Happy Little Stampers CAS December Challenge!

Time for another HLS CAS challenge for you, the last of the year and the last for me :(.  It's been wonderful working with Kylie and the other gals but I'm paring down activities to recapture time elsewhere.  I'll miss you all!

For this challenge we're asking that you pick your favorite technique or product you used from the past eleven HLS CAS Challenges.  Please share why it's your favorite or any tips you learned while doing it.  A full list of those challenges is over on the main challenge post.

I chose watercolor spritz using Distress Markers directly colored onto the rubber stamp. It's such an easy technique and one where you really never know what you're going to get.  I had to try a few times to figure out how much water to spritz (not a lot but not too little either--argh!) and found the MISTI invaluable in enabling me to color the parts in layers and re-stamp precisely.

The Details:  Hero Arts Very Merry Christmas, Penny Black Cones & Berries cling stamp, Distress Markers, VersaFine Onyx Black, Tim Holtz Watercolor paper, Zig (for the blue background)

Happy Little Stampers CAS November Challenge!

This month at Happy Little Stampers CAS, you're asked to include faux or real metal on your makes.  Super easy, especially with the holidays coming up!

I went all out with faux metal--foiled cardstock base, embossed metallic Concord and 9th trees and Peerless metallic gold "snow."   Bling-a-ding-ding!  I added some Glossy Accents on a few of the snow flakes for added dimension and popped on a small star sequin. 

The Details:  Concord & 9th O Christmas Tree, Ranger Glossy Accents, VersaFine Vintage Sepia, Gold and Princess Gold Embossing Powder, Peerless Transparent Metallic Gold, Recollections Silver Embossing Powder and Gold cardstock, Simon Says Stitched Rectangle die, VersaMark

Concord & 9th O Christmas Tree

Ranger Glossy Accents

InLinkz.com

Happy Little Stampers CAS October Challenge!

I was so excited to learn that this month's HLS CAS challenge is embossing on vellum.  I had just gotten a new Heidi Swapp stencil and Minc Reactive paint so this was the perfect opportunity to try it out!

I have to say I am amazed at how easy it was use the stencil with the paint.  Amazing results.  The stencil is tacky on the back so there's little chance of the paint seeping where it shouldn't (ask me how I know).  It also rinsed right off the stencil no problem and dried quickly on the vellum.  I ran it through my laminator with gold Deco Foil and magic happened!  Love!  I mounted the vellum on a striped panel I had created using the Concord & 9th Stripe Builder set and HA ink.  I had to ink it up numerous times using the MISTI to get good coverage.  Had I used Versamark then the HA ink on top, I bet it would have been much easier.

I did try embossing the sentiment but Versamark had no adhesion on top of the foil so I stamped and fussy cut instead.  I like the effect of the raised sentiment panel so all good.

I hope you'll join us at HLS CAS; I look forward to seeing what you come up with!

The Details:  Concord & 9th Stripe Builder and You're My Person, Waffle Flower Lacy Layers die, VersaFine Onyx Black, Hero Arts Soft Pool, Heidi Swapp stencil, Minc Reactive Paint, Deco Foil Gold, Bazzill Icy Mint, PTI vellum, Scrapbook Adhesives vellum tape

Happy Little Stampers CAS September Challenge

This month at HLS CAS, the technique we're asking you to use is watercolor spritz.  Super fun, super easy!

I sprinkled some Brushos on watercolor paper then gave it a good spritzing with water.  I've found with watercolor powders that a little water goes a long way so I spritz less than I think I need to and let the water and powder do their magic.  You never know what the results will be!  The huge butterfly die allowed the different colors to really shine, doesn't it?  To finish the card, I stamped & embossed the sentiment then dry embossed the base panel for lots of fun texture.  I added a few shiny enamel dots and Wink of Stella for a bit of bling. 

The Details:  Turquoise and Yellow Brushos, Clear Wink of Stella, Hero Arts Hello Gorgeous, We R Memory Keepers Next Level Gemstone embossing folder, VersaFine Onyx Black, Strathmore watercolor paper, Doodlebug enamel dots, Stampin Up Butterflies Die 

Happy Little Stampers CAS August Challenge

It's time for a new challenge over at Happy Little Stampers CAS where we're asking that you use masking in some way on your card. 

I love how my card turned out with the piggie in front of the fence.  I think everything should be pigs and plaid, pigs and plaid.  I stamped the piggie then masked him so the fence would appear behind when stamped.  I colored the scene with Copics and used a white pigment pen for details.  Cute!  And read that punny sentiment.  Even cuter!  Um, does anyone else feeling like having bacon?

Inspired?  Hungry?  Come join us over at HLS!

I'm entering this in Stamp Ink Paper #59 Funny or Punny, AAA #70 Stitching, Addicted to Stamps and More #204 CAS

The Details:  My Favorite Things Hog Heaven, Lawn Fawn Plaid paper, Waltzing Mouse stitched scalloped rectangle die, Waffle Flower Lacy Layers die, Memento Tuxedo Black, Uni-ball Signo white pigment pen, Copic 0, R000, R00, R02, R24, R27, R29, R89, T0, T2, T5, YG11, YG13, YG17

Happy Little Stampers CAS July Challenge!

Time for a new challenge at Happy Little Stampers CAS!  C'mon, give us a kiss.  That's right!  This month's technique is kissing and there are more than a few ways to do that.

For my card, I used both the positive and negative results.  I inked up a balloon stamp then pressed it onto a dotty background stamp.  I then stamped both onto a piece of cardstock.  The background version produced the dotty balloon and the balloon stamp created the more subtle one.  Cool, huh?!


The Details:  Hero Arts Ombre Ink Neon Red to Purple, Doodlebug striped washi tape, Altenew Birthday Greetings,  Impression Obsession Textural Dots background stamp, VersaFine Onyx Black, Copic 0.3 Multiliner, Recollections 110lb white cardstock

HLS Mixed Media June Challenge: Texture!

O, Happy Day!  Spring is upon us in the Pacific Northwest so I had to celebrate with a bright and cheery card!  It's all about texture this month at the Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media challenge.  We'd love to have you play along!

For my card I decided to use a quilt die as a flower.  Both flowers use an embossing folder at some point in its creation.  The back flower petals were embossed with a dot folder and then I used a brayer to apply ink to the raised portions of the cardstock.  For the front flower, I cut it from a panel that had been stenciled, colored and then crackle paste applied over the top.  I interchanged the flower borders for more interest.  The leaves are cut from a Distress Ink watercolor panel and the flower centers from a Brushos panel.  The card based is sponged with a stencil.  Whew!


The Details:  Distress Salty Ocean, Mowed Lawn, Twisted Citron, Lemonade and Crackle Paint, Versamark, STampendous Detail white embossing powder, Recollections 110lb white cardstock, Memento Tuxedo Black, TCW Ceiling Tile and Climbing Vine stencils, Lil' Inker Sun Sentiments, Paper Studio Mini Bubbles embossing folder, Memory Box Botancial Stem die, Jillian Vance Grandma's Garden Quilt Block die

HLS CAS June Challenge: Ghosting

Boo!  Well, not boo, but our Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge does involve ghosting.  There are a variety of ways to do it and just as many definitions of what the technique entails so check out the tutorials and give one or two or three a whirl.

I am so into all things nautical, both above and below water, right now so immediately thought I'd CASE a card we made in a Julie Ebersole class at Impress a couple of months ago (Tonya took the pic below of her version from class--so cute, right?).

I masked off the front panel and sponged it with DI Salty Ocean.  I like the different shades of blue--like sunlight reflecting off the water.  For the ghosting, I took my HA Waves background stamp, spritzed it lightly with water and pressed it over the entire panel.  It didn't look like it had worked until I gave it a little blow with the heating gun.  Wowza!  Love the effect.  The sailboats are die cut from gold foil cardstock and a red gelli print.

The Details:  Memory Box Marina Sailboats, Hero Arts Waves Background and navy shadow ink, Altenew Birthday Greetings, Distress Inks Salty Ocean, Recollections 110lb white cardstock and gold foil cardstock

HLS Mixed Media May Challenge: Shine!

There's a whole lotta shine happening on this here blog.  Check it!  And then why not join us for the Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media Shine challenge!

For my card I embossed the SU Swallowtail stamp onto a watercolored cardstock panel.  Next I cut a piece of SU gold embossed vellum and layered it over the SU corrugated cardstock--swoon-worthy.  I love this stuff!  I added a bright gold speech bubble for even more blingy goodness.  So lots of layers and texture but overall a simple design.

The Details:  Stampin' Up Swallowtail, foiled vellum, and corrugated cardstock, Savvy Hello die, Versamark, Ranger gold embossing powder and multi medium matte, Distress Inks Picked Raspberry, Candied Apple and Mustard Yellow, Simon Says stitched rectangle dies, Recollections gold foil cardstock

HLS CAS May Challenge Starts Today!

Today we have another fun challenge starting at Happy Little Stampers CAS:  inlaid die-cutting.  I have a nephew's birthday this month so thought it would be cute to inlay a 4 into a balloon.  Well, next thing you know, I'm inlaying the balloons too and making them float off of the main panel.  Cool!  I used glitter on the 4 by burnishing a diecut of Scor-Tape.  I added Scor-tape around the edges of the card too for some added sparkle and shine.  This card may be difficult to mail away I love the sparkle so much--LOL!

A couple more examples of inlaid die-cutting I posted last Autumn are below.

I hope you've had your creativity sparked and you'll join us over at HLS.  It's always wonderful to see what you create for each of our challenges! 

The Details:  Lil' Inker Mixed and Stitched Numbers, Paper Smooches Balloons, Your Next Stamp Waddles Happy Brrr-thday!, Copic Multiliner 0.3, Copics, Scor-Tape, Doodlebugs Sugar Coating glitter, Waltzing Mouse Stitched Scalloped Rectangle die, Recollections 110lb white cardstock, Neenah 110lb solar white cardstock

HLS Mixed Media April Challenge

This month at the Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media challenge, the inspiration word is Wings.  What do you think of with that word?  I think of feathers, birds, super heroes, insects, angels, planes, da Vinci.  Maybe you think of something totally different.  Come on over and share your ideas with us!

For my card I sprinkled some Jacquard acid dyes on mixed media paper and gave it a few good spritzes of water.  I then used a paper towel to pull up some of the color, leaving a really cool texture (the upper left is a clear example).  Next I stamped a sheet music background with white pigment ink.  Having fun now!  The two birds were next as well as a Copic branch and the sentiment.  Not quite done but almost.  I decided to add a bit of black embossing powder heated from beneath so I didn't need to use Versamark.  Love the added tactile element.

So that's what I did.  What are you going to do?  Can't wait to see!

HLS CAS April Challenge Starts Today!

It is April already and time for a new challenge at Happy Little Stampers CAS.  This month it's also about stencil monoprinting.  This is a really easy technique and one you can do with any plastic or metal stencil.  (Hmm, I wonder if you could use glossy paper to make your own stencil for this technique.)

I'm in a spring mood but also mindful that Christmas arrives before you know it so I combined the two.  What?!  What?!   I used bright and happy Distress Inks and randomly ran them horizontally over my stencil, following the lines of the faux stitching.  I overlapped in some places but not too much to avoid muddy colors and icking up my pads.  I followed that up with a few liberal spritzes of water.  I have a roll of Bounty always at the ready in my craft space (yes, I have a cat) so I used that to absorb any excess ink that oozed out when I pressed the stencil onto my paper.  Bright and fun and imperfectly perfect! I used a textured cardstock behind the sentiment because it reminded me of ribbing.  Easier to see irl.  

I hope you have a ton of ideas with this technique to share with us at HLS--looking forward to seeing what you link up!

The Details:  Avery Elle dies, Recollections 110lb white and black cardstock, Distress Inks picked raspberry, mustard seed, mermaid lagoon, mowed lawn, Tim Holtz stencil and watercolor paper

HLS Mixed Media March Challenge!

The new Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media Challenge starts today.  The keyword is "water."  There are sooooo many possibilities with this one!

I immediately thought of watercolor.  I happened to have one final piece of a watercolor galaxy left over so I pulled that out.  I stamped and embossed the sentiment and had planned to place the square directly on top of the embossed stars panel but it was blah.  Silver vellum and mirrored stars fixed that problem in a jiffy.  I love the depth of the layers and galaxy panel.

I can't wait to see what you come up with!

The Details:  Gansai Tambi watercolors, Stampendous white embossing powder, Versamark, Tim Holtz stars, Memory Box stars stencil, Dreamweaver embossing paste, My Favorite Things pierced square die, Canson Effects trans silver 27lb paper, Glossy Accents, Recollections 110lb black cardstock, PTI 140lb white cardstock base, Simon Says Work Out sentiment

HLS CAS March Challenge - Mother of Pearl!

Hello!  A new Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge starts today.  We're asking that you incorporate the faux mother of pearl technique into your card.  Check out the cards and videos we have for you for some fab tips and designs.  They are amazing!!

For my card I decided to use a die with large open spaces where the faux mother of pearl would really stand out.  I used a pencil to trace out the bottom half of the blossoms so I would know where to lay my masking tape.  I then pounced away.  The pic below shows my practice attempt where I used Hero Arts inks which has a much softer appearance when dry so I switched to Mementos for more wow in the finished card.

For the sentiment overlay, I stamped the sentiment first then placed the poppy about where I wanted it to go.  I moved the poppy off and eyeballed where to stamp the sentiment--turned out just fine.  I did use VersaFine to make sure I would have a nice dark inking.

The Details:  Memento Bamboo Leaves, Pear Tart, Morocco, Lady Bug, VersaFine Onyx Black, PTI linen impression plate, 140lb white cardstock base, Think Big Favorites sentiment, Memory Box poppy die, Copic .1 black fineliner, Recollections 110lb black cardstock, Simon Says stitched rectangle die

HLS Mixed Media February Challenge - Paint!

Smile, friend.  It's time for a new Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media Challenge!  This month the keyword is "paint."

Paint (n):  a colored substance that is spread over a surface and dries to leave a thin decorative or protective coating; (v) cover the surface of (something) with paint, as decoration or protection; depict (someone or something) or produce (a picture) with paint.

Does that not leave the door wide open for interpretation?  I can't wait to see what you create, you crazy geniuses, you.

For my make, I saw a bird holiday card and thought, "hey, I can do that!"  More or less--LOL.  I recreated the dotty background by coating a Gelli plate with gray acrylic paint then pressing an embossing folder into it.  I love the effect of applying different amounts of pressure to create the mottled background of the first pull.  I used origami paper and my Cameo to create the bird silhouettes.  They are so very pretty and their texture is amazing.  Reminds me of fine mulberry paper.  I love the gold detail on the paper too.   I combined two sentiments and drew in the comma with a Copic multiliner.  Maybe I should make a set of these!

The Details:  Yasutomo origami paper, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder, PTI Mixed Messages, VersaFine Onyx Black, Gelli plate, Neutral Gray Value 5 acrylic paint, Waltzing Mouse scalloped stitched rectangle die

HLS CAS February Challenge!

Time for another Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge!  This time we ask you to stamp with an embossing folder.  There are lots of ways to do this so be sure to check out the how-to videos we've included.

For my card, I inked up the raised portion of an embossing folder and misted it lightly with water.  I then pressed regular cardstock, not watercolor cardstock, onto the folder, folded it over, and burnished the lot by hand.  I was really pleased with the dreamy pointillism that resulted.  I embossed the sentiment and diecut a curved edge on top to soften it a bit.  I love how that follows along with the curved sentiment.  To achieve the texture of the chartreuse background, I impressed the paper with a linen impression plate on both sides multiple times. The texture is amazing and extremely tactile.

