Cut 'n Paste

All the Feels, Modern & simple watercolour card

It's ok to be overwhelmed. Even when, seemingly, most obligations have been cut.

I've been sitting on about 20 cards to share here on my blog for the past 8 weeks because it has just been overwhelming to think about sitting down to post and link the products. And, I'm sure I'm not the only one who has found some of life difficult to handle the past few months.

I know that this season will pass, and things will get back to normal, but it's important to keep the internal conversation positive and remind myself that it's ok to have days, even weeks, where the production level is just not the same as how I normally operate. 

This card, and its accompanying sentiment perhaps puts it nicely. Won't you join me in allow ourselves all the feels...

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Bloominous and Summer Stems by The Stamp Market
Dies:Stitched Diagonal STAX Rectangle by My Favorite Things, Bloominous Die by The Stamp Market 
Ink: Jet Black Archival Ink by Ranger
Patterned paper: Good Vibes by Crate Paper
Watercolours: Gansai Tambi Set by Kuretake 
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah
Other: MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards), Crafty Foam Tape by Scrapbook Adhesives, Watercolour brushes

Be Courageous, friend patchwork card

A simple wish for all of us at this time. To be courageous in our words, thoughts and deeds. To persevere through a season of heaviness and find joy where, and when, we can.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Courage by Pretty Pink Posh, and Simply Soft by Stampin' Up!
Inks: Emboss it Clear Embossing ink by Ranger, Blueprint Sketch Distress Ink by Ranger
Distress Markers for painting in the flowers: Stormy Sky, Faded Jeans, Mowed Lawn, Tea Dye 
Embossing Powder: White by Ranger
Patterned paper: Indigo Hills by Pinkfresh Studios
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah, Nautical and Lapis by Hero Arts
Other: Watercolour brushes, MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards), sewing machine and white thread, Heat embossing tool

Inspired by Rebecca Sower, mini collage cards

There are so many wonderful artists who have inspired me, but one of my all time favorites is Rebecca Sower. I have known Rebecca for years, going back to our paper crafting/scrapbooking days  - she even taught at my La Dolce Vita Tuscany, Italy Retreats two years ago.

At the beginning of April Rebecca embarked upon a 100 day project of making art work with birds. Her talented hand, keen eye and fresh colour palette make it a pleasure to log onto Instagram each day to see her latest addition to the project. Here's a little peek from her IG wall... If you don't already follow her, definitely go check it out, she's amazing!

Having been inspired by her collage pieces, a few weeks ago I decided to make some greeting cards inspired by them. And, man were they ever fun to make!

I dug deep into my box of patterned paper scraps to mix and match designs and colours and recreate Rebecca's signature farmhouse fresh colour schemes.

The little birds were stamped from a really old Stampin' Up! set, that had been long forgotten in the back of my storage cabinet. But I brought them out of purgatory to be given new life with watercolours.

Finally, I made one more card to mail to Rebecca, letting her know how much she inspires me and cheering her on in her 100 day project. Now that she's received it, I can finally share this post :)

SUPPLY LISTS FOR THE THREE CARDS:
Stamps: Natural Beauty by Stampin' Up!, All Inside by Ellen Hutson, Encouraging Greetings by Pretty Pink Posh
Dies: Lovely Little Border by Heffy Doodle
Inks: Potting Soil Archival ink by Ranger, Twilight by Cathrine Pooler
Distress ink markers for RED bird: Festive Berries, Tea Dye, Vintage Photo, Wild honey, Shabby Shutters, Mowed Lawn by Ranger
Distress ink markers for BLUE bird: Peacock Feathers, Evergreen Bough, Broken China, Tea Dye, Wild honey, Shabby Shutters, Mowed Lawn by Ranger
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah (as my card base), Peony by Hero Arts, Ranger Watercolor paper
Patterned paper: Vintage Bliss by Simple Stories, Stella & Rose by My Mind's Eye, Little Adventurer by Pink Paislee, Open Book by American Crafts, DIY Home by Jen Hadfield
Other: Watercolor brushes, MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards), Non-Stick Craft Sheet by Ranger, sewing machine and white thread, acrylic paint in turquoise and clementine, vintage ledger paper, circle punch, a scrap of turquoise cardstock

Hello Panda, faux epoxy die cut DIY

Happy Friday! This cheeky little bear is popping by to say hello and wish you a fantastic weekend. It's a long weekend where I live so my husband and I are looking forward to an extra day before he goes back into the office on Tuesday.

Today's card was made for a friend who has two little ones, so I wanted to send a card that the kids might enjoy looking at too - I think this adorable stamp hit the mark. It's an oldie from Concord & 9th which I pulled out of my cupboard to play with again. My first go 'round with the stamp I stamped a bear, however, this time I decided to make a cute little panda and he's SOOOOO cute!

One of the interesting techniques on today's card is the faux epoxy greeting with the "hello" die cut. To do this, I die cut 4 of the greetings with pink cardstock and glued them together. Once the glue was dry, I applied a thick coat of Glossy Accents to the top of the letters and allowed it to dry completely. Once dry, I then glued it to the card. Honestly, if you were taking a look at the card, you would be hard pressed to know that this was not a pre-made embellishment - it looks that good. It's a dead easy technique to do, just takes a little time as you need to allow the Glossy Accents to dry completely before using. But, it provides a lot of bang for the buck, so I'd encourage you to give it a try sometime.

Thanks for your visit today!

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Hi there bear by Concord & 9th
Die: Big Scripty Hello by Ellen Hutson
Ink: Midnight, Rose Petals, It's a Girl, Eucalyptus by Catherine Pooler
Black ink: Catherine Pooler Midnight
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah, Peony and Azalea by Hero Arts, Ebony by Essentials by Ellen 
Other: Die Cutting machine, scrap of chipboard, Glossy Accents by Ranger, buttons, unknown dotted patterned paper.

Time Lapse Watercolour Succulent card

Today I'm up on the Ellen Hutson blog sharing the instructions for these two simple and beautiful watercolour cards - and for those who prefer to watch the process, there is a timelapse video for painting the bucket and leaves. So, check it out here!

No line Watercolour flowers - Pumice Stone Distress ink for the win!

Happy Friday friends. The weather is gorgeous here in Vancouver, and I am revelling in the promise of a beautiful weekend.

For today's card, I grabbed some patterned paper from long discontinued collections, stamps from ages ago, and created an any occasion card that is soft and romantic. I absolutely LOVE how the watercolour flowers turned out. I decided to paint them using the no-line watercolour technique, and I purposely added the yellow centres while the grey watercolour was still wet so that the colours would flow together... Be still my heart!

I also realized through this project that Pumice Stone Distress ink is perfect to colour flowers that I want to read as white/cream... because, as they age, that colour of flower often turns grey/brown. This particular shade of grey looked fantastic and is one I'll be reaching for again and again.

I hope that wherever you are you have a great weekend - perhaps with a bit of creative time mixed in.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Natural Beauty by Stampin' Up!, Avignon by 7gypsies
Dies: Lovely Little Border by Heffy Doodle
Inks: Twilight by Cathrine Pooler
Distress ink markers: Pumice Stone, Wild honey, Shabby Shutters, Mowed Lawn by Ranger
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah (as my card base), Mustard by Hero Arts, Ranger Watercolor paper
Patterned paper: Vintage Bliss by Simple Stories, Follow your Heart by My Mind's Eye
Other: Watercolor brushes, MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards),  Die Cutting machine, Water Mist bottle Ranger or Hero Arts, sewing machine and white thread

I'm here for you, watercolour with Distress Markers

Here's the next in my cards for friends series that I've been enjoying making. This project often entails deep dives into my stash of stamps, papers and supplies and the joy I've found in unearthing sets that haven't receive much recent play has been immeasurable. 

Today's card features an old Hostess stamp set from Stampin' Up! (2009, if I recall correctly), and I combined it with sentiments from the very new (2020) Beary Good Friends stamp set by Avery Elle. I think that these sentiments are perfect for our current world and the combo of cursive and printing is beautiful.

To stamp, I coloured directly onto the markers using Distress markers, then lightly spritzed them with water from a spray bottle (holding it about 8-10 inches away, and moving my hand as I spritzed so that the water spray didn't concentrate in one area of the stamp. I sprayed approximately 3 times.) After spraying the water, I stamped directly onto watercolour paper. Then, using a watercolour brush I gently filled in the bird with a bit of watercolour made from mixing Tumbled Glass Distress ink with a little water.

The card itself is a little patchwork of coordinating patterned papers and cardstocks - it was a treat to page through all my old 6x6 pads to find just the right ones to combine!

I hope you have a great week, friends.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Beary good friends by Avery Elle, Asian Artistry by Stampin' Up!
Inks: Emboss it Clear Embossing ink by Ranger
Embossing Powder: White by Ranger
Distress ink markers: Bundled Sage, Pumice Stone, Frayed Burlap, Spiced Marmalade, Tumbled Glass, Evergreen Bough, Shabby Shutters, Black Soot by Ranger
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah (as my card base), Nautical by Hero Arts, Ranger Watercolor paper, teal - similar to Candy Necklace by Bazzill
Patterned paper: Fresh Cut by Basic Grey, Welcome Neighbour by Stampin' Up!, Modern Graphics by Ellen Hutson
Other: Vellum by Ellen Hutson, Watercolor brushes, MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards),  Die Cutting machine, Water Mist bottle Ranger or Hero Arts, sewing machine and white thread, Stampin' Up! Scalloped border punch.

Hello Friend, gold embossed greeting

Popping in to wish you well and put a smile on your face, friend! Here's hoping for a good week ahead.

Today's crafty share is a super simple card, that packs its punch on the back of the beautiful calligraphy greeting from Mama Elephant, which I heat embossed with gold embossing powder.

Have a great day!

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Hello Friend Wishes by Mama Elephant
Ink: Emboss it Clear by Ranger
Embossing powder: White by Ranger, Gold by Hero Arts
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah
Patterned Paper: Blush by My Mind's Eye
Other: Scrapbook Adhesives Crafty Foam Tape, Heat embossing tool by WOW!, vintage ledger paper, old mother of pearl buttons, needle and thread.

Love you Mom

Mother's Day is approaching fast, so today I am joining some of my fellow Ellen Hutson designers with a compilation post on the EH blog sharing some sweet Mother's Day card ideas - be sure to click on over and check it out for more inspiration!

Because I didn't have a specific Mother's Day greeting stamp, I looked through my stash trying to find a greeting that could be stretched to fit Mother's Day, and this "love you" sentiment seemed to fit the bill perfectly.

I opted to create a patchwork base for my card, using patterned paper from a variety of manufacturers. When I create this type of card, the first thing I do is decide on the focal point of the card, which was one of the floral stamps from the Bouquet Builder set by Waffle Flower. Then, I go through my patterned papers to decide which papers I will combine to create the patchwork. Typically I try to combine papers that have different scale, different values/depth of colour and while this card is somewhat monochromatic, I usually also like to add pops of complementary colour too. 

Final tip, in the photo above, you can see how some of the blooms and leaves are a slight bit raised off the background. This is a simple, but important step to add depth and visual interest to the card front. In this card I did it by applying Foam tape behind a few different areas of the floral accent, leaving some of the elements glued flat onto the card, base, and others slightly raised. 

Thanks for your visit today. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Bouquet Builder 6 by Waffle Flower, Small Sayings by Ellen Hutson
Die Cut: Bouquet Builder 6 by Waffle Flower, Stitching Lines by Ellen Hutson
Ink: Potting Soil Archival ink by Ranger
Distress Markers to watercolor with: Worn Lipstick, Picked Raspberry, Mowed Lawn, Shabby Shutters
Cardstock: Ranger Watercolor paper, Solar White by Neenah
Patterned Paper: Spring Fling by Lawn Fawn, Spiffy Speckles Petite paper packs by Lawn fawn, Cottage Stripes and Dots by Memory Box
Other: Die Cutting machine, Scrapbook Adhesives Crafty Foam Tape, Non-Stick Craft Sheet by Ranger, Watercolour brushes, sewing machine and white thread

Miss you, patterned paper patchwork card

Hello friends. How was your weekend? I came off a challenging week and spent several hours in my studio on Saturday and Sunday creating to try and capture some joy. My joy was tempered yesterday by the news of the mass shooting here in Canada that took the life of an RCMP officer, which is hitting our policing community hard. My husband kept coming down to my studio to give me updates as the messages flew back and forth between him and his fellow officers.

As the world gets scary, and sadness threatens to overwhelm I am grateful for the gift of creativity and how it offers an escape and respite for darker thoughts.

During our current shutdown, I have given myself permission to craft with whatever product I want no matter how old or new. While I know that it's helpful if I only share products where you can purchase the supplies should you fall in love with something, I hope that my projects that use old, discontinued products will be jumping off points that spark your own creativity to use products you have laying around your own craft stash. 

This card is a throwback to my previous life as a scrapbooker and product designer. One of the things I always loved was designing coordinating collections of patterned paper, and in my personal crafting I loved the challenge of mixing papers across multiple brands and lines. I always thought that the way I was able to mix and match patterns was one of my strengths as a designer. Today's card was exactly that kind of project. It uses patterned papers from 4 different collections, plus a snippet of vintage ledger paper!

The focal point is from an old Stampin' Up! set, Simply Soft. I stamped it onto a reproduction vintage label, which I designed probably about 10 years ago for a mini album workshop that I taught in Norway (if I recall correctly). I tried to see if I still had the digital file to share it with you, but alas, I couldn't find it on my hard drive. I then watercolored the stamped image using ink from some Distress markers. Finally, I mounted the label onto a piece of chipboard that was the same size as the label. This allowed the label to have a bit of depth when it was mounted to the card front.

Please let me know if you have any other questions about today's card. In the meantime stay safe and healthy, friends.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Simply Soft by Stampin' Up!, Small Sayings by Ellen Hutson
Ink: Potting Soil Archival ink by Ranger, Be Mine by Catherine Pooler
Distress Markers to watercolor with: Picked Raspberry, Worn Lipstick, Barn Door, Mowed Lawn, Shabby Shutters by Ranger
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah
Patterned Paper: Bloom 6x6 paper pad by Crate Paper (pink and yellow floral paper), Cute girl 6x6 paper pad by Crate Paper (pink paper on the left border), Kraft Striped paper by My Favorite Things (striped paper bottom right), Everyday 6x6 paper pad by Jen Hadfield for Pebbles (navy paper on the right).
Other: Pearls by Kaiser Craft, Die Cutting machine, Non-Stick Craft Sheet by Ranger, Watercolour brushes, sewing machine and white thread, vintage ledger paper, vintage label, scrap of chipboard.