christmas rose

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!

Hi there! Are you ready for some Christmas spirit today? Hero Arts is officially unveiling their Winter 2020 Catalog today, and we are celebrating all of the gorgeous new products with a blog hop and giveaway! You should have arrived here from Debi Adams’s blog, and your next stop is Ilina Crouse. I have two non-traditional holiday projects for you today, both an homage to my favorite shade of ink from Hero Arts: Raspberry Jam. (It’s just the perfect shade of pinky red, and something so fun and different for holiday cards!) Let’s get started with the details on my projects.

For my first project, I combined the new Christmas Rose Bold Prints background stamp with the beautiful Color Layering Poinsettia Tree and dies. I began by stamping the Christmas Rose background on a panel of Peony Hero Hues cardstock using Soft Blossom ink. I then used a blender brush to blend some Unicorn White ink in the center to soften the pattern a bit and create a more solid background for my floral Christmas tree!

I stamped the beautiful new Color Layering Poinsettia Tree on some more Peony cardstock using Raspberry Jam, Bubble Gum, and Unicorn White inks, as well as some gifts. I cut everything out with the coordinating Frame Cuts. For the greeting, I heat embossed the “Happy Holidays” on a strip of Plum cardstock using white embossing powder. I trimmed down the floral, tone-on-tone background panel and matted it on an A2 panel of Plum cardstock, then mounted the tree and gift die cuts in the center using foam adhesive.

For my second project, I used the fabulous new Snowflake Swirl Bold Prints for my background, doing some ombre inking using the Hero Arts branded MISTI. To achieve this look, I first stamped the top third of the Snowflake background using Rose Madder ink, softening the edges of it a bit with a microfiber towel. I stamped it on my white cardstock and repeated the process again to get a good saturation of color. Next, I did the same thing across the center segment of the stamp using Raspberry Jam ink, softening the edges at top and bottom to create a seamless blend between the two cards. Finally, I added Grape Juice ink on the bottom, creating a lovely, non-traditional snowflake ombré on my white cardstock! The formulation on the Hero Arts inks make techniques like this so much easier, because the formula actually spreads and smooths as it dries, so the colors change smoothly, as well.

To create the shaker window, I die cut the new Joy Ornament Fancy Die from the center of the snowflake card front, as well as from some white cardstock. I backed the circular cutout on the card front using acetate, then inlaid the Joy die cut on the acetate using liquid adhesive. I added foam adhesive around the shaker opening, then added some fun iridescent sequins, finally backing it with a full A2 panel of Plum cardstock.

Well, that’s all for my projects today! These new holiday products are absolutely marvelous. Totally will get you in the holiday cardmaking spirit, even if it is super hot outside haha! Now, for some fun giveaway information:

Hero Arts will give away three $50 gift cards, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by leaving a comment between now and Sunday, September 6th at 11:59pm Pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week. The more comments you leave, the more chances you have to win!

Your next stop is Ilina Crouse. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!