Monday, May 29, 2017

~ Happy Birthday Watercolor ~

I was inspired by the CASology cue card: LOUD to make this very bright Happy Birthday card using ZIG markers. I had a lot of fun watercoloring this card.




I recently got my June card kit from Simon Says Stamp. It has this gorgeous floral stamp that I thought would be fun for a watercolor birthday card. I stamped it in Ranger Archival jet black ink. I colored the image using the ZIG markers direct on the watercolor paper. I think it's a very bright and loud floral birthday card (just wish it wasn't a cloudy day so I could have gotten a better picture). The sentiment from Papertrey Ink's Wet Paint set was stamped using distress inks.






Here are the products I used for this card:
Stamps: Floral Bliss (SSS), Wet Paint (PTI)
Card Stock: White (PTI), Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor (SSS)
Miscellaneous: ZIGS Clean Color Real Brush markers (Amazon)


Go check out the challenge over at CASology!!
Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.

~ Crystal

Sunday, May 28, 2017

CYCI159 - It's Your Birthday

Good Morning! This week I'm sharing a birthday card for the CYCI sketch challenge. I've been hoarding my packages of Inside the Lines designer paper from Stampin' Up!'s Sale-a-Bration time earlier this year. I finally thought it was time to break open a package and do some coloring!




I decided to color with Copics... I was concerned at first that the colors weren't blending well, but I think it turned out nice. The paper is pretty thin so it did get very saturated and honestly felt wet, but it was fine when it dried. I had a blast coloring... it's always so calming and relaxing for me. Once I had the piece colored in, I used a stitched circle die to cut it and also cut out a piece of white card stock. I adhered the colored piece to a white card base. I then stamped and heat embossed the sentiment from Unity's So Glad You Were Born kit onto the stitched circle I had cut out. I popped the sentiment circle up using stampin' dimensionals and there it is!




 I can't wait to see what you create using this sketch as your inspiration!! Be sure to join our Facebook group so that you can see the Design Team creations and enter the challenge... Can You Case It? Challenge Group


Here are the products I used for this card:
Stamps: So Glad You Were Born (Unity)
Card Stock: White (PTI)
Paper: Inside the Lines (retired SU!)
Inks: VersaMark (SU!)
Adhesives: Fast FuseStampin Dimensionals (SU!)
Tools: Stitched Circles (SSS)
Miscellaneous: Fine Black Embossing Powder (SSS)



 Please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what you thought of my creation.
Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.
~ Crystal

Friday, May 26, 2017

A Pirate Birthday... Argh!

A quick post to share the card that I made for my youngest son's 8th birthday. He's really loving Pirates right now. We've watched all of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.




This was a fun card to make. I used a retired set from Stampin' Up!... Ahoy, Matey! I stamped the little pirate boy on white card stock and colored him in with Copic markers. I used some distress inks on kraft card stock to 'age' the paper a bit. I then stamped the other images with memento ink and colored those in with Copic markers too. I distressed the edges of the panel and adhered it to a kraft card base. I stamped and heat embossed the sentiment from Unity's So Glad You Were Born kit onto a scrap piece of kraft card stock and then distressed the edges. I adhered the sentiment to the card using stampin' dimensionals. I fussy cut the pirate out and adhered him to the card also using stampin' dimensionals. A fun card to make and my son loved it!!

Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.
~ Crystal

Thursday, May 25, 2017

Papertrey May Blog Hop Challenge

I'm so excited! It's time for another Papertrey Blog Hop challenge!! Here's the inspiration for this month's hop... 




Beautiful colors, am I right?! I absolutely love the blues in the leaves... gorgeous!




I recently received my latest Papertrey Ink order and was able to ink up this stunning set, Gran's Garden! I have to admit it took me a few tries lining up the flowers just right, but I finally got the hang of it. I evened used the assembly suggestion on the packaging of the stamp set as my inspiration for the layout of the flowers. Overall, I had some inking fun and really love the way it turned out! I tried to duplicate the blues in the inspiration but I guess in my mind it had some green to it, so I chose Ocean Tides with a touch of Dark Indigo to the edges. I have to admit... I absolutely love this combination!! I loved it so much that I added some more to the layout by using the flower center... I think it looks like tiny flowers! I also used another new set to me for the sentiment, Keep It Simple: Thank You II. Love the fonts in this set!! I actually messed up when I stamped the sentiment... I didn't mask enough of the area so some residue ink was left behind but luckily I had just ordered the Tombow Mono Sand Eraser and it came right off, like magic!! Love it! I die cut the sentiment using Stitched Circles. When I put the card together, I decided to offset the sentiment so some of the Melon Berry color could peek through! I adhered the whole panel to a white card base and BAM!


Here are the products I used for this card:
Card Stock: White, Melon Berry (PTI)
Miscellaneous: Tombow Mono Sand Eraser (Blitsy)


 If you have a minute, please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what you thought of my creation.
Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.
~ Crystal



Monday, May 22, 2017

~ Sometimes this is all you need ~

As soon as I saw the cue card for this week's CASology challenge, I knew I just had to ink up this beautiful stamp from Unity's Beach Girl.




I stamped the image using Simon Says Stamp Barely Beige ink. I used ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers to color the image and the background. It was so fun just to do some simple watercolor. Once the panel was dry, I stamped the sentiment with VersaMark and heat embossed some fine black embossing powder. I then die cut the panel using a large stitched rectangle die from MFT. I adhered the panel to a white card base and BAM!


 casology.blogspot.com



Here are the products I used for this card:
Stamps: Beach Girl (Unity)
Card Stock: White (PTI), Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor (SSS)
Inks: VersaMarkBarely Beige (SSS)
Tools: Heat Tool (SU!), MFT Blueprints 15 (SSS)


Go check out the challenge over at CASology!!
Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.

~ Crystal

Sunday, May 21, 2017

CYCI158 - You're on My Mind

Hello to you this lovely Sunday morning! I have a simple one layer card to share with you today. 




It's been terribly hot the last few days and I just felt like coloring a simple card. I thought this beautiful flower stamp from Unity's May KOM was perfect for such a simple card. I didn't use anything fancy, just my crayola colored pencils to color it in. The sentiment is from Unity's I Want You to Know sentiment kit. I stamped that and die cut it using MFT's Stitched Sentiment Strips die.



 I can't wait to see what you create using this color combo as your inspiration!! Be sure to join our Facebook group so that you can enter the challenge... Can You Case It? Challenge Group.


Here are the products I used for this card:
Card Stock: White (PTI)
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black (SU!)
Miscellaneous: Crayola Colored Pencils (Amazon)



 Please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what you thought of my creation.
Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.
~ Crystal

Sunday, May 14, 2017

CYCI157 - Sister of my Soul

It's time for another CYCI sketch challenge!! Yay! Here's my take on the sketch... I flipped it!




I've been playing with some new papers and loving them! For this card, I cut a layer of the type script paper and adhered it to a Vintage Cream card base. I stamped the image on white card stock using Memento tuxedo black ink and then colored it in using several Copic markers (listed below). I then die cut the pretty flower paper using my Fun Stampers Journey Snapshot Frames die. I adhered the die cut over top of the copic colored piece. I popped that up on the card base using stampin' dimensionals. I stamped the sentiment using VersaMark ink and heat embossed some fine white embossing powder. I then die cut the sentiment out using Lawn Fawn's Everyday Sentiment Banners. I adhered the banner and added a few The Paper Studio Gemstones and BAM!




 I can't wait to see what you create using this sketch as your inspiration!! Be sure to join our Facebook group so that you can enter the challenge... Can You Case It? Challenge Group and go check out all the creations by the CYCI design team on our Facebook page!


Here are the products I used for this card:
Stamps: Unity Girls (Unity)
Card Stock: Vintage Cream, White (PTI), Coastal Cabana (retired SU!)
Miscellaneous: Fine White Embossing Powder (SSS), The Paper Studio Gemstones (Hobby Lobby)



 Please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what you thought of my creation.
Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.
~ Crystal


Saturday, May 13, 2017

Make It Monday #284 ~ Happy Birthday Butterfly!

I'm really enjoying the Make It Monday challenges. I've had a busy week but I was finally happy to get a quiet minute and give this challenge a try. 




I stamped the sentiment several times using my mini misti so that I could get a nice crisp stamped image, but my goodness was that crazy! I had to change the direction of the stamp so many times and readjust my card stock. Probably not the most efficient way to do it, but other than the slightly darker sentiment in the bottom left corner... I think they turned out nice. It was a little dark though, so I added a layer of vellum card stock over top of the white card stock. Since I wanted the sentiment to really be my focal point, I decided to just add a butterfly. I hadn't inked up this beautiful butterfly from the recently released Butterfly Hope yet so this was a perfect excuse! I first stamped the outline of the butterfly using Classic Kraft ink but then decided it was too light. I stamped over that with Dark Chocolate. I then stamped the outer portion of the wings with Hawaiian Shores ink and then topped that with Tropical Teal. You can see a bit of the lighter coming through. I stamped the center of the wings using Hawaiian Shores. I added a few touches of white gel pen here and there on the body and wings of the butterfly. To finish off the card I added a few gemstones. BAM!

Here are the products I used for this card:
Card Stock: White, Kraft (PTI), Vellum (SU!)
Tools: Xyron Sticker maker (Amazon)
Miscellaneous: The Paper Studio Gemstones (Hobby Lobby)


 Please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what you thought of my creation.
Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.
~ Crystal


Sunday, May 7, 2017

CYCI156 - Makes Me Smile

Happy Sunday! I'm excited to share my Can You Case It Design Team
 card for our latest color challenge! We have an ombre challenge using any 4 colors you wish... how fun is that?!


 Can You Case It Challenge Group


Here's my card for the challenge. I used four of the new Distress Oxide inks to do a watercolor wash ombre style! So fun! The inks blended beautifully even with water. I love these inks!




Once my watercolor panel dried, I stamped the lace stamp from Unity's January 2015 Kit of the Month called Magic of Beginnings using VersaMark ink and heat embossed fine white embossing powder. I then stamped the sentiment that says "Everything about you makes me smile" also using VersaMark ink and white embossing powder. It's a great sentiment from Unity's Everything {Flight of Faith} kit... I'm bummed it doesn't show up as well in my picture.
I then spritzed my palm with some water and did some water splatter by clapping my hands over the panel. I let those droplets sit for a bit and then put a paper towel down to soak up any excess water. I then stamped the background butterfly stamp from Unity's {... With Her Own Wings} kit using VersaMark ink and heat embossed clear embossing powder on the top portion of the card. I really love all those little butterflies! I used an old distress tool to distress the edges of the panel and then adhered it to the white card base. 
I stamped the butterfly from Unity's Keep Going Anyway kit on a piece of scrap white card stock using the Wilted Violet Distress Oxide ink and then I heat embossed clear embossing powder. I blended a bit of Worn Lipstick and Broken China inks over top of the butterfly. I added a few touches of white gel pen on the butterfly. I then used my bone folder to bend the wings of the butterfly a bit and adhered it to the card along the body of the butterfly so the wings would give it some dimension.

 I can't wait to see what you create using an ombre style - 4 color combo as your inspiration!! Be sure to join our Facebook group so that you can enter the challenge... Can You Case It? Challenge Group and go check out all the creations by the CYCI design team on our Facebook page!


Here are the products I used for this card:
Card Stock: White (PTI), Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor (SSS) 
Tools: Heat Tool (SU!)



 Please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what you thought of my creation.
Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.
~ Crystal



Savvy 7 ~ May Blog Hop ~ April Showers Bring May Flowers!

