CAS Watercolour July 2018 Reminder - SPLASH Technique

Hello friends.  Just a friendly reminder that the CAS Watercolour challenge is open till the 24th and we'd love to see YOU in the gallery!

This months challenge is all about using the SPLASH watercolour technique for your backgrounds and Loll has a FABULOUS video (HERE) to show you just how easy it is!

I used a couple new SU! colors of ink (Soft Seafoam & Highland Heather) to create my background, and I wasn't too sure I liked it at first, but after I finished my card it really grew on me!  Take a look:

Once my background was dry, I used my MISTI to stamp (multiple times!!!) my Impression Obsession image of the birds on the tree branch (F16147).

I matted this layer to a black layer to frame it, and then added to a white card base that I had also added a white diecut from Tim Holtz's Mixed Media set.  My sentiment from PTI finished off my card.

The DT has some more great cards to inspire you with the SPLASH technique that you can find HERE, along with another lovely card from our Special Guest Marcia K too.  So check it all out and then play along with us...we LOVE it when you do!!  :0)

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas July 2018 - POINSETTIA (#2)

Hello friends.  Just a quick post today playing along with CAS Christmas AGAIN with their Poinsettia challenge!  I have a lot of fun and pretty Poinsettia stamps and dies, and just really wanted to make another Christmas card!

One of my favorite Christmas stamp sets is Avery Elle's Holiday Bouquet which has a beautiful Poinsettia bouquet.

I embossed the bouquet in black and then used my Zigs to water color the flowers, leaves, and berries.  I used red & orange and blended them together for the flowers and really like the peachy pink color I got...maybe not too realistic, but I remember last Christmas being blown away by all the different colored Poinsettia's out there!!  My sentiment is a favorite from Penny Black's Rejoice With Joy set.

This challenge is open till the 24th, so check out all the GORGEOUS cards from the DT (and in the gallery) and play along right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Make It Monday #328 - Creating Shadow Backgrounds

Hello friends.  This week Laurie is hosting the Make It Monday challenge and shows us how to create shadow backgrounds.  You can check out her beautiful cards and video HERE.

I have 2 cards to share today, but not because the process went so smoothly that I decided to create another card.  I loved Laurie's card with the Weathervane gray cardstock and so that's where I started, but after multiple attempts I only came up with a card that was ok...not terrible, but just ok.

I like the background because I really like the color Weathervane and I really like that butterfly from Butterfly Blooms.  That was my sticking point though where I just couldn't seem to come up with anything that looked good over the background.  I stamped so many of the smaller butterflies from the A Bit More: Butterfly Blooms set in different colors and even embossed with silver on vellum, but nothing looked right to me...grrrr!  I know I'm my own worst critic, and it isn't a terrible card, but...

So I played again, this time with The Sweet Life and am much happier with the end result!

This time I made my background using Fine Linen ink and the roses and leaves from The Sweet Life stamp set along the bottom and up the left hand side of my white panel.

I stamped my sentiment at this point so I would know exactly where to put my colored flower and leaves.

I used Berry Sorbet and Pale Peony inks for my rose and then fussy cut it out and pop dotted it to the panel and tucked my leaves in underneath.  After adhering to a Berry Sorbet card base, I added a piece of jute and then finished up with a few clear sequins.  I was much happier with the way this card came out!!

Make sure you check out Laurie's beautiful cards and video and all the lovely cards already in the gallery, and then play along right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas July 2018 - Poinsettia

Hello friends.  The challenge this month at CAS Christmas is to use a Poinsettia on your Christmas card.

I used a Gina Marie Designs die for my Poinsettia and came up with this:

I water colored my cardstock first using two shades of red from my Kuretake Gansai Tambi paints, and then die cut the Poinsettia twice...once from the water colored cardstock and once from gold mirror cardstock.  I also used 3 shades of green (Mossy Meadow, Tranquil Tide, & Old Olive) with Loll's Splash Watercolour Technique and die cut my leaves from that.  (Gina Marie Designs & TH Holiday Greens)

Loll had also made a set of BEAUTIFUL cards (HERE) where she wanted to use up some DSP, so I figured if she could make CAS look that pretty with DSP and still keep it CAS, then I was going to try it too...so I added a strip of PTI's Pure Poppy Bitty Big DSP to the side of my card and I really like the extra pop of red it gives my card!  My sentiment is from an older PTI set called Christmas Blessings and I just love the font on this!

I have quite a few Poinsettia stamps and dies, so I might just have to play in this challenge again!  It's open till the 24th, so check out all the GORGEOUS cards from the DT and then play along right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Color Throwdown Challenge #500

Hello friends.  This week's Color Throwdown challenge is an elegant one, and very fitting considering it's their 500th Challenge!!

I kept my Navy, Blush, Gold, and White card very CAS, just like the inspiration photo.

I started by embossing in gold PTI's Cover Up: Grid on TH water color cs and then water colored with Kuretake Gansai Tambi Deep Blue.  Once dry I layered on a white panel that I die cut with MFT's Peek-A-Boo Rectangle Die, and then added my flower that I embossed in gold and then water colored with Sweet Blush ink.  (The flower is from PTI's Vintage Linens)

I finished by adding my sentiment from PTI's Winter Woods stamp set and also adding a few gold sequins.

Check out all the BEAUTIFUL cards from the DT right HERE, and then play along!

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

Make It Monday #327 - Ombre Watercolor Backgrounds

Hello friends.  This week Betsy has a fun and easy technique to share showing how to make an ombre watercolored background for the Make It Monday challenge.

This technique was so easy and fun that I actually have a "twofer" for you today!  My first card uses one of the leaf stamps from Humming Along.

I followed Betsy's easy instructions and blended my medium color first (Autumn Rose) and then went over it with Scarlet Jewel, followed by dragging my wet (but not too wet!) wide and flat brush down my panel, creating the ombre effect.  Once dry I added my leaves from Humming Along around the edges and then added my sentiment from Year Of Psalms: March.

At this point I stamped the Humming birds from the Humming Along set, but just could not get them to fit on the card.  I think if I had stamped the sentiment lower, then the hummers would have worked on the card, but....  I still felt like it needed something though, so I went to my favorite bird set Brushed Birds and used the same colors and it worked!!

For my 2nd card I finally got out my new Salt Air: Flora and Salt Air: Fauna sets and played...I think these are going to be well loved sets!!

Used the same technique for my background with Ocean Tides, Hawaiian Shores, & Aqua Mist inks, and then flipped it upside down before starting to add my Flora.  I thought Betsy's Year Of Psalms: January set was perfect for this card as all the beautiful creatures of the sea were made by Him too!

I would have liked to add one of everything from the Fauna set, but held myself back so as not to detract from the background and sentiment.  A few Rainstones finished off this card.

This is definitely a technique I will use again!!  Make sure you check out Betsy's video and BEAUTIFUL cards right HERE, and then play along...fun, fun, FUN!!

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Watercolour July 2018 - SPLASH Watercolouring

Hello friends.  This months challenge at CAS Watercolour is all about using the SPLASH watercolour technique and Loll has a FABULOUS video HERE to show you just how easy it is!

I used one of my favorite color combinations of pink and orange to create my SPLASH water colored backgrounds and came up with this:

I love how soft and pretty this came out!  I actually did 3 layers, drying between each one.  I started with Worn Lipstick Distress Ink, then Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink, and then a very small layer of Picked Raspberry Distress ink.  Once my layers were completely dry, I embossed with white my new PTI stamp called Cover Up: Grid...I love the look it gave my background!  Here's a closer up:

Next I used an AliExpress die to diecut my rectangle frame with the torn look edges, and then added a white flower die cut (also from AliExpress).  I finished with a simple embossed sentiment on a black strip and an enamel dot.

Make sure you check out Loll's video (HERE), and all the inspiration from the DT (HERE), and our special Guest Designer Marcia K.  This challenge is open till the 24th...we can't wait to see YOU in the gallery!!

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!