Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Ellie's Dance Lesson {SNS Oct 1 Reveal}



Welcome to Sparkle N Sprinkle's October 1 Reveal.

This month SIX new stamp sets are being introduced.   These sets are 20% off their regular price, until October 3rd.  All the new reveal sets are available on Cling Mounted Rubber and as a digital image. The Bubble Gum, set #664 is the stamp set featured in  This Month's Technique Video.

The sets are:


Welcome Autumn #650   (Digi version - DIGI650)
Party Penguins #654  (Digi version - DIGI654)
Witches Brew #660  (Digi version - DIGI660)
Bubble Gum #664  (Digi version - DIGI664)
Beautiful Friendship #665  (Digi version - DIGI665)
Ellie's Dance Lesson #667  (Digi version - DIGI667)


On Oct 3rd,  one Grand Prize Winner will be selected from the comments left on the designers' blogs listed below.  The Grand Prize Winner will receive their choice of:

1) all SIX of the new rubber stamp sets
or 
2) all the new digital stamps and digital stamp sets. 

The new SNS Creative Challenges also begins today, with lots of prizes and recognition badges. 

The winner of the blog hop will be announced on Oct 3 on Facebook, the SNS blog, and on our blogs:

(Tip: if you have a problem with a particular link, try clicking on the person's blog title to send you to their Home page.)

Don't forget to leave a comment with each Designer to be eligible for the Grand Prize.  We love reading your comments and hope we have inspired you as well.  If you absolutely can not leave a comment for some reason, please email icinganne@yahoo.com with your comment and the name of the blog or Designer you are commenting about.

We hope you enjoy the New Reveals as much as we do!
Wonder which Designer contains the Grand Prize this month?
For today's reveal, I've chosen Ellie's Dance Lesson and colored her with Copic markers.  Touches of Mystical Mauve glitter was added to the waistband, headband and her toenails, as well as to the mouse's tutu.  A small dot of dimensional glue was added to the centers of the flowers on her head band and then covered in Lavender Iris glitter.

After die cutting the image using the Spellbinders Labels Four die, it was adhered to a panel of Mon Ami Gabby Silver Diamond Mesh.  The photo doesn't really do just to the sparkle that this panel adds to the card.  It's also light weight enough that it doesn't make the card feel heavy at all.

The two solid color flowers were hand cut in a spiral shape and rolled up to create the flowers.  The center flower is a Sizzix die (Flowers, 3D) that I die cut.  The "leaves" are actually a tree die from Memory Box (Small Adler Tree) that I cut off various parts and adhered to the back of the flowers.

I'm the last stop on the Oct 1 New Reveal Blog Hop. I hope you've enjoyed it and have gotten lots of inspiration.  Don't forget to leave each of us a comment for your chance to win the grand prize of all six of the stamp sets released this month.


Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Sweet Holiday


Sweet Holiday is one of the New Reveal stamp sets from Sparkle N Sprinkle this month.  I've combined several techniques as well as a couple different stamp sets on this particular card.

To start off, the background was created using the Emboss Resist technique.  Start by randomly stamping the three small stamps that come with the Sweet Holiday set onto white cardstock with VersaMark.  Cover with Clear embossing powder and heat set.

Next, take blend Distress Ink (Picked Raspberry) over the entire thing.  The embossed images stay white.  After that stamp the newly re-released Wonky Lines plaid background with VersaMark over the card panel.  Cover with Clear embossing powder and heat set.  This image will turn darker after it's heat set.

Stamp the gingerbread and the cottage twice and color with Copic markers.  Using the Paper Tole technique, cut up and layer the cottage.  Crystal Ice glitter was added to the snowflakes, one of the gingerbread mens' rickrack, the design around the door and bottom of the cottage, and the window sills.  Bridal glitter was added to the other gingerbread and Diamond Dust glitter was added to the chimney top.

The sentiment was stamped in VersaMark, heat set with Black Detail embossing powder, and die cut using the Lifestyle Crafts Nesting Sketchbooks die.  Leave the die in place and pounce some Picked Raspberry Distress Stain onto the sentiment.  Apply VersaMark over the entire die cut, cover with Clear embossing powder, and heat set.  This will give the sentiment die cut a really shiny appearance.


The Distress Embossing technique was added to the card base with Distress Ink (Picked Raspberry) and Clear embossing powder.  Some rick rack was also added.

This card looks pretty bright on my monitor, and I have to tell you, it's just as bright and festive in person.


Monday, September 22, 2014

Die-Versions + Great Impressions: A Blog Hop



Welcome to the Die-Versions + Great Impressions designers' blog hop!  We've got both talented teams hopping today with a chance to win prizes from both of these craft suppliers!  Our theme for this hop is "Tis the Season" so get ready to see some beautiful holiday creations!  

You should have arrived here from EllenParker's blog.  If you haven't and would like to hop with us, please go back to the Die-Versions blog to see the entire hop list and to start at the beginning for the maximum chances to win!  There will be two lucky winners – Die-VersionsGreat Impressions are each giving away one $25 Gift Card!  The more you comment, the more chances you have of winning!



To start off my project, I stamped both the Witches Brew and Have Some Brew sentiment from Great Impressions onto white cardstock with VersaMark and then heat set them using Midnight Madness embossing powder from Sparkle N Sprinkle.

As you can see from the photo to the right, the Midnight Madness has lots of sparkle to it - perfect for a couple witches sharing a cup of brew.

Pan Pastels were used to create the vibrant background and the card base was dry embossed using an old texture plate from Sizzix (Pumpkins and Candy).  I lightly rubbed some white pigment ink over the raised areas, giving the pumpkins a bit more definition.

The border was created using the Die-Versions Fall Festival and you won't believe what it was die cut from: glittered ribbon!  The DV dies easily cuts through ribbon, but the problem I've encountered in the past is that the ribbon unravels after it has been cut.  Since this was glittered ribbon, the weave held together just fine.  It was a little too long for the card, so I cut off the owl and added him to the top ribbon embellishment.

Thanks for stopping by today!  Your next stop in the hop is Joni Mastronardi's blog!  We hope you're inspired all along the way, and that you grab all the goodies used from the Great Impressions and Die-Versions stores!

The winners will be announced on Monday, Sept 29 on the Die-Versions blog and on the Great Impressions blog.  Good luck!

Friday, September 19, 2014

Vintage Tea Cup


Today marks the 100th Challenge at Pattie's Creations and we are going Vintage.  I've created a vintage looking card using Pattie's Vintage Tea Cup from her Etsy Store.

I started out by creating the background with Distress Inks (Antique Linen, Victorian Velvet, Vintage Photo, Old Paper).  I smooshed the ink pad down on my craft sheet, spritzed them with water, and ran the white cardstock through the inks until I was happy with the results.  Quick and easy :-).

Whenever I think of vintage china, I always think of gold rimmed pieces.  I added VersaMark pen around the edges of the china and heat set using Gold Detail embossing powder from Sparkle N Sprinkle to replicate this idea.  I also added Green Nugget glitter and Daisy glitter to the tea cup as well.

Added a touch of lace, found some cardstock that reminded me of old fashioned wallpaper, and voila - a nice note card for someone.



Be sure to head on over and participate in our 100th Challenge at Pattie's Creations and while you're there, check out what the rest of the team has created.


Thursday, September 18, 2014

Mistletoe


Won't you meet me under the Mistletoe?  Today's card features the Mistletoe Whispers die from Die-Versions and the greeting is from the Die-Versions Compliments-Holiday 1 die.


I wanted to try something a little different for the background, so I cut some patterned paper into 1/2" and 1" strips.  After distressing the edges with Distress Ink (Pine Needles), I began to paper weave the strips, alternating the widths.  I have to say, it was quicker and easier to do than I thought it would be and I like how it makes a puffy background.

The Mistletoe die cut was colored with Copic markers.  I applied Dimensional Glue to the berries and then covered them with Cloud Nine Velvet Glitter from Sparkle N Sprinkle.  As the white glue dried, it left an opaque white berry (just like the images of mistletoe that I googled).  Adhesive was only added down the center of the die cut as I wanted the leaves to naturally pop up from the background.

The bow was covered in Gypsy Red Velvet glitter and I added a small pearl to the center after the glue had dried.  The sentiment was also outlined with a bit of Spica glitter pen, but the photos didn't pick up that subtle shimmer.





Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Thanks


Today is the beginning of the 2nd Scrapy Land Challenge.  The theme for this bi-weekly challenge is to incorporate heat embossing plus using any die brands that Scrapy Land sells into your project.  You can follow the link, but as you can see from the below photo, there are a lot of brands that Scrapy Land sells!



I'm calling this card Masculine Minimalist!  :-)  My husband needed 15 thank you cards for a music related gift that he received from a group of business people (read non-creative types); therefore it couldn't have lots of bling or flowers since most of the cards were going to men.  