It's time for another Savvy 7 & Friends Blog Hop! The theme for this month is April Showers Bring May Flowers! Another theme with so many possibilities! I can't wait to see what the other hoppers created!




I had so many ideas for this hop, but decided to focus on a mixed media piece that I made for my friend's birthday. I really hope that she likes it.




I wanted to share some of the steps that I went through creating this canvas. First, I applied a thin layer of clear gesso to the blank canvas and set it aside to dry. I then stamped a script background all over a piece of tissue paper (not pictured) using Archival jet black ink. Once the gesso was dried, I applied some matte mod podge to the canvas and adhered the script tissue paper all around the canvas (even over the edges). Once the canvas was dried, I used a baby wipe to apply some Bimini Blue acrylic paint to the canvas. Along the two edges I applied some Bright Yellow acrylic paint also using the baby wipe. The yellow added to the blue gave a bit of a greenish tinge that I really liked. Once the paint was dry, I grabbed a stencil and added some texture paste around the three corners and also on the edges of the canvas.




Using the Bright Yellow acrylic paint again, I painted the texture paste using a tiny paint brush. I then stamped the daisy onto the canvas using Archival jet black ink. I wasn't looking for a perfectly stamped image... I just needed a guide for adding shading around the image. I applied a tiny bit of Pewter Grey acrylic paint around the stamped image and then smudged it using another baby wipe. I set the canvas aside and stamped the daisy on a piece of white cardstock. I wanted the daisy to be white so all it needed was a few touches of yellows, orange, and a bit of brown. I also painted the stems and leaves using a couple different green paints. I applied some matte mod podge to the canvas and adhered the daisies in two pieces - kind of like a puzzle. I then stamped the sentiment on a piece of tissue paper using Archival jet black ink and adhered that to the canvas using matte mod podge. I wanted the sentiment to pop a bit so I added some grey paint for shading but then it looked a bit too dark so I ended up adding some white paint and I think that helped it to pop a bit more. 




I used the Uni-ball Signo white gel pen to fill in the word 'Everything'. My last finishing touches were some gloss white nuvo crystal drops around the daisies. The stamped image had black dots and I wanted to make them pop so adding the drops not only made them pop, but it also gave them some dimension on the canvas.




Here's a side view showing the color and texture that was applied around the edges as well. 




Here's a close up view of the daisies with the glossy drops. 




If you've made it this far in my post, THANK YOU!! I know there's a lot of pictures and info here. I had such a great time making this canvas for a very dear friend of mine. I truly hope she liked it. 


Here are the products I used for this card:
Card Stock: white (PTI)
Miscellaneous: Uni-Ball Signo White gel pen (Amazon), Gloss White Nuvo Crystal Drops (SSS), white tissue paper

Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.
~ Crystal

Be sure to check out the rest of the fabulous creations on the hop!


Thursday, May 4, 2017

Make It Monday #283 ~ Every Day

I'm back again with another Make It Monday challenge from Papertrey Ink. This weeks challenge is a watercolor wash background. I'm a huge fan of watercoloring so I just had to play along with this challenge. It was also a great excuse to play with some new goodies I got from Papertrey Ink.




I stamped the image from the Quoted: Start Again stamp using VersaMark ink and then heat embossed white embossing powder. I was very excited to have another chance to play with my new Kuretake Gansai Tambi watercolors. They've been sadly neglected sitting on my shelf. I used a few colors to do my watercolor wash background. I cut down my piece of watercolor paper and then distressed the edges. I love the texture that gives to the card. I adhered the watercolored panel to a white card base and then I splattered some watered down white acrylic paint onto the whole card. I popped on a few sequins and called it done. Not sure that I like the image off center... but I did call it done! So it's done... :)

Here are the products I used for this card:
Card Stock: White (PTI), Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor (SSS)
Watercolors: Kuretake Gansai Tambi - Set of 24 (Amazon) 
Tools: Heat Tool (SU!)


 Please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what you thought of my creation.
Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.
~ Crystal