Thursday, December 19, 2013

IO Quick and Simple Cards



I absolutely LOVE quick and easy cards, so I was really excited about this challenge. Today I decided to share three cards that vary in exactly how quick and easy they are.

The watermelon card would take about 10-15 minutes to make. I made the seeds using a daisy die and used the petals for the seeds. The longest part of this card is using the die cut machine and gluing the seeds onto the card. For the rest of the card, I used the Thanks a Melon saying (B11085) and one watermelon slice from a much larger watermelon stamp (Watermelon Slices F2338).


The second card would take about 5-10 minutes. It is just simple stamping with some Memento Luxe inks and a couple of solid stamps. To make the card,  I used a saying from the CL41 Thanks Sentiments set and the Daisy Print (D5007) flower.

And finally...a five minute card.  You can't get more simple than that!  I used the  Heartfelt Thanks (B3928) saying along with the Whimsical Heart Border (C6309).  To color the hearts, I added watercolor pencils to the outside edges of the card and softened it towards the center with a waterbrush.  To finish the card, I tied a neutral twine bow to one of the hearts.  No layers...just simple stamping.

Need more quick and simple inspiration? Visit the other designer blogs:
Laura Fulcher (you are here)

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


Thursday, December 5, 2013

Let it Snow!!!!


.....well, not really. I have to admit I am not ready for snow. I rarely am. However, it is such a fun theme for the latest Impression Obsession challenge.

For my card, I used the Snowman with Bird (G7682) as well as the Friendship Never Melts saying (B7703). I stamped everything onto heavy watercolor paper with Versafine ink. Next, I added some various Distress Marker colors and blended them with a waterbrush. To finish the card, I added some glitter underneath the snowman.

Need more snowy inspiration? Check out what the other designers have created:

Anna Wight
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett

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

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Being Thankful and Upcoming Class

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  I know I am always grateful for to the chance to see my family.

This time of year is all about gratitude and being thankful, so I figured now would be a good time to have a class that was all about creating thank you cards.  If you are in town this weekend and would like to make ten quick and easy cards to add to your stash, I would love it if you would join me for my 10 in 10 thank you class:


10 in 10 Thank You
Where:  Angela's Happy Stamper
Date: Sunday, December 8
Time: 2:00 - 4:00 PM

Both of the cards I am posting today are from the class.  The first using images from Impression Obsession, and the second uses dies from Memory Box. 

For the die, I combined it with sticker paper and glitter from Elizabeth Crafts.  I like their products because the glitter doesn't come off of the final card.

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Inspired By a Quote


Today's Impression Obsession challenge is all about quotes.  IO has a ton of beautiful quotes in various fonts, so it was really hard to chose one.  I decided on the "In All Things" quote (B3670) and paired it with the Fern Stem (G9045).

For the card itself, I challenged myself to keep it simple and only use one layer.  I wanted the focus to be on the quote and the leaf.

To make the card, I first applied a mask to the edges of my card.  Then, I sponged some Bundled Sage and Tumbled Glass Distress ink on the card and had it fade as it approached the center of the card.  I made sure to add the ink first to the right hand side of the card so that side would end up darker than the center.  I removed the mask then added the fern in Spanish Moss and Olympia Versafine ink and the quote with black Versafine ink.

Need more quote inspiration? Check out what the other designers have created:

Anna Wight (brand new IO designer)
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett

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


Thursday, November 7, 2013

Chalkboard Christmas


Today's IO challenge is all about holiday cards and tags. I have been making a lot of chalkobard cards lately, so I was really excited when I saw the Joy to the World stamp (F13156). The layout and assortment of fonts really lends itself to faux chalkboard stamping. To complete the look, I added the Elegant Flourish 2 (A8688).

To make the card I stamped the saying and flourish onto black cardstock with Versamark ink and embossed everything with white embossing powder. To "smudge" the edges, I added some white pigment ink to the card with a sponge.

Need more holiday inspiration? Visit the other IO designer blogs:
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett
Want to play along? You can find all the information here, and you could even win a $25 IO gift certificate!


Thursday, October 17, 2013

IO Challenge- Favorite Technique


This week's Impression Obsession challenge is all about favorite techniques. I know that my favorite techniques always involve coloring, but I couldn't decide between Copic markers or watercolor pencils. Therefore, I had to post both. :)

For my first card, I used Leigh Hannan's Peppermint Moon (G2457)as well as Copic markers and Wink of Stella glitter pens. For the background, I used the new Ledger Cover a Card background (CC165). I love that you get such bright, bold results with Copic markers. As a contrast, I like the softer muted tones that you can get from watercolor pencils.

For my second card, I used watercolor pencils on the Autumn Tree (E7726). The background is a combination of both the Ledger Cover a Card (CC165) as well as the Mesh Circles Cover a card (CC161). I almost said combining Cover a Card backgrounds was my favorite technique, but I thought that I might be pushing it.


Need more technique inspiration? Check out all of the designer blogs:
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)

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


Monday, October 14, 2013

New Obsession


I have admired "chalkboard" cards on the Internet for quite a while. I finally got out a bunch of stamps and started playing with chalkboard style cards. I have to say, I am hooked. It reminds me a bit of when I was doing a lot of Zentangle cards and saw patterns everywhere. Now I am noticing flourishes, borders, and other stamps that would make great chalkboards. I decided to do a class with the cards I have been making:


If you are interested, I will be teaching my Faux Chalkboard Techniques card class at Angela's on Friday, November 15.

Thursday, October 3, 2013

IO Colors of Fall Challenge

The IO challenge today was to make a card using fall colors. I know that didn't necessarily mean I had to use fall images, but I felt the need to color pumpkins.

To make the card, I stamped the Butterfly and Pumpkins image (H1924) onto white cardstock and colored it with Copic markers. I cut out image and then layered it onto light brown cardstock and added the Blessings saying (B8182). To finish the card, I added some raffia and some Wink of Stella clear glitter pen to the butterfly wings to make them sparkle.

Need more fall color inspiration? Check the other blogs:
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett
Want to play along? You can find all the information here, and you could even win a $25 IO gift certificate!


Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Clean and Simple Halloween


Hi everyone. Today I posted this card over on the Outside the Box blog. It is a pretty quick and easy card that is part of my upcoming 10 in 10 Memory Box Halloween class. If you are interested in my classes, here are a few of them:

Memory Box 10 in 10 Halloween
Sunday, October 13 2-4pm
Make 10 quick and easy Halloween cards using the latest stamps and dies from Memory Box.

Copic Halloween (this one isn't on Angela's website yet, but it will be soon)
Friday, October 25 6:30-8:30 pm Brush up on your Copic coloring skills with spooky, Halloween-themed cards.

Memory Box 10 in 10 Christmas
Sunday, November 10 2-4pm
Make 10 quick and easy Christmas cards using the latest stamps and dies from Memory Box.

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Spooky Spider


I just love Halloween cards, so I wanted to share another card I made with some of the new Impression Obsession images. The card used two of the new Cover a Card backgrounds (Spooky CC160 and Sunburst CC156). I stamped the Spooky background onto purple paper using a Versafine Imperial Purple ink. I then embossed the Sunburst background on bright green paper using purple embossing powder from Fred Mullett. The Sunburst background has a nice distress look to it that really appeals to me. To finish the card, I added the Spider (C14144) to the center of the sunburst with black ink.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

IO Challenge- Things that Fly


Today's Impression Obsession Challenge is all about things that fly. I am still in my stencil/Dylusion sprays stage, so I combined those with one of the most versetile IO butterfly stamps (in my opinion)...the Swallowtail Silhouette.

Stamps:
Dot Border
Grunge Circles E13120D13116
Swallowtail Silhouette D5009

Inks:
Hero Arts Butter Bar
Hero Arts Orange Soda
Black India Ink

Stencils:
Crafters Workshop Mini Honeycomb TCW348
Crafters Workshop Mini Numbers Collage TCW210

