Stay cool...

 Hi there!

I'm posting on the Greeting Farm blog today and I really wanted to pull out the Beach Bums set once again. As soon as I got my hands on this summer fun stamp set, I really wanted to get this cutie off the beach and into the pool. Even though a large blow-up floatie stamp isn't included, as long as you've got a good quality black pen it is super easy to draw one in around her. Seriously, just draw four or five bumpy lines on either side then connect them at the top and bottom and you've got something for this mini Anya to float on. Once I had her resting at her leisure I just used my Copic markers to color a bird's eye view of the cool, blue pool water... tip (what really sells this forced perspective is adding in that dark drop shadow that the floatie would cast at the bottom of the pool on a sunny day). I also stamped in the bottle of sunscreen and her flip flops at the edge of the pool to help set the scene. For a bit of embellishment I thought it would be fun to add some of the new Doodlebug Tropical Punch washi tape and enamel Sprinkles because who doesn't enjoy a sweet drink or two while hanging out at the pool?  ;)

Thanks for dropping by today!

Supply list:
cardstock- Bazzill and Catherine Pooler
stamps- The Greeting Farm (Beach Bums set), Papertrey Ink (sentiment)
ink- Memento tuxedo black 
Doodlebug tropical punch washi tape
Doodlebug tropical punch Sprinkles
Sharpie white marker
My Favorite Things Blueprints 27 die
Copic markers:
skin- E00, E21, E13, R00, R20
hair- E55, E57, E49
bikini/flip flops- RV04, RV66, RV69
floatie- FYG1, YG01, YG25, Y00, Y02, FY1
sunscreen- Y01, Y18, Y35, YR04, BG15
pool- B0000, B000, B00, B01, B02, B05, B06
ground- C1, C2, C3, W2, W3

A friend like you...

Hello again!

Yesterday I shared my card using the lovely Gemini gals in all their zodiac glory and today I have a different version of the stamp that didn't require any fancy altering to achieve. To take this stamp away from the idea of representing twins all I had to do was choose different color palettes for each girl, turning them into best friends instead. This simple coloring transformation of Gemini is something anyone can do. As I colored them up, in their pretty cocktail dresses, I imagined these two attending a fancy garden party. So I masked them off and added the Garden Backdrop stamp behind them to help set the scene, talk about a quick and easy way to start bringing this whole design together. I just colored in the sky and ground as well as some extra rose bushes and this card was done. Ummm... where can I get an invite to this posh garden party? LOL! ;)
I'm also entering this into the June Bellariffic Challenge which is "flora and fauna" themed. 

Toodles!

Supply list:
cardstock- Papertrey Ink and Catherine Pooler
stamps- Stamping Bella (Uptown Zodiac Girls Gemini and Garden backdrop), Papertrey Ink (sentiment)
ink- Memento tuxedo black and Versafine onyx black
Papertrey Ink scallop card die
Wink of Stella clear glitter pen
Copic markers:
friend 1
skin- E000, E00, E11, E13, R00, R20
hair- YR31, YR15, E08
dress- R30, R12, R32, R11, RV42, E04
flowers- R02, R32, R35, E04
friend 2
skin- E000, E21, E34, R00, R20
hair- E71, E74, E77, E79
dress- E50, E41, 0, R11, R12, E04, YR21, YR14, E08, B01, B16, BG72, YG03, YG17, YG95
flowers- YR21, YR14, E08
sky- B000, B00, B01, B05, 0
fence- E81, E43, 0
grass- YG21, YG03, YG17, YG95
dirt- E30, E42, E43
rose bushes- YG00, YG23, YG67, R02, R32, R35
butterfly- Y02, Y21

Gemini...

Good morning!

June is upon us and that means it is time for me to continue on with my personal challenge to create birthday cards for each of the Stamping Bella Zodiac Girls. Next up is Gemini and my other little sister, Tracy, is a Gemini who is celebrating her birthday soon so this will be perfect for her. Gemini is the sign of the Twins and she is lively, energetic, versatile and intellectual. She lives primarily in the mind rather than the emotions and is adaptable to new situations. Her signature color is yellow, bright and luminous, the color of novelty. I stuck  with a monochromatic color scheme once again and really love how it looks here. Again, the sentiment is a mix of stamps with the top being from the Papertrey Ink Stargazer sets and the Gemini description comes with Miss Gemini herself. 
Be sure to check back tomorrow when I share a card that I've made with an altered version of Gemini. Though to be honest, this one doesn't take much altering to change up. ;)

Laters! 

Supply list:
cardstock- Papertrey Ink and Catherine Pooler
paper- Basic Grey
stamps- Stamping Bella (Uptown Zodiac Girls Gemini), Papertrey Ink (stargazer set)
ink- Memento tuxedo black and Versamark watermark
American Crafts Zing white embossing powder
vellum
Kaiser Craft gems
Copic markers:
skin- E000, E00, E11, E04, R00, R20
hair- E21, E23, E27
clothes- Y00, Y04, Y08, V20, E81, E84, Y0000
flowers- G20, YG93, YG25
shadow- BV0000

You are mermazing...

TGIF! 

It's June first and my personal month of mermaids has officially begun. Now I know I added May into the mix to compensate for DT post interruptions but today is still a mermazing day! And I'm kicking it all off with a new to me company called Stamp Anniething. I've had a couple of their cute characters on my wish list for quite some time but it wasn't until the mermaid release back in April that I finally placed my first order. This darling mer with the long flowing locks is called Waving Hello and I inked her up using desert sand for some more no line coloring. I chose this technique for her because I really wanted to be able to color in her eyes that would otherwise be all black with regular inking. With her pretty green eyes and tail I decided to contrast that with some cotton candy pink hair. I love how it makes her stand out on the card, which was created using a wave stencil from Simon Says, Distress Inks and some accessory stamps from the MFT Mermazing set. I don't know why, but for some reason I think she is hanging out in some swampy coastal waters. LOL!

