Group of Seven - Batik

Hi everybody.  This month over at the Group of Seven Cardmakers it is all about creating the look of Batik on cards by using an emboss resist technique.  I used a fern from a set called Grasses by Art Journey and a couple of different leaves from a set by Chocolate Baroque called From Nature 1.  I also used the Torn Edge Oval dies from Creative Craft Products and a Crafter's Companion set of leaf dies called Thankful and Blessed - Forest Floor.

I started by ink blending some different colours onto a piece of white card cut to fit a 6" square base card using Ripe Persimmon, Salty Ocean, Mustard Seed and Blueprint Sketch Distress Inks.  I kept the coverage quite light and then covered the piece with the fern and leaves using Versamark Ink and heat set with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder, first making sure the background inking was perfectly dry and I also dusted it with an anti static bag.  In between adding the various stamped and embossed leaves I added a bit more colour so that some are paler and those added later were a bit darker as the strength of colour beneath the embossing was heavier.  I felt that there were still too many big gaps and perhaps needed a flower stamp, and I had the Spellbinders Bold Blooms out and I decided to make a stamp from one of the smaller flowers using craft foam, and I die cut one and then cut it twice more from a bit of white card and layered them together with the craft foam on the top.  I then inked it with the Versamark and tested it out on a scrap of card and it worked well, so I used that a few times to fill the gaps.  I then inked over it all with the first three colours but the images still did not seem to stand out enough so I used the Blueprint Sketch DI over the whole thing to give it more definition and it just darkened the background sufficiently to make the images pop a bit more.  The last step was adding the creases to the card with a bone folder, and at random intervals and slanted rather than straight across the card I think looks best, and I then inked again with the Blueprint Sketch to add ink into the creases.  I did also run the bone folder over the back of the piece to flatten it out a bit which made it easier to add onto the card but didn't spoil the look of the creasing.

I finished the card by adding a Torn Edge Oval sentiment plate and inked and heat embossed the sentiment quite lightly with Versafine Majestic Blue with a bit of the Salty Ocean ink over the top to keep it a bit lighter, and clear embossed with WOW EP, and a little Salty Ocean left on the brush added around the edges, and also added three gold die cut leaves using the Crafter's Companion set and having its first outing, and then added this all onto a 6" square white card.

You can also add just one colour on the background and then stamp and emboss the images and also if you prefer you can stamp and emboss straight onto the white card and then add some colour over the top and then the images will be white, and also instead of stamps you emboss through a stencil which works well too.  If you want to see more do go and visit the GO7 blog and you will find lots of wonderful examples of ways of doing this technique and also a link to a video, and if you make something there is a Linky at the bottom of the page where you can add it for us all to see and enjoy.

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Allsorts Challenge - No. 824 Happy Birthday/Anything Goes.  How great to have reached 16 years!

NBUS Challenge - No. 74 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

Addicted to Stamps and More Challenge - No. 493 Birthdays.

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes.

A Sweet Little Tag

Hi all.  There is a new challenge in Blogland being run by Brenda, Lynn and Pinky featuring Tags and ATC's, and I wish them lots of luck with this fun new challenge.  I must say I don't make many tags and I have never made an ATC but it's good to challenge oneself so here goes.  I used a set of stamps by Chocolate Baroque called Honey Bee, and I have never used these particular two stamps before so time I did.  

I cut the tag from white card and it is 31/2" x 6" and I stamped the beehive and flowers using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink and I added the cloudy sky using Salty Ocean Distress Ink and a cloud shape as a mask which I had in my bits box and not sure where it came from but I thought it was a good size for this tag,  and ink blended using a brush.   I kept it light as I didn't mask the top part of the stamped image.  I then added the grass using Mowed Lawn DI to the bottom half.  I coloured the image using a set of pencils by Lyra and finished the scene by adding some yellow Posca pen to the centres of the flowers and a white Posca to add some flower to the Queen Anne's Lace on the right and also on the wings of the little bees.  I decided to add a larger bee also in the Honey Bee set and again stamped it with the Nocturne Ink and then cut it out..the legs of the bee were rather fine and one or two legs lost little bits but I cut the corresponding leg down to even them up..lol.  I then found a piece of string to loop through the punched hole at the top and I decided to add the bee to the bottom of the strings as a little further fun effect.  

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Tag-Along (and ATC's) May Challenge - Anything Goes.

We Love Stamping Challenge - May '25 Four Legged Friends/Anything Goes.

Stamping Sensations Challenge - May '25 Feminine/Anything Goes.

Simon Says Monday Challenge - Things with Wings.

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Things with Wings.

NBUS Challenge - No. 74 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

Chess Art

Hi all.  I have a masculine card today using an old Aall & Create stamp No. 115 called Chess Art, and a set of DL Torn Edge Dies.

I used an offcut of white card big enough to fit on a DL card and stamped it in Black Stazon ink having tried my Versafine Clair and Archival black inks.  I'm not sure why it was so difficult to get a good clear image as I used my stamp positioner but as you can see it is a very detailed stamp, and I eventually got there.  I then coloured it using Blueprint Sketch Distress Ink and a waterbrush.  I then used some Fossilized Amber DI to watercolour the background and I cut it using a DL Torn Edge die, another new set and being used for the first time.  I got a few different sets of these over at the Craft Stash sale as I just love the look of them.  I finished the card with a sentiment stamped with Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink and heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.  

I am entering the following challenges:

Color Hues Challenge - No. 109 Blue and Yellow.

Allsorts Challenge - No. 822 Inspired by a Song/Anything Goes.

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes.

AAA Birthday Challenge - No. 73 Anything Birthday Goes (congratulations on your 6th birthday).

NBUS Challenge - No. 74 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

I am also linking this over at Darnell's blog:

Darnell's I.D.E.A.S. - Week 4 'A' = Anything Goes.

Group of Seven - Gilding Flakes on Acetate

Hi everyone.  A new month starts over at the Group of Seven Cardmakers, and we are shining a light on using gilding flakes on acetate.  I don't think I have used acetate with gilding flakes before so something new.  This card uses the Cosmic Shimmer Autumn Leaves Gilding Flakes with a bee stamp from Art Journey called Honey Bee, and a background made using a Tim Holtz stencil called Honeycomb and some DecoArt White Modelling Paste.

I started with a piece of acetate and covered the bee stamp with Zig glue with a wide flat nib applicator which makes it easier to spread the glue over the stamp, and having made sure all the stamp looked amply covered I stamped it using my stamp positioner for more accuracy and if an extra application of glue should be needed.  I did apply the glue again and stamped once more and then very quickly laid it on some paper and covered it with plenty of gilding flakes and pressed down making sure they made good contact with the glued image and then left them like that for a few minutes before very carefully brushing away the surplus flakes with my fingers, and then I used the scoochy to burnish it.  I won't say it was a perfect outline but I had already decided to cut the bee out and I refined the edges as I cut it, especially on the legs where the flakes had spread so I did cut the outlines back a bit looking at the photo on the front of the stamp to see how it should look, and I did scratch off the flakes where I thought the eyes should be and added a bit of copper Sharpie pen over those.  Then I went on to stencil the honeycomb onto the centre area of a piece of square white card cut to fit a 6" square card base with a fairly narrow border.  I coloured the paste with some yellow and and orange Brusho powders and then used the paste in the centre trying to keep the edges a little rough, and then left it to dry.  I finished the background with a sentiment stamped with Versafine Vintage Sepia and heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder and I also added some foam tape down the centre of the bee to raise it up a little.

I am entering the card above in the following challenges:

We Love Stamping Challenge - April '25 Anything Goes/Favourite Stamps.

Stamping Sensations Challenge - April '25 Birds, Animals, Flowers and Nature/Anything Goes.

Darnell's I.D.E.A.S. - Week 4 'A' = Anything Goes.

For my second card I thought I would used a set of Creative Craft Products Torn Edge Stars and a Crafts Too Stars Embossing Folder which I have had for quite a long while and it is only now being used for the first time.  I used one of the stars to cut an aperture in the centre of a piece of white card cut to fit a 6" square card and then used the Stars EF over it, extending it as it is an A6 size, and this worked well.  I then cut a smaller star to fit inside the aperture using some acetate.  I did intend to use some glue through a star stencil and then add the gilding flakes, but this did not work well and I tried several times but the small stars looked extremely blobby although I used a blending tool with a good covering of glue added to the sponge which I thought was the best way to do it.  I then decided instead to cover the whole star with glue and then cover it with the flakes.  I then backed this acetate star with another star cut from black card and then put the card together.  I added a banner sentiment across it stamping with Versamark ink and heat embossed with WOW Metallic Brass Embossing Powder. 

I am entering the above card in the following challenges:

Addicted to CAS Challenge - No. 281 Star.

Allsorts Challenge - No. 822 Inspired by a Song/Anything Goes (Catch a Falling Star by Perry Como.

Can You Handle The Pressure Challenge - April '25 Anything Goes/Weather.

Rudolph Days Challenge - Anything Goes.

NBUS Challenge - No. 73 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

52 Christmas Card Throwdown Challenge - April '25 Technique: Stamping.

Peace on Earth Challenge - April '25 Anything Goes.

My last card is not made using the acetate but I will show it anyway as it is mounted onto the acetate instead.  I used up some remnants of some very old gilding flakes covering a piece of white card with some adhesive sheet and then added the gilding flakes over this and then die cut some Spellbinder Bold Bloom flowers and leaves being used for the first time, and added these to the piece of acetate.  I added a Reverse Scallop die cut frame from Crafter's Companion, also being used for the first time, and coloured it with a copper Sharpie pen, added a piece of blue card behind the acetate and a die cut sentiment which I cut from a piece of white card heat embossed with WOW Metallic Copper EP.  On reflection I think the Metallic Brass I used on the last card would have matched a bit better but it does look a lighter colour in real life.  This was mounted onto a 7" x 5" white card. 

I am entering the above card in the following challenges:

Seize the Birthday Challenge - No. 304 Anything Goes/Stencilling.

Beautiful Blossoms Challenge - No. 28 Anything Floral Goes.

Triple B Challenge - April '25 Birds, Butterflies and Blooms (using 1, 2 or all 3).

I have to say I don't think acetate and I mix terribly well..lol, and I think that the Flitter Glue from Indigoblu is the best one for using with stamps for a good clear outline and I have used this in the past and it did work well with the flakes but I don't have any at present, and they do say you can use any glue but the other glues I have did not work so well for me.  I think my last card has the look of the technique but was a bit of a cheat, but nevertheless I was pleased with it.  The other ladies over at the GO7 have produced some beautiful cards so do take a look and if you give it a go there is a Linky at the bottom of the post for you to add your cards for us all to see.

Thank you for visiting me here today and I'll see you again soon. 

Flying Pelican

Hi everyone.  I have a masculine card today using the Pink Ink Pelican and I used the smaller silhouette image which I haven't used before.  I also used a Sea Green Brusho, an orange alcohol marker and a white Posca pen.  I watch a lady called Deb Hallet on YouTube and she did a card yesterday which inspired me to make my version of it as I thought it was a clever idea.  If you are interested the link to it is here.

I started with a piece of white card cut to fit a 6" square card and sprinkled the Brusho powder from the bottom right hand corner up towards the middle of the card, spritzed it with some water and then dabbed away where it pooled around the edges and left it to dry.  I then stamped the silhouette pelican using Versafine Clair Nocturne ink and took my white Posca pen and gradually covered the black image with the white making it thick enough to cover nicely.  I then went round the outline with a pencil instead of a black Micron pen just to define it as I thought the black might be a bit heavy.  I then added the orange alcohol marker over the bill and the feet.  I finished by splattering the white Posca over the sea area, and inevitably it did go a bit further than I intended but it gives the impression of spume off the water, and I also quite lightly added a little on the waves too..I decided less is more and I did cover the pelican and the very bottom corner before I did it.  I then added the sentiment using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink and heat embossed it with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.   

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I'll see you again soon. 

I am entering the following challenges:

Colour Hues Challenge - No. 107 Orange and Teal.

We Love Stamping Challenge - April '25 Anything Goes/Favourite Stamps.

Stamping Sensations Challenge - April '25 Birds, Animals, Flowers and Nature/Anything Goes.

Triple B Challenge - April '25 Birds, Butterflies and Blooms (using one, two or all three).

N.B.U.S. Challenge - No. 73 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

Darnell's I.D.E.A.S. - Week 1 Ink/Color Mediums.

First Christmas Card for 2025

Hi all.  I decided to make a Christmas card this week inspired by the GO7 theme this month of pastes, and for the background I used some DecoArt white paste coloured with Brushos and added through a Crafter's Companion stencil which came with Box Set No. 6.  I also used a die set from Spellbinders called Winter Evergreen Foliage and Lady Bugs, and also a set of Creative Craft Products Torn Edge Stars both being used for the first time.

I coloured the paste with Turquoise and a little Ost. Blue Brusho and used it through the stencil.  I then went on to die cut three pieces of foliage using some snippets of white card and two of the dies from the set cutting two of the die which had little spaces on the stems to add the berries.  I decided to colour them in a bluey purple more like juniper, and I found a die which came as part of another set of Spellbinder dies called Balloons & Birthday Wishes which was a small round centre for one of the flowers and seemed to be the perfect size for a berry, so I cut lots of those from more snippets of white card and shaped them on a foam mat with a ball tool before colouring them with my alcohol pens and then added them to the already inked branches...again various greens and a brown used to give a more varied look to them...mind you I don't think the brown stems are very visible.  I finished by glossing the berries using Glossy Accents.

I decided to make a bunch of the foliage and cut a star again using a snippet of white card and my newly acquired set of the Torn Edge dies and inked the edges using Broken China Distress Ink and then added the foliage on top.  I then found a piece of silver embroidery thread using all the layers and formed a bow which I stuck at the top of the bunch of foliage.  I finished by adding the snowflake background and then used some very thin foam on the back of the star and also the sentiment strip placed across the star, cut from another snippet of white card, and which I had heat embossed using WOW Metallic Silver Embossing Powder. 

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Snippets Playground Challenge - No. 503 Where we use our snippets of card and paper etc.

Merry Little Christmas Challenge - No. 61 Anything Christmas Goes.

Allsorts Challenge - No. 820 Spring Flowers/Anything Goes.

Stencil Fun Challenge - April '25 Anything Goes/Patterns.

NBUS Challenge - No. 73 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

I.D.E.A.S. Challenge - Week 1 - Ink/Colour Mediums.
Group of Seven Cardmakers - March Technique - Using Embossing Paste.

Group of Seven - Embossing Paste Product Focus

Hi everyone.  Another month has rushed by and this month over at the Group of Seven we are looking at embossing paste and what you can do with it.  This is not something that I have used very much before but it does add an extra something to your stencilling, adding texture and with lots of different finished looks using pastes with shimmer in them, or adding glitter or embossing powder or things like fibres or micro beads, and waiting until it's dry to heat emboss the powder, or whilst wet to give a more puffed up look to it.  You can also add colour to white paste using any water based medium for endlessly different looks, mixing it in or adding it after it is dry.  For my card I chose a shimmery relief paste with a titanium coloured finish to it, and I used a Crafter's Companion heart stencil which came as part of a set of three different designs and called Love Hearts and being used for the first time.  I also incorporated a few die cuts from a Spellbinders set called Bold Blooms the rest of which I have yet to use, and ditto another Spellbinders set called Balloons and Birthday Wishes.

I cut a piece of card to fit a 6" square base card and then added the paste through the taped down stencil masking off the rest of the card.  I used a small palette knife to spread it, and it worked quite well, though I do think that I found it easier the few times I have tried this before by using an old plastic store card at a slight angle to pull the paste across. When dry I decided to add the extra hearts placed on the ends of some flower stems and balloon strings.  I cut off the branches on the flower stems to give one long stem, and they were a bit shorter, and I also used the balloon strings from the other set but as they were rather thin and seemed a bit flimsy I glued two back to back on three of them..not the easiest thing, but they look OK I think.  I also used the stencil and pencil marked around one of the larger hearts cutting two with my small decoupage scissors which I doubled up for more dimension.  I then found various little die cut hearts which I keep in a pot and used some in three different sizes and I coloured them with a couple of pink alcohol pens.  I used a lighter pink then decided to darken them a bit so added another colour over the top of each.  I then added a heart to each of the stems, and I decided at this point to add some Glossy Accents to all of them for a bit of pretty shine.  I also used some of the Glossy Accents as a glue over the right hand heart and stuck the heart stems down to it before adding the double layer pink heart over the top and used it behind each of the hearts to stick them down to the card..it is good for something like this as it sticks extremely firmly.  I didn't like the look of the stems beneath the heart so I cut them off so that they emerge from under the heart, and I also added the sentiment heat embossing with WOW Metallic Silver Embossing Powder, and added the five tiny hearts around it.  The titanium colour of the paste does look more silver in reality than it does in the photo which has given it a more beige tone for some reason, so the silver embossed sentiment does look a better match than it appears here.

I hope that if you haven't tried this you will be encouraged to give these pastes a go as they do give the card a bit of a 'wow' factor, and I think mine could have been smoother but not too bad considering I haven't done this technique much before.  I have seen some pastes used over an open embossing folder and left to dry, and I did give this a try with a normal folder using one that I got years ago and which if ruined would not be the end of the world.  This paste didn't release from the folder very well, but I may not have spread it quite thick enough I think, but I have another paste which has a thicker consistency which is a modelling paste made by DecoArt and this did work better and released well..again would have looked better if it had been applied a bit thicker, and I will perhaps give it a proper go during the month and put the card up on the GO7 post.

If you do give this a try do come and add your card to the Linky which you will find at the bottom of the post so we can all enjoy them, and you will also find some wonderful cards made with this technique there from the other ladies, and explanations of how they made them over on their own blogs.  

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I'll see you again soon.

I am entering the following challenges:

Stencil Fun Challenge - Anything Goes/Splatters.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes.

N.B.U.S. Challenge - No. 72 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.
Darnell's I.D.E.A.S. - Week 4 - A = Anything Goes.
Simply Clean & Simple Challenge - March'25 Anything Goes/Shades of Green.