Reused Paper Towel

 

I like to make backgrounds with ink smooshing, sprays, watercolor, Lindy's Magicals, Brushos, you name it.  If it involves pigment and water, I love to play with it.  That means I use a lot of water and paper towels to blot up puddling on the background in progress or wipe up the mat.  Sometimes when I am done I think the towel looks pretty cool and that I might want to do something with it "some day," so I toss it in a tray.  The Die Cut Divas September theme is "Re-cycle, Re-use, Re-Purpose."  If ever there was a sign to actually do something with one of my paper towels, this is it, so I went through my pile and selected this one.

I brushed matte gel medium on a piece of 110lb. white cardstock and carefully laid the paper towel on it.  I smoothed it a little, but not too much.  I realized too late that the gel reactivated some of the ink making the colors bleed a little. Next time I will use two sided adhesive paper.  Once the paper was dry I moved a 4.25x5.50 inch window around to figure out the parts that appealed to me and cut three full sized card panels and had a little leftover for something else.  Now to pick one and make it into a card.

First I lightly brushed distress ink cubes in Chipped Sapphire and Dusty Concord across the "wrinkles" which gave it a reversed batik effect.  Then, like I often do, I tried to stamp some script in Hickory Smoke Archival ink randomly along the left edge and discovered that the image didn't transfer well.  I don't know if it was the texture of the paper towel (Viva) or the gel medium.  Oh well, on to the next step.  

I found a new to me challenge, Paper Rocks Scissors, which asks you to use paper and or scissors to create any kind of project.  Paper is a given when you make cards, although I am not sure how many people use inky paper towels, so I focused on using scissors.  If you have never used rub-ons, they come on clear sheets with many images per sheet.  You use scissors to cut around the parts you want on your project, peel off the paper backing, lay the image where you want it, rub with a bone folder, finger nail. or whatever and then carefully peel back the clear sheet.   As you peel, if you see a part that hasn't transferred you can stop, put the plastic back down and rub some more unless you are going for a distressed look.  The flowers and butterfly from Aall & Create were white and faded into the background, so I colored them with a pink Prismacolor pencil to help them stand out.  Still some of the darker blue around the flowers threatened to overwhelm them, so I used a white Prismacolor to tone it down.

I used a die from Paper Rose to cut happy birthday three times and stacked them.  Lastly I trimmed the background to 4x5.25, ran an ink pad along the edge and attached it to a card base.  This is a closer look at the texture provided by the paper towel.

I plan to also enter this card in the Addicted to Stamps and More "Make Your Mark,"  Triple B (Birds, Blooms, and Butterflies), and Seize the Birthday "Anything Goes" challenges.  Thank You for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

 

Happy Hawaii Day

 

Colorful Options is celebrating Hawaii Day with a bonus mid month 1 week challenge using this color palette:

My first thought was a lotus or other tropical flower with blue, cool pink and aqua.  This provided the perfect use for my recently acquired Leaf Mix Die set from Altenew which I couldn't wait to play with.  I used this sample card from their website as inspiration but, when I tried to link it I found that the card no longer shows on their website, so I linked to the pin on my Pinterest.

First I needed a background.  I sprayed Snow Flurries, Shiny Bauble, and Fortune Teller Distress mica sprays and Dylusions White Linen mica spray on my craft mat, with no water, and smooshed a piece of water color paper in it multiple times until I was happy with the result.  Once it was dry I used the Sacred Spells stamp from Lavinia, curly corner stamp from Inkadinkado , and a cross hatch stamp from Stampin' Up's Timeless Textures set to stamp randomly with Hickory Smoke archival ink.  Lastly I gilded the edges of the panel by pressing it perpendicularly into a Versamark ink pad and Ranger super fine silver embossing powder and melting it.  All that mica means that when you tip the card in the light it really sparkles as you can see in the second photo.

I used my new Leaf Mix die set to cut the petal bases in white, top detail layers in silver foil, and the stamen and "leaf" pad in white paper that I ink blended with Seedless Preserves Distress ink.  After putting everything together on a card base I finished it off with a clear sparkle.  You may notice there is no sentiment.  I am working on building a stash of cards ready to go that I can put an appropriate sentiment on for whatever occasion I need a card for.  This one will probably have one embossed in silver on a white strip or one embossed in white on a black strip  placed below the lotus.   Because I am preserving the ability to use this card for any occasion I am entering it in the Addicted to Stamps and More Any Occasion challenge.

