Penny Black - A Bright Tomorrow

This is the last Christmas card for the season.

I used a background paper from Creative Memories Candy Cane, a die cut circle from Go Kreate Circles stamped and embossed with an image from the Penny Black set A Bright Tomorrow.  The circle was then Distress inked with Festive Berries and Evergreen Bough.  The sentiment is from the same Penny Black set.

Christmas Paper bag card

 FRONT

INSIDE

 BACK

This is the 2nd paper bag card / gift card holder that I made for Christmas.  I found the idea on the Whiff of Joy blog created by Karina  where you take a rectangle shaped paper bag, tuck the bottom flap under, fold it in half and decorate.



Front -  background gold coloured paper is actually a scrap of left over wallpaper given to me by a friend.  The owl is a Cottage Cutz die called Stylzed Owl.  I altered the leaves at the end of the branch to holly and added a couple of berries.  The santa hat is from another Cottage Cutz die Santa, Down the Chimney.

Inside - the label has been in my Christmas stash box for a few years so I am not sure just where it came from.

Back - the stamp set is Penny Black Hanging Treasures die cut with Spellbinders 2011 Heirloom Ornaments.

Penny Black - Marzipan Greetings

A fun stamp set from Penny Black which I coloured in using markers, pencil crayons and a blender pen.  Dies used - Spellbinders Curved Rectangles and MFT Fishtail Flags.  The striped paper is Kaisercraft Deck the Halls.  The sentiment is from the same Penny Black stamp set.

Cottage Cutz - Festive Deer

The reindeer on this card is from the Cottage Cutz die called Festive Deer, the background die is Spellbinders Labels Ten and I am unable to locate the set the sentiment came from.  I think it might be a Penny Black one.

Peachy Keen PKSC-11 November 2012

This Peachy Keen set is very cute with a number of  different faces for the elves and reindeers.  I coloured the image in with aqua pencils and a blender pen.  The sentiment is from the same set.  The border punch used on the right hand side of the card is EK Success Plaid.

Santa down the Chimney

This card started with me trying to get an idea to use a new die I had bought - Cottage Cutz Holly Jolly Legs.  I had a left over piece from a previous card which I used for the brick fireplace.  It was embossed with Creative Expressions Brick embossing folder and darkened with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.  The fireplace opening was made using Spellbinders Long Rectangles Classic and Scalloped.  The fireplace surrounds and 'fire' are all from Cottage Cutz Holiday Fireplace.  The mantle and base of the fireplace were die cut twice and joined together hidden under a stocking at the top and a log at the bottom.

The stockings are MFT Stocking Trio die used with the Stitched Stockings co-ordinating stamps.  The inks used for the stockings were Brilliance Galaxy Gold, Pearl Thyme and Pearl Poppy.

Paper bag gift card holder

FRONT -  Cottage Cutz Holiday Sleigh die, sentiment is Penny Black Holly Day Critters.  The background paper is actually left over wallpaper which a friend gave me.

INSIDE

BACK

The idea of a paper bag gift holder came from Karina from the Whiff of Joy blog - I added my own papers and decorations and came up with a gift card holder that was fun to make. 

The inside has a tag slipped under the foot of the paper bag on the left hand side and the snowman stamp on the right hand side is a Peachy Keen one PK-148 Snow Gifts.  The gift card holder which slips into the opening of the paper bag is Gift Card Pocket Vertical from MFT.  The wreath on the back is also MFT - Winter Wreath with the corners being from an old EK Success punch.

Punch Art - Santa in Chimney

I look at this card with the snowflake background and am wishing for icy cold weather as we have 35 deg C today, down from 41 yesterday !!

 

Starting from the snow background, I used the CI-241 Crafty Individuals stamp in Archival French Ultramarine ink layered over with vellum to dull the effect.  The 'brick' effect for the chimney is a Creative Expressions Brick embossing folder darkened with Walnut Stain Distress ink.

 

Santa punch art :

Mittens - small Spellbinders Nested Eggs, trimmed with leftovers from a Cottage Cutz die

Hat - drawn and cut free hand (my art classes are paying off !)



