copic coloring

June My Monthly Hero Blog Hop + Giveaway!

June 4, 2018

Good morning! (Or maybe afternoon, depending on where you are reading this!) Today is the day… the absolutely amazing June My Monthly Hero kit is now available for purchase! This particular kit is absolutely fantastic… the beach theme is so appropriate for the start of summer, and the kit has some absolutely fantastic components, not to mention stunning add-ons. To celebrate, we have an amazing blog hop with some fantastically creative guests. You should have arrived here from Clare Prezzia’s blog and your next stop is Ilina Crouse’s blog.

The main kit includes:

6″ x 8″ Clear Stamp Set
12 Coordinating Frame Cuts
4 Ink Cubes (Deep Ocean, Summer Sky, Soft Sky, Soft Granite)
Sand Embossing Powder 0.5 oz
Sea Foam Shimmer Spray 0.5 fl oz
Beach Enamel Stickers

There are so many amazing beachy images included in this kit, and it’s a bargain at $34.99 (valued at over $70!). These kits frequently sell out, so it’s always a good idea to subscribe if you want to ensure that you’ll get your hands on one! The kit & add-ons go live in the Hero Arts store on Monday June 4th at 1pm eastern/10am pacific. The main kit is available for a limited time only – once it’s gone, it’s gone. Kits begin shipping from Hero Arts on Friday, June 8th.

I had such fun using the main kit contents in my countdown post on the Hero Arts Blog that I created two different cards! I decided, however, to use some of the absolutely marvelous add-on stamps and dies today. Hero Arts really outdid themselves with this release!

For my first project, I used the new Abstract Wave Bold Prints stamp with an older stamp to create this beautiful under-the-sea mermaid scene. I started by stamping the Abstract Wave onto some white card stock and heat emboss it using White Satin Pearl embossing powder. I then used my blending tools to blend Deep Ocean, Summer Sky, and Orchid inks in a halo on the card front. I absolutely love this color combo… almost psychedelic! Just to make things even more magically mermaid-ish, I spritzed some Iridiscent Shimmer Spray on the card front and allowed it to dry completely.

Next, I stamped the beautifully detailed Mermaid woodblock stamp onto some watercolor paper, then die cut it out with the coordinating frame cuts. I used my Tombow markers to do some quick watercoloring in similar shades of purple and blue, then popped her up on my card front with some dimensional foam adhesive. I stamped the greeting from the new Seal of Approval stamp set onto some white card stock using black ink. I trimmed it down to a strip, then popped it up next to my mermaid. The final touch was a few iridescent gems that reminded me of pretty bubbles!

For my second project today, I wanted to feature that adorable seagull wearing a hat in the Seas the Day Seagulls set. I just couldn’t resist. I started by stamping and die cutting a few seagulls and some logs upon which they could stand. I then used my Copic markers to color both the gulls and their logs.

Next, I die cut one of the new Wave & Sea Confetti Dies from some Sea Mix layering paper, then backed it with a lighter shade of blue layering paper. Next, I pressed my Versamark pad down directly onto a piece of card stock and added some of the super unique sand embossing powder included in the main kit. I popped up my gulls, their seats, and the sandy strip with some dimensional foam adhesive, then wrapped some twine around each of the logs to create those super rustic and beachy “fences” that you might see at the beach or on a boardwalk. The last step was to stamp a coordinating greeting from the Se as the Day Seagulls set onto a strip of white card stock and pop it up with dimensional foam adhesive.

Now, for a giveaway!!! We are giving away one kit as a prize to one blog reader – selected from the comments across all of the blogs in the hop. The giveaway closes Sunday, June 10th at 11:59pm, and the winner will be announced the following week. The more comments you leave, the more chances you have to win! (If you purchase a kit and then win the contest, Hero Arts will reimburse you for your purchased kit!) Here’s the full hop lineup, so you can leave your comments:

Jennifer McGuire
Jenn Shurkus
Laurie Willison
Lydia Fiedler
Nichol Spohr
Wanda Guess
Amy Tsuruta
Clare Prezzia
Emily Midgett
Ilina Crouse
Janette Kausen
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Libby Hickson
Yana Smakula
Michelle Short

Spellbinders May 2018 Blog Hop + Giveaway!

May 16, 2018

Good morning! I am excited to be a part of the Spellbinders May Blog Hop! You should have arrived here from Keeway’s blog. This month features several new designs from Becca Feeken and Debi Adams. I was given the opportunity to play with some adorable products from Debi Adams, and I have two completely different projects for you, so let’s get started!

For my first project, I wanted to use that absolutely darling little gift box to create some gift packaging for my kiddos’ preschool teachers. I started by die cutting the gift box pieces twice from heavy weight vellum, then used Scor-Tape to adhere the flaps together. These would be adorable for shower or wedding favors, in addition to just gift packaging!

I added a few watercolored flowers from Simon Says Stamp that I had watercolored with my Daniel Smith watercolors. I adhered those with Scor-Tape as well. I wrapped some pink twine around the box a few times, then added a tag that I’d created by stamping a greeting from an Altenew set onto a strip of pale pink card stock, then flagging then ends and punching a hole in the opposite end. Perfect size for a gift card an a Ghirardelli chocolate! 🙂

For my second project, I pulled a complete 180* and played with the adorable Shake It Up stamp and die combo. I started by stamping a random pattern using Soft Granite ink on white card stock base, adding in a few random dots with my Micron .01 pen. (I think they look like little flecks of salt and pepper! Ha!) I also stamped and die cut a little salt and pepper set using Copic friendly black ink.
After I had colored the salt and pepper shakers, (or as my little ones would say, Mr. Salt and Mrs. Pepper…. they went through a Blue’s Clues phase!) I added some more little black flecks to each container. I fussy cut the greeting, then popped everything up using dimensional foam adhesive. The final touch was to add a few jewels to add some sparkle! (You know I can’t have a card without some sparkle, right?!)

Well, that’s all for my projects today! Now, for some giveaway information! Spellbinders is offering a $50 shopping spree on their blog; be sure to leave a comment there before May 20 at 11:59 pm! And the folks at Spellbinders have generously provided a $25 shopping spree for my own blog subscribers! All you have to do to be eligible to win is 1) be a blog subscriber and 2) comment on this post to let me know if you are a new or old subscriber! Leave your comment by Sunday, May 20 at 11:59 PM CST. I will choose a winner next Monday, May 21 and announce it here on the blog! (The winner will be responsible for shipping costs, duties and taxes.)

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

Emily Midgett <— you are here!

Spellbinders April Blog Hop+Giveaway!!

April 18, 2018

Hi there! Today, I’m joining the Spellbinders April Blog Hop. You should have arrived from the fantastic Miriam Prantner’s blog, and your next stop is the incredible Yana Smakula’s blog. This month, Spellbinders is releasing 4 beautiful die collections: Blooming Garden by Marisa Job, Little Loves by Sharyn Sowell, Wine Country by Stacey Caron, and Folk Art by Lene Lok. I recently had the opportunity to be a guest on the Spellbinders blog using the Lene Lok Folk Art Collection, using three different techniques with these dies. (You can see my projects here, here, and here.) For my projects today, I wanted to show you some simple, but elegant ways to add coloring to the beautiful, intricate die cuts from the Lene Lok Folk Art Collection.

For my first project, I used the stunning Rosemal Heart die. I again wanted to add color with my Copic markers, so I die cut the image from Copic friendly white card stock, then used a variety of blue and green Copic markers to add color and shading to the image. I added color to several of the sections in the image, but not all of them, leaving some white. I knew I wanted to put this piece on a panel of colored card stock, so leaving some sections white would help the beautiful details stand out even further!

I die cut the image twice more and adhered them all together to add some dimension, but no bulk! I adhered the dimensional die cut to an A2 panel of bright blue card stock using liquid adhesive. The sentiment was stamped on a strip of white card stock, then heat embossed in silver and popped up in the center using some dimensional adhesive.

For my last card today, I chose to go way back in my design inspiration. I have always loved Delft china. In fact, it was the inspiration for my wedding colors, nearly 9 years ago. Those beautiful blue and white patterns were the start of my obsession with color and design, so I wanted to pay homage to those beautiful pieces with my next project. I started by die cutting the Kurbits 2 die from plain white card stock. I then placed the Rosemal Flowers die in the corner of a white panel of cardstock, secured it with washi tape, and ran it through my die cut machine so as to simply die cut a corner flourish that would nestle perfectly in the corners of my card front. I repeated the process a total of four times, one for each corner. Folk art usually contains lots of symmetry, so I tried to add plenty of balance to this card by adding the flourishes to the corners.

After die cutting, I again added color to all five of the die cuts using my Copic markers in shades of brilliant blue. I adhered them to my A2 card front using liquid adhesive. Then, to carry on the Delft china illusion, I covered the die cuts in Crystal Lacquer to give them a stunning shine, similar to the shine on my inspirational tableware. I thought this one was so pretty that it didn’t need a greeting! Just a pretty note to drop to a friend or to include with a “just because” gift.

Well, that’s all for me today! Now, for the GIVEAWAY! Spellbinders has generously offered a $25 gift certificate to my blog subscribers who leave a comment. To be entered to win, simply subscribe to my blog on the left hand side of the blog, then leave a comment here! The winner will be chosen on Sunday, April 22, and announced Monday, April 23. (The winner is responsible for shipping cost, duties and taxes.) Spellbinders also is having a $50 giveaway on their blog!! So many chances to win! Here’s the full hop list, in case you’ve missed any of the stops:

Emily Midgett<— you are here!

Reverse Confetti April Sketch For You To Try: April

April 16, 2018

Good morning! Happy Monday! I have a new project for you today using Reverse Confetti’s April Sketch For You To Try (and this is the final SFYTT! Jen has some new fun challenges up her sleeve, so stay tuned for that!). Here’s this month’s sketch:

And here’s my take on it:

One of the things I love about sketch challenges is that it can challenge you to step outside of your normal comfort zone. I will be the first to admit that I like straight lines and things centered and symmetrical. But this sketch has given me a new love for diagonal lines! I started with the Fun Times patterned paper pack, choosing two very different patterns. Because they were going to be sandwiched next to each other, I wanted to make sure that they complemented each other nicely, so I chose a small, almost neutral mint pattern, along with a bold pink and white stripe. I trimmed them down to 4×5.5″, then trimmed them at a diagonal using my trimmer and mounted them on my A2 card base.

Next, I stamped and die cut several of the flowers from Tall Blooms, then colored them with Copic markers in shades of pink and mint and lavender! (I totally used the colors in the Fun Times paper pack as my color inspiration!) I trimmed a small rectangle of white card stock, then added a greeting from Tall Blooms using black ink. I arranged the flowers as though the white rectangle were the vase or flower box, then adhered them using dimensional foam adhesive. Because my Tall Blooms were, in fact, tall, I moved the focal point from the sketch from the center to the bottom right of the card front. I liked the balance better that way. 🙂

The final step was to add a few sparkly gems to help fill out my bouquet!

Well, that’s all for this project. Now, it’s your turn! Create your own project using the SFYTT and Reverse Confetti goodies, then link it up to the final SFYTT challenge for your chance to win a $20 Reverse Confetti shopping spree! Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a marvelous week!

Spellbinders Guest Designer: Lene Lok Folk Art Collection!

April 10, 2018

Good morning! I am so excited to have recently been a guest on the Spellbinders blog helping to showcase their new Lene Lok Folk Art Collection, and I’m thrilled that I can share my projects with you here today! Using unique dies as a focal point is one of my favorite card making techniques, and over the next few posts, I will have a few tips on how to create colorful cards using the Folk Art Series and very minimal supplies. The folk art style is so colorful, with relatively simple and clean designs, so I tried my best to emulate that style with my projects today. Let’s get started!

For my project today, I decided to use the absolutely gorgeous Floral Bouquet die from the Lene Lok Folk Art collection. The intricacy on these dies is just fantastic, and for today’s project, I used my Copic markers to enhance those intricate details. I started by die cutting the Floral Bouquet twice from Copic friendly white card stock, then added colorful details using Copic markers, which I’ll list individually below.

To add extra dimension to the card without having to trim a million tiny pieces of foam tape, I die cut the same Floral Bouquet die twice more from white card stock for each colored piece, for a total of six Floral Bouquet die cuts. I adhered them all together, making sure that the top layer was the Copic colored layer. I adhered them to a raspberry colored card front using liquid adhesive, then added copious amounts of Wink of Stella shimmer pen to the flowers.

For the greeting, I added a simple “Hang in there” sentiment that I found in my stash. I stamped it on a strip of white cardstock using Versafine, then embossed it with some white pearl embossing powder to create a lovely pearlescent charcoal. I matted two strips of shimmery charcoal cardstock on the top and bottom of the sentiment strip and mounted it with foam adhesive to add lots of dimension to this card.

Well, that’s all for me today! I hope you enjoyed this project. I will be back with more inspiration using this beautiful collection very soon!

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