Thursday Dream Schemes--Free Week

Happy Summer! This is my first blog post of a brand new summer, so I decided to show something fun and easy from my upcoming summer class.


The fish stencil shown here is actually discontinued--but never fear! If your local retailer does not have it in stock, they can still order it from Dreamweaver for you. It is stencil number LJ 848. If you are in the Brighton, Michigan area, I will be teaching a class at Scrap Tales twice in July and this stencil is INCLUDED in your class fee. Call the store to register.
Anyway, on to how I made this one. It is actually the easiest one in this class. The fish are a double glitter technique. You soap up the back of the stencil and attach it to the Double Sided Adhesive Paper. Then, you use three different colors of Microfine Art Glitter on the fish. I pinched the colors, one at a time, into the spaces and then used my VERY IMPORTANT art tool--my finger--to push them into the paper. This is critical with the microfine glitter because it is so light weight that it won't go down into the crevices on its own. When burnished like this, though, it creates a beautiful shimmering look.
When the fish are done, brush off any excess glitter. Brush it off well, mind you, because you don't want it to migrate to the areas that are supposed to be blue. Then, you put the whole thing stencil side down on a flat surface. You must remove the paper from the stencil while the stencil remains on the table. Slowly and carefully pull the double sided adhesive paper off while walking your fingers along the stencil to keep it flat.
Once you have removed the stencil, pour blue glitter over the top and gently rub it in with your fingers. (I used Art Glitter True Blue Ultrafine). Brush all remaining glitter off of your project.
The little shell charm was made with the Scallop LS 6 stencil. I used the ArtC clay. I believe it is a white paperclay. I smoothed the clay down on my craft sheet. Then, I put just a little vegetable oil on my finger and rubbed it lightly on the back of the stencil. I pushed the stencil onto the clay and rolled it slightly. Then, I removed the stencil and cut the excess clay around it. I rolled a little of it into a ball and draped the shell over the top to create dimension. I had to let this dry. I am really not good with patience, so I set it out to dry overnight. This sort of clay never dries hard, it always remains a little spongy. When it is dry, use a craft knife to put a little hole in the top.
The assembly is easy. The base is blue and is followed by Core'dinations White Wash in yellow that has been lightly sanded and ripped. The twine is from My Mind's Eye Lime Twist collection. See? An Easy summer card.
So now that you have a summer greeting from me, you should go check out all the rest of the Dreamweaver Design Team creations. Get inspired. Create. Then post a link to the Dreamweaver Blog. See you next week.

My Mind's Eye Card Sketch Challenge # 24--Song Lyrics

I have really been enjoying these sketch challenges. Especially this time, with the theme of song lyrics. (People who know me know that I love to sing).

Here is the sketch:

And my interpretation:I kept looking at the MME paper at Scrap Tales, and was drawn to Lime Twist for this challenge. It was just perfect for the song lyric theme. There were so many obvious choices, and even embellishments that contained lyrics. As I looked, the one song that stuck in my mind was "Let's Go Fly a Kite" from Disney's Mary Poppins. It was composed by Richard M Sherman and Robert B Sherman. It is at the end of the movie, when the father decides that his family is more important than his job. I kept humming it while I shopped, so I decided that it was the one to use. As I was thinking of how it would fit in a card, I thought about that person that you really want to hang out with who always seems too busy. It would be great to let them know that you just want a little time to relax and reconnect with them. The words go:" With a tuppence for paper and string, you can have your own set of wings. " How perfect for a cardmaker!

So, I used the Lime Twist collection, except for the wood grain paper in the background, which is Stella and Rose. I inked a little with distress inks, cut out and popped up the kites, and added one little extra--twine! I was thinking of how the song is all about escaping, and imagined that the person making this fine offer was flying their own, full sized kite as they invited their friend. This twine is the string mentioned in the song, and would attach to the cardmaker's kite. So, if your with me still, "Let's Go Fly a Kite" and escape reality a little. After all, "with your feet on the ground you're a bird in flight with your fist holding tight to the string of your kite---oh, oh. oh!"

Dreamweaver Fathers' Day Sketch Challenge

This is sketch week at Dreamweaver. Fathers' Day is right around the corner, too, so we decided to combine it with a Fathers' Day Challenge. Here is the sketch we used.......


......and here is my interpretation.


As you can see, I moved the sentiment, added a couple of things, and kept the background as one solid piece. If you look carefully, you can see that I also didn't exactly make it a "Fathers' Day" card, but more of a general masculine card. Why, you may wonder? Well, for one thing, I think that it is difficult to find a masculine card. This one can be used for anything from Fathers' Day, to congratulations, to a birthday. I went for the more flexible card. That is the pat answer I would give. Truth be told, though, I really like the fishing themed stencil LG 726, and my father DOESN'T fish. At all. So, I decided to make a card that I could use for any of my fishing inclined friends. The phrase is from LG 704, Birthday Words. I used LM 2003 as a focal piece because the scale fit with the idea of a circle in the center of the card. The pieces on LG 726 worked better for a rectangular vertical card.
So, on to how it was made. First, I pasted the lure LM 2003 on brown with the metallic silver paste. Then, I used the same brown cardstock and pasted LG 726 with the original, white paste. I made two extra of the fish, because I knew I wanted to have three. I selected the phrase I wanted from LG 704, and masked out the rest of the words with removable tape, pasting only the "It's Your Day" phrase.
When the paste was dry, I replaced the stencil and colored the basket with a combination of Distress Inks in Tea Dye, Vintage Photo and Walnut Stain, and Adirondack Pigment Ink in Butterscotch. I dried them with my heat tool before using my Versamarker and Zing Metallic Green Embossing powder on the straps.
I did the fishing pole in much the same way, coloring the handle with Burgundy Distress Ink and clear embossing powder. The rod was done with Zing Embossing Powder in Sand. The reel was with Stampendous Metallic Silver Embossing Powder. One of the things I love so much about this original paste is the way that it takes EVERYTHING from embossing powder, to ink, to glue.
The lure in the center was also done with embossing powders--it used Stampendous Amethyst Metallic, and a really old red powder by Commotion. Then, I used Zig pen glue and added Stampendous Flock in red and purple. The glue does not stick quite as well to the metallic paste (remember, this one was silver), so I have some patchy parts. I am fine with this, but wanted you to know it is no fault of the flock--which will be as thick and plush as you put it on.
Finally, the fish. This was the part that I was really looking forward to. I used Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear on the fish and glittered them. The silver is the Microfine, making the little "scale shine" that I had been expecting. I used Canadian Blue on the eyes and for some spots on one fish. Then, I used Pink Smoothie and Blue Boy to add a little color. I only wanted a little color, which is why I chose those specific glitters--they are transparent, and very subtle. By the way, I guess now would be a good time to mention that I am guest blogging for Art Glitter over the summer. My first post is here: http://artglitterblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/hologram-glitter-butterfies-t-shirt-by.html#comments.
So, back to the card. I cut everything out and used the TPC Reel Me In collection for the background papers. I popped up the lure, parts of the fish and the phrase. This image, complete with midday shadows, should give you an idea of how they were raised:


Now that you have seen my card, continue on and check out the rest of the cards on the Dreamweaver Design Team list. Get inspired, make your own, and maybe even link it to the Dreamweaver Blog. You can find it here: http://www.dreamweaverstencils.blogspot.com/
Come on, have a little fun! Play along with us.

Dreamweaver Free Week--A "Pear" of Thank You Cards

This week, I am posting two cards made with the same four stencils: LJ 909 Cathedral Window Small, LJ 808 Cathedral Window Large, LL 563 Large Pear, and LS 1006 Small Thanks. I was particularly interested in showing the contrast between the small Cathedral Window and the large one. These two cards were both very easy to make.
On this first one, I ran plain white cardstock through my Cuttlebug with the large Cathedral Window. I then lightly brushed across the pattern with purple ink. I ran the Thanks through the machine with Core'dinations cardstock. I sanded it to bring out the words. I used white cardstock again and embossed the pear by hand. I colored the pear with ink in a couple of colors using a stencil brush. I then placed the small Cathedral Windows on top and hand embossed selected areas. I inked them with a much darker color.

This second card was done the same way. The primary difference (aside from the size) is that I used Core'dinations cardstock on the background as well. I then lightly sanded it to bring out a very light purple.

These cards were very easy to do. They are just the sort of thing to do during a quick indoor break this summer while the temperatures are soaring outside. You should give these techniques a try. While you are thinking about stencils, take a look at the other projects made by the Dreamweaver Dream Team this week. Their links are on the left. Take a minute and get inspired!

Color Challenge--Grey and Lavender

Pam chose this week's color challenge: Grey and Lavender. Here is what I did.

Yep, I took a couple of liberties. First, I added both green and white. Then, I took the color lavender a little loosely. Although, honestly, it is not quite as bright of a purple as it is in this scan (nor is the background a bright blue color, but a instead it is a muted purple). In fact, the entire card is much more muted, subtly varied, and shimmery than it is in this picture.

The basics behind the card are very simple. First, I used the original Dreamweaver Embossing Paste with LJ 888 Hydrangea stencil on a beautiful Little Yellow Bicycle grey paper. When it was dry, I painted the paste with Twinkling H2Os in Periwinkle, French Lilac, and Snapdragon for the flowers. For the leaves, I used Pebbles Pearlescent chalks in green and then layered on Twinkling H2Os in Olive Vine for shading. I stamped a piece of white with a TPC Stamp and Black Soot Distress Ink. I then distressed it with Weathered Wood Distress Ink. After that, I just had to assemble it.

