Serendipity Stamps June Blog Hop #1

Happy June everyone!

 Can you believe it's already summertime? I've been dreaming about the beach so I decided to create a shell card for you today! Before we get started, let me remind you that today is the beginning of Serendipity Stamp's first June BLOG HOP!!

Serendipity showcases a new set of stamps every two weeks. Just comment on the Design Team's blogs listed below to enter to win a $20 gift certificate to Serendipity Stamps. The more blogs you comment on, the likelier you are to win!

Here's a list of all the designers participating in the blog hop today...

Mary's Blog (Serendipity Stamp's owner)

Julie Warner
Beth Chiu (that's me!)

Vicki Zimmer

Marybeth Lopez

On to today's card! This stamp has got to be one of my all-time favorites from Serendipity...it  features a beautifully detailed Triton shell. 

 Before coloring this image, I decided to go online and study some images of this stunning shell. Some of my favorite images were those where the sunlight was shining behind the shell and the opening was a gorgeous shade of coral. I attempted to replicate this color with my Copic markers. I used shades of cream and light browns to color the rest of the shell. I then fussy cut my image and put it aside while I worked on my background.

To create the background for this card, I stamped with some stripes and distress stamps from my stash using MFT's Persimmon and Extreme Black Ink. I added some jute twine and some Buttermilk and Ebony Black Nuvo drops as well. I then placed my shell on top of the background using some foam tape for dimension.

I layered my panel several times with some black, deep coral, and sand-colored cardstock, using a scalloped die for the deep coral layer. I used more foam tape to pop up some of the layers. I then placed my layers on an A2-sized black card.

For the inside of my card, I stamped the My Life quote by Thoreau using MFT's Persimmon Ink. It's such a beautiful sentiment and is great for an everyday "Thinking of You" card. I added more layers to the inside of my card to give it a finished look.

I hope you all enjoyed your visit to my little corner of the world today. As always, thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful summer!

Serendipity Stamps May Blog Hop #2

Hi guys! So great to be back with you again!

I made a card with a beautiful hydrangea stamped image to share with you, but first let me remind you that today begins the second May BLOG HOP for Serendipity Stamps! 

Serendipity Stamps showcases a new set of stamps every two weeks. Just comment on the Design Team’s blogs listed below to enter to win a $20 gift certificate from Serendipity...the more blogs you comment on, the likelier you are to win!

Also, please welcome back the talented Christine Alexander who is Serendipity's guest designer for the month of May!

Here's a list of all the designers participating in the blog hop today...

Mary's Blog (Serendipity Stamp's owner)

Christine Alexander

Julie Warner

Beth Chiu (that's me!)

Vickie Zimmer

Miriam Napier

Marybeth Lopez

One last reminder before I tell you about my card...Serendipity Stamps has over 100 stamps currently in their $1 cling stamp sale! Be sure to check them out at https://www.serendipitystamps.com/category/dollar25-um-stamp-sale.html

Today's card features the gorgeous Hydrangea Large rubber stamp. I love the exquisite detail in this stamp!

Creating this card was fun and easy! I first stamped the hydrangea image onto Copic X-Press It paper using MFT's Extreme Black Ink. I added the Thinking of You sentiment above my hydrangeas.  I  used my Copic markers to color my hydrangeas. Even though I love blue hydrangeas, I wanted to do something a bit different here so I went to the internet and searched for images of hydrangeas.  I found this one I really liked and tried to replicate the colors with my markers. I made sure to add some BG0000 around the perimeter of my image to give a hint of sky.

After the coloring was finished, I die-cut my panel and then mounted it with foam tape onto some green polka-dot paper to match the hydrangea's leaves. I love using foam tape to give extra dimension to my cards! I finished with a little bow made from lime-green jute twine and some little blue "pearls".

As always, a great big THANK YOU for visiting with me today! Look forward to seeing everyone again very soon! Good luck on the blog hop!!

Serendipity Stamps March Blog Hop #2!

Happy Spring you guys!!

I've gotta tell you...I'm starting to get really excited because Springtime just officially began yesterday! I've been seeing lots of happy Springtime stamp images lately, and the gorgeous lilacs stamp from Serendipity Stamps that I've colored for today's card has to be one of my all-time favorites. Floral stamps are awesome because they can be used for so many different types of cards...thinking of you, birthday, sympathy, Mother's Day or other holiday, etc...pretty much any type of card you'd like to create!

Please note that today is the first day of Serendipity Stamp's second BLOG HOP for the month of March!

Serendipity Stamps showcases a new set of stamps every two weeks. Just comment on the Design  Team's blogs listed below to enter to win a $20 Serendipity Stamps gift certificate.....the more blogs you comment on, the more likely you are to win!

Here's a list of all the designers participating in the blog hop today...please welcome the talented Bonnie Klass who is our guest designer this month! And I apologize for all the different shades of purple fonts...I'm having some strange issues with my program that I just can't seem to get worked out yet!

Bonnie Klass - guest designer

Julie Warner 

Beth Chiu (that's me!)

Vickie Zimmer

Miriam Napier
Mary's Blog (Serendipity Stamp's Owner)
Marybeth Lopez

The lilacs stamp I used for my card this week is the Stamp of the Month for March which means that it will be 50% off until the end of this month!! Yay!! And before I forget....another YAY! There's a SALE going on right now at Serendipity Stamps! Buy any three items and get the fourth one FREE! The sale ends March 24th so be sure and check it out!

Here's my card for today...

I stamped the image onto Copic X-Press It paper using MFT's Extreme Black Ink. I wasn't exactly sure which colors I wanted to use for my image, so I went online and searched different lilac and butterfly images until I found one I liked and tried to mimic that one using my Copic markers. I used blue-violet, violet, and red-violet shades together to attempt to create more dimension and depth in the flowers. I used YG03/17/67 for the leaves, V000/01/04 for the butterfly, and BG0000/000/01 for the area around the image. 

I thought the image looked a bit flat so I decided to add a little bling to the flowers. I used two different types of sequins to do this...one was a regular iridescent sequin and the other was a much smaller circle without the regular sequin's "hole" in the center. It looks pretty when you turn the card back and forth in the light but unfortunately,  I had a hard time getting the camera to capture this.  The following photo may give you a little better idea...it all depends on how the light hits it!

I used purple Stardream cardstock to create a "frame" for my lilacs and used some foam tape between my frame and my lilacs. I then adhered these to the front of an A2 sized card. I also added a little bow made from green jute twine to the front of my card.

I used a Serendipity Stamps sentiment for the inside of my card...it's called Sending Lots of Love. I really love the elegance and the simplicity of this stamp! I stamped it using MFT ink in Grape Jelly which matched my Stardream cardstock perfectly.

That's all for today! As always, thanks for visiting and good luck on the Blog Hop!!

A Big 'My Favorite Things' Thank You!

Hello friends! I just had to share this easy card I made using My Favorite Thing's new 'Big Thanks' die. It's such a great size...I just love it!

I created the background for this card by first embossing MFT's Wavy Coloring Book stamp with Ranger's white embossing powder. I then colored over my embossed image using Distress Inks in Cracked Pistachio, Broken China, and Faded Jeans, being careful to wipe over the image with a lint-free cloth as I colored so that the inks didn't stain the embossed image. I cut out the rectangle frame using MFT's Stitched Rectangle Frames die and popped the inner rectangle up using foam sheeting. I placed the entire image over a navy card and added a few Doodlebug Design Sprinkles for fun. 

Newton's Nook Inky Paws Challenge #50...Newton Dreams of Italy

When I saw the gorgeous summery colors of this challenge, I knew I had to make a card using them. This adorable set where Newton visits Italy is one of my favorites. I can just envision Newton riding all over Italy on his purple scooter and seeing all the sights! 

I made this card using Lawn Fawn's Stitched Hillside Pop-Up Die and created the orange sky using Distress Oxide Ink in Spiced Marmalade. I then created the tree background using Lawn Fawn's Stitched Tree Borders. I colored all the kitties from Newton's Nook's 'Newton Dreams of Italy' using Copic Markers and cut them out with the corresponding dies. The purple plaid paper is from Lawn Fawn's Perfectly Plaid Rainbow paper pack. I stamped my sentiment and cut it out using MFT's Stitched Fishtail Sentiment Strips. A few sequins were added and voila! 

Not Feline Well?

   

I created this adorable little card using Newton's Nook stamps. The images were stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored with Copic markers. This card would surely bring a smile to someone who isn't feeling well! 

Supplies used for this card:

• Stamps: Newton's Sick Day and Coordinating Dies
• Dies: MFT's Stitched Round Square Frame, Lawn Fawn's Stitched Squares