21st Century Pillow Book

Hello! This is my second post for today. If you are here to check out the Stampendous and Graphic 45 hop, please scroll down to my next post, but check this one out first! ;) This week the A Day for Daisies team is featuring beautiful images from the Vintage Hats collection. I used Vintage School Girl 4 for today's project. I loved coloring this image, which of course isn't unusual for ADfD images. For my crafting process, I always color my images first, well before I even think about my papers and embellishments. This image was colored with my Tombow Dual Brush watercolor markers. I was lucky enough to receive my latest care package from Imagine Crafts (I'm an Artist in Residence for them), which included the Tahiti Kaleidacolor multi-color ink pad. I rolled the colors on to my brayer, rolled the brayer on to my Mixed Media paper, and got the wonderful effect for my background which just so happened to coordinate perfectly with my colored image.  I also grab...

Hello out there! It's time for a new Wicked Wednesday ATC Challenge. This week, we are sponsored by SLS Lines , and the theme is "Girly." I used Princess Spoiled Cat for my ATC. She's definitely a "Fancy Feast" kind of girl, huh? I colored her with my Tombow Dual Brush watercolor markers. The hearts were done with a Heidi Swapp stencil and Delicata ink from Imagine Crafts in Celestial Copper. It's super shimmery and beautiful! I added some coordinating purple cardstock and 4 princess-pink gemstones. She is rather regal, don'tcha think? Please be sure to visit the Wicked Wednesday Blog to see what the rest of the team has cooked up for you this week. Thanks for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!

Greetings! It's time for a new Wicked Wednesday ATC Challenge . This week, we are sponsored by Bloobel Stamps, and the theme is "Gray, Teal (or turquoise) and Red." Here's what I made using Telephone Time. I cropped the image down a lot, and I colored it with my Tombow Dual Bush watercolor markers. My "Hello" is from Stampendous' Bouquet for You set, I added a simple button and inked the edges of my cardstock. Nice and simple. I really wanted the great color palette to be the focus here. Please be sure to visit the rest of the Wicked Wednesday team over on the blog. Thanks for stopping by. Have an inspiring day! 

Hello! It's Friday, so I have a new project for A Day for Daises to share with you. This week, the team is sharing images from the "It's a Child's World" collection, and I used Grown with Love. I love to garden, and it's been so cold in NY, that often I think about how nice it will be to grow some new flowers in the warm sunshine. I colored this adorable image with my Tombow Dual Brush watercolor markers. I inked around the edges a bit with Summer Sky Memento ink from Imagine Crafts. I also used a Fitted Frame from Stampendous to die cut around the image. I used some of the Lime embossing powder from the Spring Sparkle Embossing Kit from Stampendous around the edge of my card base. On the pink cardstock, I stamped the Peeled Paint image from Andy Skinner's Industrial set (with Rose Bud Memento ink). My sentiment is from the Spring Sentiments set, and I used a wee bit of washi tape in one corner. Please visit the rest of the Design Team ove...

Hello! So it seems that I goofed. I said last Friday that the new A Day for Daisies challenge was beginning and that it was "Add a Touch of Wood." Well, it's actually starting this week! So hopefully, you took my little mix-up and used it to your advantage and have a project already made! Here's my project for today. I am so loving the February Club Kit with all of the wooden horses. I made my marker application streaky, to mimic the look of wood. I used my Tombow Dual Brush Watercolor markers for this. For more of the wooden look, I used the Wood Background stamp from Stampendous . I inked it with Rich Cocoa Memento ink from Imagine Crafts. I used 2 Fitted Frames dies cuts (also from Stampendous), 3 buttons, and sweet May Arts ribbon to finish off the card. This was one that came together really quickly, which made me very happy. I like this one because it's great for a boy. Please be sure to visit the A Day for Daises blog to see what the rest of...

Hello there! The Stampendous team is sharing projects using Tombow adhesives along with the new Stencil Duos. I loved using the Balloon Duo Stencil Set so much (see my post from Monday), that I decided to use it again this week! I laid the pattern stencil on to my Mixed Media paper, taped it down, and then taped the balloon stencil on top of that. I used the fabulous pen that comes in the Stencil Duo set and traced the background image. Next, I removed the stencils, and colored the pattern in with Memento markers from Imagine Crafts. Then I trimmed the balloon out, but I decided it needed a little sumpin' sumpin'... and hey! We're doing a Tombow Blog Hop, right? I used their cool Glue Pen to outline parts of the pattern on the balloon, and I sprinkled some Lime Micro Glitter from the Halloween Glitter Kit on top. I worked in small sections so that the glue didn't dry before I got the glitter on. It is holding the glitter beautifully! I also used the Glue Pen...

Greetings! It's time for a new A Day for Daisies Challenge to go along with the brand new February Club Kit. I used Stick Horse Pink for my card today. My daughter would love to have this unicorn for sure! I colored it with my Tombow Dual Brush watercolor markers, and I fussy cut it out. For my background, I used a wood grain stamp that I've had in my stash for about 9 years. I used clear embossing ink with the Pink powder from the Spring Sparkle Embossing Powder Kit from Stampendous . You can see the glitter better in the photo below. I also used 2 Fitted Frames dies as little accents, and some washi tape for a border above and below the pink cardstock. Please be sure to visit the rest of the A Day for Daisies team over on the Blog . Thanks for stopping by, Have an inspiring day!

Greetings! It's time for a new Wicked Wednesday challenge. This week we are sponsored by All Dressed Up and the theme is Tic Tac Toe. You'll need to go to the Wicked Wednesday Blog to see what the Tic Tac Toe board looks like. Here's my ATC, using the free space, blues, and washi tape. I used the Little Star image today.  I colored her with my Tombow watercolor markers, and I used some Crystal micro glitter (from the Stampendous Christmas Micro Glitter Kit ) on her wings. Around the edge of the image, I inked it with VersaMark ink and sprinkled on some Shabby Blue embossing powder from the Blue Encrusted Jewels Kit . I also inked the edges in VersaMark Sunny Sky, and I added my washi tape.Please be sure to visit the rest of the Wicked Wednesday girls over on the blog. Thanks for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!

Hello Bloggy friends! It's Wednesday, so I have a new Wicked Wednesday ATC Challenge to share with you for my 7th of 31 Days of Halloween. You've been paying attention, right? If not, please visit the Smeared Ink Blog for all the details. This week for Wicked Wednesday, we are sponsored by Sami Stamps and the theme is "Trick or Treat." I used Whiskers Under My Broom for my ATC. I colored the image using my Tombow watercolor markers and 2 techniques. Direct to paper, and with a palette, brush and water. That's a really fun way to use these markers! You can use an acrylic stamping bloc, scribble the colors you want to use on the block (you don't need too much), then paint it on with a brush. Use your water to blend and stretch the color. Easy and super fun! I sprayed my orange cardstock with Iridescent Memories Mist , and I added some green glittered cardstock. My sentiment is from Stampendous ' Life Words Perfectly Clear Set . I thought it was p...

Greetings fellow Halloween fanatics! Welcome to Day 2 of the Smeared Ink 31 Days of Halloween! Today I have a project using A Day for Daisies . I am on their Design Team, and Friday is the day we always share our challenges, club kits, etc. This time around I am sharing the October Club Kit, and I'm featuring Little Witch Mermaid. Like yesterday, I colored this image with my Tombow watercolor markers. But I used a very different technique. Yesterday, I colored with the markers directly on to my paper. Today, I colored up an acrylic block (one you'd use for your clear stamps) with the markers and then I applied them with a brush and a little water. I worked in sections with this technique so that the pigment wouldn't dry on the block before I used it. Though I will say that it stays wet for a while. I used 3-4 colors for each section. Applying them this way is a lot of fun. It takes longer than the direct-to-paper method, but you get a true watercolored look when yo...

