Getting Inky With Ya!

It's a gloomy day here in New England, but I'm walking on sunshine!  I gathered up my inks and markers, some new Hero Arts stamps, and went to town getting inky today.  Those who know me, know I am "ink phobic."  Today, I conquered my fear and, I feel successfully so!  OK, I'm a little partial....

I've decided to take one stamp and use it three ways.  Or, as they say in the culinary world, a trio. This is the first card using that stamp from the Hero Arts via Basic Grey's PB&J Collection - Flower Table Cloth.  I'm smitten!

I swiped some Tim Holtz Picket Fence Distress stain over the stamp and pressed it onto a piece of espresso cardstock. I held it there for a while for the paper to absorb the moisture.  I then used a shot of the heat gun to give it a quick dry.  As it warmed up, a ghostly image appeared that I was quite happy with.  I let it dry overnight and then used an iron over the back to give it a final set and smooth it out.

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The next step was the flower.  This Hero Arts stamp, Three Dotted Flowers, is an older one I recently bought.  I wanted it to be light and milky, to coordinate with the background, so I used vellum and embossed it in a blush color.  I finished it off with a leaf branch from my friend, Lin, and a single pearl.

The sentiment is another Hero Arts stamp from the set, Live Life.  I embossed it in the same blush color. I finished off the card by adhering the espresso cardstock to a blush pink folded card.

Also, tonight I'll be drawing the name of the winner for my month-long giveaway!  I'll be posting it here tomorrow.

I'll be back with part two of my stamp - three ways!

SUPPLIES
Paper - Bazzill cardstock, Hero Arts vellum
Stamps - Hero Arts Flower Table Cloth CG431, Three Dotted Flowers CG291, Live Life CL493
Other - Tim Holtz Picket Fence Distress stain, Zing Embossing Powder, VersaMark Watermark, Hero Arts Pearls, RAK die-cut leaf branch

Hello Sunshine

This week at Our Creative Corner, butterflies are the theme!  Your hostess again this week is Irena Kowalczyk aka Rudlis from "Love, Life and Crafts" and she has a wonderful challenge planned for us.   Based on this inspiration photo of  "Butterflies," make a project, card, or tag.  Let your imagination soar!  Then tell us what it is you love about butterflies.

Here is my design team card for some inspiration.

Please drop by Our Creative Corner and join in on our challenge.  Also, check out the awesome inspiration from the rest of the design team - they are amazing!

  Linda Coughlin- The Funkie Junkie

Vicki Burdick- It's a Stamp Thing

Sue Butler- Scrumplescrunch

Ann Marie Hile- Stampin' Anne

 Anita Houston - The Artful Maven

Wendy Janson-  It's All About Stamping
Marcy Kaminski - En Papillote Arts (you are here!)
Holly Kean- Kean On Paper
Irena Kowalczyk (aka Rudlis) - Love, Life and Crafts
Meihsia Liu- Simply Paper Crafts
Tui Nathan- Stampin Time
Lori Rider- The Diva Stamper
Kristin Tierney- Lilly Beth Boutique
Sharon Wheet- Designs by Sharon

SUPPLIES:

Paper - Anna Griffin pp, Hero Arts snow layering paper

Stamps - Hero Arts Homey Patterns CL600

Inks - Versafine Black Onyx, Memento Rosy Pink

Die and Folders - Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels Twenty, Tim Holtz Butterflight On the Edge Die

Other - Silk ribbon RAK from Cheiron, Hero Arts Lace Ribbon, K&Co. chipboard butterflies

EXCITING News, a Celebration and a Giveaway!!

I KNOW- a trifecta of excitement here!  I've been giving little snippets of coming news on my blog for a while and now it's here!

Let's start with my latest news first.  I am one of the new HERO HOSTESSES!!  This has always been a dream of mine, so I am extremely honored to be selected!  Hero Arts has always been where my heart lies for their products, customer support, blog and the Flickr Group.  I've made some wonderful friends through this group and have been inspired  by their talent.  I look forward to putting on my apron and helping to support the Hero Art Flickr group with my fellow hostess sisters!  Please visit the Hero Arts blog for all the details.  Here's a sneak peek!

My next news is a milestone for me!  I turned SIXTY, yes, the big 60 this month!  And to celebrate, I am having a giveaway!

This is a special giveaway, too.  My friend, Linda Coughlin, The Funkie Junkie, has just started an amazing, new challenge blog, Frilly and Funkie.  It's a gorgeous blog, from a gorgeous owner with an even more gorgeous heart!  I am not only a huge fan of hers, but so proud of her f accomplishments!  Together, we picked out some of the wonderful goodies from her FABULOUS Zibbet store, The Funkie Junkie's Boutique, for my giveaway.  I am excited to offer her products to you because they are quality materials that are often hard to find. 

To win the giveaway, please leave a comment on my blog by April 30th, when I will have a random drawing.  Winner will be announced here on May 1st.   

Well, that's it for now!  Thanks so much for visiting my blog.  I always love it when I hear from you!  It's going to get a lot more busy around here and I hope you keep checking back to see what's in store!  I'll even be posting some of my favorite recipes!

Hugs,

Marcy

French Wine - A Man's Passion

I don't know what it is about the French, but they have a zest for living life to its fullest.  One might say it's something "in the wine" that young French children grow up on.  This wine is what inspired my husband's passion for becoming a collector.

This week at Our Creative Corner, MEN are the theme!  Your hostess is Irena Kowalczyk aka Rudlis from "Love, Life and Crafts" and she has a wonderful challenge planned for us.  On a card or project, show a passion, hobby or interest of a male family member.  Does he love sports or cars? Maybe he makes models or collects vintage books?  Please include what the passion is.

Here is my design team card for some inspiration.

My sweet friend, Jacqueline, who lives in France, sent me an envelope full of wine labels from various local wineries.  Oh, the joy!  She knows how much my husband loves wine.  I knew exactly which label I wanted to use for this card.

I wanted to create the illusion of a cabinet in an old, French wine cellar.  I embossed the label with gold ultrafine powder using a lattice bg stamp and framed it with black cardstock.  I backed the label with a piece of woodgrained patterned paper and framed that with black cardstock.  The final layer is the ivory card front.

I wanted the look of black wrought iron decorative pieces on the "cabinet door" and a fancy gold handle.  I used die cuts out of black cardstock for the iron.  For the handle, I created a floret with gold patterned paper and finished it off with a glass drop embellishment.

 

Please drop by Our Creative Corner and join in on our challenge.  Also, check out the awesome inspiration from the rest of the design team - they are amazing!

  Linda Coughlin- The Funkie Junkie

Vicki Burdick- It's a Stamp Thing

Sue Butler- Scrumplescrunch

Ann Marie Hile- Stampin' Anne

 Anita Houston - The Artful Maven

Wendy Janson-  It's All About Stamping
Marcy Kaminski - En Papillote Arts (you are here!)
Holly Kean- Kean On Paper
Irena Kowalczyk (aka Rudlis) - Love, Life and Crafts
Meihsia Liu- Simply Paper Crafts
Tui Nathan- Stampin Time
Lori Rider- The Diva Stamper
Kristin Tierney- Lilly Beth Boutique
Sharon Wheet- Designs by Sharon

 

 SUPPLIES:

Paper - My Minds Eye Miss Caroline, PPI cardstock

Stamps - Hero Arts Lattice Background 331065

Die and Folders - Spellbinders Fleur de lis doily motifs, Sizzix Flourish with Leaves, Tim Holtz Decorative Strip Die Mini Rosettes

Other - Webster's Pages glass drop embellishment

 

In Your Easter Bonnet...

..with all the frills upon it!  That's how the song goes and so does our challenge this week at Our Creative Corner.  I am SO excited to be your hostess again this week!  My challenge for you is to design a card/project that is inspired by a frilly Easter bonnet.  Use elements that you would put onto your own bonnet, such as lace, flowers, pearls, etc. 

 

This week our Guest Designer is Lisa Minckler from You Made Me Ink! We are so excited to have her with us this week! Be sure to stop by and visit her blog to see all of her beautiful creations.

 

Here is my design team card for some inspiration.  Can you see the "straw hat" on my card?

Please drop by Our Creative Corner and join in on our challenge.  Also, check out the awesome inspiration from the rest of the design team - they are amazing!

  Linda Coughlin- The Funkie Junkie

Vicki Burdick- It's a Stamp Thing

Sue Butler- Scrumplescrunch

Ann Marie Hile- Stampin' Anne

 Anita Houston - The Artful Maven Haven

Wendy Janson-  It's All About Stamping
Marcy Kaminski - En Papillote Arts (you are here!)
Holly Kean- Kean On Paper
Irena Kowalczyk (aka Rudlis) - Love, Life and Crafts
Meihsia Liu- Simply Paper Crafts
Tui Nathan- Stampin Time
Lori Rider- The Diva Stamper
Kristin Tierney- Lilly Beth Boutique
Sharon Wheet- Designs by Sharon