More Layering

In my last post I used a new layering die from Hero Arts. The company also has some lovely layering stamp sets, which is a popular technique today and adds depth to stamped images.

I love these layering stamps.

Normally, I would stamp these on white card stock with inks in pretty floral hues. This time, I took a slightly different path, starting with a white base (Hero Arts Unicorn white pigment ink) on darker card stock:

I started with the white pigment base, heat set it, then added the pink and purple layers (Stephanie Bernard’s ColorBox die inks). I created a mask (using just the bottom layer stamp) to add the leaves. The sentiment (Hero Arts) was stamped on a scrap, cut out and edged with a white Faber Castell PITT pen. I added some dots of Viva cream Pearl Pen to the centers.

The next one is a slight variation, but the same technique, same stamp set:

The black piece was cut using a pierced rectangle die from Richard Garay’s Celebra’tions line (Spellbinders).

Happy Heart Balloon Bear

I know Valentine’s Day has come and gone, but I had to share this Valentine I made for a very special boy using this adorable balloon animal set, called Balloon Builders, from Stampin’ Up!

The set has various shapes that you mix and match to create designs. I played around a bit with the shapes to find the “formula.” (My first one was a bunny, but he came out a little creepy, so we went with the bear!)

I started with the largest balloon for the body then continued to build the bear. The main stamping was done in Stephanie Bernard’s ColorBox brown. The heart balloon was stamped in my old Marvy Matchables red.  The string, eyes, nose and inside the ear were hand drawn. Grass was added with watercolor pencils, then blended (I kind of made a mess of that….) and the sentiment (from the same set) was stamped in blue. The pierced panel is from the Richard Garay/Spellbinders Pierced Rectangles set. 

Oh, heck… here are two more cards I made for Valentine’s Day (but they can be used for other occasions, too!)

How sweet are those birds?

It’s the same die I used here, a Cath Edvalson design for Technique Tuesday. The paper is from Simple Stories and the sentiment from Stampin’ Up’s Bloomin’ Love set.

And this fast and easy card uses the Scribble Heart  Arrow die set from Simon Says Stamp. I cut a bunch from various brightly colored papers and glued them on this purple card stock (a discontinued color from Paper Source. You’ll see a lot of it because I bought a huge package when I found it on clearance!) The sequins are from Lawn Fawn, attached with Ranger Multi Medium. (I also used the inside of the hearts on other cards.)

These were so fast and easy I made a bunch (note the inside pieces, too) :

Thanks for stopping by!

CHA Spotlight: Richard Garay

Here’s another highlight from the CHA MEGA Show:

Richard Garay

Designer Richard Garay’s catch phrase is “make amazing happen,” and he does that with his new collection of stamps, dies, papers and accessories.

You may have been introduced to Richard through his Celebra’tions™ line, first shown via Spellbinders. He’s expanded the line and also branched out into several different looks, from spritely florals to outdoorsy lumberjacks.

“I don’t want to get locked into one style,” he explains.

For Richard, it’s all about the party! Check out this fun look from his booth:

Richard Garay

The Celeba’tions™ line has everything you need for a party, from balloons and banner stamps and dies to a fun new box die for party favors or gifts.

And check out these flowers!

Richard Garay

Lumberjack Days is more than just plaid shirts and manly beards … it’s all about outdoor images, include trees, flowers, animals, etc.  One fun set is the Great Outdoors die, which punches out pieces perfect for a 3D scene or a child’s school diorama. The Knitted Pattern and Pine Needles embossing folders caught my eye for next winter’s cards.

The Make Amazing Happen Collection has some great affirmative phrases, such as Brave You, Make Amazing Happen, and Be Amazing.

Noteworthy, with a slightly vintage flair (what he calls “modern vintage”), is built for corresponding with cute envelope, telephone and other designs, including some fabulous paper in shades of khaki and black.

As for accessories, I like the matte finish enamel dots as a little change from the shiny ones. They’d be great on more masculine cards.

Check out more on Richard at www.RichardGaray.com.

Fabulous Finds Friday — The “Celebra’tion” Continues

I’ve been going on all week about the Fabulous Find of Spellbinders‘ new Celebra’tions™ set by Richard Garay and showing off some cards. Perfect for a Fab Finds Friday!

Here we go:

Dontcha love that texture background on the sunshine-y paper? It’s made using the fabric pattern embossing folder. I ran the panel through my Xyron to get good adhesion before placing it on my card base. The white panel for the greeting was cut using a Pierced Rectangle die. (I’m going to use this die a LOT!) It was stamped using an old Hero Arts sentiment (Hip Hip Hooray) and colored with Staedtler’s Triplus fine line markers. (Coloring brings me back to my childhood and the fine tip on the marker makes it easy to color inside the lines.) The white panel is mounted using dimensional foam tape.

The presents are stamped on white scrap paper in Memento Tuxedo Black then colored with Distress markers, fussy cut and mounted using foam tape. And of course there’s some Stickles!

A relatively fast and easy card.

Speaking of fast and easy … how about some quick tags?

The green tag is made using the smaller Pierced Rectangle die, the green card stock from the collection and the vase/flowers from # Sweet. The green string is also from the collection.

The purple dotted tag is all from the Sweet Treats set. I love that this set has the die AND the matching stamps. Notice the little slit in the top of the tag? Makes it easy to attach to a ribbon, etc. I used Distress markers to color the cake stamp so I could get multiple colors on the cake. Add a rhinestone to the flower and you’re good to go.

Thanks for “celebrating” with me this week.

More Celebra’tions

In my last post, I showcased some fun selections from Spellbinders’ Celebra’tions collection by Richard Garay.

Here are more:

This card features a piece of pretty patterned paper as well as a rosette made with the rosette die. (I added a dollop of Stickles Glitter Glue to the center). The stamp is from the # Sweet set and is colored using bright gel pens. The white dots were added to the green layer using a white dot pen from Faber-Castell (one of my must-have tools!). The patterned and purple pieces were cut using the Pierced Rectangles die (the green was a leftover!).

This pretty paper does all the hard work on this card, making it fast and easy to put together. The stamps are from # Sweet (the flower was heat embossed in black and fussy cut, then colored with Distress markers), Stickles gives sparkle on the flower, and I edged a strip of the patterned paper using a Stampin’ Up scallop edger. The gems are Dew Drops from the Robin’s Nest. (attached using Ranger’s Glossy Accents.

I made this a top folding card by cutting the patterned paper about a half inch longer than my base, then I scored the top of the patterned paper and attached that overlap to the back of the base card.

There are a few more coming!

Fabulous Finds — More to Celebrate

Several posts ago (here) I featured a few of the new Spellbinders’ Celebra’tions stamp/die/ink/etc collection, created by designer Richard Garay.

I finally had a chance to play with some of the goodies in the collection. Here are a few of my experiments, using stamps, dies, string, paper, ink and an embossing folder, all from the collection:

I first die cut the large and medium rectangles (LOVE that perforation!). (Green paper is from the collection. Yummy colors.) I stamped the vase and flowers (from the #Sweet set) in VersaMark, embossed in black, then colored with Distress Markers. A touch of yellow Stickles added some sparkle. I splattered a dash of the Luscious Silk ink (the bottle comes with a built-in brush) over the white background, tied a piece of blue Linen thread around the white panel and mounted it to the green panel.

The text frame was stamped in Lime Green, the words in Memento black. I fussy cut the piece then added it to the card using foam tape.

The process was similar for this one:

BUT …. I ran the purple piece through the fabric embossing folder — I love the look. (I’ll have a better look in another card.)

I’ll show a few more cards over the next few days.

Thanks for stopping by!