SDC220; Bright colors

Carol is requesting we use bright eye-popping colors for this weeks Stampotique Designer's Challenge.
The prompt reminded me of teaching the color wheel to grade school.  I would have children recite the colors in order on the wheel, asking them to go left or right.  The drill would usually take place while we waited for the classroom teacher to pick them up.  "The first color at the top of the color wheel is..."  Once the children called out "yellow" we'd select one student to pick a direction and "Go!"  It became a game to see who could go through the wheel quickly and correctly, hitting primary, secondary and intermediate colors.  These are the jewel tones, the bright colors!

I'm using a 8.5" x 5" Moleskine journal page that has been gessoed and collaged. I added scribbles and dabs of acrylic paint.  Kate Crane's Frock is featured in the layout.  The images is stamped in black Versafine and colored with Prismacolor pencils. I used a Persian Blue watercolor pencil with a waterbrush to add shadow to bring out Frock.

So take out your bright colors and come play with us!

SDC216; Create a tag

Coby is our hostess this week for the Stampotique Designers Challenge and is requesting that we all create a tag.

I love this chubby character named "Lollipop" created by Kira Nichols and thought it would make an adorable tag.

I stamped her with black Versamark and clear embossed then colored with Copic markers.  The tag is made from Dylusions ® sprays and I added some scraps and doodles. 

A fun and colorful tag to hand on a gift bag for most any happy occasions. 

SDC 212; Use only two stamps

Nellie is our hostess this week challenging us to use just two stamps.  Nellie says she likes to use lots of stamps in her creations.  I tend to use one or two and add collage elements.  We all have unique ways of working with these stamps which makes it all the more fun to join in on these designer challenges.

Even though Toto belongs to Dorothy in the land of OZ I though he'd look awfully cute along side of Nina.  I love finding random sentences in books to work into my cards and this copy, "I don't know what will happen" seems to fit perfectly with Toto's expression. 

My background is stenciled and stitched to cardstock.  Scrap cut into a scallop border and washi tape adds to the composition.   "Just for you" was typed on the computer and printed.

SDC206; Under the Sea

Kristen is hostess for the SDC206 Stampotique Designer's Challenge.  Kristen says she loves the calm and soothing feeling of the ocean and finds this as her happy place.  I'm inclined to agree that the ocean creates a peace and calm life nothing else.

I began this piece with wet on wet Inktense blocks on watercolor paper.  Then I lightened the color up with layers of Gelatos wiped with a baby wipe.  Amy Wilson Wellenstein's Tangled was stamped on the background with white pigment and embossed to create a dreamy ocean.  Amy's fish images Caerleon and Gawan were stamped and colored with Copics.

Share your version of under the sea or ocean inspired art and have a chance to win a $30 voucher to perhaps some ocean themed stamps in our monthly drawing. 
 

Twinchies! SDC 204

I am hostess this week over at the Stampotique Designer's Challenge and I am challenging you to create a set of Twinchies!

What exactly is a "twinchie" ?  If you have heard of inchies it's artworks that give you a little extra room to create -- exactly 2" x 2" of art!  To make your twinchies simple trim cardstock or lightweight watercolor paper in 2 x 2 inch squares.

Sift through your Stampotique stamps and find smaller images or use larger ones to offset.  Pick a common theme and balance your colors to create a cohesive set. 

 For my set I am using my quails cube - a versatile collection for four graphic inspired quails.

 I did the majority of my coloring with inexpensive BIC®  markers -- they don't blend as well as a COPIC® marker but they are great to make the most of your art budget and reasonable to use with children. I added detail with a small point PITT artist pen.

These are fun to create in sets and a great activity for children. With summer months still cooking grab your stamps and some pens and create sets for yourselves of with the kids.

 

200th challenge celebration

Kim is hostess this week and is challenging us to celebrate!  That's right -- we are in our 200th challenge with the Stampotique Design Team!  This week we are creating an anniversary or best wishes card or project.

My entry for this week is celebration card revisiting my favorite  Beauties stamp.  This week I began with a watercolor card and blended Gelatos.  I added paint, paint pens, pencil, and scraps.  "Party" is printed from the computer. The "Beauties" are stamped and embossed with a touch of Copic coloring.  Party hats are added prior to mounting on foam to stand above the background.

To mark the 200th Challenge on Wednesday, Arwen is giving away her Goth Tiered Cake and her creation!

So create a celebration project of some kind and enter it for our monthly drawing for a $30.00 gift voucher for some great stamps from Stampotique and or a treat from Arwen!

Tin is in! SDC197

I'm hostess this week for the SDC197 challenge.  I am challenging you to use some form of tin in your artwork.  Consider incorporating craft tin, tin tape, an Altoid container, a repurposed tin can or any tin object to incorporate with your stamping.
Put on your "tinking" caps and join us in this challenge to have a chance to win some Stampotique stamps.

 My entry for this tin challenge is an assemblage art doll that I created for a friend.  I've included a variety of tin objects and three Stampotique stamps.

I began with a block of wood.  I cut a paint brush and a couple of chopsticks for limps and painted them accordingly with acrylics.  I added beads and a hand painted tin hand from Oaxaca Mexico.  I applied metal tape to one side of the doll that is buffed with Stazon ink. 

Amy Wilson Wellenstein "Femme Collage"  provides inspiration for the face. The image is glued behind the glass lid of a tin container.   Amy's "wish" stamp is stamped on tin scrap with Stazon and nailed to the wooden base.  A tin heart is glued in place.   My collage definition stamp is used to add a little texture to the doll's edge.  I predrilled small holes to accommodate wire attachments for limbs glued with E600.  I used to make assemblage
dolls with my fifth grade students.  It was fun to revisit this project with the addition of Stampotique stamps.

I hope your enjoy my tinny challenge!

Springs for Spring! SDC192

Our first week of Spring is here and our SDC192 design hostess Valerie has requested we incorporate some kind of spring in our work! 

What could be more springy than creating a garden muse!
I began with a spring door stop and a piece of Gelli printed canvas.  I stamped the canvas with France's Vintage Bill and Ticket to Paris.

Fleur de Girl was stamped, colored, cut and clear embossed and attached to spring.  The canvas is stitched into a sleeve and filled with rice to give it weight and substance to stand.

I added eyelashes with my PITT pen to make her a little extra girly. 

So get springy and have a chance to win some of our terrific hand crafted rubber stamps.
 

Stitches! SDC190

Coby is our design hostess this week at the Stampotique Designers Challenge #190 and the call is for stitches. 

I love to use a sewing machine for stitching my cards but I also like creating a faux stitch with my Pitt pens.  For this challenge I had taken some watercolor waste scraps that were trimmed on the paper cutter and machine stitched for my background.

My newest stamps, crowd and birch tree were arranged on top of the staggered stitched scraps.  The quote was printed from the computer and a Pitt pen boarder added.  BIC wite-out was dotted to create a sense of falling snow.  A tag from my husband's dry-cleaning seemed to display cool temperatures that many are wanting to warm up.

You have a chance to win a $30.00 credit for stamps from Stampotique so why not hop over and join us and start stitching!

Favorite background technique; SDC188

Nellie is hostess this week at the Stampotique Designer's Challenge.  Show us your favorite background technique and get a chance to win some of our lovely deeply etched stamps. 

My favorite background is anything mixed media.  For today's card I begin with gesso, scraped painted with a spend gift card, then  added bits of collage scraps.  I like to add pencil scribble and doodles.  Here I'm using Roc's bunny , my mini cube and collage definition.  Roc's bunny is paper pieced with acrylic detail.
I like the play of random and creating asymmetrical balance.

Bring on the sunshine! SDC 184

Our designer hostess this week is Kaz.  Brrrrrr... she says, living in the UK.  She has requested we being a little Stampotique sunshine to her with a "Bring me sunshine" theme.   So lets sunny up her days and also get a chance to win some lovely Stampotique stamps!

This theme makes me think of my friends and family in NYC.  It's been cold and they have been hit hard with snow.  So I used my NYNY! stamp and little taxi to create a bright and sunny NYC.

The city stamp was repeated and trimmed to create a 3-D layered city.  I stamped with Versafine onyx black and embossed.  Peerless watercolors and a waterbrush were used to color the images.

My background is layers of paint and collage scraps.  A piece of washi tape creates a street for the taxi to drive on.



  

It's all about Love and Hearts; SDC182

It's all about love and hearts says Kristen in this weeks designer's challenge sponsored by Stampotique.  Gather your favorite Stampotique heart images and stamp to your hearts content!

My "Love You" heart is featured in this mixed media collage card.   I stamped the heart with black STAZON and clear embossed.  The image is colored with NeoColor II crayons and a waterbrush. I love to work with a little scribble, color, stitching.  Pop in a stamped image for a unique card.  This versatile stamp is good for Valentine's Day or any day.  It's loose line nature is great for art journals, ATCs, tags and more. 

The background is a piece of "under paper" that had splashes of acrylic paint.  I pulled the yellow-orange color up by stitching a matching strip of fabric to the top.  Handmade washi tape (flower stencil and spring green acrylic paint) with scraps and scribble complete the composition.  I stitched the piece to a 5" x 5" card. The left is anchored with  floral washi tape giving a hint of "Valentine" colors.  The heart is raised with a silicone glue dot.

I had fun creating this card. I hope you enjoyed taking a peek.  Have a happy Valentine's Day!  Do something nice for yourself. 

A January Princess

Happy New Year!  This is my first post for the Stampotique Designer's Challenge since consolidating our design blogs.  Kaz has requested we cheer up January with a splash of color for SDC 178.

I am bringing my color splash with Roc Nicholas's lovely Bird Princess. 

My background began with pressing colored tissue on a watercolor surface with a damp sponge.   I stamped Bird Princess on a piece of white card stock and again on pattern paper.  She is colored with Peerless watercolors and a waterbrush.  I love these watercolors and if you hacen't used them you will flip for them!  The princess crown and lips are accented with a Stardust Gelli pen.  I used and x-acto knife to cut away the bird, arms, and pocket from the pattern paper to allow me to paint the cardstock.

I added hand drawn flowers and a snip of newspaper, and white scallop scrap for balance.  I added additional watercolor to my background with white acrylic dotted with my finger tip.  The scene pops with color by accenting the image edges with Prussian blue.  The scene is stitched to another piece of tissue dyed paper.

I love the openness of Roc's images for coloring and paper piecing. 
I hope this princess with sweet little bird has brightened your day.

So get out your colors and join us in this color splash at the Stampotique Designer's Challenge.  Best of all is a chance to win $30 of Stampotique Stamps. 

Anything goes

As we are all gearing  up for the holiday season the last challenge for December at SDC 176  is Kim's "Anything goes."  You have the opportunity to enter this challenge up to five times!  That's 5x the chance to win a $30.00 gift voucher for Stampotique.

I have repurposed a Starbucks Via folder to create a pouch for a coffee gift card.  Here is Magda's "Agatha's Christmas" featured on the outside of the folder.  France's stars from her design cube are layered over a textured background.

Flatten out the folder and gesso.  Add layers of acrylic with an old gift card by scraping in all directions.  A spray of glimmer mist is added.  Double stick tape allows for a strip of glitter for Agatha to stand on.  Amy's "wish" is stamped on a cut circle and attached with fibers.

 

Stripe Background

Happy Thursday.  Corrie is setting the challenge at the Stampotique Designers' Challenge Blog and she'd like everyone to make something with a stripy background.

"You can use ink, paint or pens whatever you like, just no ready made stripes with pattern paper."

My solution was to sew stripes of rickrack and have my bouncy little taxi cab right along the bumps.
Beep beep!
 

Masculine theme

Today's sample is for the masculine theme at the Stampotique Designer's Challenge 167 ordered up by Kim.  I used Daniel's "Bob's in time out" and "Misunderstood" from Carol's Collection.

Altered Playing Card Challenge; week 3

This is week 3 of Claudine's Altered Playing Card Challenge.  If you have not jumped on board, now is a time to start.  My goal is to respond to the challenges with a digi stamp and a rubber stamp each week.

Claudine used alcohol inks and Tim Holtz's Distress Ink for her backgrounds using a fall and a Steampunk theme.

For "Fall Coat" I used mustard seed and spiced marmalade Distress Inks over gesso.  The digi images are from the Cherry Street Collection in my Vera Lane Studio Etsy shop, Classy and Fabulous.  She is colored with Copic markers.  I used BIC white out pen for white embellishments.

The background of the second card has the same color distress inks.  My number stencil does not show in the picture, but I also used brushed corduroy.  I'm not much of a Steampunk fan so putting this together took some thought.  I had an old watch cube from Post-modern Design that I had never used from years ago --  out it came.  The Mad Hatter is part of my Alice in Wonderland series for Stampotique.  I didn't have any gears so I cut circles and used a stamp edge scissor to make the grooves and colored with metallic marker. I used white Prismalcolor to accent my design elements.

I love this challenge -- for my time commitment the size of the art is just perfect.  Its a great way to try new techniques, push the envelope and experiment.   

Sleeping patterns

I've been working on a normal sleeping pattern.  It's so hard to turn off my brain at night.  Kira Nichols' sick kitty reminds me how I feel when the clock reports it's not yet time to wake up!

This week's Stampotique designer's challenge calls to use an animal or bird.  It was hard to select one from Stampotique's great assortment. As soon as I picked up "sick kitty" I knew I had to create a paper pieced bed for him.  It was a little tedious (especially his tiny pillow) but I really got a kick out of making the bed with assorted patterns.

The background is acrylic on gesso with newspaper transfer.  I thought is was a perfect backdrop for sick kitty to be floating into yet another sleepless night.

Hope it gives you a smile.
 

Altered playing card challenge

Claudine Criner is sponsoring the Altered Playing Card Challenge.  This is the second week of the challenge, last week prepping 52 playing cards with gesso or sanding. You can also find the group on the FaceBook site.  If you are daunted by prepping 52 cards at once gesso doesn't take long to dry, so you can make them week to week.

For my first card I kept with the theme and colors.  I used my Stampotique's large Fleur Fly rubber stamp and had to improvise the black border.  My card was treated with clear gesso and lightly sanded.  I applied Inktense for my color.  I added a little scribble with Prismacolor pencils. 

My second card followed Claudine's lead, however I used Inktense again for my color.  I also used the Vera Lane Studio digi image set February's Moon and colored the images with Copics.  I added  Stardust and white Gelly pen accents along with white Prismacolor pencil. When I created by digi layout  in a Word Document I filled my page with numerous images and sentiments prior to printing.  If you are new to digi stamps I have started a couple of videos that may help as well as info on my previous post. I am sizing my main digi image to 2.75" - 2.8" to utilize my card space.

I applied my gesso on the front of my cards to get a variation of images in under layers.  Since the back of my cards are not all clean I am finishing the backs by laminating scrapbook paper. 

Claudine is giving a weekly challenge and demonstrates techniques for two cards at a time.  Follow the link and play along -- the art is tiny-- you can do it!
 

You and me together

The Stampotique Designer's Challenge is sponsored by Kathi this week.  She is asking for entries with music as inspiration.  I was inspired by Dave Matthews song "You and Me" and had to put these two characters together.

Mela and Hunk by Daniel Torrente make a happy couple and even happier against a painterly mixed media background.

I used a combination of acrylic and Inktense on a gesso surface.  I love taking a liner brush with diluted black acrylic and create some accents.  That little pop of black creates a visual balance with the black outline of the characters. The stamped images are stamped with Stazon, clear embossed then colored with Copics.
 I typed my quote and wet tore the paper edges.  Watercolor and Pitt pen accents the frame that gets stapled to the background. 
Thanks for taking a look.