Quick Impression Obsession Valentine

Hello all! I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday and is ready to start thinking about Valentine's Day. I thought it might be appropriate to make a card that is really quick and easy to make. I think that after all the time people spend on Christmas cards, an easy Valentine to is a welcome thing!

I wanted to make a Valentine that would be appropriate to make for both men and women. I stamped the new Impression Obsession Rosy Ledger (H8666) onto cream cardstock using ColorBox Chalk Creamy Brown ink (my favorite). The stamp has a rose and leaves on the bottom. However, I didn't feel like coloring those elements. Instead, I overstamped that part of the image with the Vintage Rose Spray (C8652) in VersaFine Crimson Red ink. It isn't a perfect match, but I found that the brown roses and leaves worked as nice shading for the red roses/leaves. To finish the card, I stamped the Valentine Heart (D8654) onto kraft cardstock, cut it out, and popped it up onto foam tape.

I hope everyone had a happy 2011 and is ready for an even better 2012!

Pink Challenge

Nothing says Christmas quite like the color pink! Today's IO challenge was a pink color challenge, so I thought it would be fun to use it with one of my Christmas images.

To make the card, I used part of the Tall Trees (F2343) stamp. The original image actually has 5 trees on it. I stamped the trees with pink ink and then embossed it with JudiKins Psychedelic embossing powder. I love that stuff! I don't think you can tell from the picture, but the trees are sparkly and remind me of tinsel. I added some pink accents with a pink watercolor pencil and added some pink jewels. For the background, I used the Retro Floral (CC010) Cover a Card stamp.

Whenever I do a monochromatic challenge, I really like to try and only use that one color. I am proud to say that I made the card using only pink materials. It might have ending up a little too "Blush and Bashful" though. Did you get the Steel Magnolias reference? :)

Need some more pink inspiration? Check out the work by Daniela, Dina, Jeanne, and Vicki. If you want to participate in the challenge, you can find all of the information here.

IO Challenge- Only Stamps

First of all, let me apologize for my picture. It doesn't look very good and the colors are off. My Ott-Lite that I use to take photos needs a new bulb, so I was left with a sad side lamp.

Today's challenge was to make a card using only stamps....no patterned paper allowed. I love my Cover a Card backgrounds, so it wasn't hard for me to ditch the paper.

To make this card, I used the Gingerbread with Treats house (F7637), the Have a Sweet Holiday saying (B7654), and the Cover a Card Fluff background (CC014). I find that it is really hard to get a bright white look on kraft cardstock, so I embossed the background with white embossing powder to really make it pop. To color the house, I used watercolor pencils and a blender pen.

Here is a close up of the card so that you can see the sparkle of the Stickles:


Need more inspiration? Check out the work by Daniela, Deborah, Dina, Jeanne, Jenny, Julie, and Vicki.

Want to play along? You can find all the challenge information here, and you could even win a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate.

Don't forget, if you want to win an advance copy of "Sugar Rush," you have until Sunday night to leave a comment on my previous post (the one with the snowman/cupcake).

New Class and Non-Craft Giveaway

Hi all. I know it is short notice, but I wanted to share one of the cards from my Impression Obsession Sweet Treats class next Monday, November 21st. We will be making four treat-themed cards, and I will even bring a little something sweet to the class. If you are around before Thanksgiving, I hope you can come!

For this card, I used the Snowman with Treats (G7640) as well as the Cover a Card Thick and Think background (CC008) and some watercolor pencils. I just love the idea of a winter cupcake!

Speaking of cupcakes, would you like to win an advance copy of a cupcake-themed romance novel? My friend Donna gave me an uncorrected proof of her book "Sugar Rush," which will hit the bookshelves on Dec 27th. It is Book 1 of her Cupcake Club series, and you can read the synopsis here. Technically, it is a used book I am offering because I had to read it first!

So, if you want a chance to win the book, leave a comment and tell me who your favorite author is by Sunday, November 20th at 11:59pm (EST). I will randomly select a comment and announce the winner on Monday. Good luck!

Always

I thought I would take a break from holiday cards and make something that could be used for a wedding or an anniversary. Of course, you could just as easily change out the saying and make it for a card for almost any other occasion.

The heart stamp is one of the brand new Alesa Baker images from Impression Obsession. Alesa designed a bunch of vintage and floral images that I think you are really going to like. I can't wait to show you some of the other designs. On a side note, the new images aren't on the Impression Obsession site yet, but they soon will be. I also know that they will start arriving in local stamp stores very soon!

Materials:
Stamps- heart (Impression Obsession Victorian Heart D8654), saying (Impression Obsession from the CL316 A Good Marriage clear set)
Lace die- Memory Box (Charlotte Border 98242)
Paper- Basic Grey (Piccadilly Line)
Other items- Pink circle Marvy punch, pop dots, neutral twine

Snow Much Fun

For today's IO challenge, we were supposed to show you what we do on snow days. For me, it is all about staying inside, reading, and enjoying some cocoa. The less time I have to spend outside shoveling, the better!

Products Used:

Stamps- Comfort Cocoa (E8612), Comforting Cocoa (B8613), Cover a Card Large Dots (CC007)

Inks- Memento Black, Colorbox Chalk Creamy Brown

Nestabilities Labels 8

Copic Markers- R22, R27, E50, E31, E35, G21, W2, C1

Diamond Stickles

Red and White Divine Twine

Need more challenge inspiration? Check out what Daniela, Dina, Deborah, Jeanne, Jenny, Julie, and Vicki created.

Want to play along? You can find all of the information here, and you could even win a $25 IO gift certificate!

IO Purple Challenge

The latest IO challenge is all about making purple cards. For me, it was a double challenge because I wanted to make a card that fit the theme as well as one that would serve as a sympathy card. Unfortunately, I needed to make one.

For my card, I stamped the Tapestry Cover a Card (CC024) onto a purple card using Wisteria Colorbox Chalk ink. I then stamped the same background onto purple cardstock using Colorbox Chalk Lavender ink (it was a lighter purple color than the Wisteria). I then cut out the lighter purple pattern with the Nestabilities Labels 20 die. To finish the card, I stamped the the Silhouette 11 image (G5561) on top with purple Versafine ink and added a twine bow that I colored with a purple Copic marker.

Feeling the need for more purple inspiration? Check out what Deborah, Dina, Jeanne, Jenny, Julie, and Vicki created. Want to play along? You can find all of the information here, and you could even win a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate!

Stamping with Zia

This weekend I was lucky enough to take three classes at Angela's Happy Stamper with guest artist Zana Clark (the owner of Stamp Zia.) I can't tell you how much I loved her classes! As you can see from the picture above, Zana's style tends to incorporate a lot of bright watercolors. I have used a lot of sprays from a bunch of different companies, but her sprays were the definitely the most vibrant I have ever used.

The picture of the nude is from a class I took called "Hot Bodies." It incorporated fluorescent crayons, color sprays, salt, and one of Zana's images. I plan to show you samples from the other two classes soon. If you ever have a chance to take one of Zana's classes, I hope you jump on it! She really knows how to encourage you with each piece you create.

I also have to thank Angela for bringing Zana to her store. Angela knew how much I wanted to take classes from Zana, and she made it happen. I know it is expensive to fly out a guest artist and provide them with room and board. Soooo....thank you, thank you, thank you! I am finishing this week feeling very lucky and happy. :)

IO Challenge- Halloween/Favorite Costume

I feel like such a lucky blogger in that I was able to make Halloween cards for the last two IO Challenges. Halloween really is my favorite stamping subject matter! For today's challenge, we were supposed to make a card dedicated to Halloween or our favorite costume. My favorite past costumes were dressing as a Christmas tree with lights, going with three other friends as the four seasons (I was winter), or the year I went as a mouse caught in a trap. I figured the first two costumes would make cards that looked like Christmas rather than Halloween, and well, the mouse was kind of gruesome. I decided to stick with just making a Halloween card.

For the background of my card, I started with a sage notecard and first stamped it with the Canvas Cover a Card background (CC073) in Colorbox chalk Ice Jade ink. I still maintain that the Canvas stamp is the most versatile background you can use on cards. It adds just a little texture to a plain notecard. Next, I stamped the Damask Cover a Card background (CC081) on top with black VersaFine ink. What is it about damask that works so well with Halloween cards?

For the center of the card, I cut out a light yellow oval and black lacy oval using my Nestability dies. I stamped the Bat Silhouette (D2405) on the yellow cardstock using black Memento ink and then sponged Tea Dye, Mustard Seed, Shabby Shutters, and Black Soot Distress inks around the image.

