Loopy Felt Flower Tutorial & Lots of Tips!

Boy oh boy, am I ready for spring!  I am using flowers everywhere and when I saw an advertisement for Basic Grey’s new loopy felt flowers I had to see if I could make them myself. How did I do?

They are fun, easy and only take seconds. All you need is craft store felt sheets, you know, the .25 cent kind and a pair of scissors and a dob of glue. Honestly, they cost about 2 cents each to make so why not give it a try. Watch the short video to see how:

Here are the written instructions: Fold a 1.5″ x9″ strip of felt in half the long way. cut slits every 1/8″ (you can use fringe scissors to speed things up) then roll up the strip and secure with hot glue. You can cut leaves from green felt and add them if you wish. If you want a flower with a round center just use a 1/2″x4″ strip of felt and roll that up into a coil then attach the folded fringed piece and roll as before. Easy peasy!

More tips!!!

I loved the background paper I made the other day, so much that I did not want to cover it up so I stamped a magnolia collage stamp on top. Here are some tips for stamping on pattern paper

1. Color the image with regular wax-based colored pencils (like Prismacolor or Crayola) the colors, especially the light ones, are opaque and will block out the pattern underneath. Color firmly to blend.

2. Frame the image by using a reverse mask. I used Post-It notes to make a frame around my stamped image and sponged (a make-up wedge works great!)on brown ink. When you remove the post it note you have a pretty frame just like magic and you can still see parts of your beautiful paper!

3. This probably goes without saying BUT, use a dark ink on a patterned background so it will show up

One last tip!

Mix and match your frame and sentiment stamps for snazzy new looks! I have had this oval frame from Rubber Stampede for years, I love how well it pairs up with the Stampin Up stamps I just got this month. That oldie is not moldy anymore!

That’s all for today, I am having friends over to craft tonight so I must clean up the crap..er craft room!  Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

The Night Circus & WOYWW!

I am in love with the book The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern! I finished it Tuesday night and started reading it again…it was that good! I highly recommend it, I don’t even know what genre it is, it is very dreamy and transcendent with a truly original plot and I don’t want to tell you about it because I don’t want to spoil anything. I even ordered the audio book so I could listen to it read to me! Anyway, it has inspired me in my work this week. I designed a printable party kit called Midnight Dinner Party and I used one of the printable sheets to make this card:

I was inspired by the character “Kiko”, the Asian contortionist when I created this card. The Geisha Stamp I used is by Art Neko, the sentiment is from MSE!, all other stamps are from Glitz Designs. I used my Inktense watercolor pencils to color the kimono, notice how much more vivid the colors are with this brand of pencils compared to the traditional colored pencils I used on my teacher valentines and my sock monkey card from earlier this week. Both the Inktense and the regular colored pencils are by the Derwent company but they are quite different.

Here is my desk mid-card (a day late) for What’s On Your Work-desk Wednesday:

So, this book influenced me so much while I was working this week. I was compelled to design a black and white party set called Midnight Dinner Party. All the elements in my kit are black and white so it is cheap to print and if you do not like black and white you can print it out on colored cardstock. I would be pretty on cream for a wedding, or hot pink for a sweet 16 or with accents of red for a “Night Circus Midnight Dinner” like I did here. Please note that no text or wording comes in this kit (but couldn’t help the mock-up with the characters names!)  you can customize that easily yourself and use this kit time and time again!

If you find yourself inspired enough by The Night Circus to create something leave a link to it, I’d love to see it! Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Watercolor {pencils} made easy!

How do I love watercolor pencils? Let me count the ways:

1. They are inexpensive (esp. compared to Copics!)
2. They last FOREVER!
3. I can let me kids use them and not worry about them getting damaged.
4. They blend with ease.
5. I can control them in my tiny stamped images much better than traditional watercolors.
6. No mess!
7. And they look great even on cheap cardstock LOL!

Here is a quick card I made for my son to take to an ice fishing birthday party yesterday:

 

I love sock monkeys and that particular stamp is from Oriental Trading Co.(I loved it so much I paid full price for it!) One thing I want to mention about the $15 stamp sets from OTC is that they are huge! You get a 8.5″x11″ sheet full of stamps and they come on a 3 ring hole punched sheet that I can put directly in my binders and they have good sales too, many of the huge sets I have purchased from them have been between $3-$7 and if there is a problem with anything (like a stamp missing-it happened once) they send out a replacement ASAP. And I am not being compensated to say that;)

OK now on with the show…

Today I want to show you how to color and blend with watercolor pencils. I am using inexpensive Georgia Pacific cardstock, Derwent colored pencils, Stampin Up Basic Black ink and a Stampin Up blending pen. Use what you have. Any watercolor pencils, smooth cardstock and archival ink will work. I’ve tried many blending pens and I find SU to be the best as the nib does not wear down. If you don’t have one you can use a round nylon paintbrush. Dip it in water then blot it on a towel before blending.

 

Tips!

• Most watercolor pencils are good, in fact, Staples office supply sells a set of 24 in the drafting section that are very nice and since you can blend you do not need that many colors. I had the ones from Staples before I received the set of 72 Derwents (pictured) and then I gave the staples set to my niece.
• You will get darker colors on a rougher paper because the tooth of the paper will grab more pigment, it will also wear down your pencils quicker. But don’t let that worry you because they last for YEARS! I’d use the blender pens only on smooth cardstock because the rougher watercolor paper will fray the tip of the blender pen. Try a nylon (the gold or white bristle ones) paintbrush for watercolor paper work. You need a firmer brush for watercolor pencils than traditioal watercolors.
• Don’t overwork the cardstock, blend it once and leave it, if you keep going back you might “pill” the paper. You will get the feel of how much pencil to add before blending after a few tries. Practice!
• If you like the ease of watercolor pencils but want more intense color I recommend the Inktence line of pencils by Derwent. They are super vivid and you can layer colors over each other without lifting up the first color. I use them more often than my traditional watercolor pencils because I like the bright.

 

So, what do you think? Are you ready to dig out your watercolor pencils yet? I hope so! If you have any questions leave a comment and I will answer. It is going to be a very cold windy day in Maine today so I think I will hunker down with a cup of tea and my watercolor pencils, how about you? Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Gasp! A manly card :)

OK, so I am not known for making “guy” cards but I needed a birthday card for my nephew-in-law {is that even a title?} So I grabbed some kraft cardstock, my Promarkers, a wood grain embossing plate and some stamps and had at it!

Stampscapes stamp tips:

I bought this beautiful Stampcapes scenic stamp at a yard sale a few years ago but I’ll admit I had a hard time using it. These stamps have a lot of detail and there is a trick to getting it right!

1. Use a brayer to ink up the stamp. I have 2 soft rubber brayers in my craft room: one for blacks and browns and one for other colors. Simply roll the brayer on an inkpad (I used Close to Cocoa by Stampin Up!) then roll it along your stamp. Repeat this a couple of times from left to right and top to bottom.
2. Use smooth paper. You can use glossy cardstock or very smooth regular cardstock such as Neenah Classic Crest. Keep the stamp rubber side up on your table and lay the cardstock on top of the inked stamp and rub your hand over the paper. Just be sure not to move the paper as you rub.
3. When coloring keep elements that are in the background (like the trees behind the cabin) dull in color and make the objects closer to you (like the grass in the foreground) brighter in color.
4. If you need to add brighter, or lighter color to your design after coloring it with markers layer colored pencils on top for a spark of color and texture.

A couple more tips:
1. When you want to mat {layer} a piece of stamp art first punch a shape out of the center of the background layer. You don’t see the middle of the panel so it does not matter if there is a hole in it;) You can save these punch outs for a future project or make a matching gift tag! It will also cut down on wight when mailing, you might just save yourself an extra stamp!
2. Leftover over scraps of paper used on the card can be turned into an envelope liner as I did on the top photo. Simply trace the flap of the envelope on the scrap paper (make sure you have a couple of inches below the flap so you can tuck it inside) cut it out and slide in the envie. Hold the tip of the liner in place with double-sided tape.
3. When stamping oft-used sentiments such as the birthday definition be sure to stamp a few extra so you can have them ready to use on your next card, it is a time saver!

Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

The Envelope Please! {and a freebie!}

I have been obsessed with making envelopes lately! I sell my card at local shops and I always scramble to make envelopes at the last-minute, well no more I tell you, now I make them when I make my card while I still have all of the supplies out I have wanted to try printing my stamps on envelopes but I can never seem to get a good result printing on a premade envie so I made a 300 dpi template that you can layer your stamps on, print and cut! I printed my template directly on pattern paper along with stamps from the Pretty Princess collection:

I love matching cards and envies!

I colored the princess with my Prismacolor and Copic markers (they play so nice together!) and glued leftover die cut bits from yesterdays project to embellish the card. I rubber-stamped the sentiment.

Digital Stamps: Pretty Princess Collection (Lindsay's stamp Stuff), Rubber Stamps: Inkadinkado, Inque Boutique/Darice, Paper Frances Mayer, Punch: SU!

Here is the Envelope, I printed the stamps and template together on light pink pattern paper. I knew this would be hand delivered so I made a “poistoid” in the corner in Paint Shop Pro. I colored the stamps with colored pencils (because they are opaque and will show up on the pattern paper and because the will not bleed through) then scored and folded the envelope.

The envelope is today’s freebie, it is 300dpi JPG file so that when you layer your stamps on to print they will be nice and clear. Download the free envelope here.

Here is an example on how I laid mine out to print. I colored the envelope pink for to make the template easier to see:

This is the easiest way to print on an envelope!

Now let’s see what the Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff Junior DT has in store for us this week. The are all making pretty envelopes and have great (and frugal too!) tips on how to make and decorate your own! Also I have added 3 new designers to our team, two of whom are posting today, Fun, Fun!

Kristen Hamlin

Karin Martin

Jennifer Bliss

Cassandra Cushman

Tanya Johnson

Cheryl Gorka

Jessica Hammond New!

Rhonda Walker New!

Be sure to check out the new products added this week to the Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff shop including a new digistamp freebie! Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Copic+Colored Pencil=Awesomeness!

Hmmm, Is Awesomeness even a word, well if it isn’t it should be! This week I challenged my designers to create cards and projects inspired by nature. Many of the Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff sets are nature themed so it was easy to find a stamp to use, I decided to work with my Fancy Flowers digital stamp set and here is what I came up with:

Digital Stamps: Lindsay's stamp stuff, Cardstock: GP, Co'ordenations, Rubber stamp (sentiments): SU!

I got the idea to use colored pencils over my copic markers from a lady in my What’s Digital Stamping? Yahoo Group (Thanks Tiffany, you rock!) and I love the results. You simply color the images as usual with your copic (or Bic, Sharpie or Prismacolor) markers then add colored pencil on top. The more color you add the more it will glow but if you were coloring something that was fuzzy (like a teddy bear) or rough (like a rock) you can use a lighter touch to pick up some of the texture of the paper.

Markers: Copic, Colored Pencils: Prismacolor, Punch: SU!

Tiffany warns up not to use the marker over the colored pencil though, it will gunk up our marker nibs.

The colored pencils over the markers give a rich glow to the work.

I first colored the images with markers as I normally would, then I added colored pencils around the edges and blended them inward with a colorless blending pencil, or you can use a lighter colored pencil.

Digital Stamps: Lindsay's Stamp Stuff, Die Cuts: Penny Duncan

Now let’s see what nature inspired designs the rest of the Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff design team has for us today!

Kristen Hamlin

Karin Martin

Jennifer Bliss

Cheryl Gorka

Anette “Nettie” Robins

Cassandra Cushman

Tanya Johnson

Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Halloween in August {and a freebie!}

***We are having some technical difficulties with the freebie link this week, while I sort it out you can download this weeks freebie here, Please be sure to visit the design team to see what you can make with it ******

One of my friends took her family camping last weekend and the campground was having Halloween in August, wow what a cool idea I thought, and with my new Halloween stamps I am good to go:

digital Stamps: Lindsay's stamp Stuff, Cardstock: Georgia Pacific (white), DCWV (orange), Bazzil (purple), Paper co (black), Colored Pencils: Prismacolor, Rubber stamps: Inkadinkado, InqueBotique, Tool: Scor-Pal, Cricut+SCAL software, Crop-a-dial

On this card I used A Cute Witch and Harry the Spider digital stamps from Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff. I colored them with colored pencils then blended them with a blender pen that I had filled with goo-gone. Then I used a star background rubber stamp (Inque Boutique) and clear embossing ink to stamp around the witch and used a pom-pom to dab chalk over that to make the purple star design in the background.

I used my cricut and SCAL software to cut the spiderweb edge card (you can download that svg file below) then used spray adhesive to glue it to a 6″x12″ sheet of Bazzil cardstock, then I trimmed around the web. The cardstock backing adds color while making the card more sturdy. I embossed “Trick or Treat” (inkadinkado) with white on a black scrap, mounted it with orange and adhered it to the card and added eyelets for decoration. I cut the stars with my Cricut and SCAL software then gave them a coat of glitter glue.

Download the Spiderweb Edge Card SVG here.

Here is a peek at what is new in the Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff Shop this week:

Flourished Peacock

Cattails #1

Cattails #2

We have another Lindsay’s stamp Stuff Freebie hidden on one of the Design team’s blogs. Check them all out to find your freebie of the week, get ready to be inspired, oh yes and be sure to leave some love;)

Diana Stout (August Guest DT)

Katt

Margie

Lisa

Tamara

Row

Leanne

Janet

Olena

Melissa Craig

Kim

Tracey

Thanks for stopping by and till next time happy crafting!