It’s a mice day {Streamside Studios}

July 17, 2021July 16, 2021 ElinLeave a comment

… to celebrate! I have some cute mice from Streamside Studios to share today. One of these is eating a cheese, which inspired the yellow and the circles. Sometimes it doesn’t take much.

I colored the mice with Copics and adhered them behind a panel of Lemon Drop card stock from My Favorite Things, which I die cut using a die from the Slimline Starter die set and also the Slimline Stitched Circle Trio set. I thought the plain yellow cardstock looked a little plain, and stamped some streamers from the Mice Day to Celebrate stamp set from My Favorite Things using Distress Oxide ink in the color Fossilized Amber.

I created my sentiment by heat embossing parts of sentiments from two different stamp sets from My Favorite Things (Always Bring a Smile and Pawty Time) on Gravel Gray cardstock, and added three extra strips of cardstock behind them for dimension. I die cut the word mice using the In Stitches Lowercase alphabet set from My Favorite Things. I initially planned on doing it in yellow, so I die cut four layers of Pineapple cardstock and stacked together. The yellow word kind of got lost, so I die cut an additional layer in gray and added that on top, which makes it stand out more. I finished off the card with some pearl white crystals from Pretty Pink Posh.

Lots of gray and hardly anything else for the coloring on this card.

Hello {Streamside Studios}

July 12, 2021July 12, 2021 ElinLeave a comment

Hi, there! It’s the start of a new week, and I have a new card to share. This is a very simple one, featuring the Woodlands Scene builder stamp set and Toadally awesome woodland friends set from Streamside Studios.

I colored the butterflies from the Woodland Scene builder set and the bubble Hello from the Toadally Awesome Woodland Friends set (that’s a mouthful) with my Copics and fussy cut them all. I wanted to cut right up to the lines with no white borders, which meant I had to sacrifice the antennae of the butterflies. Small price to pay, I think.

I created a card base from Pale Peony cardstock from Papertrey Ink. The card measures 3 3/4 x 5 1/8″, so it’s a fraction larger than a 4 Bar size. I’d intended to make a 4 Bar card, but I wanted a chunky frame without cutting down my white panel too much, so I opted for a size just a bit bigger.

Onto a white cardstock piece, I used 24 Carats Pearly glitter paint from Aladine with the Wavy Lines stencil from My Favorite Things to create a super sparkly, textured background. This paint is a tiny bit more liquid than a regular embossing paste, and it goes on very easily. It comes in a bag with a spout and a screw cap, which makes it less prone to dry out, which can be an issue with most pastes.

I mounted my textured, stenciled background onto my card base using foam tape, and adhered the letters and butterflies on top with clear foam tape from Kool-tak. The Kool-tak foam tape is super sticky, which is perfect on a textured, somewhat grainy surface where regular adhesives tend to not want to stick. I think the balance of the card would have been a little bit better without the largest butterfly, but once it was on, there was no way it was coming off. To my eyes, the card is a little heavy on the right, and I think a smaller butterfly would have been better to complete the visual triangle, or I could have left it off entirely.

The best thing about the clear foam tape from Kool-tak is that it makes whatever you adhere look like it’s floating, more so than white or black foam tape would have. It’s not as visible from the sides, and gives a cool effect. It’s not the cheapest foam tape, so I only use small bits of it, but it’s perfect for those projects where you want the look of something hovering above the card front. You don’t need much, anyway, because it’s super strong.

Not a lot of Copics for this one.

Let’s get floral {Streamside Studios}

June 29, 2021June 27, 2021 ElinLeave a comment

Hi! Sometimes, I like to change up the use of a stamp or two in a stamp set. Small stamps in stamp sets, for example, are great for making backgrounds (though time consuming). This time, I’ve turned a floral image from the Fairy Happy Couple stamp set from Streamside Studios into a card that isn’t wedding related at all. It could be, though, I chose a sentiment that can be used for a birthday card, a wedding card and many other occasions.

This wedding bouquet is so gorgeous, and I printed it onto X-Press It blending card before fussy cutting it, leaving a white border around the edge. For some reason, I’ve been riding a pink, peachy, yellow wave whenever I’ve colored flowers lately, and this one is no exception.

I cut down a piece of Lemon Tart card stock from Papertrey Ink to 3 1/4 x 5 1/2″ and ran it through my die cutting machine with an impression plate to create some texture to my yellow background. I mounted it with foam tape onto a side fold A2 card I created using Stamper’s Select White card stock from Papertrey Ink. It’s my favorite white card stock, it’s thick, bright white and doesn’t crack.

Onto the yellow, I added my colored flowers using 1 mm foam squares. On the part that hangs off the yellow edge, I used foam tape in addition to the 1 mm foam squares to prevent sagging and make everything level. Using a die set from Papirdesign, I created a stacked sentiment. For the shadow, I used some 40 lb vellum, and on top of that I have four white die cuts stacked on top of each other for dimension. The trick here is that I also put two layers of white die cuts behind the vellum, giving it a little lift. In fact, the part of the word that overhangs to the right of the flowers has an additional three white die cuts behind it to compensate for the height of the 1 mm foam squares behind the flowers. Dimension is life?

