Technique Junkies - too delish!!!

Ah i am LOVING my Technique Junkies issues. Need to get more back issues :P here are a few cards i made using the ideas in the newsletter:


This background is called Cuttlebug Smoosh and I used Tim Holtz Distress Inks in Dried Marigold, Antique Linen, and Milled Lavendar. I stamped the main image in Antique Linen and then used Distress Embossing powder in Antique Linen, Milled Lavendar, Shabby Shutters and Dried Marigold. Inked the edges and used my foam blending tool to add some of the same ink colors to enhance the satmp - sentiment is Studio G of course!



Next background is Reinker Splash altho i did not use the glossy paper and think it would come out a bit differently so i will try that next time. Again used the distress inks - Peeled piant and Antique Linen. Stamp is also distress embossing powders - antique linen, dusty concord, worn lipstick and peeled paint. sentiment is studio g again but the FIRST one i used - i stamped it and then realized it is mis-spelled!!! yup! litte instead of little ah well they are only a buck!! (used my new eyelets and crop a dile - can you tell i need some practice with that thing???ugh! good thing this card is for my mom!)



this last background is spanish gold using acrylic paint. stamped image is colored using gamsol and prisma pencils. now to get the colors right for "spanish silver".....

i have gotten lots of new supplies in so stay tuned for more new things :)

i am going to try and start using some of this stuff on scrapbook LO as I have enough cards - found a GREAT site - check out the blinkie on the right - Got Sketch. AND BTW - if anyone knows how to make these little things that link to a website PLEASE help me as i want one or want to make myself one.....
thanks!!

UGH!! how retarded.....series 11 and my Ms

so i trek all the way out to Michaels yesterday to check their $1 stamp bin - nothing. i find someone who works there, explain I am looking for the new series 11. she calls someone in the stock room - they DO have something new for the $1 bin. we walk back to the stack room and what does she show me???? series 7!!!! i said um those are way behind - everyone already has those. she insists that no other Ms has had series 7 out yet and i say yes someone has already sent me a set before xmas.....she argues and i just give up and leave. WOW!!! so i am apparantly SOL on series 11. I live in a huge metropolitan area - you would think they would be on top of things....but anyway, IF there is anyone out there who does NOT have series 7 yet let me know and i'll grab some for you :P so frustrating! oh and my ac moore finally got out the series 9 - yay.

Have i mentioned how much I love Perfect Pearls....?????

Before I get into the good stuff: i FINALLY have email subscription capability so sign up to the right! Don't miss any news!






I just completed this wall hanging for Easter and I just love it! The shimmer is unbelievable! I did lots of new things here (new to me) and this is my first real foray into chipboard :) Not as scary as I thought! ha ha!! It was quite involved but i really enjoyed it - lots of opportunity for creativity AND used the Easter stamp set from CTMH that i just love so much! If you are interested you can view the tutorial here.

On a side note - a dear MB friend and customer, Jackie Russet, lost everything in the flooding in Australia recently. For those so inclined I have set up a gift certificate button on my website to help her replace her crarfting goodies. She will be able to use the gift certificate for items in my store as well as other items I will be going out to purchase for her that she has told me she needs. Any amount left over will be deposited into her Paypal account. If you would like to help Jackie click here.

gotta love embossing powder!!!!

i did these cards with the magic pattern technique in the Technique Junkies newsletter I just got - so many fabulous ideas, so little time!!! the stamps are a CTMH set that i just love AND i got to use my watercolor pencils that have just been sititng around - i didn't get very artistic with them as i have not had much success with that....i really love this look but need different stamps to make it look as good as the samples i have seen. i made these for my mom because she said she needed some "every day" cards.

in other news...i finally broke down and ordered some grungeboard! :P i fought it for awhile and then started looking at the elements set and thinking maybe....but then there are some weird shapes in there i thought i'd never have a use for, then i thought oh what the h*** i just have to play. and then don't you know i suddenly realized the piece i thought i would NEVER use will be the first one! i had some pics sititng on my table waiting to be scrapped and i came up with the perfect idea - used crackle paints to and LOVE LOVE LOVE it!!!! but ya'll will have to wait til i get my grunge board piece before you can see it!! i am really trying to do more scrapbook layouts and use the new products, stamps and techniques i am learning on my pages because frankly i have WAY too many cards!!!

UGH!! ever just NOT have it goin' on???

So i sit down to make some easter cards with the fabulous CTMH jan stamp of the month set and i swear i just can't make a card to save my life!! i have thrown 5 in the trash - a record for me. i rarely struggle when i sit down in my studio. altho i AM trying to force myself to do my list-of-things-to-make and maybe i just need to change the order. i always have this backlog of projects and some i want to do more than others but i was trying to do them in the order i came up with them :P anyway, here are three that have not gone in the trash. the first one i actually really like (and then it just went downhill from there). i got the idea for the design of the first one from a comforter in a catalog i was thumbing thru. it will be perfect for the stamp set i am ordering next from CTMH so you will see it again :) Papers are SU, stamps are CTMH and i used ranger's silver detail embossing powder - love that stuff, really need some gold too.... - i outlined the edges with my versamark pen and embossed those too.


the next too are just some stamping. I embossed the basket design with ranger's brown embossing puffs - pretty neat stuff but doesn't show well in the pic. the white will be FABULOUS at christmas time for snow.




i've also been working on an easter wall hanging that i vascilate between loving and hating - i think i am loving it right now......and waiting on a card to dry that i am doing for the rangerlink inkling challenge - third try on this one :P i was going thru my studio g series 9 easter stamps (thanks kim at CK!!!) looking for a sentiment to use and god if those things just aren't so stinkin' adorable!!!!!! so bummed i won't be able to carry the next 5 series....and SO anxious for HA to tell me what is going on with the next series i AM supposed to be allowed to carry. i know ya'll are choppin at the bit for more. went to micael's yesterday to see if they had series 11 out yet - GOD that place is awful - spent 45 minutes looking around the store for them - finally found them in a back corner - series 4 and series 6 is all they had a few of. so they are way behind. they never even got series 7 so it doesn't look good for me......

well off to check my card...have a great day!!

Studio g stamps series 11-15

Bad news folks - final word from Hampton Arts is that they will NOT reconsider their policy and definitely are NOT interested in making the Series 11-15 $1 stamps available to everyone. These will only be available to the lucky few who live near a Michaels or AC Moore (or who want to pay three times the price on ebay!) Mr. Gallagher does not appear to wish to receive any more emails from customers either - so thanks for all of your support but we lost the battle :( on a good note - there will be a set made just for small retailers sometime in the future which I will carry but no one can tell me yet what they will be or when that will be so stay tuned. In the meantime i am diligently working on other things for ya'll - keep ya posted!!
M

studio g stamps

i have been asked by Hampton Arts to remove the email i received from them so i have deleted it. The email i received asking this has accused me of being unprofessional, deceitful, inaccurate and mean-spirited - none of which is true as i posted exactly what i was told - which is exactly accurate and did not diss HA just asked for your guys's help in trying to be allowed to sell the series 11-15. I think it may be safe to assume our efforts have not been successful but I will be calling to find out for sure.
M

Crackle Paint letters

I decided I wanted to play some more with my crackle paints - love this stuff!! we are beginning to work on rearranging the basement so i have a scrap space and pez has a play area and so i decided to decorate some letters for her.

i LOVE how they turned out. I painted them first with a chocolate brown acrylic paint. then i traced tem onto the back of the paper i was using for the front of them. next i painted the sides with Tim Holtz Distress Crackle Paint in Tattered Rose. i put it on really thick so the cracks would be larger. a little warning - these three letters took about 2/3 of a bottle - glad i wasn't trying to de her real name - hollyn!! i LOVE how the paint looks tho - you can really see it in the close ups:




After it dried completely i brushed mod podge on the fronts of the letters and attached the pattern paper (CTMH). When that was dry I sanded all of the paper edges to get rid of the excess being careful not to sand the paint! I inked the edges in chocolate brown. I cut the shapes from the Walk in my Garden cricut cartridge and attached them. the flower centers are primas with a drop of iridescent glass paint. we ordered Pez's play kitchen for downstairs last night too - YAY!!! well tons to do today and she is eyeing my laptop - "Butties" she cries and wants to pound the keyboard :) have a great day all!!!

OMG i won i won!!!!!!

a few days ago i posted my 4 entries in the Mother and Daughter creations contest. There were three challenges plus a bonus and each challenge had a prize plus they picked one entrant for their design team. well i won the bonus challenge with my "Wishing for Spring" layout - {super grin} - what a thrill. check out the other winners: http://mothersanddaughters.typepad.com/tams_page/ and their super creations.

can't wait to get my goody pack!!

well lots to do today :P got more studio g series 10 in so i got to get them back out :)

studio g another update for you on series 11-15

Deleted at the request of Robert Gallagher - Hampton Arts

marti/pezadoodle designs

oops

mothers and daughters creations challenge

i have been busily working on 4 entries for this set of challenges - hope they like them!! The first challenge was for a shape card. i chose to do a onesie/baby card. i cut it out of certainly celery paper. for the lace details around the collar and across the middle i used a stamp set i just got from CTMH - LOVE this one - i stamped in versamark and then embossed in ranger's bridal embossing tinsel - my fave - isn't it gorgeous?? i doodled along the edges of the sleeves and legs with an embossing pen and used the same powder. i stamped the flowers with an SU set i got recently and then embossed with ranger distress embossing powders in different colors. the butterfly is a studio g stamp colored with prisma colored pencils - gamsol technique does not work so good on colored paper. i edged the whole thing in wild wasabi ink.

the next challenge was to make a box. i decided to make an easter box. the pattern can be found here http://cambriaturnbow.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2008-01-31T10%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=10

i stamped the box paper with a very light pink ink using an easter egg stamp from the CTMH january stamp of the month set - ADORABLE - and then cut the grass, basket and eggs with my cricut. i smudged the grass with wild wasabi to give it a little depth. the basket has a line of ranger pink embossing glitter and the eggs are cut from papers that i colored with perfect pearls using the northern lights technique so they have a beautiful shimmer to them. for the lid i cut a tag and square with my cricut, the chick and flowers are studio g stamps. the chick is colored using the gamsol technique and the flowers are stamped with perfect medium and dusted with various colors of ranger's perfect pearls pigment powder. flowers are primas with stardust stickles centers. this was SO much fun to make.

the third challenge was a card using red, pink and green which is the card i posted earlier:

the vase is cut with the cricut from paper i created by using alcohol inks on ranger's glossy paper - i used cranberry, currant and raisin with pearl mixative. roses are cut with the cricut and smudged with pomegranate ink for a bit of depth and definition - i find this can really make the difference in your card having a finished look. the lace border is stamped with versamark using the same lace set from CTMH. i smudged the white edges with pomegranate and wild wasabi ink using the ranger foam blending tool to soften the edges.

now the final challenge to qualify for the Design Team application was a lay out that had to have butterflies so here is what i did:

everything is cut with my cricut. butterfly under title is alcohol ink on a transparency. top butterfly is same alcohol ink as vase above. flowers, bee hive and other butterflies are cut from paper i made by making a pearl mist from the perfect pearls powder and spraying white cardstock and then accented with a black glaze pen. the fiber across the middle is from CTMH. here are some closer pics - i tried to capture the shimmer but it's icing here and i had little natural light to work with.

Studio G $1 clear stamps - series 11-15

so - bad news everyone - series 11-15 are exclusive releases and will only be available at the following stores/times:

Series 11 Rendezvous Collection by Kolette Hall, available at Michael's late February '08, 16 sets, packaging is brown

Series 12 Everyday designs by 3 Bugs in a Rug, available at Michaels March-April '08, 24 sets, packaging is light blue.

