Plant Kindness Background 2-Ways ~ Unity Stamp Co.

 Hello there crafty friend!

There's a new fabulous release over at Unity Stamp Co. going on right now and I wanted to share a couple of quick CAS cards that I created using the new Plant Kindness background stamp.

This fabulous background stamp has five rows of succulents in four columns. I masked the far left column and the two columns on the right and stamped these cute succulents with Gina K. Amalgam black ink. And then I stamped the sweet Hello sentiment from the new Gotta Love Sentiments set that also just released at Unity Stamp Co.

I colored the succulents with the following Copic markers: E08, E09, E11 {planters}; YG01, YG03, YG11, YG63, V000, V04, V12, YR000, YR15, YR21, YR68, Y0000, R14, R27 {succulents}; N0, N2 {grounding}

Of course, I couldn't just make one card! I decided to change things up for this one and masked the bottom four rows so I could just stamp the top row. And I used a different sentiment from the Gotta Love Sentiments set.

I love the versatility of this fabulous background stamp! So many possibilities!! 

I have a video sharing my coloring and assembly of my Thinking of You card. You can check that out here... Plant Kindness Background 2-Ways.

Be sure to check out all the new releases over at Unity Stamp Co. and see all the fabulous stamps on sale!! Gotta love a good sale!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

Polka Dot Orchard ~ Tag it Tuesday ~ Cotton Candy Birthday Tag

Hello there crafty friend!

Today, I'm sharing a cute little birthday tag for Tag It Tuesday with Polka Dot Orchard!! I'm using the adorable Fine and Dandy Cotton Candy digi set from Polka Dot Orchard!

I combined and resized the cotton candy digi and the Happy Birthday sentiment... but I also cropped the sentiment. It actually says Happy Birthday Sugar so I cropped off the Sugar part. I didn't want the sentiment to be too big and take over the tag.

I colored the cute little cotton candy with the following copic markers ~ BV0000, BV000, BV01, BV11, R00, R20, C00, C1, C3. I fussy cut the cotton candy and set it aside. I colored the Happy Birthday sentiment with BV0000, BV000, R00, R20 and trimmed it down to fit on the tag.

I trimmed some pretty spring colored patterned papers from the Simply Spring paper pad from Doodlebug Designs and adhered them to a manila tag. I punched a hole through the papers and added a bit of white wide organdy ribbon. I tied a little bow with some white and purple baker's twine. I die cut the Stitched Ric Rac Die-namics from My Favorite Things from white card stock and cut it in half and adhered the pieces together. I adhered the ric rac piece to the tag and then popped up the cotton candy and sentiment.

 To finish off the tag, I added a few white enamel dots. I forgot to take a picture of the back of the tag... oops! I added some more patterned paper from the same pad to the back of the tag. I had laid the tag down on the paper and traced around the tag and the hole and just trimmed it and adhered it to the back of the tag. Such a cute birthday tag! I love how it turned out!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky hugs,

Crystal

Polka Dot Orchard ~ Flowers in Bloom

Hello there crafty friends!

I have a friendship card to share today using the beautiful Flowers in Bloom digi set by

Polka Dot Orchard. I love this flower! It was so awesome to color!

I kept the flower digi rather large for the card and added the sentiment... I think it's a great combo of digis for a card front! Once I had that printed, I colored the flower using RV02, V04, V17 Copic markers... I love the way the purple blended with the pink. For the center of the flower I used Y06, Y13, Y17 Copic markers. I used YG01, YG23, and YG25 Copic markers for the stem of the flower. To finish off the flower I decided to add white dots using a white gel pen. 

I love the texture it gives the flower!

I die cut the panel using a Gina Marie Design's Eyelet Elegance Square die and I set it aside. I die cut a stitched rectangle piece of Lovely Lady card stock and then adhered a 2" strip of patterned paper from the Doodlebug Designs Simply Spring paper pad to that panel. I ran the white organdy ribbon around the panel and pulled it through the hole in the main image panel. I then tied a bow and adhered the popped up panel using dimensionals. For a last minute touch I added some flourish using a MFT die that I can't seem to find on the internet so I believe it's retired. I cut the flourish in half and adhered it just slightly tucked under the main panel... only adhering bits of it so it can pop up in spots for dimension.