Dylusion Sprays:
Cherry Pie
Squeezed Orange
Lemon Zest
Black Marble
White Linen

Instructions:
· Spritz white carstock with yellow, orange, and red sprays
· Dab piece with paper towels
· Place numbers stencil down onto carstock and spritz lightly with black spray
· Dab piece with paper towels
· Place honeycomb stencil onto piece and spitz lightly with white spray
· Dab piece with paper towels
· Stamp top or orange notecard with circle collage and Butter Bar ink
· Stamp dot border onto orange cardstock strip with Orange Soda ink
· Cut dot border down to the size you want for the card
· Edge dot border strip with orange or butter bar ink
· Stamp circle collage a couple of times onto cream cardstock using butter bar ink
· Stamp butterfly on top
· Pop butterfly square up on card using foam tape. of circles using black ink
· Layer the pieces of the card

Need more flying inspiration? Visit the other designers
Impression Obsession Blog
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett

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

Thursday, September 5, 2013



Well, it is the last day of the die blog hop. I hope you have enjoyed seeing some of the new dies! My final card features the new Pocket Watch die set (DIE088-R) as well as the coordinating It's About Time clear set (WP493). The pocket watch set can make a traditional pocket watch as well as a watch that would go around the wrist. I chose to do something that would resemble a watch. To make the card, I fist cut out the watch from a light chipboard and the center of the watch from white cardstock. I then inked the chipboard with silver Inka-Gold to make it look metallic. (Just a sidenote here...the product is called Inka-Gold even though it comes in a bunch of colors, such as silver.) Here is a picture of the first step:


For the next step, I stamped the watch face on the white cardstock in waterproof black ink and placed it inside the faux metallic outside. I then filled the whole thing with Diamond Glaze to make it look like a real watch face. This took a long, long time to dry:


Here is a close-up of the finished embellishment:


The backgrounds of the card were stamped with the Random Lines Cover a Card (CC096), and the Swirls and Stars Cover a Card (CC054). The saying is from the same clear set as the watch face.
Want to see other samples with the new dies and have a chance to win a great prize? Here is what you need to do:

Participant Drawing Guidelines
  • Comment on each participating blog today.
  • The deadline for comments today will be 10 p.m. EST.
  • There will be a drawing on each day for 3 Dies or Die Sets of the winner's choice.
  • The winner for each day will be announced in the next day's post.
  • On Thursday, September 5, we will have our regular challenge for all of you.

Blogs to visit today:
Impression Obsession Blog
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Ga>

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

IO Die Blog Hop- Day 2


Welcome to day two of the die blog hop! For today's card I used the Cattails die set (DIE087-P). It looks like I used several different die sets, but the dragonflies and the cattails are in the same set. When I first designed the card, I cut everything out in white and then started coloring the diecut pieces with markers. I decided that I didn't like it as much as I did the version where everything was cut in dark green paper with brown marker on the cattail tips and glitter added to the dragonfly wings. To finish the card, I layered everthing onto a Distress Ink background and added the Happiest Things saying (D14072).

Want to see other samples with the new dies and have a chance to win a great prize? Here is what you need to do:
Participant Drawing Guidelines
  • Starting today through Thursday, September 5, comment on each participating blog for that day.
  • The deadline for comments for each day will be 10 p.m. EST.
  • There will be a drawing on each day for 3 Dies or Die Sets of the winner's choice.
  • The winner for each day will be announced in the next day's post.
  • On Thursday, September 5, we will have our regular challenge for all of you.

Blogs to visit today:
Impression Obsession Blog
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

IO Die Blog Hop- Day 1

Hello again. Today is the beginning of a 3-day Impression Obsession Blog Hop that highlights their new dies.
I am such a pumpkin junkie that I knew that I would start with the new Pumpkin die (DIE094-U). The pumpkin and assortment of four faces are separate so you can either use the pumpkin alone for fall or choose a face you want to use. For my card, I combined the pumpkin with some Fancy Pants paper I had on hand. To finish the card, I added some Dark Green and Black Wink of Stella Glitter Brush Markers to the pumpkin to make it sparkle.
Want to see other samples with the new dies and have a chance to win a great prize? Here is what you need to do:
Participant Drawing Guidelines
  • Starting today through Thursday, September 5, comment on each participating blog for that day.
  • The deadline for comments for each day will be 10 p.m. EST.
  • There will be a drawing on each day for 3 Dies or Die Sets of the winner's choice.
  • The winner for each day will be announced in the next day's post.
  • On Thursday, September 5, we will have our regular challenge for all of you.

