Monday, May 28, 2018

My Cards and Tags: Colorful Scrap Card using Lawn Fawn's Reveal Wheel

"Masculine" is this week's theme at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge blog.  I decided to make a card with an interactive spinner since most guys I know like mechanical components, gears, wheels, etc.  I also feel very lucky that the men in my life appreciate art and color and music and my crafty endeavors.  They are supportive of my artistic efforts and make me feel like my projects turn out cool even when they don't.  


I started by cutting the inner pieces out of Strathmore Mixed Media paper.  I used a nifty new die set from Lawn Fawn called The Reveal Wheel.  It's pretty clever how they designed everything.  There's also an accompanying stamp set, Reveal Wheel Sentiments, that I stamped my wheel and cover plate with when I was done cutting them out.

I painted my cover plate with black, gray and white acrylic paint and then glued a hodge-podge of patterned paper scraps together for a panel to add some color to the front.  I also outlined the wheel with black.

I assembled all the parts (including the cute little arrow to show that the wheel spins) and added a diagonal-striped tie that I drew.  With that final touch, it was done!

Here are the supplies I used, which you can find at Simon Says Stamp:


I'm excited to see your interpretation of masculine this week!  Be sure to upload your creations to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog for your chance to win a $50 voucher to the Simon Says Stamp store.


Monday, May 21, 2018

My Other Creations: Layered Notebooks using Inky Antics' Square Lift-Up Flaps

This week's Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge theme is, "Inspired by a Song."  I made some notebooks with lots of flaps and layers after thinking about a song by the Avett Brothers called, "True Sadness."  The lyrics are all about how if you peel back the layers of every person's life, you'll find "true sadness."  That may sound like a downer, but it's actually a very positive song.  It helps me to be more kind when I remember that we've all got something hard we've dealt with, are dealing with, or will be dealing with.


I started with Strathmore Mixed Media paper that I cut into flaps with an Inky Antics die.

I sprinkled some Infusions onto the paper and spritzed it with water.  Then I colored the squares with some Mermaid Markers and painted over everything with white acrylic paint.  I added colored paint here and there.  When the paint was dry, I stamped on some images and text using Kaisercraft's Stargazer stamps and Dina Wakley's Positive Women stamps (polka dots).

I outlined the edges in black using Prima oil crayons and then smudged the black around a bit.  I also outlined a few of the polka dots with a white Signo pen.  I glued my covers to chipboard and cut some paper for the inside of the notebooks.  I assembled them with my Cinch machine.

Here's a side-view that shows the cover flaps opened up a bit.  The cute little house was cut with a die from Neat and Tangled.

Here's the second notebook with the sentiment typed out on my We R Memory Keepers typewriter (intentionally done blurry and wonky):

You may notice that my pages are multi-colored.  To get this look, I held the pages tightly together and dripped and drizzled Jane Davenport ink along the edges.  Warning, though!  This technique did make some of the pages stick together, but I was okay with that.

Here are the supplies I used, which you can find at Simon Says Stamp:

I love music and am excited to see how it inspires you this week!  Be sure to upload your creations to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog for your chance to win a $50 voucher to the Simon Says Stamp store.