I stamped and white heat embossed part of a sentiment from Norsk Stempelblad AS onto Melon Berry card stock from Papertrey Ink and added a few more strips of the same card stock behind it for dimension. I embellished the card very simply using sparkling clear sequins from Pretty Pink staggered around the flowers. Some are tucked behind, others hanging off the edge, I really like the effect it brings.

Lots of layers, and lots of dimension.

Quite a few colors despite a fairly simple palette. I didn’t want the center flower to be the same color as the other ones, so I went in with dark colors and plenty of layers before I was happy.

Hello {Streamside Studios}

May 31, 2021May 30, 2021 ElinLeave a comment

Good morning! It’s the start of a new week, and if this green color doesn’t wake you up, nothing will. It’s bright!! It feels like summer’s finally on its way, and I spent a good chunk of yesterday hiking. Everything is so bright green now after what feels like the coldest, rainiest spring ever.

I put together this little scene with an owl, a tire swing and a tree, all from the Woodland Friends digital stamp set from Streamside Studios. I did some simple Copic coloring and used a die from the A2 Stitched Rectangles STAX 2 set from My Favorite Things to turn it into a nice panel with faux stitching around the edge. I love these stitched rectangle dies, I use them so much!

I mounted the colored piece onto a card base made from Limelight cardstock from My Favorite Things. It’s a very bright green. I die cut some leaves from the Leafy Cover die from Mama Elephant and mounted those near the bottom left corner using some 1 mm foam squares.

On top of the die cut leaves I added a die cut “hallo” (hello in Norwegian) consisting of 3 white layers with the Limelight green on top, and a white shadow. I mounted this on foam squares, too, so this has a lot of dimension.

A side view to show more of all the layers. I added some sequins from the White Orchid sequin mix from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards for a little bit of an extra detail near the die cuts.

Last, but not least, the Copics I used to color my image.

Birthday wishes {Streamside Studios}

May 11, 2021May 11, 2021 ElinLeave a comment

Hi, there. I have a super simple birthday card to share today, featuring the Turtley Awesome digital stamp set from Streamside Studios. This card is actually part of an Instagram hop, so if you head over to Instagram and hop along, you’re in with a chance to win some prizes. Who doesn’t like prizes, right?

I colored two of the tortoises (the other one’s on the inside of the card) and fussy cut both. I printed one of the watercolor splashes from Lili of the Valley at 50 % opacity straight onto the card base. I love the watercolor look, but hate getting inky fingers, and this way, there’s no drying time, and I can use my nice white cardstock and not have to rely on the more yellow watercolor paper.

Here you can see a little of the tortoise I glued to the inside of the card. On the front, I added a stacked wishes sentiment (die from Mama Elephant). It’s six die cuts thick for some real dimension.

I stamped and white heat embossed part of a birthday sentiment from a Simon Says Stamp/Concord and 9th Stamptember collaboration set onto a piece of Smokey Shadow card stock from Papertrey Ink, mounted it on foam tape and adhered it above the w.

To finish off the card, I added some sparkling clear sequins from Pretty Pink Posh. It’s a great mix of sequins in four different sizes, I really love using them on my cards.

Sending hugs {Streamside Studios}

May 7, 2021May 6, 2021 ElinLeave a comment

Hi, there! I have a super colorful shaker card to share today, featuring a cute raccoon from Streamside Studios. Now, the raccoon isn’t particularly colorful, but I did some colorful ink blending of the background, making the raccoon stand out against the background.

I colored the raccoon from the Woodland Friends stamp set using my Copics. Just grays and a little R21 for the cheeks and the inside of the ears. Super simple coloring. I fussy cut the raccoon, leaving a thin white border, before I started on my background.

I pulled out a piece of Bristol Smooth card stock and my Distress Oxide inks for my background. I only have 8 oxides, and I used 6 of them for this, they make a nice rainbow. From the top left corner going clockwise they are Cracked Pistachio, Twisted Citron, Fossilized Amber, Picked Raspberry, Salty Ocean and Peacock Feathers. Where the colors overlap, new colors are created.

I splattered some drops of a shimmer sparkle spray onto the ink blended panel, blotting it off with a dry paper towel to create the oxidized look in the background. I then took the largest of my A2 Stitched Rectangles dies from My Favorite Things, along with the Say Hello die, also from My Favorite Things, to die cut the background. I made sure to keep the internal negative pieces from the Say Hello die to puzzle piece them onto the card base.

I die cut the Say Hello die an additional 8 times from white card stock, stacking all but 2 of them to form the shaker area. I removed the internal part of the stacked die cuts, creating a nice frame for my sequins to shake around in. I glued one of the remaining two die cuts onto the card base to fill in the word between the colorful negative die cuts. After filling the shaker area with white orchid sequins from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards, I put acetate on top to close the shaker area and the last white die cut on top, inlaid and flush with the colorful background mounted on foam tape for dimension.

