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Friday, February 25, 2011

Inkspirations Challenges #59 - It's All About the Buttons!

Hi Everyone, there were some great entries in last week's challenge (but I'm sorry that I didn't get time to visit everyone's individual blogs.)

Anyway, this week the Inkspirations Team have a nice, easy sketch for you:-


The first thing that struck me about the sketch was the three circular embellies down the right hand side.  They screamed to me to be buttons - therefore my Inkspiration card is "All About the Buttons!"


I wanted to do something special with the buttons, so I bought a pack of white Fimo modelling clay to make my own.  I rolled out a piece of Fimo onto baking paper & then used the lid of a large texta (marker) to cut out each button.  (I dusted the lid with flour to help stop the clay from sticking, but it still took a bit of shaking to get each button out of the lid once it was cut.)  Then I stamped into the surface of each button with a stamp featuring two concentric dotty circles.  I then pierced two holes in each button & baked them in the oven to harden.  Once they had cooled I gave them a blast of clear spray gloss, added some embroidery thread & attached them to my card.

Here are the buttons being made:-


The rest of the card is pretty simple, with an "Anya" image from the Greeting Farm being stamped & coloured with ink pads & an aquapainter.  The white panel has been embossed with an embossing folder & the turquoise panel has been embossed with a texture plate, which gives a softer, less pronounced effect.  Here is the card:-


You can click on any of the photos for a larger view.  :)

Card Components:
Cardstock:  SU Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise & Whisper White
Stamps:  The Greeting Farm "Miss Anya", SU Seeing Spots (retired)
Inks:  Ranger Forever Black Ink, SU Tempting Turquoise, Melon Mambo, So Saffron, Taken With Teal & Blush Blossom
Other:  Fiskars Heart Texture Plate, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots E/Folder, Dimensional Adhesives, Satin Ribbon, Aquapainter, Clear Glaze, White Glaze, Fimo Modelling Clay, Clear Gloss Spray, Embroidery Thread

Friday, February 18, 2011

Inkspirations Challenge #58 - Orange 18!

This week's challenge at Inkspirations is a great colour one.  Feast your eyes on these awesome colours:-

 

This year we have lots of 18th birthdays happening, with the first family one coming up in March.  One of our nephews has always loved orange, so when I saw these colours, I immediately thought of him.  Here is the card I have created:-


I decided to try different proportions of the colours than I would normally use, with just a touch of white & LOTS of Tangerine Tango!!!  I quite like the effect the heavier colours give.

I die-cut an "18" in Tangerine with a matching mat in Espresso & then gave the Tangerine numbers a very liberal coating of Crystal Effects to give it a beautiful gloss.  I've discovered the rules to using Crystal Effects are use lots & then walk away!!!  I left these numbers to dry overnight & didn't even peek at them while they were drying for fear of planting a great big fingerprint in them....  The orange layer has been popped up on dimensionals.

The circular tag has been created using a stamp from the Punch Bunch set.  When I mounted the "genuine article" stamp I cut the centre out which read "true friend" & mounted it separately, to give more mileage to the stamp.  The outer "HAPPY" ring is from a retired set.  I then punched a small star which has had a coating of clear glaze & mounted it with a dimensional.  The white layer is also raised from the Marina layer.  The whole tag has been lifted up on a double layer of dimensionals, to make it sit above the "18".  Here's a close up of the deets:-

 

For more inspiration on how to use this awesome colour mix, go check out the rest of the team at Inkspirations & make sure you play along...
The Challenge Site

Kirsty
Makeesha
Renée






 Brandi
Carrie
Helen
Ilina
Lee-Anne
Marisa
 

Card Components:
Cardstock:  Early Espresso, Tangerine Tango, Marina Mist & Whisper White
Stamps:  Extreme Elements, Punch Bunch & Starring You (retired)
Inks:  Pumpkin Pie (sorry, don't have any Tangerine), Marina Mist & Early Espresso
Other:  Crystal Effects, Glaze Pen, Dimensional Adhesives, Star Punch, Mat Pack & Piercing Tool, Sponges, Robo

Friday, February 11, 2011

Inkspirations Challenge #57 - Skunky Love

Woohoo, it's Inkspirations Challenge time again & this week the Team have a great sketch for you to play with, as well as lots of lovely inspiration to get you motivated.  Make sure you hop on over to the Challenge Site to have a look & play along.

