mixability challenge: neutral background

Mix-Ability challenge on SCS is to use neutrals to make an interesting background.  I put 6 different brown re-inkers onto an acetate folder and then transfered it to my gel plate to make a mono print.

I really liked how the colors mixed and added great texture.I wanted a little more though...

I put my STAMPlorations ARTplorations ROSEGARDEN stencil onto my gel plate.

I put gold acrylic paint onto the stencil.

 

Here is how it looked on the gel plate when I removed the stencil.

Here is how it looked.before I added all the "toppings" to my card.

Left over challenges... had to make a new card to accommodate.

When I made my multi challenge card, I had one challenge that I just could figure out how to fit it in. That challenge was from Double D Challenge blog to use gingham. That in itself was a challenge because I didn't have any gingham in my stash so I decided to make my own. 

I inked up a giant stamp that was for making writing paper.

I then inked the stamp up again and rotated it 90 degrees and stamped again. making lots of little squares.

I then colored the grids with a brown maker, and the result was a dark brown gingham.

When I decided to make this new card, I decided to hang on to a few of the challenges that I used on the other card. I kept the 2 challenges that were to use Kraft, and I kept the challenge to use paint.

I made a mono print using my gel plate, and acrylic paint and

 ARTplorations stencil called Ethenic Organic Two

1. Double D Challenge: Ginghan

2. Always Fun Challenge 103 Kraft

3. Dream Valley Challenges Kraft

4. Simon Says Monday Challenge: Use Paint

Another attempt at multiple challenges card - you can fly

 I tried to do another multi challenge card. I didn't make a card and find challenges that it fit, but truly tried to start with challenges and then make a card to fit them.

My favorite part of this card is the mono printed paper that I made using acrylic paint, my gel plate, and ARTplorations stencil called Honey Comb Delight. 

Doesn't it make a great dreamy background? I framed it with kraft and yellow and then found other dp that brought out the colors from the mono print. I had these 2 butterflies already colored, fussy cut and shaped from a project I did last week.(The one that I ended up using a white butterfly). Today's card seemed like a better home than my desk.  My card is an easel fold.

Here are the challenges: 

1. MOJO Monday Sketch 512

 

I hope that you can see the inspiration for my card came from this sketch. As always when I work with sketches, sometimes the card has a mind of it's own and refuses to fit the sketch exactly. My butterfly got a bit big and flew away from his spot and I got carried away with the papers underneath the square. But I had to listen to what the card wanted.

2.Do All Kreatives - #27 Fancy Fold

I did an easel fold.

3.Simon Says Play with Paint

I used paint with my gel plate to make the two mono prints I used on my card.

4. Always fun challenges: Use Kraft

I used Kraft behind the mono print on the front of the card. I also used it as a strip and oval on the inside of the card. 

5.The Dream Valley Challenge: #198 Kraft

I used Kraft behind the mono print on the front of the card. I also used it as a strip and oval on the inside of the card. 

6. Creativ Fusion  Challenge SPRING

The challenge was to choose one from each row. I chose Ribbon//lace, Yellow/ and Butterfly.

There were many challenges that  were "anything goes" but those don't really challenge me so I didn't list them.

I hope you are inspired by my card. Have a blessed day knowing that God loves you.

Word Art Wednesday - Hebrews 12:2

Happy Wednesday. That means it is my last Wednesday to be guest designer for

  Word Art Wednesday. 

This week's scripture is Hebrews 12:2. I think it would make a great card for Resurrection Sunday. 

I have butterflies that pop up on the inside of the card. 

I die cut a butterfly on the envelope and added a contrasting color underneath that matches the butterfly on the card. I am not sure how this envelope will hold up to the machinery of the post office, so it will most likely be a hand delivery.

The butterfly die that I used is a CUTplorations die called: FLUTTER ZEN 2 LAYERING DIES
If you would like to buy this die from STAMPlorations, you can use my discount code below to get 20% off your order.

