For my cousin...

If you knew my cousin, you'd know that she's one of the most vibrant people alive. Always with a funny story (usually a hysterical story!) or a joke. She's having a hard time right now, and I want her to know that I'm keeping her in my thoughts. So this one, Jess, is for you!
I wanted this lovely digi (from A Day for Daisies) to look like you were seeing her through the trees. And since the trees that I have didn't look right, I used this fabulous background stamp from Hero Arts.
First I printed the digi on regular cardstock, but when that proved to be difficult to work with I figured out how to print on a small piece of watercolor paper. Once that was printed (and dried overnight) I started painting it with a water brush and some Distress Ink. First I coated it with Stormy Skies - being careful not to get water/ink inside the digi - then I went over the bottom portion with Chipped Sapphire. It was an accident that I pulled the Chipped Sapphire up in a circular motion - but I thought it looked like those nights when you can see a sliver of the moon and a faint impression of the whole thing.
The digi itself was colored using pencils on her hair (no OMS, I didn't know how well it would work on w/c paper & didn't want to try it with this one), a mix of red and white perfect pearls on her wings, silver pen on her dress and white smooch over the moon.
The background image was stamped on regular cardstock (several times - I kept smudging it!) with black VersaFine. I cut the digi image out using a nestie, then placed over the stamped background where I wanted it to be and stamped again (so you could see the plants over the moon). Then I used a light touch with a pencil and traced around the circle before moving it. I used the foam pads with the same colors of Distress ink to color the main panel, then set it aside to dry.
Once dry, I cut the hole in the main panel and edged it with the same silver pen I used on her dress. Used the corner chomper on the corners and stamped the sentiment in Platinum Planet (Brilliance). (oh, and added the tiniest bit of Dusty Concord to the bottom edge - just cause I could!) Finally, I centered the digi image, popped up the main panel, mounted the whole shebang on a black base and Voila!
(in reality, I had to do the main panel at least four times and the digi at least as many to get a mostly smudge free card. this actually took me almost a week!) (at least I love it, right?!)
Thanks for dropping by!

Now I'm in a coloring mood....

You may have noticed (or not!) that I've added a widget to the side of my blog. It's for a place called CDAC - Crafters Digital Art Center - and it has an amazing array of goodies for the digital stamper. I'm no purist, if I love the image I'll use it, but digital stamps are something of a different proposition. :) Coloring them can be difficult! But, if you go poke around on CDAC you'll find lots of information about, well, just about everything digi related.
I find using colored pencils (and sometimes markers) to be the easiest way to color these printed 'stamps'. Now, I'm no expert! I've spent a lot of time studying the different posts that Marianne Walker has done on coloring. My coloring has improved significantly since I found her - and she certainly inspires me to try new things.
In the spirit of finding CDAC and getting caught up in digis, I used a lovely freebie from Mo Manning for this card. Isn't it the sweetest image? :)
I printed the image on regular white card stock. After it dried overnight (sometimes I hit it with a heat gun - otherwise it tends to smear when using OMS) I started coloring with pencils. Mostly I used my favorite Lyra Polycolor pencils, but I did have to fill in some of the colors with Prismacolors also. I did a lot of blending with OMS (odorless mineral spirits) and a lot of adding more layers of pencil in order to get the depth of color I wanted. After I finished coloring the image, I went around the outside using a warm gray Copic marker (see, Marianne ROCKS!) to give some dimension. I then cut and embossed with a circle nestie.
The base card is one of the precut letterpress papers you see all over (for use with the Epic Six & letterpress kit). Let me tell you - it takes embossing from a folder like a dream! :) This card was embossed using the Cuttlebug folder (twigs?) and then lightly brushed with Antique Linen to show the embossing. Since that wasn't enough for me - I also went over the raised portions with a clear Spica pen too - even though you can't see it! You also can't see the tiny bit of Smooch in the main image - the hearts and some streaks in the straw - but the lighting was all wrong today (storm a comin' - snow tomorrow?). The ribbon was just folded back on itself using (an indecent amount of) Scor Tape.
Soft and sweet. And it makes me happy! :)
Thanks for dropping by!

