"We're So Proud" A Clean & Simple Card that packs a punch with a splash of colour!

Hello Bloggers!

I'm back with another Peacock themed project featuring Blockheads Paper Arts stamp set 'Proud As A Peacock' which will be available for purchase next week!  Woohoo!

My first card, "Twilight Serenade", was quite an involved project with lots of different techniques going on so I thought I'd share a clean and simple card today that still makes a statement with a splash of bright colour!

Make a folded card from white cardstock and mask off a narrow panel down the right hand side with low tack tape or post-it notes.  Stamp the large and small single peacock feather images with Brilliance Purple Pearlescent ink and heat set.  You can see the pearlescent shimmer of the feathers in the photo below.

Colour the centers of the feathers and random feather strands with either dye-based Memento markers or water-based Marvy Le Plume II markers in bright colours.

Adhere a piece of colour co-ordinated ribbon (Target $1 section...one of my fav places!) to the card with double sided tape.  By the way, the ribbon IS straight!  The card had a slight curve/bulge to it along the bottom edge and I couldn't get it to co-operate and stand straight, uuggh.  I'm sure it's bothersome to your eyes and it's still bugging me big time LOL!

Stamp the sentiment "We're so proud" in Brilliance Purple ink along the bottom edge on the left hand side of the card.  If you're not confident about eye balling the placement then use a Stamp Positioner tool to get the sentiment exactly where you want it!

Here's a neat idea for this kind of card especially if lots of people are going to sign it!  You can write messages on the front of the card in the white area as well as all over the inside and the back. Great for large family gatherings like graduations and perfect for a co-worker so the whole company has space to write their kudos in!

Thanks for stopping by today, I've still got more Peacock inspired creations to share...one with traditional peacock colours and another with an Art Deco feel to it...so don't go far ;0)

Now I've got a challenge perfect for this one - thanks for the heads up Colleen!
 Moxie Fab World - Fascination With Feathers Challenge

Happy Stamping!

 THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

I design for Blockheads Paper Arts * Third Coast Rubber Stamps * About Art Accents

"Twilight Serenade" - Introducing the New "Proud As A Peacock" Stamp Set by Blockheads Paper Arts!

Hello Bloggers!

I'm thrilled to be showcasing Blockheads Paper Arts newest stamp set release called Proud As A Peacock!  These images are divine and I've been having a great time playing with them!  I've got a couple of projects to share demonstrating the versatility of this set so stay tuned!

Twilight Serenade

My first project is titled "Twilight Serenade", I envisioned that I'm looking out of a brightly lit room onto a balcony where the Peacock and the marble balustrade are bathed in the light and the peacock is singing to the moon in a twilight sky.  I'm really pleased with how it turned out ;0)

"The Architect Fairy" Fancy Fold Card - Spotlight on Lost Coast Designs Rubber Stamps!

Hello Everyone!

I'm featuring Lost Coast Designs Rubber Stamps this week!  I had so much fun creating this first project, "The Architect Fairy".  It's a fancy fold card with the beautiful Winged Girl image as the main focal point!  I also used the Tree Branch Background stamp to create the stunning nature background for the back and inside of my card.

I stamped the images with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and coloured the entire card with Marvy Le Plume Permanent markers.  I used Strathmore Bristol cardstock for the fairy panels to give the card more strength and weight and made the card base from Neenah Solar White cardstock.

Cut the Neenah cardstock to the height of the Winged Girl image and make a gate-fold card base with the overlapping front flaps the same width as the image.   Stamp the Winged Girl image twice and trim the panels down into rectangles, run them through a Xyron to add permanent adhesive and adhere them to the front flaps of the card base.

Stamp the Tree Branch background on the inside middle panel and also on all the back panels.

Colour the Winged Girl image with Marvy Le Plume Permanents which are very similar to Copic markers.  I used the following colours on the Winged Girl:
Body:  OR821, 823 and R815, Hair:  E858 and 859, Dress:  R812 and 815, Wings:  R812, 815, BV733, 736 and B707, Architecture:  AG 871, 873 and G673, Arch Background:  B707, 708 and BV736.
 On the Tree Branch background:
G673, BV733 with AG871 over the entire background to tone down the colours.

