Contraband, Part 2

Here is another card made with a "contraband" image, from Northwoods Stamp Company, that I stamped at the stamping get-together late last month. (This was the other card.) I stamped several of these to be colored at my leisure, but this was one I colored with Copics at the get-together. When I got home, it was turned into a birthday card for a friend in Idaho. I think their hummingbirds have all flown south for the winter, so this little guy can keep her company until they return in the spring!

Mom is here for a two week visit, and we plan to make cards together. She has really been bitten by the "coloring" bug and brought her colored pencils and coloring books. I'm excited to show her the Gamsol technique, and how she can get more out of her pencils!

Product List

Rose Wonder Photopolymer Stamp Set

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock

Cucumber Crush 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad

Big Shot

Layering Ovals Framelits Dies

Elegant Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

Whisper White 1/2" Seam Binding Ribbon

Stampin' Dimensionals

We Moooved....

Well, actually, we haven't but I couldn't resist breaking out some Penny Black stamps and coloring them. These cows just crack me up! Can't you just imagine them standing around, munching grass and gossiping?

Hmmmm, I think I've been away from my stamp cave for far too long.....now I'm imagining animals having conversations. LOL

Okay, I've got to get this posted and then assemble a couple more cards and get them up in the next few days. Come back again and see me soon!

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Green Galore and Whisper White, The Paper Company Basic Cardstock Charcoal Black
Stamps: Image- Penny Black Ladies Devine, Sentiment- Heart and Soul Rubber Stamp Co.
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Copics: R000, R05, R08, R20, R32, B000, B32, B34, E09, E11, E33, E35, E53, YG03, YG07, YG17, Y15, C-3
Fiskars Border Punch, Nestabilities Large Deckled Rectangle die

Strawberries...(Copic Creations Challenge No. 8)

... are just about my favorite fruit, along with peaches, blueberries, cherries, grapes, apples, plums, melons, anything citrus.......aw heck, let's just include everything except bananas! :)

So I was delighted when Flourishes released this stamp set, featuring STRAWBERRIES! They look so yummy, and are so yummy to color with my yummy Copic Sketch markers. *grin*

Purely by coincidence, this week's Copic Creations Challenge is Botanicals, and irony of ironies, the sponsor this week is Flourishes! You'd think they planned to get that stamp set in my hands just in time to play, lol.

As soon as I got my order from Flourishes (a few days ago), I stamped out three of these using Memento Tuxedo Black on Stampin' Up! Whisper White cardstock and went to town on 'em!!!

After it was colored, I cut it out with a Nestabilities Large Deckled Rectangles die, then edged it with Copic YG17.

I used the Copic markers on the strawberry charm, purchased from the Hobby House, UK. That is also where I found the Papermania Pearl Brads. The filigree flower is from Flourishes Finishing Touches.

After running the bottom half of the SU Very Vanilla cardstock through the Cuttlebug with the Swiss Dots embossing folder, I added the red polka dot ribbon and "popped" the image using SU Stampin' Dimensionals for some depth. The card base is Stampin' Up! Real Red.

Copic colors used: Y0000, R14, R24, R27, R29, YG17, YG67, G20, W-1, W-3

New Sarah Kay Noel Collection

The new Sarah Kay Noel Collection images being released for the 2009 holiday season are so adorable, and they are perfect for coloring with Copic markers. They are available for pre-ordering right now. Just click on the links below to see what's available. I can't wait to get my paws on them!

Noel Charity
Noel Eve
Noel Faith
Noel Joy
Noel Peace
Noel Santa
Noel Shepherd
Noel Stocking
Noel Treats

Speaking of Copic markers, have you seen the new Pale Copic Sketch markers? They are the answer to my prayers for really, really light background shading around an image. These are the new colors:
V0000 Rose Quartz, BV0000 Pale Thistle, R0000 Pink Beryl, RV0000 Evening Rose, Y0000 Yellow Fluorite, YR0000 Pale Chiffon, G0000 Crystal Opal, YG0000 Lily White, B0000 Pale Celestine, BG0000 Snow Green, C00 Cool Gray, W00 Warm Gray.

Everyone seems to be sold out of them at the moment, but Ellen Hutson has ordered a bunch more and you can place an order one of three ways (see below) by sending an email to customerservice@ellenhutson.com.

1. Please send me an invoice for the new set of markers - I would like to preorder and pay for my markers at this time. I am aware that you do not have a date as to when they will arrive in your warehouse, but trust that you will send them as soon as you receive them. (We will not take preorders once we reach the total number of marker sets we have on order at this time. Once we reach our limit we will notify you and put you on a waiting list.) OR
2. Please add me to an email list to be notified when more markers become available on your store, Ellen Hutson LLC. I would like to purchase them from you, but would prefer to wait until they become available and I am willing to take a chance that you might run out again. OR
3. Please add me to the list of those who are interested in purchasing these markers within the next year, I would like to let Copic know that I am most definitely going to be purchasing these new pale color Copic markers within the next 12 months, I am saving my money and I can guarantee you that these are a must have - so please order in more.

Trust me, these new colors are da bomb!

Happy Mother's Day 2009

This is the card I made for my mom this year. I was going to wax rhapsodic about what a wonderful mother she is, but I'm getting a lump in my throat and can't see through the tears, so I won't. I miss her so much! She lives about a 10 hour drive away, so we don't get to spend as much time together as we would like. She has to take care of her husband, who has many mental health problems. *sigh*

Anywho, I used Whiff of Joy's Confirmand Melinda for the image, because I wanted to link it to the sentiment inside. I stamped her with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on SU Very Vanilla cardstock. She was colored with Copic markers, her wings painted with Shimmerz Blingz Pixie Dust, then cut with the Nestabilities Petite Oval die. The mat behind her is SU Baja Breeze (I'm lovin' that color lately!), cut with the Nesties Scalloped Petite Oval, and run through the Cuttlebug with the Swiss Dots embossing folder.

I think the textured ivory background paper (Paper Company Ivory Weave) matched the Very Vanilla really well, and the ecru lace was a nice contrast. The ribbon is SU Very Vanilla Taffeta.

I didn't have any gemstone brads that matched the colors, so I took some clear ones and colored them with a Copic Sketch BG72 Ice Ocean marker. The same marker was used to line the inside of the SU Styled Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware and color the brads over the sentiment.

The Prima Flowers matched everything perfectly, but I needed some smaller ones for filler, so I grabbed my little flower punches (EK Success) and made my own. Some of them got colored with the Copics, too. ;-) And Sally's Pearls added just the right touch to them all.

The cover and inside sentiments were printed on my printer. The Little hearts adorning the inside were Nesties Classic Hearts and Classic Scalloped Hearts run through the Cuttlebug.

Copic Colors used>>>>>



Cardstock: SU Very Vanilla and Baja Breeze, Paper Co, Ivory Weave
Stamp: WoJ Confirmand Melinda
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black

Christmas in March (barely!)

Soooo much is going on right now, I haven't had time to get in my craft room for almost two whole weeks!!! I am definitely suffering severe withdrawals. :-D The only thing that has kept me sane is I've been working very hard in the garden getting it ready for spring planting. Gardening is my other passion, so no matter what the weather, I always have something to keep me busy, LOL.


This is the Christmas card design I came up with for March. I'm still on course for four Christmas cards per month, woohoo! This one was easy-peasy, which is good, since I haven't had time to stamp and color anything.

I started with some snowman peel-offs made by Mark Richards (available from Paper Wishes), placed on Whisper White cardstock cut just slightly larger than the stickers. They were colored with Copic markers, and matted on Brilliant Blue cardstock on which I stamped snowflakes with VersaMark Dazzle Frost, (which gives the most lovely subtle frosty sheen!) and tied a ribbon.

The layout give me a bit of trouble, until I decided to turn the snowpeople askew. I felt it still needed something, so I matted them (again) on white cardstock to make 'em stand out a bit from the designer paper background.

The sentiment is from Heart & Soul Rubber StampCo.





Copic colors used>>>>


Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White and Brilliant Blue
DP: HOTP Paper Pizazz Snowflakes
Stamps: Snowflake- Papertrey Ink Snowflake Serenade, Sentiment- Heart & Soul Rubber Stamp Co.
Ink: Stampin' Up! Pacific Point Classic
Enbellishments: Snowflakes by Joelee's Boutique (EK Success), ribbon from my stash

A Fairy Happy Birthday

Click any image to enlarge

This is number one (of three) cards that I made for the Inkadinkado INKAfriends Gallery, as mentioned in my last post. I wanna get those free stamps! Free is good!!!

The Fairy is from the Inkadinkado Beautiful Fairies clear stamp set, and the sentiment is from Inka's Chelsea Sentiments. I stamped the image in Memento Tuxedo Black ink, since I wanted to color with the Copic markers. After I colored the image, I went back over her wings and the star swirls with Shimmerz Blingz Pixie Dust, which I thought was an appropriate name for the shimmer and sparkle associated with a fairy!

The sentiment was stamped with VersaMagic Perfect Plumeria ink and heat embossed with Stampin' Up! Iridescent Ice EP. It really sparkles, as seen in the close up to the right (click to enlarge).

The star rhinestones that I used in the swirls are made by Darice and are available at Michael's.



Copic colors used >>>>

Cardstock: Whisper White, and bits from my scrap bag
DP: DCWV Sweet Stack
Stamps: Inkadinkado
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Embellies: Star by Darice, photo corner punch by EK Success