It's not another book...

But it is another image from A Day for Daisies! :)
This one is called Skirt of Flowers - isn't it lovely? Sorry the picture isn't all that great. Between the shimmery paper and the white smooch ink I thought the camera was going to have a nervous breakdown! Even post processing didn't help that much! :)
I actually started with a completely different card in mind, but as you all know, detours abound in the cardmaking world.
I started by printing the image on regular white cardstock & cutting it out with a nestie. Once she was colored (with Copics and colored pencils) I got a little carried away with coloring the background... it just ended up looking dirty. So, I cut her out! :) NOT my favorite thing to do - but I really loved the way she was colored and didn't want to scrap it.
The oval paper is from Reminisce and was cut with a nestie. The image is adhered on top and then lightly outlined with a warm gray copic for dimension. I loved the shimmery paper so much that I pulled out some white Smooch and added some touches to the dress and hair. It actually works quite well over pencil!
The background paper is Basic Grey; the corner punch is from Martha Stewart. Can you see some shimmer around those edges? I used the clear glitter pen from Sakura - both around the edges of the BG paper and on the lines of her dress. IRL this is one shimmery, sparkly card! :)
Thanks for dropping by!

Another book cover

Apparently I'm in a 'mood'. Do you do that? Create the same type of project in bursts? I seem to go through phases - this time it's notebooks! :)
I don't really do very much with digital stamps, although I have some, mostly because printer ink doesn't seem to go very well with my usual coloring methods. There are some images that I make an exception for - this is where I got the one I used for today's post. Aren't they gorgeous?! Love them! (and I can blame Mel for it since she's such an enabler!)
This notebook also started life as a cheap purchase (dollar bin at Michaels anyone?). Have I mentioned that I'm also in a brown phase? I bought a roll of luscious brown wrapping paper at the Container Store recently and *needed* to use it for something more lasting than wrapping boxes.
I started by prying off the covers - careful not to bend the spiral coil - and covered them with the wrapping paper & PVA glue. Unfortunately I don't have any sort of punch to make the holes look good after covering so they look much better on the outside. After gluing the paper to the front, I take a sharp knife and make three cuts in each hole. (both long sides & in the middle) Then add a little more PVA with a small brush and fold each half down into the hole with an orange stick (or whatever fits). This is *very* patience-testing work! (hence, the inside does NOT look as good as the outside)
I printed the Wind In My Hair stamp onto regular white card stock (I tried better/thicker stock and it just jammed up the printer. *sigh*) then trimmed to an appropriate size for the cover. She is mostly colored with pencil and Distress Ink but there is also a touch of Copic marker. I've been trying very hard to increase my skill with pencil - I'm pretty thrilled with the results! DI was applied with a water brush for the background (sky and ground).
Once that was all dry I roughed up the edges and applied some yellow DI to the edges. The background paper is from Basic Grey - also roughed up & edged with DI. I used Matte Mod Podge to glue both pieces to the cover and give a little protection. (note: do NOT turn a wet piece upside down - even for just a moment - and think it will all be ok! It won't!) Since that altered the brown wrapping paper a little, I covered both sides with Mod Podge as well (on both covers).
I added the flower to echo the flowers she's holding in her dress. All three flowers were colored with DI and a tiny bit of Smooch, then coated with Mod Podge as well. Except the dew drop! :)
I think I have the perfect person to send this to.... And perhaps she'll forgive me for not working too hard on the Ami's. But when the muse strikes..... :D
Thanks for dropping by!

The crafty post!

