Ranger LETTERit Release - Six Technique Cards

Hello friends and welcome to today's exciting announcement! Ranger Ink has just announced a new series of products, LETTERit, that is geared towards card makers. Woot! Woot! We have always known Ranger for their wonderful Distress Products and other crafting mediums, and now we can look to them for the production of beautiful sentiment stamps, various kits, including embossing and Perfect Pearl kits, metallic pens, and more! Read more on Ranger's web site.

I've created a video that walks you through each of the new products and showcases six unique cards, demonstrating a variety of techniques. Each of the cards focuses almost entirely on using only the new LETTERit products. You'll be amazed at the creative options available by using the kit supplies.

Scroll through the photos below to see a close up of the cards that I created and then enjoy the short video that follows to see how each of the projects came together. A supply list can also be found at after the video. Interested in purchasing LETTERit products? Visit your favorite craft supplier retail store! Enjoy and happy crafting!

The card above sums up my feelings on being selected to participate in the new product release...GRATEFUL!! A big thank you to Ranger for allowing me to play with the new goodies!

Supplies:

-Wendy Vecchi Mat Minis 

-Wendy Vecchi Translucent Embossing Paste 

-Wendy Vecchi White Embossing Paste  

-Wendy Vecchi Stencils (Checkmate)  

-Wendy Vecchi Stencils (Polka Dotty)

-Tim Holtz Stencils (Lattice Work)  

-Blending Tool  

-Non-Stick Craft Sheet  

-Blending Solution  

-Felt for Blending Tool  

-Yupo Paper  

-Tim Holtz Shears  

-Crinkle Ribbon  

-Archival Ink Minis  

-Distress Oxide Inks  

-Ranger Matte Medium  

-Neehah Solar White Cardstock  

-White Embossing Powder  

Wendy Vecchi Wednesday - Mini Album Featuring Mat Minis and Alcohol Ink Technique

Hello friends and welcome to another Wendy Vecchi Wednesday! WVW (Can I create an acronym? It's clear I've been in high tech for too long...the place where everything is turned into an acronym. *giggle*) is a special post where I create a project using Wendy's fabulous products. 

This week's creation is a tiny album, measuring only 2.5" x 2.5" in size. I've got a thing for working in miniature lately. Maybe because I'm running out of space in my studio and I can't fit anything too large...LOL! Whatever the case, I had a great time making this tiny piece that features a bunch of Wendy's Mat Minis and a background technique using Wendy's Archival Inks.

I created a video of the creation of this piece and I hope you enjoy! Happy Crafting!

Finished size:
-Covers - 2.5" x 2.5"

-Inside page - 2 1/8" x 8 1/2" (scored every 2 1/8")

Supplies:

-Archival Inks

-Mat Minis (Wait until you see the new ones!)

-Background Stamps

-Stamp It Stencil It - Put a Bird On It

-Just Say It Sentiment Stamp

-Embossing Paste

-Stencils

-Glimmer Mist

Art Journal Page Featuring The Crafters Workshop Stencils

Hey strangers! I know, I know...it's been a long time yet again. This whole moving to one state and back again thing has a way of killing one's ability to be very productive every day, especially when it comes to crafting!

We're getting fairly well settled into our new home, but are continuing to work through boxes that have been packed for months. We had the downstairs painted last week and I'm finally able to start hanging things on the walls. However, we are planning a kitchen redesign so I still have lots of stuff that needs to remain packed until that process is complete. Not that I know when I'm going to find time for that kitchen update...LOL!

And...it's summertime! School is finished and we have been enjoying spending lots of time outdoors, visiting parks and the lake. Who has time for decorating anyway! Maybe by me saying out loud that we're doing re-doing our kitchen will inspire me to get planning in a way other than visions in my head and on Pinterest...humm...

Well, until that happens...let's check out some recent artwork I created for The Crafters Workshop. This project was posted on their blog Saturday, but I thought I'd share the process photos on my blog today. Let's go!

The jumping off point for this spread was an Inspiration Wednesday video. During this video, Donna used watercolors, which was where I started. I was thrilled with the soft, summery colors that were produced using the watercolors, and the rest of the spread transpired from that point.

I started by adding some masking tape to both pages of my journal, and covered everything with gesso. I used Peerless watercolors for my painting. If you don't owe these watercolors, get them! They are papers infused with pigment, the activate when you touch them with a wet brush.

