Clearly Besotted | Masculine Birthday ft. "Hip Hip Hooray"

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day.

Today I want to share a masculine birthday card I created using the Clearly Besotted "Hip Hip Hooray" stamp set. When I first saw this set, I couldn't wait to use it; and now, all this time later, I still turn to this one when I'm looking for inspiration in masculine cards.

I started by stamping the little viking man with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on 110lb Copic-friendly cardstock. I then masked him off and stamped the mountains across the background along with the greeting, then I masked the mountains off.

I used Distress inks in Stormy Sky to create my sky and a very light hand of Gathered Twigs to create the ground. Once that was dry, I removed the masks and coloured my images with Copic markers.

I used the stitched note card die to cut down my panel and adhered it to a piece of subtly patterned paper. I then mounted the entire piece to the front of a standard A2 sized card base.

To finish off the card, I used clear Wink of Stella over the metal parts of the image and black Nuvo drops to create some interest and dimension.

I hope you like today's card and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar, over on Facebook and on YouTube! For those of you that follow me on Google+, please subscribe directly to the blog so you don't miss out on any future posts. Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think.

Lawn Fawn "I Love You(Calyptus)" | Mirror Stamping for Happy Heart Day

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day.

Sooo funny story: I've talked that last couple of days about how I've been making a lot of cards, and not really posting. While I've been trying to post my regularly, it occurred to me this morning that the entire point of that was to get my Valentine's Day cards up - y'know, before Valentine's Day. Whoops.

Today, I have this adorable Valentine's Day or even just a thinking about you or encouragement card, featuring Lawn Fawn's "I love You(calyptus)" stamp set. Along with a bit of mirror stamping.

To begin I stamped the heart and masked it off, then I stamped the adorable koala from the I Love You(calyptus) stamp set with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on 110lb Copic-friendly cardstock. I then mirror stamped the same image to make him face the other way.

I used one of the stitched rectangles to cut down the panel and masked off both the koalas. To create the background, I used Cracked Pistachio Distress Ink for the bottom, Spun Sugar and Milled Lavender for the sky. I wanted to create a very soft background to go with these little guys.

I removed the masks and coloured all the images with Copic markers. I used the "Sending Hugs" Line Border die to cut my greeting out of a piece of watercolour paper that I had "rainbowed" for another project (it didn't make the cut).

I used clear Wink of Stella over the heart and covered it with Glossy Accents then placed my greeting border die on top. Once that was dry, I mounted my panel to a piece of patterned paper, then mounted the lot to the front of a standard A2 sized card base.

To finish it off, I used some Nuvo Crystal drops to add a touch of dimension.

I hope you like today's card and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar, over on Facebook and on YouTube! Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think. I cannot begin to tell you how much every like, thumbs up, subscribe and follow means to me. I'm so grateful for all of you.

Happy Holidays 2018 | Action Wobbler ft. MFT "Jingle All the Way"

Hello everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day!

Today I want to share a card (and video) featuring My Favorite Things "Jingle All the Way" stamp set! That's right, folks. No Lawn Fawn in this one.... except for the dies, but shhhh!

I recommend watching in HD over on YouTube!

Check out the video above to see how this super cute card came together. You'll also see the extensive list of Copic markers that I used (there's a lot), how I got the texture on his hat as well as hear about my new (to me, I'm sure everyone else already knows) discovery for editing my videos!! I cannot even tell you how excited I am about this!!! - 5 exclamation marks excited. That should tells us all something right there, yeah?

I hope you like today's card (and video) and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar, over on Facebook and on YouTube! (For real, I get legit excited when I get new subscription notifications). Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think.

Happy Hoppy Day Series | Easter Tag Card, ft. Lawn Fawn "Easter Party"

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day.

Today I have an Easter Tag card featuring Lawn Fawn's "Easter Party" stamp set as well as some of their dies. No surprise, right? I swear I have other brands, but I'm just really on this Lawn Fawn kick and I can't seem to get off the wagon. I think they do it on purpose. I mean, how cute are these sets? No wonder I can't get enough!

I recommend watching in HD over on YouTube!

Check out the video above to see how I put this card together, as well as the complete list of Copic markers I used and which embellishments made it to this card!

I used patterned paper from their Perfectly Plaid "Rainbow" and "Spring" collections - because I'm trying really, really hard to actually use the patterned paper I have been hoarding. I decided to put them out where I can see them which helps me remember to use them! And so far it's working out. I haven't gone all crazy yet, because the patterned paper still scares me. Coordination issues, I don't know.

I didn't really do anything for the inside of the card because what can I say on the inside that I haven't said on the outside?

I hope you like today's card (and video) and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar, over on Facebook and on YouTube! Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think.

This card is for:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge

Anything Goes

Fairy Shaker Birthday | ft. Lawn Fawn "Fairy Friends"

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day.

Today I have a fun shaker card that I made for my little daughter's friend's birthday. I wanted this card to be bright and fun because once again it's cold and yucky here in Calgary. We get these waves of nice weather and then it goes back to dreary and lemme tell ya, I'm pretty done with this. The warm weather is nice and it starts to melt then it freezes completely and everything is just an ice rink. Not fun.

Or you can watch in HD over on YouTube!

Check out the video above for the full tutorial on how I made this shaker, as well as all the Copics used and how I just couldn't stop embellishing it at the end. Honestly, I just couldn't stop myself!

I hope you like today's card and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar, over on Facebook and now on YouTube! Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think!

Happy Hoppy Day Series | ft. Lawn Fawn "Eggstra Special Easter"

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day.

Today I learned something very, very important. Today, I learned that in order to make a video to go along with the card, it's really imperative that you hit the record button. Sooo there's no video for this one because I didn't hit the record button. Whoops!

To begin, I cut a piece of cardstock with the large banner from Lawn Fawn's "Stitched Banners" die set. I also cut a piece of green plaid paper from their "Perfectly Plaid Rainbow" paper pack with the same die.

I then used the "Grassy Border" die to cut the green banner down in two layers to get the base for my scene.

I used some Broken China and Salty Ocean Distress Oxide Ink to create the sky. I used the Distress Sprayer to splatter some clean water and patted it dry with a piece of paper towel.

I stamped the images from "Eggstra Special Easter" with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on 110lb Copic-friendly paper and used the Brother 2 Scan N Cut to cut them out. I coloured all the images with Copic markers.

I put together my scene and adhered the banner to a piece of colourful paper from the same paper pack and mounted that to the front of a standard A2 sized card base.

To finish off the card I used some Glossy Accents on the bow and some Nuvo Crystal Drops in Dandelion Yellow to create some accent dots.

I hope you like today's card and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar, over on Facebook and now on YouTube! Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think.

With Sympathy | ft. Stampin' Up "Birthday Blooms"

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day.

Finally got the voice over for this video working, I do apologize for the delay. I hope when you watch you'll find it was worth the wait.

To begin, I stamped the large flower from Stampin' Up "Birthday Blooms" with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on 110lb Copic friendly cardstock. I then coloured it with Copic markers and fussy cut it out. The image is actually much larger, but I didn't want all that stuff.

The greeting is from Stampin' Up "Rose Wonder" set, also stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.

I prepped a piece of 65lb black cardstock from Recollections with my powder tool and stamped the flourish images from Inkadinkado with VersaMark Ink, then heat embossed with clear embossing powder.

I adhered that panel to the front of a standard A2 sized card base, then added my greeting strip. It was a little harsh, so I used my black gelly roll pen to add some stitching detail.

I popped the flower up on foam tape and placed that on top. To finish off the card I used some clear Wink of Stella over the petals, glossy accents over the centre bits of the flower and some Black Nuvo Crystal drops to add some accents on the background.

I hope you like today's card and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar, over on Facebook and now on YouTube! Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think.

Happy Heart Day Series | Hello Cupcake ft Clearly Besotted "Sweet Treats"

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day.

Today's card is a quick and easy design that can be duplicated if the need arises. My 5 year old daughter actually came up with the basics for this design when she asked me to stamp some images for her to colour.

She likes to pick out the stamps and then tells me where to stamp them with all the seriousness of a structural architect; "no a little bit that way", "can you make the side ones come down so it looks like a rainbow", "Mommy, those aren't even" and so on. She's definitely my little artist and has a great eye for colour and layout. I think it will serve her well in the future.

To begin, I stamped the greeting and the three little hamsters from Clearly Besotted "Sweet Treats" with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on 110lb Copic-friendly cardstock, then coloured them with Copic markers.

I trimmed the top and bottom of the panel and adhered that to a piece of patterned paper by Lawn Fawn. I then mounted that to the front of my standard A2 sized card base.

To finish off the card I used some Nuvo Crystal Drops to create coordinating enamel dots and used Glossy Accents by Ranger on the sprinkles of the doughnut.

I hope you like today's card and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar or over on Facebook, so you don't miss any future posts. Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think.

This card is for:

Muse Challenge #250

Inspired by Kim

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge

Add a Sentiment

The Card Concept

Sweet Inspiration

Happy Heart Day Series | The Sweetest ft Lawn Fawn "Sweet Friends"

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day.

I mentioned before that I had considered scrapping this year's Heart Day series. But as I push through it - channeling the things that I want to feel instead of the things I do feel - I found more and more that though the design was harder for me this year, the process was just as calming. Moreover, I felt more accomplished when the card was completed because the initial steps were more difficult.

I do think that things are starting to turn around here, I don't have any illusions that this is going to be an easy road to travel. It's hard work and it takes a determination that is stronger than the "feelings of the moment". Falling in love is easy, that's why they call it falling; it takes no effort. Maintaining that love after the initial "high" wears off is a lot more work, and it shows in all the little things.

So if you've been floundering lately, or feel like it just isn't quite the same, think back to the beginning and figure out what it was that brought you both together to begin with. Then from that, what things you've let slide or have allowed to slide. Even recognizing those tiny little things can be helpful, make a choice to love and to show that love.

To begin, I stamped the greeting and the froyo image from Lawn Fawn's "Sweet Friends" with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on 110lb Copic-friendly cardstock. I coloured the image in with Irojiten Coloured Pencils by Tombow. If you haven't checked these pencils out yet, I highly recommend that you do.

I then tied a length of bakers twine around the two corners and then popped the panel up on foam tape. I adhered a piece of patterned paper to the front of my standard A2 sized card base and mounted the panel to the front of that.

To finish off the card I used two shades of Nuvo Crystal Drops to add some embellishment across the front of the card.

I hope you like today's card and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar or over on Facebook, so you don't miss any future posts. Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think.

Sympathy Silhouette | ft. Distress Oxide Inks

Hi everyone, thank you for stopping by. I hope you're having a great day.

A while back I did a comparison between Distress Inks and Distress Oxide Inks (you can see that post here, Distress Showdown) and I showed the most common uses for my current collection of regular Distress inks and how the Oxides compared.

This was the first time I stamped over a Distress Oxide background, and I'm beyond impressed with the results. I cannot believe how crisp the images turned out, with the help of the MISTI, of course.

I have been holding off on getting more Oxides because I didn't know if I really wanted duplicate inks that didn't come in the mini cubes taking up space - as we all know the space we have is precious. This really tipped the scales for me, and I have a list going of my most used Distress inks that I want to get in the Oxides. I was so pleased with how the background turned out and the crisp stamping on top that it is definitely worth the space they large pads will take up.

To begin, I sponged Salty Ocean and Broken China Distress Oxide inks over my panel to create a very subtle ombre look, with the darkest in the lower left corner. I then used my Distress Sprayer to spritz water over the panel, let that sit for about 20 seconds then blotted it dry with a clean paper towel.

Once the panel was completely dry, I put it in my MISTI and stamped the floral silhouette from Inkadinkado and the greeting from (Recollection, I think) with CTMH Archival Black ink. I did notice that the Archival ink stayed wet a bit longer than it normally would, as though the pigment in the Oxides created a barrier. So stamp with caution! Wait until it is dry before touching. Smearing is likely to occur.

Once the ink was dry, I used a piece of black twine to create a bow. I would love to find twine that doesn't have all these little hairs sticking out of it. I love twine, but I do not love this.

I then mounted the coloured background to a piece of black cardstock, then adhered the whole lot to the front of a standard A2 sized card base.

I then used my Nuvo Crystal Drops (gloss) in Ebony Black to add a bit of detail. The more I use these drops the more I absolutely love them (foreshadow - review/comparison coming soon!) I'm less happy about the 24 hour cure time on the drops, but frankly the finished product is well worth the wait.

I hope you like today's card and are inspired to create something of your own. If you haven't already, please follow me on the right side bar or over on Facebook, so you don't miss any future posts. Drop me a line in the comments section below and let me know what you think.

This card is for:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge

Anything Goes