Showing posts with label Basic Butterflies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Basic Butterflies. Show all posts

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Floral Wings Take Flight

This week's delightful colour challenge WWC26 is brought to you by Jean Fitch a long time member of the Watercooler artists group..  
Jean's selection of Marina Mist, Daffodil Delight and Crumb Cake evokes fond memories of the lazy hazy summer days of my youth.  When school was out we'd head for the hills and play for endless hours among the buttercups, bachelor's buttons, and waving grasses.  And of course there were butterflies flitting on the breeze.  Ahhhh, summer. Those great memories and great colours gave me special motivation to ink up my new Floral Wings stamp set.

Here's My Card:
Supplies:
Stamps:  Floral Wings and Butterfly Basics
Ink:  Marina Mist, Daffodil Delight and Crumb Cake
Cardstock, Whisper White, Daffodil Delight, Marina Mist and Crumb Cake 
Accessories:  Butterfly Framelits, Basic Pearls, Spring Flowers Embossing Folder, Elegant and Bitty Butterfly punches, trimmer, big  shot.  


 
When I began making this card, I envisioned what my finished card would look like, however, things just didn't go as planned.  As I progressed, my earlier image changed and began morphing into something else, and by the time I finished, my card looked nothing like it's beginnings.  Have you ever had this happen to you?

I didn't have any particular sketch in mind when I started on this card. I originally planned to start with a whisper white card base, then add layers of Marina Mist and Daffodil Delight followed by a stamped image of the large butterfly on a Whisper White layer. I was thinking of adding some small butterflies of other accent with the Crumb Cake card stock.


In the end, I wasn't happy with my stamping and decided to use the Butterfly Framelit die to cut out two of the butterfly images I'd stamped on Whisper White.  This was a good decision as they turned out so soft and lacy looking and added a whole different dimension to this card. These butterflies look like they were cut from a beautiful designer series paper.

By punching out smaller butterflies with the Elegant and Bitty butterfly punches and layering them in the center of the card I totally changed the layout.  I'm happy with all the changes and how the card turned out in the end. 
If you look closely at the card base you'll hopefully see the honey comb images stamped as a watermark in Crumb Cake ink around the edges of the card base. I also cut down the size of the original mats and embossed them with the Spring Flowers Embossing Folder (retired).
I also stamped the honeycomb image and the Happy Birthday sentiment from the Butterfly Basics stamp set on the inside card piece.  Here you can see what the original butterfly stamping looked like before I cut out the butterflies with the Butterfly Framelit.  Aren't those yellow flowers pretty?

I really enjoyed stamping with the Floral Wings stamp set.  TIP: Start off by stamping the flowers first, then layer in the leaves and finally center the butterfly over the images. You'll get a nicer result.  When you mount the stamps on your clear block make sure the tabs are all facing or lined up the same, and you will have perfect results every time.  

Here's another card I made with this stamp set and two of the challenge colours, Marina Mist and Daffodil Delight.  This 10 piece photopolymer stamp set gives a two-step stamped image that is very versatile.  I'm sure there are endless possibilities. 


For these cards I used the Marina Mist and Daffodil Delight combo to create a warm and inviting scene.  The Whisper White background is embossed with one of my favourite embossing folders this year called Lovely Lace.  

I stamped the vase in Marina Mist on both the Whisper White card stock for the actual vase image as well as on Marina Mist for the butterfly background. By using a combination of the multiple flowers and a single flower I was able to create the abundant bouquet image. 

Do you recognize the little bow on the vase?  It comes from the Mini Treat Bag Thinlits set.  Isn't it cute?  TIP:  I have a small Xyron for making stickers, so once I cut out the bow with the thinlit die, I ran it through the Xyron. It was perfectly glued with no excess oozing out on the sidelines.  
 
The Mini Treat Bag Thinlits are currently on sale in the Weekly Deals.  Purchase before June 29th and you'll save 15% off on this great framelit die.  Click here to see the Weekly Deals. 

For my third and final card using Floral Wings, I worked with last week's  Colour Me Subtle Colour Challenge although I missed the cut off to the link by just a few minutes.  Here's my card:

I loved this colour mix too.  So soft and beautiful and absolutely perfect for the card I planned.  