The Details:  PTI 140lb white cardstock base, Movers & Shakers sentiments, linen impression plate; Versafine Onyx Black, Distress Inks Mowed Lawn, Twisted Citron, Crushed Olive, Simon Says Stitched rectangle die, Lawn Fawn Stitched Hillside Border, Paper Studio embossing folder

Wishing for a Meadow

For this card I randomly stamped Distress Inks on the stencil and spritzed with water before placing it on the cardstock.  The resulting print reminded me of a meadow gone wild so I added tiny little flowers in pink and yellow.  So sweet.  Then I added little berries with a Copic multiliner.  This tied in so nicely with the embossed sentiment and ribbon.  Btw, don't forget about the HLS Mixed Media stencil challenge going on; here I've used watercolor, ink, embossing, pen, stencil, ribbon.


The Details:  Tim Holtz watercolor paper, Distress Ink Mermaid Lagoon and Mowed Lawn, Memento Rose Bud and Dandelion, Copic Multiliner 0.8, VersaFine Onyx Black, Ranger Super Fine clear embossing powder, Memory Box Garden Leafy Branches, PTI Choose Joy mini flower, Meadow Greens sentiment, and kraft cardstock, Hammermill Digital Color Copy 80lb coverstock, Recollections 110lb white cardstock base

I'm entering this in CAS(E) this Sketch #156, Addicted to Stamps and More #177 Make Your Mark, Seize the Birthday CAS, Fab n Funky #288 Buttons and/or Bows

 

Stencils in Mixed Media

This month at Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media we'd like to see you use a stencil somewhere on what you make.  You could layer them to give greater depth to another stencil or add texture as I've done here.  The sky's the limit!

For my cards, I followed a Gelli plate technique video by Barbara Gray.  My result was nothing like hers but, hey, that makes it uniquely my own.  I laid down my paints in the order she prescribes but I'm using the lift print from layer 3 for this card (you'll see my layer 4 results in a moment).  This is just upcycled used printer paper that I adhered to 80lb cardstock.  I then placed the trellis (first) stencil back down and randomly spread transparent texture paste down--check the upper right corner, eg.  I struggled a bit with the sentiment, finally deciding to go simple with a navy ink so the fabulous background wouldn't get lost.

I'm entering Card 1 in Seize the Birthday Anything Goes and the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge #20 Time Flies  

For the second card (really the first card if you watch the video), I used the 4th layer result.  The colors are duller but there's a LOT of shimmer since I used silver acrylic for the last layer.  I liked the grunge effect so made a bit of she art out of it with new Ranger stamps.  So two totally different cards and looks from my Gelli plate experiment.  Love!

I'm entering Card 2 in Mixed Media Card Challenge #19 Beginnings and Simon Says Wednesday Something New

The Details:  Cameo-cut trellis stencil, PTI Happy Hexagons sentiment, Hero Arts Shadow Navy, Ranger Transparent Gloss Texture Paste

Ranger Handwritten Sentiments and Clearly All the Gals, Mama Elephant Arctic Penguins, Simon Says stitched rectangle die, Recollections 110lb white and black cardstock,  Versamark, Hampton Art clear embossing powder, Stampendous black embossing powder,  Stazon Blazing Red, Versafine Onyx Black

Acrylics:  Phthalo Blue, Light Blue, Burnt Umber, Gelli Plate, Crafters Workshop Peacock Feathers stencil, PTI white cardstock base

Happy Smooshing

Did you all have a nice holiday?  Don't know about you but I'm so ready for some non-holiday cards. At Happy Little Stampers we're easing into the New Year with a smooshing technique challenge that you can do in so many ways.  Be sure to check out the video tutorials.

For my card I chose to do acetate smooshing with Distress Inks in peacock colors.  I did it in 4 parts--first Mermaid Lagoon, then Mowed Lawn followed by Mustard Seed and finally Peerless Liquid Gold.  Turned out amazing.  Since I wanted to keep the card CAS I trimmed down the colorful panel into a strip and added a thin black border to tie in with the b/w stamping.

Now shake your tail feathers and join in the fun!

The Details:  Distress Inks, Peerless liquid gold, VersaFine Onyx Black, Tim Holtz watercolor paper, Recollections 110lb white cardstock, Clearly Besotted Fancy Feathers

Update:  I'm entering this in Seize the Birthday Anything Goes, Mixed Media Monthly Challenge #20 Time Flies