Once Upon a Springtime

This week Simon Says Stamp and Show a Hat and the Tuesday Throwdown has Florals (the roses and the background) as its challenge. Instead of a card I decided to make a wall hanging. This art project is truly a combination of old and new. The hat is new. I saw it at Hobby Lobby and thought it would be fun for this project. The hat was colored with Antique Linen distress stain, new to my collection. The ribbon around the hat I found in my stash--old. The Roses were made from a die cut and formed using a quilling technique--new. The rabbit is both old and new. The base is a wooden die cut that I have had for years. He is first covered with new walnut distress stain. Then I used a piece of glassine paper which I first wadded up for wrinkles and then colored with Spun Sugar distress stain. The frame is made from some embroidery hoops which I have had since the beginning of time and then covered with Tim Holtz's tissue tape--fairly new. The pink floral background and the sentiment both come from the springtime Graphics45 pad which I just received yesterday. This was really a fun project and is ready to hang for the Easter season.

Grungy Monday Premieres

Well, this is the beginning of a new era. We completed all 35 challenges for Tim Holtz's Compendium of Curiosities. Since everyone was having so much fun, Linda Ledbetter, the challenge mom, has created a new series of challenges. Grungy Monday is a weekly challenge celebrating the techniques of Tim Holtz. Week #1's challenge is based on Tim's 12 Tags of Christmas, 2008, Tag 10. I followed Tim's direction pretty closely, although I changed colors, images, sentiment, etc to make the tag my own. I did make the pearlized mist as instructed even though I own the Perfect Pearl Mists and could have gone that route. I did choose to use my Vagabond and butterfly die for the image. Isn't the snap idea for the flower center a cute idea. Be sure to check out Tim's blog for many cool techniques and ideas at www.timholtz.com. I can't wait until next Monday for our next challenge.

Fabulous New Releases at Artistic Outpost

I've been waiting for this day. Today Artistic Outpost Stamps is releasing four new stamp sheets. And are they fabulous! See for yourself.

Flapper Fashions

Flapper Fashions is just that a wonderful collection of "flappers". You will find the size of these dames are PERFECT for card making and mixed media projects.

Gatsby

Gatsby  features Artistic Outposts version of the main characters in photograph style with deco backgrounds.

Huck Finn

Huck Finn is a collection of collage and illustration images featuring Huck, paddle boats, and that friend of his Tom Sawyer.
 
Windows and Doors

Windows and Doors features some beautiful background and focal images that coordinate wonderfully with many other Artistic Outpost images.
 


You can find all of these stamps and more at the Artistic Outpost site, http://www.artisticoutpost.com/index.html For the new stamps, click on the What's New link or to go there directly use http://www.artisticoutpost.com/whatsnew.html
All of the new stamp sets are available both as unmounted red rubber sheets for $14.00 or pre-cut and mounted on EZMount cling foam for $22.99.
 
***For a limited time, if you purchase all four of these sets, you'll receive a 15% discount. Please note you must purchase all four to be eligible for the discounted price. Simply use the code: GATSBY during check out.***
 
Here are a few examples to share with you the wonder of these stamps.


Flapper



Gatsby



Huck Finn



Windows and Doors

For more artwork, check out what the other Design Team Members have shared on their blogs.
*Connie Paxman*Gerrie Johnnic*Judy Hayes*Lisa Somerville*Lynn Stevens*Stephanie Severin*Suzanne Czosek*Louise Granlund*

Faux Shaving Cream

This week the Try That Technique Challenge is the faux shaving cream technique from the 2007 Technique Junkies CD. My bird from Stamp Zia is my solid stamp. I used sailboat blue and cloudy blue Adirondack inks. I morphed the technique a little for the leaves. I used direct to paper for the lighter ink (citrus) and then used the roller stamp for the darker (clover) on a sheet of paper. Then I used my leaf dies to cut the leaves. The sentiment is from Club Scrap. 

Candy Box

The challenge at Tuesday Throwdown is Anything but a Card. don't you agree that every stamp room needs chocolate. Here is a box I created using die cuts from Creative Cuts and More. I added the paper lace, the bling flourishes, and the bling rosette. Once the candy was added, it was perfect for the stamp studio. Care to join me?

Happy

I've been away from challenges for over a week now...a little flu, a major project, and a wonderful visit from my sisters. I'm back now and ready to go again. Here is my card for Simon Says Stamp and Show and for Ink on my Fingers Sunday Challenge.  The challenges worked so well together.
Simon Says Stamp and Show a Word. My word is happy. Butterflies make me happy. The Sunday challenge is dry embossing and dry embossing butterflies makes me happy too.
The background stamping is a technique from Technique Junkies called Millefiori from the current newsletter. All of the stamps are from Club Scrap. The bigger butterfly is a die cut using a Spellbinders/Heartfelt Creations die. The smaller butterflies are the new ones from Tim Holtz.
I hope this card spreads some happiness.