Series 13 - Summer designs Grads/Prom/July 4/Wedding by several designers, available at AC Moore April '08, 24 sets, packaging is multi-color

Series 14 - Everyday designs by Katie & Co., available at Michaels May-June '08, 16 sets, packaging is pink.

Series 15 - Alphabet samps, available at Joann's July '08, 9 sets, packaging is light green

this means other retailers like me will NOT be allowed to purchase these and carry them in our stores. I have asked my rep if there will be any sets NOT done as exclusives so everyone can get them but I have not heard anything yet. So bitterly disappointed in their decision!!
M

alcohol inks - oh what fun i'm having!!

finally got brave enough to play with my alcohol inks - figure if i am going to sell them i need to know how to use them!!! well i am completely hooked!! not NEARLY as scary and messy as i feared. (ok all you "pros" stop laughing at me!) i used cranberry, raisin and current with the pearl mixative. i put some on Ranger's glossy cardstock and also on some transparency sheets left over from school. in the baby card i used a piece as a background and in the other one i cut out a vase with my cricut and then added roses cut from the cricut as well. i rubbed the roses a bit with some pomegranate ink and my foam ink blending tool (how DID i live without that thing before????) just to make them stand out a bit and did the same to the leaves with wild wasabi ink. i stamped the lace border in versamark with one of the stamps from a new CTMH set i just got. for the baby card i used stamps from my clear doodlebug baby stamp set (i have an extra - anyone want it??) and colored it in with prismas using gamsol technique.

i also cut the transparency with my cricut - no need for the heidi swapp ghost cut outs :) i like how they turned out but don't really like the card itself. wanted to post it anyway for you to see along with a couple more backgrounds i did that i haven't used yet. i varied it a bit by how much of each color i used and whether or not i used any blending solution and couldn't really tell a difference. however i did notice they dry fast so you have to work quick or it gets blotchy like water drops or something - which isn't bad i guess just different.....

can't wait to get more colors in - oh the things i will do :P off to do my shipping for the day and then hope i get time to work on some things for a contest over at http://jenniferssweettreatdesigns.blogspot.com/2008/02/mothers-daughters-creations-challenge.html

have a fab day!!

more perfect pearls - yummy!!!

man oh man do i LOVE the perfect pearls now!!! i am like a racoon - if it glitters and shimmers i am HOOKED!! here are two cards i did while DH had the baby out shopping all morning (hooray for daddies!!) the first one is for his goddaughter who's 4th bday party was yesterday. i mixed a tiny bit of water into the pink, pearl and purple perfect pearls powder until it was creamy. then i spritzed some white cardstock with perfect ink refresher and just painted some random lines/splotches. i held the card at a bit of an angle and spritzed it with water from one of the mini misters - just enough to get the paints to begin to run a bit - it was really cool - almost like they floated on top of the cardstock. they sort of ran a bit like a marbled look (but i definitely need to add more paint next time). i let it dry and then cut out balloons with my cricut. i used stardust stickles for the highlights on the balloons and the papers are pink - SU and checkered - my new one from CTMH. i inked all of the ages in perfect plum and used a black glaze pen for the strings. next i cut a bread tag from WIMG cricut cartridge. i stamped just for you (a studio G) in perfect medium (like versamark) and edged the edge with the perfect medium pen - dusted it all with the same pink perfect pearls for fabulous shimmer!


Next is a spring card based on one of the Tim Holtz 12 tags series - i cut a border of flowers with the WIMG cricut cartridge and attached it to white cardstock with removable adhesive. i spritzed it with the same pearl mist using certainly celery reinker, water and pearl perfect pearls powder. let it dry then peeled off the mask - used my adhesive remover from SU to get the last bits of gummy yuck off. then i inked over it a bit with pale pink using the blending tool and foam. i cut a bread tag shape from WIMG and stamped it with one of my new CTMH stamsps - LOVE this set too darling!! i colored it in using prisma pencils and gamsol. inked the tag edges in pink and the checkered paper in certainly celery - tied it on with a sheer pink ribbon - LOVE the shimmer and the softness of it.



and now for my next trick.... :P today daddy is taking Pez to visit grandma and grandpa all morning so i am determined to try a stab at alcohol inks. so you'll either see a post with them or not tomorrow and that will tell you how it went ha ha!!

i also ordered photoshop elements yesterday - can't wait to play with that!!!!!!

all of the ranger items i have been using are available on my website so come on over and grab some and play with me!!!!!