I am also entering this in the Beautiful Blossoms Anything Floral Goes and A Place to Start Optional Twist Summer Things Challenges.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

In Memory of a Steel Magnolia

I made another version of this card for a friend whose mother passed.  It had just a hint of color on the flowers and a sentiment in a beautiful script.  It was really pretty, but no quite right.  You see, GrandBetty was what we in the south call an iron or steel magnolia:  a woman who is soft and sweet like a magnolia on the outside and strong as steel on the inside.  She was an artist who loved children, and she was never seen without her hair done.  When she could no longer leave her home, her angel of a hairstylist came to her home to make sure she was properly coiffed.  I have no idea what color her hair really was.  Yet she handled life's challenges, and there were a few, head on.  Of course she did so with dignity and grace.  No, I needed a different card for her to honor her.

The pink, delicate drawing, and sparkles keep it sweet, but the pink is brighter and I used bold stripes on the edge and a sentiment embossed on a black strip to provide contrast and better reflect who she was.  The layout is based on this Freshly Made Sketch:

The stamp is by Simon Says Stamp and I colored it with Prismacolor pencils.  I am much happier with this version.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Freshly Made with ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers

I have been seeing a lot about ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers and had a birthday check to spend so...  Here is my first attempt with them using Altenew's Persian Motifs stamp set and this Freshly Made Sketch:

Yes, the tip really is a brush and they can be used like watercolors.  I made life a little easier by embossing the image which helped me stay within the lines.  The panel is popped up with a sheet of craft foam and the sentiment with foam tape.  Here is the inside:

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used:
Paper:  Strathmore watercolor paper, Colonial White, Thistle, and Fern cardstock from Close to My Heart
Stamps:  Persian Motifs and Beautiful Day by Altenew, Holiday Tags by Close to My Heart
Ink:  ZIG Clean Color Real Brush markers, Fern from Close to My Heark, Versamark
Embellishments:  Princess Gold by Ranger and PEARLusture Rubellitte by Stampenous embossing powders

Freshly Made Watercolor Embossing

After watching the Jennifer McGuire video, Watercolor + Embossing Folders, I couldn't wait to play.  Essentially you rub Distress Ink on one side of an embossing folder, usually the flat side, put in watercolor paper, run it through your embossing machine, spray it with water until saturated, and wait for it to dry.  After doing one panel inking the flat side, I tried it inking the raised side for a different effect.  When the paper was dry I put it back through the Cuddlebug set up for die cutting which flattened it somewhat so it had the texture of heat embossing.  Lastly I sponged a bit of ink around the edges.

I then used this Freshly Made Sketch and Altenew's Peony Bouquet stamp set to make a birthday card.

The Peony Bouquet has four (!) layers, a base, an optional outline, a midtone shadow, and a deep shadow layer.  There is a PDF guide as well as this post and this video on Altenew's website to help you line them up.  I found it was a lot easier to see the parts of the shadow layers that need to line up  after the stamp  was inked which makes it hard to use a MISTI.  If you want to use a MISTI it is easier if the stamps have acquired a bit of stain to help you see which parts actually stamp.  If you miss a bit so they are not perfectly lined up you can fussy cut them and remove the parts that "stick out."  After I cut mine out I used a foam eye make-up applicator to ink the edges where I cut off the outline.  I could have also skipped the outline layer all together but I found I needed the outline the first few times I used this stamp to help me line up layers.

The sentiment is heat embossed in gold on vellum. and the flower attached with foam tape.  I used a bit of gold metallic paper to compliment the embossing.  Here is the inside:

I also plan to enter this in the Seize the Birthday Anything Goes Challenge.