Hat trim - middle sized Stampin Up oval punched out of sparkly white paper
Face - small sized Stampin Up oval
Moustache - Stampin Up Blossom Petals Builder punch
Nose and pom pom on hat- 5/16" circle SU
Eyes - from my stash - I have a whole packet of them already punched out

Additional :
Toy sack - PK-205 Feed, Santa or Flour Sacks stamped with Hero Arts Ancient Motif in Archival Sepia ink
Gifts - stamps unknown as have had them laying around in my Xmas stash for ages

The sentiment is Hero Arts Happy Holiday Trees in Archival Sepia on a retired Clear Dollar die.

Art Impressions - 'Try' Folds Village

I have been an Art Impressions fan for a long time and just love their new 'Try' Folds sets.  There are instructions on the rear of the packet and they are easy to follow - I generally do pictures but this was not hard at all !

The colouring in was done with a variety of mediums, markers, pencil crayons, aqua crayons and a blender pen.  The tab on the right hand side is a Stampin Up punch.

The concept is that the centre panel with the houses on is stamped in the middle of the card, you turn the cardstock over and stamp the other 2 scenes,  the trees and the snowman at opposite ends.  You then cut out the top half of the trees and snowman stamps and fold them both inwards.  Not the best of explainations, I know, but the Art Impressions site is bound to have a better one !

Gift box from 12 x 12 Cardstock

There are many crafters who have posted tutorials about making a container from a full 12 x 12 sheet of cardstock but I got my instructions and idea from Alipeeps' Art blog - just love how she fills it up with beverage sachets.

The plum pudding punch art is made from a brown circle (Spellbinders Large Classic Circles - middle circle) which was trimmed off at the bottom.  The 'icing' was punched out of a type of glitter paper and edged with the Stampin Up scalloped edge border punch.  The decoration on top is from Cottage Cutz - Holly Berry.  The sentiment is a Peachy Keen one from the set PKS-15 Oh by golly.

Tag - Penny Black Sent with Love

Another tag using the Go Kreate Concentic Tag die.  I thought this stamp from Penny Black, Sent with Love, was quite appropriate for a tag.  I stamped with Archival Coffee ink and used aqua pencil crayons with a blender pen to colour it in and then added Distress ink to the tag.

Penny Black - Flower Festival

After seeing a video on the Penny Black website on the use of Gesso as a surface for stamping on I set off in search of Gesso not thinking for one minute it could be found in Cape Town.  I was most surprised to be able to get my hands on it and set about experimenting.

Using a section of newspaper I tried to get the right consistency of the Gesso.  I did water it down a fair bit before I was happy with it.  Once it had dried I found it easy to stamp on (Archival black ink) and colouring in was no problem.  I used aqua pencil crayons and a blender pen.

The circle is from Spellbinders Circles Large and the die behind it is from Spellbinders Blossom Three.  The sentiment is Penny Black 'To You'.

Kanban Clear Stamps Jungle Animal

Not sure about the name of this stamp set from Kanban as there is nothing on the packaging.

The card size is 79mm x 158mm with the pink circle being Spellbinders Circles Large - the 3rd largest.  The zebra was coloured in with markers and the sentiment is a Stampin Up one called Whimsical Words.

Penny Black - Christmas Every Day

Using part of the Penny Black Christmas Every Day image I stamped it with Archival black ink onto a white Go Kreate Concentric tag.  Using watercolour pencil crayons and a blender pen I coloured it in.

The background is Penny Black Poinsettia Script stamped with Momento Desert Sand ink.

Punch art Mouse in Xmas hat

This is one of those cards which took on a life of its own !  I saw something similar on the internet but cannot for the life of me find it again.  Apologies for not giving that crafter the credit !

The background is a Dreamweaver Stencil LG611 - Stone done with Pumice Stone Distress ink and a stencil brush.  The window and shutters are Memory Box dies called Small Madison Window and Small Madison Window Shutter.  The shutters were sponged with Aged Mahogany Distress ink.  The curtains were made from Spellbinders Classic Squares cut and angled, the Xmas tree is a sticker and the mouse was made up as follows :

Face - the circle is an old Cuttlebug die with the face being from Peachy Keen PK757 - Wide Eyed and Bushy Tailed Face Assortment.
Ears and hands - Stampin Up Owl punch
Hat - Cottage Cutz Santa down the Chimney

The snowman is from an Inkadinkado set called Doodle Winter and was coloured in using a variety of markers and aqua pencil crayons.  The sentiment is from Hero Arts Holiday Sayings and it was stamped with Maroon Archival ink.  It was die cut on Sweet Stack Labels from MFT.

Penny Black - Ragged Santa

This image put a smile on my face when I saw it.  Such a different Santa stamp - perhaps a reflection of the times ??

I stamped the Penny Black Ragged Santa onto Cryogen paper with black Momento ink.  The Copic markers used to colour it in were :

Skin   -   E000 / E00 / E21
Gloves and patch  -   YG95 / YG93
Holly leaves   -   G94 / G82
Light grey hair and trims    -   T1 / T3
Reds   -   R29 / R27 / R24
Blues   -  B23 / B21
Bell and cord   -   E57 / E30 / E31 / E33
Belt and shoes  -  T7 / T5 / T3 / T1

The sentiment is also Penny Black - Holly Day Critters and the background paper is Rejoice Crossword from Bo Bunny.

Penny Black - Easter Basket

Why am I doing an Easter basket when Xmas is coming up ?  I had this Penny Black Easter Basket stamp which I had not used and needed a change of season.  One less Easter treat to make for next year !

The box is 109 mm x 159 mm.  On the longer side score at 50 and 150 mm and on the shorter side score at 40 mm in from both edges.  Make up the box.  The handle is an EK Success Linked Circle Chain border punch with a strip of cardstock backing it.  To fasten it to the box I punched small holes in both the box and handle and inserted brads.

The large circles are from Go Kreate Plain Circles and Scalloped Circles.  The top image is the Penny Black Easter Basket one and it was coloured in using aquarelle pencil crayons and Stampin Up crayons with a blender pen as well as a couple of markers.  The image on the reverse side of the basket is Peachy Keen PK265 Bunny Dolls with the grass being from the PK286 set called Easter Patch.  This image was also coloured in using pencil crayons and a blender pen.  The grass was stamped with Versacolor Sage ink.  I did decorate the sides of the basket with SU stamp set Eggcoutrements which where die cut with Spellbinders Circles.

Small Card - Stampscapes Windmill

This is the last of the small cards I made to fit into the Lacey Envelope Cottage Cutz die.

The stamp is from Stampscapes and I think it is called Water Mill.  The package it came in did not have a name on.  I used Archival Sepia on the stamp and edged the card with Antique Linen Distress ink.

Penny Black - Butterfly Suite

This stamp, Butterfly Suite, from Penny Black was stamped using Archival Coffee ink and sponged over with Evergreen Bough, Tea Dye and Worn Lipstick Distress inks.

The sentiment is from the Clear Dollar set called Charlie Daisy also stamped with Archival Coffee.  The background papers are from my stash with the striped one being from a free Stampin Up pad.

Kraftin Kimmie - Gaia

I have had this stamp for quite a while and thought it would be perfect for a friend's birthday card.

I stamped the image onto Cryogen paper using black Momento ink.  The Copics used to colour it in are :
Skin - E000 / E0000
Hair - C3 / C5 /  C7 / C9
Globe - sea B00 / B000 and land E30 / E31
Dress - RV 91 / RV 93 / RV 95

The grape coloured background paper is from Creative Memories Storybox Pastel and is stamped with Hero Arts Happy Definition using Momemto Lulu Lavender ink.  The ovals were made with Sizzix Ovals and the blue trim on the side is an EK Success border punch called Dotted Scallop.  The sentiment is Flourishes - Taglines and is die cut with Spellbinders Ribbon Banners.

Tag - Penny Black A Little Bird ...

Another tag using the Go Create Concentric Tag and a stamp from the Penny Black set called A Little Bird ...

I coloured the stamp in using water colour pencil crayons and a blender pen.  The sentiment is from the same set.

Penny Black - Sweet Day by Mo Manning

This delightful stamp by Mo Manning called Sweet Day was coloured in using Copics.  I used Momento black ink on Cryogen paper bought from 7 Kids College Fund.

The Copics used were :
Skin - E000 / E00 / E21
Hair - E25 / E31
Leaf and strawberry tops - G82 / G 94
Dress - B26 / B23 / B21
Strawberries - R24 / R27 / R29
Yellow flower - Y35 / YR04 / YR02 / YR01
Red flower - RV25 /  RV29
Shoes - C1 / C3 /  C5
Grass - G82 / G21

The image was framed with a Go Kreate Oval and the edges were sponged using Antique Linen Distress ink.  The background paper is from Creative Memories - Storybox Primary.  The sentiment is from a Stampin Up set called Kind & Caring Thoughts and it was die cut using the Clear Dollar Designer Label die.

