Super-late New Year's

I made this card late last night, but it's a New Year's/Christmas one. :) I was so excited to color this stamp! And put all the glitter on it... :D Here it is:

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The inside is in Russian, with lots of glitter and Stickles... Also, some Liquid Pearls. :)

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A close-up of the front image.. Done with PrismaColor pencils.

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And that's about it.. Thanks for stopping by! :)


Products I used:

• Stamps: main image is from Creative Impressions (I couldn't find the name of the image itself..); sentiment on the front and the wreath are from Recollections - Celebrate the season; Inkadinkado - All about borders; Hero Arts - Create your own (snowman)
• Inks: Memories - black; Distress - barn door, worn lipstick, broken china
• Stickles - orange peel, waterfall, frost white, golden rod
• Glitter Ritz - cool highlights, sand, regal red
• Liquid pearls - white opal
• PrismaColor pencils
• Beacon's 3-in-1 glue, Scotch dot roller, Be Creative tape
• Vellum: Snowflakes

Food Love

In today's card I used a stamp that I got about half a year ago... I was waiting to use it for a specific friend's birthday, and I really wanted this image to be a surprise for her. So, I waited, even though it was really hard, because this stamp is just too cute! :)

Today is also the first day of a new House Mouse and Friends challenge... I am entering this card there, because this stamp is definitely a favorite for me. :) I love the fully-satisfied-with-life look on the mouse's face... And the bitten marshmallows.. :)

On to the card, then!

...I did not pick a good time of day to photograph this, the lighting is a bit dark... 

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I wanted to make the card really colorful and ended up layering papers. I Cuttlebug-embossed them and used mounting tape for dimension. Plus, some stickles and ribbon.. I doubt I can do without those. :)

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For the inside, I simply stamped some little decorative images on white cardstock, colored them with Prismacolor pencils, cut out, and taped to the card. I used the Glitter Ritz cool highlights all over the butterfly and the balloons, and they really do shine! It turned out hard to photograph it though. :/ But here are my attempts to capture the details... :)

Oh, and the "Happy Birthday" sentiment was stamped in white and heat-embossed with some clear powder. :) I added random colors of Stickles to the dots, too..

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Thank you for visiting! :) 

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges:

• House Mouse and Friends #89 - favorite House-Mouse, Happy Hoppers and, or, Gruffies stamp
• Crafts and Me #23 - red

Products I used:

• Stamps: House Mouse - Sugar crash; Sarah Phelps - Lucky ladybugs, Make a wish; Recollections - Doodle birthday; Studio G - series 14
• Inks: Memories - black; Colorbox - frost white
• Embossing: Cuttlebug - With love, Swiss dots, D'vine swirls; Denami Design - clear embossing powder
• Stickles - orange peel, purple, turquoise, waterfall, lime green, golden rod, star dust
• Glitter Ritz - cool highlights
• PrismaColor pencils
• Beacon's 3-in-1 glue, Scotch dot roller, Be Creative tape

Snowy Spiderman

Today, my post is actually not about a card :) It is a snow globe with a Spiderman trapped in it! I started it a year ago, as a Christmas present for a friend who loves Spiderman. But it did not work out that time... :( I told my friend I'd remake it, and took it back. But I haven't gotten around to actually doing that up until this January, and I had to remake everything from the beginning, too. Here it is! :)

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Basically, I bought the most spherical jar I could find at Ralphs (it was mustard lol), and I visited a comic bookstore to get the smallest realistic-looking Spiderman figurine I could find (it is about 6 cm tall (~2.5 in.)). Some super-glue to stick the Spiderman onto the lid, and voila! :)

The liquid inside is water and glycerin with glitter sprinkled into it, I didn't measure proportions. I poured the glycerin in until the glitter was coming down slowly, in a snow-like fashion.

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The ribbon and snowman picture are there to cover-up the mustard jar origins... ;) I actually put two ribbons on top of each other, because the red one was too transparent.

I noticed some air was coming in after I have already super-glued the jar closed... To prevent more air from coming in, I put a few layers of Beacon's 3-in-1 glue on the boundary between the jar and the rim of the lid.

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This is just some stamping with Distress inks, coloring in with Prismacolor pencils, and distressing the result. :) The little stars are not a separate stamp... They are the "dot" on the letter i in "chill" from the Hero Arts Create Your Own (Snowman) set. I was just very careful to ink just the part that I needed. ;)

The next picture shows how the jar and the bubble that ended up forming inside act as two lenses (or "magnifying" glasses). (The actual figurine is smaller than what it appears to be in these pictures.)

