Quiet Peace of Christmas

I'm posting today for Eureka, and this is a post that almost didn't happen.  I take my design team commitment seriously, and so made most of my cards this summer, just in case I had a rough semester of college.  Well, it was crazy!  I made all of three cards, and this one I assumed would be easy enough to get to because college would be done forever.  Well, so much for that idea!  This is a card I had made a portion of earlier, which is the only reason I could finish it, lol!  The dark green background is a shimmery pattern that is very similar to the design of the holly border and square.  The text is from sister company Biblical Impressions.

JOY!!!

It's challenge time again at the Eureka Challenge Blog! The theme this week is "Christmas Spirit;" please show us your creativity, and get a chance to win free images from Eureka!

 I started this card this summer, but did not have a chance to finish it because college started up, and it's been a crazy last semester for me.  I finished the card Saturday, and learned an important lesson when using these tiny little beads: design the entire card first.  Why?  Because you cannot do any burnishing of the cardstock with the beads, they are too fragile.  Even though after I attach the beads I pour clear embossing powder over them and heat to further secure them, with the amount of activity I did attaching it to the other layers caused a number of them to fall off, and I since I couldn't burnish at all, I suspect the letter panels will separate and fall off if I try to give it to anyone.  But, perhaps a liquid glue might have helped? 

 

The letters can all be found HERE, as well as a number of letter blocks.  The filagree square is located here.  I have had so much fun with these!  There are

 

 

Wonderful, Counselor

Posting for Biblical Impressions today.  I have loved the Names of Jesus stamp, and done all sorts of things with it, but I've never embossed gold on gold.  I think it worked well! The blessing text and card are cream, not white as the camera thought!

We Three Kings

I'm posting today for Eureka.  I hope everyone is enjoying the season, and not getting stressed out with everything on their schedules!

The obvious thing to do with this image is to color it, and I really wanted to ... still want to!  But, I didn't!  I decided to find a different way to show case the Three Kings.  I wish I had a camera that could pick up the beautiful velvety cardstock I used for the background on the top card and everything on the bottom; the elegance it added is perfect.  I also don't know if you can really see that the top card is somewhat 3D; each king is a separate, solid layer of cardstock.  The star comes from the Bethelehem with verse image (see HERE for a card with the full image).  I stamped it on light gold cardstock and embossed.

The Ultimate Christmas Tree

I'm posting for Biblical Impressions today, hope everyone's Christmas planning is going smoothly!

This is a card I made years and years ago, when my cardmaking was extremely simple (not that it's amazing now, of coures, but my skills were about zero when I started cardmaking), and I was so delighted with it, I felt like I'd artistically arrived! But ... it probably took me a full day, seriously, to do this. I'm that slow to make decisions, to color, and to assemble. So, I may never make it again, even though I have improved speed a little bit. Anyway, the Jesus Savior tree was embossed in gold on white vellum, then glued. A gently applied glue stick that is not too dry works for me, but the vellum must be attached by brads or something else to keep from peeling. I also weight it down under a pile of books for a day or two. It works very well, and just possibly might make the brads unnecessary, but I still use them. The Stained Glass Nativity was embossed on white cardstock, then trimmed and mounted to panels. If you don't have some type of stamp-a-ma-jig, as I didn't when I made this, just use a bigger piece of vellum than you need, then place on the stained glass image, and mark where you need to trim.

I wanted to use the design again, but I did not want to do all the coloring. So, this is what I came up with this time:
If I remake this, I would use mini brads (I do not have any), and perhaps do all four corners.

A Savior has been born to you...

Hello!  I'm posting today for Eureka.

I love, love, love Christmas Season!  I love the celebration of Jesus' birth, and I have the most wonderful memories of Christmas from childhood.  Our house looked, smelled, tasted, and sounded like Christmas!

Anyway, this is a single image, Bethlehem With Verse.  I embossed the image with silver.  Then I traced over the star with a versamark pen, and re-embossed it with gold.

Note: I was using a rather dry versamark pad, so I did not get great coverage on the bottoms of these cards (I think I was a bit hurried, and didn't press firmly enough).  For this top one, I just added more ink and more embossing powder.  Funny, my heat gun kept putting air bubbles, dozens and dozens.  I finally figured out how to position the cardstock best, but you can see I still had a couple! I also filled in the spots with a Galaxy marker where the script is not right, but unfortunately, spilled something on the card and ruined it. :-( So, no corrected picture, sorry about that!

