Around the World on Wednesday--Let's Shake Things Up!

Our theme this month is NOT a shaker card, well it could be, but it is really to shake up your creativity by creating something new with a technique or such that you have not tried in the past. This was the perfect time for me to experiment with the Alcohol Stampin’ Blends technique that is super popular!

I want to thank my friend Alanna Wharf as she shared how to create this technique during a recent Summer Stamp Camp that I was co-hosting and it inspired me to try it out! I wanted to use this Blends technique on a holiday card—tis’ the season! Okay, well it is still summer but you can never be too ahead for the holidays!

The base of my card is on Shimmery White and you must use Vellum to create this alcohol Blends technique. You also need a Stampin’ Blend in a color (s) of your choice, in my case I used Light Cherry Cobbler, and some Isopropyl Alcohol (or Rubbing Alcohol). I used an old Aqua Painter (I knew I kept those for some reason, haha!) to apply drops of the Isopropyl Alcohol. The internet is full of a ton of videos (not my specialty) on how you can execute this technique. It is surprisingly easy!

I created my little area and then cut the star shape from the Seasonal Swirls Dies in Cherry Cobbler card stock. I added some yellow stars from the Jolly Felt and Christmas Cheer Dies. I was so happy that felt returned to the Holiday Catalogue this year again!

“Jingle” is from the Holly Jolly Wishes stamp set—this is a fantastic stamp set full of holiday greetings!

Here is a close up of how fun this technique looks like. I will definitely be experimenting with this technique again!

I wanted to create another fun little area at the top of my card and one of my favorite little dies as the moment is the ‘ticket’ die from the Bloom Dies in the Annual Catalogue. I used it to cut some of the Sweet Stockings DSP and then trimmed the ticket down in size. I found “Happy Christmas” in the Words of Cheer stamp set.

Another little felt star and some Matte Decorative Dots completed this fun little area!

I don’t typically add anything to the insides of my cards, but I thought it would be fun in this case to add the complete ‘Jingle’ phrase and another star die cut.

I can’t wait to see what the rest of the Around the World Design Team creates based on this theme! I love how you can ‘Hop’ all over the world to see everyone’s unique styles! I live in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada! Tricia Butts is up next and resides in the United States. Click on the button below to hop to her page!

Artisan Design Team--June Share!

Hello friends! I cannot believe that this month marks the halfway point of this amazing journey and experience! I have learned so much along the way but the best part has been the amazing new friendships I have developed with the other team members!

The Artisan Design Team is broken up into 3 groups as we have the largest team to date and my group was given the assignment of creating with the Art in Bloom bundle which features the new Bloom Hybrid embossing folder!

I couldn’t resist the opportunity to create a page with this little cutie’s smiling face, especially because he is now 16! But his eyes have not lost their sparkle and his face still lights up the room. And I also want people to feel ok about scrapbooking their sons, nephews, husbands, etc with flowers and pinks and other bright fun colors!

I started with a 12x12 base on a sheet of DSP from the Expressions in Ink Specialty Designer Series Paper. This gave me the foundation to add in these bright pink accents.

I used this new Hybrid Embossing Folder in two ways on this page—-one is the traditional way in the sense of I ran some Basic White card stock through the Stamp Cut & Emboss Machine to create two accent panels to flank my photo. The second way is that I used some Gold Foil Paper to emboss and cut the flowers out. This is what makes this folder so unique—it does both at the same time!! You place your paper in the folder and add the dies on top (they will nestle inside).

I also stamped out some flowers and colored them with the Pale Papaya Stampin’ Blends and then used the dies to cut out the flowers.

My favorite element in the Bloom Dies is the shape that cuts out the ‘ticket’…I just love it and think its a great way to add interest or to cut out with a sentiment. On my card I used it as an accent piece.

My tip to accompany this project is a classic one—using your Stampin’ Write Marker to isolate specific words to change how a sentiment is presented. You can see here that the sentiment in its original form is ‘long’ and I wanted something that would fit into a circle. So I just used the marker to isolate the words and stamp them in the shape I wanted.

Notice the ink spray in the background? One of my favorite things of all time—-use your Stampin’ Write Marker or even a Stampin’ Blend to flick or spray ink across your project. I do this ALL THE TIME. It just helps take away the ‘white’ space on a project.

If my projects have inspired you in any way and you would like to place an order you can hit the button below that will take you directly to my online store. Or you can use the HOST code on the main sidebar on my page. I truly appreciate it as I hope to keep loving what I do for as long as possible!