Friday, September 25, 2020

Tonic Studios Stamp Club Release: Heartfelt Corsage

Hello everybody! I am so excited to have you here for the launch of the new Stamp Club from Tonic Studios! This is the first in what will be a monthly release that will launch on the last Friday of every month (with the exceptions of holidays). This month's release is called Heartfelt Corsage and it is a beauty (it's a stamp and die bundle plus an add-on stamp set)!  Oh! There's also a $100 Giftcard Giveaway! The info for the giveaway is at the bottom of my post so make sure you enter before you go. Now, here's a peek at some of the many cards I've made with this release...
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

Before I get excited and get ahead of myself I want to give you more info about the release. So, to know everything there is to know head on over to Tonic Studios to check it out. If you're in the UK Click Here, and if you're in the USA Click Here. In case you've noticed that my face and name are on the banner below... Yup, that's me. I got to help design these products which makes this release even more exciting for me!
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

I've made a little video to walk you through the products that are available in this release so here's that video to start you off. Heads up that I've actually got three videos for you today so make sure to keep reading until the end.


Now that you've had a good look at the Heartfelt Corsage stamps and dies we can get into my first cards. I've used one of the main floral stamps to create some popped up shaker cards. This stamp is perfectly sized to be the focal point of your card and it also works to decorate your envelopes with.
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Here's a video sharing how I made these shaker cards...


To make these cards I started by ink blending the background with a stencil. Then, I cut multiple die cuts out of cardstock and an acrylic sheet.
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I layered the die cuts on top of each other and adhered them to create a focal point with a hollow center.
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I filled the center with shaker guts (glitter and sequins) and sealed it up with an acrylic window.
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

The floral piece in the front was watercolored before I glued it on to the front of the shaker.
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

Next I added a sentiment and finished the cards off with some dream drops.
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art


My next card and envelope set started out with some fun inkblending. I used pink, orange and yellow to create these vibrant card backgrounds. On these projects I used the largest floral image from the Heartfelt Corsage bundle.

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To see exactly how I did all of the stamping on this card and envelope set check out this video...


This card was heat embossed with white embossing powder. Then I added a sentiment in black.

Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

The stamping on the envelope was done in black...
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art


Did you notice that fun little sentiment on the flap of the envelope? That's from the Happy Mail Envelope stamp set and I love it. There's another stamp that says, "Licked. With my spit." If I'm being honest that second sentiment is more my style.
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

Now, if you watched the last video you know that there is another card in that video. Let's take a look at that one...

Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

This card was very easy to make and it still manages to be very soft and beautiful. I stamped the large floral image from the Heartfelt Corsage stamp set in Clear Mark ink on light blue cardstock. This gave a tone-on-tone stamped look. I die cut the image out and adhered it to a background that was lightly ink blended with purple ink.
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

The sentiment is a custom sentiment that I put together using stamps from the Happy Mail Envelope set. That stamp set is great for decorating your envelopes in a variety of ways. It's also great for the backs of your cards and creating custom sentiments. I finished the card off by adding dream drops.
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

So far you've seen the Happy Mail Envelope set used as something of a sidekick to the Heartfelt Corsage set... but guess what?! The Happy Mail set can hold it's own! It's a great sidekick stamp of course but check out how amazing the set is for decorating your envelopes! I stamped the wooden sign in brown ink, masked it off and ink blended it. Then I took a colored pencil and dragged those detail lines towards the center a little bit. I added silver gel pen to the nails.
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

The sentiment was custom built from the set. To finish the envelope off I added a tiny "to," and, "from" to the card before ink blending and splattering with Glitter Gloss.
Cardbomb, Tonic Studios, Tonic Studios USA, Tonic Studios Stamp Club, #tonicstudiosstampclub, stamps, stamping, cards, card making, ink, paper, paper craft, watercolor, video tutorial, shaker cards, envelope art

Now I just have to decide who to address it to and send it off with something fun inside. Honestly though, even if I got a bill in this I would still be so happy to find this in my mail box.

Ok, you all, that's it for me today. I really hope you've enjoyed the release and hope you'll continue on with our blog hop. Next up on the hop is the amazing Michelle Short! Head over to her blog and see what beauties she's made for you to feast your eyes upon!

