Faith Can Move Mountains

Good morning!  Here's another scenic card that I created with stencils and a stamp from A Colorful Life Designs.  I had fun with the Cloud Edger stencil first, creating a sky full of clouds tinged with blue and purple.  Then I pulled out some Mountain Edger stencils and brushed brown ink in varying degrees of intensity over each one.  The stencils I used are, from top to bottom:

Cloud Edger

Mountain Edger 4

Mountain Edger 3

Mountain Edger 1

The beautiful sentiment is from the new Altitude stamp set from A Colorful Life Designs.  These sentiments are perfect with the scenic stencils.  Please feel free to use this code, HollyFan10, to save 10% when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  Enjoy!

 

Shimmery Sunrise

Good morning!  Here is a beautiful sunrise to gaze at while you drink your coffee or eat your breakfast today.  I brushed on the yellow, orange, and pink inks for a glorious background, and then I stenciled the Mountain Edger 2 from A Colorful Life Designs with black ink.  I added the sentiment from the Altitude set from A Colorful Life Designs.  One last touch before I declared this card done was to spray the whole thing with some gold glitter.  It has a wonderful sparkle when you move the card around in the light.

Please feel free to use this code, HollyFan10, when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  You will get 10% off your entire order.  There are hundreds of great stencils to choose from.  If you haven't picked up some of these new scenic stencils yet, what are you waiting for?  :-)

 

Amazing Ability

I love this encouraging sentiment from the Lighthouse Sentiments set from Technique Junkies.  It's perfect with the new Lighthouse on Cliff stamp.  I stamped both with Nocturne Versafine Clair ink and let them dry completely.  Then I brushed on some blue ink, taking care to keep the darker areas of ink on the edges of the card.  The Colorful Blending Brushes from Technique Junkies are perfect for brushing ink onto the edges of your card like this or applying ink through a stencil.

You can use this code, TJ10Holly, to save 10% when you shop at Technique Junkies.  Stock up on stamps, stencils, Shimmering Bliss sprays, and Distress Oxide inks.  Have fun!

 

Golden Orange Sunset - Beyond the Blue #30

Today's Beyond the Blue challenge #30 is to show off your watercoloring.  You can watercolor anything - a background, a stamped image, freeform, die cuts, ribbon, canvas, whatever.  I taped some watercolor paper to the back of a clipboard and did some loose watercoloring with some yellow and orange and red watercolor paints that were leftover in my paint palette.  After that was completely dry, I used a rectangle die to cut out a piece of this gorgeous sunset background.  I stamped over this with a Penny Black stamp called Peaceful Moment.

Confession time - despite 5 attempts at inking and stamping this image with my MISTI, the rough nature of my watercolor paper left the image all mottled and blotchy.  So I took a Sharpie marker and filled in all the black silhouette areas.  I couldn't just toss this gorgeous sunset background into the trash, so I'm really glad I was able to salvage this piece!  :-)

Pull out your watercolors and share your creations with us on the Beyond the Blue blog.  Don't have watercolors?  Don't stress.  Use your ink pads by smooshing then onto an acrylic block and pick up color with a wet brush.  If you have color sprays, use a few drops of that in your palette.  If you have some acrylic paint, simply thin it down with some water and paint away.  Just have fun!

 

Gel Print Mandala Trio

Good morning, friends!  I thought I'd pop in and share some cards I made for Technique Junkies.  This new Autumn Floral Mandala stamp is gorgeous, and I wanted to showcase it by using some gel prints from my stash.  I picked some prints that had touches of gold paint and warm colors for that rich autumnal feeling.  I stamped the Autumn Floral Mandala with a black pigment ink and covered it with clear embossing powder.  After I melted the powder with a heat tool, I cut the panels down and adhered them to black card bases.

These are just so gorgeous, I didn't want to cover them up with a sentiment.  I will stamp a birthday or thinking of you sentiment on the inside if I can ever part with these.  You can see the close ups below.

