Think About Color Thursday - Concord Crush, Elegant Eggplant, Whisper White, Certainly Celery

This week's color combination pairs together a new cheerful  deep purple Stampin' Up color (an In Color called Concord Crush) with a veteran deep purple color called Elegant Eggplant, with white as the neutral base color and Certainly Celery as that "pop" color.  This card is one that I demonstrated at a workshop this summer.

The large flower from the Because I Care Level 1 Hostess stamp set is stamped using the "thumping technique".  I added Rich Razzleberry and Perfect Plum highlights with Stampin' Write marker, along with the Elegant Eggplant and Concord Crush, in the thumping onto the stamp.  If you haven't heard about this technique, check out my blog post here to see what it is all about!

The tiny flowers and message are from the same stamp set.  The tiny flowers are stamped only on the top half of the Whisper White card front.  I have layered the focal point image and punched message & adhered the message with dimensionals.  Both Concord Crush and Elegant Eggplant are nice color choices for layering card stock.

Linda

Whatever Wednesday - Field Aflutter Notebook

Instead of a card today, I decorated a little notebook for my daughter.   So pretty!

If you want to decorate a notebook without punching the edge of the card stock for the spiral wires, just measure the cs to be the same size as the front cover of the notebook & trim it down about half an inch on the side that will be placed against the spirals.

The butterfly stamp is colored direct to rubber with Stampin' Write markers in pretty shades of Pretty in Pink, Pink Pirouette, and Regal Rose.  The grass and inspirational message are stamped in Old Olive classic ink.

A strip of coordinating scrapbook paper is adhered across the bottom as well to tie it all together.

Linda

Tuesday Tips - Emerging Color Technique

Have you tried the emerging color technique on a card?  This technique was done at a recent stamp camp, and it thrilled the ladies who tried it!  If you were there, no doubt that you remember it well.  Today's card uses that same technique.

A Brocade Blue classic inkpad and a Versamark Inkpad are the only inkpads used for this card.  For the floral card element on the right side of the card, I stamped large flowers in Brocade Blue classic ink onto a River Rock-patterned dsp (retired dsp packet called Apple Cider).  I added River Rock brads in the center of the flowers and layered the piece onto River Rock cs.

For the flower element on the left side of the card, I stamped the same flower onto Very Vanilla cs & punched it out with a circle punch.  I sponged River Rock ink into the flower's center.  Then, I punched 5-petal flowers from River Rock cs with the 5-Petal Flower Punch & arranged the punched flowers underneath the punched circle. 

I stamped  the greeting in Brocade Blue classic ink onto River Rock cs.  The two floral focal point elements are adhered with dimensionals to the card.

The blue background on the card is the element where I used the "emerging color" stamping technique.   Below I have explained what I did for this particular background.

EMERGING COLOR TECHNIQUE FOR THIS CARD:

1.  Notice that the background looks primarily Brocade Blue, though you can see some River Rock and Very Vanilla patterned flowers peeking through.  I began this technique with a piece of designer series paper cut slightly smaller than the card front.  This is the base on which to work the technique.  The dsp here is called Apple Cider (retired) - the pattern is actually a Very Vanilla background with River Rock flowers.  That Very Vanilla/River Rock colored design is what showed through ("emerged") when I was done with all the steps.   

2.  I stamped my large flower image several times in Versamark ink directly onto the dsp.  I find this technique looks best when the base layer pattern is a smaller design than the stamp image size.  For instance, on this card the Apple Cider dsp's pattern consists of small River Rock flowers and the flower image on the stamp I chose to use for Versamarking covers a larger area.

3.  Next, I sprinkled the VM images with clear embossing powder & heat embossed with a heat tool.

4.  Using a brayer inked on a Classic Brocade Blue inkpad,  I repeatedly rolled the brayer over that entire piece of dsp until there was a uniform color.  After braying, the entire piece of dsp should look nearly solid blue.

5.  Now, with a paper towel, I wiped off the ink on the dsp.  The Versamarked images resist the blue ink, so the blue ink that was brayered atop Versamark embossed areas are easily wiped away, allowing the pattern underneath those see-through Versamarked big flowers to show up again!  So, colors underneath “emerge” - that's how this technique get's its name - "Emerging Color Technique"!

