Merry Whatever...

Season's Greetings!

I don't know about you, but I LOVE Christmas. It's a time where people are more thoughtful, kids behave better, and I get to shop... I like to shop! 😂 So, I've been excited about making some Christmas themed cards and have been having visions on a snow globe card for like 2 years. Well, I finally did it!

The new "Merry Whatever" set from Kindred Stamps felt like the perfect set to make my vision come to life. I began by watercoloring the images and fussy cutting them out. Next, I took watercolor paper and created a blue sky with lots of different blues and trial and error in blending them. After that dried, I took white watercolor paint and splattered it over the blue to create falling snow. 

I used the Jaded Blossom Snow Globe Die set to create my snow globe. After I cut out my sky using the die, I added a layer of snow to the bottom to create a ground for the images to stand on. After that dried, I added them with the dog positioned a bit in front to add some depth!

I built my snow globe then cut out the tag and background layer in a nice bright red cardstock. I took the "Merry Whatever" sentiment and cut the words apart to allow me to fit them on the tag, thankfully my MISTI makes positioning words onto a small tag a breeze. I added small black enamel dots to cover the holes on either side of the tag. 

I layered it all onto a nice mossy green card base to really give it a Christmas feel. I added some small iridescent snowflakes to the sky and some Honey Bee small clear sequins below their feet to really give that snow globe feel. 

My next card using "Merry Whatever" was super quick and easy! I did a "quick" watercolor on these two friends, not stressing so much about lines or adding depth, just laying down the color. I did add a little pink to the green fellow's cheeks to make it appear he was blushing. I also quick watercolored the heart stamp. 

The images I fussy cut with a bit of a border, I didn't want to stress so much about them being perfect and think they came out super cute honestly. I popped the heart onto the green fellow's chest with a foam adhesive square to complete the image.

I recently added the Kindred Stamps Medallion Stencil to my stash and wanted to play with it. I blended Catherine Pooler Rockin' Red Ink over the stencil, adding multiple thick layers. Next, I took Catherine Pooler Icing on The Cake ink and brushed it lightly over the edges of the paper. 

I put the two friends towards the center of the card, the green guy I glued down, the pup I used a foam square for. I stamped the "Holidays are Ruff" sentiment some green paper and just kept it a simple strip popped with foam adhesive.

The entire Kindred Stamps November release will be available Friday, November 29th at 8am PST/11am EST. Be sure to subscribe to the Kindred Stamps blog to see a daily line up of sneak peeks from our amazing Design Team and see the full product release on Friday! Come join the Fan Club and release event to be part of the release fun, and you may just win some Kindred Stamps credit!!

Hopefully, you enjoyed my cards, I would love to hear what kind of cards are your favorite to make? Simple and easy or more complex and time consuming? Leave me your answer and a good email address to be entered into my drawing for a $10 Kindred Stamps Gift Certificate! 

Thank you so much for visiting me, and I hope your holidays are absolutely magical and filled with love!

~R. Winn

Full of Pride

Hello again friends!

I'm so excited to share my cards using Kindred Stamps new "Full Of Pride" stamp set! This set is all about love and Gay Pride, it makes me happy. I honestly could keep playing with it, and if I had more time, I probably would have.

My first card that I just had to make, used the "Love is Love is Love" sentiment, which was inspired by my friend Kelli's ideas. I began by picking a paper to use, I chose a sheet from Sunny Studio's Rainbow Bright paper. The hearts felt ideal for this card. I used The Stamp Doctor Nested Oval Dies and Stitched Oval Dies to create a space for my sentiment and then stamped using Stazon's Purple Pigment Ink.

I finished it off by using Nuvo Dream drops on a few of the hearts, which don't show up well on the picture but give a little shimmer in person.

Next, I made a card for a "Mr. & Mr." wedding! I wanted it to make it super classy so I went with a white and silver color scheme. I started by using Gina K Designs Foil Mates in Elegant Damask and Silver Therm O Web Foil. 

I added a strip of solid white ribbon on the lower part of the card. Then I layered that onto a silver cardstock and then a white card base.

I heat embossed using WOW Bright White powder and Ink on 3's Embossing Ink onto more silver cardstock that I die cut using a stitched rectangle, that I layered onto a white piece of cardstock.

Clearly, I also needed a Mrs. & Mrs. wedding card too! I used the other pattern from the Elegant Damask Foil Mates and gold Therm O Web foil this time. 

