Tuesday, February 22, 2011

The winner is....

Someone who loved the brayered cards the best....

Farley!

The random number generator picked number 28.  With 23 comments on the post, that meant the winner would be the fifth person on my "like" list on facebook.

Congratulations to Farley!

She liked the brayered cards the best, so I'll be sending her those cards along with a special little something that I hope she enjoys.  I think if she liked these on the blog, she will love them in person.

I have a tutorial that's thisclose to being finished.  I'll share that with you soon.  Hope you're enjoying the day!

Monday, February 14, 2011

Share the Love - A Club Scrap Blog Hop

Welcome to what I hope will be the first of many Club Scrap blog hops!  Today, there are a dozen ladies  who are sharing their love of Club Scrap with the blogosphere.  I'm not going to count (the number would be way too high!), but I will show you some of the ways I love Club Scrap in this post.

First of all, I love how versatile Club Scrap stamps are.  I set up a mini-challenge for myself, picking some of my favorite materials and a single stamp from the Lotus Pond collection.

Using those supplies, and some paper, I made a mountain of card fronts, eventually selecting the seven that I'll share with you today.  Although they all share some elements, I think they're all unique and evoke a different vibe.

To start with, I used some metallic reinkers from Club Scrap on some black glossy paper.  The card in the center was created by brayering ink on the paper, stamping my image, and before lifting the stamp, I slid it over to create a black halo around the stamped image.  The image on the far left was just stamped after inking the rubber with the brayer.  For the image on the far right, both of these techniques are combined.  I didn't like how the halo effect turned out on this image, so I used a strip of plain stamped paper to spotlight part of the image.  These were really challenging to photograph, and this shot doesn't really do them justice.  In real life, they are shimmery and pop with color.

Of course, you can just stamp and color the image with watercolors.  To make the edges of the paper pop, I used some pink blush pigment ink and an ink applicator.  I liked the idea of torn edges, so I tore them all!

I also thought of this image being really soft to fit with the water theme.  The next two cards are stamped with the metallic reinkers, and matted on soft papers to emphasize the ephemeral look I was going for.  I love how the pink translucent paper allows the matted lilies to seemingly float on the paper, and how it subtly continues the pattern of the image.  Because the stamp and paper are both from Club Scrap, I know that the images and colors will coordinate beautifully.

I purposely went really simple on this card.  Just a stamped image, with a heartfelt greeting.  I love to have a few thank you cards around for quick notes to friends and family.

Finally, I had to use water colors on this water image.  I misted the stamp with water, colored with the Faber Castell Gelatos, misted again, and then stamped.  Too much water will leave you with a muddy image; too little will not activate the colors properly, so practice a bit and have fun!  Another nifty thing about Club Scrap paper is that it has two sides!  This white paper is from the Steppin' Out collection, and it is perfect for watercoloring.  Since only the print version of the paper is now available, I use the blank "back" side for these cards.  These watercolors are bold colors, so I added a bright pink mat to make the colors pop even more, and some ribbon for an embellishment.


When I joined Club Scrap in 2004, I had no idea that I would develop so many papercrafting skills or meet so many wonderful people who share my passion for paper.  I'd like to share the love with you - check out the links above to find the supplies at Club Scrap, and be sure to check out the next blog in line - Making Impressions - and all of the other artwork online.

Finally, leave me a comment letting me know which Lotus Pond card is your favorite, and I'll enter you in a giveaway to win your favorite card plus two more for your own use.  Become a friend of Lift Bridge Cards and Crafts on facebook to earn an extra entry!  I'll close entries on Monday, February 21st at 7pm eastern time, and announce the winner shortly after that.

2011 - Share the Love Blog Hop Participants!