Studio G series 10 - got more!!!

Great news!! i am still getting so many requests for Studio G series 10 I called the manufacturer to check and they still had some left!! so ordered some more and you can get them on my website again - hooray!! As for series 11 your guess is as good as mine.

i did finish something for you today - Pez's first playtime in the snow :). paper is bashful blue SU, ink is bashful blue and brilliant blue SU and stamps are SU. Large snowflakes are done in Brilliant blue and versamark then embossed with iridescent ice for sparkle - title was cut on cricut with Stretch You Imagination and snowman was embossed too. i typed the journaling onmy computer and set the font color to match the brilliant blue thanks to a fab cheat sheet i found on splitcoast in the downloads section. this is to help Stacey (my SU demo) with a tech club this month cuz she just had her baby - yay!! the technique is masking and reverse masking. i wish i could always capture the sparkle this well - just got lucky today i guess!! next up i will be playing with perfect pearls some more - i hope those pics capture the shimmer just as well!!

oh the things i'll have for you...

well no project to post today - have been working on my big surprise for ya'll with my mom while she was here. she left yesterday :( wish she didn't live so far away. i was down in my studio yesterday and boy, i almost have too many new toys to play with...ok well you can never have too many. my hubby is so funny - he rides motorcycles and is going to some track with his brother to race or something and they require leather suits for safety. so he says, well figure out something frivolous you want since i am getting something frivolous - ummmmm i have frivolous coming out of my ears down there :) but isn't he a sweetie! i truly have the best life ever!!

so i am down to the studio to work on a 2 page layout for this months tech club - i am helping my SU demo stacey because she had a baby yesterday!!!!!!!!! ohh i see a baby card in my future...... once that's done i can go back to experimenting with my Ranger stuff.

started a great post on the cricut board i hope everyone likes - got the idea on split coast - about products people are afraid of. when i first saw the post i thought oh how silly but as i read it i realized i really had a lot of fear about certain products and techniques but lately i have been doing alot to overcome those - one of the biggest was anything by Tim Holtz - ha ha!!!!!! and mod podge - i know - how ridiculous is that. anyway i hope it will be a great place for people to offer tips and help others overcome their product fears! next on my list - acrylic albums - YIKES!! have a friend who is going to help me out when she gets back from CHA - along with giving me the scoop on all the new goodies - stay tuned..........monday's post should be fabulous!!!

Ranger products - just gets better and better :) perfect pearls pigment powder

so as most of you know i have been absolutely obssessed with the Tim Holtz 12 tags of christmas tutorials on his blog. WELL i got around to tag 6 and started playing with the perfect pearls pigment powder - which i had saved til last because i was a bit skeptical/scared to be honest. well i am here to tell you i fell in love! (how many times have you heard that from me in the last month??) this stuff is awesome!!!! first of all just stamping in versamark or perfect medium and then brushing the powder over the stamp produces incredibly shimmery results. but THEN i followed Tim's directions and mixed some with reinker and water - oh WOW. i mixed it in a mini mister and it gives me this fine mist spray of the most shimmery pearlescent sheen i have ever seen - glitter cardstock no more!!! this is far better - and my favorite part is that i can use whatever reinker matches my cardstock and paper colors (i'm an SU girl) and my project is perfectly coordinated. it's going to be a very shimmery easter around here i can tell ya!!! now for all you cricut lovers - Tim's tag uses a mask made by Heidi Swapp but i am here to tell you it's not necessary - we can make whatever masks we want with our fab little friend the cricut. just cut your shape of choice out of cardstock, put temporary adhesive on the back. stick it to your card paper, spritz away with the glimmery spray and let dry. then peel your mask right off - works perfectly. i hope to have something to show you tomorrow. another wonderful thing about this stuff - when you put ink over it the shimmer still shows through - like when you stamp over it or ink your edges. the pictures i have DO NOT do this stuff justice - so glad i decided to put it all on my site - so get yourself some and play!!!!