I designed a very simple CAS card using the Thanks script die by Memory Box and the Bevelled Glass striplet die by Sue Wilson Designs.  I die cut the Bevelled Glass panel from black cardstock and heat embossed each one with Clear embossing powder.  As you can see from the photo below, the embossing powder makes a huge difference in the look of the panel.  (The panel on top is heat embossed and the panel on the bottom is not.) 


For the Thanks script die, I die cut this 45 times so I could create a 3 layered sentiment for each card.  This gives it a more substantial look and feel (a lot like chipboard would).  The top layer was heat embossed with Japanese Lacquer embossing powder from Sparkle N Sprinkle and the white layers create a shadow effect.  Love the variegated look of this embossing powder.



















The card base is from kraft paper and I have dry embossed the front with a Spellbinders embossing folder (Music).  As I said, a very minimalist card, but my husband liked the various textures incorporated into this Thank You card.

You have until Sept 28th to upload your creation to the Scrapy Land Challenge.  While you are there, you really should check out what the rest of the team has created!

Monday, September 15, 2014

Magic of the Season


I have a fun card to share with you today and it's called a Magic card, which is appropriate since this stamp set is called Magic of the Season by Sparkle N Sprinkle.  There are several tutorials out there, including the SNS tutorial and the Splitcoast Stampers version.


I followed the instructions on the Splitcoast Stampers video (listed below the written instructions).  I used SNS Clear Embossable Acetate for the front and stamped the image with StazOn (Jet Black) ink and heat embossed it with Clear embossing powder.

The image and sentiment on the magic part of the card was stamped with Memento Ink (Tuxedo Black) and colored with Copic markers.  I added some glue using a Sakura glue pen to the swirls and stars and covered them with Celestial glitter.  The background panel was created by cutting a piece of Sticker Paper and covering it with Diamond Dust glitter.

The front panel opening was die cut using the Fleur de Lis Square die from Spellbinders and distressed with Distress Ink (Bundled Sage).  1/4" Tear-ific Tape was adhered to the outside edges of the front panel and covered with Pistachio glitter.



The above photo shows a close up of the magic starting to happen.  Magic is definitely in the air!

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Elegant Poinsettia


Today's card features the Elegant Poinsettia from Die-Versions.  I die cut the shape from Super Adhesive Sheets and white cardstock and applied the Double Flocking technique to the flower.  (You can view my Double Flocking technique tutorial here).


I started off by exposing the flower center and added Canary flock from Sparkle N Sprinkle to it.  Next I took an Exaco knife and cut the protective sheet between the flower petals and the greenery.  Palm Leaf flock was burnished into the adhesive for the leaves and Cherry Sparkle was added to the flower petals.  Be sure to burnish the flock in well with your fingertip.

I wanted a bit more dimension to the flower, so I began to gently fold it between each of the flower petals.  This gave it the depth that I was looking for without using dimensional dots.  Zva Creative gems add the finishing touches.



Monday, September 8, 2014

Autumn Splendor

closed
open

Today, I have a Gate Fold card to share with you using the new Autumn Splendor (digi version) from Sparkle N Sprinkle.  This is a pretty large card, measuring 6"x6" when closed and 6"x12" when opened.


The front of the card was created by running patterned paper through the Spellbinders Dainty Dots embossing folder and cutting into panels.  1/4" and 1/8" Tear-ific tape was added to the edges of both panels.  Lavender Iris glitter was applied to the exposed adhesive of the 1/4" Tear-ific tape and Autumn Sparkle Sparkle N Soft flock covers the 1/8" Tear-ific tape.

The belly band also has 1/8" Tear-ific tape along the top and bottom edge and is covered with Autumn Sparkle Sparkle N Soft flock.  A single strip of orange Mon Ami Gabby Diamond Mesh-Brights is run along the center.  
The sentiment was stamped with VersaMark, heat embossed with Black Detail embossing powder and die cut using a Spellbinders die (Labels Four).  Dimensional Glue was added to the outside edge and covered with Autumn Sparkle Sparkle N Soft flock.

The top and bottom of the panels are embellished with Mon Ami Gabby Flower Diamond Mesh in silver.  The centers were created by applying a mound of Dimensional Glue and covering with Orange Surprise glitter.


The image was colored with Copic markers and the background was colored with chalks.  Daisy velvet glitter was added to each of the flower centers and Lavender Iris was added to her wings and the streaks in her hair.

To create the frame surrounding the image, I adhered a piece of Super Adhesive Sheet to a piece of cardstock and die cut it using the Sue Wilson Designs (Italian Collection-Umbria).  After removing the protective sheets, I covered the entire frame with Autumn Sparkle Sparkle N Soft flock.  

The side panels were created by applying translucent embossing paste to a MFT stencil (spring flowers) and sprinkling Lavender Iris over the wet embossing paste.  While the paste is wet, it's still an opaque white color, but when dry, it's translucent.


Now for a quick "the things that make us happy"....  Do you notice a resemblance to the packaging of the rubber stamp to my colored image?  I hope the answer is a YES because my colored image is the one used for the front of the laminated sheet that this set of cling stamps is sold on.  So a little bit of my artwork gets to go home with anyone who purchases this set.  Thanks for indulging me, but this definitely makes me smile :-)



Friday, September 5, 2014

Farm Sweet Farm


Farm Sweet Farm by Sparkle N Sprinkle is one of their new stamp sets this month.  To create this scene, start out by stamping the horse in Memento Ink (Tuxedo Black) and the stamp again on copy paper to create a mask.  Mask the horse and stamp the barn with Fired Brick Distress Ink.

The barn itself was colored with Weathered Wood Distress Ink and a waterbrush.  The silo was colored with Copic markers.  More Distress Inks (Tumbled Glass, Salty Ocean, Frayed Burlap, Vintage Photo, Peeled Paint) was used to create the sky and ground.  The tuffs of grass were made with Copic markers.

Snow White flock and Buff flock, along with some SNS Brushable Glue was used to color the horse.  The hay in the loft was heat embossed with Tuscan Sun embossing powder and the roof of the silo was heat embossed with Antiquities embossing powder.  A touch of Silver Pearl embossing powder was added to the milk containers and some Copper Peddler embossing powder completes the weather vane.

What's a barn without a fence?  This barbed wire fence is by MFT and was heat embossed with Copper Flame embossing powder.  The sun is another die from MFT and the sentiment was heat embossed onto the sun using Tuscan Sun embossing powder.  The top of the sun was pop dotted and the bottom rays were adhered directly to the focal panel.




Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Sparkle N Sprinkle Sept 1 Reveal Winners

This is my second post of the day.  If you are looking for my Scrapy Land Challenge post, please scroll down, or click here.



Thanks to everyone who participated in this month's release.  One Grand Prize winner will win the entire collection revealed this month!

This month SIX new stamp sets were  introduced.  All the new reveal sets are available on Cling Mounted Rubber and as a digital image. The Magic of the Season, set #653 is the stamp set featured in  This Month's Technique Video.

The sets are:


Autumn Splendor #651   (Digi version - DIGI651)
Farm Sweet Farm #652  (Digi version - DIGI652)
Magic of the Season #653  (Digi version - DIGI653)
Thanksgiving Friends #656  (Digi version - DIGI656)
Bountiful Blessings #658  (Digi version - DIGI658)
Sweet Holiday #655  (Digi version - DIGI659)

 One Grand Prize Winner was selected from the comments left on the participating Designers' blogs.  The Grand Prize Winner will receive their choice of:

1) each of the new reveal rubber stamp sets
or 
2) all the new digital stamps and digital stamp sets. 

Congratulations goes to 
Brenda

who commented on Eret's blog:
She is a very pretty fairy Eret and really like the colours you have used.


B x


Please email Anne at icinganne@yahoo.com to claim your prize.  Be sure to include your mailing address.


Hugs from The Sparkle Team,

Scrapy Land Challenge #1



Today's the day for the brand new and improved Scrapy Land Challenges to begin.  


The theme is Anything Goes using Dies and the challenge will run until 8pm Eastern time, Sunday Sept 14th.  This gives the Designers a couple of days to choose the Winner and the Top 3.  Speaking of winners, everyone gets a badge for being selected and the Winner will receive a $15 gift certificate to Scrapy Land.

For my project today, I combined Sue Wilson Designs dies (Spanish Collection - Granada; California Collection - Beverly Hills) with my Sweet Wordlets die (Miss You) from Die-Versions.   Although I couldn't capture the glitter on the sentiment, it is covered with Green Iris glitter from Sparkle N Sprinkle.  The pre-made roses were also covered with glue and Green Iris glitter for a bit more sparkle.

The seam binding ribbon was dyed using Distress Stains (Antique Linen, Seedless Preserves) and pearls were added to the corners.  This is a quick and easy card to create and send to someone to tell them you miss them.

You'll definitely want to head on over to the Scrapy Land Challenge Blog to see what all the Designers have created for you today.  There is a wide variety of styles and lots of inspiration.  Plus, we have a special Guest Designer visiting us for the debut of the new SL Challenge Blog.  Upload your creations using the InLinz button by Sept 14th for your chance to win the fabulous prize.