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used:
Paper:  Watercolor paper, White Daisy and Desert Sand cardstock from Close to My Heart, Vellum from Michael's, Gold metallic paper from Amazon
Ink:  Pixie, Hollyhock. Vineyard Berry, Sweet Leaf, Topiary, New England Ivy, and Cashmere from Close to My Heart, Victorian Velvet, Aged Mahogany, Gathered Twigs distressed inks from Ranger, Versamark
Stamps:  Peony Bouquet by Altenew, Holiday Tags and You Mean the World to Me by Close to My Heart
Embellishments:  Princess Gold embossing powder form Ranger
Other:  Embossing folder by Spellbinders

Freshly Made Henna Elements

This Freshly Made Sketch has so many possibilities that I am sure I will be using it long after the challenge closes tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. EDT.  Thank you, Cecile!  When I saw it Wednesday I knew I wanted to play with it using Altenew's Henna Elements stamp set, but finding the time was another matter with my garden competing for my attention.  It's that time of year...

The square with the flower is popped up with foam tape.  What you may not be able to see in the photo is that the stamping is just as intensely black as the border because I stamped it twice.  How did I manage to stamp something twice in exactly the same place?  I used a MISTI which was a Christmas gift from my husband.  It tells you something about how crazy my life has been that I am only just now trying it out.  If you are not familiar with a MISTI, here is a video that shows it in action.   I'm sorry about the ad in the beginning, but it is the most succinct and complete video that wasn't trying to sell it I could find.  Tonic and Tim Holtz have a version set to hit the market soon.  I will say there is a learning curve.  Sometimes the paper will shift when you lift the lid, so you should check the position of the paper each time you stamp, even if you are using magnets to hold it in place.  Secondly, to avoid smudging your paper, it is a good idea to wipe excess ink from the lid after inking our stamp if you are using clear polymer stamps.  Ask me how I know.

Here is the inside:

I used acrylic blocks for the inside stamping because my MISTI is not large enough to accommodate a ten by five inch piece of paper.

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used:
Paper:  Black and White Daisy cardstock from Close to My Heart
Ink:  Black from Close to My Heart
Stamps:  Henna Elements by Altenew, Just to Say... and Say It All by Close to My Heart
Other:  MISTI by Sweet Petunia

Heartfelt Musical Background Stamping

This month the ladies at Heart 2 Heart wanted to see some random or background stamping.  My original vision had been to layer on some more color and flourishes reminiscent of distressed B&T paper, but I decided less is more.  I started by swirling some Champagne ink with a sponge, working from just off the paper inward.  Then I stamped the flowers from the Hello Lovely cardmaking set in New England Ivy and swirled on some Sorbet and Fern.  While I was at it I rubbed some Sorbet in the upper left corner.  The trick to not making marks when you set the sponge down in the middle of the paper is to ink the rounded edge, pinch the wedge on the pointed side and start the swirling motion before the sponge makes contact with the paper while using a light touch.  It is better to layer to build color rather than starting dark.  Next I stamped the musical notes from the retired Universal Backgrounds set in Desert Sand.  Sometimes I would not completely ink the stamp; other times I would stamp lightly on scratch paper before stamping on the card.  I used the same process with the small butterflies from the Your Own Kind of Wonderful set.  The larger butterfly from the same set was stamped in Fern.

I embellished the card with some Fern thick twine and a retired Base and Bling charm.  Once I had the knot positioned the way I wanted it, I used a glue dot to hold it in position.

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:
Paper:  Sorbet, Desert Sand , and Colonial White cardstock
Ink:  Champagne, New England Ivy, Fern, Sorbet, and Cocoa
Stamps:  Hello Lovely Cardmaking, Your Own Kind of Wonderful (retired), Universal Backgrounds (retired)
Embellishments:  Fern thick twine, Base and Bling charm (retired)

My Favorite Crafting Tool

When I saw this Atlantic Hearts Sketch I found myself thinking it would make a good scrapbook page for a single photo and I just knew just the one I wanted to use.

With four babies born within six months to stay at home moms on my block, it was only natural for us to hang out. My daughter was very small (14 pounds at 15 months) and had several physical challenges which limited her mobility, but we always found a way for her to participate.  When Katherine had hip surgery and was in a cast from her armpits to her ankle on one side and her knee on the other, the other moms brought their walkers over to see if we could wiggle her into one so she could be upright.  This not only allowed her to participate in many normal activities, it kept her neck and trunk muscles strong which lessened the recovery time once the cast came off.  I will always be grateful to the those mom's.  This picture was taken at a "garden party" where we had a wading pool set up.  When dealing with toddlers in the days before swim diapers, it was easier to let them skinny dip.

