Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek Day 2: Leaves & Wreaths

It's the second day of sneak peeks for the August release from Taylored Expressions!  Today we move from Halloween into the gorgeous rich colors and meaningful sentiments of Thanksgiving! Everything you see during our sneak peeks will be available on Thursday, August 2nd. Be sure to check out each of the creative team members' blogs for all of the sneak peeks - starting with the Taylored Expressions blog.

What can be more perfect for Thanksgiving than a Rustic Wreath.  It's the perfect look especially when you pair it with the previously released Fall Florals.  To top it all off, there's a new addition to our Christian sentiments - Words of Faith 2.


First I heat embossed the wreath in Gold Fine Detail Embossing powder.  I made sure it was cool and I dusted it heavily with an embossing buddy (or a used dryer sheet or whatever you use to keep embossing powder from sticking).  Then I heat embossed the sentiment with White Fine Detail Embossing Powder.


There are two new colors this month.  The orange in this flower and the cardstock along the edge is one of them - Sweet Potato Pie.  There's also a purple named Eggplant which I didn't use here simply because I wanted the brightness of Plum Punch.


Here's the supply list for this project but keep scrolling down for some autumn leaves.

SUPPLY LIST

Taylored Expression is celebrating Release Week with a giveaway during each day of sneak peeks! Visit the TE blog to answer Taylor's Question of the Day for a chance to win one of the latest products before you can buy it!

There's not much I love better than the colors of fall! New this release is the die Caps Lock - Fall.  The Caps Lock series are big words, connected for ease of use, with one use being eclipse cards.  I pulled out the previously release Autumn Leaves Background and applied a mix of colors.  Using a Misti tool, I inked up the stamp randomly with Sweet Basil, Sweet Potato Pie and Mulled Wine and stamped. Then I rubbed the stamped piece with my embossing buddy, randomly re-inked just a few sections on the stamp with Versamark so I could do some gold embossing.

I then used Caps Lock - Fall to cut the words out of my background along with a piece of vellum.  I wanted to soften the background a bit so the words clearly stood out.  I left space for the perfect sentiment from the previously released Simply Stamped - Leaves.


Are you feeling fall coming???  Making these cards certainly made me look forward to crisp, cool autumn days!  For tomorrow's cards, I'm moving away from fall and into some seriously sarcastic sentiments to be contrasted with some "prayers"!

SUPPLY LIST

Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek Day 1: Tombs and Hinges

It's day 1 of sneak peeks for the August release from Taylored Expressions.  We're focusing on fall so you can get your stash in place to start creating cards with beautiful fall leaves, spooky (or maybe goofy) Halloween fun, and elegant Thanksgiving sentiments!  Today is the spooky and goofy day!  Everything you see this week will be available on Thursday, August 2. Be sure to check out each of the creative team members' blogs for all of the sneak peeks - starting with the Taylored Expressions blog.

My first project uses a wide variety of new products - Tomb Sweet Tomb sentiments, Tombstone Trio dies, the Bare Trees Background, a new Playful Pattern Paper Pack in black and white and splashes of the very recently released Liquid Watercolors.  I think you can guess what type of card this is - spooky!!


This was so fun to create.  I started with watercolor paper and I used Liquid Watercolors in Blue Corn, Plum Punch and Lemon Meringue to paint the glow behind the tombstones.  I used Oreo Liquid Watercolor to make it a little messy with some splatters.

I would highly recommend the use of a Misti tool to stamp the trees, especially on a textured watercolor paper.  I definitely wanted it to be rich and black and creepy.  I had stamped the sentiment from Tomb Sweet Tomb on the banner but it didn't look quite right up to the edge of the card so I added a bit of contrast with the black and white stripes.

I cut the tombstones out of Earl Grey then messed them up a bit by rubbing the edges on the ink pad.  I heat embossed three of the fun "names" from the set.


Also new in this release is an addition to the mail line of stamps to decorate envelopes - Spooky Mail.  There are so many options in each set - but given the detail in the card, I elected to just go with a colorful envelope and a spooky scene (plus a grinning bat) all in white.

Here's the supply list for this card but definitely keep reading because I have another sneak peek and a chance to win prizes!

SUPPLY LIST


Taylored Expressions is celebrating Release Week with a giveaway during each day of sneak peeks! visit the TE blog to answer Taylor's Question of the Day for a chance to win one of the latest products before you can buy it!

Continuing on the Halloween theme, this card isn't spooky - it's goofy!.  It's fun and interactive and so easy to do with all of the new products.


You don't get the interactive aspect from one picture, so let me show you this one!!


Check out her legs - they wiggle back and forth using the new On a Hinge die!  The witch is cut from On a Hinge - Wicked and the coordinating dies.  You simply use the On the Right Track discs and adhesive foam - just as you would with a slider card to build up the hinge so she wiggles around.  There is much more detail on the TE blog.

