Sending Love | Simon Says Stamp + Hero Arts

Hi friends!  Today I’m sharing a Father’s Day card with you that I created utilizing products from Simon Says Stamp, Hero Arts, and a host of other company’s products – sort of a “shop your stash” extravaganza.  Let’s get started!

The supplies used:

     Simon Says Stamp – Friend Like You Stamp Set

     Waffle Flower – Cloudy Stencil

     Spellbinders – Precision Layering A2 A Die Set

     Simon Says Stamp – Love Garden Greetings Stamp/Die Set

     Hero Arts – Butterfly Confetti Die

     Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz – Tumbled Glass Distress Ink Pad

     Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz – Unchartered Mariner Distress Ink Pad

     Simon Says Stamp – Field Pawsitively Saturated Ink Pad

     Lawn Fawn – Jet Black Ink Pad

     VersaMark Watermark Stamp Pad

     Brutus Monroe – Alabaster White Embossing Powder

     Taylored Expressions – Anti-Static Powder Tool

     Scrapbook.com – Heavy Weight Mixed Media Paper

     X-Press It Blending Cardstock

     Spellbinders – Oceanside Cardstock

     Altenew – Mini Ink Blending Tool

     Scrapbook.com – Foam Ink Blending Tool

     Copic Alcohol Markers:  E37, E35, E33, E31, E44, E55, E42,

          YG45, YG23, BG09, BG53, B00, R20, R00, R0000, E04, R32,

          R11, W3, W1, W00, E34, E43, E40

     Scrapbook Adhesives Thin 3D Foam Squares

     Sakura Black Glaze Pen

     Sakura #431 Moonlight Gelly Roll Pen

     Sakura Black Pigma Micron 03 Fine Liner Pen

     Ranger Ink – Glossy Accents

     Altenew – Instant Dimension Foam Tape

     Winsor & Newton White Designers’ Gouache

     Altenew – Carbon Black Artists’ Gouache

     WOW! Dual Speed Heat Tool

     My Sweet Petunia - MISTI Original Stamping Tool

     Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine

Creating the Background Panel

To create the background, I used a sheet of Scrapbook.com’s Heavy Weight Mixed Media Paper and smooshed Tumbled Glass Distress Ink onto my work surface.  I used a mister to spray a generous amount of water to the ink and used a scrap piece of plastic packaging to dip into the ink and place it in random locations onto my mixed media paper.  I repeated this step until I was satisfied with my results.  Utilizing the Spellbinders Precision Layering A2 A die set, I used the second largest die to die cut the inky, mixed media panel and used the largest die in the set to die cut an A2 matting layer from Spellbinders Oceanside cardstock.  I used the Waffle Flower Cloudy Stencil and an Altenew Mini Blending Brush to ink blend clouds across the top two-thirds of the background panel.  Next, I grabbed a foam ink blending tool and Uncharted Mariner Distress Ink to ink the edges of the mixed media paper panel to add depth and interest.  To add the grass, I used grass cling stamp from Simon Says Stamp’s On the Ground stamp set to stamp a row of grass along the bottom edge of the inky panel using Simon Says Stamp’s Field Pawsitively Saturated ink and my MISTI Stamping Tool.  Lastly, I used Winsor and Newton white gouache and Altenew’s Carbon Black Gouache to add spatter across the inky panel and placed Altenew Instant Dimension Foam Tape to the back side of the background and adhered it to the Oceanside cardstock panel.

Creating the Focal Point

I chose the cute critter scene on the Simon Says Stamp Friend Like You stamp set as my focal point.  I stamped the image onto a piece of X-Press It Blending Card using Lawn Fawn Jet Black ink since I will be coloring the image with Copic alcohol markers.  The Copic colors I selected for the stamped image were:

     Tree Stump Bark:  E37, E35, E33, E31

     Tree Stump Top:  E44, E55, E42

     Leaves:  YG45, YG23

     Grass:  YG45

     Bird:  Blue Tail - BG09, BG53, B00

               Belly - R20, R00, R0000

               Head/Back - E04, R32, R11

     Chipmunk:  W3, W1, W00, E37, E34, E31, E43, E42, E40

Once the coloring was completed, I fussy cut the image with scissors and placed Scrapbook Adhesives Thin 3D Foam Squares on the back side of the image.

Creating the Sentiment

For the sentiment, I chose to go with a the “sending love” greeting from Simon Says Stamp’s Love Garden Greetings stamp set.  I used VersaMark Ink to stamp the sentiment onto a scrap piece of Spellbinders Oceanside cardstock that I coated with anti-static powder, then applied a coating of Brutus Monroe’s Alabaster White embossing powder.  Once heat set, I wiped off the excess anti-static powder with a microfiber cloth and used the coordinating die to die cut the sentiment and die cut two additional blank sentiment die cuts to glue behind the heat embossed one for dimension.