I had a card base from a Michael's pack that had a foiled edge that I layered my foiled damask onto. I used some Love From Lizi black Peel Offs and added a few on two opposing corners to give a bit of a framed feel.

I have a bunch of random pieces from different kits over the years and that includes some foiled gold envelope liners, I cut one down and stamped my "Mrs. & Mrs." onto it and used Recollections Detail Black Embossing powder and Ink On 3's Embossing Ink to heat emboss with. Finally, I backed that with some black cardstock and popped it onto my card.

I hope you've enjoyed my cards, I have loved making them. There are two others that I didn't blog about but you can find them in the Kindred Stamps Release event! Make sure you drop a comment here to be entered into my $10 Kindred Stamps Gift Certificate drawing, in order to enter, make sure you include your email address!

The entire Kindred Stamps October release will be available Friday, October 25th at 8am PST/11am EST. Be sure to subscribe to the Kindred Stamps blog to see a daily line up of sneak peeks from our amazing Design Team and see the full product release on Friday! Come join the Fan Club and release event to be part of the release fun, and you may just win some Kindred Stamps credit!!

~R. Winn

Chilling Birthday Card

I played with the Kindred Stamps "Witch Please" Digital Stamps, ok, I only colored one but, still! I adore this chill dude and couldn't wait make a card with him on it. I didn't really know what I was doing until I did it, I'm not much for pre-planning my cards.

I started by trimming down a piece of watercolor paper that I used Catherine Pooler Color Burst on the night before. I ended up with a very magical looking piece, it reminds me of the colors you see shooting out of wands and fingertips in movies and tv shows involving witches and wizards. The trimmed piece I mounted onto a black card base.

Next, I cut out several pieces from The Stamp Doctor's Halloween Dies #1, in black and orange sparkly paper, and gold foiled paper. I decided these would make a fun filling for a shaker card!

I used Close to My Heart's Shaker die set and cut out a gray background and maroon front piece.

It was time to build my card! I placed my shaker housing over a darker piece of the background that I wasn't happy with, the CTMH kits have a foam circle to use for your cards, the piece is white so I colored the exterior with a gray marker so it doesn't stand out on the darker background. I put my die cut pieces in and added a bit of stardust sequins from Stamp Anniething into my circle. 

My sentiment was stamped onto the acetate using black Stazon Pigment ink (OMG, this is a must have ink!) I added my maroon circle to the front of the card to finish the shaker.  I add my chill dude to the right of the shaker. I finished my card off with 3 black glitter bats from The Stamp Doctor's Halloween Dies.

My shaker doesn't really shake, because I may have used a bit too much filling, but I still love how this card turned out.

Head over to The Stamp Doctor and use my coupon code "RWINNCREATES" for 10% off any and all items not already discounted!

 I hope you've enjoyed my card and will see you again soon!

Thank you,

~R. Winn

Witch Please!

Hello friends,

I'm showing off a fun new set from Kindred Stamps today called Witch Please, this set will be available on Friday, September 27th! This set features a lovely little lady, and her ever-watching cat.

I started by coloring the friends up using Copic Markers. I kept them simple with no fuss. 

Next, I went to work building a fantastic background for them to have behind them. I wanted it to look like nighttime in front of the family graveyard. The back of the card front is a light gray (I know it looks white but that's just the lighting!) I took a white piece of cardstock and blended Catherine Pooler's Twilight ink over it lightly. I got a new stencil from Stencilgirl that has the neatest looking clouds and used it with Deco Foil Metallix Black Ice and of course, my Stencil Pal, to make a bluster evening full of menacing clouds.

Next I took to my Jane Davenport die cutting machine (because it's mermaid, duh) and used a set of dies from Stampin up to build the family graveyard. I wanted the background to be darker so I went with black for the tree and ground there, and gray headstones.  The fence and my foreground grass I used color to bring us forward to the friends who are in full color!

For my sentiment, I used a set of banner dies from The Stamp Doctor, that aren't released, yet but I use this set constantly because it allows me to layer my banners, and has tons of sizes so I get exactly the right size! First, I stamped my sentiment using Nocturne VersaFine Clair on a red scrap that matches my girl's sweater and headband. I layered that over a scrap of white sparkly paper. 

To finish off, I added a few bat sequins I had picked up at Target last year!

The entire Kindred Stamps September release will be available Friday, September 27th at 8am PST/11am EST. Be sure to subscribe to the Kindred Stamps blog to see a daily line up of sneak peeks from our amazing Design Team and see the full product release on Friday! Come join the Fan Club and release event to be part of the release fun, and you may just win some Kindred Stamps credit!!

