Ink N' Scrap Habits

Tis The Season For Hearts!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 09:00:04 PST

Hi Everyone!

Hope you're all having a great Thursday!

There's a new challenge on the DRS Designs blog and this weeks theme is Hearts! I created the card below for the challenge. I guess it could be a Valentines Day card even though it doesn't say Happy Valentines Day, or an anniversary card would be appropriate as well.

I admit, the technique and layout idea are not my own. I cased a card I received a long time ago from a friend on the Stamp-Shack, who has passed away. I've been meaning to case her card for a while, but I just never had the right stamps/inspiration to create it until now.

The first thing I did was stamp the Love Is Patient (201H) saying on glossy cardstock with red ink. Once it was dry, I cut it out and inked the edges with Worn Lipstick Distressing Ink. I then stamped the Filigree Heart (599E) using Versamark ink and heat embossed it with clear embossing powder. Then to make it stand out against the glossy cardstock, I sponged on top of the heart again with the Worn Lipstick ink.

Doesn't the heart look really nice sponged this way? I matted this piece with black cardstock and embellished it with a punchie from the SU! Word Window Punch and a red heart brad. I used red cardstock for the card base and stamped the lower front side of it with the Heart Drops image (344K).

This is such a simple card, yet it has so much detail. I hope you enjoyed seeing it!

Good luck in the heart challenge if you decide to play! Check out what DRS Designs is giving away for the prize HERE!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Half A Year, Already!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:00:03 PST

Just a quick post today to show you who has been occupying all my time lately.

Here is my favorite 6 month picture of Anthony.

He'll actually be 7 months old this Sunday, January 29th.

As his Doctor said recently..."It's time to start planning that first Birthday party!"

YIKES! ;-)

Smiles,

Jennifer

Get Your Irish On!!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 18:43:47 PST

Hi Everyone!

Today I'm thinking green and sharing one of the St. Patty's Day cards I recently made. The big Green Day will be here before you know it and we'll have corned beef and cabbage in the crock pot and green beer to wash it down! LOL, Just kidding! To be honest, I'm not really a fan of either one! I make it for my Hubby who loves it and St. Patty's Day even though neither one of us is Irish.

So, anyways, back to my card...I'm really happy with how it turned out. Sometimes the layouts I draw up in my notebook don't work out as planned, but this one seemed to come together nicely. All of the stamps I used on this card are by DRS Designs. They include the Swirly Shamrocks (983F), the Easy Shamrock Background (326H), and the Irish On Greeting (1005D). The Shamrocks were colored with Copic Markers and the edges of each panel were distressed with green ink. So very festive, don't you think?

Well, that's all for today. Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate your visit.

Smiles,
Jennifer

Snowman Challenge!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:45:41 PST

Have you heard of a Center Step Card? I received 2 hand stamped Christmas cards this past year using this technique, and it was just the inspiration I needed to try something different! I used the instructions found on SCS to create my Snowman card for this weeks DRS Blog challenge. This is such a fun card! I love how it turned out!

Here's what I did...The card base was created from black cardstock, and I stamped the center panel with the Interlocking Snow Background (015H). I cut small strips of white cardstock embossed with the Snowflake Cuttlebug embossing folder to decorate the side panels. The Warm Wishes Sentiment (611D) used here is actually one stamp that I split apart so that I could stamp it as shown on the red panel used to decorate the bottom of the card base. For the center image, I stamped the Silhouette Snowflake Snowman (247K) on Vellum, using white Staz On ink. I layered it on black cardstock, cut it out with an oval Nestie and added red twine for a scarf and 3 black brads for buttons. I matted it with a white scalloped oval which really made the snowman and his red scarf pop! Best part about this card is that it measures A2 size, so no need to purchase a separate envelope for mailing...Gotta like that!

Just to show you how unique this card is, I took a picture of the side view.

Hope you enjoyed seeing this card! Give it a try, it looks so much more difficult than it really is and I'm sure it will become one of your favorites as well.

Smiles,
Jennifer

Loyalty, Love, and Friendship

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:04:42 PST

The beginning of this month, DRS Designs released new stamps for Valentines Day and St. Patrick's Day. One of the new stamps is the Claddah (991F), which symbolizes loyalty, love and friendship. I used this stamp as the focal point on today's card. The DRS Blog Challenge this week is paper piecing and I thought the claddah image would look great using this technique.

Not only did I paper piece the heart, and crown, but I also pieced the Swirly Shamrocks (983F) in the background. Nothing like taking the challenge to the extreme, but I'm not quite sure I like how the background turned out--this may have been one step too far! LOL. The sentiment I used is the One Line St. Pat's Day (636D) and I thought it helped break up the starkness of the yellow panel along with a few green brads. Overall, I really like the layout of this card. I might have to put it to use again.