Feel free to use this code, TJ10Holly, to save 10% when you shop at Technique Junkies.  You can pick up this Autumn Floral Mandala as well as hundreds of other stamps.  You can also stock up on Distress Oxide ink pads, stencils, and Shimmering Bliss sprays.  Enjoy!

 

Blue Sunrise

Have you seen the new scenic stencils from A Colorful Life Designs?  I've had so much fun playing with these.  Today, I paired the Mountain Edger stencils with the Rays stencil for a blue sunrise card.  I used the same dark blue ink for everything on this card.  I applied very light pressure when brushing on the pale blue mountains and sun rays, and then I increased my pressure and added more ink for the darker mountain ranges.  The sentiment is from the Stampscapes Scenic Sentiments Sheet 3 set.

From top to bottom, the stencils I used are:

Rays

Mountain Edger 2

Mountain Edger 3

Mountain Edger 1

You can save 10% off your order at A Colorful Life Designs when you use this code, HollyFan10.  Happy shopping!

 

Beyond the Blue #29 - Black and White Gingham Note

This week's Beyond the Blue challenge is to create a card or project that is ONLY black and white.  No other colors are used - just black and white.  So I pulled out some stamps from Ink Blot Shop and created this fun little card.  I used the Micro Gingham Background with black ink and cut a circle out of that.  Then I added the black scallop circle behind the gingham and adhered it to the side of the card, cutting off the excess.  The sweet little sentiment is from the Solid Sayings set and I added the teeny heart (from the same stamp set) on the right side.  

Give this fun challenge a try!  You might be surprised to find out how much you like creating black and white cards!  Enter your creation in the linky tool on the Beyond the Blue blog HERE.  Have a great weekend!

 

Live Colorful

Good morning, friends!  Today I'm sharing a card I created with a new stencil from A Colorful Life Designs.  I started by brushing on some rainbow colors of ink across some white cardstock.  Then I placed the Skyline Edger 1 stencil over the rainbow and sponged on some black ink.  I intentionally left the black sponging all gritty so some of the rainbow colors could show through.  This looks like the rainbow colors are reflecting off the skyline, doesn't it?  

You can use this code, HollyFan10, to save 10% when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  There are hundreds of fabulous stencils, including all the new scenic stencils.  You can see all the scenic stencils HERE and you can see the new stamp set HERE.  Have a wonderful day!

 

Colors of the Spirit

Wouldn't you like to wake up to this glorious explosion of color every morning?  That would really be starting the day off right, wouldn't it?

I created this card by first brushing on some pink and blue distress inks onto some white cardstock.  You can see where the pink and blue mixed together to create that fun purple in the middle.  Then I placed the Desert Edger 1 stencil from A Colorful Life Designs and sponged some black ink over the stencil.  I didn't want to cover up that colorful background so I kept this card simple with just the one stencil.  The sentiment is from Stampscapes and it's from their Scenic Sentiments 4 sheet.

If you haven't seen the new scenic stencils from A Colorful Life Designs, you should go check them out.  They are simply awesome!  You can go simple with just one stencil or you can mix and match like I've done on several cards that I've posted before.  You can save 10% off your order by using this code, HollyFan10, when you check out.  Have a wonderful day!

 

A Study in Lavender Collage

Good morning!  Today I'm sharing my results of a study using the new Lavender Collage stamp from Technique Junkies.  If you look closely at the picture above, the two cards are stamped the same but the colors are reversed.  I wanted to see how these would look with purple ink and with white embossing powder.

Both cards are stamped with Lavender Collage and the sentiment is from the Difficult Time set from Technique Junkies.  I stamped them with purple ink onto white cardstock for the card on the left.  For the card on the right, I stamped these with Versamark onto lavender cardstock, covered them with white embossing powder, and melted the powder with a heat tool.  You can see the close-up pictures below.

These two cards are very different even though their stamps, colors, and composition are the same.  I love the delicateness of the purple inked collage, and I love how the white embossed card is so crisp and detailed.  Which one is your favorite?

Please feel free to use this code, TJ10Holly, when you shop at Technique Junkies.  You'll save 10% off your order, and you can stock up on new stamps, stencils, Shimmering Bliss sprays, and Distress Oxide inks.  Happy Shopping!

 

The Best View

I loved creating this card with new scenic stencils from A Colorful Life Designs.  It's so calm and peaceful.  I only used one color of Distress Oxide ink (Peacock Feathers) and one white card base for this clean and simple monochromatic card.  

I used the following stencils from top to bottom:

Mountain Edger 4

Mountain Edger 1

Tree Line Edger 6

Tree Line Edger 5

Tree Line Edger 4

Tree Line Edger 3

The stamped sentiment is from the new Altitude stamp set from A Colorful Life Designs.  Yes, they have a stamp set now!  It's perfect with these new scenic stencils, and you definitely need to add this to your order.  Please feel free to use this code, HollyFan10, to save 10% when you order from A Colorful Life Designs.

 

Beyond the Blue #28 - Happy Fall Y'all

Good morning, friends!  This week's Beyond the Blue challenge is to use those ribbons, twines, and fibers that we all have in our craft stash.  I used some ribbon as well as a little bit of twine (it's on the top of the acorn) on my card today.

Here's how this particular card came about.  My mom has been cleaning out her craft room and she's been giving me all her old stamping stuff.  I was going through a small box of dies that she gave me, and one of them was this adorable acorn die from Lil Inker Designs.  I really wanted to play with it, so I designed this whole card around that acorn.  I used my Thankful Leaves Turnabout stamp from Concord and 9th as well as the Fall stamps and dies from Honey Bee Stamps.  

The colors were chosen simply because they were sitting on my stamping table.  I used Baked Brown Sugar, Cucumber Crush, Bermuda Bay, and Razzleberry inks (Stampin Up) with some kraft, cream, and Razzleberry papers.  I die cut the acorn from kraft cardstock and then pressed the bottom piece into the Razzleberry ink and the top piece into the Baked Brown Sugar ink.  They almost look like velvet, don't they?  I tied the tiny little leaf to the acorn with the twine and I added the strip of Razzleberry ribbon behind the sentiment.

Come play along with us and use up some of that ribbon and twine.  You can share your creations by adding your link to the linky tool on the Beyond the Blue blog.  Happy Friday!

 

Cactus and Canyons

On today's card, I played around with a couple of new scenic stencils from A Colorful Life Designs.  I started with some white cardstock and I placed the Desert Edger 2 stencil down near the bottom.  I randomly added different green and yellow Pan Pastels to the cactus and the surrounding grassy areas.  Then I placed the opposite stencil (the mask) of Desert Edger 2 over the cactus and carefully taped it in place.  I laid the Canyon Edger 1 stencil over the top of the cactus and used more Pan Pastels to color in the canyon areas.  I applied horizontal strokes of color because that's what you see when you look at desert landscapes - those bands of color.  I'm so happy this turned out like I saw it in my head!

To complete the card, I carefully removed the Canyon Edger 1 stencil and placed the opposite stencil (the mask) over the colored canyons.  I left the cactus mask in place and made sure both masks were taped down.  Then I applied some blue and gray Pan Pastels to the top of the card for the sky.  After I carefully removed the masks, I sealed this with some workable fixative.  This card came together in about 10 minutes or so.  The longest parts of making this card was arranging and taping down the masks.  

I have not added a sentiment just yet because I'm not sure if this will be a birthday card or a thinking of you card.  Quite honestly, I'm just having so much fun playing with these new scenic stencils, I'm not sure I can part with any of these cards!  :-)  Please feel free to use this code, HollyFan10, to save 10% when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  You can pick up these scenic stencils as well as hundreds of others for all your paper crafting creations.

 

Sunflower Birthday - DTGD2021

Good morning, friends!  Today, I am hosting a Dare to Get Dirty challenge over on SCS.  It's my first time hosting as a Dirty Dozen alumni and I'm so excited.  While I can't tell you the details of the challenge, I can tell you a little bit about the card I made for the challenge.  You can find the details by clicking HERE as long as you are a Fan Club member.  If you aren't a Fan Clubber, you can learn more by clicking HERE.  You don't want to miss out on any of the fun this week!!

For my card, I stamped the yellow background with the Sunflower background from The Ton.  It's a very subtle background because I stamped it with Versamark.  Then I stamped the sunflower from Botanical Blocks (PTI) and colored it with Copic markers.  I stamped the birthday sentiment from the Botanical Blocks set and adhered it as a long strip over the width of the card.

Come on over and play with us in the Dare to Get Dirty challenges.  There's still a few more days of challenges ahead, so you've got plenty of time to stamp with us.  Have a great day!!

 

Metallic Mountains

Have you seen the new scenic stencils from A Colorful Life Designs?  They are so wonderful and so easy to work with.  Another bit of news is that A Colorful Life Designs just released their first stamp set!  I used one of the stamps on this card today along with two of the new Mountain Edger stencils.

I decided to try something different with these scenic stencils.  I started with some black cardstock and I placed the Mountain Edger 1 stencil down in the middle.  I used a special sponge to apply some gold Pan Pastels to the black paper following the edge of the Mountain Edger 1 stencil.  I removed this stencil and placed the Mountain Edger 2 stencil down just below the previously colored mountain.  I applied some bronze Pan Pastels to the paper by following the edge of the Mountain Edger 2 stencil.  Because of the chalky nature of the Pan Pastels, I sealed the scene with some workable fixative.  

To complete my card, I stamped the sentiment from the new Altitude set with Versamark and covered it with gold embossing powder.  After I melted the powder, I used a gold paint pen to add the stars.  I wanted to stick to the metallic theme of this card, so my artistic license extends to creating gold stars.  :-)

Please feel free to use this code, HollyFan10, to save 10% when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  You will find hundreds of wonderful stencils in the store as well as the very first new stamp set.  If you are finding it hard to decide which scenic stencils to pick, just use the new Master Creator Bundle button to select all of them.  It's a fantastic bargain!

 

Textured Fall Hugs - DTGD2021

Good morning, friends!  I'm back with another card I created for one of the Dare to Get Dirty challenges.  Today is the second day of DTGD, and there's seven new challenges posted this morning for y'all.  I made this card for Misti's challenge (Scraperwannabe), and I had so much fun with this one.

I can't tell you what the actual challenge is, but I can tell you what I did to create this card.  I started with the Skeleton Leaf stencil from A Colorful Life Designs and I placed it onto some white cardstock.  I taped off the edges so I wouldn't smear anything on the card past the stencil.  Then I spread some Paper Glaze (Picket Fence Studios) over this stencil.  I used one of their new ombre sets called Pumpkin Spices - a fun autumnal mixture of greenish brown, orange-red, and a creamy yellow.  I took the stencil off and let the leaf glaze dry completely.  Then I put the stencil back over the leaf and taped over the entire stencil so the only part showing was the rest of the paper beyond the stencil.  

I wanted to try something new for the "background" beyond the leaf, so I dotted some gold Paper Glaze all around the leaf.  Then I spread some brown Paper Glaze next to the gold glaze.  After I spread the two glazes to cover the paper, I smacked the wet glazes with my palette knife.  Yup, smacked!  I just pressed the knife onto the glazes and lifted straight up - very quickly and randomly.  Smack smack smack!  This created the most awesome texture!  I love it!!!

I carefully peeled the stencil off the paper and let the whole piece dry completely.  Then I sprayed the entire piece with some gold Perfect Pearls Mist (Ranger) and let that dry.  The mica spray settled into the nooks and crannies of this card, making this card super shimmery.  I couldn't bear to cover anything up, so I added the fall sentiment (Honey Bee Stamps) right on top of the leaf.

I hope you'll play along with the Dare to Get Dirty challenges!  There's still five more days of challenges ahead and lots of inspiration for you.  