Before you go let me tell you about that Giveaway I mentioned...

GIVEAWAY!!
Tonic Studios will be giving one lucky winner a $100 gift card ( £100 if you're in the UK!)! That is such a fantastic giveaway and someone is going to be so happy! To enter the giveaway you need to comment on every blog in this blog hop (the list of blog hoppers is down below). Get your comments in by 11:59 pm PST on September 30, 2020. The winner will be announced on the Tonic Studios Instagram and Facebook accounts on October 2, 2020 (so make sure you're following the Tonic social media accounts). Good luck to you all!


Ok, the blog hop list is below (or just head over to Michelle's blog right now). I've also linked most of the products that I've used today in case you'd like to check anything out. 

Have an awesome day (or evening if you're on the other side of the Earth from me)! Bye for now.

Maria.


BLOG HOP LIST:

Tonic Studios UK

Tonic Studios USA

Amber Rain Davis

Christine Smith

Daniel West

Jen Kray

Ilda Dias

Vicky Papaioannou

Maria Willis: YOU ARE HERE.

Michelle Short

Marie Heiderscheit

TaeEun Yoo

Mindy Eggen

Galina Filippenko

Sandi MacIver

Seeka


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Monday, September 21, 2020

Hero Arts Awesome Monster Kit for Kids (and Big Kids!)!

Hello Everybody! How are you all doing today? I am super excited because today Hero Arts is launching a new kit and this time... the kit is for kids! And, it's a Monster kit and I love monsters! You're probably wondering why I'm so stoked on a kit that's geared towards children? Well, it's true that the kit is geared towards children but it is also perfect for making cards, games and charts for children too. That means that it's just as much for adults with kids in their lives as it is for kids. My son is 18 and he loved the card I made to share today but I'm thinking of sending it off to one of my many nieces and nephews (obviously I'll have to make more because I can't just send it off to one of them).

This kit makes creating so easy because it has a ton of components. I was in the mood for a little mindless coloring so I cut this piece from one of the coloring sheets and went to my happy place.

The kit has a great variety of items to help you effortlessly create a wide variety of projects. Here's a look at the full Monster kit and what's included in it...

-Monster Ink 'n Stamp Tub (18 stamps and 1 ink cube)
-Monster Eyes Woodblock Stamp
-Neon Green Ink Cube
-5 Super Washable Marker Pens
-10 Paper Monster Die Cuts
-12, 6"x9" Monster Scene Stamping Sheets (3 each of 4 different designs)
-Self-adhesive Googly Eyes

That's a lot of stuff, right?! The kit itself costs $34.99 and there are three more monster themed sets you can choose to add-on if you want to. The sentiment I used on this card is from the add-on set called Party Monsters and I absolutely love it-because anytime that it's "Time for a Wild Rumpus" you can count me in!


To make my card I colored my coloring sheet with my copic markers. Then I stamped and colored some extra monsters both from the kit as well as from the add-on stamps and adhered them with foam tape for a little added dimension. It was seriously that easy to create this fun card!

Now, here's a closer look at the add-ons for this kit. This first one is called Party Monsters...
This second one is called Bedroom Monsters...
This third one is a red rubber cling stamp (6"x6") and is called Monster Bedroom Boldprints...
You can pre-order the Kids Monster Kit and add-ons starting today! Once sold out, the kit will be gone. The kit and any items ordered with the kit will ship together starting October 9, at the same time as our upcoming October My Monthly Hero Kit.

Ok! That's it for me for today. I hope this kit has you as excited as I am. I know sending cards out to all my little people will bring huge smiles to their faces especially in this crazy time when I don't get to see them and squeeze them. 

Keep on hopping with us to see more creative ideas for using this kit (games, magnets, daily happiness charts, etc...). Links to my creative friends are below as is info for the GIVEAWAY and links to what I've used today on my card. 

Stay well everybody and have a most amazing day! 
Maria




GIVEAWAY!

Hero Arts will give away one $50 gift card, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by Sunday, September 27th at 11:59pm pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week. All you need to do to enter is leave me a comment below and Boom! you're entered. 