Hero Arts Journal de Voyage small card

Yet another one layer card to fit into the Lacey Envelope Cottage Cutz die.  The card was stamped using an image from the Hero Arts Journal de Voyage set and Archival Sepia ink.  I then blocked off the top and bottom section of the card with Post it notes and Distress inked it with Tea Dye and Broken China.

Cottage Cutz - Hanging Monkey

Yes, I know I use Cottage Cutz dies a lot on my cards, but I really do like them.  As a fan of punch art I find these dies perfect - I don't have to buy all the different punches to make them !  The problem is also the storage of the punches - dies are just so easy to store !

Starting from the background, I found the paper in my stash, the green leaves are from a Martha Stewart border punch called Branches and I used Distress inks Shabby Shutters and Peeled Paint on them.  The Cottage Cutz die - Hanging Monkey - was Distressed inked with Tea Dye and Vintage Photo.

The sentiment was stamped with Archival Coffee ink and it is from the Kaszazz set called Express Yourself Occasions.

Tag - Penny Black To You

Another tag in my series.  Here I used Stampin Up pencil crayons plus blender pen to colour in this image from the Penny Black set To You.

The sentiment is from Clear Dollar Something to Crow About and it was framed in a negative image of the SU Word Window punch inked with Momento Lady Bug and Love Letter ink.  As the tags are one layer and I wanted the Word Window shape, I thought why not use the negative image.

Cottage Cutz Lacey Envelope / Christmas card

The background ink used on this card is Distress Weathered Wood.  The stamp is Winter Borders from Inkadinkado stamped with Archival Cobalt ink.  The sentiment is Hero Arts Holiday Sayings.

Again, I lined the Cottage Cutz Lace Envelope with Spellbinders Circle, cutting them to size.  The card size is 58mm x 178mm scored in the middle.

Punch Art - Lion

I took a lot of artistic licence with the making of this punch art lion.  With animals I have not seen I find it easier to make them up out of proportion but with being up close and personal with a number of lions on a regular basis I found this one quite difficult.  I think I will call him Tsau! after a very special white lion I know.

The punch recipe is :
Face - Spellbinders Circle Small - third smallest which is 1 5/8"
Mane - 2 x Martha Stewart deep edge border punch Daisy Fan joined together and lined with a Spellbinders Circle Large - fourth smallest
Muzzle / cheeks - 2 x 3/4" circles
Tail - Stampin Up Build a Blossom
Legs - Stampin Up small oval
Paws - Stampin Up Modern Label trimmed down
Fringe - hand cut
Nose - heart from Owl Punch
Eyes - I have a bag of already punched out eyes, so not sure where I got them from

Background stamp is a Hero Arts one called Aged Print Frame Archival Coffee ink.  The sentiment is from Kaszazz - Happy Birthday and it is also stamped with Archival Coffee ink.  The green paper from my stash.

SU Fancy Favor box for Halloween treats

I have been so good in writing down what I use on my projects but I forgot to note which die was used for this container.  I have a feeling it is Stampin Up Fancy Favor box.

The bats are from the Stampin Up set called Wicked Cool, the fence is Spellbinders Halloween Fence, the Distress ink used for the main area is Chipped Sapphire with the moon being Squeezed Lemonade.

Halloween shoe

 

For a while now I have been looking at making up a card stock shoe and thought Halloween would be a good time for it.  I found this template on Skip to my Lou blog  and used Creative Memories Shades of Orange card stock which I lined with black.

The bat is a Cuttlebug die, embossing folder combination, the decoration on the front of the shoe is from the Tim Holtz Mini Paper Rosettes die and the sentiment is from the Stampin Up set called Holiday Best.

Cottage Cutz Lace Envelope / Kaisercraft - Flourish

Once I started on this series of small cards (58mm x 178mm) it was fun going through all my stamps looking for suitable images.  This Kaisercraft Clear Stamps Flourish is quick and easy and stamps well first time.  I used Archival black ink on the stamp and the band across the card is sponged with Shabby Shutters Distress ink.

Hero Arts - Untitled Postmark

I took the thank you image from this Hero Arts Untitled Postmark set, inked it up with Stampin Up Whisper White and stamped it onto a piece if blue cardstock.  The sentiment is also a Hero Arts one from the Mini Messages set and it is stamped in Archival Cobalt.

The flowers and button are from my stash and the yellow border punch is a Martha Stewart one called Beaded Arcs.

Cottage Cutz Lace Envelope card series

I am particularly fond of the Cottage Cutz Lace envelope and thought I would do a series of small cards to fit into them.  The card is 58mm x 178mm in size and is scored down the middle.  I also realised it would be easier to fit it into the envelope if there were no layers on the card.

The stamps on this card are from the Inkadinkado set called Stitch in Time Inchie bundle and they were stamped with Archival black ink.  The band of sponged ink which is approximately 10mm from both the top and bottom of the card is Momento Lulu Lavender.

The envelope was die cut using 100g paper and lined with 80g copier paper cut using Spellbinders Circles.  I found it necessary to do this otherwise the card was catching on the envelope which probably would not have happened if I used thicker cardstock but then I would not be able to get it to fold as nicely.

Tag - Penny Black A Little Bird

Using a Go Kreate Concentric tag and this delightful image from the Penny Black set called A Little Bird, I made a clean and simple tag.

The image was stamped using Archival black ink and coloured in as follows :
Skin - Faber Castell aquarelles pencil crayon with a blender pen
Pants - Distress Marker Worn Lipstick
Top - Distress Marker Pumice Stone and black fine liner for the stripes
Cake - Smooch Banana Custard and Spica pen Chocolate
Hair - Start watercolour pencil crayons - Light Brown and Dark Brown with a blender pen
Gift - Smooch Cape Cod with white gel pen dots

Tim Holtz -In the Bag die for Halloween

I think this Tim Holtz In the Bag die is going to come in very handy.  I have been experimenting with it and find it works best for me using around 100g weight paper.

On this treat bag I used the Stampin Up jumbo wheel Haunting Halloween Witch (I think that is the name).  The trim top and bottom is from Doodlebug Paper Frills and I used Distress inks to give colour to the background.

Tag - Penny Black Flower Festival

This is the latest in my ongoing box of tags that I am making for a gift.  The tag is from a Go Kreate die called Concentric Tags.

I recently bought this Penny Black Flower Festival set and coloured this image using Stampin up watercolour crayons - So Saffron for the petal tips and Old Olive and Dark Green for the leaves - together with a blender pen.  The red was done using watercolour pencils, a combination of a SU one and Start Red 7.

Halloween treat box

The Stampin Up Fancy Favor Box is a good size for a Halloween treat box.  This one started off white and I Distress inked it with a variety of colours.

The stamps used are both from Kaszazz and are Spiderweb and Spider Large.  The bat is from a Cuttlebug die and the sentiment is a Stampin Up one from the Wicked Cool set.

Hero Arts - Sending Holiday Cheer

I was wanting to make a Christmas card and bring in different colours.  The gingham paper is from W& M - CB124 and I die cut it using a Go Kreate die called Large Frames Plain Square.

The wreath and holly are from Marianne D - Holly Garland which I left in the die sponging Distress ink through the holes.  The stamp is a Hero Arts one from the Sending Holiday Cheer set and I used a variety of markers to colour it in.  The sentiment is from the Hobby Art Clear set called Christmas Greetings.

Penny Black - Christmas Every Day

I recently acquired this Penny Black Christmas Every Day stamp set from Simply Creative here in Cape Town.

Using Black Archival ink I stamped the image onto water colour paper.  Once I had decided to paper piece the pyjama bottoms it made it easier to colour coordinate the top using Weathered Wood Distress marker and adding dots made with a white gel pen.  The teddy was coloured in with Tombow markers and a blender pen.  I also used Tombow markers for the tree and base.  The ornaments were done with Spica pens.  I then popped the die cut back into the die (Spellbinders Label 2) and sponged it with Weathered Wood Distress ink.

The 2 dies behind the image are Marianne D Square for the cream one and the patterned one is Spellbinders Lacey Squares.