Crafting by Designs Challenge: Anything Goes 3/27-4/2

Crafting by Designs Challenge: Anything Goes

Date: 3/27- 4/2

Sponsor: Oddball Art

Here is the list for the HOP:

Crafting by Designs Design Team

Rene 

MariLynn ***This is me***

Pam 

Isobel 

Carole 

Julia 

Laura 
CraftyGirl 
Sharon 

Guest Designers from the Odd Ball Art Design Team
Penny from Busch Creations   
Susan from Calling All Crafters   
EK from EKGormanDesigns  

MIX321 Tulips or are they?

This week's mix-ability challenge on SCS is all about the flowers. Tulips, daffodils and pansies. I choose to do tulips.  Before I even started I knew I wanted to use the colors teal and brown. I had this mono print laying on my desk. I used STAMPlorations art stencil called EMANATIONS.

It had a bit more white than I liked so it had been sitting on my desk ,in my use someday pile, for several weeks.

It is subtle in the next photo but I distressed it with a brown distress ink. Then the part I really liked about this project. It was a stamp that I had been given years ago that I never had used. It was an old Cornish Heritage stamp that was for stamping writing paper. I stamped it in blue and because the ink was still juicy on the stamp, I turned it and stamped again. It made kind of a checkered trellis look. I then took some silhouetted wild flowers and stamped them. I have had the wildflowers for so long. They are one of the first stamps sets that I ever bought. My goal with my creating this week was to use old stamps to remind me that I don't always have to have the "NEW" stamps to be happy. 

What I did next was really hard, because I really liked how my page was looking. I CUT IT. I cut it into 4 sections. One thing I had been noticing was that with my mixed media cards, I had been neglecting an element of design, the card sketch or layout. I think it was because I was afraid to cut up my art. So before I could second guess myself, I just went ahead and cut it.  Don't you like my Tulips? They were stamped and fussy cut and popped up on foam... oh wait, they look like tulips but they were really lotus blossoms. My friend Kyra had sent me a layered stamp set of lotus blossoms. I just cut away what I didn't want and voila... tulips. To add to my old stamps used, an old Our Daily Bread scripture stamp and I also  used an old Martha Stewart butterfly stamp. I really struggled. At first I stamped and colored it pinks and oranges, but it was "fighting" the tulips for attention. Then I did one in blue... nope not good. Then I did one in yellow... no not good either. I was about to give up then I decided to do a white butterfly with black glitter dots on the wings. I don't think I have ever done a white butterfly. I have always had to color them. So again before I could change my mind I glued him down. I really like how my card turned out. I hope you do too and 

Crafting by Designs; Flowers 3/20-3/26

Crafting by Designs Challenge: Flowers

Date: 3/20/3-26

Sponsor: Beccy's Place

Beccy so generously let me use the three flowers from her Nasturtium Set.

I watercolored the flowers, and fussy cut them out and did paper tole on them. I did burned glue for the centers. 

It can be done but it is a lot of work.

My friend Pam and I were talking the other day about cards that we have seen that that people entered into "challenges" where they enter that card in 20 or more challenges. We wondered how anyone can truly do that many challenges. We are of the opinion that they make their card and then go to the challenge blog: Paperplayful

and say "What challenges can I say I did this for."

 Today just for fun, I tried to do it the right way, the way that challenges are supposed to be. You go to the challenge first and then when you make your card you incorporate that challenge into your card. I stayed away from everything goes challenges. I looked through many challenges before deciding upon 10 challenges. I added my own challenge which was to use an old set. 

When I stamped this little girl I realized that almost every time I have used this set, I have always paper pieced the dress. So why did I mess up cutting the dress? It wasn't until I getting ready to glue the dress to the image that I realized that the far left portion of the dress had been cut off, and of course I had stamped it on a piece of dp that had a limited pattern. I couldn't "re do" the piecing. There was coordinating color but not the pattern. So I stamped the coordinating color then I got the idea to put a piece of craft foam under the part that I had messed up. It gave the dress the look of being blown up by the sea breeze. I call it my happy accident. 

