Time4Stamping Tip: Coloring Techniques, Part 1

Although a simple outline design can be very elegant when stamped with a single color, they are also often stamped with black ink and colored with one of several methods.

I have taken a flower stamp from the brand new ‘Love What You Do’ stamp set and used several methods to apply color.    

The methods I have used are:

  1. Stampin’ Write Markers in Lemon Lime Twist and Berry Burst and a Blender Pen
  2. Watercolor Pencils and a Blender Pen
  3. Stampin’ Blends in Old Olive and Cherry Cobbler
  4. Sponge Daubers with Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin’ Pad and Berry Burst Classic Stampin’ Pad
  5. Stampin’ Write Markers and Aqua Painters

Today I will discuss using the Stampin’ Write Markers with a Blender Pen. This gives a nice pastel watercolor look to the finished design.

Since the markers are water-based, you must use a permanent ink (either pigment or alcohol base) to stamp the image to be colored. I have used Stazon Black ink to stamp my image on Whisper White Cardstock. Be sure to use Stazon Cleaner to clean the ink from your stamp!

I use my two colors of Stampin’ Write markers and scribble a little on a white tile. You can also use an acrylic block for this, but my personal preference is to use the tile block as I find it easier to see the ink on a white background.

Using a Blender Pen, pick up the ink off of the tile and color your stamped image. By using a Blender Pen, you can control the depth of color. Start light and simply apply more color if you want it darker!

Keep in mind that the cardstock is not as heavy as watercolor paper, so if you rub too hard or too long with the Blender Pen, the cardstock will degrade a bit. You may want to use Watercolor Paper if you’re concerned that this may be an issue for you.

Notice in the finished image that the colors are slightly varied depending on the amount of ink I used to color the image.

Have you tried this technique before? Are you trying it for the first time now? Feel free to send me a picture and let me know how it worked for you!

Watch for the next post in this series where I’ll discuss using Watercolor Pencils with a Blender Pen.

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Tutorial: Painted Purple Sunflowers

The Painted Harvest stamp set is perfect for making a gorgeous summer floral card for someone special. The ‘sunflower’ stamps take on a whole new life when stamped in shades of purple!

These are the stamps from the Painted Harvest set that I used to create the floral layer. The flower petals are made using a two-step process. Two-step stamping involves using two different but complimentary stamps to achieve an image. The ‘flower’ stamps are very similar, but when using this set it is important to use the stamp on the left, the more solid stamp, with the lighter color, and the stamp on the right with the darker color as it has more detail.

Cut cardstock as follows:

Whisper White – 8 ½” x 5 1/2″, scored on the long side at 4 ¼” for the card base

Highland Heather – 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8” (cut two)

Whisper White – 5 1/8 x 3 7/8” (cut two)

-Scrap of Whisper White

-Scrap of Granny Apple Green

To begin, randomly stamp a 5 1/8 x 3 7/8” piece of Whisper White cardstock with the flower stamp that has the more detail, using Gorgeous Grape ink. I find it easier to stamp with the darker color first as it is a bit easier to see your stamp placement.

The second step is to add the lighter color, Highland Heather, using the more solid flower stamp. There is no right or wrong way to do this with this particular stamp set – just stamp over the previous image. Notice how the two shades of purple compliment each other and complete the look of the flower petals.

Next, use Granny Apple Green ink and the solid leaf stamp to fill in the spaces between the flowers.

Stamp the centers of the flowers with Crushed Curry ink, using the flower center stamp. Again, there is no right or wrong way to do this. This is a very forgiving stamp set!

Use Soft Suede ink and the small dots stamp to add a little interest to the flower centers.

I tied a piece of retired Crushed Curry ribbon around this piece to add more interest and texture. Currently, there is ½” Textured Ribbon in Granny Apple Green that would also look lovely here.

Use Gorgeous Grape ink to stamp the ‘Thoughts for you’ stamp from the Best Birds stamp set on a scrap piece of Whisper White cardstock, then cut it out using the second smallest oval from the Stitched Shapes Framelits. Snail this onto a Granny Apple Green oval cut with the second largest oval from the Stitched Shapes Framelits.

Use Dimensionals to attach it to the card front. Snail the stamped card front to a 5 3/8 x 4 1/8” piece of Highland Heather cardstock.

Snail the finished card front to the card base.

Snail the second piece of Highland Heather cardstock to the inside of the card. In the same manner as before, stamp a flower in the lower left corner of a 5 1/8 x 3 7/8” piece of Whisper White cardstock. Stamp a sentiment of your choice or leave blank to write your own message, then snail to the inside of the card.

