JAI #368 Use birthday to make Christmas

Hello there, 
well this week has been a bit busier and also chillier (the kids enjoyed smashing the ice sheet that formed each night on our little fountain outside though)! The chill weather is actually a perfect segway to our new challenge at Just Add Ink this week. This week Kelly has asked us to Just add a twist - the twist? Well, to use a birthday set to create a Christmas card. So get out all your birthday sets and look at them in a different way - it takes a bit of creative thinking but it's such a fun way to see if you can get more use from your stamps!

Here's what I came up with. 

I spotted the string of lights in Confetti Celebration and couldn't get the idea out of my mind of using them as Christmas lights. But what to drape them on?? I settled on the sweet little elephant from A Little Wild. I kind of liked the idea that he could hold them up using his trunk. It took some fiddly masking (I had to stamped the lights first so they would be in front of the elephant) which meant I had to cut teeny tiny light masks. But rather remarkably I managed to get everything in the right place first go! Then I coloured up my elephant and lights before fancying the lights up with wink of stella and then a coat of fine tip glue pen to get a lovely glossy sheen. For the background I brayered up a night sky, adding some texture with a splatter of white gouache and the gleam of gold stars. There had to be stars with for my elephant to wish on!

I was delighted my minds concept worked out so well (big smile). We'd love you to join the challenge this week, before you do though, go and check out the projects from the rest of the design team!

Thanks for visiting,
Kim

Recipe: All SU! unless otherwise noted

Stamps: A Little Wild, Confetti Celebration, Moon Baby, Labeler Alphabet, Teeny Tiny Sentiments

Cardstock: Island Indigo, Whisper White, X Press it Blending

Ink: Night of Navy, Island Indigo, Bermuda Bay, Pool Party, Versamark, Tuxedo Black (Memento)

Accessories: Stitched Shapes framelits, Classic Label punch, Star punch (R), Copic markers, Gold glimmer paper, White and gold embossing powder, Sponge brayer, Fine Tip glue pen, White Gouache, Dimensionals, Tear and Tape

Colour INKspiration 13

Hello there,
welcome to the Colour INKspiration 13 blog hop. If you are hopping your way around the blog hop, you will have arrived from my lovely friend Nikki Spencer's blog. I'm sure you were wowed by her project! If you are starting the hop here but would like to go to the start at the  Colour INKspiration challenge page over on Facebook, just click the link to be redirected and ask to join the group, that way you can load your projects directly to the Facebook group and join in the fun every 2nd and 4th Wednesday. Our INKspiration for this round is filled with delicate floral tones.

Here's what I came up with this time.

I still had mermaids on my mind when I started thinking about these colours. So out she came again. This time I decided to keep the colours focused in the mid section of the card and even created a wave line at the top. With the mermaid looking out over the waves I thought "thinking of you" was the perfect sentiment! As a last minute addition I wrapped silver thread over my watercolored embossed panel to add more texture and sheen to the 'water'. The challenge runs till July 24th. Hope you can join us! Next up, on the blog hop is another friend, the very talented Kelly Kent. Enjoy!

Recipe: All SU! unless otherwise noted
Stamps: Magical Mermaid, Teeny Tiny Sentiments
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Basic Black, Blending cardstock (X Press)
Ink: Wild Wasabi, Lemon Lime Twist, Sweet Sugarplum, Fresh Fig, Tuxedo Black (Memento), Versamark
Accessories: Seasonal Layers thinlets, Water colour paper, Seaside embossing folder, Copic Markers, Silver glimmer paper, Sweet Sugarplum DSP, Silver metallic thread, White embossing powder, Wink of Stella, Iridescent sequins, 1/8" Silver taffeta ribbon, Fine Tip glue pen, Dimensionals, Tear and Tape

JAI #333 Just add G

Hello there,
Well it's been an eventful week. So I'm going to keep this short and plunge straight into this week's Just Add Ink challenge. This week Tina has asked us to Just Add 'G'. Add 'G' you ask? Well that means we want you to add something, or several somethings, that begin with G as the main focus of your project. This could be colours - gold, or green for example, it could be an activity - golf, it could be a giant or gladioli or a technique or card fold as long as it starts with G!

