Postage Background

I pulled out some oldie but goodie stamps for today's card. I love the look of old postage, and have several stamps that look like postage stamps. I haven't used them in a while, and decided to make a background with them.

I started with a piece of white Bristol, cut to 4.25" x 5.5". I wanted to use muted colors so that none of the individual stamps would stand out, but blend together. I used some dye inks from Stampin' Up! that I've had since I first began stamping - Almost Amethyst, Barely Banana, Close to Cocoa, and Mellow Moss. I also used an ink Stampin' Up! produced together with Ancient Page called Pretty in Pink. The stamps I used are: French Postage by Paper Inspirations, French Post by Hampton Art, and Creative Block #13 by Stamper's Anonymous. I also used a stamp that is part of a set designed by Dawn Houser for Inkadinkado called World Traveler & Postage Mark as well as a stamp from a set by Stampin' Up! (the cancellation mark). 

Each stamp is stamped multiple times, allowing the images to overlap. I decided that the white of the background was a bit too stark, so I used Distress Antique Linen ink and a blending tool to tone everything down a little.

The sentiment is a new-to-me die from Savvy Dies called Hello Script. I cut it four times from some scrap brown cardstock and glued all the layers together to make it stand up a little from the surface of the card. After gluing it down with matte medium, I decided to add a few sequins from Doodlebug Design. They are also glued down with matte medium. I trimmed the panel slightly smaller and mounted it on a dark brown cardstock base.

I'm linking this up to the current challenge from Craft Stamper Magazine.

Till next time - 

Immi

Published!

I am excited to share this card. I recently had the honor of having this one published in the August issue of Craft Stamper magazine. This is a UK publication, and I enjoy trying their challenges.

Here's my card:

This was done with stamping and watercolor. The main image and sentiment are from Your Wings Exist by Unity Stamps; the butterfly is from Inkadinakdo's Inchies; the flowers are from Hero Arts' Trees, Birds, & Messages.

Thanks for stopping by today to take a look. I got an email yesterday letting me know that another card I've submitted will be published in a few months. Once it comes out, I'll be able to share it with you.

Till next time,

Immi

Alcohol Ink on Acetate

I love Pinterest for collecting ideas! Recently, I stumbled across an image that led me to this post. I couldn't wait to try the technique described there!

Here is the first card I made:

I simply followed the directions I'd read on the blog post, using a couple of colors of alcohol ink and blending with Ranger's blending solution and a blending tool with a felt applicator. Next I stamped the flower from Hero Arts (I hope you can see the faint flower images) with Ranger's Archival ink - I used  Potting Soil but it doesn't really matter what color you use. After letting it sit for a minute or two, I rubbed the surface with a paper towel. That removed the color of  the ink I'd stamped, but left a "ghost" image behind.

I kept everything else very plain - a die cut "stitched" rectangle (Simon Says Stamp) to frame  it, a die cut branch with leaves (Sizzix) and a simple sentiment (Hero Arts Friends) on a banner shape with black marker in a dashed line around the edges.

Here is the second card I made with this technique:

The technique is exactly the same. I used different colors of alcohol ink and a script stamp (Inkadinkado) this time. The butterflies are cut from vellum using a die (Sizzix) and stitched down with a couple of machine made stitches per butterfly. I used the same stitched rectangle die and the same sentiment as before. I think this card is my favorite of the two - the ghost image shows up better.

I'm linking these cards up to Hero Arts Nature Challenge.

Happy crafting!

Immi

Getting in the Holiday Mood

I have a couple of projects to share for this week's Monday challenge from Simon Says Stamp.

First is a card I made, inspired by this card.

I started with a kraft cardstock panel. I stamped the sentiment first to be sure that the snowflakes would fit around it. I combined snowflakes from multiple sets (Stampin' Up! and Inkadinkado) so that each one would be different. I used a silver pigment ink and covered that with silver embossing powder. After heat setting, I wanted to use some kind of thread or ribbon to make the snowflakes look like hanging ornaments. I remembered that I had some thin silver cord, so I tried that. I put down tiny dots of Glossy Accents to hold the ornament strings in place, then tied teeny little bows and glued them above each snowflake. I put a heavy book on top until everything dried. Then I wrapped the cord to the back of the panel and taped it down. The stamped panel was mounted onto a navy card base. I was surprised how quickly this came together. In retrospect, though, I don't know if I'd use the silver with kraft again. I'm not sure there's enough contrast. Live and learn, I guess.

Next is an ornament:

To make this, I cut a scalloped circle from watercolor paper using a die set from Spellbinders. The stamp I used is an old one from Stampin' Up! that I've had for many years. I used Versafine Black Onyx ink and embossed it with clear embossing powder. To color the image, I used Distress Inks diluted with water and some Stampin' Up! markers in a few spots.

I cut three more scallops and glued them all together, using a book to weight it down until dry. I decided to run a Versamark marker around the edges and dip them in silver embossing powder. I really like the way that turned out. Then I used a bookbinding tool to punch a small hole in the top and used some of that thin silver cord to make a hanging loop.

That's it for now. I hope your week is going well!

Immi