Happy Birthday Sucker!

Happy birthday Sucker!! Hahaha! Today is my friend Sara's birthday and I have been saving this card for what feels like forever just to give to her. Sara has an awesome sense of humor and likes punny cards so I really hope she will like this. 

I used shimmery white paper and quite a few Distress Oxide inks to create this background. I added layers of ink, spritzing with water to oxidize the ink and also added multiple layers of distress resist spray between the layers of ink. The Distress Resist Spray added such a fun, slightly rough texture to the background. The awesome octopus is from Hero Arts and is called the "Color Layering Octopus." I love that this octopus looks like it's in motion, either swimming or crawling across the ocean floor.

Well, that's it for me today, short and sweet for once. The biggest thing I wanted to say is Happy Birthday Sara! You're so old today! I hope you like your card. Hahaha! 

Alright, bye everybody! See you back here soon. Have an awesome day!

Maria

mariawillis@hotmail.com

PS: If you have questions please don't hesitate to ask. You can shoot me an email or leave me a comment below. I'm looking forward to hearing from you. 

Autism Awareness Blog Hop 2018

Hi Everybody! I'm back today with a really special blog hop. April is Autism Awareness Month and you may remember that on April 2nd (International Autism Awareness Day) I participated in a different hop to raise awareness (you can see that post HERE). Well, April lasts for 30 days and we are only on day 18 so it's time to hop again for Autism Awareness. I've teamed up with a truly amazing group of stampers for today's hop. I hope that you will visit each of us and read what each of us has to share today. You can do this by clicking the next button at the bottom of each post or by clicking the links in the blog roll at the bottom of my post. Thanks so much for joining us.

All over the world Autism affects so many people in so many different ways. When I made this card I was thinking about a friend of mine who has two autistic children. She is truly one of the loveliest people. She is kind and thoughtful and patient. She never seems to get tired or frustrated... how that is possible I do not know. When I saw this sentiment I felt like it was the right one for her because it just warms my heart to know that people like her exist in this world.

I made my card in tones of blue as that is the color for Autism Awareness.  Earlier in the month my post was about lighting it up blue for autism. That post was more about creating a feeling of solidarity and making sure everyone affected by autism feels supported and that they are not alone. Today I am focusing more on supporting one specific individual and I am painting a card blue just for her. 

I stamped my image in Basic Gray Archival ink and then used my aqua painter with Dapper Denim, Pool Party and Soft Sky inks to watercolor it. I layered the watercolored piece over a mat of Pool Party and added that to a preprinted card base. You can't see it in the pictures but I added Clear Wink of Stella to the flowers to give them some sparkle. I also added some Glitter & Clear Epoxy shapes for subtle texture that reminds me of dew drops.

Whether or not you are directly affected by autism you can make a difference in the lives of those who are. There are many national and international organizations that you can donate to (tax deductible). Today I am fundraising for the Organization for Autism Research. If you are interested in making a tax deductible donation you can get started by clicking on the Donate Now button below... and, Thank You! If you are not able to donate at this time no problem! You can still help me spread this fundraiser by sharing this blog post with your friends or on your social media pages. Thank you for any support that you are able to give!

Thank you so much for joining us for today's blog hop. I hope that you will continue on with the hop by clicking on the Next button below and heading over to see the fabulous Elizabeth Price. Have a wonderful day!

Maria Willis

mariawillis@hotmail.com

BLOG ROLL:
Sue Plote
Jenny Hall
Denita Wright-Smee
Maria Willis: You are Here.
Elizabeth Price: Next.
Tami Hewlett
Lisa Curcio
Lauren Alarid
Tanya Boser
Jen Sootkoos
Eva Dobilas
Kim Oliver
Charlet Mallett
Sandi MacIver
Adrienne West
Amy Koenders
Carolynn Sander
Stella MacKay

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Simon Says Stamps Texture Challenge!

Hey everybody! Happy gorgeous Sunday to you! Well, it's an amazing day here in Northern California so I apologize to those of you around the world who are bogged down in snow. I need to get outside and enjoy this sunshine before it starts raining again tomorrow so this blog post will be short and sweet.

I was inspired by the amazing Simon Says Wednesday Challenge this week. They've got an "Add Some Texture" theme going on and they are also showcasing Tim Holts products... Yes, Please! The design team over there has some incredible projects and you can check them out HERE.

I had so much fun making this card and I've gotta say using Tim Holtz's Distress products made it easy!

I started out by adding a few die cut leaves to the background and then added many layers of Distress Oxide inks. I also used Distress Crayons (pewter and colored) and added pops of color to the areas that needed a little more brightness. I love that the Distress Crayons can be smeared upon application but then set and won't go anywhere (or make a huge mess) after that.

I colored this fun toucan from Stampin' Ups! Bird Banter set with my Copic markers and layered it over the sentiment piece using dimensional adhesive. I added some clear embossing powder and white grunge to the sentiment piece to give it some texture.

I wanted the background to have even more texture than it did so I used my new stencil from Hero Arts and some embossing paste to create some depth. The embossing paste is white so I mixed some ink into it (Emerald Envy and Lemon Lime Twist) to add color.

Another way that I was able to add texture to this card (that is hard to photograph) was to add some Distress Resist Spray. Have you used that stuff yet? It's awesome!! It adds shine and sandpaper-like texture and it also seals whatever it covers. Really cool stuff! I added a few black rhinestones, some metallic thread and washi tape and called it good for this card.

The process of making this card was really fun. My favorite thing was just layering color after color, different type of texture after texture. I'll definitely be making more cards like this in the future. Thanks for the fun challenge Simon Says Stamps!

Have an awesome day you guys!

Maria

PS: April is Autism Awareness month and I'm in a blog hop on Wednesday, April 18th that will be promoting Autism Awareness. I hope you'll come back for a visit then. Thanks!

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#TGIFC155 - Sketch Challenge

Hello! I'm here for a quick post today. I've been really sick all week and didn't think I'd be able to participate in this challenge but thankfully I was able to pull it off. The crew over at TGIF Challenges has an awesome Sketch Challenge for you this week and this is my interpretation of the sketch. I started off by watercoloring (on watercolor paper) a background of Smoky Slate and Pink Pirouette. Then, as I often do when I'm in a bind for time, I reached for my trusty "scrap" bin. Everything on this card was in the bin except for the watercolor piece I painted, the vellum and the tiny glimmer paper heart. That makes for some fun putting together!

I thought the dragonflies flying up into the sky would be a really fun way to mimic the circles that are on the sketch. I used the Wood Grain DSP as a back drop piece and added lots of metallic thread instead of one bow. Instead of adding a sentiment to the top right I opted to eliminate a word sentiment and add the heart and the pretty layers behind it to the bottom right. I think the heart still conveys a sweet message without being too wordy. The final touch to this card was adding the clear epoxy embellishments. I think these are my favorite embellishments of all time and as they are retiring soon I think I'm going to have to order a kazillion packs. I love them because they add a little magic to your project without being overkill.

Here's a look at the sketch that inspired my card today. If you'd like to see more cards inspired by this sketch head on over to TGIF Challenges to see what the design team has made to share with you. I have seen some of the cards already and they are amazing! One thing I love about sketch challenges is seeing the different and creative ways that each designer interprets it. Anyhoo, head on over to #TGIFC155 for some eye candy and to submit your own fantastic idea if you have one. 

That's it for today folks. As always I am so glad to have you drop by. If you'd like to purchase any of the products I've used today please feel free to shop in my store via the product carousel below or the Shop Now button. If you have questions or need any help please leave me a comment below or shoot me an email.

Have an awesome day! See you soon!

Maria

mariawillis@hotmail.com

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Want a great discount on Stampin' Up! Products and to have a fun new stamping family? Join me on this fun adventure! I can't wait to be your super excited Stampin' Up! side kick and support lady! In case you didn't know, you can join Stampin' Up! just for the discount and never sell a single product. If you want to know the details just let me know. If you're looking for a discount on your favorite hobby (stamping and paper crafting with Stampin' Up! products) and want to earn money doing it... let me know! I'd love to talk with you whatever your interest might be! If you want to see a little more info go ahead and click the button below. Looking forward to hearing from you!

