A Forgotten Technique

I saw a tutorial recently that reminded me that I have an embarrassing amount of ink.  Reinkers, alcohol inks, tsukineko ink, etc.  Love them all, all are neglected.  When I saw the Color Throwdown challenge, I had to bust out the marbling technique.

I started with the one on the right, using SU! Tempting Turquoise ink spread through shaving cream.  I hate wasting stuff, so I smeared the leftover shaving cream on my mat, and added more ink to make the background on the left.  Despite being super careful, my fingers are stained!  Love this. Bonus - they smell good, too ;).  Sharing with the Color Throwdown:

Try Stampin' on Tuesday - or Saturday :)

I absolutely love the meerkat set from Stampin' Up.  Their sweet little faces make me smile!  I colored them in with watercolor pencils, an ancient Megan Elizabeth sentiment, and DCWV Safari Chic paper. 

I based the layout on the Try Stampin' On Tuesday's sketch:

Masculine Cards

Even though I am not a frou-frou  person, I still tend to make cards that are a little more feminine.  Trying to branch out a bit using the Paper Craft Crew sketch challenge:

Using Simon Says and older SU sentiments paired with Geared Up Garage paper and some twine:

On my first attempt (not pictured, a hot mess), I embossed the papers with a gears folder.  WAY too much going on!  In this case, less was more.  Also playing along with the Paper Girls All About Boys challenge. 

Shopping Our Stash - Stuck On You

It has been a while since I played along with Shopping Our Stash.  I didn't realize how much I missed this group!  Their challenge is to use a sticker.  I broke out the leftovers from an Echo Park Fashionista paper pack and made a few of these:

I hope to post more often, as I have joined the ranks of the unemployed and now have a little more time on my hands ;).  

All About the Boys

The Paper Girls have a male focused challenge going on.  Great reason to break out a new-to-me SU Best Dad Ever stamp set.

I stamped the ties with Versamark ink onto colored card stock, then fussy cut.  The patterned paper is from a Love Nicole Prince Charming paper pad.

Celebrate

I used elements from the Echo Park Party pack and Bo Bunny Very Vintage Double Dot Designs for the background. 

Playing along on a Try Stampin on Tuesday sketch challenge.

Birthday Wishes

I treated myself to the Echo Park mystery box a few months back, and am still working my way through the vast amount of paper and ephemera I received.  Mystery boxes are a good way to try out different products.  I find myself buying similar things over and over.  With a mystery box, I often get things I might not choose to buy, then find something new that I like. Low risk! 

Here is a good example.  I am not a pink girl, and rarely buy cutesy stuff, but have really enjoyed this Party paper set.  I paired it with this week's My Favorite Things weekly sketch challenge.  

I trimmed the journaling card down, and added a bit of bling to the Unity sentiment. 

Mini Envelopes

I've had this mini envelope die for a while, but didn't know what to do with it.  Just Us Girls has the perfect challenge for me break it in!

I cut a bunch of envelopes out of different colors and patterns, but every layout I tried looked messy. 

I added a little heart to each flap, included die cuts inside, flowers, hearts, a sun, etc. and used repositionable adhesive to close each envelope.  Found the perfect sentiment in a new-to-me Carta Bella Just Be You set.  Tip Top Taupe and Mint Macaron patterned paper and ink. 

Under the Sea...

Try Stampin' on Tuesday has a fun challenge this week. 

Challenge accepted!!

I wanted to make a scene from a diver's point of view.  Echo Park Let's Be Mermaids was used for the background.  I have some adhesive puffy foam that I die cut into a rectangle to pop up the window.  I added some pearls, sequins, water dots, stars, etc. Added the sand layer to the top.  The starfish was originally a gold earring, and the rhinestones were grey.  I used alcohol inks and Wink Of Stella to color them light purple.  Don't know why they look so dark in the pic.  Happy Mother's Day to moms of all kinds - birth moms, step moms, fur moms, crazy aunts, angel moms, teacher moms...  You are valued and appreciated.  

Hello

Playing along with a couple of challenges today.  The Paper Girls have an inspiration challenge:

I love cards that use a bunch of tiny stamps, but I have never been able to duplicate the look.  Until I realized that I could use really tiny dies! 

I used a variety of neon adhesive paper and dies from the Sizzix Lace Heart set, the "Hello" is one of the Ranger Letter It sentiments.  I liked this one enough to try again, using this week's Color Throwdown combo:

I used Bermuda Bay, Coastal Cabana, and metallic gold paper surrounding the "Hello" stamped in Basic Grey. 

Thank You

Attempting to join in challenges more often and get out of my creative rut.  Try Stampin' on Tuesday has a sketch challenge this week:

Carta Bella Ahoy There anchor paper, old Just Rite stamps, layered on paper embossed with waves from an even older Fiskars texture plate.

Attitude of gratitude - I have a roof over my head, food on my table, and a job to keep going.  

Hero

No posts for a month?!!  I have been very lucky to be able to work from home for the past 6 weeks.  I have been busy sewing masks and making cards.  I'm sending more cards lately, trying to keep in touch and lift spirits.  I am seeing everyday heroes who are stepping up.  And some have always stood watch.

JUGS (Just Us Girls) have a word challenge this week - HERO.  

I used 4 different embossing folders to create the background, and layered the large sentiment in navy to make it pop.  These will go into my next box for Cards for Soldiers to be distributed to our deployed military.  How are you managing quarantine?