Friday, January 30, 2009
Simply Prayers
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Copic Polished Stone
I added the outline images in the three colors on the base white card and the inner images on the 3 panels and cut a few extra out to add as accent.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Big Shot Valentine
Monday, January 26, 2009
Sweet Love
Friday, January 23, 2009
My Red Bird
The Inspiration Challenge (IC164) the week is of some beautiful Lang Calendars....gorgeous illustration and when I saw the beautiful bird calendars I knew this set would be perfect.
I liked these two pictures, but wanted a red bird...so it's sort of a combination.
Here's my card:
I think it might be my favourite one I've done so far with this set. I really like the simplicity of the design yet the pop of red in the bird. Bird is watercolored and cut out. I love the colors of Chocolate, Riding Hood Red and Artichoke. And the Top Note really gives it lovely shape. I sponged the edges of the Watercolor paper to give it a softer yet richer look, added some pretty piercing details around the edges. Doesn't he look SO real? Happy Saturday everyone!
And just a note to all of you I have a special invitation from Flourishes:
Here is the scoop:
Flourishes Stampers Dream Weekend February 21-22, 2009
Join us for a full weekend of stamping with some of the best Flourishes Designers! In addition to making cards with artistic elegance, you'll learn techniques and have a chance to sit in on a free lecture given by Marianne Walker on the theory of color.
What: Flourishes Stamping Weekend
Where: 4140 Lyric Lane, Pensacola, Florida
When: Saturday February 21:
Stamp the day away with a morning and afternoon class featuring Flourishes designers Becca Feeken and Faith Hofrichter. You'll learn how to create wonderful cards in their original style. Instruction, lunch, snacks, and all supplies are included.
Sunday, February 22: The morning is free for you to sleep in or enjoy some of the sights. Join us in the afternoon for a class with Jan Marie Caruso, where you will come away with finished cards and a limited addition stamp set. Then join us afterwards for a lecture on Color Theory by Copic Instructor Marianne Walker. We'll provide an afternoon snack and all supplies.
Price: $150 per person Payment is due by February 8 AND IS NONREFUNDABLE!
Space is limited for these classes. To register and pay for the Flourishes weekend go to the Flourishes website: www.flourishes.org; click on the CLASSES category
Monday: Copic Certification Class with Marianne Walter. See the I LikeMarkers blog ilikemarkers.blogspot.com
Recipe: Stamps: Flourishes- Home Tweet Home; Ink: Brown Stazon, Chocolate Chip; Paper: Riding Hood Red, Chocolate Chip, Watercolor, Always Artichoke Prints; Chocolate Chip Prints DSP; Accessories: Oval Punches, Top Note, Big Shot, Piercer, Antique Brads, Dimensionals, Riding Hood Red Taffeta, Reinkers, SW Markers
Happy Chocolate Cupcakes!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
For the Love of Reading
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Toonie Tuesday - You Crack Me Up!
Toonie Tuesday - Dirty Dozen Valentine Challenge
Well, it's the 20th of the month and time for another roundup of the Dirty Dozen girls, current and alumni for a challenge! This month Jodi - Kharmagirl challenged us to make a Valentine creation....Required Element: Texture, Restricted Element: NO RED!
So, I pulled out my precious birds from Flourishes new release *Home Tweet Home* and made some Love Birds.
A few weeks back I played around with this color combination and really liked it (Bravo Burgundy, So Saffron and Kiwi Kiss), so since I couldn't use any RED, I made a very rich but springlike Valentine.
I stamped the birds on watercolor paper and watercolored them and cut them out. Cut out my watercolor frame with my Nestabilities die (and the other two frames as well), then sponged the watercolored piece with Kiwi Kiss and watercolored it as well. And I added a little free-hand watercolored heart between them.
The burgundy is old old DSP, before SU went to double sided DSP, so I haven't got a clue which one it is. I turned the frames in different directions and added some pretty piercing throughout.
So what are my texured items? I scored the So Saffron DSP which I wish you could see better, and I added felt and satin ribbon and a felt flower.
Sentiment is computer generated.
I'll be back later with my color challenge card...we have dental appts in the AM!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Charlie's Love Story Continued
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Cherish Heartfelt Friendship
Saturday, January 17, 2009
A Cupcake Love Story
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Three Chairs for You!
Three Chairs
This set has such beautiful sentiments, I love this one by Thoreau: "A house needs these chairs, Ones for solitude Ones for friendship and Then those for society"...isn't that sweet!?
So I watercolored these three styles of chairs very spring-like and differently. I have it lots of scalloping and Flourishes ribbon ...do you see the cute watermark of the dog on the pillow in the lower right? He's so cute!
Ornate Chair
Look at this fabulous chair!!! You can do so much with it. I just received some beautiful glittery paper from Flourishes and thought...that pattern almost looks like a textile for upholstery...that would make a perfect chair! So, I stamped it twice, once on copper metallic and once on the glittered paper and then pieced the chair together. To give dimension to the chair I also added copic shadows within the seat and then on the wood.
For the sentiment I wanted to create a little flag but it looked too plain without some stamping so I added some of the leaves from Autumn Flourishes which match the pattern in the paper and stamped them in copper and gave them some depth with a copic marker as well.
See the other creations of the girls at the Flourishes Blog
Here are the other girls creating today!
