update on STAMPlorations (3)

Howdy friends! 

As I mentioned in my last post, even in my less prolific days you could still count on me for my weekly inspiration posts using STAMPlorations products. I've been blessed to support Shery and the store since the beginning. Things were quiet around here lately. For the following reason.

You may or may not have seen the post over at STAMP regarding Shery's hiatus. "The energizer bunny," as I've always lovingly called her, has been forced to slow down. She has cancer and is going into battle to kick its butt. 

Basically, the store is closed for the time being since Shery needs all her energy for herself and her family. But she wouldn't be Shery without keeping a couple options open. Afterall, the store provides a portion of her family's income. 

First, digi stamps are still available since they require little physical effort to send to customers. Second, Shery has, as energy allows, created some product bundles at fabulous prices which she can pack up when she's feeling up to it and then just pop in the mail when people buy them. And third, she's offering mystery bundles at an amazing discount. If you'd like to check it out, here's a link to the store and the bundles.

I'm going to revisit a few projects from the past in case they might inspire you to pick up a couple digi stamps from STAMPlorations.

How about more florals - if you're not into coloring them, use gilding flakes! I used Love Card Fronts. Here's my post.

Or print them on patterned paper! For details check out my original blog post using Cupful of Blooms.

Next I'll revisit some of the birthday products included in the Bundle #1. Thanks for looking and maybe supporting Shery and the store. 

update on STAMPlorations (2)

Howdy friends! 

As I mentioned in my last post, even in my less prolific days you could still count on me for my weekly inspiration posts using STAMPlorations products. I've been blessed to support Shery and the store since the beginning. Things have gotten quieter around here lately. And that's why I want to share the following with you.

You may or may not have seen the post over at STAMP regarding Shery's hiatus. "The energizer bunny," as I've always lovingly called her, has been forced to slow down. She has cancer and is going into battle to kick its butt. 

Basically, the store is closed for the time being since Shery needs all her energy for herself and her family. But she wouldn't be Shery without keeping a couple options open. Afterall, the store provides a portion of her family's income. 

First, digi stamps are still available since they require little physical effort to send to customers. Second, Shery has, as energy allows, created some product bundles at fabulous prices which she can pack up when she's feeling up to it and then just pop in the mail when people buy them. And third, she's offering mystery bundles at an amazing discount. If you'd like to check it out, here's a link to the store and the bundles.

I'm going to revisit a few projects from the past in case they might inspire you to pick up a couple digi stamps from STAMPlorations.

How about florals - who doesn't love to create with florals. For details check out my original blog post. I made the shaker by enlarging one of the frames from Blossom Frames.

For the next card I selectively colored with alcohol markers and then fussy cut the wings to make the butterflies from Fluttery Garden really pop.

I'll be back with more floral digi images next. Thanks for looking and maybe supporting Shery and the store.

 

update on STAMPlorations

Howdy friends! It's been awhile since I've shown my face around here although I think lots of card peeps have left the blog world and now reside in the Instagram world. If you're still here - WELCOME. I maintaining both the blog and IG for the time being...

Even in my less prolific days you could still count on me for my weekly inspiration posts using STAMPlorations products. I've been blessed to support Shery and the store since the beginning. Things have gotten quieter around here lately. And that's why I want to share the following with you today.

You may or may not have seen the post over at STAMP regarding Shery's hiatus. "The energizer bunny," as I've always lovingly called her, has been forced to slow down. She has cancer and is going into battle to kick its butt. 

Basically, the store is closed for the time being since Shery needs all her energy for herself and her family. But she wouldn't be Shery without keeping a couple options open. Afterall, the store provides a portion of her family's income. 

First, digi stamps are still available since they require little physical effort to send to customers. Second, Shery has, as energy allows, created some product bundles at fabulous prices which she can pack up when she's feeling up to it and then just pop in the mail when people buy them. And third, she's offering mystery bundles at an amazing discount. If you'd like to check it out, here's a link to the store and the bundles.

I'm going to revisit a few projects from the past in case they might inspire you to pick up a couple digi stamps from STAMPlorations.

How about coffee - quite a popular theme for cardmakers. Here's the Bloomdala Coffee Cup to Go as tags - colored with colored pencils or watercolors. For details check out my original blog post.

Or fussy cut to add to a card front. I actually colored this one with distress inks. Here's the post.

I'll be back with some floral digi images next. Thanks for looking.

STAMPlorations inspiration #324

Welcome to a Tuesday inspiration post from the STAMPlorations inspiration team girls. 

Another colored digi coffee cup today. Let me tell you, these coffee cups are such fun to color!

