In Shades of Gray

This week I was intrigued by the weekly CAS594 ('Cloudy Days') challenge at Splitcoaststampers.  Plus, I'm sharing one of the new July release stencils from A Colorful Life Designs.  Sounded like a different color mix to try!

Being a foliage & floral lover, I tend to use a lot of greens in my stamping, but I like this switch to shades of gray!  I traced & fussy cut a large mask so the central image would be set forward of the others.  The cool thing about this 'Ferns' stencil is that it includes 3 different fern images!  Here on my Texas turf I have only full, blazing sun, so live ferns are just beautiful memories of beautiful places.  

  My mini Misti allowed me to perfectly stamp the tiny sentiment in VersaMark on the very first try.  I so adore that awesome tool.  The words were heat embossed with Gina K's Detail White embossing powder .... another favorite product of mine.  

And finally, I used a Simon Says Wonky die to add just a bit of extra interest.  There it is!  Two shades of inks, two shades of card stock, and a wowsome one go at the embossed sentiment!

Psssst!  Use my discount code BevFan10 whenever shopping at A Colorful Life Designs.  

Thanks for checking in.  I'll be back again soon with a completely different stencil style.

Inky ((((huggss)))),

Fishing You Were Here!

Yaaaaaay!   It's one of my favorite stamping weeks of the year!   The annual Dare to Get Dirty (DTGD) challenges have begun at Splitcoaststampers!  DTGD is a special challenge week presented as a bonus to SCS Fan Club members.  Come join in the fun!

My card today is for my sweet friend Kittie's challenge, DTGD19kittie747.  

I was eager to play with the new 'Splash' and 'Beach Waves' stencils from A Colorful Life designs.  Psssst!  Use code BevFan10 for a discount when shopping for your stencils!  I love the way these stencils create the look of watery fun, especially now that I've paired them with the 'Fin-tastic Friends' stamps by Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps.

The 'Splash' stencil was used to create the primary background of this card.  I blended Distress Inks with Life Changing Brushes ... so easy & fun!   The 'Beach Waves' stencil was used atop blended inks for the mini scenes throughout my card. 

Believe it or not, I haven't used all of the images in the super-fun stamp set ... there are even more!

I created this by making 2 Z-folds, then affixing them together.  I'll add a view from the top to help you visualize the Z's.  

Don't worry ... you won't get the zzzzzzz's when creating with this fun design.  

Thanks a bunch for your visit and your comments!  I'll be back by Tuesday with another sample created for the DTGD challenges.  

Inky (((huggss))),

Supplies used:

STAMPS:  Fin-tastic Friends (Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps)

INKS:  Distress Inks = Crushed Olive + Mermaid Lagoon + Peacock Feathers + Tumbled Glass;  Memento Tuxedo, Ranger Archival Black (on vellum)

PAPERS:  Neenah Solar Classic, Gina K Creme de Menthe, Prism Intense Teal, Vellum

ACCESSORIES:  'Splash' and 'Beach Waves' stencils (A Colorful Life), Copic markers, Picket Fence Studios Life Changing Brushes, circle die, Sizzix Adhesive sheets, Wink of Stella, gifted sequins

Christmas in July Hop & Sale!

Welcome to a special Christmas in July Blog Hop featuring Christmas stamps by Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps!   One lucky commenter will win a $50 gift code to the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps shop!  The deadline for leaving comments on the hop is 11:59 PM, July 31.   
You'll find our complete blog hop list shared below my card. 

There's more fun!  We're also kicking off the Christmas in July Sale starting today, July 24 - July 31!  
Save 25% on all Christmas stamps during this sale.  No code necessary.

Click here to shop now!

Since it's 100% natural for me to be instantly attracted to florals, the beautiful Christmas Poinsettia set (SNS-18-062) called my name right away.  

Even though Copic markers cause problems with heat embossing, that became a non-issue by positioning the poinsettia stamp on my Misti.  I left the stamp in place after stamping the with Memento Gray Flannel ink.  Then I colored the poinsettia and when it was finished, I placed the colored image right back into the Misti in the same spot it had been earlier.  Next I inked it up the cleaned stamp with VersaMark, applied anti-static powder to the image card stock, and stamped directly atop the colored image.  Then it was ready for embossing.  Ta-dah!

Remember to check out even more Christmas inspiration from each of our blog hop participants.  Best wishes on winning the $50 gift code to the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps shop!

Sweet 'n Sassy Blog
Julee Tilman
Bev Gerard   (Thanks for being here!)
Ceal Pritchett
Dina Kowal
Gayle Bond
Giovana Smith
Jane Bosi
Jeanne Streiff
Julie Cassell
Lee Ann Barrett
Lyn Tomlin
Monika Davis
Sheri Gilson
Stephanie Serrano

You Inspire Me!

Surely most of us have at least one person who inspires us, whether it's in a creative way, spiritual way, parenting, 'adulting', positivity, or many other ways.  So when I spotted this sentiment in my recent order from Sweet 'n Sassy stamps, I knew I would be using it right away.

My card actually started with an idea for the new 6"x6" Rays stencil from A Colorful Life designs.  I love that the stencil's rays radiate a full 360*, allowing for a wide variety of placement options when one is creating.

The color blending was so smooth & easy with the Life Changing Blending Brushes!  Distress Oxides used were:  Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick, & Squeezed Lemonade.  

Yes ... I'm a huge hibiscus fan!  Reality is that this is a rare Summer without a blooming hibiscus at my studio doorway.  That personal love started nearly 40 years ago with gifted hibiscus plants from a beloved Aunt.  Today's fab blossom & foliage are from the Be a Flamingo stamp set by Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps.  The photo above is the only one that shows the shimmer of Wink of Stella within the hibiscus blossom.

Thanks so much for your visit!  

Inky (((hugs))),