Chill Out, Take It Easy

Chill Out Folks, Take It Easy! Spring officially starts today, and I am looking forward to warm sunny days and evenings so nice you can sit outdoors and "Take It Easy"!  

This is a card I submitted in the Texas Independence Day Card Challenge at Deadbeat Design Stamps the first of March. I started by cutting a piece of lavender card stock 4" X 5 1/4", and using the Relax Background Stamp from Deadbeat, stamped an all-over background using Versamark clear embossing ink and Lindy's Stamp Gang Two-toned embossing powder to cover the card.  I then took a large heart shaped Spellbinders die and cut-out the heart shape in the middle.  Using another white card stock piece, I used my Gelatos to add sunset colors and then with a baby wipe blended the colors to make the evening sky. Then, by stamping the adirondack chairs stamp from Deadbeat Designs, I colored them with my copic markers and fussy cut them out. Using 3-D pop dots, I adhered them right inside the heart cut-out. I also added a few flourish swirl die cuts from Memory Box in a purple translucent paper, and added the banner on which I stamped one of the phrases from the background stamp, "take it easy".

I saw this card base done on YouTube, listed as a File Folder Card.  Using my We R Memory Keepers Envelope board, the indention's cut at the top of the card make it look like a triple-cut file folder. Something different to send your friends and family.

Have a great day, and enjoy the weather, if it is nice where you are.

Humming Along

This is another of the wonderful stamp sets I recently purchased from Flourishes stamp company. Humming Along features two hummingbirds along with the Trumpet Vine and several leaf sprays. The sentiments range from Hello's to Thank You's, to "The tiniest thing" stamp I used on this card.

The background used here, was a piece of watercolor paper that I colored using the Tattered Angels Naturally Aged Rusty Metal Paint System.  After spritzing the colors on the watercolor paper, and letting it air-dry, I ran it through my Cuttlebug embosser and the Sea Beauty Embossing Folder from Spellbinders. I then stamped the Trumpet Vine on Neenah white card stock, along with the large hummingbird, and colored them with my Copic markers. I colored the vine as I remembered a vine my neighbor's yard, back when I was younger. It had bright orange trumpet shaped flowers that the hummingbirds used to love getting nectar from. I was always amazed at how those tiny little birds could move their wings so fast, darting in and out of the flowers on the vine.  I didn't remember too much about the coloring of the hummingbird, since they moved so fast, it was hard to see their coloring. But after looking at images on the Internet, I colored the "hummer" to blend with the background.

After fussy cutting the images, I adhered them to the background and card front using double sided tape. I also added a small banner with the sentiment, and outlined it with a Warm Violet ColorBox Chalk ink along with the embossed background. To add a bit of sparkle to the entire card, I dotted the background with some Apple Green acrylic paint, and sprinkled it with a fine sprinkling of two-toned embossing powder. I also added a bit of my Wink of Stella Glitter markers to some of the flowers and the hummingbird. The banner and "Hummer" were attached with foam tape to give the card some dimension.

Have a Great week, and enjoy your Halloween festivities. Don't eat too much candy, and have a spooky good time

PRIMA DOLL STAMP BLOG HOP! - Week #2- Summer

It's time for Week #2 of the Prima Doll Stamp Blog Hop! Have you seen the Doll Stamps from artist Julie Nutting? They are adorable, and a few of us are having so much fun with them, that we have decided to put together a 4-part Blog Hop, and the rules are very simple.

Each Tuesday throughout the month of August, we will be sharing creations made with a variety of these fabulous stamps, to inspire you. This is going to be a 4-Seasons Blog Hop with each Tuesday's projects featuring a season of the year.

The theme of Tuesday, August 13, 2013 will be Summer Features;  Tuesday, August 20, 2013 will be Fall Features;  and Tuesday, August 27, 2013 will be Winter Features.

All you will need to do is HOP to each of our blogs each Tuesday in August and leave us a comment. Be sure to leave your email address, because on August 30th we will EACH be giving away a prize!  (and we need to know how to get in touch with you, so we can send your Blog Candy!)

Yes, each participant will be giving away a prize package, and these packages will be shown on each of our blogs during the Hop!  REMEMBER. . . . you will need to comment each Tuesday to be eligible for the prize drawing.  AND. . . .if you share our hop information on your blog, Facebook page, or Twitter account, be sure to let us know and you will get a SECOND chance at the prize drawing.  WAIT THERE IS MORE!  If you become a follower/subscriber to our blogs, you will get a THIRD chance!!!!!!

Are you ready for some fun?????Here are our participants, and they are waiting for your visit this week!                          
                                                                     * * * * * * * * * * * *

                                                               Dar's Crafty Creations

                                                                 Primitive Seasons

                                                              A Mermaids Crafts

                                                                   Nellies Nest

                                Paper & Ink with Mulberry Mindy (you are HERE)

                                                               Scrap for Joy

                                                                     * * * * * * * * * * * *

Here is my Feature for Week #2:  SUMMER FUN AT THE BEACH TRIPTYCH

This three-panel art piece can be used as a free-standing collage, or wall art piece used to decorate your special "get-away" space, to remind you of a time, feel, or special destination that inspires you to relax and enjoy every moment of the day!

I started out by collecting all sorts of "beachy" type ephemera, clip art and stickers that reminded me of a special time. Most of my summers were spent with my family at the beach.  My father would take a couple of weeks vacation time during the summer when I was out of school, and the family would drive down to the coast of Texas, where we would enjoy the sun and sand, and lots of fish dinners during our stay.

