Unity Friends with Flair (24.02.2012) & A Giveaway

Happy Friday is here again!  I have a card and a piece of happy news to share.  First of all, the card - recently I bought some Ippity stamps for the first time.  It was really nice to see them all on Unity's website, and the ability to combine orders is great. 

The image & sentiment are from the Ippity sets "What Matters Most" and "Devoted".  The house is coloured with Copic Markers (YG03, YG05, RV23, RV25, RV29, BG10, BG0000, E00, E02, E21, E23, E25, E04, E31), and patterned paper from Crate Paper - Farmhouse.

My happy news is my cards have been published in this latest issue of Australian Cardmaking, Stamping & Papercraft!  Truly overjoyed ;)

Here are some pics from the pages in the magazine:

Unity stamps by Jillibean Soup & Papers by Jillibean Soup

I never thought my cards would ever be published, and it's a great feeling to hold a magazine with your contribution.

And...for making you read this long post, I'd like to offer a little giveaway - I have 2 Unity Itty Bittys to give away for a lucky commenter.  Just leave me a comment and I'll pick a name on Sunday before I leave for my vacation.  Good luck!

Thanks for visiting me today.  Have a Lovely weekend!
Kary

Inspired Stamps - 1 Stamp, 3 Ways

Hello again!  The Design Team's assignment today for Inspired Stamps February Favourites is to use a Scripture Sentiment in 3 Ways.  This is so practical because it's always great to see the potential possibilities for every stamp set we have.

The Scripture sentiment I've chosen for all my projects is Matthew 1:23.  It's a 2"x2" and a great value at $3.99 each. On my first project, I had the Scripture Sentiment as the focal image of the card.  I must admit, I seldom make the effort to do so, as I always tend to use image stamps.  Maybe it's because I love to colour too much {smiles}.

Stamp sets used : Matthew 1:23, Lovely Lace, Paper : Webster's Pages

This card was quite easy to put together.  The Scripture sentiment was cut out using Spellbinders Classic Circles and I adhered it on top of the Lovely Lace doily, which was stamped on white cardstock with Memento Angel Pink.  The doily was cut out and the edges of the doily inked with Memento Angel Pink and Desert Sand.  Because I stamped the doily on white cardstock, I decided the white areas on the doily needed some colour and I used Copic E00, to match the background paper.  Then I added a die-cut flower and some ribbon & the stacked butterflies to finish off the card.

Stamps sets : Matthew 1:23, David's Shepherd  Paper : Webster's Pages

On this card, I used the Scripture sentiment with an image.  I was thinking Christmas when I made this card.  I coloured the shepherd boy with Copic Markers (BG10, BG11, BG13, B60, B63, B66, E30, E31, E33, E35, R20, E11).

On my last project, I decided to make a simple tag.  On this tag, I split up the Scripture Sentiment into 3 sections.  It's quite easy to achieve this, with the masking technique.  You can either ink only the portion of the stamp which you need or you can use a piece of paper on your cardstock to mask off the words you don't want to show on the tag.  Another method is to cut up the clear stamps and use each strip to stamp on the cardstock separately.  Either way, it works just fine.

I hope you like the above projects & I'd love to see your ideas if you'd like to play along with us. Just leave me a comment when you do, and I'll be sure to visit your blog.

Now, please head over to the Design Team members' blogs to see their fabulous projects.

Thanks so much for coming by today.
Kary

Simple Things (MFTWSC59)

Sometimes it's the simple things in life that make us happiest.  Some years ago, I went on a trip staying with the natives in the most remote parts of my homeland.  Some of the places we visited were without electricity and running water, and without a school nor medical supplies.  I learnt that life can be so full and happy without the sophisticated gadgets and abundance which sometimes clutter our lives.  The smiles on the children's faces and how their eyes lit up receiving the simplest gifts we brought really touched my heart.  Of all the places I have travelled to, this experience was most unforgettable.