Cindy Lawrence, Faith Hofrichter, Julie Koerber, Latisha Yoast, Laura Fredrickson, Kimberly Crawford, Cindy Haffner, Dee Jackson, Becca Feeken, Silke Ledlow, Jan Marie Caruso, Nancy Kirk, Sharon Doolittle
Please join the team for our release party tonight (Friday) from 7 - 9 pm Eastern in the Splitcoaststampers Flourishes forum. All of the sets will be unveiled and it's your chance to win prizes, and the winner of the Celebrating Home challenge will be revealed. Yippee!
Marcella does it Again! Flourishes New Release Day Two
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Release Week Celebration! Yum Cake!
Today it's all about CELEBRATION, with Yum Cake!
This adorable set called Birthday Celebrations is designed by a new illustrator for Flourishes Lauren Pope...it's full of whimsy and yet still in a Flourishes style! I actually started this card with the paper....this yummy Basic Grey Two Scoops, and also some Urban Prairie. I love the colors and since this is for my niece who LOVES pink....it is very girly! I stamped this great cake in Stazon and watercolored it with pinks and greens. To mirror the gingham in the paper pattern, I wove some ribbon as accent and added pretty felt flowers. The little cupcake has white gel pen sprinkles and a pink cherry brad on top!
CUTE and YUMMY!
Here's a second one I added today with the Sketch Challenge:
Celebrate Cake!
On this card I used Copics to color the cake and cupcakes and then added touches of chunky glitter on Crystal Effects...I love the adorable sparkle it gives. The patterned paper is Basic Grey Urban Prairie...I love the pattern in these sheets with the depth of the black.
Check out all the other samples from the Flourishes girls at the Flourishes Blog....or these other rainbow of fabulous designers blogs...
Cindy Lawrence , Faith Hofrichter , Julie Koerber, Latisha Yoast, Laura Fredrickson , Dee Jackson , Sharon Doolittle , Jan Marie Caruso , Nancy Kirk
Recipe: Yum Cake! Stamps: Flourishes - Birthday Celebrations Ink: Black Stazon, Rose Red Paper: Pink Pirouette, Wild Wasabi, Watercolor, Basic Grey - Two Scoops and Urban Prairie Accessories: Felt Flowers, Brads, White Gel Pen, Striped Wasabi Ribbon, Pink Taffeta Ribbon, Piercer, Dimensionals, Reinkers
Celebrate Cake: Stamps: Flourishes - Birthday Celebration; Ink: Palette Noir; Paper: Cool Caribbean, Basic Black, Basic Grey Urban Prairie DSP, Pure Luxury White (Gina K); Accessories: Copics, Organdy Ribbon (Flourishes), Brads, Circle Punches, Corner Rounder, Chunky Glitter, Dimensionals
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Urban Thanks
Monday, January 12, 2009
Lovely Locks
So, when we had a little girl....I knew that I wanted her to have LONG hair. All things girly and feminine. So, our daughter has really almost always had quite long hair. She has gorgeous hair too, thick and beautiful shades of blonde. But, despite her mother's opinion she would rather have short hair! (go figure!). She likes the low maintenance of hair that's not so long.
So I made a deal with her. Grow it out for a year and then cut it for Locks of Love. Most of you have probably heard of this great organization...they collect hair and make it into wigs for kids who are Cancer patients (or lose their hair through other medical conditions). Since Cancer has touched our lives very personally with my husband, we really like causes like this.
So....Saturday was the big day. You need at least 10 inches of hair for a donation. Our girl had at least 13. Her hair was about to her waist.
Here is she is before:
I'm proud of her. And she really looks so grown up too! Ok...she can have short hair. I'll just keep mine long thank you :)
Saturday, January 10, 2009
A Taste of Summer
Let's Get Together...Valentine
Three new stamp sets for Flourishes are fresh off the polymer presses and we're happy to say,this release is one that truly celebrates the different occassions that matter to you - a new home, a birthday, big events. Each stamp set definitely has a "Celebrating Home" flavor. How
would you like to win all three of the brand new stamp sets? Visit the Flourishes blog to find out about our "Celebrating Home" challenge! The winner will be revealed on Friday January 16 at our release party chat over at the Splitcoaststampers Flourishes forum!
This card was inspired by our silverware at home. This is the special occasion silverware for guest and special occasions, but wouldn't this be a very *inviting* Invitation to your Sweetheart for a lovely dinner for two?
The card is made from beautiful clear cardstock from Flourishes, and stamped with the flourish from the Siberian Iris set with White Stazon. Because of the way I trimmed it with the Top Note die, it left spaces in the fold where I could fit ribbon through, so I tied these elegant ribbons through it.
I've stamped the place setting from the You Are Invited set, 2 x, coloring the first set with Copics, A silver Zig Painty (for the silverware), and Lumiere (to give the plate and cup the look of fine china). Then I trimmed out the place setting raising up the plate and cup with dimensionals and just gluing down the silverware. Very elegant I think!
So pop on by to the Flourishes blog...you don't want to miss out on winning these new release sets...it's going to be a great week ahead showing them to you! And if you're ever inspired by something I make and want to make a purchase at Flourishes - would you be so kind to put my name christineo (as in lower case o not zero) in the promotion code box when you order? Flourishes gives me a little bonus when you do! Have a great Saturday!
Recipe: Stamps: Flourishes- You are Invited, Siberian Iris; Ink: Black Stazon, White Stazon; Paper: Riding Hood Red, Gina K Pure Luxury Cardstock; Clear Cardstock; Accessories: Decorative Scissors, Coluzzle, Satin Ribbon, White Organdy Ribbon, Zig Painty, Copics, Lumiere
Friday, January 9, 2009
Calendar Inspired Hugs and Wishes
And here's my design: