Tag:

winter sketches

TGIF – Holding Hands Holiday

by Betsy December 17, 2021

written by Betsy

Happy Friday! It’s been a weird week here…how about you? But it’s Friday and I’m pretty excited about that! 🙂

I’m taking a turn for this week’s TGIF, which means I finally had an excuse to sit down and just have fun pulling together a few last minute holiday ideas that have been floating through my mind! I’ve been wanting to pull out my Holding Hands set and play with a few holiday ideas.

For this first card, I created a gift to place in the hands. I used a few different dies for this – one of the dotted rectangles from the Curio: Divider & Details II set, topped off with the puffy bow from the Fit to Be Tied set. I sponged the “box” with green ink and stamped some little sprigs onto it to create the “wrapping paper”.

I attached a tiny tag from the Sentiment Suite: Basics die set, stamped with a sentiment from the Sentiment Suite: Christmas set. I also tucked in some diecut Pine Bough sprigs, and Inside & Out Berry Branch sprigs, and glittered them up, along with the bow. For the hands, I sponged them with Fine Linen ink and stamped the detail layer. Then I added the sweater sleeves, cut from kraft cardstock and stamped with brown ink for the sweater detail.

For my second card, I wanted to create a pretty holiday bouquet for the hand to hold. I created my bouquet using several different elements…the berry branch from Winter Sketches, some BotaniCuts Pine Bough sprigs, and a few stems of Petite Eucalyptus. I tied them all together with some linen string, and attached another tiny tag from the Sentiment Suite stamps and dies.

I love embellishing these little hands with the jewelry that comes in the set. I cut the bracelet and ring from gold cardstock, and added a red gem to the ring.

For both cards, I attached a Nordic Frames diecut panel to a kraft card base and sponged just a bit of Tumbled Glass ink to the background. I also added lots of white ink splatters to give everything a snowy look.

Thanks so much for joining me today, I hope you enjoyed these projects! Have a lovely weekend…the last one before Christmas! Time to get those presents wrapped…or at least start shopping – lol!

December 17, 2021 13 comments

TGIF – Winter Sketches Boxed Set with Angelica

by Betsy November 19, 2021

written by Betsy

Happy Friday! We’re reaching the end of November and it’s definitely starting to get that “settle in” feeling around here. The evenings are dark and a winter chill is creeping into the air! It’s a great time to settle in and get crafty. Angelica is here to inspire you today with a gorgeous set of cards, perfect for holiday gift giving!

Christmas gift-making is in full swing in my house. I have been making Christmas ornaments, recipe books, and card sets for my loved ones. I wanted to share a stationery set I made for my husband’s aunt. She’s an older lady, and getting to the store to buy cards is a hard errand for her to make these days. So I thought it would be nice to make her a set of Christmas cards, and get them out in the mail to her next week.

This stationery box holds 7 flat cards and envelopes nicely. Before I stamped the outside of the cards, I stamped a sentiment from Sentiment Suite: Christmas. (I forgot to take a picture of the inside!) I used my MISTI to stamp the Winter Sketches branch onto the top right of each card base. I turned the card base around, and stamped the other side. Once I finished with the layers, I stamped the Opposites Attract Holiday sentiment. I LOVE the fonts in this stamp set.

To break up the white on the card base, I blended Toffee ink around the edges, and used Frosty Flakes stencil to add snowflakes to the empty corners. To finish the card fronts, I added glue and clear glitter to the branches for sparkle. While the glue dried, I assembled the box.

I stamped the outline winter branch onto Neenah Desert Storm 100lb card stock with Toffee ink. I die-cut the panels with the stationery box die, and used the half circle to die-cut the box opening. The flap I made with white card stock, stamping the same branch I used on the cards. I used magnetic discs to close the box, and finished the box with red pattern paper on the back of the inside.

I am so glad I reached for toffee ink to add color to the edges. It brought so much warmth to the cards. It took me about 2 hours to make the whole set, from start to finish, and I know she’s going to love it.

November 19, 2021 25 comments

All TGIF

TGIF – Winter Blue Birds with Angelica

by Betsy January 10, 2020

written by Betsy

It’s finally Friday! TGIF time!

Angela is here this week and she’s going to knock your socks off with the gorgeous project she’s sharing with you today! I have to tell you, I was the lucky recipient of this card and it is even prettier in real life (if that’s possible)! If you like hearing all of the supply details you’re in for a treat as well. Angela has it all for you today…

**Edited to add: The Winter Sketches set Angelica used in her project today was restocked this morning in case you’re on the look-out for it! 🙂

Hi friends! We are almost halfway into January, and I finally finished my post-Christmas Thank you cards. The last card went out into the mail today, but not before I took a couple pictures to share with you today.