I guess the sentiment on this card says it all.  I kept the card really simple and with minimal colouring - that's some restraint on my part {grin}.  The stamp set is from MFT Pure Innocence Feeling Froggy, and the papers are from Studio Calico's Autumn Press.

The card follows this sketch:

Have a "Simple" and Lovely day!
Kary

WMS Sketch #85 - Celebrate

Recognise the rose?  I was on a roll stamping the roses from WMS Roses In Bloom set and colouring them in different colours.  Sure is fun to be able to create your own shade of rose.  This rose is the larger flower in the stamp set, and I coloured it with Copic Markers (YR23, E00, E000, E02, E15)

Here's the completed card:

I used the paper from Webster's Pages Hollywood Vogue and I love that it came with the beautiful flowers and the phrase Live Your Dreams.  I added the sentiment from Say It Loud which goes pretty well with the phrase.  At the bottom of the sentiment is a strip of lace.  I punched two tiny butterflies from white cardstock coloured with Copic marker E00 to match the rose.

My card follows the sketch (flipped anti-clockwise) this week on WMS (a little loosely, I think):

Thanks for visiting me.  Have a great week!
Kary

Waltzing Mouse Stamps Blog Party - 17.02.2012

Hello Friends!  It's time for this month's WMS Blog Party, and the theme is Looking forward to Spring.  Springtime brings to mind beautiful blooms and it's a great time to get out the camera.

For my card, I used my all-time favourite set of Waltzing Mouse stamps, Roses In Bloom.  I love roses and it's great to be able to colour the rose in any shade I like.  I used Copic Markers for the rose (Petals - R01, R20, R22 ; Flower centre - E00, E02, YR23, E15).

Just underneath the rose, is a stamp from the set Very Vintage Labels 18, I stamped it with Memento Rhubarb Stalk, and cut it out with Labels 18.  I also stamped the grid background stamp from the set Off Beat Backgrounds in Memento Angel Pink just for some added texture.

Here's the card:

The sentiment is from Eat Cake, another favourite set of mine, heat embossed in white. The sentiment was stamped in the same polka dot brown & pink paper and placed a little off to the left for some interest but not to take the eye away from the rose focal image.  I added a lace trim, an aqua ribbon & some pearls to finish off the card.

I hope you like the card.  Please click here for more WMS Inspiration and Fabulous creations.

Thanks for visiting me. Enjoy the Blog Party!!
Kary

Unity Friends with Flair (17.2.2012)

So glad Friday is here again.  Just a simple card today - using the Itty Bitty So Blessed, and the matching papers from Simple Stories Generations.  I stamped the image directly onto the patterned paper and coloured it with Copics (E02, E30, E31, E33, BG0000).  I'm persevering in my quest, to use all my uninked stamp sets and patterned papers in my stash ;)  I wonder how long this will last though {grins}

Have some free time or in need of some inspiration?  Check out all the fabulous Unity Friends with Flair projects here, there's a prize too for leaving comments.

Thanks for visiting me.  Have a lovely day!!
Kary

Love You Dearly

Hello! Since it's Valentine's week, here's another "love" themed card.  My card above was inspired by the photo on the current Paper Smooches Sparks' challenge.

I was inspired by the canvas texture on the photo, the sweet pink felt heart and the stitching.  Pretty obvious, isn't it?  I coloured the image from Chubby Chum Pals with Copics (Bear - R22, R21, R00; Cap - R24, R22, R20) and adhered two small  "shifty" eyes on the image.  The sentiment was from Pretty Phrases set, and I stamped it with Memento Rich Cocoa and Rhubarb Stalk inks.

The kraft background was embossed with a Sizzix embossing folder (I can't recall the name) and inked with some white pigment ink.  The felt heart was cut using Spellbinders Classic Scalloped Hearts die and the pink cardstock with Spellbinders Classic Hearts die.  It's been a long time since I did any hand stitching and I must say it was rather therapeutic ;)

Thanks for coming by.  Wishing you a lovely day!
Kary

Let's Dance

I recently made this card for a friend who enjoys dancing with her husband.  I thought it would be a nice Valentine's card.  The dancing couple's image is from MFT stamp set May I Have This Dance and the Eiffel Tower from the set Who's That Parisian Girl. I paper pieced her dress with My Mind's Eye Lost & Found Madison Aveneue paper and coloured the rest of the image with Copic Markers (Skin - E000, E01, E13, E31; Man's attire - C01, R85, R89, E43, E74, E77, E49; Background - E00, E93).  I added the Skyline border in background just off to the side (but..did you notice my paper was cut upside down? {lol})

I just had to decorate the inside as well, because May I Have This Dance set comes with so many gorgeous sentiments.

I stamped the sentiment with Versamark and heat embossed it with detail white embossing powder, on a dark chocolate cardstock.  The hearts were cut with Hearts a Plenty Die-namics, the larger heart with patterned paper & the smaller heart from with glittered red felt.

This card follows the sketch this week at MFT, I flipped the sketch sideways:

Have a happy, happy Valentine's day!!
Kary

Inspired Stamps - 1" Flowers

Hello Friends!  I hope you had a wonderful weekend!  I'm sharing a special post today focusing on Inspired Stamps 1" Flowers stamp set.

These tiny images are so fun to work with.  They are perfect for creating cute little focal images on a card or using them to create pretty backgrounds, as well as working with stamping/inking techniques.

I went with a Clean & Simple design.  Here's my card:

The 1" flowers were stamped on white cardstock, and coloured with Copic markers. I die-cut a window on the card front and did some piercing along the shaped window.  The flowers image was adhered just behind the window with 1/16" foam adhesive.  I stamped a sentiment just underneath the window with the set Inspired Stampers' Favorite Collection #2.  This is an easy design and could easily be mass produced for a card set.

Speaking of card set, I have one to share using the 1" Flowers set:

These cards measures 4.25x4.25".  I used the Neenah Desert Storm cardstock with patterned paper from Lily Bee Design (Picket fence) and some brown and pink cardstocks.  It's so easy to mix and match the flowers to the stem and leaves or the vase.  Add a little glitter to the stamped images for some interest, and using a simple layout and you'll have a great card set.

Here's a photo of the card gift set:

I hope you like the above ideas.

Thanks for visiting me.  Do have a wonderful week!
Kary

Unity Friends with Flair (10.2.2012)

Happy Friday!!  It's been a long week for me, and I'm so glad for Friday.  I have a fun card to share, using a set from my favourite Unity line by Phyllis Harris.  When I first saw this stamp set Happiness is..., I knew I had to have it {smiles}. What is one of your earliest childhood memories?  Well, I suppose you can easily guess mine - yupe, it's waiting for my turn to get on the swing! 

I decided to keep this card really simple so the eye is drawn to the girl on the swing.  The girl image was stamped with Memento Rich Cocoa, and the Clouds with Memento Summer Sky. The images are coloured with Copic markers - Skin (E000, E01, E13), Shoes & blouse (RV02, RV10, RV13), Shorts (BG72, BG75, BG78), Hair (E21, E35, E99), Swing (E35, E40, E43, E44), Clouds (BG0000). Patterned papers by Lily Bee Design - Head Over Heels.

Here's another view:

Be sure to head over to the Unity blog for more inspiration from the Unity peeps.  

Thanks for visiting me. Have a lovely day!!

Kary

Inspired Stamps - Character Artwork

It's a month long of February Favourites at Inspired Stamps.  This week the focus is on Character Artwork, and I'm sharing a card using the sweet HLO girl - His Little Ones : Girl Studying.  She's a 2"x3" character and she fits perfectly on any card, and is a great set to use with your colouring tools.  