I used a very wet brush and variety of colors to create the background. The gesso keeps the watercolor from soaking into the paper, which keeps the colors light and bright. I loved the look of the background so much I didn't want to add anything else to the page!

Since I liked these pale colors so much I didn’t want to add anything with a drastic contrast so I used sections of the 12×12 Screen Print stencil (TCW525) and Tea Dye Distress Ink to add some subtle shading.

Next, I used a gold paint pen to trace around a few of the images. This added just the tiniest bit of shine and highlighted the designs. I also used Wendy Vecchi’s embossing paste, in white, to add the dragonfly image (also from the Screen Print stencil).

Once the embossing paste was dry, I put the stencil back over the embossed area (basically using the stencil as a mask now), and painted the dragonfly with various shades of Distress Paint. I added two dragonflies to this spread, one on each page.

I added more stenciling in the background, using the Believe Script stencil (TCW541) and Wendy Vecchi’s Watering Can Archival Ink. I also added some stamping, from some random Tim Holtz stamps, and gold paint flecks. Lastly, I added some shading to the dragonfly using some Faber Castell Big Brush Markers. I added a quote using alphabet stamps from Tim Holtz and black Archival Ink. See the rest of my photos below!

I hope you enjoyed today's art journal project! Happy crafting!

Inspiration Wednesday - Week 9 - Featuring The Crafters Workshop Stencils

Greetings from the great state of NH! Yes, we are officially back in NH, and I couldn't be happier! We are definitely missing some of our friends back in CT, but we are looking forward to a summer filled with frequent visitors! (And maybe even a trip or two to CT for us as well!)

While I've just barely started to unpack my art supplies, I managed to sneak in one project while we were still in CT, and my supplies were packed. (Hey, I had to leave a few things out just in case I got desperate!) I also received a shipment of TCW stencils to use on my design team projects, so really, they needed to be used ASAP...to make sure they worked correctly. *wink*

This project was from last week's Inspiration Wednesday video and while I've shared a few steps, I'm not going to provide an in-depth description of all of the steps, as this is a pretty literal copy of what Donna created in her video. If you're interested in following along with this year's Inspiration Wednesday projects, you can sign up here, it's only $35 for the entire year!

My project started with vintage text and the Jax (TCW599) stencil. I used Dina Wakley acrylic paint (Black) to add the stencil design to the pages. Notice that I did not start with gesso...

Next came the watered down gesso, creating a nice wash that only slightly covered up the text and stenciling. I also didn't wait for the black paint to completely dry (mostly because my heat gun was already packed!) and some of the paint smudged, but I ended up really liking how the page developed more of a gray tone vs. pure white.

My next layer was, of course, Wendy Vecchi embossing paste...it's my favorite paste! I used the Coaster (TCW621) stencil with the paste and added this fun design in random places over both journal pages. I placed the stencil off the edge of the paper each time I added paste so that I wasn't getting a complete circle.

And...that's when I finished with the step-by-step photos... :-) This is the finished piece, which features circles and the great color combo of teal, orange, and gold. Love, love, love the colors on this piece! I also used a Stabilo pencil for the shading around all of the circles. The "you have what it takes" sentiment is from a Wendy Vecchi stamp set (see links below).

The numbers inside the circles is a stamp designed by Donna Downey (sold by Unity), you can find all links at the end of this post. The stickers were once white...I painted them with Dina Wakley paint (Gilt) before applying them to the spread. The faith word is actually a chipboard piece, from Michaels, that I painted and attached with matte medium.

Since I had packed all of my tags, I needed to go foraging for a place to put my date stamp. I found this fun stickers in a basket of random goodies, and I really love the addition of the red and the speech bubble design vs. a manila tag. Might have to use more of these on future pages...

I'll end with a close up of that Coaster stencil...I just adore the look of the broken design and how the teal paint, applied with my finger, highlights small portions of the raised area. This stencil is definitely going into my fav pile!

I hope you enjoyed today's project! Now that we're firmly (I hope!) planted back in NH, I'm looking forward to unpacking all of my supplies, and getting back to more regular blog posts. Thanks for hanging in there through this crazy transition...Happy Crafting!

Supplies:

Donna Downey Inspiration Wedneday Videos

TCW599 - Jax

TCW621 - Coaster

Wendy Vecchi Embossing Paste

Golden Fluid Acrylics

Dina Wakley Acrylic Paint

Donna Downey Stenciled & Reconstructed Stamp Set

Wendy Vecchi Passion for Art Stamp Set

Inspiration Wednesday - Week 7

Hi kids! Sharing my next Inspiration Wednesday creation! I actually have last week's to share as well, but I'm running painfully behind on my posting. I've been spending my days getting ready for our move back to NH, which has kept me busier than normal. Yesterday I packed up all of my craft supplies and I don't expect to see them again for 2-4 weeks, insert sad face, so I prepped a bunch of projects to share over the next month or two...this is the first!

This project was from a few weeks ago, as you can tell from my date stamp of 4/3. And while my last IW project didn't thrill me, this was made me do the happy dance! It's really such a simple project, comprised of bits of collaged paper, including designer paper, tissue paper, and vintage book text, along with my favorite products..embossing paste and stencils.

The best part of this layout? Glazing medium and umber paint...oh man, this is nothing better than the vintage look that these two products create. I just love the look of the embossed, aged letters...swoon.

I also really loved working with the kraft tissue paper, which is a left over from my store ownership days. The color of the tissue paper provides a wonderful contrast with the white paint, and because it's so thin you end up with wonderful crinkles that translate into texture you want to reach out and touch.

This little bit of script text on the inclusion may be my favorite bit of all...Overall, I had a great time creating this piece, and it will no doubt serve as an inspiration for future projects. 

Happy Crafting!

Inspiration Wednesday - Week 6

Well it only took six weeks for me to get way behind on my IW videos and posting...oh boy! And it also took six weeks for me to hit the "they can't all be winners" creation. LOL! This layout, although very simple, took the most time to create. Those darn flowers were tricky!

However, in the end, I found that I was mostly happen with the final results. The flowers, which were created with Wendy Vecchi's embossing paste, started as white, then blue, then back to white again before ending up as gold. I do really love the look of the gold against the dark blue background.

My page ended with some cork letters, aren't they fun, and a few sentiment stickers. Next week I'll share week 7, which came together much faster and easier. Hey, they can't all be winners, but keeping a journal filled with all of our art, not just the very best, is a satisfying experience. I love looking back on older projects and seeing how my techniques have evolved or improved. It's a great keepsake...like a diary packed full of color, texture, and artistic growth!

Enjoy!

Jumping on the Bird Crazy Bandwagon

I've finally done it..given in to the Bird Crazy craze! If you don't know about these fun bird images then where have you been for the past two years?! LOL! I fought it long and hard, but I finally found myself too drawn to these silly faces to resist any longer...

Tim Holtz introduced the Bird Crazy stamp set probably two years ago, maybe less, and the demand for them took off like mad. He then introduced coordinating dies and accessories. And now I see these birds on craft blogs all over the internet land!

When these were first released, I still owned eclectic Paperie and I honestly had a hard time keeping the stamps and dies in stock...it was madness! Once I started the closing process, I managed to tuck one stamp set and one die set into my stash...you know, just in case. Almost a year later...I finally pulled them out to create a card for my son's upcoming birthday. (I think this bird is has a slight resemblance those Angry Birds so I know my son is going to love this card!)

My card began with a healthy dose of Wendy Vecchi's embossing paste and a Dina Wakley stencil. Once the paste was dry I added some water and applied ink from Tim's Distress Markers. Adding more water made the ink from the markers run in between all of the non-paste surfaces...dreamy. (I used Ranger watercolor paper for this process)

My bird was stamped on another piece of watercolor paper and die cut. More markers, with a non-stick craft sheet and water brush, were used to color the bird. The dies, which perfectly fit around the birds eyes and beaks, were used to cut out those features and pop them up with foam tape. Bring on the dimension! To finish the card I simply added a vintage text circle and some words from a Chit Chat sticker book.

So there you have it..my introduction to this super fun stamp set! Want to give using these birds a try? Click any of the links below to go directly to the product pages. (The Funkie Junkie sells these products for 20% below retail!)

Happy Crafting!

Supplies:

Bird Crazy Stamp Set

Bird Crazy Die Set

Wendy Vecchi Embossing Paste (white)

Distress Markers

Ranger Watercolor Paper

Distress Spritzer

Watercolor Brush