Stamping on Tissue Paper with Flourishes Kids Play stamp

Not quite sure where I saw the technique of stamping on tissue paper but it is really quick and easy to do plus I get to use stamps which usually sit in my drawer.

I have a stock of tissue paper from flowers DH buys for me and for this card I chose white.  I then crinkled it up and flattened it out again.  Using black Ranger Archival ink (I love that range) I stamped the image onto the tissue paper.  The tissue paper is then glued onto cardstock which must be smaller than the size of the tissue paper.  Using a glue stick (I used Pritt) generously cover the cardstock and then lay the tissue paper on top of it.  Tidy it up by folding the tissue paper to the back of the cardstock and glue down.

For the balance of the card I matted the tissue paper cardstock, which was white, onto black paper after wrapping a SU Certainly Celery ribbon around it.  Using a piece of SU Certainly Celery card embossed with the SU Square Lattice folder I then popped it all onto a white card.  The sentiment is from the same Flourishes set punched out with a retired SU punch and layered onto a Clear Dollar Tabs & Tags die.

Envelope Gift Bag

This is a project I saw Angie from Chic 'n Scratch do so I thought I would give it a go.  I had trouble finding the right sized envelope then wondered what I could fit in it.  What I did find was what I believe to be an A5 sized envelope (230 x 160mm) which worked really well. 

This is a really quick and easy project and it pays to watch the video Angie has made.  As my envelope was way too big to emboss I covered the front and back with paper instead.

The great thing about the size of this envelope is it comfortably fits 4 normal sized cards & envelopes in see through bags.  This makes a super thank you gift.

CRICUT - SPRING COLLECTION CARTRIDGE

I was curious to see how the Cricut cut this image out and when it did I thought it looked way too plain.  I then experimented with a variety of different Distress inks and the die cut sat on my desk for quite a while with me thinking I would eventually toss it out.

When I was digging around in my selection of Hero Arts stamps I came across a patterned cling one which had potential so I used it diamond shape.  I then embossed the die cut with a CB folder and sanded the corners off.  The green paper is CM and the script on the yellow paper is from a SU stamp called En Français.  The edges of the card, which opens up in the centre, have been distressed and sponged with Rusty Hinge Distress Ink to finish it off.  The card opens up like this :

Excuse the shadows but the sun was really bright when I took the photo.  Enough of the hot weather, roll on the cold and rainy days of winter !

BOX - CRICUT - SPRING COLLECTION CARTRIDGE

When I had my Cricut out I found this cute box.  The size is such that it would fit small cards (half the normal sized cards) which I think would make a rather good Thank You gift.

I am using American Craft 65lb weight cardstock in the Cricut with great success and thought I would experiment with this colour - not one I am particularly fond of.  The Cricut does cut out the four corners which makes it so easy to co-ordinate matching paper, in this case CM, and tuck the paper into place.  The sentiment is one from CB, the flower is from my stash as are the pearls and the leaves are from one of my many punches.

Apologies for being vague on the names of the products I use but my computer is upstairs and my craft desk and storage area is downstairs.  Normally that would not be a problem as I would run downstairs to have a look, but I have a broken foot (the second in 2 years) and find it difficult to get up and down the stairs with the moonboot and crutches.

BILDMALARNA - MIMOSA'S BOOK

When I saw Bildmalarna stamps being offered at 7 Kids College Fund I was delighted.  This little cutie was stamped onto X-Press It paper using Momento Black ink and coloured in with Copics.

I recently watched a couple of videos made by Suzanne Dean from Scrap Bitz (the Queen of Copic colouring)  and tried her 'flicking' technique which, I think, worked rather well on this stamp.  I do find having a larger area to colour in on a stamp helps a lot with Copics.  For the smaller, more detailed stamps I tend to use either blending pens in conjunction with markers or an aqua brush and Distress Inks.

The embossed frame on the green cardstock is a Cuttlebug one.  The spray of flowers was lying on my desk and literally fell onto the card as I was working on it, so I really do not have any idea where it came from or how long it has been on the desk.  You do not want to see the state of my craft desk!

PEACHY KEEN - COTTAGE CUTZ - COW PEEKER

Yes, I know, another cow, but at least I got the colouring on this one right !  The package came with ideas so all I had to do was copy.  I just love the end result when you mix Peachy Keen stamps with Cottage Cutz dies.

The star die is a Marianne D one, bought from Bunny-Zoe's Crafts online and in my stash I found a red circle which fitted underneath the die perfectly.  I used small CB embossing folders on either side and a Fiskars ribbon border punch at the bottom.  The ribbon was bought from Simply Creative here in Cape Town and I think the sentiment is from Hero Arts.

SHEENA DOUGLASS - A LITTLE BIT SKETCHY - MILESTONES AND MOMENTS

This was the first of the two Sheena Douglass stamps which I tried out and I did not quite get the knack of the stamp on my first try.  This often happens to me as my hands are not strong and I struggle to apply pressure to most stamps.  Anyway, I decided not to toss it out and thought I would have a bash at colouring it in.  Turns out I was happy enough with the end result to pop it onto a card.

For the whole stamp I used Distress Inks and an aqua brush.  As I had used watercolour paper it was no problem to use the aqua brush.  The stamp set is a bit like Popcorn the Bear sets in that it comes with a small 4 page booklet complete with a coloured in version of the stamp and 2 card ideas.  It does not get any easier than that !

STEMPELGLEDE - GRUNGE ORNAMENTAL CIRCLE

Am I the only one who finds it difficult to make a male 21st birthday card ?  When I ordered this stamp from Bunny Zoe's Crafts I thought it had potential for a quick yet elegant card.  What I did not know was just how quickly I was going to find a use for it.

Using the same cardstock I used for the white card, I stamped the image using Archival Ink Maroon, cut out the numbers from a CB die in white and inked it with the same maroon ink, edged the bottom with a new MS border punch I bought locally and backed it all onto a maroon piece of cardstock.

I think I am going to get a lot of use out of this stamp as it would even suit Xmas cards.

CRICUT - CREATE-A-CRITTER CARTRIDGE

I wanted to try out the Create-a-Critter cartridge and thought this little chap was quite cute.

Before assembling the panda, which is really easy put together, I sponged some of the parts with Distress Inks.  I found the background paper in my stash and the sentiment is from a Hero Arts set.

PENNY BLACK - JOIE DE VIVRE

This wooden stamp has been sitting on my craft table unused for around 6 months.  When I came across a new technique (for me anyway) on Splitcoast stampers called Out of the Box with Nestabilities  I knew I had just the right stamp to experiment with.

I used watercolour paper to stamp the image on and coloured it in using Distress Inks and an aqua brush.

The sentiment is Popcorn the Bear cut with a SU large oval, the blue cogs are from a SU punch and the red border is a SU Bigz XL die.

SHEENA DOUGLASS - A LITTLE BIT SKETCHY STAMP SET - CHEERS

The two Sheena Douglass stamp sets I bought recently have been a real treat to colour in.  I made this card for a male friend's birthday and it was a hit.

I stamped the image on watercolour paper and coloured in the finer details with a mixture of SU, Tombow and Marvy Le Plume II markers.  For the larger areas I used Distress Inks and an aqua brush.  The stamp is not at all hard to colour in and I know I will be using this one a lot for those difficult male cards.

The photo corner punch is an EK Success one, the sentiment comes with the set and I used a Clear Dollar die called Designer Labels to cut it out.  I was not happy with the sentiment being on white cardstock so sponged it with Tea Dye Distress Ink.  With the watercolour paper being slightly off white I did use Antique Linen Distress Ink around the edges of the white card just to match the two up.

MARIJ RAHDER - SUZY 3

There are certain stamp sets that have an instant appeal and this is one of them.  The images are easy to ink up and stamp and with the larger areas (they are big stamps), they are quick and easy to colour in.

DH was not certain what type the bird was and after a long discussion I thought it safer to leave it white with tinges of grey.  Suzy was coloured in using Copics with her dress being paper pieced.  The foliage behind them is from a stamp bought in Australia - Outlines Solid Grass, the grass is done with Distress Inks and Art Impressions stamps with the fence being from a MS border punch.

The label is from a SU die, the button brads from my stash and the sentiment is a Gina K Designs one from the set Spring has Sprung.         

COTTAGE CUTZ - DUCK W/UMBRELLA

Chatting to a colleague earlier in the week, she mentioned how she crafted on the weekend using duck images, well Adi, here is my little ducky.  I am loving the CottageCutz dies and when I went onto the Scrapping Cottage site to get the name of the duck for the title I found some new dies which are so cute.

The die was popped onto a smaller Nestabilities Labels 15 die, then I layered a larger one behind it.  The unusual yellow die behind is Marianne D Creatable Frame.  The sentiment is a SU one as is the scalloped oval.  Buttons and patterned paper are from my stash.