OSAT Blog Hop: Pocket Full of Posies

Hey Everybody! I'm here with the OSAT crew today for a Black Plague themed blog hop... ok, the theme is really "Pocket Full of Posies" but that's basically a throw back to the Black Plague. Ring around the rosie, pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, we all fall down! The ring around the rosies were the rosy cheeks the diseased people had from the fever. The Pockets full of posies were the pockets full of flowers the dead people had to mask the smell of their decaying bodies (I'm so serious). Ashes, ashes we all fall down... they burned the bodies and pretty much every died (fell down). Ok, so that's morbid and I stopped singing that song to kids for a while after I learned what it was really about. 

I wanted to keep with the theme of flowers but also go a little dark with my card and projects today. I used a watercolor paper base and the Blooms & Wishes stamp set (retiring soon so get it now!) along with my Stamparatus to make this card. I started by watercoloring multiple layers of Smoky Slate and Island Indigo (retiring soon) inks on the background. Then I flicked some ink on top to add some splatters. I arranged the stamps on my stamparatus and stamped repeated layers of Smoky Slate ink (I applied it to the stamp with a paint brush so it would be watered down but not bleed on my paper). I used either Elegant Eggplant or Perfect Plum to stamp another layer and also added more detail with my aqua painter. Both of those purples are retiring soon so get 'em both before they are gone. 

For the finishing details I heat embossed that sentiment in silver, added Clear Wink of Stella to the wispy flowers and then added faceted gems and pearls to finish off the card front.

I added the watercolored piece to a base of thick whisper white cardstock and left the inside blank.

For my projects I decided to do something I've never done before. I made what I'm calling "Secret Notes." I cut a couple extra pieces water color paper and repeated the same process as on the card.

I can write sweet little notes on these and leave them for someone. They could be kept and used as a bookmark or even added to a scrapbook or photo frame as an accent piece.

Well, that's it for today folks. I hope you've enjoyed my projects for today. If you'd like to purchase any of the products I've used today please click on the links below. If you have any questions please leave me a comment below or shoot me an email. If you want to see more Pocket Full of Posie themed projects then keep on hopping along with us! There's a list of bloggers below and all you need to do is click on the next person in the list. Enjoy!

Maria Willis

mariawillis@hotmail.com

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Email: mariawillis@hotmail.com

Want a great discount on Stampin' Up! Products and to have a fun new stamping family? Join me on this fun adventure! I can't wait to be your super excited Stampin' Up! side kick and support lady! In case you didn't know, you can join Stampin' Up! just for the discount and never sell a single product. If you want to know the details just let me know. If you're looking for a discount on your favorite hobby (stamping and paper crafting with Stampin' Up! products) and want to earn money doing it... let me know! I'd love to talk with you whatever your interest might be! If you want to see a little more info go ahead and click the button below. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Hero Arts: My Favorite Things Challenge

Hey everybody! If this is your first time visiting my blog, my name is Maria Willis and I am from a little mountain town in Northern California called Boulder Creek. I'm stopping by for a late night post so that I can play along with this month's challenge over at A Blog Named Hero. This is an awesome challenge because you literally just get to pick some of your favorite products from Hero Arts and make whatever you want. About two weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit the Hero Arts warehouse for the first time and had a blast picking out a huge bag of amazing products. This Color Layering Octopus stamp is the first thing I wanted to use...

I stamped the octopus in Distress Oxides inks in Twisted Citron and Mermaid Lagoon. The background is a blend of (I'm trying to remember because I actually made this background over a week ago)... Seedless Preserves, Blueprint Sketch, Peacock Feathers and Twisted Citron. There may well have been a couple more colors in there too but I apologize because I cannot remember what they are. I also layered this background with multiple layers of Tim Holtz's Resist Spray. I cannot tell you how amazing that stuff is. It gave my card a cool speckled look as well as a sandpaper like texture that reminds me of salt water. After layering the color and resist spray I also flicked some water over the background to oxidize it and to lift some of the color off. 

I fussy cut the sentiment out after heat embossing it in white and added some sequins to finish of my card. This is my first time playing along with the A Blog Named Hero Challenge and there is a lot of great design inspiration from both the Creative Design Team as well as from the challengers. If you haven't been over there yet I hope you will go check it out (just click the link above or the badge below)!

That's all for today folks! Thanks for stopping by and I will see you back here soon!

Maria

mariawillis@hotmail.com

#GDP133 - Guest Designer

Howdy! It's Monday here in my neck of the woods and I'm happy to be starting off my week with something exciting. A few weeks ago I won the Global Design Project color challenge and was given the honor of guest designing with the GDP team for today's color challenge. What a treat!

Today's color challenge is Crumb Cake, Night of Navy and Tranquil Tide. I pulled out my inks, my aqua painter, my Blends, Stamparatus and the Message in a Bottle stamp set and I got to work. I used my Stamparatus to perfectly position the love notes inside of the bottle and stamped it on Shimmery White cardstock. Then I used my aqua painter and Night of Navy and Crumb Cake inks to watercolor the image. I also watercolored the background using Night of Navy and Tranquil Tide on watercolor paper. I added multiple layers of light color washes in order to get the soft, blended look. I used my Night of Navy Blends (light marker) to flick some ink onto my background. I also used the marker to color some silver foil blue so that it would match my project (this is such an awesome use for Blends!). If you look closely at my background you can see that I've use my Crumb Cake Blends to add some spatter to my card base as well.

Here's a close up of the bottle and all of the fun layers behind it. I used a die cut banner (Bunch of Banners Framelits Dies) cut from Shimmery White paper and gave it a light watercolor wash with a mix of Tranquil Tide and Night of Navy. These colors make such a pretty new color when blended. When the banner was dry I went back in and added some detail in Night of Navy then added some dots with a white gel pen. That's all layered on top of some shredded and coiled Crumb Cake Ribbon,  a square of Night of Navy and a vellum strip. I added some Glitter & Clear Epoxy Shapes that I had colored with Night of Navy Blends and called this card done!

Thanks for checking out my card today! If you're up for some more color inspiration please head on over to check out #GDP133 and see what the design team has cooked up for today's challenge. If you've got a great idea for this color combo you can join the challenge and share your own project by entering it over at the GDP Challenge Blog.

Thanks for having me on the blog for such an awesome challenge today GDP! 

I hope you all have an amazing day and I'll see you back here soon. As always, if you have questions, comments or need help making a purchase from my store please feel free to message me as I love hearing from you. You can leave me a comment below or send me an email.

Bye for now!

Maria

mariawillis@hotmail.com

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Want a great discount on Stampin' Up! Products and to have a fun new stamping family? Join me on this fun adventure! I can't wait to be your super excited Stampin' Up! side kick and support lady! In case you didn't know, you can join Stampin' Up! just for the discount and never sell a single product. If you want to know the details just let me know. If you're looking for a discount on your favorite hobby (stamping and paper crafting with Stampin' Up! products) and want to earn money doing it... let me know! I'd love to talk with you whatever your interest might be! If you want to see a little more info go ahead and click the button below. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Let's Get Hopping Blog Hop: Very Vanilla

Hello Everybody and welcome back to another blog hop! If you haven't visited my blog before... my name is Maria Willis and I am an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator from a small mountain town in California, USA called Boulder Creek. I love making cards and other crafty things and I'm so happy that you've decided to join me for the fun today!

Today I'm hopping with the Let's Get Hopping crew and the theme for this month is Very Vanilla Cardstock. I decided to combine the theme with my March 2018 Paper Pumpkin kit for a card that reminds me that spring is near... Well, technically it's already spring here in California but it doesn't feel like it yet.

For my card I used one of the envelopes that came in the Paper Pumpkin kit. I cut it open, turned it inside out and instead of using the vintage themed side, I opted to use this bright green prettiness instead. The stripes on the DSP are Very Vanilla so the paper matches my Very Vanilla card base perfectly.

I wanted to add a contrasting color and thought the circle of Soft Sky went well with the green and still looked soft and natural. I layered my sentiment piece (stamp and die are both from the PP kit) and the circle on top of a strip of Very Vanilla cardstock that has been splattered with a Stampin' Blends marker. I embellished my card using the twine and wooden embellishments from the Paper Pumpkin kit. The card needed a little something extra so I added pearls to finish my card off.

Now I'm finding myself curious to know if you all find yourself using Very Vanilla or other creamy, off-white colored cardstocks very often? I realize that I've been using it more often lately and I'm not sure why... although I suppose I've been doing more vintage and shabby chic cards recently. Both of those styles usually work really well with Very Vanilla. Anyhow, let me know if you use it or not. If not, what color card base tends to be your go-to color? 

If you're looking for more Very Vanilla inspired creations head on over to Tracy Bish's blog by clicking on the next button below. As always, if you have any questions please let me know. You can leave me a comment below or shoot me an email and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. 

Have an amazing day! Thank you for stopping by and I'll catch you back here soon.

Bye!

Maria 

E-mail: mariawillis@hotmail.com

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Want a great discount on Stampin' Up! Products and to have a fun new stamping family? Join me on this fun adventure! I can't wait to be your super excited Stampin' Up! side kick and support lady! In case you didn't know, you can join Stampin' Up! just for the discount and never sell a single product. If you want to know the details just let me know. If you're looking for a discount on your favorite hobby (stamping and paper crafting with Stampin' Up! products) and want to earn money doing it... let me know! I'd love to talk with you whatever your interest might be! If you want to see a little more info go ahead and click the button below. Looking forward to hearing from you!

World Autism Awareness Day Blog Hop

Hello everybody and welcome to my blog. If this is your first time visiting me- Hi! My name is Maria Willis and I am a Stampin' Up! demonstrator from California, USA. Today I am participating in a very special blog hop and I will be "Lighting It Up Blue" for Autism...

All around the world April 2nd is Autism Awareness Day. I am so happy to be collaborating with this amazing group of people to help spread awareness and to raise money for autism. 

One of the ways that people show their support for both individuals on the Autism spectrum, and, families of those on the spectrum is to wear the color blue. A number of years ago I read an article explaining that on April 2nd many people put blue light bulbs in their outside lights and turn them on. The idea is that even if you personally are not affected by Autism that someone may see your blue light and know that they are not alone. This idea that we can let people know that they are not alone through such a simple and beautiful gesture has stuck with me. This idea of "lighting it up blue"is the inspiration for my card today...

I drew the lightbulb by hand and watercolored my background attempting to make it look like the lightbulb was shining down on all of the houses flooding them with blue light. In my mind shining the light over all of the houses is symbolic of unity, support and understanding.

The little houses are all sponged with ink (multiple colors) and are popped up on foam strips to give them dimension. I like that when you look through the house you can see blue inside... as if that light has shown through and has filled each home with care and understanding. In the top left corner I've cut a tiny ribbon and written "light it up" on it.

Today's blog hop is more than just an artistic interpretation of the "light it up" movement though. I thought I might share some Autism facts or statistics with you now but luckily I am able to do something more personal. I have multiple friends with children on the Autism Spectrum. I asked one of them if she had a platform to share just one thing about Autism that she wished everybody knew, what would that one thing be? She thought for only just a second before she said, "If you've met one kid with autism... You've met ONE kid with autism." I love this reminder that every individual on the spectrum is an individual with their own unique interests, personalities and needs. 

I have a goal today to help fundraise for the Organization for Autism Research. My goal is to raise $1500 by the end of the month. It'll be tough I'm sure but every dollar counts and if you have a few bucks to spare (or a lot of bucks-lol!) I would greatly appreciate your donation. Your donation will go directly to the Organization for Autism Research and is tax deductible (tax ID info is available on their website through the link provided). If you are interested in making a donation please click the donation button below and Thank You!

Organization for Autism Research

That's it for today but I hope you will continue on this World Autism Awareness Day Blog Hop. Just click on the next button below to head to the next blog.

Thank you so much for stopping by today and I hope you have an amazing day!

Maria Willis

E-mail: mariawillis@hotmail.com

BLOG ROLL:

Want to shop with me? No problem, just click the button below. 

Let me know if you have any questions!

Email: mariawillis@hotmail.com

Want a great discount on Stampin' Up! Products and to have a fun new stamping family? Join me on this fun adventure! I can't wait to be your super excited Stampin' Up! side kick and support lady! In case you didn't know, you can join Stampin' Up! just for the discount and never sell a single product. If you want to know the details just let me know. If you're looking for a discount on your favorite hobby (stamping and paper crafting with Stampin' Up! products) and want to earn money doing it... let me know! I'd love to talk with you whatever your interest might be! If you want to see a little more info go ahead and click the button below. Looking forward to hearing from you!