Impression Obsession DT Challenge: Summer Flowers

The Impression Obsession team's challenge today is to create a project with a floral theme!

I love poppies, and I ran across this large stamp when I was cleaning the other day - it's great for a background but also works really well for a repeating border. I've been having fun with these slimline cards - this one is 3.5" x 8.5" so I was able to stamp the image twice, then took just the corner to fill in a couple of empty spots on the left edge.

I colored the entire panel because I was wanting to test out some cardstock I bought, looking for a less expensive alternative to my usual Neenah for Copics! This is a medium weight (80# or 216gsm) but it comes in 100# weight as well. It's actually a brighter white than the Neenah Solar White, and I was really pleased with the results! No bleeding, very bright and very smooth, and less than half the price of Neenah! I'm sold. I'll get that heavier weight when I run out of my heavy Neenah too - always up for a money saver! I did a little blending with Distress ink at the top, and that was very easy too.

I stamped my sentiment and cut it out with this tag die, then realized the die has double stitch lines... and thought it would look nice to have both lines of stitching, so I cut an opening out of my panel and pieced the white tag in.

...and then I had a pretty floral tag, so I popped up some word dies on it using Lydia's Faux Heat Embossing technique!

I repeated my stencil trick from the other day, but vertically instead, just to add a little more texture and sort of echo the grass effect in my background.

Here are the stamps and dies I used:

L13752 Poppy Field

C13699 Love Yourself

DIE968-N Whimsical Rectangle

DIE905-Y Typewriter Sentiments

For a virtual vacation check out the featured category too - there are some sweet summer stamps that are all 25% off!

Be sure to visit the other designers' blogs for inspiration on this week's challenge - see the I.O. blog for all the details! Remember, you can play along with us for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate!

Impression Obsession - Old is New

With such a huge collection of wonderful stamps from so many artists, sometimes the older stamps in the Impression Obsession catalog find their way out of the spotlight. We don't want them to be forgotten, so we like to feature them regularly. We hope you're inspired!

SS-459-L Porch Flag
B13590 Begin with Me

I'm sharing an image from the Serendipity Stamps line today, paired up with one of my sentiments. I went with a simple coloring scheme, using just a red and blue pencil on the flag, and then adding in the sky and some shading in watercolor. 

Such a beautiful image for so many reasons - it would be beautiful in full color too, but I love the simplicity of this spotlight coloring today. The sentiment is a simple one too - I have it filed in my "Be the Change" category, and it's such a good reminder that change in the world begins with a heart change in each of us individually. "You must be the change you wish to see in the world."

Be sure to check out the other designers' blogs for inspiration - see the I.O. blog for all the details!

Hang on!

It's rare that I just sit down to make a card for fun any more... I need to fix that! 

I have been slowly working through piles and bins of stamps that need to be sorted and cataloged and put away - one of them was this adorable Windy Day Girl image from Katzelkraft (via Topflight Stamps). How relatable is this image?  It's totally perfect for 2020.

There is a new Watercolor Wednesday challenge over on Splitcoast, and this week's challenge is no-line coloring, so while this girl was out I had a little fun with my Inktense pencils... I used those so I could watercolor the background and the permanent ink would stay in place! Such a great property of that medium. 

Currents

I love this Currents stencil from A Colorful Life - it's great for water or wind, or just for a pretty background with a little movement. I have found it a little difficult to ink, but it worked wonderfully with long horizontal watercolor strokes. When my panel was dry I used the same stencil to emboss it in my die cutting machine. I love that technique so much and I think I like the effect better than an embossing folder simply because it's more subtle... I need to go through my stencils and folders together and if there are any with the same patterns, the folders are either going in the sale box or downstairs to the gel printing table! 

The sentiment is one of mine, and it's here - seemed perfect!

Two things to know - here are two discount codes you can always use, and these will help you save and also send a little 'thank you' my way too. 

At A Colorful Life Designs, use code DinaFan10 for a 10% discount on your entire order.

At Topflight Stamps, use code YAYDINA! for a 12% discount on your entire order. Topflight has all kinds of international products all in one place - it's such a fun site!

That's all I know today! Hang on! 

Spellbinders Glimmer Backgrounds

I have a project to share that is a bit outside the box! Spellbinders has a new collection of sweet and modern foil plate backgrounds - I used mine on a jewelry set! 

Here's the Modern Lines design that I used:

...and here are the paper beads I foiled! I used them to make an adjustable bracelet - of course I failed to take pictures while I was working on these and I don't have any more of these strips to recreate this specific look, but I did take some pictures later to show the process!

 If you feel inspired to try some paper beading, I have a post with more information here to help you get started! The strips I used for these were 11" long, and tapered slightly, but not to a point... that shape gives them the wide band at the center which is a perfect little canvas for the foiled stripes.

I love the shine of the silver foiling on these gel printed beads - each one is perfectly unique! I created links for the bracelet, and had a couple left for a pair of matching earrings. (The pearls came from Spellbinders too  - they were part of a rosary chain that was on clearance in a recent sale. Looks like that item is sold out now.) The bracelet is about 8" long with a little extender as well - I will plan on tucking the set into my Etsy store, so if you love it, check for it there soon!

Here's a quick explanation of how the foiling works on these beading strips. I have some shorter ones here in a triangle shape... I heated my Glimmer machine up, laid down the plate and foil, and then laid the tip of each strip onto the foil to emboss.

Here's the finished result, and I could have flipped the strips around the other way to foil the full length as well - I just did the tips this time, and you'll see the effect below.

I used a tool from PaperBeadRollers.com to roll up the strips, gluing them at the end to secure the shape.

Here's the finished bead - just having the foil at the tip gives me a pretty pattern at the center of the bead, which I like.

The beads will be sealed with a wood hardener, which strengthens and waterproofs them, and gives them a shiny gloss.

Hope this fun little project inspires you to try something new with your foiling plates (or to grab a new one if you'd like to recreate this look!)

Impression Obsession - Die Cut Obsession

There are so many amazing dies at Impression Obsession - this special Monday feature lets them have the spotlight! We hope you're inspired! 

Before I get going, just a reminder about the flash sale going on now! You don't want to miss it!

Here's a card I made last summer and never got to share - this little bee hive is part of a set called Jam Jar Fruits that goes perfectly with the adorable Jam Jar die set Anna designed!

 So many cute pieces to choose from. The sentiment is here, and how perfect is that paper?!

Jam Jar Fruits

Things to remember:Don't forget the sale section for some great bargains (half price!!) on dies you might not find again!
For everything else, use code FLASH through Tuesday for 25% off your order!
Also, be sure to check out the other designers' blogs for die cutting inspiration - see the I.O. blog for all the details! Have a great week!

Spellbinders - Wedding Season!

I have very few wedding dies, so I was excited when Spellbinders sent me this gorgeous new Wedding Dress and Tux set to play with! 

As you can see below, there are multiple small dies that can be mixed and matched - the dress can be long or short, with straps or sleeves - there are options for the lapels on the suit, and choice of ties. So fun! I cut all the pieces out of watercolor paper and colored them with Copic markers. A tip for adhesive - I've actually been using Elmer's Glue-all in a needle-tip bottle - it dries quickly, and also dries matte, so if you squidge a little out, it doesn't show!

My card is a 3.5" x 8.5" gate fold (7" x 8.5", scored on the 7" side at 1.75" and 6.75"). I used die cut rectangles on each side, then layered the dress and suit so they overlapped at the opening. This size has suddenly become very popular so I had to give it a try!

To hold the card closed I created a belly band, and added a foiled sentiment from another set in this new collection - the Glimmering Wedding Wishes set is full of mix-and-match words and phrases that can make a great variety of wedding sentiments.

So many options - and of course with this common font, these pieces can be combined with so many of the other Glimmer sets as well.

I tucked another foiled sentiment inside - this one is from the June Glimmer kit, which you can still grab! There are 5 sentiments about this size, in the same beautiful font. I used the Blush foil on both sentiments - it's a pale rose gold, and it's so pretty!

If you need to add some wedding items to your stash, take a peek at the Wedding Season collection - I really had fun with these! Have a great week!

IO Flash Sale!

I know a few of you have been building up your wish lists and tucking items into your carts - here is a 3-day Flash Sale for you! Be sure to enter code FLASH at checkout for your discount.