tea-drinking stamper

I have had a great deal of fun playing with the Black Ice Technique developed by Melissa Kerman and you will see a few posts showing this technique. I find it is a great technique for masculine cards, but can also be made more feminine by adding printed backgrounds, which is what I did for this card that we made at my March stamp class. This card utilizes our Fresh Fig In Color for the background and for the card base. I did "grunge" the 4" x 5-1/2" piece of  Fresh Fig Fresh Florals Designer Series Paper by dragging the Basic Black Archival ink pad across it. I simply tipped the pad so I was using only the edge as I dragged it down, turning the paper and doing so one again. I used a very light touch so as not to dirty the paper too much. For the "black ice", I used a piece of 3" x 3-1/4" Silver Foil And dragged the ink pad across its surface in the same way. Only the archival ink will stick to the foil, according to Melissa. You may wish to

I am so glad I earned the Heartfelt Blooms stamp set! I have used it in so many ways, and this is  just one more example. I stamped the image using Basic Gray Archival Ink and then water colored over it using my Aqua Painter using four of our five latest In Colors. Over the dew drop on the daisy, I placed the palest pink Glitter Enamel Dot. Once again I did some fussy-cutting and then popped up the bouquet with Stampin' Dimensionals. I go through a lot of dimensionals because it seems I always pop up something on my cards. Products Used: Heartfelt Blooms rubber stamp set (4), Sale-a-Bration, Free with $50 purchase Powder Pink 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 144244, $8.00 Whisper White 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (40), 100730, $9.00 Fresh Florals 12" x 12" Designer Series Paper Stack (40), 144131, $22.00 Watercolor Paper (5 sheets, 6" x 9"), 122959, $5.00 Basic Gray Archival Ink Pad, 140932, $7.00 Berry Burst Classic Stampin' Pad, 1

"You're Inspiring" stamp set is perfect for Easter or Mother's Day or sympathy or almost any occasion. With Easter approaching, that holiday was the obvious choice. This card uses two Sale-a-Bration items as well as the "You're Inspiring" stamp set from the Occasions Catalog: the Basket Weave embossing folder and the Springtime Foils Specialty dsp. And of course I used the Stampin' Blends! I'm wondering if I'll ever use my markers, now that I have experienced the 3D effects of our blends that also allow me to color with no streaks. Unless you have the Springtime Foils dsp, you may not realize that the leaves on this sheet are not green.  You can color this glossy paper with metallic designs using your Stampin' Blends, which is what I did here. Products used: You're Inspiring rubber stamp set (8), W 145805, $27.00; C 145808, $19.00 Daffodil Delight 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 119683, $8.00 Old Olive 8-1/2" x

The Sale-a-Bration flyer doesn't begin to show just how gorgeous this Springtime Foils Specialty Designer Series Paper is! And it is so versatile. Use it as it is or color part with blends or just smear ink on with an ink pad. On the two cards I'm showing here, I did some more fussy cutting, using the flowers in the design as my focal points. Both cards use the same dsp but are done so differently. For the first one, I used my Flirty Flamingo ink pad and smeared it across the card stock, coloring the entire background. I then chose a flower from the unused piece and cut it out, attaching it with a dimensional. The ribbon is last year's In Color ribbon in Flirty Flamingo. These colors are being retired in June when we get five new In Colors.  The embossed greetings for both cards come from the Heartfelt Blooms stamp set, also a Sale-a-Bration product. The embossing is done with Copper Stampin' Emboss Powder on Glossy White card stock for the first card and on Vellum ca

I have run out of sympathy cards and decided to use one of my newest Sale-a-Bration sets to make a couple. One has a more masculine feel than the other, but it is definitely the Pink Pirouette and Very Vanilla card that is my favorite. But I loved seeing how the Stampin' Blends worked on Smoky Slate card stock. This Sale-a-Bration product is actually available only as a bundle including a 5-piece rubber stamp set and an embossing folder. New this year are more valuable items available for free with the higher spending amount of $100.00.  There are still many items available for free with the lesser $50.00 purchase. What is interesting is that the Basket Weave Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder will be available alone in the 2018-19 annual catalog. (Blossoming Basket Bundle, W 147504, C 147505, free with $100 purchase). The Pink Pirouette card would work very well as an Easter card and the attendees at my stamp class next week will be given the option of making it for

I love this stamp set and wanted to come up with a unique design for a card using it. I think I succeeded. The Cozy Cottage set is a hostess stamp set in the Occasions Catalog. I used my Aqua Painter to watercolor the image. I  used Old Olive and Pear Pizzazz to get different shades of green for the mountains, trees, shrubs and grass. I love the fact that the Glitter Enamel Dots come in varying shades, which make them easy to use. I also love the fact that they are placed on transparent sheets so I can lay them against my card before removing and attaching them. Products Used:  Cozy Cottage rubber stamp set (7), W 145940; C 145943; $17 and $12 hostess dollars, respectively 6" x 9" Watercolor Paper (5), 122959 $5.00 Whisper White  8-1/2" x 11" Thick Cardstock (24), 140272, $7.00 Pear Pizzazz 8-1/2" x 11" cardstock (24), 131201, $8.00 Basic Black Archival Stampin' Pad, 140931, $7.00 Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad, 131173, $6.50 Crumb

