Simon Says: Not A Card

This week on the Simon Says Monday Challenge we are challenged with making something other than a card.

As always Simon Says Stamp will be giving away a $50 voucher to shop at their store.

I've created a spread in my Small Dylusions Journal.

The first layer uses PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Paints (Amethyst, Cheesecake, Smurf, Captain Peacock) applied with my fingers.

Opaque Crackle Texture Paste was added through the TCW Mini Rosetta Stencil and left to dry.

Once dry more Fresco Finish Paints (Lilac, Turquoise, Antarctic) were used, this time applied with a brush to make it easier to paint over the crackle.

A close-up picture of a crackled area.

Stenciling through the PaperArtsy PS001 stencil with both Snowflake and Banana paint applying Snowflake first and then Banana.  I didn't wait for the white to get totally dry, just went in with white and then immediately the yellow over it.

Some stamping using a text image from PaperArtsy ESN11 and Archival Ink Garden Patina. 

Pieces of Composer Tissue Wrap torn and glued on with Distress Collage Medium Matte.

Then back in with some of the first colors of Fresco Finish Paints again using my fingers.

More stenciling using Antarctic paint through PS016 stencil this time adding the paint with a stencil brush to get a sharper image with no bleeding under the stencil.

Stamped an image from ETS11 using Amethyst paint.  Put some paint on your craft sheet, spread it thin with your finger, tap the stamp in the paint and then onto your page.  Be sure to clean your stamp before the paint dried on it.  Once the paint was dry, I used a White Gel Pen to add doodles and marks to the circle images.

Stenciling with Black Embossing Paste and PS045 stencil.  Once stenciled I used a heat tool to dry the paste.

Some PaperArtsy Treasure Gold brushed onto the center of the flower and rubbed around the edges of the spread.

Highlights added to the black stenciling with the White Gel Pen.  Idea-ology Stickers - "every" from the ChitChat pack and "day" from the Big Chat pack - were stuck on.  Distress Markers used a add a bit of color to them.  A black pen to add lines by the stickers and a border line around the spread.  The Distress Splatter Brush used to add splatter, first with Little Black Dress and then with Gold.  

I hope you've enjoyed the journal spread for this week.  I really enjoyed making it!!!  If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask.

Hugs, Wanda

Daughter of a King

The background is a very light piece of shaving cream technique paper and I sewed around the edge.  The words are a Taylored Expressions stamp, stamped and embossed with black, a Distress Marker used to add color to some of the words.  The leaf is a Tim Holtz/Sizzix die cut from alcohol inked paper, embossed using the matching folder and the high spots hit with some Distress Ink.  Gold metallic ribbon used to make the bow.  Dots of Gold Lame Smooch are a nice finishing touch.  

I'm linking this to the Simon Says Stamp World Card Making Day Challenge.

Baby It's Cold Outside

Hi There!!!!  I have a short tutorial over on the Quietfire Creations blog today showing how I made this card.

Simon Says: A Walk on the Dark Side

Hello There!!!!!  I'm absolutely thrilled to have been asked to be this months Spotlight Designer for the Simon Says Monday Challenge.  I could hardly believe my eyes when the email came from Lols.

Wow!!  Thanks so much, Lols and Simon Says Stamp, for this opportunity!!

This week on the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge we have A Walk on the Dark Side.  The challenge is to use Dark Colors or to go with a Halloween theme.  As always, the first week of the month also showcases a product and this week it is Tim Holtz products so if you have some we'd love to see how you use them.  If you don't have any, it's all good, you can still create something for the theme and enter the challenge.

As always Simon Says Stamp will be giving away a $50 voucher to use in their shop.

For my project I went with Dark Colors, and actually one dark color, black.   

I knew for this project that I would use dark colors and had decided maybe I'd stick with black but beyond that I had nothing.  So as I do when there is a deadline and I've got no plan, I just started something.  I took a piece of black cardstock (4 1/4" x 5 1/2") and brayered on some Distress Oxide Reinkers (Black Soot and Walnut Stain).  Shake the reinker bottles and put just a little bit on the craft sheet, run the brayer through the ink a couple times lightly and then onto the card a couple times lightly.  Pick up the rest of the ink and brayer in the opposite direction on the card. 

After drying the ink, I used the Flourish Embossing Folder and then inked over the high spots with Distress Ink Black Soot.  This gave a nice contrast to the Oxide.

The panel was edged with Distress Paint Tarnished Brass, dried well, the edges distressed, and then Tarnished Brass splattered on using Tim's Brush.  

I love to use flowers including the Tim Holtz/Sizzix Wildflower dies so I cut them from black card and sprayed them with Distress Mica Spray Tarnished Brass.

I'd chosen a picture from the Tim Holtz/Idea-ology Photobooth pack and I had left the picture and all the black flowers just laying on the panel for awhile as I wasn't really sure where I was going next with it and while doing other things as I walked past it the thought "Hope Springs Forth" popped in and I thought, "Oh, that would be cool" and I cut one flower from the Wildflowers 2 set from yellow card and spritzed it with Distress Mica Spray Tarnished Brass.  

I pulled out the Small Talk Sticker Book and Metallic Stickers Book and the Quote Chips hoping to put that phrase together.  I found Hope Is Never Lost and decided that would work just as well.  I could have used a Dymo or the computer to create the first phrase, but I like this.  I cut the Quote Chip between Hope and Is, nipped the corners of the Hope piece, inked both pieces with Distress Ink Mustard Seed, dried them, and added Distress Paint Tarnished Brass to the edges.  The whole time I was working on this panel I was planning to make a card.  Once I was this far, I think because I liked it so much, I decided it needed to become a canvas.

I got out a 6" x 8" canvas panel and put both Black Soot and Tarnished Brass Distress Paint onto the panel, sprayed it with lots of water and moved it around a bit.  I was concerned that I'd used too much Brass but, nope, the back overtook it.  I thought about a second layer but chose to just move on.  I knew the center area would be completely covered.

I used the Tim Holtz/Stamper's Anonymous stencil Mesh along with Wendy's Black Embossing Paste and after removing the stencil added Clear Embossing Powder and then heated it all.  Fun stuff..... 

And then I forgot to take any more process pictures.  

I put some Tarnished Brass paint on my Craft Sheet and using a dry paint brush, brushed it on the canvas panel.  Sprayed the paint on my craft sheet with a little water and then used the Splatter Brush to splatter all over the canvas.  Next I stenciled through the Bubble stencil with Distress Paint Black Soot using a Stencil Brush.  When you have a more fluid something that you want to stencil, it can really help to get a nicer image if you use a stencil brush.  The very edges of the canvas are painted with Black Soot.  I die cut another set of Wildflowers from black card and used them without spraying or inking them.  The black flowers and main panel are attached to the canvas as shown.  Finally I added a Metallic Sticker at the bottom.

I do hope you like my project.  Thanks so much for following along!!

Hugs, Wanda

Be Brave, Be You

The More Than Words Mini Challenge for September is to use the word Brave. 

I've created a card for this challenge.  I started with a piece of white card brayered with Distress Oxide Re-inkers, Broken China and Wilted Violet.  I applied white Embossing Paste through a Wendy Vecchi/Stamper's Anonymous stencil, covered the paste with Wendy Vecchi/Ranger Ink Embossing Powder Garden Patina while the paste was wet, tapped off the excess and heated the embossing powder/paste.  I absolutely love the look you get with this. 

There is stenciling in the background through Tim Holtz/Stamper's Anonymous stencils.  The hearts are stenciled with Oxide Ink.  The dots are stenciled with Embossing Ink and then Ranger's Liquid Platinum embossing powder used.  I also embossed the edges with Liquid Platinum  

I used cutting dies designed by Suzanne Cannon for Elizabeth Craft Designs for the words, be Brave.  They are cut from water color paper twice.  One set is colored with Distress Oxide Ink Wilted Violet and shaded with Distress Ink Dusty Concord.  The other set is left white.  They are layered together. 

In the center of the larger flowers I've Brads that are embossing with the Liquid Platinum embossing powder.  In the centers of the smaller flower I've used Nuvo Drops.  "be you" is a Tim Holtz/Idea-ology Small Talk sticker.  Some purple Dew Drops are the finishing touch.