So this past month has been a bit of a whirlwind with teaching around the country, traveling and creating. And one of the exciting things is that I made it through the first round of the Scrap-a-doodles design team and here a week or so later is my next entries. I am not a busy scrapper, I am a ME scrapper, true to myself and my odd style with some techniques thrown into the mix. Love it or hate it – this is me and I am totally comfortable with it all. So for this week I created a layout and some cards. The layout is done using the new Fancy Pants range of paper with some photos of my niece. As with most of my layouts i added some of my current favourite techniques and elements alongside this bright and beautiful range of paper.
I used a few sheets of patterned papers which also included some of her favourite colours at the moment. One such product is this tree die-cut from Couture Creations. I first added a layer of green Distress ink and then misted it with Gold Mister Huey ink to add the shimmer.
One of my favourite new border punches is this circle punch – not only because of the circles which i love but also the endless supply of confetti dots that i can recycle and use again all over. On top of the punched border I added another little die cut element using a Sizzix die cut with my Cuttlebug.

Step 1 – I cut the shape out of white ‘technique’ cardstock

step 2 – ink the die-cut with Versamark ink on a scrap piece of paper.

step 3 – Add your first colour of embossing powder over the inked die-cut. Shake off the excess and return it to the container.
step 4 – Heat set the embossing powder until fully melted. Once the powder is shiny that’s when it is melted.

step 5 – Leave the embossed die cut to cool down before inking it again using the Versamrk ink. If the embossing is still hot the embossing powder will pull off and stick to the ink pad damaging the surface. Once the die cut is inked, lightly sprinkle a thin layer of gold embossing powder onto the die cut.

step 6 – Heat set the gold embossing powder for a multi coloured effect. Cut the element in half to use on your layout.

To create my own elements for the layout I cut the sun on my silhouette machine and then added
a layer of colour using Distress ink.
step 1 – Press the ink pad onto your craft sheet repeatedly until you see some colour.
*lighter colours may not be visible on your craft sheet

step 2 – Mist the ink with water until colour drops form

step 3 – Dip the die cut into the ink until it is fully coloured. You can leave it to dry naturally or heat set the colour with a heat gun.
If you want a darker more intense colouring leave it to dry and then add another layer of colour until you are happy with the look.

I love stamping and what better way than to create my own stamps and use different mediums to add interest to the stamping. For my background circles I used 2 colours of Mister Huey inks to stamp with. My stamp was die cut using fun foam and a circle die from Provo Craft. I simply adhere the foam circle to an acrylic block using double sided tape.
step 1 – Mist the 2 colours on top of each other on your craft sheet

step 2 – Dip your stamp into the ink and carefully lift it. Avoid getting too much ink on your stamp, when turning it over the ink may splash and drip all over your project – a little ink goes a long way

step 3 – Position the stamp onto your cardstock and press down – the ink may cause it to slip so be carefully and hold it steadily. Hold your cardstock down with your one hand and lift the stamp carefully not to smudge the image. Repeat as desired

and so I completed my layout using lots of different techniques and products to add colour, texture and interest.
Products used
Patterned paper: Fancy Pants Meology Inks: Mister Huey Gold & Classic Tan, Distress ink Evergreen Bough, Versamark ink pad Die-cuts: Sizzix Decorative Icons Set, Couture Creations Tree Punch: X Cut Border Punch Dotted Wave Embossing Powder: AC Zing embossing powders Other: Heat Gun, Fun foam, Craft sheet, Mini mister, Cuttlebug
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I love making cards as well. A couple of years ago I fell in love with the Gorjuss range of stamps. These stamps are perfect for colouring in, and so I simply had to re-create some cards i made years ago for a class – and if you know me this is rare.
What I love about these easy cards is that the stamps are really versatile and opens a world of opportunities by combining techniques and products to get different effects.
I stamped the images onto white watercolour paper and coloured them using my Distress markers. Once i finished colouring the images I added some paper pieced layers to the images adding to the cute factor.
Here’s how i did it
step 1 – Stamp the image onto the white cardstock using black Versafine ink. Versafine ink is perfect for the detailed images with their fine lines and also dries permanent and will not affect your painting with water at all.

step 2 – On an acrylic block lightly scribble your marker to add colour to the surface.
TIP – Always use the flat side of the brush tip to scribble with and colour to the block, to avoid damaging the tip itself

step 3 – Mist the ink with water and then use a small soft paint brush to paint your image

step 4 – Repeatedly stamp the image again onto scrap pieces of patterned paper. I only stamped the areas I know that i am going to cut out and use as paper pieced images liek the rabbit and the dress. The cut out the image and ink the edges

step 5 – Adhere the cut out image to the stamped image on the white cardstock that you are colouring in. I sometimes add the cut out paper pieces first and then add my colouring afterwards to avoid colouring an area that I may cover with paper later

Finish off your cards with other elements that will match the theme or the colours of your card. Remember that any good card has a background, embellishments and a focal point
And here’s another card I made using my left-over papers and elements.

Products used
Stamps: DoCrafts Gorjuss Inks: Tsukineko Versafine, Ranger Distress ink Markers Patterned paper: Teresa Collins She Said 6×6 Paper pad, Bazzill Cardstock, Watercolour paper Other: Sewing machine, Embroidery thread, Buttons, diamante, paper doilies, Olba flower punch

I leave you with this canvas i did earlier in the year and am now working on a second and third one to match….

texture paste and shimmery mists in gold – pure joy

Happy crafting! And here’s to creativity and design teams and living a creative life everyday!
Love what you do and do what you love!