Assembling the Card

I removed the adhesive backing paper from the focal point image and adhered it to the bottom of the card front panel.  I used a black Sakura Glaze pen to color the bird and chipmunk’s eyes and added Glossy Accents to the chipmunk’s nose.  I used liquid glue to adhere the sentiment to the card front.  For the embellishments, I decided to die cut the Hero Arts Butterfly Confetti die from pink shimmer cardstock that I found in my stash and cut it from a piece of black cardstock from my scrap bin.  I selected three sizes from the pink die cut butterflies and selected three of the black ones that were the same size.  I trimmed the middle/body portion from the black butterfly die cuts and glued the body parts to the center of the three pink butterflies.  For the butterfly decorating, I ran a bead of Ranger’s Black Enamel Accents on all the black bodies, used a black fine liner pen to draw antennae on the butterfly heads, then used a Sakura #431 Moonlight Gelly Roll pen to add small dots on the butterfly wings.  Once the Enamel Accents had a chance to dry, I adhered the card front to a white A2 card base.

Thank you for stopping by and checking out today’s blog post, I really appreciate it.  Until next time, happy crafting!

Lots of Love | Penny Black & Pinkfresh Studio

Hi crafty friends!  Today I am sharing a Valentine’s Day card featuring products from Penny Black.  I love how approachable their products are when it comes to creating greeting cards.

The supplies used:

Penny Black – Passion Stamp

     Penny Black – Background Basics Stencil Set

     Waffle Flower – A6 Piercing Layers Die Set

     Pinkfresh Studio – Whimsical Blooms Stamp Set

     Ranger Ink / Tim Holtz – Tumbled Glass and Shabby Shutters Distress Inks

     Simon Says Stamp – Aster Pawsitively Saturated Ink

     Schmincke Watercolor Paint – Volcano Red, Shire Green, Forest Green, Tundra Pink,  

         Volcano Orange

     Winsor & Newton – Permanent White Designers Gouache

     Kuretake Starry Colors Metallic Watercolor Paint – Gold No. 901

     Gina K. Designs – Barely There Amalgam Ink

     Fabriano Artistico Extra White Watercolor Paper

     Ranger Ink / Tim Holtz – Splatter Brush

     Scor-Tape Double-Sided Adhesive

     MISTI Stamp Positioning Tool     

     Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine

Creating the Background Panel

I started by stamping the Penny Black red rubber Passion stamp onto a 6” x 7” piece of Fabriano Artistico Extra White watercolor paper using Gina K. Designs’ Barely There Amalgam Ink.  I used the MISTI tool for this so I could add enough layers of the Barely There ink so that it was dark enough for me to see to be able to watercolor over it.  I like to use the Barely There ink since it doesn’t really influence the watercolor paints and doesn’t change the intended color.  I used Schmincke Watercolor Paint in the colors:  Volcano Red, Shire Green, Forest Green, Tundra Pink, and Volcano Orange. 

Once the watercolors had dried, I used the largest die from the Waffle Flower A6 Piercing Layers Die Set to die cut the panel with the assistance of my Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine.  Using the Penny Black Background Basics Stencil Set – the one with the 4” x 5-1/2” aperture – and used low-tack tape to temporarily adhere it to the top of the watercolor panel, aligning it so that I was framing the aperture in the center of the upper portion of the card.  I used a large blending tool to lightly ink blend a combination of Ranger/Tim Holtz Tumbled Glass and Shabby Shutters Distress Inks over the upper two-thirds of the watercolor panel.  Once completed, I moved the stencil to the lower end of the card to attempt to capture the same amount of the aperture as I did for the top, this time ink blending Ranger/Tim Holtz Shabby Shutters Distress Ink.

Creating the Sentiment

For the sentiment, chose to use the Pinkfresh Studio stamp set called Whimsical Blooms.  It includes a stamp that says, “Lots of Love” and I felt that was appropriate for this card.  I placed the watercolor panel in my MISTI tool and stamped the sentiment in the upper left corner using Simon Says Stamp’s Aster ink pad.  I wanted to use the purple toned ink to tie into the little floral hearts that are the purplish color.

Assembling the Card

Since I wanted to add some spatter, I added the photopolymer sentiment stamp over the stamped sentiment to protect it from spatter.  Using Winsor & Newton White Gouache, I applied a generous amount of white spatter using my Ranger/Tim Holtz Splatter Brush and repeated this process using Kuretake Starry Colors Metallic Watercolor in the color No. 901.  After the spatter dried, I added Scor-Tape to the back side of the watercolor panel and adhered it to a side-folding, A6 card base.

Thank you for stopping by and checking out today's blog post, I really do appreciate it. Until next time... happy crafting!

Beautiful Birthday | Pinkfresh Studio

Hi crafty friends!  Today I am sharing a card featuring some fabulous products from Pinkfresh Studio – both recently released and a tad older.  My beautiful niece gifted me with a pad of Strathmore Toned Tan Paper during Christmas and that paper was the inspiration for what ended up being a delightful tone-on-tone birthday card.