Don’t forget the envelope! Stamp a flower on the lower left corner of the envelope to give the recipient a hint of what’s inside.

Use this card sketch and other color combinations to make cards all year long. It looks great for spring in shades of pink. Use the traditional sunflower colors of deep yellows and oranges for an autumn card. It even looks fabulous in red with yellow centers for a Christmas card!

‘Painted Harvest’ is a great set to play with if you’re looking for fantastic results for almost any occasion. Have you found a new color combination or a twist on this card that’s your favorite? Share it here!

 

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The holidays are coming soon – and so are coupons!

August at Stampin’ Up is all about preparing for the holidays, making this a great month to take advantage of two great promotions!

 

Now through August 31st, every $50 spent on Stampin’ Up products earns you a $5 coupon that can be used during the month of September! This can very easily be combined with your early holiday preparations, because also now through the 31st, the new, limited Blended Seasons stamp set and Stitched Season framelits dies are available as part of the limited-time Color Your Season products.

 

 

Coming soon: The 2018 Holiday Catalog…

Tutorial: In Every Season

One of my favorite new stamps sets in the 2018-2019 Stampin’Up Annual Catalog is ‘In Every Season’ (in wood mount and clear mount!). I just love the small flower designs and all the possibilities to use them!

Using just one of the stamps you can create a beautiful card. Following the same sketch pattern, you can make twelve different cards using a different flower for each card—perfect for ‘flower of the month’ cards! In my examples here, I’ve made them into birthday cards, but leave them blank and you have a great set of notecards for yourself or as a hostess gift for someone special.

Here are some of the cards I’ve made using the same sketch:

Choose a flower, choose a color, and you’re ready to begin! For the purpose of these directions, I have chosen the daffodil stamp and Pineapple Punch for my main color.

The card base is Whisper White cardstock measuring 8 ½” x 5 ½” and scored on the long side at 4 ¼”.

2nd layer: Pineapple Punch cardstock cut at 5 3/8” x 4 1/8” and snailed to the card front.

3rd layer: Whisper White cardstock measuring 5 ¼” x 4” and snailed on top of the Pineapple Punch layer.

4th layer, which is the background layer: Whisper White cardstock cut at 5 1/8” x 3 7/8”. I used the daffodil stamp and Black Stazon ink to randomly stamp the flower on the cardstock. I then used a sponge dauber and Pineapple Punch ink to daub over the flower as well as the edges of the cardstock. This gives it subtle color to coordinate with your focal point, yet it doesn’t detract from the focal point of the card. I used Old Olive ink and a blender pen to color the leaves and stems.

For the next step, cut a piece of Whisper White cardstock 2 ½” square. I used the ‘Happy Birthday’ sentiment from the ‘You’re Inspiring‘ stamp set (also available in wood mount or clear mount) to stamp around all four sides of the square, then used the sponge dauber to add a little Pineapple Punch ink to the edges. I snailed this piece onto a 2 5/8” square piece of Pineapple Punch cardstock, then used Dimensionals to adhere this piece to the card front with the corners to the sides, top and bottom.

For the focal point, I stamped the Daffodil with Black Stazon ink onto a 1 5/8” square piece of Whisper White cardstock. I colored the flower with the Pineapple Punch Marker and the leaves and stem with an Old Olive marker. I again added Pineapple Punch color to the edges of this piece with a sponge dauber. I snailed this piece onto a 1 ¾” square of Pineapple Punch cardstock, then used Dimensionals to adhere it in place on the front of the card.

For the inside of the card, I snailed a piece of Pineapple Punch cardstock measuring 5 3/8” x 4 1/8”. I stamped a daffodil on the lower corner and colored it as noted above.

I also stamped and colored a daffodil onto the lower left corner of the envelope.

There are many sentiments you could use around the edges for the 2 ½” square layer. The ‘Happy Mother’s Day’ stamp from the ‘Itty Bitty Greetings’ stamp set (also wood mount or clear mount) would make a lovely card for Mom. There are several stamps from the ‘Sheltering Tree’ set that could also be used, such as ‘Thinking of You’ or ‘Thankful for You.’  There is another ‘Happy Birthday’ sentiment from the ‘Birthday Banners’ stamp set as well.

