JAI 610: Just Add Inspiration

 Hi!

Welcome back to the new Just Add Ink challenge. This week we have an Inspiration Photo challenge for you, suggested by Kerry. I really love the pops of colour that the balloons provide in the B&W photos.

Today's card features a digi stamp from Simply Cards Magazine. I've had it in my collection for many years, but when I went to try to find it again to link to it, I could not find it. Still, it was so cute that I couldn't resist using it.

The sentiment and bunny are two separate stamps. I printed them on Whisper White cardstock and coloured them using my Copic markers. I also used a Gold Sharpie for the stars, to coordinate with the Gold Foil card base.

The totally adorable bunny was fussy cut after I coloured him, and the popped up over the card base. I'm not sure who will get this card, but I think I'll add another digi stamp of a number balloon for him to hold in his other hand. You can't ever have too many balloons!

I forgot to print a second bunny for the inside, so I got lazy and just stamped some balloons from Penguin Palace on the inside. I did use some of my new Masking Paper, so I wasn't too lazy!

We'd love to see what you make using our Inspiration Photo as a guide. The Design Team have had plenty of fun ideas, so there's lost of creativity to spark your muse over on the Just Add Ink blog. You can also link up your card when you've made it.

Bye for now,

Tina

Colour Creations: Blackberry Bliss

 Hi!

Thanks for stopping by for the new Colour Creations Blog Hop. This week it's all about Blackberry Bliss, which is a dark, rich purple from the Regals colour family.

Brian King has once again been the source of a fun colour combo featuring Blackberry Bliss. I would never have thought to combine these colours, but after playing, I think they are great together.

Woo Hoo! My Amazing Phrasing Sale-A-Bration stamp set arrived, so I was able to have another play with the shadow technique. I think I was right last week - the wider font in this set makes it a fantastic choice for this technique. The Triple Layer card makes the centre sentiment stand out from the rest.

I stamped first in Blackberry Bliss, and then the shadow in Pool Party, as it's easier to line up the shadow if you stamp the darker colour first. The downside is that the stamp picks up the BB ink, so I had to keep cleaning my stamp after each use so that I didn't end up with a mucky Pool Party ink pad. The stars are from Days To Remember, and are stamped in Daffodil Delight.

I used the offcuts from the front to decorate the inside. I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with this stamp set!

It's now time to pop on over to Rachel Woollard's blog so that you can continue your way around our Blackberry Bliss blog hop. You won't want to miss out on any of tonight's projects!

As ever, if you run into any difficulties, please jump to Catherine Proctor's blog. She has a master list of all of tonight's participants so that you can find your way again.

Bye for now,

Tina

CTC 375: CASE Your Favourite Retiring Product

 Hi!

It's always a but of a sad day when the retiring list comes out at the end of a catalogue. There'e nearly always something on the list that I'm sad to say goodbye to. This week at CASEing The Catty, we are asking to to give your Favourite Retiring Product one last hurrah.

For me, it's hands down the Butterflies & Flowers Layering Decorative Masks. They will certainly be finding a permanent home in my stash.

I chose to CASE the butterfly card for a few reasons. I hadn't yet used the butterflies masks, so that had to be rectified! I liked that the butterfly was inked over DSP, and the little peeps of zig-zag trim at the top and bottom of the card.

I hadn't yet used my Heart & Home DSP yet, so it was well past time to cut into it! I'm a blue girl, so this piece caught my eye. I cropped the square from the DSP and flipped it over to use as the base for my butterfly. Instead of zig-zags, I layered it over a scalloped square die cut.

I thought that the woodgrain in the DSP sort of mimics the strips of DSP in the original card. The solid layer of the butterfly was inked using Fresh Freesia ink, with the detailed layer in Misty Moonlight. You can't really see in the photo, but the centre of the butterfly got a swish of Wink Of Stella.

I inked the exact same butterfly on the inside of my card. Sadly, this time the Wink Of Stella smudged into the Fresh Freesia ink. I may have to hide it with a die cut butterfly over the top!

What's your favourite retiring product? There's a lot to choose from! I hope that you can make a card and enter our challenge. You just need to post a photo in our Facebook group before next Sunday's blog hop.

Our Blog Hop continues tonight, with the next stop along the way. I wonder what Rebecca Scurr's favourite retiring product will be? Only one way to find out!

