Dina Wakley Media Painted Tag

Just found this video on YT and LOVE love LOVE the way Dina Wakely created this tag and I have a thing for birds, too. I so want to try doing something like that. She makes it looks like it's a very easy and simple process; very doable. So, I'm thinking my next post will be my attempt at this tag even though I don't have any of the supplies Dina uses but I figure if I can pull it off with what I have, I just know you'll be able to do it, too.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a blessed and crafty day & enjoy the video share.

Hugs~Bettina :)

Stretch Your Stencils

Hi again,

Today I thought I'd post a link to a video that I actually made a while back (in June or so). I'm sharing the link because I'm not able to upload videos to my blog; I think I'd have to upgrade or something. Anywho, In the video I share how you might be able to use your existing stencils to emboss on paper. I got the inspiration from one of the SSS kit inspiration sheets where one of the cards caught my eye with its lovely, subtle soft texture which looked embossed to me. There was a moroccon stencil included in the kit so I played around with it to see if I could re-create the look of that embossed background and I share the results in this video on my YouTube channel:

So, I hope that inspires you to get out your stencils to use them in a new way.

Thanks for visiting and have a blessed & crafty day.

Bettina :)

Thinking Of You card

Hi folks,

Hope everyone had a fantastic 4th of July and is enjoying their summer. I can't believe it's already mid July; where'd the time go?!

I'm trying to figure out some technical issues with the Movie Maker software on my new computer; apparently it's not able to convert the file from my camera so I'm unable to edit any videos because I can only hear the audio. (*sigh*). Been wanting to make a tutorial for some time now but I can't get around this problem. So, instead here are some pictures of a card I made recently.

It's a standard A2 size card I made using the new Mama Elephant stamp set "In My Heart". This set has the cutest images and sweetest sentiments. You can find them here. I colored this image with my Spectrum Noir markers and used the coordinating die to cut her out.

I also purchased the "Landscape Trio" die set from Mama Elephant which I used to create the scene of the rolling meadows and the cloud shape. The meadow is cut from green cardstock, the cloud from some white, and the actual sky background is a very light blue cardstock scrap I found. I love the faux stitching the dies create. I used foam tape to adhere the cloud, the front layer of the meadow, the buttefly, the little girl, and the sentiment. I used different thicknesses of foam tape to create the various layers and depth. Check here if you're interested in this die set. I love it!

The sentiments is actually from Lawn Fawn; it's the "Chit Chat" stamp set and I used a coordinating die to cut that out as well. I'm in love with this Memento Luxe ink color Lilac Posies. It's like the perfect shade of pink and it just looks yummy. The picture doesn't do it justice.

I stamped the grass (included with the stamp set) all over the green cardstock to add more texture & interest 'cause it was looking a little bland. Also stamped the butterfly (also part of the set) on the background then stamped it again, colored it, and cut it out and used a tiny piece of foam tape to place it over the stamped image.

Finally, I added some sequins because I can't leave well enough alone and clean and simple cards are super hard for me. But I think it's still clean and simple. What do you think? Did you make anything fun lately? Would love to hear from you.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope you enjoyed this card.

Have a blessed & crafty day.

Bettina :)

Supplies used:

Stamps & Dies: In My Heart by Mama Elephant, Landscape Trio
Papers: White, green, and light blue cardstock; card base is white cardstock
Inks: Memento Tuxedo black, Spectrum Noir: FS2, TN1, TN2, PP3 (Face, arms & legs) PP3, BP1, PP6 (dress), Memento Luxe Lilac Posies
Adhesives: 3M Foam tape and Recollections foam dots
Embellishments: Pink & Irridescent White sequin (Michael's brand)

Souffle's Sentiments Hello Card

Hi, and welcome to my first post of my new crafty blog.

Today I wanted to share with you a card I created last night using stamps included in the July 2014 Simon Says Stamp card kit. I also used the cutest little ducky image from my new-ish stamp set, Popcorn the Bear. This set is called "Souffle's Sentiments" and it's made by Crafter's Companion. Isn't he cute? I'm not sure if his name is Souffle? I kind of love that idea. lol. You can find the stamp set here.

While the card is fairly easy to put together, it did take me about an hour to complete it because of all the fussy cutting and distressing of each envelope. So here's what I did.

I stamped out the ducky on some white scrap paper with Memento Tuxedo Black ink, colored him in with Spectrum Noir markers, and then fussy cut him out. In hindsight, I should have used the cardstock intended for use with alcohol markers for smoother blending. Buuuuutttt....he still turned out stinkin' cute :)

Next I used all the envelope stamps from the "Sending Happy Thoughts" stamp set and stamped them out on various colored card stock using VersaMark ink and black embossing powder. Once I heat set the embossing powder I cut out each envelope. Next I chose Tim Holtz distress inks that closely matched the colored card stock and sponged the edges of each envelope. Since I don't have a lot of distress inks, I actually chose the papers based on the inks I did have. Gotta make do, right? A few envelopes were stamped with a heart stamp (also from the kit) using a SSS ink called Red Lipstick (came with the kit).

Finally, I stamped out the "hello" from the same stamp set in a turquoise ink and used a 1" punch to punch it out.

For the background I chose some polka dot paper. On top of that I layered a sheet of vellum cut slightly smaller. The ledger paper was cut using dies from my new Die-namics Blueprint #5 die set from My Favorite Things.

Everything was assembled on a top folding card base using white cardstock. The ducky and the "hello" are on some foam tape for extra dimension. For the final touches I added a few enamel dots. I love enamel dots lately.

And here's the finished card. Can't wait to send it to my friend :)

Hope you enjoyed and got inspired.

Have a blessed & crafty day.

Bettina :)

Supplies used:
Stamp sets used: "Sending Happy Thoughts" from Simon Says Stamp, "Souffle's Sentiments" by Popcorn the Bear from Crafter's Companion.
Spectrum Noir Markers: For the duck- LY1, LY2, CT2, PP3 his bill & feet-GB3, GB4, OR1
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black, Versa Magic "Turquoise Gem", SSS "Red Lipstick", Versa Mark, Tim Holtz Distress Inks-Scattered Straw, Peacock Feathers, Spiced Marmelade, & Shaded Lilac
Embossing Powder: Recollections Black Fine Detail
Dies & Punches: Die-namics Blueprints #15 from My Favorite Things, Martha Stewart 1" circle punch
Papers: Heavy weight vellum from SSS card kit, AC "Hip Hip Hooray", MME "The Sweetest Thing-Tangerine", Neenah White #110, miscellaneous colored cardstock from my scrappy stash
Embellishments: various enamel dots from my stash
Adhesives: 3M Foam tape, Tombo Mono-Multi Glue, ATG tape