You've made it this far, make sure you leave a quick comment, maybe tell me what you or your kids are going to be for Halloween, to enter my drawing for a $10 Kindred Stamps Gift Certificate! I will leave my drawing open for a week and pick a winner on October first. Be sure you include your email address in your comment or I will not be able to count it since I won't be able to contact you!

Until next time my pretties!

~R. Winn

Teen Detectives Box

Hi friends!

It's no mystery that we are excited about our newest Limited Edition box at Kindred Stamps! The theme this time around? Teen Detectives! This box includes a 6"x8" stamp set, a custom paper pack, a custom washi tape, a loose glitter pot, and an amazing stencil; there are a few other things, I just can't think of them right now.

Any who, I created 3 fun projects using this set, take a look...

My first project involves two of the detectives, and their furry counterpart! I colored the girl using Copics, but the boy and the dog were colored using Chameleon Markers. 

For the background, I started with a grey paper, for a dusky sky feel. The trees are different shades of green scrap paper I had in my overflowing scrap drawer, cut out using an old Stampin' Up Christmas tree die set. I layered the different sizes and shades to feel like a forest.  I had planned on just placing the kids and dog in front of the trees, but because I had used different dimensional adhesives to layer, there was an odd gap beneath them. I decided a road using Tonic Expanding Mousse, I mixed about 5 different colors, attempting to make brown. I ended up with more of a gray, and it looked like a gravel road after heating it with the heat gun!

I typically leave the insides of my cards blank, but... this sentiment just seemed perfect to me! I used Catherine Pooler Orange Twist (which matches the girl's sweater!) and stamped it out right in the center of my card.

Next, I wanted to use the awesome tie dye stencil included in the Teen Detectives Box. Brianne had done an awesome background on white, so I decided to go with a black background and used Distress Oxide inks and my toothbrush makeup brushes to create a tie dye background. Next, I used a Stampin' Up Star die to cut out the center of the card to let the blue base show through.

I always felt these two kiddos had that "young love" thing going on so they felt perfect to make a "love card!" I used banner dies from The Stamp Doctor to cut out the two sentiment banners, and placed them in opposite corners. I finished my card off with a few sequins from the box.

My last card, I had no more teens left to use, nor the energy to color up more. I did have this fantastic star cut out from my other card though... and the custom washi tape included in the Teen Detectives box! I layered 5 strips of the washi tape onto my white cardstock, then used foam adhesive to pop up my tie dye star. 

On my star, I used Brutus Monroe Alabastar Embossing Powder to emboss my sentiment from the Teen Detectives stamp set. Then I took a small brush and Tonic Crystal Glaze and brushed it over and around the sentiment, I used the loose glitter in the box to dust over it. The glaze really allowed the glitter to stay put and not fall off!

I finished the card with some of the sequins in the Shaker Pack included in this box!

I hope you've enjoyed my cards, and cannot wait to see what you make with your own Teen Detectives Box!

~R. Winn

Time to Celebrate with Kindred Birthday!

Hi friends! I absolutely love this new set from Kindred Stamps!  We felt like we needed a good birthday set, enter "Kindred Birthday".  This is a 6"x8" set that has something for everyone. 

I decided to throw Audra a birthday party with Molly and Evan for this card.  I stamped these three friends out using my Catherine Pooler Midnight ink. I wanted to create my own background, so I left them on one piece of cardstock rather than cutting them out.  They were colored using Copics and Spica markers, then accented a bit using Wink of Stella.  My background is simple using Copics. 

For my sentiment, I decided to use two from "Kindred Birthday" instead of just one. "Happy birthday" is heat embossed using WOW purple embossing powder.  Next, I used "Not A Day Over Amazing" down below my peeps, this was heat embossed using WOW Opaque Bright White embossing powder.  I added a few Studio Katia Iridescent Crystals throughout the card to accent and give something to catch your eye.

I layered the card front onto a piece of retired Stampin' Up DSP that has a fun candle pattern. Lastly, I put all of this on a white cardbase.

I hope you've enjoyed my take on "Kindred Birthday" make sure you leave a comment that includes your email address to be entered into my drawing for a $10 Kindred Stamps Gift Certificate! I will draw for a winner on September 3rd! Be sure to check out the rest of the team's blogs for more opportunities to win some Kindred spending money!😉

The entire Kindred Stamps August release will be available Friday, August 30th at 8am PST/11am EST. Be sure to subscribe to the Kindred Stamps blog to see a daily line up of sneak peeks from our amazing Design Team and see the full product release on Friday! Come join the Fan Club and release event to be part of the release fun, and you may just win some Kindred Stamps credit!!