Bloomdala Coffee Cup to Go digi stamp

Coffee and Mondays stamp

alcohol markers, patterned paper, washi, embossing powder

I colored and fussy cut the image. Heat embossed the fun sentiment (all three in the set fit perfectly on a die cut circle) and then added some PP from my stash and a strip of washi before adding the cup.

As always, you could win yourself a $15 prize code to the store by leaving a comment on this month's inspiration posts! Check out today's post over at STAMPlorations. And if I should ever inspire you to order something from the store, I'd appreciate it if you used my STAMPGIRLMARIA discount code for an additional 20% off your order. 

STAMPlorations inspiration #323

Welcome to another Tuesday inspiration post from the STAMPlorations inspiration team girls. 

I'm still playing with some Decotime Twinmarkers alcohol markers I picked up at the local "dollar store" and practicing my coloring. I colored another digi image today. I love this one. And since I'm always in need of a belated birthday card...

Bloomdala Coffee Cup to Go digi stamp

Oh Frap die

Stained Glass stencil

alcohol markers, Distress Ink

I colored and fussy cut the image. Die cut and stacked the sentiment. Before adhering the cup to my card I sponged some Antique Linen DI through a stencil onto my cardbase.

As always, you could win yourself a $15 prize code to the store by leaving a comment on this month's inspiration posts! Check out today's post over at STAMPlorations. And if I should ever inspire you to order something from the store, I'd appreciate it if you used my STAMPGIRLMARIA discount code for an additional 20% off your order. 

STAMPlorations inspiration #321

Welcome to another Tuesday inspiration post from the STAMPlorations inspiration team girls. 

Playing with my new Decotime Twinmarkers alcohol markers again. I actually colored this image during Kathy Rac's last coloring challenge.

For today's card I turned the colored digi image into a card.

Fluttery Garden digi stamp

Patches stencil

World Birthday Cakes stamp

alcohol markers, Distress Inks

I fussy cut the image, took a black marker to the cut edges and popped it up over a panel I'd inked through a stencil. Added the perfect sentiment and voila!

You could win yourself a $15 prize code to the store by leaving a comment on this month's inspiration posts! Check out today's post over at STAMPlorations. And if I should ever inspire you to order something from the store, I'd appreciate it if you used my STAMPGIRLMARIA discount code for an additional 20% off your order - at no extra cost to you.

spring summer coffee lovers hop

Know how I've been playing with fantasy watercoloring this month? I kinda carried on with that inspiration for today's projects which are a part of the Spring Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop. STAMPlorations is a sponsor and in addition to the four STAMP prizes being given away on the hop, you could win a prize for leaving a comment over at the STAMP blog today too.

For my first project I used the new set, Sweet Kindness. This set arrived just in time as that floral spray (not coffee related, I know) was perfect for a tag to accompany a birthday present!

 Sweet Kindness stamp

Lowercase Alpha Plate dies
Tag #1 Nesting dies

Gansai Tambi watercolors

Watercolor paper.  Tag die cut. Water. Watercolors. Dabbing and voila! I love how those little half-embossed alphas fit perfectly to personalize the tag for my friend. Here's the tag in action ;)

And then I went all "fantasy watercolor" again. Made this next card with Bloomin Coffee and You.

Bloomin Coffee and You stamp
Just Caffeinate clear stickers

Gansai Tambi watercolors

I printed a digi version of the stamp (cuz my postman hasn't delivered this set to me yet) onto watercolor paper. FYI, my image is larger than the stamp in the set. But if you're interested in digi stamps, this collection of digi stamps has a similar image and many more.

So. Fantasy watercolor. Wet-on-wet technique. I wouldn't call it "sloshed" cuz only Shirley can do that. And it's sure not realistic. It's kinda dabbed. Kinda pushed around. But I stuck to a more limited color palette and even kept the coffee brown!

I fussy cut the image and adhered it to a cream colored cardbase since my watercolor paper is creamy. A sticker sentiment tops off the cup.

Hope you're enjoying the hop with a nice cuppa. Thanks for stopping over today. Have a great week and remember to "Be kind, be calm and be safe."

I'm joining the fun at:
Spring Summer Coffee Lovers Hop
I pulled my colors from ATSAM - Photo Inspiration

STAMPlorations inspiration #268 - new coffee stamps

Welcome to another Tuesday inspiration post of the month from the STAMPlorations inspiration team! Today we have something special for you, an introduction to two new coffee stamp sets available in the store. Just in time for the upcoming Coffee Lovers Blog Hop too!

Know how I've been playing with fantasy watercoloring this month? I kinda carried on with that inspiration for today's projects.

Meet #1. I've used the new set, Sweet Kindness.

 Sweet Kindness stamp
5 Love Words dies
Crazy Double Running Stitch Rectangle dies

Gansai Tambi watercolors

Watercolor paper. Water. Watercolors. Dabbing and tipping. Voila! Doesn't that graphic image make for a great focal point?

And then #2. Made with Bloomin Coffee and You.

Bloomin Coffee and You stamp
5 Coffee Phrase dies

Gansai Tambi watercolors

Again, watercolor paper. Onto which I printed a digi version of the stamp cuz my postman hasn't delivered this set to me yet. FYI, my tag is actually somewhat larger than the stamp itself. I chose to dab watercolors onto the background, leaving the image uncolored. I did add some grays to the bloom however. I think the die cut sentiment works well over the image.

I hope you are doing well in these crazy Corona times. As the health officer in British Columbia says, "Be kind, be calm and be safe."

You could win yourself a $15 GC to the store OR one of the new sets by leaving a comment on the inspiration girls' posts and over at the STAMP blog! Check out today's post over at STAMPlorations. And if I ever inspire you to order something from the store, I'd really appreciate it if you used my STAMPGIRLMARIA discount code for an additional 20% off your order - at no extra cost to you, just with perks for me ;)

Thanks for stopping over today. Have a great week. I'm stopping over at:
Stamping Sensations - Flowers
Happy Little Stampers - May Watercolor

STAMPlorations digital stamps with patterned paper

I'm over on the STAMPlorations blog today with five digital stamp projects. You could win a $15 GC to the store for comments left here and there. Just sayin...

So as I mentioned in my last Digital Wednesday post, I'm a newbie to digital stamps, but there are definitely some benefits to digi stamps - no smudges, perfect coverage without a MISTI, image resizing, even layering images (though I've yet to give that a try).

My technology tools are limited to Microsoft Word and my Canon ink jet printer. I watched this video for a great intro to digi stamps.

For today's projects I used a pad of patterned paper from the dollar store. The pastel colors caught my eye. The paper is thin however, so to print on it I used cellophane tape to attach the 6x6 sheets to a normal sheet of copy paper. This went through my printer without any problem.

TIP: First I print the image onto copy paper and then hold that up to the light with my 6x6 PP in front of it to see where I would like the image to be. (See how I lined up the flower on the floral PP so that one of the red roses was in the center of the bloom?)

Here's a look at the PP pad and some of the images I printed.

Another TIP: I use Photoscape to edit photos. I'm no pro. But since I knew I was only using the bloom from the latte-cup-with-bloom image, I cropped the image to remove the top portion of the to-go cup. This was then what I printed to waste less PP. (As if I don't already have enough PP to last 300 years...)

Let's get to my cards, shall we? First up, I used a cup of blooms image and thought I was going to mix and match cup and blooms - paper piece just the mug from PP onto the image printed on white cardstock and then give the white blooms just a little dab of color. But I liked the look of the image on the watercolored-look PP so much I couldn't cut it apart! So these two cards happened.

For the first, I fussy cut the image printed on Neenah solar white, added dabs of color to the flowers and adhered it on a floral PP.

Cupful of Blooms digi stamp

Just Caffeinate clear stickers

alcohol markers

patterned paper

Then for the second card I added color to the centers of the flowers on the image fussy cut from the pretty watercolored-look PP and added it to a shimmery, linen texture cardbase.

TIP: Look for pencil colors fairly close to your PP colors to keep the contrast minimal. I used a pink, a purple, a blue, a gray and a green cuz they were closest to the tones of the watercolored-look PP.

Cupful of Blooms digi stamp

World Birthday Cakes stamp

Prismacolor colored pencils

patterned paper

embossing powder

For my next card I used an image that covers the front of an A2 card. I printed it once onto white cardstock and once onto PP. When fussy cutting the blooms from the PP to paper piece on the other panel, I carefully cut out the frame too.

TIP: When I fussy cut the flowers touching the frame on the PP panel, I made sure to leave the thick black line around the frame intact. This enabled me to use the frame for a second card. In general when paper piecing, fussy cut on the black line. Since you will be adhering the fussy cut piece to a stamped or printed image, those outlines will show.

I lightly applied some Spun Sugar and Squeezed Lemonade to the Neenah panel before adhering the PP flowers. Then I stamped the sentiment and added some sequins.

Coffee Blossoms digi stamp

Dream the Impossible stamp

Distress inks

PP, sequins

To accompany the fussy cut PP frame, I shrunk one of the other coffee cup images, printed it onto contrasting PP (twice so I could see which size I preferred) and fussy cut just the flowers to use to embellish the second card. (This was when it dawned on me to use Photoscape to crop the image so only the part I need would print and I wouldn't waste PP ;)

Added a sentiment in the form of a clear sticker to the frame. And colored the leaves of the flower spray and added gems too.

Coffee Blossoms digi stamp

Birthday Word Art clear stickers

This last card was such fun. I printed the image (sized to my liking) onto four different patterned papers, felt like I was back in kindergarten as I fussy cut the flowers and then arranged them on my cardbase.

TIP: Use the bits and pieces you trim off around the edges to fill some of the white space on your cardbase. I only had four flowers but it looks like I used seven.

I did not add adhesive to the outer edges of the petals so there's some dimension. I love how the sequins fit perfectly in the flower centers. Adds dimension. And that sentiment die with the drop shadow adds even more dimension.

Holiday Lattes digi stamp

Skinny Sentiments die

sequins

Whew. That was a lot. Don't forget to leave me a comment. And on my Digital Wednesday post here too, for another chance to win.

With card #1 I'm playing over at:
The Flower Challenge - Anything Goes
SSS Wednesday Challenge - Whatever the Weather (card's going to girlfriend who combats stress with coffee)

STAMPlorations digital stamps four more ways

I'm over on the STAMPlorations blog today with four digital stamp projects. You could win a $15 GC to the store for comments left here and there. Just sayin...

So. I'm no pro with digital stamps. I love getting inky with actual stamps. And I'm a pro at ink smudges. But there are some benefits to digi stamps - no smudges, perfect coverage without a MISTI, image resizing, even layering images (though I've yet to give that a try). And no shipping!

I use Microsoft Word and my Canon ink jet printer. I recommend this post for a great intro to digi stamps. It's where I figured out how to print them using Word.

I've got four projects to share today. One image enlarged. One shrunk. One left as is. And one heat embossed. Let's get started.

First up, I wanted a really large image. I inserted the PNG file for the image (it's the rectangular frame with roses along its left edge) into a Word document. Then I clicked on the image and stretched it to enlarge it. It's got nice thick lines so this worked great. I trimmed the printed image down to the card front size I wanted and made a shaker card.

Blossom Frames digi stamp

Succulently die

Copic markers

Klartext Kartengruss stamp

sequins

Something about those thick black lines... I decided to go all dramatic on this one. Chose red tones and Copic colored only a piece I die cut from the printed panel and set it back behind the shaker. Added a heat embossed German sentiment since this will be a birthday card for DS's girlfriend.

For my second card I shrunk a digi stamp so it could be just an accent piece on my card.

Blossom Frames digi stamp

Manila Tag die

5 Love Words die

Altenew ink

Sweetly stamp

PP, washi, sequins

You can imagine my joy when I stumbled upon this PP in my stash. A perfect complement to the digi image. Thinking anniversary or wedding, I chose silver glitter for the die cut sentiment and the strip of washi. Sequins added more sparkle.

To eliminate some of the empty white space I masked and stamped some yellow blooms with the Sweetly stamp. On the cardbase and within the digi frame. BTW, I flipped the die and made a second cut to turn the manila tag into a rectangle!

So after enlarging and shrinking images on the previous cards, my next card uses an image just as it is (A2 size), I merely trimmed away the black lines of the frame.

Fluttery Garden digi stamp

Bloomful stamp

Copic markers

No need to color the entire image. I had fun coloring just the butterflies. Have you ever been to a garden where those gorgeous blue butterflies flutter about? They were my inspiration.

I added interest by cutting out parts of their wings with an exacto knife and backing the "holes" with yellow cardstock. Added white gel pen dots to the wings and some color to the background with dots of various yellow Copic markers.

My final card was the result of an aha moment I had when I was printing digi stamps on PP (for my March post!), and using cellophane tape to hold my PP in place on copy paper. I noticed the toner ink remained wet where it printed on the tape...Maybe that would also be the case on vellum, I thought. And it was! Which means if you're quick you can heat emboss a digi stamp printed onto vellum! 

Cupful of Blooms digi stamp

Birthday Bash stamp

PP, embossing powder, vellum

It may not be as perfect as with normal heat embossing, but I think it's pretty amazing! And quick. I chose to back it with floral PP and adhere the vellum with just a line of messy stitching up top.

That's it for today. Don't forget to leave a comment here.  And here too, for another chance to win.

I'm playing over at:

SSS Wednesday Challenge - Add a sentiment (card #3)

Die Cut Divas - Hearts or Flowers (card #1)

Creative with Stamps - Red (card #1)