Use code HollyFan10 when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  You can pick up this Skeleton Leaf stencil as well as the new scenic stencils that were just released last week.  Have fun!

White Christmas Poinsettia - DTGD2021

 If you are a long-time member of SCS (SplitCoastStampers), you may be aware that today is the first day of the Dare to Get Dirty challenges.  Every year, the Dirty Girls host a week-long festival of challenges for all the members.  The challenges are a varied mixture of techniques, sketches, color combos, or themes and there are 4 or 5 or more challenges every day.  It is one of the most intense and most fun weeks of the year!

The card I created above is for Kittie's DTGD challenge today.  I can't reveal what the actual challenge is, as you will need to be a Fan Club member to see it.  If you would like to become a Fan Club member and play along with us this week, head on over to SCS and sign up HERE.

I used some dies from Rubbernecker Stamps for the poinsettia and the leaves/foliage, and the sentiment stamp and die are from Honey Bee Stamps.  That gorgeous paper in the background is from Wild Rose Studio - their Painted Poinsettias collection.  I actually cut a paper from my stash that I've been hoarding!!  LOL

Beyond the Blue #27 - Gesso Resist Birthday

 Good morning, friends!  There is a fun new challenge up on the Beyond the Blue blog today and this is the card that I created for it.  The challenge for this week is any kind of resist technique.  I decided to try something new - gesso resist.  

I placed the Tic Tac Toe Mask stencil from A Colorful Life Designs down on my white cardstock and brushed some white gesso over it.  After the gesso dried, I sponged on some blue, teal, and green inks.  The gesso squares don't really give off that bright white like you see with emboss resist.  It's a softer, grungier kind of resist.  It's perfect for a masculine card like this one.  Now I have a fun and easy way to make some quick cards for the men in my life!

If you'd like to get this Tic Tac Toe Mask stencil, please feel free to use this code, HollyFan10, so you can save 10% when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  You can also pick up the new scenic stencils that I've been sharing with y'all this week.  :-)

The balloon die that I used is from Frantic Stamper and the Birthday Dies are from Concord and 9th.  Wanna play along with our resist technique challenge?  Head on over to the Beyond the Blue blog and share your creations in the linky widget.  Have a great weekend!

How Wild Is Nature

Good morning, friends!  Today I am sharing another scenic landscape using new stencils from A Colorful Life Designs.  I'm completely head over heels in love with all the new scenic stencils this month.  On this card today, I used three of these new stencils - Canyon Edger 1, Canyon Edger 2, and Tree Line Edger 5.  

I started by placing the top half of Canyon Edger 1 stencil onto my white cardstock.  I then brushed on some soft brown ink by starting on the stencil and moving the brush down onto the paper.  I let the color fade naturally where my brush stroke ended.  I then placed Canyon Edger 2 over where I inked the brown areas and brushed some rust ink in the same downward motion.  Lastly, I placed the Tree Line Edger 5 stencil below the rust-colored areas and brushed some dark blue ink all across the bottom.  I used this same dark blue ink to stamp the sentiment from Stampscapes at the top.

As you play with these stencils, you will get a feel for how much ink you want to put down and how many scenic layers you want to add.  It's a very fun process to mix and match and see what happens.  Please feel free to use this code, HollyFan10, when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  You will save 10% off your entire order.  I can't wait to see what you create with these new stencils!

 

Pace of Nature

 Good morning!  Have you seen the new scenic stencils from A Colorful Life Designs?  They are so cool!  There's everything from mountains to grass to canyons to hills to underwater reefs.  The possibilities are endless when it comes to creating your own scenes and landscapes.

On my card today, I've used three of the new Mountain Edger stencils and just one color of blue ink.  I started by very lightly brushing the blue ink over the Mountain Edger 2 stencil.  Then I brushed a little more blue ink over the Mountain Edger 3 stencil.  Finally, I placed the Mountain Edger 1 stencil below the first two mountains and brushed a heavy application of the blue ink over that.

I love this monochromatic look with these mountain stencils.  You can create as many layers as you want and never make the same card twice.  A simple shift left or right or up or down and you have a completely different look. 

There is a great new option for purchasing the entire release from A Colorful Life Designs called the Master Creator Bundle.  You can get all 34 stencils at 20% off.  

As always, you can use my code, HollyFan10, to save 10% when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  There are hundreds of stencils in the store, so settle in with your favorite drink and have fun shopping!

Edited to add: I've had a few questions about the sentiment stamp. The sentiment is from Stampscapes.

Forest Floor in Watercolor

Remember my Forest Floor card that I posted yesterday?  It was a very simple card stamped with green ink which showed off the incredible detail of this gorgeous Forest Floor stamp from Technique Junkies.  Today I'm sharing this same Forest Floor but this time I've watercolored it.  I stamped this with a permanent brown ink and pulled out my brushes and watercolor paints.  I had fun with this process of painting, letting it dry, painting some more, letting it dry, and adding final details here and there.  I love it when I become so involved in painting that I lose track of time.  :-)

Please feel free to check out all the great new stamps from Technique Junkies.  All of the new release stamps are on sale at 15% off through August 8.  You can use my code, TJ10Holly, to save 10% off everything else.  

Change Your Altitude

 

Good morning, friends!  I have some exciting news to share with y'all today.  A Colorful Life Designs is now creating stamps to go with their amazing stencils!!!  How great is that?  That sentiment on my stenciled card above is one of the awesome new sentiments from A Colorful Life Designs.

This month is all about landscapes and scenes, and there are a bunch of great new scenic stencils available today.  I used five of them on this card along with Altitude, the new clear stamp set.  I used two green inks, starting with a pale green ink at the top and getting progressively darker as I worked my way down.  I used five different Tree Line Edger stencils - 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6.  I used the dark green ink to stamp the sentiment from the new Altitude stamp set.  Then I finished off the card with a strip of dark green cardstock and a tiny strip of gold washi tape.

I confess, I'm in love with these stencils!  It's so fun to mix and match and get a different result every time.  If you are like me and you NEEEED alllllllll of these, you can click on the Master Creator Bundle for August.  You will get all of the August stencils (34 total) at 20% off for only $185.33.  

Be sure to use my code, HollyFan10, when you shop at A Colorful Life Designs.  You will save 10% off your order and you can grab the new Altitude stamp set along with a cart full of stencils.  Happy Shopping!

Technique Junkies August 2021 release

Happy August 2021 Release Day!

We have new stamps and stencils in the Technique Junkies line!

All of the August 2021 New Release stamps are 15% off through August 8th. We can all use a little bargain, right? No codes needed, just put them in your shopping cart and the discount will be applied at checkout.

You can save 10% off everything else in the store by using my code,TJ10Holly. Stock up on Shimmering Bliss sprays, stamps, and stencils while you are ordering the new release stamps.

For my first card today, I used the beautiful new Lavender Collage stamp with a sentiment from the In Full Bloom set (previously released).  I stamped the Lavender Collage with a soft purple ink and then I brushed on blue and purple inks.

For my second card, I used the Lighthouse on Cliff stamp.  I stamped it with Versamark, covered it with white embossing powder, and melted the powder.  I did the same with the sentiment which is from the Lighthouse Sentiments set (previously released).

My third card today uses the new Forest Floor stamp.  This stamp has some amazing detail!  I simply stamped it with a green ink and lightly brushed the same green ink around the edges.  That detail just makes me swoon!  The sentiment is from the Dream Hope Wish Wonder set (previously released).

 Looking for more inspiration?  Check out what my fellow designers have created with these stamps.

TJ Blog

Pam Stang

Erin Short

Holly Brown

Patti Gilliam

Beth Norman-Roberts

Pat Huntoon

Tracy Schultz

Be sure to use this code, TJ10Holly, when you shop at Technique Junkies.  You can get stamps, stencils, Shimmering Bliss sprays, foils, and Distress Oxide inks all in one trip.  Have a wonderful week!!