A New Ink on Life

Pirate Party-My Digital Studio to the Rescue!

So a few weeks ago my son was invited to a pirate themed birthday party. I knew the parents were going all out for this party as Logan's friend Maddy is a huge Pirates of the Caribbean fan. So I needed to come up with a cool "pirate" card and was a little concerned when I soon realized that I had no pirate stamps! So I quickly decided to look through my "stash" of My Digital Studio Downloads and was delighted to find From the Crypt. Now I know that this is more of a Halloween set but just look what I came up with:

I love the fact that this program allows you to create quick and easy Hybrid Projects like this card. I resized the skull image, "stamped" it in Basic Grey, changed the opacity, added a slight drop shadow and created a text box to make a customized greeting, then printed it out on Very Vanilla card stock. Of course it needed to be destressed so I misted on some water and used the Destressing Essentials Kit Tea Stain Ink. I also stamped the crown from Extreme Elements using Black Craft Ink and Heat embossed it with Black Embossing Powder, then added a Rhinestone Jewel. Next I wrapped some Hemp Twine around it and attached a Trinket Key. The whole piece was then matted on Basic Black card stock that had been embossed with both the Square Lattice Folder and the Stripes Folder. Lastly it was mounted onto a Cherry Cobbler base.

And here's what the inside looked like:

 I printed the inside sentiment on Very Vanilla then stamped over it using the Woodgrain Background stamp and Crumb Cake Classic Ink. I then added the ship from Open Sea using Basic Grey ink that had first been stamped off.

So I think all in all I was successful in my Pirate Quest:) I really encourage you to give My Digital Studio a try. It is so much more then just a "Digital Scrapbooking" program. You can create Custom cards, Hydid projects, Home Decor and Party Decorations be sure to check out tons of cool ideas HERE. And right now Stampin' Up! is having a My Digital Studio Contest where you can win $500 worth of FREE downloads!

Have a great day!

A K.I.S.S to my Friend

Hehehehe, did ya wonder what is up with that title?! It is Wednesday so that means another great challenge at Stampin' Royalty and this week we are challenging you to K.I.S.S. -Keep it Simple Sweetie:) Create a card, scrapbook page, or 3D item, but easy does it! We would love to have you join us this week and please be sure to check out the Design Teams amazing sample's for some awesome inspiration

So, not gonna lie- I really had a hard time making this card and I really don't like the finished product, but I guess that happens sometimes to all of us-right?!:)

I think I was trying to focus too hard on keeping things minimal, oh well it is what it is and I do like this pretty colour combo of Soft Suede, Very Vanilla, Pink Pirouette and Marina Mist. The base is Soft Suede card stock and was stamped with matching ink using the Woodgrain Background stamp. I then die cut a circle and scallop circle and stamped them with the floral image from Elements of Style.
 
I just had to add some yummy Striped Grosgrain Ribbon but I did cut it down so it was not as wide and pleated it a little, then added an Antique Brad. The sentiment is from a new FAV set of mine called Friendly Phrases. I stamped one of the images from Four Frames and punced it out with the matching Decorative Label Punch then stamped the sentiment.  That's it, a really simple card that took about 15 minutes to make:)

 

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Woodgrain Background, Four Frames, Friendly Phrases

Ink: Soft Suede, Marina Mist, Early Espresso, Pink Pirouette

Paper: Soft Suede, Marina Mist, Very Vanilla

Accessories: Big Shot, 3 1/2 Circle Die, Circle Scallop Die, Decorative Label Punch, Antique Brad, Soft Suede Wide Striped Grosgrain Ribbon

Have a great day!

A Merry Dasher Christmas

Hmmm looks like I am skipping halloween this year and going straight to Christmas,lol! I will have some fun Halloween projects to show, but lately I have been trying to come up with designs for some upcoming Christmas card classes and this week's Try Stampin' On Tuesday's Sketch was perfect!! We would love to have you join us this week so be sure to check out all of the Design Teams samples:)

Here's the sketch:

And my card: 

 
I just love Dasher! It is just such a great single image stamp. Because I am creating this card for a class I kept the over all design pretty clean-no destressing or sponging here,lol! The base is Crumb Cake and I used the holly stamp from Dear Santa to stamp tone on tone, just to add some interest to the background. For the main image I stamped Dasher on Very Vanilla and matted it on Chocolate Chip then added a 3 mini Pearl Jewels to his antlers. The DSP is from the Holly Bouquet and Subtles Pack Stack (Wild Wasabi).    

The red scallop was die cut using the Tastful Trim Die and Textured Real Red Card stock. Lastly I added some Real Red Grosgrain Ribbon.
For the sentiment I used the Christmas Greetings set.

