Hi, crafty friends! I’m sharing a fairly simple card today with a little bit of stacked die cut inlay and some Copic coloring of this adorable Dinosaur Friends image from Rachelle Anne Miller.
I started by creating a watercolor background in Photoshop using a png from Lili of the Valley, before I added the Dinosaur Friends on top. No fuss and no masking, I love how easy it is to work with digital files. I printed my critters and background onto X-Press It blending card before I did Copic coloring. I wanted to match my coloring to the colors in the background.
I used the largest die in the A2 Stitched Rectangles STAX 1 set from My Favorite Things to create a nice finished edge around my coloring, before I did partial die cutting using the Sending Big Hugs die, also from My Favorite Things. I made sure to only die cut the word HUGS from my colored panel, and die cut 3 more from white cardstock. I layered my white die cuts together, adhering the colored piece on top of each letter. I adhered my scene to a side fold cardbase I created from Amethyst Allure cardstock from Papertrey Ink, and puzzled each of the letters into their place.
The letters are a bit chameleon like. You can’t see them very well from head on, but if you look at them from an angle, they pop into view a lot better. I added a layer of Glossy Accents to the letters so they would shine and stand out a bit more.
Stacked die cut inlay is a great technique when you want to add a big sentiment without distracting too much from the focal point of the card. This HUGS word is pretty big, but because of the inlay, what you really notice are the colored critters.
I added some Sparkling Clear sequins from Pretty Pink Posh to finish off the card. These are my favorite sequins; they go with everything, and my stash is running low, so I need to buy a new bag soon. They also last forever, I’ve had mine for years, used them a ton and am only now running low.
Simple color palette for this one. Those BGs blend effortlessly!
I often wind up running out of time to create cards from my colored images in a timely manner, but better late than never? I colored most of this image in very neutral tones, I wanted the red nose to really stand out, and it does. It helps that I added Glossy Accents to it, but it’s a very red nose!
Once I’d colored my image, I used the largest die in the A2 Stitched Rectangles STAX 2 set from My Favorite Things to give it that nice finished edge that I’m so fond of.
I sprinkled on lots of Chunky White embossing enamel from Stampendous and heated the panel from the back, before adhering it to the front of a top fold white card base I created from Stamper’s Select White cardstock from Papertrey Ink.
From the same white cardstock I die cut the sentiment three times using a die from Mama Elephant and stacked them for a dimensional look, before gluing them to my sky.
I added some shimmer to the die cut words using a Wink of Stella brush marker from Kuretake. It doesn’t really show up in photos, but it gives a nice effect in real life.
Last but not least – lots of Copics. 6 markers for that tiny red nose might have been overkill…
This is a tall, narrow tree, so it’s perfect for a slimline card. Using the largest die in the Slimline Double Stitched Rectangle STAX die set from My Favorite Things, I quickly turned it into a panel perfect for a slimline card. I adhered it to a cardbase I created from Blue Breeze cardstock from My Favorite Things.
I used a die from Papirdesign for my sentiment and die cut that in Stamper’s Select White cardstock from Papertrey Ink before matting it with a small piece of that same blue cardstock that I used for the cardbase. I pulled out a matching slimline envelope and white heat embossed an image from the Santa Stationery stamp set from Papertrey Ink on the flap of the envelope. I love this stamp!! No graphic today for the Copics I used. I colored this three years ago, and there were no scribbled notes on the back of it, nor a post-it to tell me what colors I used.
Shari’s images are funny, whimsical and quirky, and they make for very playful cards. For this card I colored up 
Once my sunset was in place, I colored the trees. I usually like a bit of contrast in the coloring, but for this one I really restrained myself. It’s a background element, and I didn’t want it to take any attention away from the foreground with the new stamps, so I only used BG93 and BG90 for the green, and E71 and E70 for the tree trunks.
Using the Madison Avenue die set from Mama Elephant, I die cut a frame three times from Stamper’s Select White cardstock from Papertrey Ink. To one of the cardstock pieces, I added Stick It adhesive before die cutting. I glued the three frames together, putting the one with the adhesive sheet at the top of the stack. I removed the backer sheet and sprinkled on Rock Candy distress glitter, before putting the backer sheet back over the top and burnished with a bone folder to make the glitter really stick to the adhesive and not fall off.
I trimmed down the scene slightly to make it fit inside my frame, and adhered both the scene and the stacked die cut frame onto a top fold card base I created from more of that Stamper’s Select White cardstock. It’s my favorite white cardstock, I still haven’t been able to find a good quality cardstock that’s whiter than this.
I fussy cut Feathers the bird leaving a small white trim and glued him down to the frame using liquid glue. His head’s sticking out into the scene, so I put a small piece of foam tape behind it. I also stamped a speech bubble from the 
I did my best to limit the amount of Copics I used for this card. The five marker colors that come after the gap on the bottom row are the ones I used to airbrush the sky.
In this stamp set there are five mice in different poses, there’s a giant piece of cake, a few accessories and some sentiments. I decided to focus on the mouse with the birthday candle for my card today. I usually color larger images, but these small ones from Streamside Studios are perfect for playing with different layouts for my cards.
I colored the mouse very simply with my Copics, and did some fussy cutting, leaving a white border around the image. I usually prefer cutting right up to the lines, but with the tail and the wick on the candle being thin, single lines, that wasn’t going to happen.
