Autumn or Spring Seasonal Colors at Craft-Room Challenges!

For this fortnight the challenge at Craft-Room Challenges is to use the seasonal colors of Autumn or Spring.  Zoe has provided us with some beautiful inspirational color pallets to use: 

Spring Colors

Autumn Colors

Autumn Card on the left, Spring on the right

In response to this challenge I made 2 cards because I could not decide what colors to use.   First I am going to show you my spring watercolor card.

This is what I used to Make my Spring Watercolor Card:
White Card Base
Penny Black wood mounted rubber stamp, "Rhyme", #2959K
Distress Markers in Dusty Concord,  Faded Jeans and Seedless Preserves
Distress Ink in Milled Lavender
Watercolor paper
Spritzer filled with Water
Remnant Rub, Life Quotes, "hello friend"
Blue & Purple Cardstock
Stipple Brush

No pictures of the process today because it is SO easy.  First you want to pick out a rubber stamp that isn't intricate - the more "block style" the design is the better this will work.  Scribble your markers directly onto the stamp (have your watercolor paper ready and have enough to make at least 2 prints) then lightly spritz the colored stamp with water.  Flip the stamp over quickly (try not to muddy the colors) and stamp and stamp again.  The beauty of this technique is you get a different result each time you use it and it's fun!  I took one of the images I made and trimmed it down, trimmer the blue & purple cardstock to layer the image and then used a Tim Holtz Remnant Rub that says "hello friend" down on the lower corner.  After the card was assembled I felt the white watercolor paper was a bit stark, so I stippled it with Milled Lavender - I think it warmed the card up a bit.

For my Autumn Colors card this is what I used:
Tim Holtz Dried Flower Stamp from Flights of Fancy Set, 
Cream (vanilla) Cardstock
Ranger Adirondack Ink in Caramel, Currant, Terra Cotta & Pesto
Clear fine (detail) Embossing Powder
Ranger Archival Ink in Jet Black
Small Alphabet (sorry I don't who made it)
Distress Ink in Brushed Corduroy 

Embossing Close up

I used a piece of cream cardstock, stamped the Dried Flower in Caramel first and embossed it with the clear powder, the ink is wet so you don't need embossing fluid. Completed the same steps using the Currant, Terra Cotta & Pesto inks.  I stamped thankful, not really worrying about if they were straight. as long as I could tell all the letters were in the same word it worked for me, on a scrap of cream using the Jet Black ink.  I edged the saying with Brushed Corduroy to make it pop a bit.  Glued the Dried Flower quartet onto a moss green card I had then glued the sentiment onto the corner. 

I have to share a short story with you.  I moved a few years back and ended up living in a one room apartment once I got to Colorado.  There was absolutely NO room for any craft stuff.  So my stuff sat in storage for almost 9 months.  Lots of it dried out, but the Adirondack pads stayed juicy.  I did not have to reink a single one!  I find that amazing! Keep in mind, these ink pads are about 13 years old - I got them when I first began stamping - so it wasn't as if they'd never been opened. 


I am trying to get a little clean and simple - I hope you think these cards fit the criteria!  Hope you enjoyed checking out my latest post and you still have 2 weeks to enter the Craft-Room Challenge!  Thank you ~ Christi

I would like to enter my Autumn Colors card in the following challenges:
Again, here is my Autumn Colors Card - the challenges I am entering with my Spring Watercolor Card will follow:

Little Red Wagon - #256, Anything Fall Themed
Red Rubber Inspirationals -  #139, Stay Focused on Stamping, Anything Goes
Addicted to Stamps & More - #114, CAS
Wednesday's Creative Inspirations - #282, Autumn Colors
The House That Stamps Built -  Repeat Impressions DCC924 ~ Fall

Now I would like to enter my Spring Watercolor card in the following challenges:

Treasured Times Rubber Stamp Challenge - #25, Anything Goes
Sister Act Card Challenge - #76, Anything Goes
 Addicted to Stamps & More - #114, CAS

~ Thank you for stopping by!! ~

Steampunk Sweetheart for Anything But A Card #39

** This post is full of photos so it may take a bit to load - you should be able to click a photo to see it larger if you'd like, please let me know if you have trouble with this ~ thank you :) 

The whole set

I have had the stamp set I used as a base for this project for years and it turned into one of those sets that you adore, but can't bring yourself to actually use, until that one project comes along and BAM! This entire project was literally built around one stamp from a set called French Laundry #11.  I remember seeing an ad for the sets in a stamping publication and I immediately went to the web site called Character Constructions, made by the talented Catherine Moore, and drooled at them all (and now she even has custom dies to coordinate with some of the sets!).  I don’t remember why I chose this particular set but I have been wanting to use her for the longest time and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to get her inked. I introduce my Steampunk Sweetheart for challenge #39 at Anything But A Card:

My Steampunk Sweetheart

What I Used in My Project:

9 x 12 piece of frame board

Character Constructions Set French Laundry #11

Tea Dyed Coffee Filters (I dyed about 8, I think I used 5 or 6)

Tim Holtz Idea-ology File Tabs w/ gear sticker (on her hat)

Tim Holtz Grungeboard Wings (mine are embossed with the Harlequin design)

Tim Holtz Grungeboard Letters Mixed Minis

Darice Gears Embossing Folder

Brown “velvet” Paper

Brown Cardstock Scrap

Corset Card Cutfile

Silhouette Cameo

White Cardstock

Ranger Archival Ink in Jet Black

Distress Ink in Brushed Corduroy

Distress Paint in Gathered Twigs

Krylon Leafing Pen in Red Shimmer

Butterfly Sticker (stash)

Gesso

Stampin’ Up! Paper for Background (discontinued)

Star Punches (various sizes)

Scraps of Metallic Papers

Stickles in Star Dust

Miscellaneous Embellishments

Crafters’ Pick The Ultimate Glue

First thing I did was dye the coffee filters (the round ones) in tea for 2 full days and dried them.  I have wanted to make a frilly something out of coffee filters ever since I saw some demos online about coffee filter flowers and I felt they’d make a wonderful skirt.  I stamped the woman from the French Laundry #11 set using the Jet Black ink and fussy cut her out, leaving her arms separate.

  I set her and the skirt aside and gessoed the wings.  I was hoping to obscure some of the Harlequin pattern that was embossed in them already; it worked a bit and set the stage for using the gears embossing folder.  A tip: I have a Sizzix Big Shot and I found that the wings (and I figure all Grungeboard) is too thick to run through the machine the way you are supposed to when using an embossing folder, but I found that when I used the 2 clear cutting plates with the thick platform (I think it is called the Universal Platform?), but without the shim, it worked fine.  Took a bit of muscle, but nothing broke. So I ran the wings through and then lightly swept the Distress Ink Pad in Brushed Corduroy on the top and sides just to pop out the gear embossing a bit more.  I covered my board with the decorative paper from Stampin’ Up! like I was wrapping a gift so I wouldn’t have to fuss with trying to cut the paper and then glue it perfectly. 

I knew I wanted my Steampunk Sweetheart to have a corset.  I have a few corset stamps, but none of them fit her the way I wanted, so I went to my Silhouette Cameo and found a corset card.  I choose what pieces of the card I wanted to use and I cut the outer layer using some old brown “velvet” paper I had as well as some brown fiber as the lace up. I also cut out one under layer using white cardstock and that just peeks out the very top of her corset.  The corset it a bit big for her but I think it flows nicely with the skirt.  Her boots are just hand cut. 

