It's All Perspective

Happy Thursday and last day of February!! The weekend is almost here!! Another week that has flown by :)

The challenge this week at Simon Says Stamp and Show is the stamp set you love, but don't use. I absolutely love this image of David from the Tim Holtz Artful Artifacts stamp set. It was the reason I bought the set, but I've never used it. So I chose it for my project today. Actually, I used all four stamps from the set :)

The base of the card is watercolor paper. Tim Holtz Distress Stains in Old Paper, Walnut, Tea Dye, Vintage Photo and Antique Linen were dabbed onto a craft sheet, sprayed with water and the paper was inked with the stains. Once it dried, David was stamped with Jet Black Archival Ink. A TH Distress Marker in Vintage Photo was used for the hair, Forest Moss for the eye, and Victorian Velvet for the lips. A water brush was used on all the Distress Markers for a lighter, watercolor look. Another David was stamped on a separate sheet of paper and cut out to create a mask. It was placed over the image and the alphabet stamp from the Artful Artifacts set was stamped with Tea Die Distress Ink. The flourish along the top and pen nibs on the bottom were stamped with Walnut Distress Ink. TH Commute Tissue Tape was applied  and then the edges were all inked with Walnut Distress Ink. The watercolor paper was then adhered to black cardstock from The Paper Studio with adhesive and a TH Tiny Attacher.

It's all Perspective is from the TH Good Thoughts stamp set, stamped with Jet Black Archival Ink. The metal flower is from TH's Idea-ology Foliage Flower Leaves.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Simon Says Stamp and Show - The Stamp Set You Love, But Don't Use
2. Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes
3. Dl.Art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
4. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party

Thanks so much for stopping by!! Have a great evening :)

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Keep Calm & Carry On

Happy Wednesday!! I hope your week is going well!! It's my turn to post at Getting Cricky and I have a card to share with you today :)

I took a break from playing with my Dylusions sprays for this one.

The paper is from My Mind's Eye Blush stack. The black paper is from The Paper Studio. The edges were inked with Tim Holtz Victorian Velvet Distress Ink. The label is a Spellbinders Decorative Labels 8 die with a Labels 8 popped on top with foam tape. The sentiment is from K Andrew Designs Beautiful Thoughts stamp set:

This set isn't available anymore, but there are a few that you can still purchase for 60% off. Click HERE to visit the online store.

I have some friends to thank for supplies for this card!! The gorgeous flower is a RAK from  my sweet friend Chriss of Scrappin' With Chriss & Lou!! Thanks again, Chriss - I love them!! The stunning stick pin is from my talented friend Christina of Flowers, Ribbons and Pearls (as is the Want to Scrap black gem flourish)!! Thanks again, Christina - I love everything!!

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Dl.Art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party

Thanks so much for stopping by :)

My First Dylusions Spray Project and WINNER!!

Happy Sunday!! I hope you are having a fabulous weekend!! I've been playing with my new Dylusions Ink Sprays and I am in love!! They are so much fun!! The colors are so bright and vibrant!! I hope you don't get sick of seeing me use them because I foresee lots of inky projects in the near future :)

I'll try, but I don't think I can even explain how I did the background because most of it was just playing around with the sprays and stencils and stamps :) I will also include a list at the bottom of all the supplies used.

The paper is watercolor paper from Strathmore. The Dylusions sprays used are Squeezed Orange, Pure Sunshine, Lemon Zest, Postbox Red, Cherry Pie, Bubblegum Pink, Funky Fuchsia, Dirty Martini, Fresh Lime, White Linen and London Blue. A Cosmic Swirls stencil from The Crafter's Workshop was placed over the paper and sprayed with Postbox Red. Another stencil from TCW, Numbers, was placed on the corners and spritzed with water for a ghosting effect. A Dylusions Dotted Flowers stencil was placed along the top corner and spritzed with London Blue. A waterbrush was then used to color in parts of the flowers with different colors of the sprays. A TCW Mini Art Is stencil was placed along the bottom and then covered with Wendy Vecchi Embossing Paste. The Dylusions Dotted Flowers stencil was placed back over the original one and a few of the dots were covered with the embossing paste. Two stamps from the Tim Holtz Ultimate Grunge set were stamped with Peacock Feathers and Fired Brick Distress Inks. White Linen Spray was then flicked on the background for subtle spots. Black Soot was sponged along the edges and then the paper was adhered to cardboard painted black.

Dylusions Pondering Petunia was stamped with Ranger Archival Ink in Jet Black and then colored with TH Distress Markers in Spiced Marmalade, Barn Door, Fired Brick, Tumbled Glass, Spun Sugar, Wild Honey, Dusty Concord, Mustard Seed, Bundled Sage, Antique Linen, Tattered Rose, Picket Fence and Faded Jeans. A Sakura Gelly Roll pen was used to outline Petunia and the flowers.

The sentiment, from TH's Just Thoughts stamp set, was stamped with Jet Black Archival Ink on TH Specialty Stamping Paper. The words were cut out and inked with Antique Linen and then Walnut Distress Ink along the sides. The arrows are from TH's The Journey stamp set. They were cut out, glued on and outlined with the white gelly roll pen.

I'm entering this in the following challenges:

1. Simon Says Stamp - Use an Arrow
2. Dl.Art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
3. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party

And now for the winner of A Lovely Blog Hop!! First, I have to apologize...I was supposed to announce the winner over a week ago. Time completely got away from me. So without further delay, the winner of the Fiskars Friendship stamps is:

and #56 is:

Congratulations, Missy!! Email your address to me at  indymermaid(at)gmail(dot)com and I will get them in the mail to you!!

Thanks so much for stopping by :)

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Little Scrap Pieces Fun Friday - Emboss It!!

Happy Friday!! Are any of you snowed or iced in?? We got a little snow and ice, but not the amounts they predicted (thank goodness!!) I have an exciting weekend planned...my Dylusions sprays arrived so I'll be getting inky all weekend :)

Friday means a Fun Friday challenge at Little Scrap Pieces!! I'm sponsoring this week's challenge, so I hope you will all play along!! The theme is Emboss It...it can either be wet or dry embossing.

I was feeling grungy in my craft room, so I pulled out my Tim Holtz supplies and started playing :) The base of the card is black cardstock from The Paper Studio. The Kraft paper is also from TPS, and it was embossed with the Spellbinders Bricks and Bark embossing folder. It was then inked with Tim Holtz Vintage Photo and Walnut Distress Inks. The edges were distressed with a Zutter Distress-It-All and then inked with Black Soot for a burned look. A Foil Tape Sheet from Ranger was applied to heavy weight cardstock from Canvas Corp., and then embossed with the Tim Holtz Subway embossing folder (love this folder!!). Black acrylic paint was applied to the embossed foil and after a few minutes, wiped off the embossing. TH Tarnished Brass Distress Ink was then applied to the raised letters and wiped off for a grungy look. The awesome skittles are from my sweet friend Carri of DoubleClick - AKA ABusyBee :)

The tag is a TH Tiny Tabs & Tags die. The sentiment is from TH's Just Thoughts stamp set. It was stamped with black Ranger Archival Ink in and then heat embossed with TH Black Soot Embossing Powder. The tag was inked with Vintage Photo distress ink and then crumpled. The ridges were inked with Walnut distress ink and then it was flattened out. The edges were inked with Black Soot. The flower is a TH's Metal Foliage flower. The tag was attached with foam tape for dimension. The TH Metal Word Band was inked with black acrylic paint and wiped off so it stayed in the crevices. It's hard to read from this angle but it says: The journey awakens the soul. The hemp fiber is from Michaels.

I am linking this up with the following challenges:

1. Simon Says Stamp and Show - Metal-ology
2. Dl.Art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
3. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Little Scrap Pieces to see the amazing projects my talented design team sisters have created for today's challenge. Then link up your Emboss It project...this is what you could win:

I can't wait to see what you create!!

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Enter Your Emboss It Project Here!!

Decorate to Celebrate #45 - Wedding/Engagement

Happy Wednesday!! I hope you are having a great week!! It's time for a Decorate to Celebrate challenge :)

For Challenge #45, we are asking you to create any project to be used as a party decoration (or party supply) for a wedding or engagement party or event!! Let's celebrate everything wonderful about saying "I DO!" with your table decorations, party banners, pennants, yard signs, cupcakes, party favors and more :)

For my project, I created a banner that can be used for either a wedding or engagement party. The hearts are Spellbinders Classic Scalloped Hearts and Classic Hearts. The black paper is from The Paper Studio and the white is heavy weight cardstock from Canvas Corp. The letters were traced on Tim Holtz Idea-ology clear mask sheet and cut out. The hearts were inked with Tim Holtz Tattered Rose, Barn Door and Fired Brick Distress Ink. Each heart was stamped with a Tim Holtz stamp in Fired Brick. The mask was removed from the letters and they were outlined with a Tim Holtz Black Soot Distress Marker and adorned with gems. Two holes were punched in each heart with a Crop-a-Dile and fitted with eyelets for the hemp fiber.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Dl.Art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Decorate to Celebrate to see the amazing projects my talented design team sisters have created for today's challenge. Then link up your Wedding/Engagement project...I can't wait to see what you create :)

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Paper Playtime - Use a Sentiment Stamp

Happy Monday and Happy President's Day to all my friends in the USA!! I hope you had a great weekend!! This month is just flying by...I don't know where the days go.

It's time for a Paper Playtime challenge, and the theme this week is Use a Sentiment Stamp. Fun and easy...I hope you will all join in :)

All of the paper for this card is from My Mind's Eye Reunion stack. The base is a Spellbinders Card Creating Basics A die. The rest are Spellbinders Marvelous Squares dies, except for the orange layer, which is a Labels 1 die. The layers were each popped up with foam tape for dimension. The butterfly is a Spellbinders Fanciful Flight die. The banner is a Spellbinders Ribbon Banner die, inked with Tim Holtz Antique Linen Distress Ink. The sentiment is from Just Rite's Thank You Labels Twenty stamp set, inked with Versafine Onyx ink. The ribbon is from 3 Girl Jam.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Dl.Art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Paper Playtime to see the amazing projects my talented design team sisters have created for today's challenge. Then link up your project using a sentiment...I can't wait to see what you create :)

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Embrace Imperfection

Happy Saturday!! I hope you are having a great weekend!! It's chilly but sunny here today. It just seems like spring is closer when the sun is shining :)

I have a card to share with you today. I am having so much fun with Dyan Reaveley's Dylusions stamps. Today I'm using Curious Corrin. Aren't her curls fun?? It's hard to tell in the pics, but they are Spun Sugar pink :)

I've ordered Dylusions sprays but they aren't here yet, so I used Studio Calico Mister Huey's sprays for the background. The base is watercolor paper. Overdue, Pumpkin Spice, Plum Thumb, Heirloom Blue,  Dewey and Estate Green Mister Huey's were sprayed onto the background. Pumpkin Spice was sprayed over a Crafter's Workshop Numerals stencil, and Overdue sprayed on a Donna Salazar Brick stencil. Estate Green spray was mixed with water on a craft sheet and a Tim Holtz dots stamp from the Psychedelic Grunge stamp set was stamped randomly. The circles stamp from the same TH set was inked with Ranger Archival ink in black. A few of the circles were outlined with a Picket Fence Distress Marker.

Curious Corrin was colored with Tim Holtz Distress Markers and a TH Fine Point Water Brush. Spun Sugar was used on her hair, Antique Linen for her skin, Tumbled Glass for her eyes and Barn Door for her lips. Her dress was colored with Dusty Concord, Spiced Marmalade and Forest Green. Stormy Sky and Tumbled Glass were used on the tights, Spun Sugar and Victorian Velvet on the boots. Corrin was outlined with a Sakura Gelly Roll pen in white.

Embrace Imperfection was stamped with a Hero Arts small alphabet set onto watercolor paper. Antique linen was sponged on top, Black Soot on the edges. The words were popped up with foam tape for dimension.

I am entering Curious Corrin in the following challenges:

1. Simon Says Stamp and Show - Something Messy
2. Dl.Art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
3. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party

Thanks so much for stopping by!! Have a great weekend :)

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Little Scrap Pieces - Be My Valentine

Happy Friday!! Another weekend is upon us!! That means it's time for a Fun Friday Challenge at Little Scrap Pieces :)

The theme this week is Be My Valentine...we want to see any Valentine card, project or layout.

The tag was cut with the Tim Holtz Tag & Bookplate die, using watercolor paper. To My Valentine is from the TH Lovestruck stamp set. It was stamped with TH Embossing Ink and then embossed with clear embossing powder. Next, the tag was inked with TH Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick, Victorian Velvet and Barn Door Distress Ink. Once the ink was dry, water was flicked on it to give a little background texture. The edges were inked with Vintage Photo and Fired Brick Distress ink. The heart stamp is from the Lovestruck stamp set. The rosette was cut with the TH Paper Rosette die on Kraft paper, the edges inked with Fired Brick. The metal number 14 is from TH's Idea-ology Numerals. The tag was cut with a TH Ticket Strip Die, and stamped with a TH Odds and Ends stamp in black Archival Ink. The number was colored in with a Barn Door Distress Marker.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Dl.Art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Little Scrap Pieces to see the amazing projects my talented design team sisters have created for today's challenge. Then link up your Be My Valentine card, project or layout...I can't wait to see what you create :)

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Hello Friend!!

Happy Wednesday, and happy Ash Wednesday to all my Catholic friends :) I hope you are having a great week!! It's my turn to post at Getting Cricky and I have a friendship card to share with you today.

In my new year's resolution quest to learn new techniques, I came across THIS one from my sweet and amazingly talented friend Beate of Fresh and Fun. I love the look of bricks...stamps, stencils, embossing...and this looked so amazing, I had to try it!!

The base of the card is black cardstock from The Paper Studio. The rest of the paper is heavy weight white cardstock from Canvas Corp. The bottom white layer was cut with a Spellbinders Grand Rectangle. The nest two layers were cut with Spellbinders Card Creator Matting Basics A and B sets. I popped each layer up with foam tape for dimension. The stamp is from the Tim Holtz Nature's Discovery stamp set. It was stamped first in New Sprout ink from Memento, and then Cottage Ivy. Then the paper was cut into strips to make the bricks...first 1/2 inch strips and then they were cut into 3/4 inch bricks. The cuts were staggered to give the appearance of a brick wall. The edges of the bricks and the paper were sponged with Tim Holtz Frayed Brick Distress Ink.  The ribbon is from May Arts. The sentiment tag is a Spellbinders Nested Pennant die. "Hello Friend" is from K Andrew Designs Fashionable Friends stamp set:

You can pick this set up for 60% off, but hurry...there is only one set left!! Click HERE to visit the online store.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Dl.Art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
2. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party

Thanks so much for stopping by :)

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A Lovely Blog Hop!!

Hi everyone and welcome to A Lovely Blog Hop!!

If you just stumbled upon this hop, you can follow along by starting at Every Day is an Occasion. If you have been following along, you should have arrived from Heather at The Hunny Pot.

The idea behind this hop was to make a Valentine's Day project, card, etc... For my project, I created a Valentine's Day wall hanging.

Watercolor paper was inked with Tim Holtz Distress Stain in Barn Door and Aged Mahogany, spritzed with water and dried. A stencil was placed over part of the paper and spritzed again with water, and then the water was dabbed off for a ghost effect in the stain. The edges were inked with Walnut Distress Ind and then Black Soot. The chipboard letters are from a Wal-Mart clearance a few years ago. They were stamped with the text stamp from the Tim Holtz Love Struck stamp set in Versafine Onyx Black, and then inked with Barn Door and Fired Brick Distress Ink. The edges were shaded with a Distress Marker in Black Soot.

I think the chipboard heart and wings are from Tim Holtz, but I'm not positive. I've had them for a long time and had thrown away the packaging. They were inked with Fired Brick and Barn Door. A strip of TH Tissue Tape was adhered to both. The edges of the heart were lined with a Distress Marker in Black Soot, and the wings were inked with Black Soot Distress Ink.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Simon Says Stamp - Have a Heart
2. Sunday Funday #6 - Linky Party
3. Dl.art Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
4. DJ's Sundries - Valentine Challenge

I have blog candy!!

All you have to do to win a set of Fiskars Perfect Blend stamps is:

1. Be a follower
2. Leave a comment

That's it!! I will choose a winner on Tuesday, February 12.
 
Your next stop is the sweet and talented Jessica of Chick-n-Scrap!! Here's the entire line-up in case you get lost along the way or want to revisit anyone:

Jill from Every Day is an Occasion
Holly from Ribbons and Glue
Shelly from My Paper Love
Kelsie Ann from Cut Craft Create
Arin from A Piece of Life's Pie
Court from Court's Craft Corner
Missy from Quick Chick Designs
Heather from The Hunny Pot
Lisa from A Mermaid's Crafts < YOU ARE HERE
Jessica from Chick-n-scrap < GO HERE NEXT

Thanks so much for stopping by :)

Little Scrap Pieces Fun Friday - Love

Happy Friday!! Wow, another weekend is upon us!! I hope you have fun plans!! My thoughts and prayers are for all my friends in the Northeast in the path of the storm...stay safe.

Since it's Friday, that means a Fun Friday Challenge at Little Scrap Pieces!! This week, the theme is LOVE...we want to see any Valentine, Anniversary, Wedding, I love You card, project, or layout.

For my Love card, I used the awesome Tim Holtz Mini Blueprints 2 stamps...I love, love his blueprint stamps!! The base of the card is black cardstock from The Paper Studio. The next layer is Kraft paper, also from TPS. The black squares were cut with Spellbinders Marvelous Squares dies. The blueprint stamps were stamped onto Kraft paper with Versafine ink in Onyx Black. The images were colored in with a TH Distress Marker in Barn Door and then a TH Water Brush was lightly brushed over the color. Fired Brick Distress Ink was stamped onto a craft sheet and then the Water Brush was dipped in to color in the label on each stamp. The stamps were torn and the edges inked with Walnut Distress Ink. The sentiment is from TH's Stuff to Say stamp set, embossed with Recollections Blaze embossing powder. The heart in the center is a Spellbinders Classic Scalloped Heart and Classic Heart, inked with Fired Brick, Old Paper and Walnut Distress Ink.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Simon Says Stamp - Have a Heart
2. Dlart Thankful Thursday - Linky Party
3. DJ's Sundries - Valentine Challenge

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Little Scrap Pieces to see the amazing projects my talented design team sisters have created for today's challenge. Then link up your Love project...I can't wait to see what you create :)

Also, I hope you will stop by tomorrow for A Lovely Blog Hop, hosted by Jill of Every Day is an Occasion!!

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Decorate to Celebrate #44 - Valentine/Love

Happy Wednesday!! I hope you are having a wonderful week!! It's time for a Decorate to Celebrate challenge!! We are happy to announce that Arin from A Piece of Life's Pie has joined our design team!! She is incredibly talented and her projects will definitely inspire you :)

For Challenge #44, we are asking you to create any project to be used as a party decoration (or party supply) for a Valentine Party or Event. Let's celebrate everything wonderful about hearts, love and Valentines with your table decorations, party banners, pennants, yard signs, cupcakes, party favors and more :)

For my Valentines decorations, I created a rosette centerpiece. The paper is from My Mind's Eye Love Nest stack. The rosettes were cut with the Tim Holtz Paper Rosette die. I love making rosettes, and this die makes it so easy. No more getting out my scoreboard :) For the smaller ones, I just cut off about a quarter of an inch. The edges were inked with TH Victorian Velvet Distress Ink. The letters are from TH's Idea-ology Alpha Parts Ransom.

The base is a jelly jar, painted white. Love is from the MME paper stack. The satin ribbon is from Joann. The button and heart charm are from Hobby Lobby.

I am entering this in the Simon Says Stamp Challenge - Anything Goes

Now it's your turn!! Head on over to Decorate to Celebrate to see the amazing projects my talented design team sisters have created for today's challenge. Then link up your Valentine Party project...I can't wait to see what you create :)

Life Isn't About Finding Yourself and WINNER!!

Happy Sunday!! I hope you are having a wonderful weekend!! It's been cold and snowy here...perfect weather to stay inside and craft ;) I have a winner to announce from my Valentine Giveaway, but first, I want to share with you another new technique I've discovered.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, one of my resolutions this year is to expand my crafty knowledge and learn new techniques. I found this awesome technique HERE. After I started, I discovered I was completely out of clear embossing powder, but I did have UTEE, which is clear, but very thick. I decided to try it anyway and it worked :)

I am really bad about taking pictures as I go along because I never know what direction I'm going with projects. I started with a piece of cardstock from the Tim Holtz Lost and Found paper stack.

I embossed it with the Cuttlebug Bit of Paisley embossing folder. Then I took a brayer and inked it with TH Distress Embossing Ink and ran it over the embossed portion. Next, I covered the ink with Ranger UTEE and embossed it. I repeated the inking and embossing so that it had a nice texture. Once the embossing was completely dry, the next step is to take black craft paint and a sponge, and cover the entire card. The sponge works the paint into all the cracks. Then you take a cloth or baby wipe and remove the paint from the embossed portion. Finally, you put the paper between two sheets of paper towels and iron it to remove some of the embossing powder. This is the result:

Isn't that gorgeous??!! The colors of the paper pop through, really highlighting the texture.

I didn't want to add too many embellishments so that the background would really show.

The star is a Spellbinders Stars die, cut with paper from the same TH Lost and Found stack, and wrapped with hemp fiber from Michaels. The rosette was cut with a Tim Holtz Rosette Die and the same paper stach. The paper for the sentiment is heavyweight white cardstock from Canvas Corp, inked with TH Fired Brick, Spiced Marmalade, Aged Mahogany and Brushed Pewter Distress Stain. The edges were inked with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. The sentiment is from the Tim Holtz Mini Classics stamp set, inked with Walnut Distress Ink. The crinkle ribbon is from my sweet friend Karen of Little Scrap Pieces. The star is another Spellbinders Stars die, the edges inked with Walnut Distress Ink, with a gem from Recollections.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

1. Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge - Seeing Stars
2. Simon Says Stamp Challenge - Anything Goes
3. Mark's Finest Papers Simple Salutations - Anything Goes

Valentine's Day Giveaway WINNER!!

Thank you all so much for following me and entering my giveaway!! I wish I had something to give all of you. But...my 2 year blogaversary is coming up in less than 40 days and I'll have a huge giveaway to share with you!! For this giveaway, Random.org chose as the winner....................

And #22 is...................

Congratulations, Pam!! I'll email you or you can email your address to me at indymermaid(at)gmail(dot)com and I'll get the stamps and paper in the mail to you!!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!! Enjoy the rest of your weekend :)

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