 

Supplies used:

Stamps: Dasher, Christmas Greetings, Dear Santa

Paper: Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Real Red Textured, Subtles Designer Series Paper Stack and Holly Bouquet Designer Series paper

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso

Accessories: Big Shot, Tasteful Trim Die, Pearl Jewels, Real Red Grosgrain Ribbon

Have a wonderful day!  

 
 

To My Girls

So I have been creating a little lately and will have lots to share in the coming weeks, especially some traditional scrapbook pages as I decide to get my butt in gear and get back to scrapping. I joined the Got Sketch Express 2 which is a on line class created by the very talented Valerie Salmon. Sometimes I just need a little help in getting that creative mojo going,lol:)

Here is my first page that I created using one of the sketches:

Now first let me explain a little bit about my title and the quote. These pictures were taken about 2 weeks ago and my husband and son were at a soccer game so I was home with just the 2 girls. My oldest will be 12 this weekend and she is at the age where it seems to be everything is about ipods and cell phones and what you wear and how you look. She is a great kid and doesn't really feed into all the hype but there are times when it seems that "everyone but her" has something:) Well on this particular day we walked down to a neighbours house and the kids had fun just being kids. They acted silly, had a water fight and ran around the yard. Good old traditinal fun that no amount of money can buy.

 I took these pictures as they were climbing a tree in the front yard. There was so much that I wanted to say about the day so I created a hidden journaling tag in My Digital Studio. Here's what the tag says:

 I used so many products on this page that I will not go into full details but I will list them and if you have any question just ask:) One thing I will point out is the ruffled fabric that is along the edge of the layer with the photos. I used the Tasteful trim Die to cut the fabric and then attached it using a Hot glue Gun. Hope you have a wonderful day and you find the time in life's hectic and sometimes crazy days, to reflect on the things that truly matter most.

 Supplies used:

Stamps: Fabulous Phrases, French Foliage, Family Reunion

My Digital Studio Program and Autumn Elements Download

Ink: Early Espresso, Soft Suede. Pool Party, Peach Parfait, Crumb Cake, River Rock, Cherry Cobbler

Paper: Soft Suede, River Rock and Pool Party Textured Card stock, Spice Cake DSP, Naturals Ivory, Very Vanilla

Accessories: Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch, Big Shot Perfect Pennants Die, Tasful Trim Die, Circles #2 Die, Simple Letters Die, Cork Sheets, Spice Cake Designer Buttons, Spice Cake fabric, Linen Thread, Striped Grosgrain Ribbon Soft Suede,  Neutrals Buttons, Vintage Trinkets, Heart to Heart Punch, 1/4" and 1/2" Circle Punches
 

 

French Foliage Thank You

Well the kid's have been back to school for 2 full weeks now and I was so looking forward to getting LOTS of stamping done:) But what I had forgotten was back to school means back to GERMS-yuck! Thankfully today is a much better day for all of us and I even have a card to show you!

It's Wednesday so that means time for a great challenge at Stampin' Royalty! This week we have a Fabulous Sketch challenge, so be sure to check out all the Design Teams awesome samples for inspiration and we would love to have you play along this week.

I just can not get enough of that Spice Cake Designer Series Paper (DSP) and Fabric. And apparently I can not get enough of sponging and destressing either:) The colour Combo is Pool Party, Soft Suede, More Mustard and Naturals Ivory. For the large piece of Soft Suede I stamped the Woodgrain Background then roughed up the edges with the destressing tool from the Cutter Kit.  I then layered on a panel of DSP that I tore the lower corner of then matted it with More Mustard Textured card stock and added those awesome mini button brads from the Vintage Trinkets.

 For the sentiment I used one of the ones from Three Little Words and stamped it on a strip of Naturals Ivory. I was totally inspired by the way the sentiment was done on this amazing card, so I added some Linen thread and curled the end, oh and of course sponged and detressed the heck out of it,lol. For the main image I used the stunning French Foliage set and did the Rock and  Roll technique for the leaves. The whole piece was sponged with Soft Suede Ink starting heavier at the outside edges then working inward.

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Three Little Words, French Foliage

Ink: Soft Suede, Early Espresso, Calypso Coral, Peach Parfait, More Mustard, Cherry Cobbler, Pool Party

Papers: Spice Cake DSP, Textured More Mustard, Pool Party, Soft Suede, Naturals Ivory

Accessories: Cutter Kit, 2 1/2 Circle Punch, Sponges, Vintage Trinkets, Linen Thread, Spice Cake Fabric

Have a great day! 
 

Easy Events Cupcake Inspiration

We have such a fun Picture Inspiration Challenge for you this week at Stampin' Royalty! I think of all the challenges Inspiration ones are my favourite. You can be as creative as you want with them, this week however I took the photo pretty literally:) The Design Team came up with some absolutely fantastic samples this week, so be sure to check them out and we would love to have you play along!

