Starch and Brushos

I had fun with some friends recently using spray starch with brushos to make backgrounds.

Here's a card using the technique:

It's pretty easy to do the background - spray some starch on watercolour paper, sprinkle with brushos, cover with slightly scrunched cling wrap and let dry.

I added two diecut mistletoe sprays (double layered for more dimension), a bow to tie the sprays together, pearls for the berries, and a sentiment.

Another for my Christmas card stash and for the SCS Ways to Use It challenge "Oh Ribbon"!

Supplies:

Stamps - Impression Obsession sentiment

Ink - Memento Cottage Ivy

Paper - white cs, watercolour paper

Size - A2

Accessories - green ribbon, fun foam, green brushos, spray starch, cling wrap

A Bird for Merry Monday

I'm trying to get back into doing my favourite challenges.  Merry Monday is one of them.  This week they want a bird on a Christmas card:

I had set myself a goal in January of making one card a week that uses some dp on it as I'd love to get rid of some of my stash.  I've failed miserably in this goal!!  But I made myself go through my dp for this card and found something I liked with the bird stamp I wanted to use.

I inked up the bird with little red and green ink spots I've had for ages so that I could get the two different colours.  Die cut the image and a piece of green cs with inverted scallop dies that make me think of holly, and mounted on the dp and a green card base.  The gemstones on the bird really are red, but for some reason look black in the photo.

I feel like this card is a throwback to my old style of cardmaking - not sure it's really me any more.  So maybe I need to bite the bullet and get rid of a lot of my dp!!!

Supplies:

Stamps - Inkadinkado

Ink - red and green ink spots (unknown brand)

Paper - green and cream cs, Heidi Swapp dp

Size - 4.75" square

Accessories - red gemstones, foam tape, Nesties inverted scallop dies

Autumn Berries

I've done one more watercolour card for the new CAS Watercolour challenge and am squeaking in before the deadline tonight.

I love the way leaves turn colour and, on some plants, berries appear in the place of flowers in the autumn.  Here's my card:

 

It's a very traditional way to use watercolour - simply painting the image with watercolour pan paints!  As much as I love playing with all the new watercolour mediums (like Brushos and Bister) and all the new techniques, I do still love just colouring my image with paints.

Enjoy the last of autumn!

Supplies:

Stamps - Magenta leaves and berries, unknown sentiment

Ink - Versafine Onyx Black

Paper - watercolour paper, PTI Vintage Cream

Size - A2

Accessories - Sizzix die, twine, foam tape, watercolour paints

Christmas with a Bit of Orange

The October challenge at Christmas Cards All Year Round is "use a little or a lot of orange on your Holiday project".

Here's my entry:

I dropped bits of red, orange, yellow, and green alcohol inks onto Yupo paper, and then added a bit of silver mixative.

I die cut "merry" out of silver cs and twice more out of scrap cs, gluing them together to give dimension, then added a matching border, and stamped and heat embossed "Christmas" underneath.

It was hard to photograph - there is actually a bit more silver in the background than it seems as some of it photographed as if it were just grey.

Supplies:

Stamps - SU Christmas

Ink - ColorBox silver, various alcohol inks

Paper - white and silver cs, Yupo

Size - A2

Accessories - silver mixative, silver embossing powder, PTI "merry" die

Christmas Dogs

I love Christmas card challenges as they help me get my cards done on time.  The current challenge at 52 Christmas Card Countdown is:

Here's the card I did for it:

It's a very simple card - stamped and watercolour, with a bit of Flower Soft on the brim and pompom of the hat.  It's for a friend who has a miniature schnauzer.

Here's another I did recently for SCS but never blogged:

Stamped and watercoloured image, with glitter on the snowflake dots and snow lines, and then some snowflakes punched out of glitter cs for extra interest. I added Flower Soft to his hat as well, and bordered it in red to match the hat.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:

Stamps - Stampendous Santa Pup and Rubber Soul sentiment (card 1);   Crafters Companion "Barkley" (card 2)

Ink -  Memento Tuxedo Black

Paper - dark green, white and red cs, watercolour paper, aqua glitter cs

Accessories - various small snowflake punches, Nesties label dies, Quickie glue pen and glitter, white Flower Soft, watercolour paints

Ghosted Mistletoe

Just a reminder that the CAS Mix Up "Ghosting" challenge is going on until October 24th!

One of the easiest ways to do ghosting on a card is to use Distress inks, an image, and water.

I created a green background with two shades of green Distress inks.  I made sure it was thoroughly dry before stamping and heat embossing my mistletoe with Versamark and white embossing powder.  I stamped the sentiment with black Archival ink.

I then took a fine paintbrush and some water and lifted the green from the insides of all the mistletoe leaves and stems.

For added interest, I sprinkled Frantage chunky white embossing enamel over the panel and heat set it from underneath the cardstock.

I mounted it on fun foam for some dimension and added a white pearl pen to the mistletoe berries.

The CAS Mix Up challenge requires stamping, ghosting, and at least one other technique or element - my others are heat embossing (on the image and the sprinkled Frantage) and liquid pearls (the pearl pen).  Be sure to keep your card clean and simple!

Supplies:

Stamps - Penny Black mistletoe, Impression Obsession sentiment

Ink - Distress Peeled Paint and Mowed Lawn, Versamark, Archival black

Paper - white cs

Size - A2

Accessories - white embossing powder, white Pearl pen, Frantage chunky white embossing enamel, fun foam