Rainbow Stamped Happy Birthday Card

This week I had a little bit of time to play in my craft room and accomplish something other than design team responsibilities. Winnie and Walter happens to be one of my fave stamp companies and I hadn't pulled out the sets I own in awhile. 

Time to remedy that! I thought to myself. 

So I went to their blog and found the latest Gossip Column Challenge with Taheerah Atchi. Taheerah does such a good job of explaining new trends and this month's focus was on Spectrum.

Spectrum! Perfect because I L-O-V-E all things bright and rainbowy. I stamped some stars and watercolored them with a bevy of colors. Then I used a HAPPY die cut and watercolored that alllllll blue. 

STAMPS USED: Winnie & Walter - The Big the Bold The Happy and Big Bang Confetti,
  DIES USED: Winnie & Walter, In a Word: Happy Cutaway

I then took another sheet of watercolor paper and created the full spectrum of rainbowy color to have a fun background for my focal image. Last but not least, I added some sequins that shimmered in sun, too! 

I'm also going to link this up to:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday - ATG

Addicted to Stamps & More - Clean and Simple

Thanks for popping by! 

PSSSSSSSSSSSSSSTTT - 

Just a reminder that you have 3 days left to play in my birthday challenge and have a chance to win part of $100 in prizes I'm giving away!

Link up your cards here. 

Messy Stars - Mixed Media Card

Ok, so ya'll know I love a good process photoshow explanation for my blog posts, but I'm gonna apologize here because while I was making this card I SUCKED at taking any photos. 

Do you ever just get in the mood to play and then totally lose yourself in the artsy process? That's what happened here and it was soooooo liberating. So... sorry not sorry? Ok, I am a little bit sorry. But also not. 

If you want to talk about an explosion of fun, that's sort of what happened here. I just kept adding and adding and adding layers of mixed media until I was happy with what was going on. 

I made the background using Distress Spray Stains, frantage, starry washi tape, gesso, stamps from the Balloons and Banners STAMPloration set, and a gel pen.  

Since the theme of the month over at STAMPlortions challenge is STAMPS and STARS, you can tell why this is ridden with starry wonderment. 

 If you haven't played along at STAMPlorations yet - consider this  your reminder to get your but in gear! You can use either the theme or the sketch OR both! 

My center star was made by coloring with yellow gelatos. I hated that so I dipped it in distress ink. Still wasn't what I was going for so I added Blue Patina Perfect Pearls and then I was happy!! Mixed media cards are cool like that. Just keep adding til you're happy. 

The coolest part of the card was this bubbly little center piece. I had some black gemstone adhesive paper from DCWV and I gessoed over it. Then I sprayed it with Distress Spray stains and darkened the border of it with a gelato crayon. 

All in all I think it's wicked cool. 

I'm also going to play along in the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge where their theme is also Stars, Aud Sentiments (anything goes), and the Male Room (Blue, Red + One Color - My color is  hints of yellow!)

 

 Thanks for popping by!!

------------------------------------------

PSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSTTTT - 

Have you played along in my

30th Birthday Challenge

yet?? 

I'm giving away over $100 in prizes! 

It's My 30th Birthday! And I'm Partying with Prizes!

Woop Woooooooop! 

Today is the day where I enter the decade of the big three - OH!

That's right! I turned 30!!

And I'm partying down in the bloggy way by throwing a Birthday Bash with a card linkup party. And I know I'm supposed to get gifts for my b-day, but I thought it would be nice to GIVE some gifts too, to thank all of my amazing followers for cheering me on for the past two years. So read on to learn what I've got in store for you. 

The Mood Board:

So let's explain how this party works:

1. Look at that fancy mood board and find something you like! Here are some ideas:

• A bright bold explosion of colors
• Circular shapes
• Distressed, rusty elements
• Unique angles
• Trees
• Artsy fartsy experimentation

2. Make a card

3. Follow my blog (most of my giveaways are open whether or not you're a follower, but for my birthday bash I like to celebrate with friends - old and new alike!)

4. Make a blog post using the graphic and a link back here and link up your card at the bottom of this post.

Of course, I had to make a card myself!

I'm sure you can tell which picture was my inspiration for this guy - the tree! I made it using Distress Paint. All those little dots are individual brushstrokes. 

Since we're celebrating birthdays, I'm also playing along at Seize the Birthday where the theme is Bold & Bright. 

Now for prizes! 30 is a big year so I've got some BIG prizes to give away for those who are linking up to my birthday bash.

Prize 1 & 2 - STAMPlorations Gift Cards

I'm giving away 2 gift cards to STAMPlorations for $20 each (a big thanks to Shery for donating the second card - what a sweetie!!)

Prize 3 - A complete Fossilized Amber Set

Prize 4 - 2 packs of Copic Caio Markers

Prize 5 - A Bundle of Fun

So there you have it! I hope you'll party along with me! 

Link up here:

***NOTE***

InLinkz is deciding to be a poop and not working for some people (though most don't have issues). If you can't link up, just leave your link in the comments section and I will add it. :) Thank you!

An InLinkz Link-up

Inlaid Die Cutting - Flower Power Card

As with many things in my life, I saw this wicked cool card on Pinterest and wanted to give the technique a go. So I Pinned it, then - naturally - waited a few months... and of course had NO idea which of my Pinterest boards it belonged to and could never find it again. 

Sigh*

So I am trying what I think was the technique, but I'm not sure. :) Either way, I like how the finished product turned out so here it goes on my blog. 

My Aunt Julie, Aunt Jerrie, and my momma came for a visit to play in my new crafty space, and this was one of the projects we all did together. Aunt Julie had brought some pieces of from an adult coloring book and we each took a sheet that we liked.

We used different sizes of circles to die cut three circular areas out of the coloring sheet. 

We colored the images within the die cut circles and then put them back in their rightful positions. 

So in the end, you have areas of popped color. I think it creates such a visually striking effect and it's totally a technique I plan to try again in the future. Since I didn't want to cover up the pretty background, I added a simple vellum overlay of a sentiment. 

I'm going to link this card up to:
Simon Says Stamp Monday - Flora & Fauna
Happy Little Stampers - Anything Goes with Die Cuts
Addicted to Stamps & More - Make your Mark


Psssssssttttt.... Be sure to come back on Sunday for a special announcement/party/woooooooooooooooooo! I might be turning the big three-oh and I just MIGHT have a birthday bash planned for all of my bloggy friends. ;) 

Wedding Season!- Stamped Wedding Card

I don't know about you, but I've depleted my stock of wedding cards pretty quickly this summer. It seems like everyone and their dogs are merrily walking down an aisle somewhere. Meanwhile, I am happily walking down the aisle of my local craft store to pick up more supplies for wedding season.

This card was inspired by the latest STAMPlorations theme and sketch challenge. Every month we give  you a new theme & a new sketch. You can choose to use either the sketch or the theme OR both - so many options! And you DO NOT have to use STAMPlorations products to play along.  So get creating already. 

This month's theme is Stamps & Stars, and I chose to ignore that altogether. Instead, I got all rebellious with the sketch by using the basic outline and adding a couple more layers. hehe. 

>>I'm such a rebel.<<

Here it is in all its glittery glory! I think it turned out oh-so-elegant. 

Supplies List - STAMPS: STAMPlorations Vignette: Ever After, PAPER: Recollections,
RIBBON: Verve Signature Ribbon Collection. EMBELLISHMENTS: BoBunny

I hope I'll see your project in the STAMPlorations challenge gallery this month! We've got some AWESOMESAUCE prizes for the winning creations. 

Speaking of challenges - I'm going to play along in some too!
Aud Sentiments - For a Girl + Sentiment
Crafty Gals Corner - Lots of Layers

P.S. - while you're over at the STAMPlorations blog, check out my very first piece of blackout poetry on this Spotlight post. 

 
Blackout poetry is something I've long admired and never undertaken. Let me know what you think!
 

Happiest of Birthdays to the Happiest of Bosses

Light the candles! Sing the songs! Open the presents!
It's the birthday of our fearless STAMPlorations leader, Shery Russ!

We're having a surprise hippity hop to say HAPPY B-DIZZLE in the craftiest way we know how.

My card brings together some mixed media with a background made of Distress Crayons and gold texture paste. I used a golden sun die cut, some gemstones, and pre-typed sentiments from Tim Holtz.

I wanted to go with a sun motif because Shery is absolutely the sunshine in all of our STAMPlorations girls' lives. She is so generous, kind, and super talented to boot. 

Wishing you a day filled with sunshine - today and always, Shery!

This card was inspired by the moodboard up at the Lawnscaping Challenge: I loved the summery yellows/golds and teals, as well as that cross art shape.

I'm also going to link it up to the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge - Anything Goes.

Thanks for popping by! Have a lovely day!

STAMPlorations 3rd Birthday Party - Over $200 in Prizes!

If you haven't heard yet, STAMPlorations is throwing a big shindig in honor of their 3RD BIRTHDAY!!!! 

I shared a card on day one of the blog hop, but the party is still raging on so I thought I'd pop in and join the festivities again! 

Today, I'm going to show off a card that makes me giggle hysterically. 
Actually - whenever I use the dinos from the STAMPlorations Dino Things stamp set (designed by yours truly), laughter is always quick to follow. They all just have such stinkin' cute personalities.

But first! Let's not jump the gun and get away from the blog hop details. 

As we celebrate our 3rd birthday, all orders of at least $20 ship free worldwide until July 8! Use coupon code HAPPYBIRTHDAY on checkout.
(If you're a stamp club subscriber, use your personal discount coupon code
to get free shipping on orders of at least $15.)
There are over $200 worth of prizes up for grabs!!

Whew! Now that I've done that, it's time for some seriously adorable dino-ness. 

Tell me you aren't amused right now? Haha. 

I colored up my images with a mixture of Distress Markers and watercolors and then stamped a coordinating sentiment from the same stamp set. I wanted to keep it pretty clean and let the images pop, so I just put a strip of patterned paper down at the bottom and called it a day! 

I hope you'll join in the party over at STAMPlorations and win some awesome prizes in the process! 

I also am going to party down with the following challenges:

Seize the Birthday - I'm skipping the toppings this time and just doing ATG

CAS Mix It Up - Stamping + Markers (distress markers) + your choice (watercolors)

Cardz 4 Guyz - Clean and Simple

  

Glitter and Feathers and Gems - Oh My! Mixed Media Card Challenge

We are getting alllllll sorts of sparkly up at The Mixed Media Card Challenge this month and boy do I every have some sparkly goodness to flash your way!

You may have already guessed that our theme for the month is Sparkle along with the option of including Gems.

I was in the mood to make some mixed media backgrounds earlier this week and this card showcases a quick and easy, but classy and fab-o mixed media background that anyone can achieve. 

I started by sponging Fired Brick Distress Inks onto a piece of cardstock, putting a heavier coat on around the edges to create a little vignette action. 

Once I was satisfied with my sponging, I used a Polka Dot stencil and a wet paper towel and lifted some of the ink off the paper to create layers of visual interest. 

Then I stamped another circular-shaped grungy stamp randomly across the background. 

Lastly, I added some gold texture paste over through a smaller polka dot stencil and then let it air dry. 

These are some examples using the exact same techniques but it different colors and stencil variations. 

When creating a cohesive mixed media design, I really like to use one shape (in this case a circle) repetitively throughout the design in various shapes and sizes. 

Since I used polka dotted stencils and circular stamps, I carried the circle shapes into the foreground by dry embossing part of my sentiment panel with a polka dotted embossing folder and then gluing glitter on the raised areas. 

 

Since the theme was sparkle, I added glitter to some gold feathers, and then added gold gemstones, too. I put some burgundy raffia behind my feathers to give some contrast to the design. So pretty! 

I'm going to send my sparkly beauty over to play along in the following challenges:
Craft Stamper - Take It Make It - Take a Stamp
Just Add Ink - Just Add S (for Sparkle, Sponging, Stamping)
Creative Artiste Challenge - Anything Mixed Media Goes