Gin and Tonic

It's been a while since I have spent any time in the craft room (and it seems like this is how I start all of my blog posts these days). It's been a few weeks of beautiful summer which means the garden is growing way too much (why is it only the weeds that grow out of control but not the actual plants you want to grow?). Anyhow, today's rainy weather brought with it some mojo.

Inspired by the CASology challenge, where the theme is Citrus, I created this quick one layer CAS card. I love the fun STAMPlorations Layered Citrus stamp set which was perfect for the theme. I stamped the lemon outline in Distress Oxide and used the layering stamps to "colour" it using Distress Inks. Last, I stamped the sentiments and splattered some watered down Distress Ink for a grungy feel. I'm also linking up with Cupcake Inspirations where the theme is shades of yellow and Shopping Our Stash where the theme is One Layer Card. 

Stamps: STAMPlorations Layered Citrus

Ink: Tim Holz Distress Oxide Fossilized Amber, Distress Ink Mustard Seed and Squeezed Lemonade, Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black

If you feel like doing some crafty shopping, don't forget to check out the 

STAMPlorations Summer Sale with over 300 products at 40% off for some great finds!

June STAMPlorations challenges - Mid-Month Reminder

The summer is rushing away in a hurry, how can we already be halfway through June? The silver lining is that we are only halfway thorough June, so there is still two more weeks to play along with the STAMPlorations challenges. Together with my fellow DT members, we were so inspired by the current challenges that we wanted to share some more projects with you over on the STAMPlorations blog. Hope you will join us if you haven't already!

I was super inspired by one of the CAS challenge entries from May, by the super talented Jane. She had used the faux watercolour technique for her beautiful card, and I immediately went into my craft room to create a card. I coloured the beautiful Blossom Sprays #3 stamp using Distress Markers, spritzed with water and stamped on watercolour card. I then lightly sprayed the stamped image to blend the inks just a little bit more. The colouring of the stamps can be a bit fiddly, but I absolutely love the look, so it's definitely worth the time. For a high impact sentiment, I heat embossed a Thank You from For the Birds in white on black card.

Stamps: STAMPlorations Blossom Sprays #3, For the Birds

Ink and colouring: Tim Holtz Distress Markers, Tsukineko Versamark

STAMPlorations discount code: If you want to save 20% when shopping at the STAMPlorations store you can use the code STAMPGIRLKAROLA at checkout. The discount applies to all normal priced and discounted stamps, stencils and dies. The code cannot be combined with other discount codes.

Last but not least don't forget the 6th Birthday Summer Sale in the STAMPlorations store.

CLICK HERE to see all 250+ qualifying products!

Happy Wedding

We are going to our friends' wedding this weekend, and I realised I don't have any wedding cards in my stash. How is it possible that despite having dozens and dozens of cards, there is never a suitable one when you need one? Oh well, that just gave me an excuse to spend some time in the craft room, something I rarely make time for during the week.

To create my card, I used the super cute Lawn Fawn Happy Wedding stamps and Stitched Rectangle dies. I also used some of my gorgeously beautiful hand-made (not by me though!) paper which has a stunningly beautiful texture and a delicate, slightly rose tint (you can't really see the paper in all it's beauty as I just about managed to snap the pictures in what was left of the evening light. I heat embossed everything in gold as this matched the wedding invite. I did some minimal colouring on the cake in the front using a pink Copic, a silver Sharpie and a white gel pen. I also stamped a sentiment inside the card and heat embossed the wedding cake on the envelope.

I'm linking up with the following challenges:

Scrap From Your Heart - Wedding

Addicted To Stamps And More - Anything Goes

Artistic Inspirations - Anything Goes

Crafting From the Heart - Anything Goes

Stamps: Lawn Fawn Happy Wedding
Dies: Lawn Fawn Stitched Rectangle Nesting Dies
Ink and colouring: Tsukineko Versamark, Copics, Sharpies, White Gel pen

Faux Watercolour Florals

Just a quick post today as I've spent most of the day doing meal-prep for next week. I just can't get around to cook anything sensible during the week. Either it's meal prep on Sunday or I only eat utter rubbish all week. Lunch salads are already prepped, as are quinoa-olive-feta-tomato-chestnut stuffed peppers. Now I just need to think of something for the other half.

Today's card is inspired by the adorable rainbow birdies over at Fusion. I was also inspired by the sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches and the Nature theme over at Time Out.

I used the beautiful STAMPlorations Blossom Sprays #1, coloured the stamp with pastel colours of Tim Holtz Distress Markers, spritzed with water and stamped on watercolour paper. I cut the panel using Crazy Double Running Stitch Rectangle Nesting Dies. I added strips of Lawn Fawn patterned paper and attached it onto a cardstock that I had inked up with Spun Sugar Distress Ink. The sentiment is from Lawn Fawn Party Animal.

Stamps: STAMPlorations Blossom Sprays #1, Lawn Fawn Party Animal

Dies: CUTplorations Crazy Double Running Stitch Rectangle Nesting Dies

Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Markers, Spun Sugar Distress Ink, Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black

STAMPlorations discount code: If you want to save 20% when shopping at the STAMPlorations store you can use the code STAMPGIRLKAROLA at checkout. The discount applies to all normal priced and discounted stamps, stencils and dies. The code cannot be combined with other discount codes.

June STAMPlorations CAS Challenge - Mahogany

Welcome to the STAMPlorations June CAS Challenge! June means we are seriously into summer now - let's enjoy every moment while it lasts. But a rainy day here and there is great too as the garden needs it and that makes a great opportunity to spend some time in the craft room.

The optional colour twist for the June challenge is Mahogany. It's a reddish brown (or brownish red?). I'm not really into colour theory in depth, so I have devised a cunning plan... When in doubt - do an ombre background. I'm sure some part of my background will qualify as mahogany. Right?

I created the ombre background with Distress Inks Aged Mahogany, Abandoned Coral and Seedless Preserves, and after inking I splattered some water for fun and texture. Then I stamped, coloured and fussy cut the little robot from Little Robots and stamped a sentiment from Big Robots. I know a little guy who is turning 2 very soon who will receive this card!

I hope you feel inspired to join the challenge: June CAS Challenge.

I'm linking up with the following challenges:
As You Like It - Your favourite stamp brand and why (obviously STAMPlorations - love the variety of stamps, everything from amazing florals to cakes to robots. In addition, love all the sentiment and word dies as well as the stencils. I never used to use stencils until I came across STAMPlorations and fell in love with them)
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Masculine
Through The Purple Haze - The Guys Have It
Unicorn Challenge - For the Men/Boys

Stamps: STAMPlorations Little Robots, Big Robots
Ink and Colouring: Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black, Tim Holtz Distress inks Aged Mahogany, Abandoned Coral and Seedless Preserves, Copics

STAMPlorations discount code: If you want to save 20% when shopping at the STAMPlorations store you can use the code STAMPGIRLKAROLA at checkout. The discount applies to all normal priced and discounted stamps, stencils and dies. The code cannot be combined with other discount codes.

June TAGplorations Challenge - All About Dad

It's time for the June TAGplorations challenge. This time we are all about the Dads out there.  If you are a regular follower of the STAMPlorations blog, you may have seen Shery's recent post about losing her Dad less than a month ago. My deepest sympathy and my thoughts are with Shery and her family in these difficult times. So for this challenge, I hope you will be inspired to create something in honour of a fantastic Dad, Granpa or another amazing man in your life, whether someone who is with you or someone who will always live on in your heart although no longer with you in person.

My tag was inspired by a stencilled background I had created using Tribal Triangles for another project which didn't work out so it got a new life as a tag. I stamped the letters from Sketchy Alphabet and the phone from Hello You on white card, coloured them with Copics and fussy cut. I then randomly stamped the grungy Art Marks stamps in Vintage Photo Distress Ink on the background, added the stamped images and finished the tag off with some leftover bits of wool from a pair of socks I knitted earlier (for my Dad in fact, so very appropriate for the theme!).

I hope you are inspired to create something with a tag for the June TAGplorations challenge.

Stamps: STAMPlorations Hello You, Art Marks, Sketchy Alphabet,  

Stencil: ARTplorations Tribal Triangles

Dies: CUTplorations Manila Tags Nesting Dies

Ink and colouring: Tim Holtz Distress Inks, Copics, Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black

STAMPlorations discount code: If you want to save 20% when shopping in the STAMPlorations store you can use the code STAMPGIRLKAROLA at checkout. The discount applies to all normal priced and discounted stamps, stencils and dies. The code cannot be combined with other discount codes. 

Life Is Short

I haven't been creating much in the last few months. Things have happened. Life has happened. We had a death in the family. I started a new job. I simply had no energy to create at all. To be honest, I also had no energy to cook, clean or exercise. This weekend I felt the call of the craft room for the first time in months. So I cranked the music up and answered that call. I'll show you what I created some other day. Today I'll show you something I had forgotten I made earlier. I knew a few months ago things were going to get tough, so I created this tag while I was grieving for things to come. I found it yesterday when I was performing an archaeological excavation in my craft room (also known as cleaning your crafting desk).

I don't usually do mixed media, so this is a bit out there for me. I have to admit, I can't even quite remember what I did to create the tag, as it now seems like a lifetime ago. I think I started with a background created with Distress Oxides, then added Gesso on top of that. I stencilled the floral using ARTplorations Bloom Boldly using texture paste mixed with Bronze Distress Paint. I then splattered some watercolours and white acrylic. I also think I stamped some grungy stamps on the background before stamping sentiments from It's a Girl Thing:Kindness and It's a Girl Thing: Sunshine onto a previously created rainbow coloured leftover piece of cardstock.

I'm linking up over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge where Anything Goes, Love 2 Create and A Inky Mess where anything mixed media goes, and Tuesday Throwdown where the theme is Stenciling.

Stamps: STAMPlorations It's a Girl Thing:Kindness and It's a Girl Thing: Sunshine 

Dies: CUTplorations Maila Tags Nesting Dies

Stencil: ARTploratons Bloom Boldly

Inks and colouring: Distress Oxides, Distress Paint, Distress Ink, Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black

STAMPlorations discount code: If you want to save 20% when shopping in the STAMPlorations store you can use the code STAMPGIRLKAROLA at checkout. The discount applies to all normal priced and discounted stamps, stencils and dies. The code cannot be combined with other discount codes.