The other amazing products on this card is Foil It - Basics.  These are background patterns that are pre-made to be able to easily use with Deco Foil Transfer Sheets.  Just run them through the laminator and you have a foiled pattern!!  I'm not sure why I went with the star background and the Rainbow Foil - but with her flashy outfit and dancing legs, I'm calling her my Disco Witch!!!

And to add to the fun - guess what the Double Crafty Point deal is this month?  The On a Hinge Bundle!!

That's it from me for goofy and spooky - but there's plenty more to see on the TE blog.  Tomorrow I have richly colored fall and Thanksgiving cards!

SUPPLY LIST

Stampin' Up and Copics (en français) 2018

Recently I was contacted by Chantal who had found my chart for Stampin' Up and Copic marker matches and was asking permission to translate it into French.  Absolutely!!  (As long as I got to share it too!)  She agreed - so there's now another link on my sidebar!!  I am so thrilled that this tool is useful for others.

I did this card using the color family match for Flirty Flamingo, Daffodil Delight and Mossy Meadow (and a little Certainly Celery since that was the scrap of patterned paper that I was using!)


The charts come in most handy for me when I am literally putting something next to cardstock - so if I had Flirty Flamingo cardstock on this card, I would't have to think - I just look at my chart, grab R32 and start coloring.  This card came about a little differently.  I'm playing along with the current challenge at the Fusion Card Challenge: Outdoor Room.

The Copic chart came in handy because I saw Flirty Flamingo in that picture.  I also saw soft greens (which could have been Soft Sea Foam but I didn't have any patterned paper for that), rich greens (thus Mossy Meadow came out), and there's even some blue accents so I pulled out last year's Glitter Dot set and used the lightest Dapper Denim.


And I clearly had to go with Stampin' Up since I'm talking about a Stampin' Up Copic chart.  I recently got the Falling Flowers and they seemed just right. I didn't spend much time shading or trying to be artistic.  I love the bold look of the flower and just colored in sections.   I did switch companies with the sentiment because I just had to say "Merci" to Chantal for all of her hard work!!  Thank you so much!
SUPPLY LIST Stamps: Stampin' Up Falling Flowers, Papertrey Ink Think Big Favorites 3
Dies: Stampin' Up May Flowers Framelits dies
Cardstock: Mossy Meadow
Patterned Paper: A scrap of old Certainly Celery
Miscellaneous: Stampin' Up Glitter Enamel Dots
Copic Markers: R32 (Flirty Flamingo) along with R35, Y32 and Y35 (both recommended for Daffodil Delight), G43 (Certainly Celery), G94 (the lighter green in the Mossy Meadow color family).  There's also E44 (Soft Suede) under the glitter in the flower centers.

The Paper Players and Inkspirational: Birthday

The Inkspirational challenge for this month is "birthday".   July isn't a big birthday month for my family and friends (almost everybody I know is March or November!)  However, there is one big one - and I mean big.  My husband's birthday is this weekend and it's one of those big round numbers ending in a zero.  He's not happy about it.

Making cards for him is not fun.  I think he'd be happiest if I printed happy birthday across the front - no color, no decorations.  But I couldn't let this birthday go by without a few balloons and maybe even a few sequins.  I was thrilled when I saw the challenge at The Paper Players because I realized negative space would add the interest that I wanted without a lot of the fluff that he wouldn't want.


I did a variety of negatives - then I popped a few other die cuts with different thicknesses of adhesive. I used a variety of small patterns in my negative space.  I even added a few silver sequins, although he will notice and comment on them - "too much bling!"


Thanks to the following challenges for inspiration (links above)!

SUPPLY LIST

Dies: WPlus9 Happy Birthday die, Lil' Inker Designs Balloon Builders

Paper: Doodlebug 6x6 Gingham-Linen Rainbow Petite Prints and Dot-Grid-Daisy-Stripe Rainbow Petite Prints

Sequins: Pretty Pink Posh Silver Stars

Freshly Made Sketches: Sending Hugs

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches! Today we have a sketch by me!!!

I made this card to send to a friend with no intent of posting it, then I got to looking at it and realized that it wouldn't be a bad sketch.  I so love coming up with the sketch and seeing all of the creative ways that you use it!  It is absolutely amazing to me how different a single sketch can look on each card.


I wanted to made a card of encouragement, so I started with the daisy and the patterned petals because I wanted it to be bright and cheerful.  I used another circle die to cut it out.  I also wanted to use that background because it gives it the look of a quilt which I find comforting. The square below was a happy accident - I had the daisy set aside and it happened to be on a small scrap of that paper.  I knew I couldn't stamp directly on the "quilt" so I looked and looked again and decided I really liked the two shapes together - plus it gave me a place for the sentiment!