Before I tell you about my scrapbook page, I want to say a word about the judicious cropping of photographs.  It didn't occur to me to write about this until after the photo was already cropped and mounted, so please forgive the cut lines.  This is the original photo pieced back together.  You can see that the edges are a busy and detract from the subject.

Now look what happens when you trim about a quarter of an inch off the top and a half from the side.  There is enough background to see that they are in a garden with a makeshift fort, but the focus is now on the interaction between the girls.

Now back to my project:

I combined this sketch with the Heart 2 Heart challenge to use tools to create a project.  Because I like to play with ink, my favorite tool is a sponge (or sponge dauber) which can be used in many ways.  You can use sponges to ink a stamp in multiple colors, create a background, distress an edge in one or more colors, add dimension to a shapes, or outline a shape to ground it which is particularly helpful if you have a black and white object against a white background.  My favorite way to use a sponge, however, is to resist emboss which I did in this card which is still still getting hits three years after I posted it.


I knew I wanted to use the Hello Lovely cardmaking stamp in the background around the photo, but wanted to keep it subtle do avoid making the layout too busy.  I could have used second generation stamping to keep it light, but emboss resisting would be more fun.  Plus, I wanted to give my page a sweet, vintage feel.  Now the problem was how to position the stamping.  I could cut out completments leaving the backing paper intact so I could rearrange them, but once an image is stamped it can't be moved around.  Thin cuts to the rescue!  I love Close to My Heart's thin cuts because I have never been that skilled at lining up a stamp on a cut out image.  It is so much easier and less stressful for me to stamp, line up the thin cut, hold it in place with a bit of washi tape, and run it through my Cuddlebug.  I stamped and cut three and played with them until I was happy with the look.

I then removed everything except the die cuts and traced around them lightly with a pencil so I knew where to stamp and emboss.  Of course embossing required another tool, a craft heater, to melt the embossing powder.  Once I erased the outline, I used a sponge to rub Desert Sand ink over the image, layering and pulling the ink out lightly toward the center and in from around the edges of the page.  As I worked I periodically placed the photo and main elements back on the page to check the look.  Here is what the background looked like when I was finished:

I did the journaling and date on my laptop and printed it in dark brown on cardstock that had been cut to 8.5 x 11 to fit in my printer.  The flowers hide the edge of the not quite long enough  strip of paper.  For the date I cut out the center of the frame from the Hello Lovely compliments pack and put the printed date behind it.  Lastly, I rubbed a little bit of ink across both pieces so they would blend in and distressed the edges of all the elements including the complements.  Now it was time to put everything together.  How did I make sure all those strips of paper were straight?  I used my Versamat, another handy tool.  Now all I had to do was bling it up with some gold glitter gems and some hearts from the Hello Lovely complements.

Thank you for stopping by!  Now why not head over the Atlantic Hearts and Heart 2 Heart challenge sites for some inspiration?  You might even be inspired to enter Heart 2 Heart's tool challenge which is open through the end of March.  Until next time,  Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:
Paper:  Hello Lovely (only available until April 30), Colonial White, New England Ivy, and Desert Sand cardstock
Ink:  Desert Sand
Stamp:  Hello Lovely (available until April 30)
Embellishments:  Hello Lovely compliments, Gold Glitter Gems, Clear embossing powder
Tools:  sponge, craft heater, Hello Lovely thin cuts, Versamat, paper trimmer

My Favorite Paper Meets Atlantic Hearts Sketch 147

This Atlantic Hearts Sketch is the perfect one for Heart 2 Heart's challenge to use our favorite paper pack because it is what I call a sample sketch.  It allows you to showcase most if not all the papers in a given pack:

Before I began there were two problems I had to solve.  The first was that this mathamatically challenged art major had to figure out what size to cut the pieces.  I finally managed it, and to keep from having to figure it out again and to give y'all a head start should you want to use this sketch in the future, here is a cheat sheet for a 6 1/2 by 5 inch card with a background panel that is 5 7/8 by 4 3/8.