Be inspired:

and my card:
Don't those cupcakes just look yummy? When I first looked at this photo I immediately thought ice cream cones, but when I sat down to create my card, there laying on my table was another stamp set from Convention that had yet to see ink! So I decided to show it some love and inked up the cupcake from Easy Events.  Pretty in Pink is not a colour that I use a ton of but I knew that it would be perfect for this card. I started with a Crumb Cake base then stamped the cupcake image tone on tone with Pretty in Pink Classic Ink. I knew I just had to add some cherries to the card so using the Cupcake Punch I punched some out of Melon Mambo Textured card stock and put them on the background cupcakes to add a pop of colour and texture.

 The  cupcake image was coloured using Classic Ink Pads and an Aqua Painter. I also used a Blender Pen with ink for the areas that I wanted more depth of colour. Now I am not sure if you can see it in the picture but the frosting is actually covered with Crystal Effects and some Dazzling Diamonds. I also misted on some homemade Shimmer Mist (made by combining Champagne Shimmer Paint and Alcohol) so that it really glitters. I pleated  Rose Red Seam Binding under a strip of Just Add Cake Designer Series Paper, then added some Early Espresso 1/8 Taffeta Ribbon.

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Easy Events

Ink: Stazon Jet Black, Early Espresso, Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Bashful Blue, Sahara Sand

Paper: Melon Mambo Textured, Pretty in Pink, Crumb Cake, Baja Breeze, Whisper White, Watercolour Paper

Accessories: Big Shot, Lots of Tags Sizzlet, Square Lattice Impressions Folder, Wide Oval punch, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch, Rose Red Seam Binding, Early Espresso 1/8 Taffeta Ribbon, Champagne Shimmer Mist, Dazzling Diamonds, Crystal Effects 

 Hope you find the time to play with us this week:)

 
 

It's Raining Flowers!

Hehehe, can you tell what song came to mind when I wrote the title to this post? I had yet to ink up my Raining Flowers set that I had received from Convention (yes I know that was almost 2 months ago!) So I figured the current sketch challenge at Try Stampin' on Tuesday gave me the perfect opportunity. Be sure to check out all the Design Team samples and we would LOVE to have you play along this week:)

Here's the sketch:

and here's my card:

So if you have been following my blog for any length of time you may have noticed that I have a tendancy to flip sketches or just change them up a bit:) I also have voiced my aversion to the colour purple and the absolutely adoration for the colour orange, so I figured why not combine the two?!  I must admit that I am loving the colour combo of Whisteria Wonder, Early Espresso, Calypso Coral and Lucky Limeade that is found in the Berry Blossoms Designer Series Paper (DSP) and I think the colour purple (atleast this shade of it) is starting to grow on me. For the base of the card I started with Whisteria Wonder and added some texture by embossing the whole card front with the Stripes Impressions Folder and the Big Shot. I then layered on the DSP and a piece of Whisper White card stock that was also embossed, but this time using the Perfect Polka Dots Folder. I then stamped the largest flower three time using Calypso Coral, Whisteria Wonder and Lucky Limeade Classic Ink on a scrap of Whisper White and cut each of them out.
 
  
I  stamped the largest flower three time using Calypso Coral, Whisteria Wonder and Lucky Limeade Classic Ink on scrap Whisper White and cut each of them out. To add some interest and make the front flower stand out, I used a Designer Printed Brad and some Rhinestone Jewels. Now I could never (or rarely) complete a card with out adding some ribbon. I think the new Ruffled In Colour Ribbons are becoming an absolute favourite of mine. The sentiment is from the Sweetheart stamp set and I just added a small butterfly from the Beautiful Wings Embossit to the bottom right corner. 

 Supplies Used:

Stamps: Raining Flowers, Sweetheart

Ink: Lucky Limeade, Calypso Coral, Whisteria Wonder, Early Espresso

Paper: Berry Blossoms DSP, Whisteria Wonder, Lucky Limeade, Early Espresso, Whisper White, Calypso Coral

Accessories: Big Shot, Beautiful Wings Embosslit, Stripes Folder, Perfect Polka Dots Folder, Rhinestone Jewels, Designer Printed Brads, Calypso Coral Ruffled Ribbon, 1 1/4 and 1 3/8 Circle Punch
 
Have a great day,

Bright Hopes with a Little Spice Cake

 I know it is a little early for Christmas, but I had joined another holiday mini swap so I am back today with another Chritmas card. When I designed this card I wanted to create something that would be able to easily  be recreated for a class or mass produced.

I used some untraditional colours, but I think they worked out well. I picked the colour scheme from the Spice Cake Product Suite in the Holiday Mini (p.17)  For the base I used Soft Suede (can you tell I love this colour:), next I layered on a piece of River Rock that was stamped with the Medallion Background and spritzed the whole layer using a Soft Suede Marker and Colour Spritzer Tool. 
   
For the main image I stamped the tree using Pool Party Classic Ink on Naturals Ivory Card stock. I destressed the edges then sponged them with More Mustard. I am so in love with Stampin' Up's Designer Fabric and since I don't sew (on my bucket list of things to learn), I cut a strip, frayed the edged then used it as I would ribbon. I matted that piece onto Soft Suede then wanted to add little more sparkle and to tie in with the Rhinestone, so I added some Silver Glimmer Paper that was punched with the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch. I then attached it to the card with Dimensionals.

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Bright Hopes, Medallion Background

Ink: More Mustard, Early Espresso, River Rock, Soft Suede Marker, Pool Party

Paper: River rock, Soft Suede, Naturals Ivory, Silver Glimmer Paper

Accessories: Sponge, Destressing Tool (cutter kit), Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch, Rhinestone Jewels, Spice Cake Designer Fabric, Colour Spritzer Tool

 

Christmas Lane Stocking

I am a huge fan of the new Holiday Mini Catalogue and I absolutely adore the patterns and colours of the Christmas Lane Simply Scrappin' Kit (p.26). These kits are so perfect for so many paper crafts-not just scrapbooking. I also had fun playing with the new Stocking Builder Punch.

 
I created this card for a recent swap that I participated in that was focusing on the Holiday Mini. I started with a Soft Suede card base then layered on Crumb Cake and Cherry Cobbler. The Crumb Cake piece was embossed using the Stripes Impressions Folder and then sponged with Whisper White Craft Ink. The Cherry Cobbler piece was embossed with the Perfect Polka Dots Folder. On the Designer Series paper layer I attached two pieces of Early Espresso card stock that had been punched out with the Dotted Ribbon Border Punch. I then added the yummy Ruffled Ribbon in Lucky Limeaid and attached a snowflake to it that was die cut using the Northern Frost Decorative Strip. 

  I created the main image panel by embossing some Soft Suede Textured card stock with one of the Designer Frames Folders then cut it out.
The stocking was made by using the Stocking Builder Punch, Lucky Limeaide Textured card stock and another pattern of DSP from the Christmas Lane Simply Scrappin' kit. Of course I just had to attach one of those cute little Mini Jingles Bells with some Early Espresso Bakers Twine. And unfortunately the one thing you can not see in this picture is the fine shimmer that is all over the card. I mixed some Champange Shimmer Paint with Alcohol in a misting bottle then sprayed the whole card.

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes

Ink: Whisper White Craft, Cherry Cobbler

Paper: Simply Scrappin' Christmas Lane Kit, Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler, Early Espresso, Lucky Limeaide, Soft Suede

Accessories: Jewlery Tag Punch, Big Shot, Northern Frost Decorative Strip, Lucky Limeaide Ruffled Ribbon, Espresso Bakers Twine, Linen Thread, Stripes Folder, Designer Frames Folder, Perfect Polka Dots Folder, Mini Jingle Bells, Mini Silver Brad, Champagne Shimmer Paint, Basic Pearls

Have a great day!

Up, Up and Away!

I am back with a FAB colour challenge for this week at Stampin' Royalty. I know I only took last week off but I am just so glad that I am able to get some stampin' done again:) Be sure to check out all of the Design Teams samples-these girls seriously ROCK!

Here's the combo:

and here's my card:

Now I absolutely Love orange in any shade but purple scares me,lol! Although I must admit that I am starting to be able to work with it a little more. I am so glad that I finally got to ink up my new set Up, Up and Away. This was a must have set for me when I first saw the new Stampin' Up! Catalogue, but it has taken me over a month to ink it up! I am still not 100% happy with the way this card turned out, but will just have to do:)

The base of the card is Certainly Celery that was layered with Concord Crush and a fun sunny pattern from the Domestic Goddess (which I am so not,hehe) Designer Series Paper. 
 
   
I inked the hot air ballons with markers, stamped them on some scrap Whisper White card stock then cut them out. I popped one of then up with Dimensionals and added a little punched flower and Mini Brad. The card is very Clean and Simple so to jazz it up a bit I added a little strip of Silver Glimmer Paper that had been punched with the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch.
 

Supplies Used:

Stamps: Up, Up and Away

Paper: Domestic Goddess DSP, Certainly Celery, Concord Crush, Whisper White, Tangerine Tango, Silver Glimmer paper

Ink: Tangerine Tango, Concord Crush, Daffodil Delight and Certainly Celery Markers. Early Espresso and Pool Party Classic Ink

Accessories: Silver Mini Brads, Pear Pizzazz Poly Twill Ribbon, 1" and 1 1/4" Circle Punch, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch, Itty Bitty Flower Punch

Have a great day!