cardmarker, artist, mother of three, crafty
Happy Holidays! My youngest daughter made me a card for me and I thought I would share it. I love the simplicity of it. (The thoughtfulness and creativity that was applied.) Yes I am one of those moms that saves everything that my kids make. 🙂 I hope you have a wonderful holiday. Stay safe and healthy. See you in the New Year!
Recently my middle sister asked what set of watercolors should she buy her daughter for Christmas. I have a couple of suggestions. Before I make a recommendation, I would like my niece to understand the science behind watercolor because it will make using them a lot easier. According to Britannica, watercolors are a combination of pigment and ground gum arabic. Gum arabic is used as a binding agent. If not enough binder is used your watercolor will be difficult to rewet and pick up color. Too much binder used they will be soft and delicate. Some watercolors are translucent while others are opaque.
When using watercolor, start with the light colors first, then use dark colors. The clerk at Blicks art supply store, likened watercolors to an onion, layers on layers of watercolors make a watercolor painting, like the layers of an onion make an onion. Waiting for your colors to dry is essential.
Depending on the project, most people start out with a basic set. I like Schmincke because the colors are rich. But as a student, I used anything from Crayola watercolors to Daniel Smith watercolors. The cardmaking industry promotes different brands depending on the card marker’s level of watercolor experience. One cardmaker likes Mission Gold Watercolors while another Cardmaker may use Kuretake. I have both sets , Mission and Kuretake, and use them for different reasons. Depending on the subject I will pick a brand. The card that I am show casing was made with a 12 colors set from Schmincke. Schmincke, is my favorite, and expensive. However in previous posts I have recommended handmade watercolor, like Hydra Colour or Case For Making. As you begin to work with watercolors sometimes you begin to look for certain hues that only handmade watercolors can give you. Artists that make handmade watercolors put along of time in creating a formula that gives watercolors certain hues. I like adding handmade watercolors to my Schmincke set.
I took a class with Alexa from Case For Making to further my understanding of watercolors. I also ordered from Kremer a watercolor set for producing watercolors paint to make my own watercolor. In the Kremer kit you had to ground the arbic gum well to mix with the pigment and water. Jane Davenport sells a watercolor kit too which you make half pans of watercolor. Jane adds distilled water and mixes the pigment. However, Jane suggests adding vegetable glycerin and clove essential oil mostly for rewetting reasons and mold reasons. Jane has dubbed her watercolor pigments, as ‘fairy dust’ which is illustrative of who Jane is and her brand. I enjoy using Jane Davenports brand because her line is geared toward the liking of women’s makeup.
There are artists who specialize in one medium. I have a general understanding for watercolor and can use it well. There are website you should look into to get more information regarding watercolors. I am writing this post mainly to help my middle sister out. If you have any questions, please feel free to write using the comment section below.
Happy Friday! Affiliated links used when possible at no cost to you.
Lawn Fawn’s color inspiration challenge as been on my mind and I keep thinking how can I meet this challenge. The design team from Lawn Fawn have chosen a set of colors and your challenge is to use those colors in a card. As I was going through my stamp sets from Lawn Fawn and the Beary Happy Holidays stood out because the bear is iceskating.
The bear figure illustrated on the front and the back which lends itself to a ‘twirly’ card. I used white thread and taped it to the front side of the bear. After glueing the back, I used medical take to secure the thread to the card. The card can sit by itself.
I used small blue balls in the window to make it look like water. They are from a company called Queen & Co. Link is included to make it easier to find. Thats it- I enjoyed making cards as well as painting.
Affiliated links used when possible at no cost to you. Happy Wednesday!
I was watching Nichole Sphor’s YouTube channel while I was jogging. (a mom’s life is all about multi-tasking) Long story short, Nichole was featuring cards about inlay die cuts but what I liked most about her cards were the layers that she applied to make the card interesting.
Here is my take on layering cards: Using Simon Says Stamp Holiday Background with their Audrey Blue ink I began the first layer with stamping the background image. To add some texture, I embossed Lawn Fawn’s Snowflake Trio Stencil and added white embossing powder. Typically you see cardmakers cut out a circle right in the middle but I thought “Why not place the circle die cut to the left a little so you can see more of the snowflake stencil?” I glued on the acetate to the back of the first layer to cover the circle cut out . This gave me a window, in which I glued on the Picture Book Deer. The words, ‘Season’s Greetings’ are from Simon Says Stamp, to give the words dimension I glued white foam. To make the the words look like they had snow on top of it, I brushed on SS White Pigment Ink using Picket Fence Studio brushes. The snowflake sequins are from Pretty Pink Posh.
One last thing: to get a matching paper to surround the shaker card, I used a Copic Marker (BG 49 Duck Blue)to match Simon Says Stamp Audrey Blue ink. By doing that, it gave a more unifying look to the card.
Affiliated links used when possible at no cost to you. Happy Monday!