Hello again! I have 2 projects to share with you today. The first is for A Day for Daisies and the second is for Left of Center. We have an inspiration board for ADfD, and the team is featuring the Mucha Flowers again. These flowers are so pretty! What a great inspiration board! I love the colors, the art nouveau flair, all of it. Here's the card that I made featuring Mucha Style Poppy . I colored my poppy using my Tombow watercolor markers. Then I inked the edges and background of the image. For the layer under the poppy, I used the fantastic Art Nouveau Background from Dreamweaver. I used Gold embossing paste , so it has a beautiful shine. After the paste dried, I inked the edges. Then, I watercolored my card base, keeping it simple. I glued it all together and voila! Do you love the inspiration board? Then play along with A Day for Daisies ! Now, on to Left of Center. Left of Center is challenging you to Rip it Up this week! We are sponsored by Oddball Art ...

Hello! Today I am sharing my portion of the A Day for Daisies Designer Showcase of the Mucha Style Flowers. I used the Mucha Style Wild Poppy for my card. I colored this lovely poppy with my Tombow watercolor markers. I decided to go with a hard and soft contrast for my card. So the flower is soft and pretty, while the Chevron stencil that I used from Dreamweaver is hard and graphic. I used a sponge dauber and ink for the stencil. I did of course want the poppy to stand out, which is why I kept the stenciling soft in color. My sentiment is from the Bouquet for You set from Stampendous . I used some scrap checkerboard paper and torn black cardstock to finish the card off. Next week, I  will be sharing another project with one of the Mucha Flowers. But for now, please be sure to visit the rest of the A Day for Daisies team over at the Blog . And don't forget to join in our current challenge, which is, "Frame It!" Thanks for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!

Greetings! The Stampendous Design Team is getting ready for a fantastic blog hop with Tombow. I love Tombow products, and I use them in many of my projects. Today, I am using their wonderful watercolor markers to share the Splash Technique with you. I took a piece of watercolor paper and tore the top. I then stamped my skeleton and his top hat from the super fun Skeleton Style set, and I embossed it with black embossing powder . Then, I stamped and embossed my sentiment and bats, from the Spooky House set. Then I started to really play. I pulled out a few of my Tombow Dual Brush watercolor markers and I scribbled on a large acrylic block. The colors I used were 985, 933, 636, 603, 055, and 025. Then I spritzed the block a couple of times with water. Then, I turned my watercolor paper over so that the images were face down, and I swept, dabbed, and tapped the paper across the acrylic block. There's no right or wrong way to do this, it's just a matter of how much cover...

Hello! I have 2 projects to share with you today. The first is for the latest A Day for Daises and the second is for Left of Center . The ADfD team is busy featuring the September Club Kit, and our new challenge is "Frame It!" I used Fairy Lily Portrait for my card. I colored her with my Tombow watercolor markers, and I added a wee bit of glitter to her wings. Here's a closer look. I love the new gray hair trend that women are going lately, so I went with that for this lovely fairy. For my frame, I simply made 2 borders with an EK Success punch, and then a piece of coordinating green cardstock. It took a little engineering to make sure the green didn't show behind the punched areas, but still was big enough to frame the image...but I love how it turned out. Very clean and simple, which I don't often do. I added a couple of buttons, and that's it. Now, on to Left of Center ..... This week, we are sponsored by Bugaboo , and the challenge theme i...

Hello! I have a 2-fer for you today. My first project is for the Fall theme that we Stampendous gals have been sharing with you all week. The second is for the new August Club Kit from A Day for Daisies . Let me start by saying that I LOVE House Mouse stamps! If you've been following me for a while, you know that I prefer creepy stuff...but when it comes to House Mouse images, I just melt! For today's card, I used Trick or Tweet . I colored the stamp with a combination of Tombow watercolor markers and Copics. I also used watercolor paints for my sky. If you look really close, you'll see that the bird has a teeny seed that he's giving to the trick or tweeters. For my background, I used the negative background that I had created for yesterday's card....scroll down to my next post to see! It was made with Pale Ale Memory Mist and the stencil that comes with the Wired stamp set. On top of that, I inked the Oak Leaf in random areas to add more oomph to the b...