Stampin'B Challenge #56 - Mother's Day

NancyRuth’s Mother’s Day card challenge gave me another opportunity to try my hand at watercoloring. I am determined to keep at it until someone finally says, “STOP! You’re not very good at this!”




I tried using water color crayons and an aquabrush to see how that went. I did a wash with yellow on the entire panel and tried the “salt technique” that Jeanne Forsyth showed me a couple of weeks ago. I stamped the SU lilies with Stazon Jet Black, then masked them and stamped the foliage behind them. Using a couple different crayons (Pumpkin Pie and Really Rust) I did the lilies. I colored the stamens with a brown watercolor pencil but didn’t use the aquabrush. The DP is from Basic Grey’s Ambrosia paper pad, and the sentiment was cut with a Nestabilities Labels Four die after stamping with a coordinating Scent With Love stamp. A few silver half pearls finished it up.
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Stamps - SU Fifth Avenue Florals, Scent With Love Label Accents
Paper - SU Very Vanilla, Pumpkin Pie; Watercolor paper; Basic Grey Ambrosia DP
Ink - Stazon Jet Black, Palette Landscape, ColorBox Silver
Accessories - Watercolor crayons, Aquabrush, Watercolor pencil, Spellbinders Labels Four, Silver half pearls

Stampin'B's Challenge #55 - Color Challenge

Faith gave us a color challenge today – White/Yellow/Soft Blue or Mint. I decided on Mint. I thought these colors would lend themselves to these Flourishes images.

I stamped the lemons on Snow Storm Smooth with Palette Noir and colored them with Copic markers. I added some sparkle (which is hard to see in the photo) with Spica glitter pens. Then I cut out the image. The centers of the white panel and the Lemon Slice panel were cut out with rectangular nesties, allowing the Special Mint panel to show through. The white panel is popped up on pop dots to give it more of a frame look. I stamped the botanical name for the lemons with a green pigment ink and clear embossed it. All cardstock and Palette ink available at Mark’s Finest Papers.

Thanks for the bright cheery colors, Faith.
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Stamps - Flourishes Life, Love & Lemons

Paper - Mark's Finest Papers Snow Storm Smooth, Lemon Slice and Special Mint

Ink - Palette Noir Black, ColorBox Green

Accessories - Copic markers, Spica glitter pens, Rectangle Nestabilities, Brads, Clear ep, Pop dots

Inspiration Challenge - Crate Labels

The website for today's SCS Inspiration Challenge was Crate Label Museum, which has a collection of vintage crate labels from fruits and vegetables. I had a wonderful time touring the "museum." I wound up choosing two labels to use as my inspiration.

The first was in the Florida section of the museum. As a Floridian, that was the place I started, winding up at a label for the Winter Garden Citrus Growers Association.

I used two Mark's Finest Papers sets -- Speedy the Cat's Friends and Our Side of the Pond to recreate the label. My layout is this week's sketch challenge. The card base is my new favorite neutral color -- Corn Husk. I stamped the frog with Palette Moss Jardin and the cattails with Burnt Umber and then clear embossed them. All of the background is sponged. After much trial and error, I have finally figured out how to ink up a Cuttlebug embossing folder to get color into the design. The folder I used for the background layer is Forest Branches.

For my second card I went to the Pears section of the website finding this beauty -- Mariposa Pears -- as my inspiration.

I thought the Black Magic technique would work well -- although my background is Not Quite Navy rather than Black. For the background I stamped Just For Fun's Wildflower Silhouette in Whisper White and then embossed it with Detail White ep. Using a Q-tip I colored over the embossing with pastel chalks, wiping off the excess with a paper towel. The butterfly is stamped on white with Palette Noir Black and then clear embossed. I sponged on Palette Raw Sienna and Cognac with sponge daubers and then cut out the image, minus the antennae -- which I replaced with wire. The sentiment is a rub-on.

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I think the Inspiration Challenge is my favorite of the week because it allows you to really use your imagination. Your card does not have to even look like the inspiration piece -- or it can be a perfect replica. It's totally up to you!

Blog Hop - Day 4

Mark's Finest Papers RELEASE Hop and....BLOG CANDY!!!
Mark's Finest Papers Design Team is celebrating our BRAND NEW STAMPS for the Speedy the Cat Designer Collection and Serenity Collection with a Blog Hop! They are available TODAY! For your chance to win BLOG CANDY, visit and comment on each of the design team members' blogs on April 14th, 15th, and 16th. On Saturday, (April 17th), a winner will be chosen FOR EACH DAY from those participants who visited all 9 blogs for that day! The 3 Winners will be announced on the Mark's Finest Papers Blog. Each winner will receive 1 Stamp Set that will be released NEXT month. That’s three chances to win!

My cards for today have two totally different looks – but the images are all from Our Side of the Pond. One is whimsical, the other more glamorous.

The first one has a happy little frog in the bulrushes. He’s stamped on MFP Yum Yum’s Blue Eyes and colored with Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol. I was torn as to whether I should use googlie eyes on him, but in the end I decided against it. I used some fun flock for the cattails in the background. The sentiment is cut out with one of the dies in the Spellbinders Ribbon Tag Trio Two set, and sponged with Palette Landscape ink.

My second card uses the Spellbinders Fleur de Lis pendant as the background for the lovely swan. I thought the Basic Grey Wisteria DP was feminine enough without being overwhelming. I added some half pearls for a bit of elegance. The sentiments (which actually are one stamp) were cut out with one of the Fancy Tags Shapeabilities with the pointed ends cut off.

For another chance to win a free stamp set, be sure to visit the blogs of the rest of the design team and comment on each.


April Guest Designer: Sherry - http://workingandstamping.blogspot.com
Nancyruth - http://nancyruthat.blogspot.com
Nikki- http://smellslikehomemade.blogspot.com/
Lois - http://clownmomcreations.blogspot.com (that’s me)
Peggy - www.artfulljourney.com
Vicky- http://www.villagestamperramblings.blogspot.com
Jeanne - http://nannys-room.blogspot.com/
Faith - http://stampinwithmarkiesmom.blogspot.com
Mark’s Finest Papers - http://marksfinestpapers.blogspot.com

Blog Hop - Day 3 and Stampin'B's Challenge

Today my card serves two purposes – Day Three of the Mark’s Finest Papers’ Blog Hop and the Stampin’B’s DT Blog Challenge. Joanne (jojot) was the hostess for this week’s Stampin’B’s challenge. Because it is tax day, she wanted us to make a card using the sun and an encouraging sentiment. MFP’s Take the Time and Father’s Day set was perfect!

I made the sun in the corner using a template made from a 1 ¾ inch punch and a post-it note. I sponged Palette Nude, Raw Sienna and Orangerie – then made the clouds using a template made from a scallop circle punch, sponging Palette Beaux Arts Blue. I must confess that the grass is NOT from today’s set, but from a set that will be released next month – but I needed some grass! The sundial is stamped using Palette Burnt Umber. I actually did this part of the card twice. The first time I had the sun on the other side and then realized that the shadow on the face of the sundial would be going in the other direction if the sun were where I had originally put it.

The DP is from Basic Grey Indian Summer, and I added a sun charm with some gold cord. The charm was originally silver, but I dabbed it into some gold pigment ink and embossed it with gold embossing powder.

My second card using this set is a little more feminine. I used the large clock face, embossed in gold and placed it in the center of a Spellbinders pendant. The DP is from Basic Grey’s Bittersweet paper pad.

For your chance to win BLOG CANDY, visit and comment on each of the following design team members' blogs on April 14th, 15th, and 16th. On Saturday, (April 17th), a winner will be chosen FOR EACH DAY from those participants who visited all 9 blogs for that day! The 3 Winners will be announced on the Mark's Finest Papers Blog. Each winner will receive 1 Stamp Set that will be released NEXT month.

April Guest Designer: Sherry - http://workingandstamping.blogspot.com
Nancyruth - http://nancyruthat.blogspot.com
Nikki- http://smellslikehomemade.blogspot.com/
Lois - http://clownmomcreations.blogspot.com (that’s me)
Peggy - www.artfulljourney.com
Vicky- http://www.villagestamperramblings.blogspot.com
Jeanne - http://nannys-room.blogspot.com/
Faith - http://stampinwithmarkiesmom.blogspot.com
Mark’s Finest Papers - http://marksfinestpapers.blogspot.com

Blog Hop - Day 2

Mark's Finest Papers RELEASE Hop and....BLOG CANDY!!!
Mark's Finest Papers Design Team is celebrating our BRAND NEW STAMPS for the Speedy the Cat Designer Collection and Serenity Collection with a Blog Hop! They are available TODAY! For your chance to win BLOG CANDY, visit and comment on each of the design team members' blogs on April 14th, 15th, and 16th. On Saturday, (April 17th), a winner will be chosen FOR EACH DAY from those participants who visited all 9 blogs for that day! The 3 Winners will be announced on the Mark's Finest Papers Blog. Each winner will receive 1 Stamp Set that will be released NEXT month.