Ok, so technically it's not Tuesday anymore. But it *is* just barely Wednesday - does that count? :)
I thought this book deserved it's own post (and I didn't know if I could fit this pic in with the last post!). It's something I've done a few of - actually they're pretty easy to do once you get the hang of it.
Isn't it lovely? :)
This started out as a plain notebook from Target (clearance, even!). I started by prying apart the binding and slipping both covers off. Once I chose my yarn (yes, yarn - it's actually called ribbon yarn and is getting *much* harder to find these days) I was ready to wrap.
If you choose to wrap a notebook like this there are a few tips that I can give you. Before anything else, decide if the area where the binding goes looks ok - paint, sharpie, ink or otherwise color it to look good. Measure enough yarn to wrap the right edge of the cover - I used red liner tape on the edge & folded my yarn in half. This will completely cover the edge and make for a nicer finish. Apply whatever adhesive you choose to use (this was a combo of red liner tape, xyron & Fabri-Tac) to both sides of the cover and start wrapping from the bound edge. The first wrap will have to completely overlap your leading edge, but after that you can wrap overlapping 1/2 to 1/3 of the preceding edge. I chose to cover the corners of this book with metal findings from Tim Holtz, but with a little forethought you can make that last edge look professional enough to escape notice. :) If you (or the intended recipient) will be dropping this in a purse from time to time you may want to use some Fabric Tac and nail down some of the edges. Otherwise the yarn may get pulled out of whack and look bad. If you're just using it at home, don't bother!
As I said, I used some Tim Holtz book corners in a sort of antique-y gold color. To match the feel of them I matted the main panel with a piece of gold card stock that was embossed with a cuttlebug embossing folder and punched with a Martha Stewart corner punch.
The main panel is a stamp from Lost Coast Designs. I stamped it with black VersaFine on a piece of letterpress card. Yes, I bought some letterpress card - even though I don't have anything else related! :) Thick, luscious paper! I had to use a *very* light touch with the water brush - it is NOT built like watercolor paper. I used a couple of different Distress Inks to color the columns, her wings and the 'sky', but the woman is done with colored pencil. After it dried I gave it a quick coat of Matte Mod Podge for protection.
Thanks for dropping by!

Settle in, it's going to be a long post!

If you're like me you're always searching for a better way to organize your stuff. If you have perfect organization skills, then this post is *not* for you! :)
Most recently I've been needing a better storage solution for my Cuttlebug stuff. Back when I didn't have very many dies/embossing plates/nesties I decorated a box and used that. While pretty, it wasn't easy to find what I was looking for - and we all know that means - you don't *use* it! My nesties outgrew the box and, for a while, I kept them in a small photo holder (cheap at Target, just one of those 4x6 plastic jobs). It worked as long as I didn't buy any of the larger sizes dies - yeah, the tall nesties and the embossing plates didn't fit at all.
Enter Office Max.
Or maybe I should say *I* entered Office Max! :)
While we were there a couple of weeks ago I picked up a package of these three pocket page protectors. While I'm sure that plenty of people have tried page protectors - these are different. They're thick, really thick. You can't really tell from their picture, but these are constructed a little differently than you might think. The front pocket is about 4 1/2" deep, the second (middle) pocket is about 8 1/2" deep. The third pocket is 11" - imagine a page protector with two pockets, then add another sheet of the plastic to the back to create another full page size protector on the back side. Am I explaining this well enough? :) Anyway, that back sheet is important - trust me!
So I brought the package home and brainstormed how I could 'fix' them to be perfect.
You'll need a hot knife (Don't have one? Go *get* one! You rarely need it, but it's irreplaceable when the occasion arises) with a melting edge instead of a knife edge, a metal ruler, an x-acto knife, a cutting mat and a piece of cereal box (I used the backing from one of the Cuttlebug embossing folders). I used a magnetic cutting mat, which made working with that slick material much easier, but you can use whatever you have.
It isn't easy to see, but if you look closely you can see that my hand is in the front pocket and the cuttlebug piece is in the last pocket. That faint line across where the top of the cuttlebug piece is - that is the top of the middle pocket. You can also see that this stuff is translucent, but *not* transparent. That should give you an idea of how thick and sturdy this stuff really is.
I measured my embossing folders and decided that my middle pocket should start at the same height as the top of the first pocket. Once the measurements were done I lined everything up on the cutting mat. I inserted the board piece in the third pocket. That's very important. You want to use the hot knife to melt the two middle pieces together, but you *don't* want to melt into the final sheet of plastic.
So, insert the board into the third pocket, line up the ruler and start melting! :) No need to go all the way from one side to the other. Embossing folders are wide enough that they won't fall through if you leave a half inch on either end. We did have a couple of missteps, nothing major (yes, DH helped a lot). Make sure to leave plenty of space above the bottom pocket edge before sealing (I sealed more than one pocket shut before figuring that out) about a quarter of an inch seemed to be perfect. If you do seal one shut just insert the x-acto knife into the open edge of the bottom pocket (with the blade facing up toward the top of the page) and gently slice open.
Here you can see my hand in the newly created middle pocket. The board piece is still in the back pocket. I wish I had thought to add something to the front pocket - but you'll just have to trust that I didn't seal it shut! :) I think the most important thing to note here is that the third pocket is still undamaged. It's not only helping the structural integrity, I could make more pockets on the back if I needed to.

