A new class

Its a gorgeous day in Ohio!  I have the day off so I'm spending my time in the art studio.  I have completed another class for the AECP program called Clean and Simple Boutique Cards, taught by none other than Jennifer Rzasa.  You don't have to be a part of the AECP to take the class, and I highly recommend if you struggle with CAS cards like me.


Clean and Simple is not my normal forte'.  I tend to be fussy and over complicated with my work.  Always trying to do something a 'little extra'....my daughters call me 'Extra', it's my thing....  I knew this class would be a challenge for me!  I have 3 projects I completed from this class, each showcasing a different lesson.

I started off the class by making this simple, 1 layer card.  I think I made this card at LEAST 6 times....I would change the color, the layout, the ink would bleed through the washi tape, then it would bleed through 2 layers of washi tape....it was the bane of my existence!   I will say I do like how it came out after all the trial and error.

I used Altenew's Leaf Clusters stamp set for my images and my sentiment.  I used 3 layers of washi tape....just to be sure NOTHING was getting through it....so I would have a blank space for my sentiment.  Then using my Misti, I stamped the background layer twice with Frayed Leaf ink.  I like the intensity and the full coverage of the inks when they are stamped twice, they look luscious!  The forefront leaves were stamped in Forest Green ink, again I double stamped these as well.  I then used my ink pads to make a watercolor wash to splatter those 2 inks on the background.  It's an old trick I use often for water coloring and Jennifer also shows you how to do it in her class....go check it out!....

I removed the washi tape and stamped the sentiment.  I kept the layout all to the left, I like the juxtaposition of all the images on one side with lots of white on the other.  It's just a different way of balancing the space.

After I stamped the sentiment, I added the black lines with a Sharpie marker and a ruler....'cause it's what I got!....  I then highlighted the leaves by hand lining them with a .03 Micro marker.  In the end, I think it's a nice card.  SUPER simple 1 layer card for me!  So I'm entering it in the Addicted to CAS blog this week!

This second card I focused on using a single stamp to create a background.  I thought about using a floral stamp and even started with one, but decided to do a sentiment instead from Altenew Fancy Greetings....because I can't just keep it simple....  I used this sentiment for my daughter.  She is in the process of trying out for the play in school and is struggling with her confidence.  She loves when I give her cards....she still has the one from her first day of 1st grade I put in her lunch box, she's in 10th grade now....and I love making them for her!

First, it's NOT at all what I had planned, but I LOVE how this came out!  It's teenager grunge and I like it!  Like the first card, I probably made this background 4 times before I liked it.  I started off by stamping the sentiment just above center.  This is an old technique I learned in art school when I learned to frame my work.  If the focal point is exactly smack in the center, it has an uneasy, 'not sure if its really centered' feeling.  If you add a small amount of space to the bottom of your mat when you frame, it gives a better illusion of being centered in the frame.....see, my art degree DOES pays off....  Doesn't it look centered? Anyhoo, I used a black pigment ink then added clear embossing powder to it for some shine and to protect it from the next part of the process.

Next I stamped the sentiment repeatedly to create the background using Versamark ink.  Now, if I had used glossy paper and blended ink on it, the Versamark would have slightly resisted the ink, making it a bit lighter in the background.  Since I'm all out of glossy paper, I decided to try using the Versamark but with watercolors instead.  It didn't resist the paint....at all....and I panicked....after all, that is a lot of plotting and stamping!....  Then as I panicked and wiped away the excess paint with a wipe...a magical thing happened!  The Versamark absorbed the paint more than the paper did!  I then tested my luck and added 3 or 4 light layers of watercolor and repeated the process of wiping it off after a few seconds.  It created this cool watermark background.  I felt like a genius!  I'm sure someone else has done this before, but I'm just so super pleased with myself and will now have to do it again.

I finished it off my highlighting the main sentiment with some extra watercolor paints that I didn't wipe away and some black splatter.  I did use my heat gun to speed the drying process up which helped with the grunge look.

My final project for the class actually combines the last 3 lessons of the class.  I started by creating this card, combining lessons 4 & 5.  I used the Altenew Layered Plaid and Fantasy Floral die sets.  To say this was an easy card in an understatement!

Following Jennifer's advice, I decided to use some luxury papers for my flowers. Since I'm EXTRA, I used all luxury papers for all the layers....yup.... It may have been overkill, but I'm LOVING IT!!! I used 5 different luxury papers; 3 glitter papers, copper shimmer paper and gold mirror paper....the gold mirror paper is awesome on the flowers!..... 

This was my first time using the Fantasy Floral die set, and can I just say, EASEY PEASY!!!  Such a great die set and it make gorgeous flowers!  I couldn't stop making them, it was addicting!  Just look at the shimmer and shine!!

For the back panel, I just ran the Layered Plaid die with a rubber shim to emboss instead of cut the paper....such a great background....I added a sentiment from the Beautiful Day stamp set and assembled them all together.  If I hadn't made a million flowers, it would have only taken me about 10  minutes to make this card.

Then, after I watched Jennifer's last lesson....and with my plethora of flowers on hand....I decided to make a card gift set and some tags to go along with it.  Each card and tag has a different sentiment from Altenew Fancy Greetings and flower color combo.

I finished off the box with a simple stripe of copper glitter to match the cards.  I used  1/4" double stick tape around a plastic box I had on hand.  After removing the paper on the tape, I covered it with the glitter and viola!  Simple and fabulous box!  I tied it off with some ribbon and added one of the tags to it.

That was the longest post EVA!!!  I hope you enjoyed it!

Have a colorful day!!!

Last one!

Hi y'all!

Its my last one for the day...I promise!  This little ditty was also inspired by the All About Layering class I'm taking with Altenew for the AECP.  I'm tellin' ya, it's a great class!  You should partake....

With this card I combined lessons 8 & 9.  Using Vintage Roses from Altenew, I stamped the flowers and the leaves with ALL THE LAYERS.  *whew!*  That was a lot of stamping, but just look how it came out!  Like a vintage little dish my grandmother used to have.  I just love it!

I used the Tea Party ink collection for the roses and the Green Fields ink collection for the leaves.  I then used some watercolor paints to add some color around them.  I chose the yellow because the color combo remind me of 40's and 50's vintage cloth or dishes, just as sweet as can be! I then splattered the background with yellow, green and black.  Then, I added my sentiment with black pigment ink and clear embossed it so it would shine!  I also added some sparkle with sequins and some pink Stickles, 'cause I love me some sparkle!

Have a colorful day!!

Beautiful Day

Hi y'all!

In May I invested in new inks from Altenew....the 15 yr old colors I had from Stampin' Up! were all retired!....and I LOVE them!!  I really do appreciate the various shades of the colors.  Some people claim you can just off stamp, but this is different.  Each image is crisp and full of color, not just a shadow of what it 'should' be.  These inks just makes my creating that much more diverse and polished looking.  I highly recommend...just sayin'.  The inks were PERFECTION for this new stamp set!

This is another card I created from the All About Layering class from Altenew with the AECP Program.  This card uses layered stamping techniques from many of the lessons as well as the sentiment layering from Lesson 10.  First, I love layering the die cut sentiments, it gives them major pop on the card!  I used 3 layers of dark green then topped it with a black layer, POP!
Second, I must admit I'm obsessed with this new stamp set Wonderful Wycinanki!  I love the bold images and I have a soft spot for Polish art.  I used Polish art as inspiration project last year for the EWP artshow....my preschoolers love color too!....  This project I used lighter colors than I would normally use, as I'm sending it off to a pastel loving friend.  Next time, SUPER. BOLD. COLOR!!

So EXCITED!!!!!

Hi y'all!

I am SUPER excited to share some news today!  I applied and was recently chosen to be a part of the Altenew Educator Certification Program....or AECP for short....!  I am SO incredibly excited to work with them.  Returning to paper crafting after a nearly 6 year hiatus, kept finding these gorgeous stamped images on cards EVERYWHERE!  I did my research and found they were from Altenew.  I was familiar with Jennifer Rzasa back before I disappeared because we were on the 'Our Creative Corner' Design Team together!....its a small world!.....  now, she's one of the geniuses behind Altenew!....I can sort of say 'I knew her when'....

Anyhoo, part of the program is participating in some of the classes they offer.  The first class I have completed is the All About Layering class.  This is actually offered for free on the Altenew website!  It has great techniques you may or may not already know, and they also explain some of the layered stamp sets for you so you can excel at using them.  The 3 cards to the left are some I created from a few of the lessons in the class.  They were made a few weeks before I was officially accepted into the program....but I had already started the class.....

I have completed all the lessons in the class, and I have created a card....well 3 MORE actually....using several of the lessons combined into one project.  The card below includes techniques from Lessons 2, 4 and 5. 

I used gold embossing powder with the layered Beautiful Day stamp set, both on the background stamping and on the main flower image.  I opted not to put the gold on the green leaves, as I wanted the flower and its accented background to be the focal points.  I also went back in on the background stamp with a blender pen and some ink to create shading in the flowers and leaves.....you can see it a little better in the close-up photos....  

I also added some splatters to the background using some of my old Tattered Angels Shimmer Mists in Pomegrante and Vintage Pink as well as some gold shimmer watercolor paints.

I am also killing 2 birds with 1 stone, I'm entering this in this month's Altenew Inspiration Challenge.

I'll be posting my other 2 cards in a few, so stay tuned!!!

Have a colorful day!!

My little artist!

Hi y'all!

I just have to share this with you!  My sweet 10 yr old is a budding artist.  She loves nothing more than to spend time in our art studio, creating, experimenting and testing out new products.....new to her at least....  I recently gave her a set of watercolor paints I had replaced and she has been going to town with them! 

She created this FABULOUS background paper for me to use for card making!  First, isn't she thoughful?  Second, I never knew those watercolors could do that!  I told her it looked like a galaxy of stars, and I knew I have a perfect set to go with it!  I embossed with white and die cut the rocket on black paper.  I then used the same paints and made a thick water color paint to fill in the spaces.  It has a chalk paint feel and look to it.  It's completely adorable!  I'm planning on sticking this in her lunch box next week to make her feel special and to show off her handiwork to her friends!

Global Design Project is having a challenge this week:

What perfect timing!?!?!

Have a colorful day!

Gnome or not to gnome...

Hi y'all!

Just a quick one here today!  I created this card for the My Favorite Things Color Challenge this week.  The background paper I created 2 months ago when I was working on multi media papers.  It's just been sitting in my stash since then, waiting for it's chance to shine.  It went perfectly with the MFT color challenge, so I thought I'd use it. 

I struggled creating this card, the layout, the coloring, the imagery....I just couldn't figure out what to do.  I decided on the gnome, because I knew I could give it to my Beloved and he would appreciate it....he loves gnomes....  I don't have any Copics that match, so I had to improvise and layer them to get the right colors.  I think I like it?  I know he will!

Hope you have a colorful day!!

Gotta love COLOR!!

Hi y'all!

While today may be the first day of school for my kiddos, I won't start until the week after Labor Day....yay for me!!!....  I do however have to re-build my entire classroom due to a flood from all the rain we had in May.  They are 90% done with the construction and I can't wait to make it pretty again.

Since I'm in the 'back to school' mode today, I decided to head over to Paper Smooches for this month's challenge.  Kim offered us up 2 challenges in one - Back to School or Words (sentiments).  I decided to combine them both for my creation!

You might ask, what does painting have to do with back to school?  Well, I'm an art teacher so when I hear 'back to school', I think paint, brushes, paper, crayons, clay, glue, scraps, rocks, baby wipes, markers, pencils, ribbon, glitter......and so on.....  I used PS Word Salad for my sentiment and I Heart Art for my images.   I adore both of these sets, and my littlest artist....she's not so little anymore....loves to make book marks with them for school! 

I stamped the background sentiment with 4 shades of Altenew Gentleman's Grey inks so it would have a subtle ombre....thank goodness for MISTI!.....  I then stamped, colored and fussy cut the pallet and the brush.  Finally, I stamped and embossed the sentiment again on black paper, then added color to 'color' with Copic markers. 

I'm still working on my photography skills, so excuse the fuzzy edges!  Any suggestions or help would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

Have a colorful day!!!

Red all over

Good morning!

The kiddos are off for their first day of school today, so I'm enjoying a quiet morning in my art studio.  It's a sad and happy day for me, hard to see them grow up another year,....5th and 10th grade - YIKES!.... but I am excited to have some free time to myself without any mama guilt.

I created a bunch of mixed media papers a while back and have been holding onto this gorgeous red paper for just the right project. I was playing around with a stencil, rubbing alcohol and re-inkers, and I absolutely loved how it came out!  The flower is from Altenew's Peony Bouquet.  It's embossed with white powder on black paper and the shading was done using a white charcoal pencil....that's a bit of an oxymoron don't you think?....  I think this is one of my most favorite cards I've made in a while!

I've decided to include this card for The Paper Players challenge this week; black, white and a color of your choice as well as the CAS on Friday challenge blogs.

Have a colorful day!!

What a busy August!

Hi ya'll!

What a busy month so far!  I moved my sister from California to Hendersonville TN, had my oldest friend and sister in law visit from Copenhagen and Salem OH, then had our old neighbors visit from Columbus OH.  WHEW!!!  I have been crafting occasionally....late at night obviously....and will be sharing those with you this week!

First up I have this sparkly little number!  This is for this weeks Color Throwdown.  I kept the colors a bit more pastel....at least the green....and loved how it came out.  Soft and subtle.  The stamps are Hexagon Play from Altenew and Ellen Hudson's Squeeze the Day.  Love them both!

Super quick...

Hi ya'll!

I've been CrAZY busy these last 2 weeks!  I made some cards for a magazine call, finished up our fire pit, and am leaving in 7 short hours for California!  Before I left, I had to get this creation in for the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge. 

The challenge is to create your own background.  Well...I've been having TONS of fun creating papers using stencils, rubbing alcohol and re-inkers.  I made these 2 cards by spraying rubbing alcohol on Bristol paper, placing a stencil on top, then using re-inkers to add colors!  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the effect it created!

I think the pink and purple one is my favorite!!! 

Have a great 10 days!

Here for you

Hi ya'll!

Super quick card here today.  Decided to try the CAS(E) sketch this week.  I need a more complete collection of the pink Copics , the flowers came out a bit neon-esc.  But it's a sweet card for a friend that recently lost a family member.