Tag - Hero Arts Away

This is another tag using the Go Kreate Concentric Tags #1 die.  The background is from a Prima stamp called Tea - Thyme and it was stamped using Archival Sepia ink.  The next stamp set is a Hero Arts one called Away and I think it was also stamped with Archival Sepia.  I have gotten a lot more specific with naming  the products I have been using as I have been jotting them down as I go along but forgot to note which ink I used on the Hero Arts stamps.

To finish the tag off I Distress inked it with Scattered Straw and Peacock Feathers.

Punch Art - Teddy Bear

This delightful bear was cased from Kim Score's blog Paper Punch Addiction - for instructions see here .  It was designed to be made with one punch only - the Stampin Up Blossom Petals Builder.  I did deviate by using a ¾" circle punch for the ears.

The bear punch outs were all edged with Distress Ink before assembling.  The cute face is from a Peachy Keen set PK-754 Critter Faces Set A Medium and the rosy cheeks are done using chalk and a very small stencil brush which I also bought from Peachy Keen.

The sunflower is from a Cottage Cutz die called Mouse w/Sunflower and it was coloured using a sponge and Distress Inks.  The sentiment is from the Penny Black stamp set called Micey Day and I stamped it using  Archival Ink - Coffee.

The die behind the bear is Marianne D - Oval CR1204, behind that is a Go Kreate Oval die.  Both patterned papers are from an Authentique Paper pad called Loyalty.

Kaisercraft - Postmarks

Kaisercraft stamps are not always my first choice but the latest lot I picked up at Simply Creative here in Cape Town are making me reach for them.  I stamped out this image a couple of times before realising the image is supposed to be a bit fuzzy and it was not my eyesight or the ink I was using !

The ink used for Postmarks was Versafine Vintage Sepia.  The background paper is from a large 12 x 12 pad called Alison made by Me & My Big Ideas.  I stamped on the paper with the Hero Art Old Letter Writing stamp also using Versafine Vintage Sepia ink.  The layer of paper underneath (the scalloped edge which I hand cut) is also from the same paper pad.

Kaisercraft - Decorative Lamp

Wanting to do a quick, one layer card I reached for Kaisercraft's Clear Stamps Decorative Lamp image.  The inks used were Versafine Onyx Black for the image and Archival for the sentiment.  The sentiment is from the Stampin Up set called Kind & Caring Thoughts.

Penny Black - Dropping you a Line

When I popped into Simply Creative here in Cape Town the other day I came across some new Penny Black stamps designed by Mo Manning.  This one is called Dropping you a Line and I decided to stamp it onto watercolour paper using a blender pen and watercolour pencil crayons to colour it in.

Once I had finished the colouring in I cut out the top part of the image.  The 'sun ray' background was done with post it notes, 3 ink pads and a sponge.  I started with Hero Arts Soft Sand Shadow ink and moved the post it note around in a semi circle sponging at relatively even spaces.  Then came Momento Peanut Brittle and Momento Morocco.  I have found a tutorial for this technique here.  The frame around the image is from a Cuttlebug die which does not have a name on it.  The 2 flourishes either side are part of the same die.

The background on the card was made using a large Hero Arts stamp called Newspaper Background stamped with Momento Peanut Brittle ink.  I then used Antique Linen Distress ink sponged around the sides of the card.  The sentiment is from the Just Rite set called Just Because and after numerous tries I eventually managed to stamp it using Momento Rich Cocoa ink.  All the other inks did not give a clear image.  The sentiment was then die cut with the Stampin Up punch Word Window.

Cottage Cutz - Elegant Favor Box

I do enjoy the Cottage Cutz dies and this Elegant Favor Box is no exception.  You have to cut the die out 4 times and I learnt from the first run through that if it is not too easy to push out the card stock from all the holes then you need a shim the next time.

The snowman is from the Peachy Keen set PK 329 - Chill Baby Chill Snowman set and I stamped it with Momento ink on Copic card stock.  The Copics used for the red parts were R39 / R37 / R35; the nose was done with YR18 / YR16; the boots were E77 / E74 / E71; the hat was N8 / N6 / N4; for the waistcoat I used BG15 / BG13 / BG11 and the broom head was done with E51 / E50.

The sentiment is a Stampin Up one from a set called Sincere Salutations and I used the Go Kreate Concentric Tags #1 to die cut it.  The "snow" around the base of the box is from an EK Success border punch.