Bye for now,

Tina

JAI 609: Just Add Flowers

 Hi!

Welcome back for another Just Add Ink challenge. It really is the best way to start the weekend.

This week, Annie has asked us to add flowers to our cards. I'd be nearly willing to bet that there isn't a stamper without at least one floral stamp in their collection!

The flowers on this card are from a WaffleFlower set, called Sunflower Love. The sentiment is also WaffleFlower, called Simply Said 1, and was cropped with the coordinating dies. I coloured the flowers with my Copic Markers.

To create the background, I used a Blending Brush to apply some Picked Raspberry Distress Oxide ink to the Whisper White cardstock. I then spritzed some water onto the floral background stencil from the Butterflies and Flowers Layering Decorative Masks set, and laid it wet side down on the inked card. After a few seconds, I removed it. The water lifts some of the ink, giving a lovely, subtle look.

I used the same mask on the inside, but this time I brushed the ink through the stencil.

That's all from me for now, but please head on over to the Just Add Ink blog, where you'll find the rest of this week's Design Team cards - you won't want to miss them! You can also link up your card there when you've made your flower card.

Bye for now,

Tina

Colour Creations: Bermuda Bay

Hi!

Thanks for stopping by for our new Colour Creations Blog Hop. I love this week's feature colour - Bermuda Bay. It's a lovely mid blue-green that belongs to the Brights colour family.

I've once again looked to Brian King for a colour combo, and he hasn't disappointed. I love the pairing of Pool Party and Bermuda Bay, with Crumb Cake as an awesome neutral thrown into the mix.

I had actually hoped to make this card with an about to be released Sale-A-Bration stamp set, called Amazing Phrasing, except that my BBB hasn't been delivered yet. The stamp has a few words in a large font that's a bit wider than the font in Biggest Wish. Can you see the shadow effect with the word 'happy'? I think it would be more effective with the SAB stamp set. I will have to try it another week with a different colour.

I used my Tailor Made Tags dies for the focal part of the sentiment. I used the biggest tag to crop the Whisper White card, so I had to hand cut the Bermuda Bay layer underneath. It's easy enough to do when the outline is all straight lines.

You can see the shadow effect a bit better on the inside, with just one word stamped.

Thanks for stopping by, but please do continue your way around our Bermuda Bay Blog Hop. The nest stop along the way is my Melbournian friend, Rachel Woollard.

As always, the lovely Catherine Proctor keeps everything running smoothly, so it you run into any issues with links, pop on over to her blog to help yourself to get back on track.

Bye for now,

Tina

CTC 374: CASE Your Favourite Retiring Bundle

 Hi!

I hope that you've had a wonderful weekend, and what a great way to wrap it up - with the new CASEing The Catty Sunday Challenge Blog Hop. This week we are asking you to CASE a project made using your favourite retiring bundle from the Mini Catalogue.

For me, it's a no-brainer choice - the On The Horizon bundle. LOL, it was the only bundle that I purchased from the Mini!

I chose the card above because I really liked the way the DSP has been split over the front of the card. It's such an effective look. While I used the same technique, I changed a few things about the card.

The most obvious change is the orientation of the card. I also made each section of the DSP even in size. I cut my DSP to 3 inches wide so that it was a little more efficient use of the DSP. After stamping it, I trimmed and adhered to the Soft Succulent cardstock. It's all popped up on a Whisper White base.

I stamped the trees several times on the DSP, mostly because the first attempt saw the trees floating in space, as I stamped it too high. Oops! 

I quite like how the inside turned out. I was just using up scraps from the front of the card. I was a bit uncertain about the DSP behind the die cut trees, but I've ended up liking the way it looks.

That's all from me for now, but your job is just beginning. Do you have a favourite retiring bundle from the Jan-June Mini catalogue? Of course you do! Just CASE a project from the catalogue and add a photo to our Facebook Group. Easy!

The next stop in our Blog Hop this evening is my lovely friend, Rachel Palmieri. Hmmm, I wonder which bundle she'll choose?

Bye for now,

Tina

JAI 608: Just Add Colour

 Hi!

Thanks for joining me for the new Just Add Ink challenge. This week we have a colour combo for you, with the colours selected by Rochelle. 

To me, it's a very retro vibe! Having said that, I decided to make a floral card even though this colour combo wouldn't usually evoke thoughts of flowers.

I recently rediscovered my retired Beautiful Friendship stamp set. I stamped the big roses in Pumpkin Pie, with Basic Gray centres. The leaves were also stamped in Basic Gray, but this time stamped off first. I'm hoping that they look like the silvery leaves that you sometimes get on plants!

The flowers were fussy cut and popped up over my background. I stamped the Rays Of Light stamp in stamped-off Crushed Curry ink. It was still too dark for my purposes, so I covered it with a layer of vellum to tone it down.

The sentiments, both stamped and die cut, are from the Sweet Sentiment Builder stamps and Dies from Uniquely Creative. It's a great set that allows you to mix and match words and phrases to suit a variety of occasions.

That's all from me for tonight, but your job is just starting! Please jump on over to the Just Add Ink blog, where you'll find the rest of this week's Design Team cards. You'll also find our Linky, where you can add your card to our challenge gallery.

Bye for now,

Tina

Colour Creations: Basic Gray

 Hi!

Welcome back to the new Colour Creations Blog Hop. This week we are featuring Basic Gray, which is actually a very tricky colour to feature! It's usually more of a supporting colour. I had hoped that my new Tech Support stamp set might have arrived in time, as I thought it would work well with the dark gray, but sadly it did not.

I once again looked at Brian King for a colour combo. I really liked the pop of rich red with the grays. By using the about-to-retire Symbols Of Fortune SDSP, I also got a pop of Gold Foil.

I've wanted to try a Double Box Fancy Fold card for a while, and thought that this was a good opportunity. Basic Gray was used for the card base, while Merry Merlot was used for the smaller box part of the card.

The crane was roughly cut from the DSP and adhered to a price of Thick Whisper White card before being fussy cut. This extra layer helps to stop it from sagging when it's popped up on Dimensionals. One dragonfly got the same treatment, but as the other two were being adhered directly to the background they did not need the extra layer.

I don't know if you noticed, but the front of my card is back to front - in every other sample I've seen, the box is on the left, not right. I had to make it this way, as I made the back panel before I decorated the front, and glued it on upside down. Luckily it was easily fixed by rotating the card base, but I really should not attempt to make a card while watching a fascinating show on scammers!

Next up in tonight's Basic Gray Blog Hop is Kate Morgan, who was one of the talented card makers who inspired my Fancy Fold tonight!

If you find a broken link, or run into other difficulties, please pop on over to Catherine Proctor's blog. As always, she does a wonderful job of keeping all hoppers organised.

Bye for now,

Tina

CTC 373: CASE An Embossing Project

 Hi!

Welcome back to the new CASEing The Catty Sunday Challenge Blog Hop. Usually, I'd comment on how it's a great way to finish off the weekend, but as it's a long weekend here, there's an extra day to go. Woo hoo!

This week we are asking to to CASE an Embossing Project. It can be any type of embossing (wet, dry, paste) from either of the current catalogues. Flipping through the mini, I found this card to CASE. I think it's really eye catching, how the flowers radiate away from a central point.

You may not have even realised that it's an embossed card - I only worked it out because there is a pot of embossing powder and a heat gun in the photo! When I looked closer, I realised that the flowers are heat embossed using white powder on coloured cardstock. I took a slightly different approach because I wanted two colours, not a colour and white.

I started by stamping my new Rays Of Light background stamp onto Whisper White cardstock using Versamark ink. I had an old pot of Pool Party Embossing Powder, so I used that to heat emboss my card. If you don't have coloured powder, you could stamp the image in Pool Party ink and use Clear powder over the top. I then used a Blending Brush to apply So Saffron ink to the embossed card. I added extra ink to the sun and the outer edges to give the sun a bit of a light halo.

I thought that the cloud shapes were a great addition over the top of the sun rays. The smaller ones are from the retired Wiggly Bugs Dies, and the sentiment is from Under My Umbrella, which is also retired.

I used the offcuts from the front of the card to finish off the inside of my card. It makes it look very fancy!

I hope that you find some time to craft over the Long Weekend. We'd love to see you enter our challenge. Just take a photo of your embossing card and upload it to our Facebook Group. It's that easy!

Please continue on your way around our Blog Hop. The next stop tonight is the lovely Monique Fielder. I wonder what she's got in store for you?

Bye for now,

Tina