You Make Me Smile plus small cloud tutorial

Hi Everyone! I hope everyone has been having a great summer!  My kids start back to school next week.  I can't believe how quickly this summer has went by!  I'm due in a little over 2 weeks so we have lots happening the next few weeks!  I'm excited to meet our new little one soon.  We didn't find out if it is a boy or girl so I'm ready to find out! :)

Today, I thought I would share a card I created last month and a little tutorial on how I shade the clouds behind my images.   I recently picked up some Tiddly Inks images from an online shop and had to ink one up right away.

This adorable little girl is from the Friends are Flowers stamp set.  I love the little heart flowers in the pot.  The sentiment I used is from a little stamp that comes with one of the LOTV images.

I colored the image with copic markers (listed below).  I added some grass under her feet before masking to spray the sky and clouds.  I put together a little tutorial to show how I create the clouds.

Mini Cloud Tutorial

These are the supplies I use when spraying my backgrounds.  I have the clouds die cut from some Tim Holtz masking plastic.  It's nice because it's slightly tacky and you can use them over and over. 

I stamped the image on some Eclipse masking tape and cut it out to create the mask for my image.

First, put the mask over the image.  I didn't worry about masking the grass I had added because the blue is a light color and won't cover the darker green.

I added some of my cloud masks randomly around my image.  Then, I sprayed the piece using a blue copic marker and my air compressor.

After removing the masks, the image looks like this.  I store the image masks on the back of my clear stamp sets like this so I can use them again later if I want to.  No use cutting them out all over again. :)

For this tutorial, I used W0 and W1 when coloring my clouds.  (I didn't have W00 when I photographed this tutorial.  I now use that color, too, since it is even lighter.)  First, I went around the the clouds where I wanted the shadows with the W1 marker.  Then, I flicked the color up using the W0 marker to help blend the colors up.  I did this a couple times until I got a nice blend and shading to my clouds.  Remember to use a light hand so the clouds don't get too dark.  I often go over the gray again using my colorless blender, too, to lighten the colors.  (This can push too much color to the bottom of the clouds, though, so use it lightly.)

I later added more grass below her feet, too. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. 

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I love hearing from my blog readers! :)
Niki

you make me smile card supplies:
Stamps: Friends are Flowers (Tiddly Inks), sentiment (LOTV)
Cardstock: X-Press It (Copic), hot fudge (MFT)
Patterned Paper: This & That: Graceful (Echo Park)
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento (Tsukineko)
Embellishments: twine, hot fudge button (MFT), pearls, graph washi tape
Copic Markers
skin: E000, E00, E11, R00, R20
hair: E13, E15, E17, E19, E18
dress: R32, R35, R37, R39
shoes: W2, W4, W6, W8, W10
shirt: G05, G00
heartsL R24, R27, R37, R89
pot: E33, E35, E37
sky: BG11, B000
grass: YG11, YG63, YG67< E35, N6, N8
clouds: W0, W1

I {heart} you and little masking tutorial

Earlier this week, I received a fun package of stamps that I had ordered from Simon Says Stamps filled with a bunch of Lawn Fawn stamps.  Their images are so cute and they are so fun to play with! This was the first card I created with my new stamps.  Aren't those little critters so cute?!

I stamped my kraft card base with the little heart background stamp from Teeny Tiny Backdrops and some red ink.  I stamped my images on Copic X-Press It cardstock with Tuxedo Black Memento ink.  I did some masking (little tutorial on masking below) to create the image with my two little foxes (fox, mushrooms, and tree from Critters in the Forest, hearts from My Silly Valentine, and grass from Critters in the 'Burbs). 

I used these copic markers to color my image:
foxes: E08, E09, E18
mushrooms: E31, E33, R29, R46, R89
hearts: R29
grass:YG67
tree: YG63, YG67, G99
sky: BG000, BG0000
colorless blender

After coloring my image with copic markers, I stamped my polaroid image from Say Cheese on white cardstock and cut it out.  Then, I stamped my sentiment (also from Say Cheese) on the bottom and colored the little heart.  I adhered my image behind my polaroid and wrapped some baker's twine from my etsy shop around the bottom and tied a button with a bow.  I stitched a little piece of patterned paper from Cosmo Cricket to some red cardstock and adhered it to my card base.  Last, I added my image with some foam adhesive.

Masking Tutorial

Many of you may already know how to mask images, but I thought I would share a little tutorial for those of you that might not have done much masking yet with stamped images.  The Lawn Fawn images are perfect for masking!  The lines in the images are easy to cut for masking (and paper piecing).

I use these supplies when masking: Eclipse Masking tape (available in 6" and 1" rolls), Tuxedo Black Memento Ink, detail scissors, stamps, and acrylic block.  I used the Lawn Fawn Critters in the Forest stamp set for this tutorial.  (You can also use sticky notes for your masks, but I prefer the Eclipse Masking Tape.)

Stamp all your images on the Eclipse Masking tape and cut out with detail scissors.  For my scene, I used the two little mushrooms and stamped the fox twice so I could use the image twice in my scene.

Stamp your first image (the image that will be at the front of the scene that you will see in its entirety).  Then, apply the mask (littlest mushroom) and stamp the second image that will be slightly behind the first.  The mask prevents you from stamping over the first image so you will still be able to see it.

Mask the second stamped image and stamp your third image.  Continue doing this until all your images are stamped.

After I stamped my two mushrooms and two foxes, I stamped the tree behind them.  I didn't have to mask my tree because it was at the back of my scene and I wouldn't be stamping anything behind it.  I added a little grass stamping to each side of the image. It looks like a mess with all the images stamped over each other, but as you peel the masks off . . .

you can see all the images look like they're supposed to with parts of them masked off.  (I also added a few little hearts above my little foxes.)  I decided it looked a little strange like the first fox was standing on the second fox's tail, but you can't see that part of the image in the polaroid frame anyway.

One more little tip: I store my masks with my stamp sets.  They are reusable so I won't have to cut them out next time.  I just put these masks on the backside of my stamp set before slipping my stamp set back in the package. (I used the little owl, log, and clouds on another card that I'll share next week.)

I hope this tutorial might have helped you if you haven't done any masking before.  Feel free to ask questions if something wasn't clear.  We are heading out this afternoon to go visit my dad and step-mom.  Have a great weekend!

Niki

School Time Day One

Hi Everyone!  Welcome to Day One of the Papertrey Ink Countdown.  I have two new sets, School Time and School Time Additions, releasing this month on the 15th.  Things have been a little busy around here with a new little one and preparing my sneak peeks so if I leave something out, just ask.  When I was creating these sets, I wanted them to be versatile so they would work well for scrapbooking and card making so there are many images within the sets that are perfect for both uses.
Stamp Set Details:
School Time consists of 15 stamps (4 image stamps, 4 sentiment stamps,
4 background stamps, one journaling card stamp, one rectangle border
stamp, and one circle border stamp) and will retail for $24.

School Time Additions consists of 40 stamps (21 number stamps, 18 word stamps, and a colon) and will retail for $15.
Okay, how about a first look at my new School Time stamp set.

It's hard to pick my favorite stamp in the set, but this alphabet background stamp has got to be one of my favorites.  I love how easy it is to create an alphabet background.  I stamped my background directly on my kraft card base and sponged the edges with brown ink.  Then, I stamped the frame on vintage cream cardstock and cut it out.  I rounded the corners and sponged the edges with brown ink.  I added my sentiment and apple image.   Then, I added my pure poppy and simply chartreuse layers.  I stitched around the edge and adhered it to my card with foam adhesive.  Last I added the cardstock circles and buttons to the bottom of my card.

Alphabet Background Stamp Tutorial

I thought I would do a little tutorial about how to use the alphabet background stamp because I designed it differently than most of the background stamps available through Papertrey Ink.  This is what the stamped image looks like.  See the dip in the letters about the G, J, and L. 

To create the stamped alphabet background, stamp the image once.  Then, ink the stamp up again and align it so the D and H fit in the dip above the G, J, and L.

Continue stamping your background up your paper by aligning the bottom letters in the dips of the previously stamped image.

Once you have stamped up your paper, it will create a diagonal image.  Go back and stamp the image again by aligning the A beside the X and Z and vice versa for the oppposite side.  When you are through, you will have a wonderful stamped alphabet background like the one on my card.

The other stamp designers have sneak peeks of their new sets as well so be sure to stop by and see what they've created: Nichole, Alli, Heather, and Dawn.  Betsy also has some sneak peeks of the fun new set she helped Nichole design.  I'll be back again tomorrow night with more sneak peeks at my new School Time stamp sets.

Thanks so much for stopping by!
Niki

Recipe
Stamps: School Time (Papertrey Ink - available July 15th)
Cardstock: kraft, vintage cream, pure poppy, simply chartreuse (Papertrey Ink)
Ink: dark chocolate, pure poppy, true black (Papertrey Ink)
Accents: pure poppy buttons (Papertrey Ink)
Tools: sewing machine, sponge

Butterfly Dreams Day 3

Wow, I can't believe it is already day three of the countdown.  Today, I thought I would go in another direction with the style of my card and share a vintage inspired card.  Sweet blush and rustic cream are perfect for vintagey cards!

I used the second background stamp in the set to create my own stamped paper on the bottom and Damask Designs for the stamped paper on the top.  I stamped a piece of rustic cream cardstock with Text Style II and antique linen distress ink and then used a scalloped circle die to cut out my circle.  I sponged the edges of my scalloped circles, my card base, and my patterned stamped paper.  Then, I stitched my patterned stamped papers to my sweet blush card base and wrapped some crocheted lace around one side of my card.  I tied a sweet blush ribbon around the front of my card and added a vintage cream button to the center of my bow.  I die cut a butterfly from rustic cream cardstock, stamped my butterfly in sweet blush ink, sponged the edges, and added a body using the separate body stamp included in the set.  Last, I stamped my sentiment and adhered my butterfly and scalloped circles with foam adhesive.

Stamping with Background Stamps

I know many of you are pros when it comes to stamping with Papertrey's background stamps, but I thought I would share a few tips for those of you that might be new to using this style of stamps.  The background stamps are designed to make it easy to create your own stamped papers.  My background stamps are a little shorter than those previously released through Papertrey Ink, but they will work the same way.  I just shortened them so I could fit more butterflies in the set. *wink*

First, stamp your first row.  I always start in the lower left hand side of my paper.  Stamped patterned papers will look the most like real patterned papers if some of the stamped image goes off the edge of the cardstock.

Now, reink your stamp and realign it above your stamped image.  You can see with my butterflies that the top butterfly will hang over the edge of the cardstock again since I stamped the first row off the edge.  Align the stamp so the bottom row of butterflies stamp above and in between the butterflies previously stamped.

Repeat stamping until you reach the top of your cardstock.  To start your second of stamped butterflies, simply align the stamp so it matches the first set of butterflies you stamped.

Continue stamping until you fill your cardstock with your custom stamped pattern.

Lots more sneak peeks on these designers' blogs: Nichole, Lisa, Dawn, Heather, Alli, and Melissa.  I'll be back tomorrow night with more sneak peeks.  Have a wonderful weekend!

Niki

Recipe
Stamps: Butterfly Dreams, Background Basics: Text Style II, Damask Designs (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: rustic cream, sweet blush (Papertrey Ink)
Ink: sweet blush, dark chocolate (Papertrey Ink), antique linen distress ink (Ranger)
Accents: sweet blush satin ribbon, vintage cream button (Papertrey Ink), crocheted lace
Tools: butterfly die (Papertrey Ink), corner rounder, sewing machine, scalloped circle dies (Spellbinders)

mini copic marker tutorial

Did everyone have a good Christmas?  Ours was really nice.  We stayed home and just spent time together as a family.  It was very laid back.  Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, too!

I have a little mini copic marker tutorial over on the Whiff of Joy Blog today showing how I colored this cute little Henry Mouse Hugging Heart image.  I would love it if you stopped by to check it out and to see my card in its entirety.  I just love this patterned paper from My Mind's Eye, Irresistible.  The sentiment and heart I used are from Verve Stamps (Thankful Accents and Thankful Hearts).

Have a great day!

Niki

vintage birthday and flower tutorial

I created this card for the last Papertrey Ink release, but I haven't shared it yet because I wanted to type up a quick tutorial with how to create the flower embellishments.  They are really simple to create, but I will get to that in a minute.

For my card, I wanted to create a vintage inspired card.  The Green Tea Leaves patterned paper is one of my favorite patterned paper lines from Papertrey Ink.  I love how it can be modern and also easily vintage with just a little distressing.  I cut my patterned pieces to fit my card.  Then, I sponged dark chocolate ink along the edges and lightly sponged the top of the patterned paper.  I made it darker in some spots than others.  I think this helped it look like old, dirty wallpaper or fabric.  Then, I distressed the edges with an edge distressor.  I stitched my patterned papers and twill (which I had also dirtied up by sponging it with dark chocolate ink) directly to my card base and stamped my sentiment in the lower corner with true black ink.  Last, I created my flower embellishments.

Here's a close up of my custom flowers.  I love the look of text printed papers and embellishments!  I attached my flower embellishments to my card using foam adhesive.  I thought I would share a quick tutorial so you can easily create your own text style flowers.  They are so easy to create and I love how they look!

Flower Tutorial

All the supplies are pictured here except the dark chocolate ink and sponge.  Start by stamping a sheet of vintage cream cardstock with the Background Basics: Text Style stamp set and dark chocolate ink.  (I used part of my stamped paper on this card.)  You can click on any of the photos to see a larger version.

Use a flower punch to cut your text patterned flower.  (I used the Marvy Extra Jumbo flower punch.)

Use a 3/4" circle punch to punch a pure poppy circle.

Sponge the edges of the flower with dark chocolate ink.

To help the sponged ink look more gradual, I lightly sponge the entire flower with dark chocolate ink.  Remember to dab your sponge on scrap paper first to get rid of some of the ink.  You can always add more ink, but you can't take it away.

Sponge the edge of the pure poppy circle with dark chocolate ink.

Layer your flower, pure poppy circle, and aqua mist button and punch holes through the button holes with a paper piercer.  This will make it easy to stitch the layers together with embroidery floss.

Stitch the layers together and tie a knot in the embroidery floss on the back of the flower to hold it all together.

And here is your completed, custom flower embellishment.  They are so easy to create and definitely cheaper than buying a similar product at a scrapbook store.  We all know times are tight right now for many people (my family included) so it's always great to have another way to use your stamps to save a little money.  I attach them to my card with foam adhesive for extra dimension.

Hope you enjoyed this little tutorial.  Have a great day!

Niki

Recipe
Stamps: Background Basics: Text Style, Damask Designs (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: vintage cream, kraft, pure poppy (Papertrey Ink)
Patterned Paper: Green Tea Leaves (Papertrey Ink)
Ink: dark chocolate, true black (Papertrey Ink)
Accents: aqua mist vintage buttons (Papertrey Ink), twill
Tools: sewing machine, edge distressor, sponge, extra jumbo flower punch (Marvy Uchida)

basket tins tutorial

I thought I would share a tutorial today in case anyone wanted to create some little baskets like these that I made for my kids using the 8 oz round clear top tins.  They are really pretty simple to create and the only special thing I used was a crop-a-dile.  You need something that is strong enough to punch a hole through the metal tins.  The tutorial will go back and forth between the boy and the girl versions that I created.  I created them at the same time and took photos of each along the way. If you would like to view larger photos, they should enlarge if you click on them.
 

First, cut a strip of cardstock 1 x 11.  The small ovals from the Borders and Corners: Oval set fit perfectly on the one inch strips.  I always stamp first on scrap paper to make sure my stamp is stamping evenly.  Then, simply stamp the entire strip with the oval of your choice.
 

The little bunny and the little chick from the new Tags for Spring stamp set fit perfectly in the small ovals.  I stamped the bunny in dark chocolate ink on my boy version and the chick in summer sunrise ink on the girl version.

Now, you will need a layer of cardstock for below our stamped images.  I cut mine 1 1/2 x 11 inches and then trimmed a tiny bit off the end.  Sorry, this is not an exact measurement!  When you are wrapping two layers around a tin, the bottom layer will always wrap farther around the tin because the top layer is going around both the tin and the layer of cardstock below it.  (Does that make sense?)  It's esentially going around something that has just a tad bit bigger circumference.  For this reason, I trimmed just a little bit off the end of the colored cardstock so they would end up being the same length when wrapped around the tin.  This is not really necessary.  I just like how it looked a little better.
 

Apply the adhesive to the back of the cardstock.  I just used my atg and added some glue dots to the ends to give it a little extra strength.
 

Wrap the cardstock around the tin just below the embossed part of the tin where the lid rests.
 

Don't wrap it all the way around yet.  Just wrap it most of the way around and then stop so we can add the other layer without overlapping.
 

Now, center the stamped cardstock and adhere it over the solid cardstock.
 

Go ahead and adhere the end of the solid cardstock over the stamped cardstock.  See how it overlaps?  I just think it looks a little better if the two pieces are adhered the same way.  You certainly could just adhere each strip and not worry about this.

Now, we are going to make the handle for our baskets.  I cut my ribbon strips 8 inches long, but I would have liked them to be a tag bit longer when I was done with my baskets so I would go 9 inches long.  Cut two strips of ribbon.  I run a strip of adhesive from my atg down the backside of the top ribbon (my spring rain twill in this case).  This helps keeps the ribbons together and they don't slip out of place when you are putting everything together.
 

Now, just center the top ribbon over the bottom ribbon and adhere the two ribbons together.
 

Now, it's time for the crop-a-dile.  Use the large hole punch and punch a hole through either side of your tin (opposite of each other).  Center it on the cardstock that is above the stamped strip.

Now, wrap a piece of ribbon (I use the atg to make the ribbon back sticky) around the top of the tin.  Make sure the ends that overlap will be in the back.

Now, thread the ribbon through the punched holes on each side.  I stick a glue dot on the end to hold it in place.

Now, use the smaller hole punch on your crop-a-dile and punch a hole through the ribbon handle, the strip of ribbon around the top of the tin, and the tin itself on both sides of the ribbon handle.  I center the punched hole on the handle and on the ribbon strip going around the tin.
 

Now, add your brad through the hole.  The brad and the glue dot will help hold the ribbon handle in place and the decorative brads look pretty on the sides.  You can see the inside of other side of the tin in the photo.  It's not too pretty on the inside so we're going to line the inside and that will cover up the ribbons and the ends of the brads.
 

I used polka dot basics to stamp my cardstocks that I used to line the insides.  I just heated it with my heat gun to make sure the ink dried quickly and I could put them inside my tins without smearing the ink.
 

Now, put the cardstock liners inside the tins.  I put adhesive on the back and curl the cardstock while putting it inside the tins. (Make sure not to touch the adhesive to any of the rest of the cardstock.  You don't want it getting stuck to itself.)
 

To create the tags, use a scalloped circle nestability die to punch a tag that opens (create a hinged edge).  Then, punch four white cardstock circles.  I used a circle from Borders and Corners: Circles for the inside and a stamp from Tags for Spring for the ouside.
 

I tied the tags to my ribbon handles using white embroidery floss and added a stitched button to the tags using a glue dot.
 

Here you can see I stamped the "for my" and just hand wrote who they were for on the inside of the tag.

After the basket tins sat for a bit, I thought they were looking a little plain so I went back and added some stamping on the bottom of the baskets.  The little astricks on the bottom of the boy basket are from Borders and Corners: Rectangles.  The flowers on the girl basket are from Borders and Corners: Heart.  I added the white to the flower centers using a white signo pen. 

I filled some baggies with jelly beans and tied a ribbon around the top to finish them off.

Phew!! It took forever to type this up and load all the photos!  I would love to hear what you think!  If you decide to create one, be sure to leave me a link so I can check it out!

Niki

Recipe
Stamps: Tags for Spring, Borders and Corners: Oval, Borders and Corner: Rectangle, Borders and Corners: Heart (Papertrey Ink)
Cardstock: white, sweet blush, spring rain, dark chocolate, raspberry fizz (Papertrey Ink)
Ink: dark chocolate, fresh snow, summer sunrise, raspberry fizz, true black (Papertrey Ink)
Accents: new leaf bitty dots ribbon, new leaf grosgrain ribbon, spring rain twill, raspberry fizz satin ribbon, sweet blush twill, dark chocolate swiss dots ribbon, summer sunrise swiss dots ribbon (Papertrey Ink), vintage cream button, new leaf button (Papertrey Ink), brads (Making Memories)
Tools: crop-a-dile, circle nestability die, scalloped circle nestability die (Spellbinders), white Signo pen
Other: 8 oz round clear top tin (Papertrey Ink)