WATERCOLOR THANKS

This is one of those cards that just didn't go the way I had envisioned.  Began by watercoloring several background pieces with pearlescent watercolors in copper, rose and gold.  Just didn't love the results of any of them, so ended cutting one of them with a frame die. 

Added some foam tape to the frame part and mounted that on my card base and then inserted the inside piece.  Die cut the wheat and painted them MS metallic gold paint and added over the frame.  Die cut the sentiment from copper metallic paper and used bits of foam tape to keep it all even over the frame and wheat.  Popped a few sequins here and there for little sparkle and done.

I am entering this in the Concord & 9th watercolor challenge as I used their Layering Leaves dies for the wheat.

Thanks for stopping by today and love to read your kind comments.

GIVING THANKS

More inspiration for A Blog Named Hero's October challenge

Circles, rectangles and a square all in a Thanksgiving card for your inspiration.  Check it out here and enter our challenge here.  The wonderful new Color Layering Grateful Leaves is this month's prize so be sure to add your entry by 29 October!

Thanks for stopping by and love to read your comments.

 

GOLD POLKA DOTS

The Curtain Call challenge this week is "Glittery Gourds" and couldn't resist making a glamorous pumpkin card.

 

Die cut and embossed the pumpkin and painted it with some MS gold metallic paint.  Then added some white Pico dots.  While that was drying, I adhered the PTI gold dotted piece backed with some fun foam to a white card base and added the sentiment. Added my pumpkin and done!

 

 

Thanks for visiting and love to read your comments.

 

 

PINK LILY

A friend asked me to make some blank cards - sometimes that is so difficult 'cause often the sentiment balances the whole design.  But managed to produce them and this is one of my favorites.

The card base had been in my stash for awhile with that cut out circle - no clue what I had originally wanted to do with it! First I backed the circle with another larger circle of printed vellum.  Used a glue pen to attach the vellum and it didn't show at all.  Stamped the layered lily with my new Altenew pink inks, spattered the front with some gold, added the flower and a few sequins and done!  Am entering this in the new Flower Challenge and also CAS(E) This Sketch #194.

 

Thanks for stopping by today and your kind comments make me happy.

 

MERLOT

This theme for Just Add Ink #333 challenge is "G" - so have a gold and gray wine card to share today.  Haven't made a wine label card in ages so made several and this is one of my favorites.

I stamped the mondo hydrangea in Altenew morning frost ink on the two card base corners.  Backed the label with some lovely shiny gold and added the little petals which were stamped in Versamark and gold embossed.  A few sequins and done.  I have a very old stamp that says "Like fine wine, you have aged to perfection" which is on the inside.  

By the way - have lots of lovely wine labels and would be happy to share - email me. 

Thanks for stopping by and love to read your kind comments.

COPPER LEAF

The other day as I was out walking, I found this leaf and couldn't believe how beautiful it was. Then I remembered a favorite  poem "Trees" by Joyce Kilmer. 

So here's one more card for CAS Watercolour Challenge.  The background piece was loosely watercolored with Kuretake Gamsai watercolors.  Die cut the leaf from some of my Target copper paper and then embossed.  Added a little sentiment embossed in copper metallic and some vellum leaves.  To paraphrase Kilmer -

Cards are made by fools like me

But only God can make a leaf. 

I am also entering this in Virginia's October challenge where she asks us to use a focal point and Paper Players CAS leaf challenge.

Thanks for visiting today - your comments make me happy.

 

PUMPKINS & GEOMETRIC

Have a post over at A Blog Named Hero today - the theme this month is

We're using Hero Arts products this month and the challenge prize is the new Color Layering Grateful Leaves!!!  Actually I have two cards to show you for inspiration - and be sure to check out all the other design team posts for a grand variety of inspiration!  Enter here.

Thanks for stopping by and love to read your comments!

 

GHOSTING

For this month of Halloween, "ghosting" is a fitting technique.  CAS Mix-Up challenge wants us to use it, stamping and a choice (die cut).

I used distress inks for both of my cards - tried other watercolour backgrounds and none gave the effect I wanted.  On my first card I sponged iced spruce, evergreen bough and peacock feathers and used Artplorations mini leaf stencil - spritzed with pearlized water (although it can't be seen in the photo).  Put the piece behind a stitched frame and added my copper leaf and the little sentiment.