See you later gators!

~R. Winn

Nuts About You

Hello again friends! I'm back with the newest Kindred Stamps release! Today, I have 3 cards using "Nuts About You" which will be available on Friday, July 26th at 8am PST/11am EST.  This 3"x4" set features two adorable chipmunks, and some punny sentiments that make me happy!

I used Ink On 3's Fade-Out ink with my MISTI to stamp out two pairs of these little dudes. Then I colored them with Prismacolor Colored Pencils. I am absolutely smitten with how they turned out.

My first card features the sentiment "I'm nuts about you". I picked one of my little guys and built the card around him. First, I went ahead and heat embossed a strip of acorns on pink cardstock using Brutus Monroe Sand Castle powder. This was cut down to a thin strip and layered it onto a piece of Stampin Up Crumb Cake cardstock for my card base. On the base, I heat embossed a little "Aww" using a Lindy's Gang pink powder, below where I wanted to put my chipmunk.

 I used the new Kindred Stamps Sunshine Glitter Gloss on white cardstock over the Kindred Stamps Hearts and Dots Stencil to create a textured patterned paper. I cut out pieces of this using a set of The Stamps of Life heart dies after it had dried. I layered these around the card using foam tape and Therm O Web Ultra Bond glue. 

To finish this card up, I layered the base onto a bright yellow cardstock that matches that Sunshine Glitter Gloss to form my card, I really like using colored cardstock for cards, I feel like it's a nice change from the typical white. For my sentiment, I heat embossed "I'm nuts about you" in the same Sand Castle embossing powder on the same pink cardstock as I had done the acorns. I layered that onto a piece of the yellow cardstock after die cutting them both to create a little layered banner. Finally, I placed the chipmunk in the midst of it all for him to shine.

My next card didn't turn out exactly how I had hoped. I wanted to create an alcohol ink background and use Ink Lift to pull up acorns in the background. Unfortunately, I'm not an expert with alcohol inks and ended up layering it too thick for this to work well! So, instead, I cut my background down into three smaller squares. I layered these onto a piece of Echo Park's Fall paper pad. I arranged the squares over a strip of gold glitter cardstock so it just barely peeks through with a bit of shine. 

Next, I used Alcohol Lift-Ink to pull up acorns and then stamped them onto white cardstock. I created a little stack of them creating a background. These look faint in the photo, but in person, they look great! I put all of this onto another piece of the same Echo Park paper, I just flipped it over so the other side's pattern showed instead of the cool blue.

 I love the buildable sentiments in this set, they are fun, and a bit punny, which is completely my sense of humor! "Sorry for driving you nuts" was my pick for this card, I stamped it onto a banner from an old card kit. Last, I put my little guy on a piece of brown scrap and trimmed around him to create a border, I placed him off to the side a bit so you could still see the acorn stack. 

My last card, is my favorite! I wanted to work in the Christmas in July concept. I used both chipmunks for this card. I started by stamping a tree from an old Stampin' Up set in Catherine Pooler Sage ink on to a piece of patterned paper from Echo Park. I added a few rhinestones to the tree for decorations, some I left clear, some I colored using a blue Sharpie, I feel like they look like little crystal ornaments. I used a Uchida Snow Marker to create a thin layer of snow on the ground below the tree.

I placed a chipmunk on either side of the tree, added some adorable Santa hat stickers from Michael's, and then the Candy Cane die set from The Stamp Doctor to place a candy cane in each of their hands.

Next, I stamped the family sentiment onto a tag from an old card kit using Catherine Pooler Samba ink. I strung the tag onto a sliver ribbon, and added a few large glue dots to the back of the tag to hold it in place. I wanted to add "Merry Christmas" to the card so I used The Stamp Doctor's new Tiny Alphabet dies to cut the letters from a piece of glitter cardstock that I ink blended Samba onto and arranged them on the other side of the tree.

My final touch was a layer of Wink of Stella clear onto the snow to add a bit of sparkle to the card! The card turned out better than I had originally imagined it, which doesn't happen often for me.

Now, be sure to leave a comment including your email address, I'd love to know which card is your favorite! I will be drawing a name from everyone who comments, the winner will get a $10 Kindred Stamps store credit. Make sure you check our entire team's blogs because they each are going to give away $10 store credits too!

The entire Kindred Stamps July release will be available Friday, July 26th at 8am PST/11am EST. Be sure to subscribe to the Kindred Stamps blog to see a daily line up of sneak peeks from our amazing Design Team and see the full product release on Friday! Come join the Fan Club and release event to be part of the release fun, and you may just win some Kindred Stamps credit!!

Thank you so much for visiting me today, I will see you again soon!

~R. Winn

Kindred Stamp Limited Edition Part of a Pride Box

I've had such an amazing time playing with the newest Kindred Stamp Limited Edition Part of a Pride Box! This box is absolutely fantastic, and the price point is so low for so much. You get a fantastic 4"x8" stamp set, a 12 sheet paper pack, washi tape, a stunning Shaker pack, a 1.5 oz Glitter Gloss container, a 6"x6" stencil, a sticker sheet, and a cute button! Oh, and a digi! I'm OBSESSED!

Let's start with my use of the  Savannah Glitter Gloss! I used the Kindred Stamps Basket Weave Stencil and my Therm O Web Stencil Pal to create this stunning background. I liked the brown cardstock paired with the orange of the gloss. I used a Pretty Pink Posh Scalloped Frame Die to create a diagonal cut in the background. I layered this onto a white cardstock and stamped the "I'm Glad You're in My Pride" sentiment in Catherine Pooler Samba ink so it lined up with the cut in the background.

I colored my lion using my Chameleon Colored Pencils, which I'm honestly obsessed with! I layered this all onto another piece of brown cardstock for the card base. 

 My next card is about a strong female! I used the AMAZING stencil included in this box to create a grass and clouds background. I used Therm O Web Pixie Spray to make my stencil stick to the cardstock so I didn't have to move tape over and over again. I used multiple colors of Catherine Pooler inks for both the grass and sky.

Again, my lion is colored using Chameleon Colored Pencils. I used the build-able sentiment "You're a queen" and "Let out a roar!" I stamped them out in Stazon Pigment in Brown. To finish this card, I mounted it on orange cardstock, and added a few sequins from the Shaker Pack.

My last card features three best friends. They were colored in Chameleon Colored Pencils. This card was actually a fairly quick and simple one. I used a paper from the paper pack, added a few strips of the washi tape and lined up the best friends up on top of it all.

My sentiment is heat embossed using a brown embossing powder and placed on a die from The Stamp Doctor. I added the little grub that is included in the stamp set. I put them all on a light green cardstock.

I hope you have enjoyed my take on this box! Make sure you head over to Kindred Stamps and snag your own box before they're gone.

Thank you for visiting to!

~R. Winn

Making a Splash with Kindred Summer!

 Long time no see! I'm excited to see you again!

Today, I get to share with you, our Kindred Summer stamp set! We have a fun little tradition where Audra has custom images of the team made up to celebrate new seasons, holidays, etc. Our pool party images were such a hit when we shared them that we thought they would be a perfect stamp set for summer!

My first card is featuring Molly, my best friend, and her amazing hair, sliding into the pool. I wanted to create one layer on this card that was full of details and a simple hand drawn background. I see all sort of people making AMAZING backgrounds by hand, that's outside of my comfort zone, so I figured I could start somewhere, by creating a pool scene.

While I knew I wanted to make Molly my star, I also used Audra on her ducky floaty, hanging out in the pool. I placed sunbathing Marcia on the pool deck, catching some rays. After these 3 were stamped, I took a pencil and a straight edge and created the pool/deck separation line. I started by coloring in my people, I tried to create depth in their colors, next, I did the cement, I used several shades of gray Copics to get depth and shadow. I added the water, again, several shades of blue were used. Last, I used a red Copic to add in the depth markers on the pool deck!

Normally, I stamp my sentiment and then die cut it and put it on the card, for this one, stamping directly on the scene just felt right! I used a WOW embossing powder that I picked up from Kraftgali to make "Hope Your Birthday is a Splash" really pop.  Finally, I used a sheet of the new Kindred Stamps Pool Party Paper Pack to back my "masterpiece" and mounted it on a white card base!

Next, I created a fairly simple, and quick card. I LOVE this sun paper from the Pool Party Paper Pack, and the sentiment "Here Comes the Sun" from Kindred Summer together. I added the 

I stamped my sentiment out using Catherine Pooler Something Borrowed ink, then used Ink On 3 Embossing Ink over top of it, and heat embossed with Lindy's Gang powder. It has a slight iridescent shimmer to it. I die cut the sentiment using a Tonic Oval.

