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Sixth Street Sundries

Emily Midgett

copic coloring

Tonic Studios Garden Party Blog Hop!

Hi there! I’m so excited to be taking part in today’s Garden Party blog hop, hosted by Tonic Studios to help celebrate their newest release! This release is chock full of fantastic florals and some stinking adorable critters. You should have arrived here from Galina Filippenko‘s blog, and your next stop is Keren Baker‘s blog. Be sure to stick around to the end to get my special discount link to save an extra 15% on your Tonic purchase! I have two cards for you today using new goodies from the Garden Party release, so let’s get started with the details!

For my first project, I used the Nuvo Shimmer Powders to do some watercoloring. Now, I am kind of particular about being precise when it comes to my coloring in any medium. There are some people who can absolutely rock the “loose” look, but I am not one of them. Every time I try, it ends up looking like a giant, muddy mess. But, the good news is that you don’t have to use the Nuvo Shimmer Powders as “bursts” as they’re probably intended; you can use them just like regular watercolors! Isn’t that awesome?

I began by stamping the new Flora Background stamp on some watercolor paper and heat embossing it with some silver pearl embossing powder to create a pretty pearlescent charcoal look. I then tapped some of the Nuvo Shimmer Powders in shades of Cherry Bomb, Violet Brocade, Lilac Waterfall, Storm Cloud, and Green Parade onto my Water Media Mat and used a wet paintbrush to create a “paint” so that I could add color to the flower images! I was so impressed at how the color moved so beautifully!

Once I had finished my watercoloring, I trimmed the panel down to A2 size, then added a heat embossed greeting from Summer Flowers, which I popped up using foam tape for some added dimension. The final touch was to add some Lilac Whisper Nuvo Drops randomly on my card front.

For my second project, I absolutely couldn’t wait to ink up the beautiful Peony Blooms stamp set and go to town coloring them! I have really been loving the combination of deep raspberry with a pretty orange-y coral lately, and I just love how the color combo turned out with these flowers! I began by stamping them using Fadeout Ink on some Copic-friendly card stock. I then used my Copic markers in shades of RV17, RV29, RV14, RV13, and RV42 for the coral peonies, and RV99, RV69, RV17, and RV09 for the raspberry peonies.

Once I had finished coloring the images, I used the Tim Holtz Mini Snips detail scissors to fussy cut all of the images. I got a little sloppy with some of my coloring (whoops) and so cut right up to the edge of the image instead of leaving a white border. It took a little extra time, but I think it was worth it to achieve the final clean look!

Finally, I arranged all of the blooms in a little cascade on my long white card front and adhered them with some foam tape. I heat embossed a greeting from Botanical Burst onto some black card stock using gold embossing powder, cutting around it to create two sentiment strips. Finally, to help tie in some more gold, I added a few Gold Rush Stone Drops to the card front.

Well, that’s all for my projects today! Now, I have some fun sale information and a giveaway for you!

Tonic has generously provided each stop on the hop with their own unique discount code for 15% off your total purchase!
•To receive the discount: Simply click on this link for US purchases, this link for UK purchases, then fill your cart, and the discount will automatically be applied at checkout! How easy is that?!

Tonic has also generously provided each stop on the hop with a £25 gift certificate. Simply leave me a comment (and if you wanted to become a blog follower via email or WordPress, I would be ever so appreciative!) on this post, and the winner will be announced on the Tonic blog on Wednesday, August 29.

Here’s the full hop list in case you get lost:

Hero Arts and Gina K. Collaboration!

Hi there! Today, we have an extra special collaboration between Hero Arts and yet another of my most favorite companies (and people!): Gina K.! These two rockstar companies epitomize kindness to me. Gina is just about one of the nicest people you could ever meet, and the kindness and community spirit that Hero Arts exudes makes me insanely proud to be part of their Creative Team. Today’s blog hop is celebrating this gorgeous new stamp set: Friendship Blooms (HA|EH|SSS). (Such a perfect name for a collaborative stamp set like this, right?) We have a stellar blog hop list for you today, with lots of beautiful floral inspiration. You should have arrived here from Caly Person’s blog, and your next stop is Ilina Crouse’s blog. You can also head back to the Hero Arts blog if you get lost.

This stamp set is absolutely stunning. Like, I literally gasped when I saw images of it. Gina’s florals are always so gorgeous, and this trendy, beautiful spray of peonies is a perfect way to represent the two companies. And let’s not forget the eloquent and meaningful sentiments included in this large 6×8 stamp set! Here’s a peek at Friendship Blooms (HA|EH|SSS):

Gorgeous, right? I had to create a quick project before I left on vacation, so I can’t wait to get back and delve into Friendship Blooms (HA|EH|SSS) a little further!! That peony spray is just stunning! I think that keeping the project fairly simple shows off the beauty and detail of the large peony spray.

For my project today, I started by stamping the Friendship Blooms (HA|EH|SSS) main image onto a panel of white Neenah card stock using Intense Black ink. Then, I colored the beautiful peony image using my Copic markers in shades of R59, R56, RV34, RV32, and R81 for the flowers and G46, G21, and YG61 for the leaves. I colored the little berry sprays with a black Micron pen to keep things simple.

After I’d finished coloring the image, I used my Micron pen and T-square to make a neat black rectangular frame around the edge of my card front, skipping over the flowers to allow the blooms to spill over the edge of the frame. I love adding a simple frame like this to floral cards; it gives them such a clean, elegant finish, I think!

The final touch was to add a greeting created with White embossing powder and Pitch Black card stock. I popped it up using foam tape to add a little extra dimension.

Well, that’s all for my project today! Now, for some fun giveaway information! Hero Arts is giving away one Friendship Blooms (HA|EH|SSS) stamp set to a lucky commenter! All you have to do to be eligible is leave a comment on the hop stops. The more comments you leave, the more chances you have to win! Comment by Sunday, August 4 at 11:59pm PST. I hope you’re enjoying the hop! Your stop is Ilina Crouse’s blog. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

Hero Arts
Gina K. Designs
Jennifer McGuire
Kristina Werner
Kathy Racoosin
Laura Bassen
Jaycee Gaspar
Yana Smakula
Michelle Short
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Janette Kausen
Caly Person
Emily Midgett
Ilina Crouse

Life’s A Picnic!

Hi there! I’m popping in to share a few more projects using some new products from the latest Essentials By Ellen release, as well as sharing a fantastic sale that ends on 7/17/19! I have two projects to share with you today, so let’s get started with the details!

For my first project, I have a super clean and simple project using the new Life’s A Picnic stamp set from the latest Essentials By Ellen release. I stamped the watermelon wedges onto some Neenah Solar White card stock using Intense Black ink and colored them with my Copic markers. I then die cut the fruits using the coordinating dies. I also stamped the super cute punny sentiment on a rectangle of white card stock.

To add a bit of interest to the plain background of the card, I used the frame die from the Oh Happy Day Shaker Dies from The Stamp Market. I die cut the outer frame from some more white card stock and adhered it to the A2 card base using foam adhesive. I added the watermelon and the sentiment using foam tape, then stamped a few hungry little ants leading up to the watermelon pieces.

For my second project, I stamped several of the elements in the Life’s A Picnic stamp set using Intense Black ink, then colored them with my Copic markers (which are on sale–from an already-discounted price–in the Happy Colors sale!). I die cut them using the coordinating dies.

I stamped a red gingham “tablecloth” using the Essentials By Ellen Plaid Maker stamp set and some Ruby Red ink. I trimmed the panel into a triangular shape so that it was overhanging the edge of the picnic table, then trimmed a thin rectangle of brown card stock and arranged the delicious picnic, adhering it to the card base using a combination of liquid and foam adhesive to create lots of dimension. I white embossed a greeting from Life’s A Picnic onto a rectangle of Pitch Black card stock and adhered it with foam adhesive. Such a cute little scene! I can’t wait to pair this yummy food with the Leading Ladies!

Well, that’s all for my projects today.

Now, for some information on the sale! Save 25% on products in the Happy Colors sale… some of them are already discounted, so take another 25% off of those already low prices!! There are a few products that I noticed (out of 156 pages of sale items!!!) that I thought I’d direct you to:

~Daniel Smith Dot Chart– A great way to test out the Daniel Smith watercolors and figure out which colors you love. The Essentials and Primatek samplers are on sale, as well.
~Copics-these are already at a great discounted price, but during the sale you can take an extra 25% off!!
~Lots of Altenew-including the new Pen Sketched Flowers that I used in this post.

I highly encourage you to check out the entire sale…. it’s a marvelous array of products to help you add lots of color to your projects!! Simply fill your cart, and then add code HAPPYCOLORS to receive your discount at checkout!

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

Power Poppy arrives at Ellen Hutson!

Hi there! I have a super fun, colorful post for you to start your week… the Ellen Hutson Design Ambassadors are hopping with the Power Poppy ladies! You should have arrived here from Kathy Jones’s blog. I am so excited to see Power Poppy at Ellen Hutson. I had the pleasure of meeting Marcy, the owner and ridiculously talented artist behind the Power Poppy designs, at a Daily Marker Road Trip event a few years ago, and so I was extra thrilled when I found out that Ellen would be carrying her gorgeous stamps and dies! Power Poppy designs are inspired by nature, and if you follow @powerpoppy on Instagram, you’ll soon see where Marcella Hawley (artiste extraordinaire) gets lots of her inspiration… from her own stunning garden!

As someone who can kill even the heartiest of green things, I am so happy to be able to cultivate my own “garden” in stamp form using Marcy’s gorgeous stamps. I have two projects to share with you today, one with brand spanking new Power Poppy products, one with some older-but-still-stunning products from Power Poppy, so let’s get started with the details!

My first project uses the new Big Sexy Blooms stamp set, and I have to say… I am absolutely in love with this gorgeous stamp set. Don’t you think that daisies are the friendliest flowers? (If you didn’t hear that in Meg Ryan’s head cold voice from You’ve Got Mail, then you clearly need to go watch that movie ASAP.) I love color (obviously), and so it was imperative to saturate these happy, gigantic blooms with bright and bold color. I began by stamping the Big Sexy Blooms on some hot press watercolor cardstock (nice and smooth) using Versafine Black Onyx ink, then adding some White Satin Pearl embossing powder over the top to create a pretty metallic charcoal. Love this combo… it’s dramatic and elegant at the same time.

After I’d embossed my background, I used the Altenew Watercolor Brush Markers (Tropical and Winter Wonderland) to add some vibrant watercoloring to these huge blooms. I kept the color scheme fairly minimal, keeping to the pink/purple end of the spectrum, accenting with black and gray. The key to getting these super vibrant and saturated colors is layers. I used at least 3 or 4 layers of color on each bloom to ensure vivid color. After I’d watercolored the blooms themselves, I used the black watercolor brush marker to fill in the small areas in the background to ensure that those blooms really popped.

After the watercoloring was complete, I heat embossed one of the sentiments from Strong and Beautiful on some black card stock using white embossing powder, then cut each individual line using my trimmer so that I could stack them. I adhered the sentiment strips using foam adhesive for added dimension.

For my second project today, I wanted to showcase one of Power Poppy’s absolutely stunning older sets. I adore any and all peony stamps (a girl can never have too many peony stamps, in my opinion), and the Abundant Petals stamp set has not only a giant, gorgeous peony, but it also contains a wide variety of other flowers and foliage so that you can build bouquets to your heart’s content! In keeping with my bold and saturated colors from the previous project, I thought I’d do a vibrant fiesta color scheme in shocking pink and bright tangerine.

I began by stamping the blooms from Abundant Petals on some white Copic-friendly card stock, and I wanted something a little different than just plain black, so I used some Smokey Grey Versafine ink. I then used my Copic markers to color these vibrant blooms and die cut them with their coordinating dies.

I arranged all of the blooms in a pretty bouquet on my white A2 card front, then adhered them with dimensional adhesive, finally adding a sentiment from Strong and Beautiful white embossed on a Slate Gray card stock strip. Some Watermelon jewels finished it off with a touch of sparkle!

Now for some fun giveaway information:

We’ve got fun prizes!!! We are giving away $25 to the Ellen Hutson shop and $25 to the Power Poppy shop! To enter for a chance to win, make sure to leave comments at each stop along the hop! Two random & lucky commenters will win! Comment before Sunday, July 7th at 11:59pm PST. Winners will be notified by email.

Your next stop on the hop is Stacey Morgan. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous week!

Man Card… Thursday?

Hi there! Man Card Monday is a few days late this month… sorry about that. The holiday and our travels on Monday threw my entire week off, then my kiddos and I have been under the weather (again… UGH!), so MCM is a little late this week. I have a super cute little baby boy card for you for this month using some of the old/new products from the Hero Arts 45th Anniversary Catalog release, so let’s get started with the details!

For this sweet little card, I kept things clean and simple, using lots of white card stock with a pop of bright blue! I started by stamping the From the Vault Bear and Kitty woodblock stamp on some white card stock using Intense Black Ink. I then colored the image with my Copic markers in a gray and blue color scheme (teddy bears are so cute in gray, don’t you think?). I also stamped the sweet greeting (that could be used for so many occasions!) from Hero Greetings Sending Smiles on a strip of white card stock.

I blended a small blue halo on a white card base using Summer Sky ink and a blender brush to create a super soft lightly blended effect. I adhered the stamped images to the blended panel using dimensional foam adhesive, then added a few sequins for a bit of sparkle and texture.

Well, that’s all for me today! I really enjoy doing the Man Card Monday projects…. pushes me out of my (floral and pink) comfort zone. I hope you’re enjoying them, too! Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a marvelous day!