Photo coloring

This is my oldest child many moons ago. Liked coloring a couple of things in the background and her little bonnet. My, they don't wear bonnets anymore, do they? Look at how cute she posed.

Fashionista

One of our many kids birthdays - this gal loves to shop. The image is Dyan Reaveley's Dylusions. I absolutely fell in love with this stamp set - not sure if the hat I chose to use belongs to the guy figure or one of the gals but I liked the feather. Colored it with copics even though I stamped it in archival ink. Surprised the heck out of me that it didn't smear. I used that Tim Holtz distress glitter on the belt and hat band and used the Sakura Glaze pen on the feathers after I colored them. You can actually feel the lines in the feathers. I also used it on the feet. Since we are hand delivering this one, I used ceramic roses. They are super hard, don't know where I got them but they were the wrong color of blue so I recolored them in copics. I stickled them. Have had these forever as they are pretty deep and would never make it in the mail. Used some edge paper punches and a leaf punch. The card is a light gray. I used weathered wood distress to ink everything so it made it like it all came from the same place (paper wise), but it didn't. On the inside those cute fashion gals was just a strip on some 6 x 6 paper I found in my stash. I didn't want to use the rest of that sheet. I stickled a

couple of the skirts and one of the tops. The bottom is a piece of each paper I used on the front. I stickled in between spots here and there to give some pizzaz. So here are the copics I used (best that I remember as I picked up the wrong paper). B01, B02, B14, B0000, RV29, RV23, C3. The perfect greeting on the front came from a "fashion" stamp set by Stampingscrapping.com. They have little dresses on that set as well as some dies to cut them out. Of course I have them. Silly. But I chose to use this stamp.
I am recovering well from my eye surgery even though things are still blurry in that eye, I am allowed to drive now! Yayyy!!!!!! Prisoner let out for good behavior! I also found that I don't have to strain to see anything. Either I can see it or not. And for the most part, I can see it. I do not have the halos at night anymore which makes my sight better. The blurry is only in one eye.
Have been taking the Tim Holtz Creative Chemistry 102 and though it is super fast paced, I have been loving it. I managed to do through day 3 (see previous posts if you want to see the tags I did). I have learned a whole lot of new techniques using the things I already had. I only had to buy a couple of things for the class. We used stencils and I am thinking that I NEED at least a few of Tim's new line. I have so many now that I am considering making a system similar to my dies, stamps and embossing folders so I don't have to look through all of them to find what I want. I think all that excess handling deteriorates them quicker.
Jennifer McGuire has recently done a video on her ink storage systems. It is just wonderful! I went right away to the new place, Organizemore.com. And I just had to order the storage unit for 48 inks and reinkers( I found that the TH paints or stains also fit where the reinker goes.) I decided to order sage green as how cool is it that I could have a color in my room! It will be a few weeks until it gets here and then I will see how I like it. I probably will order another one if that works out so I can get all my ink where I can readily see it. I made an ink swatch card thing (see February 20, 2013 Some odds n ends). Now I think I will glue them to card stock and put them in my notebook. I use the cards a lot since I stamped each one on the card stock I usually use to copic color on.. I know exactly what color each ink will be when dry. It is easy to move them around but not so nice when I drop them! I think if I was going to do it again, I would just order my ink and stamp each one in that order on a cardstock sheet and put it in a notebook - only problem with the notebook thing is what do you do when you get new stuff? It wouldn't be in order anymore. I know by the stamp I use what kind of ink it is, etc - and how would I put all that information in a notebook for each stamp? I have my cards organized by color since that is best for me to chose which color (say red) that would go best with what I am doing. Maybe I will leave well enough alone. But I do need a place to put my ink pads. Guess I have rambled long enough. Hugs to you all, Barb F

Distress Glitter

In real life, this looks like it was dusted with diamonds!! This is just a trash piece of a box cut out with the TH Sizzix steel rule die. I just can't bring myself to put that bird behind the cage.  This is the rock candy glitter. I am not a fan of glitter as it goes all over the place and its not worth the effort. BUT THIS GLITTER!!!! OMG!! It doesn't stray from where you are and even goes back in the jar nicely. I didn't have it on everything when I was done! I am truly in love - but it still will not replace stickles in my heart! I only bought the one kind (they do make colored distress glitter) as I didn't think I would like it, but I knew I would need to try it for the class. I love it to pieces! Colored my stuff with distress ink first.