The first thing that popped into my mind was gold. Since gold is perfect for blinging up Christmas cards I went gold, gold, gold and this is how it turned out.

The inside

See I wasn't joking about all the gold now was I! This is pretty simple in that it is just a mix of a bunch of different gold textures in a whole bunch of layers. All the shimmer is tricky to capture but I think you can get a feel for it.

Do stop past the rest of the DT for lots of fun and fabulous 'G' ideas.
Thanks for visiting,
Kim

Recipe: All SU! unless other wise noted
Stamps: Foxy Friends, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Cardstock: Basic Black, Very Vanilla
Ink: Versamark
Accessories: Layering Circles Framelits dies, Banner framelits, Gift card envelope and trims thinlets die,  Gold Glimmer paper, Gold Foil sheet, Fancy Foil Designer Vellum Gold (R), Gold embossing powder, Star punch (R), Metallic enamel shapes, Metallic sequins, Sewing machine, Tear and Tape, Dimensionals

JAI #309 Just add Inspiration

Hello there,
with the beginning of school again life has returned to its normal pattern here which is rather nice (especially as it means some stamping time for me ;) It has also meant I had time to break out some new stamps I received at OnStage. This weeks challenge - Just Add Inspiration - at Just Add Ink - a lovely serene photo from Jodene was perfect to make a special Mother's Day card for my MIL. Here's the inspiration photo.

The new stamp set was perfect as my MIL loves her cat and this gave me the option to add one!  

I have pulled the very fresh colour palette from the inspiration photo and also tried to add in a knit texture background that echoes the chevrons in the picture. Construction was very simple, colour the images, trim out the different pieces and arrange them. It wasn't essential but I had to make sure the cat was comfortable so I added a pillow for it to rest against (My old fur baby certainly loves having something to snuggle into).

What inspires you in the inspiration photo? We'd love you to play along with us. Don't forget to check out the rest of the DT projects too!

Thanks for visiting,
Kim

Recipe: All SU! unless otherwise noted
Stamps: Sitting Here, Mixed Borders, Teeny Tiny Sentiments
Cardstock: Whisper White, Thick Whisper White, Blushing Bride
Ink: Blushing Bride, Watermelon Wonder, Pool Party, Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Tipped Tops dies (PaperTrey Ink), Copic markers,  Pool Party and Calypso Coral seam binding, Silver thread, Dimensionals, Fine tip glue, Wink of Stella clear, Sparkling Clear sequins (Pretty Pink Posh), Tear and Tape

JAI #284 Just add a fancy fold

Hello there,

well I've survived another school holidays. We did manage to get out for a town for a few days to enjoy some time down the coast. Adventures there included watching whales as the sun rose, which was pretty special and an encounter, fortunately at a safe distance, with a red bellied black snake!!

Following on with my animal theme I made a card recently that was perfect for this week's Just Add Ink challenge - to Just Add a Fancy Fold.

A view looking down shows you how simple this fancy fold really is.

And you can flatten it out for posting!

I first came across this fancy fold - a shadow box - on Kelly Kent's blog here. She includes some great instructions for Australian sizing there as well as a link to a video tutorial. I thought it was perfect to make something fun for my husband for father's day. So I pulled out some monkey's to colour and made a little scene for them to hang around in. The kids loved the idea that they each had a monkey to represent them.

We'd love to see what fancy fold you create this week. Please do join us and don't forget to check out the amazing fancy folds the DT has made this week!

Thanks for visiting,
Kim

Recipe: All SU! unless otherwise noted
Stamps: Teeny Tiny Sentiments, Tremendous Treats: Birthday (PaperTrey Ink), Tiny Treats: Birthday (PTI), Heart 2 Heart #6 (PTI)
Cardstock: Soft Sky, Daffodil Delight, Real Red, Whisper White, Pear Pizzazz, Wild Wasabi, Garden Green, Early Expresso
Ink: Daffodil Delight, Tuxedo Black (Memento), Whisper White
Accessories: Ovals Collection framelits, Mighty Oak die collection (PTI), Tremendous Treats: Birthday die collection (PTI), Heart 2 Heart die collection (PTI), Sweet Dreams DSP (R), Owl builder punch, Bitty Banner framelits, Itty Bitty Shapes punch pack (R), Copic markers, Fringe scissors, Crystal Effects, Glue dots, Dimensionals, Double sided tape (X Press)

