Two Stamping Techniques, Two Cool Tools, One Fall Card

Moments of fall seem to be peeking through the days of lingering warm weather. One of my favorite fall color palettes is this one here. Mostly because I can create fall without diving head first into reds, yellows, and oranges. Because those colors somehow don't feel right when its still 85 out and the air conditioning is running. :D

Check out the We R Memory Keepers tools I used to create not only the beautiful sort-of fall color background, but also the shadowed sentiment.

For a full tutorial please visit the We R Memory Keepers Blog.

First set of tools up is the Impressions Daubers. These foam-handled tools are perfect for blending inks on your card stock or patterned paper. You can even use them to create unique backgrounds by using them as a stamp. There are two shapes as you can see. I personally love the circles, but when you need to get into a smaller spot, the triangles really are helpful. The Impressions Daubers come in a handy case that closes nicely. A fun and useful tool to add to your stash!

Then I used the Precision Press to create a very cool shadow effect behind my sentiment. The Precision Press is very helpful with lining up stamps so they line up perfectly. The part that I like the most about the Precision Press is the fact that the lid is not attached to the base. You can use the lid to stamp on its own. Nice for creating backgrounds.

Visit the We R Memory Keepers Blog for the full details on using these tools. Plus a few very helpful inking and stamping tips! 

Sincerely Yours,

Supplies Used. Listed with affiliate links. Thank you for supporting me and my family with your shopping.

Papertrey Ink December Countdown Day 1 - Text and Texture Bokeh & Words to Live By: Happiness

Welcome to day 1 of the Papertrey Ink December countdown! I am thrilled to be playing along this month and showcasing some of the gorgeous designs the team has in store for you this month! Today I start things off with a look at the latest from Betsy Veldman, Text and Texture Bokeh and Happiness. Clever designs for some seriously fun card making!

I encourage you to head to the Papertrey Ink Blog for a closer look at my projects, and to see what the rest of the team is up to as well!

These products that I am showing will be available on December 15, 2018 at 10 PM EST. So while I will not have links yet, that night, I will be sure and update them quickly.

Text and Texture Bokeh is a very cool stamp set! It comes with two large background images that are perfect for layering to create this stunning bokeh-effect background. Bokeh is the blur of lights or color in a photo. Like Christmas lights. By layering a lighter shade of ink (put down first) and then topping it with a darker layer of ink, this background is made.

Note on this background-I also accentuated some of the star bursts in the background with a darker ink. It really adds to the depth of the image.

The word happiness is a new die that has a coordinating stamp set, fittingly called, Happiness. Ok, so technically its called Words to Live By: Happiness. :D 

I die cut the word several times from card stock and layered them together to make the word appear like a custom embellishment.

On this card, I again created the background, but cut out a part of it to use on my card base. Leaving the other half of my card base open, allowed me to stamp some fantastic sentiments from Happiness. To draw more attention to the words, I surrounded it with individual bokeh images and star bursts. Oh, and I had to make it shine even more with some glitter. But in a "safe" format of Nuvo Glitter Drops. (WAAAAY less messy.) 

How fun is that font? I also love that the sentiments are separate, allowing you to stamp them in different colors. It brings a unique look to the card.

And all those other shaped dies I used? Stay tuned. :D

You really do not want to miss what is on the Papertrey Ink blog! What a talented team of designers! This week should be a ton of fun! Thanks for stopping by!

Sincerely Yours,

Supplies. Affiliate links used. Thank you so much!

New Papertrey Ink products will be linked when they become available on Dec. 15

Sending Joy - available now!

It is time! The October release for Papertrey Ink is now available! For all the release information please visit this page: October Release. To purchase Sending Joy and Sending Joy Dies, please click the images at the bottom of this post. Thank you, one more time for all the love, support, comments, messages, and emails! I could not be more fortunate to have such a wonderful group of people surrounding me! I could never express how much it means to me!

For tonight's cards, I used one of my personal favorite images, this diamond from my set, Bold Basics. It creates one lovely focal point on a card!

After stamping and heat embossing the diamond image from Bold Basics, I began layering my stamped and die cut images from Sending Joy. The elements in this set are perfect for mixing and matching. I am pretty sure there is no way to use this set "wrong!"

The last step was adding the stamped and die cut word joy. Oh, and to finish it off, I added one of the straight-line sentiments from Sending Joy. I masked the image off to make it fit into the design of my card. Using a post-it note, I inked the first two words and stamped them. Making sure my image was clean and dry, I once again masked and added ink, but this time to the second half.

One more card. This intensely dark green cardstock was giving me fits for photography, but the elegance of the rich color with the gold is stunning in real life! 

On the cardstock, I stamped and heat embossed the diamond from Bold Basics and the small pine branch image from Sending Joy. When heat embossing on dark cardstock, be sure and use an embossing magic pouch on your surface to help eliminate stray flecks of powder.

For more depth, I stamped the berries from Sending Joy and then applied gold Perfect Pearls. I will be trying this dual look again soon!

And I couldn't end this release without showcasing the main image of Sending Joy, the word joy. Have fun shopping tonight! I cannot wait to see what you make! Be sure and tag me on social media, or email me your projects! Seeing how your creativity uses images and dies is a thrill that cannot be described! 

Sincerely Yours,

Supplies. Affiliate links used. List will be updated as quickly as possible.

Sending Joy - cards and a table runner

More projects with Sending Joy today! The October release from Papertrey Ink continues today. Be sure and visit the blog for a look at all the amazing products coming out this month! So much holiday goodness! And once again, thank you for all the online love! When you work so hard creating a set of images and dies, it feels SO great to have others get excited about them! Huge hugs to you all!

For the last two Christmases I have been obsessed with buffalo check, and the buffalo check pattern in red and black. I changed my tree ribbon to it and bought an adorable wool coat with the same pattern! Its probably the northern Minnesota girl in me and my love of flannel. But the look can be created easily with the gingham border image in Sending Joy. I stamped my image on red cardstock with black ink. I trimmed it out and distressed the edges to give it that rustic feel.

Please note: the border image in this set is an incredibly detailed image. It is also a very long image, as it runs the length of an A2 card. When you stamp the image, you will need to put a good amount of pressure on the center of the image. 

I added several stamped and die cut images from Sending Joy in the corner. To tie in the gold embossed sentiment, I added details to the stamped images with a gold gel pen. Simple touch, easy to do, but it adds quite a bit of visual detail. Plus, sparkle! :D

Wanting to continue using the buffalo check pattern, I punched the stamped image with a small star punch. I knew I could use them to create the look of ornaments. 

After stamping the pine branches along the top of my cardstock, I foam-mounted each of the stars. A black pen allowed me to draw quick strings to "hang" my stars. I finished off the card with some glitter. I stamped an image from Sending You Comfort and used my Quickie glue pen to add glitter. I know, enough with the glitter already. :D

The final project I have to share with you is this table runner! I found this table runner in the Dollar Spot at Target last year and picked up a few. I knew I could stamp on them when the perfect set came along. Today was that day!

Using an ink made for surfaces, I stamped the word joy first. Then I surrounded the word with images from Sending Joy. Again, its simple, but what a beautiful touch to add to your holiday table this season!

I am thoroughly enjoying the visit with my parents, so I apologize for this posting a little late. Shopping and cooking, watching movies, and today some crafting-I could not be happier! Have a wonderful day, friends!

Sincerely Yours,

Supplies. Affiliate links used. List will be updated on October 15, when the release is live.

Sending Joy

Welcome back! Its day two of looks at the Papertrey Ink October release and I am going to continue to share projects with my newest stamps and dies called, Sending Joy. Thank you for all the sweet comments on the blog! I love that the simplicity of this set and the heartfelt idea behind it excites you! And I have to admit that when people said they liked the font of the word "joy," I was truly tickled because it is in my own lettering! :D Thank you!!!

Continuing with the simple yet elegant look is this card. I stamped the pine branch and berries images onto white cardstock. Once the ink dried, I applied a sheet of double-sided adhesive to the entire panel. Removing the backing exposes all the adhesive, but allows the stamped images to show through. I covered the entire surface with glitter and created that very cool looking background. Yes, I know glitter isn't always beloved, but this look is pretty great! 

 To finish things off, I stamped and heat embossed the word joy on vellum and then die cut it. I love the soft effect the vellum has.

The second card does contain glitter, but only a teeny, tiny bit. I stamped the gingham border onto white cardstock. I cut it from the cardstock and used a distressing tool along the edges. My hope for this image was to create the look of ribbon. Distressing the edges adds to that feel. With this color palette, I wanted the pine cone image to be the stand-out. Layering two of them together looks nice with the pine branches.

Here is where the glitter comes in. It was a Christmas card, it needed some shine or sparkle. To add some sparkly snow to the pine branch, I used a Quickie glue pen and drew along the image lines and added the same glitter as before. This is more my speed with the glitter. Just enough to find it all over your face later in the day. Ha!

I have a list of ideas a mile long. Tomorrow I will be bringing you more cool ideas, including an idea and tip on creating some ornaments. We get special ornaments for each year, so this idea is awesome for our family! I hope it is for yours as well! See you tomorrow!