I hesitated over posting this card, because it didn't turn out as well as I would have liked it to.  However, I really liked the concept: I embossed the image with sticky embossing powder, then brushed different colors of mica powder over the scene.  As you see, the blue did on the bottom looks a bit odd.  It's very important not to heat sticky emboss powder too long, or it will not look smooth and shiny, but very dull.  As I said above, I also did not check that I had thoroughly coated the stamped image.  Still, I  hope you are inspired!

Thanksgiving challenge for Eureka!

It's challenge time again at the Eureka Challenge Blog! The theme this week is "Thanksgiving;" please show us your creativity, and get a chance to win free images from Eureka!

 

I colored the Harvest Bounty with Harp image with pencils, and embossed Thanksgiving Blessings with an embossing powder that is no longer made, but is very similar to the Tim Holtz line of distress embossing powders. 

Eureka Blog Hop!

Welcome to Eureka Stamps' November Blog Hop!

The Eureka Stamp design team is showcasing one of the many wonderful stamps that you will find in the Eureka Stamp Store.

*The Grand Prize winner of the Eureka blog hop, chosen from comments left on the very last stop, will receive 5 new digital stamps of their choice from the EurekaStamp Store!

*Two Mystery DT Members will each be choosing a winner from the comments left on their hop post who will win our featured Eureka Stampdigi image.

Our hop will run through Saturday, November 10th. Winners will be announced on Sunday, November 11th.

So grab your favorite cup of choice and sit back as you hop along with us as we share some beautiful creations.

If you have arrived here from Kristie's blog, then you are in the right place. If not, why not start at the beginning of the hop which is Eureka Stamp Blog?

Now, admit it ... this is not an award winning color job! Honestly, coloring is not only something I do not do well, but frankly, dislike altogether. I never got over the trauma of being the last kid in my kindergarten class - no exaggeration - to learn how to color inside the lines! Perhaps therapy would help? ;-) Actually, this was also my first experience with digital stamps! I have never been interested in them, mostly because since coloring is a weak point, I enjoy create techniques like embossing, alcohol inks, etc, both of which don't work when using digitals. Frankly, had I paid attention when the call went out for this hop, and noticed it was a specific and digital image, I would not have agreed to do it! So, I am very glad I was in ignorance: digitals are fun! As I said, coloring is a weak point, so I knew that my efforts would not focus in that direction (though I admit, I did not mean for my focus to wander quite so far, lol!) Actually, I did take the time to google turkeys for realistic colors! Anyway, I literally prayed for inspiration, and immediately the idea of a place holder came to mind. I do not have a photo editor that allows me to custom size an image, but I can pick from standard picture sizes. Wallet size was the closest I could get, a little on the big side: the length of the green place holder is 6 inches, so a little large, but not badly so. If I were making a set of these to use, I would attach the name and its background with temporary bond glue, so that I could "recycle" them another year.

Thank you for stopping by! And don't forget to leave a comment at each stop for a chance to win!!

Your next stop on the hop is at Katie's blog!

Mosaic pumpkin!

 

I'm posting today for Eureka. I few weeks ago I posted with Eureka's mosaic background and leaves; today I'm showing you the mosaic pumpkin!  I embossed the pumpkin in gold, then sponged orange and green inks.  

Christmas idea

I used to do a craft fair at a local Christian college, Houghton, and my first year I made what I called "Nobbies," decorated tags to which I added plastic bags with candy inside, looping the bag behind the tag with wire. The idea was for the student to write a note on the back of the tag, and then wrap the wire around the door knob of a friend in their dorm. All except the "Merry Christmas" are Biblical Impressions or Eureka images. Most of these are long gone, so I could not rephotograph them for this post.

smARTworks giveaway!

Susan Trask is hosting a celebration of eight years of business with a  smARTworks giveway, including a generous amount of her wonderful stamps as well as some great supplies!  I absolutely love Susan's stamps, and you will too!  I am not in any way affiliated with smARTworks, just wanted to pass the opportunity on!

Here are a couple of cards I've made with her Spirit dancers stamps:

A Partridge in a Pear Tree

It's challenge time again at the Eureka Challenge Blog! The theme this week is "Things With Wings;" please show us your creativity, and get a chance to win free images from Eureka!

 

This was a very challenging image for me to color.  I made one a number of years ago that was, frankly, terrible!  But I love this Partridge in a Pear Tree, so I decided to try again.  This time, I took an hour or so researching, and came up with a picture (bottom of the three) of a partridge here. (This type is called a Roul Roul Partridge).  I made the feet a little deeper red to be more Christmasy.  As long as I was doing a more fantasmic coloring job, I wanted a Christmas red!  The partridge was stamped and colored separately, then attached over the original gold-embossed image for a bit of a 3-D look. (Ahem ... and also because I didn't want to remake the entire panel, so I used the horrible one, and covered it up with the newly colored partridge!)

 

 

James 1:22

I'm posting today for Eureka.  I love the design of this James 1:22 scripture stamp.  So simple to make a card with!  The background panel is Japanese Ghost paper, I believe, a sort of thin, white embossed mulberry type paper.  It is white, but so thin it picks up the background color.

Isaiah 40 tile

I really hesitated to post this tile, from the set of tiles I with the accidental application of glue instead of sealer which reduced the clarity of image and color, and I had also grabbed the wrong green to fill in the space below the trees.  But additionally, as I have said of the other tiles, the style of these  tumbled tiles just does not make for great photos, at least when I am taking them!  But I am posting it despite my error and the camera's lack of sensitivity (!!) because this really is a great group of images for a tile, coming from smARTworks in a set called Hope Soars.  With more detailed images, I recommend Brilliance inks only; they are the only inks, that I have tried so far, that give a relatively crisp image on tile.  Also, it's especially important to look at where your nooks and crannies are before stamping an image that might be ruined by poor placement.

MoreTiles!

Well, I had planned to post a few days ago for Biblical Impressions, but when I photographed the tiles, the picture turned out awful.  As I mentioned in my last post, I accidently sprayed these tiles, made this summer before college started up again, with glue instead of sealer.   While the glue darkened and dulled the tiles, they still looked okay, but these two just didn't photograph well.  So, I decided to remake them this weekend after (hurrah!!) I finished my last assignments for this quarter. 

First, I want to show you a tile before I stamped on them.  As you can see, these are not smooth ceramic tiles, but are tumbled tiles.  When you choose your tiles, be sure to be aware of the grooves and pits.  On my sunflower tile, I did not notice that, and around the edges, it doesn't quite have the smooth look of the original. 

I wanted to make a masculine looking tile, so this is it.  I applied my green Stazon pad directly to the tile.  I embossed the plaid stamps in copper.  When I first photgraphed this second set of tiles, I though the white cracks (from the tile) made the tiles not look really nice, though it is a more natural look, so I inked in some more green on this, and yellow on the next tile.

Now, in case you were wondering if the glue really had made all that difference, here is the tile, same copper embossing, though maybe a different green:

I used the Sunflower Background for this stamp, after applying yellow to the tile.  I edged the tile first in brown, then yellow as the brown was too far to the edge, then edged in once more with butterscotch.  I liked the color, and decided to daub it on the sunflower centers as well.

Unlike the plaid tile, I covered all of the tile surface with ink.
Here is the tile before I altered it (note, photographing on wood vs. countertop  yielded different appearance fo the yellow):

So, those are the tiles I recreated for this post.  But as long as I finally had a chance to play with my stuff, I made a couple of Christmas tiles.  These are your standard ceramic glazed tiles.  I got a bunch for next to nothing at a place called "Why buy new" which has all sorts of fun used stuff.  I've discovered, from a flawed tile that I had been using as a coaster just to determine this, that embossing handles use very well.  So, I used embossing on both of these.  First, however, I applied alcohol ink to each of them.   For the tile with the Our Lord circle image, I decided to emboss the sides with gold.  I probably won't do it often: embossing on tile (either kind) takes FOREVER, so I may try something else next time. For the sectioned tile (same size as the single tiles), I used Glory to God and holly from the discontinued line of BI stamps still available.