Here is the sketch:-

I have flipped the sketch on its side & created a little bit of skunky love:-


My daughter asked, "why do they put skunks on love themed things - they smell!!!"  LOL.  I actually think this little guy is quite cute. 

The background, including the faux border stitching, & the fussy cut skunk have been taken from the same sheet of heavy designer paper that has been wallowing in my stash for a considerable amount of time.  I have versamark stamped & heat embossed little sketched hearts along the black panel.  Here's a close up including the skunk's glossy nose & heart:-


Now I actually made two cards for this week's challenge.  Here is my first attempt:-


Does anybody else have a crafting adversary?  I certainly do - it's patterned paper!!!  I love how it looks in a full sheet but I tend to run in the other direction rather than use it.  I see so many gorgeous creations that feature beautiful prints, but I tend to stick to rather safe patterns (& only ONE at a time!!)  Anyway, I thought I would challenge (insert *force*) myself to use some prints when I found this gorgeous fruit & vegie paper.  I ended up using 4 prints from 3 different companies but I'm still not convinced I like it.  My daughter thought it was very cute & then asked who had made it.  (Hmmm, does that tell you something about how often I pull out the prints?) 

So, what scares you in your crafting?

It's been great to see so many people playing along in recent challenges, here are the links so you can play along too:-
 The Challenge Site


Cindy
Kirsty
Makeesha
Renée







Brandi
Carrie
Helen
Ilina
Lee-Anne
Marisa
 

Card Components: 
Skunk Card
Cardstock:  Basic Black, Whisper White
Printed Paper:  Sorry, no markings on the sheet  :(
Stamps:  SU Short & Sweet - sentiment & hearts
Inks:  SU Riding Hood Red, Versamark
Other:  Clear Embossing Powder, Dimensionals, SU Modern Label Punch, Kaiser Black Pearls, Satin Ribbon, Clear Glaze Pen
Fruit & Veg:
Cardstock:  Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla
Printed Paper:  SU Good Morning Sunshine (retired), October Afternoon Root Cellar & Cosmo Cricket Material Girl Measuring Up
Stamps:  SU Afterthoughts
Inks:  SU Soft Suede
Other:  Twine, Sponges

Friday, February 4, 2011

Inkspirations Challenge #56 - Tic Tac Toe!!!

Hi, ready for this week's challenge? By the look of things love is in the air & these great colours are perfect for a Valentine greeting:-


After last week's grid sketch, I have been itching to create a "tic tac toe" card. I was super excited to discover that the SU itty bitty punches provided me with perfect "crosses" &, with the addition of a smaller circle punch, a bunch of "noughts" as well. Here is my card:-


& look, no crazy cutting this week! LOL

I glazed the playing pieces with SU Crystal Effects & added some Cherry Cobbler cardstock to the back of one of the cute little heart buttons & tied it with fine satin ribbon. I wanted the grid to have a hand drawn look, so I stamped it using the stem from the "dandelion" of SU's retired Good Friend set.  The sentiment has been added to a tag from the SU Medium Jewellery Tag Punch. The background stamp is a distressed grid pattern & I have stamped it repeatedly in Cherry Cobbler to achieve a natural fabric looking texture. Here's a close up of the details:-


Make sure you check out all the divine creations by the rest of the Team & play along yourself at the challenge site, we'd love to see what you have created.  :)
 The Challenge Site



Cindy
Kirsty
Makeesha
Renée







Brandi
Carrie
Helen
Ilina
Lee-Anne
Marisa
 

Card Components:
Cardstock:  Basic Black, Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler, Baja Breeze
Stamps:  SU Good Friend & Tiny Tags, Kaiser background stamp (Grid?)
Inks:  Basic Black, Cherry Cobbler
Other:  Itty Bitty Buttons, Itty Bitty Punches, Small Circle Handheld Punch, Heart to Heart Punch, Crystal Effects, Satin Ribbon, Dimensionals