Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Mixed Media Fall Flower Card

I have another fall-ish card for you today using water colors. I first stamped my Penny Black Noble stamp with Faber Castell PITT markers. It's my first time to use these markers and I love that I can place the color directly on the stamp.
Watercolored-PB-full
The background is watercolored. While that is still wet, I stamped the text from PB Love Chapter and let the ink soak in the extra moisture on the paper. When the paper dried, I stamped the sentiment from Sunny Hello with Versamark ink. I stamped the burlap background from the Textures stamp set and spritz it a little bit with water. The butterflies were cut using PB Tagged die set. The pearls are by Want2Scrap. The adhesives are by SA by 3L.
Watercolored-PB
Challenges: Curtain Call (Wishing well inspiration), Just Us Girls (Photo inspiration), Crazy 4 Challenges (leaf); SSS Monday Challenge (finishing touch with the sentiment stamp), Muse (color scheme), Diecut Divas (Something new: stamping with PITT markers).
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Thursday, September 25, 2014

Watercolored Maple Thanks

We are certainly enjoying fall weather here. The chilly air, grape harvest and wood gathering are all around us that signal that autumn has arrived. I have a mixed media, water colored card for you today. I had so much fun making this.

I first hand sketched the big maple leaf and did the wet-on-wet technique using my kids' cheap watercolors. This is the first time I've done this technique and I'm a fan now.
Watercolor-Maple
I then added pseudo textures using various Penny Black stamps: Textures (burlap) and The Love Chapter (script text). The paper was distressed on the edges. With the stamped textures, distressed water color paper, the panel looks like it's a piece of cloth. The sentiment is die cut using Penny Black's Wishes dies.
Watercolor-Maple-det
Challenges: Die-Cut Divas (something new: wet-on-wet technique), Muse Challenge (Inspirations from the Muse card: my maple leaf substituted the circle, and the die cut sentiment), Cardabilities (sketch).

Have a great day!
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Monday, September 22, 2014

Thanks So Much Mixed Media

I have a mixed media thank you card for you today using some of my Want2Scrap® staples.  I first took a neutral patterned paper and water colored it randomly.  I then stamped the Penny Black’s Floral Applique stamp along the bottom using Clearsnap inks.
PB-Destash-W2S
I covered Want2Scrap’s Nestaboard Labels Eleven (using Spellbinders‘ Labels 11 dies) and Chipboard Clouds with patterned papers, then inked the edges. I painted the Chipboard Houses with DecoArt gesso, then placed a Heart Bling. I adhered them right on the seam. I glued a piece of SRM Sticker doily on the bottom. The sentiment, adorned with Want2Scrap Baby Bling white pearls, is also by SRM Sticker. Finally, I added the corduroy button stringed with burlap twine.
PB-Destash-W2Sd
Challenges: Colour Me...1, Vintage Stamping.
Want2Scrap® Products for Mixed Media Thank You Card:
Other Products:
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Friday, September 19, 2014

I'm back! And no, nothing bad happened to me :)

Hello, friends! I know it's been a while since I've posted here. First, I have received many inquiries about specific stamp sets people are looking for. I will soon have a sale of stamps and dies for sale here. I have them all organized and photographed. I just need to write the post :). Thanks for your patience!

Thank you to so many who sent me messages asking my whereabouts. Nothing bad happened, I assure you. In fact, good things have happened in my absence. In many ways, the good stuff is the reason for my not blogging. Here's a summary of the summer blessings we've experienced the last few months:
  • We hosted our 5th Annual English Camp at the end of June with a record number of participants again this year.  It was exhausting, but also exhilarating, to have so many young people interested to learn English through Bible lessons, songs, sports and class interactions.
  • My family and I traveled all summer in the US. It's part of our "work" but also a delightful adventure where we spent lots of quality time with my dear parents and lovely friends, saw some beautiful sites in America and ate a ton! :) Our girls are Americans, but they don't know much about the American culture. One day when they're a little older, I would love to take them a cross-country road trip and show them more of their country of citizenship, up close and personal.
  • I took our girls for the first time to an American county fair and we experienced together this rich, gooey treat - deep friend cheesecake. The verdict: it was okay the first bite, but even with 6 people sharing it, we couldn't finish this uber-sweet dessert. We went for the experience.
  • I enjoyed the rare times I get to spend with girl friends, whom I don't see very often. I was able to reunite with old college friends and roomies. It was a treat to hear of their walk with the Lord and God's faithfulness in their lives. I was able to talk about our life and adventures in Croatia, too.
  • My girls got to meet Olaf's illustrator. If you don't know who Olaf is, don't feel bad. You're just one of the very few who haven't been tortured blessed by little girls' singing of songs from the movie Frozen.The illustrator is pretty cool and even sketched one for my girls. He is a dear brother in the Lord.
  • I've been reading and studying some. I was able to share my heart with a group of missionary wives about things I've learned in the field the last 16 years! Yes, friends, I am now one of the "old" missionaries among our colleagues. And I still feel like I'm a novice at this. :) 
  • My family and I got to meet a real-life astronaut. He is a dear brother in the Lord and had the "difficult" task of photographing God's creation from space. In fact, he wrote a book about it called The Work of His Hands. Here's his inscription for my girls. Isn't that special? I highly recommend it! He is going out to space again next year. He shared some real experiences in space that resonated with me as a missionary. I would most like never know loneliness like he does when he's literally alone in space (he has a colleague in the space station, but they're working in opposite sides, so they don't get to see each other often).
  • My girls got to experience summer camp for high school and junior high for the first time. This is close to our heart because hubby and I worked with the youth back many moons ago. We used to organize the fun games during camps that our girls got to experience. And get this, one of the Jr Highers from our time as youth workers is now a youth worker herself. And she had my little Jr Higher in her group. What a testament of God's faithfulness, in a circle of life kinda way. 
  • Finally, the biggest event in our family that has contributed largely to my absence here is that I started home schooling our two oldest. It was a difficult first week and a half. But I think we've found our groove. My girls are still taking music and Croatian Language in the local public school, so it takes time to juggle our schedules to accommodate these classes. All in all, so far, I am enjoying it. It's a lot of work, but it's also so rewarding. I love having the girls home and that we get to interact more regularly about what they're learning.
This is all for now. I just thought I'd update you about what's going on with my life. Though I have definitely slowed down, I haven not quit paper crafting. In fact, I have a large stack of projects that are waiting to be shared on my blog.I hope to do that soon! Thanks for reading to the end. Have a great weekend!
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