Here Comes the Clown

I have a friend who thinks clowns are creepy, and I know that many others do, too. I have no such aversion, though. Clowns are just silly of you ask me, like this guy from the Starving Artistamps Doodlefactory Costume Party collection.  He's colored with Copic markers to match the background paper, which is from Basic Grey.  The layout I used is Card Positioning Systems sketch #5.

Have a great day!  I think I'm going to venture out and try to relieve myself of some of my Christmas cash.  :-)

So, now what?

That's how I feel after Christmas is over...so, now what do I do?  Not that I don't have lots of things I want to do, mind you.  I just can't decide which to start on.  And you mean I can use colors other than red and green?  Too many choices!  So, where did my unfettered muse take me, you ask?  Somewhere near Galveston, I think.

Before you look, I should warn you...you'll have this song stuck in your head for days.
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.
.
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Don't say I didn't warn you...

He-he-he, you're singing along now, aren't you? 

My Rhinestone Cowboy, from the Starving Artistamps DoodleFactory Costume Party collection, is colored with Copic markers and encrusted with all sorts of glitter pens, Stickles and gems, and the song lyrics are from the internet.

What are you doing now that the holiday is over?

Poinsettia Card

Since Christmas is only a few days away, I think this is going to be my final Christmas card posting for the year.  This is the card I made from the poinsettia painting I posted  a week or so ago.  Until I made the holly cards, this was my favorite card ever.

I cut the poinsettia image "outside the box", and then mounted that on a red mat.  The scalloped square is cut with a Nestabilities die, and the yellow square is cut using a Martha Stewart Punch around the page set.  I also added maroon Stickles dots to the green scalloped panel just to add a bit of bling.

Merry Christmas!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge #18

It seems like I've been waiting for today's challenge forever!  Lori sent us this photo quite awhile ago, and when I saw it, I just couldn't believe my eyes.  I had just started working on a new painting that I was hoping to get done in time to use on my Christmas cards.  A painting (from a design by Lynda Montefusco) of a bouquet of greenery with holly berries and currants...WINTER BERRIES!  Can you believe it?

I finished the painting last week--not exactly last minute, but close.  The original is 8" x 8" and is done with Prismacolor pencils on Stonehenge paper.  I scanned it and then used every single one of my Photoshop skills (a few of them aquired just for the occasion) to get the greens and reds to match the original.  Then I reduced the image to about 3" x 4" and printed it on some good quality, heavyweight drawing paper. I needed a very simple layout because I had a bunch of these to make in a very short time period so I went with the oval focal point and red background from the inspiration piece.

So here you have it...my favorite Christmas card ever:

As always, everyone is invited to play along in the Divine Diva challenges, and if you do, please link your creation here. If you upload to PCP or SC, use the keyword DDIC18. For even more inspiration, please visit the other Divine Divas: Anne, Chris, Lori, Julie, and Kerri

Have a great day, and join us if you can!

Here's my smART-Word challenge card...where's yours?

The smARTworks design team along with owner, Susan, have a monthly challenge, and it's so easy to play along.  Just make a card inspired by the word of the month and post a link to your card on our smART-Word Challenge blog.  I know it's a busy month for many of us, but if you can take a break from your  holiday prep, we'd love for  you to join us! 

The word for December is Christmas, and I made this card using the smARTworks Snowy Pines and Little Say sets.  The paper is from Memory Box, and I stamped my pines with Dark Moss Fluid Chalk ink.  I added a few shadows with a green colored pencil and dimensional glitter glue (from Sparkle and Spinkle) and pearl glitter for the snow.  You could use any glue for the glitter, but the dimensional glue makes mounds that look just like snow.

Merry Christmas!

Poinsettia Painting

This weekend was our big "clean the house, put up the tree, and get the rest of the decorating done" weekend. For some unknown reason, we don't like to put everything out too early. I'm not sure why because I really love having the house all decked out. Next weekend is all baking, all the time.

I finished this painting a few weeks ago and decided to use the image on some of my Christmas cards. The poinsettia is done with Prismacolor pencils, and the background is a combination of Derwent watercolor pencils and Inktense pencils. The original is 8" by 8" done on Rising Stonehenge paper. I'll show you the cards later, after I've gotten them in the mail.

Happy Holidays!

Oooh...Glitter!

I wish you could see how cool this card looks in person! I used Barbara Trombley's Art Glitter.  The color is called Green Briar, and it is so pretty...mostly green with little bits of gold and copper and red.  And, talk about easy! This is one of my extremely rare 10 minute cards. I used a Martha Stewart glue pad to ink up my Snowy Pines stamp from smARTworks, stamped it onto some pretty printed paper and sprinkled on the glitter. Next a ran a coordinating piece of paper through my Cuttlebug, and added a mat with some Kraft cardstock, sponged and distressed the edges a bit, glued everything together, and added a plump little bow.  I just love it when a plan comes together!  : )

Happy Holidays!

Brrr...DoodleFactory has Gone to the Arctic

Welcome to the Starving Artistamps New Release Blog Hop
and One Day Only Blog Candy Giveway!

We are so excited to present our newest release...DoodleFactory Arctic

You are going to want to visit all the stops on our hop because someone is giving away a complete unmounted set of the new release for blog candy! We are keeping the blog candy open for one day only so your chances of winning are even better! (blog candy ends 11am PST December 8th, 2009 the winner will be announced on or before December 9th 2009). If you have arrived here on your own and are just finding out about the blog hop you should start at the Starving Artistamps Company Blog

And, now for my cards...

Eskimo Girl

Stamps: Starving Artistamps – DoodleFactory Arctic
Supplies: Cardstock, printed paper (Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses), brown paper bag, Copic markers, snowflake stickers
Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black, Ranger Distress Ink – Tea Dye
How To’s: Stamp images and color with Copic markers; cut out. Create background panel using Technque Junkies Brown Bagging tutorial (12/09). Assemble as show to create an A2 card.

 

Merry Christ-moose

Stamps: Starving Artistamps – DoodleFactory Arctic; harlequin background
Supplies: Cardstock, Green Coredinations paper, Cuttlebug, embossing folder, twine, Stickles
Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black, Versafine Black
How To’s: Stamp image and color with Copic markers; cut out. Cut and emboss panels; stamp red panel with harlequin stamp; sand green embossed panel to highlight embossing; punch several snowflakes. Assemble as shown to make an A2 card, and highlight center of snowflakes with Stickles.

 

Chill Out!

Stamps: Starving Artistamps – DoodleFactory Arctic
Supplies: cardstock, printed paper (black/white polka dot), Smooch Spritz (blue), Copic markers, ribbon, Cuttlebug, oval Nestabilities die, circles embossing folder.
Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black
How To’s: Stamp images and color with Copic markers; cut out. Spray a piece of blue cardstock with Smooch Spritz; let dry. Cut panels; emboss white panel, and assemble as shown to make an A2 card.

Thank you for stopping by my blog, the next stop on the hop is: Lori @ Inking Aloud
In case you get lost somewhere along the way here is the complete list of stops:
START HERE: Starving Artistamps Company Blog
Juliana @ Stampin' With Inky Fingers
Donna @ Dee's Studio   (you are here)
Lori @ Inking Aloud
Lydia @ Understand Blue
Tracey @ Stamp-o-matic
Jenn @ Confessions of a Scrapaholic
Eva @ Muffins pyssel
Nina @ Ninas krumelurer
Dawn @ Amusing Musings & Things

Thank you for hopping with us! You can find the new Arctic collection and much more at Starving Artistamps.

Snow Today!

The weather in New England sure can keep you guessing. The other day it was in the mid 60's. Today? Snow.  Are you ready, Freddy?

Reddy Freddy

Stamps: smARTworks - ABC Happy Winter

Supplies: Cardstock, Copic markers, Cuttlebug, embossing folders, Nestabilities, ribbon, Stickles

Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black

How To’s: Stamp image and color with Copic markers. Cut and emboss panels, assemble, and embellish with Stickles as shown to make a 5 ¼” by 5 ¼” card.

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge #17

For our inspiration piece this week, Lori chose these cocoa mugs from Garnet Hill.  Aren't they great?  I've been doing these challenges since September, and I'm not sure which part is more fun...making the cards or checking out the cool sites Lori finds!

Anyway, when I first saw these mugs, I knew just what I wanted to do for my card.  And, joy of joy, it came out just the way I pictured!  I made my background by using the handle of a paintbrush to make random dip dots with white acrylic paint.  Just dip the handle into a puddle of paint and holding it straight up and down,  touch it lightly to the paper--perfectly round dots!  Have trouble making dots that look random?  Here's a trick I learned that works...make your dots in groups of three in a triangle pattern.  I'm not quite sure why this works, but it does.  Another thing I did to make sure the dots weren't all the same size was to make two or three dots before I dipped into the paint again.  I'm going to try this method with different color combos, because I think it makes a great polka dotted paper.

As for the rest of the card, the image is from smARTworks, and I colored it with my trusty Copic markers.  Seriously, I don't know how I lived without them!  I stamped the image directly onto the background and again on white cardstock.  I colored the white one, cut it out, and glued it over the background image.  I did the sentiment with stick-on letters, and you can't tell in the pic, but they are glittery...because I can't seem to make a card without glitter these days, lol!

Remember, everyone is invited to play along in the Divine Diva challenges, and if you do, please link your creation here. If you upload to PCP or SC, use the keyword DDIC17. For even more inspiration, please visit the other Divine Divas: Anne, Chris, Lori, Julie, and Kerri

Have a great day, and join us if you can!

Silver Pines

Are you ready for a Christmas card blitz? I'm just making my cards now (wish me luck with that, lol!) so I'll have plenty to share over the next couple of weeks. I don't like to make 60 cards of the same design, but no way will I have time to make them all different. The strategy I'm using so far is to make a card, and if I like it, make a few more while the supplies are still out on my table. So far, it's working out pretty well.
Here's a card I made over the weekend. The glimmer on the blue panel is just unbelievable in real life, and the card went together really quickly so this was definitely one of those "make a few more" cards.  So how about you?  What's  your Christmas card situation? 

Silver Pines

Stamps: smARTworks Snowy Pines
Papers: card stock - white, light blue
Inks: Versamark; Ranger Distress Ink - Weathered Wood, Broken China
Other Supplies: silver embossing powder, Cuttlebug, Swiss Dots embossing folder, oval Nestabilities, Smootch Spritz - pearl, blue
Embellishments: silver cord
Special Techniques: Technique Junkies Newsletter, Dec. 09 - Antiqued Glimmers
General Instructions: Cut oval frame and emboss; stamp trees with Versamark, emboss, and cut out; create blue Antiqued Glimmers panel; cut and assemble as shown using foam tape between oval frame and blue background.

Save the Date!

We are super excited to present the newest addition to the DoodleFactory line at Starving Artistamps....

DoodleFactory Arctic

The Design Team along with a few special guests will be kicking off the release with a blog hop starting at the Starving Artistamps Company Blog on December 7th 2009 at 11 am EST.

I already made my cards, and I can not wait to show them to you...so save the date, and I'll see you there!!

Starving Artistamps is sponsoring 2S4Y this Week!

I play along with the 2 Sketches 4 You challenge whenever I can because I just love a good sketch challenge. Whenever Starving Artistamps is sponsoring, I make sure to get a card done...you know...being on the SA design team and all, lol. The 2S4Y design team always has some amazing cards for inspiration so be sure to check them out. And, here's mine to (I hope) add a bit more inspiration. And if you need a bit more incentive, the stamps I used are part of the awesome prize you could win!

Star of Light

Stamps:  Starving Artistamps - The Nativity
Specialty Papers: Strathmore cold press watercolor
Inks: Versamark; Fluid Chalk Blue Iris
Other Supplies: White Embossing Powder, Inktense Pencils, Copic marker, scalloped border punch, ribbon, Nestabilities die, Cuttlebug, Waterbrush
Special Techniques:  Watercoloring - Stamp image with Versamark onto watercolor paper. Wet an area of the image with water until it is quite wet.  Use the brush to pick up color from the tip of an Inktense pencil, and the lightly touch the tip of the brush into the wet area.  The color should start to spread immediately.  If the color doesn't spread, rewet the area with more water.  Continue wetting and adding color.

One more Autumn Card

It's still November, and it's in the mid 50's here today, so I thought I'd post one last Autumn card.  Besides, I really like the way this one came out!

The image is from smARTworks, and I stamped it onto brown Kraft paper and colored it with Prismacolor pencils.  The background is called Herringbone from the current Technique Junkies Newsletter, but I've been doing a similar background for years, which I learned from fellow smARTworks design team member Dina Kowal.  

The Holidays are Upon Us

I am so not ready...haven't even started my Christmas cards.  I've made a few, but so far they've all been design team stuff so I can't keep them.  I wonder if I could get away with sending photos of Christmas cards? 

The card I'm sharing today is one I made for Starving Artistamps using the new Nativity set.  I also used the weave background for my card base.  The images are colored with Prismacolor pencils, and I highlighted my Cuttlebug embossing with brown chalk ink. 

That's it for now.  I have to get back to my stamping...there are only 28 days until Christmas.  Ack!

Happy Thanksgiving

Wishing you all a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

The card I'm sharing with you today is one that I made using the ABC-Bountiful stamp and a sentiment from the Square Say set, both from smARTworks.  I stamped the image on watercolor paper with Stazon Black ink and colored it with Derwent Inktense pencils.  And because I just can't seem to resist glitter lately, I added just a bit of Crystal Stickles here and there.

Holy Family

Hi everyone, and thanks to all of you who wished me a happy birthday.  I had a very nice day off work, and my DH gifted me with a gorgeous bracelet...what more could I wish for?

I only have time for a quick post, but here's another card I made using the Nativity set from Starving Artistamps.  I colored the images with Copic markers, then I masked them and airbrushed the background.  I used my colorless blender to remove some of the color around the halo, and then added gold Stickles to highlight.  The rest is pretty self-explanatory I think, but as always, feel free to email me if you have any questions or need more info about this or any of my cards.

Bye for now!

Happy Birthday to Me

Today is my birthday, and I just have to share this pretty card that from Susan T. from smARTworks sent me.

Thank you, Susan...you made me smile!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge #16

Our inspiration piece for this round of the challenge was the room from Pottery Barn.  I love this room.  It reminds me of my family room, or more accurately, it reminds me of what my family room could look like if I had any talent for decorating!

Anyway, I love red, and I especially like the way it pops against the neutrals in this room, so I kept the colors for my card.  The rooster pillow on the sofa also caught my eye for a couple of reasons.  First, I have roosters in my kitchen, which is next to the family room, so that pillow would be a perfect accent on my own sofa.  Second, I actually had a rooster stamp that would work!

The stamps I used on my card are from smARTworks.  I stamped the rooster with Adirondack Pitch Black ink onto white cardstock and colored it with Copic markers.  The white was really stark white, so I went over that part with a very pale warm grey, which toned it down just enough.  That pretty paper is a digital download available from The Angel Company.  It's meant to be black and white, but I printed it on kraft cardstock instead.  The flowers are Hero Arts, and the layout is from CPS142 over at Card Positioning Systems.

Everyone is invited to play along in the Divine Diva challenges, and if you do, please link your creation here. If you upload to PCP or SC, use the keyword DDIC16. For even more inspiration, please visit the other Divine Divas: Anne, Chris, Lori, Julie, Keri, and Kerri.

Hope you can join us!

Silent Night

I have another card to share using the new Nativity set from Starving Artistamps.  This was such an easy card to make, and I really like the way the star shines brightly against the soft neutral color palette.  The images and sentiment are stamped with Memento Rich Cocoa ink on Ivory Pearl cardstock, which is so shimmery in real life.  I did my coloring with Copic markers in muted shades and added a single crystal to the star.

If you're liking this set as much as I do, don't forget that you can get 10% off my using my discount code:  SAVETENDD

My Mojo Returns!

You may have noticed that it's been a little quiet around my blog lately.  It's true that I've been busy lately, but the biggest reason is that I've had NO MOJO!

I'm happy to say that I found at least a little of my mojo this week and was able to make this card, which I'm quite pleased with.

The image I used is from the Starving Artistamps The Nativity collection.  I used the Technique Junkies Penciled Twinks technique to color the image.  Basically, you shade the image with colored pencils, and then instead of plain water, use Twinkling H2O's or any other shimmery watercolors to blend the pencil. 

For my layout, I used the sketch from SC254 on Splitcoast.  The background paper is Basic Grey Marrakech, and the square panels are red cardstock embossed with my Cuttlebug.  I sprayed the background panels with Gold Smooch Spritz for some extra glitz, and I have to say that I just love the effect!  To finish the card, I added a gold bow and a Prima crystal embellishment.

That's all for now.  My friend and I are off to the mall for some lunch and a bit of retail therapy.  Hope you have an enjoyable Saturday planned as well!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge #15

It's been awhile since we've had a Divine Diva challenge, but it's time for another one today.  Our inspiration this time was this perfume gift set from Pacifica.

First of all, let me just say that I really wish I had a set of Nestabilities that cut fancy medallion shapes like the ones in this design.  Do you hear me Spellbinders? 

Ok, back to the  challenge.  There are so many elements that I like in the design for this packaging, but the gift box immediately struck me as a cool layout for a card.  Since I don't have any Nesties that cut fancy frames, I used a rub-on frame instead and cut it out with my oval nesties.  My printed papers are from Basic Grey, the image and sentiment are from Starving Artistamps (DoodleFactory Home Decor collection), and I used Copic markers for my coloring.

Everyone is invited to play along in the Divine Diva challenges, and if you do, please link your creation here. If you upload to PCP or SC, use the keyword DDIC15. For even more inspiration, please visit the other Divine Divas: Anne, Chris, Lori, Julie, Keri, and Kerri


Have a great day, and join us if you can!

The smART-Word for November is Gratitude

Well, it's November 1st and time for a new smart-Word challenge.  Susan chose our word this month and came up with one that is very fitting for November:  gratitude.  If you'd like to play along in our challenge, just make a card that says "gratitude" to you and post a link on our smART-Word challenge blog.  Every one who enters is eligible to win the monthly prize drawing, so what are you waiting for?

Here's the card I make to kick off the challenge.  This image (ABC-Bountiful) just said Thanksgiving to me, and I thought it would be perfect on a thank you card to use this time of year.  I colored the image with Copic markers, and since I didn't want any embellishments to complete with the image, I just did a bit a piercing in the corners and some simple layers to finish off the card.

Hope you can join us this month!

Happy Halloween!

This is a project I made for the Oct/Nov 2009 Technique Junkies Newsletter, for which I was a guest designer.  The ornament is a clear class ball that I painted from the inside with white acrylic paint.  For the black spots, I used the Technique Junkies tutorial called PKGlitz and added a crystal to the center of each spot.  The charms made with shrink plastic using colore pencils and images from the Starving Artistamps DoodleFactory Witches' Brew collection.

Happy Halloween!

My Latest Drawing

This is the assignment I just finished for my drawing class--graphite on Stonehenge paper. 

Have a great day!

Happy Birthday, Susan!

Today is Susan's (smARTworks) birthday...HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Susan!  I hope your day is filled with whatever little pleasures and make you happy.  Enjoy!

The rest of the team has posted birthday wishes as well - be sure to pay them a visit:

Trish
Giovana
Dina
Donelda

And then, head on over to Susan's blog and wish her a Happy Birthday!

Oh, and don't forget about the smART-word challenge!!  There's still time to enter for October, and all you have to do is make a FALL card, post it somewhere, and then post the link on the smART-word Challenge blog.  Easy-peasy!

Susan's Birthday Card

• Stamps: smARTworks - Leaves #1, Forget Your Age
  Coloring Media: None
• Papers: cardstock - white ultra-smooth, mustard yellow textured
  Ink: Brilliance Graphite Black
• Other Supplies: Clear Embossing Powder
  Techniques: Burnished Background (Technique Junkies Oct/Nov 2009)
• Embellishments: Black Crystals, ribbon
  

Blog Hop: The Final Frontier

Welcome to the Starving Artistamps New Release Blog Hop! We are so excited to be presenting you with the newest collection in our DoodleFactory line...

DoodleFactory Final Frontier

You are going to want to visit all the stops on our hop because someone is giving away a complete unmounted set of the new release for blog candy. We are keeping the blog candy open for one day only so your chances of winning are even better! (blog hop ends October 21st, 11am PST). If you just can't wait to get your hands on the new Final Frontier set, don't worry. You can order it starting now, and if you are our lucky winner we will let you substitute a set of equal value instead!

If you arrived here all by yourself and are just finding out about the blog hop please start at the beginning:

START HERE: Starving Aristamps Blog
Juliana Swanson
Tracey Berkey
Donna Duquette (that's me!)
Sandra MacLean
Lori Tecler
Lydia Fiedler
Andrea Cloutier
Dawn Mercedes
Jenn McMillan
Irene Silva

And, now for some cards!

Peace on Earth (“Peace on Earth” in pieces on a pieced earth.)

Coloring Media: Copic markers
Papers: cardstock, Basic Grey Lime Rickey
Ink: Versafine Black, Adirondack Pitch Black
Techniques: Paper Piecing
Embellishments: Prima flowers, crystals

The More the Merrier (How many little green men can you fit in a little green flying saucer?)

Coloring Media: Copic markers

Papers: cardstock

Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black, Colorbox Fluid Chalk Blue Iris

Other Supplies: Stampers Magic Tape, Star punch, Cuttlebug, Embossing folder, circle die

Techniques: Masking, glitter stars (cut stars from Stamper’s Magic tape, adhere to background, apply glitter to exposed adhesive.)

Embellishments: Silver cord, glitter

Home Sweet Home (I’ve been a lot of places and seen alot of things, but I’m always glad to see the parched brown dirt and fiery red skies of home.)

Coloring Media: Copic markers, colored pencil

Papers: cardstock

Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black, Colorbox Fluid Chalk Burnt Sienna, Lipstick Red

Other Supplies: Glaze pens,

Techniques: Technique Junkies Color Pop (done on yellow paper and oversprayed with Silver Glimmer Mist)

Embellishments: Black Rain Drops

Happy Birthday (I was going to get you a present, but I was kidnapped by aliens and by the time the sent me back it was too late to go to the mall so all you’re getting is this card.)

Coloring Media: none

Papers: cardstock

Ink: Versamark, Versafine Black, Brilliance Platinum Planet

Other Supplies: Ranger Platinum Embossing Powder, Cuttlebug, Embossing Folders, dies

Techniques: Technique Junkies Embossed Crayon Resist

Embellishments: ribbon

Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogosphere. Now it's time engage your warp drive and boldly go on over to Sandra's blog to continue your mission to seek out new creatures and compositions.

Sandra: http://paperfuntastics.blogspot.com/

Make it so, Number One.

It's Almost Here!

This Blog Hop, that is.  Tomorrow is the big day...stop by after 11:00 a.m. EST and join the fun!

Here's another card using the Starving Artistamps DoodleFactory Costume Party collection.  I colored the image with Copic markers and used a Technique Junkies tutorial called Simple Whitewash for the orange background panel.  The flower, crystals, and ribbon are all recent purchases from Michael's.

See you tomorrow!

We're Having a Blog Hop on Tuesday!

That's right!!! A Starving Artistamps DoodleFactory Blog Hop is coming to this blog in just a couple of days. You KNOW what that means...a brand NEW set of DoodleFactory stamps will be released, we'll have TONS of cards to share with you, you'll have a chance to win some BLOG CANDY, and you can get the stamps at a DISCOUNT. So be sure to join us because this hop is going to be out of this world!

While you're waiting for the hop to start, I have a new card to share that uses the Starving Artistamps DoodleFactory Costume Party set.  This funny little guy looks like he's spooked, himself!

I did the coloring on this with Copic markers, and the printed papers are from an 8x8 pad of Cosmo Cricket paper called Hello Sunshine.  (LOVE that paper...I'll be so sad when I use it all up.)  I "Cuttlebugged" the background and sanded the embossing to add some texture, distressed the edges, added a sentiment with some glitter letter stickers, and finished things off with some crystals, a scrap of ribbon, and a couple of google eyes.  Quick and cute.  My favorite kind of card!

I'll be back with another card tomorrow.  Until then, enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge #14

Our inspiration for today's challenge was this piece of Japanese fabric, Chrysanthemums by Kobayashi. It's a really pretty piece of fabric, but to tell you the truth, I never really had an inspired idea as to how to work it into a card.  In the end, I used the design with some images I was already working with and ended up with "East Meets Werewolf".  I'm regretting my choice of green for the mat...oh well, it seemed like a good idea at the time, lol!

Everyone is invited to play along in the Divine Diva challenges, and if you do, please link your creation here. If you upload to PCP or SC, use the keyword DDIC14.  For even more inspiration, please visit the other Divine Divas:  Anne, Chris, Lori, Julie Keri, and Kerri

Have a great day, and join us if you can!

Trick or Treat

Definitely a treat for me! I finally found some time to play with my DoodleFactory Costume Party stamps from Starving Artistamps. I made several cards over the weekend, so look for more with these fun stamps throughout the week.

Here’s the first card I made. I colored Vamp boy with Copics, and you can’t really see it in the photo, but I used a Copic atyou Spica marker to make his skin sparkle like Edward’s does when he’s in the sunlight. I couldn’t help myself, I just had to!

Don’t forget, you can get these stamps (and many others) for 10% off by using my discount code: savetendd.

The smART-Word for October is Fall

And there's still plenty of time to play along in our challenge.  Just make a card that says "Fall" to you and post a link on our smART-Word challenge blog.  That's it.  Easy, right?

I love the colors of autumn, so I tend to make lots of Fall cards, but here's the one I did especially for the challenge.  The stamps are from the smARTworks Scarecrow set, the papers are Basic Grey Indian Summer, and I did my coloring with Copic markers.  For embellishments I added a Hero Arts flower, a vintage button, some hand stitching and a few Dew Drops.

Hope you find some time to make a card and join us!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

We've been so busy lately, I'm just not sure where the time goes!  That's not a bad thing, though, because mostly I've been busy with fun stuff.  One of the fun things I've been doing is an Cindy Wider's online Drawing and Shading class over at Drawspace.com.  For most of my life, I believed that I couldn't draw.  More and more, I'm convince that I can draw...I just didn't know how.  For those of you who might be in the same boat, I thought I'd share one of my class projects.  It's done completely in graphite, and although it is one of Cindy's designs, it is not traced.  I used the grid method to create a construction drawing and then filled in the details from there.  This is my first ever graphite drawing, so I'm pretty darned pleased with Cindy's class!

Details:  8.5" x 11" on Strathmore Series 300 Bristol Vellum with Derwent Sketch pencils.

There's a new Challenge in Town!

We have a brand new challenge starting today at smARTworks.  It's a monthly challenge, and it's oh, so easy to join in.  On the first of each month either Trish or I will post a new challenge word.  And, you?  You make a card, or whatever, inspired by that word.  Take a pic or a scan, upload it somewhere, and then post a link using Mr. Linky on our new challenge blog.  Easy, peasy.  And guess what?  There are prizes, too!  All the details, the October word, and Trish's beautiful sample card are posted on the smART-Word Challenge blog. 

Please join in...it's sure to be fun!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge - DDIC13

It's time for another Divine Diva Challenge, and this time Lori gave us this print as inspiration: Golden Day II Print by Jo Molton at Art.com.

When I first looked at the print, I thought it would make an awesome frame for an inchie so that's exactly where I went with this card.  All of the stamps I used are from smARTworks, the papers are Basic Grey, and the technique is just simple stamping and sponging with Fluid chalk ink.

Everyone is invited to play along in the Divine Diva challenges, and if you do, please link your creation here. If you upload to PCP or SC, use the keyword DDIC12 so that we can find your creation and give it all the admiration it deserves.  For even more inspiration, please visit the other Divine Divas:  Anne, Chris, Lori, Julie, Keri, and Kerri

Have a great day, and join us if you can!

TJNL + SADF = ?

This card...plus a few more, that's what!

I got an email from Pat Huntoon back in July asking if I would be interested in being a guest designer for the Technique Junkies October Newsletter.  Heck yes!  It was great fun, and this is one of the cards I created using the Faux Marble tutorial to create my cave wall.

Right about the same time, Starving Artistamps released this awesome DoodleFactory set, called Prehistoric, containing all the images you see here.  Isn't Cora the Cavemom hot stuff?  I colored Cora with Copic markers, added some vintage buttons, and "drew" on the walls with Versafine black ink.  The sentiment is embossed with Zing! embossing powder.

If you're a TJ subscriber, be sure to check out my other cards on the website, as well as my Halloween ornament on the front page of the newsletter.  And if you're not a subscriber...what are you waiting for?

A Quickie Inchie

I only have time for a very quick post this morning so it seems fitting to share a card that was very quick to make. 

I started off by stamping my image (smARTworks Inchie Blocks - Set 4) onto a black Inchie square with Cosmic Copper Brilliance Ink.  When it dried, I added a Prima crystal embellishement.  I made my background with a piece of Basic Grey paper (Scarlet's Letter 6x6) with some copper ink rubbed on the edges, stamped the sentiment (from the same smARTworks set) and put it all together with a piece of velvet ribbon.

Well, that's all I have time for right now...have a wonderful Saturday!

What A Cheezy Grin!

This guy reminds me of one of those Orbit gum commercials. You know the ones..."Dirty mouth? Clean it up." Then, the main character smiles a perfectly white cheezy smile that's so bright it sparkles. Doog, from the Starving Artistamps DoodleFactory Prehistoric collection, has a grin that is every bit as cheesy, if you ask me.

You probably can't see it in the photo, but I added some sparkle to that cheezy grin with some Pearl White Smooch ink.  Once I did that, the googlie eyes were a no-brainer. Doog himself started off as a piece of Polished Stone that I overstamped with Stazon Black ink and then cut out.  The image is mounted on a background created by stamping the Fern Leaf Tooled Leather background (also from Starving Artistamps) onto green cardstock with green ink.  The little round ornaments I stamped in the corner are also from the Prehistoric set, and the sentiment is from the matching sentiment set.  A small scrap of ribbon, a few staples and a piece of background paper from the Basic Grey Archaic collection finished things off nicely.

Enjoy your Sunday.  It looks like it's going to be a beauty around here!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge #12

I have news!!!  A couple of weeks ago, I got an email from Lori (you may know her as Chanteuse on SCS) over at The Diva Stamper asking me if I'd like to join the Divine Divas challenge team.  Now, who wouldn't want be a Diva?  And here she was offering to make me a Divine Diva!  Well, I gotta tell ya...I couldn't say yes fast enough!

So what does it mean to be a Divine Diva?  Of course, there's stamping involved.  Here's the way it works.  Lori chooses an inspiration piece, and the rest of the Diva's create a something using that piece as inspiration...it could be a card...it could be anything!  The challenges are posted on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month.

The inspiration for today's challenge is this cake from Let Them Eat Cake.  When I saw those white overlays, I immediately thought of my long-neglected paper crimper.  And then, I remembered an Indadinkado stamp I'd bought and never really used.  So with those two things in mind, I created my card.

I stamped the image with Fluid Chalk Ink in Chestnut Roan and cut it out with a nestie and my Cuttlebug.  Next, I created the background by crimping a piece of white cardstock, matted both panels with brown cardstock and assembled the card.  The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink and is stamped in the same chalk ink.  The embellishments I chose are Prima and Hero Arts flowers, and self-stick crystals from who-knows-where.

Everyone is invited to play along and if you do, please link your creation here. If you upload to PCP or SC, use the keyword DDIC12 so that we can find your creation and give it all the admiration it deserves.  For even more inspiration, please visit the other Divine Divas: Angela, Anne, Chris, Lori, Julie, Keri, and Kerri

Have a great day, and join us if you can!

Dare to Dream

Over at smARTworks, we do a Design Team challenge every couple of months. Susan sends each of us the same stamp set, and without consulting with each other, our instructions are to make something. This time, the set was Piggy Dreams, which I think is way cute. I mean, how many times have you said to yourself, “Yeah, when pigs fly!” Well, you have to dare to dream! And, if you’re going to dream, dream big. Maybe you can make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. Which is kind of where I went with my card. I decided that my little piggy needed a really fancy and ornate silk purse kind of a card.

I started off by stamping the piggy on white paper (Neenah Solor White, I think) with Adirondack Pitch Black ink and coloring it with Copic markers. I cut it out leaving just a bit of a white margin to help it stand out from whatever background I would dream up. OK, next I needed to find some paper to go with my piggy. I wanted something fancy, but not shiny fancy…something more along the line of shabby chic. I poured over my paper collection and finally decided on using paper from my Basic Grey Sugared 6x6 pad. The paper is pretty, and the colors were the right shades to match the piggy I’d colored, but the colors were a bit brighter than I wanted. So, I used my Copic airbrush and an olive green pen to tone things down a bit and give everything more of a vintage, shabby look.

At this point, I liked the colors and the patterns, but it just wasn’t fancy enough. I had just picked up some ornare templates at a stamp show, so I thought I’d add piercing designs and quickly decided that a pink vellum overlay would look amazing. Truth be told, the vellum overlay didn’t look as amazing as I had hoped, but after all that piercing, it was going on the card no matter what! But, I didn’t like the way the piggy looked just sitting on the vellum, so I made the blush pink panel by embossing it in my Cuttlebug. I used an olive green chalk inkpad to highlight the embossing and darken the edges of all my panels so that nothing looked brighter and newer than anything else. I also distressed the edges on the paper panels, and dirtied up the vellum panel and pink panel a bit using my airbrush and the brush tip of my olive green marker. The brush tip makes more of a spatter pattern, while the chisel tip makes a fine mist of color.

OK…we’re getting there…I just needed a sentiment, which I decided should be stamped directly on the vellum panel. Yeah, I do that lot. After spending all that time doing the piercing, I decided to risk ruining everything by stamping something on it. Crazy, I know, and I almost did wreck it. I stamped the sentiment with olive green chalk ink, and it just blended in with the background. Now what? Well, I really had nothing to lose, so I figured I would try heat embossing to help the sentiment stand out a bit more. My ink was still wet, so I sprinkled on some clear EP and gave that a try. Grrr…it still didn’t stand out. Desperate now, I grabbed my olive green Copic marker and colored over the embossing. Phew…that did the trick! Afraid that I would ruin everything for sure if I tried to do too much more, I assembled the card, popping the pink panel and the piggy up on pop dots, and added some ribbon and a few dew drops just for good measure. There. Done. And I even liked the way it turned out. Cool!

Did I have a point in all this? Sort of. I’ve been asked a few times lately how I come up with my designs, and the making of this card is a pretty good description of how it usually goes. I can’t always work this way because it is time-consuming and the end result is pretty unpredictable, but it is my favorite way to create…just flying along by the seat of my pants.

Maybe pigs never will fly, but you can...even if it is by the seat of your pants.  And, while you're up there, fly on over to Susan's blog for a chance to win your very own Piggy Dreams stamp set.