JAI 624: Just Add A Diorama

 Hi!

Welcome back for a new Just Add Ink challenge. This week we have an extra-fun one for you!

Kerry has challenged us to make a Diorama card. I've gone a bit OTT with mine, but that doesn't mean that you have to. A diorama is a 3D replication of a scene, but it can be as complex or as simple as you'd like - you just need the layers and a scene.

I decided to create a jungle diorama scene for my hero to come running out of. I tried to create a rolling boulder chasing him, but I just couldn't get it to work to my satisfaction. The snake will have to do! I created the frame for my card using the cutting files in this tutorial. I inked each layer in increasingly darker shades of brown and green as I went backwards with the layers. The final layer is just black.

The leaves were cropped from green cardstock using my retired Tropical Thinlits. I used darker greens at the back and lighter as I moved forwards in the layers. The rocks on the ground are stamped using my Oceanfront stamps. The hero, snake and sentiment are from the Kindred Stamps set, called Treasure Hunter. I coloured the images with my Stampin' Blends.

I'm not sure who I'll give this card to yet. While it does fold somewhat flat, it would take a custom envelope to send it. It's 5" square and 1 1/2" deep! For now, it will just go on display in my stamping room!

We'd love for you to play along this week with us at Just Add Ink. Go crazy, or go simple, or anywhere in between in creating a diorama card to share with us. Pop on over to the Just Add Ink blog to see the rest of the Design Team's diorama cards, and then use the linky to add yours to the challenge.

Bye for now,

Tina

Bron's Birthday Blog Hop - September

 Hi!

Thanks for joining me for the sixth and final Birthday Blog Hop, held in honour of our lovely friend, Bronwyn Eastley, turning 60. She's currently on a tropical holiday celebrating, and so that's the theme for the final hop - Tropical Holiday.

I pulled some old favourites out of my retired products stash for my card. The paper is from the Tropical Oasis DSP, and the sentiments are from the Pretty Perennials stamp set.

What about the pineapple, I hear you ask! I had planned it to be a little different - I found a layered SVG file and was going to make an awesome layered pineapple, but my Scan'n'Cut had other ideas. It did not like how intricate the final layer was, so in the end I just printed the jpg of the file instead. It still makes an awesome background - perfect for the Tropical Holiday theme!

I had a solid pineapple that I'd made when messing around with the svg, so I just added a little ink and it was a great embellishment for the inside of the card. It was too small for the front, but just perfect for the inside.

Time now to jump on over to the next blog in the hop, which belongs to Monica Formosa. She's the very clever gal who designed the Next button for the hop.

Bye for now,

Tina

Bron's Birthday Blog Hop - August

 Hi!

Thanks for joining me for the second to last Birthday Blog Hop for Bronwyn Eastley, as she celebrates her 60th birthday. If you've followed Bron for a while, you know that she's the Queen of Fancy Fold cards. She creates the most amazing cards! Fittingly, this month's theme is Fancy Folds!

My daughter, Ada, celebrated her 17th Birthday last month, and she'd always talked about the ABBA song, Dancing Queen. I decided to make her card in this theme. The front pink panel was a download that I purchased from Etsy and printed to card front size. I then purchased a disco themed SVG bundle, which included the mirror ball. I used my Scan'n'Cut to crop it to size. I used a circle die to cut an opening in the pink panel so that the Be Dazzling paper would show through. I think it makes a fabulous mirror ball!

The inside of the card is where the Fancy Fold shines through - some more images from the disco SVG pack were used to decorate the Twist And Pop Fancy Fold. The text at the top was another Etsy purchase.

Here's a video so that you can see how the card opens up. Hopefully it works! I'm pleased to say that Ada loved it, and it has pride of place on her desk.

I wanted to get my money's worth out of the Etsy purchase, so she also got a custom made top. She hasn't worn it yet, but it will likely get an airing in summer.

And last, but not least, was the cake topper!

That's me done for tonight, but please do continue your way around our Blog Hop. There's also an Instagram Hop - you'll find the details over on Bron's blog. Next up though is my Kiwi friend, Jan Clothier.

Bye for now,

Tina

JAI #490: Just Add An Easel

Hi!

Thanks for popping back to check out what the Just Add Ink team are doing for our new challenge. This week Lou has challenged us to add an Easel to our creations.

There are *lots* of different types of Easel Cards out there, but I decided to do something a little different and actually use an easel image on my card. I don't have any stamps or dies, so I googled free easel clip art, and when I found one I liked I cut the shape on my Scan 'n' Cut.

I really loved this vintage woman. Check out the hairstyle! I'm sure it was very fashionable over 100 years ago. This image set the tone for the card - I went for vintage colours and papers. The newsprint behind the image is from the Come Sail Away DSP pack. I tried to cut a piece that wasn't obviously sailing related, and then inked the edges to age it further.

Perennial Essence DSP was the perfect choice for the artwork, don't you think? I used another piece from the pack to cut the oval background. This sentiment from It Starts With Art was also perfect for the card. The metal flower underneath is from the retired Share What You Love Embellishment kit. I aged the silver flower by colouring over it with my Bronze Stamping' Blend.

I'm not entirely sure what I'll use this card for - I guess it could be anything, depending on what I write on the inside!

I hope you have a lot of fun thinking of easel ideas for our challenge at Just Add Ink. I can't wait to see what you make!

Bye for now,

Tina

Happy Birthday Ada!

Hi!

Last week my daughter had a birthday, turning 14. Ada's a mad Harry Potter fan, and so I usually make her a Harry Potter themed card. She's been talking lately about getting a Dark Mark tattoo when she's old enough (gulp!), so I decided to go with that theme for her card. For those not in the know, the Dark Mark is a magical tattoo on the 'baddies' (Death Eater's) arm that they use to summon each other.

The Dark Mark is a skull with a snake coming out of the mouth. I certainly don't have any stamps for that! In the end I purchased a cut file from an Etsy store and cut it from some Shaded Spruce cardstock.  The Basic Black cardstock was a little to stark, so after I adhered the Dark Mark I misted it with some old Smooch shimmer mist that I found on my desk.

I can't take credit for the sentiment on the card. -I googled 'Death Eater Birthday Cards' and found one that I liked. Avada Kedavdra is an Unforgivable Curse that kills the person it's aimed at, hence the second part of the sentiment!

The inside sentiment is from an Ink Road Stamp set called Expecto Stampo. Incendio is another spell to light a fire, so it's perfect for the birthday candles. These were just stamped using the retired Incredible Like You stamp set. Did you notice I stamped 14 candles?

In case you were wondering, Ada loved the card!

Bye for now,

Tina