Here are the 10 challenges I used on my card.
1.  Double D Challenges Let's Make Some Music(I used music dp)
2. Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media Challenge Music (I used music flourish and piano keyboard stamps from Layers of Color)
3.Simon Says Monday Challenge: Feminine/girly (I made her dress pink and the roses dp made me think girly)
4.Fab'n'Funky Challenge: Butterfly (The image that I used had 2 little butterflies that I added purple glitter to. There was an imperfection in the Kraft panel that I decided needed a 3rd butterfly so I doodled it with an ink pen and added glitter to it too. Can't ever have too many butterflies!)
5.Mod Squad Challenge Blog: Layered Looks (The base of my card has several layers, the inside of my easel card has several layers as well, but in addition to the obvious layers, I think the paper piecing on the dress especially with the one layer popped up on craft foam fulfills the challenge)
6. The Sisterhood of Crafters: Ladies/Girls ( I used the little girl image)
7.The house that stamps built : Tic tac toe ( I did paper piecing on the girls dress, I added texture by doing burned glue and I used buttons to prop open the easel on the card)
8.Splashy mix challenge: Near the sea I long to be ( The old set (my own challenge) was an old SU set called SUMMER BY THE SEA I also was inspired by the blue sky on the mood board)
9. Joy of Sets Tic tac toe: #JOSTTT003  (I added sparkle by adding glitter to the butterflies, nature is the flowers and the butterfly, and rectangle is the sentiment and the patterned paper on the left of the image.)
10.  disdigidesignschallenge: Tic Tac Toe ( I did easel for fancy fold, I used Kraft paper and I added a sentiment)

After trying to make this card the right way and linking to all the challenges it has taken me several hours to make and blog. So my conclusion? Everyone else must have a lot more hours and time in their days to do this often.

watercolor quilts

This week's MIX-Ability challenge at SCS is to make a watercolor quilt.
Which is perfect because this Saturday is National Quilt Day.

The first one I made with piano keyboard to the side. I watercolored, masked and stamped and then embossed to make it look quilted. I used STAMPlorations IT"S A GIRL THING -SUNSHINE

After I made my first card, I had a really bad migraine and decided to try and take a nap. As I was trying to sleep, I wondered how this technique would look with some of my older stamp sets. So after I woke up from my nap I pulled out one of my oldest sets. It is a SU set called Netherlands. The other day on Facebook several friends shared cards that they made this week using a set that had a windmill and wooden shoes and tulips. I had to catch myself. I at first was thinking, I really want this new set, then I realized that even if I got a NEW set, I would probably only use it a couple of times. I have had this set for over 16 years and I have only used it a handful of times. It was a lesson in contentment and gratitude. 

I drew the lines, and watercolored the spaces. I used markers and colored pencils to color the tulips. I made it an easel card. I fussy cut the wooden shoe filled with tulips and put a piece of craft foam underneath it to give it dimension enough to be the "stopper" for my card.

6 years ago my kids and I went to Pella, Iowa for the tulips festival. It is gorgeous to see all the tulips. If you get a chance to go, I highly recommend this festival. These two photo were taken that weekend. I think this if my favorite variety of tulips. I tried to capture their color when coloring the tulips on my card. I could't even come close. God is such a master colorer.

Word Art Wednesday - 1 Corinthians 12:27

Happy Wednesday.  I am excited to share that for this month at Word Art Wednesday, I will be a guest designer. I remember when Word Art Wednesday started. I think it is awesome that is still going strong. The scripture for this week is 1 Corinthians 12:27.  I die cut the envelope and used contrasting cardstock to make it stand out and then I doodled around the edges. I don't think it will hold up running through the machinery at the post office so this will probably be hand delivered to one of the ladies at my church. 

I die cut 3 little yellow butterflies and glued their wings so that they pop up on the inside of the card. 

The butterfly die is a CUTplorations die: FLUTTER ZEN 2 Layering Dies
If you would like to buy this die you can use my STAMPlorations discount below to get 20% off your order.