Paper Crafter's Library – Page 7 – A world of creativity at your fingertips

Trend Watch – Die Cut Elements

This last year I found my love for die cutting again. I don’t know what I was thinking, but for some reason I felt like it took me a lot of work to add a die cut image or background to my card. But there are so many beautiful and great die cuts! So last year I started die cutting again. And I love it! I’ve only used die cutting for backgrounds and layouts until now. But in this trend watch I’m going to focus on the die cut elements you can get. There’s a lot more in die cutting than ‘just’ backgrounds. And well maybe… I’ll have to make a new wish list after writing this one ;).

When I think of die cutting elements I still tend to think of stamped images that you would die cut. But there are a couple of lovely dies that you can cut out of paper and just use the die cut images. No stamps needed. I love this little elephant from Marianne Design, Sanne made a very cute card with it!

Veel liefs (lots of love) by Sanne, image source Scrap Cards and Stuff

Marianne-3944 Marianne Design, Collectables Eline’s Elephant at Buddly Crafts

Taylored Expressions has some beautiful elements too. Take a look at these cute lanterns Monika used for her happy birthday card. Love the summer feeling you get from the patio party die cuts.

monika-6a00d8341d00e753ef01b8d11fa803970c Happy Birthday card by Monika, image source M.A.D. Stamper

patioparty Patio Party dies at Taylored Expressions

You can even get die cuts for male cards. I thought this pub glass die was really clever. Manuela made a male card with two glasses of beer, they look almost real this way.

manuela-IMG_0491 Cheers card by Manuela, image source Ela’s District

ptd-glass-0812
Pub Glass Die at Papertrey Ink

Another great thing of die cuts is that you can add your own colors to them. I love the colorful way Julia used her butterflies in this card! (I have to admit, the butterflies she used are from a punch, but you can use die cut butterflies too)

Cupcake Challenge Guest Designer – Butterfly Birthday Birthday card by Julia, image source Just one more card

Simon-butterfly-1_301768_FS Butterflies Craft Dies at Simon Says Stamp

Last but not least, I want to share a very creative way to use die cut elements. Mariana Grigsby used an umbrella die to create flowers!

mgrigsby_28 floral arrangement by Mariana Grigsby, image source Hero Arts blog

fancy-umbrella0c5ed8c0d8ea45b9942020a1d5f91855 Umbrella Fancy Die set 2 at Hero Arts

I hope you’ll have a crafty day!
– Lucinde

Featured Artist/Designer: Tracey McNeely 07 23 2015

Welcome to another Featured Artist/Designer Spotlight. Today we’re thrilled to welcome Tracey McNeely . Before we show you. Tracy’s project, let’s get to know her a little bit more…

Hi, Tracey McNeely here today. I am absolutely thrilled that Andrea invited me once again to join her in a spotlight feature at the Paper Crafter’s Library!

This post is going live just three days before we move out of Toronto and into our new country home. My craft space was by far the most challenging to pack. It is safe to say, especially here, that my craft room contains my most precious cargo. I have been paper crafting most of my life, but in the last 15 years I have really gotten involved with scrapbooking, card making and other projects. I am currently on the Design Team for CASology, the Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge, RetroSketches, Muse and I own and design for the Tag You’re It! Challenge.

You can find me:
On my blog: In My Creative Opinion
Facebook: In My Creative Opinion
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TraceyMcNeely
Instagram: https://instagram.com/traceymcneely/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/traceymcneely/

Panda Birthday

Although I am typically a CAS designer what I have discovered through packing is that yes I have LOTS of stamps and dies and cardstock but I have also really taken a plunge into getting messy with techniques. Using mediums like Distress Ink, Copic markers, embossing paste, stencils, watercolours, gelatos and more recently color brush markers is a great way to add texture and dimension to your projects. It is always fun to learn new techniques and for today`s project I have combined some of these together.

My process:

I started by sponging my 5 ¼” x 4” card panel with Distress Ink, I love how the colours blend together in unexpected ways.
After sponging I applied white embossing paste to the top right of the card using the Bubbles stencil from Memory Box. I did not use the entire stencil and I angled it on my panel. I used some Post-It tape to cover the areas I did not want to come in contact with the paste.
I stamped and die cut my card elements—the panda, the bamboo stalks and the sign.
Before sticking anything down to the paper I always arrange the elements on the base, then walk away! Come back in a few minutes or hours and if you like what you see then stick it down!