BLOG HOP LIST: 

Hero Arts

Maria Willis
Daniel West
Dana Joy
Ilina Crouse
Pocono Pam
Mindy Eggen
Lydia Fiedler
Libby Hickson
Channin Pelletier

With special guests:
Heather & Aiden Ruwe
Tenia Nelson

And extremely special guest:
Theo!!




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Friday, September 18, 2020

Hero Arts STAMPtember release!

Hi everybody! Guess what?! It's time for another Simon Says Stamps STAMPtember release and today Hero Arts is getting their turn! The Park Scene stamp set is sweet and simple with clean lines (full stamp pictured below). Remember that this stamp set will be available for a limited time only and when it's sold out it's gone for good! So, if you have to have it you'd better snatch it up right away!

For today's card I decided to use only one stamp and build a scene around it. I stamped the lamp post in INTENSE-ified black ink and used my Hero Arts liquid watercolors to paint a scene in pinks, purples and blues. I added a little yellow to the light and left a light colored halo around the lamp to give off a glow.

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I used the Oval Woodgrain Frames Infinity Dies to cut out both the frame and the focal point of my card. I heat embossed my main sentiment in gold onto vellum, fussy cut it, and adhered it with glue dots. After splattering the background with some Midas Touch shimmer pen I used foam tape to pop the framed image piece up on the gray card base. 
Hero Arts,Simon Says Stamp, stamp, paper, papercraft, #STAMPtember,watercolor,#card,#cardmaker,#handmade,#art,#create,#diy,

Well, that's all for today you guys! Remember, this stamp set is limited edition and when it is sold out it's gone forever. So, if you just have to add it to your collection, head straight over to Simon Says Stamp to pick it up. Here's a look at the full set before I go...




Have an awesome day! Bye for now!
Maria



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Thursday, September 17, 2020

Shoot for the Stars! Kids United!

Hello everybody! I hope you are having a wonderful day! I'm just popping in to share this card made with a super sweet image from the Hero Arts Kids United stamp set. I love this image of two young girls holding hands and looking at each other like they and their dreams are all that matters in this world. I just want to tell them, "Shoot for the Stars kids! You can be anything you want to be and do anything you want to do!" I found this sentiment in the You're My Universe stamp set and it was just perfect for what I wanted.

I started by stamping the image in Hero Arts INTENSE-ified black ink so that I could use my copics without my ink smearing. I colored the image in gray scale using my cool gray markers. Then, I added a subtle wash of color with some light pinks and blues. After I was done coloring I used the coordinating dies to cut the image out. I'm so glad I had the dies because I'm sure I would've done some wonky cutting on the ropes. 

Hero Arts, Kids United, stamp, ink, paper, paper craft, card, card making, handmade, art, color, ink blending,#copicmarkers,copics,


Next, I ink blended a background using my Hero Arts Reactive inks in Taffy, Creamsicle and Lemon Drop. I heat embossed the sentiment in black at the top. Then, I splattered the background with water to lift some color... and then I sprayed the whole thing with shimmer spray. I wanted it to look sparkly and celestial and that did the trick. 
Hero Arts, Kids United, stamp, ink, paper, paper craft, card, card making, handmade, art, color, ink blending,#copicmarkers,copics,

I used the Star Confetti Fancy die to cut stars out of some glittery white cardstock. I used the larger stars and some foam tape to hang the swing and girls in the sky. Then I adhered stars in many sizes to the background. I adhered this whole front piece to a white card base using foam tape and that was all!

Hero Arts, Kids United, stamp, ink, paper, paper craft, card, card making, handmade, art, color, ink blending,#copicmarkers,copics,


Thank you so much for stopping by today! I know you all are busy and I truly appreciate the visit. If you're interested in checking out any of the supplies I've used today I've got a list for you down below.

Bye for now and I hope you all have the best day!
Maria



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Tuesday, September 15, 2020

Hero Arts Bare Branched Tree Done Christmas Style!

Hi Everybody! I hope you are having a great day and that it doesn't seem too early for me to be sharing a Christmas card. I generally don't start making Christmas or Holiday cards until it is far too late to get them mailed out on time... so it's pretty weird that here I am in mid-September with a Christmas card. The truth is that this Bare Branched Tree Bold Prints Background stamp just screams wintery, holiday everything to me.

So, for today's card I've heat embossed the gorgeous Bare Branched Tree stamp in Gold Glitter Embossing Powder onto Cranberry cardstock. It's hard to see in the photo but I've also ink blended the edges with some Raspberry Jam dye ink to make the edges of the card face a little darker.
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I decided to use the Stocking Bouquet stamp set to add my sentiment and the flower. Now I'm sure that's supposed to be a poinsettia... and poinsettias are typically red but I needed the flower to contrast so I colored it green with my copic markers. I added a few green enamel dots for some additional pops of color. I love these enamel dots bc the backs of them are already sticky and they come in multiple sizes (so easy and convenient to use). 
Cardbomb, Maria Willis, Hero Arts, cards, stamps, ink, paper, paper craft, crafty, create, cardmaker, cardmaking, handmade, diy, color, art


To finish my card off I added it to some gold foil paper from Tonic Studios and added all that to a top folding white card base from Hero Arts. 

Have you started making holiday cards yet? Do you start early on purpose or are you a last minute holiday card maker like I am? Let me know in the comments below.

Have an awesome day you guys!
Maria




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Tuesday, September 8, 2020

Hero Arts My Monthly Hero Kit and a Giveaway!

Hey everybody! I hope you had a great weekend! Today is launch day for the new My Monthly Hero kit from Hero Arts and it is such a fun kit this month (the add-ons are pretty epic too so check those out!). In case you aren't familiar with the My Monthly Hero Kit... It's a kit that comes on the first Monday of every month (unless there's a switcheroo) and has an incredibly high value but is offered at a discounted rate. This month's kit is is valued at $80 but you can pick it up for just $34.99. There is a catch though... Once the kit is sold out it's gone for good. You can put dibs on a kit of your own by subscribing to receive the kit each month. Each month there are add-on products that match the theme of the kit too and subscribers get the perk of being able to add those extra products for no additional shipping costs.

Ok! For my first card today I decided to do something different with the kit. The main kit has a layering pumpkin set with a bunch of fun stamps for creating a scene. I decided to use the cornfield layering stamp (although I only used the detail piece) to create a backdrop for my scene. I stamped this image in Granny Apple Green and colored the white space in with a copic marker. Then, I colored the the grass in the foreground with my copics too. I used the dies that come in the kit to cut this out and set it aside.
Cardbomb, Maria Willis, Hero Arts, cards, stamps, ink, paper, paper craft, crafty, create, cardmaker, cardmaking, handmade, diy, color, art

Next, I ink blended a night sky using Splash, Blue Hawaii and Grape Slush reactive inks. I splattered the background with water and then blotted it up with left me a distressed, galaxy looking background. I wanted to add a little more magic so I splattered the background with white metallic paint to add some "stars." I heat embossed my sentiment in white and set that piece aside too.
Cardbomb, Maria Willis, Hero Arts, cards, stamps, ink, paper, paper craft, crafty, create, cardmaker, cardmaking, handmade, diy, color, art

I created the pieces for my scene by stamping them all in Dandelion yellow ink with the exception of the crows which I stamped in Soft Granite. These stamps are solid which allows you to add any detail that you want. I used dark yellow and brown markers to add detail to the hay bales. I used that same brown on the scarecrow's hat and then gave him an orange shirt and blue jeans. I added some tears to the blue jeans with a white gel pen.The crows had been stamped in a light gray color so I just used a darker gray marker to add some shading to them.
Cardbomb, Maria Willis, Hero Arts, cards, stamps, ink, paper, paper craft, crafty, create, cardmaker, cardmaking, handmade, diy, color, art

After all of the was the fun part-putting my scene together! I adhered the cornfield/grass piece to the sky background using foam tape. Then I layered the hay bales so that they looked like they were stacked and placed the scarecrow behind them. I finished the scene off with the crows. I put all of that onto an A2 top folding card base and my card was done.
Cardbomb, Maria Willis, Hero Arts, cards, stamps, ink, paper, paper craft, crafty, create, cardmaker, cardmaking, handmade, diy, color, art



For my second card I've actually made a video to show you step-by-step how I made this card.