This technique is sure to WOW anybody & is fun to try!  I hope you give it a whirl & let me know how beautiful your card looks!   Have fun!

Linda

Map It Monday - Coffee Crazed

The card map this week features a new Stampin' Around wheel called Take a Sip.  Isn't it cute?

Just about any Stampin' Around wheel would work out well on this card layout.  Check out all the different wheels you can choose from in our current catalog!

The designer paper called Greenhouse Gala has more than flowers - here I have used one of the paper from this designer paper packet with a zig-zag!  I also added a strip of Cajun Craze cs and Pear Pizzazz cs that is punched with the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch!


I love, love, love having all of the Stampin' Write markers that match the paper and inkpads!  I dotted the coffee cups with matching markers!

There is no stamp camp this week, but be sure to email me to register for next week's Stamp Camp!

Linda
 

Fast Friday - Silhouette Pieces

This week's Fast Friday card takes those little pieces of designer series paper scraps and puts them to good use.  You can see just a glimpse of a fluttering butterfly in the little dsp square and soft breezy flowers in the rectangle dsp.  The dsp on this card is from my ever-favorite Sweet Pea stack (retired).

The Silhouette Sentiments flower, from the Hostess Level 1 stamp set in the current IB&C, and the Vases in Vogue (retired) stamp set messages are the only things I stamped here.  A tiny piece of coordinating cs and some dimensionals liven it up.  Easy as apple pie!

Linda

Think About Color Thursday - Pretty in Pink, Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green

Think of a pretty pink summer flower.  Shades of pink & red with green leaves and stems.  That's this week's color combination - one more stab at summer on the first day of Autumn!  The colors may be that of a summer flower, but the card is most definitely a baby shower card!

Pretty in Pink

Cherry Cobbler

Garden Green

The card is a flap-open card with plenty of empty space inside for writing a sincere message.  Pretty in Pink and Garden Green cs cover the card front, along with a Garden Green Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punched cs strip (a new punch in this year's big catty!).  Here's a side view of this card......

The versatile new stamp set called Perfect Punches (in the big Idea Book & Catalog) and an almost vintage "happy shower" Stampin' Up retired stamp pull this card together.  I have stamped both images in Garden Green and Cherry Cobbler, then I layered a cut-out Garden Green portion of the image with dimensionals over the Cherry Cobbler stamped image.  Both messages become 3-D!

The "happy shower" message is layered onto punched circles and the flap corners are punched with the Scallop Trim Corner punch.

Linda

Whatever Wednesday - Birthday Bag

Have you seen the Level 1 Hostess stamp set called "Birthday Bakery"?  It is so cute & delicious!  At my September stamp camp we made a card similar to this one, so I have adapted it & posted this one using the birthday gift bag stamp from this set!

My, oh my, the designer series paper on this card is older than dirt!  Maybe 2007?  It is called Treehouse, and it is one of the very first designer papers I every bought!  And, it hasn't gotten any less cute!  I love how my Stampin' Up papers always have something to match - I paired this dsp with More Mustard cs.

The scallop edge punching along the edge of the card, the circle design on the dsp, the eyelets, the dots on the gift bag image, and the little cs circles I have adhered with Stampin' dimensionals really get the circular pattern repetition going.  So cute!

I colored the gift bag with matching Stampin' Write markers.  By the way, this stamp set is fun to color with markers!  I felt like I was a child again coloring this one!

The dsp is attached to the card with three eyelets.  I scored the card front and dsp about an inch from the fold, opened up the card, and installed eyelets into only the front of the card.

Linda

Tuesday Tips - Triangulation

Today's Tuesday Tips card is an example of how the concept of  triangulation can work to make a card well balanced and beautiful.  The idea is to use color, texture and pattern in three opposing places within the card to maintain the card as a whole visually in balance.  Though there are really no "rules" in cardmaking, once in awhile I run across a concept that can be such a positive influence on card design.  As an untrained card artist, it sure is interesting when I learn how some of the basic concepts of art can influence my card design.   I wanted to share this one with you!

Let's take a look at how "triangulation" applies to today's card. 

Color:  A Bashful Blue card, a message stamped with Bashful Blue ink, and a Bashful Blue ribbon
Texture:  A message adhered with dimensionals, and then the two tails of the bow create texture on the top & bottom of the card

Pattern:  Rectangular dsp strips, a rectangular line of ribbon, and a rectangle of Certainly Celery cs

Triangulation can also be considered in the physical arrangement of elements on a card.  A visual triangle is pleasing to the eye.  Can you see the triangle on today's card?  It goes from the scallop circle up to the upper ribbon tail, then down to the lower ribbon tail, then back up to the scallop circle.  See it now?  Kinda cool!

If you think a card seems visually off-balance, give triangulation a try & rearrange the elements on the card.  It is a good idea to arrange the elements on a card before adhering.  Doing so will enable you to shuffle the elements until you have that balance. 

Linda

Map It Monday - 80th Floral

My card layout this week is a card I made for an 80th birthday.  The shades of blue on this card are Baja Breeze and Not Quite Navy. 

Since there are two message pieces on this layout, it can be a great layout for any birthday or anniversary where you might want to stamp a number.  For a child, stamp their age, a birthday message, and a fun image such as an animal, a baseball bat, or even a sock monkey in bright, happy colors!  What 5 year old wouldn't like seeing the number 5 on their birthday card!?!

Linda

Fast Friday - Herringbone Here

This quick card is primarily created with punches.  The Boho Blossoms Punch will punch out the tiny flowers.  I actually used the Three Flower Punch, which has been retired, however, the Boho Blossoms Punch will punch a similar flower and actually give you more variety of flower sizes.

I would begin designing this style of card by first choosing the appropriate designer series paper.  After that is done, choose two or three solid colors found in your dsp pattern for the cs.  Use whatever color combinations suit your occasion or mood!  This paper is herringbone tweed-pattern from the Sweet Pea paper stack (retired).  I would highly recommend that you never pass up the purchase of a paper stack - the supply of paper on a stack seems endless & the coordinating designer papers come in handy so often!

The stamp set is called Friends 24/7.  I have used Stampin' Up Craft White ink. 

Happy Weekend!

Linda

Think About Color Thursday - Whisper White, Old Olive, Certainly Celery, Rose Red, Elegant Eggplant

This week's color combination has quite a few colors!  I blended two shades of green and I also blended several shades of purple and pink on the flower.

The flower stamp from the Level 1 Hostess stamp set in our current catalog, Because I Care, is a terrific stamp on which to use the "thumping technique". This technique works a bit like banging a drum with a drum stick.  Working one color at a time, take the brush end of a Stampin' Write marker & tap it repeatedly all over the rubber, similar to playing a drum.  The color from the marker will be transferred to the rubber.  After you have done the same thing with each color from your color palette of purples & pinks for the flower, as well as the greens for the leaves and stem, breathe onto the rubber to remoisten it and then stamp the image.  The resulting image will be a variegated, feathery image!  What fun!

Choose several coordinating Stampin' Write marker colors in shades of pink and purple for inking the flower and both Certainly Celery and Old Olive markers for the leaves.  You can either ink up the stamp on the lightest color inkpad and then "thump" the remaining colors onto the rubber, or you could opt to only thump the color all over the rubber without first inking the entire image.   You will be thumping the markers a bit more if you opt to omit the inkpad inking first.

Other elements on today's card:
Retired Raspberry Tart dsp pulls out the Rose Red color that I thumped onto the flower.
A Whisper White cs layer on this card is dry embossed with an embossing folder.
Certainly Celery ribbon adds charm.
The Old Olive cs layer is punched with the Scallop Edge Border Punch.

Have a great day!

Linda

Whatever Wednesday - Inking the Negative Turtle

I've been intending to post this cute turtle card for some time....I taught this card at a specialty camp several months ago.  The turtle stamp is from the Long Fellows stamp set, which is a Hostess Level 2 Stamp Set in the current Idea Book & Catalog!  If you host a stamping event, you could earn this stamp set based on orders!

Notice the cool background on the card front?  I love how it reminds me of a real turtle shell!  To create a background similar to the inked, embossed card background in today's posting, open up an embossing folder, ink the negative side with a brayer or by dabbing ink directly with an inkpad, lay cs or your card front inside the embossing folder, close it up and roll the sandwich through a Big Shot or Cuttlebug diecutting machine.  Make sure to wash the embossing folder immediately afterward so it doesn't stain.

The Mini Library Clip can be purchased from the current catalog as well.  The little plastic tin contains 48 of these tiny embellishments in four colors for just over $10 to keep you clipping for a long time!

Linda

Tuesday Tips - Sweetest Friend Treat Box

Do you want to make this little treat box?  I'll show you how when you attend my Oktoberfest Stamp Camp on Thursday, October 7 at 7pm!  This is one of the six pretty projects and cards you will get to create at this festive Fall event focusing on Sweetest Day (yes, Sweetest Day is a Fall holiday) and Halloween!


The Love Letter designer series paper from the IB&C looks yummy with the Crumb Cake cs!

The polka dotty patterned paper is decorated with Riding Hood Red and Very Vanilla.  The Crumb Cake/Riding Hood Red/Very Vanilla trio is definitely a winning combination!

Linda

Map It Monday - Birthday Gala Awash

What do you think of my new blog design?   It is soooooo pretty, just like the designer series paper on today's card!  This Pumpkin Pie card is merely the base for some beautiful Greenhouse Gala dsp designs.

I have layered the coordinating dsp designs, along with Chocolate Chip cs strips, onto the card.  The upper corners of the card and the four corners of the Whisper White cs are punched with the ticket corner punch. 

The message piece is a piece of Whisper White cs that has been stamped in Pumpkin Pie classic ink with a flower outline stamp from the Awash With Flowers Stamp Set and then stamped with the birthday image from the Perfect Punches stamp set in Chocolate Chip classic ink. 

Linda

Fast Friday - Gala Wishes

The Greenhouse Gala Designer Series Paper is lovely!  It dresses up this Fast Friday card in a hurry!  The curly label punch (once in Whisper White and once in Pear Pizzazz), and the modern label punch dress up the message.  You could use any message here, but one specifically designed for the curly label punch is fun!  You might try the stamp set called Perfect Punches in the current IB&C!  There's a stamp for every occasion that fits inside a specific punch! 

The strip of Chocolate Chip cs is added as a belly band above the dsp.  If you are in a real hurry to make this card, that's really all you need to make it look pretty.

If you want to add additional detail, you can pierce a row onto the Chocolate Chip cs as I have done here. Since the cs strip is adhered with dimensionals, the piercing adds another decorative touch.  You can also use the Scallop Trim Corner Punch to adorn the two open corners.

Happy weekend!

Linda

Think About Color Thursday - Lion Reflection

I recently created this cute little card as a thank you note for a friend.  The color combination is:

Crushed Curry, Basic Gray, and Ruby Red.  

Since Ruby Red is a retired color, you could substitute the current shade of dark red, Riding Hood Red.

The Crushed Curry cs layer is punched with the Scallop Trim Border punch.  That punch jazzes up anything!

Two stamping techniques make this card very interesting.  The thumping technique with Stampin' Write markers onto the rubber of the rubber stamp in several "lion-fur" shades is the method for creating the variegated colors on the lion's fur.  Using the reflection technique is how the lion is transposed upside down.

Sponging around the main image softens it and gives the appearance of water to the upside down reflection.  The top portion of the image is sponged very lightly with Basic Gray, while the bottom portion is sponged with Basic Gray and blue.

Linda

Whatever Wednesday - Baby Peanut

Here's a baby card I created recently.  The photo isn't the best quality here, thanks to my skill level again, but hopefully you can see it well enough!

I incorporated several stamps and embellishments to pull this one together.......The Apple Blossoms stamp set that I showed you on Monday is used for the background of little circles.

Are you wondering how the leaves are created?  The Five-Petal Flower Punch!

Linda

Tuesday Tips - Designer Notebooks

Look at the little notebooks I made!

These notebooks are fun to make - I bought inexpensive notebooks and cut Whisper White cs to fit the front of the notebook.  After some pretty stamping, I'm ready to jot some notes down.

Linda

Map It Monday - Happy Cajun

The map layout for this week incorporates the look of a ripped-out notebook page.

I have used the Spiral Border Punch as the tool to make the main image piece look like that notebook page.

Don't you just love, love, love this stamp set?  It is a Level 2 Hostess Set from the current catalog!  {It's called Apple Blossoms!}   One of my hostesses at a recent workshop earned this stamp set - I loved it so much that I just HAD to order lots of new toys so I could earn it too.  lol

Several oval punches and a circle punch also contribute to this card's style.  The bottom edge of the card is punched with the Scallop Edge Border Punch.

I added color to the edges of the main image piece with sponging color from an inkpad........the Cajun Craze is sponged around all of the edges, and the bottom edge is ripped to appear distressed and sponged with Marina Mist ink.

That brings me to the color combination.....Cajun Craze, Marina Mist and Crumb Cake.  Yummy!

Sorry I am a few days backed up with my blog posting this week.....I had some technical problems.

Have a great week!

Linda

Fast Friday - Cherry Crabby

Fast Friday again!  Today’s quick card showcases the happy new color called Cherry Cobbler.  It makes me smile!  Notice the message on this card…….no crabby here…..cuz Cherry Cobbler makes me smile.

The stamp is from a set called “It’s the Thought” in the recently retired Occasions Mini Catalog (just retired yesterday, so boo-hoo if you don’t have this stamp set, but there’s lots of new stamps in the new Holiday Mini Catty and the big IB&C to choose from!).

The reason this card is so fast is because this is all I did:

On a 4 x 4” card, score the card front only in both directions on a paper trimmer with the scoring blade.

Stamp the crabby crab in Cherry Cobbler Classic ink onto a Whisper White cs.,  Any shape will do….The stamp is small enough to fit in plenty of punches.  There’s even a new 2 ½” circle punch in the new Holiday Mini catalog!  Or, you could simply cut a small piece of cs into a square.  I have cut a large scalloped circle for this card – this can be done with a die, including Stampin’ Up’s Scallop Circle #2 Bigz Die.

Adhere the white cs with Stampin’ Dimensionals onto the card.

Easy but pretty!

Linda

Think About Color Thursday - Pink Pirouette, Basic Gray, Pear Pizzazz

It's so much fun creating cards with one of my new stamp sets, Silhouette Sentiments.  It's a Hostess Level One Stamp Set from the current IB&C.  The set has several miniature flowers on stems, including one with a little silhouette of a bird sitting on a branch, along with some versatile messages.  The best thing about the message stamps is that the font is so small that they tend to fit in just about any of Stampin' Up's medium sized punches and many small sized punches!  No guesswork when adding a message to a card as to which punch will fit which message!

Notice the button?  It's one of the new Corduroy brads in Basic Gray!   Adorable little buttons and brads come in several sizes, all in Basic Gray corduroy (other colors available)!

One of the littlest flowers from the Silhouette Sentiments stamp set is stamped repeatedly to create a patterned background.

Linda

Whatever Wednesday - NEW HOLIDAY MINI RELEASE and GREENHOUSE GALA DSP!!!

WOO-HOO!  Today is September 1st, and that means it is the first day we can purchase awesome stuff from the 2010 Holiday Mini Catalog!  If you would like a hard copy of the mini catalog from me, please email me at lahinks@gmail.com.  I will be happy to give you this mini catalog filled with new products available for a limited time and an ocean of ideas!  Take a look......

click here to view this mini catalog !!!!

 MORE EXCITING NEWS for you if you might be interested in becoming a Stampin' Up demonstrator.....if you join Stampin' Up before October 18, 2010, they are giving you this to-die-for stamping tote FOR FREE.  I wanna join again. :(    I wish I could start over because I want that tote for free. :)    I am ready to support you as you start your own business - just email me or give me a call to discuss the possibilities!

Does the pattern on this beautiful tote look familiar?  The Greenhouse Gala dsp from the big Idea Book & Catalog is transformed into fabric on this remarkable tote!  Speaking of Greenhouse Gala, why not adorn today's card with Greenhouse Gala dsp?  Here's what I created today.

I'm lovin' this designer series paper!  Great color combo:  Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, Pear Pizzazz, Daffodil Delight, Real Red, Pumpkin Pie.  Wow!

Have a fantastic day!

Linda