Supplies

Cardstock: Stamper’s Select White (Papertrey Ink)
Stamps: Happy Pandas (MFT Stamps)
Dies: Happy Pandas Die-namics (MFT Stamps)

We hope you have enjoyed today’s project courtesy of Tracey McNeely. Be sure to stop by Tracey’s blog to see even more of her beautiful work (and let her know we sent you).

Happy Crafting!

Featured Company: Lil’ Inker Designs – 07 22 2015

We are happy to bring you this week’s Featured Company: Lil’ Inker Designs.

Lil’ Inker Designs is the creative venture of two high school friends Laura Pryor, Owner and Creative Director of Lil’ Inker Designs, and Ariana Grant, professional graphics artist and owner of ag designs.

Here is what they say about their company:

They say that necessity is the mother of all invention and that’s so true for Lil’ Inker Designs as our very first release in August of 2010, Sentiment Flags, was born from the need to have a flag die for sentiments for our own crafty projects!

Almost four years later we have a full line of fun and innovative quality products that we’re so proud of!

Our stamps and dies are made using only the best quality merchandise this industry has to offer! Our dies are laser cut steel and can cut about any medium you can dream up such as card stock, felt and cork. Our stamps are clear and ultra-clingy clear photopolymer which allows for proper and easy stamp placement and alignment in your designs as well as superior ink to paper image transfer.

Our headquarters are located just outside of Boston, Massachusetts and ALL of our stamps and dies are proudly manufactured right here in the USA!

This week’s prize package from Lil’ Inker Designs contains everything you need to make the card seen here today! It contains 2 brand new release items! Included are our fun and funky Pineapple Panache Stamps and coordinating Pineapple Panache Die as well as our popular Dual Dotted Rectangle Die Set. It’s a prize valued over $45! (Details at the end of the post.)

Lil’ Inker Designs Designer/owner – Laura Pryor

Today we welcome Laura Pryor. We are so excited to have her showcase her work today on Paper Crafter’s Library. You can see Laura’s fabulous project below, but first, here is a little more about her:

Hi there! I’m Laura and I LOVE to make cards! I’m also the owner of Lil’ Inker Designs. I’ve been making cards and paper crafting since 2003.

Like lots of paper crafters, I went to a Stampin’ Up party and fell in love with this craft and immediately began hoarding, I mean, collecting lots of fun and pretty supplies. Interestingly enough, I fell away from my beloved hobby for a year or two and then after my son was born in 2008 I found myself needing lots of thank you’s and by then the paper crafting world had changed; there were new online paper crafting communities and blogs I’d discovered and it was AWESOME and I was once again a hardcore crafter.

In early 2010, I found myself looking for a die in a flag shape that literally did not exist in any store so I thought about trying my hand at designing this supply and a coordinating stamp set to use with it to jazz it up a bit. I remembered having stalked the Facebook profile of an old high school friend recently (LOL) and I remembered reading that Ariana was a professional graphics designer.

I contacted Ariana about collaborating on this project and in August of 2010 we released our Sentiment Flag Die and Sentiment Flags Stamp Set. I didn’t have a store, we hadn’t started a company. I just thought that if this is a die I was looking to have in my own personal stash then maybe lots more might like to have it as well. Samples of the new goodies were given to the ladies at The Color Throwdown Challenge Team and they helped to show off how fun these new goodies were.

Shortly after our next release of our Pinwheel Die and Pinwheel Sentiments Stamps, in 2011 I had an idea to create a Rainbow Die but felt it would HAVE to be released with some clouds dies. By then, some other companies had released cloud dies so I knew my clouds would have to be different and that’s when our signature stitching detail was born!

Lil’ Inker Designs was the first small company in our paper crafting industry to add stitching to dies.

We’ve continued to remain a small but innovative company and are responsible for bringing you the first sets of geometric shapes with stitching. However, the most important innovation that belongs to our company is our idea, concept and invention of Dual Stitching which was first brought to market with the release of our Stitched Mats: Circles in August of 2013.

Lil’ Inker Designs is now getting ready to celebrate 5 years of fun stamps and dies and in a nutshell this is my story! What started out as a hobby in 2003 has turned into a full-time job and busy business that I am so grateful for and continue to enjoy!

