The Flower Challenge Sketch

Hello friends!  How about some spring flowers in fall?  The Flower Challenge is a welcoming place for flowers year 'round, and this month they've given us a sketch for starters.  I'd set aside Penny Black's Good Wish Bouquet for NBUS coloring and I figured I could make it work with the sketch.

Here's the basic idea:

I added the band on the left to cover an unstamped edge.  The background is Hero Arts Leafy Vines.  I used blending brushes to apply inks to the stamp in my MISTI, and was pleasantly surprised at what a nice job it did.  Colors are listed in the recipe.

The flower stamp and butterflies are watercolored with Twinkling H2Os on 140 lb hot pressed WC paper.  I hand cut the flower and vase.  This set is part of a group I've stamped with intentions of coloring, cutting out, and setting aside to be made into cards as time allows.  I need this outlet, and it's nice to have something creative/crafty in the works for whenever I have a few or a lot of minutes.

I've also simplified the photo process -- same set up every time, no props.  I'm feeling optimistic as opposed to overwhelmed.

I'm sending my card and a big thanks to the following challenges.  The administrators and DTs put a lot of work into these challenges and I do appreciate it.

The Flower Challenge:  Use the Sketch
NBUS #78 -- Never before used schtuff -- That would be my Penny Black Good Wish Bouquet
Penny Black Saturday Challenge -- Optional spots and/or stripes

And one more per Lisa's friendly reminder:

Just Us Girls #792 -- Word Week -- Container

    

A big thanks to all of you, too, for stopping by.  What would I do without my crafty friends?  Group hug!

Stamps:  Penny Black Good Wish Bouquet, Hero Arts Leafy Vines  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot pressed watercolor, Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White 80 & 110 lb, SU Old Olive  Ink:  Ranger Archival Watering Can for flowers, Memento Tuxedo Black for sentiment, SU Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Summer Sun for background  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H2Os  Other:  Memory Box Stitched Circle Layers, Impression Obsession Butterfly Set, SU Subtle 3D embossing folder, Honey Bee gems

Playing Along with the Colors of The Flower Challenge

Hello friends!  I've been meaning to get my Twinkling H20's out for some watercoloring.  Over time they've become one of my favorite watercolor mediums.  Those little pots of paint are full of some very rich and gorgeous colors!  I think they're off the market now, but there are other types of shimmer and glimmer paints that are pretty amazing.

I stamped Penny Black's Enchantingly in Ranger Archival Pale Ochre on Arches cold press watercolor paper.  Painted first, then cut with the matching die.  The designer paper is one of my newer pads by Brutus Monroe called Love Letters.  The whole pad is scripty, vintage, papery, double sided, semi-gloss, awesome, and perfect for backgrounds.  There is nothing about love apparent in the script so it can be used for any occasion.

The small envelope was made with my envelope punch board, and I inserted a note made with an old, neglected SU notepaper edge punch.  I drew lines with a pencil and stamped with Penny Black's Note Builder.

The colors were decided by The Flower Challenge.  I love this combo!  Even the paper fits the colors.

I can never capture the shimmer of Twinks in a photograph, but you can see the graininess of the mica flakes in the photo below.  I know you can imagine how it looks and feels in hand.

In addition to The Flower Challenge I would also like to share in two more challenges:

The Neglected Stuff Challenge -- Darlene and Diane encourage us to play with something we haven't touched in months.  It's probably been years since I've used my notebook punch.
NBUS Challenge #76 -- My never before used schtuff is the Penny Black Enchantingly stamp.

  

I'm so glad you could stop and visit when there's so much summertime activity to be enjoyed.  I'm heading out to the garden with my little helper, Sophie, as soon as I finish here.  It's looking lovely out there!  Have a beautiful day!

Stamps:  Penny Black Enchantingly, Note Builder  Paper:  Arches 140 lb cold press watercolor, Cougar Natural, Brutus Monroe Love Letters designer paper  Ink:  Ranger Archival Pale Ochre, Memento Tuxedo Black, SU Creamy Caramel  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H20's  Other:  Envelope Punch Board, notepaper punch, sequins

Pink and Gold Floral

Hi there!  Getting right down to it... I felt inspired to create for two challenges.  It's the same Woodware stamp I used on the black watercolor card, but the look of it here is entirely different.  Both cards were embossed in gold and colored with Twinkling H2O's... the difference in the outcome is striking.  The other was impactful, this one gives the eyes a chance to rest.

Just two colors -- pink and gold.  I had to dilute the pink quite a lot to lighten the color, therefore it lacks shimmer.  That's okay because there's plenty of shimmer in the golden leaves.  The card is 3 3/4 x 6 3/4".  I guess I'll call it a midi-slimline.

I used an ancient JustRite sentiment with a circle punch and made it into a tag.  The Wicker Weave embossing is an old folder.  I can hardly make a card without old meeting new.

The two challenges:

Color Hues Challenge #55:  Light pink and gold.  Such a pretty combo.

Can You Handle the Pressure:  Anything goes with an optional twist of snow (I did not use the twist), but the challenge is the reason for the dry embossed lower edge, and the card is better for it.

 

Thank you lots for stopping by.  I hope to see you here again soon!

Stamps:  Woodware Floral Wonder, JustRite A Warm Hello Set (retired & out of business)  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, SU Whisper White  Ink:  Versamark  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H2O's -- Egyptian Gold & Pink Azalea  Other:  Ranger Princess Gold embossing powder, gold cord, 1 1/4" circle punch, Cuttlebug Wicker Weave embossing folder

Watercolor on Black

Hello friends!  I hope this finds you all happy and relaxed after Christmas.  I'm basking in the peace and calm that comes this last week of the year.  We had a minor wind storm that left the yard a mess of debris but this can be dealt with in due time.  We didn't even lose power.  As we watch the weather catastrophes on the news we're feeling very fortunate indeed.

I've been enjoying some time in my stamp room and am thinking I'd better get a card posted while I have a chance.  Today you can see I've been at my black watercolor paper again.  My new flower stamp from Woodware is called Floral Wonder, and it is wonder-full with all that open space in the flowers and leaves which make it so nice for watercoloring.  There are limits to what you can do with the blending of metallic inks, but I'm trying out some possibilities.

Working with metallics on black is an interesting experience.  I've used a higher concentration of paint for good coverage, and in this case I started at the petal and leaf tips and brushed inward, leaving black showing at the base.  At the tips of the petals I added a hint of darker purple, the effect of which is much more apparent as you move the card in your hand.  Just learning and playing.  My paints are the old-timey Twinkling H2O's.  There are some very pretty and fine quality pearlescent paints on the market which I may try someday.

The gold embossing is my usual Ranger Princess Gold, but even that looks different on the black watercolor paper.  Is it just me?  When heat set it does not raise up all smooth and sleek as you would expect.  Rather, it lays more flush with a grainy texture.  It's not a bad thing.  Just a whole other look.  Note that I'm using black watercolor 140 lb cold press as opposed to mixed media cardstock.  I'm sure each paper enables a different result.

I added gold splatters and didn't even make much of a mess this time.  I've made a note to self to leave the fan brush alone when it comes to splatters. 🙄

So there you have it, my second experiment with metallic watercolors on black.  It intrigues me and I will try again.  Have a fantastic day!

Stamps:  Woodware Floral Wonder  Paper:  Stonehenge 140 lb cold press black watercolor, gold satin metallic, pink glitter cardstock  Ink:  Versamark  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H2O's  Other:  Ranger Princess Gold embossing powder, Cottage Cutz Hello Phrase

Peony Rose on Black

Hello again!  I've had my first try at watercolor on black.  I bought a 5x7 pad of Stonehenge coldpress -- not too much to start just in case it turns out I don't care for it.  It's too soon to tell at this point.

For my first go I pulled out my Lisa Horton 3D Peony Rose Stem embossing folder and embossed a black panel.  I used my Twinkling H2O's to paint the raised areas of the image.  It's just plain old painting, no shading.  I'd forgotten what a difficult time I have seeing details in black, but I kept on till the end.  

The Twinks did an amazing job of covering the black so now I know I don't need to rush out and buy more metallic paints.  I love those little pots of paint!  I used my water spritzer bottle to spray water directly into the pots, then dipped my brush into the pot and proceeded to paint without any additional water.  After the paint was dry I slipped the panel back into the folder and embossed again.

I splattered with gold and added a gold embossed sentiment and a gold border at the lower edge.

The  4 1/2" x 6" card base is SU's retired Orchid Opulence, still one of my favorite SU colors.  I embossed the entire folded card base with SU's Subtle 3D folder.  It makes plain cardstock look so much prettier.

It's very difficult to show dimension on black, but I tried in the photo below.  It's also a trick to photograph metallic shine.  I was fortunate to have some sunshine coming through the window to help with all that.

This was probably not the easiest project for my first time out.  A gold or white embossed open line stamped image will be my next try.  I had a gold-embossed test piece on the side and I found that the full strength Twinks (metallic paints) obliterated any gold embossing they came in contact with so I know to be careful about that.  It's not the same as using regular watercolors that do not stick to embossing.

Anyway... more to follow with this technique later.  Any time spent in my stamp room is good time, so I'm happy.  See you again soon!

Stamps:  Birch Press Contempo stamp and die set  Paper:  Stonehenge Legion 140 lb coldpress watercolor, SU Orchid Opulence, scrap gold mirror cardstock  Ink:  Versamark  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H2O's  Other:  Lisa Horton Peony Rose Stem 3D embossing folder, SU Subtle embossing folder, Ranger Princess Gold embossing powder, foam mounting tape to pop up sentiment

Wild Horses

Hi friends!  Brace yourself for some wild color because I've been at my Laurel Burch stamps again.  They were sold by Stampendous, but I don't see them there now, so I'm wondering if they've been discontinued.  I see they're available on Amazon and elsewhere.  Typical of me to be clueless.  I'm just happy to have a few in my collection.

My Horse Friends are stamped in Versamark and embossed in gold.  I painted with Twinkling H2O's, using natural colors for the horses' bodies but going more creative for their manes.  I didn't want too much crazy color in the focal piece because the background is so wildly colorful.  The die cut "fantastic" seemed appropriate considering the fantastical nature of the artwork.

About that background...  I was in my Joseph's Coat phase but had an idea for something different.  I used a large sponge to apply a rainbow of inks to shimmery ivory cardstock.  Then I laid my stencil over top and used another large sponge to thoroughly apply black ink to the negative spaces.  It's a striking lot of color, but perfect for my Laurel Burch stamp.

The stencil is Whispering Grass by Pink Ink.

Inside is trimmed with a leftover piece, and the sentiment is gold embossed.  It's an oldie Wordsworth stamp and one of my all-time favorites.

The next card actually came first.  I brayered ink from an old SU spectrum pad onto Whisper White cardstock, then clear-embossed the horses.  I used a craft knife to cut the image from the center of the inky background and then rubbed black ink over just the horses image.  Matted the image and put it back in place.  It's more trouble than it would have been if I'd had a plan from the beginning.  Just goofing around.

I'm working with my not-yet-used Stampendous this week.  They're a favorite company with a variety of image styles and always reliable quality.  Just saying.  Some of my oldest and best loved stamps are from Stampendous.

As per usual I'll be sharing at Darnell's NBUS Challenge.  My Horse Friends stamp and Whispering Grass stencil are both being used for the first time.

See you again soon!

Birds and Blooms

Greetings!  It's nice to see you at the start of a brand new week.  I've been working with my not-yet-used Creative Expressions stamps in an effort to do another focus week.  It has taken a while -- I made this card in April.  I know!  I've been going through an extensive coloring slump due to some hand/arm pain and other issues.  I'm tentatively thinking the situation has improved somewhat, but not holding my breath.

