Today’s post is short and sweet, just like this flat card featuring Lil’ Inker Designs’ new Sweet Bee stamp set. The design team is blog hopping again today with samples of Sweet Bee and Cutie Cat, both perfect for Valentine crafts.
This little bee card in particular is great for class Valentines: cut and stamp the white panels, then let your kids go to town with their favorite coloring mediums while you make the red layers and sentiment flags. I had hoped my toddler would be able to help me out with a kids sample, but it turns out, he’s way too fond of his black marker.
If you’re hopping along, you should have come from Debby Hughes’s blog. And if you want more inspiration, head over to Teresa Kline’s blog for the next stop on our hop. We’re giving away a LID gift certificate and these two adorable sets to two lucky commenters, so don’t forget to leave yours along the hop. Then check back on Friday for an extra special Valentine treat!
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
Tagged with Lil' Inker Designs, Sneak Peeks, stamping.
By Sarah
– January 19, 2012
Happy Wednesday! It’s Lil’ Inker Designs release week, and today the design team is sharing samples from the latest 2 Cute 2 Ink stamp series. If you’re following our blog hop and leaving comments along the way for a chance to win prizes at the end of the week, then you should have just seen Debby’s clean and simple creation. And you can always get the full scoop on the new releases and the hop at the Lil’ Inker Shop Blog.
My cream-colored cutie is paper pieced and shaded with Copic markers. The paper piecing lets it stand out away from a busy background, but I will admit it’s not the easiest image to cut out. If you do decide to try it, I recommend just cutting through the tail where it meets the body to get at the negative space and holding it in place with adhesive.
Did you notice our new double-ended flag die cut tucked in behind the cat? It’s a great size for smaller cards, like this 4bar. I think you’ll be seeing a lot more of it in our samples this week. Now head on over to Teresa Kline’s blog for a truly gorgeous sample.
For even more inspiration, check out these posts from our design team:
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
Tagged with Lil' Inker Designs, Sneak Peeks, stamping.
By Sarah
– January 18, 2012
It’s the third Tuesday of the month, which means we’re back with another Runway Inspired Challenge. The last challenge generated loads of great, graphic cards in a crisp black and white color scheme. But this time, with a little help from my friends at Clear and Simple Stamps, we’re adding a whole spectrum of color!
Because the Christopher Kane inspiration piece uses a blended rainbow fabric, I really wanted a watercolor rainbow. After trying a few techniques (including actual watercolors) I settled on an old favorite: scribbling water-based markers on an acrylic block and misting with water. The results are different every time. Sometimes its a muddled mess, and others it’s a brilliant rainbow of color.
And of course, it’s hard to beat the build-your-own sentiments in CSS’s Lucky Charm stamp set. I played with using the markers to color each letter in the word rainbow, but water-based markers produce a very mottled, watercolor effect on clear stamps. Which is great if you’re working with solid florals, but not so much on small type.
I hope you’ll take a look at the different ways our design team interpreted this colorful challenge, and maybe even try it yourself:
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
Tagged with challenges, Clear and Simple Stamps, Runway Inspired, stamping.
By Sarah
– January 17, 2012
I’m so glad its finally Lil’ Inker release week so I can share all of the fun things Laura and her team have come up with. Today and tomorrow, the LID design team will be showcasing the next must-have stamp and die set, Flags and Tags. If you’re following the hop, you should have arrived from Jen del Muro’s blog. And if you didn’t, you can head to the Lil’ Inker Shop blog for the full introduction to the new set and blog hop.
It’s easy to exaggerate with all the new release excitement in the air, but Flags and Tags is one of those sets that I find myself sketching into more and more projects. I used two of the dies — the double-ended flag and giant flag — as well as the Valentine’s sentiment to sweeten my treat bag. I’ve seen a lot of cute favor and treat bags topped with folded or cut doilies, but that wasn’t enough for me. I layered my pink doily over the giant flag and topped it with a die cut heart and simply stamped double-ended flag.
Check back later in the week for more samples of the new Lil’ Inker releases. And head on over to the Lil’ Inker store to see the full release.
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
Tagged with Lil' Inker Designs, Sneak Peeks, stamping.
By Sarah
– January 16, 2012
Scroll down to see my card for the Runway Inspired Challenge.