Tip:  I also used the thicker cardstock for the fairy panels to ensure the colouring didn't bleed through and ruin the colouring on the other side and vice versa!  But I wasn't concerned about that happening on the middle panel because I just used the colours in the same places and it didn't mess up the effect.  I also didn't want to double up the cardstock on the middle panel because it would have made it harder to do all the cut outs which I did next.

Once everything was cut out I embellished the wings with glitter glue.  I finished off the card wtih some flower embellishments adhered to the front panel with glue dots.  I really couldn't decide if I wanted the flowers or not so I took some photos with and without them so you can decide what look you prefer ;0)

In these next photos I also wanted to show you how versatile this fancy fold card really is!

The Tale of the Naughty Witch Who Cast A Spell - A Third Coast Creative Coterie project!

Hello Everyone!

Let me tell you a little story about how this card came about!

This is the Tale of the Naughty Witch who cast a Spell...for Personal Gain....gasp!

Tired of paying for parking every where she went she decided to conjure up a special tree where she could park her broomstick for free and invited all her friends to use it!  But...oh no...how could this spell go horribly wrong you are wondering coz everyone knows when a good witch casts a spell for personal gain it always backfires on her!

What happened you ask?  Well let me tell you...the tree picked up it's roots and stalked off with all her friends broomsticks and she ended up having to replace them all...oh the horror of it!
Giggle, I couldn't resist a bit of silliness ;0)

The cute little Witch and Tree are available from Third Coast Rubber Stamps:
Witchy Sprite VB-038-I
Free Parking AP-479-P

Supplies

Best Witches sentiment - Inkadinkado

Peach, Purple, Metallic Blue cardstocks
Neenah Solar White Cardstock
Recollections Flourish Paper Border

Memento Tuxedo Black ink pad

Copic Sketch markers:
Witch:  BG07, YR02, BV13, 110 and E19
Sky:  C3 and 5, Blender Pen
Grass:  G21, 24 and 28
Tree and Brooms:  E02, 09, 11, 15, 18, 41 and 49
Copic Black Multi-liner and White Gelly Roll Pen, metallic silver paint pen

Prismacolor pencils: Cream, Aquamarine, Pink, Scarlet Lake
Glitter Glue, Judikins Diamond Glaze
Purple Silk Ribbon
Spellbinders dies:  Deckle Rectangles, Circle, Lace Circle
Martha Stewart Deep Edge Lattice punch
Paper Trimmer and Scoreboard
Pop Dots and Glue Dots, Permanent Adhesive Tape, Xyron permanent adhesive

I started off by stamping all the images with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah solar white cardstock that's suitable for Copic markers.  I used a Copic Multi-liner to draw in the same landscape details found in the Free Parking stamp behind the Witch and continued the little magic star-bursts from the Witch image across to the Tree panel so that there is no doubt that the tree is magical.

I die cut the two main panels with Spellbinders Deckle Rectangles - a large standard rectangle for the Witch and a Mega large rectangle for the Tree and a Circle die for the sentiment.  I coloured everything with Copic markers but used Prismacolor pencils to colour the Witch's face, neck and hands.  I added white highlights with a Jelly Roll pen and applied a coat of Judikins Diamond Glaze to the tree and broomsticks for dimension and to make it look all sparkly and new.  I added even more sparkle to all the star-bursts and edged all the panels with glitter glue.
 

 I then die cut a slightly larger circle die mat for the sentiment and larger Deckle mats for the two main panels out of the gorgeous metallic blue cardstock and a Lace Circle mat out of purple cardstock.  I also punched the Lattice trim with a Martha Stewart Deep Edge Punch out of the purple cardstock and applied glitter glue to the Lace loops on both the trim and the Lace Circle mat. 
I used permanent adhesive tape to layer all the mats and panels and ran the Lattice Trim through my Xyron to add permanent adhesive and adhered all the pieces including the grey Flourish Border and purple satin ribbon to a folded card made from peach cardstock.  I completed my magical Halloween card with a purple satin ribbon.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today and checking out my 3CCC project!  For more Third Coast inspiration pop on over to the 3CCC Blog where my fellow Creative Coterie Design Team members are sharing their Halloween themed cards too!

I'm also hosting a spooktacular 31 Days of Halloween event over on my DominoART blog!  Hop onto your broomsticks and go and check out all the Halloween eye-candy we'll be sharing all month long!

Happy Halloween Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

I design for Blockheads Paper Arts, Third Coast Rubber Stamps and About Art Accent

"Congratulations" Christening Art Card - Combining Stamping and Dry Embossing With Digital Design!

Howzit Stampers!

I want to share this very special Congratulations art card I made for my Nephew and Godson's Christening with you today!  I was inspired by my recent W.O.W art cards I've been playing with for the last few weeks and combined some elements from them with digital design to create this elegant card my Sissypoo, Paula, will treasure forever.

Supplies:  'Congratulations' sentiment stamp from Blockheads Paper Arts exclusive Verses Full Sheet collection, Versafine Onyx Black ink pad, White cardstock:  two with different texture styles and one smooth style, Vintage Sage/Blue heavy weight Paper and matching Striped Patterned Paper, Silk Flourish design ribbon, Script Cuttlebug embossing folder, Quickutz Lace Squares dies, Double sided tape, Permanent Adhesive Tape, Glue Dots,  Xyron permanent adhesive,  Scoreboard, Paper Trimmer and Self Adhesive Pearl embellishments.

I started out designing the focal point of my card with Photoshop which includes a photo of my cutiepie Nephew and printed out the design onto white textured cardstock and cut it out.  I ran it through my Xyron to add permanent adhesive and adhered a piece of Striped patterned paper to the back.  I then cut another panel from smooth white cardstock the same size and adhered more of the Striped patterned paper to it.  I put those to one side while I made my card base.

 For the card I started out with a sheet of textured white cardstock, scored it to form a gate fold and embossed the front panels with the Script Cuttlebug embossing folder.  I ran a sheet of Vintage Sage/Blue paper through my Xryon to add permanent adhesive and cut out a panel to fit the inside of the card.  I embossed the panel with the Script embossing folder and adhered it to the inside of the card.  I then stamped the 'Congratulations' sentiment onto smooth white cardstock with Versafine Onyx Black ink, cut out the Lace Square with a Quickutz die and adhered it to the inside of the card with double-sided tape.

 Next I printed out the large flourish design onto a sheet of white cardstock cut a bit larger than I needed and embossed it with the Script embossing folder.  The panel I needed was larger than the embossing folder so I just moved the embossing folder over, lined it up and repeated the design.  I added permanent adhesive to it with my Xyron and adhered it to the back of the card and then trimmed away the excess cardstock.  I then cut a length of silk ribbon and wrapped it around the entire card, starting from the inside Gate fold flap and finishing on the outside flap adding permanent adhesive tape to the ribbon as I went.

Next I ran a sheet of the Vintage Sage/Blue cardstock through my Xyron and adhered more of the Striped patterned paper to it before cutting out the Lace Square mat with a Quickutz die.  I adhered the Lace mat to my main design panel and also added the other square panel I made to the back of the Lace mat with double-sided tape just to make it stronger and to neaten things up when viewed from the other side.  I then adhered the assembled panel to the left flap with double-sided tape.

Inside the card I wrote that my Nephew is a treasured gift to our family and I continued the 'gift' theme by adding another piece of ribbon vertically to the right flap so that the finished card looks like a ribbon wrapped gift!  The ribbon lines up perfectly with the left flap's edge for a seamless look when the card is closed.  I also decorated the right flap with a monogram design I created.  I layered it onto a smaller Lace Square die cut and adhered it to the card with glue dots.

I then embellished the front of the card with 4 small self-adhesive pearls in all 4 corners and completed my art card with a matching envelope!

Thanks for stopping by today and checking out my Christening card!  Stay tuned coz I've got some Blockheads Halloween themes coming up!

Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

I design for Blockheads Paper Arts * Third Coast Rubber Stamps * About Art Accents

W.O.W Finale! Part 4 of my Blockheads Design Team Series!

Howzit Stampers!

I'm back today with the finale of my W.O.W series of Art Cards!  This is Part 4 of my creative adventures into exploring White on White Embossed and Die Cut Layering.
This layering technique really is so much fun and the results are truly WOW!
I really do love that the acronym for White on White is W.O.W coz that's exactly what the recipient of one of these cards would say ;0)

I've been playing with creating dramatic effects by layering different shades of embossed and die cut white cardstock.  I absolutely love how the combined textures and the play with shadows gives the cards a richness that's filled with luxurious drama!
   

This is a Blockheads Design Team series of tutorials and I've been featuring sentiments/sayings and words from their exclusive Verses Full Sheet set of stamps which is available unmounted or on cling cushion.  If you missed Part 1 - 3 then you can see them all here!
Just click on each photo to go to the tutorial.

WOW Part 1 - 'Congratulations'

WOW Part 2 - 'DREAM'

WOW Part 3 - 'A Real Friend'

 On to the finale...

Supplies:  Square white folded card, White cardstock in various shades of white, Blockhead Paper Arts' Verses Full Sheet stamp set, Versafine Onyx Black ink, T!m Holtz Alterations Bingo design from the Bingo/Patchwork Texture Fades set, Cuttlebug Floral embossing folder and Plaid design from the Winter Wonderland embossing folder set,  Spellbinders Fleur De Lis Square die, Leaves die set, Ornate Label die, Daisy lace trim, Butterfly and Self-adhesive pearls embellishments, white sheer ribbon, glue dots and pop dots, double-sided tape, Crafter's Pick The Ultimate glue and permanent adhesive tape.

Start by embossing the front of a 5" x 5" square folded card with the Plaid design by Cuttlebug.

Emboss the Daisy floral design into a piece of white cardstock that's a creamier shade of white when compared to the folded card then cut out the embossed panel with a Spellbinders Fleur De Lis square die.

Based on the dry run of my layout I knew I wanted to place the Fleur De Lis panel off center so I cut away part of the edge so that I could extend the design and make the square appear more like a rectangle.  Adhere the panel to the card with pop dots.

Adhere a piece of white sheer ribbon to the card with permanent adhesive.  Then die cut and emboss some of the Spellbinders Leaves out of white cardstock the same shade as the folded card so they will stand out against the Daisy panel and adhere the large one to the card with pop dots.  Overlay the leaf with another one and adhere it in place with a glue dot.  The second leaf is just the upper portion of the same design that I had left over in my scrapbox.  See, this is why stampers/artists shouldn't throw anything away, coz you just never know when you need that 'something' for a project... statement made for the benefit of any husbands who just might be reading this and I can think of one in particular ;0) 

Stamp the 'Happy Birthday' sentiment with Versafine Onyx Black ink onto white cardstock the same shade as the folded card and use a Spellbinders ornate label die to cut it out.

Adhere the ornate label off center with pop dots and tuck in the cut off Fleur De Lis piece under the label and adhere it in place with a couple of dabs of glue.

Make a bow from the sheer ribbon and attach it to the right hand side with a glue dot.

Adhere a strip of daisy lace trim to the top edge of the card with Crafter's Pick The Ultimate glue.

Tuck in some Bingo number pieces (more left overs) behind the ornate label and adhere them in place with glue dots and pop dots.  Also tuck in another Spellbinders leaf too.  I added the numbers to my design because I thought the sentiment inside the card could read "Gorgeous at any age!'.  This card is definitely meant for the lady who is young at heart or proud of her age and who wouldn't try to kill you if you included it on the front of her card!  It's a risky design move so make sure you know what you're doing ;0)

Adhere the butterfly with The Ultimate glue to the right hand side of the card and add some self-adhesive pearls.

Finish off the card with a large pearl adhered to the upper left side and embellish the ornate label with two tiny pearls too.

Thanks for joining me on my creative adventure!  I hope you enjoyed seeing all my W.O.W art cards.  I'd love to know if you've given this technique a whirl so please leave me a comment with a link to your blog projects so I can see what you've all been up to!  Don't forget you can also share your projects on Blockheads Facebook page too!

Check back again soon coz I've got a Christening card I made for my nephew and godson to show you that incorporates a bit of WOW-ness with colour mixed in ;0)

Happy Stamping!

 

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

I design for Blockheads Paper Arts * Third Coast Rubber Stamps * About Art Accents

Mini Handbag Sewing Kit - A Blockheads Design Team Tutorial!

Hi Everyone!

I just got back from a wonderful mini vacation in Las Vegas at The Palazzo with my precious hubby!  We celebrated our 14th Wedding Anniversary and saw the Phantom show which was absolutely fantastic!  But now I'm back home and ready to share another project I designed for  

Blockheads Paper Arts :0)

click on the photo to enlarge

click on the photo to enlarge

 I've designed a seriously cute mini Handbag Sewing Kit that is oh so pretty in shades of pink and black that's perfect as a two-in-one novelty greeting card and gift or as a nifty little stocking stuffer.  I created the handbag template and it can easily be adjusted to make any size handbag but I love miniatures so went with a mini handbag for this tutorial!  Today I'm featuring a selection of images from their awesome exclusive Sewing themed stamps!  Household Notions, Vintage Light Form and one of Blockheads newest releases, the Sewing ATC set!  Click on the text or pix below for more info!

click on the template to enlarge

Cut out the handbag template from white cardstock with a deep grain texture to it that kind of reminds me of corduroy for an instant faux fabric effect.  Score and fold along the dotted lines and punch out the holes along the top edge with a small hole punch.  I used a fancy corner punch on the two bottom flaps.

Stain the cardstock with Rouge ColorBox Fluid Chalks ink.  I applied the ink with a Inkssentials Ink Blending Tool and Foam (look in the Other Brushes section) but a piece of scrunched up paper towel will do the trick too.

Stamp all the sewing themed imagery with Warm Violet ColorBox Fluid Chalks ink first and then stamp the lace and tape measure images with Versafine Onyx Black ink.  I stamped just a small portion of the lace image along the top edge too.

 Decorate the inside too.

 Fold the bottom flaps up and sew along the inside and outer edges of the kit to make the inside pockets.

click on the photo to enlarge

Stamp the small collection of buttons in black Versafine ink on the inside and on the cover of the kit.  Stamp four of the large buttons (from the stamp and scissor image) in Rouge Fluid Chalks ink on a piece of scrap cardstock and cut out.  Adhere them to the corners of the inside pockets with a permanent adhesive.  Sew real hot pink snaps to the inside of the kit with black cotton for a closure, I also added a dab of glue to help make the closure more secure.  I also drew in faux cotton lines with a black Sharpie on all the pink buttons except for the 4 large ones and one or two of the small ones.  Click on the above photo for a closer look at the details.

click on the photo to enlarge

Embellish the outside cover of the kit with fabric flowers and buttons.

 

Here's some close ups of the flowers with the buttons I sewed to the centers.  I stacked two buttons on the flower in the top photo.

Add mini white eyelets to the holes and attach them with a Crop-A-Dile or other eyelet setting tools.

 

I made the handles for the handbag out of black wire and pink beads.  Cut 2 lengths of wire and thread one end through an eyelet and wire wrap it in place.  Alternate the beads as you thread them onto the wire and finish by looping the wire through the other eyelet and wrap that end too.  Then do the same for the other handle.

 

Cut a small piece of self-adhesive magnet tape and adhere it to one of the pockets.  The magnet strip is perfect for storing needles, pins and safety pins.  Finish off by tucking in some thread and a mini packet of buttons and whatever else you'd like to add to your kit.  If you're giving it as a card or a gift you could make a matching gift tag and attach it to the handle!

Front Cover

Back Cover

 Here's two more views of my finished mini Handbag Sewing Kit!  Cute isn't it ;0)

I hope you enjoyed my Blockheads tutorial!  Don't forget to check out what Karen is up to over at Dreaming and Creating for more Blockheads inspiration!

Until next time.....Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

I design for Blockheads Paper Arts * Third Coast Rubber Stamps * About Art Accents