Christmas Celebration - Just Add Ink Challenge #775

Welcome back to another Just Add Ink challenge! This time around we're challenged to...

Can I interest anyone in an Elf Cocktail or Clausmopolitan?

Looks like a great way to celebrate! I don't think I can even remember the last time I had a cocktail of any kind, though I did have a mocktail when seeing Wicked: For Good recently, which was delicious. The green elf cocktail is witchy enough to pass for Elphaba, don't you think? (It is made from a Halloween set, after all, lol)

I did some white-on-white heat embossing on my background for added interest, coloured all the bits with distress inks and just layered everything up. Tons of fun!

Materials used:

• stamps - Christmas background (My Favorite Things), Overlapping Merry Additions (Waffle Flower)
• dies -  Olive Martinis, Christmas Cocktails, Boos Cocktails (all Spellbinders)
• distress inks - lumberjack plaid, aged mahogany, mowed lawn, rustic wilderness
• other - Dimensionals, MISTI, white embossing powder, heat tool, blending brushes, clear acrylic dots, craft foam

With so many kinds of celebration, we hope you'll have the chance to create and join our challenge. There's plenty more samples to see from my team mates over on the Just Add Ink blog.

Entering in the Christmas Kickstart challenge #105 and the Paper Players challenge #766 (left vertical row of white, Christmas and die cuts).

  

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry

Well, Hello There! - Just Add Ink Challenge #768

This week's Just Add Ink challenge is a sketch - not one of my strengths, I admit, so I was surprised and enthused when I actually had an idea for a card. I rotated the sketch 90º and sat down to create.

The colour scheme I've used might be familiar - yes, it's the teal, red and white combo again, this time with some added black. So versatile! 

I began with constructing Mickey, then the circle feature which has an ink sponged piece behind it. Then it was simply a matter of more ink sponging on the background, attaching die-cut pieces, and adding the focal image. I used Distress black heavystock card for all the black pieces - not only is it strong, it's also a very dense black and has an almost velvety finish. Perfect for a famous mouse! 😉

Materials used:

• dies - Steamboat Willie Duo Etched dies (Spellbinders), Vault Picture Show (Tim Holtz)
• other - blending brush, Dimensionals, craft foam, Big Shot, R46 Copic marker

Check out more sketch inspiration over on the Just Add Ink blog and thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

To A Classic - Just Add Ink Challenge #767

It's time for an inspiration challenge with Just Add Ink and here's this week's photo prompt:

I took the cars as inspiration and made a birthday card. 

Naturally the car is red - we all know red cars go faster, right? 😁

Materials used:

• stamps - Road Signs bold prints (Hero Arts), All About You (MFT)
• dies - Classic car (Spellbinders), Vault World Travel (Tim Holtz)
• other - Sidekick, MISTI, Dimensionals, craft foam, black embossing powder, heat tool

We hope you'll be inspired to join our challenge with your own creative projects. 

Thanks for driving by.

Cheers

Kerry

Shake It Up on your Birthday! - Just Add Ink Challenge #751

Welcome! This week the challenge at Just Add Ink is to...

I made a birthday cocktail shaker.

The cocktail glass is made up of 6 layers, 4 of them for height as the die was too thin to use dimensional tape. For the background I already had an embossed piece on hand, so I sprayed it with oxides then once dry, ran a white pigment ink pad over random areas and distressed the edges. 

Materials used:

• dies - Olive Martinis, Christmas Cocktails (Spellbinders)
• Betterpress plate and die set - Cheers Sentiments (Spellbinders)
• distress inks - salvaged patina, peacock feathers
• distress oxide sprays - salvaged patina, kitsch flamingo, saltwater taffy
• other - Big Shot, sea level Sparkletz (Buttons Galore & More), glacier jewels (Pinkfresh), craft foam, acetate transparency, distressed tile 3D embossing folder (Stampin' Up), distressing tool

Check out more shaker cards over on the Just Add Ink blog and share your own creations in our gallery.

I'm entering this in the current Festive Friday challenge, with my picks being something shiny (silver foil card used for the glass and mat plus some gems), acetate window (for the shaker part), glass, drink themed sentiment. 

Thanks for dropping in.

Cheers

Kerry

Nobody Can Be Uncheered With a Balloon

Especially a shiny red balloon!

In what I'm calling my Pooh series, I'm back with another card using Spellbinders Pooh Bear dies, this time featuring everyone's favourite depressive donkey. The quote from Pooh himself is very fitting for Eeyore and I'm thinking some (uninflated) balloons inside the card is a great way to send a simple pick-me-up.

I made some modifications to the die-cuts - I cut two heads, trimming the second to make a muzzle and inner ears. Apparently this colouring is more used for merchandise rather than the classic look from the books, but I think it gives him a bit more cheer. 

Materials used:

• dies - Tigger & Eeyore, Pooh & Piglet etched dies (Spellbinders)
• distress inks - kitsch flamingo, lost shadow, hickory smoke, candied apple, brushed corduroy, tumbled glass
• other - Dimensionals, craft foam, Sidekick, blending brushes, computer & printer, alpine aster ink (Altenew), clear embossing powder, heat tool

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry

Favourite Day

Drawn by the irresistable nature of a Pooh Bear, I've made another card for the Festive Friday challenge.

This time my picks from the inspo list are yellow, red, bear, colouring techniques and friend sentiment. 

Once again I die cut from heavy watercolour card and coloured on the more textured side to give a real 'fuzzy/furry' kind of look. Unfortunately I kept smudging black all over Pooh's face, so had to compromise and cut the black parts from black cardstock. (Yes, there were a few non-Pooh-approved words bandied around when things smudged for the second time! Piglet was definitely blushing.) This time I created Pooh's red shirt by cutting two lots of body and arms, then trimming them down. My sentiment is a Pooh quote, again typed on the computer in Pooh font. 

Materials used:

• dies - Pooh & Piglet (Spellbinders)
• distress inks - fossilized amber, candied apple, kitsch flamingo, picked raspberry, seedless preserves, brushed corduroy, tumbled glass
• other - Dimensionals, craft foam, blending brushes, Bubble Bath ink (Stampin' Up), Big Shot, computer and printer

I think I may possibly have one more Pooh card in me ... hmm, ok, maybe two. Stay tuned. 

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Silly Old Bear

The card I have for you today is for two challenges. Firstly, Festive Friday made my day, my week, my month, my year with their current challenge celebrating the incomparable Winnie the Pooh (yup, huge Pooh fan). 

And the Seize the Birthday challenge is to use something new. 

Coincidentally, just a couple of days before I saw these challenges I had ordered some Pooh Bear dies from the new Spellbinders release! Of course, their arrival was the perfect excuse to sit and play. From the inspo list for FF, I used yellow, bears, honey, colouring techniques and bees.

I die cut all my pieces from heavy watercolour cardstock and coloured with distress inks. While I wanted the honey drips to be shiny, I didn't have the patience to wait for glossy accents to dry (lol) so used clear embossing powder instead. My sentiment was done on the computer using Pooh font.

Materials used:

• dies - Pooh & Piglet, Pooh's Honey Pot (Spellbinders)
• distress inks - fossilized amber, wild honey, faded jeans, chipped sapphire, tumbled glass, prized ribbon, black soot, mustard seed, brushed corduroy
• other - blending brushes, Big Shot, Dimensionals, Versamark ink, clear embossing powder, heat tool, computer and printer, sticky grip mat, craft foam

Thanks for dripping by (a little hunny humour 😉).

Cheers

Kerry

Three Wise Penguins

I absolutely love the theme over at the Christmas Kickstart challenge this week and just had to play along.

My card features three playful penguins bearing gifts - and how adorable are they? 

I cut my pieces from black and white card then used Copics to colour, keeping to soft pastels apart from a pop of red on each wee cutie. My background was ink blended before stencilling the star and spritzing with shimmer mist for some gorgeous sparkle, which - as I'm sure all crafters know - just doesn't photograph well. Sigh! Everything was kept very simple because I wanted those penguins to really be the star of the show (excuse the pun!). 

Materials used:

• dies - Playful Penguins (Spellbinders)
• other - Copic markers, Big Shot, blending brush, Sparkle stencil (Tim Holtz), Dimensionals, shimmer mist, shaded lilac oxide ink, Christmas tiny text remnant rubs (Tim Holtz)

Thanks for waddling on by.

Cheers

Kerry

Something Wicked - Just Us Girls Challenge #747

Welcome! This month I'm honoured to be Guest Designer with Just Us Girls challenges and for this week it's a colour combo.

The chartreuse and grey immediately made me think Halloween but the light blue threw me for a bit of a loop, I must admit. Luckily it didn't take long before an idea came to mind that I hoped would work.

The drink was coloured with Copic markers then I sponged some oxide ink through a bubbles stencil to make it look a bit more 'evil potion'-esque, lol. I shaped the bubbles to give them roundness and added some shimmer to the drink, drips and bubbles. Does it look suitably wicked? 👻

Materials used:

• stamps - Unravelled (Tim Holtz), Lovely Legs - Best Witches (Colorado Craft Co)
• dies - Boos Cocktails, Olive Martinis (Spellbinders)
• other - Copic markers, white gel pen, clear Wink of Stella, shaping mat and tool, Dimensionals, blending brush, MISTI, Bubbles stencil (Tim Holtz),  twisted citron and hickory smoke distress oxide inks, hickory smoke distress glaze, heat tool, gold POSCA pen, tumbled glass distress ink, hickory smoke archival ink, craft foam

We'd love for you to be inspired by this colour combo to create, and of course to share your creation! Do check out what the design team came up with over on the Just Us Girls blog.

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry

Vista View - Just Add Ink #716

It's inspiration week at Just Add Ink and here's the picture to draw that inspiration from:

The main two elements which inspired me are the gorgeous blue tiles on the step risers and the terracotta pots, which on my card became blue bricks and a terracotta planter. 

The brick wall was created using a stencil, Versamark ink and embossing glaze. I used the same shade of blue to colour my window frame, the top layer of which was cut from woodgrain card. I used acetate for the glass and vellum to give the impression of sheer curtains inside the house. For all the flora, I cut two of everything and coloured with distress inks then placed them in the planter, greenery towards the back and flowers up front, along with a few ferns and a butterfly. 

Materials used:

• dies - Vista View Window and The Botanical Solarium (both Spellbinders) 
• other - Versamark ink, uncharted mariner distress oxide ink and embossing glaze (Tim Holtz), blending brushes, Big Shot, Dimensionals, distress inks, acetate, vellum, woodgrain card

I haven't put a sentiment on it but think it would be useful for a number of occasions, especially to give to a keen gardener or someone who has just moved house.

Check out how my fellow team mates were inspired and of course we'd love to see your own creations in our gallery.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Birthday Dinosaur

When I saw the options in this week's Color Throwdown challenge I immediately had an idea.

I thought they suited a card for a little boy, so got out my dies to have a play and this is what I came up with:

I stencilled the terracotta layer to get the look of plaid fabric. The pocket I curved to give it shape and adhered it only around the U portion so you can actually add something in there. 

Materials used:

• card - night of navy, copper clay, basic beige, basic white, basic black (Stampin' Up)
• dies - Birthday Dinosaur (Spellbinders), overalls and number die from stash
• other - Plaid Builder stencil (My Favorite Things), blending brushes, Dimensionals, Big Shot

So cute! 

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

The Card Concept #207 - Red, White and Blue

This month at The Card Concept we're challenging you to draw inspiration from our red, white and blue mood board:

I was inspired by the bold primary colours of red and blue to create a card for a young child, also incorporating the stars and stripes.

Materials used:

• card - basic white, basic black, real red, starry sky, pink (Stampin' Up), striped paper (Etsy)
• dies - Dancin' Birthday Panda & Dancin' Birthday Dragon, Smart Glasses (Spellbinders), Celebrate (Tim Holtz), Large Numbers (Stampin' Up)
• other - Sidekick, Dimensionals, stars stencil, volume paste, palette knife, computer & printer

If you create anything inspired by our challenge we'd love to see it in our gallery. Visit the Card Concept blog to do so and to see more samples from my fellow design team members.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Just Add Ink #699 - Colour Combo

You all know I love to play with colour, so even though it's not my week to create for Just Add Ink's new challenge, I couldn't resist.

Coastal cabana always makes me think 'water', especially paired with another blue. Toss in some berry and my mind immediately says 'tropical' - what can I say, it's just how I'm wired, lol. So I now had the perfect opportunity to play with some new dies to make a card for someone going on holiday.

I began with ink blending, masking off an area to do the water with coastal cabana 'undercoat', then starry sky. That was then covered while I did the sky with a light blending of berry burst and starry sky, using a small circle mask for the moon. There are two layers to the trees as well as the porthole window and I embossed the blue background for added interest. My die-cut sentiment is also two layers and features more ink blending to give an ombre effect.

Materials used:

• dies - Coastal Escape View (Spellbinders), Playful Alphabet (Stampin' Up)
• card - basic white, basic black, starry sky, gold foil
• inks - coastal cabana, starry sky, berry burst
• other - 3/4" circle punch, masking paper, blending brushes, Simple Stripes embossing folder (SU), Big Shot, gold brads, Dimensionals, craft foam, white gel pen

Relaxing in the tropics looking at a beautiful sunset sounds awfully good to me! Where do I sign up? 😁 What do these colours make you think of? We'd love you to share your creations with us over on the Just Add Ink blog.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kerry

Dancin' Birthday Dragon

The Color Throwdown people have given us another gorgeous combo to play with, nice and bright and cheerful. 

Rather than a birdie, I went for another creature that flies - and dances!

I've done some ink blending on the dragon, stencilled clouds behind and stamped on my background piece. In case you're not familiar with this die, the head and body are attached separately and the body swings from side to side in a dance. I did take a short video to show you but Blogger is being uncooperative. It worked on my instagram, so click here and scroll to the second image.

