JAI #364: Just Add Inspiration

Hi!

It's an Inspiration Challenge this week at Just Add Ink!

Kelly selected this fabulous photo of the flowers in a gorgeous copper jug. I struggled a bit to incorporate the copper into my card, as I don't have any of the metallic paper or embossing powder, but then I remembered I have some of the stunning new Copper Trim.

I was very excited to see the brick wall in the background of the photo, as it gave me a good excuse to break open my new Embossing Paste and Pattern Party Decorative Masks. I mixed a drop of Basic Grey reinker into the paste to get the darker colour. It's quite easy to use, and makes a great textural addition to a card.

I stamped a heap of flowers from the Jar Of Love stamp set to create a bouquet for the front of the card. I also punched two strips of the new Decorative Ribbon Border punch. I love that they look like a lacy ribbon when they are laid down back to back like I have. The overlap was hidden under the Copper Trim.

I had a few extra flowers left over, so I added a smaller bouquet to the inside. I used the new In Colour, Fresh Fig as the base of my card and the feature colour. It's a colour I'm still warming to, but I love how it pairs with Sweet Sugarplum on my flowers.

What do you take inspiration from in the photo? You can see what the rest of the team have done with it, and link your creation over at Just Add Ink. See you there!

Bye for now,

Tina

JAI #363: Just Add An Anniversary

Hi!

Are you ready for a new Just Add Ink challenge? I am!

This week Chantell has challenged us to Just Add Anniversary. It could be the anniversary of anything you like, as long as it celebrates an Anniversary.

I recently hosted an ATC swap, and I had a stamped and cut butterfly left over, as well as a 'love' die cut from vellum. I decided to put them to good use for this challenge while they were still floating on the surface of my desk. If I left them too long, they may have been lost forever!

The butterfly was stamped using the solid stamp from Watercolour Wishes in Powder Pink ink. I then inked the flourish from Timeless Textures in Berry Burst ink and 'kissed' the two stamps together. I then repeated on the other wing before stamping the butterfly image on my cardstock. It's such a pretty look, isn't it?

Do you have an upcoming Anniversary to celebrate? I've only just celebrated mine, so this card will go into my stash until such time as I require an anniversary card. They are always handy to have on hand. Why don't you pop on over to the Just Add Ink blog so that you can join in the fun?

Bye for now,

Tina

Perth OnStage Swap

Hi!


I just realised that I haven't showed you the card I made as my swap while I was at OnStage in Perth last month. If you follow me on Fabebook, you probably would have seen a photo of me making them, but not the finished product. Well, here it is!

Yes, my love affair with the Sponge Brayers lives on! I used Sweet Sugarplum ink to create the ombre background, which went a lovely, deep, dusky pink. I loved the sentiment for this card, as I made it as a swap for my friends that were going to OnStage.

The Basic Black butterfly had a layer of Gold Foil paper behind it. I think it looks a little like a Monarch butterfly. The gold certainly added a bit of luxe to the card.

Most people only make a card front for swaps, but as I was only making 12 I decided to make a whole card.


Bye for now,


Tina

AWH Blog Hop: Easter

Hi!

Today I am participating in a blog hop along with the super talented ladies in the Art With Heart Team. We thought it would be fun to share some Easter projects, seeing as Easter is only about 3 weeks away!
Saleabration is a great time to join or place a $90 order to get extra free items – ask me how!
Blog Hops are full circles, so you can start hopping here and then at the end of each post is a link to the next one. There is also a list of participants at the end in case of any broken links. Now let’s get started!


I don't really send Easter cards, so after a lot of thinking about what I could do instead of a card, I decided to scrap a layout of an Easter from my childhood. I rummaged through my box of photos, and found this gem from around 30 years ago. My sisters and I are wearing blue and pink nighties, which tied in beautifully with the colours in the Falling In Love DSP.

I had to laugh, as my sisters and I each got a Humpty Dumpty egg. They are still around now, and my children regularly receive them at Easter. In fact, I went to a Chicks at the Flicks movie last night and received a sample one in my goodie bag!


I also laughed, as I had to date this photograph based on my haircut! I dragged out my old school photos, and based on those it had to be either 1986 or 1987.


I haven't journalled on this layout yet. I have typed up the text on a Project Life card, however what I thought looked blue actually turned out more of a green and didn't look right on the page. Sadly, my typewriter ribbon ran out, so I have to wait for my new one to arrive so that I can add the text.

I cut this 'sweet' from Cupcake Cutouts Framelits many months ago at my friend Kathryn's house. I cut it in Whisper White, which wasn't going to work on this layout. No problem - I just grabbed my trusty Sponge Brayer and my Sweet Sugarplum inkpad, and hey presto! A Sweet Sugarplum title! I love that the brayer has given it a textured look, very different from if I'd cut it with SS card stock.

Did you know that butterflies are a symbol of Easter? I certainly didn't until I Googled symbols of Easter while I was brainstorming for my project. The life cycle of the butterfly reflects the story of Jesus over the Easter period. You learn something every day!


That's it from me for now, but next on the list is Rachel Woollard. She's bound to inspire you with her creativity!

If you find a broken link or have come to this blog hop from a different entry point, you can view the participants below:

1. Judy May
2. Catherine Proctor
3. Ros Davidson
4. Rebecca Jacovou
5. Kathryn Mangelsdorf
6. Claire Daly
7. Kate Morgan
8. Monika O'Neill
9. Tina Gillespie
10. Rachel Woollard

Some Fancy Folding

Hi!


Today I have a Fancy Fold card for you. I'm not sure what it's called - triangle pocket card maybe? Whatever it's called, it's a very easy fold that looks fabulous.

Doesn't it look great? The most difficult part was working out how to cut the DSP, but even that was relatively easy. You simply cut a sheet of A4 cardstock in half longways and then score diagonally. Fold along the score, and then fold the whole lot in half, so that the on the bottom of both the front and inside you end up with a triangular pocket. Decorate, and you're done!

I found it better to make two cards at once, as the DSP panels are rectangles cut in half. I don't tend to use triangle shaped DSP on my cards, so by making two I wasn't wasting any DSP. I used the Blooms and Bliss DSP on this card.

The inside of the card has a little pocket, which is the perfect spot to pop a gift card for the recipient. Why don't you give this Fancy Fold a go - it really is very easy!


Bye for now,


Tina

Unexpectedly Grungy

Hi!


Today's card 2was one that was a bit of a surprise for me. Let me explain! My granny upline, Claire Daly, occasionally sets challenges in our team forum - I've probably mentioned this before. This time she gave us a pic of a bed with a geometric style doona and challenged us to use the colours. I loved the colours, but was also inspired by the geometric patterns in the doona. However, when I sat down to create, this is what I came up with.

I think grungy must be nearly the complete opposite in style to geometric! When the mojo's flowing, you just have to go along for the ride. The colours I used are Island Indigo, Pool Party, Blushing Bride and Crumb Cake. The retired Expressions "Thanks" was pushed into my Island Indigo inkpad to colour it, even though it looks nearly black in the pic.

After I'd assembled the card front it looked a little blank, so I ended up adhering a scattering of Gold Metallic Sequins.

So there you have it, my unexpectedly grungy challenge card!


Bye for now,


Tina

An Easel Card Just For You

Hi!

Even though Sale-A-Bration has finished now, I still have a couple of cards to show you, so I'm going to blog them this week.  Today's card uses the Wildflower Fields DSP and the Botanical Gardens Designer Vellum.

It's a sweet little card, just 4 inches or so square. The vellum is attached to a square of Old Olive, just to help it pop a little more.

The flowers were stamped in Calypso Coral, a colour I selected from the list of colours used in the Wildflower Fields DSP.

Another little cluster of flowers serves the purpose of both decoration and to hold the card open.

Bye for now,

Tina

Watercolour Wings On A Brick Wall

Hi!

Today's card is an older one that's been sitting patiently in my "To Blog" file on my computer waiting for it's own blog post. I've been doing a fair bit of Project Life scrapbooking lately and haven't made many cards, so this card is getting it's turn today.

I'm pretty sure this card was a CASE of some sort. I don't think I copied directly, more made this using another card as inspiration, but I really can't recall. Do you think I can find the card I CASEd though? Sigh. If you think it's yours, please let me know so I can give credit.

The Crumb Cake background was embossed with the Brick Wall TIEF and then lightly sponged in Crumb Cake ink to give the bricks a bit of definition. The ferns were then stamped over the top. The smaller butterfly was cut from Silver Foil paper - so pretty!

The inside, as usual, got a similar treatment as the outside. I think it's so important to 'do' the inside as well as the outside - it really is a lovely finishing touch to a card.

Bye for now,

Tina

JAI #277: Just Add Colour

Hi!

This week at Just Add Ink we have a colour combination put together by Kim.

My first thought was that the combo would make a great baby card, but in the end I went for something totally different

I went for a tone on tone Mint Macaron base.  It's a great option when you want to add a layer to your card without making it really obvious.  I embossed the layer with the Fluttering TIEF.  I love that this one is a square so that you can emboss in either direction.

The butterfly from Watercolour Wings is stamped in two layers of So Saffron and a top layer of Calypso Coral. Just don't look too closely at how badly I lined it all up!

I did a much better job of lining it up on the inside!

I hope you can find the time to play along with us this week at Just Add Ink.

Bye for now,

Tina