Whew! Are you bored yet?We're almost done ! :D

Dh helped me figure out exactly what to do to make four pockets on the front (for smaller dies). If you decide to do this (and you need help) let me know and I'll try to explain the process. It's very similar - you just have to be careful where you put the board when cutting and melting. Here are some pictures of what it looks like now:
The embossing folders fit beautifully side by side. The best part is that their weight doesn't cause even a little sag. Excellent for putting in a three ring binder (this is a 3" binder - it barely fit all my stuff!).
Here you can see what the quad pocket looks like when finished. It's the perfect size.
I love how this came together. Everything about this project worked beautifully. I'm here to tell you that it's not only easy - it's ridiculously easy! I'm really glad I didn't let the 'unknown' stop me. Thanks for making it easy on me husband! :)
And thank *you* for dropping by!
See ya tomorrow for a crafty post! :)

I've been MIA

Although I do have a fairly decent reason! :)
First is the new computer. If you've ever had to move all your stuff from one computer to another - you know it's never as easy as you think it will be! The networking with Win 7 is, ummm, not as clear cut as I'd like and makes it difficult when your pictures are over there and your software is over here....
Strangely enough (since it's September) we've also had a rash of wildfires in the area. Nothing too close to us but they've been very destructive. Just a little west of us was the major one, the
most destructive one in the history of the state! Ten square miles, tons of people left without homes, clothing, food. It's just awful. We actually had ash raining down on us from that one. There was another south of us, one north (and the high winds blew so much smoke toward us that it smelled like a bonfire outside our house - everyone got sore throats from that!)
and then yet another west of us. It's been unreal to see the devastation. Thankfully every single one has been contained now (if not totally out) even though the wind did *not* cooperate.
Today I am thankful for the hundred (plus) firefighters that came from all over the country to help.
Anyway.
I have a Halloween card to share, which is odd since I think this might be the first one I've ever made! :) I used a TJ technique called Splash 'n Stick from the Aug/Sept 2010 newsletter. Although I *did* change it up a little - there was no splashing. :D I like my clothes to be Alcohol Ink free!
The sticker is a laser cut sticker from Mrs. Grossman's line. All alcohol inks came from Tim (of course!). The background piece was also done on glossy with Tim's AI, then stamped with an image from Creations Unlimited. The truly deep black color is some velvet paper from Doodlebug, it's such a deep black color that it made the sticker look almost gray. Go figure! I did add some black Distress Stickles to the birds to help them stand out - they seemed to just fade into the background otherwise.
Unfortunately this is one of those cards that looks much more interesting in person. Even though I have the original - when I look on the screen I think it needs something more. I promise - IRL it's very 'done' looking! :)
Thanks for dropping by!