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Thursday, April 30, 2020

4 simply stamped card ideas + pinkfresh studio april 2020 stamp and die release blog hop

I love creating simply stamped cards! For some crazy reason, a one layer card makes me feel like I've earned extra creative points, LOL! And I also love that a simply stamped card can highlight a stamp set you love and help you get more cards done (& hopefully sent)!

 Hopefully you are hopping along with us for the Pinkfresh Studio April 2020 release! You should be arriving my sweet friend Caly Person's blog (and you can find the whole hop list at the bottom of this post).

 Now let's talk stamps and cards! I am completely smitten with the gorgeous images and sentiments in Pinkfresh's Keep Going & Take Pride sets so I wanted to stick with some simple designs to feature them.
Can't get any simpler than this card, right? I just stamped the rainbow and the sentiment, gave the rainbow a quick bit of color with some Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers and blended with a little water.


 For this card, I stamped the floral wreath in black and added a bit of color to a few flowers. Then I colored the center with black, let it dry and embossed the sentiment in white.
After stamping the flowers on watercolor paper, I colored around them with Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers and blended with water.


For this card, I used a circle template to create the design. You can see the process in this quick video...




Now before you hop on, let's talk about fun GIVEAWAYS!
  • Pinkfresh is giving away the WHOLE amazing release so make sure you sure you stop by their blog. And they are also running some great specials so you are probably going to want to shop!
  • You also have a chance to win $25 to the Pinkfresh shop by leaving comments here and at each hop stop!
  • Winners will be announced on the Pinkfresh Giveaway page on May 8th so please make sure to check there (winners have two weeks to claim there prize).


BLOG HOP LIST

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!
Click here to enter


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Sunday, April 26, 2020

how to use extra card backgrounds

Looking for a way to use up paper scraps and extra card panels? Here's a quick look at my newly discovered process for getting more cards made from my extras!
Do you ever have so much fun stamping or die cutting or watercoloring, that you end up with more pretty card backgrounds then you actually need for a project? 

 This happens to me all the time and I usually put the pretty card panels in a pile on my desk, intending to use them later BUT then the next time I tidy my desk (a rare occurrence), the pretty card panels usually end up in my trash bin. Terrible, I know!
Recently after cleaning my desk, I challenged myself to actually use the panels but I needed to figure out how!

 I started by selecting just four panels from the pile so I wouldn't feel too overwhelmed. I chose four that I thought might look nice together.
Next I selected some stamps & dies that I had been wanting to play with more. This part was easy, I just pulled out my most recent stamps & dies from The Stamp Market. I knew they would work well together and I was excited to use them. I think it's always important to my creative process to choose products I feel excited and inspired by!

 Then I created little piles on my desk with the panel and the supplies I thought I might use with it. 
And finally, I made cards!

 This first background was created by applying drops of water & reinker to watercolor cardstock and blowing it around into splatters with blower tool (a technique I learned from the amazing Channin Pelletier).

 I used the "thank you" die to cut a window and backed it with acetate to create a shaker window. Then I stamped the coordinating "thank you" on the card front and topped it with a thin layer of Moon Dust Glitter Gel. (You can see more about a similar shaker card in this post.)
This background is one of my favorite ways to use glitter paste or gel. I used strips of low-tack purple tape to mask off a rectangle on white cardstock. Then I added color with ink blending and topped it with glitter paste.

 To this simple background, I added a layered butterfly. The top layer has the butterfly detail stamped on vellum and embossed with sparkly glitter powder.

This card started with another glitter paste panel but it had some extra ink and glitter smudged on the bottom so I used it as the background for a shaker card.

 I stamped the leafy vine first and then used the die cut flowers to create shaker windows.

And finally this background started as just a test with my rubber brayer. I love brayered backgrounds (you can see more about them is this post).
On the brayered background, I stamped the detailed butterfly layer using Party Pink on the top and Bubble Gum on the bottom. Then I added the butterfly bodies and embossed the sentiment in white.
I hope this inspires you to use up some of the extra card backgrounds and scraps you have laying around.
And hope you are staying safe & well! Hugs!
Carly
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Friday, April 17, 2020

3 ideas for happy mail to send right now

Sending happy mail to our friends and family is always a good idea but I might even upgrade it to a necessity during this strange & stressful time of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A recent (and very informal poll) of my friends and family reveals that they feel like they don't have enough cards ready to mail so today I have 3 really simple card design ideas to share with you. 

 Hopefully these easy peasy ideas will help you create a stockpile of cards so you can send more happy mail!

For those of you joining us from the #spreadjoynotgerms blog hop, welcome! You should be arriving from Teri Wilson's wonderful blog. You can also find the complete hop list and all the joyous details HERE.
You will see that for many of the cards I made today, I started with this super simple printable card. I’ve made it a PDF you can download & print HERE.

I think the "hello friend" card is perfect for mailing as is but I've got 3 simple ways to dress it up...

 #1. add simple black stamping
Black & white cards are classic! I recommend choosing stamps with beautiful details so they don't even need coloring!

 #2. add simple stripes
Color blended or adhered stripes are a super simple way to dress up a basic card. 

 #3. add simple two-color stamping
It's easy to add a little extra detail by stamping a solid image with multiple colors. See more about this technique and all the cards in this quick video...




Before you go, let's talk about the awesome sponsors and prizes!!! There are 31 amazing companies giving prizes so please make sure to comment on each hop stop you visit for a chance to win. Comment before April 24th for a chance to win. 

 Your next hop stop is Jen Carter's beautiful blog.

Thanks so much for stopping by and hopping with us! Hope you are safe & well!

 Hugs!
Carly
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Monday, April 13, 2020

how to...quick and easy emboss resist stamping technique

Emboss Resist is a quick and easy stamping technique that provides fantastic results!
Embossing the image lets you create beautiful layers of color because the embossed image will resist the ink you add on top. Emboss on light colored cardstock and then add darker inks over the top to make them images POP!
You can see the process step by step in this quick video...


Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you are safe & well!
Carly

 P.S. Wanna see more? Here are some of my favorite resist & masking projects...

 Layered Distress Oxide Resist
Masking With Glossy Accents
Simple Masking With Glimmer Paste

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Saturday, April 11, 2020

how to make a shaped card with essentials by ellen

Creating shaped cards to send to your friends & family is so easy with stamps & dies!
My amazingly talented friend Brandi Kincaid created the cutest little bouquet card and I just had to try creating my own! 
I think it would be perfect for a sweet Mother's Day card but I don't think I can wait that long to send this one to my mama! We haven't seen each other in ages due to the COVID-19 crisis and I miss her!!!
You can see Brandi's wonderful original card HERE (and don't worry, she gave me her blessing to create my own bouquet card and share it with you!)

 Here's a quick video on how my bouquet shaped card came together...

Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you are safe and well!

Hugs!
Carly
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Sunday, April 5, 2020

multi-color stamping with the stamp market

Multi-color stamping is fun way to add interest to your stamped images, especially with solid stamps like The Stamp Market's Butterfly Builder.
Are you wondering how to stamp multiple colors with one stamp? Let me show you an easy way I like to do it and how the Butterfly Builder stamp set makes it extra easy!





 Some tips...
  • for the easiest way to do multi-color stamping, look for stamp sets that have multiple layers.
  • I find pigment or hybrid inks like Distress Oxides work best for this kind of stamping & blending BUT it's always fun to experiment with dye inks too!
  • don't forget to choose colors that blend nicely, you don't want mud!
  • a stamping tool like the MISTI and a DIY jig can make lining up layered stamps easier.
And if you have a bunch of butterflies left over like I did, they are super easy to make into fun cards with the sentiments from The Stamp Market's You set...


Check out The Stamp Market's latest stamps & dies HERE and if you can, don't forget to support small business!!!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you are staying safe & well!
Carly
supplies:
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