Blogs to visit today:
Impression Obsession Blog
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett



Thursday, August 15, 2013

Challenge- Lets Hear it for the Boys

Hi everyone! Today the IO challenge is all about making cards "for the boys." I decided to use the Skateboard Silhouette (D13131) along with Dylusion sprays (Fresh Lime, London Blue, After Midnight, and White Linen) as well as some stencils from Crafters Workshop (12” x 12” Coral TCW360 and 6” x 6” Mini Tile Texture TCW237).

Need more "boys" inspiration? Check these other sites:
Impression Obsession Blog
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)

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

Don't forget that you can find Impression Obsession on Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook!

Thursday, August 1, 2013

IO Challenge- Words of Encouragement


Today the IO challenge is all about words of encouragement. What could be more encournaging than advice from "the Duke" John Wayne? I really like the new cowboy silhouettes and sayings that Dina Kowal created.

For today's card, I added some Squeezed Lemonade, Spiced Marmalade, Festive Berries, and Chiiped Sapphire Distress Ink to white cardstock and then spritzed everything with Gold Shimmer Spritz to blend the colors. I then added the Rodeo Silhouette 2 (D13166) and Courage Is saying (D13150) saying in black ink. Here is a close-up of the shimmer from the gold Shimmer Spritz:


Need to get more encouraging insparation? Check out the cards by other IO designers:
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett

Friday, July 26, 2013

IO CHA Blog Hop- Day 5


Today is the last day of the Impression Obsession blog hop.  I started the week with a Leigh Hannan Halloween card, and I am ending the week with the same. 

I thought the Ghost Espresso image (E2455) was a lot of fun, and I always like to make coffee cards because they make me think of my mom.  Hi mom! 

To color the image, I used some Copic markers.  I decided to make the ghost/steam grey so that it would show up well (rather than leave it white).  If you can't read it from my picture, the cup says "It's Scary Good."  Also, you can't see it from the picture, but I added a bunch of sparkle to the ghost with my clear Wink of Stella clear glitter pen.  To finish the card, I added the Happily Haunted saying (D14148) and a few brown pearls.

Don't forget to check out the other designers in the blog hop for a chance to win prizes.

Blog Hop Details
We are having a $25 Gift Certificate drawing each day during the hop, with an extra drawing on Friday. Follow the guidelines below the DT participant list each day and you will be eligible to win. Start with the DT line-up below for today, then come on back and click on the direct link to the new stamps/dies/clear sets in the last paragraph below:

Blog Hop List:
Impression Obsession Blog
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett

Rules for Drawing Eligibility
To be eligible for the $25 Gift Certificate drawings, Monday through Friday, and for the extra one on Friday you should:

•Leave a comment on the IO and each participating DT member's blog for that day.

•Posts are closed for each day at 10 p.m., EST, for that day's drawing.

•The winner(s) will be announced in the post for the next day.

•To be eligible to win the extra drawing Friday, you must have commented on each participating blog for each day (Monday through Friday). Posts close at 10 p.m., EST, Friday. (You can go back and catch up on comments to be eligible for the 5 day drawing on Friday.)

Thank you very, very much for stopping by this week!

Thursday, July 25, 2013

IO CHA Blog Hop- Day 4


Today is day 4 of the Impression Obsession blog hop, and I wanted to share with you a really quick and easy card (5 minutes tops) featuring the Crossword Cover a Card (CC159).

I always seem to need thank you cards, and I thought the new Thanks (A9061) script looked like it could have been written by the new Calligraphy Pen (C9037).  Everything was stamped with black Versafine ink onto white cardstock.  I didn't do any coloring or shading.  All I did to finish the card was add a bit of grey and red papers for layering.  You could just as easily fill out the crossword with personalized sentiments, but I wanted to leave the pattern blank.


Don't forget to check out the other designers in the blog hop for a chance to win prizes.

Blog Hop Details
We are having a $25 Gift Certificate drawing each day during the hop, with an extra drawing on Friday. Follow the guidelines below the DT participant list each day and you will be eligible to win. Start with the DT line-up below for today, then come on back and click on the direct link to the new stamps/dies/clear sets in the last paragraph below:

Blog Hop List:
Impression Obsession Blog
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)

Rules for Drawing Eligibility
To be eligible for the $25 Gift Certificate drawings, Monday through Friday, and for the extra one on Friday you should:

•Leave a comment on the IO and each participating DT member's blog for that day.

