Illustration Friday Challange - Soar

This week's topic on the Illustration Friday web site was "Soar." A perfect topic as I just recently received a lovely order of justjohanna stamps and the above images were all part of my order...yes, even the "Soar" sentiment!

This type of design is a first for me as it didn't include any layering or patterned paper. I was almost nervous about attempting this type of card! However, one of the things I really like about justjohanna images is how well they stand alone, without the need for a lot of extras.

My cardstock is a beautifully textured cream paper. All of the images used on the card are separate; the birdcage, the cage stand, the bird, and sentiment, and they have all been colored with Copic markers. I added a small gray shadow under the birdcage holder to "ground" it and a black brad to act as the "hinge" that holds the cage to the holder. The "soar" sentiment was stamped on a small piece of paper covered chipboard, with two more black brads added to each side. A bright piece of orange grosgrain finished off the piece.

Enjoy and check out the Illustration Friday web site...This is my first card created for this site and they post some very cool and creative art. You can see all of the entries for the Soar challenge here.

Happy Flying!

EDIT: Uploaded a better photo of the card.

Paint Can Full 'O Goodies!

This is my last holiday themed post for 2007 and is the final piece in the holiday gift pack that I've posted about over the past few days; the candle, gift card holder, and coaster....it's a paint can to hold all your goodies! :-)

This paint can was purchased at Wholly Scrap and is a bit larger than the cans I've worked with in the past. However, it was the perfect size to hold the items mentioned above, along with some festive shredded paper as filler. Below is a photo looking into the can (and this provides you with a good photo of the tiny gift cards that fit into the round tin):
Since I used these items in a class that I taught I was somewhat limited on supplies. I could have picked up enough paper to cover the entire paint can but then the class price would have gone increased so I went with a belly band..and...I really liked the final result. Not only did the can still look festive but it was a breeze to decorate!

I used more of Basic Gray's Figgy Pudding paper, the snowflake and polka dot designs are part of the same piece of double-sided paper. I wrapped the can with the two paper designs and a piece of funky green ribbon. A tag was added along with a small holiday flower image. The top of the paint can was covered in the same paper, using a large scalloped circle to highlight the flower image, which was colored with Copics and cut out before being attached with dimensional tape.

Using paint cans is such a great way to package a themed gift, such as a at-home spa package, manicure package, jammie package...the possibilities are endless...what fun!

I hope you've found some inspiration for when your next gift giving opportunity arises!

Happy Giving!

Gifts - Stamped Candles

Sorry for falling off the blogging bandwagon for a few days. I ended up with a nasty cold and didn't feel like doing much of anything, especially when I had to be up and preparing for Christmas. But I'm back now and am back with a few more gift ideas!

The next idea is stamped candles. I have two versions to share; the first is a candle that has a stamped image directly on the candle and the second is what I call a candle wrap, which is basically a belly band for a candle! Both of these projects are super easy!

Stamping on a Candle:
Although it appears as if the image is stamped directly on the candle, it's actually stamped on a piece of tissue paper and adhered to the candle. Follow these simple directions for this technique:

1) Stamp desired image on a piece of tissue paper that matches the color of your candle.
2) If necessary, color image with markers, watercolor pencils, etc. (I used Copics)
3) Don't cut, tear out image, tearing as close to the image as possible.
4) Place torn image on candle, smooth any wrinkles
5) Use a heat gun to slowly and carefully heat the image. Be careful to not hold the heat gun in one position for too long or you'll get drips on your candle. Move slowly back and forth across your image. The wax will begin to melt and the tissue paper will melt into the candle. You need to take your time with this process, don't give up too soon. You'll know you're finished when you can't see any more lines of the tissue paper.

Candle Wrap:

This is pretty self-explanatory and there are so many options available for wrapping a candle. For this project, I used Basic Grey Figgy Pudding paper to wrap the entire candle. I then punched out a large scalloped circle, layered it with a plain red circle and then added my stamped and colored image to the top of both circles. I also added a piece of silver cording that was wrapped around the candle and through two eyelets before being tied in a bow.

This technique is a beautiful way to dress up inexpensive candles. Imagine purchasing a number of differnet height candles, stamping and/or wrapping them, and then placing them all on a hand stamped platter. Wouldn't that be an awesome house warming gift? It would make quite a presentation!! (Just be sure to remove the paper before burning the candle! Shooting flames would be all wrong!!)

I'll be back tomorrow with a final project and fun way to create an all enclosed gift package!

Happy Stamping!