In case you like written instructions I'll give you a quick overview ... I used the pumpkin patch stamp layering set but I only used one layer of it. I stamped that layer in Splash ink using my Misti. Next I stamped the detailed layer of the cornfield behind the pumpkin patch. I used my copic markers to color in the corn and the pumpkins. 
Cardbomb, Maria Willis, Hero Arts, cards, stamps, ink, paper, paper craft, crafty, create, cardmaker, cardmaking, handmade, diy, color, art
I ink blended the sky using Fruit Punch, Taffy, Creamsicle and Lemon Drop reactive inks. Then I splattered it with white metallic ink. Someone asked me if that was snow which I thought was pretty funny. You could easily use it for snow but I add because I think it makes a card that much more magical to have a little bit of metallic paint splatter on it. I stamped my sentiment in Versafine ink and heat embossed it in clear embossing powder.
Cardbomb, Maria Willis, Hero Arts, cards, stamps, ink, paper, paper craft, crafty, create, cardmaker, cardmaking, handmade, diy, color, art

That's it for today you guys. Today's post is part of an amazing blog hop and some of my teammates have come up with the most amazing projects to share with you all today. They've used not only this kit but the add-ons as well and if you like zombies you are in for a serious treat! So, I hope you'll keep hopping with us. You can do that by heading over to Mariana's Blog, or, by using the list of blog hoppers that I've added below.

Before you go let me tell you that there is a giveaway! Details are below but all you have to do to enter is leave me a comment below for your chance to win a $50 gift card from Hero Arts!

Have an amazing day you guys and thanks so much for stopping by!
Maria



GIVEAWAY:
Hero Arts will give away one $50 gift card, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by Sunday, September 13th at 11:59pm pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week.





PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST- CARD #1:  



PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST- CARD #2

Monday, September 7, 2020

STAMPtember Picket Fence Studios: Happy Water

Hello everybody! Guess what?! It's time for another Simon Says STAMPtember release and today's stamp set is from the fabulous Picket Fence Studios! This is a fun and super sassy set called, Happy Water and there is a coordinating die if you want to pick this up as a bundle! In case you don't know how STAMPtember works... This set is only available from Simon Says Stamp and when it is sold out it's gone forever. So, if you need this stamp hurry and drop it in your shopping cart while it's still available. I've put an image of the full stamp set at the end of my post so be sure to check that out so you can see all of the hilarious sentiments.

For my first card using the Happy Water stamp set I stamped the image in Versafine ink and watercolored it with my Arteza brush pens. I selected colors that were vibrant and would blend well together. I scribbled the Arteza's onto a media mat and painted by picking up the color with a wet paintbrush.


When the paint was dry I splattered the background with some of the colors that I used as well as some black. To be honest, if I could do it over I would have used much less of the black splatter (maybe even none) as my image popped more before I added that. My final touch was to add a layer of Crystal Glaze over all of the beverages. This gave a super cool effect and made the drinks look like they are all 3D shiny glass. I wish that the camera picked that up better.


For my second card I started out by ink blending a background using Hero Arts Reactive Inks. Then I stamped my image in black hybrid ink so that I could work with both water and alcohol inks without having to worry about smearing my image. First, I added water to the inside of my image causing a reaction with the blended background. I gently used a paper towel to pick up the excess water and lifted some ink with it. This left all of the beverages a lighter color than the inked background. At this time I also lightly sprinkled the background with water and dried it to leave some splatter drops. 

The next step was to color in the images with my copic markers. Then, I added highlights and some asterisks in the sky with a white gel pen. The hilarious sentiment was heat embossed in white onto black cardstock and popped up with foam adhesive.


Here's a closer look at the entire stamp set. It has so many sassy sentiments to go with the main image. Remember, if you love this set and need to add it to your stash, it's a good idea to pick it up now. Supplies are limited and once this fun stamp is sold out it won't be coming back. Click HERE to head over to SSS to buy your own set. 
This set is exclusive and is part of the Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember party where a new, limited edition stamp is released every day! Check out this stamp and the other releases over at Simon Says Stamp!

That's all for today you guys! I hope you love this stamp set as much as I do! I'll see you back here in the morning for the Hero Arts My Monthly Hero release!

Bye for now!

Maria


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