CTC #228: Favourite Retiring Stamp Set

Hi!

Welcome to the new CASEing the Catty Sunday Challenge Blog Hop. I hope you've had a great weekend! I have, and got very spoiled today for Mother's Day. I'm very grateful for my beautiful family. Anyway, on to the hop! You may have arrived here from Monique's blog, or you could be starting here. It doesn't matter, just keep hopping until you get back to where you started!

This week the CTC Crew are stamping with our favourite retiring stamp set. Talk about hard to pick! As with last week, I ended up choosing a stamp set that I wish had seen more ink during the year - Treehouse Adventures.

My card was CASEd from the card at the bottom right of the picture above, which is taken from  page 87 of the Annual Catalogue. I started off by intending to CASE it completes, but once I had the stamping done I went a bit off track!

I used the same colours as the sample - Granny Apple Green, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Poppy Parade, Coastal Cabana and Mango Melody - with the addition of Pool Party for the sky. Once I'd stamped everything I used my snips to fussy cut the scene, including the little bits between the tree and the tree house.

I then added the Pool Party cardstock (embossed with the Subtle folder) to the card base and popped up a piece of Whisper White at the top and bottom of the card. The scene was then popped up over the top, with the grass and top of the tree flat to the WW sections. I hope that makes sense! I finished it off with the sentiment and a few clouds tucked behind the tree.

The treehouse was very cute, so I stamped it again on the inside to finish it off. I think this stamp set will find it's way to my 'keep' pile. I have 5 young great nephews who would love a tree house like this!

Don't forget to join us in our Facebook group to see what everyone's favourite retiring stamp set is.

Before you do though, don't forget to finish the hop! Next up is the lovely Shannon with a fun bunch of cards.

Bye for now,

Tina

JAI #454: Just Add Colour

Hi!

Welcome back to the newJust Add Ink challenge. This week Lou has put together this fun colour combo for us to use.

I must admit that when I first saw this combo, fun was not the word I had in mind! It's very bright and I was stumped for a long time. Then I saw a technique using glycerine with ink and sponges to create a background and I thought I'd give it a go with these colours. You basically pick up a bit of glycerine with your sponge before picking up the ink. It helps the ink to go onto the cardstock a lot smoother.

My initial background was meant to look like the sun at the bottom with the sky and upper atmosphere above. My daughter thought the balloon was floating over a beach! Whatever works for you, I guess!

I was OK with the Pineapple Punch sun and Coastal Cabana sky, but the Blueberry Bushel atmosphere part just didn't work - I couldn't get the blue intense enough. I nearly binned the whole piece. I hate wasting the effort though, so I pulled out my trusty sponge brayer and went over the Blueberry Bushel part. Yay! Finally the depth I was after!

I then used my Aquapainter to flick some water over the piece to add some visual interest to the background. I initially cut a Basic Black balloon to go on the card, but it didn't look right. The Whisper White was much better. Don't you agree? Did you know that the Up & Away bundle is retiring with the end of the current Annual Catalogue? It's one I will miss!

I used each of the colours again on the inside of the card. I hadn't intended the Pineapple Punch layer, but I'd forgotten that I could have just stamped on the WW base rather than the insert piece. It looked strange just white on white on the inside, so I just trimmed the layer and matted it with the Pineapple cardstock.

So, all in all, it really is a fun colour combo! What do you think? You can see the rest of this week's Design Team cards over at the Just Add Ink blog, where you can also link up your card. See you there!

Bye for now,

Tina

Gamer's Birthday Card

Hi!

Today's card is one I made for my brother-in-law's birthday. He's very much into pop culture, so I couldn't go past these stamps from Kindred Stamps called Plumber Brothers.

Aren't they cool? I had to google the game they came from so I could colour the characters in the 'right' colours.