I can’t wait to try making a Christmas card with this set using the Poinsettia flower stamp and Real Red or Cherry Cobbler cardstock and ink. I will use the ‘Merry Christmas’ stamp from the ‘Star of Light’ stamp set around the edge of the 2 ½” square layer.

I would love for you to try making a card with this sketch and post your finished product. Happy Stamping!

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July Deals!

Take a look at these Designer Series paper sets! All are arranged by theme and are double sided, so there are twice the designs in a pack.

Now through July 31st, these 10 sets of Designer Series Paper are buy three get one free.

July is also a great month to become a Stampin’Up! demonstrator! Besides the usual great discount on supplies and exclusive kits, anyone signing up to become a demonstrator before the 31st will also receive a free assortment (of your choice) of 10 Classic Stampin’ Pads along with your Starter Kit. Click to learn more about becoming a demonstrator and to sign up before the additional ink promotion ends!

Paper Pumpkin Deal – One Week Left!

Did you know there’s a subscription box for papercrafting? Paper Pumpkin sends a surprise box of crafting supplies (including a stamp set, everything you need to create a cute handmade card, and more) directly to your door every month! It’s the perfect “treat yourself” gift that will give you a fun craft to create and grow your collection of supplies for future projects.

Right now, they’re also offering a special promotion for new customers, so this is the perfect time to try it out!

Normally already a great deal at $19.95 per month (including shipping), this coupon will save you 50% on your first two months of boxes if you subscribe by May 10th! Make sure you use the code SAVEFIFTY0418 when you sign up so you can enjoy the savings along with your new subscription box.

Time4Stamping Tip: Using Dimensionals

Dimensionals are wonderful little double-sided foam dots that give your cards and other papercrafts a little more depth and dimension, adding that extra special touch to your creations.  They come in two sizes, the original size and mini.

 

Here’s a simple little tip for removing the paper backing from the dimensionals you use to pop up some of the features on your cards.

 

Place the dimensionals as desired on your cardstock. Use your thumbnail or blunt side of your scissors to make a crease on the paper backing.

 

Try this…

…or this…

…to get this!

When you do this, the edges of the paper backing will pop up a bit, giving you something to easily grasp and able to pull off the backing.

No more ruining your dimensional just to get the paper off!

Remove all of the paper backing, and you are now ready to place your feature onto your card!

 

Need to restock? Get more dimensionals here!

Tutorial: Flying Home

The adorable ‘Flying Home’ stamp set (available in wood mount or photopolymer) is one of the new sets found in the Stampin’Up! 2018 Occasions Catalog. Included are the perfect designs to create this cute, spring-themed card!

 

 

For this card, I chose the stamp with the nest and birds.  The cardstock color is Pool Party, and using a blender pen, I colored the picture with Pool Party, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, and Wild Wasabi inks. I used the Daffodil Delight marker to color the birds’ beaks.

 

I used the large oval framelit die from Stitched Shapes Dies to cut out the design and also cut a scalloped oval from Pool Party cardstock using the Layering Oval Framelits, adhering it under the design to ‘frame’ it.  I repeated this pattern for the inside of the card as well and added one of the little birds from the same stamp set to finish off the design.  Using Dimensionals on the left half of the design, I placed it on the front of the card.

Using the Petal Burst embossing folder on the plain cardstock (both on the front and the inside) adds overall interest to the card.

 

I used a piece of Pear Pizzazz ribbon on the front of the card, but it is now retired so you may want to use the 3/8″ Stitched Satin Ribbon in Garden Green.

 

This card would also look great in most any color you choose so give it a try!

 

A full list of supplies used to create this card:

Time4Stamping Tip: The Perfect Fold

“Is there a right way and wrong way to fold cardstock after scoring it?”

 

I get asked this question quite frequently. Actually–there IS a right way, if you’re after that smooth, perfect fold!

 

When you score your cardstock, you’re leaving an indentation in the cardstock, so there is a side where the indentation goes inward as shown below. On the other side, the indentation is protruding outward.

 

Inward

Outward

If you’re not sure from a quick glance which side is facing you, running your fingers over the score mark (gently!) is an easy way to tell!

 

On the side that goes outward, the fibers in the cardstock are stretched from the scoring tool, and therefore are a bit weaker. The natural inclination is to fold the cardstock with this side on the outside, but when you do that, the weakened fibers on the scoreline may appear frayed.

 

Folding the cardstock with the INWARD indentation on the OUTSIDE and the PROTRUDING indentation on the INSIDE will result in a smooth edge.

 

Cardstock sets: