Cut 'n Paste

Good Times: June 2019 Ellen Hutson release

I am currently in Italy leading my second week of La Dolce Vita Women's Retreats. When this set brand new Essentials by Ellen stamp set landed in my mailbox, I was preparing to depart for my trip, and was totally in an Italian frame of mind. So, as you can imagine, when I saw this set, I was in LOVE - check it out!

Totally a set made for a card to celebrate Italy, right?! Feeling inspired, off I went to make a red, white, and green card that pays homage to the country I love so much.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Good Times by Ellen Hutson
Inks: Barn Door and Mowed Lawn Distress ink by Ranger, Tuxedo Black by Memento
Cardstock: Solar White  and Environment Desert Storm by Neenah, Caramel Apple by Bazzill
Copic Markers: WO, W2, W3, YR23, C7, C9, R27
Patterned paper: Tiny Check 6x6 pad, by My Favorite Things
Other: MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards), Glossy Accents by Ranger, Rainbow hearts by Doodlebug, sewing machine and white thread.

Thanks for joining me today. The June release by Julie Ebersol for Essentials by Ellen is super inspiring. I hope you get a chance to click over to the Ellen Hutson website to check it out.

Mondo Wildflowers - May 2019 Essentials by Ellen Release

Today I'm back to share the Mondo Wildflowers Stamp and die set from the May Essentials by Ellen release with you. It's a big one, and I'm only highlighting one of the sets, so be sure to head over to the website to see the entire release!

Some of my favorite cards that I've ever designed were made using Mondo Flower stamp sets from Ellen Hutson, and so I am always excited when a new set is added to the family. Check it this beauty - so pretty, right?!:

To put this card together, I stamped the Mondo Wildflowers onto kraft colored cardstock with VersaMark ink, then heat embossed it with white embossing powder. Next, it was time to break out my inner child and color it with pencil crayons (colored pencils to Americans). This was fun - I loved how the colors popped against the kraft cardstock. When finished coloring, use the coordinating die cut to trim the bouquet out.

The next step was to prep the background. I knew that I wanted a pop of color to sneak out from behind the die cut flowers, so I experimented with my inks and the Ripe Persimmon Distress Ink ended up being the winning shade that provided the pop of color I was looking for, yet wasn't too overwhelming. I blended it onto white cardstock using a medium sized Life Changing Blender Brush. Okay, that name cracks me up, but they are indeed totally awesome and it was some of the easiest blending I've ever done. True Story!

I stamped the greeting using Sand Castle Catherine Pooler ink, then glued the white cardstock onto a kraft card base. The final step was to adhere the Mondo Wildflower die cut to the front of the card using pop dots (3D adhesive).

This card was a treat to make as it has been forever since I've broken out the pencil crayons and it brought back so many great memories of being a kid.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Mondo Wildflowers by Ellen Hutson
Dies: Mondo Wildflowers by Ellen Hutson
Stamp/die Combo: Mondo Wildflowers by Ellen Hutson
Inks: Sand Castle by Catherine Pooler, Ripe Persimmon Distress ink by Ranger, and VersaMark by Tsukineko.
Embossing powder: White super fine by Ranger
Colored pencils: Prismacolor Pencil Collection
Cardstock: Solar White and Environment Desert Storm both by Neenah,
Other:  3D Foam adhesive, MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards),  Heat embossing tool, Life Changing Blender Brush - 2 Pack by Picket Fence Studios

Thanks for your visit today! Have a great weekend.

April 2018 Ellen Hutson release Everyday Doodles and Everyday Punnies

Hi Friends, it's time to celebrate the April Essential by Ellen Release! Designed by Julie Ebersole, there are some adorable stamps in this release. I love, love, love this wee chick, above. It was such an easy image to stamp and seriously gives me fresh, Spring vibes.

I'm going to start my release posts sharing two cards featuring the Everyday Doodles & Punnies stamp sets. The Everyday Doodles stamps have a coordinating Die set available. 

My cards are simple, but I think that sometimes that's where the magic is, right? 

Both cards follow the same formula:
1) Cover the front of the card with gingham patterned paper
2) Die cut a small white tag and add a colourful reinforcement to the top of it
3) Stamp the focal image and punny greeting onto the tag. (For the chick tag, I also used W0 and W2 Copic markers to add a ground so that the chick had something to stand on and wasn't floating on the tag.)
4) Attach the tag to the card front using 3D foam adhesive so that it is raised from the background.

Here's the supply list for all the products used in these two cards.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Everyday Punnies and Everyday Doodles by Ellen Hutson
Inks: For Chick card: Sauna and Shea Butter by Catherine Pooler, For Sweetest card: It's a Girl and Sand Castle by Catherine Pooler, Tea Dye Distress ink and Blush Altenew ink. For both cards: Tuxedo Black by Memento
Dies: Tag'd by The Stamp Market
Cardstock: Solar White  and Desert Storm by Neenah, Artic by Hero Arts
Copic Markers: WO, W2
Patterned paper: Gotta Have Gingham by Lawn Fawn
Other: MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards), 3D Foam adhesive

Thanks for visiting me on this release day. Be sure to head on over to the shop to check the whole release out!

Lawn Fawn Rawrsome birthday card

This weekend, my friends at Ellen Hutson are having a 25% off sale on all in stock Lawn Fawn products in the store from now until March 31. To celebrate I'm sharing a card I recently made featuring their Rawrsome stamp set, which helped me make the perfect card for celebrating the birthday of a little guy I know.

I combined this set with my newest Concord & 9th die that I added to my collection, the 'Hey There' Die, which I thought would be just the kind of thing to get a kid's attention, lol. The dino was colored with Copics, and after finishing, I coated him with Glossy Accents which gives his skin a smooth, shiny finish - kinda reptilian!

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Rawrsome by Lawn Fawn
Dies: Hey There by Concord & 9th, Woodgrain Cover by Mama Elephant, A2 Stitched Rectangle STAX Set 1 by My Favorite Things 
Inks: Tuxedo Black by Momento
Copic Markers: YG61, G94, E53, E55, YR16, W2
Cardstock: Solar White and Environment Desert Storm both by Neenah,
Other:  3D Foam adhesive, MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards), Glossy Accents by Ranger, Star Dust Stickles by Ranger

Thanks for your visit today, and please pop over to Ellen Hutson's Lawn Fawn section to see if there are any goodies you need to add to your collection this weekend while they're on sale!

Penny Black Painter's Vase

Happy Tuesday. How are you doing? I'm neck deep in tax preparations and given that it's my least favorite part of being self employed, I thought I'd distract myself a bit by sharing this card with you. With it's soft, shabby chic style, this card embodies the kind of card making I love. Featuring the Penny Black Painter's Vase stamp set and The Stamp Market's Thanks die from their Beyond Grateful set, I feel like this card screams SPRING to me. 

The technique is very easy. Simply color directly onto the stamp with waterbased ink markers (I used Distress Markers, colors listed below), then holding a water mister about 6-8 inches away from the stamp, lightly mist the stamp surface and immediately stamp onto watercolor paper. This will blend the inks wonderfully and give you the beautiful watercolor effect as seen on my card! 

The greeting is a die cut from The Stamp Market. I love the handwritten writing style and thought that white, tone on tone would work well for this soft, shabby chic styled card. However, although I wanted the greeting to be subtle, I didn't want it to blend into the background. So, I cut 4 of the 'thanks' greeting from white cardstock and stacked them, gluing one to another until I got the look of a raised chipboard element. By raising the element, it allows for more play of shadow which helps it pop of the card front.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Painter's Vase by Penny Black
Dies: Beyond Grateful by The Stamp Market
Patterned Paper: Gotta Havea Gingham 6x6 pad by Lawn Fawn
Cardstock: Ranger Watercolor paper, Solar White by Neenah.
Distress Markers to watercolor with: Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick, Picked Raspberry, Shabby Shutters, Mowed Lawn 
Other: Water Spray bottle, Essentials by Ellen Vellum, sewing machine and white thread

Thanks for your visit today!

Penny Black Special Friends Happy Birthday

Happy Spring Friends! At times it felt like winter would never end, but finally, we are transitioning into sunny, nicer weather here in the Pacific Northwest, and I am HERE for it! I can't think of a better card to welcome in Spring than this little Happy Birthday Bunny from the Penny Black Special Friends Stamp set.

If you have visited here before, you probably already know that I am a patterned paper LOVER. As a former patterned paper designer in the scrapbooking industry, I can hardly finish a project without it. I think it adds such a huge punch to paper crafting projects. As I experimented with colors, I was stoked to find that Catherine Pooler's Garden Party and Melon Ice inks coordinated so incredibly well with Heidi Swapp's Emerson Lane paper pad - score! 

For the wee bunny, first I stamped him with Ranger Pumice Stone Distress ink, then I watercolored him using that ink, along with their Tea Dye ink. After the watercolor ink dried, I then stamped on top with Potting Soil archival ink by Ranger to bring the detail of the lines back into the image. 

One final design note that the photo doesn't convey is that I embossed the "Happy Birthday" greeting to add a tiny bit of extra dimension to the card front. It's subtle, but definitely visible when you see the card in person.

SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps: Special Friends by Penny Black
Dies: Special Friends by Penny Black, Nesting Ovals by Hero Arts
Inks: Potting Soil archival ink by Ranger; Garden Party, Melon Ice, It's a Girl by Catherine Pooler; Tea Dye and Pumice Stone Distress ink by Ranger, Emboss it Clear Embossing ink by Ranger
Embossing Powder: Clear by Hero Arts
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah
Patterned paper: Emerson Lane by Heidi Swapp
Other:  3D Foam adhesive, MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards), Aqua Flow brushes by Tonic,  Heat embossing tool, pink seam binding, an old white button

Thanks so much for your visit today! I hope you have a great weekend!

It's March EBE release day!

Hi friends, today is March release day for 3 new stamp and die combinations at Ellen Hutson - yah!

My card uses the new Backyard friends stamp set, which is also available with a coordinating die set.