Tile Fun!

Here is my update from yesterday's post, which I'm leaving here ... scroll below to see the update!

Well, I have searched high and low for my camera, but cannot find it anywhere. I had three tiles to show you today, but I'll have to settle for this one poor photo. The tile actually is much nicer to look at (yet not good enough to re-create, lol!) than you see here ... I had photographed it simply because I wanted to remember the design before I destroyed it.

No, not because I don't like how it looks in the photo, but because I did one very, very flaky thing. I made about eight of these, each with a different design, including three from Eureka .... and accidently grabbed by glue spray instead of my sealing spray. AAAAUUUGGHHHHHH as Charlie Brown would say! I am happy to say that the glue peeled off the design nicely, so at least I can reuse the tiles! I was waiting to photgraph the others before peeling them off, so I will photgraph them tomorow when my son is home with his camera! So, check this post tomorrow afternoon to see the other two tiles!

I stamped the Fine Art Rose with Versafine black, and chalked in the color. Then I embossed the Names of Jesus in copper.

Well, my hand were a bit shaky, but I think these are a fair representation of the other tiles. This first one is, of course, the same rose with a Joy stamp for the text (this also comes in a larger size):

This one did not turn out well, though I will say it looked better before I accidently sprayed that glue on it. I left it here simply to inspire those of you who can actually color, lol! The fern background really does work nicely, really!

 

Now this tile is my favorite. It looks nice enough in this picture, but it looked FANTASTIC before I sprayed the glue! I just inked it with Brilliance blue ink, and stamped it on.

I hope I've provided some inspiration! Christmas is coming ... these are a simple, not very time consuming gift! (Well, as long as you keep your spray adhesive far away!!!)

Tile fun

Posting today for Eureka...

Well, I have searched high and low for my camera, but cannot find it anywhere. I had three tiles to show you today, but I'll have to settle for this one poor photo. The tile actually is much nicer to look at (yet not good enough to re-create, lol!) than you see here ... . I had photographed it simply because I wanted to remember the design before I destroyed it. ;-)

No, not because I don't like how it looks in the photo, but because I did one very, very flaky thing. I made about eight of these, each with a different design, including three from Eureka .... and accidently grabbed by glue spray instead of my sealing spray. AAAAUUUGGHHHHHH as Charlie Brown would say! I am happy to say that the glue peeled off the design nicely, so at least I can reuse the tiles! I was waiting to photgraph the others before peeling them off, so I will photgraph them tomorow when my son is home with his camera! So, check this post tomorrow afternoon to see the other two tiles!

I stamped the rose with Versafine black, and chalked in the color. Then I embossed the Names of Jesus in copper.

Mansion

Have you ever started a card, put it aside, and then forgotten just what you planned to do with it? 

I'm posting for Biblical Impressions today.  I wasn't exactly sure what I would do with this card, in fact, I'm still not sure ... the we've moved text is attached with temporary bond - we're not moving!  But my mind was a complete blank ... I can't remember what I had in mind when I ordered it this pretty mansion!  I love stone and brick houses, and I don't own any other stamps with a home on it, so perhaps that was reason enough!

The birds are not part of a stamp ... they're covering a blot of blue ink.  I'm always nervous adding something like this, but fortunately, it turned out!

Funky Birthday Card

I'm posting (while rolling my eyes) for Eureka today. This is a totally unplanned card.  The odd squiggly-lined panel started out as just a place to clean off my brushes as I pained another card with opalite inks.  But as I started "stroking off" the paint of a third color, I decided it looked kind of fun, and proceeded to cover the whole scrap.  So, of course, I had to make a card.  :-)

The Baroque background is black embossed on black; the baroque corner and Happy Birthday text are also embossed in black.

Yesterday I posted leaf cards for Eureka, so today I am posting leaf cards for Biblical Impressions.  I love how different techniques can create a completely different look for the same image!

This first card is just a nice, simple monochromatic card, a quick and easy card for a no-frills recipient.

For these leaves, I used gold leaf.  I am happy with the look, though I think I could have gotten the same effect with metallic/mica powders; gold leaf is shown to best effect with stamps that have thicker lines/images.

Mosaic leaves!

It's challenge time again at the Eureka Challenge Blog! The theme this week is "Fall Fun;" please show us your creativity, and get a chance to win free images from Eureka!

I love Eureka's mosaic stamps!  In addition to the leaves and background images shown  here, there is a pumpkin as well, with which I made a card last fall.

For this card, I used Eureka's gold leaf.  I love how beautiful the gold leaf looks, it totally changes the look of the image!

  This card was made with metallic/mica powders, another fun medium that adds a sparkle to the image!

I'm posting today for Eureka.  I was looking at my comforter just before going to bed one evening, and thought, "What a pretty card background this would make!"   Of course, then I couldn't sleep for awhile thinking about which stamps I would use!  I wonder if any other cardmakers have that problem?  I knew that I would definitely want to use Eureka's Baroque Background stamp, so I started with that in the morning.  I ended up also using the peacock feather and in samples below,  the Mosaic background stamp.  The background was created using faux batik technique, and sponging brilliance ink dew drop-shaped pads directly onto the cardstock.

This is the comforter:

Here are a few of the other backgrounds I made trying to catch the look.  I couldn't get a decent photo of two of them, so included one of all four together.

 

I stopped before adding black to this one because I liked how it looked at this point:

 

Ladybug!

 

Today I am posting from Biblical Impressions.  This is actually "take two" of a card I made for my daughter who likes butteflies and ladybugs.   Somehow, I managed to send her the card without photographing it.  I borrowed it back from her to take a picture ... but somehow managed to lose it!  So, I made this card, a different design, but with the same way of doing the ladybug, with microbeads.  I had first tried stamping the ladybug image and putting black microbeads on the image, but the look was too messy.  So I decided to just cover the entire ladybug, after trimming off the antenae and legs.  By creating a "tail" on the cutout, I gave myself an easy way to cover the bug with versamark ink without having any uneven edges by doing it before cutting it out, and then giving myself  something to hold on to while heating the sticky embossing powder.  After I did that, I sprinkled some clear embossing powder over it and melted that to ensure a firm hold on the microbeads.  I then stamped the image again, with black ink and powder to give texture to the antennae and legs, then glued the microbeaded ladybug on top.  I couple of weeks ago I made something else with microbeads, and it suddenly occured to me that I could try gently pushing the microbeads that were just a bit over the edge, into the design for a neater look.  If you do a close-up look at the bug, you can see a few clear beads overhanging the image.  Now I know to just gently push in those strays for a much cleaner look!

I almost didn't post this card, because it really did not turn out as I had hoped.  (I also didn't sponge my sky on dark enough to see in the photograph!)  I realized in retrospect that hot, humid days are not good days for sticky embossing!  But as I appreciate learning from people's mistake, I'm passing on what I learned with this!  If you click on the picture for a larger image, you can see with the flower that a number of excess microbeads are layered, giving a messy look to the flower.  The butteflies turned out much better, but I also had problems with them.  Just too much moisture in the air!  I embossed the grass and flower stem, and colored in the leaves with marker so that the stem would stand out from the grass.

All the images can be purchased seperately, or you can get the full sheets Flower Blocks and/or Dragonflies.  I have made a number of cards with these adorable images!

Praise the name of the Lord!

It's challenge time again at the Eureka Challenge Blog! The theme this week is "anything goes;" so please show us your creativity, and get a chance to win free images from Eureka!

I absolutely love Eureka's scripture stamps! They're a large size, which is great when you want the scripture to be the dominant part of a card! Psalm 133:3 is a great encouragement that it is always time to praise the Lord! I chose this bookmark image as a great reminder of the beatiful world He created that we can thank him for!

I used colored pencils to color the bookmark image.  I rarely choose stamp images that need coloring because  I don't have a natural ability for it, and so it easy for me to ruin an image, and if I have to "ground" it or anything, I'm really lost!  But this image is not to large, and detailed enough (small spaces) so there is not a lot of guesswork or difficulty in achieving a "smooth" coloring job as there is when a large space is being filled in.  (Have I ever mentioned I got kicked out of a summer art class???)

I often stamp several of the same image, in case I ruin one in the process of turning it into a card.  I absolutely love this rose from Impression Obsession; it's beautiful, and it's great for making a quick card like this one!