Welcome Pineapple

Start by trimming a panel of white card stock down to 4″ x 5.25″ and stamp your pineapples in any colors you choose. Stamp your sentiment in black, trim and add to front with foam dots. Cut and score a card base and die cut the front using the largest die from the Dual Dotted Rectangles set which will cut out this pretty dotted border along the edge of your base. Affix your focal panel to the card base as shown and call it done! 🙂

Supplies

Stamps: Pineapple Panache (Lil’ Inker Designs)

Dies: Pineapple Panache Die, Dual Dotted Rectangles Die Set(Lil’ Inker Designs)

Paper: white card stock (Papertrey Ink), Summer Starfruit (Stampin’ Up)

Ink: Black, Vermillion, Magenta (Ranger Archival Inks), Summer Starfruit (Stampin’ Up)

Accessories: foam dots (Stampin’ Up)

Check out Lil’ Inker Designs at www.lilinkerdesigns.com.
Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/lilinkerdesigns
Follow us on Instagram: @lilinkerdesigns, #lilinkerdesigns
We’re also on Pinterest, Flickr and have a company gallery at Splitcoast Stampers!

We hope you have enjoyed today’s feature. We want to extend a sincere thank you to Laura Pryor for her fabulous project and Lil’ Inker Designs for sharing their company with us.

In order to enter the give-away to win the prize shown above, please leave us a comment in the comments section of this post. The winner will be announced next Wednesday.

Happy Crafting!

Trend Watch – Beautiful inside and out: Frames

I love shopping. Especially if crafts are involved. But I also love trends that you can take advantage of with the products you have or that you can make for yourself. Using frames in your paper crafting project has enough flexibility and creativity that you do both in any combination that suits you. I have found a few cards to show you with the frame theme to start your creative juices flowing.

In this first case, the frame is so intricate and pretty, the frame can be the focus versus what you put in it. I love the color combination Kittie uses for the frame and background paper.

Card by Kittie Caracciolo photo courtesy of KittieKraft

You can use die cuts and decorate them or even use chip board accents to create a beautiful frame to highlight your sentiment. This is such a romantic take on a thank you card. It’s just lovely.

card by Gabrielle Pollacco photo courtesy of Such a Pretty Mess

While this is a sweet and simple card, I just loved how Lisa created her frame with a circle and had the circle stand out from the panel it was created out of. Clever and simple.

card by Lisa A. photo courtesy of I’m in Haven

The way Keisha uses her frame spatially is so nice. She achieves a open look by using a monochromatic color theme and adds pretty touches of color around her frame with her embellishments.

card by Keisha Campbell photo courtesy of A Bit East Coast

This tri fold card was just such an awesome example of how a frame could frame a frame! It is beautiful and so elaborate. I can imagine a special invitation with this die cut and folding treatment.

card by Becca Feeken photos courtesy of Amazing Paper Grace

Kalyn’s use of several frames is so pretty. You could use stamps, dies or fussy cut a piece of decorative paper to achieve this layered look.

card by Kalyn Kepner photo courtesy of Paper is Love

I am really digging the off the page look of the white on white frame that is the centerpiece of Laura’s beautiful card.

card by Laura Bassen photo courtesy of Doublestick Heaven

Frames can also create a window look to highlight the sentiment you stamp on the inside of the card.

card by Sharon Hashimoto Burkert photo courtesy of As the Ink Dries

The dimension and the fun personality of Alice’s card just makes me smile. This is such a cute hello card I love the way her gnome peeks out of her frame.

card by Alice Wertz photo courtesy of My Favorite Things

Yuki created a beautiful scene with her bunnies and the baby bundles they are discovering. Super cute take on a baby card.

card by Yukari Yoshioka photo courtesy of Handmade by Yuki

Sarah’s adorable tent card also uses a scene theme. By die cutting and layering she created a double frame that shows off the tree branch and bee hive hanging from it.

card by Sarah Gough photo courtesy of Reverse Confetti

The whimsical frame Audrey uses is a sweet way to highlight a stamped image on your project. This is such a beautiful card.

card by Audrey Tokach photo courtesy of Pink Ink Originals

I hope these gorgeous examples have given you some inspiration to raid your stash to find products you can use to create your own framed cards and pages. But just in case you feel like shopping too, I have a few products you can buy too 🙂

Simple Stories Chipboard frames from Simon Says Stamp

Studio Calico wood veneer frames from Simon Says Stamp

Hero Arts Frame die cuts from Simon Says Stamp

Memory Box angled frame die cut from Simon Says Stamp

Flirty Frames stamp set from Lawn Fawn

So go ahead… make something pretty.