I have something sweet featured on the Clear and Simple Stamps Daily App today. Check it out!
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
Tagged with Clear and Simple Stamps, Sneak Peeks.
By Sarah
– January 3, 2012
I’m smitten with the latest Runway Inspired Challenge, which is inspired by a fabulous striped frock from Gareth Pugh’s spring collection. What’s not to love about a graphic black and white stripe?
I went right for the stripes with this card, cutting and layering my patterned paper at different angles to recreate the pleats and folds of the inspiration piece. And instead of a stamped sentiment, I used these great foam Thickers to turn my hard into a bold hello.
I’m also swooning for the projects our Design Team created for the challenge.
Want to try your hand a a bold, black and white beauty? Give it a shot — the winner of this challenge gets a $15 gift certificate from Simon Says Stamp!
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
Tagged with challenges, Runway Inspired.
By Sarah
– January 3, 2012
Check it out! My festive project is being featured in the Clear and Simple Stamps iPhone App today. If you just got a new iPhone or iPad for Christmas, make sure you check out the CSS app for a daily dose of stamping inspiration.
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
Tagged with Clear and Simple Stamps, Sneak Peeks.
By Sarah
– December 27, 2011
The second Runway Inspired Challenge is live, and I’m finally able to share what I created. I was inspired by the mustard and olive colors, the white overlay on the dress, and the pattern of the fabric. It translated into a simple two-layer window card, filled with gold and green. And since we’re sponsored by The Twinery this week, I had an extra challenge element to work in.
To make my card, I cut a round window in the white panel and backed it with a piece of white cardstock stamped with a yellow fabric pattern and green sentiment. I wrapped a bit of baker’s twine from The Twinery below the sentiment and filled the negative space with felt holly leaves and a mustard button. And then I mounted the whole thing is on an olivey-green card base.
I hope you get a chance to play along during the holidays, but if you don’t, there will be another one coming your way in two weeks.
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
Tagged with challenges, Market Street Stamps, Runway Inspired, stamping, twine.
By Sarah
– December 20, 2011
Have you heard that Market Street Stamps has a new release this month? The Design Team is sharing sneak peeks all week, and today we’re focusing on the new Believing Butterfly mini set. All of the new sets you see this week will be available for purchase Thursday night.
I used an inked acrylic block technique to create my background: cover an acrylic block with Distress ink, then mist with water and stamp it on cardstock. Before I stamped my block, I dripped a bit of silver Smooch Shimmerz spray over the surface. The effect can be soft, like the card above, or very intense depending on the amount of ink and water you apply to the block. The subtle versions make a great background for long sentiment and quote stamps.
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
Tagged with Market Street Stamps, Sneak Peeks, stamping.
By Sarah
– December 19, 2011
Hooray!
It’s finally Friday! And the last day of the Lil’ Inker December Blog Hop, featuring our newest releases. I hope you’ve been hopping along with us to see all of the fun ways to use the new images from Lil’ Inker and 2 Cute Ink. Today we’re featuring projects made with Cocoa Bear. If you didn’t hop here from Alicia Thelin’s blog, start back at Laura’s blog to get the full scoop, including how you could win one of the two $10 Lil’ Inker gift certificates just by leaving comments.
For my final project, I made a 4″ x 5″ cocoa pouch to show off a paper pieced Cocoa Bear. I used four different colors and textures of cardstock to bring him to life. Cutting all of his winter gear makes it a challenging paper piecing project, but the image is perfect for paper piecing to add depth.
And because I could just leave him along, I used watercolor pencils to add a little shading and blush to his furry face and feet. It’s just one more great way to color these adorable images.
If you’ve made it this far, you’re near the end of our week-long hop. Just one more stop at the LID Store, then you’re done. And if you’ve been leaving comments along the way, you’ve improved your chances of winning the gift certificates we’re giving away during the hop. Not to mention spreading a little love for Lil’ Inker.
Posted in Crafty, Stamping.
By Sarah
– December 16, 2011
Today’s post is short and sweet, just like this flat card featuring Lil’ Inker Designs’ new Sweet Bee stamp set. The design team is blog hopping again today with samples of Sweet Bee and Cutie Cat, both perfect for Valentine crafts.
I’m Sarah Jay.