Having dedicated this blog to making cards, I would like to raise awareness and contribute as much as possible to a good cause. It is Christmas time, and we are in the middle of a pandemic. People are struggling, Taylor Saleem is a silversmith jeweler who I have admired for a long time. A couple of days ago Taylor posted that she wanted DO something helpful this season. Her dad (to help) has been donating groceries to the Food Bank. The number of people waiting in line for food at the local food bank was devastating. Taylor decided to do a raffle with the help of several Instagram artists, starting Monday, December 14th. Better World will be selling raffle tickets for $5.  BetterWorld.org provides free fundraising tools to bring local businesses and nonprofits together on the same platform. All proceeds will be donated to Feeding America.
Three small paintings will be included in the raffle, 4 by 4 acrylic.
You can purchase tickets here:https://arttofeedamerica.betterworld.org/events/arttofeedamerica
Can I purchase a ticket for a specific prize?
– No. Winners AND prizes will be chosen randomly. But be assured you’ll be getting something AMAZING!
Will prizes be shipped before Christmas?
– No. Each item will be most likely be shipped from its hard-working artist AFTER Christmas. Combined with already chaotic package delivery times means your prize will likely arrive after the holiday rush.
Do I need to follow all the artists to win?
– It’s not a requirement, but it is HIGHLY recommended. These are incredibly gifted, giving, authentic humans, well worth the follow.Â
Where is my money going?
– Payments are processed through BetterWorld.org and will deposited via Taylor Saleem Jewelry. A receipt for your ticket purchase will be emailed from BetterWorld. As the sponsor of this event, Taylor will donate ALL ticket sales directly to Feeding America.
Is there a limit to the number of tickets I can purchase?
– Nope! Purchase as many as you would like, but remember you can only win ONE of the incredible prizes. Better ask your family to buy tickets, too.
Do I need to pay shipping if I win?
– Nope. The artists will cover that. Remember that this is a high-volume time for shippers, and your prizes won’t arrive until after Christmas.
I can’t buy many tickets. Is there another way I can help?
– HECK YES! Tag your friends in the comments! Share the raffle link in you stories! Save posts about the raffle – the algorithm thinks it makes a post more important. Follow the participating artists and thank them for their donation. Take any extra canned goods and non-perishable food items to your local food pantry.
There are other incredible artist who are participating in the raffle.
Here is the list: to see the items listed click here
To visit each artist Instagram page click on their name below.
Bee necklace – Jonesing for Jewelry
Kitchen Measurements Cutting Board – The Homebody Society
Fringed Leather Wallet – Pink Thistle Co
Perpetua Dangles – Rosy Revolver
Wood Twist Ink Pen – Unnatural Resources
Hand Embellished Faux Leather Jacket – Amy J Garbutt
Southwest-inspired Ceramic Mug – Beech Street Pottery
Poppy Earrings – Jess G Jewelry
Braided Pom Beanie – Boo to the Bear Crochet
Crescent Earrings – Lumenrose Jewelry
Buttercream Hat in Teal – Cristin Rae Knits
Conelet Necklace – The Wild Pine
Hand-painted Peony Plate – Golden & Grey
Wheatgrass Leather Bag – Taylor Saleem Studio
Twilight Shawl – Montana Crochet
Glass Winestopper – VillaDesigns
California Costal Paintings 4×4 acrylic – Carol de Melo
Happy Holidays and thank you for participating in the raffle.
Stopping by with a Christmas tag that you can use as an ornament too. I am having fun with my color pencils. I created a scene using stamp from Lawn Fawn called Snow Globe Scenes.
Affiliated links used when possible at no cost to you. Happy Sunday!
Happy Wednesday! Today I am featuring Lawn Fawn’s Magic Iris Snow Globe, as well as Christmas Fishes. To make this card unique, I made it into a shaker card by using Little Things from Lucy’s Cards Splash embellishment.
Inspired by Lawn Fawn card challenge. This week’s theme is color inspiration, Lawn Fawn gives you a set of colors and you try to make a card using those colors.
Some products have been difficult to link. For example, Splash embellishment from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards, has been discontinued but you can find a ton of cute embellishments at her website. To make it easier I have included the link for you. Also, Heidi Swapp glittered and foil paper, I purchased Heidi’s paper back in 2015. I can not find a proper link, I can’t even find something similar to show you. However, I have included Heidi Swapp link to her website anyway. The paper is beautiful and deserves a proper credit when using.
Furthermore, the iridescent speckles that you see on the globe is from Hydra Colour. Elena is the owner of Hydra Colour and has been making handmade watercolors since 2017. Her handmade watercolors are creamy and vibrant. I used the watercolor called Neptune. Fair warning, if you are interested in purchasing this color, now would be the time to get it because her watercolors sell fast.
Affiliated links used when possible at no cost to you. I hope you enjoy your day!
