I was able to play with the new Cool Cats stamps from MFT Stamps. I love the images on this stamp set and the sentiments are so adorable. MFT has done it again! They never cease to amaze me. Here is a process video of the card I made yesterday.
Have an amazing day!
Hello stampers and crafters! Today is my turn to showcase my all-time favorite Brentwood stamp from www.jessicalynnoriginal.com. It is also JLO’s 11th year anniversary. Today’s post will be a little different. I will not be showing you a ton of card samples. My blog post will be all about my designing process. A little disclaimer, I am still a novice in card making. The tips I am sharing with you today are some of the things I have learned along the way being a paper crafter. I am still learning and trying to improve. However this is my own designing process so I hope you enjoy. I would love to receive your comment as well on what is yours. What inspires you to create cards or scrapbook layouts? Some of you guys are visual learners and would probably like to see some of it in action, so here’s a little YouTube video that I filmed and posted on my channel. This is my “happy” place.
First thing that I do is to make a good cup of coffee for myself. I then turn my iPod on to my favorite playlist so that I can play my favorite music while I work on the card. Lighting a great scented candle is always my go-to. I know that’s too much for some people but that is what I do for myself. I like to work in a peaceful and beautiful environment. Once the room is completely how I like it, I then start gathering my supplies.
If I am using a clear stamp, my favorite tool to use for stamping is my MISTI or my stampoholic-Nano. This tool makes lining up the sentiments and stamping the images so much easier. If you didn’t stamp it correctly, you can always go back and stamp it again and make it look as perfect as you want it to be. However for the two cards you see below, I used my all-time favorite digital stamp from JLO and the free anniversary digital stamp now available for download until the end of this month. Here’s the link http://www.jessicalynnoriginal.com/limited-edition-instant-download-jessicalynnoriginal-coms-brentwood-owl-singing-in-the-rain-celebrating-our-11th-anniversary-digital-rubber-stamp/
From my experience, stamping the image a couple of times is always a good idea because if you somehow mess up the coloring on one image, then you can color another without having to go back and stamp again and again. Trust me, it will save you so much time! I use Memento Tuxedo black ink for Copic markers, or MFT Stamps Black Hybrid Ink. Now, Simon Says Stamp made the Intense Black Ink that is both good for Copic markers or watercolors. I switch between the three!
Before I die-cut the stamped images, I like to clean my stamps by using my all-time favorite cleaner, water and a chamois. Yes, a chamois! You know, the stuff that you use to wipe your car with? You can purchase one inexpensively at an auto-supply store, or order one from Amazon (where I got mine). You can reuse this a hundred times and it will clean the stamps nicely. I used to use baby wipes but they sometimes left some fibers on my stamps. I got this tip from a fellow stamper months ago at a Facebook group called Stamping Enablers. Lawn Fawn now has a stamp Shammy that they also sell in their online store.
Once the images are colored, I proceed to die-cut the images with the coordinating dies but if I don’t, I fuzzy-cut the image using my favorite Fiskars cutter-bee scissors. I also die-cut everything else that I need for my card. I like to use post-it tape to hold my dies in it’s place so it doesn’t shift when I run it through my die-cutting machine. The supplies you see on the photos are all of my favorite supplies in card making. One helpful TIP: I try to use as few colors as possible and also try to coordinate my patterned paper or card stock with the color of the images that I’m using for my card.
Have you ever noticed that popular card-makers always somehow create the most beautiful cards? Aside from using some great tools, this is the main reason why! However, this doesn’t always work for me. Sometimes, I don’t have the coordinating patterned paper or card stock but I try to minimize the colors that I use. At times, I get carried away over-embellishing my cards but then that’s what card-making is all about. Isn’t it? Sometimes I like to create simple cards, sometimes I don’t. It depends on my mood, I guess!
Once I finish the card, I then proceed to take a final photo so I can post it on my social media accounts, like Instagram, post on my Blog or use it as a thumbnail for my YouTube videos.
Another great tip: Lighting is the key to great photographs. I know it doesn’t always work but I will teach you a trick on how to edit your lighting! YOU DON’T NEED EXPENSIVE LIGHT BOXES TO MAKE THEM LOOK PROFESSIONAL!
For my cards, I use a white poster board that I lined up with a neutral patterned paper. Having a neutral color background will always make your images pop. I use a frog pin (purchased from a craft store) to hold my cards up. Once I am satisfied with the position, I take a few photos using my iPhone 6S.
If my lighting is really bad and the sun doesn’t want to cooperate, I use a photo-editor app to fix my lighting (Layout, RealBokeh, or Adobe Photoshop). However, there are a ton of free photo apps out there that can do this for you. You just need to find whatever works for you. Once I am happy with the lighting, I then use another app to put a watermark on my photos (Phonto). I started doing this now because I found that some of my card photos before were (stolen and) used to submit photos for an application to be published at a magazine. Yes, I know it is horrible and I really do not want to specify anymore because I try not to dwell on things and just move forward. I have learned my lesson the hard way. This is why I always have my watermark on my finished cards.
So I hope you guys found these tips and tricks very helpful. I would like to know your designing process and would be really grateful if you share your tips with me as well.
Here are my cards to celebrate Jessica Lynn Original’s 11th year anniversary! Please celebrate with us by going to Jessica’s Blog for more details; she will be giving away a HUGE prize at the end of the week. To participate, download the free digi-stamp and post your link at Jessica’s Blog. Here’s Jessica’s link: http://jessicalynnoriginalstamps.blogspot.com/2016/04/happy-11th-anniversary.html
Have an amazing week!
The day has finally arrived to introduce to you, two brand new sets from Jessica Lynn Original stamps ~ Jam & Coffee Rubber Stamp and the new All Season Planner Stamps. These two stamp sets can be purchased as a bundle at a discounted price, plus free shipping, We only have 30 sets so if you like them, please go to Jessica’s online store or click on this link before you miss this deal: http://www.jessicalynnoriginal.com/february-bundle-deal-calendar-planner-jam-and-coffee-rubber-stamp-set/
I am the last person on this blog hop. I hope we inspired you today to start creating with JLO stamps.
Here are the photos of the cards I made and a YouTube video link so you all can see the planner stamps as well. Have a great Valentine’s weekend!
The materials and measurements for the box card and other supplies are indicated in the description box of my YouTube video.
It is that time of the year again when we’re all thinking about making cards and special treats for our loved ones for Valentine’s Day. I used to make a ton of Valentine’s projects when my kids were little to help them bring the treats to class but I also made some very special treats just for them ~ and my husband.
When my kids were still young, I decorate the house on February 1st but on the eve before Valentine’s Day, I really go all out! I wait until my kids are past asleep, and then I decorate the dining room with all sorts of stuff. I really love seeing the reaction on my children’s faces when they come down for breakfast and see all the little treats I laid out for them. Of course I do the same for my husband and include little treats in his lunch box.
Here’s a project that I used to make with my kids to bring to school. I really love Lawn Fawn and the sentiment is perfect for these little test tubes. If you have younger kids, please get them the plastic version so no one gets hurt on Valentine’s Day.
I hope you like this project. I will be posting more Valentine’s crafts in the next few days/weeks.
Have an amazing day!
I am thrilled to finally be able to post photos of this new stamp set by Jessica Lynn Original called Rock Lobster. I love Brentwood, but don’t you just love that little smiley fish? It’s so adorable! Jessica is such a talented artist and a wonderful person; I am so proud to be a member of her design team.
Below you will find a photo of the stamp set. I think this will be a great addition to your collection. Just like the rest of Jessica’s stamps, this is made of high quality photo polymer material. You don’t have to be a skilled stamper to use this set.
Since today is Halloween, I wanted to create a Halloween card. I have always believed that you can use any stamp set for any occasion, with just a little imagination. I always liked stretching my stamps and dies. Since Brentwood is already dressed up as a lobster for Halloween, I figured he needed some confetti to go along and celebrate my favorite holiday! I also used my We Are Memory Keepers Fuse tool for the first time to create a flat shaker. Note to self: next time, do not touch the fuse tool with your fingers to check it it’s hot enough! Ouch!
The next card is one of my all time favorites! I think everything just worked and blended together beautifully. I love the colors on this card. I used my Avery Elle Wonky Stitched rectangle die to create the frame for my shaker card. I used a combination of blue, iridescent and white sequins and seed beads for my shaker elements. A video tutorial will be posted soon on my YouTube channel so please stay tuned for that.
I hope you like what I’ve created. Please don’t forget to go to www.jessicalynnoriginal.com to grab this stamp set. Happy Halloween!
There is something about Lawn Fawn stamps that just makes me happy. It’s whimsical, fun and brings out the inner child in me. I found Lawn Fawn stamps two years ago, but it was only the recent 6 months that I started getting obsessed with it. I watch Lawn Fawn’s YouTube videos constantly, especially when I don’t feel crafty. I somehow get my mojo back just watching people create with Lawn Fawn stamps.
I am entering this card for the Lawnscaping Challenge called Sparkle and Shine. The card below is one of my all-time favorite stamps – the Critters Ever After! As a child, I was very sickly and most of the time I was stuck indoors looking at my sisters and other kids play in the yard. I wasn’t allowed to go out so I always pretended I was a princess stuck in a castle. A little cliché but true! So when I saw the stamp set, I was immediately hooked! They didn’t have the coordinating dies then so I bought the stamps first and when the dies came out, of course I had to get them too. Who likes fuzzy-cutting?! Definitely not me!
It took me a couple of hours to create the card below. I’ve put on some music and just let my imagination run wild. I wanted it to look girly, whimsical and glittery. This is the reason why I used a lot of glitter paper on this card, vellum and stickles. In my memory as a child, this is how the dragon looked like ~ cute, friendly, glittery and purple! I used my Wink of Stella clear glitter pen on the dragon but unfortunately, my camera and the lighting didn’t catch the glitz and shine.
The unicorn and the frog prince are also one of my favorites, so I decided to do a pop-up card to show them off. I didn’t want them left out!
I hope you guys like this card and please let me know what you think. Happy crafting!
Please check out this link to join the fun ~ http://www.lawnscaping.blogspot.com
Maria Russell Designs 