The card base is Whisper White with a layer of Elegant Eggplant that's been embossed with the Lovely Lace Embossing Folder, and then stamped with the splatter from Gorgeous Grunge in Elegant Eggplant ink.  


This was followed by a layer of Whisper White that was first cut with the Apothecary Framelits die and then  stamped with three of the splatter stamps from Gorgeous Grunge that had been inked up with Old Olive, Coastal Cabana and Eggplant inks.  To distress this layer further I ran it through the Big Shot with the Lovely Lace Embossing folder, and then used a sponge dauber and Elegant Eggplant ink to highlight the embossing.  

The beautiful butterfly was first stamped in the challenge colours and then using the Butterfly thinlit I cut out the butterfly image in Elegant Eggplant cardstock and glued it over top of the stamped butterfly.  I love that veined look...........so beautiful.  To finish off the butterfly I used a combination of medium and small basic rhinestones, and then attached it to the card with dimensionals.  

For the sentiment I used the Happy Birthday from the Butterfly Basics stamp set stamped in Elegant Eggplant on Whisper White.  This piece was layered with a 2 3/4" x 1 1/8" strip of Coastal Cabanna cardstock.  For the final touch I fussy cut one of the flowers and added it with a dimensional.

Well that's it for this week's post folks.  I hope you enjoyed it.  I think you're going to be seeing a lot more of this Floral wings set, especially since Stampin' Up introduced a new set of butterfly framelits that works perfectly with this set.  It's called Bold Butterfly Framelits.  It's on my wish list.  






Happy Stamping!

Penny Tokens

Thursday, May 14, 2015

May Retirement Blues - Wacky Watercooler Blog Hop




It's time for another Wacky Watercooler Blog Hop and this time we're dedicating it to the "Retirement Blues", and I'm not talking about retirement from work.  I'm referring to the retirement of Stampin' Up! stamps and accessories that happens every May as Stampin' Up! prepares for the new Annual Catalogue launch on June 2nd.  
Check out the retirement list here.  Products and accessories are available until June 2nd or while supplies last. 
As a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator this is often a time of mixed feelings - happy and sad. I'm super sad to see some of my favourite stamp sets designer series papers and accessories go, but I'm also super excited knowing they'll be replaced by new products that will bring a smile to my face, and a lot of enjoyment to my stamping world!   

So I hope you'll join us on this "reminiscing" blog hop.  Get yourself comfy, grab your favourite beverage and settle in for a journey through some of our favourites.  Oh and in case you're not aware, wherever you begin in our blog hop, whether you're moving forward or backwards through the participants,  you'll eventually wind up precisely where you began.  

I hope you'll take time to visit all the participating blogs and, perhaps, leave a short message letting us know what you've thought of our posts, and comment on what products were your favourites too.  

If you've been moving forward through the hop you'll have arrived here from Marsha Reed's wonderful blog.  

Here's a list of all the Wacky Watercooler Blog Hoppers, just in case you get lost. 
Here's My First Project:
Ironically when thinking about what to make for my first project, I decided to make a Triple Layer Sympathy Card.  Unfortunately this year, I needed several Sympathy Cards, and my "to go for" stamp set was one of the 2014/15 Annual Catalogue Hostess Sets called Bloom With Hope.  I am truly going to miss this artistically sketched stamp set with it's eleven flowers and hopeful phrases.  



I pounced ink from my Indigo marker on the center of the flower to enhance the image and then covered it with Crystal Effects.  I stamped the "With Sympathy" from the Loving Thoughts stamp set in Wild Wasabi and Versa Mark inks and then mounted it onto a piece of Island Indigo cardstock.  While this stamp set is no longer available you can still get the MDS Studio Brush Script set for $4.99, but hurry as it will retire in June.  This is a terrific value for a wonderful sentiment set. 

