"Measure" Steampunk card featuring Lost Coast Designs - A Blockheads DT project!

Steampunk is definitely one of my favourite stamping themes and I had a blast getting my Steampunk action on with this card ;0)  Here's another project for Blockheads' upcoming newsletter feature on creating with Border Stamps featuring Borders by Lost Coast Designs!

Last Friday I shared a project that featured a loose stamped weave pattern created with just the border stamps themselves instead of weaving paper strips and now I'm going to show you how to do a tight basket weave pattern too.  I've  been playing around and created a few basket weave backgrounds.  Here's a sneak peak at a weave (left) that I'll be using in my next project created with just the Measuring Tape border and also a peek at the sewing themed background I created from a weave that went wrong...so don't throw away your 'mistakes' coz you can still make fun backgrounds with them ;0)

On this project I used the following Lost Coast Designs rubber stamps
Steampunk Typewriter Girl, Measuring Tape border, Bingo border and Numbers border.

Ice Roses And Holly - A Winter Card for the Holidays designed for the 3CCC

Happy Holidays Everyone!

I hope Santa was good to everyone this year and you got lots of crafty goodness in your stockings ;0)

I'm on vacation at the moment and you are all probably super busy with your holiday festivities so I'm popping in today to share a quick project with you ;0)

The "Ice Roses and Holly" winter card I designed for the Third Coast Creative Coterie is really beautiful but it doesn't take ages to make so drop what you're doing and grab your supplies and get in a little stamping Me time!

"Santa's Key" Christmas Card featuring the Sanded Colour Block Technique! Join us for a Blockheads Technique Challenge Blog Hop!

Hi Everyone!

I've been gone a while coz I had abdominal surgery on Nov 12.   I'm okay and recovering nicely and finally getting around to letting you all know about a fun series of Technique Challenges that we've started with Blockheads Paper Arts!  The first challenge has begun already (on Nov 17th) but you've still got plenty of time to join the fun!

The first Challenge technique is called "Sanded Colour Block".  

To take the Challenge visit the Distress Stain Sanded Colour Block Technique Page at Blockheads Paper Arts and create your own "Sanded Colour Block" project.  The card I'm sharing today features the technique!

For this series of challenges we're trying a different kind of Blog Hop by providing you with html code to include in your project blog post!  This way any one can join in the Hop and by including the code in your post it will automatically link you up with everyone else taking part in the Hop!  How cool is that ;0)  The code is at the bottom of this post!

Once you've posted your project featuring the "Sanded Colour Block" technique on your blog please pop on over to the Blockheads Blog and add your blog post URL link via the linkie button.  You will then be in the running for an awesome prize!  The Blockheads Design Team, that's me, Karen and some new members yet to be announced) will then select a winner who will receive a $25 Blockheads gift certificate...Woohoo!  Awesome right, so I hope you'll join the fun!  Don't forget to include

Here's my card I made using the featured Challenge technique "Sanded Colour Block".

The Santa Face, Snowflakes and Christmas sentiment stamps I used are exclusive Blockheads Paper Arts images from their new An Illustrated Christmas and Christmas Morning sets! 

Santa's Key

 

You will need the following materials to do this technique:

Any brand of Embossing Folder like Cuttlebug or Tim Holtz' Texture Fades

Bone Folder or some kind of burnishing tool

Sand Paper

Glossy Cardstock

One or more colours of either Distress Stains or Distress Inks (or both if you want)

Masking/painter's tape

Rubber stamps to complete your project

I decided to try the Technique out on the Christmas words embossing folder by Cuttlebug and created the colour blocking effect by masking each section with painter's tape.  I used Distress Stains:  Bundled Sage, Stormy Sky, Fired Brick and Tea Dye.  I didn't burnish my painter's tape enough on the 'Holidays' block and had some bleed into the neighbouring blocks but I wasn't worried coz I decided that's where my ribbon would go to cover up the 'mistake'.  I tried to fix it but didn't like the darker lines that I ended up with.  The painter's tape also peeled off some of the top layer in places too coz I burnished too much but that didn't bother me either coz I was going for a distressed effect for my card anyway and most is hidden by the bow too.