The stamp set is Creative Expression Nightingale's Song.  I stamped on 140 lb hot pressed watercolor paper, then painted with Twinkling H2O's.  The whole card was sprayed with the last of my glitter spray, but no sparkle shows in the photo, tsk tsk.

I made another card with this set, too, but one is enough to represent.

Since this was the first inking of the set I'll share at Darnell's NBUS Challenge #40.

Thanks so much for stopping by.  I'll continue with Creative Expressions on Wednesday and Friday.  Just trying to lighten the load in those NBUS baskets.  Have a good day!

Fish Splishin'

Hello and happy day to you!

Things haven't been going right in my stamp room lately.  I can't color worth a darn, equipment fails me, techniques don't turn out... just to name a few.  I decided to quit worrying about it and do another Rubbernecker week.  This week will wrap up the last of the not-yet-used Rubbernecker stamps in my basket -- hooray!  Today it's a stamp called Fish Group.  I love these guys.  It's an older stamp and I think no longer available.  I must have gotten the last one.

For this card I watercolored with Twinkling H2Os.  You can't see much twinkle, but I like the colors.  I'm trying to show the bubbles in the picture below.  I spent a good amount of time cleaning the nozzles on all my Nuvo drops, so I'll be using them more often now.  They have to be rinsed clear after each use or they clog.  At least that's my experience.  They're an awesome product when properly cared for.

I cut a Big Splash Border (Memory Box 2013) and stenciled make-believe sunrays.  It's all just fun and whimsy as I work my way through this mojo slump.

I hope these fish faces will make you smile with me a little bit.

Sharing at Darnell's NBUS Challenge #39.

More Rubbernecker coming later this week.  Have a happy day!

Stamps:  Rubbernecker Fish Group, Stampendous Ocean Sayings sentiment  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot pressed watercolor, Neenah 80 lb white card base  Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black, SU Summer Sun  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H2Os  Other:  WOW Super Fine Clear and Super Fine Black embossing powder, Nuvo Sea Breeze translucent Jewel Drops, MFT Ray of Light stencil, Memory Box Big Splash Border

Easter Bunny

Hi again!  Sharing one of very few Easter cards I made this year.  When I realized how I was struggling with them I decided to call it good enough.  This stamp is not an Easter image but, hey, it's a bunny and it's a pretty thing with all the flowers.  Add an Easter sentiment and it works, I think.

I watercolored with Twinkling H2O's, added sequins and a scalloped edge.  There are dots of white acrylic paint in the flowers.  A simple enough card, but the coloring took forever with the Twinks on such a detailed image.

I'll be playing along in Double D's Easter Challenge today.
Also, the bunny stamp is fresh out of the package so I'll join the rest of the NBUSers in Darnell's NBUS Challenge #37.

Thanks bunches for stopping by today.  I'll see you again soon!

Stamps:  Creative Expressions Running Free  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, 49 and Market Sage designer paper  Ink:  Palette Noir  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H2Ox  Other:  Sequins, SU Subtle embossing folder, Impression Obsession Easter Joy die, Spellbinders A2 Curved Borders One, Sue Wilson Pierced Flags

Twinkling Bouquet

Hi there!  Still trying to catch up with the blog posts.  I believe I made this card in January.  It's a perky and fun Stampendous set called Pop Bouquet.  I still have a few lot of Stampendous in my not-yet-used baskets.  However, this set is no longer NBUS as it's card #2 after I stamped and embossed everything multiple times and watercolored all with Twinkling H2O's.  It's my favorite way to insure a set gets thoroughly used before I put it away.

Those little pots of Twinks sure produce some pretty colors.  Lately I've been going for simplicity in my coloring as I still have a trigger finger problem.  This time it's in my right ring finger and it's the worst yet in terms of working around it, grrrr.  We do what we can, right?

I love playing with arrangements of all my little cut out pieces.  This one has chicken wire over some gorgeous Mintay paper.  The flower bunch is popped up.  Very cheerful!

I'll keep this quick today and leave you with dreams of springtime and warmer days.  We had a stretch of sunshine, but chilly wind, and then on Friday it was gorgeous.  We spent the day in the country with family, mostly outside.  You'd never know it was February.  Keep your hopes high!

Stamps:  Stampendous Pop Bouquet  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot pressed watercolor, Neenah 80 lb white, Co'redinations 65# white base, Mintay Lovely Day designer paper  Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black, Memento Tuxedo Black  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H2O's  Other:  Small black pearls, clear detail embossing powder, Spellbinders Standard Circles Large, Cheery Lynn Chicken Wire Frame, dimensional dots for flowers

Twinkling Hello

Hi there!  The sun is shining as I write this and I'm heading outside, but first a few minutes to share a card.  I rummaged through one of my "not yet used" baskets looking to choose something cheery.  Yes, I now have two baskets of not yet used stamps and another one for dies.  It's sometimes so much easier to shop than to create, but I will say for sure that creating is much more fun.  I need to remember that!

Today's card is made with a Stampendous set called Pop Bouquet.  I wanted to color, but had no plans for a particular card design, so I stamped a whole lot of images with Versafine Onyx Black on watercolor paper and then clear embossed.  I set to it with my Twinkling H2O's and when finished I cut everything out by hand.

It's hard to show the shimmer of the paints.  It can be subtle, and some colors shimmer more than others.  Also, more water means less shimmer, but the colors are always scrumptious.  I love my old timey Twinks!  The die cut sentiment is Cottage Cutz -- three layers of black and then brushed with Wink of Stella.

The frame and lattice piece are from my card parts drawer.  The frame had been embossed with an Anna Griffin folder (Cuttlebug) and then ink applied with a blending brush.  It wasn't a great look as a whole, but it made a nice frame and I thought the colors coordinated so...  put it all together on a soft gray card base... I kinda like it.  It is going to a local friend/former coworker as a birthday card.

I need to rush off for now.  Rich is washing my car after I spent three afternoons detailing the inside.  I had planned to wash it myself, but he's being a nice guy and sometimes you just have to let a person be a nice guy, you know?

Hugs and happiness to all!

Stamps:  Stampendous Pop Bouquet  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot pressed watercolor, Neenah white, textured gray card base, black cardstock  Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black, misc SU inks brushed on embossed frame  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H2Os  Other:  Clear detail embossing powder, Wink of Stella, black pearl, Cuttlebug Anna Griffin Aviary embossing folder, Spellbinders Scored and Pierced Rectangles, Spellbinders Lattice Border, Cottage Cutz Hello Phrase

Just Tweeting Around

Color me happy to have some time to play in my room!  This one is another new-to-me stamp set which was gifted to me in either October or December.  Shame, shame that I can't remember.  If I was a gambling woman I'd say October (birthday).  It's the cutest little Polkadoodles set called Stay Chirpy, and I just love it to pieces!  I've linked to it at Simon Says Stamp, but it's out of stock.

I watercolored with Twinkling H2Os.  Love those little pots of shimmery paints!  So many pretty colors.  The more water you use with Twinks the less twinkle you see, but it's there as a little surprise when you turn it certain ways.  I put Black Diamond Stickles glitter glue on the polka dot wings, too.

I'm going to play along in the following challenges:

Darnell's NBUS Challenge #25 -- my birds are fresh out of the package.

Dies R Us Challenge #166 -- anything goes with a brand of dies that are sold in the store.  My grass and flower corner dies came from the DRU store, but not sure they're still available as I've had them a few years:  Poppystamps Hampstead Corner, Impression Obsession Grass and Grass Border

Back soon!  Wishing you a very happy day!

Stamps:  Polkadoodles Stay Chirpy  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, black cardstock, spicy coral textured cardstock  Ink:  Palette Noir  Coloring:  Watercolor with Twinkling H2Os  Dies:  Spellbinders Grand Squares, Poppystamps Hampstead Corner, Impression Obsession Grass Border and Grass (tall)  Other:  Clear rhinestones, Black Diamond Stickles, white acrylic paint