Sixth Street Sundries

Emily Midgett

etched primrose

STAMPtember Begins with a New Release!

This post was sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. Thanks, Simon!

Hi friends! STAMPtember has officially begun over at Simon Says Stamp, and it’s going to be such an amazing celebration for the entire month, with marvelous surprises and gorgeous new products with which you can create long after the party has ended! This month is all about celebrating stamping and the joy that comes with it, and I’m so excited to be part of it. The first STAMPtember release just went live in the Simon Says Stamp store, and I have two projects to share with you using several of the new goodies. Let’s get started with the details!

The color palette for my projects today was inspired by the new Purple Fields Pawsitively Saturated Ink Cubes that were released tonight! This set of six ink cubes features two different purple palettes to make for super simple stamp layering and ink blending, taking the guesswork out of which colors work together, as well as creating a beautiful ombré color palette. Both of my projects today feature a deep blue violet with pops of vivid magenta, but utilizing two completely different styles.

To start my first project, I die cut some of the gorgeous Etched Primrose dies, Layered Rose Leaves dies, and Privet Branch die from some plain white Hammermill cardstock. I then used OLO markers to transform these plain white die cuts into this vivid magenta and mint floral bouquet! I added some shimmering handmade watercolors to the centers of each of the flowers to add extra sparkle. Before arranging my bouquet on my card front, I trimmed down a panel of Blue Violet Cardstock to A2 size and used a blending brush to blend the Iris ink from the new Purple Fields Pawsitively Saturated Cubes set over the Diamond Circles Stencil. This tone-on-tone blending creates a super subtle pattern behind the floral bouquet and adds just a touch of interest to the background!

After I had adhered my floral bouquet to the stenciled card front using foam adhesive, I turned my attention to the sentiment. I heat embossed the outline “enjoy” from the new Enjoy Phrases stamp set using silver embossing powder on more Blue Violet Cardstock. I used the handmade metallic glitter watercolors to fill in the interior of the outline; the opacity of these watercolors really makes the word pop from the deep blurple cardstock! I popped up the sentiment elements with a double layer of foam adhesive to really help it stand out. Finally, I added a few shimmering gems for some more sparkle. Such a vivid, dramatic card!

For my second card, I used one of the darling new Happy Days stamps from the STAMPtember release! These sweet storybook critters each are so unique and have the most precious expressions on their faces. I can’t wait to color more of them. I started by using Blending Brushes to blend a super saturated sunset sky background using Amethyst, Lilac, and Iris inks from the Purple Fields Pawsitively Saturated Cubes. I splattered the darker section with some glittering metallic watercolors to create stars. Such a fun effect!

I stamped the mouse from Happy Days on his little mushroom using Contour Ink onto Hammermill cardstock, then colored the image using Warm Gray OLO Markers. I wanted to create a little sunset scene, with the mouse gazing up at the stars, so I “glazed” the lighter areas of the stamped scene with a super pale pink alcohol marker, creating a bit of a pink glow on the image to match the glowing pink sunset background.

To give my stargazing mouse some ground out of which his mushrooms could grow, I die cut two strips of some deep teal cardstock using a grass border die from Honey Bee Stamps. I layered the strips one behind the other, popping the front grass border up with some foam adhesive and tucking my mouse behind it with some more foam tape. I heat embossed another greeting from Enjoy Phrases, this time using the solid large “enjoy” stamp with silver embossing powder and fussy cut it out and pairing it with the retirement sentiment. I loved the notion of a retiree finally having time to gaze at the stars and contemplate the universe like this sweet little mouse! I popped up the greeting pieces using more foam tape, then added a few sparkling gems for one last touch of shine!

Well, that’s all for my projects today! You can check out the entire STAMPtember release HERE. Buckle up, because STAMPtember 2023 is going to be an amazing ride! Be sure to check back this weekend as we kick things off with a fabulous blog party! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

Matching Copics to Colored Cardstock-Alcohol Marker “Glazing”!

This post was sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. Thanks Simon!

Hi friends! With as much work as I’ve been doing in my craft room lately, I’ve been trying to keep things interesting with different color schemes and techniques. I love cornflower blue, and I love all variations of aqua/pool, but the new Tidepool color from Concord and 9th’s 2023 color release has absolutely won my heart, so for today’s post I wanted to combine the two colors to create a pair of elegant floral cards. I have created a collection of color combinations for my alcohol markers to use as a quick reference when I am searching for a color match or looking at different color combinations, but I couldn’t find just the right match for the gorgeous and unique Tidepool. No matter; I pulled out my Hex Chart and started swatching different combinations of colors that were a close match to the beautiful blueish-green cardstock.

When watercoloring, one can use a technique called “glazing” to add a subtle wash of diluted color over a dry, previously-watercolored area. This addition can completely change the overall feel of the color, brightening or muting the area, depending on the color of the glaze. I frequently use this technique when watercoloring large florals to add reflections of the surrounding colors and to add interest to the image. When searching for an exact match for Tidepool amongst my Copic markers, every combination that I tried was either too blue or too green. After trying a dozen different combinations, I settled on BG78, 75, and 72, which are lovely shades of a muted gray-turquoise, adding a “glaze” of G00 to brighten up the green.

For my first card, I die cut the Flourishing Blooms Plate from some Hammermill cardstock. This beautiful floral cover plate is totally stunning cut from basically any cardstock; I used it HERE with metallic cardstock and pale blush cardstock, adding a bit of interest with some ink blending. Today, I wanted to go more in depth with some coloring, adding dimension and shape to the flat die cuts with some alcohol markers. I used the debossed lines on the floral die cuts to determine which petals were on top vs. tucked beneath. The shape of the flowers reminds me of forget-me-nots, so I used Copics B39, 37, 34, and 32 to create beautiful blue flowers. I used the BG78, 75, 72 with a G00 glaze for all of the foliage, then added some sparkling handmade gold watercolor to the centers of the flowers. I absolutely love the finished product!

To coordinate with the “Tidepool” Copic colored foliage, I trimmed down a panel of Tidepool cardstock to A2 size, then blended some Tidepool ink around the edges to add interest to the background. I also splattered the background with some of the same sparkling golden watercolors that I used on the flower centers. (I hope you’re not sick of watercolor splatters-I just adore the texture and interest that they provide to a colorful background!)

To finish off the card, I die cut the Bold Thanks die from Simon Says Stamp three times from deep navy blue cardstock, adhering them together to create a dimensional die cut greeting. I adhered that to a strip of heavyweight vellum and fussy cutting around it, leaving a border around the die cut. This vellum border helps differentiate the sentiment from the rest of the similar textures on the card. I popped up the colored floral cover plate die cut and sentiment die cut on the blended Tidepool background using foam adhesive.The final touch was a few shimmering iridescent blue pearls!

My second card features the same color combination and Copic colors, this time using the Etched Primrose Blooms and Windswept Leaves dies for the focal point. I die cut the large Etched Primrose Blooms and Windswept Leaves dies again from white cardstock, then used the same Copic combinations to add lots of depth and color to the plain die cuts.

For the background, I ran a panel of Tidepool cardstock through my Platinum 6 machine using the Exotic Vines Embossing Folder. The elegant detail on this folder is spectacular; to enhance it, I first trimmed the panel down to smaller than A2 size, then blended Tidepool ink around the edges. I also lightly swiped the Antique Gold pigment inkpad from Altenew onto the raised areas of the embossed panel, which adds a gilded effect to the background. It almost reminds me of the patina on the Statue of Liberty! I matted the panel with an ever-so-slightly larger panel of matte gold cardstock to add a gold frame and coordinate with the gold accents on the card. To coordinate with my blue flowers, I mounted the embossed panel with the gold frame on a panel of Blueberry cardstock from Concord and 9th.

For the greeting, I heat embossed the newer Elegantly Modern Hot Foil Plate + Dies from Simon Says Stamp, creating both the positive sentiment image and the negative by using the leftover foil panel with the Pinkfresh Studio Solid Hot Foil Plate. I die cut the sentiments with the coordinating die, selecting one and saving the rest for a rainy day. I lightly blended more Tidepool ink over the white areas on the foiled sentiment to coordinate with the rest of my card, then arranged the flowers and foliage on the card front, tucking the sentiment in the corner with a double layer of foam adhesive. The final touch was a few more shimmering iridescent blue pearls.

Well, that’s all for my projects today! I am so excited to try color glazing with my Copics to match even more of my (copious) colored cardstock stash! I hope you will give it a try, too. Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a marvelous day!