[imagelinks id=”30″]

I started with stamping a Winter Sketches branch. I used Gathered Twigs, Evergreen, Saphire, and Stargazer Pinkfresh Studio inks as my colors. Then I pulled out my Copic Markers to really enhance the branch. I added a dark shadow to with limb with E79, contrasting greens to the needles and leaves with G29 and YG05, and shaded the blue berries with B26 and B28. I die-cut the branch with the coordinating die, and finished by adding Ranger Distress Rock Candy Glitter, using Multi Media Matte as my adhesive. I set the branch aside to dry, and set up my MISTI to stamp two matching blue Robins from the Robin an d W ren stamp set.

I stamped the birds with Slumber, Sapphire, and Stargazer PF inks, and Antique Linen and Weathered Wood Distress Oxide inks for their bellies. Gathered Twigs PF ink was used for beaks and feet. I used the coordinating dies to die-cut them.

I made a quick watercolored background, using Mijello watercolors. I let the panel dry, then splattered watered-down acrylic paint and shimmer water all over the panel. I die-cut the panel with the middle rectangle from Nordic Frame Dies, and attached it to Blueberry card stock, die-cut with the large Nordic Frame Die. I mounted the panel onto a white card base, and attached the branch and birds with foam squares. I finished the card with a Sentiment Suite: Thank you Sentiment in the upper corner.

Aren’t Angela’s colors (and her coloring) amazing? Such a pretty project.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! And just a reminder…next week will be busy here on the blog as we introduce our newest collection. I hope you’ll join us for sneak peeks, product reveals, projects, and giveaways! I’ve already seen just a few bits and pieces of what the Inspiration Team has been working on and it’s just beautiful. I can’t wait to show you!

January 10, 2020 40 comments

All TGIF

TGIF – Winter Sketches Watercolor with Norine

by Betsy December 27, 2019

written by Betsy

It’s TGIF time! What a crazy week. It kind of felt like we had two Mondays this week, didn’t it? But it’s Friday for real this time. I hope you all had a very merry Christmas!

Norine is here today with a gorgeous TGIF project using the Winter Sketches set. Let’s hear all about it…

Hello Greetery Friends! Have you finally got your feet up? The wrapping paper picked up? Hopefully, Christmas dinner leftovers will take care of everyone for a little while longer and you can schedule some creative time for yourself! This week’s project is a thank you card that will serve perfectly for the current season, but translates well to other occasions, even a sympathy card.

[imagelinks id=”27″]

I’m drawn to muted colors with the Winter Sketches stamp set so for today’s card I indulged that by creating a watercolored background of blues, greens and browns. Because I used a lot of water, the colors blended to the point where you can hardly distinguish what colors were used. Getting color mixes like that is easy when you never clean the lid of your watercolor paint palette. It used to be a matter of laziness, until I realized that was where the most beautiful “non-colors” were born.

After a few attempts to stamp first and watercolor second, I decided that that order of the process dulled the ink lines more than I liked. So using the stamp panel discards as a guide I painted the color to approximately fill the background of my stamped design. Once the paint was dry, I stamped two of the pine needle outline images from the Winter Sketches set using shade of blue ink and the rough sketchy tree limb with a combination of kraft and dark grey inks.

Using more of the leftover blue, green and brown paints on my palette, I painted in the pods on the pine needle images, connected the branch limbs where I wasn’t stamping the additional layers to the branch, extended some branches and very lightly added the suggestion of more leaves to the ends of the branches. After allowing that to dry, I splattered the card panel with more blue paint as well as some white gouache paint, thinned with water to splattering consistency. Then I added a sentiment from the Sentiment Suite Thank You stamp set, stamping with Versamark ink and heat embossing with platinum embossing powder.

I paired the stamped and painted part of the card panel with a strip of plaid patterned paper from my stash along the bottom. I wrapped the card panel with a strand each of brown fiber cord and shiny platinum floss, opted for a knot over a bow so it wouldn’t distract too much from the stamped design, and adhered everything to a cream colored cardstock card base. This card went together really fast (except for the time waiting for paint to dry, when I picked up my current felt appliqué project to stitch on), and was super simple and easy to create!

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you get a chance to play over the next few days!