Alrighty, thanks for swimming by today and I shall see y'all Monday!   

Supply list:
cardstock- Papertrey Ink and Copic X-Press It
stamps- Stamp Anniething (Waving Hello), My Favorite Things (Mermazing set)
ink- Memento desert sand and Tim Holtz Distress tumbled glass, peeled paint, twisted citron, squeezed lemonade, shabby shutters
My Favorite Things Blueprints 27 die
Simon Says Stamp wave stencil
Wink of Stella clear glitter pen
Ranger glossy accents
Sharpie white marker
Copic markers:
skin- E000, E00, E11, E04, R00, R20
hair- R20, RV42, R43, Y0000, Y000
eyes- YG11, YG95, YG99, 110
tail- YG21, YG23, YG67, G29
starfish/top- Y02, Y35, Y38

A sea full of love...

Hi there!

Once again it's my turn to share some inspiration on the 7 Kids Customers Create Facebook page and I've got a lovely little mermaid from Honey Bee Stamps swimming by in a sea full of love. This braided beauty is from the Under the Sea set and the sentiment is from the Mermaid Song set. I stamped her in Desert Sand ink so that I could do no line coloring and I also did a tiny bit of altering by wiping away the lines on her arms and neck that created a shirt and colored in a kelp bralette instead. I also did a bit of masking on her hands so she could hold a sea shell that is part of the set as well. She is so peaceful and serene looking that I decided to "halo" her in soft rays of light shining down into the water. I can just imagine her bobbing along in the soft sway of a gentle current, letting the little fish flipper past. :) 

Ok, there is still time to create something for our current "flowers" themed challenge. As always there is a $20 gift certificate to the 7 Kids store up for grabs and the store is full of fabulous new finds!

Supply list:
cardstock- Papertrey Ink and Catherine Pooler
stamps- Honey Bee (Under the Sea set and Mermaid Song set)
ink- Memento desert sand and Papertrey Ink spring moss
My Favorite Things A2 stitched rectangle stax set 1
Ranger glossy accents
Nuvo crystal drops
Sharpie white marker
Copic markers:
skin- E000, E00, E11, E04, R00, R20
hair-E30, E31, E34, E35
seashell- E50, E81
tail- YG00, YG01, YG03, YG25, G07, G29, Y02
top/hair ties- YG03, YG95, YG99, YG13, YG17
water- B00, BG53, BG15, Y000
fish- YG01, BG53

Happy Birthday...

Hello crafty friends!

This card goes back a couple months to the March TGF release but I just realized that I hadn't shared it here yet. This musical duo is part of the Sing It set and they are here to entertain us with a birthday tune. I mean come on, how cute would it be to have a pair of monkeys serenading you on your big day? LOL! I really love how these small TGF critters fit so nicely into a circle or arch die allowing me to create a contained scene for them and still have room on the card to play with paper and other goodies. :)

Ta ta for now!  

Supply list:
cardstock- Papertrey Ink and Catherine Pooler
paper- Doodlebug (Birthday Boy)
stamps- The Greeting Farm (Sing It set), Papertrey Ink (Scene It Birthday)
ink- Memento rich cocoa, Studio Calico sunny day, Versafine onyx black
Papertrey Ink Scene It Birthday die
My Favorite Things stitched circle die
Ranger glossy accents
Copic markers:
monkeys- E00, E21, E13, R00, R20, E55, E57, E49, E04
top hat/bow- C6, C10, RV10
drum/ukulele- E81, E84, 0, B04, B06, B18,  YR31, Y04, YR23, Y26, W5
sky- BG000, BG01
dirt/grass/trees- E41, E42, E43, YG21, YG25, YG17, YG67

Thank you...

Hey there!

My friend Tracey and I recently made a trip across the mountains over to Seattle for a fun day of crafty shopping. Our first stop was at Ellen Hutson, where I added a couple more of these super cute Leading Ladies stamps to my collection. While we were there picking up our orders THE Ellen Hutson herself came and said hello and even took 10 minutes or so out of her busy day to chat Copics and stamping with us, it was so awesome! I know that I can speak for both Tracey and myself when I say that that simple act of kindness really made our day extra special. As soon as we pulled out of the parking lot we both knew we wanted to create a special thank you card for Ellen and I thought it would be fun to use her Leading Ladies to do it. I ended up altering the Crafty Lady by wiping away her long locks and giving her a bit of a hair cut as well as drawing in Tracey's signature specs to create the stamped version of her. My mini me was Photo Lady and I only needed to add a little shopping bag to her hand to have her fit the scene. Then I just used my Copics to sketch in the entrance to the Ellen Hutson store behind us, which was pretty easy considering all those windows and door are basically just a grid of different sized rectangles. I really hope that Ellen likes her card. :)

Catch ya later!   

Supply list:
cardstock- Papertrey Ink and Catherine Pooler
stamps- Essentials by Ellen (Leading Ladies Crafty Lady and Photo Lady), Simon Says Stamp (sentiment)
ink- Memento tuxedo black
My Favorite Things A2 stitched rectangle stax set 1
speech bubble die
Nuvo crystal drops
Sakura stardust glitter pen
Copic markers:
skin- E000, E00, E11, E04, R00, R20
lips- R32 and R21
hair 1- E50, Y32, E33
hair 2- E23, E27, E59
clothes 1- B95, B97, B99, C00, C1, C2, 0, BV01, BV04, BV13
clothes 2- B93, B95, B97, E50, E81, YR21, YR12, YR04
background- E30, E31, E34, E23, E25, W2, W5, W7, C1, C3, R24, B000