This is the card that I could have easily given to my mother for her birthday last week. That is what it reminded me of. I just absolutely love the sentiment and how it goes with the gorgeous Hydrangea stencil. In case you can't read it, the sentiment goes: "If I had a flower for every time I thought of you, I would walk in my garden forever."

I really enjoyed the lavender and grey challenge. Thank you, Pam.

Stampendous Card Challenge

Here is the Stampendous Card Challenge. The sketch was created by Geny Cassady, who is a Stampendous Blogstar.

Here it is:

It was created for a long card, which is a very interesting proportion to me. Here is my take on it:

I used a cling background stamp CRR114 on green with Versamark and Stampendous White Pearl translucent embossing powder. Then, I stamped the flowers from Daisy Stem Trio with Walnut Stain Distress Ink three times. I embossed one set with Stampendous Clear Embossing Powder. Then I colored some of the background petals with colored pencils. On the second set, I colored the top petals with a Versamarker (the marker relative of the pad) and embossed with Stampendous Winter Wonderland Opaque Embossing Powder. It is hard to see in this photo, but it is sparkly white. The third set was embossed with clear, and then flocked (except in the details) with Lemonade Yellow Stampendous Fun Flock. Each of these separate sections were cut out and stacked with 3D Dots, making the flowers very dimensional.

The butterfly and ladybug were from the Daisy Thanks set. The butterfly was stamped twice and embossed with Stampendous Detail Black embossing powder. Then, I colored it with Twinkling H2Os, cut out the top wing from one and stacked it with dots to make it three dimensional. The ladybugs were stamped once with Black Soot Distress Ink and embossed with the Black Detail Powder. Then they were colored with Stampendous Red Jewel Glitter and Stampendous Crystal Glitter (for the wings). The "hello" was from the Daisy Stem Trio set, and was stamped with the Walnut Stain Ink.

I really enjoyed using this fun sketch, and am quite pleased with the results. I especially liked making the flowers and bugs that replaced the hearts from the original.

Dreamweaver Free Week--Two Cards, One Theme

Aren't you always in need of masculine cards? I know I am. Well, partially this is because I can't keep my hands off of the glitter (more on that later.....an announcement at the end of the post) and the flowers. Neither a particularly masculine item. I think I can also blame the manufacturers, though. Not too many of them make masculine products. Lynell has come to the rescue with the tie stencil (LG 735). I used it, the stripe stencil (LX 7002) and the Happy Birthday stencil (LM 248) to make this card for Dreamweaver.

I first pasted the tie with the original white paste. Then, I pasted the Happy Birthday in glossy black. After the paste was dry, I stencilled a little Distress ink in Antique Linen under the collar and Mustard all across the tie. Then, I placed the stipe stencil on the tie, angling it to match the bottom edge of the tie, and stencilled it with Adirondack Pigment Ink in Denim. After that dried, I replaced the tie stencil, covered the whole tie with Versamark and embossed it with clear powder. Finally, I determined the shape and angles of the suit and cut it from a beautiful piece of Graphic 45 Proper Gentleman paper. I finished up the card with inking and brads, photographed it, and sent it off.

Fast forward a couple of months, and I am thinking that I would like to use this card in a class. Of course, we have run out of the Graphic 45 paper, and never did carry the brads. Additionally, we only have one of these birthday stencils in stock. I was thinking that I could also stand to cut a little time from the overall class...........So, this is what I came up with:

Okay, so this is how I solved my problems: I switched the stencil to the Birthday Words (LG 704), I replaced the paper with one from the Pebbles Mr and Mrs line, and I changed the tie color, stencil, embossing project to just stencilling on a colored piece of paper and cutting it out. This last part will shorten my time considerably, since there is no waiting for the ink to dry between steps. I just stencilled on the yellow paper with Aged Mahogany Distress Ink and replaced the tie stencil, tracing the inside lightly with pencil and cutting it out. Then I glued it on with Art Glitter Dries Clear. Notice I removed the brads from the card, saving me time, money, and aggrevation, as Scrap Tales never did carry that particular brad. This decision, believe it or not, really troubled me. I kept trying to find a replacement for the brads until I finally just gave up.

The assembly is pretty much the same. I did take awhile to figure out the changes needed to make this card more appropriate for class, but once I worked it out, I liked it. I think I might like it better than the original. Of course, it is now time for you to make the changes that you want to on it. Also, check out my Dream Team Sisters Blogs for their projects today. (The blogs are listed on the left).

Oh, and about that glitter comment, anyone who knows me understands that I often walk around leaving a trail of glitter in my wake. My favorite brand is, of course, Art Institute Glitter. Therefore, it is quite a thrill for me to have been selected to be a guest blogger for June, July and August on the Art Glitter Blog. (Blinkie and link to follow as soon as I get it). You have heard it here first, folks, as Art Glitter hasn't announced the names yet, and I am posting here before Facebook this time. I hope to catch you over there some time this summer, too. I will still be here every week though, so keep coming back for your Dreamweaver fix.