The supplies used:

Pinkfresh Studio – Amazing Things Stamps/Stencils/Dies

     Pinkfresh Studio –Bloomscape Stamp/Stencils

     Pinkfresh Studio – On My Mind Stamp Stamps/Dies

     Spellbinders – Precision Layering A2 A Die Set

     Pinkfresh Studio – Nested Elongated Ovals Dies

     Kraft Cardstock

     Tonic – Craft Perfect Pearled Gold Vellum Paper

     Strathmore Toned Tan Sketch Paper

Spellbinders - Cinnamon Color Wheel Cardstock

     Anna Griffin – Champagne Matte Foil Cardstock

     Simon Says Stamp – Earl Ink Pad

     Simon Says Stamp – Charcoal Ink Pad

     Simon Says Stamp – Nutmeg Ink Pad

     Simon Says Stamp – Paprika Ink Pad

     Simon Says Stamp – Allspice Ink Pad

     Altenew Mini Blending Brushes

     Ranger – Anti-Static Pouch

     Ranger/Tim Holtz – Distress Embossing Ink

     Ranger – Princess Gold Embossing Powder

     Scor-Tape Double Sided Adhesive

     Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue

     WOW! Dual Speed Heat Tool

     My Sweet Petunia - MISTI Stamping Tool

     Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine

Creating the Background Panel

I cut a piece of Strathmore Toned Tan paper to measure 4.5” x 5.75” and used Simon Says Stamp Earl ink to stamp Pinkfresh Studio’s Bloomscape cling floral stamp onto the Toned Tan paper with the assistance of my MISTI stamping tool.  I chose to create a tone-on-tone floral background colorway, so I started my ink blending utilizing the coordinating Pinkfresh Studio Bloomscape stencils and some ink pads from Simon Says Stamp in the colors:  Earl, Charcoal, Nutmeg, Paprika, and Allspice.  Using Altenew’s Mini Blending Brushes, I added greys to the leaf-related stencil areas and the brown-tones were blended into the floral aspects of the stencils except for the flower centers and I added Lisa Horton’s Night Sky Cloud 9 ink to those.  Once the gold pigment ink dried, I used the Spellbinders Precision Layering A2 A dies to die cut the inky, floral background panel using the second to largest die in the set and die cut Anna Griffin Champagne Matte Foil Cardstock using the largest die in the set.  I adhered the floral background panel to the center of the champagne metallic cardstock using strips of Scor-Tape.

Creating the Focal Point

Using the Pinkfresh Studio Amazing Things stamp set, I placed the large floral stamp and a piece of the Strathmore Toned Tan paper into my MISTI tool, prepped the paper with Ranger’s Anti-Static Pouch to help alleviate stray pieces of embossing powder sticking where I didn’t want them to, and stamped the image onto the Toned Tan paper using Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz’s Distress Embossing Ink.  Once stamped, I applied a coating of Ranger Princess Gold embossing powder to the inked image, tapped off the excess, and melted the embossing powder using my WOW! Dual Speed Heat Tool. 

For ink blending the image, I used the Pinkfresh Studio Amazing Things stencil set.  For the leaves (stencils 1 and 2), I chose Simon Says Stamp’s Earl and Charcoal inks to add color and shading.  There are three stencils for the flowers, so I used Simon Says Stamp’s Nutmeg, Paprika, and Allspice inks for the floral aspects of the image.  I ink blended the Nutmeg on stencil 3, Paprika on stencil 4, and Allspice on stencil 5. 

Once the image was completely colored, I used the Pinkfresh Studio Amazing Things die to die cut the flower image and die cut plain, kraft cardstock three additional times to add dimension to the focal image.  After die cutting, I used Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue to adhere the inked image and two of the plain, kraft cardstock layers together.  Using the Pinkfresh Studio Nested Elongated Ovals die set, I die cut a piece of Tonic Craft Perfect Pearled Gold vellum using the largest die in the set.  I glued the floral stacked layers to the center of the vellum oval and glued the final/third plain, kraft cardstock image that matches the floral image to the back side of the vellum.  This will add some lift and separation for the floral image from the floral background.

Creating the Sentiment

For the sentiment, I used the Pinkfresh Studio On My Mind clear stamp and die set and chose the “Wishing You a Beautiful Birthday” greeting.  I placed the sentiment stamp and a piece of Spellbinders Cinnamon cardstock into the MISTI tool, prepped the cardstock with Ranger’s Anti-Static Pouch and stamped the image onto the cardstock using Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz’s Distress Embossing Ink.  Once stamped, I applied a coating of Ranger Princess Gold embossing powder to the inked sentiment, tapped off the excess, and melted the embossing powder using my WOW! Dual Speed Heat Tool.

Assembling the Card Front

To add the focal point the card front, I added liquid glue to the back side of the bottom layer of kraft cardstock that was previously glued to the vellum layer of the focal point and carefully positioned in onto the center of the card.  Once the glue dried, I added a few pieces of scrap cardstock the two outer edges of the sentiment to give them stability and glued the sentiment to the bottom center of the card front.  Lastly, I adhered the completed card front to a side-folding, A2 size, kraft cardstock card base.

Thank you for stopping by and checking out today’s blog post, I really appreciate it.  Until next time, happy crafting!