I have been yearning for Spring, so my card leaned heavily into a Spring colour scheme with robin's egg blue, yellow and gold. My little birdy was watercolored using shades of blue and yellow Distress markers as my inks. Handy Tip: It is so important to ground design elements. Had I not added the grey ground below it, the little birdie would have just been floating on a white cardstock base, and it would look off. Adding that little ground detail makes a HUGE difference.

Here's the supply list for today's card:

Stamps:  Backyard Friends
Dies: A2 Stitched Rectangle STAX Set 1 by My Favorite Things 
Patterned paper: Patio Party by Pebbles 
Cardstock: Ranger Watercolor paper, Solar White by Neenah.
Distress Markers to watercolor with:  Wild Honey, Mustard Seed, Tumbled Glass, Broken China, Peacock feathers, Pumice Stone.
Ink:  Ranger Archival in Jet Black, Versamark Ink by Tsukineko
Embossing Powder: Gold by Ranger
Other: Watercolor brushes, Vintage buttons, sewing machine and white thread

Thanks for the visit, and please head on over to Ellen Hutson to see the other great new releases this month.

Find me on your newstand!

Did you know that I host a women's retreat in Italy each summer? La Dolce Vita Retreat is a labour of love, and it's humbling to have seen its growth over the past 6 years. So, you can imagine how exciting it is to see it featured in the pages of a beautiful magazine.

I'm honoured to share that the 2018 Retreat has been published in the Winter 2019 (Jan/Feb/Mar) issue of "Mingle". Featuring photography by the talented Paige Knudsen, the article gives a little peek into the world of a La Dolce Vita Creative Lifestyle Retreat and the heart I have for creating a memorable experience for all who attend.

You can pick up an issue at major book sellers like Barnes & Noble, Indigo Books, or directly from the publisher, Stampington.

Thank you to Paige for sharing her photography with us, and Danielle Williams from Stampington for working with me to bring this story to print.

I hope you enjoy it ♡

Lucky Day!

It's the final day to celebrate the new Essentials by Ellen February Stamp and Die release, and today I'm highlighting the new Bear Ware 3 Stamp and Die set.

As you can see, this set was designed to coordinate beautifully with the "All Inside" bear that was released a few years ago. Every so often he receives a few accessories to spiff up his look!⁣
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I chose to highlight how the images in this set could also be used on their own - in this case, for a cute little St. Patrick's Day card! If you like sending seasonal cards, you're going to love this set for Spring and Summer themed cards.

HERE'S THE SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps:  by Essentials by Ellen
Dies:  Rectangle Peek-a-boo Window by My Favorite things
Inks: Midnight by Catherine Pooler and Peeled Paint by Ranger Distress ink
Patterned paper: Emerson Lane by Heidi Swapp
Cardstock: Solar White by Neenah
Distress Markers to watercolor with: Peeled Paint
Other: Watercolor brushes, Ranger Craft Sheet, MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards), 3D foam mounting squares

Thanks for your visit today!

It's too Peopley!

Welcome to my second card featuring the February Essentials by Ellen Release.  

The Latte Love stamp set is FULL of sweet, adorable images, and I had thought, when I was first given a sneak peek of the graphics, that I would work with one of the wee animal images from it.

But, when the set arrived and I sat down at my desk to work on my assignment, I immediately saw something else. I saw the possibility of making a card for someone who was going through a period in her life when it seemed like she was being followed by a rain cloud. As someone who had a serious fight with depression twenty years ago, one that culminated in a hospital admission, I would have appreciated receiving a card like this during my illness. One of the typical ways depression often manifests itself is that the sufferer feels anti-social. So when I created this's card I imagined it as one that I would send to a friend, letting her know that I love her during the battle she is fighting and that, even though she doesn't feel like being around people right now, I am still here for her.

Technique wise, I did have to get a tad creative with the stamp. If you look closely, you'll notice that the cloud stamp has a smily face -  making this a happy little rain cloud. So, I needed to remove his smile. Instead of stamping the entire design with one ink, I used Distress markers to color directly onto the stamp. I omitted coloring the eyes and smile, thereby removing it from the design. I used the Pumice Stone Distress marker for the cloud and the Weathered Wood Distress Marker for the rain drops. I then added more color using Pumice Stone, Stormy Sky, Weathered Wood Distress markers as watercolors, thus turning the happy cloud into a storm cloud.

HERE'S THE SUPPLY LIST:
Stamps:  Latte Love by Essentials by Ellen
Dies: A2 Stitched Rectangle STAX Set 1 by My Favorite Things 
Inks: Tuxedo Black by Memento, Pumice Stone Distress ink by Ranger 
Patterned paper: Emerson Lane by Heidi Swapp
Cardstock: Ranger Watercolor paper
Distress Markers to watercolor with: Pumice Stone, Stormy Sky, Weathered Wood
Other: Watercolor brushes, Ranger Craft Sheet, MISTI Stamp positioner (large or small, either will work for cards), 3D foam mounting squares

Thanks for coming by to check out my latest card. Please feel free to let me know if you have any questions.