I stamped a sentiment from the Simon Says Stamp/Concord & 9th stamp set Monster Hugs using VersaMark ink onto Steel Gray card stock from My Favorite Things, before white heat embossing it, cutting it down to a strip and adding it to the acetate window using foam tape. The last thing was to add 1 mm foam squares behind the raccoon, and my card was complete.

Miss you, my friend {Streamside Studios}

April 17, 2021April 4, 2021 ElinLeave a comment

Hi, there! I’m sharing a very simple card today, featuring this rainbow image from Streamside Studios.

I colored in the image with a whole bunch of different Copics, I kind of went overboard for this one. I knew I wanted a frame around the image, so I colored the background as well.

I stamped and white heat embossed a sentiment from the Leaf Clusters stamp set from Altenew on the heart. The red color is dark enough for the white to stand out, and the size of the stamp was perfect. I dry embossed the card base using the Watercolor Stripes stencil from Altenew, I wanted a little interest in the background, without it being too distracting.

I die cut one of the dies in the Stitched Rectangle Scallop Edge Frames die set (that’s a mouthful) from My Favorite Things four times from white card stock and stacked them for a dimensional frame on top of my colored panel, and adhered the frames with the colored panel in the center of the card front.

I added Wink of Stella to the stars in the stamp, but I forgot that I’d put water in my brush, and the printed lines of the stamp started bleeding. I was not about to start over, so I dug through my stash of card stock and found a scrap of Harvest Gold card stock from Papertrey Ink that I die cut using the stars in the Say What? Gift Tags die set from Lawn Fawn. I stacked the stars for dimension and added a little bit of Copic Y17 and Y00 to them, so they have a little bit of a gradient and don’t look too flat.

Like I said – lots and lots of Copics!

You crack me up! {Streamside Studios}

April 2, 2021April 2, 2021 ElinLeave a comment

Hi, there! I have a fun, super simple card to share today, featuring the Hatching Chicks stamp set from Streamside Studios.

I colored in the eggs with my Copics, before fussy cutting them. I forgot to create a graphic of the colors I used, but it was B04, B02, B01 and B000 for the blue and YR16, Y17 and Y00 for the yellow.

I used one of the stencils in the Simple Patterns Trio set from Cathy Zielske (Simon Says Stamp) on a panel of Stamper’s Select White card stock from Papertrey Ink using an ink blending brush from Taylored Expressions along with Altenew Ink in Limeade and Fresh Leaf. I wanted a bit of a gradient in the green going up the panel, so I used the darkest of the two at the bottom of the panel with a medium firm application, and the lighter color with a lighter application towards the top. I cut off 1/4″ off each side and mounted the panel to my card base using foam tape.

I added the eggs with 1 mm foam squares and drew the legs back in on the chicken sticking his legs out on the left hand side.

By adding the sentiment inside one of the eggs, I eliminated the need to find a place for it elsewhere.

God påske {Streamside Studios}

March 18, 2021March 18, 2021 Elin2 Comments

Hi, everyone! I have an Easter card to share today, featuring the Easter Friends slimline panel stamp from Streamside Studios. I scaled the image to fit the front of a mini slimline, and colored the image with Copics.

Soft, pastel colors throughout this one. I die cut the panel into a rectangle by doing partial die cutting twice with a stitched rectangle die from My Favorite Things. I don’t have any dies for mini slimline cards, but partial die cutting definitely works.

I added the panel to a card base made from Lavender Moon card stock from Papertrey Ink. I die cut God påske (die from Papirdesign) four times; three from white card stock and once from Lavender Moon. I stacked them and centered my dimensional die cut as best I could above the image, before finishing off with some sequins from the White Orchid Sequin Mix from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards. I love her mixes, they’re awesome!

My light Copic palette shouldn’t come as a surprise, pastels and spring go hand in hand.

Hap-pea birthday {Streamside Studios}

March 15, 2021March 15, 2021 Elin1 Comment

Hi, everyone! I’m back again, this time with super simple coloring of some peas and even some ink blending, which is kind of rare for me.

These peas are part of an upcoming stamp set from Streamside Studios. I thought they were fun and festive, and with the added punny sentiment, I couldn’t resist. I colored the peas and party hats with my Copics.

Once I’d colored the peas, I masked off each individual pea and did some ink blending across the entire panel using distress inks. I went for an orange to yellow ombre combo with Spiced Marmalade, Mustard Seed and Squeezed Lemonade. I placed a stencil (Dotted Flowers) from Ranger on top and ink blended again using the same colors, going in with a heavier hand. I adhered the panel to a mini slimline card base I made from Stamper’s Select White cardstock from Papertrey Ink and used foam tape for a little bit of dimension behind the sentiment, before finishing off with some sequins from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards.