Girl on Crescent Moon, Dreamland Crafts Card

December 21, 2011 By 2 Comments

Ok, so today’s card uses this absolutely adorable image by Dreamland Crafts .  This little Anime style girl would be perfect for any winter occassion, be it Christmas or winter birthday’s.    The super fun thing about this card, is all the layers which you will find in the image.  I wanted to demonstrate the more intricate form of paper tole, and decided that this image would be perfect for that.  The other fun elements of this card include the beautiful Tattered Pinecone Sizzix die which I used for the pine branches, and the beautiful Spellbinder dies which I used for both the mats on the image, and the small mat on one of the layers.  All in all, I love how this whole card turned out, and hope you do to!

Supplies:

  • Stamps:  Girl on Crescent Moon ( Dreamland Crafts)
  • Ink:  Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain, Tea Dye, Shabby Shutter Distress ink (Ranger)
  • Paper:Tis the Season PP, Java CS (Bazzill), Real Red, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla textured, Kiwi Kiss CS (Stampin’ Up!)
  • Dies:  Circles, Teardrop Circles, Creative Book Pages 2 (Spellbinder), alphabet (Quickutz retired), Tattered Pinecone (Tim Holtz Alterations Sizzix)
  • Coloring Medium:  Copic markers, Pan Pastels, Soft Tools
  • Other:  Helmar Scrap Dots glue, Tombow multi-purpose glue,  Glossy Accents (Ranger), dimensionals, embossing stylus, sponges, detail scissors, Big Shot die machine (Sizzix), White gel pen, Martha Stewart fine crystal glitter

Filed Under: Cards, Christmas, Coloring With Copics, Dreamerland Crafts, Pan Pastels, Quickutz, Ranger, Sizzix, Sophia's Artwork, Spellbinders

Cricut Craft Room: Fish Bowl Box and Peppermint Candy Box

December 20, 2011 By 4 Comments

Fish Bowl Box, with Birthday Greeting hidden inside.  Eat candy, see message.

Peppermint candy box, fill it with white candy, or fill it with red, either way, it is the perfect little gift for the holidays.

Well today’s projects, come to you compliments of the Cricut Craft Room!  This free software, offered by Provocraft, is a wonderful tool which allows you to create as you would on a Gypsy.  Ok, so here is the low-down.  The idea is that when you download and open the Craft Room, you have the ability to see every cartridge for every machine, which Cricut has available.  Not only can you see it with all the layers, but you can also play with it.  Now this is great if you are not sure how versatile a cartridge is!  On top of this, they offer exclusive digital cartridges which are for purchase online, and many of their existing cartridges are also available for digital purchase.  The only thing which you will need to do, is ensure that you have a Cricut account.  Now once you have looked at the different cartridges, and played around a bit, you will realize how great this studio is!  You can alter and remove parts of a design, or create new ones using existing shapes.  The only thing which you must be aware of, is that you will need the cartridges used in order to cut out your project (along with a Cricut Digital Machine).  The cartridges must be either physical (actual cartridge), or Digital.  And if that wasn’t enough, Cricut Craft Room has an exclusive free digital cartridge which has some images, as well as a font.

Ok, so there are a few quirks about the Craft Room, which I should mention.  For starters, you can only use it with an internet connection.  This means that should your internet go down…… there will be no playing.  On top of that (due to the internet issue), you will not have your digital cartridges downloaded on to your computer, but rather will have access to them while you are in the Craft Room.  I have to admit that this was not the most pleasing way of running it, but as long as you have a good computer, and a good connnection, you should be fine!

So for today’s projects, I used the Cricut Craft Room :mrgreen:   for designing.  I made sure that each project would require only one cartridge.  The Fish Bowl uses the Create a Critter cartridge, and the Candy Box uses the Simply Charmed cartridge. I thought it would be fun, to alter them a bit to create some shaped treat boxes/flat cards.  For Paper Crafter Library members, you will have the ease of downloading my Craft Room files, so that all you have to do is load and cut!

Supplies:

  • Cartridges:  Simply Charmed, Create a Critter
  • Paper:  Pool Party, Lucky Limeade, Tangering Tango (retired), Cajun Craze, Basic Black, Whisper White, Appricot Appeal (retired), Creamy Caramel (retired), Island Indigo, Real Red DP  Stampin’Up!
  • Ink:  Shabby Shutter, Broken China, Vintage Photo, Spiced Marmalade, Rusty Hinge, Chipped Sapphire, Aged Mahogany Distress Ink
  • Other:  strong glue, glue dots, Tombow multi-purpose adhesive, Sakura Stardust pen, sponges, Pool Party 3/8″ ruffled ribbon, Cricut Expression, candy

 

Filed Under: 3D Projects, Birthday, Christmas, Cricut, Latest News, Ranger, Sophia's Artwork Tagged With: , , , ,

Halloween Themed Decorated Lunch Bag, Featuring Gorjuss Girl Image & The Paper Tole Technique

September 30, 2011 By 5 Comments

 

I love stamping, and I love coloring.  Sometimes though, you just don’t have time for either.  In this case, I wanted to feature some of the Beautiful Artwork of Suzanne Woolcott who does the Beautiful Gorjuss Girl Stamps.  While it is not always easy for me to get ahold of her stamps (shipping from UK), I can easily get hold of her digital images which she sells in her store HERE. 

She is first and formost a talented artist, who sells her artwork.  She offers (to my great delight) many of her images in digital format.  They go under the name “tubes” and are offered individually or in sets.  I love the fact that I can use her gorgeous art work in all my personal crafting.  One of my favorite things to do with these is print them multiple times, and do paper tole with them.  As part of my paper-tole technique, I also make a point of personalizing the images with the use of glitter, glimmer mist, sponging, crystal effects and whatever other product takes my fancy.

For this project, I decided to do a fun halloween themed gift bag.  It is so fun and simple to make, and totally dresses up any gift you happen to give.  The great thing of course, is that you can dress it up for whatever occassion you need.  The girl is toled from one of the Gorjuss Girle tube sets which I purchased, and can be found HERE.  I of course added some personal touches, then added her on to the bag which I created using some cool skull and crossbone paper by Karen Foster.  A little bling, and a little flowers, and it was all ready to go!  All Paper Crafters Library Members will be able to access the Halloween-Themed Decorated Gift Bag video HERE, and the Paper Tole Technique video HERE - please note that you do have to be logged in to be able to view the videos.  If you are not a Paper Crafter’s Library member, be sure to click on the “Become a Member” link at the top of the page for more information.

Silhouette :

  • Paper:  Skull and Crossbone DP (Karen Foster), Rich Razzleberry and Elegant Eggplant, Whisper White for printing (Stampin’Up!)
  • Cuts: Gorjuss Girl tube pack 38, Silhouette, Canon Pixma Printer
  • Ink:Fired Brick, Concord Grape, Black Soot Distress ink (Ranger)
  • Other:  Tombow multi-purpose adhesive, Diamond Glimmer mist (Tattered Angel), Glossy dimensional glaze, Black Diamond stickles (Ranger), Sakura Stardust pen, Roses (Prima), Adhesive backed Rhinestones (Stampin’Up!), dimensionals, Cream colored satin ribbon (Stampin’Up!), Sponges

 

Filed Under: 3D Projects, Halloween, Latest News, Sophia's Artwork

Product Spotlight: Dr. Ph. Martin’s Radiant Watercolors

September 21, 2011 By 2 Comments

 

For any of you who might know me, you will know that I am an absolute art junkie!!  I love art supplies and colors, papers and pens.  I adore sketching and playing, and most importantly, I LOVE to color!  I think my favorite coloring method is watercolor, followed by pastel, Copic/Color pencils, then everything else. 

Watercolor though, is like a kind of magic.  It flows with a certain unpredictability.  The colors mingle on the page, the pallet is limitless, and everything has the potential to look beautiful, even mistakes.  So when I first came across Radiant Concentrated Water Colors in my University days (translation: long ago), I was enamoured with the bright beautiful hues, and the luminous transparency of this medium.

Radiant Watercolors are a dye-based ink which is watersoluble (unlike India Ink which is permanent). This ink was created with Comic writers, and designers in mind.  Anyone who did work which would not be permanent (used to make prints), would use these inks to add vibrant color to their work. 

 Now of course, with the lines between crafting and art becoming more blurred, I find that these colors would be perfect for anyone  who desires bright punches of color, with beautiful blending of color, and little or no chance of muddying in their work.  These colors are probably some of the brightest on the market, producing vibrant washes and fills.  They are of course meant for the artist, but if you appreciate the significant improvement which artist quality can bring to your work, then you are sure to love these.

Like any dye based ink, they are not lightfast, and will fade under direct sunlight or Fluorescent lights (this includes energy savers).  Under incandescent light though, they will remain true.  Fading is not fast, and under indirect light they will be fine for years (as in the production of cards).  For items which are not exposed to light often (such as art journals, sketchbook journals and Scrapbook pages) the color will remain true indefinitely.  Because of this lack of lightfastness (which all dye based inks share), bottles must be stored in a dark cool place for optimum preservation. 

So why pay more when you can use dye-based ink refills (the kind used to refill stamp pads)?  While I do love my stamp pad inks for coloring, I find that it cannot compare to the vibrance of these colors, and they don’t always mix as well in producing new colors.  I find that Dr. Ph Martin’s Radiant Watercolors  just flow really nicely, and they can easily be mixed with my watercolors to give me clear glazes over heavier colors.  The example above and the one below will show you how beautiful these colors are (and yes, the colors are actually pretty true to the originals in my book). 

For more information on these products, check out the complimentary video on Paper Crafter’s Library which introduces you to what each color looks like, and what it can be used for.  For more information on the manufaturer and their other products, check out this website.

 

 

Filed Under: Dr. Ph. Martin's Radiant Watercolors, Product Spotlight, Sophia's Artwork Tagged With: , , ,

What’s Cookin?

February 14, 2011 By 18 Comments

Who can resist this adorable chicken from Rosie’s Roadshow?  I just love these stamps, which allow you to mix and match, and which are only limited by your imagination.  Paired up with some fun watercolor pencil techniques, and you have an all round winning combination. 

Watercolor pencils are so much fun to work with because they combine the fabulous look of watercolor, with the control and dry techniques of pencil.  For a little extra glitz, I added a touch of Twinkling H2O’s along the base of the BBQ legs.  It adds just the right amount of understate sparkle.  Be sure to check out the tutorials on Paper Crafter’s Library using these versatile mediums, you will definitely fall in love.  Also, coming soon will be some great tutorials on building scenery’s with stamps.

Supplies:

  • Stamps: Rosies Roadshow
  • Ink:    Tea Dye, Tumbled Glass, Vintage Photo (Ranger Industries), Stewart Superior Hybrid Black ink
  • Paper:    Artistico Traditional White 140lbs Hot Press Watercolor paper (Fabriano), Whisper White,  Early Espresso (Stampin’ Up!), October Afternoon DP
  • Pencils: Supracolor Watercolor pencils ( Caran D’ache )
  • Other:  Mini Glue dots, Stampin’ Sponges ( Stampin’ Up!),   1/4″ white silk ribbon, red button, twine (Papertrey ), Big Shot, Spellbinder Deckled Rectangle, Sharpie White Posterpaint fine tip marker, Spica glitter pens in Orange and Black

And now…. the winners of a 2-week Paper Crafter’s Library membership are…….

Lisa Flynn says:
February 13, 2011 at 1:52 am  
Great card! Congratulations on PCL. I have purchased your class planners in the past and LOVED them! I would love to try PCL for 2 weeks free! If money wasn’t so tight, I’d already be a member!
~Lisa~

Jasmin Post says:
February 11, 2011 at 3:29 pm 
Sophia, I adore your coloring and as a big fan of the color orange and tea I love this card.
thank you for showing.

To claim your prize please email Andrea at andrea@sunnystampin.com and be sure to put “PCL blog winner” in the subject line.  If you are already a Paper Crafter’s Library member, then you can choose another tutorial from www.sunnystampinstore.com instead. 

Don’t forget to check out Andrea’s Vintage/Botanical-themed card over on the Sunny Stampin’ Blog!

Win a 2-week Membership to Paper Crafter’s Library! 

With the successful launch of Paper Crafter’s Library and the many positive responses we’ve received about the value of what we offer on that site – we have decided to “share the love” with you all and give each and every one of you an opportunity to win a 2 week membership to Paper Crafter’s Library (PCL).    

How?  All you have to do is leave us a comment on any one of our posts.  Every time you leave a comment – your name will be put into a draw. It gets even better though – you have even more chances to win because the Sunny Stampin’ blog is also offering the same opportunity.  When you visit the Sunny Stampin’ blog, leave us a comment and for every comment you leave there, you will also be entered to win a 2 week membership to PCL.  

On the 2nd and 4th Monday of the month we will announce 2 lucky winners of a 2-week FREE membership to PCL here at the Paper Crafter’s World Blog.  On the 1st and 3rd Monday of the month we will announce 2 lucky winners of a 2-week membership to PCL on the Sunny Stampin’ Blog.  So every week there will be two lucky winners to a 2 week membership to Paper Crafter’s Library! If you are already a member of PCL then you can choose a tutorial or planner from www.sunnystampinstore.com of your choice instead.

Filed Under: Birthday, Cards, Friendship, Projects by Occasion / Theme, Sophia's Artwork, Summer, Thank You, Watercolor Pencils Tagged With: , , ,

Peas in a Pod

February 8, 2011 By 29 Comments

One of my favorite things to color are images of fruits and vegetables.  The colors are always so vibrant and rich, the highlights are distinct and there are just so many wonderful textures happening!  This beautiful pea image is no exception.  I colored this image using a “watercoloring with markers” technique which we feature on Paper Crafter’s Library as part of our special section on Coloring and Watercoloring Techniques.  The intense colors of this technique are just perfect for showing off this beautiful image.

Supplies:

  • Stamps: Whipper Snapper
  • Inks:  Broken China, Tea Dye, Stormy Sky Distress Inks (Ranger) 
  • Cardstock:  White CS (Papertrey Ink); Basic Black CS, Newsprint DP, Kiwi Kiss DP (Stampin’ Up!);   Montval 140 lbs Watercolor paper (Canson)
  • Markers:  Tombow markers
  • Other:  1/16″ hole punch, Crop-A-Dile, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Stamping Sponges, Heat Tool, Big Shot (Stampin’ Up!) Cuttlebug Embossing folder, Spellbinder Label 1 nesting die, Ranger Star Dust Stickles, Sharpie White Poster Paint Fine point marker, Fine Detail Black embossing pwd., copper brads, 1/4″ Corner Chomper round

Filed Under: Cards, For You/Thinking of You, Friendship, Project by Technique, Sophia's Artwork, Thank You, Watercoloring, Watercoloring With Markers Tagged With: , , , , ,