A Peony for You...

Yes, I admit...I have been neglectful! I have been crazy busy once again and this poor blog got pushed by the wayside in the process! So to apologize for being a bad blogger, I have a short post and a pretty peony to show you ;0)

I have been a busy lady getting all my ducks in a row for teaching over at My Creative Classroom! It's been fabulous so far, but an incredible learning experience for this somewhat easily dumbfounded individual! lol

Over the past few weeks I have been learning to use all kinds of funky software that I hadn't dared to use before, because let's face it people...who actually likes to sit down and be baffled by new programs unless they have too? *wink* Needless to say that I have now figured out the software and may even have a video tutorial or two up my sleeve for next month! I know that you are all waiting with bated breathe! hehehehe

Did I also mention that I'm going to be an auntie again? No? Hmmm ...I must have forgotten to mention that somewhere along the lines while I wasn't posting and being a bad blogger! My sister in law is now 7 days over due and we are waiting for my sweet little niece to make her grand appearance, but not nearly as much as her over due mommy! lol I personally think that she's holding out so that she can enjoy a turkey dinner :o) I will let you all know when she's here and may even have a picture or two by then...I will keep you posted!

Ahem, now that I've bored you with what's going on with me...let's get back to that pretty peony that I don't have any more pictures of! lol

This card was made for the June Dirty Dozen gallery and was made with one of my very first Illustrations called Peony. The peony was stamped with Versa Mark onto watercolour paper and heat embossed with a half and half mixture of Ranger Gold Tinsel and Gold Embossing Powders (a tip that I learned from Jerri Kay). I watercoloured it using a waterbrush and Tombow Markers and then cut "out of the box" style and paper toled so that it looks more realistic. The image is so sparkly in real life due to the embossing powder mixture! I then just played with some shapes of designer paper to come up with this layout. I used up some scraps of ribbon that I was lucky enough to have matched it up to some designer paper and added the pearls to balance out the card.

Thanks for being such understanding readers that know how sometimes life gets in the way crafts!...I try not to let it happen but sometimes I lose and life just budges in and takes over! ;0)

Just a reminder for anyone who is interested in taking the Watercolouring with Tombow Markers Class with moi ...the final day for registration is October 9th, so don't miss out!



Card Recipe:

Stamps: Clear Dollar Stamps - Peony
Paper: Gina K, Caramel, Watercolour, K&Co DP, Basic Grey DP, Karen Foster DP
Ink: Versa Mark, Caramel
Accessories: Sewing Machine, Sponges, Dimensionals, Ribbon, Half Pearls, Aqua Painter, Tombow Markers, Ranger Gold Tinsel and Gold Embossing Powder

Roses for My Parents - Tombow Style!

Way back in May I made this for the Dirty Dozen Gallery called Art of Every Woman because it was inspired by my mom. I kept this card hidden away since then and recently gave it to my parents for the celebration of their 36th Anniversary :)

Whenever I think of feminine things, I think of my mom and her love of them. She has a collection of fine bone china very similar to the teacup in the picture and that's what made me use this particular Rose Stamp. I think that my Mom's china is a bit of a representation of her - Beautiful, resilient, memorable even with a few fine cracks along the way...or perhaps because of them! lol :D (Did I mention that I take after my mother?) *giggle*





I watercoloured up the rose with my tombow markers and then carefully added 5 coats of clear embossing powder to do the cracked glass technique. I really wanted the cracked glass rose to resemble the inside of a well loved teacup, where the tea makes fine cracks in the enamel over time. I chose to use very soft colours of patterned paper and continued the tones with the butterfly punchies and neutrals of the pearls.

I really love how soft the background palette is and that the roses really stand out against it even though they have been watercoloured with semi soft shades. I only wish that I had taken more photos of this card before I gave it to my parents!

For those of you who might be interested in learning how to watercolour like this, I will be teaching a six week online class for Watercolouring with Tombow Markers over at My Creative Classroom and it starts October 1st. Enrollment is open now ;)


Card Recipe:

Stamps: Local King Rubber stamps
Paper: Gina K, Sand, My Mind's Eye DP, Inque Boutique DP, Watercolour
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Sand, Pink, Versa Mark
Accessories: Sewing Machine, Coluzzul, Pretties Kit, Clear Embossing Powder, Tombow Markers, Waterbrush, Corner Punch, Ribbon, Martha Stewart Butterfly and Doily Edge Punch, Kaiserkraft Pearls

A Poppy for the Papertake Weekly Challenge

I got a chance to participate in this week's Papertake Weekly Challenge that is sponsored by My Creative Classroom. The challenge this week was a sketch and I have to admit, that a sketch challenge is my favourite kind of challenge :)




I finally got a chance to step foot into my craft room after being away camping for most of the month of August. It felt a little strange to pick up my card making supplies and being creative! But I quickly got over the foreign feeling and pulled out this gorgeous set from Flourishes that I have been itching to get inky for quite some time! lol




I stamped the poppy three different times and watercoloured various pieces of it with my aqua pen and Tombow markers and then paper toled it to be 3Dimensional. I then placed the poppy onto my sponged background and then added the little frame that I made with my Nestabilities. I paired up the poppy with my Martha Stewart twig punch to created the fun leaves and added a sentiment from on of my sets from a rather large direct sales stamp company.

The Gina K ivory card stock was run through my cuttlebug and then sponged and distressed to warm up the paper to blend it with the tones of the designer papers. I rounded all the corners with my Chomper Tool and stitched most of the edges with coordinating threads.

I had a great time with this sketch and don't forget to play along this week as the girls from MCC are donating a $25 gift certificate for this week's prize and it can be towards the class of your choosing :)


Card Recipe:

Stamps: Flourishes - Poppy Patch, Serene Spring
Paper: Gina K Ivory, Dk Brown, Basic Grey DP, Watercolour, 7 Gypsies DP
Ink: Lt Brown, Dk Brown, Mustard, Dk Green
Accessories: Sewing Machine, Cuttlebug, Embossing Folders, Nestabilities, Ribbon, Brads, Sponges, Pop Dots, Distressing Tool, Corner Rounder, Aqua Pen, Tombow Markers, Martha Stewart Punch, Scallop Edge Punch