Ingenious Inkling

Birdie Love

The newest challenge at The Paper Players is creating Clean & Simple with birdies.

 

 

I've had these vintage little collage images from Red Lead Paper Works in my stash for more years than I can remember.  Today they finally get to send some papercrafting love.

 

 

I paired this cutie with a doily, a coordinating color card base and a sentiment from Essentials by Ellen Valentine Vibes.

 

 

 

This little cutie gets paired with a strip of alcohol ink gel press print (I knew there was a reason I saved that tiny bit) and another Essentials by Ellen Valentine Vibes Sentiment. 

 

 

With a cup and saucer of Tea & Flowers on her bonnet (and a hat to protect her from the rain) I'm joining the Just Us Girls Moodboard Challenge ... sometimes even a little birdie needs a cup of tea to get her day started.

Overdue for Hugs & Kisses

I have always loved libraries.  Growing-up they were one of the places I felt most at ease.  I loved the magic of being able to look at, touch, and take home almost anything I wanted.  

So needless to say, I had to have the new Essentials by Ellen Treat Yo'Shelf Set and the coordinating Library Card Pocket Die cut.  I always loved looking at the library card to see who else in town had read the book and when the last time was that someone had taken it home (and sometimes checking out a book because it felt like it had been too long, and I didn't want the book to feel neglected).

I started by die cutting the Library Card Pocket several times from two coordinating Gel Press prints (I needed the second to line the inside of the pocket).

 

 

Next I stamped the library card and Overdue sentiment on ivory cardstock.  I then added multiple stamped sentiments to the card itself.

I created my card base from a Rainbow Gel Press Print and attached the pocket.  I'm linking-up at the Crafter's Café Colours of the Rainbow Challenge.

Heart Love

It's the time of year for Heart Cards, and that's the Challenge theme at Just Us Girls.

I started by playing with some new Japanese Sakura Shimmery Pastels that I found at my local Create/Exchange yesterday to create a scribbled and blended background ... absolutely gorgeous color and shimmer.

 

As the packaging noted, they are harder than any Pastel I've ever used with less dust ... I had to use much less to get the color saturation I was wanting and they blended effortlessly.

 

 

Next I attached gorgeous wide Pink Peony Washi Tape from The Ton to white cardstock and die cut a Spellbinders heart.   The washi has gorgeous copper metallic elements, so I die cut Simon Says Stamp Etched Berry Branch from Copper Metallic Cardstock to adorn my heart.  I used the same copper metallic cardstock to frame my card.

 

I finished with some enamel dots on the berries to bring out another color in the washi tape and a tiny love sentiment from Catslife Press stamped inside another Spellbinders Die Cut Heart.  With my little Wood Block Stamp, I'm linking-up again at Amy T's #woodblockwednesday challenge.

 

I'm also linking-up at the Anything Goes Cut It Up! Challenge.

Peeking In

The January #TEMakerChallenge is to use stitching or faux stitching on a card.

 

I stamped the Taylored Expressions Good Hearted Background in Guava ink on a piece of pink Tayored Expressions Hello Happiness designer paper.

Next, I used the Taylored Expressions Frame in Frame 2 Cutting Plate to die cut the stamped paper and Cherry Cardstock to create a fun tag with my favorite pink ribbon.

 

 

I added a fun Taylored Expressions Little Critters Bear & sentiment to finish the tag before attaching it to a Taylored Expressions Harlequin Embossed card front.

 

 

I'm also linking-up at the Tag You're It! Challenge at The Paper Players.

Happy Love Day

I spent part of today purging my studio and trying to decide which backgrounds to keep and which Reverse Confetti products to keep.  

This background was made on a day I spent playing with Dina Wakley Gloss Sprays.  It's sort of an unexpected color combination (Lime, Blackberry & Orchid I think), but I love it.

 

 

I paired it with bright green cardstock in the same hue and coordinating Glitter Paper.  After choosing a card with these Reverse Confetti dies and stamps as a favorite of 2022, and loving this card, I moved them from the donate pile to the keep bin.

It also reminded me that I need to intentionally just "play" with product groups more often like these gorgeous Gloss Sprays.

#loveyou

The December Challenge at Memory Box is all about Bows!

 

There's only one problem ... I don't have any bow stamps or dies in my Memory Box Collection, so I had to pull out some twine for my tiny bow accent.

 

 

I decided to use the colors from this week's Global Design Project (the time said I had time to link-up, but it was already closed) and found a candy heart embossed panel in my scraps that worked perfectly.  I used a Gel Press Print & Cardstock for the Bermuda Bay and added Memory Box Heart Connection & Memory Box Little Sketch Heart in Blushing Bride.  The Sentiments are from Memory Box Big and Little Valentines.

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

 

Chalk Prints

When I saw this chalk printing video by Cassie Stephenz, I knew I didn't have the high pigment chalk she used, but I was curious if any of the chalks I had in my studio might produce a similar effect.

All I could find were these vintage Pebbles Shimmer Chalks, so I figured I would give it a try.  I used a blade to pull out the half-circles of chalk & shave them onto the top of the water.

 

 

I tried four different color combinations after my initial blues, and pulled these four prints ... not as vibrant as Cassie's, but still pretty cool.  I sprayed the paper with clear varnish spray to keep the chalk from rubbing off onto my fingers and everything else.

 

 

I used the yellow and coral print at the top right to make this card with the Simon Says Stamp CZ Design Love You Sending Sunshine Die Cut cut from coral cardstock & vellum..

 

Squeeze You

Today I'm joining the Kraft+ Challenge where the theme is Inspired by Fruit.

 

 

I started with my favorite speckled kraft cardstock and added three oranges and a sentiment from Concord & 9th Orange You Sweet.

 

 

I finished with some hearts and some colored pencil highlights.

 

 

These stamps are from at least as far back as June 2017, so with my three hearts & sweet sentiment, I'm also linking-up at the Love, Love, Love Challenge at Retro Rubber Stamps.

 

 

And a squeeze is an expression of affection for CASology Challenge.

Heart-Felt

The February Poppy Stamps Challenge is to use Hearts or Felt (or in my case, both).

 

 

The main layered die is the Adora Layering Dies from sister company Birch Press cut in three shades of purple.  The center heart is from Poppy Stamps Heart Confetti Collage.

 

 

I used a sentiment from sister company Memory Box Big and Little Valentines.  I die cut a felt circle on which to place the design.

I finished with a strip of watercolor paper painted with Dylusions Shimmer Paints.

I'm also joining the Dies R Us Valentine's/Love Challenge with my Adora dies & the Love Cards for Guyz challenge at Cards 4 Guys.

My Heart BEETS for You

The theme at Shopping our Stash is My Heart BEETS for you - to make a card featuring Hearts or Vegetables (or both).

We're big Schrute Farms fans at our house (it's the name of my husband's fantasy baseball team), so there we have several pieces of beet-themed art.  And of course, I couldn't resist this fun BEETS for You stamp set from Unity Stamp Company. 

I inked it using Chianti & Shady Lane Versafine Clair ink (a shout out to DelBellos Designs for having the remainder of the refills I needed) and stamped on watercolor paper.  I also stamped the sentiment from the set and die cut with a Spellbinders Heart Die Cut.

 

Next I cut more hearts from a piece of brayered paint paper in my stash and then assembled my card, finishing with tiny epoxy hearts.