DRS Designs is giving away a $10 store voucher to a selected winner for this challenge. Click HERE to check it out. Good Luck to you if you decide to play!

Smiles,
Jennifer

Irish Blessing

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 21:19:18 PST

How many of you received new stamping/papercrafting supplies over the holiday? I received gift cards to my favorite scrapbooking store and Hobby Lobby. They were just what I needed to keep me inspired. I also received some new rubber from DRS Designs--Nothing says inspiration to me like new stamps! Have you seen the stamps in DRS Designs new release? If you enjoy stamping for Valentine's Day and St. Patrick's Day then this release is for you! You can see everything that's included HERE.

Here's the card my new found inspiration created. I'm using it to show off the new Irish Blessing (1009K) stamp. I stamped the background using the Shamrock Background (326H), and it is so easy! Just a little green ink and each impression lines up perfectly. No Stamp-a-ma-jig needed! I couldn't help but use twine on this card. I haven't used it in forever and it matches perfectly. I think it's a nice touch.

Well, that's it for today. I have to keep things short and sweet these days!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Smiles,
Jennifer

Great Friends Drink Alike!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 19:48:19 PST

It's that time again...DRS Designs has another sponsorship opportunity for you to win a $20 shopping voucher for Free! How to do it, you ask...Just create a card using the sketch below and link it up on the Card Patterns blog for your chance to win.

I'm not eligible to win the $20 voucher, but I played along anyways. Here's my take on this sketch. I love when a Clean and simple card turns out great! I still love the layered (and layered) look but sometimes there's just not enough time for that. That's what happened with this card.

I used the new Great Friends Drink Alike (707F) and the Margarita Glass (017G) stamps from DRS Designs. Both were colored with Copic Markers. I deviated from the sketch a bit and used the Margarita glass as the focal point and then used the 3 buttons to embellish my card front.

Best part about those buttons is that the orange twine isn't really orange! I bought a large spool of white twine and colored a portion of it with my YR16 Copic Marker before tying it thru the button holes. Now I can have the perfect colored twine to match any project!

Well, I hope you've enjoyed today's post and that I've encouraged you to enter this weeks Card Patterns Sketch Challenge. I'll be back soon showing off more of DRS Designs new releases soon.

Have a wonderful day!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Love In The Spotlight

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 19:45:19 PST

Love is in the air with Valentine's Day just around the corner. Have you started making your Valentine's yet? I have a few underway for the special loves in my life. Here is one of them I made for DRS Designs Blog challenge this week. We've been challenged to use the Spotlight Technique.

All stamps on this card are by DRS Designs. For the Spotlight I used the new Stacked Love (980H) stamp and colored it with Copic Markers. The stamped background was created using the Interlocking hearts background (808H). I really like the The One Line Valentine Greeting (996D), which is also new. Isn't that a fun font?

If you'd like to play along for a chance to win free stamps, please link your Spotlight card HERE:

Thanks for stopping by and good luck!

Smiles,
Jennifer

Tree of Hearts

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 20:43:24 PST

Hi everyone!

Just in time for the New Year, DRS Designs has released some new stamps! With the holidays behind us, the next card making holiday is Valentine's Day. Now is the time to start making your Valentines! I made this Valentine with stamps from DRS Designs new release.

I used the Valentine Tree (976H) as my focal image and used the Stacked Love (980H) to create the background. Both were colored with Copic Markers. I couldn't help but continue with the heart theme I had going with this card and use a heart embossing folder to add a little texture. Ribbon is always a nice touch as well. The One Line Valentine Greeting (996D) is also part of this new release. Hope I've inspired you to check out DRS Designs new stamps!

Thanks for stopping by!

Smiles,
Jennifer

Snowflakes!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 21:13:48 PST

Happy New Year!
There's a new challenge posted at the DRS Designs Blog. This week it's a call for SNOWFLAKES! It's out of sorts for me to create a card like this right now, as our Winter is off to a very mild start. It's strange to not have snow on the ground yet either--nothing but some flurries, and trust me I'm not complaining! Something tells me that when the snow does start to fall, we are in for a treat--according to the Farmer's Almanac, we are supposed to have a lot of snow this Winter. I'd be happy if the only snow we receive is the ones we make on paper! LOL! Anyways, here's my Snowflake challenge card...