Chapel Road Artstamps Challenge

This is the first challenge on the Class Act Insider for the Chapel Road Artstamps. The challenge is Around the Edge (use edge punches/die cut edges); Colour Blue. This is my challenge card. I had a lot of fun creating it and I can't wait to tell you about it.
I used a white base card to start. I used my Fiskars corner and border punch around the edge of my blue panel. My image panel was done using the Glossy Gesso technique from the December 2010/January 2011 issue of Technique Junkies. I used glossy black cardstock and stamped the butterflies (from Butterfly Square and Angle Butterfly) on it with gesso. After they dried, I sprayed the images and panel with Sunflower Yellow Glimmer Mist. This gave the butterflies a cool yellow sheen and the background looks a bit like marble. The sentiment (from Butterfly Square) was stamped on a piece of the blue cardstock and edged with Stormy Sky distress ink. The flowers were white flowers from Hero Arts. I used the yellow Glimmer mist to color them so they matched the card. They were attached to the card using  yellow flower brads as the centers.
Come join us with this challenge. Grab an edge/ corner punch or die and a bit of blue and add your work to the Linkie on the website.

Bloggers Challenge Sketch

This week Lisa has given us a sketch challenge. This is really a great sketch. I can see using it again and again. As you can tell from my colors, I am desparately wishing for spring to really arrive. A butterfly, flowers, and Easter colors were used to create this CAS card. The butterfly is actually dimensional, but flattened by the scanner.
Could someone with more springlike weather send some my way? Pleeeeease.

Bloggers Challenge Spring Flowers

I'm posting a little late today. I had my card mostly finished on Wednesday and had every intention of finishing yesterday until I was hit by a 24 hour flu bug. I'm sort of functioning today, so here is my card. Bloggers Challenge is Spring Flowers. I used a background stamp from Stamp Camp for my flowers and a butterfly die cut from Sizzix for my butterfly. The flowers were painted with Creative Inspirations paints. The butterfly was cut from A Tim Holtz paper and then embossed and painted over with fairy dust paint to give added shimmer. I tried to use spring colors -- pink and green to say spring. At least our weather today seems to be hinting that spring is on its way.

Thinking of You

This week I used my Chapel Road Artstamps butterflies to make a Thinking of You card. I used an olive green basecard. The yellow background panel  is a print from Club Scrap. I used a Cuttlebug embossing folder to create the flowers. They were highlighted using Copic markers. The butterfly panel in the corner is from Butterfly Angle. The butterflies were stamped on  deeper yellow cardstock and were colored with Copics. The three butterflies at the top are from Butterfly Square and are also colored with Copic markers. The sentiment is also from Butterfly Square. To finish the card I sprayed the entire front with Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Mist. It gives a sparkly look to the card.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Sharing Happiness

This week the Try That Technique challenge was double bugging from the new To Die For Cd or from the June 2009 newsletter. I used two oriental embossing folders for my background. On the first embossing I used tumbled glass distress ink. On the second embossing I used victorian velvet embossing ink. The image and sentiment are from the Artistic Outpost stamp sheet Thai Buddha. I used the abalone technique from the October/ November 2010 newsletter. I used Perfect Pearls to color the image. The sentiment was stamped in white pigment. The flourish is from a set of bling I won during the grand opening of the Kitchen Sink Stamps Forum.
I wish two of my friends, Gerrie and Lisa, much happiness as they celebrate their birthdays today.

Compendium Finale

I can't believe that we have completed all 35 of the technique challenges from Tim Holtz' Compendium of Curiosities Book and I actually kept up with all of the challenges. Do I hear shouting and clapping? This weeks's challenge is Design Details from p. 67.  I started with the cowboy image -- one of the new sets of stamps. I stamped it on tag stock and tore around the edges. I used walnut stain distress inks around the torn edges and colored the image with Copics. The letters were cut using my new (to me) Vintage alphabet die. The background paper is from last month's Club Scrap kit. The funny thing is that I thought I hated the paper when I first saw it. Now I love it. It makes such an interesting background and the colors are so vintage. I stamped over the paper with several of Tim's stamps for even more visual texture. Along the left edge I used Tim's brad detail idea. Hmmm, I may need to refill my stock of brads. I used the wire sewing idea on the letters. As I've stated many times before, sewing is not my cup of tea. Sewing with wire is even harder. Well, it's a good thing that the idea is distress. I'm so glad I participated in this series of challenges. I've stepped outside my box several times. Linda Ledbetter, our challenge mom, hints of new challenges to come. Bring them on...I can't wait.

Simon Says Stamp and Show Some Metal

This week Simon Says Stamp and Show some Metal. I decided to make a wall hanging for my studio door. I used a piece of metal sheet and embossed it using a Cuttlebug folder. I always thought that this folder would look great on metal. I did the background using the polished stone technique with alcohol inks.  The flowers and stems were painted with Creative Inspirations paints. The frame was die cut using a Bigz frame die. I used the Vagabond to emboss the metal, and the pressure did create pressure lines on the metal. However, in real life it isn't as obvious as in the scan and it seem to add more life to the background.

The Altered Alice CHAPTER 2 Challenge - Week 2: Hall of Doors

"There was not a moment to be lost: away went Alice like the wind, and was just in time to hear it say, as it turned a corner, `Oh my ears and whiskers, how late it's getting!' She was close behind it when she turned the corner, but the Rabbit was no longer to be seen: she found herself in a long, low hall, which was lit up by a row of lamps hanging from the roof.

There were doors all round the hall, but they were all locked; and when Alice had been all the way down one side and up the other, trying every door, she walked sadly down the middle, wondering how she was ever to get out again."

-- Chapter 1, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

This month's challenge at The Altered Alice is to use a door or doors, and preferably for the door or doors to open and close so we can see what lays beyond! While it is not required that your project include Alice in Wonderland, we do encourage it. If your project features Wonderland you will get two chances in the prize drawing instead of one! For more information on entering this challenge visit HERE.

I am thrilled to announce that The Octopode Factory, the slightly mad brainchild of 17 year old artist Lily Chilvers, is our March sponsor! We are celebrating because Lily has moved into the world of rubber! That's right - RUBBER STAMPS! The Octopode Factory will have both digital stamps AND rubber stamps on some of her most popular images, which includes most of her AMAZING Alice in Wonderland images!. Read about the new range of Octopode Factory rubber stamps and how to order. Lily started with her quirky digital images, and she has gifted the design team members with some of her wonderful Wonderland digital sets. Most of the digital images we will be using are those that are now available in rubber,


One lucky winner will win a $30 gift certificate for digital images from The Octopode Factory's Etsy store! Enter by Friday, March 25 at 8 p.m. Eastern time (GMT -5:00) and a winner will be announced on Sunday, March 27. Show us your DOORS!


Here is my artwork for the challenge.

As you look at the front of the piece, there is Alice peering through the keyhole of the door. Look closely and you can see the white rabbit on the other side of the door. When you open the door, Wonderland appears with all of the Octopode elements in view. You find Alice and the Mad Hatter at the Tea Party. The Cheshire cat sits by a tree. The caterpillar is on his mushroom, and the talking flowers surround the scene.
My piece started with a shrine shaped cardstock and a wooden door I had in my stash which just so happened to fit together. I stained the door with walnut stain, added an acetate window and filled in the top of the door. The white rabbit was placed to look through the door window. I added a keyhole from Tim Holtz' Idea-ology line. Alice was adhered to the door so she could look through the keyhole.
Wonderland is just that--a land of wonder. Thanks to Octopode for the fun figures that make up this fun place.

I hope you will join us in this challenge. Check out The Altered Alice blog site to see what some of the other Design Team members have created. Then join us by adding a piece of your artwork using the Linky tools following the Week 1 post.

Butterfly Birthday

It's Friday and time for Blogger's Challenge. This week the theme is "Happy Birthday." I'm dedicating this post to two dear friends who have birthdays coming up very soon.
For my card all of the stamps I'm using are from Class Act Inc., Chapel Road Artstamps. My card is a little unconventional in size. It's 6 3/4 by 5 1/4 inches. I chose to leave it larger because I liked the white space around the black images. The base card is white. I used a yellow panel to contrast with the black and white theme. I dry embossed it with a Cuttlebug folder and then distressed the edges with dried mustard distress ink. The butterflies were stamped with Staz-On on glossy paper and then punched using a 1 7/8 inch  square punch. Each of the squares was matted with black.  The sentiment and poem were also stamped on glossy with Staz-On and matted on black. All of the butterfly squares were adhered to the yellow panel. The poem was adhered using dimensional foam tape.
The butterfly stamps are from the Angle Butterfly and Butterfly Square stamp sheets. The sentiments are from Butterfly Square and Birthday Abermarle.
Lisa and Gerrie, have a wonderful birthday.

Springtime

This week the Try This Technique challenge was Waxy Cuttlebug from the April 2008 TJ newsletter. I have only been successful with this technique a few times. I believe that the kind of waxed paper used makes a difference. Unfortunately, I could only find the generic brands for this card. I think that when I used CutRite in the past it worked better for me. However, you can see some of the design in the background. I brayered in all directions to get the color you see here. I didn't want the stripey look. All of the stamps are from Artistic Outpost, the Birds of a Feather sheet. I did bleach out the images before I colored them with markers. Even though the Cuttlebug design is not as strong as I would have hoped, I do like how the card turned out.

