Penny Black Holiday Head Start

Time to turn those colored images from The Daily Marker's 30 Day coloring challenge into cards...
I decided to start with some entries into Penny Black's Holiday Head Start Challenge.

Here's my first card. I just love snowmen. And penguins. So the combination of both together is just too cute.

This image was colored with copic markers on Neenah solar white paper and stamped wth Memento Tuxedo Black Ink. Diamond Stickles as accents. Paper is Polar Pals from Doodlebug designs. Images and sentiment are both from Penny Black - Mimi's Christmas and Winter Friends.

Here's a second card - pretty simple, again focusing on coloring.

The image and sentiment are stamped on Neenah solar white cardstock in memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored with copics. The Christmas lights and star are highlighted with glossy accents. The card base is from Memory Box. Penny Black - Cold Nose Warm Heart

Stamp set is Penny Black's Winter Friends. All colored with copic markers and white gel pen used for snow. Rock candy Distress stickles as an accent. The sentiment was die cut out of silver foil paper and is also a PB die cut - Exultations.

An Overdue Thank You

This is actually a card that should have been made and mailed over a month ago. We decided to do a bike trail ride, ended up with some very odd (and unexpected) bike issues, and were bailed out by a very kind bike mechanic... not once, but twice. So, this is his thank you - overdue, but will be mailed tomorrow, nonetheless. Better late than never!

Supplies
Paper: Neenah Solar white and misc. Bazzill
Stamps/Inks: Memento - Paris Dusk, Distress Oxides - Salty Ocean, Wilted Violet, Fossilized Amber, Black Soot, Picked Raspberry, Distress Inks - Lucky Glover, Mowed Lawn, Peeled Paint, Reverse Confetti Freebie Thank you stamp
Cutting/Embossing: MFT - Stitched Basic Edges, Peek-a-boo Wonky Windows, Taylored Expressions Little Bits - Bicycle
Misc: Adhesive, Sparkle Shimmer Mist

Outside the Box - Memory Box Challenge

This month's challenge at Memory Box's Outside the Box September Challenge is "Falling for Fall."

I don't have a lot of fall dies, so this was a challenge! (And I've been doing The Daily Marker 30 Day coloring challenge on Instragram, primarily focusing on holiday coloring, so this was a bit of a break!). So, I looked through the stash and found some fun dies that I thought would work together for Halloween.

I basically inked up a watercolor panel with the distress inks, spritzed, dried, and then die cut with the star die. Cut and adhered the black graveyard border, and then cut the MB tree frame out of kraft, and glued it all together. Trimmed the edges flush, heat embossed the sentiment. Adhered the die cut ghosts with dimensional adhesive - voila!

Materials:
Paper: Watercolor paper, kraft, Neenah - solar white
Stamps/Inks: Lawn Fawn - Heebie Jeebies, Versamark, TH Distress Ink - Dusty Concord, Spiced Marmalade, Wild Honey, and Black Soot
Dies: Memory Box - Orchard Tree Frame Die and Graveyard Landscape Die, SSS - Falling Stars, and Avery Elle - Cityscape dies
Embossing: Ranger superfine opaque embossing powder
Misc.: White gel pen, dimensional adhesive, black copic multiliner, and sparkle sheer shimmer spritz

Thanks for stopping by!

MFT Clean and Simple

Here's my entry for the MFT 2017 Card Design Superstar Clean & Simple Challenge. This was a tricky card for me. I think it's always easier to add more to "dress things up," but not an option in this challenge!

Here's a close up - hard to see all the sparkle!

Paper: Kraft, Neenah Solar white
Stamps/Inks: MFT - Hand Lettered Holiday, Distress inks - Salty Ocean, Tumbled Glass, Peeled Paint, Mowed Lawn, and Lucky Clover, Versamark and Amuse Studio red pigment ink
Cutting/Embossing: Ranger superfine clear and gold embossing powder, MFT - Snow Drifts, Winter Tree Dienamics, and LJD Stitched Peek-a-Boo Window
Misc.: Shimmer mist, mister huey's opaque white mist, tombow brown marker

Thanks for stopping by!

MFT Interactive Entry

Here's my second entry for the MFT 2017 Superstar contest - this time in the "innovative" category. This has been a fun challenge and forced me to really stretch and make very different cards! Here's my slider card...

I don't know that this photo really shows all the sparkle in this card. I took two pieces of watercolor paper (canson xl) and applied blue distress inks to one and green to the other. Both were heavily sprayed with sparkle shimmer spritz. The blue was also sprayed with an opaque white mist. The blue was made into the sky, and the trees were cut from the green (brown marker for the trunks).

The two bears actually spin down the hill, but the idea is that they can slide into a "high five" with their outstretched arms. My kids love that they move.

Details

Paper: Neenah Solar white, misc. Bazzill, watercolor paper

Stamps/Inks: Memento - Tuxedo Black, TH Distress Inks - Lucky Clover, Mowed Lawn, and Peeled Paint, TH Distress Oxides - Salty Ocean, Peacock Feathers, and Tumbled Glass. MFT - Bitty Bears, Christmas Cuteness, Somebunny

Cutting/Embossing: MFT DieNamics - Hit the Slopes, Bitty Bears, Winter Trees

Misc.: Brown Tombow marker, 3M dimensional adhesive, sheer shimmer spritz - sparkle, copic markers, mister huey's opaque white spray, white gel pen

Thank you for stopping by and taking a peek!

Dusting off the blog...

Yikes - has it really been two years?

Anyway, not to say that I haven't been creating... mostly that I just haven't taken the time to write blog posts. Too busy chasing kids.

So, I was recently inspired by the My Favorite Things 2017 Card Design Superstar Challenge. There are three different categories - if I have time, I'm going to try to create three different cards. The card I have for you today has a focus on coloring.

So, I looked through the sets I have, and if you follow me on Instagram, you'd also notice that I'm posting a ton of holiday coloring.... I'm trying to get a jump on my Christmas cards... and I ended up, as usual, with a holiday set.

I used copic markers for all coloring, with the exception of the white gel pen accent on the tree and snow. The background takes the most time - layer after layer of colors and blending. Lots of refilling of markers!

Close up: 

Paper: Neenah Solar white, misc. Bazzill cardstock
Ink - Tuxedo Black
Stamps - MFT - BB Santa's Elves
Misc: White gel pen, copic markers

Thanks for taking a peek!

Lots to post!

You'll have to forgive me for not being regular in updating. I've still been creating, but very busy chasing after a toddler. We snuck away for the weekend, without baby, allowing me some time to get caught up on Christmas cards and get some preparations done for my upcoming Holiday Card Class.

Without further ado, here they are!

Not great lighting for this one, but some Hero Arts white opaque embossing, silver foil background, new Creaste a smile die popped up with dimensional adhesive.

Same silver foil, the new layered stamps from the Hero Arts October monthly kit, and a Mama Elephant sentiment embossed in silver...

This one is for a Studio Calico card class that I'm taking right now (it's about finished, in fact). Avery Elle sentiments, Memory Box die cuts, lots of glossy accents and glitter (Mister Huey's blizzard and opaque white mists).

This one is for Justine's challenge - creating a watercolor wash background. A Mama Elephant stamp set, Gansai Tambi watercolors, Lawn Fawn snowflakes, etc.

This one is a design for my upcoming class. Tim Holtz Distress markers and tumbled glass distress inking, Stampin' Up - Ornamental Pine for the stamping, SSS stitched circles and dimensional adhesive, hard to see it, but liquid pearls for some snow accents.

These next three are also for Justine's 12 Days of Christmas challenge and class...

I experimented a little bit with glittered embossing paste in two of the three. Used the Ton - Holiday Bows, a Lawn Fawn set, and did some coloring... Whew... that's enough catching up for today!