As you can tell from a previous post as well as this one, I know a number of people who have reached a new decade. I am loving the Flying Home stamp set colored with Stampin' Blends and then cut to accomplish this new favorite technique. At this point I have managed to use every image in this set, except the little bumble bee and butterflies. Look closely and you will see the raised 90 on this card front. Products Used: Flying Home Rubber Stamp Set (8), W 145926, $25.00; C 145929, $18.00 Number of Years photopolymer stamp set (29), 140653, $27.00 Whisper White 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (40), 100730, $9.00 Basic Black 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 121045, $8.00 Powder Pink 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 144244, $8.00 Cherry Cobbler Combo Pack Stampin' Blends (2), 144575, $9.00 Bermuda Bay Combo Pack Stampin' Blends (2), 144600, $9.00 Daffodil Delight Combo Pack Stampin' Blends (2), 144603, $9.00 Crumb Cake Combo Pack Stampin' B

I've been playing around with Brusho, new to Stampin' Up! although not a brand new product. I envisioned a card with an explosion of color around a cross for Easter and this is the result. We are going to make this card at my stamp class Thursday, March 22. I am going to make one change, however; I think we will gold emboss the "Happy Easter" greeting so it will show up no matter how the color turns out. No two cards will be alike. For this card I used the Prussian Blue, Yellow and Gamboge Brusho crystals. I sprinkled some on the card stock and then sprayed with water. Then I just misted the entire piece and sprinkled on more Brusho, which seemed to work better. I discovered the saturation of the water color paper or the Shimmery White card stock makes a difference in the look of the Brusho. Although it was not one of the papers recommended, I might experiment with using Brusho on the Glossy White card stock as well. Products Used: Hold on to Hope rubber stam

Admittedly, I have a weakness for flowers and probably have way too many floral stamp sets. But I couldn't resist the "You're Inspiring" stamp set. And it's another of those versatile sets because of the various words included. I chose to make this one an Easter card. Plus I am enjoying coloring with our new Stampin' Blends. Products Used: You're Inspiring rubber stamp set (8), W 145805, $27.00; C 145808, $19.00 Daffodil Delight 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 119683, $8.00 Pumpkin Pie 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 105117, $8.00 Old Olive 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 100702, $8.00 Whisper White 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (40), 100730, $9.00 Tuxedo Black Memento Pad, 132708, $6.00 Daffodil Delight Combo Pack Stampin' Blends, 144603, $9.00 Pumpkin Pie Combo Pack Stampin' Blends, 144599, $9.00 Old Olive Combo Pack Stampin' Blends, 144597, $9.00 5/8" Burlap Ribbon (5 yards), 141487, $7.00 Petal

In case you hadn't guessed, I have been buying an awful lot of supplies lately. In fact, to acquire this particular stamp set for free, I had to spend $100.00. When I used the various images in this set, I put them all on one clear block. I do wish the "anniversary" was a little higher up, but it still works. As I tried to decide on a background for this stamp, I decided the Fresh Florals designer series paper was perfect. Berry Burst is one of my favorite colors, so I chose to use those coordinating items for this card. Products Used: Happy Wishes rubber stamp set (16), W 147224; C 147227; free with $100 purchase Berry Burst 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 144243; $8.00 Whisper White 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (40), 100730, $9.00 Fresh Florals 12" x 12" Designer Series Paper Stack (40), 144131, $22.00 Berry Burst Classic Stampin' Pad, 144083, $6.50 Berry Burst 3/8" Metallic Edge Ribbon (10 yards), 145489, $7.00 Lots of Lab

Dear friends of my deceased parents have experienced a great deal of difficulty in the last few weeks. Ruth, who has MS, fell and broke her leg and is still in rehab, although gaining strength and control. When at the hospital for her leg, her husband fell down a flight of cement stairs when going for his car, resulting in a broken spine and a sever concussion. His pain has been severe but it is finally receding and he's in physical therapy. He is well enough now to complain and is hoping to be sent home by Monday. Needless to say, I have sent them a number of cards. They have not been able to see each other because they are in different facilities. And their 62nd anniversary is coming up as well as Ruth's birthday. Anyway, when playing with one of my new sets, I made this card with Ruth in mind. I had planned to use Calypso Coral so I could use the shimmer ribbon from the Sale-a-Bration catalog but grabbed the wrong watercolor pencil, Pumpkin Pie. It still looks great, but I

There is something addictive about playing with this stamp set. I'm learning more and more the more I play with it. And I'm liking the results more and more as well. I do think I need to learn to leave a little more white space. I actually used this one for my husband's Valentine because I wanted to play with this set plus I thought the saying from the Love You Still stamp set just seemed appropriate. No hearts, but... Products Used: Love You Still photopolymer stamp set (14), 1145811, $16.00 Waterfront photopolymer stamp set (16), 146386, $17.00 Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad, 126975, $6.50 Wild Wasabi Classic Stampin' Pad, 126959, $6.50 Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad, 126982, $6.50 Marina Mist Classic Stampin' Pad, 126962, $6.50 Soft Sky Classic Stampin' Pad, 131181, $6.50 So Saffron Classic Stampin' Pad, 126957, $6.50 Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad, 126983, $6.50 Tranquil Tide Classic Stampin' Pad, 144085, $6.50 Basi