No Line Watercoloring

Let me tell you, this technique is not for sissies. I don't even know why I am posting this, but it is my umpteenth try at no-line watercoloring (stamping image in a very light shade of ink then "watercoloring over it" to hide the initial lines. I just wanted to try the Just Us Girls Challenge #562 and this is my result. I watched Karen Werner and Jennifer McGuire videos and "get" what they do, but this is HARD! Now you know why my image is so small. Less room for error and not a lot to color. The tea bag is also stamped, watercolored, then cut out and pieced with pink and white baker's twine. 

The stamp set I used is an older Stampin' Up! set called Morning Cup. The patterned paper is from My Mind's Eye. I used Ranger Distress Oxide inks to "watercolor"  and a Sakura Gelly Roll white pen for details on the cups. I guess it is always good to try new techniques to stretch your skills! 

See you soon,

-Carol

Another Fun Challenge

 I'm back again with not only another holiday tag but one with a color challenge: pink and brown. I decided to play along with ColorHuesTheColorChallenge #6 and here is my take on it. I used random papers from my stash and The Stamp Market Dotted Tree die. Then I added the Merry die from Concord and 9th along with The Ellen Hutson Prize Stag die by Julie Ebersole. It was fun searching for pinks and browns to put together all into one project! I am also playing along again with #25DaysofChristmasTags2020 that Tracy McNeely is hosting. I was inspired by @sentsue whose (Day 2) tag layout and elements are what I chose to CASE.

Do you make tags for gifts or the holidays? I always want to but don't usually get around to it. This year I am finally going to have some handmade tags!

See you soon,

-Carol

A Quick Tag

Now that I'm on a roll with tag-making, I used some scraps on my desk to make this quick little gift tag. I found a product called Flower Soft in my stash and used it on Santa's hat, mustache and beard. The sentiment is one of my all time favorites and is in the same (older) Ellen Hutson set as the Santa. The tag die is from Reverse Confetti and includes the cute little reinforcement where the ribbon threads through. This took just minutes to make because I had already made Santa ahead of time.

It's the first "cool" day in Florida this fall so this "cool" Santa may appear again soon. My tag was inspired by a tag by @popsofpaper from Day 5 of the #25daysofchristmastags2020. She used black and white gingham paper that just popped!! Go check out all the inspiration over there!

-Carol

25 Days of Christmas Tags

It's day 17 of the #25daysofchristmastags event hosted by @traceymcneely. 

Tracey's darling tag on Day 15 (above) inspired me to make a greeting-centered tag as well. On my tag (below) the silver embossed greeting is a JudiKins wood stamp from eons ago! Being a stamper...I had to have it! Santa is from Ellen Hutson and the tree die is from Right at Home in the "Holidays are on the Way" set. The Wonky Scalloped Frame is Avery Elle. I cut the frame from white glitter cardstock and colored Santa's hat brim, mustache and beard with a sparkly Wink of Stella pen. I used Glossy Accents to make his sunglasses shine and to finish off the tag, I added a jingle bell on the tip of Santa's hat. 

I am not done making tags yet and have lots of ideas swirling around in my head. See you back here soon. Are you making tags this year, or cards or something else? 

-Carol

I am also entering my tag into the Merry Little Christmas Challenge Blog this month.

Christmas Cozy Cup

 Hello again! Today I am sharing a Christmas card that I made with this beautiful cup and saucer stamp and die set from The Greetery called Cozy Cup. The color combinations are endless. I also incorporated a Michael's dollar spot stamp for the poinsettia, and foliage from The Stamp Market set called Candy Cane Christmas. I have added a couple of other cards that I also made with the Cozy Cup set. In the pink card I used handmade paper that I found at Michael's with a very similar leaf print to the little branch in the Cozy cup set. I love when that happens! I used silver cardstock for the cute little spoons...so cute that I am trying to figure out how to incorporate spoons on other cards in the future! The sentiments in this set can be bent to be straight or curved, to fit your card design. In the first example below I made the sentiment straight, but in the next two cards I left them curved, as they come in the set.

Hope you are staying "cozy" as fall marches forward. The holidays are coming quickly and the handmade projects are waiting to be completed! See you soon.

-Carol

I have also entered my Cozy Cup Christmas card to the Merry Little Christmas Challenge Blog. Click on the link to check out all the entries.

Tepee Card

 Hi everyone! I'm back with a special card for the Just us Girls Challenge #561 - Triangles. I immediately thought of a tepee card because of its shape, obviously! This type of card is simple and quick to make, as well as adaptable to all occasions. I like that the person who is gifted this card can keep it out on a desk, bookcase or other spot where she can enjoy it for a while.

I made rickrack with my envelope punch board for my Santa and friends to stand on, then stamped, colored with Copics, and added embellishments to make an ongoing scene on all three sides. The best part is that the card folds flat into an A2 envelope for mailing! The stamp set I used is Jingle All The Way from My Favorite Things. Such a fun set for the holidays! Can you see the little "jingle" on this card?

Be sure to go check out the challenge this week at Just Us Girls Challenge #561 for some inspiration!

See you again soon! Happy crafting!

-Carol

Also linked to: Merry Little Christmas Challenge Blog

Little Paper Purse

 Well, It is November and I better get busy with Christmas projects! This little purse is something I think I made last year the week of or the week after Christmas when things settled down and I could finally play with my craft stash. I poured through You Tube today and miraculously found the tutorial I got it from: Collette Mitrega made this video Mini Paper Purse and I adjusted mine for the supplies I had on hand. I think it would be a cute little gift of chocolate or money to a little girl. It could also be a cute way to write a note to someone special in place of a regular card. 

I used white cardstock for the base of the whole card. I added patterned paper and glitter cardstock on the inside and out, as well as leaves from The Stamp Market Candy Cane Christmas stamps and dies.

I used velcro for the closure and stretchy silver string for the purse handle.

On the inside is the origami-style folded patterned paper in the center along with the Mama Elephant wine bottles and the sentiment from The Stamp Market Candy Cane Christmas set again. What uses could you see for this little project?

See you soon,

-Carol