Trying New Things

Hello! Did you hear that the new 2016-2017 Fun Stampers Journey catalog includes colored pencils, watercolor pencils and Panpastels? So exciting! I have very little experience with pencils and never even heard of Panpastels until recently!  And I can't wait until they arrive in my studio so I can play, learn and share my projects and experiences with you! 

This week I decided to sit down with an old set of colored pencils I have and practice a little before my FSJ sets arrive!

I'm always humbled when I work with new mediums! It's not easy to go from one that I've worked with a lot and have success with to learning all over again! I'm remember last year when the new Fusion Blender solution and re-inker system debuted and my first attempt to use them was so intimidating! I smeared things, colored outside the lines, etc. My work looked like a Kindergartner did it! lol 

Today's card turned out okay. I have so much to learn. For instance, I think my flower would have turned out prettier had I used a blending tool. And no matter what medium I'm working with I'm always learning about shading, etc! 

So...an appropriate sentiment for this card is that "imperfection is beautiful!" It's what I tell my son when he tries things for the first time and wonders why his dad or I can do it better. I tell to practice, practice, practice. Everything that's done well takes lots of patience and practice.

For this card I embossed the image, colored it with pencils and sponged a little Whip Cream ink around the edges.

Fun Stampers Journey Supplies:

Summer Garden SS-0078

Text Happy SS-0168

Black Licorice IP-0041

Whip Cream IP-0009

Clear Pigment Ink IP-0102

Journey White Embossing Powder IP-0098

Oatmeal Cookie CS-0023

Smile

Today I'm posting another nature inspired bee-utiful card created with the Fun Stampers Journey Summer Garden Stamp set. 

I love bees! We wouldn't have the amazing variety of produce without them, would we? 

And I think they're quite fascinating to watch swarming busily around the garden! 

For this bee background I used the Vintage Screen stencil, a sponge and Summer Days ink. Keeping my design clean and simple I added just a little Silk, Twine and a mini paperclip for accents.

Enjoy and have a fa-bee-lous day! 

Fun Stampers Journey Supplies:

Summer Garden SS-0078

Text Happy SS-0168

Vintage Screen JM-0002

Black Licorice IP-0041

Summer Days IP-0042

Journey Silver Silk IP-0090

Fusion Blender IP-0088

Lemon Drop RI-0026

Paper Clip Elements AC-0102

Black Licorice Journey Twine AC-0004

Whip Cream CS-0040

Bee Amazing

Hi! I'm buzzing by today to share another outdoorsy card with you using the bee stamps from the Fun Stampers Journey Summer Garden stamp set. 

 For my sentiment I thought it would be fun to combine a letter die from the Marquee Alphabet set with a word from the Today Is set. Makes for a unique greeting, don't you think? 

If you look carefully at these bees you will notice that the wings have been colored in the lightest gray and then outlined in a very pale blue. To create these subtle colors I simple used several drops of Fusion Blender, bringing in just a touch of color. 

Final touches include a pierced circle around the bees and a little Black Licorice Journey Twine. 

Ahhhh....what a bee-utiful card! Wink!

Fun Stampers Journey Supplies:

Summer Garden SS-0078

Today Is SS-0264

Journey Circles DI-0039

Marquee Type DI-0104

Black Licorice IP-0041

Fusion Blender IP-0088

Lemon Drop IP-0026

Lovely Blue RI-0074

River Stone RI-0052

Black Licorice Journey Thread AC-0004

Lemon Drop CS-0018

Whip Cream CS-0040

Practice Practice Practice

I'm constantly practicing my paper crafting skills! One of those skills is Fun Stampers Journey's Fusion Blending solution and re-inkers coloring system released last year with their 2015-2016 catalog. 

When I first sat down to give them a try, I was terrible at it! I used way to much color on my brush which blurred the stamp lines and made streaks, but with continued practice this is what I can do today. 

Additionally, I tried a brand new technique which was to die cut a shape or sentiment directly from my image and raise it...an area I need more practice in because you can't really read the sentiment. On the above photo I added a white layer of the die so you could see what I mean. 

Next time I plan to use an image that has more white space which should make the sentiment stand out better. 

There's so much fun in playing and learning new techniques! Sometimes you nail it, sometimes you miss. This was a bit of a miss, but I had so much fun with it, I thought I'd share anyway. 

Fun Stampers Journey Supplies:

Summer Garden SS-0078

Spring Celebrations DI-0148

Black Licorice IP-0041

Fusion Blender IP-0088

Bubble Gum RI-0057

Watermelon Fusion RI-0008

Lemon Drop RI-0026

Sweet Pear RI-0053

Limeade Splash RI-0025

Kiwi Slice RI-0020

Green Olive RI-0071

Lovely Blue RI-0074

Pretty Amethyst RI-0023

Grape Fusion RI-0033

Happy Day

Ah spring! What a gorgeous season it is! I've been taking my afternoon walks around the neighborhood lately to get some fresh air, vitamin D and enjoy the flowers, birds and bees.  

In honor of those fuzzy, buzzing little critters I created this card using Fun Stampers Journey Summer Garden stamp set. 

This was quick and easy project to create...and fun! 

Supplies include floral paper from the Spring Parade pack and Watermelon Fusion Satin Ribbon; new from the summer catalog. I also added a few springs of greenery using the Border Details die set and put a little shine on the bees' wings with Journey Glaze. 

Hope you have time to get outside and enjoy spring! 

Fun Stampers Journey Supplies:

Summer Garden SS-0078

Journey Circles DI-0039

Border Details DI-0147

Black Licorice IP-0041

Fusion Blender IP-0088

Lemon Drop RI-0026

Summer Days RI-0042

Journey Glaze AD-0002

Watermelon Fusion Satin Ribbon AC-0183

Spring Parade PP-0020

Limeade Splash CS-0020

Kiwi Slice CS-0016

Whip Cream CS-0040

Thank You

Hello everyone! Wednesday already? Gettin' close to another weekend! 

Today I have a thank you card to share with you that I made with a bunch of yummy goodies from Fun Stampers Journey. 

Stars, embossing and ribbon, oh my! 

 This was a blast to create, except for the teeny little dots of Cool Pool Splash that I got on the carpet! Oops. If I do that again I might have to splatter the entire carpet to make it look like that's the way it's supposed to be! 

Speaking of the background...it was made with Cool Pool Paint, Splash and re-inker. 

Have a great hump day! 

Fun Stampers Journey Supplies:

Summer Garden SS-0078

Journey Circles DI-0039

Star-Dom DI-0052

Border Details DI-0147

Clear Pigment Ink IP-0102

Cool Pool Splash IP-0076

Cool Pool RI-0073

Cool Pool Paint JM-0020

Journey White Embossing Powder IP-0098

Journey Sequins AC-0115

Spring Accent Dots AC-0179

Candy Minis AC-0135

Sweet Berry Gingham Ribbon AC-0093

Bubble Gum CS-0099

Sweet Berry CS-0034

Citrus Cooler CS-0089

Cool Pool CS-0118

Whip Cream CS-0040