I coloured the images using my Copic markers. I especially wanted to try shading the tunnel thingy to make it look round. How do you think I did? It helps if you squint a little so that it blurs 😂

I have no idea what these little characters are called, but they are super cute! I'm pleased to say that my brother-in-law loved the card, so I must have done a good job with the card.

Bye for now,

Tina

Up & Away With Basic Grey

Hi!

Time for another feature colour Blog Share!

This week we are featuring Basic Grey. I must admit that it's a colour I don't used very much, so it was a bit of a struggle this week for me. My card classes this month have been trying the Polished Stone technique, so I decided to give the technique a whirl using Basic Grey.

To make the Polished Stone panel I took a piece of Glossy White cardstock and a cotton ball. I squirted some Isocol (rubbing alcohol) on the cotton ball and then dripped some drops of Basic Grey, Smokey Slate and Bermuda Bay ink from my reinkers onto the soaked part of the cotton ball. I then just dabbed the cotton ball all over the Glossy cardstock until I was happy with the look. I had to use my old Archival Basic Grey reinker, and I don't think it worked quite as well as the Classic reinkers do, as it reacted differently with the Isocol. Good enough, though!

I adhered the panel flat to the base and then popped up the Whisper White panels on either side. It's a fun, different way to add a bit of interest to a card. How do you like the sentiment feature? Using a rectangle under a flag is a little quirky, but fun touch to the card.

I used another Polished Stone panel on the inside. I actually made this piece first using a Glossy offcut as a test piece for the larger panel on the front. I suspected the Archival Basic Grey might not work, so I made a smaller piece first rather than waste a larger piece. Thankfully, it worked well enough that I was happy to keep going.

As usual, Catherine is hosting the Blog Share, so you can find the links to the other blogs there. Enjoy - there's always some amazing projects to see!

Bye for now,

Tina

Lift Me Up With Colour Theory

Hi!

Today's card is a quick and easy one that I made to show off the gorgeous ombre papers in the Colour Theory DSP Stack. I love the ombre look, and while it's not difficult to achieve the look yourself with some cardstock and a sponge brayer, there are times when it's easier to just grab for the DSP.

I was after a bit of a sunrise effect with the background, so I arranged my Crushed Curry DSP so that the darker section was at the top, rather than at the bottom like I usually do. I think I stamped my sentiment too close to the bottom, but that's because I completely forgot to stamp it until I'd adhered the Crushed Curry DSP to the base using Dimensionals. Those little suckers really grip! Rather than trying to remove the whole lot, I just removed the one under the sentiment and replaced it with a new one after I'd stamped.

I kept the rest of the card nice and simple - just the little scattering of balloons and clouds.

I think this would be a great card for those times where you need to whip up a card in a rush. What do you think?

Bye for now,

Tina

JAI #369: Just Add Inspiration

Hi!

Well, the school holidays are coming to an end for us. It always makes me a bit sad, as I love having the kids home for a couple of weeks R 'n' R.

Being Friday, it's time for the new Just Add Ink challenge. This week Rochelle found this gorgeous image, that is certainly bound to inspire you. I know I found it inspiring - who wouldn't love to float away in a balloon over that lake, forrest and mountains?

You can take anything you like from the picture - the colours, nature, a balloon, whatever you like! I liked the look of the sky (and I wanted to play with my Texture Paste!!), so that's what I based my card on.

Have you played with the Texture Paste yet? It's a lot of fun! For this card I just used the paste as is with the cloud mask. I quite like that the clouds didn't come out evenly, as clouds aren't smooth in real life. I made a similar background and I used my palette knife to fluff up the clouds by gently slapping it against the paste. It reminded me of the way I get meringue peaks when I am making a Lemon Meringue Pie. Yum!

I saw this trick of having a shorter rectangular matt under a banner on a card recently and quite liked it. I filed it away in the old memory bank, and surprised myself when I actually remembered to use to on a card.

'I hope your day is on cloud nine'. It's such a great sentiment for a birthday card, don't you think?