I started this project on Tuesday and I kept trying different ideas until one idea came together exactly how I imagined it. The garland came out cute and I am super happy with it. Its simple but made a nice statement on my fireplace mantel.
After cutting several snowflakes, I decided to use Ranger’s Medium Matte to glue on white foam to add a thickness to the snowflake, as well as shimmery paper. In addition, I used Stickles Distress Dry Clear Dry Glitter by Ranger to make it look like crystals. There are two links, one link will take you to Ranger’s website. However, I also found a link on Amazon selling multiple products from Tim Holtz which I have. Worth checking out both if you are interested Tim Holtz’s products. Last but not least, I used DMC metallic thread to string them.
Affiliated links used when possible at no cost to you. Happy Monday!
Simon Says Stamp Kit , We Believe, has a lot of creativity and options. Today I am showing you three simple tags that I made using Prismacolor Premier Color Pencils and Kraft paper. To spruce up the tags I also used Gelly Roll pens.
At the age of ten I was fortunate that Mr Bob Friedman took me in as art student. Mr Friedman was an artist from New York. He showed me how to use oils, pencil, charcoal, pastel, and other mediums. Back then, I used to like to do portraits of people. My major in college however was Polticial Science and I minored in Visual Arts. Faith Ringold was one my instructors at the University California, San Diego. We had this conversation about going to graduate school for art. I remember her saying, you don’t need a masters in art to be successful, you just need to do it. I totally got what she meant , I just needed to do art. Which was, and still is one of the things that I love. I am making cards and enjoying the creativity and especially the community of cardmakers.
This is my second set of 150 color pencils. But you don’t really need that many pencils to start. The basic set of 12 primary color pencils can do the tags. Also you don’t need the whole set of Gelly Roll pens just a few will do. However if art is your passion, like mine is, the whole set provides colors and options to add interest to your cards.
One more thing: I used Zing embossing powder in Rouge to stamp the phrase Just for You. I have looked for a link but I can not find it, as it was something I had for a while. I stamped the images with Ink On 3 Fadeout No line coloring from Simon Says Stamp. The link is included for you to make it easier to find.
Affiliated links used when possible at no cost to you. Happy Thursday! My final project for We Believe Kit will be posted on Friday.
Simon Says Stamp has created a stamp kit in a limited edition for the holiday season. The kit includes two die cuts, one stencil, two brushes from Gina K Designs, stickers from Doodle Bug Design, card stock, envelops, and We Believe stamp. I have created two cards, three tags and one banner with it. My only regret was not ordering the die cut to go with the stamp, We Believe.
Once the images were stamped on the card, I masked the image with it with Post It Note . Be sure to cut right on the line. Reason being, once you color the the back ground its extremely difficult to go back and color close to the image. I find that cutting right on the line or slightly inside the line works best for masking. You can also use stamping mask paper from Inkadinkado. Unfortunately, I ran out of Inkadindado masking paper so I used a Post It Note instead. I also used Tombow Dot Adhesive to make the rest of the Post It Note stick. This was tricky because when I pulled off the Post It Note, I could see some of the adhesive dots. I have a rubber cement eraser and used that to remove the adhesive dot.
The background is a blend of several Distress Oxide colors, Salty Ocean, Chipped Sapphire, Faded Jeans and Shabby Shutters. I used brushes from Taylor Expressions and blending brushes from Amazon. Taylor Expressions brushes are color coded while the brushes from Amazon are a generic black. Blending brushes from Amazon come in different sizes so I like to have a variety of sizes depending on the area I want to cover. To maintain my blending brushes, I wash them with soap and water after making a card to keep them clean.
Affiliated links used when possible at no cost to you. With four projects to post I am doing the first two for now and will post the last two for tomorrow. Happy Wednesday!
Peace. Joy. Love. -A Shaker Card
My second card is made with Tim Holtz’s Fanciful Snowflakes and Simon Says Stamp Neighorhood Wafer. Its more of a mix media card, with texture, and jewels! I got a different look using the same kit. Even if the kit is sold out, Simon Says Stamp sells these products individually.
There are a couple of items that need to be mention, besides selling stamps, Honey Bee Stamps also sells embellishments. The colors in Spring Fling Mint Julep matched Rustic Wilderness Oxide and Shabby Shutters Oxide perfectly. You can get them here as I have linked it for you. These embellishments are not apart of the SSS Kit. Rather than color the neighborhood, I thought of what it is like inside each home. During the holidays you see merriment, and color. The embellishment has small white butterflies, and beautiful green seed beads. Its that spark that reminded me of joy.
In case you are wondering how I got the light green dots, I mixed Rustic Wilderness and modeling paste together. Using a pallet knife, and SSS Large Dots Stencil from the kit, smear the paste over the stencil. Remove the stencil as gently as possible and wash your stencil before the modeling paste hardens.
Affiliated links when possible at no cost to you. I will continue with the last two projects tomorrow. Happy Wednesday!