I created a top fold landscape cardbase from Ripe Raspberry cardstock from My Favorite Things and used the Crystal Distortion embossing folder from Simon Says Stamp on a piece of Stamper’s Select White cardstock from Papertrey Ink to create a textured background for all my elements to sit on.
I die cut the Celebrate die from My Favorite Things four times from the same Ripe Raspberry cardstock that I used for the cardbase, and stacked them for a dimensional look. I stamped a sentiment from the Itty Bitty Birthday set from My Favorite Things using Smokey Shadow ink from Papertrey Ink onto a piece of Cement Gray cardstock from My Favorite Things and trimmed it down to a strip that I glued to my die cut word.
I popped up the mouse using foam tape, and added sequins from the Sparkling Clear sequin mix from Pretty Pink Posh to finish my card. Super simple.
Not a lot of Copics for this tiny image.
I wasn’t sure initially what colors to use on this, so I asked a friend for suggestions. 
She suggested purple. She knows I don’t color a lot with purple. It’s not that I don’t like purple, I think purple’s pretty, it’s just soooo hard to photograph well, so I tend to avoid it for that reason. This time I didn’t, though. I listened to her and chose a V combo with my Copics I thought worked well.
Once my coloring was complete, I die cut the Stitched Snowflake Circle Frame from Memory Box five times from white cardstock. I wanted to make a shaker card, and I find that stacking layers works better than foam tape. I eventually ditched my shaker idea, but still kept my stacked die cut window for a dimensional frame. I did layering of cardstock to the outside of the frame too, making the entire white front panel flush. I added more stitching detail using the largest die in the A2 Stitched Rectangles STAX 2 set from My Favorite Things and adhered all my layers onto a card base I created from Winter Wisteria cardstock from Papertrey Ink.
For my sentiment I die cut the wishes die from Mama Elephant twice from the same purple cardstock I used for my base, before stamping a sentiment from the 
Very muted color palette for this one, but wintery cards tend to be somewhat muted.
I love 
I stamped Flannel using Extreme Black ink from My Favorite Things onto X-Press It blending card. It’s my favorite cardstock for coloring. It’s super bright white and the Copics blend very well on it. It’s no surprise, though, the paper is made especially for Copic use.
I die cut the panel using the largest of the dies in the Wonky Stitched Rectangles STAX set from My Favorite Things, which is one of the many things I purchased with the $250 gift card I won in this year’s Superstar contest. I love my MFT faux stitch dies, and this wonky one is a fun change from my regular faux stitched rectangles. I sprinkled on chunky white embossing enamel from Stampendous and melted the granules from the back of the cardstock, before adhering it to an A2 card base I created from Green Parakeet cardstock from Papertrey Ink.
Using the Very Merry and Bright die from My Favorite Things, I die cut the letters for the word Merry five times from the same green cardstock that I used for the card base. I glued them together for a stacked, dimensional look and adhered them to my colored panel using liquid glue. Onto a small strip of Cocoa Bean cardstock from Papertrey Ink, I stamped and white heat embossed part of a sentiment from the 
To finish off the card I added a few Snowdrift sprinkles from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards for a little bit of extra interest and dimension. I love these tiny clay snowflakes, I use them all the time.
Simple color palette. That bright green really is fun!
In the stamp set, there are three fairies, a few ghosts, an adorable bat (yes, it’s adorable) and various accessories. Among them are different candies. I created a panel of these candies, and colored them in with my Copics using very Halloween-y colors. That was last year.
I wasn’t sure what to do with my colored background, but I didn’t want to cover too much of it, and opted for a very simple design. Using the largest die from the A2 Stitched Rectangles STAX 2 set from My Favorite Things, I turned my colored piece into a panel with a nice faux stitched edge. I love these faux stitch dies from MFT and use them for nearly every card I make. It adds such a wonderful detail. It’s all in the details, to paraphrase a famous German architect.
I adhered my die cut panel onto a card base I created from Royal Velvet cardstock from Papertrey Ink. It’s a deep purple that goes well with the coloring.
I created the remainder of my sentiment in Photoshop and printed it, cut it down to two strips and added them on top of the letters with an extra strip of black cardstock behind for a little added dimension and stability. I added three enamel dots from Papirdesign (yellow and orange) and Altenew (purple) to finish my card.
Not a lot of colors for this one, and yet they’re very Halloween-y.
I actually colored this in May last year. I keep my colored image in stamp storage sleeves from Tim Holtz. They’re super sturdy and you can put a lot of colored images in one pocket. They come five in a pack, which is perfect for me, that way I can dedicate each sleeve to one design team, since I’m currently on five design teams. Sometimes, I just want to color without having to turn it into a card right away, and sometimes I just want to make a card, but don’t feel like coloring, or simply don’t have time to do both. Compartmental crafting for the win.
I mounted my colored panel using foam tape and adhered it to the center of the card. I felt like it was missing something and needed a little bit extra. Mini paper doilies from Doodlebug Design to the rescue. I love these mini doilies, I use them often. And you don’t need the whole doily, either, I just used two small pieces for this card, and there are 75 doilies in one pack, they last forever. Onto a piece of Blue Breeze cardstock from MFT I stamped a Norsk Stempelblad AS sentiment using Blueberry Sky ink from Papertrey Ink. I cut it down to a 1″ circle using a circle punch from EK Success, added it to my card using foam tape and finished the card with a few pink enamel dots from Papirdesign.
Papirmølla 