JAI #256 Just add a sketch

Hello there,
well finally Autumn is starting to set in - I can't tell you how much I love that fresh chill in the air and the increasing depth of colour in the leaves. Sometimes the colours are just so gorgeous I have to stop and just soak it all in!  Hopefully you will enjoy the challenge we have for you this week at Just Add Ink just as much as I'm enjoying my Autumn weather - this week we want you to Just Add a Sketch, designed by Tina. Here's the sketch.

 I did struggle with the Autumn light to get a decent photograph though!

Soft, pretty and layers upon layers is where I ended up and where I started from, well I was intrigued and inspired by a post by Melissa Phillips here about adding wings to tags. I'm definitely in a vellum phase at the moment so don't be surprised if you see some more :)

Hope you can join us this week. Oh and don't forget to visit the rest of the DT to see their gorgeous creations!

Thanks for visiting,
Kim

Recipe: All SU! unless otherwise noted
Stamps: Kinda Eclectic, Teeny Tiny Sentiments, Butterfly Basics
Cardstock: Bermuda Bay, Pink Pirouette, Whisper White, Soft Sky, Vellum
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Crumb Cake, Versamark
Accessories: Brights and Subtles DSP paper stacks,  Butterflies Thinlet dies, Banner framelits, Starburst framelits, Bitty Banners framelits, Large Polka Dot embossing folder, 2 1/2" circle punch, 2 3/8" and 7/8" scallop circle punches, Angled Tag topper punch, Life is Beautiful die collection (PaperTrey Ink),Silver glimmer paper,Tea Lace Paper Dollies, Pool Party embossing powder, Essentials Piercing template, mat and tool, Jewels- rhinestones, Sponge, Pink Pirouette seam binding, Venetian Crochet trim, Soft Sky stitched ribbon (R), Double sided tape (X Press), Dimensionals

JAI 247 Just add love blog hop

Well hello and welcome to the first Just Add Ink challenge for 2015. It's nice to be back :)

Once again we are starting off the year with a blog hop to showcase the design team's projects for the challenge. You may have arrived here from Louise Sharp's blog (wasn't her project delightful!) or you can begin the blog hop here. Just click on the blog hop button at the bottom of the post or the link in the text at the end to move on to the next DT blog (Jodene Tripp). (You'll be glad you did!)

So what are we kicking the year off with? This week the challenge, from Christine, is to Just Add Love with the added twist of using a tag sketch as part (or as) your project. Here are the details.

An important January project for me every year is a birthday card for my little Miss - I think you'll be able to work out what milestone birthday we are up to this year ;) The first version of this turned out like something you would make for your 80 year old granny - perfect for that but just SO not right for a 10 year old! The new version is scrappy and bright (but not shabby) and rather remarkably liked by Miss almost 10. Thank goodness for that!

One to show the shimmer and shine.

The inside

The rest of the Just Add Ink DT have a wonderful array of inspiration generating projects for you to see so please do continue on and visit the rest of the team. Your next stop on the blog hop is Jodene Tripp's blog. I know she has something just gorgeous for you to see! 

Hope you can join us for the challenge,

Thanks for visiting,

Kim

PS: Recipe below

Recipe: All SU! unless noted
Stamps: Dictionary, Kinda Eclectic, Teeny Tiny Sentiments (SU!), This Sweet Life, Sew Simple borders (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: Rose Red, Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White, Vellum
Ink: Strawberry Slush, Rich Razzleberry, Blackberry Bliss, Mossy Meadow, Pistachio Pudding, Smokey Slate, Rose Red, Versamark
Accessories: Bitty Banners Framelits, Scallop Edge border, Small Butterfly and Elegant Butterfly punches  (SU!), This Sweet Life dies, Basic Bookmark die 2, By the Numbers die (PaperTrey Ink), Gold Foil, Champagne shimmer paper, Gold embossing powder, All Abloom DSP stack, 2013-15 In Color DSP stack, Epic Day washi tape, Tea lace paper doily, Strawberry Slush twine, Jewels - rhinestones, 2014-15 In color sequin assortment, Tombow multi, Double sided tape (X Press), Dimensionals

JAI 237 Just add clear block stamping

Hello there,
well I was busy busy busy this week! But even if you are having a week like me do try and find the time to join us at Just Add Ink this week because we have a fun challenge - this week it is to Just Add Clear Block stamping. This is the technique where you ink up your actual block and use it as a stamp. The JAI DT have lots of fabulous examples of how you can use this technique and here is what I came up with.

And here is how I did it.
1) I inked up (I literally just patted my ink pads on the block) my largest clear block with green, blue and brown ink in roughly the pattern I wanted (I used the cover image of my World Map stamp set as a guide).

2) Spritzed with just the finest mist of water. Then I stamped.
3) Once dry I stamped my map image over the top. You can see the ink colours are not a perfect match for land/sea but it still looks good!

This was my Dad's birthday card this year - in his young days he rode a motorcycle. So I thought this would appeal to him. Most unusually for me I went with a very rich dark colour scheme but it seemed to suit the card so I went with it.

Hope you can join us. Thanks for visiting,

Kim

Recipe: All SU! unless noted

Stamps: World Map, Teeny Tiny Sentiments, Motorcycle

Cardstock: Cherry Cobler, Basic Black, Naturals White, Vellum

Ink: Bermuda Bay, Old Olive, Soft Suede, Crumb Cake, Tuxedo Black (Memento), Versamark

Accessories: Top Note BigZ die, Starburst framelits, Spiral Border punch, Black and White embossing powder, Cherry Cobler baker's twine, Dimensionals, Double sided tape (X Press), Vellum tape (Scotch)

Just Add Ink 231

Hello there,
well despite Father's Day here in down under being last Sunday I have two more Father's Day cards for you this week - it's a two for one day today - lol! As it just happens the new Just Add Ink challenge this week is a Just Add a Colour Combo challenge and the colours were just what I needed for both cards. Here's the combo provided by Mae this week.

This first one was for my DH, you can probably guess it does something special (I always make either his Father's day card or birthday card - both in the same month (groan) interactive). It's a slider (or surprise pop up card). You can find a tutorial on the Splitcoast Stampers site here.

Starting to open up.

A little bit more.

Open all the way from the side.

And finally the inside.

And here's the one I made for my FIL. No interactive elements in this one but my FIL assured me he loved it.

I was wracking my brains trying to think of some way to finish off the bottom of the front panel when using the fringe scissor occurred to me - very pleased it did as I think it works great!

So there you go - two guy cards from the same colour combo - Fathers Day mission accomplished - on schedule - phewww!

Hope you join us for this great colour challenge. Do check out the rest of the DT for lots of fabulous colour inspiration.

Thanks for visiting,
Kim

Recipe: All SU! unless noted otherwise
Card 1:
Stamps: Positively Chevron, Teeny Tiny Sentiments, Alphabet (Rotary), Metro Type Alphabet, Back to Basics Alphabet, Peachy Keen (R), Vintage Labels (PaperTrey Ink)
Cardstock: Bermuda Bay, Basic Black, Crushed Curry, Whisper White
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Starburst framelits, Hearts Collection framelit, Finishing Touch Edgelit, Regals Background DSP stack, Itty Bitty Accents punch pack, Owl Builder punch, Regals Candy dots, Bermuda Bay 1/8" taffeta ribbon, Dimensionals, Double sided tape (X press)

Card 2:
Stamps: Metro Type Alphabet, World's Greatest (R), Hello Sunshine (PaperTrey Ink)
Cardstock: Bermuda Bay, Basic Black, Crushed Curry, Whisper White, Vellum
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Black Stazon, Crushed Curry
Accessories: Starburst framelit, Fringe scissors, Mat Stack one layerz, Crushed Curry Baker's twine, Vellum tape (Scotch), Dimensionals, Double sided tape (X Press)