Sincerely Yours,

Supplies. Affiliate links used. List will be updated after the release goes live on Oct. 15:

Sincerely Yours introduces - Sending Joy

Welcome to the beginning of the Papertrey Ink October release countdown! I am once again thrilled to be releasing stamps and coordinating dies this month for my Sincerely Yours line! For all the details and links to the rest of the incredible design team projects, visit the Papertrey Ink Blog. 

"Sending Joy is a stamp set full of timeless and classic holiday images. Evoking a sense of warmth and comfort, Sending Joy will help you create cards that send your joyful thoughts during the holiday season. Create the look of plaid with the border image that works on either orientation of a standard A2 card. With the look of plaid ribbon, your card will feel like it has texture. Stamp the botanicals of winter and arrange them into a lovely bouquet. Or simply stamp them and heat emboss in gold for an elegant card. The handwritten word “joy” will express your feelings of the season with simple polish. Finally, use the images of Sending Joy to stamp on your envelopes as a stylish finishing touch."

This set is full of timeless images, images that will help you create quick, lovely, and heartfelt cards for the holidays. Everyone wants to make their own cards, but the time never seems to be available. Well, with the images and dies in Sending Joy, you will be able to be all Martha Stewart this holiday season! 

As I was stamping the two pine branch images in Sending Joy, I realized that I could make a wreath from them! I placed a circle die template on my cardstock and traced around the edges with a pencil. Following the line, I stamped the pine branch all the way around (you can use one image, or alternate. The person who wants quick did one branch on this card). Oddly enough, the bottom of each branch followed the curvature of the circle, making it easy to create! Stamp a few berries over the top to finish the wreath. Then I die cut the joy coordinating die and stamped it. For more dimension, I foam mounted it, but it would look fantastic adhered flat for mailing purposes. It took me longer to find a pencil than to make this card! :D

Again, I kept things simple on this card. It is my deal. Its the look I want when I am designing my stamp images. Classy, bold, and easy. 

There are two different sized holly leaf images in Sending Joy, which also have coordinating dies. I simply stamped them on the cardstock. If you wanted to step this up a notch, you could use two colors of ink, or add more detail with a color pencil.

The sentiment and berry images were also stamped, but in red ink. The berries got a couple of drops of Crystal Clear drops to add shine, but still keeping things flat and mailable.

Finally, there are three straight-line sentiments in Sending Joy that work with the main word, joy. You could use these words on the inside with this pairing. Once again, quick and easy. But oh, so nice looking!

Be sure and come back and visit me each day of the previews leading to release night. I will be sharing a TON of projects. From more advanced cards, to home decor, to ornaments, and much more! You should see the pile of projects building up in my office. Sending Joy has something for everyone and every style! Just wait and see! :D

Sincerely Yours,

Supplies. Affiliate links used. List will be updated when products go live on October 15.

Sincerely Yours - Sending You Comfort - simple elegance

Yep, more cards. I know its shocking. But like I said yesterday, I am truly enjoying the card-making process with the images in Sending You Comfort! One more day and the entire release from Papertrey Ink will be available. The whole release is a home run. No, its a grand slam! Truly beautiful designs and I am so humbled to be a tiny part of it!

I promised I would not use my favorite color palette again today, so I didn't. Sort of. Today I only used the purple color. Because it is just.so.pretty!

Because I knew I wanted to heat emboss the lined leaf branch image from Sending You Comfort, I had an unusual order of how I created this card. Not my normal.

I began by heat embossing the lined leaf image and sentiment with gold powder on my cardstock. Once an image is embossed, the shiny and raised area does a ton of resisting of other inks, allowing me to create the background look I wanted.

I then inked the entire background with purple ink. Distress Oxide inks take forever to dry. Which is an awesome feature, but not if you are looking to heat emboss. Inking a background like this can take many hours to dry. I didn't have that kind of time in my day. Had I attempted to heat emboss the leaf branch after inking, it would have been a mess. The embossing powder would have stuck to the whole background. Even if I passed a heat gun over it. So, knowing the embossing powder would resist, that is why I chose that order.

I rubbed the ink away from the embossed areas with a dry paper towel. (any water would have altered the inked background)

Finally, the background still needed something. It was too plain. Too flat-looking. So I stamped the solid leaf image in the same purple ink. Once again, I could stamp over the embossed areas and wipe the excess ink away. Mixing the lined and solid image leaf is such a great look! I want to try it with more colors of ink. Maybe on kraft cardstock...My next post will be to tell you its time to shop. I will be at an outdoor concert that night, so my lists will get updated as soon as I get home. :D

Sincerely Yours,

Supplies.

Lists will be updated when the products are available on September 15.

Affiliate links used.