I tackled the lettering next.  I used Grungeboard Mixed Mini letters and I painted them all using Distress Paint in Gathered Twigs, I painted all the letters twice to ensure really good coverage.  I liked the matte color of the paint, but I also wanted to jazz the letters up just a bit so I took my seldom used Krylon Leaf Pen in Red Simmer and outlined the letters with that.  Now previous experience has taught me that Grungeboard is flexible, so I knew I’d make some “mistakes” while outlining the letters but that is precisely what I wanted.  I wanted some of the shimmer to show on the top of the letters but I didn’t want it to be overwhelming.  It was nice not having to be careful when doing the outline, especially since I had to make the pen really juicy so the ink would flow into parts of the letters the nib couldn’t reach.

Finally she was ready to be put together.  I wasn’t exactly positive how I was going to pose her, so I attached her arms with 2 small black brads I had.  The arm holding the clock is stationary, but her right arm does move. I hand cut her top hat and attached the Idea-ology File Tab with the gear in it onto her hat.  I colored the cat eye glasses silver with another Krylon Leafing Pen, took some loose gears and attached them to her wings.  I crumpled up the tea dyed coffee filters and arranged them to appear like a layered skirt. 

I attached the body to the skirt, the corset over the skirt and body, glued the wings to the back of that and finished up with all the embellishments, which included stars punched out of various metallic papers and coated with Stickles placed randomly about (oh and I glued her boots to her skirt).  I held her in place with temporary tape and glued all the letters in place, attaching her last. 

Head Shot

And there you have it – my Steampunk Sweetheart wall hanging.  I worked on her for quite a while, once
my initial idea started to become a reality, in between other projects and it was SO much fun! I have admired Steampunk at since it burst on the scene and it was a pleasure to create something I feel is worthy of being called Steampunk.  I hope you enjoyed my long tutorial and perhaps gained a bit of inspiration to get your own Steampunk creation and enter at Anything But A Card ~ Christi

Another View

I would like to enter my Steampunk Sweetheart in the following challenges:
Divas By Design - Anything But a Card
Stamping Sensations - September Challenge, Things with Wings
Inky Chicks - #38, Anything Goes
Ruby's Rainbow - #88, Anything Goes
Papertake Weekly  - Punch it Out (used star punches)

Forest Friends Holiday Card

The newest challenge, #85, at Craft Room Challenge was chosen by Amber and her theme is Forest Friends.  I looked through my stamp stash and surprisingly I don’t own a single stamp with a forest animal on it so I resorted to using my Silhouette Cameo machine.  I have to confess I was inspired by the beautiful canvas that Zoe made - one of the many perks to being on the Design Team, we sometimes get sneak peeks!  

What I Used to Make my Card:

Silhouette Cameo

Reindeer Cut File

Tree Cut Files
Branch Cut File

Kraft Cardstock
Light Brown Cardstock (mine had some texture)

Dark Brown Cardstock

Glitter White Cardstock

Ranger Liquid Pearls in Platinum

Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz "Simple Sayings" set, CMS155
Ranger Archival Ink in Jet Black
Scrap of White Cardstock
Distress Marker in Gathered Twig
Distress Ink in Brushed Corduroy 
Craft Sheet
Detail Paint Brush

First I cut out my reindeer.  Knowing he was going to be the focus I felt he should be cut out first. I chose a light brown cardstock that was already embossed with lines to give a bit of texture to him.  After he was cut, I scribbled

some Gathered Twigs Distress Marker on my craft sheet, spritzed a bit of water and painted the antlers and hooves, very lightly, just to help the reindeer stand out a bit more.

Next step was the trees.  This step took me the longest because I had to find the perfect fur trees.  So I searched through all my cut files (I have hundreds) and found a few good trees and a branch that I thought would look good.  I chose a few different shades of brown cardstock and the glitter white cardstock that I took from the DCWV "The Halloween" Stack (I cannot get enough glitter paper - it amazes me that the glitter is embedded into the paper, but, it doesn't take much to amaze me) and cut my trees and the branch.  I put a few spot of Liquid Pearls on the branch to simulate snow; I used a toothpick to move it around after I put a

small dot on the branch.

I chose my Kraft card base, placed the trees in the background, cutting a few in half and I trimmed the branch to fit better.  I stamped the "happy holidays" sentiment on the scrap of white cardstock, using Brushed Corduroy ink, trimmed it down and edged it with the Brushed Corduroy as well to pop it out a bit.  That's my first holiday card of the season and now the ideas are coming fast and furious!

I hope you enjoyed my Forest Friends Holiday Card! Please consider joining us at Craft Room Challenge and enter in your own Forest Friends creation - just PLEASE read the new rules! Thanks ~ Christi

Another look - this one shows the sparkle :)

I would like to enter my card in the following challenges:

Completely Christmas - #29, Anything Goes

Craftyhazelnut's Christmas - #194, Silent Night (I imagine it is quiet in my scene because the buck came out to play)
Creative Cutting Challenge - #38, Anything Goes
Vintage Stamping Challenge - #29, Anything Goes (September Challenge)
Paper Creators Crafts - #29, Early Christmas

Stars and the Night Sky Tag

I was bumbling around the Internet the other day reading some blogs and getting inspired when I decided to drop in on the Tim Holtz blog.  I love reading what he and his design team do with his products and you'd be hard pressed to find anything I make that doesn't have something from of one of his product lines in it.  So, I decided to take a chance and see what I could make for his "12 Tags of 2014" for September.

I love playing with alcohol inks.  When I play with these inks I always have a bunch of glossy paper available to grab so I can use every drop and make backgrounds and such for other projects.  That was what really got my interest about this months Tag challenge - Tim used different colors of alcohol inks on his tag.  I have a bunch of alcohol ink papers that I had already made, so this challenge was for me!  I didn't have all the products that Tim used in his tag, but I had fun finding things to substitute.

This is What I Used on my Tag:
8" x 4" Manila Tag 
Glossy Cardstock
Ranger Adirondack Alcohol Ink in Stream
Ranger Alcohol Ink Blending Solution
Tim Holtz Stencil "Shatter"
Stampers Anonymous "Sun Collage" stamp, #U5-709
Ranger Archival Ink in Jet Black
Blue, Silver, Purple Alcohol Ink Paper
Star Punches, small & medium
Craft Sheet 
Small Piece of Silver Paper
Tim Holtz Remnant Rubs both Life Quotes & Words
Distress Ink in Black Soot
Heat Gun 
Crafters Pick The Ultimate Glue
Dream & Vision stamps were hand mounted and I didn't label them (sorry!)

On Tim's blog, he speaks about a technique using alcohol ink and blending solution to make a "ghosting" effect (click the link to see the how to) - I tried it using Stream alcohol ink (he said to use a light color and that was the lightest I

had) and his "Shatter" stencil but it didn't work at all for me.  And yes, I tried it more than once (after all, Tim told me to).  I think my failure is due to the stencil pattern not being small enough and I don't have any small stencils, so I moved on - I will be trying this again once I get a stencil better suited for this type of technique. The new Compendium of Curiosities (book 3) also has a great tutorial on how to do something similar - I have all 3 of Tim's books and I refer to them often for inspiration.

I had already trimmed my glossy cardstock to fit on the tag, so once my piece of alcohol ink cardstock was done I stamped the Sun Collage on the side of the paper using the Jet Black ink.  I set that aside.  I don't have any black tags but I wanted to try to stick as close to Tim's tag as I could, so I colored my Manila tag with Black Soot ink.  I just pounced the pad all over the tag and used my fingers, dipped in water, to move the ink

My Black Tag

around so the tag was covered, placing special emphasis on the edges since they would show.  I used very little water but I set the ink with my heat gun.  Setting the black(ish) tag aside I went back to the alcohol ink paper.

Close Up of the Remnant Rubs

For the portion of the tag where the rub-ons were used, I used rub-ons from two sets of Remnant Rubs, both "Life Quotes" and "Words" (see I really am trying to get over my rub-on fear that I talked about here). I basically cut out the items I thought fit the tags theme - I could of used more, but I cherish my Tim Holtz products.  After the rub-ons were rubbed on I glued the decorated paper to the tag.
 

The papers I used and some stars already punched

Layering the Stars

I then set about punching out the stars.  I had already made the alcohol ink papers that I used in the project so I just had to dig them out of my stash.  I used papers with various colors of ink, sticking to blues, purples and silver.  My small punch is so old the index star is wearing off and it sticks every time I use it (no matter how many times I punch waxed paper) so I'd punch a few, then take a break.  I ended up with too many stars but I saved them - I am sure they'll turn up in a Halloween project.  I then began to layer the stars with no real pattern and as I was placing them I really felt that I needed a bit more of a wow factor. So I got out some small scrap of silver paper, punched out some moresmall stars and put them on the tag as well.  I finished up with two hand mounted stamps that read "dream" and "vision", also stamped with the Jet black ink.

Close up of the Stars

There you have it!  I really had fun figuring out how to get a similar effect as Tim's tag without having the same supplies.  I rarely work with tags but I think I may just keep trying this challenge.  Thank you for stopping by & enjoy ~ Christi


 

Another Look

I am entering my tag in the following challenges:
Tim Holtz 12 Tags of 2014 - September
Unruly Paper Arts - September Challenge, The Dark of Night
Divas by Design - Tags!

Celebrate with the Cats!

My local stamp store has a mascot - a kitty named Sacha - and they are celebrating her 2nd birthday.  I had already been formulating a card using these stamps in my mind, so when I read about the celebration in their email newsletter I was happy to see that they requested birthday cards be mailed to Sacha. I really need to get to the store to see the birthday girl as I doubt she'll be at the convention coming to Denver (I am hoping be there Friday, Sept. 12, 2014 - if you are going as well let's meet up! Drop me an email)  I quickly put this together and dropped it in the mail.

How can you not want to celebrate with these felines!?!

What I Used to Make this Card:
Cherry Pie Stamps, Group of Cats, R8509
Lost Coast Stamps - Party Cat (this is a hand mounted stamp and I had written Lost Coast Designs on it, but I couldn't find it in their catalog)
A2 White Card Base
Ranger Archival Ink in Jet Black
Scraps of festive paper
Celebrate rub-on - 7 Gypsies ALa Card Birthday Rub-Ons (discontinued)
Stickles in Diamond
Pop Dots

A fairly simple card - the hardest part for me was cutting the little party hats small enough! I stamped the group of kitties on the card base first, then stamped the party cat on separate paper, fussy cut her out and added Stickles, in Diamond, to the hat, with my finger.  There is no coloring under the Stickles, but it looks like there is - very cool! I cut out a bunch of little party hats out of scrap, trying to pick the sparkliest, most festive scraps I could (not easy when they are SO tiny!) and glued them on to the cats that were facing forward - a little detail that I bet you didn't notice (keeping you on your toes!).

The Party Hat Makes the Cat

I added the Celebrate Rub-On (I have to tell you, I used to be terrified of rub-ons - not in the scary horror movie way, but scary in the "I know I am going to mess this up and can't fix it" way, so I have TONS of them! I belonged to a kit club and I got rub-ons every month.  So, I am working on my fear of rub-ons!) and then pop-dotted my party cat on the card, after the Stickles dried, of course.

Dimension!

No coloring needed!   By now Sacha has her card, and birthday wishes from my five felines - I hope her birthday month is fabulous! 

Another View - you can see the white outline a bit on the rub-on

Thanks for popping by ~ don't forget, the new challenge at Craft-Room Challenge is up and there is a Design Team Call at Anything But a Card! Come and play with us ~ Christi

I am happily entering my card in the following challenges:
Aud Sentiments - Any Sentiment Other Than Birthday  
Pixie's Crafty Snippets Challenge - Use Snippets of Paper - the party hats are snippets :)
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Be Bold 
Loves Rubber Stamps - Anything Goes
Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes w/ option of recycle (I recycled those bits of paper!)
Through the Craft Room Door - Anything Goes
Fan-Tastic Tuesday - Anything Goes