colorwhimsy

Embossed Background

For today's card, I wanted to add a little texture to the background.  To add lines to my Sage notecard, I used my Scor-Pal and scored lines every 1/2" on the diagonal.  I then took some sand paper and roughed up the edges of the scores.  Because Memory Box paper has a white core, the sanding let the white show through and distressed my lines.

For the center of the card, I stamped the Flower Patch (C700) onto white cardstock using black Versafine ink.  I colored the stems, leaves and petals with watercolor pencils and blended everything with a Dove blender pen.  I then cut out the flowers with a Marvy Mega Circle punch and layered it onto some Blue Poppy paper cut using a Marvy Giga Scalloped Circle punch.  To finish the card, I added some Spearmint patterned paper and white pearls to the centers of the flowers.

Brilliant Tree

I made a similar card to this one using the Easter Egg tree, but I really liked the layout for highlighting a single image.

To make the card, I cut my mocha and white paper with Nestability Labels 3 dies.  I then stamped the tree (Brilliant Tree F1332) using brown and green pigment inks.  I used two shades of green to add a little more interest to the leaves.  I then finished the tree by adding some pistachio jewels.  I can't get enough bling!

To finish the card, I added some Spearmint Glimmer paper and placed everything onto a Meadow notecard.

Just a Note Birdies

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.  I didn't get any crafting done, but I had a great time with my family.  I guess you can't ask for anything better.

For today's card, I stamped the Dotty Tree Bird (D1347) with brown Momento ink and colored it with Copic markers (YG11 Mignonette and BG10 Cool Shadow).  I cut the tree out with a Marvy mega circle punch and layered it onto some Spearmint White Willow paper that I punched with a Marvy giga scalloped circle punch.  The background pattern is some Spearmint Mint Riipple paper that I layered onto mocha cardstock.  The stripe is some Spearmint Glimmer paper, and everything was layered onto a Blue Poppy notecard. 

A Little Extra Bling

Do you like the logo on the Outside the Box site?  Well, it is now a stamp!  I Inked the Clear Tree Border (D1334) with black memento ink and stamped it onto some Spearmint paper.  I then stamped it again onto white cardstock with the same ink.  After I colored the circles with an assortment of Copic markers, I cut them out and layered them onto my patterned paper trees.  I placed everything onto a Bayou notecard and then decided the card needed some bling...a lot of bling.  Instead of adding individual diamond jewels to the card, I added an entire strip.  It went a lot faster than dealing with the jewels one by one!

Easter Tree

I had a wonderful time stamping with some buddies today and thought I would share one of the cards I made.  It features the new Easter Egg Tree Combo (G1343) as well as the saying that is found on the side of the stamp.  I colored the eggs with Copic markers and then planned to cover them with a clear gel pen to give them a glossy sheen.  I accidentally picked up a white Souffle pen instead.  I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised with the end result.  The eggs still have a sheen to them, but they also have a white cloudiness to them that makes them look more egg-like.

To finish the card, I cut out the tree and a background layering piece (Bayou cardstock) using my Nestability Labels 3 dies.  I placed the tree onto some paper from the Spearmint 6" x 6" paper pack and layered everything onto a Pool notecard.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

It is quickly approaching March, so I am starting to think about St. Patrick's Day cards.  For this particullar card, I inked the new Shamrock Combo image (E1336) with Moss Colorbox Chalk ink and edged the outside of the image with Warm Green Colorbox Chalk ink before stamping it onto some white cardstock.  I then cut out the shamrock with a Marvy Mega Circle punch and edged it with more of the warm green ink.  To finish the card, I popped the shamrock up onto some Spearmint patterned paper using foam mount tape and added the Happy St. Partick's Day saying (B1229).  I then layered everything onto a parsley notecatd.

Floral Background

When I got the new Vintage Peony Combo stamp (E1341), I kept coming up with ideas for coloring it.  Should I stamp it in brown and watercolor the flowers for a vintage feel?  Should I emboss it in gold?  Should I color the stems with a green marker and the flowers with vibrant markers?  So many choices!  I ended up inking the whole thing with my Versa Magic Oasis Green inkpad and stamping it onto a Pool notecard.  I loved the background you can create by stamping the image over and over.  The floral stamp has a leaf stamp on the side of the wood block that I used as "filler" for the background.

To finish the card, I added some patterned paper from the 6" x 6" Spearmint paper pack, some mint pearls, and the Thanks Script (A833). 

Spring?

I just read on Yahoo that 49 of the 50 states had snow on the ground today.  Wow.  That seems so weird to me.  I am going to pretend that Punxatawny Phil didn't predict that we have six more weeks of winter to come.  Instead, I am gearing up towards spring.

For this card, I stamped two images from the new Song of Spring release onto some Spearmint paper using Deep Lagoon VersaFine ink.  One stamp is of the bird on a branch and the other stamp features the spring words.  I layered the patterned papers onto eggshell cardstock, placed everything onto a water notecard, and added some petal jewels for extra sparkle.

Well, I am off to watch the opening ceremonies of the Olympics.  I must admit that I am a bit of an Olympic junkie.  Maybe winter isn't so bad after all.

Explore, Create, Discover

I love purple and green together.  There is something about the combination that just appeals to me.  For this card, I used patterned papers from the Spearmint collection and accented them with Concord Grape paper.

To make the card, I stamped the Create Art background (G1330) onto some of the Spearmint paper using black Versafine ink.  I then stamped the stems from the Flower Bundle (E1321) using Olive Pastel Colorbox Chalk ink and the flower from the flower bundle using Purple Hydrangea Versamagic ink.  The flower bundle is another one of those stamps where the stems are on one part of the wood, and the flower is on the end of the wood stamp.  It really made stamping the two elements in different colors easy to do.  To finish, I added some purple flowers with purple buttons and tied everything together with twine.

New Stamps!

Have you seen the new What's in the Box images?  They are gorgeous!  I was immediately drawn to the Brilliant Tree (F1332).  It looks nice in greens, but I am already anticipating how good it will look in fall colors.

To make this card, I inked the stamp with light green, dark green, and brown pigment inks.  I stamped it onto some paper from the new 6" x 6" Spearmint pack and then filled in around the leaves using light and dark green chalks.  To finish the card, I added a layer of parsley cardstock, another layer of patterned paper from the same paper pack, added some pistachio jewels, and placed everything onto an eggshell notecard.

I can't wait to show you more of the new stamps and papers!