The Art of Spring

Tomorrow I am going to the Chicago Flower and Garden show. It's one of my favorite events of the year. There may be snow on the ground here, but when I walk into the hall at Navy Pier, it'll feel like spring for a few hours. With spring on my mind, I spent the afternoon creating this spring card. Flowers, foliage, and butterflies are all part of spring. Purple and lilac are  spring colors.
The  butterfly die and stamp and the  stained glass background stamp are from Heartfelt Creations. The image is from a collage sheet from Alphastamps.com. The scalloped oval die is from Spellbinders. The sentiment, so uplifting and hopeful, is from Club Scrap. Hopefully, spring is really around the corner.
This card works with Hels' Sunday challenge from Ink on my Fingers which is Nature and with the March challenge from The Artistic Stamper which is "Spring has Sprung".

New Challenge at The Altered Alice -- DOORS

"There was not a moment to be lost: away went Alice like the wind, and was just in time to hear it say, as it turned a corner, `Oh my ears and whiskers, how late it's getting!' She was close behind it when she turned the corner, but the Rabbit was no longer to be seen: she found herself in a long, low hall, which was lit up by a row of lamps hanging from the roof.

There were doors all round the hall, but they were all locked; and when Alice had been all the way down one side and up the other, trying every door, she walked sadly down the middle, wondering how she was ever to get out again."

-- Chapter 1, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

 

The Challenge at The Altered Alice is to use a door or doors, and preferably for the door or doors to open and close so we can see what lays beyond! While it is not required that your project include Alice in Wonderland, we do encourage it. If your project does feature Wonderland you will get two chances in the prize drawing instead of one!

I am thrilled to announce that The Octopode Factory, the slightly mad brainchild of 17 year old artist Lily Chilvers, is our March sponsor! We are celebrating because Lily has moved into the world of rubber! That's right - RUBBER STAMPS! The Octopode Factory will have both digital stamps AND rubber stamps on some of her most popular images, which includes most of her AMAZING Alice in Wonderland artwork!. Read about the new range of Octopode Factory rubber stamps and how to order. Lily started with her quirky digital images, and she has gifted the design team members with some of her wonderful Wonderland digital sets. Most of the digital images we will be using are those that are now available in rubber,

One lucky winner will win a $30 gift certificate for digital images from The Octopode Factory's Etsy store! Enter by Friday, March 25 at 8 p.m. Eastern time (GMT -5:00) and a winner will be announced on Sunday, March 27. Show us your DOORS!

Check out The Altered Alice to see how the first group of Design Team members interpret this challenge theme. Start thinking about what doors YOU will take us through as you design your own challenge projects! Enter them on this post before 8 p.m. Eastern time (GMT -5:00) on Friday, March 25 and we will announce the winner on Sunday, March 27. In the meantime the design team will be back each Sunday with weekly Wonderland inspiration! Join in the fun and create a piece of art. I'll be sharing my art next Sunday. I'm looking forward to see what you create.

Bloggers Challenge Friday

This week our Bloggers Challenge was a color challenge. We were to use green, peach, and white in our card. The Tuesday Throwdown challenge is "Tag You're It", use a tag in our art. I started with my tag and stamped Butterfly Background, a background stamp from Chapel Road Artstamps with Versamark and used clear embossing powder. After heat embossing, I colored the whole tag with Forest Moss distress ink wiping off the embossed images. For the roses, I morphed the Penciled Twinks technique that I showed with the peony post on Monday. Instead of twinkling H2Os, I used my Creative Inspirations paints. I like the results even better. I used the peach paint for the paint color.  Behind the roses I used the Spellbinders lotus pendant which I cut in white and then painted with winter frost. The lace at the bottom is paper lace which I also painted with winter frost. The background panel was dry embossed with a cuttlebug folder and adhered to a green base card. The little peach colored butterfly was added to the lace at the bottom of the tag.

Butterfly--Thinking of You

I am really excited. I am posting my first blog post as Design Team Member for The Class Act/Chapel Road Artstamps. I chose to use the stamps from the Butterfly Square set and  the Butterfly Background stamp for my card. To  create the background panel I used a purple piece of cardstock and stamped it with the Butterfly Background stamp. When I cut out the butterfly square from the rubber, I separated the butterfly from the frame to give me more stamping options. However, for this card I wanted the butterfly in the frame. I stamped the frame on white cardstock and added just a little color using my Copic markers. I cut out the square frame. I stamped the large butterfly in the frame and again on another piece of cardstock. I colored  the separate butterfly with the Copic markers and cut it out. I adhered the butterfly over the one in the frame to give slight dimension. I then adhered the stamped square to a black panel. I stamped the sentiment on a small piece of white cardstock and matted it with a black panel. A silver ribbon was adhered to the bottom of the card and the sentiment was placed over the ribbon. I added three rhinestone flowers to the ribbon for a little glitz.