Materials used:

• stamps - You Matter background stamp (Simon Says Stamp)
• card - basic white, lemon lime twist (Stampin' Up)
• dies - Dancin' Birthday Dragon, Essential Arches (both Spellbinders)
• distress inks - kitsch flamingo, picked raspberry, squeezed lemonade, mustard seed, spun sugar
• other - cloud stencil (My Favorite Things), blending brushes, lemon lime twist and crushed curry markers (SU), mounting foam tape, craft foam, MISTI, Big Shot, Wordies sentiment sheets - Everyday (Creative Expressions) 

Thanks for calling in. Have a dancin' day!

Cheers

Kerry 

The Card Concept Challenge #199

Welcome to the first Card Concept challenge after the holiday break and we've a fabulous inspiration photo for you called Country Style. 

The challenge is to create a card inspired by any aspect of this photo, whether it's the theme, the colours, the flowers, rooster, barn, door, ribbon, wreath - just any idea that comes to mind. Plus of course we'd love it if you shared your card in our gallery. If you post on social media, please tag @thecardconceptchallenges2 and use the hashtag #tcc199. 

My mixed media card was inspired by the country theme, flowers and black gingham ribbon.

Lots of layering and dimension on this one. Everything was cut from watercolour card and coloured using oxide inks, and you all know how much I love using those! 😉 SU's in-colour dots came in very handy for flower centres.

Materials used:

• stamps - So Sincere (Stampin' Up!)
• card - black, watercolour, gingham digi paper (Etsy)
• dies - Country Wheelbarrow, Garden Builder, Essential Arches (all Spellbinders)
• other - Big Shot, craft foam, Dimensionals, blending brushes, in-colour dots (SU), distress oxide inks, MISTI, fine-tip glue

I do hope you'll pop over to the Card Concept blog to see what my fellow team mates created, and that you'll be inspired to join us. The challenge runs for a month, ending on Monday 9th October. 

Happy crafting and thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry

The Humble Pumpkin

The other night I was enjoying a bowl of homemade pumpkin soup with some toasted sourdough (om nom nom) and reflecting on the humble pumpkin, which I've always loved. I can remember as a child, whenever mum made a roast dinner, I would swap with my older brother - I'd give him my kumara (sweet potato) and he'd give me his pumpkin. Recently elder daughter came to visit bringing some pumpkin goodies I had never tried - a pumpkin scone and a couple of pumpkin muffins. (They'd had lots of pumpkin in their veggie box that week, so she was making pumpkin everything, lol) The scone didn't do anything for me but the muffins were fabulous, moist and flavorful - of course I got the recipe!

So for today's card I've featured pumpkins. I was having another play with my Country Road collection dies (see this earlier card), again adding some other dies I already had in my stash. 

Materials used:

• stamps - Welcome Sign & Sentiments (Spellbinders) 
• card - basic white, early espresso (SU), Biscuit (Kaisercraft), watercolour
• dies - Welcome Sign & Sentiments, Country Wheelbarrow (Spellbinders), Autumn Elements (Karen Burniston)
• distress oxide inks - peacock feathers, rusty hinge, vintage photo, antique linen, black soot, hickory smoke, carved pumpkin, ripe persimmon, crackling campfire, mowed lawn, rustic wilderness
• other - blending brushes, Big Shot, Dimensionals, craft foam, water spritzer, early espresso marker, ground espresso and vintage photo archival inks, MISTI

And now, having thought about pumpkins so much, I'm craving those muffins! In case you're interested, here's a link to the recipe. By the way, did you know pumpkin is a fruit? Go figure!

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kerry

Gather Love

As crafters I'm sure you understand completely that feeling of instantly falling in love with a stamp or die or stencil set. Such was the case for me when I first saw the Country Road collection by Annie Williams for Spellbinders. I've bought just a couple of the sets so far (though I'm pretty sure more will make their way here before long) and love that I can pair them with bits and pieces already in my stash. Today's card came from a play with the Welcome Sign & Sentiments stamp and die set. 

I really wanted the sign to look a bit weathered, so hopefully I've achieved that. Many of the dies were assembled late at night, so do forgive any mishaps, lol. Those small, fiddly bits can get the better of me when I'm tired! And does anyone else always lose the flower centres (and tiddles from letter 'i's) and have to cut more?

Materials used:

• stamps - Welcome Sign & Sentiments (Spellbinders)
• card - basic white, basic black
• dies - Welcome Sign & Sentiments (Spellbinders), Bunny Games (Tim Holtz), Cats at Play (stash), Essential Arches (Spellbinders)
• distress oxide inks - hello honey, carved pumpkin, picked raspberry, seedless preserves, villainous potion, mowed lawn, mustard seed, wilted violet
• other - blending brushes, Dimensionals, craft foam, picket fence distress paint, paintbrush, Big Shot

More to come from this collection I'm sure, so stay tuned! Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kerry