Is it spring yet?

Hi friends,

I've been working on cards a little at a time, then took pictures last night. So it seems like I've been really busy, but have not - just doing a bit here and a bit there until each card was completed.

The first card uses the Stately Flowers 4 stamp set by Melanie Muenchinger for GKD. The salmon pink shimmer embossed layers are from Anna Griffin. She has such romantic colors and feminine creations that I simply LOVE :) It was a lot of fun and inspiration watching her on HSN this last Monday. Yup, I ordered some new products {sigh}.

The top left ribbon is an idea I saw on one of Anna Griffin's cards - she pulled ribbon down on both sides of the corner into the bow - had to CASE that part. Embossed image and sentiment in gold, colored with Copic markers. The rhinestones are a beautiful blush color IRL.

The next four cards are using Hula Riley which I think is really Sophie :D  The hula skirts are 3D, cut into thin shimmery slits and flared up a bit with my fingers. I painted the flowers and stems with Perfect Pearls and added Stickles whenever possible!

And finally a card made using the new StampTV kit by GKD. The stamp set is Warm Spring Wishes. I used white embossing powder, fussy cut the flowers and leaves out, tied some plain embroidery thread into a bow and added Sakura clear glitter pen to outline the embossed butterflies. I sprinkled some clear glitter around the pearl centers of the flowers. The inside of the card is the last picture for today.

The inside is stamped with Gina K. white pigment ink, clear glitter pen to highlight the flowers and butterfly.

Thank you very, very, VERY much for stopping by today!!!!

Swim with Us :)

Ready to snorkel or dive? How about just swim in warm ocean, look down and see all the pretty colors of fishies?

These cards were very hard and challenging for me to make. They took a full two days.

Stamp Set:  Under the Sea by Theresa Momber for GKD
Inks: Gelatos (blues, greens, and yellows)
Shimmer: Perfect Pearl spray (background or ocean water) and Wink of Stella clear (over the fish).
Bubble bling: Robin's Nest blue and clear dew drops
Bling scattered on sand: Taylored Expressions Mini Mini crystals
Paper Punch: Photo Corners, Modern Label, Word Window by Stampin' Up
Cardstock: Flourishes Black, Georgia Pacific white 80#
Vellum: Grafix confetti
Paper piercer, copper brads by GKD, Aileen's Clear Tacky Glue, Mono adhesive
Memento marker in gray


The funnest part of the cards were 1) creating the backgrounds, and 2) coloring/fussy cutting the fish and turtles.

Briefly, I scribbled Gelatos all onto my craft sheet, then spritzed several times with Perfect Pearls mixed with water. Doing this gives me the option of not having to buy all the gelatos in metallics, which are a real temptation! Then I took the white card layers and placed them onto the wet gelatos, gently swirling to make sure I covered all the paper.

I stamped the fish and turtles with Memento Tuxedo Black, then colored them all with Copics. After I glued them to the 'water,' I brushed the Wink of Stella clear all over them to give them quite a shimmer.

I made up the sentiments on the laptop, then printed on vellum, cut and adhered to the card outside and inside. I used some fun fonts, so that's why the first letters look goofy. I drew in some swaying sea weed with the Memento Gray Marker. The yellows in the ocean kind of looks like that in real life when the sun filters through the shallow water :)

Card One

Card Two

Thank you dear friends for stopping by to take a look!!

Aloha ♥

And e komo mai! (welcome)

Isn't this little hula girl by My Favorite Things adorable? I thought so, too! The little stamp set is called "Aloha." I am still trying to build a stash of Island Style cards to provide to a local store :) hurray!

I love the gentle pattern paper and used Divine Swirls EF by Cuttlebug to emboss it. I tore a piece of paper, ran it through the corrugator and sponged it tan and gold. I covered it with glue, sprinkled Prisma Glitter all over to be a sandy hill.

I used Copic markers on the little girl, hand sketched a leaf around the sentiment, colored and cut out. Both are popped up with adhesive pop dots. I REALLY enjoyed using the pale blue silk ribbon and tied it into a double bow. Add very pink rhinestones and Wink of Stella clear micro glitter all over and ta da! Pau! (done in Hawai'ian). The inside and envelope are decorated but I forgot to take a picture of those, sorry!

Thank you dear friends for stopping by!!!!

Ancient Voyages - Distressing Edges and Colors, a Masculine Card

I wanted to make a masculine card that felt like an Old World ocean log book entry. I used a stamp set from Stampin' Up called "The Open Sea." The large circle in the bottom left is a world map, but it didn't turn out too well. I distressed all the pieces and added some Delicata Gold inks to the muted colors of Memento inks. Four copper nail heads hold down the picture of the ship, a micro rhinestone in black centers the Compass Rose, and I used some Metallic Rub On pastes to tone down the bright golds of the Anchor hanging from the twine. The background was a dark wood grain, but after I got done with it, no one knows what it was LOL!!!!

Finally, I typed up a sentiment to appear like a log entry by Captain Cook :) who visited the Bay below where we live, Kealakekua on the Big Island of Hawai'i. Then I distressed it, rolled the edges to look more like a scroll.

Thank you for stopping by ♥

Thank you for stopping by - I appreciate you!

Beach Wishes, That You Were Here!

Here is another beach scene, but this one during the day. I used the same Flourishes Beach Life stamp set by Flourishes. This will be entered into the Flourishes Timeless Tuesdays Challenge #261 by Ally.

Masking: The landscape was masked so that I could create the sandy hill, sky and ocean.

This is the first time I used rain drops from The Robin's Nest and I am IN LOVE. Can't wait to try them in an underwater sea scene as bubbles!

I looked up some sea-going flags, and here in Hawai'i, I found one that has a cocktail drink on it LOL -- that's how I created this one and stuck it in the sand for the sentiment :)

I kept this card simple, and the products used are basically the same as last night's card on home page below this post. Very best wishes to all!

This is the inside and back of envelope

Thank you very much for stopping by!!!!

A Crescent Moon - Masking Techniques

Hi, friends,

Here is a sponged nighttime ocean scene with a crescent moon. It's made for Flourishes Timeless Tuesdays #261

First I cut a circle from Post It note, then reinserted it into the punch until only a slice of the circle would be cut out = crescent moon.

I also placed a mask from Post It over the ocean so that I could sponge the night sky. Then I removed the Post It that covered the ocean and placed it over the sky to keep the straight horizon line. I stamped and cut out the palm trees on paper, and held it into place as I sponged over the ocean. Then I removed the masked palm trees, and stamped those into the ocean. Finally I sponged the sand, added stars with a gel pen, then smoothed Wink of Stella over the whole sky, ocean, sand and palm tree... so yep, I covered the image with mini sparkles :D

I love the bullet nibs on Memento markers. I used them to add color and details to the palm trees, the sail boat that looks like a rock, and added some dots into the sand. I used the white gel pen to add highlights in the ocean and trees, then quickly smudged it off to blunt the vibrancy of its stark white color.

Stamp Set: "Beach Life" by Flourishes {Lauren Pope}
Inks and markers: Memento
Rhinestone flourishes: Recollections
Rhinestone tear drops and round: Want2Scrap
Cardstock: Gina K. Designs 120# Pure Luxury White
Layer: Bazzill navy, pattern paper was preprinted but I embossed with Argyle EF by Cuttlebug
Spellbinder Dies: Petite Ovals Large #5 (counting from center out) and Opulent Ovals, largest oval

The inside is also stamped with Flourishes beach stamps, gently sponged in light blues, sentiment by Victor Hugo.

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Crossing the Bar

This is a sponged sunset scene with a poem tucked in with the poem Crossing the Bar. Remember that one? It's so touching -- here it is, by Tennyson ~

Crossing the Bar
BY ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON

Sunset and evening star,

      And one clear call for me!

And may there be no moaning of the bar,

      When I put out to sea,

   But such a tide as moving seems asleep,

      Too full for sound and foam,

When that which drew from out the boundless deep

      Turns again home.

   Twilight and evening bell,

      And after that the dark!

And may there be no sadness of farewell,

      When I embark;

   For tho' from out our bourne of Time and Place

      The flood may bear me far,

I hope to see my Pilot face to face

      When I have crost the bar.

It's for a dear friend's husband who lost his best friend recently. Most of us know what that feels like.

Stamp Set: Aloha by Theresa Momber for Gina K. Designs

Inks: Memento (black ink by Gina K. Designs)

Thank you for coming by !!!!

Some Rain Must Fall

I have no idea how to doodle now that I am... old'er.' When I was in junior and high school, I think I must have been near professional level doodler depending on how boring the teacher lectured. There were notebooks filled with doodling, zentangles (before they were called zentangles) and penmanship styles. Now you can purchase how-to books showing how to doodle (seriously) as well as how to create zentangles. 

The card below is for a friend - doesn't it seem like when it rains it pours? She feels like that right now but this is to help her realize it rains on everyone, and it's temporary (unless you live on Kauai or in Ketchikan, Alaska).

The image and sentiment are heat embossed with black embossing powder. I doodled the palm trees waaaay back in the bay behind the hula dancer. I doodled the ocean waves lapping at her feet, the rain falling from the cloud, and all the little dots are flowers on the hillside.

The cloud on the left is popped up on adhesive foam dots. I swiped some Wink of Stella glitter across the ocean, the clouds, and the rain. The ocean foam is a product called Snow Tex - it's like foamy white soft toothpaste with fine glitter and dries quickly. Then I added some Stickles Diamonds in the rain and waves.

Challenge: STV14MON6 at StampTV STV14MON6 at StampTV hosted by Cat >o.o<



Stamp Set: Hula Diva by Debbie Corbiari for Gina K. Designs

Thank you so much for looking!!!

I don't see any snow :D

Thank you to Stamping Bella for the lovely stamp sets for participating in Hope You Can Cling To challenges at Splitcoast Stampers this last November. It was a very difficult month to complete every single challenge with a different card, and maybe that's why I haven't been up to creating a lot since. It truly took all my molecules to do that but it was whole hearted motivation.

This stamp is called Senior-ita Harriet by Stamping Bella. She is so kickin' back on the warm ocean waters, not missing winter at all.

I used the no-line coloring method but will have to stamp with ink lighter than Memento Sahara Sand (tan) because I can still see it. Then I colored with Copic markers, used some Stickles Diamond glitter, and some Wink of Stella clear glitter pen. Finally I added a few enamel dots and green satin ribbon.

Thanks so much for stopping by to look!!!