A Triple-stamped Fancy-cut Flower card

Hi All!

So.... I was feeling all in charge the blogging regularly thing again (like a real blogger even!) but I pulled an intercostal muscle or something very mean, and it has decided that it gets to be the boss of life-in-general instead of me. I'm still hoping to keep up the pace of every 4/5 days or so, but if I don't manage that... you'll know why. :-)

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This card is made using a fave,

Hero Arts 'Large Flower' stamp:

 

Here's a close up view:

I stamped the flower image three times:

 

The 1st stamping was to create a white embossed background of the little flowers.

I used Frost White Colorbox ink & white embossing powder on watercolor paper.

The 2nd stamping was to make the leaves. I stamped in white ink on black cardstock, 

then heat-embossed with clear embossing powder, cut the leaves out & adhered them.

The 3rd go was for the flowers. I made a digital paper, pasting little squares of pattern,

 then printed that to stamp the flowers on (in black ink with clear embossing powder).

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(silver leafing your embellishments)

This is a grungeboard frame that I covered in silver leaf (or foil). To adhere the silver foil,
I just painted on the adhesive that comes in the Mona Lisa foil kit, let it dry & stuck the foil on. Easy peasy! (By the by, I use the imitation silver leaf foil. It's more affordable.)

The "happy birthday" is a white SRM sticker stuck onto black cardstock.

Interested in some simple striped paper? The stuff I used to line
 the envelope (and the inside of the card) is here:

(or here on flickr)

Hope you're having a scrumptious week! ox

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a Happy Secret: a Tutorial on SCS! :-)

So, there's this happy secret I can finally share with You!


(Butterflies: K & Co. "Hello Friend" sentiment: Hero Arts "Just for You" digi kit.
"happy birthday" sentiment SRM Stickers "Happy" set)

First things first, Thank You! There are no words for how much your kindness means to me. I am always astounded anew by how incredibly supportive You lovely Crafty Kindred spirits are. How lucky for me that you take the time to share your wise thoughts and beautiful way of thinking. A thousand happy thank yous & I'll keep you posted on my journey to healthiness. OXO

And that secret?
It's an ultra special first:


A while back, the queen of tutorials, Beate from Splitcoaststampers

offered me the chance to do a tutorial on SCS. Of course, I jumped at
the opportunity & today is finally the day it goes live!
giggle giggle giggle

The technique is called Distress Watercolour Embossing
and you can find the tutorial here on Splitcoaststampers.

Here's a version of the technique that uses another image style of folder, a tree
pattern in a Spellbinders M-Bossabilities embossing folder called Flora:


(Butterflies: Hero Arts "Flutterbies" digi kit. Sentiment: Hero Arts "Just for You" digi kit)


This background is really quick and easy to do. I tried to get an ombre effect with the shades of green. Distress Ink colours used: old paper mixed with crushed olive & shabby shutters.
All the details are on SCS here, for this card.

If you like the graph paper,
it's a freebie that you can find here:

(I lightened the plum colour in photoshop by selecting the
following: image - adjustments - hue/saturation - lightness +)

To save this file:
In Firefox/Chrome: right click on the image & choose "save link as"
In Explorer: right click on the image & choose "save target as"
(or you can see the whole set here on Flickr)





And here's a version that's my attempt at that modern casual style:


("happy birthday" sentiment from SRM Stickers "Happy" set.)


It uses just a piece of watercoloured embossing &
a Tim Holtz Texture Fades embossing folder called Regal Flourishes.
Distress Ink colours used: tumbled glass; broken china; crushed olive
and all the other details are here on SCS.

If you like the papers, they are digital paper freebies
that you can find...

... here:


To save this file:
In Firefox/Chrome: right click on the image & choose "save link as"
In Explorer: right click on the image & choose "save target as"
(or you can see the whole set here on Flickr)

...and here:


To save this file:
In Firefox/Chrome: right click on the image & choose "save link as"
In Explorer: right click on the image & choose "save target as"
(or you can see the whole set here on Flickr)

This last example is a soft version that uses a more abstract watercolour

style and an embossing folder from Sizzix called Tropical Paisley:


(Baby T-shirts and Sentiment: Hero Arts "Special Delivery" digi kit.)


By the by, it's actually easier to do this type of folder than the rose outline one,
since there is less chance of getting embossing powder where you don't want it.
Distress Ink colours used here watered down to make pastel shades:
broken china; wild honey; crushed olive; spun sugar
And you can find all of the other supplies & details on SCS here.

If you like the papers, they are digital paper freebies
that you can find...

... here:

To save this file:
In Firefox/Chrome: right click on the image & choose "save link as"
In Explorer: right click on the image & choose "save target as"
(or you can see the whole set here on Flickr)

...and here:

(I lightened the plum colour in photoshop by selecting the
following: image - adjustments - hue/saturation - lightness +)

To save this file:
In Firefox/Chrome: right click on the image & choose "save link as"
In Explorer: right click on the image & choose "save target as"
(or you can see the whole set here on Flickr)

Thanks ever ever so much
for being You!

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CAS-ual Friday: Delicate Branches card

A simple birthday card I made for someone special...



It was made this way:

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1) Cut a piece of kraft coloured cardstock to size (to fit a standard card).
2) Stamp Hero Arts Delicate Branches stamp in Frost White Colorbox ink.
3) Cover stamping with white embossing powder & heat with a heat gun.
4) Colour the branches, flowers and some leaves) with Copic markers.
5) Apply Distress Ink (with foam applicator) to softly colour the edges.
6) Add the kraft cardstock image to some turquoise cardstock (for a mat).
7) Stick it on a white top-fold card & add the SRM sticker on a little flag.



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This card is for the CAS-ual friday
challenge here:


The challenge is to make a C.A.S.
card with flowers or trees.

Thankfully, this Delicate Branches stamp
from Hero Arts has both:



The challenge
is sponsored by:


And the brown "happy birthday" sentiment
on the card is from their 'Happy' sticker set:

Here's hoping that you have
a gorgeous weekend,

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