I began the project by giving the entire piece a nice coat of white gesso and letting it dry completely. I then glued my clip art picture from Paper Wings Productions to the center panel about half way down.  Then using the picture as a starting point and guide, I sketched the mountains on the left panel, and the water line/horizon line on the right panel.  I then basecoated the beach/sand on the left , sand in the center, and water and sand in the right panel. When the paint was dry, I added a layer of gel medium to the sand area and sprinkled on a  layer of  Tim Holtz Distress Embossing Powder in Antique Linen, which when right from the jar looks like grainy sand.  I also added more gel medium to the left panel, and sprinkled on Spring Meadow Speckles from JudiKins, which is a product similar to glitter, (loose and rough textured) and reminds me of chopped up grass clippings. This gave the sand dunes a feeling of plants growing at the edges.  I then used various shades of watercolor pencils to color in the sky areas, and the water with waves.

After the sky dried, I painted a wash of yellow acrylic paint, thinned with Golden Acrylic Glazing Liquid around the edges of the frames, in the joining area, and on the back of the piece.  Then using the circles background stamp from Paper Wings Productions I stamped one row of the circles around each

frame in Sepia Archival Ink from Ranger. I colored in the mountain area with my Copic markers, and stamped some low clouds with the cloud stamp from Paper Wings. I also wet my watercolor brush with water, and scrubbed some white cloud areas in the sky areas and blotted with a paper towel. Using my white Posca marker, I added white caps to the waves in the water, and softened the stamped clouds so they weren't so striking.

The last steps consisted of adding all the collectibles to the triptych panels. To the left panel I added acrylic bubbles and spanish moss to the grassy area, with 3-D flowers to accent the panel. The center panel hilighted the sun in the sky and the shells in the sand at the water's edge, and a turtle sticker and sea glass accented the last panel along with the words, "Summer is. . . . Time for Fun!"

For my Prima Doll, I stamped the Doll in Peasant Dress Stamp on heavy watercolor paper, and colored her in with Copic markers, coloring on her one-piece bathing suit. I then paper pieced her dress/cover-up from a summery flowered scrap of scrapbook paper. I dimensionalized the dress and figure using the very thick 3-D Zots from Thermo-Web to adhere her to the triptych panel.

So, there you have it! Don't forget to leave a comment here, to be eligible for my "BLOG CANDY" give-away. Please check my sidebar on the right for a picture and list of my Blog Candy prize!

DON'T FORGET TO CONTINUE ON HOPPING TO JOYCE'S BLOG,  "SCRAP FOR JOY" to continue on the hop!

Here are a few more of my past projects using my Prima Doll Stamps.

Thanks for stopping by, see you again soon!   Mindy

LOVE-ly Lady Tag

Here's a special card for you, lovely lady!
Today's post is a tag/card made from the New Prima products I purchased from Paper Wishes/HOTP.

The tag is a large tag made by Prima, it's measurements are 3 3/4" x 8 1/2" and it is a heavy weight stock preprinted with an antique writing lightly in the background.  They come in a pad of 48 tags for about $7.00.  The back side is white, so you can decorate it also, or leave it plain for writing a special message.  It then fits easily in a #10 business size envelope for mailing.

The tall Doll stamp, also from Prima, is designed by Julie Nutting. They are just labeled as Doll and then a number. The companies where I have seen them, have them numbered #1, #2, #3, and so forth, but not every company's numbers are the same, so you have to remember which one you saw where.  There are two styles I have seen so far, a younger little girl, and the older looking tween or young woman. Then each doll has different poses and dresses. I stamped the doll on the tag with memento black ink and then colored it in with my copic markers.  I didn't really like the way the dress looked when I finished, so I paper pieced a dress to pop on top with foam dots. That gave the image some dimension anyway. I then stamped and punched a few various flowers and leaves from stock and assembled them together to form the floral arrangement in the bottom left corner. I used Ranger Glossy Accents to glue the flowers together, and Liquid Pearls to dot the centers. The sentiment "love" was colored with copics and then heat embossed with Vintage Gold embossing powder from Globecraft & Piccolo, and adhered with Glossy Accents. To finish off, I tied a bow at the top with a thin brown plaid ribbon.

A handwritten message on the back, and then pop it into an envelope and off it goes to a dear friend who is celebrating a birthday this month. I hope you have enjoyed this tag, and hope you will check back in a few days for more stamping and paper fun. See you soon.

Winter Wishes Collage Card

Brrrrrrrrr! Is Jack Frost nipping at your nose? Hello fellow stampers and collage artists. Today's card that I want to share with you is a Winter Wishes Collage card made from the 8" X 8 " "A Place in Time" paper pad from Graphic 45.

The January collage item page has snowflakes and snowmen in shades of teal. So I pulled out a teal card base to construct my card. I first got all my collage pieces together that I wanted to use, and arranged then on the front of my card to check the size. I then stamped the Snowflake #2 stamp from Penny Black in Versamark Clear Embossing Ink in several places on the front of the card, sprinkled them with white opaque embossing powder, and then heat set them. I then attached the collage elements to the card front with double stick adhesive and foam dots for the postage stamps.
I then stamped the phrases, "Brrrrrr!" and "Jack Frost" on the front of the card, and "Baby, it's COLD outside!" on the inside of the card. All of the phrases came from the "Snow Day" clear stamp set from Cardz TV with Mary. They have some of the cutest phrase stamp sets ever, I just went crazy when I saw them.  Of course, I wanted all the phrase stamps when I saw them, but had to limit my purchase to just a few.  Why not check them out HERE when you get a chance.

Have a great day, pour yourself some tea, and make some greeting cards. You will be glad you did! See you soon.