The girl image was stamped on X-Press It paper with Memento Rich Cocoa, and coloured with Copic Markers - Skin (E000, E01, E13, R21), Book (C1), Outfit (R02, R05, R08, C1), Hair (E99, E35, E21).  The patterned papers are from Studio Calico's Autumn Press 6x6 pad.  I've not added a sentiment on the card yet, but I'm thinking any of the Scripture sentiment sets Inspired Stamps has on the online store would go so well with this card.  I'm really partial to the 2x2 sentiment stamps ;)

Please remember to check out the Awesome projects the rest of the girls are showcasing today:

Anita

Belinda

Chere

Gabrielle

Jamie

Jenn

and

Inspired Stamps Blog

Thanks for visiting me.  

Kary

All Heart

Happy Monday!!  It's the 15th day of Chinese New Year today. Tradition has it that the day is associated with finding a life partner - the single girls will head to the river and throw mandarin oranges into it and the single guys will be collecting these oranges further down the stream.  I don't really know if the story is true, but it's a nice one.

I have a cute heart shaped window card  (or shadow box card) to share today.  I made the card, with measurements from the Layered Heart Die-namics.  I used the sweet PI boy from "I Love You This Big" stamp set.  The boy was coloured with Copic markers and I paper-pieced his pants with some patterned paper.  The Copics markers used are : Skin - E13, E01, E000; Shoes - BG72, BG75, BG78; Sweatshirt - G00, G000, G02; Heart - R32, R35, R37, R39.  I added some Sparkly Fluff (Rockstar Red) onto the heart for some sparkle and dimension.  The sentiment was stamped on patterned paper and cut out using First Place Award Ribbon Die-namics, and I cut another strip slightly larger for the mat.  The patterned papers are from My Mind's Eye - Lost & Found II, Breeze.

Did you know that MFT has a Guest Designer contest every month?  For the month of February, the contest is Stamp Your Heart Out.  I thought I'd submit an entry this month just for fun.  I reckon my cards are always too simple but it's nice just to try.

Thanks for visiting today.
Have a great week!!
Kary

Unity Friends with Flair (03.02.2012)

Here's my CAS card for the Unity Friends with Flair post ;)  After a long day, I just wasn't keen on colouring.  Some days are like so, isn't it?  I love this Itty Bitty sentiment and the little bird on it.  Be sure to check out the rest of the Unity peeps' fabulous creations all here on the Unity blog.

Thanks for visiting me.

Have a great weekend!!
Kary

Inspired Stamps - Favourite Set

The Inspired Stamps DT are showcasing their favourite stamp sets today.  I had a really hard time choosing just one set.  I've wanted to make a Snowglobe for the longest time, and I think I found a way to do it while showcasing one of my favourite Inspired Stamps set, 1" Snowmen.

This is a set which I've used a lot, on Christmas cards and also general everyday cards.  On my card today, I selected the Snowman with the cute hearts and placed him in the Snowglobe.  To complete the scene behind the Snowman, I added cutouts of the silhouette houses from the set Me and My House, and the snowflakes from Let It Snow.  The houses were stamped using Memento London Fog and the snowflakes with Memento Summer Sky inks.  The sentiment is from Winter Ruth set and I used papers from Echo Park's Winter Park 6x6 pad.

It's a fun card to make, and I hope you try it.  Please click on the links below to discover the favourite sets the Design Team members are showcasing today:

Amber 

Belinda

Chere

Deneen

Jamie

Jenn

Inspired Stamps Blog

Have a great day!

Kary

You're in my Thoughts

Hello Friends!  Today I have a card for the Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #151.  I love this sketch and I felt all it needed was a pretty patterned paper and a simple image and sentiment.

I used the flower image from Your Ways, and the sentiment from Labels of Love. The flower was coloured with Copics R32, R35, R37, R29 and G000 for the outline.  The pretty patterned paper is from Webster's Pages Country Estate 6x6 and dies from Spellbinders Floral Doily Motifs and Classic Circles.

Thanks for stopping by.
Kary