 I trimmed the "Sanded Colour Block" panel and distressed the edges with a Tim Holtz Distress tool and applied Vintage Photo Distress Ink to the edges with an Ink Blending tool.

Cut a mat for the "Sanded Colour Block" panel from brown cardstock and emboss it with a snowflake Cuttlebug embossing folder and distress the edges with the Distress tool.  Apply Fired Brick Distress Ink to just the embossed areas and to the edges of the mat.

Adhere the "Sanded Colour Block" panel to the mat with permanent adhesive tape just to hold it in place.  Run the panels through a sewing machine without thread to punch the holes and then hand stitch the panels together with red thread.  You can sew the card on your machine if you want to put I didn't have a bobbin set up with red thread and didn't feel like getting one ready ;0)

Adhere the snowflake ribbon (Michaels) to the panels with double-sided tape and attach a Tim Holtz Idea-ology charm clip to the ribbon before sticking it down. 

Die cut a tiny tag with a Cuttlebug die cut from cream cardstock and a mat slightly larger from brown cardstock.  Distress the edges on the both with the Distress tool and hand write 'Dear Santa' in a kid's handwriting style with a red Prismacolor pencil.

 

 Apply Fired Brick Distress Ink to both and adhere the tag to the mat with permanent adhesive tape.  Attach the tag and the key charm to the charm clip with a large jump ring.

Stamp the Santa Face onto Neenah Solar White cardstock with Rich Cocoa Memento ink.  Tear the edges of the stamped image to continue with the distressed look.

Colour Santa with Marvy Le Plume Permanent markers or Copics except for the berries.  I coloured them with a dark red Prismacolor pencil and added highlights with a white gel pen.  Apply Judikins Diamond Glaze to just the berries and holly to add some dimension to the image.

I'm very excited to let you know that later this week I'll be sharing a Marvy Le Plume Permanent marker tutorial called "How to Colour A Vintage Santa" over on the Blockheads Blog.  The step-by-step photos will show exactly how I coloured my Santa.  I'll let you know when the tutorial is up so stay tuned for that ;0)

Apply Tea Dye Distess Ink to age and distress the Santa image.  Adhere the image to the front of the card with double-side tape then adhere the bow with a glue dot.  Gather up the ribbon tails and adhere in place with glue dots too.  Embellish the left side of the card with amber self-adhesive rhinestones.

Make a folded card from cream cardstock and stamp the snowflake design around the outer edges on the front of the card and all over the back of the card with Fired Brick Distress Ink and distress the edges with the same ink.  Do the same to the inside of the card too!

For the inside of my card I stamped the Christmas sentiment onto a piece of matching cardstock in Fired Brick Distress Ink and trimmed and distressed it.  Cut a slightly larger mat from brown cardstock and distress the edges too.  Then apply Fired Brick Distress Ink to all the edges.  Adhere the sentiment to the mat with permanent adhesive tape and adhere it inside the card with tape too. 

Here's some more photos of my finished card!

That was a really fun technique to do.  I also tried it out on another brand of glossy cardstock which didn't sand so well but still produced an interesting background for a future card ;0)

I hope you enjoyed seeing my project and are inspired to give it a try.  Then come and join the Challenge Blog Hop for a chance to win the $25 Blockheads gift certificate!  Remember to include the html code in your blog post coz links added to the Blockheads Blog without the code will be removed, so don't forget!

I can't wait to see your projects and good luck ;0)

I've entered this card into Challenge #9 - I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas at Fashionable Stamping Challenges

Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

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

"Say Oink Oink If You're Thankful for Football!" A Blockheads DT Project!

Howzit Stampers!
It's nearly time for the big Thanksgiving game!  Do you need some card inspiration for the guys in your life?  Will a Thanksgiving card that involves Football score a touchdown for you?  Then I've got a manly Thanksgiving card to share with you ;0)

I designed this little cutie just for the guys and used the Pumpkin digi stamp and Naughty Pig rubber stamp available exclusively from Blockheads Paper Arts.

NAUGHTY PETS

SUPPLIES
White and Black cardstock
Neenah Solar White cardstock
Tim Holtz Alterations Pocket Watches and Steampunk Texture Fades set
Memento Tuxedo Black ink pad
Distress Ink Pads:  Fired Brick and Vintage Photo
Tea Dye Distress Stain
Black Micron pen
Marvy Le Plume Permanent Markers:
O835, R812, R803, OY848, E858 and E859
Orange Watercolour pencil
Turquoise Prismacolor pencil
Dove Blender Pen
Pencil
Tim Holtz Distress Tool
Inkssentials Ink Blending Tool and Foam pads
Tiny Black brads and tiny hole punch
Spellbinders Square dies
Black pop dots
Double Sided tape
Raffia
Painter's Tape/masking tape

Lay out 4 digi stamp Pumpkins and print them out onto white cardstock.  Die cut the panel out with a Spellbinders Square die.  Emboss the left hand side of the panel with Tim Holtz' Pocket Watch Texture Fade.

Decorate the two pumpkins on the right hand side with Tangle patterns.  Use a black Micron pen to draw and colour in the black areas and a pencil for the rest and for shading.  Use Orange (O835) Marvy Le Plume Permanent marker to colour in some of the Tangled areas and sections of the pumpkins on the left hand side too.  I used the following more masculine patterns on the top pumpkin:  Baton, Barbershop and Boomerangs.  On the bottom pumpkin:  Boomerangs, Ambler and Jonqal.  No floral swirly whirls for the guys ;0)

Mask off the embossed side with painters tape and apply Vintage Photo Distress Ink to the panel with an Ink Blending tool.  Remove the tape and mask off the stained side and apply Tea Dye Distress Stain directly to the cardstock in a random fashion.  Leave areas of white and apply more Tea Dye Stain with a piece of paper towel so that some areas aren't as saturated.  Apply Fired Brick Distress Ink to the just the embossed areas with a Ink Blending tool and remove the masking tape.

Rough up the edges of the panel with a Tim Holtz Distressing Tool and ink up the distressed edges with Fired Brick Distress ink.  Add more pencil shading to the Tangled pumpkins.  Punch tiny holes into all 4 corners and add tiny matte black brads.  Wrap raffia around the panel along the dividing line and adhere in place with double sided tape.

Stamp the Naughty Pig from the Naughty Pets collection onto Neenah Solar White cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  Die cut out the panel with a Square Spellbinders die and a slightly larger square from black cardstock.  Colour in the image with Marvy Le Plume Permanent markers.  Pig:  R812 and R803, Football:  OY848, E858 and E859.  Colour the eyes with a Turquoise Prismacolor pencil and add background to the image with an Orange Watercolour pencil and blend with a Dove Blender Pen.  Roughen up the edges on both the panel and the black mat with the Distress tool and apply Fired Brick Distress Ink with the Ink Blending tool.  Adhere the image panel to the mat with double sided tape.  Punch tiny holes in all 4 corners and add tiny brads.

Make a folded card from black cardstock and adhere the large panel to it with double sided tape.
Adhere the Naughty Pig to the card with black pop dots.  Finished!  A manly mans Thanksgiving card that will surely delight the guy in your life, and if not, oh well at least you tried, right ;0)

This little cutie fits the bill for this weeks Fall/Winter Challenge over at Mark's Finest Papers!

Christmas is coming!  Christmas is coming!
Stay tuned coz I'm going to be getting all wintery with lots of seasonal creations!!!

My team mate, Karen, has already started getting into the Christmas spirit so hop on over to her blog for a look see!

Design Team Call for Blockheads Paper Arts!
We're looking for 3 creative artists to join our amazing Design Team! 

Get the scoop on the DT details here!
Happy Stamping!

THE SHARPIE DOMINO QUEEN

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

"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