Holiday Gifts - Coasters

Looking for a really inexpensive gift that is also lovely? You can use 4"x4" (approximate size) tiles from your local hardware store to create beautiful custom coasters. These are so easy to create and the design ideas are limitless! The coaster shown above was created for a class I taught a few weeks ago. Here's my method for creating these:

1) Purchase tiles from local hardware store, mine came from Lowes. I prefer a rougher finish, I believe these are tumbled marble. This finish is also easier to stamp on vs. a high gloss finish.
2) Wipe off any dust that may be on the tiles.
3) Use Stazon ink to stamp image. If you smudge the ink, you can remove Stazon with rubbing alcohol and then try again.
4) Allow ink to fully dry and then paint the image with a glass paint. I used Pebeo paint, which can be purchased at most craft supply stores. (Follow the manufacturer's directions for firing).
5) Be sure to cover all of the lines made by the Stazon with the paint. Once the piece has been fired in your oven, it will be oven and water proof. You can also use a spray sealant to make them waterproof.
6) Add cork or felt feet to the back of the coaster to finish your piece!

Below I've shown a set of coasters and matching box. I found this box at Walmart and the coasters fit perfectly! I simply painted the box with acrylic paint and stamped the outside. Piece of cake!

Happy Stamping!

SALT Challenge - John 3:16 For God so Loved the World

This week it's Esther's turn to set the SALT challenge and she choose John 3:16, for God so loved the world.

The verse John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only son, that whoever believed in him shall not live but have everlasting life", is perhaps a well known verse but it is a real testimony to our Christian faith, thefact that the babe Jesus was born as a Savior for our sins. So that if you believe that he came to die, and ask for forgiveness you also can recieve the gift of eternal life in heaven. John 15:13 reminds us "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."

I kind of "cheated" with this challenge...How you ask? Well I knew that I wanted to use a heart with this challenge but I didn't have a heart that was very large and I didn't want to just use paper. Today during lunch it hit me...alter the heart ornament that was hanging on my tree! :-)
This large wooden ornament was just painted a plain red with the wire so I got to work on adding some extras! I added the SU! French Flair background stamp to the entire image, using a distress ink. A torn and aged piece of More Mustard, which was stamped with a diamond background, was added as the first layer and a thin strip of Old Olive, stamped with a floral pattern, was added on top. Two green buttons were attached with twill tape.

Then...what to do about the words of the verse. I didn't want to just print them out from the PC so I went through all of my stamp sets and found words from different sets that I needed to create a portion of the verse that would fit on the heart. The toughest word to find was "world!" Notice how tiny it is...it's from a retired SU! stamp that included images that look like postage stamps and travel stickers. One of those stamps had a world! Yeah! The metal helped to give the small type a little umph. Other ribbons and hardward is fairly self explantory!

Why not create a project based on this week's theme! If you do, please leave a comment on the SALT blog with a link back to your blog or gallery, it is always encouraging to know that you come and visit our blog!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Holiday Gift Packaging

There are lots of options for creating hand stamped gift packages. I've shown just a few here...

1) Gable boxes - These versatile boxes can usually be purchased in bundles and are packed flat. They can be painted, stamped, or as I've done wrapped with a belly band. The belly band option is a super quick solution. I created this in just minutes! And guess what I just purchased? Stickles! OK - love them, new favorite product! You can just see a bit of stickle shine on the flower - fabulous!

2) Boxes - This is a standard jewelry box that I simply covered with pattered paper. The bottom section of the box is covered in a solid color-coordinated cardstock. I then used a few stickers (stamped images would work just as well) to decorate the top and added a piece of ribbon. This was the box I used to house the necklace, shown in the post below.

3) Tins - I think Nichole Heady of Papertreyink has made famous the round and square tins with the clear tops! I have a few of the Papertreyink tins - love them - but this is a tin that I picked up at Wholly Scrap. Another super easy project - got to love that during the holiday rush! I simply covered the bottom and top lids with lovely Basic Grey Figgy Pudding paper. I then decorated the front of the tin with a scalloped circle and some stamped images, purchased from Wholly Scrap. I used a Crop-A-Dile to punch holes in the top of tin so I could tread a ribbon through the top. During my class this month we filled these with note cards but wouldn't these be perfect filled with peppermint patties covered with a custom stamped label! And once they're empty, they can become a wonderful Christmas tee decoration! Speaking of stamped candies...thought I'd share a few nugget covers that I created as a sweet handout during my last class, another idea made famous by Nichole. The stamp image was one I purchased from Wholly Scrap. I then stamped on Avery 8160 labels and colored the image with Copics, then wrapped the labels around the nuggets. Voila, easy peasy nugget wraps! ;-)

Any other ideas you'd like to share? Feel free to leave a comment with a link back to your blog or gallery...I'd love to see your creations!