Here's a close up of the card. I think it turned out real pretty!

Thanks so much for checking out my blog post!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

Scrapping for Less ~ December 2018 Blog Hop ~ Animals in the Arctic

December’s kit is all about Arctic Animals…Now if you are anything like me, you hate the cold weather, snow, and anything that would mean being cold. However, snow and these cute little critters in this kit are all about fun! So grab your warm beverage, sit back, and hop along with us to see these adorable critters and all the inspiration our designers have to share. Check out the Flavor of the Month page to place your order if you haven’t subscribed. Also, don’t forget to check the A La Carte items (items that are leftover - full packs and such - from putting the kits together, and other items that we have on the website that may coordinate with this kit). Make sure you also put your name in for that Rafflecopter prize!

Hey there! I am loving the theme of this month's kit... Animals in the Arctic! The critters in the stamp sets are all so cute! Let's not waste anymore time and get straight to the cards!

For my first card I used Sketch #2 with Collection One.

I did a mix of layers using the Winter Skies patterned paper by Scrapping for Less along with some Sno Cone card stock. I adhered all of the layers on a white card base. I added a few sequins to the main image and on the card base.

Here's a close up of the watercolored bear. In real life the watercolors coordinate a whole lot better with the colors in the background. You can also see the touches of purple organza ribbon on either side of the bear.

For my second card I used Sketch #4 with Collection Two.

I say I used sketch #4 for this one but it's a loose interpretation... what I mean is, I went rogue! LOL! I kinda sorta used some of the elements of the sketch, but it really had a mind of it's own. ;)  Now you may notice that this card looks kind of similar to my sneak peak card... and that's because I made them at the same time. I just loved this color palette that I pulled from these Alexandra Renke papers included in Collection One so I had to use it for this card too. I trimmed my layers of patterned paper and adhered them to a kraft card stock base. I stamped the adorable penguin with memento tuxedo black ink and colored him in with the following Copic markers:

Penguin ~ C0, C2, C4, C8, R20, YR15, YR27, YR68

Hat/Scarf ~ BG10, BG11, N0, N1, Colorless Blender

Mug ~ B0000, B000, B39, B99, N1

I added some sparkle to the hat and marshmallows using stickles from my stash. I then die cut the image using a wonky square die. I popped it up on the card base and adhered a few die cut snowflakes using the snowflake die from Collection Three. The sentiment was simply stamped, trimmed, and then popped up, as well.

For my third card I used Sketch #1 with Collection Three.

I adhered my layer of grey snowflake patterned paper to a piece of Grape Jelly card stock. I stamped a few snowflakes on the white card base using Wilted Violet and Hickory Smoke Distress Oxide inks. I adhered my grey/purple panel to the card base and then stamped the 'Snow Much Fun' sentiment using Wilted Violet Distress Oxide ink.

I trimmed a small piece of white card stock for my focal scene and stamped the mountains and chunk of ice using Memento Tuxedo black ink. I then stamped the owl and penguin on a scrap piece of white card stock and got to coloring using the following Copic markers:

Mountains ~BV20, BV23, N1

Sky ~ B60

Water/Ice ~ B000, B02, BG0000

Penguin ~ N0, N1, N5, YR15, YR68, V17

Owl ~ C1, YR15, YR68, B02, BG0000

I fussy cut the penguin and owl and adhered them to the scene. I added a few banners cut from the Frosty patterned paper by Pink and Main in the collection. And my last touch was a few sequins here and there.

For my last card I used Sketch #3 with Collection Four.