For the leaves on this card I used the Square Lattice Embossing Folder and the Flower Frenzy Bigz Die.  I'm truly blue that this BigzL Die is retiring! 
Check out the Flower Frenzy BigzL Die on the Retiring Products list it is greatly reduced in price.  This is a fantastic  die for making floral designs and it's sad to see it go.
Supplies:
Stamp Sets:   Bloom With Hope (Hostess - 2015 Annual Catalogue) and Loving Thoughts
Bloom With Hope #133952
 
Loving Thoughts only available in MDS Studio Brush Script.
Ink:  Island Indigo, Wild Wasabi, Pool Party and Versa Mark
Cardstock:  Island Indigo, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White 
Accessories:  Flower Frenzy (leaves), Square Lattice Embossing Folder, Big Shot, Clear Blocks, Snips, Dimensionals, Trimmer, Crystal Effects, Sponge Dauber.

Measurements for Triple Layers:
1.  Card Base in Island Indigo measures 8 1/2 x 5 1/2 scored at 4 1/4
2.  Indigo Layers:  2 1/4 x 3 1/2", 3 1/4" x 4 1/2" 
3.  Whisper White Layers:  2 x 3 1/4", 3 x 4 1/4" and 4 x 5 1/4"

Second Project: 
I'm also sad and blue to see the Happy Hour Stamp Set retiring.   What a fun set.  It has a total of 17 images and sentiments, that are perfect for using on invitations, festive birthday or seasonal cards and more. Here's a card I made to showcase a few of these elements:


I just love the boldness of this sentiment!  I paper pieced the contents of the glass with Moonlight DSP Paper Pack The 48 sheet Moonlight DSP is such a great little paper pack. There are 12 different paper designs and you get 4 of each.  They measure 4 1/2 by 6 inches so they're perfect for card fronts and other small projects.  The designs correspond with Hello Honey, Basic Grey, Lost Lagoon and Blackberry Bliss It's on for 50% off right now in the retiring products promotion.   

Here's the inside of the card.  I continued stamping some of the circles with sponge daubers for a fun effect. 


Supplies:
Stamp Sets:  Happy Hour and Perfect Pennants
Ink:  Lost Lagoon, Hello Honey, Basic Gray
Cardstock:  Hello Honey, Lost Lagoon, Whisper White 
Accessories:  Basic Rhinestones, Large Oval Punch, Circle Framelits, Banner Framelit, Sponge Daubers Moonlight Designer Series paper pack

Third Project:
I really enjoy the BigzL Dies and one of my all time favourites has been the Petite Purse.  What a fun tool to have.  I've used this die over and over again for wedding and party favours, so I will really regret that it's gone.  Here are a couple of purses I made with this die:
I used Crisp Canteloupe for the base of this purse, one of the retiring In-colours that I'm going to truly miss.  The top of the purse was cut from DSP that retired with the Sale-A-Bration but the mix of colours went perfectly. Unfortunately you can barely see it because of my poor picture taking skills.   


I used the Petite Flower punch to cut out the large flower and the smaller ones were made with one of the Itty Bitty Accent punches.  Basic Pearls were added to the center.  I was trying to get a cascading flower effect placing all the flowers on the front.  I also  covered the brads that are holding the handle in place with the Petite Flowers but instead of the centers being Crisp Cantaloupe I added Lost Lagoon centers to bring out some of the colour from the DSP.  


I left the Crisp Cantaloupe purse background plain but it could have been stamped with a flower design as in this Regal Rose sample.  I like them either way.  With this super cute versatile die the sky and your imagination are the limit.
This die is so easy to use and the end product always brings a smile!

I hope you liked my projects today, and will leave a comment or two.  Don't forget to continue on to see the rest of the Wacky Watercooler participants projects.  They are simply awesome!


 

 




Before I go, here are some pictures of projects made with some of the other retiring stamp sets and products that I'm going to really miss.  Enjoy:
Stippled Blossoms - I literally cried when this was retired, and then I said "I'm never going to stop using this stamp set, it truly is my all time favourite!






Too Kind
This is an amazing 8 piece two-step set - perfect for every occasion. 

Starburst Sayings and Timeless Talk 

Timeless Talk 

Starburst Sayings

Postage Due 

Post Card 


Tea Party


Perfect Blend 

Today and Everyday





Well that's the end of my retirement tour.  Hope you had a good time.  

Happy Stampin!
Penny Tokens 

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