Thanks for stopping by and....

Happy Wrapping!

Holiday Gifts

Stamping...it's not just for cards anymore! Stamps can be used to create so many things now; home decorations, such as candles and coasters, wall art, tee-shirts...the list goes on and on. One of my favorites has always been jewelry and once I saw these 7Gypsies bracelets on Deb Olson's blog, I knew I had to try them out!

The bracelets come in an unassembled kit, they are a breeze to put together! You stamp the image you want on your bracelet, attach the clear pebble sticker over your image, cut away the excess, and glue each finished circle into the empty holes. Then, using needle nose pliers, you link the pieces together, attach the clasp and you're done!

To create my bracelet, I used some beautiful paper from Stampin' Up! The design went so well with the antique look of the bracelet. I really wanted a stamped image that I could color and it's not easy to find something that will fit such a small space but I looked through my stash of stamps and found a SU! set that was retired years ago. It has a floral image that was perfect. I only had to stamp the image once and then cut out different areas for my four stamped sections. The images are colored with Copics.

The bracelets comes with eight circles, I only needed seven, so taking a clue from what Deb did with her kit, I created a pendant with the left over circle. Adding a piece of SU! grosgrain ribbon made a perfect necklace and although it's not that visible in the photo, I added a crystal brad to the bottom of the pendant to cover up the hole where the link would go. (Sorry for the fuzzy photo...didn't realize the blur at the time and I have since given this gift set to a friend!)

I used one of the Papertreyink round tins to hold my bracelet (check back tomorrow for my necklace box...). I filled in the tin with a piece of coordinating paper and used stickers to create the inside design. This makes a great gift and the bracelet is really beautiful on...I really like the antiqued finish of the metal pieces.

Get yourself one of these nifty bracelets and have a grand 'ol time! Hope this has inspired you to try creating some hand stamped gifts for your friends and family!

Check back tomorrow for packaging ideas...

Happy Gifting!

Holiday Sketch

It's not that I was published in a card magazine but my card above was published in the December edition of the justjohanna newsletter and, for me, that is just as exciting! I was so excited to see one of my cards showcased in the newsletter. Thanks so much Johanna, you made my day!! :-)

The sketch challenge is below along with a second card I created using the same layout: (all images justjohanna) Why not give this layout a try? If you create something using the sketch, please feel free to leave a comment with a link back to your blog or gallery. I'd love to see what you've made!

Stay tuned for more fun holiday projects that will posted this week...

Happy Shopping!

Sketch Challenge - Holiday Countdown!

Here is the final card I created using the sketch challenged posted last week. Since we're only a week away from Christmas (and at the moment almost knee deep in snow here in the Northeast), I thought this card would be the perfect launching point for my week long holiday event! During the countdown to the 25th I'll be posting a number of holiday cards and projects so check back often! :-)

For this card I used the justjohanna Pauline partridge stamp, notice the right and left facing images...perfect for "holding" an object, such as my heart image, also from justjohanna. My thought was "sending love at the holidays" when I created this card.

All of the papers are from Stampin' Up!. A Mavy scalloped circle punch created the backdrop for my loving partridges. Colors have been added with Copic markers and the bling at the bottom of the card is also compliments of SU!

Happy Day!

Sketch Challenge - Take Three!

This card is more Fallish than holiday-ish but still fun any way! :-) Stay tuned...my next post will be the perfect holiday card...

Even though this justjohanna image is a peacock, I kind of thought he could be perhaps a peacock dreseed up as a turkey...no...hee hee The background papers is part of SU!'s western designer paper, love these designs! And the faux stitching is a fun fit with the western paper. This is the first time I've used this style of faux stitching and I really like the look. Emily, over at Stampin' and Stuff did a great tutorial on different styles of faux stitching. You can check it out here.

My turkey...err...peacock has been colored with my Copics and then cut out and adhered, with dimentional tape, on top of a metal edged tag. I also colored the tag with the markers so my image wouldn't be on a white background. It's hard to see from the photo but the edges of the twill tape has been frayed for more of that western feel.

Enjoy and Happy Fall Y'all!

Sketch Challenge - Take Two

Here's the second card I created with the same sketch, noted below. This time I decided to use the hot air balloon as the "circle" section of the layout. This balloon is the pefect "hanging out" spot for any of justjohanna's chicklet images. Here my "Easter bonnet" chicklet is out for a lovely hot air balloon on perhaps a sunny spring day. (Not like the bone chilling day we're having here in the Northeast!)

