Enjoy Life

So many things around us inspire what we create.  I recently spotted an embossing folder that also cut out a hot air balloon window and bought it immediately.  I knew just what I wanted to do with it and this is the card I am sharing today.

Even with a plan, this card did take a while to make as I did little parts at a time.  With my recent knee surgery, I could only sit with my leg down for a limited time so lots of interruptions.  I had made some backgrounds with alcohol inks and chose one that looked like sky and clouds and ran it through the folder.  I stamped the two Just For Fun balloons on the front and the heat embossed their Enjoy Life sentiment in white on the background layer, through the cut out window.  Acetate was placed behind the window and the embossed front was popped up to create a shaker window filled with sequins.

The JFF Flower Balloon and the Steam Punk Balloon were stamped and colored with Tombow Markers.  The circular balloon and the basket from each were cut out and layered on the front stamped images.  A few more sequins were added.

These stamptangle designs are a lot of fun to color and worked great with this folder.

What inspires your cards?

What's Brewing?

Here is one more coffee themed card for the 2019 Spring/Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop.  This card features four stamps from Just For Fun Rubber Stamps.  The Coffee and the Café images were heat embossed in white on brown cardstock and cut out.  The What's Brewing was stamped on kraft cardstock.

These were all layered on some special coffee paper that my friend shared with me from this special pad of paper she had.  

I stamped the Water Ring on it in brown and added a variety of brown layers.

I’ll be back Monday with a new card.

I entered this project in the following challenge:

2019 Spring/Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop

He Has Risen

What a lovely weekend for Easter.  I hope you had a special time with family and friends.  I spent mine laid up due to knee surgery but was inspired to make it into my craft room and make this card to share.

The Easter Cross, from Just For Fun Rubber Stamps, was heat embossed in white on a piece of cardstock and a piece of vellum.  The one on the cardstock was fussy cut and layered behind the one on the vellum.  This was all layered on top of light blue and a white die cut oval window placed over this.  JFF's He Has Risen sentiment was stamped on a piece of vellum and layered across the center and blue pearls added to the corners.

Have a great week.

Just For Fun February Challenge

Wow! I can’t believe it is already February.  I’m sure we just had Christmas.  This means it is time for a new challenge at the Just For Fun Blog.  

The new theme is Music with Purple, Green, and Gold.

The background of my card was created by smooshing watercolor paper into various spritzed Distress Inks (purples and greens) on a craft mat.  When this was dry,  Just For Fun’s Distressed Music Block was lightly stamped in several areas.  The design was very subtle.  JFF’s new Poinsettia Flower was stamped along the top and their Treasured Times sentiment along the bottom.  Both were heat embossed with detail white embossing powder.  Additional white EP and some gold EP were sprinkles in areas and heat set from beneath.

This card front was layered on gold and a white card base.  A simple but colorful design.  Now head on over to the Just For Fun Blog to get the challenge details and some great inspiration from my fellow designers. 

  

Autumn Greetings

With all the Black Friday craziness, everyone around me is moving on with Christmas prep.  I am still enjoying my turkey and the lovely fall look surrounding my neighborhood.  Before I move on I have one more fall card to share.

I have had the thought and design of this card in the back of my mind for a while and finally had some time to create it.  The new Modern Leaf from Just For Fun was stamped repeatedly with Rich Cocoa Memento Ink on cream cardstock, then added to layers of brown and gold.  The same image was heat embossed in gold on fall colors of cardstock and fussy cut.  These were tucked around the Autumn Greetings sentiment, from JFF's The Seasons Word Block, and at the bottom.

Love the simplicity of this card with the pop of color.

Just For Fun February Challenge

Where did January go?  It flew by and Just for Fun Rubber Stamps' Blog has a new challenge for February.  The new challenge is "Silhouette Stamps".  

Just for Fun has so many wonderful ones in their online store and I love working with these.

I created this Valentine’s card using JFF’s Couple Under Light Post silhouette stamp.  It was stamped in red on white cardstock and layered on black.

For the background, one of JFF’s 2 Sided Postal Hearts was heat embossed in white and spritzed with water.  Color Bursts were carefully sprinkled on and allowed to spread and bleed.  When dry, this was layered on black and white and a pink card base.  Dark and light pink jewels were added to the sides.

Get all the challenge details at the Just For Fun blog.  You can also see more great samples from my fellow designers.

E. Marie

New Year's Challenge

Happy New Year!  Hard to believe it is already 2018.  With a new year come lots of resolutions and wishes.  At the Just For Fun blog we also have a new challenge. 

For January we have a color challenge  - Blue, Purple, Silver.

This inspiration card uses a background layer created with an embossing folder and various ink colors.  I have had this in my stash for a while, thinking I would use it for a birthday card, but it caught my eye and I kept thinking about the count down for New Year’s.  It was trimmed down and layered on dark blue and purple cardstock edged with Silver Blue Embossing Powder.

Just for Fun’s Skyline Silhouette and the May all your wishes... sentiment were both heat embossed with Silver Blue Embossing Powder on dark blue cardstock.  I used my new Tim Holtz Stamp Platform to make sure I had a fully stamped image for the silhouette before embossing, and to help me place the sentiment.  This was added to the card front.

Since I had kind of a rough December, my wish for this coming year is to be healthier.  What is your New Year’s resolution or wish?

E. Marie

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!  This is such a special time of the year and for most of us, we really hope to see snow on Christmas day.  This is pretty rare in the south.  This card is for those of you who have been dreaming of a white Christmas.

The background is using Color Bursts and the Galaxy Technique.  I used Indigo, Ultramarine Blue, Merlot, and Yellow Ochre on watercolor paper.  After adding the water droplets to the background, I splattered it with a little Platinum Liquid Metals.  This gave a great shimmer to some spots which sadly does not show up in the pictures.

The Just For Fun new Silhouette Pines image, along with the Joy To The World from the Sentiments 1 Unmounted Sheet, were stamped with Versamark Ink and heat embossed with detail white powder.  To me this looked like a snow scene with the northern lights in the background.

Whether you have snow or not, cold or warm, I hope you have a very blessed Christmas.

E. Marie

Just For Fun November Challenge

Halloween has flown by and it is time for the November Challenge at the Just For Fun Blog.  The theme is Thanksgiving, along with Family and Travel.

I used three different Just for Fun stamp images for this card.  The small Stamptangle Pumpkin and the Stamptangle Tall Pumpkin were stamped with Versamark ink and heat embossed in gold on decorative cardstock.  The corn and wheat from the new Harvest Bounty were also heat embossed in gold and colored with Copics.  All were fussy cut and layered on a large red circle, die cut with a Spellbinders’ Circle Nestability.

The background is layers of two designer cardstocks, brown cardstock and a cream card base.  The front yellow layer was edged with Versamark Ink and heat embossed with more gold EP.  The JFF Happy Thanksgiving sentiment was added to the top.

We would love for you to share your cards for the JFF November Challenge.  Find more details, inspiration, and the link on the blog, here.

E. Marie

Not Lost

The new Lighthouse Silhouette is today’s featured image.  Instead of using the usual black for this silhouette image, I chose to use a dark brown.  The image was stamped with Rich Cocoa Memento Ink on decorative cardstock from K & Co.  This was die cut with Spellbinders’ Valiant Honor Card Creator Etched Die and ink was sponged around the edges before removing the die.  This was added to layers of dark brown and light blue.

The sentiment, Not All Who Wander are Lost, goes so well with the lighthouse, that guides the way.  It was heat embossed in light blue to coordinate with the light blue layer.

There are still a few days left to enter the current sketch challenge.  Find more information here.

E. Marie

America The Beautiful

This weekend many of you will be traveling to visit family for the upcoming 4^th Of July holiday.  To get the celebration started I have four patriotic cards to share with you, using Just For Fun rubber stamps.

I have been playing with several techniques and this first card uses a smoosh technique with a ziplock bag.  I added Fired Brick and Faded Jeans Distress Ink to the bag and spritzed with water.  White cardstock was laid over the ink and then all of this is flipped over so you can manipulate the ink to help with coverage.  When this has dried, you can repeat the process to add more color.  Once the background was completed and dry the Striped Background was stamped with Versamark Ink and Sparkle Embossing Powder was added and heat set.

The Statue of Liberty Silhouette and America the Beautiful sentiment were stamped with the same inks on a rectangle and layered on the front.  This was added to layers of blue and black and three small, red buttons were added.

For the next three cards I did a similar background but the ink was placed directly on my work mat, spritzed, and the cardstock was dragged through the ink.  I was working towards creating a background for the Joseph’s Coat technique so once the background dried, the Fireworks Burst was stamped several times on the background with Versamark Ink and then heat embossed with Sparkle Embossing Powder.   

It was so pretty like this that I just added the fussy cut Statue of Liberty Silhouette.  The Home of the Free... sentiment was added to a layered flag across the top and three small red jewels on the bottom.

This card has the same background technique as the previous one but this time I completed the Joseph’s Coat technique by sponging Chipped Sapphire Distress Ink over the entire background, bringing out the fireworks. 

On this final card, I used Distress Oxide Inks, which gave it a more muted look.

Have a wonderful time celebrating the upcoming holiday with friends and family and be safe!

E. Marie

I entered these projects in the following challenge:

Rubbernecker Challenge #12 - 4th Of July

TTCRD Challenge – “Anything Goes”

Simon Says Stamps Wednesday Challenge – Anything Goes

Repeat Impressions Challenge J2817 ~ Anything Goes