Tutorial Tuesdays: How to make a handsome Poe artist trading block by Leigh!

Howzit Creative Friends!
Welcome to today's Tutorial Tuesday segment! 

You all saw my altered wooden cube during the Poe Hop and today I'm going to show you how easy it is to make this handsome piece.  All of the digis featured today are now on FLASH SALE until midnight pacific tomorrow night...Feb 7th which is my birthday🎉

 I got this 3.5 inch unfinished wooden cube from Michaels and started off by base coating it black.  You can use regular acrylic paint, black gesso or Black Soot Distress Stain.  I'm a thrifty artist when it comes to my supplies so I only painted the outer edges that will be visible...nothing wrong with base coating the entire cube if you'd prefer!

I then distressed it with metallic silver acrylic paint to enhance the wood grain as well as any imperfections in the wood.  This is called Dry Brushing and its an old ceramic technique used to enhance the detail of a piece by applying paint to all the high areas only.  Just as the technique suggests, you do this with a very dry brush, ie: without using a lot of paint or water.

 Here's a look at some of my Dry Brushed ceramic pieces I did in the 90's.

I then sealed the painted areas with a coat of Delta CeramCoat matte varnish and while it dried I made the collaged panels in Photoshop CS6 using all the classic digis from my new Poe collection.

I applied Pumice Stone Distress Ink to age the panels and Black Soot to distress and darken the corners and edges too.

I then edged the panels with a metallic silver Promarker but I wanted a little bit more metallic shine and edged again with a DecoColor liquid silver paint pen.  So the panels have two levels of metallic silver going on, a wider duller silver and a narrow brighter silver.

 Mount each panel onto black cardstock and trim leaving a 1/8 inch border.

Adhere all the panels to the cube with your favourite glue and attach Tim's gorgeous Idea-ology Foundations feet with E6000 adhesive.

While the feet dried I painted a wooden ball black, dry brushed on the silver and then sealed it with a coat of matte varnish.  I then completed my cube by adhering the ball on the top as a finial and added the pewter metal corner pieces with E6000 adhesive.  I've had those decorative corners in my stash forever just waiting for the perfect project and this was it, I love how handsome and elegant it turned out!

Here's another look at the finished piece and you can see detail photos of each side on my Poe blog hop post HERE!

 Don't forget that all these digis are now on FLASH SALE until midnight pacific tomorrow!

Thanks for stopping by to see my project today!  It's a hive of activity here preparing for my next big new release, I can't wait to show you all my new designs so don't go far😋

Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

Poe Appreciation Day Blog Hop 2018 WINNERS!

Howzit Creative Friends!

What a mind blowing show of appreciation for Poe we received in my 3rd annual Poe Appreciation Day Blog Hop!  75 POEtastic creations were added to the hop collection over the span of 5 days and there were even more to see as some bloggers shared more than one project in their posts too!  Thank you to everyone for making the hop such a huge success!  It took me awhile to tally up all the entries and comments and now the moment you've all been waiting for...who won LeighSBDesigns Poe Prizes😋

I pulled names from all the qualifying entries for each prize from the Mr Random sorting hat and the winners are.....

the Blogger Prize

for playing goes to

Susan Renshaw

the Hopper Prize

for commenting goes to

Donna Mundinger

AND coz so many of you used my LeighSBDesigns digis I decided to add an extra prize to show my appreciation❤️
Three names actually came out of the hat stuck together, can't argue with Mr Random so....

the "Thank you for using my digis" Prize

goes to

Susan Sayler
Ike
Anne Squire

CONGRATULATIONS ladies, you've all won one LeighSBDesigns digi of your choice from the LeighSBDesigns Etsy Boutique🎉

Email (LeighSBDesigns @ cox . net) or Facebook message me your picks😀

My February new release is just around the corner in time for the MY DARK VALENTINE Blog Hop so you're welcome to pick from that collection too, happy shopping😜
See you for

Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

Poe Appreciation DT Showcase: 2 more POEtastic Fat Pages by Nan!

Hiya Creative Friends!
Today is the last of our Poe Appreciation DT Showcase, I hope you've enjoyed having a closer look at the projects my fabulous design team ladies, Val and Nan, made for our annual Poe Appreciation Day Blog Hop!

  If you missed the fun then you can still hop and enjoy all the POEtastic projects shared.  The 2018, 2017 and 2016 Poe Blog Hop Collections, as well as info on the upcoming Poe 2019 hop, are on the Poe Page so click on over for a look!  I'm still tallying up all the comments by the bloggers and the hoppers and will announce the Winners of my two Poe Prizes soon😋

Today I'm sharing the final two wonderful pages from LeighSBDesigner Nan's POE Fat Book she made for the hop!