Now for the second problem:  What is my favorite paper pack?  It is probably Majestic Blue of which I have only a few pieces left, and if you have seen the Seinfeld episode about being "spongeworthy" you will understand my reluctance to use it for anyone other than the most special people in my life.  So what do I do?  I could use my favorite "pretty" paper (For Always), my favorite Christmas paper (Frosted), My favorite guy paper, (Timberline), or my favorite currently available paper (Charlotte).  As you can see I opted for Charlotte.  I edged each of the "sampler" pieces with a bit of black ink before attaching them to the background.

For embellishments I started with the Springtime Wishes stamp set which I stamped with Momento ink, colored with watercolor pencils, and cut out with the new coordinating Thin Cut.  I added a piece of a Small Black Flourish (retired but available on clearance), a heart from the Charlotte assortment and a black sparkle.  The final embellishment is a chipboard piece from the Charlotte assortment and a black sparkle.  The sentiment is from  the Sincere Expressions stamp set.

So there is my favorite current paper sampler.  Now please head over to Heart 2 Heart and Atlantic Hearts for some inspiration.  The Atlantic Hearts challenge is closed, but you have until the end of the month to enter the Heart 2 Heart favorite paperpack challenge.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:
Paper:  Charlotte, White Daisy and Champagne cardstock
Ink:  Black and Black Momento ink
Stamp:  Springtime Wishes, Sincere Expressions
Embellishments:  Charlotte assortment, Small Black Flourish (retired, but available on Clearance), Black sparkles
Other:  Watercolor pencils, Springtime Wishes Thin Cut

A Valentine for My Husband

Because my DH occasionally reads my blog, I have had to wait to post this Valentine which I am entering in Heart 2 Heart's "Two" challenge.  After all, Valentine's Day is the day to celebrate love between two people.  I was inspired by this card by Jennifer Dykstra and used this tutorial to learn how to make a gatefold card with a window.  I have been doing a lot of playing with Black, White, and Red lately, so I thought I would add some Champagne to soften the effect, except that the paper that appears to be Champagne cardstock is actually a shimmer paper that I found at Michael's.  I cut the hearts with a Spellbinders Nestabilities set and then followed the directions to emboss the shape to get the outline on the smaller heart.  The triangle accenting the sentiment is the bottom half of a heart cutout with a few sparkles thrown in (because y'all know I love sparkles).  I cut the flowers using Close to My Heart's Artiste Cricut cartridge and used Black Epoxy Bubbles and Tan Opaques in the centers.  I placed the flourish so that both hearts were required to complete it to symbolize how my husband and I, two very different people, compliment and complete each other and that together we have made our marriage work for 38 years so far.  (I was a child bride...)  You may remember that this particular flourish in the retired Pearl Opaque Flourish set was composed of all small pearls.  I felt it was getting lost, so I spliced in some larger opaques from the large flourish that came with the set.  The smaller heart, sentiment and triangle are popped up with foam tape.

Here is what you see when you open the "gate:"

I had to splice in a piece of a flourish leftover from another project on the smaller heart.  I cannot believe that I managed to line everything up inside and out!  Both sentiments are from January's Stamp of the Month, Beloved Bouquet.  The cutouts have left me with extra heart halves which I am using to make a second card.  See, there is that number two again...

Thank you for stopping by!  Now please check out some other interpretations of the word "Two" at Heart 2 Heart Challenges and maybe even enter a project of your own.  You have until the end of the month to complete any of the February challenges.  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:

Paper:  La Vie En Rose, Ruby, Black, and White Daisy cardstock, shimmer cardstock by Recollections

Ink:  Black

Stamp:  Beloved Bouquet (retired)

Embellishments:  Pearl Opaque Flourishes (retired), Tan Opaques (retired), Black Epoxy Bubbles (retired), Black ribbon from I don't remember where, Black sparkles (retired)

Other:  Artiste Cricut cartridge, Heart Nestablities by Spellbinders

Words of Comfort

This just under the wire card is based on the Freshly Made Sketch by Narelle:

My daughter is due home any minute, so I will have to tell you about this later.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi