Lotsa Layers Spring Card

Do you ever just sit at the craft table, find a pile o' scraps, wave a wand and magically have a card appear? 

... yeah... me either. 

But! By some force of wizardry, that's exactly what happened yesterday! 

As I've mentioned, I've been playing along with some of the challenges released by Paper Anthology's Creation Staycation. One of 'em caught my eye last night - Black, White and Tan. 

Why did it catch my eye? Because I had a big pile of black, white and tan scraps from my last cardmaking class sitting right in front of me. I always love mixing and matching patterns together - especially if they SHOULDN'T belong. But tell me something doesn't belong and I will prove you wrong! 

I grabbed a few scraps and put them on top of each other and literally designed this card in 30 minutes. That NEVER happens to me. Usually I spend 2 hours or more agonizing over a design our swip swapping paper and second guessing every decision. 

I stamped flowers from the Trendy Spring Blooms STAMPlorations set using a tan light tan color. (I know it's out of stock right now. Sad face.) Amazingly - that's the only stamping I did on this little number. I added a little bit of glitz and glitter using a Wink of Stella pen, and finished it but adding some ivory embellies to the center of my flowers. 

I'm so happy with how this one came out, and LOVE that I even got to use the binding scraps from watercolor paper! Reduce, reuse, recycle, rebuy every kind of paper you can find. ooops.... that last one is true, though. #guilty. 

Also linking this up to the Never-Ending Anything Goes Challenge at STAMPlorations. 

Thanks for popping by! It's been fun to be back in the bloggy world. 

It's Springtime Flingtime + Prizes

Hello Friendly Friends!
It's springtime, and around these parts where it often gets to -35, that is DEFINITELY something to celebrate! 

STAMPlorations is ringing in all things flowers and bunnies and color - oh my! with a Spring Fling celebration filled with 12 days of prizes and bold inspiration. You're not going to want to miss it! 

For my card, I pulled out some of the brightest colors I had in my stash and got to work. 

I embossed this gorgeous flower mandala from the Bloomfull STAMP club set, using clear embossing powder. 

To use the words "zen" and "relaxing" would be an understatement. It was so much fun watching this image come to pretty life with each drop of the Color Burst watercolors. 

I used the thanks word die and cut out the word in a bright pink and then added a second layer of just white to really make it pop. 

I'm playing along in the Paper Players challenge and used a die-cut, embossing, and floral elements for their tic-tac-toe board. I'm also playing in the Cardz 4 Galz Flora or Fauna challenge. 

I am in LOVE with this big ol' springy mandala and maaaaaaay have made 3 more of these cards. :) 

Now hop on over and get to playing! These prizes are serious and every single designer has some gorgeous inspiration for you. 

PSSSTTTT if you're looking to do some spring shopping, everything in the STAMPlorations store is an additional 15% off using code STAMPGIRLBECCA. 

Unicorns and Gelatos and Circles - Oh My!

Magic was in the air of my craft studio - mostly because I broke out the mythical creatures (namely in the form of a glorious unicorn from the Visible Image Believe in Unicorns stamp set).

Just look at that majesticness!

 To make this shimmering creation, I started with a good base of black and grunged it up a bit using the Fibonacci background stamp. This stamp has quickly become one of my faves because it is so big and covers the whole background of a design perfectly. 

Next, I created my own patterned panel using a sheet of white cardstock and the Universal stamp set, which has all these scribbly circles.

I used three colors of extra bright gelatos to add a pop of color to my creation. 

I love working with Gelatos - there are so many ways to use them. If you haven't tried them, they're a sort of gel-like crayon that is water soluble. So you can use them as crayons, or mix them with water for unique watercolor effects.

 For this technique, I applied a thick layer and let the colors overlap as I was scribbling, then I used my fingers to blend the colors together.

I put everything all together, and created a my unicorn focal circle, then added a sentiment from the Go To Words stamp set. 

Products Used:

 

Thank you all for popping by!

Elegant Autumn Leaves Thank You Card

Happy Thursday! 
This weekend, I'm off to a concert series down in the Twin Cities area and I can't wait! 

But before I go, I get to show off the design I made for the latest Fusion challenge. I loved the warmth of the inspiration image and I took a stab at the sketch, too. 

I've had these gold leaf stickers from Martha Stewart for so long. They're just so lovely and I haven't been able to bring myself to use them. I finally found the perfect design that would let me part with them. 

My little design is also going to go play along over at
Die Cut Divas - Autumn 
Little Red Wagon - Harvest Time

I hope you'll come play along at Fusion this fortnight! 

Cheers!

Shabby Chic Tea Stamped Card

Well now that Watercolor Week is over, I'm going back to my shabby chic/mixed media roots for ya'll. 

There's a whole new challenge up at the Fusion blog and I absolutely LOVED the soft romance of all those purple and pink blooms pouring out of the adorable polka dotted teacup. 

 

If you've never played along at Fusion, I love it because you have options. You can either choose to play along with the sketch, or you can choose to be inspired by the image, OR you can mash 'em both together and create a true fusion.

I chose to use both the sketch and the image for my card. I stamped and colored the pretty little teacup from STAMPlorations Always Tea Time Set and also added in a sweet sentiment from the Strong Women set. 

I used some vintagey patterned papers and then added a swath of flowers to complete my look. 

Pssst - if you are interested in either of these stamp sets, you can get them for 20% off in the STAMPstore by using code STAMPGIRLBECCA at checkout.

It feels good to have a little shabby chic play time under my belt again!

I hope you'll head on over to Fusion and play along!! :)

Creamy Color Burst Coffee Card

Hello citizens of the Blogosphere!

Today, I've got an awesome tutorial up on the Coffee Loving Papercrafters blog showcasing the many uses of Ken Oliver Color Burst crystals. 

Pop on over if you want to know how I achieved this glorious look!

This card was inspired by the goodness going on in the inspiration image from Victorine Originals: 

Check out that bottom right corner. I instantly spotted the coffee and just knew I had to play along!

Happy Monday, fellow crafters. I hope you'll pop over to CLP for some inspiration!

Warm Coffee Card

It's Friday and that means it's time for coffee. Unlike the rest of the world, Mondays aren't usually when coffee is an absolute requirement. But Fridays.... Friday mornings always seem to kick me in the pants. Something about the last day of the week before freedom requires copious amounts of caffeine.

I stamped a row of super cute coffee cups from the brand new What's Brewing STAMPlorations stamp set.

PSSST - bloggy readers - if you're interested in anything from the STAMPlorations store, go look right now! Through today, July 7th, everything in the whole store is 15% off AND you can get an additional 20% off by using my personal discount code: STAMPGIRLBECCA.

I colored around my coffee cups with some Dina Wakely Scribble Sticks and used a watery brush to blend my colors together.

I chose my colors because the July theme for STAMPlorations is stamps and warm colors.

 

There is also a sketch to inspire you.

 

To play along in this challenge you can use ANY stamps from ANY company. Just choose the theme or the sketch to inspire your card, or use both!

 

Here's my completed design! I love how warm and inviting this feels. 

I hope you'll all consider playing along over at STAMPlorations Theme & Sketch challenge for a chance to win some pretty sweet prizes!

I'm BACK! With a Thank You Card.

Hello Friendly Friends! I am BACKKKKK! Thank you all for your kindness and understanding as I took a short bloggy break to deal with personal things. Sometimes.. ya just gotta. 

I'm back in action with a bright and fun card I designed for the new STAMPlorations theme & sketch challenge. 

The theme for this month's challenge is Stamps & Family, but I chose to use the sketch for my design. 

I stamped a bunch of those funky flowers from the Trendy Spring Blooms set in black ink and then colored them with lots of GLITTER!!!! 

I just found these Spectrum Noir Sparkle Markers at Michael's for 70 percent off.... so naturally I had to take them for a test drive. 

Once everything was colored, I did some fussy cutting and added some fun gemstone and enamel dot centers to some of my flowers.

I used a serious of sentiments from the Trendy Feathers 2 stamp set and created a text pattern for my background. 

And just like that - a card was born!  

If you liked any of the stamps you saw me use in today's card... have I ever got good news for you: You can get them for 20% off in the STAMPlorations shop by using code STAMPGIRLBECCA at checkout. Woop woop! 

It feels good to be back in action! I hope you all will go play along with this month's challenge so I can oooogle some sweet designs.

Distress Oxides - Take 2! Sponging on Kraft

As you may have known (by the large earthquakes stemming from North Dakota) I have been jumping up and down in my excitement to finally have time to break out my brand new Distress Oxides and play. 

I'm planning on having tons of time this weekend to explore some of the other things, but I really wanted to give these babies a whirl on kraft paper.

Guys. Guys. Mind = Blown.

I cannot believe how pretty they look when sponged over kraft paper.
If you're new to the Distress Oxides, what rock have you been under? Haha - just kidding. If you're new to Distress Oxides, they are a pigment + dye based ink fusion. What that means is that the pigment portion of the ink sits on top of the paper. Which means that you can use it on kraft & black cardstock. 

But before I get tooooooo far, I also want to say that this card was made for the brand new challenge at STAMPlorations. 

 

The theme & sketch challenge is exactly what it sounds like. Choose the theme or the sketch OR use both! There's prizes for the winners and you can use ANY brand of stamp you want! So, what I'm saying is... YOU should go play! 

I chose to use the theme: Spring and picked out these pretty little daisies from the Pocket Blooms stamp set. I embossed them in white and then began sponging. 

See how well that color shows up? You'd never be able to get that with a dye based ink, and pigment based inks leave an oily little residue that doesn't dry for...like... ever. Distress Inks dry within a minute! 

Like all Distress products, Oxides react uniquely with water, too! I sprinkled some water over the ink and dabbed it up. That's when the magic "oxidization" happens. 

Yeah.... I love this technique with Distress Oxides. Definitely going to be using this one again. 

I added the Thanks Word Die cut to the center panel.

I used Worn Lipstick and Fossilized Amber Distress Oxides for these two cards. 

Blam! Two super pretty and relatively easy cards to make! 

If you are thinking about buying any of the stamps/dies used here, just know that my bloggy subscribers get 20% off ALL the things in the STAMPlorations store by using the code STAMPGIRLBECCA. 

I'm also going to link up to:
Addicted to Stamps and More: Anything Goes
Paperminutes: Spring

Thanks for popping by!

A Rose by any Other Name Stamped Card

A rose by any other name doth smell as sweet. 
A rose colored with any other medium doth look as lovely. 

Don't you just love quoting Shakespeare. I'm pretty sure he wrote both of the two lines above. 

Today, I'm doing a reminder post for STAMPlorations theme and sketch challenge, so I'm popping in with a quick, but lovely little thank you card I made using watercolors.

I used the rose from the STAMPlorations Blossom Overture set and the sentiment is from the Strong Women set, designed by yours truly.

For the theme & sketch challenge, you can use EITHER the sketch OR the theme OR both. And you can use ANY stamps from ANY company. We're pretty easy huh? So get on over and play along with us already!

This card is also going to go play along in Tuesday Throwdown's anything goes challenge.

This posting is also a two-fer because I want to remind you to play along in the STAMPlorations Stencil Hop & Linky party, too! 

 

We're celebrating all things stenciled with a 7-day inspiration hop complete with TONS of prizes. If you're feeling inspired, you can also link up a stenciled card of your own for even MORE prizes. 

As for me, I'm also going to link it up to:
Cards Und More - ooooh it's cold
A Snowflakes Promise - Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp Monday -  Let there be Snow

I showcased how I created this background in >>>this post<<< using the Broken Glass stencil. The sentiment is from the HOLIDAY SKETCHES: Christmas Candles set.

Thanks for popping by! Hope you enjoy the weekend. Considering it is going to be a high of -15 degrees F tomorrow... I'm not sure how much I'll be enjoying it! BRRR

Giving Thanks Blog Hop

Hold on to your turkeys, ladies and gentlemen, because this is one BIG hop and linky party with some BIG prizes.

STAMPlorations is hosting its annual Giving Thanks blog hop and featuring 38 designers - 15 of whom have been sponsored by STAMPlorations in the past year.

Prior to showing off my card, I'm going to get a little misty eyed and talk about Shery Russ, the owner of STAMPlorations. When we talk about things (or in this case people) to be thankful for, Shery tops the list. She was the one who gave me my first ever design team assignment from an official company. She's given me the opportunity to design stamps (a dream I never even knew I had until she asked) and she's sponsored causes that are so important to me (The Hop to Stop Domestic Violence).

I'm also SOOOO thankful for my STAMPteamies, who are constantly inspiring me with their creativity, uplifting me with their comments, and being all-around badass people. (pardon my French).

Ok - I know you've got some hopping to do, so that's my reverie.

Now here's my card.

I made this sweet shaker using the brand new Be Thankful Bundle (stamps and coordinating die cuts). 

I watercolored my apple basket and turned the card into an adorable little shaker with some fall leaves and shimmery sequins.

I'm going to link this card to the Dragonfly Dreams Autumnal Colors challenge and Fashionable Stamping Autumn or Winter challenge.



I love the brand new bundle sets being released for this hop. Each bundle includes a stencil, die cut, and harvesty stamp set.

And just because Shery is thankful for YOU, her customers, she's giving you all a 35% off discount in the STAMPstore.

Go wild and get to shopping!!

But before that - get to hopping and/or link up to the linky party below- because for all the hoppers and linkers there are 

>>>9 BIG PRIZES<<< 

up for grabs.