CPS design team call

I did these two cards for the CPS design team call - i had to use two of their sketches - not very over the top but i don't tend to do that kind even when i want to go over the top - i always end up simple. but i like them. the heart is done with fired brick distress embossing powder and a CTMH stamp. The pink card also uses stamps from the same CTMH set as the third verve challenge card I posted yesterday. i just think the set is so cute and sweet. all paper and ink is SU as usual. one day i'll get my act together with this and post actual paper and stamp names like everyone else :P

i just got my last SU tech club order in and should get my CTMH order friday so i hope to have time to play over the next few days. got some super cool goodies to pair with my fantabulous Ranger Ink goodies - see what I can come up with for easter/spring. i plan to do a bit of playing with some chipboard - venture off the page and onto the wall ;) stay tuned!!!!! and show me some LOVE - leave me some comments!

One more entry for Verve

third card for the Verve contest - i really love the sketch and have had so much fun with it. i had never used a sketch before but i think i am going to have to do it more often!

Ranger products go live!

hooray - i have lots of new stuff up on my site! I am building up quite an offering of Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz products. Some are in stock now and some are on the way. i LOVE these products so much that i decided to pass them on to others - ha ha!!! i hope to become your one-stop shop for all things Tim Holtz due to my frustration in finding the whole array of products in my local craft stores. I am also posting examples and tutorials of the products as some of them can be a bit confusing and advanced - but it turns out - really easy! so here's to having fun!!!! if you haven't been using this stuff now's a great time to start!!!!

Verve Contest - Guest Designer

I read about the contest for a guest designer over at verve visual http://vervevisual.blogspot.com/ and loved the sketch so i figured what they heck - i'll give it a shot. here are my two entries

First one is done with the January stamp of the month set from CTMH and CTMH papers - i LOVE pink and brown together! and a little stickles for good measure :)

The second one uses the same mardi gras and crawfish stamp as a previous card i have on here. paper and ink are SU.

Hope they like them!!

oh how i love goodies!!!

my products from Ranger Ink have started to roll in and boy am I having fun creating examples for my website. i have been using a lot of the techniques shown in the 12 tags. I have two mardi gras ones -i entered Dream in the ranger group jan. challenge. I used distress crakle paint, stamped with vintage photo distress ink and used the foam blending tool to add in ink around the edges of the card. i cut the crown with my cricut, smooshed it down in versamark and then covered it in pale gold pearl embossing powder. i flicked the back pretty hard to knock some off then heat set it. once cooled i smooshed in vinatge photo distress ink into the bare spots with the foam blending tool. the Dream stamp is a studio g :) and the large stamp is a hampton arts that will be available on my website. paper is vanilla cream and wild wasabi from SU.

The second mardi gras card uses two stamps i found at http://www.scrappersaurus.com/index.html

i stamped the crawfish with versamark to make a watermark and stamped the large stamp with versamark and covered with various colors of distress embossing powder. inked the background with the foam blending tool and used the same technique as above for the crown and mask i cut with my cricut.

the last two cards are nearly the same just with different colors. i smeared the whole background with versamrk and covered it with bridal tinsel embossing powder. i flicked the back hard and then heat set. next i took distress ink and smooshed it into the bare spaces with the foam blending tool. I stamped the rose with distress inks - which can also function as an embossing ink - and covered them with bridal tinsel and heat set. then i used the foam blender tool to color around the stamp and edged using vintage photo distress ink. the photo corners are cut with the cricut and colored with vintage photo distress ink too. the picture doesn't do justice to the shimmery-ness of the bridal embossing tinsel - i LOVE it. i DO, however, need to work on stamping my words straight :P

i had LOADS of fun with my new stuff and hope others try it out if they haven't already played with any of it. i have a lot more in store too.