Now for this card, I flipped the sketch because I wanted to use the Winter Tree Stencil from the Banana Split subscription in my focal panel. I blended Worn Lipstick, Tattered Rose, and Shaded Lilac Distress Oxide inks over the stencil and then set it aside to dry while I stamped and colored the owl and moose. The owl is part of the stamp set included in Collection Four, but the moose is from the Arctic Sentiments set by Scrapping for Less that is in the Banana Split subscription. I colored the images using the following Copic markers:

Owl ~ BV04, BV20, BV31, YR27, YR68

Moose ~ E00, E01, E02, R01, RV95, W5

I fussy cut the images and adhered them to the focal panel that I had mat on Bubblegum card stock. I adhered a few banners on the back of the focal panel and then popped up the panel on the card base. I adhered some snowflakes and sequins all over the card and then realized I didn't have a sentiment yet... so I stamped out the 'Snow Much Fun' sentiment again, trimmed it, and adhered it to the card.

Such a fun kit to play with!! I had a blast creating these cards. I sure hope you've enjoyed them as much as I have.

Here's a look at the Double Dip Subscription.

Here's a look at the Banana Split Subscription.

Next up on the hop is Luci!

After checking out the hop, make sure to join the Rafflecopter back on the SFL blog to have a chance to win an awesome prize!!

Thank you friends for checking out my blog post!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs!

Crystal

Scrapping for Less ~ September 2018 Flavor of the Month ~ Happy Fall Y'all Card Kit

Thankful, Grateful, Blessed! 

My favorite fall saying. 

Pumpkin Spice! My favorite fall flavor.
Shorter Days! My favorite fall time.
Soup is on! My favorite food to eat when it’s cool.
Sweaters and football! My favorite time of the year. 
Everything about fall is my favorite. What is yours? 

If it is all about crafting check out this fabulous and
fantastic fall kit Scrapping for Less has this month. 
Jump in and hop along for some great inspiration.

For my first card I used Sketch #1 with Collection One.

I started with a black card front adhered to a white card base and I added a layer of Lemon Drop card stock on top. I layered a piece of the diagonal striped patterned paper from the Let's Talk Bees patterned paper by Scrapping for Less onto a black mat, also part of the paper pack. I adhered that to the card base along with a strip of black patterned paper and set the card aside.

I stamped the adorable Bumblebee Marci stamp using Gina K.'s Amalgam black ink so that I could color the image with Copic markers and watercolor with Distress Crayons. The Banana Split subscription includes a few sheets of Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor sheets and either a Mustard Seed or Wild Honey Distress Crayon. For my card, I used both the Wild Honey and Mustard Seed distress crayons. I also used the following Copic markers ~ N1, N3, N5, N7, E0000, E000, E00, E55, E57, E74, R20, G14.

I die cut the image/sentiment with a stitched rectangle die and popped it up on the card. I added a few sequins and called this one done. 

For my second card I used Sketch #2 with Collection Two.

For this card I really wanted to include a lot of pieces of the patterned paper.. I just love the rich colors! I cut the patterned papers from the Fall Breeze paper pack by Photo Play and mat them all on Hot Fudge card stock. I adhered all of my layers to a Tangy Orange card base and set it aside. 

I stamped this awesome Scarecrow Marci stamp, made exclusively for Scrapping for Less by La-La Land Crafts, on Neenah card stock and colored her in with the following Copic markers ~ Hair - YR23, YR24, E99; Clothes - BG45, BG72, BG75, YR07, YR27; Flowers - YR15, Y35, E17; Boots - YR27, E17, E74; Bird - N3, N5, N7, YR68; Skintone - E0000, E000, E00, R20.

I die cut the focal image with a circle die and sponged a bit of brown ink around the edges. I stamped the sentiment and die cut it with a banner die. I then die cut another banner using a slightly larger banner die and mat the sentiment. I popped up the focal image and the sentiment on the card using foam tape. I trimmed off the edge of the banner sentiment so it was flush with the edge of the card and there you have card #2.

For my third card I used Sketch #3 with Collection Three.

For this card I die cut the fun coffee print patterned paper from the Stay Awhile patterned paper pack by Bo Bunny. I mat the patterned paper on a piece of Hot Fudge card stock that I adhered to a white card base. I added a strip of the pretty floral patterned paper (sadly, not much of it shows). I then stamped the beautiful girl image from the exclusive Teresa Talks Fall stamp set by Scrapping for Less in Memento tuxedo black ink and colored it in with the following Copic markers ~ Hair - E40, E43, YR30, YR31; Sweater - V91, V95, V99; Pants - B37, B97; Skintone - E0000, E000, E51, RV21 (lips); Cup - E81, YR15, YR68; Outlining of Image - W00, W1.

I trimmed down the focal image and mat it on a piece of Tangy Orange card stock. I popped it up on the card using foam tape and set the card aside. This collection includes a few round kraft tags and I thought it would be fun to use that for the sentiment. I stamped it in VersaMark ink and then heat embossed a fine black embossing powder. I borrowed the twine from Collection Two to tie a double bow that I adhered to the top of the tag. I popped up the tag on the card and then adhered the beautiful Petaloo purple flower using a combination of glue dots and multi medium matte. To finish the card off I added a little a sequin to the center of the flower.

For my fourth card I used Sketch #4 with Collection Four.

The stamp set for Collection Four is my absolute favorite! It's another exclusive Scrapping for Less stamp set called Give a Hoot? It includes a couple owls, a few flowers, a partial tree or branch, and some really adorable Owl pun sentiments. I used this set for a Sneak Peek card earlier in the week (you can check that out here, if you missed it). 

When I saw the soft colors of the Amber Moon papers by Prima that are included in this collection, I just knew I want to make a bit of a scene with the tree and the smallest owl. I used my last card front piece of Hot Fudge card stock to add my layers of patterned paper and Tangy Orange card stock. I then stamped the tree and owl on a scrap piece of Neenah card stock. I wanted the tree to be taller in my card so I masked the bottom portion of the tree and drew longer lines using a Memento tuxedo black dual marker. I colored the tree using the following Copic markers ~ E43, E47, E49, R05, R08, R14, R37, YR15, YR68, Y06, Y17. I then fussy cut it out and colored the flower using the same reds, yellows, and oranges that I used in the leaves of the tree. I fussy cut the flower and adhered a sequin to the center. I then stamped the little owl using the following Copic markers ~ YR0000, YR21, YR24, YR27, YR31, E21, E23, E25. I fussy cut him out and set him aside with the tree and the flower. Using a Fiskars Fingertip Precision knife I cut around the bottom portion of the patterned paper that includes some foliage, a pumpkin, and a bird. Every once in a while I would tuck the tree in there to see how far I needed to cut. Once I had that piece ready, I adhered the tree using a liquid glue and then I adhered the whole piece onto a mat of Whip Cream card stock. I adhered the owl and the flower to the piece and then noticed the little gold leaves in the package of sequins. I added more than a few of those to the tree and a couple on the 'ground'. I then stamped the sentiment and die cut it using a banner die. I die cut another banner just slightly larger and mat the sentiment. I trimmed the sentiment piece down and popped it up on the card. My final touch for this card was a couple of gold leafs on the sentiment banner. I just adore this card! I hope you do, too!

Here's a look at the Double Dip Sundae subscription.

Here's a look at the Banana Split subscription.

I hope you enjoyed the cards I shared today. I had so much fun creating them to share with you all.

Let's get to hopping and see what the other members of the design team created!

Up next on the hop is Desiree

After checking out the hop, make sure to join the Rafflecopter back on the SFL blog to have 

a chance to win an awesome prize!! 

Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.

~ Crystal

Scrapping for Less ~ Brutus Monroe ~ Fall Themed Baby Card

Hello! Today I'm sharing a fall themed baby card... actually, I had so much fun making the first card, I decided to make two cards to share with you! Let's get to it!

My first card has layers using the Lawn Fawn Knit Picky Fall paper pack on a dark brown card base. I stamped the sweet bunnies from the Brutus/Monroe Bunny Kisses stamp set on a piece of white card stock and then stamped them again on a post-it note. I masked the bunnies with the fussy cut post-it note and then blended Scattered Straw, Wild Honey, Spiced Marmalade, and  Vintage Photo distress inks. I took the mask off and colored the bunnies using the following Copic markers ~ E30, E31, E35, E53, E55, E57, YR24, R20. I die cut the piece using the large cross stitch rectangle die that I mat on the same dark brown card stock. I stamped the sentiment using VersaMark watermark ink and then heat embossed a fine white embossing powder. I popped up the panel using foam squares and called this one done!

I used similar items for my second card. I stamped the bunnies again on white card stock and used the same mask to protect the image while I blended Wild Honey, Mustard Seed, and Scattered Straw distress ink. I then removed the mask and this time I used Copic markers to color my ground for the bunnies. I used E53, E55, and E57 with a touch of 0 around the edges to softened it up. I die cut the piece using a wonky stitched square die and then mat it on dark brown card stock. I then popped up the piece on a kraft card base. I did debate coloring the bunnies... but I really like how they are the focal point on the card here. The white pops! And because I had so much white popping on the card, I also decided to keep the sentiment white so I stamped it in VersaMark watermark ink and heat embossed a fine white embossing powder. To finish the card I wrapped some natural twine around the card a few times and made a little bow. There you have my two Fall themed baby cards.

You can get this sweet Brutus Monroe Bunny Kisses set here.

Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.

~ Crystal

Scrapping for Less ~ MFT Springtime Critters

Hello! Today I'm sharing some cute critter cards that I made using the My Favorite Things Springtime Critters stamp set and leftover patterned paper and card stock from the June 2018 At the Beach card kit. If you are a member of the Scrapping for Less Show & Share group on Facebook, you'll notice that my first card is a variation of the sketch challenge going on in the group this month.

I love the flexibility in a fun sketch and this one is no different! I'm a bit of a rebel when it comes to sketches and I like to flip them... just to change things up a bit. :) 

Sometimes it works... sometimes it doesn't. In this case, I think it turned out pretty cute. I die cut the layers for each of my cards and adhered them to my white card bases.

I stamped the critters out twice each using memento tuxedo black ink and colored all of the images. Coloring all of them gave me the opportunity to pick the ones I like better as far as the color blending went... but it also gave me an opportunity to cut pieces and pop them up. 

You can see some of the dimension that popping up the bunny's head gave to this card.

The white oval piece behind the critters has a bit of Tumbled Glass and Mowed Lawn distress ink that I blended lightly with the new Tim Holtz blending brush. You can see it just slightly in the photos. My final touch was the sentiments. I decided to do strips for the frog and bunny card... I like the way it breaks up the front panel. For the turtle card, I decided to do a banner with the side cut off so it didn't take up too much room and take away from the little turtle.

Here's a look at the MFT Springtime Critters stamp set.

You can find it in the shop here ---> Springtime Critters.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

~ Crystal

Pets Make Life Sweeter!

Hello! Today, I have a sweet card using the My Favorite Things New Best Friend stamp set! Have you seen this adorable set?! It's in the Scrapping for Less store right ---> here! 

I knew when I saw it, I just had to have it... even though, at this time, we don't have a pet in our home. I do, however, have a lot of family and friends with fur babies so I can make cards for them with this adorable set. Enough, chatter... let's get to the card!

I've been in a mood for white cards lately, but I decided with this one I wanted some layers. I stamped the main image using memento tuxedo black ink and then colored her in using a bunch of copic markers {Skin - E50, E51, E53, RV10; Dog - E02, E07, E08, E09, E21; Hair - YR20, YR23, YR31; Jeans - B95, B97; Boots - E34, E37, E39; Shirt - YG61; Ground - N0, N1, 0}. 

I paper pieced her shirt using a pack of papers that I normally wouldn't have reached for to make a 'shirt'. I used the Echo Park Go. See. Explore. paper pack. I loved the color and the fun geometric design was a bonus. I also used the paper for the dog's collar, but it's really hard to see. It's just a light blue portion of the other side of the paper.

Once the main image was colored I die cut it using a wonky circle die and set it aside. Next, I cut a 4-1/4 x 5-1/2" piece of white card stock and stamped the top portion with the tiny hearts from the stamp set using Distress Oxide Candied Apple ink. I dried it with my heat gun... just to be safe and then ran the card stock through my Big Shot using a paw print embossing folder just for the top portion. The bottom half was not in the folder at all. And then, I die cut the card stock using a stitched rectangle die. I adhered the embossed rectangle piece to a white card base using pop dots. I then popped up the main image using foam tape.

I got to thinking about what color to do the sentiment on and I thought I'd keep with the red from the hearts. So, I stamped the sentiment on red card stock using VersaMark ink and then heat embossed some ultra fine white embossing powder. I die cut the piece using a banner die and then adhered it to the card. But I wasn't done there... it needed some more love so I die cut a couple of hearts using the Lawn Fawn Hearts dies from the December FOTM kit. I then stamped and heat embossed a little paw print. How cute is that?! I adhered the heart popping up the edges to they didn't get smooshed later when I mail it. That's it for today... I sure hope you like this sweet card.

Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.

~ Crystal

Our Story ~ A Cute Bookmark

Hello! Today, I am sharing another fun project using the My Favorite Things Our Story stamp set and some Lawn Fawn Perfectly Plaid Winter paper. 

I had some extra images already stamped and I still had my Christmas papers out on my desk so naturally, I had to make another project with this cute little image. This time I decided to make a bookmark. I cut the papers to fit on a white piece of card stock that I could run through my Big Shot with a bookmark die. I set that aside and started looking through my stash of papers and found the cute polka dot papers that worked perfectly with the grays and blues in the plaid paper.

 I stamped the image on the polka dot paper and fussy cut it out. I paper pieced it to the image that I had colored in with copic markers {Skin ~ E50, E51, E53; Hair ~ E07, E08, E09; Book ~ E34, E37, E39; Chair legs ~ E57; Pajamas ~ BG10, BG32} and set it aside. 

I then colored in the lamp {YR23,YR24, Y00, Y06, E55, E57}, the stack of books {YG61, YG63, BG10, BG32, YR23, Y000, Y06, E55, E57} and the kitty {0, N0, N2, RV11}. I fussy cut the images out and adhered them all to the bookmark. I stamped the sentiment with VersaMark ink and heat embossed ultra fine black embossing powder. I added a couple different ribbons that I tied off with some natural twine. I just adore this sweet little image! I hope you like it too!

Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.

~ Crystal

Our Story ~ Framed Art for my Daughter

Hello! Today, I have another project using up some of those Christmas papers. I don't know about you, but I seriously went overboard with all the Christmas papers. I have quite an abundance still leftover so I thought it would be great to use some of the papers up doing projects not necessarily for Christmas.

I had started out making this as a card front, but at some point I decided it would be super cute if I framed it and put it up in my daughters room. It looks just like her cuddled up with a few books reading by the fireplace... maybe with hot cocoa instead of coffee though. 

I started out by making my walls using some scraps from the Doodlebug Milk & Cookies papers. The floor was made using some scraps I had in my stash... I'm not sure what brand it's from. I adhered these pieces on a 6 x 4" piece of white card stock. I have a bunch of die cut pieces leftover in my Doodlebug Odds & Ends Milk & Cookies and the fireplace came from that... only I didn't use the whole piece because it was just too big and it had stockings hanging from the mantel so I cut out the inner part of the fireplace and adhered it to my 'brick' wall. Now came the fun part, stamping all the images from the My Favorite Things Our Story stamp set. I stamped them all on white card stock using Memento Tuxedo black ink because I knew I would be coloring them with my copic markers. I also stamped a bunch of images onto leftover papers from the Milk & Cookies paper pack so that I could paper piece some of the furniture. I used the colors from the the papers to color the books and the little girls pajamas and cup. I decided to fussy cut all the images because I didn't want the white edge around the images, but I think this would still be cute if you used the coordinating dies and cut the images out that way. I adhered all the images onto the scene and once it was dry I added it to this simple black frame. I think it turned out so cute! I hope my daughter likes it too.

The Copic Markers I used: Skin ~ E50, E51, E53; Hair/End Table/Chair Legs/Shelf ~ E55, E57; Book ~ E34, E37, E39; Pajamas ~ RV0000, RV11, RV21; Dog ~ N0, N1, N7; Cat ~ YR0000, YR15, YR24, YR27, YR68; Plant ~ YR0000, YR15, YG61, YG63; Cup ~ BG10, BG32; Book Stack/Books on Shelf ~ variation of all the colors listed above.

Thanks for stopping by!

See ya next time.

~ Crystal