Day Two of the Blog Hop features the new set Butterflies, Dianthus and Flourishes.

My first card is a long card, which are always fun. The card base is MFP Morning Sun, with a strip of Heidi Grace DP on one side – separated from the solid color with a strip of Deepest Mahogany punched with a Martha Stewart border punch. I stamped both butterflies and the medallion in Palette Burnt Umber on MFP Corn Husk and then cut them out with circle nesties. I used some Copic markers in shades of lime green.

My second card is a standard A2 card, using MFP Breezy Blue and Basic Grey Wisteria DP – a simple card, with a popped-up flower, which is colored using Copic markers.

Be sure to visit all the blogs in our hop. Starting today, each day you will have a chance to win a stamp set to be released next month. That’s three chances to win!

April Guest Designer: Sherry - http://workingandstamping.blogspot.com
Nancyruth - http://nancyruthat.blogspot.com
Nikki- http://smellslikehomemade.blogspot.com/
Lois - http://clownmomcreations.blogspot.com (that’s me)
Peggy - www.artfulljourney.com
Vicky- http://www.villagestamperramblings.blogspot.com
Jeanne - http://nannys-room.blogspot.com/
Faith - http://stampinwithmarkiesmom.blogspot.com
Mark’s Finest Papers - http://marksfinestpapers.blogspot.com

MFP Blog Hop - Day One

Mark's Finest Papers RELEASE Hop and....BLOG CANDY!!!
Mark's Finest Papers Design Team is celebrating our BRAND NEW STAMPS for the Speedy the Cat Designer Collection and Serenity Collection with a Blog Hop! They are available TODAY! For your chance to win BLOG CANDY, visit and comment on each of the design team members' blogs on April 14th, 15th, and 16th. On Saturday, (April 17th), a winner will be chosen FOR EACH DAY from those participants who visited all 9 blogs for that day! The 3 Winners will be announced on the Mark's Finest Papers Blog. Each winner will receive 1 Stamp Set that will be released NEXT month.

I actually was able to make two cards using the Spring Breeze set from the Serenity Collection.

I thought the Brick Wall technique would be perfect for the foliage from this set. I stamped the image twice on MFP Corn Husk and then cut the ½ inch strips, sponging around the edges before I cut them into 1 inch blocks – and then sponging again. The cute little butterfly is part of this set, too. The sentiment is stamped on MFP Desert Sand and cut out with one of the dies from the Spellbinders Ribbon Tag Trio Two. I added some purple to the foliage to coordinate with the ribbon and the butterfly.

My second card could work for a guy. I used this simple layout from Page Maps, a great site for card and scrapbook layouts. The left-hand strip of DP was made using the foliage stamp from Spring Breeze. The right-hand strip of DP is a piece of two-sided Heidi Grace DP, folded over at the top, adding a “button” made from cardstock. The sentiment is stamped on MFP Speedy the Cat’s Morning Milk and sponged with Palette Landscape and cut out using one of the Spellbinders Fancy Labels dies.

Be sure to visit the rest of the team to see what they did with this lovely set. And remember, starting tomorrow you have a chance to win one of the stamp sets to be released in May. That’s three chances to win!

April Guest Designer: Sherry - http://workingandstamping.blogspot.com
Nancyruth - http://nancyruthat.blogspot.com
Nikki- http://smellslikehomemade.blogspot.com/
Lois - http://clownmomcreations.blogspot.com (that’s me)
Peggy - www.artfulljourney.com
Vicky- http://www.villagestamperramblings.blogspot.com
Jeanne - http://nannys-room.blogspot.com/
Faith - http://stampinwithmarkiesmom.blogspot.com
Mark’s Finest Papers - http://marksfinestpapers.blogspot.com

SCS Featured Stamper - Pat Smethers

As I was looking through today's Featured Stamper's (Pat Smethers) gallery on SCS and saw her ~Gentle Place~, at first I thought it was a one-layer card. But when I pulled it up to look closer, I saw that it wasn't. It was so pretty that I decided that I would CASE it -- as a one-layer card.





I recently met up with Faith Hofrichter (Markie's Mom) and Jeanne Forsyth (jaforsyth) in Mims, Florida. Jeanne's daughter was involved in an experiment going up in the Shuttle. Jeanne shared with Faith and me some tips on coloring -- both watercoloring and colored pencils. I think I was able to retain the pencil technique more than the watercoloring.


I stamped the swan image with Palette Noir Black and the cattails with Palette Burnt Umber. I used some of Jeanne's tips to give you a sneak peek of a new Mark's Finest Papers set called Our side of the Pond, which will be released later this week. The coloring was done mostly with Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol. The embossing around the edge was done with a square Nestabilities die.

Stampin'B Challenge #53 - Color challenge

Vicki D was the hostess of the Stampin'B's DT Blog challenge this week. One of Mark’s Finest Papers Premium Paper Craft Packs was perfect for her color challenge of turquoise, green, and white. The “I’ve Got the Blues . . . and Greens” pack had just the right colors.




I wanted a nice wide border to show off the turquoise and then worked my way down to the white panel in the center. The ferns, from the Speedy the Cat Collection set called Ferns and Chickadee, are stamped in Palette Landscape, as is the sentiment, which is from a different MFP set called Daffodil and Anise. All of the flowers and the brad are also from the Craft Pack. This card is my attempt at a Clean and Simple card.
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Stamps - Mark's Finest Papers Presents: Speedy the Cat Collection - Ferns and Chickadee, Daffodil and Anise
Paper - MFP Premium Paper Craft Pack - I've Got the Blues . . . and Greens
Ink - Palette Landscape
Accessories - Flowers and Brad from Craft Pack

Featured Stamper - TheresaCC

Today's Featured Stamper on Splitcoaststampers is Theresa Momber (a/k/a TheresaCC). I actually had time to do two cards -- one last night and one this morning.

The first card is a sneak peek of a soon-to-be released (next week) set from Mark's Finest Papers called Our Side of the Pond.




I CASEd this card of Theresa's -- Life Happens -- keeping much of the feel of her card. I used Spellbinders Labels Nine for my frog image panel, stamping the cattails in Palette Cognac and coloring with Copic markers, sponging around the edge with Palette Raw Sienna. I finally figured out the technique of inking up a Cuttlebug embossing folder so that the ink transfers onto the embossed piece. That's what I did with the background panel. After stamping the sentiment, I punched it out using the SU Key Tag punch, adding a button and some twine.

This card also qualifies for this week's Crazy 4 Challenges challenge of using kraft as the card base. While not called kraft (it's actually Mark's Finest Papers Desert Sand), I don't think anyone is going to argue.


Stamps - Mark's Finest Papers: Speedy the Cat Collection - Our Side of the Pond
Paper - MFP Desert Sand, Corn Husk, and Deepest Mahogany
Ink - Palette Cognac, Raw Sienna and Landscape
Accessories - Spellbinders Labels Nine, Copic markers, Brads, SU Key Tag punch, Button, Twine, Sponge daubers
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My second card is a CASE of Theresa's Rainbow Butterflies. I didn't change much on this card, keeping the colors, layout and theme. What I did change were the stamps -- this butterfly is a new Purple Daisies Designs stamp I found at a recent StampFest in Clearwater. It coordinates with one of the Paper Shapers punches. I added an additional two layers (one black, one white) to my card.

What drew me to Theresa's card were the bright colors on her butterflies, so I didn't want to change that at all. The flower image is from Just for Fun, and the sentiment is from Verve's Birthday Surprise.

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Stamps - Purple Daisies Designs butterfly, Just for Fun Wildflowers Silhouette, Verve Birthday Surprise

Paper - Mark's Finest Papers Snow Storm Smooth and Speedy the Cat Black

Ink - SU Tempting Turquoise, Regal Rose, So Saffron; Versafine Black Onyx

Accessories - Paper Shapers butterfly punch, Sponge daubers, Rectangle Nestabilities, Paper piercing tool, Scor-Pal

Happy Anniversary, Stampin'B's!

Happy Anniversary to the Stampin’B’s! And that’s no April Fools joke!!! It’s hard to believe we’ve been at this for a year. It’s been a blast!!! Our hostess, Vicky, on the other hand, wanted us to get into the mood of April Fools Day by making a humorous card.





I don’t have many humorous stamps, but I found these Repeat Impressions stamps at a StampFest a couple of years ago. And they mimic my philosophy perfectly!!! I put the first four stamps on the front and the final comeback response on the inside, along with one of those wonderful Inky Antics ladies. Her expression really lets you know that perhaps you are crazy!!! BTW, I chose the color combo on the front for Joanne (jojot)! The DP is from a DCWV paper pad that I've had for some time, and the curly-ques on the sides are Cuttlebug dies. All coloring was done with Copic and Prismacolor markers.

Stamps - Repeat Impressions and Inky Antics
Paper - GP White, Real Red, Basic Black, DCWV
Ink - Palette Noir and Moulin Rouge
Accessories - Copic and Prismacolor markers, Cuttlebug Floral Borders die