My sun paper was amazing, but I felt like the Memeory Box die cut took it to the next level. I layered my die cut sun paper onto a piece of blue paper from Stampin' Up that matched my Catherine Pooler ink well. I loved the card, but felt like a blue SPARKLY ribbon down the center of the card, below the sentiment really finished it off.

My last card was an adventure! My little sister, Addison, feels that she should ALWAYS be made into a stamp. So, I decided to do a mirror image stamp of the Rachel stamp, this allowed me to create a pool scene with the two of us.

I colored myself first, I used lighter hair colors, and then finished myself off with a bit of R20 and created a sunburn look. (I don't tan, I lobster). I chose a colorful, yet clean look for my unicorn, and added sparkle with Wink of Stella. 

For Addison, my mirror image skills... well they don't exist... it took me a few tries to be ok with my stamped image. I went ahead and colored her with a slightly darker skin and hair color, she tans, well. I didn't love the thought of my baby sister in a bikini, so I went ahead and colored the belly area giving her a tankini instead! For her unicorn, I did an obnoxious pink, because she has a BRIGHT personality! My lines were not as crisp as I would have liked, so I went over them with a black marker after I finished coloring... her nose may have been compromised...

Again, this Pool Party Paper Pack... it's amazing. I loved the pool water sheet and felt like a double slider be fun. I used Lawn Fawn Slider dies and pennies to allow us to float back and forth. I used a few purple and white sequins from a Kindred Shaker Pack to add a little pizzazz to the card. 

Last, I stamped "Float On" onto the beach ball paper using Stazon Purple Pigment and then heat embossed using Brutus Monroe's Fairy Dust embossing powder. I placed my beach ball onto a wobbler and it bounces around when you bop it!

Now that you've stuck with me through three cards, please make sure you leave a comment! I get to give away a $10 store credit and I'm hoping it's you. Leave a comment here and make sure you include your email address so I know where to reach you. 

The entire Kindred Stamps June release will be available Friday, June 28th at 8am PST/11am EST. Be sure to subscribe to the Kindred Stamps blog to see a daily line up of sneak peeks from our amazing Design Team and see the full product release on Friday! Come join the Fan Club and release event to be part of the release fun, and you may just win some Kindred Stamps credit!!

  

Thank you for visiting me, I hope you have a fantastic summer!

~R. Winn

Once Upon A Nap

Hi daydreamers! I've got a few fantastic cards using Kindred Stamps new "Once Upon A Nap" stamp set. I absolutely adore this set and had tons of ideas right away.

I started with the princess and her fairy godmothers. I colored them with Copics, for the princess I colored her twice so I could have her dress change colors. I used a Stampin' Up Flip Card die for the base and back cardstock. Then I layered the left panel with paper from Echo Park's Princess paper pad. I put the green fairy on the blue panel and added a few sequins around her. 

My princess in pink went on the flip, with Wink of Stella to add some glittery magic behind her. I then moved to the right panel and put the pink and blue fairies with sequins around them. My sentiment was stamped in Catherine Pooler "Lime Rickey" ink.  I had a boo-boo to cover up, so I added a few flowers that I punched out of adhesive backed paper. 

Next, I opened the card and added the blue princess backed with blue Wink of Stella for magic. 

I added more paper from the Echo Park Princess paper pad to the back, and white to the other panel for a space to write in.

Next, I used the villain for make a simple, but kinda fantastic card. I colored her in Copics, and added some Nuvo Glossy Drops to the ball and her collar. 

I used a frame die and Gold Mirror Paper from The Stamp Doctor to create a mirror frame. I used Silver Mirror Paper for the mirror surface. I just got the new Stazon Pigment inks and used the purple to stamp on the shiny surface. In order to protect the mirror surface I added a layer of acetate behind the frame. I also used a light grey distress oxide brushed onto the frame to distress and age it a bit.

I finished the card by adding the villain to the bottom right. Simple but awesome right? 

My last card, I used the prince! This guy is dapper and super fun to color. I used the Navy Metallic Paper from The Stamp Doctor for the background. I wanted to create a cloud background so I used the Memory Box Mini Cloud stencil that I picked up from Kraftgali. I used Nuvo Embellishing Mousse in Mother of Pearl and my Stencil Pal from Therm O Web to put the clouds on the cardstock. 

I added a die cut cloud edge to the bottom of the card and stamped my sentiment in the red Stazon Pigment. I finished the card by adding my prince.

