Crabby Card

Hello again friends,

I am so excited to show you my card for today! I played with Sassy and Crafty's Sassy but Sweet Stamp set. This set features an adorable mermaid and fantastic "king" crab along with some amazing sentiments.

I decided to stamp the crab from Sassy but Sweet for my card today. I stamped him using Ink On 3's Fade Out Ink and colored him with Copics. To add a bit of extra fun, for the gems on his crown, I used clear rhinestones colored red using a Copic. I also stamped each of the shells from Sassy but Sweet a few times to color in different fun bright shades, again using Copic markers.

Once I had finished coloring, I focused on the background next. I used black cardstock and the Mermaid Tails Stencil for this. I used my i-Brush Blender Brushes and Distress Oxide inks in various shades of blue and one purple to create a watery feel. I added a few spritzes of watered down Ink on 3 Liquid Pixie Dust to add some shimmer to the background.

Next, I cut out Kindred Stamps "Sorry" word die. For the bottom layer I used a purple scrap with a kind of watercolor or bubbled look to it, and for the top layer I used a blue glitter cardstock scrap. The sentiment I stamped on to a silver cardstock scrap and heat embossed it with a metallic light purple WOW embossing powder. I trimmed this down.

When it came time to build my card, I layered my dark watery sheet over a light purple card base. TIP: I like to buy card bases and envelopes in bulk from box stores when I find them on sale, this saves my energy so I'm not constantly cutting and scoring card bases. Once the card front was adhered to the card base, I glued the "sorry" layers toward the top center of the card. I added a strip of Thin Double Thick Foam Tape to the back of my "I've been crabby" sentiment strip and positioned it under but crossing into the "sorry" layers.

I added my king crab to a mini wobbler to give him a fun little interactive element and positioned him towards the center(ish) of the card. To finish the card, I added the shells that I had previously colored up and a few clear sequins.

Here is a short video of the crab in action!

Well, I hope that I've inspired you to check out Sassy and Crafty for yourself and look forward to seeing what you create next! 

Until next time,

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

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

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

Adventures Abroad Continues, In Italy!

Hi friends! I hope you've enjoyed the Beth Duff Designs Winter Release so far! I get to share the newest in the Adventures Abroad line, Italy. I absolutely adore this line, and this newest set is a fantastic addition.

I was shown a tutorial about for a card that was super 3D with floating floor. I started by creating the background using a MFT brick stencil, two gray Distressed Oxide inks, and Tonic Expanding Mousse.  In the future I would cut it down to be smaller than the cardbase like a card front layer would normally be, but this was still a bit of trial and error for me!

The floor is cardstock cut to 4 1/4" x 6 1/4" and is scored at 3/8", 4 3/8", and 4 6/8". The short score ends up attaching to the back wall, while the longer end is used at the front of the card. I used a Pen Blade to cut small pieces out of the floor where I wanted my pieces to stand. 

I chose to use 4 pillars, 2 scooters, and of course, the chef! They were colored using Copic markers. I can't remember all of the colors I used, but the pillars are W-1, W-5, and W-7! They are standing up by using small paper "L brackets", to create these I cut several small strips of cardstock and folded them in half. I glued them to the underside of the floor first, then the back of my pieces. 

I staggered the pillars, then I put the scooters in front of the back set. I wanted my chef front and center. I finished my card off using the "Grazie" sentiment, which I love the font of! I heat embossed this in a Wow Gold Pearl powder.

As a bonus, I made a bookmark, I used the small pieces from the set in different light colors, stamped at random. Next, I stamped my favorite sentiment from the sent in black VersaFine Clair ink. I finished this quick project off with a light blue ribbon, knotted simply at the top.

I hope you've enjoyed my take on this set, and cannot wait to see what you make with it! If you want to see more of our team's creations, you're always welcome to visit the Beth Duff Designs blog! Make sure you join us at Unicorn Crafts on Facebook to share your own projects, and see a bit more of all of us, and of course, like the Beth Duff Designs page to see when new and exciting things are happening.

And don't forget to go shopping with Beth Duff Designs!

~R. Winn