Inspired By Nature and a comeback?

I'm back, sort of. My stamping mojo left me and I haven't really felt like stamping for quite a long time. But I've taken up hand embroidery and I love it and usually spend my time on that these days.

But my friend, Teresa, inspired me with her recent card creations and I'm kind of looking at my stamping stuff again. Where this goes I don't know, but at least I took this blog out of mothballs. :)

Below is the only card I've created for months. Even so, my mojo was nowhere to be found.



Maybe opening things up here again will help.

Yukon Bear

Someone in my comments section anonymously requested that I do something with my SU Yukon set. I love requests like that! Thank you, anonymous person! So here goes...

...btw, if there's a stamp set you'd like me to play with please speak up. Sometimes these little nudges are what gets my mojo moving.

This card was done intentionally simply. After wrestling with that last card (thanks for the kind comments!) I wanted an easier design. No cuttlebugging, no designer papers (I skipped that on the last one, too, did you notice?), no paper piercing, just simple stamping, you know, like we used to do before accessory mania took over. It's funny, but I think I get more positive feedback when I go simple than when I doody it up.

So for this one I did direct to paper (basically rubbing the ink pad on the cardstock until it's fully saturated) on Always Artichoke cardstock with the Always Artichoke ink pad. It gives the cs a leathery or suede-ish appearance. It's wonderful for masculine cards.

Then on the More Mustard cs I used the Distressed Ink Antique Linen, direct to paper, and after that I stamped the SU Print Pattern background stamp in More Mustard over that.

For the bear I stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and then colored it and the main background with Copics. I touched up the background trees a bit with an Always Artichoke marker.

Well, it was fun taking out one of my least-used sets and one of my most-used background stamps to play, so thanks again for the nudge, whoever you are!

Recipe

Stamps: SU Print Pattern, SU Yukon, SU Inspired By Nature (saying)

CS: Always Artichoke, Black, More Mustard, White

Inks: Distress Ink Antique Linen, More Mustard, Always Artichoke, Versafine Onyx Black

Other: Ticket corner punch, Nestabilities dies, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Copic markers, SU Always Artichoke marker, foam tape, gingham ribbon

Inspired by my littlest

After all the coloring I've done, I ended up making a card with an image I never set out to use on a card. Funny. My youngest wanted something to color with my Stampin' Pastels (chalks) as she had a blast the other day when I let her play with them. So I thought this big silhouette image from Stampin' Up! Inspired By Nature would be just perfect. Well, I stamped me one, too, and boy, was it fun to color!

I stamped it in VersaMark ink and let it dry for maybe 30 minutes or so. I find it's easier to color if the ink is drier. I began by laying on the main colors I wanted the flowers and leaves and stems to be. Then I kept adding little touches of other colors. Once I liked the way it looked and decided to make a card out of it, I added more touches of color to match the background papers (Basic Grey Recess 6x6 pad - retired) and finished it off by going over the edges of the images ever-so-slightly in black chalk. It ended up looking like a watercolor! I used an eye shadow applicator to apply the smaller touches of color, as it was more precise that way. But for the big washes of color I used mini pompoms and an alligator clip. That's just my preference. You might like to do it differently.

*Edited to add* After coloring, I used a kneaded eraser to remove the excess around the images. It comes right off.

After I finished coloring the image, I put it through the Cuttlebug using the Script embossing folder. Then I spritzed it with Stampin' Up! Basic Black ink using the Inkworx air art gun (which, I think, goes by a different name now).

The word stamp is a Dawn Houser image by Inkadinkado. I thought it had just the right feel for this image.

Stamps: SU Inspired By Nature, Inkadinkado 8361-L (Dawn Houser line)

CS: Black, PTI white, Basic Grey Recess

Inks: VersaMark, Memento Tuxedo Black

Other: Cuttlebug Script embossing folder, Stampin' Up! Scallop Trim border punch, Nestabilities Long Classic Rectangles Large, Long Classic Scalloped Rectangles Large, sewing machine, Inkworx air art gun, SU Basic Black marker, clear gems, black polka dot ribbon, foam mounting tape, Stampin' Pastels, eye shadow applicator, mini pompoms, alligator clip, kneaded eraser