Ingenious Inkling

Live a Beautiful Life

When I was playing with my alcohol inks on Sunday night, I started on a piece of Ranger Black Alcohol Ink Blending paper, but I couldn't quite make it work, so I set it aside. 

Last night I tried again bringing out pearlescent and glitter inks together with some white and finally got a cool effect.  I came in at the end adding a touch of silver foil.

 

 

I decided with all of the silver to feature a vellum butterfly sticker on silver paper from my stash. I used the layout from the Inspire.Create.Challenge replacing the circle with the butterfly ... but looking at it now through the camera lens, I wish I would have angled it a bit (why are design facets always clearer when you photograph).

 

 

I stamped my Impression Obsession Words for Art Sentiment on vellum in black ink and clear embossed and backed it with silver metallic paper to stay with the theme.  I'm linking-up at the Simon Says Stamp Thinking of You Challenge as this one goes in the mail.

 

 

Now to figure out more inks that will work on this black paper.

 

 

I'm linking-up at the TGIF Challenges Alcohol Ink Blending Challenge as well.

 

Flutterby

One of my favorite things about creating in person with another artist is getting their feedback on designs and channeling their style as you watch them create.

This card started with a little piece of cut-off gel press print that the Damsel of Distressed had made with the Shower of Flutters stencil from STAMPlorations.  I added it to one of my gel press prints and die cut it with a hexagon die.

 

 

I combined it with two more of my Gel Press prints and a ruler that had been trimmed from a piece of designer paper that Becca had used on another card.   I brought in some Distress Crayons that Becca uses frequently in her designs, but I seldom grab, for a grungy finish to the design.  Final steps were creating a little poem with sticker sentiments that described my intention when creating the card & a few gems.  It was a really fun process.

I'm also linking-up at Little Red Wagon where the challenge theme is Flutterby (to use butterflies on your design).

 

 

I'm also joining the Stencil Challenge & Anything Goes Challenge at STAMPlorations.

Gel Printing Travel Adventures

One of the items on my Grand Forks travel agenda was to give the Damsel of Distressed (go give Becca a Like) her first Gel Printing experience.  We had so much fun creating, we never wanted to stop ... and needless to say, she was a super-quick learner (and bought us matching shirts from Unglued for our creative day).

 

We started with 5"x7" plates and basic acrylic paint and stencil techniques ... as you can see, Becca rocked it.

 

 

Here's Becca putting the stars onto that magical Unicorn print.

 

 

I had some fun playing with new Elizabeth St. Hilaire Stencils & Masks from Joggles inspired by Gustave Klimt.   The bottom two prints use the one called Rectangle Motif.  The top right is ARTplorations All Swirls. 

 

 

I also had fun creating with one called Cubes on the top right and bottom left.

 

 

 

And more Rectangle Motif on the top left.  The bottom left is All Swirls from ARTplorations.

 

 

Then on day two of our creative adventures, we spent a little time learning alcohol ink printing with the Gel Press.

 

 

And next up was playing with die cuts and stickers to turn prints into cards.  This one features the ARTplorations All Swirls Stencil together with words from the CUTplorations You Word Die Set and the CUTplorations Awesome Word Die.   I think that die cuts can completely transform some Gel Press Prints that felt more like "rejects" when you pulled them.

 

 

I'm linking-up at the October Anything Goes Stencil Challenge at STAMPlorations.

 

 

Here's another card made from these prints.  Becca had stamped and painted a group of houses and had this cutie left over after finishing her cards, so I added it to my design.  I had fun using Ranger Sentiment Stickers to create a little poem.

 

 

I'm linking this one up at the Anything Goes Stencil Challenge at Happy Little Stampers.

 

 

And one more stamping directly onto the Gel Press Print with an image from Sassy & Saucy from Inky Antics by Andrea Ockey Parr.  

 

 

Vintage Lemon Twist

I'm on a bit of a quest to use-up my Simple Stories Vintage Lemon Twist Collection (affiliate link at no cost to you).

Tonight I used this week's Freshly Made Sketch.

 

 

Two die cut circles, a horizontal sticker and two foam heart stickers.

 

 

 

Oh Happy Day!

Tonight I made a quick paper-crafted card using the Simple Stories Vintage Lemon Twist Collection (affiliate link ... costs you nothing to click on through).

I took my inspiration from The Card Concept making a card in the Clean and Layered Style.

 

 

I took my inspiration from the gingham ribbon (swapping black for gold), a black and white background (swapping woodgrain for polka dots) and multiple big bold blooms.

 

 

I used tow papers from the collection, some foam stickers for the focal image and two other stickers for the sentiments.  

 

 

The layout is from Try Stampin (or Not) on Tuesday.

Ink Cube Background

The September Monthly Mix Challenge at Gina K. Designs is to create a background using Ink Cubes ... only one problem ... I love Gina K.'s inks so much, I own the collection in the full size pads. 

 

 

After hunting through all of my extras, I found that I had a few neutral colored cubes, so that made my color combination challenge pretty easy to make.  I did a half-sheet of white cardstock not entirely sure where I was headed.  

 

 

I added a white ink splatter hoping it would unify the design a bit more, but I didn't quite get the look I was hoping for (but did manage to get white ink all over my floor and studio table, so an emergency cleaning session had to interrupt my design work).

I decided to go with a slimline design featuring the images from Botanical Blocks Mini, since I liked the idea of repeating the block design theme with my focal stamps.  

 

I finished with and offset positioning of the sentiment in the set and a few scattering of smoky grey gems to finish the design.

Autumn Array On My Mind

The September Taylored Expressions #TEMaker Challenge are lovely autumn hues of the Napa Valley Color Combination.

 

I thought they would be pretty for the new Taylored Expressions Autumn Array Stamp, Stencils & Dies.

 

Though it's a bit hard to see in the picture, the Taylored Expressions Leafy Vine Embossing Folder for the Embossing & the something that begins with E parts of the Challenge (as well as a torn Edge).  I finished with Merlot Bling in the center of the tiny Raspberry Sorbet blooms.

I used the layout from Atlantic Hearts Sketch and a sentiment from Taylored Expressions Beautiful Soul.

 

 

I'm also joining the Nature's Bounty Challenge at The Male Room, because men enjoy flowers too.

 

 

Gel Press Leafy Envelope

Today is Day 5 of the ABS's of Gel Printing with GelliArts - E is for Envelope.

 

I had a couple of ideas, but finally decided to go with a Leafy Envelope Die cut from PinkFresh Studio to use with a lot of the prints that were left on my studio table from the D is for Distress Ink Challenge Yesterday.  I created a few more darker prints using the two blues of my color combination and used one with the PinkFresh Studio Slimline Stitches Die for my card base.  I matted it on one of my clean-up pulls with white paint from yesterday (I love finding ways to use the "throw-aways" in my designs).

 

 

Next I die cut the Pinkfresh Studio Leafy Envelope from white cardstock and a second time from the light blue and grey sections from one of yesterday's prints for contrast against the background.

 

I used one of the lighter Gel Print sections to die cut Pinkfresh Hugs (I think this was a gift with purchase) on the white cardstock background.  Next I used Pinkfresh Studio Just a Little Lovely Mini Puffy Letter Stickers for the rest of my sentiment.

For the finishing touch (and for a few more leaves for the Pinkfresh Studio September Leaves & Greenery Challenge) I die cut the Pinkfresh Studio Curvy Leaves from pink cardstock and added some pink enamel dots.

 

One Day at a Time

Today's ABC's of Gel Printing with Gelli Arts Is D is for Distress Ink. 

I decided to use the colors from the Color Throwdown Challenge, which I translated to Chipped Sapphire, Stormy Sky & Pumice Stone Distress Oxide Ink.  I pulled multiple prints, but ended-up choosing the one where the ink beaded a bit on the plate for my card.

 

 

I used the Taylored Expressions Abstract Accents Clear Stamps on the background in Chipped Sapphire Distress Ink.  Then I die cut the Taylored Expressions Branch Out Dies from coordinating cardstock.

 

I finished with some glittery enamel dots and a sentiment from Taylored Expressions Beautiful Soul stamped in Chipped Sapphire on one of the Pumice Stone strips from the other prints.

 

I'm also joining the Simon Says Stamp Stamp it in STAMPtember Challenge.

Love Your Guts

Today's paper crafting goal is to clean my studio.  I have way too many piles to even begin creating.  

But of course while I was cleaning, I got sidetracked by a bit of striped paper I had leftover from Day 1 of the Crushing on Cardstock Class at Online Card Classes.  I decided to cut it into strips and make one more card inspired by Kristina Werner's Designs.  The colors are Oceanside & Sorbet from Concord & 9th.

 

 

I mounted the checkerboard design with foam tape on a floral card base and topped it with a Love Your Guts die cut sentiment from Simon Says Stamp by CZ Designs.  The finishing touch were s cattering of silver sequins.