Featured Artist/Designer: Susan Opel 07 16 2015

Welcome to another Featured Artist/Designer Spotlight. Today we’re thrilled to welcome Susan Opel!

Before we show you Susan’s project, let’s get to know her a little bit more…

When I turned 39, my life changed drastically. After receiving a BA in English from Concordia University in Ann Arbor, MI, I spent 16.5 years teaching English, art, and religion to students in Illinois, Nevada, and Indiana. One day I decided that I wasn’t excited about teaching anymore. I wanted to expand my world.

In a dramatic leap of faith, I took a position at Paper Crafts magazine, quit teaching, and moved across the country to pursue a dream job. For 6 1/2 years I worked (can you really call it that?) as an editor for Paper Crafts, connecting with cool creative people from all over the globe. I forged relationships and friendships with scrapbookers, card makers, and manufacturers.

I reveled in the creativity that surrounded me, and I couldn’t imagine NOT being a part of the industry.

One day that little magazine shut down for good, but God knew what he was doing. I’m now thrilled to be continuing my career in the creative industry as the Creative Ambassador for My Favorite Things, a premiere stamp and die company with some of the CUTEST designs out there, the best product, the most amazing design team, five star customer service, and a group of dedicated and seriously awesome employees. I get to look at pretty designs and cheer people on in their creativity every single day. It’s pretty awesome. Really.

Be Yourself

I love using the Die-namics from My Favorite Things, and I always do my best to use them in unique ways! I just love the versatility of dies for creating whatever the imagination can dream up. And that flamingo? Seriously. I can’t get enough.

I also love to find inspiration for color combinations from real life or online. This card was inspired by this amazing pair of earrings that I bought at Charming Charlie. I can’t tell you how fabulous I feel when I wear them! For more color inspiration, I invite you to participate in the MFT Color Challenges with my design team and me.

Supply List

Stamps: (Friends Like Us) My Favorite Things
Paper: (Black Licorice, Grout Gray, Blu Raspberry, Lemon Drop, Orange Fizz, Cotton Candy, Razzle Berry) My Favorite Things
Ink: (Black Licorice) My Favorite Things
Dies: (Flamingos, Blueprints 20, Blueprints 25, Inside & Out Diagonal Stitched Rectangle STAX) My Favorite Things
Accents: (rhinestones) Close To My Heart and (Wink of Stella) Zig Kuretake

Finished Size: 4 1/4 x 5/12

We hope you have enjoyed today’s project courtesy of Susan Opel.

If you are looking to see more from Susan, she hosts the MFT Challenge & Inspiration blog with a talented design team and at least one challenge every week! http://www.cardchallenges.com/

You can also find Susan in the following place:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/susan.opel

Instagram: https://instagram.com/susanropel/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/susanropel

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/susanopel/

Happy Crafting!

Winner of the Design By Ryn Give – Away! 07 01 2015

I’d like to extend a HUGE thank you to Design By Ryn’s guest designer Ryn Tanaka for sharing such a wonderful project and to Design By Ryn for their generous give-away of their collection shown below.

And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for…….the winner is…… Ann Celino!

Congratulations Ann Celino! Be sure to email us at customerservice@papercrafterslibrary.com to claim your prize. Please be sure to put “Design By Ryn Winner” in the subject line of the email, and then in the email itself, be sure to include your full mailing address and phone number.

Join us next week when we feature another great company!

Trend Watch – Summer Sweets

Summer has gotten off to a very HOT start. I am not a hot weather person. I grew up in Northern Minnesota and would much prefer a hoodie and some jeans to stay warm rather than trying to stay cool. However, today’s trend is all about summer sweets that hit the spot and help us to cool down on a hot day. Maybe you can help a friend cool down with some stamps that feature cool treats during this hot weather!

First off is this cute card by Nichol that features Lawn Fawn’s Best Pun Ever set. How cute is that popsicle with a mustache!? I really like the color gradients on each popsicle.

You’re the Coolest by Nichol Magouirk, courtesy Lawn Fawn Blog

Lisa’s card has some adorable sparkly striped popsicles. They’re so much fun! The sentiment ties into the theme so well.

Happy Birthday Sweet Friend by Lisa Johnson, courtesy Poppy Paperie

Sarah used some adorable enamel stickers to welcome in summer, including that glass of iced tea. I love relaxing with a cold glass of tea or lemonade in the summertime, and this card really captures the relaxed feel of summer.

Smile by Sarah Moerman, courtesy My Impressions

Next up we have some delicious looking ice cream. JJ’s card features a cute waffle cone stacked high with scoops of ice cream with sprinkles! Believe it or not, her scoops of ice cream are actually from a cupcake die set. You probably have something in your stash already that will make some great ice cream scoops.

Let’s Chill by JJ Bolton, courtesy handmade cards by jj bolton

Debby’s card features so many cheery things. The sentiment is so perfect for a summer sweets card. She’s got a great shaker filled with sequins in the middle, and then a cute stack of ice cream scoops on the side.

Happy Birthday Ice Cream card by Debby Hughes, courtesy lime doodle design

This card by Kay has also got a great sentiment. The ice cream cone colors are so vibrant! Her watercolor background really sets off the sentiment and ice cream cone.

I Like You More Than Ice Cream by Kay Miller, courtesy My Joyful Moments

If you’re looking to add to your stash, here are a few of the sets featured here, along with a cute popsicle die.

Best Pun Ever stamp set by Lawn Fawn

Cone Building stamp set by Simon Says Stamp

Popsicles dies by Taylored Expressions at Simon Says Stamp

Hopefully I’ve whet your papercrafting whistle for making some summer sweet cards to send a virtual “cool” hug to a friend!

Featured Company: Graphic 45 – 07 13 2015

Today we are thrilled to once again welcome back a regular guest of ours – Graphic 45.

Graphic 45 Designer – Tanya Dudkina

Our Graphic 45 Guest Designer for this week is Tanya Dudkina who is part of the 2014/2015 Graphic 45 Design Team. You can see Tanya’s fabulous project below, but first, here is a little more about her.

TanyaProfilePic-250W-07102015 Hi! My name is Tanya Dudkina. I live in wonderful city of Saint-Petersburg, Russia.

I love everything about scrapbooking. 5 years ago I found this world of papercrafting and now it became both – my hobby and my job. Currently I’m working as online scrapbooking educator and I adore my job.

Everyday scrapbooking helps me to meet amazing people, to try something new and to be active. I can’t say I have a favorite style because I love all of them, especially mixing new techniques with my favorite papers.

Mixed media is my big love and I adore watercoloring – paints and brushes make me free, I love the idea of creating something from a blank sheet of paper. Hope you enjoy my project today.

Once Upon a Springtime

Hi! Today I’m happy to share with you my video tutorial how to decorate Tag album by Graphic45 with the help of lace and amazing Once Upon a Springtime collection.

My tip – use lace for a background and you will get a perfect look for you album. I demonstrate how I made it in my tutorial. Hope you enjoy my idea and create something really magical!

Here a video tutorial:

Supplies

Regular Tag Album-Ivory
Once Upon a Springtime Deluxe Collector’s Edition

We hope you have enjoyed today’s feature. We want to extend a sincere thank you to Tanya Dudkina for her fabulous project and Graphic 45 for sharing their company with us. Be sure to visit Graphic 45 to see more of their products and their blog for some inspiration!

Happy Crafting!

Featured Artist/Designer: Laurie Willison – 07 09 2015

Welcome to another Featured Artist/Designer Spotlight. Today we’re thrilled to welcome Laurie Willison. Before we show you Laurie’s project, let’s get to know her a little bit more…

Hey there! It’s Laurie Willison from Soapbox Creations. I have been making cards for years but now, officially a blogger for 8 years. I don’t know where the time has gone! During these last 8 years, I have been honored to be on several design teams including my current teams, Papertrey Ink and My Favorite Things. I love to make cards but my most favorite part of this hobby are the all the people I have been lucky to have met and now call friends. I am a CAS card maker…I do love all that white space! I have also created a fun die called the Card Hanger Die which is available on my blog for purchase. I love coming over here to Paper Crafters Library to visit and am so happy to be joining in again today!

Social Media Links:
Blog: www.soapboxcreations.blogspot.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lauriewillison
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SoapboxCreations

A Lovely Hello

Hey there! It’s Laurie here today and I am so thrilled to be stopping in at Paper Crafters Library. I have a fun little card to share today using a couple of my favorite techniques.

First, I used a die from PTI to make the card front panel. Next, I randomly scored lines on that panel using my Scor-Pal. I lined that up and attached it to the gray card base using foam tape. I stamped the curve sentiment in black ink so it would pop from the card. I attached the leaf die to the card front using Elmer’s Craft Bond Spray Adhesive. I have a sticky pair of tweezers I use just for adding these delicate dies to the card. I just hold it over my trash can and give it a light spray. Once its on…its on but it is SO much easier to attach. Next, I did a little ombre stamping with Life is Beautiful stamp set and dies.

Here’s a detailed video to see on how I do this technique:

I also cut one more layer in vellum to add between the leaves and the top butterfly layer, just for a little more soft look. And that’s it!

Thanks so much for having me today! Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies

Stamps: Sentiment Splits, Life is Beautiful (Papertrey Ink)
Paper: Soft Stone, Stampers Select White, Spring Moss and PTI Vellum(Papertrey Ink)
Ink: Berry Sorbet, Lemon Tart (Papertrey Ink), Versafine Black Onyx
Misc: Life is Beautiful Dies (Papertrey Ink), Misc Leaf die

We hope you have enjoyed today’s project courtesy of Laurie Willison. Be sure to stop by Laurie’s blog to see even more of her beautiful work (and let her know we sent you).

Happy Crafting!

Trend Watch – Color Outside the Lines with Messy Watercolor

This is my kind of watercolor! It is beautiful and colorful but I don’t have to stay within the lines to make a something awesome.

It reminds me a bit of the freedom you had to create when you were in kindergarten. You were given a piece of paper and some paints and told to go at it. The abstract design and color combinations were accidental and every once in awhile, you could see something almost brilliant in the randomness of your finished masterpiece.

Messy watercolor is a bit like that. It is a lot more free form and does not require you be exact with your paint brush. And accidents are often the most beautiful! If watercolor had been intimidating, messy watercolor might be a great way to try this exciting trend.

One of the first things I created when I was practicing drawing as a kid was a rainbow. I love the take on the rainbow here with each color blending into the other with ease and acceptance of the overlap and a general flow along the edge of the card. This is a really nice effect and the butterflies just highlight it.

card by Tobi photo courtesy of Tobi’s Place

Francine had a similar take and included the butterfly in the rainbow and gave the last color a few flicks for a cool dripped or spotted look.

card by Francine Vuilleme photo courtesy of 1001 Cartes

You can use distress inks, water colors or spray paints to get vibrant colors like in the card below. The techniques to get the color are on card are limited only by your imagination. I love the look of the smoosh look this musically inspired card.

Card by Diana Nguyen photo courtesy of Yours Truly

You can still hold the general shape of a stamped image or a die cut like Jocelyn used and not focus too hard about staying in the lines. I love this look. It creates a halo of color that is very forgiving.

card by Jocelyn Olson photo courtesy of Red Balloon Cards

Brenda dedicated a blog post to how to recreate with a “mess up” to create this card. Stamping over watercolor is another great look and creates a cool collage look.

card by Brenda Weaver photo courtesy of Sweet Paper Treats

This sweet tag that Debby created is just beautiful. I love the concentration of color and the masked look she picks with with the clock in the background.

tag by Debby Hughes photo courtesy of Lime Doodle Designs

Laura’s stamped skyline looks like modern art with the different colors general suggesting where the buildings begin and end.

card by Laura Bassen photo courtesy of Doublestick Heaven

You can test several color combinations together, let them dry and stamp or emboss over them for awesome pocket pages.

cards by Rachel Izakowicz photo courtesy of Seize the Stamp

I love that you can get a watercolor look with the things you have on hand. This awesome collage was created with watered down acrylic paints and washi tape and a few stamps.

page by Missy Whidden photo courtesy of Shimelle.com

You can create your own background palate by using one color to ground the rest of your paper art. I love the color combination in this card.

card by Vanessa Menhorn photo courtesy of Wings of a Butterfly

The light blue wash is the perfect background for the watercolor flower combination.

card by Dawn Woleslagle photo courtesy of W Plus 9 blog

Freedom in crafting is here. Use the materials you have, try different techniques for different looks and most of all don’t worry about staying within the lines. Long live messy watercolor!!!

So go ahead…, make something pretty.

I found a few product below to start you on your messy journey.