The top portion of my card was stamped using a jj cloud image, which is so much fun because it can be used in so many different ways; a cloud, of course, waves, steam, smoke...any other ideas? The bottom portion is a piece of patterend paper from K&Company (love them!) The balloon was paper pieced from another piece of K&Company paper. The ribbon is compliments of SU! and my chicklet and balloon basket were colored with Copics. Sentiment is lovingly surrounded by a piece of SU! hardware!

Happy Ballooning!

Sketch Challenge

Each month the jj design team is given a sketch challenge. This was the first challenge I participated in and I've got a bunch of cards to share this week, using the same layout. I loved this sketch and found that I had lots of ideas for images that would work well in this format.

My first card showcases some of justjohanna's new Harvest images, that were released before Thanksgiving. I adore this leaf wreath image and it was a perfect fit for the circle section of the card. I'm also partial to the sentiment, which not only says thanks but also expresses gratitude.

My card base is SU!'s Always Artichoke. Top section is the backside of some Crate paper and the bottom section is SU!'s More Mustard. The large Artichoke circle at the top was cut out using my handy dandy Coluzzle cutting system, which BTW I can't stand! LOL! It's so difficult to use!! OK, back to the card...The wreath was colored with Copics, cut out, and adhered (after attaching one lovely piece of chocolate brown taffeta ribbon) with dimensional tape to the larger circle. The sentiment has been colored and attached to two layers of color coordinating cardstock. Lastly, the tiny acorn was added to the edge of the sentiment...a lovely Fall embellishment!

Why not try out this layout and leave me a comment with a link back to your site...would love to share in your creations!

Happy Stamping!

justjohanna Design Team!

Johanna just announced the new design team on her blog! I'm thrilled to be staying on for the next term of six months!!

The more I use justjohanna stamps, the more I love them! Not only are most of the sentiments clever and oh so cute, fun, and silly but they match perfectly with all of her whimsical images. There are so many possibilities...and all of them are fabulous!

Johanna has released a boatload of new images over the past few months...go check them out on the justjohanna web site.

Enjoy!

SALT Challenge - JESUS - THE TRUE MEANING OF CHIRSTMAS

Hi all! It was Casey's turn to set the challenge for the SALT blog this week and she chose "Jesus, the true meaning of Christamas..."

We all love celebrating Christmas because it is a time for us to stop, remember and praise God for the birth of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. HE IS the true meaning of Christmas. Not presents, not parties, not decorations, etc. JUST JESUS!!!

I created a card, whose background (unfortunately) is not that easy to see...looks like I have a bit of a shine on my photo! The background is made up of many sentiments that are expressed throughout the holidays; Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, etc. I then added a section of a verse from Luke 2:11, which announces the birth of Christ....The real reason to celebrate! Even though Christmas has been set aside as a day to remember His birth, we are blessed to be able to recall his miraculous birth each and every day!

Pale blue paper used on the card is from Stampin' Up!. Star and brackets are chipboard covered with Basic Grey's Figgy Pudding (of course!), and red cardstock is by Bazill.

We' also love to see what you come up with too! Feel free to leave us a comment on the SALT blog so we too can share in your art!!!

Eiffel Tower - Part Deux!

A second card created with the justjohanna mini Eiffel Tower image.....

I again started with my Eiffel Tower image stamped on a pale gray cardstock and that's about as far as I got the first night! The following evening I remembered a card that Nichole Heady had created using a slide mount made from polyshrink. Since she's oh so generous, she posted the template to her blog, which you can find here. In measuring out the tower image I realized it would fit perfectly inside a slide mount!

Finding this floral print, which I adore, was the perfect start to the card design. The paper is double-sided, floral on one side and polka dots on the other. I used the floral paper as a layer on a peice of SU! Mellow Moss cardstock. The bottom edges of the card were rounded using a corner round punch. The polka dot paper was glued onto the slide mount and I used Basic Brown ink to age the edges of the slide mount.

To showcase the Eiffel Tower image, I created a tiny landscape "painting". Using a piece of watercolor paper, I used SU! water color crayons to create a sky and grass. I then used a very dry brush, dipped in white craft ink, to create teeny, tiny stars in the sky by lightly stippling the ink across the sky. The Eiffel Tower image was then cut out and adhered, using stampin' dimensions, to the painting. The finishing touch was a piece of stitched ribbon slid through a piece of SU! hardware and an "oh la la" added to the bottom of the slide mount. Voila!

Here's a close up shot of the slide mount, image, and painting! :-)
Happy Creating!