Clean and Simple Stencils

10 Monday Sep 2012

Tags

Balzer Designs, Classes, Layouts, Stencils, The Crafter's Workshop

I love mist. I love the randomness of it and how it’s intense where you spray and then fades out – love it!

I also love molding paste – the dimension, the cool effect, the sharpness of the image yet it’s jagged on the top. Awesome!

But I know people who hate getting their hands dirty.

Yes, it’s true, there are crafters out there with clean hands, my friends! They’ll never understand the Julie Fei-Fan Balzer Dirty Girl apron…. Heck, they’ll never need one! 🙂

And so, for those people, and for those of you like me who can swing either way, I have a new class this Wednesday night!

Clean and Simple Stencils.

You can do it, you can stay clean, and I have two LO’s to prove it! Better yet, I incorporate at least 4 different techniques too!

If you haven’t signed up yet, this class is selling fast – call The Paperie ASAP to come join in the fun. If you can’t make it, we can get you a kit with instructions!

You know I love a big and crazy class so come on – what are you waiting for?

See you Wednesday! 🙂

Index Card A Day – #52

10 Monday Sep 2012

Posted by Sara in ICAD2

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Distress Inks, Dylusions Ink Sprays, ICAD, ICAD2, The Crafter's Workshop

#52 – Enjoy the little things…

I’m finally back to finishing the last 10 ICAD’s from this summer! For this one I smeared light molding paste over a fun stencil, Bug Doily, and let it air dry. I then painted over it with my cheapie water colours paints, blending them together. Although I really liked the blending colours, I wanted a bright spot and that wasn’t happening so I misted the centre with Lemon Zest Dylusions Ink Spray and then blended around it again.

Over that I stippled watercolour paint through another stencil, Art Is, and painted the wood veneer stars. The sentiment is, of course, stamped over a premade background and cut out!

I love the texture of the molding paste, especially with the text over it.

And the addition of a quick spritz of Studio Calico Shine? Awesome!

I’ll have another post later today with the LO’s from my upcoming stencil class – stay tuned!

Things on Thursday…

07 Friday Sep 2012

Posted by Sara in Classes, Things on Thursday..., Uncategorized

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

Classes, ICAD, ICAD2, kindergarten, Printstagram, Project Life, The Crafter's Workshop, The Paperie

Yes, yes, I know it’s Friday (late on Friday!) but yesterday was a big day and it got away from me!

1. Miss M started school yesterday! There’s no pre-k here so it was truly her first day ever and she was uber excited!

Me, not so much… However, it hasn’t been as bad as I thought it would and she loves it!

2. I’m starting Project Life. Yup, today is the last day of week one for me and I’m still not sure how to go about organizing it all. Please help me! Anyone who is doing this or has done it, give me your best tips – the things you’ve learned that work well and the things you’d do differently next time. In order for me to do this, I’m going to need all the help I can get!

Already I’m overwhelmed with the amount of content for this week alone: long weekend at the cabin, school starting, swimming starting for G… Go ahead, ask how many pictures I’ve taken!

3. I’m doing a new class at The Paperie next week and it’s all about stencils! Better still, it’s all about clean and simple stencils! So, those of you who hate to get your hands dirty (I know who you are!) this will show you how to use this great tool without getting mist under your nails! 🙂

4. I’ve started in on the last 10 ICAD’s I have left to make. I promise a blog post on Monday for the next one on the list!

5. I’m considering getting some stuff done from Printstagram – has anyone used it? Thoughts? Shipping and quality good? What size do you like?

The tiny books look neat and I thought they might make fun gifts for the kiddies at Christmas!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Index Card A Day – #50 & #51

07 Tuesday Aug 2012

Posted by Sara in ICAD2, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Cosmo Cricket, Creative Imginations/Luminarte, Dylusions Ink Spray, ICAD, ICAD2, Kiddies, Ranger, The Crafter's Workshop

#50 – Make a beautiful mess

I recently got some black gesso and decided to use it on an index card. It didn’t turn out as planned! So I took some old paper towel and adhered it with gel medium. Because of the black base, it turned out pretty dark which is why I added Golden Light Molding Paste over the Peony stencil to cover the majority of the card – it lightened it up quite a bit, thank goodness!

I heat set the molding paste, since I like the look when it puffs up, then added the sentiment from some Cosmo Cricket word stickers.

After a bad start, I really like how it turned out! And the detail from the stencil is awesome!

Here’s a bonus for you today – M did one last index card!

Of course, she had to use the “sparkly pots” aka my Twinkling H2O’s and she covered the whole card in gold. She then painted little wood veneer people and when the card was dry, stuck them on. She’s pretty minimalist, so she said that was it!

I love the colours she used!

#51 – Be true…

This is one of my recent faves – I love the bright colours!

I first added molding paste over another new stencil, Zinnia, and then misted with my Dylusions Ink Sprays. I added a couple of stamps but it was still just not quite right. Then I saw the mask left over from card #48 and since it was covered in a different colour mist, I added it to the mix.

Love how it turned out! I little bit of colouring and some more Cosmo Cricket word stickers and it was done!

That’s all I have ready to show you, but there will be a few more in the next little while – I just need to get the time to complete them! 🙂

Index Card A Day – #46 & #47

30 Monday Jul 2012

Posted by Sara in ICAD2

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Creative Imginations/Luminarte, Dylusions, ICAD, ICAD2, Mandala, Ranger, The Crafter's Workshop, Twinkling H2O's

(note: I totally forgot to set this to post yesterday morning – sorry!)

#46 – mandala

If you follow me on Twitter, you already know that this card did not want to be made – it blew into the pool and got soaked twice! Thank goodness for permanent ink!

The ink in the background (Hero Arts Shadow and Mid-tone Inks) did bleed a little but the stamped pattern is still perfectly intact.

I drew the mandala with my black Zig pen from Kuretake and added a few tiny highlights with my white Uniball.

There’s nothing else because, frankly, after drying it out a second time I was simply ready to be done with it! 🙂

#47 – I was cleansed forgiven….

This one was just fun to do. I used my Twinkling H2O’s and randomly painted, adding extra colour here and there, then added in some stencils and punchinella.

I finished by stamping the sentiment on a pre-made background of a contrasting colour, then cut it out and added it.

As always, I love the shine – it makes me happy!

Hoping to be back tomorrow with another couple of cards or maybe vacation photos – I haven’t forgotten about that!

Things on Thursday – CHA-S edition

26 Thursday Jul 2012

Posted by Sara in Things on Thursday...

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

CHA, CHA-S, Dyan Reaveley, Dylusions, Ranger, Studio Calico, The Crafter's Workshop, Tim Holtz

First, a little note: I know I’ve been posting a little less here – summer is busy! If you want to see more, I post pics and life bits on Twitter and Instagram (I’m saracees), follow me there! That’s also where you’ll find sneak peeks of upcoming classes! 😉

So CHA-S (Craft and Hobby Association, Summer 2012) is over and the companies in the crafting industry released their new product, focusing mostly on Halloween and Christmas. Here are some my faves of the new goodies!

1. Dyan Reaveley – Dylusions for Ranger

You know I love Ranger and you know I love the Dylusions line. The new Christmas stuff coming out is no exception. Top of my list is this sentiment stamp set – hilarious!

2. Tim Holtz – Ranger

Finally! Rock Candy Distress Stickles in a big jar with a brush! YAY!!!!

3. Studio Calico

A new collection for SC is Yearbook. And they have polaroid frames. These will be mine!

4. Dyan Reaveley – Dylusions for Ranger

OK, so I know I said the sentiments were top of my list but this is fighting for first place too! 🙂

5. The Crafter’s Workshop

I can’t narrow these down. With new designs from Julie Fei-Fan Balzer, Dina Wakeley, Karen Ellis, and Jaime Echt, there are more stencils than I could hope for. And I want them all! The Bug Doily makes me laugh, and I need the Whimsical Vines, and the Spilled Hearts are awesome!

Trust me, these aren’t the only things on my want/need list – but it’s a good start!

Leave a comment letting me know what you love and need from the new releases, I have no problem adding to my list! 🙂

Index Card A Day – #41

12 Thursday Jul 2012

Posted by Sara in ICAD2

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Cosmo Cricket, Creative Imginations/Luminarte, ICAD, ICAD2, Sharpies, Studio Calico, The Crafter's Workshop, Twinkling H2O's, Wood Veneer

I’m so sorry. My mojo is still in hiding so you have to suffer through another blerg card. You can leave now and come back tomorrow, I don’t mind, really!

Still here? Well, don’t say you weren’t warned….

Another premade background, this time with flexible molding paste and coarse pumice gel – the texture is amazing!

I painted each little block with different coloured Twinkling H2O’s, then misted with water to blend them all a little. I blotted with a paper towel and thought, “Blech.” Seriously. That was the word that came to my mind.

I took a Cosmo Cricket phrase sticker, cut it up, stuck it down and drew lines around the pieces. Then I coloured in the word “color.” Then I inked some wood veneer pieces and stuck them down. Then I threw my hands in the air and called it done.

The texture and shimmer is cool I guess. I’m sulking now….

Later, I’m finding my mojo, beating it into submission, and doing a good card. Or else.

Index Card A Day – #38

11 Wednesday Jul 2012

Posted by Sara in ICAD2

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Creative Imginations/Luminarte, Dylusions Ink Sprays, ICAD, ICAD2, Ranger, Studio Calico, The Crafter's Workshop, Twinkling H2O's, Wood Veneer Stars

I made this background a while back while showing my mom the Dylusions Ink Sprays and a stencil. I misted turquoise, blue, lime green, and orange and let them blend then dry.

Once dry, I sprayed hot pink through the stencil which made purple on the blue part of the card. I also used water for a ghosting technique and then covered the whole thing with Perfect Pearls Mist.

I stamped the house and sentiment on another misted background I had done and cut out all the pieces. With the house, I cut each layer of the roof apart and cut open the door on one side. When I pieced it all back together again, I only glued the tops of each roof piece and then bent them out for dimension. I also let the door swing open.

The stars were simply painted with gold Twinkling H2O’s and adhered.

I love these painty, blendy looking backgrounds and Dylusions mix to make the most amazing colours! I love the “shingles” on the roof too – fun, fun!

See you tomorrow for a few more!

Index Card A Day – #36

11 Wednesday Jul 2012

Posted by Sara in ICAD2

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

ICAD, ICAD2, Idea-ology Chitchat Stickers, Perfect Pearls Mist, Pomegranate Stencil, Ranger, Studio Calico, The Crafter's Workshop, Wood Veneer Stars

I’m a bit behind on posting my index cards so there will be a few posts today – hope you enjoy!

I’ve had an idea for this card in my head for a while but was waiting on my wood veneer stars to arrive before I did it. It’s pretty simple but I love the shades of blue and purple.

My oldest and best friend and I took our kiddies to the beach for this past wet and grey weekend and I made this card while I was there so I had limited supplies with me but I’m happy with how it all came together.

I painted the background with my cheapy watercolour paints, which I love, and used lots of water and shades to really blend it together. I didn’t want any lines, just a gradual fade into the darker colours of blue and purple.

Once it dried I misted Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls Mist over my mini Pomegranate stencil. As an aside, that stencil is the best! It’s so versatile and seems to work with and be whatever you want – love it!

Anyway…. I then painted the stars with Metallic Gold Paint Dabber, then sprayed those and the Chitchat word stickers with Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls Mist. I had to stamp the word “star” but there is some extra sticky paper left on the Chitchat word sheets so I just used that. I adhered it all to the card and inked the edges to finish it off.

I love the sparkle of the mist and the little bit of dimension from the stars:

What do you think of the stencil? Looks like sky/comet/galaxy/space stuff to me! Do I need the 12×12 version, what do you all think?

Back soon with another one – I had to try a fun material my friend Cathie has been using! 😉

Index Card A Day – #27

29 Friday Jun 2012

Posted by Sara in ICAD2

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

ICAD, ICAD2, Index Card A Day, Ranger ChitChat Stickers, The Crafter's Workshop

I had a premade base for this – Flexible Molding Paste spread over the star portion of a 12×12 Punchinella stencil.

I started by blowing three different watercolours around with a straw. I wasn’t happy with the amount of tentacles spreading out and there was too much solid space so I covered the whole thing with my new, but old, favourite product – Twinkling H2O’s! I really like how the colours blended together more and appear layered under a translucent teal cover.

For my quote, I used one that M and I say to each other all the time but in my ChitChat stickers there was no “stars” so I wrote it on the card. Blerg. Then I stamped the letters on one of my Martha Stewart kraft sticker labels, cut out each letter and stuck them down. Then I covered the word and letter stickers with matte multimedium which removed some of the teal paint around the stickers revealing more of the original colour – pretty cool!