Tall One - make a Slimline or Mini-Slimline Card

 

More embossing with the hot foil plate and layering the two slimline frames.  

I had so fun to making these two lovely cards.

Gel Press Abstract Mountain

I love creating with my Gel Press, but my rate of creating prints far exceeds my rate of using prints.  As I was surrounded by all of the recent prints from the #birgitkoopsengelprintingchallenge, I decided to find a way to use a bunch of them in a card.

I started with the Essentials by Ellen Abstract Mountain Cover Die and decided to use it with a mix of prints.

Then I saw Ellen has a May Essentials Composition Sketch Challenge on her blog, so I decided to incorporate that as well.

 

 

I love the fun & funky landscape I ended-up with.  The top sky piece is a roll-off scrap where I cleaned the alcohol inks from my brayer ... I thought it had sort of a northern lights feel to it.

 

For the Circle Element of the sketch, I punched three different circles from Gel Press prints and layered them behind the Essentials by Ellen Nice of You sentiment.

Pinkfresh Create & Connect

I had the joy of participating in the Pinkfresh Create & Connect virtual event with one of my crafty besties here in town (she's the one who invited me to my very first ever crop where I learned about card making).  We had a lot of fun creating together.

The first class was taught by the talented Lea Lawson with the new Whimsical Blooms stamps, stencils and washi tape.  I really loved these colors and the mix of blooms in the set.

I didn't completely follow the instructions on any of the cards (which my friend reminded me has been my style for over 20 years.

We started with a washi tape card to get warmed up for two days of creative fun.  I loved the gold Mini Slimline frame frame with the pre-printed gold sentiment.  

 

 

We also learned how to emboss with a hot foil plate, which is the wonderful texture on the background.

For the second card we combined stamping and stenciling.

 

 

I love layering and ink-blending the circle frame for a background.  We used the fun Pinkfresh Studio Gems in the centers of the blooms.

So much fun for class number one.

More May Gel Printing

We're still having fun with the #birgitkoopsengelprintingchallenge.

The Stamp Challenge made me smile ... but the challenge to me was which stamp to use.  I decided on a vintage Three Ferns stamp from Hero Arts with two colors of Distress Oxide Ink.

 

 

Next up was Packaging Materials.  I sorted through things I had kept in my stash for future packing, and found this sheet of differently shaped bubble wrap that I tried.

 

 

 

You can barely see it on the second print on the left, but I loved that effect too.

Next was buttons.  I tried inserting the buttons in a rolled-out piece hand-exercise clay thinking I could stamp with that, but the buttons refused to stay embedded (I got it sort of done in the red print).  After that I used the individual buttons to stamp into the pink paint covered plate (and basically got my hands completely covered with both colors).

 

 

I was able to wash all of the paint off my buttons, so they can be used again.

Next Up was Feathers.  I decided to use my favorite Feather Stamp from Tyggereye (Gina).

 

 

I liked how they stamped off with the Acrylic Paint better than the prints itself, which was a reminder that I could cover the plate in medium and use it like a giant stamp pad (love thinking about different ways to use products I already have).  Still one of my favorite stamps.

Next up is using a Brush.  I used Dina Wakley's Media brush to apply the paint by swiping horizontally on the plate.

 

 

Love how the paint blended and the brush strokes (particularly in the second print).  The vibrant colors make me smile.

Masculine Merry Christmas

We're celebrating a Masculine Merry Christmas at Jingle Belles - making cards for the men & boys on our Christmas card list.

Some of the men on my Christmas Card list really love winter sports like skiing and snowboarding, so I thought this card and sentiment would be perfect for them. 

 

 

I used the Lawn Fawn Lawn Cuts Stitched Snowflake Backdrop for the background, added a frame from Lawn Fawn Lawn Cuts Say Cheese and finished with Lawn Fawn Lawn Cuts Stitched Snowflakes in two shades of blue glitter cardstock before finishing with my holiday sentiment.

 

 

With my blue holiday card, I'm also joining the Double D Challenge where the theme is Monochromatic.

 

 

And I'm joining the Dies Only Challenge at the Lawn Fawnatics Challenge.

Thursday Link Love

Another week of blogland discoveries:

• Can you ever go wrong with Lemon Ricotta Pancakes (shown)?
• DIY Wood Ring Trellis
• Salty Sweet Cereal Bars
• the importance of Creating Space
• Sugared Prosecco Grapes
• Three Layer S'mores Cake
• transferring Photos to Wood
• Quick Pickled Onions
• easy Cream Cheese Pastries
• How to Strip and Bleach Wood Furniture
• Raspberry Crumble Cookies
• love her beautiful Wedding Dress
• I'd love a big bowl of Tom Kha Gai
• Rhubarb Cookies

Have a tremendous Thursday!

More May Gel Printing

I'm continuing my way through the #birgitkoopsengelprintingchallenge in May.

 

 

I had fun trying an Egg Carton.  The paint was really wet, so my Egg Carton slid slightly when I set it on the plate, so I just went with it and let it keep sliding around.

 

 

During my weekend away, I didn't have a comb ... so what's an artsy girl to do ... make my own comb out of a piece from a 12 pack of Squirt Zero (which you can buy in Wisconsin even though it is often absent in Iowa).

 

 

Next up is Punchinella ... I decided to us one of my Paper Artsy Chalk Acrylic Paint prints from the weekend.

 

 

And as usually happens, I love the clean-up print more than my first print.

 

 

And last night I printed with an almost-used-up Scrubby Soap Sponge (that I love for removing paint from my hands).

 

 

I am really having fun with the tools theme of this year's challenges.

Beautiful Bugs

The Global Design Project Challenge is all about Beautiful Bugs.

I don't usually call a Butterfly a Bug, but since it's included in their graphic and many of the design team cards, I'm going for it.

I love the drop-shadow technique with full cover die cuts.  This one is Simon Says Stamp Floral Card Front.

 

 

I added a few clusters of coordinating matte enamel dots and finished with a Simon Says Stamp Sentiment Strip Birthdays.

From Flower Bouquet to Card

At our retreat this weekend, Chris Dayton made us an adorable paper flower bouquet with a die cut sentiment that was *potted* in a collapsible CLIC & GO watercolor cup from Faber Castell (so cute).  She asked that if we dis-assembled, to use the flower to make a card, so that's what I did this morning.

I found one of my Gel Press Prints from the weekend. (with fabulous ThermoWeb iCraft silver foil) that I made during the weekend to use as my background.  I found the flower stamps in The Stamp Market Just Add Flowers.

 

I wasn't sure the source of the leaves, but the sentiment is Simon Says Stamp + CZ Design Just Because die.

I used the layout from Atlantic Cards Sketch to assemble my card.  I attached the alcohol ink panel to a larger white card base to work with the large sentiment.

 

 

I used Taylored Expressions Bits & Pieces Drip Drops for the dot elements on the sketch.  I trimmed the leaves & flower petals where they hang over the edge of the card after everything was attached.  I also used foam tape on some of the smaller flowers & the sentiment for dimension.

 

Crafty Friend Like You

I just got home from my long crafty weekend, and before I start putting everything away, I wanted to make a card using pieces that I made and assembled at the retreat.

I used the colors from the May AlteNew Challenge to die cut and assemble the AlteNew Jumbo Garden Picks (the perfect crafty retreat task).

 

 

Next, I paired the assembled pieces with one of my green Gel Press prints from the trip.

 

 

 

I used the sketch from the TGIF Challenges! to assemble my card.  It only seemed appropriate to use a sentiment from the AlteNew Crafty Friends Stamp Set.

The friends I have made in this industry are some of the best ... there was so much awesome learning & laughter (and comfy clothes, shopping and good food).

 

 

I finished the card with enamel dots in the challenge colors.

 

I love how this turned out.

 

I'm also joining the Make It Bloom Challenge at Little Red Wagon.