'Tis the Season!

Oops!  It seems that I've forgotten to post anything here in over a week.  Maybe this will explain...

Ha-ha...cracks me right up!  The stamp is from Sparkle-n-Sprinkle and it's colored with Prismacolor pencils.  The background technique is one from the December 2010 Technique Junkies Newsletter, called Pencil Resist.  The papers are Basic Grey Fruitcake collection, and the sentiment is from Stampin' Up!

I've got to go make merry...hope you're enjoying the holiday season as well!

Merry Winter!

Well, technically it's not winter yet, but it sure feels like it around here.  My thermometer is showing a measly 13 degree right now.  Brrrr!

The card I have for you today uses a technique from the August/September 2010 Technique Junkies Newsletter called Soft 'n Sparkly.  I have quite a bit of Flower Soft in my collection, but I don't think to use it often enough.  While working on this card, I remembered this technique and decided to give it a try for the trim on Juniper's outfit.  Boy, was I surprised at how much I like the look over plain Flower Soft.  I just wish I know how to take a photo that shows off glitter in all of it's true glory! 

The stamps I used (Juniper, the circle background, and the sentiment) are all from Starving Artistamps.  I did my coloring with Copic markers and used Ultra Fine Pine Flower Soft and Sparkle and Sprinkle Laser Green glitter for the Soft 'n Sparkly technique.  The papers are from the Basic Grey Jovial collection, a new favorite of mine.

Happy Stamping and stay warm!

I Just Can't Wait

Remember when you were a kid and it seemed like Christmas would never get here?  Now it seems like it gets here so fast there's no time to enjoy the season.  I'm sure it's because, as kids, the only thing we had to do is sit and wait like little Jupiter here.  Although...he's an elf so shouldn't he be busier?

Jupiter (from Starving Artistamps) is colored with Copic markers, and the brick wall he's sitting on was made from a tutorial in the December 2010 Technique Junkies Newsletter.  I took my wall one step further and embossed it using extra coarse sandpaper as my embossing plate (I used a piece of black gasket rubber and a couple of shims to get just the right sandwich thickness for my Cuttlebug).  I lost some of my "mortar" after I did the sandpaper embossing so I went over it with a Versamark pen and added more embossing powder.  It went on kind of messy, which actually made the brick look more realistic.  

Here's a detail so you can see the texture. 

I made the tag from a piece of white chipboard airbrushed it with a Copic marker and a couple of grungeboard numbers that I dyed with distress ink and covered with distress Stickles. 

Whether it's going by fast or slow, I hope you're enjoying your holiday season!

A Neat New Technique for You

The background for this card is a technique I came up with for Technique Junkies, and it appears in this month's newsletter.

The newsletter has a step-by-step tutorial for this technique, but I'll give you the condensed version here.  First, go dig up those blue Fiskars texture plates that you just had to have a few years ago.  You're finally going to actually use them!  Take one of the plates and smoosh a couple of colors of distress ink all over the plate.  Spritz the plate with a little water and then lay your piece of cardstock on the plate.  After a couple of seconds, lift off your cardstock and check out your totally cool background!

I used the snowflake plate with Broken China and Stormy Sky ink to make my background.  The image is from Starving Artistamps and is colored with Copic markers.  It's doesn't show in the photo, of course, but the white and blue panels are glitter paper.  The layout is this week's sketch 195 at Card Positioning Systems.

Thanks for stopping by, and enjoy your new technique!

Busy as an Elf...

That's been me the last couple of days making cards with my new Juniper and Jupiter stamps from Starving Artistamps.  The little cutie is Juniper Elf.  She's partly colored with Copic markers, and partly paper pieced.  The card layout I've used here is called Flap Fold, and it's one of the cool tutorials on the Technique Junkies Fancy Folds and Motion Paper Crafts CD.  I have to admit that I don't always have the patience to do fancy folded cards, but this one was easy to cut and even easier to put together.

Stay tuned...I'll have more holiday cards to post other the next couple of weeks.  Like I said, I've been busy as an elf!

Finally!

I can finally start sharing some of the projects I've been working on lately!

I'll start off with this set of Artist Trading Cards that I just finished for a trade over at Drawspace.com.  The theme was Windows and Doors, and I decided to use Art Deco stained glass window designs for my cards.  I sketched the designs in pencil first and then inked them with a Rapidograph pen.  The coloring is done with Inktense pencils.

Have a great day!  I'll be back tomorrow with a greeting card or two to share.

Tuesday Again

It's Tuesday again...and I've got nothing show from my studio.  I'm working on several art projects, but nothing is in any shape for showing at the moment.  I've got lots of knitting going on, but most are for gift giving so I need to keep them under wraps.  I've got some stamping happening, but it's of the top secret variety. 

You'll get to see all of that stuff eventually, but for now, I'll share a card I made last month with my DoodleFactory Gourds and Pumpkins stamps from Starving Artistamps.  The pumpkin is stamped onto an alcohol ink background with Versamark, "embossed" with Heat 'n Stick powder, and foiled with black foil.  I edged the mats with black Stickles, and added a textured metallic Prima flower and leaf for a little bling. 

Before I go, I'd like to wish everyone here in the U.S. a very happy Thanksgiving, and to everyone else, have a great week!

A Mixed Bag

Happy Friday, everyone!  It's weird, but even when you aren't working, Fridays still feel good.  The big difference is that Sunday evenings and Monday mornings also feel good.

As the title of this post says, I've got a mixed bag for you today.  First, I want to thank everyone for the lovely comments on my last post...they mean so much to me!

And while we're on the subject of comments on my blog, I realize that I forgot to choose a winner for the Technique Junkies CD #8 at the end of October.  Better late than never, I just shook my iPhone for a random number and the winner is #10, Donelda.

Yeah, and I missed my semi-regular Tuesday post again.  I did think of it, and even got as far as getting my camera out to take pics, but the battery was shot.  I put it on the charger and one thing led to another, and here it is Friday already.  Anyway, here's what I'm working on at the moment.  First up is my Bug Light picture.  I don't even know how many hours I've put into the sky so far.  It's not quite done yet, but I'm going to leave it for now and move on to a different area. This is a pretty lousy picture, but it is proof that I've gotten at least a little bit more done on this one.

The project I'm really excited about at the moment are these mittens I started knitting last night.  The cuffs are done with corrugated ribbing, which I had never tried before.  I haven't done stranded knitting of any kind in quite awhile so at first it felt like I was knitting with two left hands with all thumbs.  But, once I got the hang of it, I was zipping along pretty well.  I found the pattern on Ravelry.  If you knit or crochet and haven't discovered Ravelry yet, be sure to pay them a visit.  The site has tons of patterns, forums, blogs, groups, databases that let you catalog your yarn stash and supplies, and project albums.  It literally took me days to explore the whole site!

The final item in my bag today is a card that I made for the Design Junkies blog using the Designer Tiles technique from the August 2008 newsletter.  The stamps are from Inkadinkado, the papers are a mix of scraps and new Basic Grey Jovial, and the "grout" is Ranger old paper Distress embossing powder.

OK.  I think that's it for now.  I'll see ya when I see ya!

Tuesday in My Studio

It's Tuesday, and I almost forgot my "regular" Tuesday post again. Almost. It's not midnight here yet, so this still counts.

Last week was a very eventful week--Riley (our adorable new little granddaughter) was born on Friday; also on Friday, my husband Dave retired after more than 40 years at the same company, we went with friends to see a Patriots football game on Sunday (they won), and on Monday we got to meet Riley for the first time. She's a cutie, isn't she?

I did manage to find some in my studio, though, and almost finished this drawing.  I did the main part of the drawing with Prismacolor pencils on Colorfix sanded paper.  I've used rough paper before, but never anything this rough.  The paper demands a much looser style than I'm accustomed to, and I found it thoroughly enjoyable.  Since Colorfix is a paper intended for use with pastels, I thought that doing the background in pastel would be absolutely perfect.  And, it may well be a perfect solution.  The only catch is that I don't have the first clue how to use pastels.  So as soon as I take care of that little detail, I'll finish this one.

Thanks for stopping by my studio!

Tuesday in My Studio

I just realized that I missed my Tuesday post last week.  So much for this being a regular feature on my blog...guess it'll just have to be semi-regular now. 

My drawing table is empty at the moment.  I've got a few projects started that I should be working on, but they aren't quite capturing my attention right now.  I've got some class assignments that I should be working on, and I think I will work on them this afternoon.  But for the most part, I'm in "I just finished a drawing and I don't know what I want to do next" limbo. 

I did finish up a little drawing of a cardinal yesterday.  It's a copy of a drawing from Kaaren Poole's "Drawing Birds in Colored Pencil" book, and I did it in hopes that it would help break me out of my limbo.  I'm starting to get some ideas for my next project, so maybe it's working.

Well, I'm off to tackle some of my classwork.  Have a great day!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge #38

Sorry to be a little late joining the challenge this week. I've had this card essentially done for days, but I was waiting for a little bit of last minute inspiration to tell me how what embellishments to add. Well, inspiration never came, so I'm taking that to mean that this card doesn't need any embellishment. Anyway, that's my story, and I'm sticking to it!

Lori gave us a couple of different photos to choose from this time, mostly involving apples and pears. I only have one pear stamp and no apples to speak of...hmmm, maybe I do need more stamps? But I digress. I did have my DoodleFactory Gourds and Pumpkins (from Starving Artistamps) out on my desk, though. Done up in the right colors and looking at them with my eyes squinted, they sort of look like the apples and pears on this cake to me!

In the inspiration photo, the fruit is surrounded by luscious chocolate so I surrounded my fruits with a chocolate brown frame and placed everything on a ground of cocoa brown.  My gourds and pumpkins are paper pieced from scraps and then shaded with Copic markers.  The wood grain background I used is also from Starving Artistamps.

The other Divas always come up with divinely inspired projects so be sure to take a few minutes to visit their blogs and have a look.

Lori
Anne
Chris
Julie
Kerri

Hope you are inspired to come and play along. Just leave a comment on Lori's blog with a link to your card. We can't wait to see what you create! The keyword for uploading on online forums will be DDIC38.  Have fun and look for the next challenge on November 4th.

Does it Get Any More Fun Than Halloween?

I don't think so! Isn't Morty here just a scream?  He's from the DoodleFactory Ghoulies collection from Starving Artistamps. The DoodleFactory always comes up with great Halloween images, but these are my all time favorites...creepy dead hands down, lol!



I colored Morty with Copic markers using the most undead colors I could find in my collection. The rest of the card design is all about grungy, dirty, dusty, creepy and dark. I distressed, sanded, crumpled, tore, sponged, embossed, spritzed and cut with wild abandon.  I felt kind of like a mad scientist having way too much fun.

I love Halloween so much that I'm going to give out some blog candy on Halloween.  A copy of the Technique Junkies Newsletter 2010 Edition (CD8) will go to one lucky winner. Just leave a comment on my blog between now and midnight EST October 31 and I'll automatically enter you to win.  In fact, leave lots of comments.  I'll give you one entry for each day you leave a comment (one per day), and to be sure I can find them make sure to put your comments on this post or any of the posts I made between now and the 31st.

Happy haunting my little ghoulies!

Tuesday in My Studio

I think I'll make this a regular feature on my blog.  Tuesday will be my day to show you my works in progress, and every now and then, a finish or two.

Today I actually have a finish to show.  It took me all day yesterday, but Hannah's portrait is done.  It's such a good feeling to finish something.  I should do that more often!

Hannah, Graphite on Arches hot-pressed watercolor paper, 9" x 12"

Thanks for stopping by my studio!

Fall is Here for Real

We had a light frost last night so it officially feels like Fall around here.  The foliage isn't at peak yet, but we have quite a bit of color and the air is filled with the sweet smell of dried leaves.  This is my absolute favorite time of year.  I love the weather, the colors, and the upcoming holidays--starting with Halloween.

I really enjoy making Halloween cards so I'm only too happy to be working on my design team cards for my latest batch of stamps from Starving Artistamps.  The card I made today uses the jack-o-lantern faces from the DoodleFactory Gourds and Pumpkins set and Hollow from the DoodleFactory Ghoulies set. 

The glowing faces in the background are done with a simple resist technique.  I stamped the faces with Versamark and then embossed them with clear embossing powder.  Then, I just smooshed on some Weathered Wood Distress Ink and used a paper towel to wipe the ink away from the faces.

I made my frame from scraps of paper.  I cut a bunch of 1.25" square from scraps and glued them down to a piece of thin cardstock and then I cut out a variety of shapes, including this frame.  I put a piece of vellum behind the frame so that Hollow, colored with Copic markers, would stand out a bit from all the chaos.

Thanks for stopping by my studio!

Frankie

Today was my first post on the Technique Junkies Design Team blog, and I'll be posting there on the second and fourth Friday's of the month.  I made this card to showcase the Texture Duet (October 2010) and Sanded Core'dinations (April 2010) techniques, but Frankie is really taking center stage.  He's from the DoodleFactory Ghoulies collection from Starving Artistamps.

The Core'dinations paper I used on my card is called Black Magic, and I love the stuff so much it's hard not to hoard it.  I colored both Frankie and the sentiment (Starving Artistamps) with Copic markers. You can't see it in this picture, but Frankie's eyes and the letters are shiny because I went over them with a glaze pen.

Have a great day, and thanks for stopping by my studio.

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge 37

It's the first Thursday in October, which means that it's time for another Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge. I also just realized that I've been doing these challenges for a whole year now. It's been a fun year with some truly beautiful inspiration photos--thanks for inviting me to play, Lori!









These Classico soaps from Cambria Cove were our inspiration this time.  I just love the colors and the Art Deco patterns on the wrappers.  Truly beautiful.

I'm also trying to participate in the Hope You Can Cling To card drive to benefit those affected by breast cancer, sponsored by Splitcoast Stampers.  I'm not sure that I'll get all of them done, but I'm going to try.  This card is for challenge HYCCT02B-Lingerie Inspired.  The stamp I used is Simone from the DoodleFactory People collection at Starving Artistamps.  I colored her with Copic markers and paired her with a sentiment from the Classic Decor collection, also from Starving Artistamps.  The layout I used is Laura's sketch #62 this week at 2 Sketches 4 You so I covered a lot of challenge ground with this one!

The other Divas always come up with divinely inspired projects so be sure to take a few minutes to visit their blogs and have a look.

Lori
Anne
Chris
Julie
Kerri

Hope you are inspired to come and play along. Just leave a comment on Lori's blog with a link to your card. We can't wait to see what you create! The keyword for uploading on online forums will be DDIC37.  Have fun and look for the next challenge on October 21st.

Tuesday in My Studio

I spent the entire day today noodling around in my studio.  I made lots of cards, worked on room layout for my drawing class, and I also did some more on a portrait of our granddaughter Hannah.  Not a bad day's work, if I do say so.

Here's one of the cards I did today.  It's a quick little card that I made using the DoodleFactory Gourds and Pumpkins set from Starving Artistamps and this week's sketch from Card Positioning Systems.  I stamped the pumpkin and gourd onto orange paper and colored them with Prismacolor pencils.  The printed paper I used is Basic Grey Indian Summer and my scalloped mat is embellished with cinnamon Stickles.  The rest is pretty straightforward, I think, but if you have a question, just holler.

And here's where I'm at with Hannah's portrait.  I've got about 10 hours into it so far, and I'm guessing it will take me at least another 8 to 10 hours to finish.  I have no idea how long it should take to do a graphite portrait this size (9" x 12"), but I thought it would be quicker.  I've spent a lot of time fussing with her mouth and eyes, and I'm not through fussing yet!  It's coming along, though, and I'm pleased with it so I'll just take my time and finish when I finish.  Thank goodness I don't have a deadline!

Well, that's a little peek at what Tuesday looked like in my studio.  What I should also show you is a picture of the mess I made, but I won't.  Not that I wouldn't show you, but if I go in there to take a picture, I'll have to look at the mess again, and I just can't bring myself to do that.  Yeah, it's pretty bad!

Have a nice evening (or morning, or afternoon)!

October TJ Sketch By Design Blog Hop

Hello Junkies! Welcome to the October Blog Hop showcasing our Design Team's artwork using the By Design sketch and techniques from the October newsletter!

I hope you arrived here from Jane's blog--her card was awesome, wasn't it? If you didn't, please take a minute or two to join us at the beginning of the Hop on the Technique Junkies Design Team Blog so that you don't miss any of the stunning artwork the designers have in store for you!

You too can have an opportunity to participate in this challenge and maybe even with a prize! October is Pat's anniversary month--she's been creating the Technique Junkies Newsletter for 8 years. Wow! Congratulations, Pat!!! To celebrate, Pat will make one lucky winner a TJ Subscriber for life, including all back issues and CD's to fill in the winner's collection.

So how do you enter? First, create a card using the design sketch and follow the directions for entering the contest on Pat's blog. You will need to send Pat your card or share it with the TJ yahoo group or send Pat the web link where your card is posted, and you will need to comment on Pat's blog.


Now for my card.  I used the Faded Texture technique on the bottom panel...quick, easy and fun! The harlequin background stamp on the top panel is from Starving Artistamps, the crows are from I Brake for Stamps, but I'm afraid I've long since forgotten where I got the alphabet stamps.

Hetty is the next stop on the Blog Hop, but here's the entire list just in case you get sidetracked along the way:

Judy's post @ TJ Design Junkies blog
Jane @ Jane's Addiction
Donna (that's me!) @ Dee's Studio
Hetty @ Craft Chaos
Beth @ Sunflowers and Dragonflies
Kimm @ Artful Sentiments by Kimm BT
Cathy @ Artful Observations
Chris @ Creating with Chrissy
Pat @ The Technique Trail

Happy Stamping and Happy Hopping!

One Studio Fits All

It's been so long since I posted. I was on vacation last week and we've been generally busy, but really, time isn't the problem. It's more of a lack of direction. I've been toying with the idea of doing two blogs, one for cards and one for my art, but when it came right down to it, that idea stopped me cold. So back to the one blog for everything. Just like my real studio, which is packed to overflowing with supplies for all the different things I do, this blog will be for everything. There. That feels better already!

So what have I been working on, you ask? I've got several projects going (I always do), and today I'll show you a couple that I've actually finished.

I mentioned awhile back that I had become a member of the Technique Junkies Design Team, and since the October newsletter has been mailed and is also available online, I can start sharing the cards I made with you. The two I'm sharing today were published in the hard-copy version of the newsletter.

The first card uses a technique called Puzzle Layers.  The image is from Twisted Papers, and I colored it with Copic markers.  I didn't color the entire image three times, just the parts I needed, but I will admit that this one took some time to do.

My second card was much quicker to make.  The technique is called By the Inch, and it's a great way to use up leftover technique sheets.  I started off with a sheet I made using the Antique Wallpaper technique from the June 2010 newsletter.  The stamps I used are from I Brake for Stamps.



It's going to be a nasty, rainy day here today so I plan to spend it in my studio.  I'm not sure which project I'll decide to work on, but I'll be in there doing something, and I promise I'll have more to share soon!

Have a great day!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge 36

It's time for the second September Divine Diva challenge already?  Time seems to move in hyper-drive since I stopped working.  Maybe it's true that time really does fly when you're having fun.  Who knew?

Speaking of fun, this book cover was our inspiration this time.  I already had my DoodleFactory Backlit Blooms stamps out on my table, so naturally, I used those.  This is the poppies stamp, and I just covered up the poppies with a couple of big Prima flowers.  I didn't have two flowers in the color I wanted, so I airbrushed them with Copic markers.  At 5 inches by 7 inches, this card is a bit bigger than I usually make, and I have to say, I like the bigger format.

Be sure to check out the cards made by all the Divine Divas for this challenge!

Lori
Anne
Chris
Julie
Kerri

Hope you are inspired to come and play along. Just leave a comment on Lori's blog with a link to your card. We can't wait to see what you create! The keyword for uploading on online forums will be DDIC36.  Have fun and look for the next challenge on October 7th.

Craft Season has Begun!

It's after Labor Day, the weather has turned cooler, and the days are shorter.  All of these things signal the beginning of Craft Season, which almost immediately turns into Holiday Craft season.  All of a sudden, it doesn't seem to early to start working on Christmas cards, and here's my first one. 

I used the DoodleFactory Backlit Blooms Poinsettia and sentiment from Starving Artistamps.  The poinsettia is stamped with Copic markers.  Yes, you can do that!  The instructions can be found in the June/July 2010 issue of the Technique Junkies Newsletter.

Starving Artistamps has a whole slew of new stamps out besides these gorgeous blooms.  Best of all, Tracey is giving away some of the new stamps as blog candy all month on the company blog.  Check it out and spread the word!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge 35

It's the first Thursday in September, and that means it's time for a Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge.

The photo Lori chose for us this time is a page from a Sundance Catalog.  I just love all the character in that wooden chest, so I tried to duplicate that in my background panel.  There's lots of stamping, sponging, embossing, sanding, and stamping again on there.  In real life, it really does have quite a bit of depth and character.  Too bad my photo skills aren't good enough to show you!

The flower image I used in a new DoodleFactory Backlit Bloom from Starving Artistamps.  I stamped the flowers with Fluid Chalk ink onto a piece of light aqua paper.  The paper has a beautiful fabric texture, and the chalk ink works really well to show off all that texture.

Kerri couldn't join us today, but be sure to check out the cards made by all the Divine Divas for this challenge!

Lori
Anne
Chris
Julie

Hope you are inspired to come and play along. Just leave a comment on Lori's blog with a link to your card. We can't wait to see what you create! The keyword for uploading on online forums will be DDIC35. Have fun and look for the next challenge on September 16!

Where did the week go?

I've been so busy since I left my job that I don't know how I ever had time to work!  It's been an entire week since I posted on my blog, and here I was thinking that I would be able to post more often. 

To add to my time management issues, most of the stamping I've done in the past couple of weeks has been of the top-secret variety.  I did do one card that I can share with you, though...

I used a great tutorial from the latest Technique Junkies Newsletter called Splash-n-Stick (Pat has an awesome subscription special on her blog right now), which is a great way to use some of the Magenta Peel-Offs stickers that I can't seem to stop buying.  The papers are from a Basic Grey Boxer 6x6 pad.

Thanks for stopping by my studio today!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge 34

I can't believe it's already time for another Divine Diva challenge!  This time, Lori chose a magazine ad for Lindt chocolate.  I had lots of ideas for this one and ultimately settled on replicating look of the journal.  I loved the colors, and besides, I have LOTS of buttons!

Lindt chocolate magazine ad.

All of the papers I used came out of my scrap pile--Yay!  I just taped the pieces together from the back and then cut my panel so that the seams fell at 30 and 60 degree angles.  The stamps I used are old favorites from Inkadinkado and the cupcake is colored with Copic markers.

Be sure to check out the cards made by all the Divine Divas for this challenge!


Lori
Anne
Chris
Julie
Kerri

Hope you are inspired to come and play along. Just leave a comment on Lori's blog with a link to your card. We can't wait to see what you create! The keyword for uploading on online forums will be DDIC34. Have fun and look for the next challenge on September 2!

More News

I got a note from Pat Huntoon last week asking if I was interested in joining the Technique Junkies Design Team.  Heck yes!  So I'm happy to announce that I'll be contributing to the newsletters starting with the October/November 2010 issue.  I'm so excited--thanks, Pat!

Today happens to be Try That Technique Thursday at Technique Junkies so I thought I'd play along.  The featured technique this week is Gated Tags from the February/March 2008 newsletter.  I don't usually make these special fold cards, but I have to admit, they are fun.

 

All of the stamps I used for this are from Starving Artistamps.  Since there is so much going on with the card itself, I kept the stamping and coloring simple.  The images are stamped in various shades of chalk ink, and the lighthouses are colored with Prismacolor pencils.

Thanks for stopping by!

Smooth Sailing

It's official.  Friday was my last day at work, and I'm retired...nothing but smooth sailing from here on out!  My husband will follow along sometime before the end of the year. 

So many people have asked me lately how I will keep myself busy.  Won't I be bored?  Um, no.  My job was the boring thing that got in the way of all the things I want to do.  No.  I won't be bored.  Yes. I will be busy. 

One of the things I plan to busy myself with is this blog.  More and more I've been feeling like I need to have two blogs--one for my cards and one for my art.  On the card blog, I'd like to start a challenge, do some tutorials, and be much more consistent in the way I present the cards.  My art blog will be a place for me to post my artwork and my thoughts--I envision this blog as an online art journal.

For now though, I'll keep sharing cards here like I always have.  This one uses stamps from Starving Artistamps --my buoy background and the sail boat from the Juniper and Jupiter Go to the Beach set. I stamped the background with Tea Dye Distress Ink onto a piece of paper from the Basic Grey Basics Kraft paper pad.  The sail boat is colored with Copic markers, and I used a few long forgotten white snaps for embellishment.

Enjoy your day!

Divine Diva Inspiration Challenge 33

Our inspiration this time comes from Lovely Package.  Would you believe that these are tequila bottles?  They really are lovely!

I was especially taken with the beautiful soft pastel colors so those were my jumping off point.  I decided to mimic the colors on three panels just the way they are on the three bottles.  I stamped my flowers (Inkadinkado) with White Brilliance ink onto the colored cardstock and then added color with Prismacolor pencils.  The dotted borders and the green zigzag border are also drawn with Prismacolors.  To further carry the floral theme, I debossed my background panel with an Impressibilities stencil. 

I have to say...I'm pleased with the way this card came together.  And, I would also like some pretty tequila!

Be sure to stop by the other Diva's blogs to see how they were inspired by the pretty tequila bottles.  There blog links are in my sidebar.  And as always, we welcome you to play along with us (use keyword DDIC33 or DDIC if you upload to SSC or PCP).

Thanks for stopping by the studio!

People, People! Take a Seat!

Take a seat and browse all the wonderful creations from the Starving Artistamps design team using the brand new DoodleFactory People Take a Seat collection. 

I used Lizzie and Casey from the Cutie Kids set, and there's also a Sophisticates set that's perfect for more grown up occasions.  Be sure to check out the other designer's blogs (links are over in my right sidebar) for examples of both sets...as always, they've done themselves proud!

Oh, and did I mention the sale?  To celebrate the release, Starving Artistamps is having a 3-day sale.  The flyer at the bottom of this post has all the details.

Summer Fun

I've never tried water skiing, but people swear that it's fun.  As for me, I'd rather be in the boat than being dragged behind it, lol!

I so think this image from Starving Artistamps is fun, though.  It's from the Juniper and Jupiter Go to the Beach collection, and I used it along with the Weave background and a sentiment from the DoodleFactory Tropics collection.  The image is colored with Copic markers and layered onto a panel I made from scraps of blue paper.  I had originally planned to use a plain red background, but the paper I chose was a bit too bright for my taste and kind of clashed with my ribbon. To fix that, I stamped it with the mesh background in a darker shade of red ink, which toned it down, added some nice texture, and unified all of my various shades of red.  I didn't think to take before and after shots, but trust me...the difference is huge! 

See you tomorrow for the new DoodleFactory release!  In the meantime, go have some summer fun while there's still some summer left.  Where did July go, anyway?

Save the Date!

What's that you're saying?  It's been way too long since the last DoodleFactory release? 

Well, I couldn't agree more, and the good news is that your wait is almost over.  Starving Artistamps will be debuting a new DoodleFactory collection on Monday August 2nd.  From cute to sophisticated, there's something for everyone in the release!

Here's a little peek of what I did with one of the new stamps...

Still at the Beach

I'm still having fun playing with my Juniper and Jupiter Go to the Beach stamps from Starving Artistamps.  This card was so easy to put together, and I just love the way it came out.  The lighthouse is colored with Copic markers and that great cloud background (also from Starving Artistamps) is stamped with light blue chalk ink.  The sand dunes are made from kraft paper torn, embossed, and edged with chalk ink. 

Mmmm...I can almost smell the salt spray!

At the Beach

Starving Artistamps just came out with TONS of new stamps. One of the new collections is called Juniper and Jupiter Go to the Beach, and these stamps are from that collection. For this card, I gave my Copics a bit of a break and pulled out my Prismacolor pencils. And, (*GASP*), I also used my sewing machine. The blue background is Core'dinations paper, embossed and then sanded.  The layout is from this week's Card Positioning Systems sketch #176.

It's going to be way too hot here for a real beach day, so this will have to do.  I'm staying the the AC today for sure!

Bug Light

This is the other of my illustrations that is now available as a stamp from Starving Artistamps.  I drew this from a photo I took of Bug Light on the breakwater at the entrance to Portland Harbor, near South Portland, Maine.  This little lighthouse isn't very far from Portland Head Light, and there are four or five other lighthouses nearby so my husband and I made an afternoon of touring the area and photographing them.  If you're ever in that area, it's a fun way to spend an afternoon.

For my card, I stamped the lighthouse on white cardstock and colored it with Copic markers.  Then, I cut out the top of the image, along the horizon and lighthouse, and layered it over a background that I stamped with light blue using Starving Artistamp's new Build-a-Cloud stamp.  To finish of the card, I added some layers and a sentiment.  Wicked quick to make and suitable for anyone from Down East...or a Connecticut Yankee like me...or anyone who likes the sea.

Thanks for stopping by!