I've been having lots of fun with this simple daisy die.  Check out this post for a trio of cards.

I hope you enjoy this sketch - I am very much looking forward to seeing all of the different ways that you use it!

SUPPLY LIST

Stamps: Papertrey Ink Keep It Simple Sending Hugs
Dies: Frantic Stamper Stitched Daisy Pair, Taylored Expressions Stitched Circle Stacklet and Stitched Square Stacklet, Lil' Inker Designs Perky Posies (the leaves) and Quilted Stitched Pattern
Cardstock: Taylored Expression Peapod
Patterned Paper: Doodlebug Designs Dot-Grid-Daisy-Stripe Rainbow Petite Prints

AAA Cards: A Wonderful Time

Earlier this week, I posted this card playing along with the AAA Cards Christmas in July challenge. Although I really liked that card, it's been bugging me that I was actually most inspired by their graphic which was a row of very colorful trees which I did not do on my first card - so I decided to try again!


And here's their row of trees.

I have to admit to a love/hate relationship with my card.  It's been made for days, but I just couldn't quite decide whether to post it or not.  Some days I look at it and think "ugh" and other days, I like it.  It's definitely not in my comfort zone.  I tend to like either soft snowy Christmas cards, or Christian cards, or warm and homey cards.  This is none of those so perhaps that's why I have days I don't like it.  (Or maybe it's just not a good card!!)  But this morning, I liked it - so decided to go ahead and post it.  (Let me be clear - it has nothing to do with the stamps which I dearly love.  In fact, I used the same stamps on my softer card linked above.)  But if nothing else, I have another Christmas card in my stash and I'm quite certain there will be the right recipient for it!

SUPPLY LIST

Stamps: Neat & Tangled Scandinavian Prints Christmas with coordinating die set

Inks: Just a mish-mash of rainbow colors!

Freshly Made Sketches: Peace & Joy

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  This week's sketch  we have a sketch by Linda.

I have been in a bit of a panic over Christmas cards.   I've never waited until July before.  It's not so much that I send that many.  My issue is that my favorite cardmaking seasons are autumn and Christmas.  So I generally have a big jump on Christmas cards in the spring and summer so I can focus on autumn when it arrives.  Somehow it's wrong to get a jump on autumn in the spring and summer, but it's OK to do Christmas.   Yeah - I know - it's all a bit obsessive.

Anyway, I saw snowflakes in those circles.


I struggle with photographing foil or glitter.  The card is actually quite a bit lighter and brighter than the above photo shows.

Also a shout-out to Color Throwdown.  A few weeks ago they had their 500th challenge (a big congrats!) but I have to admit, I first wrinkled my nose at the colors.  But then I saw the design team inspiration - and then I saw what so many of you made - and I decided it was a fabulous color combo.  This particular challenge is over, but I did want to give them the credit for my colors!

I hope to see you playing along with us this week at Freshly Made Sketches.

SUPPLY LIST

CtS and CTD: Birthday Rose

I put a couple of challenges together to create a floral birthday card for someone at work.  I don't know her well - I only know she gardens so I stuck with flowers.

I was intrigued by the current sketch at CAS(E) this Sketch and started browsing my stash for a border type die.  I stumbled on this retired die by Stampin' Up that I think is stunning and I just haven't used enough.  So I cut it edge to edge across the card. I did experiment with a little distress ink and inlaying the colored pieces, but that got too fussy really quickly.  So I found a cheerful yellow polka dot and backed the rose with it.

I thought it would be fun to pair with another classic pattern and found the gingham hiding in the paper stash.  Initially I was feeling like I should find a brighter color (or perhaps a green for the leaves!) but then I remembered another current challenge that I had bookmarked as wanting to try - the current challenge at the Color Throwdown.  So I stuck with the gray gingham and added a simple kraft banner.


It's a gorgeous color combo and definitely not one that I would have come up with on my own.

SUPPLY LIST
(Everything I used is retired - sorry!)
Stamps: Stampin' Up And Many More
Dies: Stampin' Up Rose Garden
Patterned Paper: Stampin' Up Polka Dot Parade and the gingham no longer had a label
Embellishments: Stampin' Up Glitter & Clear Epoxy Shapes

AAA Cards: A Softer Christmas

I got worried in June that I hadn't done a single Christmas card, so I decided to do a big Christmas in July.  So here it is July 14th and I've only done two others.  So here's #3 - but I actually did four of them so I'm at a grand total of six Christmas cards done!


I lined up the sentiment and the blue tree then stamped directly to the card front. The stamp set is a great builder set - so I added the tree trunk and the horizontal lines.  I masked off the sentiment with some removable tape, then used the big Clarity Stencil brush to add the blue glow. Then I mixed a few drops of white acrylic paint with a few drops of water, picked some up with a paintbrush and used my finger to tap the paintbrush and splatter the paint/snow on the scene.

Separately I created the pink tree with the vertical lines and the green tree with the ornaments.  I tapped the white paint over them too.  I wanted each tree to be distinctly different so I die cut a tree trunk from the coordinating die set for the pink tree and added a sparkly star to the green tree.


This card was inspired by this AAA Challenge.

Obviously I liked their grouping of trees. I had originally intended to go with the bright colors - but then I fell in love with the sentiment and had to go softer.  Hmmm...I think I'll have to try a bright one too!

SUPPLY LIST
Stamps: Neat & Tangled Scandinavian Prints Christmas
Dies: Neat & Tangled Scandinavian Prints Christmas die and Lucky Stars die

Freshly Made Sketches: Celebrate Me & You

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches! Today we have a sketch by Jen Mitchell.

I'm feeling lucky...I had been playing around with these dies/stamps on another card and never quite got it together.  Then before I cleaned off my desk, I took a peek at the sketch - and knew right away those same dies/stamps would work!


I love the fun of the angled panel.  I decided the main panel was perfect for the "celebrate" with the angled panel making it fun for an anniversary.  The soft bokeh seemed like a good fit too!  (The card was simple, but the photography gave me fits.  I hate glittery stuff.  I see others photo it and it looks great, but for me, it does weird things to the focus and the color.)
I hope to see you playing along with us!

SUPPLY LIST
Stamps: Neat & Tangled Celebrate
Dies: Neat & Tangled Celebrate
Paper: Stampin' Up Lost Lagoon Cardstock, Lawn Fawn Let's Bokeh in the Snow, Silver Glimmer from Michaels, Vellum
Embellishment: Pretty Pink Posh stars

Taylored Expressions: Retirement Sale

As much as I hate it, stamp companies simply have to retire products once in awhile, otherwise they'd have to have Amazon-sized warehouses.  I get it - but I do hate that some of my favorites are going away.  The good news for you is that there's a sale!! 

Taylored Expressions is bidding a fond farewell to over 200 products as we retire some of our favorite items with an amazing SALE. Choose from a variety of stamps and dies at prices up to 70% off -- but hurry, once they're gone, they're gone forever! Visit the SALE HERE to start shopping!

Plus, for a limited time, you can receive additional savings on these soon-to-be collector’s items. Additional discounts expire 11:59 pm CST on July 20, 2018.

To get you started with some ideas, here are a few cards that I've made in the past that include retiring items.

EVENTFUL - BBQ and BLOCK PARTY - PARTY

The BBQ border has so much wonderful detail. I love it sitting on top of the Block Party - Party die. Original post here.


EVENTFUL - FRIGHT NIGHT Another fabulous border scene is Eventual - Fright Night.  For this card, I trimmed it to the narrow part of the card and overlapped two sides.  Original post here.

MARLEY STAMP & DIE COMBO and TANNER STAMP & DIE COMBO and WATSON STAMP & DIE COMBO These are some of the cutest little guys you'll ever see! Original post here.


LOVE ALWAYS WINS STAMP & DIE COMBO

You really can't go wrong with a tic-tac-toe set that includes I {heart} U!  And the sentiments are charming.  Original post here.

CENTER STAGE CUTTING PLATE and the MR. & MRS./CONGRATS BANNER You can put just about anything on a stage! Original post here.


PEEK-A-BOO CHRISTMAS and PEEK-A-BOO CHRISTMAS DIES A wonderful set of basic Christmas images and fun sentiments.  Original post here.


PICTURE PERFECT - SMILE/HELLO The Picture Perfect series of dies is great for scrapbooking but are also excellent for framing scenes on cards.  Original post here.


RAINBOW SCALLOP BORDER It's lovely on its own - but check it out as the ocean!  Original post here.


SACK IT - MOOSE It just doesn't get much cuter than this!!  A lot of the Sack It dies are going - they all coordinate with Sack It To You.  Original post here.


SIP, SIP HOORAY and SIP, SIP HOORAY DIES Absolutely perfect for hot sunny summer days. Original post here.


IN & OUT THANKS I hesitate putting this on one the list because there aren't many left in inventory and you'll have to run fast to shop (with your fingers crossed).  But not knowing it was going to retire, I just used a stamp from this set to coordinate with the Thanks Script die and the new Thanks Script Backer - Mixed Media die.  It's a very handy set of "thanks" in different fonts plus add on lines to go with dies.  (FYI - In & Out Wedding is also retiring).  Original post here.

There are many, many other items but I didn't think you'd want to be scrolling through my post when you could be shopping!  Here's a link to all of them and here are the ones that I picked to show you.

RETIRED ITEMS