Need more challenge inspiration? Check out what Daniela, Dina, Jeanne, Jenny, Julie, and Vicki created. Also, there has been a change to the IO Design Team. Kathy Menzies has stepped down and Vicki Garrett has joined the team. Be sure to check out Vicki's blog and welcome her to the team. She is one talented lady!

Want to play along? You can find all of the information here, and you could even win a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate!

Zenspirations- Fangtastic!

Impression Obsession has a new line of stamps called "Zenspirations" and are designed by Joanne Fink. Today the IO design team is hosting a blog hop to introduce you to the stamps. I really think you are going to like them!

For my card, I used images from a Halloween set called When Life CL336. I also used a stair-step card from The Paper Cut as the base of my card. It looks like I did a lot of work to cut and fold my card, but I didn't. The card comes with all the cuts and scores already done for you, which really works for me!

To begin, I stamped the Cover a Card Halloween text onto the card using black versafine ink and then edged the piece with Black Soot Distress Ink. I then added some bats from the sets that I colored with black and grey watercolor pencils and a blender pen.

Here is a side view of the card to see the popped up bats:

I then punched out a yellow circle and added some Scattered Straw Distress Ink around the edges, added "Fangtastic" saying, and added a pumpkin that I colored with Copic Markers.

Here is another picture to see the pumpkin view of the card:

I thought it looked odd that all the color was on the right-hand side of the card, so I stamped the Cover a Card again and colored some of the words with Copic markers before gluing them to my card.

Want more Zenspiration inspiration? Start at the Impression Obsession blog and get a list of the participating designers. If you leave a comment on each of the designers' pages, you will be entered to win a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate.

Good luck!

Fall Challenge

Is anyone else ready for fall? Today's IO challenge is all about creating fall themed projects. Reds, yellows, oranges, leaves, apples, and of course.....pumpkins! As a pumpkin junkie myself, I had to include pumpkins in my card.

To make the card, I started with a light yellow notecard and stamped the Large Paisley Cover a card background (CC039) onto it using Peach Pastel Chalk ink. For the bottom, I stamped the Woodgrain Cover a Card background (CC034) in brown Versafine ink onto tan cardstock and glued it onto my notecard. The focal image is called Fall Serenity (F8615), and the saying is from the Count You Blessings clear set (CL286). I colored the chair with pumpkins with Copic markers and then cut out the image to add to the card.

Need more fall inspiration? Check out what Daniela, Deborah, Dina, Jeanne, Jenny, and Kathy, created.

Want to play along? You can find all of the information here, and you could even win a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate!

Impression Obsession Challenge

Take me to your cake! I love that saying. After all, isn't cake the best part about birthdays?

Today the Impression Obsession challenge is all about birthday cards. For my card, I used a cake from the CL203 Birthday Cakes clear set and a saying from the band new CL329 Let them Eat Cake clear set. The paper is from the Basic Grey Wisteria line.

One of the reasons the theme for the challenge is birthdays is to celebrate the birthday of Operation Write Home. Operation Write Home organizes it so that handmade cards are sent to the troops that can then be used by the troops to send to their families. You can read more about their work here, and there is even a place where you can make a donation to help with the cost of postage.

In honor of Operation Write Home's birthday, there is a chance today to win a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate. In order to win, you have until 11:59 pm EST today to leave a comment on each of the participating designer blogs (including this one). Then, leave a comment on the IO blog letting us know about your favorite new IO stamp. You can find more information about today's contest here. Here is a list of the other participating designers: Daniela, Dina, Jeanne, Jenny, Julie.

Want to play along and make your own birthday card? You can find all of the information here, and you could even win another $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate.

Black and Cream Butterfly

I owe my aunt Nan a set of thank you cards, and I am in the process of of designing four cards that look completely different from each other. Sometimes I want to design sets of cards where all the cards coordinate with each other, but this time I wanted to make cards that were all unique and might appeal to her various recipients. We shall see. If the cards clash too much, I might change my mind.

To make the card, I used a Hero Arts butterfly from a set called "Butterflies and Print [CG328]" and papers from the Basic Grey "Little Black Dress" collection. It might be hard to tell from the photo, but the butterfly is popped up with foam tape, and I added a couple of yellow pearls to the Basic Grey flower stickers I added to the card.

IO- Hostess Gift Challenge

Time for something other than a card. The theme this IO challenge is to make a hostess gift. Instead of making a gift, I decorated my gift of wine with a tag. Wine makes such a great gift! Of course, I didn't realize that I was out of tissue paper until I was ready to take the photo. I think it would look much better wrapped with the tag on top. I also wouldn't give the hostess an already opened bottle of wine. :)

For my tag, I stamped a saying from the CL41 Thanks Sentiments clear set and then stamped the grapes (A2112) all around the saying. I colored the grapes with watercolor pencils, blended them with a Dove Blender pen, and sponged purple ink around the edges. I then stamped the wine bottle (D2113) onto scrap paper, colored it with watercolor pencils, sponged around the edges, cut it out, and popped it up onto the tag with foam tape. To finish the project, I colored my natural raffia with a purple Copic marker to match the tag.

Want more hostess gift ideas? Check out what Daniela, Deborah, Dina, Jeanne, Julie, and Kathy, created.

Want to play along? You can find all of the information here, and you could even win a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate!

Christmas Window

I had the urge to play with new Impression Obsession Starry Window (H8637) today. It is kind of a funny thing because I had one color scheme in mind before I started, and in the end, I used completely different colors. Sometimes I guess you just have to go wherever the creative juices take you!

I colored the window with an assortment of watercolor pencils and then softened the colors with a Dove Blender pen. I then stamped the Cover a Card Wood Grain (CC034) in dark brown ink onto brown cardstock to create a tone-on-tone background. To finish the card, and to add a little pizazz, I added yellow jewels to the centers of the stars and added stickles to the "snow" to make it shimmer.

IO Challenge- Orange

Today, the IO team will be doing an Orange challenge. Normally, I would take that as an opportunity to make a pumpkin card. After all, pumpkins are my favorite things to stamp/color. However, today is my mom's birthday (oh, and the president's too), so I thought it would be better to make a birthday card. A good rule of thumb to live by is "moms always trump pumpkins."

One of the nice things about doing a color challenge is breaking out of your comfort zone. I know I have never made an orange birthday card before!

I know it might not look like it, but I used only one color of orange ink for each of the layers (Versafine Habanero). The color of the paper really affected the color of the ink. Choosing a birthday theme also allowed me to play with the new "Let them Eat Cake" clear set (CL329) by Kalani Allred. The background pattern is the Floral Lines Cover a Card background (CC089).

Need more orange inspiration? Check out what Daniela, Dina, Jeanne, Jenny, Julie, and Kathy created. Be sure to visit the various blogs since many of us chose to use some of the new stamps.

Want to play along? You can find all of the information here, and you could even win a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate! Please note that the challenge requirements have changed a bit. Now all entries must only use Impression Obsession stamps. Good luck.

Happy Birthday mom!

Upcoming Class

Hello all. Is anyone thinking about fall and Halloween yet? I hope you can join me for my Memory Box Halloween class this Sunday, July 31st from 12:30-2:30pm. We will be making five cards using the latest Memory Box "What's in the Box" release. There are new papers, dies, and of course...stamps. Hope to see you there!

Day 7- IO Sneak Peeks

Well, today is the last day of the sneak peeks, and I wanted to show you perhaps the easiest of the cards to make. I often forget about making one-layer cards, but I really like them. They are definitely a great idea if you have to crank out a lot of Christmas cards!

For my card, I stamped the Hannah Davies Angel (H10014) onto a kraft notecard and embossed it with detail black embossing powder. I then colored the image with some Faber-Castell markers. They don't blend as well as my Copic markers, but they also don't bleed to the inside of the card. To finish, I added some pink pearls and a saying from the All I want for Christmas (CL304) clear set.

Want to see more new IO samples? Check out what Deborah, Dina, Julie, and Jeanne, created. Be sure to visit the various blogs since leaving comments on the design team blogs could win you a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate.

Thanks everyone for spending time on my blog this week and for leaving all the wonderful comments. I hope you had a good time seeing all the new stuff!

Day 6-IO Sneak Peeks

Well, it is almost the end of my week posting Impression Obsession sneak peeks. I hope you have enjoyed it!

For today's card, I used the new Gail Green Martini (D7618) stamp. I love how the olive takes center stage. Personally, I can't get enough olives. Of course, I had to add green and red circles to look like an even bigger olive. To color the martini image, I used watercolor pencils and a blender pen. There is just a slight tint of red to the edges of the martini to make it look festive and to add a bit of color to the glass. To finish the card, I added the Reverse Damask Cover a Card background (CC082) and Cheers (A5500) saying.

Want to see more new IO samples? Check out what Deborah, Dina, Julie, Jeanne, and Jenny created. Be sure to visit the various blogs since leaving comments on the design team blogs could win you a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate.

Cheers!

Day 5- IO Sneak Peeks

Time to take a break from Christmas cards and show you a little something for Halloween. The cat in the pumpkin stamp is a design by Gary Robertson and is called Cat in the Jack (E1842). I colored the pumpkin with some Faber-Castell markers, cut out the cat/pumpkin, and layered it on top of a circle I cut from cream paper. I edged the circle with a little Scattered Straw Distress Ink just to give it a little dimension. For the background, I stamped the Clouds Cover a card background with black Versafine ink onto grey cardstock to create a night scene. To create the ground, I just added a piece of plain grey paper that I edged with some Pumice Stone Distress Ink. Finally, I added the Purr-fectly Frightful saying (B5479).

Want to see more new IO samples? Check out what Daniela, Deborah, Dina, Jeanne, and Jenny created. Be sure to visit the various blogs since leaving comments on the design team blogs could win you a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate.

Also, you have a chance to submit your own work for a chance to win another $25 IO gift certificate. Shirley posted all the contest information on the Impression Obsession blog. Good luck!

IO Day 4 and Color Challenge

I thought I would combine a couple of things into one card. First, I wanted to show you more of the new Impression Obsession stamps. Second, I wanted to use this week's color challenge to inspire the color palette of my card. Here are the colors I was supposed to use:

To make the card, I first inked my Cover a Card Swirl Lace stamp (CC086) with the Kaleidacolor Caribbean Sea ink pad. The colors of that pad match the color challenge perfectly! I then spritzed the stamp with some Sparkle Shimmer Spritz and stamped it onto white paper. I then stamped the Snowflake Tree (F8641) onto white paper with black Memento ink and colored it with copic markers. I tried to use both green and blue markers on the tree to make it look like a blue spruce, but the green overpowered the blue. Finally, I added a saying from the All I want for Christmas clear set (CL304). Here is a side view of the card held up to the light so that you can see the Shimmer Sprtiz, the Stickles on the branches, and the rhinestone on the snowflake ornament:

Are you too anxious to see more? How about a link to the new Impression Obsession catalog with all the new images? You can find it here.

Want to see more new IO samples? Check out what Deborah, Dina, Jeanne, Jenny, Julie, and Kathy created. Be sure to visit the various blogs since leaving comments on the design team blogs could win you a $25 Impression Obsession gift certificate.

Also, you have a chance to submit your own work for a chance to win another $25 IO gift certificate. Shirley posted all the contest information on the Impression Obsession blog. Good luck!

Day 3- IO Sneak Peeks

Today I want to show you one of the new Gail Green images. Gail often makes really detailed stamps, so I find that they stamp best with Versafine ink. Also, because there is so much detail, you can add just a smidge of color with Prismacolor pencils or watercolor pencils, and it looks like you did more work than you actually did. Therefore, her images are perfect if you need to crank out a lot of cards in a short amount of time!

For my card today, I used the Snowman with Treats stamp (G7636) along with the Merry Christmas saying (B10011). I colored the image with watercolor pencils and then softened the color with a Dove blender pen. I then layered everything onto some Memory Box dot paper.

Are you too anxious to see more? How about a link to the new Impression Obsession catalog with all the new images? You can find it here.

Want to see more design team samples? Check out what Need some purple inspiration? Check out what Daniela, Deborah, Dina, Jeanne, and Julie created. Be sure to visit the various blogs since leaving comments will enter you to win a $25 IO gift certificate. You can find more information about that on the Impression Obsession blog.

Want to play along? You can find all of the information Impression Obsession blog.

Also, you have a chance to submit your own work for a chance to win another $25 IO gift certificate. On July 21st, Shirley will be posting contest information on the Impression Obsession blog. As a heads up, the theme will be to make a card using only Impression Obsession stamps (in case you want to get started now).