Space Out! SDC 260

Its time for another fantastic designers challenge over at Stampotique!

This time around I knew exactly what I was going to create for the space them. I am obsessed with galaxies. Really. Gorgeous. I spent some time learning and trying different things to get the look I wanted and this is what I came up with:

I LOVED creating this and LOVED the outcome. It is perfectly imperfect and a lot easier to create than you might think. I created a video. I am still learning on the video front so bear with me. ;) If it is wonky on Blogger, click the video and it should take you on to Youtube.

Here is the final product. When I thought space and galaxy, this sentiment from Stampotique seemed just about perfect. I stamped the sentiment onto watercolor paper and tried to make it match the galaxy theme. To top it off I used some tiny sequin stars along with some twine, because, twine makes everything better!

Overall, this is a sweet positive card and I am satisfied! I hope you are inspired to create your own galaxy, and if you do don't forget to link it up over at our challenge here for your chance to win a 30 dollar gift card to the fantastic Stampotique shop which has something for literally everyone!

Ingredients:

Enjoy Today Stamp (Stampotique)

Master's Touch Watercolors

Ken Oliver Liquid Metals

Dollar Tree Twine

Star Sequins

Ranger Archival Black Ink

Word Up Weekend

Good morning, from Stampotique!

It is Saturday which means we are going to start hi-lighting the many fantastic sentiments that Stampotique sells! Our artists have sentiments everything from holidays, to inspirational quotes to snark, which, are my faves.

Today I used Sarcasm . Because, it is my language. ;) I really do love all of the sentiments we have. Such a range makes it easy to find something to go with any style and any image. Listen to me. I sound like a walking commercial, but in all seriousness, they have such a great range!!

I feel like I am perfecting my watercoloring technique for my paper and this one really popped for me. Someday I hope to create my own line of papers using this technique. <3 Here is another I created this week:

Okay, I am off, but I hope that all in the path of Hurricane Matthew are safe and warm with the ones they love. You are for sure in my thoughts!

Ingredients:

Sarcasm (stampotique)

Feathery Monster (Stampotique)

Dylusions Ink Spray

Twine
Sequins
Doily
Watercolor Pencils
Ranger Archival Ink

SDC #258 Favorite Quote

When I was younger, I had a Tigger (yes, tigger) notebook that I used to write down every inspirational quote that meant something to me. I must still have it somewhere. Anyway, I kind of wish I still knew where it was. This week we are continuing our theme at Stampotique, which is, "favorite quote". Luckily, Stampotique has a lot of fun and inspirational quote stamps.

This one, "Color Her Soul" really spoke to me. It needed to be a wall hanging. It is a larger stamp so that worked out well. Moth Fab seemed like the perfect girl to be paired with this sentiment. 

And, of course, Moth Fab got the watercolor pencil treatment as well as a white paint pen to make her pop. Love using mixed colors on her. 

Its no secret that I have really gotten into mixed media over the last couple of years, and this is no exception. For this wall hanging I used Dina Wakely heavy bodied acrylic paint as well as some other acrylic paint. For the texture on the background I used Diane Revealy's "large triangle" stencil and Ranger texture paste. 

Loved how all of these elements came together to tell a story and back up the sentiment. Went a little heavy on the accessories, but I think they work. Even stiffened some bakers twine to create a fun detail behind the flowers.

Be sure to check out all of the other beautiful projects (see the DT on the left bar of this page) and then enter our challenge!!! 

Ingredients:

Stamp: Color Her Soul

Stamp: Moth Fab

Dina Wakely Heavy Bodied Acrylic Paint

Prima Handmade Flowers

Ranger Texture Paste

Ranger Archival Ink

Watercolor Pencils

Bakers Twine

Sequins

Adhesive Pearls, Paper Studio

Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist, Chalkboard

Various Washi Tape

Monochromatic Monday

Good Monday evening to you all! It is time for another swap over at Stampotique! Everyone voted and decided that Monochromatic would be an awesome theme. I love monochromatic projects, it is just very difficult for me to create something without a third color to pop.

I decided to go with teal and green. Greens are varied, so I thought this would be my best bet to follow the challenge without cheating. ;) Once the colors were chosen I knew I wanted to use Feathery Monster. He looks so handsome in teals and greens.

I used my watercolor background technique to create a dynamic background. I used Dylusions Ink Sprays and water on my Ken Oliver mat and this was the result. This is my favorite one to date. I wish so hard my scanner was working because I would have scanned this one and saved it for sure! It turned out amazing with all of the little dots hovering perfectly on the paper. 

For the ATC, I decided to go with shakers this time. In order for them to fit into an ATC sleeve I went ahead and cut my foam squares in half (height) in order for the top layer to be smaller but still allow the sequins to shake around. It was tedious. I will be buying a roll of thinner foam tape in the future. I covered the foam outside with some fun green twine, which, this idea I borrowed from someone else. 

 I really like how these guys turned out. Oh! The sentiment is also from Stampotique!! I thought it was just about perfect for his expression.

So, I hope you will hop over and join us at Stampotique for our FaceBook swap! We would love to have you!!

Ingregients:

Feathery Monster (Stampotique)
The Crew (Stampotique, just the sentiment)
Dylusions Ink Sprays
Dollar Tree Twine
Dollar Tree Sequins
Le Pen Black
Ranger Archival Black Ink
Transparency Paper
Adhesive Foam Squares

ATC DIY Stamping!

Do you ever look at your mixed media projects and wish you had a different way to add pattern or texture? Or, are you on a budget like I am and don't want to spend money on a fancy background stamp? Yeah. Been there.

So....this is what I do....I create something using whatever I have lying around.

For this I used jute twine and bubble wrap. Both subtle, but exactly what I needed to create a fun pattern for my ATCs. I used Americana acrylic paint in lieu of ink.

The houses are Stampotique, of course, and this time I broke out my Copic markers as well as my Prima markers. They blend well together, which is awesome! I love the whimsy of these houses and had a lot of fun imagining a color scheme for them. 

I added some doodled boarders and a couple of cute sentiment stickers to round off the whimsy. I am excited to swap these, but kind of sad to see them go as well. It is always hard to swap away something you like, but if you like it, then you know your partner will appreciate it as well. 

Did you know Stampotique also carries an ATC stamp for the back of all of your ATCs and it is delightful with its webs and skull spiders. Be sure to check it out! 

Ingredients:

Stitched Houses

Bubble Wrap

Jute Twine

Americana Acrylic Paint

Teresa Collins Sticker Sentiment

Copic Markers

Mail, Mail, Here Is The Mail

Congratulations! If you have ever watched Blue's Clues you now have an obnoxious preschool song stuck in your head....

ANNNND now you have a Jefferey Dallas song stuck in your head. Muahahaha. Did I mention I am kind of manic lately? Yeah. Lots of stuff going on, so now I am being dorky. Hope that's okay.

So, recently I reconnected with a dear friend of mine and, like myself, she loves to color and with the new "fad" that has finally caught up to the both of us I wanted to print some free coloring pages and send them to her.

Years ago now, probably at least 5 years? She sent me this amazing box with glitter, paint and washi tape ALL over it. I swear this is STILL glitter in my dining room from that box. I wanted to create something just as special for her that she could keep or hang (or toss, whatever) but make it also be meaningful and make her smile.

I started with a manila envelope (size, 10 x 13...YIKES) and laid down a generous layer of Gesso. I didn't want the colors to mute or get muddy. I also didn't want the watercolors seeping through the paper and creating a ripped up mess either. 

Once that dried, I used my favorite technique of watering down my Dylusions spray inks and creating a beautiful piece of art. I just love this technique and was SO happy with the outcome this time!! I used some stencils and paint to add some more pattern/interest and, of course, used my faber castell black pen and my posca pen (white) to doodle like mad. 

I tried something different too. I decided to stamp these girls on label paper, like, what you would get at staples? Colored them with colored pencil and cut them out with my fussy scissors. It was perfect! No way these gals are coming off in the mail! No worry about how to affix them or masking them off. It worked so well! 

I really can't wait to take this to the post office tomorrow and send it on its way. REALLY can't wait for the recipient to get it though! I hope she loves it! 

Ingredients:

Stampotique Stamps:

Marsha

Sargent

Hanging Hearts

Just Keep On 

Stencil Girl Circles 

Dylusions Circle Stencil

Dylusions Ink Sprays

Ranger Gesso

Posca White Pen

Faber Castell Black Pen

Ranger Archival Black Ink

Folk Art Acrylic Paints

Americana Acrylic Paints

Label Paper

Colored Pencils

Happy Halloween! SDC 257

Is it STILL September? Actually, I feel like September hasn't even been around that long with everything going on here at home.

I went to Target awhile ago and got this adorable wooden house for 3 dollars in the Dollar Spot and knew it needed to be a haunted house. Like, the most adorable, colorful haunted house ever. It is wooden, and pretty sturdy.

This was a new undertaking for me, but anxiety kept me up yesterday so I crafted all night (well almost 11pm, which for me is SUPER late) I really had fun coming up with the color scheme and the theme.

Of COURSE I used a Stampotique Originals stamp, Bat Boy. I did remove his hat, but left the rest of him in tact.

 I used a fiskars punch to create the scallops on the roof and on the eves. I used decorative papers in everything but the washi tape I used for the sides, and then, of course, colored the sweet Bat Boy with my watercolor pencils. I created the fencing and the door and windows free hand and just went where the paper took me.

The clouds are from a paper pack and I just cut them out. I really like how the cloud is on the front and the back. The moon helps make the spider really stand out! I had a really hard time getting a good shot of the house in or out of the sun, so I hope you are getting the idea of how it looks in real life!

Additionally, I am using this as an entry into our challenge this week (week 2, actually)  over at Stampotique originals, "Put A  Bug On It" ,SDC 257. Pretty sure my giant spider is going to fit right in. Poor Bat Boy, trying to see who is lurking outside on All Hallow's Eve! 

Ingredients:

Bat Boy: Stampotique Originals

Core'dinations Cardstock

Studio Calico Cardstock

Tombow Adhesive

Ranger Archival Black Ink

Ranger  Glacier White Pigment Ink

Fabric Washi Tape

Wooden House, Target Dollar Spot