December 27, 2019 22 comments

All New Product Meet & Greet November 2019

We’re Pining for New BotaniCuts, Winter Sketches, and More…

by Betsy November 21, 2019

written by Betsy

Are you ready for another fun day? I think reveal days are my favorite, how about you? I just love getting to show what we’ve all been working on for months! Today is the second reveal day for our November mini collection called Winter’s Song

All of the products being introduced on the blog this week will be available for purchase in The Shop, beginning at 10am EDT on Friday, November 22.

Let’s meet today’s new products…

Winter Sketches stamps & dies

Winter Sketches is a gorgeous wintery set that’s filled with possibilities! Layer the solid and outline images for a pretty, yet carefree look, or use them independently. The outline can be used alone and colored with your favorite medium, or to create quick and easy backgrounds! The solid images of this set even feature built-in snow for a sparkling-like effect when stamped! When layering the outline over the solid, consider heat embossing the outline with metallic embossing powder for a touch of elegance. You’ll have fun exploring the possibilities of the Winter Sketches set!

This set comes on a 4″ x 8″ sheet and includes a full-color printed stamping guide.

Approximate sizes:
large assembled branch – 3.5″ x 2.5″
smaller berry cluster – 1.75″ x 1.75″
pine sprig with pinecone – 1.7″ x .8″

Budding Beauties Winter stamps & dies

The Budding Beauties Winter set is made to coordinate perfectly with the Bottled Up stamp set. Fill the bottles with these pretty wintery sprigs. Use them individually, or cluster a few different stems together with the Fit to Be Tied dies to created pretty bouquets. There are also a handful of tiny sentiments to stamp on the label included in the Bottled Up set. Use these pretty stems without the bottles as focal points and more on your winter and holiday projects!

This set comes on a 4″ x 8″ sheet and includes a full-color printed stamping guide.

Approximate sizes:
assembled mistletoe sprig – 1.75″ x 3.75″
assembled holly sprig – 2″ x 3.5″
pine berry sprig – 2.1″ x 3.75″

BotaniCuts Pine Bough die

The BotaniCuts collection is a series of stand alone dies for cutting various botanical designs. This BotaniCuts Pine Bough set creates a pretty layered pine branch and two sizes of layered pinecones. Keep it simple by cutting them from colored cardstock, or have fun experimenting with your favorite coloring method, such as ink blending, watercolor, markers, and more for dramatic effects!

Approximate size:
assembled branch – 3.6″ x 2.6″
large pinecone – 1.2″ x 1.5″
small pinecone – 1″ x 1.3″

Fit to Be Tied die

If you love it, put a bow on it! The Fit to Be Tied die collection consists of three pretty ways to top it off. The string wrap is great for gathering a few sprigs, the loopy bow adds a delicate touch. The third bow in the set is nice and plump, with an additional detail layer for adding shading and detail. You’ll find yourself reaching for this handy set year round, whether it’s for package toppers, cards, tags, and more!

Approximate size:
twine wrap – .85″ x 1.35″
loopy bow – 3″ x 1.65″
puffy bow – 2″ x 2″

To aid in your list-making and planning, below you will find the prices for today’s products.

Winter Sketches 4″ x 8″ stamp set – $18
Winter Sketches die – $16
Budding Beauties Winter 4″ x 8″ stamp set – $18
Budding Beauties Winter die – $24
BotaniCuts Pine Bough die – $24
Fit to Be Tied die – $16

I have so many projects to share, and just wait until you see what the Inspiration Team has created for you! Before we dive into projects, I put together a video showing how to layer and assemble the BotaniCuts Pine Bough die.

Now for those projects! My first card uses all three of the different sprigs from the Budding Beauties Winter set, paired with the Bottled Up set.

[imagelinks id=”14″]

I still just love stamping these bottles! It’s so fun to see them come to life in different colors. I stamped the Budding Beauties Winter stems in pretty shades of greens and reds. For the background, I embossed the largest frame from the Nordic Frames die to give a pretty impressed design. I also scattered a few snowflakes from the Frosty Corners die into the background. I stamped a couple of the tiny sentiments included in the Budding Beauties Winter set onto the label from the Bottled Up set.

My next card uses the mistletoe image from the Budding Beauties Winter set, this time without the bottles.

[imagelinks id=”13″]

The pretty sprigs from this set are perfect for pairing with the Fit to Be Tied dies to create pretty clusters and bouquets. Here I hung two mistletoe sprigs and topped them off with the loopy bow from the Fit to Be Tied set. I also included one of the tags from the new Speed Tagging Christmas Prints paper collection. I loved how the embossing on the last card turned out withe the Nordic Frames, so I did that again, this time using the two larger frames. I also included the outline portion of the Inside & Out Berry Branch die in the background for even more texture. I love how dimensional this card feels with the embossing and tone-on-tone diecut, but it’s still fairly flat and mailable.

My next card uses the new Winter Sketches set and is probably one of my favorite cards ever. I just love how this one turned out and it was really fairly easy!

[imagelinks id=”17″]

I used just the outline image of the large branch from the set and heat embossed it with gold power onto black watercolor paper. Yes! Black watercolor paper. Did you know there is such a thing? I was alerted to this fact not that long ago (thanks to Heather Nichols!). To add color to the gold embossed designs I used Prima Metallic Accents watercolors. I also added a few pops of white and lots of white splatters using white acrylic ink. I cut down the panel of black watercolor paper using the largest Nordic Frames die, and also heat embossed the sentiment from the Pine Blossom set. Would you like to see a Make & Tell Tuesday demo on this card? I will try and put one together very soon!

My next card also comes close to my top favorites ever and it uses the new BotaniCuts Pine Bough die.

[imagelinks id=”15″]

When I designed these dies I could not wait to try creating them in glittering layers of white. We have some glittered white pinecones that we put out every year that slip over a string of lights. They are so pretty, and they’re one of my favorite holiday decorations…there’s just something about glittery white pinecones! I added some subtle color to the pine needles and branch by sponging some ink. I also added some details and shading to the pinecones themselves using colored pencils. This card is so textured with the Inside & Out Berry Branch and Nordic Frames layered under the pine branch! The sentiment is from the Tree Trimmings set.

Next up is a dreamy winter scene pairing the BotaniCuts Pine Bough with Winter Sketches. I love shades of cool blues and greens for winter projects.

[imagelinks id=”18″]

I pulled out my Frosty Flakes stencil and my trusty watercolor technique I shared in a video a few weeks back to create this background. The Nordic Frame pattern around the edges makes it even prettier! The cluster in the center is done with The large branch and smaller berry cluster from the Winter Sketches set. Like I mentioned in the description of this set, there is a snowy effect built into the illustration of these branches and berries, and they almost seem to sparkle on their own. I once again used a white pinecone and pine needle sprig from BotantiCuts Pine Bough, and tied it all up with the twine from the Fit to Be Tied die set. A sentiment from Pine Blossom is the perfect finishing touch…the little details on the first letters of the sentiments in that set are just the perfect little touch to tie it all together!

I love the white pinecones, but I couldn’t do this post for today without including some traditional colored pine cones as well! The BotaniCuts Pine Bough die is great for holiday and winter cards, but also great for more masculine cards throughout the year.

[imagelinks id=”16″]

I used both sizes of the pinecones along with a couple branches to create this card. I also tucked in a few sprigs from the Inside & Out Berry Branch die. The background was done by stamping the outline images from the Winter Sketches set onto the medium Nordic Frames rectangle. The sentiment is from Sentiment Suite: Thank You.

My final card for our Winter’s Song showcase combines Budding Beauties Winter, Inside & Out Berry Branch, and a pretty Speed Tagging Christmas Prints tag.

[imagelinks id=”20″]

I stamped two of the pine berry sprigs from the Budding Beauties Winter set and tucked them into a pocket created with the Halfsies Diamond die, along with a Speed Tagging Christmas Print tag and some Inside & Out Berry Branch leaves. The background was sponged with ink, and I also added some stenciled leaves using the Berry Branch stencil. The white acrylic ink splatters add a touch of snowy fun to the background as well.

That wraps up my projects for today, but there is still so much more! Now that you’ve gotten to meet all of today’s new products and see them in action, you can “greet” them for a chance to win a $50 gift card! Read on for details…

Comment here on the blog for one entry (one comment per person). What caught your eye today, and gets you excited to get creating?
Comment on our Inspiration Team Members’ blogs for more entries (one comment per person, per blog)
Comments close at Midnight EST on Thursday, November 21
Winners will be posted at 7am EST on Friday, November 22 here on the blog

You are in for such a treat! It’s time to see what our amazing Inspiration Team has to share with you today!
(click on the images to visit their blogs, or click HERE if viewing this post via email)

ANGELICA

DAWN

HEATHER

KAY

KEEWAY

KELLY

LAURIE

LIZZIE

NORINE

WANDA

Thank you so much for visiting and participating in our excitement over our new Winter’s Song collection! We’ll be back tomorrow with gift certificate winners + a few fun surprises before everything goes live in the shop at 10am EST!

November 21, 2019 281 comments