Faux cracker glass

Oh this technique is so neat - I did it on the TH vials as well as a piece of plastic packaging that is colored with TH alcohol inks. Let me tell you about those alcohol inks - awhile back they sold a cute TH container that is a metal box specially to hold the inks. I had to have it and of course I filled it - including a pen which by the way I have learned they are going to discontinue that refillable pen, so if you have been thinking about one, you might hunt one up before they are gone. The black ink on this is archival - had to see the difference.

Day 3

The red/blue one was done with distress stains and the green/yellow/gold one was done with distress paint. Both were done with a brayer! Super neat technique! The one with the butterflies is called smudge stamping and what a cool technique that one is! Its done with a Tim Holtz stamp set and distress ink.

Embossing with stencils & Ink mono print

The left one was done with a Dyan Reavely stencil - see I told you I love her stuff! and distress ink. The red one is also done with one of her stencils and distress ink.

Stencil sketching

This technique is going to be a favorite one! Got to use my distress markers here as well as some stencils. The letters are from a Dyan Reavely one and the stamps are Tim's. Of course distress ink.

Stencil stamping & embossing through stencils

Both have distress ink ( all my tags have distress ink even if its only around the edges). The first is done with a Wendy Vecchi stencil and Tim Holtz stamps. That plane is my most favorite stamp of my entire collection of stamps! The dotted one is using a Dyan Reavely stencil which so far of my huge stencil collection all of hers are my favorites. I am dying to get Tim's new stencils - especially the star one!! Anyhow I used Ranger's embossing powder on this one.

Mixed media layering & Paint mono print

Look closely at the leaf stamped tag and you will see layer upon layer upon layer! Done with distress paint, distress ink and stencils. The red white and blue tag is distress paint and stencils.

Happy 21

Our grandson turned 21 and I really wanted to make this a special card. I haven't colored since I had my eye operated on and was a lot leery of doing so. I couldn't find the just right image in my entire stash (which is huge) so I turned to digital images and found this one on Makeitcrafty.com. It was perfect for him. I was so surprised as how much easier it was for me to color now compared with before! Anyhow I did keep track of the copics for a change and will list them at the end. The star paper was made with the Tim Holtz foil sheet, embossed and painted with his paints. Loved this technique. I bought that foil twine for the class and it was perfect to use. Of course I stickled some things - look for the silver on his buttons and I made him have tap shoes! The "greeting" is one of my favorite sayings and is cut from spellbinder's scalloped ovals. I pop it up so it could lay on top of that twine. I colored it with Peacock Feathers as it matched everything else.  The inside of the card is below (the color is not real good in this photo).

I made some more peacock feather paper and used a border
punch on it and took a strip of the background striped paper
from the front. That star is another piece of that colored
card stock cut from a sizzix thin die. I figured that the star
would match the stars on the embossing. Those numbers
are metal and altered with paint and stickles. They were
actually 1/2 separated by a horizontal bar. I broke them apart, filed the edges and altered them. They look like brads are holding them in place (there are brads in use) but I did glue them. The edges of the star is stickles and it is on dimensionals. Happy Birthday is done with a white pigment ink. I think this maybe wouldn't have been quite so nice if I wasn't taking Creative Chemistry 102. And here are the copics: E00, E11, R20, BG05, BG13, BG15, C2, C3, C5, C7, B39. Hope you enjoy this. It was really fun to make. Hugs to you all, Barb F

Industrial technique

This was my only try and I decided that I wasn't going to try it again today as I was covered with paint when I got done! Good thing I was wearing my apron!

Eroded Metallic - day 1

I used blue sapphire paint on this one as I don't have black paint.

Day 1- colored crackle

My first tag for today I decided to do the marbling technique with the paints again as I really wasn't too fond of yesterday's tag. Since I put my crackle pieces aside to dry, I knew I would put them on this tag. I have a bunch of grunge shapes and thought I would actually use a few - have been hoarding them for just the right thing and decided to finally use them!  Since I want to post all my tags to the class, I am just posting the photos for the other two I did today. So much fun. Hugs to you all, Barb F

Day 1 of Creative Chemistry 102

What a wonderful class! If you want to be a part of this, it's not too late. Onlinecardclasses.com. You do have to pay for CC101 (preferably read it all and listen to the videos before you start on CC102). before you get a code to allow you to register and pay for CC102. Its a little confusing, but so worth the effort! Can't tell you how, but these are all done with using Tim Holtz' distress paint. The little metal tag I embossed using a vintage folder on my Vagabond machine.The blue one is done with a paper I made awhile back using Dyan Reavely's new spray inks made by Ranger. They are so pretty!!  I love that I can make such a neat embellishment of metal. I colored that tag with distress inks. I dearly love learning new things using stuff I already have. Hope you enjoy- Hugs to you all, Barb F

Scrapbook cover page

I never made one of these before. DH went on a trip and it was very important to him. He traveled Route 66 and took a million photos. I asked him to chose one of them for his cover page. I blew it up to what looked like a decent size and then I ordered a paper collection from Twopeasinabucket.com. It is called Wild and Free and I ordered it mainly because it looked western themed and it has a wonderful page full of horses. DH saw a herd of horses cross the road in front of him so I figured it was perfect. However, it has a lot of pink in it. It is gorgeous but mostly unusable for this. So I was stuck. I knew I wanted to use that horse paper but nothing seemed to go with it. Then I remembered an old travel collection that has a black and white paper that reminds me of a lot of roads.

I put the photo here so you can follow along. That background is black. Then I found some red card stock and stamped it with red memento ink "route 66" It is an old Tim Holtz stamp.  I dug out any stickers I had with black, red or aqua (the horses, remember?). That "wheel" at the bottom left had an orange center which I covered with a red enamel dot.  The H card was an embellishment that I didn't like the rest of, so I pushed it under the photo.  That is true also of the word one on the top right. I love that font that the route 66 stickers came in. There were little dot things that were in the center of all the o's that kept sticking to my fingers, so I  finally just stuck them here and there on the page. I kind of followed them along with black enamel dots. That "road trip" is also from the same Tim Holtz set. I double framed the photo - it is gray and then aqua. It was a matter of trial and error and using what I already had. I can't imagine how hard it would be to go to the store and buy stuff just for one project . It would take forever to go through all that. I edged my papers with Vintage Photo as usual and also decided that the white behind the horses was too much so I added a little ink to that also. That strip goes all across the page. I didn't know where the photo would end up and its better to have too much than not enough. 

So let me tell you how I add to my stash - I go to places like Two peas and only check out their clearance stuff. That site does a wonderful thing - they arrange products in their clearance by % off. How can you pass us wonderful papers for pennies? They ship in a larger than 12 x 12 box and everything is in perfect condition. I order stuff that is new while I am at it that I just have to have but the shipping isn't too bad and it comes pretty quick. I do the same with several companies that I have come to rely on. Like Oozak - I get all my ink and refills from there as well as their clearance stuff. And Stampingscrapping.com - they have great products by them as well as a real clearance section arranged by price. I also use Simonsaysstamp.com and a few others. I am taking a Gltter Girl class at Two peas right now and will start the new Tim Holtz one on Onlinecardclasses.com on Monday. So excited about that one. My vision is still a lot blurry and I still haven't tried to color as I am still having a bit of trouble with my depth perception. Hope you enjoyed this post. Hugs to you all, Barb F