I used abandoned coral and dried marigold inks and a leaf stencil for my second card.  Die cut a section with a stitched frame die and then put it all back together adding a piece of vellum to the center to soften the color.  Added the copper die cut leaf and a sentiment and done.  The die and stencil are from Memory Box and are discontinued.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy reading the wonderful comments you leave!

 

GRATEFUL

Several weeks ago I was browsing thru the $ bins at Target and found a 6x6 paper pad with gorgeous copper and kraft paper, notecards in navy and copper, embellishments, tags, etc.  All too enticing to pass up.  I used one of the notecards and some paper from the pad to create my card for Color Throwdown.

I die cut one of the notecards and the two mats with HA Rectangle Infinity Dies and added all to a kraft card base after stamping some leaves with Versamark in the upper right corner for a little added interest.  Cut the leaf and the little sentiment tag from some copper metallic paper.  Added a few copper gems and done.  I am entering this in the Color Throwdown challenge for this week.

Thanks for stopping by and love to read your kind comments.

GOLDEN PUMPKIN

It's a glorious fall day here in Nebraska - the sun is shining, there's not a cloud in the sky, my windows are open - love, love it!!  After sweeping out the garage, having a guy paint all the eaves on the house, and other various little chores around here, I headed down to the studio to make a couple of fall cards.  Have been wanting to make pumpkins and leaves by coating them with gold metallic paint, so here's my first attempt.

I first created the watercolour background with my Kuratake Gamsai watercolours using my own mixture of the oranges with some gold metallic.  Spattered the background and the pumpkin with more of the gold.  The die I used for the pumpkin is a very old Sizzix die that came with it's own little embossing folder.  The sentiment was also painted with the gold.  I used my new HA Infinity rectangles for the main piece and the mat - I can't say enough good things about these dies - no more measuring to have perfect mats.  To give some definition to the pumpkin and the sentiment I added black offset.

I am entering this in CAS Watercolour Challenge and also Happy Little Stampers Anything Goes With Dies, Addicted to CAS - Watercolour and A2Z Scrapbooking (Layer It).

Thanks for visiting today and your lovely comments always make me happy.

 

AUTUMN WATERCOLOUR

Bonnie and Loll have a new challenge out and it looks fantastic - CAS Watercolour - and the theme for this month is "autumn".  I needed a few masculine cards - so here is my entry.

 

I watercoloured the background with my Kuratake Gamsai colors using a little gold and copper metallic.  The leaf was was embossed with silver and copper several times for a nice heavy coat.  Added a copper frame and mounted it onto a soft gray card base.  Stamped the sentiment in black and embossed with clear so it was shiny too.

 

Thanks for visiting today and love to read your kind comments.

 

 

 

AUTUMN CARDS WITH CAT

Several months ago Cat Craig and I decided to do a challenge together using the same materials - so earlier in September I sent her a kit of fall papers, stamped leaves, gems, die cuts, etc. all with a fall theme with the challenge to make two cards with fall, Halloween, or Thanksgiving theme using what I sent her plus any other little bits and bobs of her own.  Among the items I sent her were real leaves from my Japanese maple tree which I had coated with glossy accents and added gold spatters. Today we are both posting our cards, so be sure to check out her creations here.  When I made up her kit, I had just received the September Hero Arts Monthly Kit and other good stuff from them, so the dies and stamps were all from that order.

My first card is on some copper metallic cs, with the leaves embossed in copper and watercoloured with Zigs.  The sentiment is coated with glossy accents to give it nice shine and dimension.  The second card uses my real leaf and more HA sentiments.  The pp are all from PTI from several years ago.

The other day I received my package from Cat with all sorts of good stuff, so on 7 November we'll both be posting our challenge to each other cards.  Can't wait to start creating with it.

Thanks for stopping by today and be sure to hop over to Cat's post also.

PINK SNOWFLAKE

The challenge this week at Merry Monday#215 is to use the color scheme of pink and silver.

 

I had a scrap of pink watercoloured paper left over from something and die cut the snowflake.  Then layered circle pieces cut from silver metallic paper over it to make it recessed.  Added the silver snowflake, pink sequin and the sentiment and done.

 

 

Thanks for visiting today and love to read your kind comments.