altenew – Page 35 – SkyPaperScissors

Hi there! I hope you’re having a lovely day!

Today’s card uses the Focus On You stamp set from Altenew which has a number of beautiful flowering branches.

I started by stamping three branches of flowers in Versafine Black Onyx ink onto Canson XL watercolor paper. This ink is waterproof and plays nicely with watercolors. Once the ink was dry, I added color using a few Arteza Real Brush Pens (Honey and Punch Pink for the flowers, Pea Green for the leaves, and Chocolate for the woody stems). In hindsight, I could have used any type of marker since the details in this image are so small and there’s not much opportunity for adding water or blending. I used a white Sakura Gelly Roll pen to add some very small dots to the centers of the flowers. When I finished coloring, I cut out the images using a Brother ScanNCut2 and set them aside.

The background is a piece of Strathmore Bristol Smooth which I cut down using the largest die from the Lawn Fawn Outside In Stitched Rectangle die set. Then I used a foam blending tool to softly blend Dried Marigold Distress Ink in the area that would be behind the bouquet of flowers. To add a bit of movement, I added splatter by smooshing the ink onto an acrylic block, adding a bit of water, and using a 2 round brush to flick ink onto the card front. I let the card front dry for a bit and then stamped the sentiment in the same black ink.

Then I assembled the bouquet, starting with the sprig in the middle which I adhered flat onto the card front. For the spring on the right, I added a few Zots Bling adhesive dots to the back, layering two dots on top of each other for a bit of dimension. To the spring on the left I added foam tape so that all three sprigs sit at different heights. Once all three sprigs were adhered to the paper, with their stems overlapping, I tied a bow using a piece of hemp twine. Finally, I adhered the card front to an A2-sized card base.

Thanks for stopping by!

Just Because Cards

Life Happens, Coffee Helps

April 20, 2018April 19, 2018 SkyPaperScissors

Happy happy Friday! We survived another week!

I often think of coffee-themes on Sunday evening, when I’m dreading dragging myself out of bed on Monday morning to start another challenging week at work. But today I was inspired by the My Favorite Things Sketch Challenge #381, specifically by the three small dots in the sketch that, for some reason, made me think of coffee beans (I must have been really tired!).

I started by blending Vintage Photo and Tea Dye Distress Inks onto a piece of Strathmore Bristol Smooth paper. I added some sprinkles of clean clear water, let it sit for about 10 seconds, and then dabbed it up with a paper towel. Then, I blended more Vintage Photo over the resulting spots which gave the effect of a darker splatter, rather than a lighter splatter.

Then I used a mug and an espresso maker image from the Altenew Coffee Love stamp set and stamped them onto a scrap of Bristol Smooth using Copic-friendly Hero Arts Intense Black ink. I used a few colors of Copics (C1 and C3 for the espresso maker, E31 and E35 for the mug, and R30 for the heart on the mug) for some very basic coloring. In hindsight, I might have tried W1 and W3 for the espresso maker since the Cs look particularly cool compared to the rest of the card. When I finished coloring, I cut out the images using the coordinating dies and set them aside.

The sentiment comes from Studio Calico’s Coffee by One Little Bird Stamp set. I just love the sentiments in this set! I stamped the sentiment in Versamark ink onto a piece of black Recollections cardstock, sprinkled Hero Arts white embossing powder of it, tapped of the excess, and hit it with my heat gun.

For the card front, I used a piece of Neenah Solar White 80# Classic Crest cardstock. I cut out a circle using the second largest circle from the My Favorite Things Stitched Circle Inside & Out die set. I adhered the inked Bristol Smooth piece behind the card front and then adhered the sentiment strip, all using liquid adhesive. The coffee mug is also adhered flat onto the card, but I popped up the espresso maker with some foam tape. Then, I stamped a trio of coffee beans from the Altenew set in Vintage Photo Distress Ink. To finish, I adhered the entire card front to an A2-sized card base.

I hope you have a wonderful day, thanks for swinging by!

Feel Good Cards, Just Because Cards

Hello Lovely

April 17, 2018May 5, 2018 SkyPaperScissors

Hello, lovely!

Today’s card is my submission to the Color Throwdown Challenge as this week’s Guest Star Stamper. I’m super excited that my card is being shared as an inspiration card for this week’s color palette, alongside some of my favorite card makers like Amy Rysavy and Barbara Anders. How did I get to be a Guest Star Stamper? A random number generator picked my submission to an earlier challenge :p

Today’s card uses flowers and leaves from the Altenew Adore You stamp set and a sentiment the Concord and 9th Hello Lovely stamp set.

I started by stamping the flowers and leaves onto Bristol Smooth Cardstock using Copic-friendly Hero Arts Intense Black ink. Then, using Copic Sketch markers, I did some very basic blending. I added some white detail to the centers of the flowers using a white Sakura Gelly Roll pen. I cut out the images using a Brother ScanNCut2 and set them aside.

For the card front I cut down a piece of Neenah Solar White 80# Classic Crest cardstock with the largest die from the Lawn Fawn Outside In Stitched Rectangle die set. I stamped the sentiment in Versafine Black Onyx Ink. It was looking a little sparse so I smooshed some Mowed Lawn Distress Ink onto an acrylic block, added just a touch of water, and then used a small 2 round paint brush to create green splatters on the card front.

I went back to the flowers and leaves and played around until I settled on an arrangement. Then I used a few strips of Post-It tape to temporarily hold the arrangements together so that I could easily move each arrangement around as a single piece. I flipped each piece over and added liquid adhesive to the backs of the pieces that I wanted to sit flush against the card. Then I flipped the piece right-side up, laid it over my card, and gently removed the Post-It Tape. The remaining flowers are popped up using foam tape. Finally, I adhered the entire card front to an A2-sized card base to finish off the card.

Thank you for visiting!

Feel Good Cards, Just Because Cards

What A Lovely Face

April 5, 2018 SkyPaperScissors

Hello lovely!

We’re due for some heavy rain in the next few days so I was inspired to create something bright and summery to offset the gray skies.

This card uses elements from two stamp sets from The Ink Road stamps: Frond of You and Chin Up Buttercup. A note about The Ink Road is at the bottom of this post.

I started by stamping multiple solid leaves and fronds in three shades of Altenew ink (Bamboo, Parrot, and Olive) onto a piece of Neenah Solar White 80# Classic Crest cardstock. Then I stamped a few flowers in Peach Bellini ink from Gina K. Designs. The flower stamps were outline stamps, so I used a few shades of Copic Sketch markers to fill them in and add some detail. I used R20 for the center of the flower, R22 for the petals, and then I added flicks of R24, the darkest of the colors, on the petals as well as a few dots in the center of the flowers. In hindsight, the R20 isn’t noticeable so I could have used just two colors. I also added some dots to the centers of the flowers using a white Sakura Gelly Roll pen.

Since these stamp sets don’t have coordinating dies, I put my new toy to use. I recently splurged on a Brother ScanNCut2 so that I could cut out images without needing dies. I ran the sheet of stamped images through the machine and wound up with beautifully cut elements.

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I used Post-It Tape to help temporarily hold the leaves in place while I arranged them in the pattern that I wanted. Because they were all held together, I was able to easily flip them over and add small pieces of Scotch Tape to adhere them together. Then I added some liquid adhesive and adhered the entire set of leaves to the front of an A2-sized card base before removing the Post-It Tape.

For the sentiment, I stamped in VersaMark ink onto black cardstock and then sprinkled gold Ranger Super Fine embossing powder over it. I tapped off the excess and hit it with a heat gun to melt the powder. I trimmed and adhered a piece of scrap white cardstock to create a mat for sentiment, and then adhered the flowers in place using liquid adhesive. I re-used the Post-It tape to temporarily hold everything in place while I was arranging the flowers and gluing them to the sentiment.

Then I added foam tape to the back of the sentiment/flower strip and then adhered it to the card base and that finished up the card.

Thanks for stopping by!

A note about The Ink Road: I placed my first order with them last week using a special link that someone shared on Instagram. That link gave me 50% off my first order and I was able to find some great deals, including the stamp sets that I used today (with the 50% off they were $3.50 each!). When I received my order, I was pleasantly surprised to see a hand-written thank you note from Lara, the owner, as well as a bonus full-sized ink pad and some beautiful sequins. Lara offers many ways to save on orders and one is by providing a referral link. I’ve posted my referral link at the top right of this page which can be used for 50% off your first order (as the referrer, I would receive a $5 credit to the shop). Please visit The Ink Road for ways to save without using the referral link.

Feel Good Cards, Friendship Cards, Just Because Cards, Love Cards

You + Me = Awesome

April 4, 2018May 21, 2018 SkyPaperScissors

Good morning, I hope you’re having a great week!

Let me start by apologizing for any duplicate blog post emails you may have received over the past couple of days. I’m still learning about this blog platform and I made a couple of mistakes that caused the extra emails. Thanks for your patience!

Today I have something a little different. I felt challenged by this Simon Says Stamp You + Me set which has a lot of linear elements and bold sentiments. I decided that I wanted to use the “You + Me = Awesome” sentiment and then somehow weave together strips to resemble a knot, or “we.”

I started with Neenah Solar White 80# Classic Crest cardstock and stamped the L-shaped strips (the stamp has three stripes) four times in Altenew inks (Rose Quartz, Puffy Heart, and Purple Wine).

I fussy cut the strips and then wove them together, using washi tape to temporarily hold everything still while I got all four pieces spaced and lined up properly.

For the background, I created a pink splatter on an A2-sized piece of Neenah Solar White. I started by smooshing my Picked Rasberry Distress Ink mini ink pad onto an acrylic block, and then I used a Pentel Aquash Water Brush to mix a bit of water into the ink and to pick up some of the color. Holding the brush over the paper, as if I was turning a key in a lock, I used a finger of my other hand to tap the middle brush and splatter ink onto the card front. By moving closer or farther from the paper, I was able to create splatter drops of varying sizes.

To finish, I adhered the “knot” to the card front and then removed the washi tape. I stamped the sentiment using Versafine Black Onyx ink and then adhered the card front to an A2-sized card base.

Thanks for stopping by!