I get to give one lucky fan who comments on my blog a $10 store credit to Kindred Stamps! In order to enter, tell me what your favorite ways to use a stencil. I will draw a winner on May 28th after 8AM, make sure your email address is either in the comments, or attached to your comment (if you are logged into your Google account that works!)

The entire Kindred Stamps May release will be available Friday, May 24th at 8am PST/11am EST. Be sure to subscribe to the Kindred Stamps blog to see a daily line up of sneak peeks from our amazing Design Team and see the full product release on Friday! Come join the Fan Club and release event to be part of the release fun, and you may just win some Kindred Stamps credit!!

Thank you for visiting me today!

~R. Winn

Foiling with Ocean Royalty!

Hello all!

I am so excited to share my project for today with you! Our Kindred Stamps team is teaming up with the Therm-O-Web team to show off how beautifully our products work together. I'm showing off the new Kindred Stamps "Ocean Royalty" and using a few different Therm-O-Web products with it.

Now, I don't normally do step-by-step photos, but our fans in the Kindred Stamps Fan Club, said they like the breakdown of how a card is made, so... here's my attempt for you.

I started with the "Long Hair" stencil and the coveted Purple Tape. I love this low tack tape that allows me to position stencils, dies, etc without ruining my projects by tearing the cardstock!

Next, I used the AMAZING Stencil Pal to spread the Deco Foil Transfer Gel over the stencil. Before I move on, I have to tell you, the Stencil Pal is a game changer. I always struggle to get a smooth even coverage with any stencil medium, with some mediums it's not such a problem, but when you're foiling, you want a nice smooth coverage so your foil doesn't pit or look cracked. You use a palette knife to put a little on the edge and then it's easy-peasy form there!

I had already watercolored my characters using a Tombow Blender and Stampin' Up Stamp 'n' Write markers. I wanted to give my mermaid a shiny tale, so I added Ink On 3's Liquid Pixie Dust on a detailing paintbrush to really make her shine.

 While I added that sparkly, I ran my stencil through my laminating machine, covered with the Deco Foil Lapis Watercolor Transfer Sheet and some parchment paper. This is one foil that I have been dying to get my hands on, I loveeee how perfect the blue and silver played with the "Long Hair" stencil from Kindred Stamps.

Now, I wasn't in love with the white behind the foil since I was going for a water scene. I decided to try ink blending over the already foiled stencil. I used Distress Oxide Broken China and a makeup brush, then wiped it down with a microfiber cloth. I'm pleased to say, IT WORKED!

My next step was to create a beach for the gentleman to stand on. I mixed some DecoArt Media Texture Sand Paste with the Deco Foil Mextallix Gel - Champagne Mist. 

I got to see the Metallix Gel at Creativation for the first time, and I LOVE how smooth this product is, but for this project, I just needed it to have a bit more texture. I'm super happy with how well it mixed.

My next step was using the Metallix White Pearl Gel, with a small amount of Pinata Black Alcohol ink. I LOVE the color of the white pearl but I needed a bit of a rock color so I went ahead and mixed it up. 

I used this mix to create a small rock on the left side of the background. I wanted it to be rough looking so I made sure not to smooth it out too much.

Next, I used Ink On 3's Detail Ink to stamp out my sentiment on a scrap of paper. 

I used my Cut A Line from My Sweet Petunia and a Pen Blade to cut it down to a nice size. I love that I can reduce my waste and end up with a nice looking sentiment using the Cut A Line.

Next, I started to build my card. I used Therm-O-Web's Memory Tape Runner XL to add my background to a blue cardstock. I glued the mermaid and prince in place using foam tape on their upper bodies and iCraft Ultra Bond Adhesive on their lower bodies so they stuck to my rock and beach.

I finished the card off by adding my sentiment with a bit of foam tape, and a few shell sequins to the beach using Therm-O-Web Zots Bling. 

I hope that you've enjoyed my process and can't wait to see what YOU make using some Therm-O-Web products and Kindred Stamps! Make sure you check back to the Kindred Stamps Blog each day for more amazing projects from both our team and the Therm-O-Web team.

~R. Winn

Playing with Power Packs! Long Hair, Don't Care

Holy cow, I have the coolest thing to share today! My good friend Amanda from Pear Blossom Press is launching a fantastic new item called a "Power Pack," this is a way to safely and easily create your own light up cards and is compatible with Chibitronics leds! I'm going to share my card, and then you have an awesome chance to win some amazing prizes by hopping our Mega Blog Hop... Amanda is doing it a neat way to enter, each time you comment on a blog, you're entered, because 20 blogs is a TON... but also, we are all excited about this product.

I decided to use the Kindred Stamps "Long Hair, Don't Care" stamp set... because this needed to be lit up! I created my circuit to light up a single lantern that was hand-carved by Audra years ago. After my circuit was created I started to build my card face. I used navy cardstock, then took the Kindred Stamps "Moon and Stars" stencil, and some silver Cosmic Shimmer Gliding Wax to create the background. I chose a small square die cut to create a hole in that background for the LED to shine through. I added a stitched border using The Stamp Doctor A2 Stitch Dies.

I couldn't locate my grass die cut, so I used my Scan 'n Cut to cut a layer of grass on a dark mossy colored cardstock. Then placed 3 of the characters from "Long Hair, Don't Care" front and center! These were colored using Copic markers. 

Next,,, I stamped my lantern on vellum using a Stamp 'n Write marker from Stampin' Up, then hand cut it. I glued it onto my background using a liquid adhesive from Thermoweb, I shy away from vellum because it's tricky to get to stick without showing lines. If I was doing it over, I would probably still use this adhesive, but cover the lantern's back more fully so that it was less splotchy.

Next, I used a dark grey cardstock (the same color that my circuit was built on) to put my sentiment on, I decided to emboss with Ink On 3's Embossing Ink and some beautiful WOW Gold Pearl Embossing Powder that I got from Kraftgali. I used some foam adhesive to pop the sentiment up. My last touch was adding a "Push Me" button to the card. I used Stampin' Up die cuts for both the sentiment and this button. Since I don't have any stamps that say it, I used a gold Sharpie to write it out.  I finished the card by mounting the card face and circuit to a card base that was trimmed in gold.

My tips after making my first light up card? 

• Definitely watch one of Amanda's videos on the Pear Blossom Press YouTube channel BEFORE you start your card, building one of these cards takes a little bit of pre-planning  (my kryptonite!)
• Draw out the circuit like she recommends in the video, visualizing it is only half the battle.
• Don't smooth the copper tape too much on the Power Pack corners, it may crack causing issues with getting it to light.
• Press firmly, the better the pressure, the better the light shines!

The last little bit from me, before I share some important info about these nifty little Power Packs, is a 30 second video. Be kind, I don't typically do videos, and hearing my own voice weirds me out, but I felt like it was necessary to get the full effect of this product!

To get a great introduction of the Power Pack, check out the first blog on the hop from Pear Blossom Press. Amanda and Micah have worked hard to create an amazing product and I could not be more honored that they asked me to join this hop, or more excited about how easy they are to use. 

The Power Packs are available three ways:

• Power Pack Kit (set of 3 power packs, batteries, copper tape, and 3 LED stickers) retail $15.99 USD
• Power Pack (3 units) (3 power packs with batteries only - perfect for people who already have Chibitronics kits, but don't want to make paper switches and battery holders) retail $9.99 USD
• Power Pack (single unit) (1 power pack with a battery) retail 4.99 USD

Deals Just For You:

Customers in the US can enter the code FREEUSA to receive free shipping on orders over $9 until May 11, 2019

International customers can enter the code INTL5 for $5 off International shipping until May 11, 2019.

Customers in Canada will be able to order kits from my amazing friend Kim Brown-Blyleven's Etsy shop here https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheCreativeCard/. You won't be able to use the coupons above, but you'll also avoid any pesky Customs charges.

MEGA BLOG HOP BELOW 

 Remember, for each comment you make, on the blogs and YouTube videos below, you will be entered into the drawing for 10 Power Packs, and Kindred Stamps is also offering a couple fantastic prizes to support Amanda and Micah in this new venture, so get commenting!

Pear Blossom Press

Koren Wiskman

Lynda Kanase

Jessica Shier

Lynnea Hollendonner

Kim Brown-Blyleven

Niccole Kulig

Annalisa Gibson

Marie Heiderscheit

Beth Duff

Mary Polanco

Rachel Winn (You are here)

Marcia Caradinta

Katrina Bertelsen

Daisie Hanson

Jessica Francisco

Samantha Klaebe

Jessica McAfee

Lesley Oman

Tania Cordie

Thank you for visiting me today, and please join me in congratulating Amanda and Micah on making their dream a reality, and wishing them the best of luck on their new venture!

~R. Winn