Connie-Un-Stamping Technique with Love Is Blind

I used a cool "un-stamping" technique with this card containing images from Sweet Pea plate #7 "Love Is Blind."  You can see the entire plate HERE

1)  Stamp image with Memento ink

2)  Color only the part you will be removing color from

3)  Pour small amount of blending solution in plastic lid and

dab with Tim Holtz applicator then apply to "busy" stamp

4)  Place alcohol-ed stamp over original stamped image and

press down as if stamping (this removes color)

5)  Repeat if necessary-embellish and finish as desired

My sample uses Sweet Pea Stamps image.  I colored the dress with a

Copic marker, then removed color partially to create sense of pattern

by over-stamping with alcohol blending solution which removed some of 

the marker.

For this technique you will need alcohol-based markers.  The

blending solution removes the alcohol marker color in the design

or depth of your "busy" stamp for a cool textured effect.

**Important**  Only color that portion of your image that you will be removing

color from as the blending solution removes any alcohol-based ink.  You can color the rest after

you have done steps 3-5.

Dress it up!!

The dress form image I used on these 2 items is on Sweet Pea plate #7.
I created a card starting with lavender cardstock. I used a decorative photo corner punch and then cut another piece of lightweight purple scrapbook paper to fit within the corners. I did edge the purple piece with a black marker before putting the piece in place. I stamped the dress form 4 times on the purple paper and then stamped the sentiment in the center. To 'dress up' this card I then stamped the dress form onto 4 different colors and patterns of scrapbook paper. I cut out the dresses without the dress stand from those papers, ran them through a Xyron and then attached them to the stamped images on the purple paper. I had some purple faux gemstones in my large supply of embellishments, so I attached one to each corner of the card using glue dots.


This ATC was made for a swap group. The theme was "What women want...". I thought of this stamp almost immediately and knew it would fit into the theme.
I had some scraps of background papers laying around. This piece was created by laying a piece of punchinella down and then spraying with Glitz Spritz; a watercolor spray that contains a mica powder. This particular color is pink; the photo doesn't really show how shimmery the ATC is.
I stamped the dress form in the center of the ATC with black India ink and attached a strip of lace and pearl ribbon down the right side. I typed the words using the computer and printed them on a piece of vellum. Once I cut them out, I ran them through the Xyron and then attached them to the ATC.

There are many more uses for this stamp. Let's see what you can come up with.... Chrissy

A simple gift for a friend

The images and sentiments used for this bookmark can be found on Sweet Pea plate #7. And the plastic bookmark holders are also sold on the website; go check it out!

Here's how I created this bookmark:
- I cut a piece of Basic Grey double sided scrapbook paper that would fit into the plastic sleeve.
- I stamped the image and sentiment on watercolor paper and colored with Twinkling H2O's. I cut them out and ran them through the Xyron machine to apply an adhesive.
- I cut 2 ribbons, one a solid green and the other a white with multi-colored dots, to approximately the length of the paper. I then trimmed the dotted ribbon to a slightly smaller length than the other ribbon and snipped both ends of both ribbons.
- I applied double sided tape to both ribbons placing the green ribbon down the right side of the bookmark first and then the dotted ribbon on top of the green.
- I attached the image and the sentiment to the bookmark next, and then edged all sides with a gold Krylon pen.
On the opposite side of this bookmark.....
- I cut 2 pieces of very thin brown ribbon that would fit down the left side and across the bottom. I ran them through the Xyron sticker machine to apply adhesive and set them in place.
- I stamped the image and the sentiment onto watercolor paper with India black ink. Then I painted both with Twinkling H2O's.
- I trimmed the 2 pieces attaching the sentiment with square brads and ran the image through the Xyron and then attached to the bookmark.
- I edged all 4 sides with a gold Krylon pen and slid the piece into the plastic bookmark holder.
- I cut various pieces of fibers and strung them through the prepunched hole at the top. I added several beads to some of the fiber ends.
Do any of your friends like to read???
Make them a bookmark....
Chrissy

It's a 6-pack birthday party!!!!

I was rummaging through my craft area and found 2 of these 6-pack cartons that I had bought at a craft rummage a couple of months ago. An idea popped into my head and I was off and running. One of our granddaughter's has a birthday coming in November and this looked like a good way to 'package' her birthday gifts.


Alcohol ink seemed the best way to color this carton because the texture was somewhat glossy to the touch. After a few experiments with various colors of ink, I decided on these 4 (purple twilight, stonewash, pool, and silver). I used a felt applicator and blending solution to apply the inks to the surface.







I laid out my newspapers for this messy job and got to work applying the alcohol inks. In no time I was finished. It was easy since this carton folds pretty flat.



Here is a picture of the 6-pack carton after I finished applying the alcohol inks. Lizzy loves purple so this should be the perfect to hold her birthday gifts. Actually, I like purple too!!







I pulled out some Grungeboard letters and a couple of chipboard swirls, painted them with silver acrylic paint, and attached them with double sided tape to the side of the carton. I got out my fabric flower petals and Aileen's color mist sprays and kept spritzing on colors until I saw the colors I thought would look good. I attached one set of petals to this side of the carton with a rhinestone brad, and saved the other set of petals for the other side of the carton. I have some decorative ribbon, actually they are slightly padded fabric silver stars, and I attached to the bottom of the carton with glue dots.

I happened to have this purple embellishment in my stash, so I attached it to the side of the carton with some glue dots.








On this side of the 6-pack I stamped images and phrases from Sweet Pea stamps. The two 'ladies' are from plate #7, and the Birthday sentiments are from plate #9. I used permanent markers to color in the images so that they would show up more easily on the slightly dark-colored background. I attached the second grunge swirl to the right of the handle, the puffy silver stars to the bottom, and another couple of fabric flowers to the right of the stamped images.

Ready to go!!! I wrapped various items with colored tissue and dropped them into the 6 slots of the 6-pack. Lizzy likes some of the shower gels and body creams available at Bath and Body Works; and they fit perfectly into this package. I think Lizzy will like it. I'm thrilled with how it turned out.
I have one more of these blank 6 packs left. Hmmm, what shall I do with that one??
Keep on stamping.... Chrissy

Connie-Girls

This is a simple yet striking card I think. My scanner wants to wash out the color so please take my word for it....I did NOT forget to color the entire image!

Supplies I used:
Girl from Sweet Pea plate #7
Words from Sweet Pea plate #5
Tuxedo Black dye ink by Memento
Copic Markers
Creative Memories corner rounder punch
EK Success edger punch

I cut a yellow panel slightly smaller than the blue base and edged with "Bubbles" edger punch.
I cut a cream panel slightly smaller than the yellow on which I stamped the images.

That is all there was to this card. Sweet Pea has images that stand by themselves I believe. You don't need to bury them with foo fah.....

You can find the stamps I used by clicking HERE.

Thinking of You

Here's a great black and white card featuring a lady stamp from Plate #7 and a sentiment from Plate #4. That's perfect for the BOGO sale going on at the site right now. You can buy one set of stamps and get the other set free. See Sweet Pea's website for details.


To make this cute card you will need: black A2 size card, 6x6" pattern paper, Plate's 7 - lady stamp and Plate's 4 - "Thinking of you" stamp, Versafine Ink, Flower embellishment, Fiskar's border punch, black and white cardstock.

1. Stamp the lady image 3 times, once on white cardstock, once on the patterned paper, and once on black cardstock. The image on white cardstock will be your final image. Trim the pants from the stamped image on the patterned paper and glue them to the final image; then, trim out the shirt from the lady stamped on black cardstock and glue it to the final image.

2. Neatly trim the final image and mount it on black paper. I used Copic E00 to color in the skin of the woman.

3. Take the black and white patterned paper (sample uses DCWV); Cut a strip that is 3.5" wide and use a Fiskar's border punch to trim one side. If you don't have a Fiskar's punch, how about some cute decorative scissors? Once trimmed, adhere the patterned paper to the black card.

4. Adhere the final lady image to the card. Beneath the lady I added a black flower and matching brad (Prima and Making Memories).

5. Trim the edge of the card off at about 1" deep. Cut a strip of white cardstock 1.5" wide and stamp the "Thinking of You" sentiment from Plate #4. Adhere the sentiment to the card.

Happy Friday!

Holley

Beautiful in Blue

Hello and Happy Friday! Here's a beautiful blue card featuring the dress stamp from Plate #7. The "Let's Celebrate" sentiment is on Plate #9. Makes me want to go put on a fancy dress and go out. This card would be good for any celebration occasion. I love all the shades of blue working together on the same card.




Materials: Blue Mica card stock, handmade in India papers silver/blue, 2 shades of brads silver/blue, white cardstock, Colorbox Blue Iris chalk ink pad, Versafine black ink pad; Derwent Inktense pencils, blender pen, paper trimmer.

Steps:

1)Stamp the dress from Plate #7 onto the white card stock using a black Versafine ink pad. Set aside and allow this to dry well.
2) Stamp the sentiment from Plate #9 onto white card stock using blue iris chalk ink.
3) Trim the handmade paper to fit onto the blue mica card, leaving approx a 1/4" border all the way around. You can use use tape or glue to adhere the paper down to the cardstock or you can rely on the brads to hold the paper down.
4) Select three complimentary shades of blue watercolor pencils from Derwent--one light, medium, and dark.
5) Once the Versamark ink has completely dried, take the dress image and color in the light shade of blue; then use the medium shade of blue and lightly color the areas you want to shade. In this case, I shaded the waistline and the bottom, and very gently on the edge and dress seams.
6) Starting in the lightest area, use your blender pen to color the watercolor pencil. Allow the image to dry.
7) Now take a very dark color of blue and color ON TOP of the already colored image. Do so very lightly and carefully as you can not get rid of the color once you have added it.
8) Take the blender and very gently blend the darkest color on top of the other colors. If you look at the dress image, you can see that there are three shades of blue showing (esp. if you look at the skirt area).
9) Once the watercoloring is dried, take a watercolor crayon in grey and outline the entire image. Then use your blender pen to color the image. It's hard to see in the photo, but adding this outline to your image really makes it "pop" off the paper. Good colors for outlining are greys and light blues.
10) Mount an additional sheet of dark blue handmade paper on top of the embossed silver paper.
11. Trim the image and the "Let's Celebrate" sentiment to the same width and mount them on top of your card.
Watercoloring your stamped images is a fun artistic way to learn about shades of colors and how to make your images seem more dimensional.
Cheers!
Holley

Connie-Love Is Blind

But not so blind to miss this lovely dress! I made this card using an image from Plate #7, which is FULL of gorgeous images!

I layered everything with a black edging and sponged ColorBox Chalk "Olive Pastel" ink around edges of focal image. I stamped the dress once on white cardstock and again on some designer paper by Basic Grey "Lily Kate" and cut out the DP dress portion & layered that over my plain white image. "Paper Piecing" is what this technique is called.
I used the same Basic Grey paper as a background to match the dress and bring it all together. Added a small blue flower by Jolee's to finish it off.

I just realized that I did this without any coloring at all.....

If you want to see those lovely images on this plate just click HERE

A pattern for fun

I am flattered to be invited to return to the design team this round and hope I provide lots of inspiration for your creative mojo. This card features the Sweet Pea plates number 7 and 5. It is pretty simple to make with just a few supplies, including your pc and printer.

Supplies:

Sweet Pea Plate #7
Sweet Pea Plate #5
Black Brilliance Ink Pad (Tsukineko)
White Card Stock (Unknown)
Solid Green Card Stock (s.e.i.)
Patterned Card Stock (Basic Grey)
Water Color Pencils (Stampin' Up)
Blender Pen (Stampin' Up)
Adhesive (Terrifically Tacky)
Mod Podge (Plaid)
Scissors
Computer
Printer
Paper Trimmer

Instructions:

1. Stamp the straight legged girl image on white card stock twice, leaving space between them.

2. Of the two stamped images choose the better and set aside. Trim the remaining image out for a mask.

3. Position the mask over the image and stamp the remaining image about .5 - .75" above and to the right of the first image, overlapping about .5".

4. Color in the images with the water color pencils and blend the colors with the blender pen. Trim the images out neatly.

5. Cut a piece of white card stock out that is 3" x 4.25", a piece of patterned paper out that is 3.25" x 4.5" and the solid paper to 5.5" x 8.5" and fold in half to create the card.

6. Using the computer and a word processing or image software, create a "pattern envelope" adding the name of the line and additional information.

7. Print a sample of the computer generated background on a full sheet of paper to verify size and positioning on the paper.

8. Using a small piece of adhesive, overlay the white card stock on top of the printed area of the test page and adhere. Position this in the printer tray so that the card stock will receive the printed information and print.

9. Adhere the stamped images to the front of the pattern with Mod Podge.

10. Mat the pattern to the patterned paper with double sided tape.

11. Using the text stamps, stamp "Girls just want to have fun." along three edges of the card front and "Just a note," at the lower right hand corner of the card front.

12. Adhere the matted image to the card front at an angle, positioning between the stamped sentiments.

13. Enjoy sharing!