Ingenious Inkling

Relax & Enjoy

SmilynStef — Sat, 18 May 2013 21:17:30 -0500

It always feels so good to be back in my studio after traveling ... while I love expressing my creativity through photography while I'm away, nothing beats getting inky.

I used this week's Retro Sketch together with the CAS-ual Fridays Challenge to stamp on patterned paper to create a Father's day card.

I stamped Hero Arts Cloud Background on a piece of designer paper from Fancy Pants Park Bench Collection for the background ... I love the patterned clouds. The Party Grill is a great die cut from Memory Box. I finished with an SRM Sticker Summer Sentiment that seemed perfect for the occasion.

Thinking of Blue

SmilynStef — Sat, 18 May 2013 07:05:00 -0500

This week's Unscripted Sketch has so many possibilities.

I decided to go with a modified Inchie-like grid on the left size by cutting my Stamp-It Australia Butterfly Frame into six equal parts and attaching it to a kraft card base.

On the right side of the card I embossed navy cardstock with the Floral Frenzy Embossing Folder. I finished with a sentiment from Sentiment Swirls and a Die Cut Kaleidoscope Butterfly embellished with pearls.

Vibrant Holiday

SmilynStef — Thu, 16 May 2013 23:01:00 -0500

We're still celebrating Merry & Bright at Jingle Belles this week. When I saw this dazzling Gelato Background by the talented Roxie, I knew it would be the perfect technique for this week's card.

I used Red, Orange and Yellow Gelatos on Watercolor Paper and blended with a baby wipe. Once the Gelatos were dry, I stamped Fresh Squeezed Holiday Subway Art in India Ink and clear embossed. All that was left to do was attach my panel to a white card base using foam tape.

Thursday Link Love

SmilynStef — Thu, 16 May 2013 08:00:00 -0500

Another week of fun blog finds:

14 PhotoShop Shortcuts
Tutorial for a Traveling White Board ... perfect for long trip entertainment
Would love to try this Kung Pao Chicken Recipe that doesn't involved fried, breaded chicken.
Ever since making a Macrame Owl in Girl Scouts, I have loved rope & knots ... so this Ombre Rope Knot Necklace would be a perfect accesory
Tutorial for gorgeous butterfly art (shown) ... but the free butterflies would also be perfect for cards
Free downloadable scenes for your adorable Origami Animals
S'Mores Bundt Cake ... why does every cake taste better when cooked in a Bundt pan?
A fantastic Art Journal Page celebrating the rainbow (and the rain).
Bacon S'mores ... and many more options ... and 50 more S'mores recipes here ... appararently it's a good week for S'mores on the internet.
Lots of lovely triangle inspiration.
Fabulous 3-D Paper Landscape

Have a terrific Thursday.

17 Mile Drive

SmilynStef — Wed, 15 May 2013 12:01:27 -0500

Since we were staying in Carmel ... how could we not take the 17 Mile Drive. It was a perfect morning with minimal traffic and limited fog ... near perfect. I could sit and watch the waves roll in for days.

I particularly love seeing the waves hit the rocky shoreline ... and trying to time my photos mid-splash.

A park ranger even let us use his binoculars to see some otters floating in the kelp forest.

There were lots of birds on Bird Rock

Glad to see the Lone Cyprus was still hanging in there (with the help of some chains and ropes).

What a marvelous morning.

Design Inspiration

SmilynStef — Tue, 14 May 2013 22:21:09 -0500

On our walk around San Francisco this afternoon, I saw so much design inspiration ... it really made me miss my studio ... so instead I captured the inspiration in photographs, so I could take the inspiration with me.

This was the window display at the Tory Burch store ... loved all of the white with some pop of color ... and those amazing paper flowers.

There was also this wonderful quote (and lots of bold vibrant summer colors) at the Kate Spade store.

These sassy dresses were from Red Valentino.

I forgot to capture the name fo this store, but I loved the wonderful colors and textures of the leather ensambles ... and I love the reflections of the city in the store window.

This entire Farinelli storefront was inspiring ... there was a little scene in each window ... and what appeared to be lots of intricate glass plates lined-up above the doorway.

And of course after all of that inspiration, I had to stop at Melt for a little gelato ... Peanut Butter & Grape Jelly on top with a scoop of rich dark chocolate on the bottom ... yum.

Another great day in San Francisco.

More California Adventures

SmilynStef — Mon, 13 May 2013 22:25:50 -0500

We've spent the last few days enjoying San Jose and Carmel, California ... and we've been told by the locals that thel weather has been exceptional (however after the recent snow in Iowa, it honestly wouldn't take much for us to consider sunny warm weather exceptional).

Today we explored Carmel and then took the drive down Highway 1 to Big Sur ... it was windy & foggy, but we had a few great moments to catch the view.

And it wouldn't be vacation if I didn't find some new shoes ... love my new orange driving moccasins.

The flowers are gorgeous ... so many in bloom.

The rose bushes are so large that they are trimmed like trees ... we saw them in almost every color.

They smelled wonderful too.

And I will confess that on my late afternoon shopping jaunt, more shoes were purchased ... these are from an Italian company called Wonders ... and so comfortable.

... and the fog cleared tonight, so we could see the sunset over the ocean in Carmel.

Cheers

SmilynStef — Sun, 12 May 2013 08:00:00 -0500

This card is a sneak peek of some awesome new Crafter's Companion sets that will be releasing in the US on May 15th. The collection is called Camden Town and includes fabulous sets for both the men & women in your life. I chose to use sentiments from all of the sets together with a great bucket of beer image that will be perfect for lots of the men in my life ... they do love their micro-brews.

I'm still enjoying improving my Spectrum Noir coloring skills ..., here are the markers i used for this design. I added a wrap of twine to pull in more of the golden colors.

Here's a sneak peak of the entire set ... so many fun images.

And remember, the May Challenge at the Crafter's Companion blog is Masculine ... with Father's Day nearing, it's a great time to get those cards ready to go.

Magnolia Way Butterflies

SmilynStef — Sat, 11 May 2013 07:03:00 -0500

I'm still loving my DCWV Magnolia Way papers for this week's Unscripted Sketch card design.

The papers are so lovely, all I had to add was a stamped sentiment, dimensional butterfly and some lovely green pearls to complete the design.

California Dreamin'

SmilynStef — Fri, 10 May 2013 17:40:50 -0500

I'm off on a little adventure to California. We started by staying along the Embarcadero, so we could get the full experience of the Bay Bridge Lights at night. We love staying at Kimpton hotels and the Harbor Court did not disappoint (can you say Anchor Steam beer during *wine* hour).

We had supper at Epic Roasthouse which was delicious and continued our fabulous view. I loved my Tuna Tartare with Mango Salsa ... and some scrumptious Pate.

Yesterday, the weather was amazing, so I took an all day walking tour of San Francisco with The Real San Francisco Tour Company. It was lots of walking (including some crazy stairs and hills), but it was a fabulous way to get to see lots of neighborhoods in a compact period of time ... and I got some great photos.

We started with a cable card ride and a walk through China Town ... it was fun to see them making fortune cookies by hand.

Next we headed to the Italian neighborhood of San Franciso where there was some amazing street art.

I really loved these phrases on the sidewalk that looked like they were written on some kind of tape.

We also stopped at the Artist & Craftsman Supply Store ... but only stayed long enough to check out the concreted tunnels in the basement. She did however give me her card & told me they ship.

We visited the San Francisco Art Institute where there was a gorgeous mural by Diego Rivera on display.

And a fantastic view from the SFAI rooftop including this shot I took of two sailboats training for the America's Cup. As I was editing my photos, I realized the boat on the right is the Artemis ... the one that experienced a fatal capsize later in the day.

We also enjoyed some amazing ice cream from Smitten, where the machines freeze the delictible treat using liquid nitrogen for some of the smoothest ice cream I've ever experienced.

We also saw lots of gorgeous spring blooms ... these roses were blooming in a public park.

We experienced many amazing views frin a variety of vantage points including this one from the top of Lombard Street.

Or this one from Dolores Park.

The public art was my favorite part of the tour ... like this stunning mural at the San Francisco Women's Center.

Seeing an original Banksy made my day.

The Balmy Alley Murals were also amazing.

Such a great mix of styles and colors.

We also enjoyed seeing the various neighborhoods like the fun store front windows in the Castro.

All-in-all a great way to spend the day if you just want to get an overall feel of the various neighborhoods in San Francisco.