May Mid-Month Reminder - CAS Stencil and CAS Watercolor Challenges

Today I'm here to remind you that you still have time (until May 24th!) to link up your CAS Stencil and CAS Watercolor card challenge entries!

For my stencil card, I used Altenew's beautiful Layered Dahlia A and Layered Dahlia B stencils. 

I watched the video linked over at CAS Stencil -  Layered Stencils by Jennifer McQuire using her Ink and Impress technique.

I brushed some Clear Glitter Wink of Stella over the darker orange parts of the petals.

Here's how I made this:  I first laid Stencil A over a piece of yellow card and sponged using a lighter orange ink.  Then I laid Stencil B over the panel and sponged with a darker orange ink.

Then I ran it through my Big Shot.

Here's the sandwich - base 1, cutting plate, Silicone Rubber pad, Stenciled panel, stencil lined up over stenciled paper, a paper shim if you need it (trial and error), cutting plate.

You can see the impression from the back

 and from the front -  cool right??!

And here is my watercolour challenge card -  Night Sky

I first brushed water over a panel of watercolor paper and then brushed on a watery purple water color paint in the center and then a light and dark watery blue over the rest of the panel.  I added a little watery black along the bottom.  I adhered tiny silver stars in the sky and a die cut stamped bunny colored with a grey copic.

We hope you'll join us in one or both of these fun CAS Challenges!  

The links are open through May 24th!

 
















  

 You'll find the CAS Stencil Challenge here.           You'll find the CAS Watercolor Challenge here.

Stenciled card
Stamps:  Direct Messages - Papertrey Ink
Paper:  Harvest Gold, White, Orange Zest - Papertrey Ink
Ink:  Chamomile, Marigold, Obsidian - Altenew
Accessories:  Layered Dahlia A Stencil, Layered Dahlia B Stencil - Altenew, Clear Glitter Wink of Stella, Direct Messages Dies - Papertrey Ink, Silicone Rubber Pad - Sizzix, sponge pad and applicator - Ranger.

Night Sky card

Stamps:  Upon a Star - Lawn Fawn

Paper:  White, True Black - PTI, watercolor paper - Canson.

Ink:  Obsidian - Altenew

Accessories:  Upon a Star Dies - Lawn Fawn, Kuretake and Ruby Mountain water color paints, Star Confetti - Honey Bee Stamps, W0 Copic, Ultrabond adhesive - I Craft, foam dots, paint brush, water.

May CAS Stencil Challenge - Layered Stenciling

The May CAS Stencil Card Challenge has just been posted.  Hilary is our hostess this month and she wants us to layer our stencils!

 There are several links to different stencil layering technique videos over on the blog to help inspire you.  I looked at the one by Tim Holtz and used his techniques on my background.

I used 3 stencils on my background two stenciled with Distress Paint and one with Distress Ink. 

First I laid the Typo stencil over a panel of white Bristol Smooth Paper by Strathmore. 

I pounced some Scattered Straw Distress Paint onto my craft mat then rubbed my blending tool with a  foam pad over the ink and pounced it over the stencil.  I wiped off my stencil before the paint could dry. 

(I've had this Distress Paint for years and haven't used it lately. I was happy to find that it was still liquid! You could use any acrylic paint through your stencil - just be sure to clean it right away!)

(my paper looks cream color due to the lighting in my craft room but it is white!)

I dried the panel with my heat tool, then laid the Bubble Layering Stencil over the panel

I used the same process for inking - using Cracked Pistachio Distress Paint and pouncing it over the stencil with my foam applicator. 

 (the paint is not sparkly, that's just the light on my work table reflecting off it on the bottom portion)

I dried my panel with my heat tool and washed off my stencil.  Then I sponged colors onto my panel, first with Ranger Distress Picked Raspberry.

Then Wild Honey and finally Broken China.   

I rubbed over the panel with a paper towel to remove the Distress ink off of the paint stenciled areas. You don't have to do this but it does make the paint stenciling stand out more.

For my final stencil layer, I used this mini leaf stencil with Gathered Twigs Distress Ink.  

I also stenciled on the lower right side of the panel but did not take a photo of that!

I cut my panel in half horizontally and made two cards.   The cat is Mooch from Lavinia Stamps.  The sentiment is from Just Sentiments Birthday by Ink to Paper.  I added some Periwinkle Flower Sequins from Honey Bee Stamps. I layered the stenciled panel to a slightly taller black panel and layered the two over a white card base. 

I really love how this multi layered stenciling came out and will definitely try it again! 
Here's the 2nd card I made from the stenciled panel.
The Stars 2 Mini stamp and Mini Slender Mushrooms stamp below are from Lavinia Stamps and the sentiment is from the same Ink to Paper set as my first card.

So please join us.  What a great new way to use our stencils!  The challenge is open until 5/24/2020.  You will find the challenge, more inspiration from the rest of the Design team as well as our talented Guest Designer Greta here.

Stamps:  Mooch, (cat), Stars 2 Mini Mushrooms - Lavinia Stamps, Just Sentiments - Ink to Paper.
Paper:  White Bristol Smooth - Strathmore; white, True Black - PTI.
Ink:  Obsidian - Altenew, Ranger Distress Picked Raspberry, Wild Honey Gathered Twigs, Broken China.
Accessories:  Bubble Layering Stencil, Typo Stencil, Mini Leaf stencil - Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous, Ranger Distress Paint Scattered Straw and Cracked Pistachio, foam and applicator - Ranger.

April Mid Month Reminder - CAS Watercolour and CAS Stencil

I'm here today with my April mid-month reminder cards for both CAS Watercolour and CAS Stencil!

I used the Exotic Tulip stamp set from Altenew which has 3 layers of stamps for each tulip - I just used one of the detail bud tulips and a stem here.  I mixed yellow water color paint with water and brushed it right on the stamp and stamped it 3 times using my Misti

Here I'm showing how I place the clean stem on the panel where I wanted it to stamp

And here I've brushed over the stem with watery green paint, which I then flipped the Misti cover over onto the card panel and pressed down.

 I added some white watercolor splatter and 3 Frosted Flower Sequins from Honey Bee Stamps and adhered the panel to a white card base..

Here is my reminder card for Cathy's challenge to use Gilding Flakes with Stencils.  I was so excited to learn ways to use Gilding Flakes this month!

Look at the gorgeous mix of colors in these Autumn Leaves Cosmic Shimmer Gilding Flakes!

I used Matte Gel for the adhesive, spreading it over a panel of black card stock with a plastic palette knife.

I carefully removed the stencil from the panel- not wanting to disturb any of the gel.

 I waited just a couple of minutes before placing the panel onto a piece of computer paper inside a pizza box (to contain all the flying gilding flakes!) and covered the panel with Autumn Leaves Cosmic Shimmer Gilding Flakes. 

 (if you wait too long, the gel will dry and the flakes won't adhere to it)

I laid another piece of computer paper over the panel and pressed down with my hand over the whole panel to press the flakes into the gel.  I removed the top piece of computer paper and left the panel to dry for several hours. (you can leave it over night)

I used a sponge to rub over the panel to remove the loose gilding flakes and was left with a beautiful panel of stenciled gilding!  You can really scrub with the sponge to get the flakes off the black spaces as the gilding is really stuck to the gel and won't get rubbed off.  I put the brushed off flakes back into the jar of Gilding Flakes to use again later. 

(Don't put any flakes that are sticky with adhesive back in the jar.)

I die cut the panel with an older Movers and Shapers Mini Cabinet Die from Tim Holtz.  I adhered the die cut piece to a black panel and cut around it leaving just a small edge of black showing.  I stenciled lightly on a white card base using Antique Linen Distress Ink through the same AALL and Create Stencil and adhered the gilded panel over the stenciling.  I gold embossed the sentiment on an MFT die cut sentiment strip and adhered that over the panel with foam dots.

 You have until 4/24 to link up your cards to either challenge - so please join us!

See the CAS Watercolour Challenge here.     See the CAS Stencil Challenge here.

I'm linking my tulip card to:

Seize the Birthday

The Card Concept

My tulip card is Clean and Simple

Inkspirational Challenge

The Flower Challenge

Watercolor Card
Stamps:  Exotic Tulips - Altenew, Sentiment Staples: Birthday - PTI
Paper: Water color paper - Canson, white - PTI
Ink:  Obsidian - Altenew
Accessories:  watercolor paints yellow, green and white


Happy Anniversary Card
Stamps:  Hero Arts
Paper:  True Black, Whi - PTI
Ink:  Versamark, Ranger Distress Antique Linen.
Accessories:  Stencil #58 Autour de Mwa - Aall and Create, Autumn Leaves Cosmic Shimmer Gilding Flakes, 3D Matte Gel Transparent - Finibar/Art Basics, Movers and Shapers Mini Cabinet Die - Tim Holtz/Alterations, Sentiment Strip Dies - MFT, Gold Embossing Powder, foam dots, sponge.

April CAS Stencil Card Challenge - Gilding Flakes

Happy April everyone!  The new CAS Stencil Card Challenge is up over at the blog!  Cathy is our creative hostess this month and she would like us to use gilding flakes with our stencils!

 

One of the technique videos on the blog uses a Xyron laminator - which I just happened to have in my craft room - purchased at least 10 years ago and haven't used for quite some time.  I inserted the adhesive cassette into the machine and ran a panel of black cardstock through it.

I peeled off the clear cover and my cardstock now has sticky adhesive on one side.

I laid my Feathered Leaves Stencil from Altenew over the sticky surface and covered it with Cosmic Shimmer Inka Gold Gilding Flakes -  another thing I just happened to have in my craft room that I must have bought for something years ago - and then forgot why I bought it - so it was sitting there waiting for me when I needed it for this challenge! 

The next step is to spread the gilding flakes over the whole stencil, pressing it into the openings with your fingers.

When it's all covered, you remove the stencil.  Now all the black spaces left are still sticky so you need to put something in those spaces.

The video I watched suggested black glitter be applied to stick to these open spaces.  I didn't have any (shocking, I know!) so I used some black micro beads I did have.  I poured them over the panel and pressed them into the open spaces.

They seemed to stick in the larger open spaces - but there are still beads rolling off it that didn't stick!

I added the Love die cut over the panel and added a wedding sentiment inside.

This is the first time I've used gilding flakes and I was happy to be 'forced' to learn this new technique for Cathy's great challenge!  

You'll find links to several Gilding Flake technique videos, details of the challenge and lots of awesome inspiration from the Design Team as well as our talented April Guest Designer Mac at CAS Stencil here.

You have through April 24 to link up you CAS cards!

Paper:  white, True Black - PTI, Kraft Stock Metallic - Tim Holtz/Idea-ology
Accessories:  Inka Gold Cosmic Shimmer Guilding Flakes, Feathered Leaves Stencil - Altenew, black glitter beads, Love Die - PTI, Xyron Laminater and Adhesive cassette.