You can see the cards the rest of the Design Team have created over at the Just Add Ink blog. Why not join in the fun by linking up your card that has been inspired by our picture?

Bye for now,

Tina

JAI #360: Just Add A Sketch

Hi!


My past couple of cards for Just Add Ink have been pretty, feminine Mother's Day cards, so for this week's challenge I decided to go the exact opposite.

This week we have a fabulous sketch, designed by Narelle, to guide our creativity.

When I saw the large circle, the first thing that popped into my head was a circular opening, so that's what I went for on my card.

I also wanted to try the balloons from Lift Me Up in sepia/vintage tones. I chose Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake and Early Espresso. I quite like the look!

I cut the opening in the Crumb Cake layer using the Layering Circles Framelit that fitted inside the largest circle Stitched Shapes Framelit. I then used the two Framelits to create the stitched border around the opening. Just something a little different!

The inside of the card continues the vintage balloons theme. I only recently purchased Guy Greetings, but I'm finding that I'm using the sentiments a lot on masculine cards. It's a great font for male cards.


The Design Team have been very creative this week in using the sketch in their creations. You can see what the rest of the team have created over at the Just Add Ink blog. You can link your card up while you're there!


Bye for now,


Tina

JAI #347: Just Add Colour

Hi!




Apologies for the late post this week! I'm posting for the new Just Add Ink challenge, which is a great colour combination suggested by Kim.





Oooh, I found this one to be a tricky one! But that's half the fun of a challenge - to get out of your comfort zone.  This is the card I made.

I really love this cloudy paper from the Carried Away DSP pack. It was the perfect backdrop for the hot air balloons on my card.

The banners for the sentiment looked a little plain when I laid them flat on the card, so I ended up curling the top one a little to give a bit of movement.

I love this inside sentiment. It's so full of positivity and excitement for the future.

I hope you can play along with us this week at Just Add Ink. I'd love to see what you do with these gorgeous colours.


Bye for now,


Tina

Lift Me Up CASE

Hi!


Today's card is a CASE of this card by Kim Williams. I saw it online and loved it, so I just had to CASE it.

I made a few changes, mostly the colours. I went with colours from the Carried Away DSP, which is a Sale-A-Bration selection.

I added some extra little clouds in Soft Sky to my card, and I also changed it to be a birthday card.

I hope your day is on cloud nine, whatever you are doing today!


Bye for now,


Tina

JAI #343: Just Add A Blog Hop

Hi!


Welcome back to our Just Add Ink challenges for 2017. It's always so exciting starting off a new year, and I love that we start the year of challenges with a Blog Hop. Usually I get to see everyone's creations before challenge day, but on Blog Hop day I get to hop along and be surprised just like all of our lovely followers.


You may have arrived here from Christine's blog, or you may have started here. It really doesn't matter, just keep hopping until you get back to where you started!

To kick us off in style for 2017 we are all making projects with an Interactive or Pop-Up element. I decided to make a 3D spinning card using the new Lift Me Up range of products.

I used the Up & Away Thinlits to cut through both the card base and the DSP at the same time. It's not really recommended that you do this, but I wanted to get the two layers to line up perfectly. I then stamped and cut 4 smaller balloons. I folded each one in half, and then glued them together. Before I glued the last balloon in place I added a piece of Whisper White Baker's Twine through the middle. This twine is then firmly held in place between the layers of cardstock and Carried Away DSP.

This allows you to twist the balloons around, 'winding' them up. Then when they are released, they spin around. Hopefully you can see the end result in the video. It's the first one I've done, so apologies for the quality!

Here's the inside of the card. I kept all of the elements low so that they can't be seen when the card is closed.

That's it for me, now you're off to Narelle's blog.

Of course, if you get lost, just pop back to the Just Add Ink and pick up where you got lost. It's also where you link your cards when you enter the challenge. Don't have a blog? You can still enter - just email the JAI team with your card and we will add it to the entries.


Bye for now,


Tina