Picket Fence Studios STAMPtember Release

Hi everybody! I'm popping in with a fun card from the lates Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember release! Now it's Picket Fence Studio's turn to join the fun with an adorable cat stamp set called, Sarcastic Kitties. You can get just the stamp set, or, go big and get the stamp and die bundle.

I decided to go with a mixed media look for my mini-slimline card. I grabbed a watercolored, galaxy background from my stash and then added some gold mousse through the SSS Circle Dots Stencil to add a little texture and shine.

Then I watercolored on of the cats from the set using my Karin markers. I only used two colors ( a gray and a pink) but I was able to mix them to achieve a range of shades.

I heat embossed my sentiment in black  and added some extra detail to the background with a black posca pen. Then I adhered the cat to my card with foam tape, attached the background to a black cardbase, and called it good!

Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you have an awesome day and I'll see you all back here soon!

Maria

Hero Arts STAMPtember Release: Make a Wish!

Happy STAMPtember everyone! Today is Hero Art's turn to collaborate with Simon Says Stamps as they come together to release an exclusive (to SSS) and limited stamp set! This stamp set is called, Make a Wish, and it's such a sweet little set. 

I decided to make a mini-slimline card and I started out by ink blending my background in Taffy, Splash and Lemon Drop Reactive Inks. Then I used the Tile Pattern Stencil and some White Iridescent Shimmer Mist to create a subtle, textured background. I also splattered both White and Gold Glimmer Metallic ink onto the background for a little extra shine and texture. The final step for the background was to stamp the "Happy Birthday" sentiment multiple times in Versamark ink and heat emboss it in White Satin Pearl Embossing Powder.

I stamped the Make a Wish image in Onyx Pigment ink and heat embossed it with clear embossing powder. Then I cut it out using my Nesting Circle Infinity Dies. I also cut a silver glitter circle in the same size from the Holiday Sparkle Glitter Paper collection. After coloring my image with copic markers I glued the two circles together with liquid adhesive and attached them to my card base with foam tape.

After adding all of that to a dark gray mini slimline cardbase the final touch was to add some holographic stars that I had cut using the Star Confetti Fancy Die.

Well, that's it for today you guys! I hope you're enjoying all of the Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember releases and that you've thought this Make a Wish collaboration with Hero Arts is as fun as I think it is.

Bye for now and have an awesome day!

Maria

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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.

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. 

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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Watercolored Daisy Fun!

Hey everybody! Happy Sunday! I hope you all are having a great day. I'm just popping in to share in a little watercoloring I've done with this beautiful Daisy stamp from Simon Says Stamp.

I used my Arteza watercolor brush pens and some Canson watercolor paper. The Canson is new to me and the ink definitely moves differently than with the Arches and Strathmore that I usually use. It's fun to have a new watercolor paper in my arsenal.

I used just five brush pens for this card but by mixing the inks I was able to create a beautiful color palette! After I finished watercoloring, I finished my card off by mounting it onto a black card base and adding an easy sentiment from the Simon Says Stamp Sentiment Strips "Get Well" pack. These strips make it so easy to add a great sentiment to your card!

Ok, that's it for today. I'm off to work on my taxes but I'll see you all back here tomorrow for the Hero Arts My Monthly Hero release!

Have an awesome day!
Maria

Gorgeous Butterfly from the Ton

Hi Everybody! It's late here but I wanted to pop by and say hello before I head off to bed. Recently I water colored this gorgeous stamp from The Ton. It's called Transformation and I'm pretty much dying over how gorgeous this stamp is.

I heat embossed it in gold and watercolored it on Arches Hot Press watercolor paper. The hot press paper has a much smoother finish than the cold press does and I thought that would make the embossing easier. It did but the watercolor moves differently on hot press than it does on cold press paper and it took me a little time to get used to it. Once I did, I loved it!

I started out with those gorgeous flowers on the right wing. I added a light wash of color, let it dry and added more shading.

I loved watching the colors on the left wing bleed together. The Tonic Studios Nuvo Dream Drops that I used to decorate the wing were the perfect touch as they give such a soft, iridescent look.

I finished my card by popping the butterfly up on an ink blended background. Then I topped that off with some sequins in Moonstone from Simon Says Stamps.

Ok, guys! I am off to bed now! I don't know what time you all will be reading this but either sleep tight or have a fantastic day!

See you back here soon!

Maria

STAMPtember: The Hero Arts Collaboration is here!

Hey Everybody and happy STAMPtember! I know that some of you have been waiting excitedly for the Hero Arts collaboration to be released and tonight is the night!! This gorgeous set is full of beautiful floral images that are just asking to be used as silhouettes. I've done two cards to showcase this set. One is silhouette style with a vibrant ink blended background. The second has a more colorful take...

For my first card I started by ink blending my background with Hero Hues Reactive Inks in Lemon Drop, Creamsicle and Fruit Punch. Then I splattered a little water onto the background and used a paper towel to pick up the water droplets. This lifted some of the ink too and gave my background a distressed feel. I wanted a little more color variation on the background so I splattered both the White Liquid Watercolor and the Pewter Glimmer Metallic Ink onto the background with a paint brush.

After my background was dry I used the new INTENS-ified black ink (great for both alcohol markers and watercoloring) to stamp many of the images multiple times at the bottom of my card. I love how crisp and black this ink is. 

I stamped the sentiment (I love the font!) in the same black ink. I wanted it to stand out more than the florals did though so I stamped it again with my Hero Arts Clear Mark embossing ink. Then I embossed it with clear embossing powder. It's hard to tell in the pictures but it did the trick to make the sentiment stand out. To finish off my card I added some of the new enamel dots in black. These embellishments are so easy to use because they have adhesive on the back and all you have to do is stick them on to your project.

You can see from this next picture that I used a similar layout on my second card but did a way different technique so that I would end up with brightly colored florals.

I started my second card out by stamping the florals multiple times across the bottom in Lemon Drop, Creamsicle and Fruit Punch. Then I heat embossed over the top of the florals in clear embossing powder. This layer of embossing over my stamped images will create an emboss resist and protect the colors that I have used for my stamping.

I continued by ink blending my background using Hero Arts Reactive inks in Thistle, Splash, Blue Hawaii and Blue Raspberry. I went right over the top of my stamped images. When I was done I used a paper towel to gently buff the ink off of the top of my embossed images. I splattered my background with shimmer spray and lifted the larger droplets with a paper towel. This lifted the ink but left a shimmery background. I also flicked black ink from a marker pen with a brush tip onto the background to make a little more grungy. I also added some spatters in Lemon Drop.

I heat embossed my sentiment in white onto black cardstock and fussy cut it out. Please note that I did not use Hero Arts embossing powder on the sentiment. I used a different brand and was unable to get a smooth finish. The lesson here is to buy quality embossing powder from Hero Arts. At least it matches the rustic look of my card, right? After that  I added some jewels in purples, blues and greens  and called it a day!

Here's a last look at these two cards side by side. I really had fun playing with this set and I hope you'll be able to get your hands on it before it sells out! Remember that once these STAMPtember exclusives sell out they are gone forever. So if you love this set snatch up quickly (links below)!

That is it for today you guys.  If you're interested in checking out any of the products that I've used today please check out the links I've added below. As always, please let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks so much for stopping by and I will see you again soon!

Maria

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