tonic

Tonic Studios Snowmies Stamp Club Blog Hop + Giveaway!

October 29, 2021

Hi there! I’m super excited to be helping my friend Maria Wills and the folks at Tonic Studios to introduce the October Stamp Club release; this month’s theme is Snowmies! We’re giving you lots of inspiration with a blog hop. You should have arrived here from Mindy Eggen, and your next stop is Michelle Short. You can also start back at the beginning at Maria’s blog. Here’s a peek at this month’s stamp, die, and stencil set:

The Snowmies kit is so cute, and the huge variety of dies (both coordinating and standalone) included with the kit make this super versatile, with so many options! I’ve used the stencil and standalone snowman dies as the main focal point for my project today, so let’s get started with the details.

I began by doing some ink blending on a white A2 card base using some pale blue and light lilac ink and some blending brushes. Then, I used some Moonstone Glimmer Paste from Tonic to add some shimmery, glittery snowflakes using the stencil included in the club kit to the lightly blended background. I’m in love with the subtle shimmer and texture that it adds to the background.

Next, I used the standalone individual dies to create a cheerful, cozily-dressed snowman. I die cut some sparkling snowflakes and the dressing for the holiday gifts from some glitter paper, as well. I adhered all of the pieces together and used some foam tape to add the die cuts to the card front.

For the greeting, I used one of the sweet sentiments included in the Snowmies kit, white embossed on some bright purple cardstock and adhered to the card front using more foam tape. Because snowflakes come in all shapes and sizes, I like to vary the sizes and textures when doing a snowy background, so in addition to the stenciled glittery snowflakes and the glitter snowflake die cuts, I added some iridescent white pearls on the card front to help complete the effect of snowfall and add just that extra touch of sparkle and shine.

Well, that’s all for my project today! To help celebrate the Snowmies release, Tonic is sponsoring a fun giveaway!

One lucky winner will win a £50/$50 Giftcard to Tonic Studios and the Snowmies bundle! To enter, comment on every blog in the hop by 11:59pm PST on November 3, 2021/ 7:59am GST on November 4, 2021. Winner will be announced on November 5, 2021 on IG and FB so make sure you’re following all of the Tonic Studios social media accounts!

Your next stop on the hop is Michelle Short. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

Tonic Studios August Release: Christmas Rose- Blog Hop + Giveaway!

August 27, 2021

Hi there! I’m so excited to be a part of Tonic’s Christmas Rose release blog hop! This stamp set was illustrated by my talented friend Maria Willis, and I’m so honored that she asked me to be a part of the hop! You should have arrived here from Maria’s blog, and your next stop is Jen Kray. I love Tonic’s Stamp Club releases, because these stamp+die sets are always such a great value, and you get so many unique extras. Here’s a peek at the Christmas Rose kit:

These kits are exclusive to Tonic, and aren’t really a club, just a small monthly release. The Christmas Rose kit features some gorgeous floral images, as well as a variety of sentiments in a beautiful font, and some fun snowy/frosty images that you can add to your projects! I was in the mood to just sit and watercolor, so I used my tie-dye technique to create this mini-slimline card. Let’s get started with the details!

My tie-dye technique is a fun one that adds a variety of color and interest to watercolored images. I began by heat embossing the main floral images on some Arches Cold Press watercolor paper, one offset on a mini-slimline (3.5″x6″) and then some more on another panel of watercolor paper using white pearl embossing powder. Once I’d finished embossing, I laid down quite a lot of clean water on the embossed panels, then dropped in diluted Daniel Smith paints in shades of blue, green, and a pretty mauve-y rose. I swirled the colors around and pulled them out on the card base, allowing them to fade subtly, but still adding some interest to the background!

Once my tie dye layer was dried, I went back in with more concentrated color using the same mauve watercolor and added shadows and highlights to the flower images. I also mixed the green and blue shades together to create a lovely jungle green for the foliage. The use of the diluted tie-dyed layer first helps to add some different layers of color to the elements of the flower, instead of them being entirely pink or entirely green. After I’d finished watercoloring all of the images, I used the dies included in the Christmas Rose to die cut the rose bouquet and individual flowers.

I layered the die cuts on the mini-slimline card base using some foam adhesive for lots of dimension. For the greeting, I used some of the sentiment dies included in the Christmas Rose die set, with the base cut from vellum and the detail layer cut from Seafoam Mirror Cardstock from Tonic. Finally, I added a few minty green pearls to help fill in the gaps and create a visual cascade down the front.

Well, that’s all for my projec today! To celebrate this new release, Tonic has a giveaway for you!

One lucky winner will win a £50/$50 Giftcard to Tonic Studios and the Christmas Rose bundle! To enter, comment on every blog in the hop by 11:59pm PST on September 1, 2021/ 7:59am GST on September 2, 2021. Winner will be announced on September 3rd, 2021 on IG and FB so make sure you’re following all of the Tonic Studios social media accounts!

Your next stop on the hop is Jen Kray. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

Tonic Studios Sunshine & Sunflowers Blog Hop + Giveaway!

June 25, 2021

Hi there! Today, I’m taking part in a special blog hop to help introduce Tonic’s newest Stamp Club installment: Sunshine and Sunflowers! You should have arrived here from Erica Andersson-Burke, and your next stop is Marie Heidescheit. (You can also start back at the beginning if you got lost!) If you love sunflowers, this kit is screaming your name. I adore sunflowers… they’re just so happy! My bedroom was even decorated with black and white gingham and sunflowers as a child, so I’m totally in love with this beautiful kit. So many beautiful ways to create beautiful sunflowers with this kit! With this kit, you’ll receive a large, 6×8″ stamp set, coordinating dies for the stamps, as well as standalone layering dies so that you can color, ink blend, or die cut to your heart’s content! I have a cheerful project reminiscent of a summer’s day to share with you today, so let’s get started with the details!

I began by stamping images from the Sunshine and Sunflowers kit: the large sunflower corner, as well as some individual blooms and foliage, onto some Arches cold press watercolor paper with embossing ink, then heat embossed the images with some silver embossing powder. I then used my Schmincke watercolor palette to add lots of sunshine-y yellow, gold, and orange to the flowers, with some muted green for the foliage. I also watercolored some lovely turquoise all around the edges of the embossed images (you’ll find out why in a moment). I die cut all of the pieces using the coordinating dies included in the Sunshine and Sunflowers kit, then began work on my card base.

Next, I trimmed down a panel of light turquoise cardstock to A2 size, upon which I blended some Seaside ink from Pinkfresh Studio in the top right corner using a blending brush. I think it looks like the endless blue of a perfectly clear, late-summer sky, don’t you? To add a bit more interest to the background, as well as to add another element of silver to tie into the silver embossing, I added some metallic silver splatters to the background using some handmade metallic paints that I purchased on Etsy. The shine is incredible!

I added the die cut flowers to the card front using both liquid and foam adhesive for lots of dimension. The turquoise watercolored edges help to maintain the continuity from the flower die cuts to the turquoise sky background without those pesky white die cut edges. I added a greeting from the Sunshine and Sunflowers kit, heat embossed in silver on some sunny yellow cardstock and tucked in amongst the flowers. The final touch was to add some yellow pearls for a bit of extra texture and to fill in some of the bare spots on the floral arrangement.

Well, that’s all for my project today! We have some fun giveaway information for you to celebrate the Sunshine and Sunflowers hop:

One lucky winner will win a £50/$50 Giftcard to Tonic Studios and the Sunshine & Sunflowers Bundle! To enter comment on the blogs in the hop by 11:59pm PST on June 30, 2021/ 7:59am GST on June 1, 2021. Comment on as many hop stops as possible as every comment is an additional chance to win! Winner will be announced on July 2, 2021 on IG and FB so make sure you’re following all Tonic accounts!

Well, that’s all for me today. Your next stop on the hop is Marie Heidescheit. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

*****(If you can’t find the comment box on my post, click on the title of the blog post, then scroll down to the end of the post, where you should see a comment form.)*****

Tonic Studios February Card Kit Blog Hop!

February 26, 2021

Hi there! Tonic Studios is releasing a beautiful new card kit today, called Compassion and Poppies, and we are hopping to share lots of inspiration with you all! You should have arrived here from Dilay Nacar, and your next stop is Erica Andersson-Burke. These fun card kits from Tonic are exclusive to the Tonic store, and are full of beautiful stamps and dies that come in easy-to-store packaging! (Love that there’s very little waste with these!)

The Compassion and Poppies kit contains a 6×8″ stamp and die set containing 18 stamps and 17 dies. The kit is exclusive to Tonic, and is a limited edition-once it’s gone, it’s gone! Tonic dies cut well and come precut/separated with no burs!Stamps & dies come in high quality plastic envelopes with a tab for labeling and binder holes on the side, which are compatible with Tonic’s A5 ring binders.

I frequently associate poppies with sympathy cards, probably because of the association with World War I remembrances, so I thought I’d create a somber sympathy card for today’s hop using some colored pencils and deep navy cardstock.

I wanted to keep the color scheme as simple as possible, so to avoid white die cut edges that would drive me nuts and detract from my navy-gold-red color scheme, I used only that dark navy cardstock for all of my images. I began by heat embossing several of the poppy images from the main kit and foliage onto some deep navy cardstock using gold embossing powder, then die cutting them with the coordinating dies included in the kit.

I used my Luminance colored pencils to add some bright red coloring to the poppy flowers. It’s kind of amazing how bright these pencils are even on dark cardstock! I die cut a very thin, rectangular frame from the nesting rectangle dies included in the kit (so many useful extras included with these Tonic kits!).

For the card base, I splattered some vivid gold watercolor on an A2 panel of the same navy cardstock, then adhered the die cuts using foam adhesive. I also die cut the standalone branch dies (included in Compassion and Poppies) from some matte gold foil cardstock to add a little extra texture. The final step was to add some golden gems to help round out the bouquet and add a touch of sparkle.

Well, that’s all for my project today!

One lucky winner will win a £50/$50 Giftcard to Tonic Studios and the Compassion & Poppies Bundle! To enter comment on every blog in the hop by 11:59pm PST on March 3, 2021/ 7:59am GST on Feb. 4, 2021. Winner will be announced on March 5th, 2021 on IG and FB, so make sure you’re following all Tonic accounts!

Your next stop is Erica Andersson-Burke. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

Tonic Studios Happy Hibiscus Blog Hop+Giveaway!

November 20, 2020

Hi there! Today, I’m excited to be a part of the Tonic Studios Happy Hibiscus blog hop! You should have arrived here from Daniel West’s blog, and your next stop is Jen Kay. Each month, Tonic releases a super fun kit for cardmakers, and this month has a beautiful tropical theme, called Happy Hibiscus, with lots of fun die elements, both for use specifically with the kit as well as some great basics that can be used with many other designs! Here’s a peek at the products in the kit:

Some details about the release: This stamp concept is a 3-fer. The large stamp can be used as a background stamp or cut apart to create a floral frame and bouquet resulting in three uses for one stamp. The dies includes two word dies with halo backing, as well as 7 Stitched rectangles and squares both cut out shapes and also cut a stitched frame into your cardstock (On both the negative and positive pieces). Tonic dies cut well and come precut/separated with no burs! Stamps & dies come in high quality plastic envelopes with a tab for labeling and binder holes on the side (which fit perfectly inside this A5 binder!). These products are exclusive to Tonic, and are limited in quantity… once they’re gone, they’re gone!

For my project today, I created a tropical sunset shaker using the edge of the gorgeous stamp. I started by stamping the background stamp on some watercolor paper and heat embossed it with silver embossing powder. I used my Daniel Smith watercolors to add lots of vibrant color to the floral design around the edge, then used the interior die to create the frame.

I used a pretty combination of lilac, coral, and apricot inks to blend a soft tropical sunset background using some blender brushes. These three colors worked perfectly with the colors of the tropical flowers on the border! I added an acetate sheet to the back of the frame, then added lots of foam tape around the edges.

I filled the shaker with lots of pretty coordinating colors of sequins and adhered the shaker frame to the blended background panel. For the greeting, I die cut the Happy Birthday included in the Happy Hibiscus set from some Tonic Silver Screen Glitter Cardstock.

To celebrate this release, Tonic is sponsoring a giveaway! One lucky winner will win a £50/$50 Giftcard to Tonic Studios and the Happy Hibiscus bundle. To enter comment on every blog in the hop by 11:59pm PST on November 25th. Winner will be announced on November 27th on IG and FB so make sure you’re following all Tonic accounts!

BLOG HOP LIST:

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!