Leaf Press Thanks

 Well, I'm moving onto fall cards now since tonight is Halloween and I've already sent all the cards I'm sending this year.

So I'm turning to Autumn and Thanksgiving themes.

This is a clean and simple card I made using fallen leaves from the Japanese Maple tree in my yard.

 I laid two leaves over a panel of water color paper, face down, then layered another panel of water color paper over the back of the leaves. I took a piece of computer paper, folded it in half and laid the water color paper leaf  sandwich inside the fold (sort of like a shim). Then I ran it through my Big Shot a few times to be sure I got a good press.

The panel with the leaves face down on it gives a darker press (I made my card from this one) the panel over the backs of the leaves comes out lighter.

I tried using very colorful orange maple leaves but they must have been too dried already as they hardly left a print.

You can try green leaves from plants, as well as flower blossoms - it's trial and error on what presses well!

 

I'm linking my card to 

 

 AAA Cards Challenge

Anything CAS goes

Splitcoaststampers CAS Challenge 

Use Leaves

 

Stamps: Mini Strips Harvest - Taylored Expressions
Paper: Water Color paper - Canson Cold Press
Ink: Espresso - Altenew
Accessories: Big Shot, 2 leaves from my Japanese Maple Tree, Mini Strips Die - Taylored Expression
 

Trick or Treat Pumpkin

 Here's another Halloween card from me!  This may be my last this year, but you never know!

I white embossed the black card panel using the Windowpane Plaid stamp from The Greetery.  I die cut the pumpkin and ghost with Frightful Things dies from Tim Holtz/Sizzix.  I stamped the sentiment onto a die cut strip.  The pumpkin and sentiment are up on foam dots, the ghost is flat against the background behind the pumpkin a bit.

I'm linking my card to:

Double D Challenge
Orange and Black Mood Board

 

Stamps: Windowpane Plaid - The Greetery, Mini Strips - Halloween - Taylored Expressions.
Ink: Versamark, Espresso - Altenew
Paper: True Black, white, Orange Zest - PTI
Accessories: Frightful Things Thinlit dies - Tim Holtz/Sizzix, Mini Strips die - Taylored Expressions., foam dots.

Simply Give Thanks

 Starting on my Thanksgiving cards now that Halloween is almost here. 

This one is clean and simple - just using some strips of patterned papers and a sentiment stamped on a sentiment strip, layered on a watercolor paper panel.  It would be easy to make multiples of these very quickly!

I'm linking my card to:

AAA Cards Challenge

Stamps: Mini Strips: Harvest - Taylored Expressions
Ink: Espresso - Altenew
Paper: water color paper - Canson Cold Press, DP Harvest Festival - Honeybee Stamps.
Accessories: Mini Strips die - Taylored Expression.

A Canvas to Our Imagination

 I've been playing on line with some stamping friends trying out a fun technique called Black Magic.  

Betsy Veldman has a tutorial on it on YouTube.  Basically, you start with piece of black mixed media paper or black watercolor paper.  Pick out a stamp that is an outline stamp.  I used a Crackle background stamp.  Stamp the image with Versamark onto the black paper and emboss it in gold.  Then you color inside the embossed lines using pearlescent water color paints.   When the paint is dry, you can add white splatter and white dots - I didn't do that step on today's card. 

I'm linking my card to :  

Inkspirational

Here is another card I made using this technique:

Mosaic card
Stamps: Crackle Stamp - Impression Obsession, Clearly Sentimental About Art - MFT (retired)
Paper: Black Mixed Media - Strathmore, white card base - PTI
Ink: Versamark
Accessories: Gold Embossing Powder - Ranger, heat tool, Pearlescent Water Color Paints - Yasutomo.

Boat card

Stamps: Liberty (boat), Forest Hares, Bell Flower Vine - Lavinia

Paper: Black Mixed Media paper - Strathmore

Ink: Versamark

Accessories: Gold Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Yasutomo Pearlescent Water colors, water, brush, White POSCA Pen, Ebony Black and Simply White Nuvo Drops

The Eyes of Halloween

 It's the Halloween season and although I've mailed out most of my cards already, it seems I keep making more!

I adhered a strip of watercolor paper to a panel of black card.  I added the Eerie Eyes to the strip and Halloween Label Tape above and below the strip of eyes.  I cut the SPOOKY from the label tape and adhered it in the bottom right corner.  

I'm linking my card to:

Inspired By

I was inspired by the 'eyes' on a log on the food tray in the photo

Two Old Bats

anything Halloween

Paper: True Black, white card base - PTI, watercolor paper - Canson Cold Press
Accessories: Eerie Eyes - Doodlebug Designs, Label Tape: Halloween - Tim Holtz/Idea-ology.

Gobble 'Til You Wobble

 A little humor for Thanksgiving - I think we all feel like this after Thanksgiving dinner!?!

 

 I stamped the turkey onto watercolor paper with Archival Black Ink.  I water colored the image and grounded it with a swash of watery green.  I added the sentiments  Mini Strips: Harvest cut with the Mini strips die from Taylored Expressions.  To finish it off I added a few enamel dots from Altenew.

I'm linking my card to:

 

Inspired by... Autumn

I was inspired by the sign!

We Love Stamping
Autumn Colors

Cardz for Guyz
Autumnal Colors

Die Cut Divas

Watercolor

 

Stamps: Turkey - wood stamp from Inky Antics, Mini Strips: Harvest - Taylored Expressions.Paper: Water color paper - Canson Cold Press, white card base - Papertrey Ink.Ink: Archival Jet Black - Ranger, Mocha - Altenew
Accessories: Mini Strips Die - Taylored Expressions, water color paints - Winsor and Newton, brushes, water, Enamel Dots - Altenew.

Gather Together

 I love fall with the beautiful change of color in the leaves and all the variations of colors in the pumpkins and gourds available at the Farm Stands here in New England.  Today I got out a new purchase, the fun Pumpkin Duo Colorize dies from Tim Holtz/Sizzix to create this card.

A few weeks ago I made a stack of the pumpkins using the dies and got them out to make this card today

I had made panels of orange and green colors by smooshing a piece of water color paper into a mix of oranges and browns Distress Ink on my craft mat spritzed with water and then doing the same using greens and browns. (sorry I didn't write down the colors I had used) Then I die cut the pieces for each pumpkin and assembled them.

I love buying the blue, grey and bumpy pumpkins for my steps every fall!

I'm linking my card to:

Double D Challenges

I was inspired by all of the pumpkins!

Inspired by Challenge

I was inspired by the pumpkins on the wall

Stamps: Mini Strips Harvest - Taylored Expressions
Paper: water color - Canson Cold Press, White - PTI, DP Wood Textures Craft Papers - The Craft Consortium
Ink: orange, green and brown Ranger Distress Inks, Cocoa Bean - PTI
Accessories: Pumpkin Duo Colorize Dies - Tim Holtz/Sizzix, Mini Strips Die - Taylored Expressions, enamel dots - Altenew, foam dots

Ghostly Cat

Another Halloween card made for the spooky day!  

I made the background by dropping Alcohol Inks in Sunset Orange, Wild Plum and some Alcohol Blending Solution onto a white card Yupo panel.  I blew the ink around using an Alcohol Ink Blower (but you could also use a straw).   The colors mixed and blended - but I hope you can see the orange and purple!  

I used the alcohol lift technique for the images  - after the alcohol inks on my panel of Yupo were dry - I inked up my stamp with Alcohol Lift Ink and stamped it onto the AI background and pressed gently and held it there a minute. I lifted the stamp off and quickly stamped it onto a piece of white card to get an off-stamping from the ink that was left on the stamp.

Here's the off-stamping of the cat and sentiment on a white cardstock panel.

Back to the Alcohol inked panel -   I laid a soft cloth over my stamped AI Yupo panel and pressed over the image area. I removed the cloth and then rubbed over the whole panel with a clean section of the soft cloth and the image appears!

I adhered Eerie eyes to the cats face.  I layered the Yupo panel to a slightly larger orange panel and then to a black panel.

I'm linking my card to the following challenges:

Color Hues

I used Sunset Orange and Wild Plum Alcohol Inks.

Two Old Bats

anything Halloween

Stamps:  Boo Black Cat - Papertrey Ink

Paper:  White Yupo Card - Ranger, True Black, Orange Zest, white card base - Papertrey Ink

Ink:  Alcohol Lift Ink - Ranger

Accessories:  Alcohol Inks Sunset Orange and Wild Plum, Alcohol Blending Solution, Alcohol Ink Blower - Ranger, Eerie Eyes - Doodlebug Designs, clean soft cloth (or paper towel).

Spooky Ms. Skull

 Today I'm sharing a Halloween card I made using stencils and a die cut.

The stencils are all from Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous - Halloween, Harlequin and Bat Ground.   I used blender brushes to apply the Distress Inks through the stencils onto a white card panel - Carved Pumpkin through the Harlequin background and Black Soot through the Bat Ground and the sentiment.  

I held the bat stencil at an angle so they look like they are flying up from left to right and I only inked through part of it as I didn't want it to fill the panel.

I die cut the woman skull from black card and layered her over the panel with foam dots.  I layered the inked panel over a larger black panel.

I'm linking my card to the following:

Inkspirational

Two Old Bats Halloween Challenge

Stencil Fun

Paper:  White, True Black - Papertrey Ink

Ink:  Ranger Distress Carved Pumpkin and Black Soot.

Accessories:  Halloween, Harlequin and Bat Ground Stencils - Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous, blender brushes foam dots, skull die - no brand.

Eat Cake and Celebrate

 Today I have a clean and simple birthday card to share.

The cute little gnome is a die from Charlie and Paulchen a company in Germany.  I adhered the pieces together and then used Copics to color his hat, boots and nose.  I popped him up on the watercolor paper card base with foam dots and stamped the sentiment from Sentiment Suite: Birthday from The Greetery.

I'm entering my card in the following challenges:

AAA Cards Challenge

Seize the Birthday

Keeping everyone living in the South East USA in my prayers - that you are safe and dry after Hurricane Ian plowed through leaving such devastation in its path.

Stamps: Sentiment Suite: Birthday - The Greetery
Paper: Water Color Paper - Canson Cold Press
Ink: True Black - PTI
Accessories: Big and Small Gnome dies - Charlie and Paulchen, foam dots, Copics R20 and B23.

September Card Chain Challenge Reveal

Today is the day all the cards sent for the Sept Card Chain Challenge are revealed over at the Card Chain Challenge blog.

This month, I sent a card to Kath in the UK and I received a card from Robyn in Australia!

Here is the card I sent to Kath in the UK.

This month I used the colors suggested as well as the Friendship theme.

I took a panel of Yupo white cardstock and dropped Alcohol Inks onto it, using Butterscotch, Dandelion and Moss AI's.  Then I blew the inks around with a rubber bulb until I was happy with the look. 

(you can also use a straw or canned air to blow them)

When the ink was dry, I inked up the Bell Flower Vine from Lavina with Alcohol Lift Ink.  I carefully pressed the stamp onto the inked panel. 

(it can be slippery and if it slips it smears the image - how do I know that??!) 

I carefully lifted the stamp off the panel then pressed over the panel with a clean cloth.  Then I rubbed over the panel with the soft cloth to remove any residual Alcohol Lift Ink and the negative image is revealed where the ink was lifted!  

(before cleaning the stamp, you can press it onto a piece of cardstock to capture the lifted image and make another card)

I added a Big Chat Sticker for the sentiment.

This is the white card panel I off-stamped after lifting the inked stamp off the Yupo. 

I had stamped the vine several times over the alcohol inked panel and off-stamped each time to capture the image before cleaning the stamp.

If you'd like to join in any month, you can check out all the details of how you join in the challenge here.

Stamps: Bell Flower Vine - Lavinia
Paper: Yupo White Card - Ranger, Water color paper for card base - Canson Cold Press.
Ink: Alcohol Lift Ink - Ranger
Accessories: Alcohol inks - Moss, Dandelion, Butterscotch - Ranger,  Big Chat Stickers - Tim Holtz/Idea-ology