Nan's POEtastic 4th page features the Raven from the Oddleigh Poe and Raven set.  This time he stands alone atop a quote from the classic poem, Alone, which Nan typed up in a wonderful font.  My Oddleigh Raven has a Mona Lisa smile....he likes to keep you wondering what he's thinking😋  Nan coloured him with Spectrum Noir markers and she used decorative 6 x 6 paper from the same paper pad for the background.  She inked the pages and stamped various stamps from assorted companies with Black Soot, Fired Brick and Gathered Twigs Distress Inks and embellished with a wonderful vinyl lace she picked up in Japan.

 Nan's POEtastic 6th page features the Master of Macabre and his signature from my classic E.A. Poe Portrait and Signature set.  Nan chose to only colour his eyes and tie to achieve a vintage look for this page and used Spectrum Noir IBI3 and GG2 markers.  Keeping the continuity of style going she used more decorative paper for the background from the same 6 x 6 paper pad as her previous pages.  She stamped the text RIP from her Halloween stamp stash in a gorgeous font with permanent black ink and framed it with a wonderful tiny gothic frame.  She typed up a quote about art and edged that, the page and the signature panel with Black Soot Distress Ink and finished the page with more vinyl lace she found in Japan.

And there you have it...a great page for the last of the Poe shares....for now that is, you'll be seeing Poe popping up again throughout the year I'm sure....one can never have too much Poe😋

All of the digis featured today are now on FLASH SALE until midnight tonight (pacific).
Click on the pics to go shopping!

Coming next is our My Dark Valentine Blog Hop, Feb 12-16, with a brand new Dark Valentine collection, those will be released this week!  We're going to have so much fun getting all dark and twisty in February!  You can read all about the hop on the My Dark Valentine Blog Hop page!
I hope you'll join us😋

 Thanks for stopping by to see Nan's project today!

Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

Tutorial Tuesdays: Raven Shutter Card tutorial by Val!

Hello Creative Friends!

YAY, it's time for another Tutorial Tuesday segment and today's project is a fabulous brand new shutter card by LeighSBDesigner Val featuring digi stamps from the 2018 Poe Collection!  All the images featured today are on FLASH SALE until midnight tonight!

Hi Everyone, Val here and I'm excited to share my card tutorial featuring some of LeighSBDesigns new Poe themed digis!  Did you see our fabulous Poe Appreciation Day Blog Hop on Jan 19-23?  Click HERE to hop all the wonderful Poe projects shared in the 2018 hop plus the 2017 and 2016 hop collections are up there too!  Mark your calendars and join the fun in 2019, everything you need to know is up on the Poe Page!

To make my fun Poe card I used the shutter card die from Crafter's Companion.

I placed the dies onto Neenah white cardstock and ran them through my Cuttlebug using the sandwich recipe for thin dies.

I then used the insert dies as stencils to cut slightly larger mats from black cardstock.  Do this by tracing around the outside of the metal dies with a pencil and cut them out with scissors.

 While the white card die cuts were still in the dies I applied Peeled Paint Distress Oxide with a Smoothie applicator.

This leaves a nice clean white border around all the die cut panels.

  To give the panels a lovely textured effect I lightly spritzed the panels with water. 

 Once all the panels were coloured I adhered them to the black panels with PVA glue.

The next step is to adhere all the panels to the shutter card base.

While the shutter card panels dried I prepared all the Poe images I wanted to use.  I sized the digis in my art software, printed out onto Neenah white cardstock and fussy cut them out.  Some I matted onto black cardstock and fussy cut out again.  Matting on black makes the images pop nicely and also adds strength to some of the smaller areas while fussy cutting them out.  I used the Raven portrait, a large Poe Signature with Quill, two smaller Quills and two small Poe Signatures to decorate my card.

Shutter cards are so much fun, I hope I've inspired you to make some of your own!

LeighSBDesigns Poe digis, click on the pix to go shopping and enjoy 25% off until midnight pacific tonight!

realistic portrait of a Raven

single digi of Poe's signature with a quill

2 digi set consists of a classic Poe portrait and his signature

 Supplies used: 

Crafter's Companion Shutter Card die

Peeled Paint Distress Oxide

White gel pen

Black Micron pen

Neenah classic white cardstock

Black cardstock

Smoothie foam applicator

 Mini mister with water

 Thanks for stopping by to Val's projects today!

Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

Poe Appreciation DT Showcase: 3 POEtastic projects by Val!

Howzit Stamping Friends!
The Poe Blog Hop Prize drawing is now closed, thank you to everyone who played and everyone who hopped and commented!  I will announce the winners of my two Poe Blog Hop prizes soon, you don't want to miss it so keep checking in😉

If you missed all the fun then you can still hop and enjoy all the fabulous Poe art, the 2018 Poe Blog Hop Inlinkz collection is up on the Poe Page HERE as well as the collections from 2017 and 2016!  Mark your calendars and play with us again in 2019! 

I'm now continuing on with our Poe Appreciation DT Showcase!  My fabulous design team ladies, Val and Nan, made lots of POEtastic projects for our 5 day Poe Appreciation Day Blog Hop which they shared on their own blogs and now I'm showcasing them here until the end of January😋

Up today I'm sharing three POEtastic creations by LeighSBDesigner Val featuring digis from my Oddleigh Poe collection as well as the POE LOVE freebie I gave away during the hop.

Val created a magical misty background to feature Oddleigh Raven Nevermore on her CAS card.  I love the glow surrounding him❤️

Val coloured Oddleigh Raven Nevermore with GG1, GG2 and IG5 Spectrum Noir markers with touches of white gel pen.  She used Faded Jeans Distress Ink and Wilted Violet Distress Oxide to create the background.  Neenah classic white cardstock and black cardstock was used for the digi printing, mats and card base with black Micron pen dots decorating the one mat.

Up next is this POEtastic fun tag featuring Oddleigh Edgar Allan Poe!  I love the classic black and white colour scheme with a splash of red and blue to grab your attention. Mr Poe look so handsome!

Val printed Poe out on Neenah classic white cardstock and colour him with satin and red Promarker, cerulean Spectrum Noir marker, white gel pen and a black Micron pen.  For the background she used Bat decorative cardstock, black and white washi tape and black cardstock.  She added magical sparkle with glitter glue and embellished with black fibers.

The last of Val's Poe Blog Hop projects is this wonderful card she made using the POE LOVE freebie!  I love the classic black, white and red colour palette of this card, it really makes the digi stamp pop!  Val printed the digi out on Neenah classic white cardstock and coloured it up with satin Promarker and Fired Brick and Black Soot Distress Ink.  She then added a wonderful texture to the text with Versamark Ink and clear Ultra Thick Embossing powder.  The rose stamp is by Alt New and she added red Promarker and Tim Holtz clear Rock Candy glitter to them.  Everything was fussy cut out and adhered to a black cardstock mat and then a white folded card made from white cardstock.

 If you missed POE LOVE during the hop then you can still add it to your collections, its now up in my Etsy Boutique and on FLASH SALE along with the other digis featured today!  Click on the pix to go shopping!

Thanks for stopping by to see Val's projects today, she has one more Poe project to share so stop by tomorrow for Tutorial Tuesday!

Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

Poe Appreciation DT Showcase: 2 POEtastic Oddleigh Fat Pages by Nan!

Howzit Stamping Friends!
I'm still busy showcasing all the POEtastic projects my fabulous design team ladies, Val and Nan, made for our 5 day Poe Appreciation Day Blog Hop which they shared on their own blogs during the hop.  The Poe fun is continuing on through to the end of January😋

  If you missed the hop then you've still got TODAY to join the fun and be included in the prize drawings!  Everyone who hops and comments on all the participating blogs included in the link-up below will be included in the drawing for my Commenter Prize!  The same goes for the Blog Hop participants too, you need to hop and comment as well to qualify for the Blogger prize.  You all have until midnight pacific TONIGHT to do your rounds.  Winners will be announced soon after!  Start your hopping on my Day 1 post HERE!  Enjoy😋

Today I'm sharing two more wonderful pages from LeighSBDesigner Nan's POE Fat Book, Nan's fun quirky style is fitting in so nicely with my Oddleigh designs❤️

Nan's 3rd POEtastic page features Oddleigh - The Raven and he's presiding over Poe as he types up his classic poem on a typewriter....clearly we are looking at an alternate universe on this page😆. 

Nan coloured up the Raven and the words with Spectrum Noir markers.  She used 6 x 6 inch paper from the same designer paper pad as her previous two pages and did some background stamping inked with Gathered Twigs Distress Ink.  Nan's theme for this page is Poe's passion for writing so she added the die cut typewriter which she highlighted with a gold gel pen and matted onto an ATC sprayed with Tea Dye Shimmer Spray.  The little white embellishment is Nan's little "wax seal" she made from melting crayons with a glue gun, what fun!

 Now look at this gorgeous 4th page featuring Oddleigh Poe from the Oddleigh Poe and Raven set and the Poe Signature with Quill!  Nan set the tone nicely with that elegant background and Mr Poe is so handsome❤️

Nan used more paper from her decorative 6 x 6 pad and added Black Soot Distress Ink to it.  She used Spectrum Noir markers to colour all the digis and typed up the text which she edged in red ink coz this page is all about Poe's love for his real wife she says, so red for Hearts!  The finishing touch is the gothic black die cut flower and leaf embellished with gold flakes and a bead adhered to the center.

All of the digis featured are now on FLASH SALE today only so add them to your collections before midnight pacific!  Click on the pics to go shopping!

  Thanks for stopping by to see Nan's projects today!

Now off you hop to admire all the glorious Poe Art!

An InLinkz Link-up

Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN