A Bit of Bister
Posted: June 25, 2015 Filed under: Bister, Flower sparks | Tags: Bister, CAS, Penny Black stamps 12 Comments
I have another card for you made from my beginner bister experiments. The panel above, cut from a larger piece, was made by first spritzing water on cold pressed watercolour paper then dropping bister powders onto the dampened paper. I have yet to try other types of paper but I would definitely recommend the texture of cold pressed paper with bister because the liquids settle into the grooves making little patterns of more intense colour.
I chose the Queen Anne’s lace stamps from the flower sparks set as they were perfect for stamping over the bister. I was able to position the stems and flower heads to make the most of random patterns.
Thanks for dropping by. More bister bits & pieces to come!
Supplies:
Stamps: Flower Sparks, Snippets (Penny Black)
Inks: Versafine Onyx Black, (Tsukineko) Bister pigment powders
Cardstock: Canson cold pressed watercolour paper, Fabriano hot pressed watercolour paper
A Burst of Bister
Posted: June 24, 2015 Filed under: Bister, Poppy Time | Tags: Bister, Kuretake Zig clean color real brush markers, Penny Black stamps 12 Comments
This is my first creation using bister. A friend shared her set of powders with me a week ago and I made several panels exploding with colour and have turned only one into a card. When I was experimenting with the pigment powders I stamped the large ‘Poppy Time’ stamp on a couple of pieces of cold pressed watercolour paper and left two more pieces blank. I then spritzed water on the panels and started dropping bister into the water using a very very small paintbrush. Because I had poppies already stamped on two panels I tried to drop bister colours in appropriate areas. On the blank panels I was more random with the powders and I ended up liking those panels better. I have my own set of powders now and I am looking forward to trying some more techniques.
I did learn that it is best to walk away and let the pigments powders do their magic. It helps to have a packet of Honey & Dijon mustard chips on hand to distract you at that point. To turn the panel above into a card I used a couple of my zig clean colour real brush markers to add extra colour to the stamped images. I trimmed the panel and attached it to a card base with two strips of co-ordinating card stock.
Supplies:
Stamps: Poppy Time (Penny Black)
Inks: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), Bister pigment powders
Cardstock: Canson cold pressed watercolour paper
Also: Zig clean color real brush markers
Sweet Trumpet Song
Posted: June 18, 2015 Filed under: Trumpet Song 4 Comments
I pulled out the ‘Trumpet Song’ stamp again and stamped an even looser image than the previous two (here and here). I stamped on watercolour paper splattered with masking fluid. After stamping with distress stains I did a little blending with a paintbrush then let it dry. After it was completely dry I added some extra definition to the flowers with coloured pencils. Using coloured pencils at the end made it possible to add the purple star shape to the blue flowers. Unlike some of my recent flower stamping I attempted to the keep the colours close to real life on this card so I pulled up a few photos for reference. I finished the card by matting with blue and adding a little tag with an abbreviated sentiment. Thanks for dropping by today.
Supplies:
Stamps: Trumpet Song, Sprinkles and Smiles (PB)
Creative Dies: Flower Tags (PB)
Inks: Tumbled China, Salty Ocean, Seedless Preserves, Mowed Lawn, Forest Moss, Vintage Photo distress stain, Salty Ocean distress ink (Ranger)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper, Blue cardstock
Also: Winsor & Newton masking fluid, embroidery floss
Thank you flowers
Posted: June 17, 2015 Filed under: CAS, Poppy Pattern | Tags: CAS, Fabriano Watercolour Paper, Penny Black stamps, Ranger Distress stains 8 Comments
June is my last month as a member of the Dirty Dozen at Splitcoaststampers. I joined the team in January for my six month term. I have really enjoyed being part of the group and have been stretched by the monthly themes. Some of the themes saw me creating cards I would never have chosen to make otherwise which was a great exercise for me. It was also wonderful to see all the projects created by the rest of the ‘Dirty Girls‘. For the June theme I created a friendship card using the ‘poppy pattern’ background stamp. I turned a left over scrap into the card above.
As you might have gathered I love to ink my stamps with distress stains because the print I get is usually fluid and easy to blend. To stamp the panel above I used the misti and inked the stamp one stain at a time which enable the stains to blend on the paper as each colour was added. I have been enjoying pairing pinks with oranges lately, something I would never do if choosing what to wear, but a combination which I love on paper. I used a pink, a yellow and an orange stain on the flowers, one green for the leaves then added black to the flower centres once the yellow was almost dry. I don’t use my misti all the time but it is so very helpful with large background stamps which I rarely manage to stamp well the first time.
Supplies:
Stamps: Poppy Pattern, Heartfelt (PB)
Inks: Mustard Seed, Worn Lipstick, Spiced Marmalade, Peeled Paint distress stains & black soot distress marker (Ranger) Versafine Onyx Black (ImagineCrafts/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper
In the Garden: Through the gates
Posted: June 15, 2015 Filed under: Floral & Feathers, Gothic Gate 5 Comments
In the garden today there are several different plants. I won’t even try to label them; I was after the effect of mass flowers in bloom rather than botanical drawings (obviously!) I used the three small silhouette stamps from the transparent Floral & Feathers set and inked them with distress stains. I spritzed the stamped images to let them bleed into the surrounding area. When the flowers were almost dry I turned the panel upside down and painted the sky with blue stain tilting the panel so the colour did not run into the flowers. Here and there I pulled some colour from the flowers into the wet sky.
The pretty die-cut gates bordering the scene are called ‘Gothic Gate’ and when run through the die cut machine they are scored on the sides so they can open if you wish. I trimmed the sides off so I could stick them either side of my scene. This is the final card in my In the Garden mini series; the others are here, here and here.
Supplies:
Stamps: Floral & Feathers, Sprinkles & Smiles (PB)
Creative Dies: Gothic Gate (PB
Inks: Tumbled Glass, Dusty Concord, Seedless Preserves, Festive Berries, Spiced Marmalade, Bundled Sage, Scattered Straw, Peeled Paint, Forest Moss, Ripe Persimmon distress stains (Ranger) Versafine Onyx Black (ImagineCrafts/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper, Green cardstock, Gold cardstock
In the Garden: A Bird on a Branch
Posted: June 10, 2015 Filed under: Dancing Blooms, Winged Beauty | Tags: Penny Black creative dies, Penny Black stamps, Ranger Distress stains, Tsukineko Memento inks 8 Comments
My ‘In the Garden’ mini-series continues today with even less botanical information than yesterday. I can tell you the stamp does in fact feature ‘a bird’ which I inked in blue because birds do come in blue and a branch which I inked in the fairly safe colours, pink and brown. If you are looking for accurate flora and fauna details you have come to the wrong place. I can however tell you how I created this little garden scene. The purpose of my mini-series is to show you some of the smaller floral stamps from the ‘Sunshine and Smiles’ release. Penny Black has brought out some fabulous large floral stamps this year but you can make beautiful cards with the little ones too.
The card above was made using two little slapstick cling stamps from the ‘Winged Beauty’ set. Two of the stamps have the same blossomy foliage so I used them repeatedly to fill the space adding the bird once at the end. I began with watercolour paper speckled with masking fluid. I wet the panel, inked the branches with distress stains and markers and stamped onto the panel. The colour bled out into the surrounding area. When the ink was almost dry I stamped the branches again achieving more defined results. I added the bird when the paper was dry and blended the colour on its feathers. To finish I added a few splatters and some blue and yellow sponging for the sky. I matted in blue cardstock and added a few die cut branches to the cardbase.
I finally filled our bird feeder and hung it in the back yard last week and I think the word is getting around again that there is seed to be had. Unfortunately the squirrels always end up hearing about the free food too and then it doesn’t last very long.
Previous ‘ In My Garden’ cards here and here.
Supplies:
Stamps: Winged Beauty (PB)
Creative Dies: Dancing Blooms (PB)
Inks: London Fog, Rich Cocoa, Baham Blue, Danube Blue, Tuxedo Black Memento Markers, Summer sky, Dandelion Memento ink (ImagineCrafts/Tsukineko) Festive Berries, Worn Lipstick distress stains (Ranger)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper, Blue cardstock
In the Garden: Astilbe
Posted: June 9, 2015 Filed under: Floral & Feathers | Tags: Penny Black stamps, Ranger Distress stains 8 Comments
The second of my ‘in the garden’ flowers was harder to identify than the first. The stamp is a silhouette so I have to go by the shape rather than any details. It could be several plants but for the purposes of this post I am labelling it ‘Astilbe’ as seen in the photo here.
The technique for this one is smoosh, stamp, spritz and splatter with distress stains whereas yesterday’s was more controlled swipe, stamp, then paint. When using distress stains to ink a stamp you can’t guarantee an even coverage like you get with an ink pad; I like the unpredictable light and dark and the wetter and dryer areas too. You can’t see in this picture but some of the spritz was pearl-ex and water so there is a subtle gold sheen to the leaves and flowers.
Supplies:
Stamps: Floral & Feathers, Sprinkles & Smiles (PB)
Inks: Forest Moss, Ripe Persimmon, Aged Mahogany distress stains (Ranger) Versafine Onyx Black (ImagineCrafts/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper, Green cardstock
In the Garden: Magnolias
Posted: June 8, 2015 Filed under: Florets | Tags: Penny Black stamps, Ranger Distress stains 12 Comments
I have the first card in a mini-series of cards for you featuring smaller floral stamps. I’m starting with the branch of magnolia blooms from the ‘Florets’ transparent set. I used the technique shown in my watercolour with distress stains video tutorial where I ink the stamp directly with distress stains and markers then take advantage of the liquid nature of the stain to paint inside the petals and stems. I inked the stamp with a yellow and an orange distress stain as well as a green marker for the stems, stamped on watercolour paper then filled in all the petals with a paintbrush. When the image was almost dry I painted the blue background. I say almost because in places the stamped image bled into the background, an effect I quite like in moderation. I chose orange as my colour scheme without checking whether magnolias come in orange but apparently they do.
In my real life garden progress is being made this year primarily due to my daughter’s efforts while she is not yet working full time. She has done a ton of weeding, picked up some free plants at a plant swap and started putting some in. I have weeded then planted several herbs in hope of cooking with fresh not dried this summer. We even have a few tomatoes growing. Nothing like the garden efforts of my parents but it is something!
Supplies:
Stamps: Florets (PB)
Inks: Broken China, Spiced Marmalade, Scattered Straw distress stains & Forest Moss distress markers (Ranger)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper, Green cardstock
Morning Glory
Posted: June 2, 2015 Filed under: Trumpet Song | Tags: Penny Black stamps, Ranger Distress stains 5 Comments
It seems like an age since I sat down and ‘played’ with stamps and ink. I pulled out the ‘Trumpet Song’ stamp to try it with distress stains. Last week’s card with the same stamp was done with Memento inks and retained more of the definition in the stamp. Using distress stains I lost some of the veins and details in the flowers and leaves so I painted some extra colour onto both then added some veins with the pen tip of the distress marker. The image was stamped on watercolour paper which had some masking fluid splatter on it (that’s what makes the tiny white dots). I painted some distress stain around the image fading it out with water at the edges.
Kathy Racoosin is doing her second 30 day Coloring Challenge during June so I hope to participate every few days at least. Although my method of colouring today is one of my favourite techniques I hope to take the challenge to use some techniques and mediums that I haven’t used in a while.
Supplies:
Stamps: Trumpet Song (PB)
Inks: Broken China, Barn Door, Worn Lipstick, Spun Sugar, Bundled Sage, Mowed Lawn distress stain, Pine Needles, Barn Door, Frayed Burlap distress markers (Ranger)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper, Green textured cardstock
Also: Winsor & Newton masking fluid
Trumpet Song
Posted: May 29, 2015 Filed under: Stitched Edges, Trumpet Song | Tags: Penny Black creative dies, Penny Black stamps, Tsukineko Memento inks 11 Comments
Thanks for joining me this week as I showcased stamps and dies from the new Sunshine and Smiles collection. Today I have this lovely floral slapstick cling stamp to share. I began by painting a pale blue wash over watercolour paper with Broken China distress stain. Once that was dry I inked the Trumpet Song stamp with Danube Blue and Grape Jelly memento markers on the flowers, Bamboo Leaves and Cottage Ivy on the leaves, Dandelion, Cantaloupe and Tuxedo Black on the bird and Rich Cocoa and Black on the twigs. I spritzed the stamp lightly before stamping on the watercolour panel. I used a paint brush to pick up memento ink from an acrylic block which I added to the stamped image. To finish I splattered some grape jelly and cottage ivy ink over the panel.
To complete the card I cut both the painted panel and a blue mat with one of the stitched edge dies, attached it all to a natural white card base then added a sentiment.
Karen has used this stamp on a couple of gorgeous cards recently here and here.
Supplies:
Stamps: Trumpet Song, Pretty Petals (PB)
Creative Dies: Stitched Edges
Inks: Broken China distress stain, Evergreen Bough distress inks (Ranger) Versafine Deep Lagoon, Danube Blue, Grape Jelly, Bamboo Leaves, Cottage Ivy, Dandelion, Cantaloupe, Tuxedo Black, Rich Cocoa memento markers(Imagine Craft/Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Fabriano 100% cotton hot pressed watercolour paper, Neenah Natural White cardstock
Heather Telford 