•Posts are closed for each day at 10 p.m., EST, for that day's drawing.

•The winner(s) will be announced in the post for the next day.

•To be eligible to win the extra drawing Friday, you must have commented on each participating blog for each day (Monday through Friday). Posts close at 10 p.m., EST, Friday. (You can go back and catch up on comments to be eligible for the 5 day drawing on Friday.)

Join us for the week, tell your friends, and have fun every day.

Thanks for stopping by to look and share!!

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

IO CHA Blog Hop- Day 3


Welcome to day three of the Impression Obsession blog hop.  Today I am featuring another Halloween card and one of my favorite color combinations....lime green and purple.

To make the card, I stamped the Grunge Circles (E13120) multiple times in Versamark ink and embossed them with lime green powder.  I then added the Halloween Stamp (B14133) and colored it with Copic markers that matched my papers and embossed images.

Don't forget to check out the other designers in the blog hop for a chance to win prizes.

Blog Hop Details
We are having a $25 Gift Certificate drawing each day during the hop, with an extra drawing on Friday. Follow the guidelines below the DT participant list each day and you will be eligible to win. Start with the DT line-up below for today, then come on back and click on the direct link to the new stamps/dies/clear sets in the last paragraph below:

Blog Hop List:
Impression Obsession Blog
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett

Rules for Drawing Eligibility
To be eligible for the $25 Gift Certificate drawings, Monday through Friday, and for the extra one on Friday you should:

•Leave a comment on the IO and each participating DT member's blog for that day.

•Posts are closed for each day at 10 p.m., EST, for that day's drawing.

•The winner(s) will be announced in the post for the next day.

•To be eligible to win the extra drawing Friday, you must have commented on each participating blog for each day (Monday through Friday). Posts close at 10 p.m., EST, Friday. (You can go back and catch up on comments to be eligible for the 5 day drawing on Friday.)

Join us for the week, tell your friends, and have fun every day.

Thanks for stopping by to look and share!!

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

IO CHA Blog Hop- Day 2



Welcome to day two of the Impression Obsession blog hop.  Today I wanted to show you a card I made using some of IO's new images featuring artists' tools.  I randomly stamped the Charcoal Pencil (C9038), Caligraphy Pen (C9037), Flat Paintbrush (D9046), and Fan Brush (E9044) on top of the Cover a Card Ledger background (CC165).  I knew that I would like the Ledger background, but I underestimated how many times I would use it.  It has already become one of my "go to" backgrounds.

To add a little interest to my brown-stamped card, I highlighted parts of the card with a white Prismacolor pencil and added a bit of yellow Pan Pastel chalk.  To finish the card, I added the Creative Imagination saying (C9041) and added a few brown pearls.

Don't forget to check out the other designers in the blog hop for a chance to win prizes.

Blog Hop Details
We are having a $25 Gift Certificate drawing each day during the hop, with an extra drawing on Friday. Follow the guidelines below the DT participant list each day and you will be eligible to win. Start with the DT line-up below for today, then come on back and click on the direct link to the new stamps/dies/clear sets in the last paragraph below:

Blog Hop List:
Impression Obsession Blog
Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Ellen Taylor
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kittie Caracciolo
Laura Fulcher (you are here)
Vicki Garrett

Rules for Drawing Eligibility
To be eligible for the $25 Gift Certificate drawings, Monday through Friday, and for the extra one on Friday you should:

•Leave a comment on the IO and each participating DT member's blog for that day.

•Posts are closed for each day at 10 p.m., EST, for that day's drawing.

•The winner(s) will be announced in the post for the next day.

•To be eligible to win the extra drawing Friday, you must have commented on each participating blog for each day (Monday through Friday). Posts close at 10 p.m., EST, Friday. (You can go back and catch up on comments to be eligible for the 5 day drawing on Friday.)

Join us for the week, tell your friends, and have fun every day.

Thanks for stopping by to look and share!!