...all stamps used on this card are by DRS Designs. I created my own own background by heat embossing the interlocking snow background (015H) on white cardstock. Then, I sponged blue ink all over it. I used the Snowflake Cuttlebug Embossing folder to add some raised texture to the middle panel, and the focal point is the Stepping Back In Time Greeting (674H).

Here's a close up of this beautiful Winter verse:

If you're in the mood to create Winter cards this week, I encourage you to play along in DRS Designs Snowflake challenge. If you're interested in making Valentine's Day and St. Patty's Day cards soon, please see all of DRS Designs new stamps HERE. I'll be showing off some of those stamps tomorrow.

Ta ta for now...thanks for stopping by!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Jolly Santa Face!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 21:38:43 PST

Yeah, I know, Christmas is over, but I didn't get a chance to show off my last Christmas card design. So, here it is a few days late. I promise to keep it short and sweet!

The Santa Face (541E) and this One Line Merry Christmas sentiment (364B) are by DRS Designs. I colored the image with Copic Markers and keep the overall design of this card simple--hey, I had to make a lot of cards this year, and postage is getting expensive! LOL!

Isn't he cute? I only wish I had time to add white flock to his hat. Now wouldn't that be fun?!?!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Heat Embossed Poinsettia

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 20:01:23 PST

In the hustle and bustle of the Christmas Holiday this week, I was able to complete my heat embossed challenge card for DRS Designs blog challenge. I used the Stain Glass Window technique.

The Giant Poinsettia image (093M) was heat embossed with fine black embossing powder on Vellum. Then I turned it over and colored it with Copic Markers on the back side. Turning it over is an important step, because the alcohol in the markers causes the black embossing to smear into the image. Turning the vellum over prevents this, yet the color appearance practically looks the same. I used the SU! Top Note die to cut out the image and then embossed the Merry Christmas Arc (102E) above it.

Then I used a vellum glue stick to adhere white cardstock to the back side completing the stained glass look. This was adhered to a red card front and I added a green ribbon tied in a knot to the top. I created an A2 green cardstock base to match and my card was complete. Simple, yet very festive! I hope you too, get to play in this challenge--deadline is this Wednesday Dec. 29th.

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas full of all things wonderful!

Thanks for visiting today!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Merry Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 04:00:09 PST

Couldn't help but share my Santa Baby with you today!

Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New year!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Christmas Candy Canes

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 08:32:25 PST

Finally, the last of my Christmas cards were sent out just last night! Nothing like waiting til the last minute! Every year I say that I'm going to start them early, but I never do, and then I'm rushing around trying to get them done the week before Christmas. Perhaps next year will be different because I have some card bases and some colored and matted images left over from making this Candy Cane card. Look at that...I'm already ahead for next year!

The Candy Cane image (552H) and the Small Merry Christmas sentiment (520D) are both from DRS Designs. The image was colored with Copic Markers and I embossed the bottom of the card front with the Candy Cane Stripe Cuttlebug Embossing Folder. Since I made so many of this card design and since they were going to be mailed, I wanted to keep the embellishments simple--no bumps and had to keep it lightweight to avoid extra postage. I thought the red satin ribbon was a nice touch.
If you were one of the lucky ones to receive this design, I hope you like it!

Hope you all have a sweet Christmas!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Red, White and Green "Holly"days!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:15:56 PST

The DRS Designs Blog Challenge this week is to create RED, WHITE, and GREEN cards. I thought this would be an easy one since many of us are making Christmas cards right now. I'm still trying to finish mine up and get them in the mail! Yes, I know I only have 5 days left! I made 3 different Christmas cards to send to all my stamping friends this year. Here's one of them that I made--it's perfect for the Red, White, and Green Challenge.

I used 3 stamps from DRS Designs on this card:

Girl Swirl Holly (887G) was colored with Copic Markers

Happy "Holly"days Greeting (888B)

Open Plaid Background (631P) was stamped with SU! Real Red ink.

Thanks for stoppin' by today. I know this is a busy time of year for everyone, so your visit is much appreciated!

Have a great day!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Polka Dot Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 20:49:37 PST

Hi Everyone!

Hope the Holiday season is going well for you. I know it has me quite busy! But, I did find a little bit of time to create another Christmas card for DRS Designs second blog challenge.

This week's challenge is Polka Dots!

My challenge card uses the 3 stamps that one lucky participant will win:

Candy Canes (552H)

Polka Dot Background (688P)

and the Small Merry Christmas Greeting (520D)

I colored the candy canes with Copic Markers and used the Polka dot background stamp to make my own patterned paper using red and green ink. I also thought about using the Swiss Dots Cuttlebug embossing folder and polka dot ribbon, but I didn't want to over do it. See, adding polka dots is easy! Make sure to run over to the DRS Blog to link your polka dot card for a chance to win. You have until Wednesday, December 14th, 5pm EST to enter.

Good Luck and Thanks for stopping by.

Smiles,

Jennifer

Faux Sewing Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 09:23:25 PST

I know everyone likes to win free stuff and even better for us stampers is winning free stamping stuff! Today on the DRS Designs blog a new challenge begins every Thursday where one lucky participant will win a free package of stamps!

This weeks challenge is Faux Sewing! I love the ease of this technique and not having to drag out my sewing machine just to get that sewing look! Here's my card.

The DRS Designs stamps I've used on this card are the Santa in your Stockings Greeting (118F), the Santa Face (541E), and the Woven Plaid Background (613P). If any of these stamps spark your interest I encourage you to play along and link your Faux Sewing challenge card for a chance to win! The 3 stamps used on the card above are the prize we're giving away for this challenge.
You can find the challenge post HERE.

Thanks for blog hoppin' and stoppin' here. I appreciate your visit!

Smiles,
Jennifer

Snowman Smiles

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 03:00:02 PST

Some great new Winter stamps are now available for purchase from DRS Designs! You can check them all out HERE. The card I have to show you today shows off the new Snowman Smiles greeting (962G). Even though this is another CAS card, I love it!

To make this card I started with a piece of white cardstock and stamped the Snowman Smiles greeting on one side and Stretch the Round Button Snowman (1129H) on the other. Stretch was colored with Copic Markers. I then masked the snowman and stamped the Interlocking Snow background (015H) over the entire piece with Versamark ink (However, the snowflakes didn't photograph very well!). I added a snow mound using one of the snowflake Cuttlebug embossing folders. I ripped off a small portion of it to adhere to the bottom. I used a snowflake border punch to dress up the top along with some elegant red ribbon. After adhering this card front to a red cardstock base, I went crazy with the Stickles--I love how this card just sparkles!

Hope your holidays are off to a great start!

Have a wonderful day!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Snow Doubt About It!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 05:00:00 PST

Need an idea for a Winter birthday card? Here's a CAS one I recently created with stamps from DRS Designs. The Snow Doubt Birthday Greeting (964D) is a new release.

I stamped the sentiment on white cardstock and then stamped the Interlocking Snowflakes (015H) with blue ink around it. Next, I created the blue layer by heat embossing the Interlocking Snowflakes with clear embossing powder and then sponging it with blue ink. I used a decorative border punch on the bottom and then embellished this layer using the Snowflake Ribbon Slide (932D). It too was heat embossed however I used white embossing powder instead and then I cut out the center so that I could slide it on white grosgrain ribbon. I added a blue gem to the center and then wrapped it around the snowflake background. The 2 layers were adhered together as shown and a white brad was added to each of the upper corners. For the final step I attached the card front to a blue cardstock base. Finished card size is 4.25" x 5.5".

Have a great day!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Leave A Path

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 03:00:16 PST

Extra, Extra, read all about it...new stamps were just released from DRS Designs!

Run over to their new release page to see all of the new designs.

As soon as I saw the new Hiker Boot Prints (946D) stamp I knew right away that I wanted to pair it up with the Leave A Path Greeting (860G). I thought this was perfect because December isn't only about the holidays--for some students, like my cousin, it also means Graduation. She's a scrapbooker too and I know she'll appreciate a hand stamped Graduation card from me. An added bonus for this card is that it's Clean and Simple--lately those are becoming my favorite kind! This finished card measures 4.25" x 5.5".

Stay tuned as I show off more of these new stamps in the upcoming days!

I appreciate you stopping by!

Until next time,

Smiles,

Jennifer

Penguin Warm Wishes

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 03:00:03 PST

DRS Designs is getting ready for another release of some great winter stamps. They will be available for purchase Nov. 19th. One of the stamps included is the adorable Penguin Snowball Blast (966K) that you can see on today's card.

I started by coloring the entire image with Copic Markers. I even outlined each of the ice blocks with C1, a light gray marker, but I didn't like the look. Plus, it just looked like it needed something. Once I added Stickles to it, this image really came to life! The glistening snow was just what it needed!

After matting the colored image, I stamped the 4 in 1 Snowflakes (096D) repeatedly to create my own designer paper to add behind the image. I stamped a piece of white card stock with Warm Wishes in dark blue ink in the lower right corner and then used a snowflake embossing folder to add texture to it. Then I adhered the matted image on an angle as shown and added some blue brads to help pick out the blue in the image. Finally, the card front was adhered on to an A2 size cardstock base. I really liked the final look to this card. I'm sure it will help beat the Winter Blues when the time comes and brighten up anyone's day! Hope you like it!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Glitter Trees

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 03:00:17 PST

Sometimes simple is better and now that I'm a Mom I'm finding this to be more true everyday! With this latest release from DRS Designs, many of the cards I made were of the Clean and Simple (CAS) type rather than the layered look that I love. It's been difficult to find adequate time for stamping, working full time at my real job, and being Mommy all at the same time. Therefore, I seem to be exploring the CAS aspect of card making more often these days!

Today's card is definitely CAS! The glittered trees stamp I've used as the focal point is DRS Designs new Vertical Triple Tree stamp (876H). I stamped it in blue ink and masked off the edges with Post-It Notes before sponging blue ink around the image. Once I took the Post-It Notes off I had an elegant white frame all the way around my image. I then stamped Warm Wishes (611D) in the empty space at the bottom. I matted this stamped piece with blue cardstock and added a blue brad in each of the upper corners. I think this piece really took on a lot of elegance once I added Stickles to the trees to create a Winter scene.

For the card front, I used white cardstock and stamped it with the 4 In 1 Snowflakes (096D) using the stamp-off technique. Unfortunately, these snowflakes are hard to see in the pictures. I then used a decorative border punch to the right side and adhered it to a piece of light blue cardstock. I tied blue ribbon in a knot to fill in the white space next to the decorative border and attached the entire card front to a dark blue cardstock base. Overall this was a pretty quick and easy card to make. I love all the blues together and the glitter is just the icing on the cake!

Thanks for stopping by!

Smiles,
Jennifer

Scarecrow Thanksgiving

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 09:47:11 PST

Here's my attempt at this weeks Splitcoast Sketch Challenge SC357. The focal design should be more towards the right side, but, it is what it is. Now that Halloween is over it's time to start thinking about Thanksgiving cards. All stamps on this card are by DRS Designs.

I colored the Split Scarecrow (054K) with Copic Markers. I stamped the Thanksgiving Arc (050E) on the background panel above the image, and stamped the Polka Dot background (688P) on the card front panel. I added a brown strip of ribbon above it and embellished the empty space to the tight of the image with a spiral clip with ribbon wrapped around it.

Have you started making Thanksgiving cards yet?

Thanks for stopping by to see my first one!

Smiles,

Jennifer

Merry Christmoose!

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 04:00:13 PDT

Calling all moose lovers, this one's for you!

Here's a Christmas card I made using the new Circle Christmoose (834L) stamp from DRS Designs. I love this stamp! I think that moose is adorable in his sweater and scarf! Don't you? I colored it with copic markers and then cut the image part out. I stamped it again on white cardstock, colored the background light blue and then adhered the image portion to it with foam tape for dimension. The snowy background was created by stamping the Interlocking Snowflakes (015H) with Versamark ink and heat embossing them with clear embossing powder.

I kept things rather simple on this card and used some red ribbon and red brads to embellish it. CAS is not my regular style of card making, but Anthony and working full time at my real job is consuming a lot of my time these days. I'm enjoying creating my cards a bit differently and now I really cherish the time I have to myself to stamp. But, stay tuned...I've been trying to stay focused and have been working diligently on the next release from DRS Designs. More cards coming soon!
Thanks for stopping by!
Smiles,
Jennifer

Stain Glass Happy Halloween

noreply@blogger.com (Jennifer E.) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 02:00:05 PDT

Whenever I have a decent amount of time in my stamp room, I like trying new techniques and card styles whenever I can. I use the resource list from SCS often and recently found the Stained Glass Window technique. I used it to create this Halloween card.

I stamped this adorable Jack O'Lantern and Black Cat image from Serendipity Stamps on vellum with Versamark ink and then heat embossed it with fine black embossing powder. Then to create the look of the stained glass I turned the image over and colored the back side of it with Copic Markers. I used a vellum glue stick to then adhere it to a white piece of cardstock. Using the Happy Halloween stamp (042A) from DRS Designs, I created the sentiment tag the same way.

The black panel was trimmed using a decorative border punch and then run thru my Cuttlebug with the Swiss Dots embossing folder. I added 3 orange brads to the far right side and then adhered it to an orange cardstock base. I added purple and white polka dot ribbon to the top of the black panel with a knot and layered the colored image to the left side of the card front. I placed the sentiment tag as shown and then added 4 black rhinestones above the image. I really like the stained glass look. I'm eager to give this a try on a Christmas card. Have you ever tried this technique? Let me know if you have a send me a link if you can. I'd love to see your stained glass work!

Have a wonderful day and thanks for stopping by!

Smiles,

Jennifer