First, the jar enlarges the Spiderman, and then the bubble reduces the Spiderman in size... That bubble really irritated me up until I saw this. :) ...So, yes, I have to admit, I am a nerd! I am in college right now, and pretty much all of my classes are physics.. And they've corrupted me into seeing physics is most everything! :D

Pretty cool, no? :)

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That's it, hope you enjoyed it! :)

Products I used:

• Stamps: Hero Arts - Create your own (snowman); Recollections - Celebrate the season
• Inks: Distress - vintage photo, worn lipstick, broken china, barn door
• PrismaColor pencils
• Faerie Glass dewdrops; Art Glitter - Sahara
• Super glue, Beacon's 3-in-1 glue
• Glycerin (can buy at a drugstore, like CVS)
• White modeling clay (on the inside of the lid, to make it seem like Spiderman is standing in snow), but you can't see it in the pictures

A Mexican Penguin :)

I was born in 1990, and 2011 is the year most of my friends are turning 21. :) One of them actually gave me the stamp set I used for this card, called Salud, with a hint to use it on her birthday card that I have yet to make. :) I love this penguin, it's so cute! :) 

So, here's a card I made for one of my guy friends for his birthday. :) The pictures did not come out too great, because it was already evening and the lighting in my room is not that good..

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Not visible in this picture, but the black on the penguin is embossed so it's all shiny. :)

This is the first time I have used Faerie Glass dewdrops! They are on the glass that the penguin is holding, making it look like a cold drink. :) I really liked using these, they're so cool! 

The friend I made this for really loves soccer, so I cut and folded a piece of white cardstock using this pattern to make a 3D soccer ball (okay, just half a soccer ball...) for the penguin to stand on. :) I then had to glue on little black pieces.

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The inside is very simple... I didn't want to overdecorate a guy card (I have barely any experience in making those), so I kept it as simple as I could. :)

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges:

• Craft Your Days Away #11 - anything goes
• Stamp Something - anything goes

Products I used:

• Stamps: Swanky Stamps - Salud; Sarah Phelps - Make a Wish
• Inks: Distress - peeled paint; Memories - black; Colorit - black (used for embossing); ColorBox - frost white
• Stickles glitter glue: lime green, burgundy, frosted lace
• Embossing: Denami clear (powder); Art Glitter - martini (powder)
• PrismaColor pencils
• Faerie Glass dewdrop glued on with "Be Creative" tape

Winter Sparkle

Here's a New Year card I made for another friend :) This one is pretty simple, but very sparkly! Without any more prelude, I will go on to the card.

Here it is!

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I love my Hero Arts "Create Your Own" set... I can make snowmen with different faces, hats, buttons, and add a scarf or a broom if I like. :D I actually ended up putting some lime green Stickles to highlight some of the top of the broom... But I forgot to retake the picture after I did that.

I used the cool highlights micro-fine glitter to make the snow-sparkly background.. Very easy to do with some wide double-sided tape and no need to buy any special blue glitter paper ;) Since the glitter is micro-fine, it doesn't rub off, and actually feels pretty smooth.

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On the inside, I added some vellum paper and more stamps from the same Hero Arts set. And some Stickles in the corners of the vellum. That's it! :)

I would like to enter this card in the following challenges:

• One Stitch at a Time #43 - anything goes
• Crafty Catz #63 - your choice (I chose #61 "Happy New Year")
• Paper Playtime #31 - New Years

Products I used:

• Stamps: Hero Arts - Create Your Own (Snowman)
• Inks: Distress - broken china, peeled paint, worn lipstick, vintage photo; Versa Color - royal blue; Memories - black
• Stickles glitter glue: turquoise
• Glitter: Jewel Glitter Ritz - cool highlights
• Embossing: Denami clear embossing powder
• PrismaColor pencils
• Vellum: Christmas trees

Christmas Fun!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful time this holiday season! :) I haven't made all the Christmas cards that I wanted to, yet... But my excuse would be that in Russia, my homeland, New Years is celebrated much more than Christmas is... And Orthodox Christmas itself is on January 7th, which gives me two more weeks ;)

Anyway, here is a Christmas card I made for a friend of mine. I love this card so much, I'd keep it for myself if I could! ;)

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Can you see all the glitter on the background?.. It's the snow that the lucky mouse is rolling through... :D Here's a close-up to see the snow..

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And here is the inside of the card, also all sparkly (not really visible in this picture =/)! Sprayed with Tattered Angels glimmer mist, marshmallow. 

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And that is all for now. :) But I will definitely be making more Christmas cards very soon.. :) Merry Christmas, everyone! :)

I am entering this card in the following challenges:

• House-Mouse & Friends #85 - aperture
• A Spoon Full of Sugar #133 - Christmas cards
• Crafts and Me #20 - anything goes

Products I used (not a complete list yet..):

• Stamps: House-Mouse - Light Fun
• Inks: Distress - barn red; Memories - black 
• Stickles glitter glue: burgundy, waterfall
• Jewel Glitter Ritz: highlights (white), sand

Winter break is here!

The finals week at UCSD has just ended (yay!), and the winter break has begun! :D Thus, I now have the time to post this card I made for my friend to wish good luck on these finals :) It's a mini-card, approximately 5 by 5 cm (2 by 2 inches), and I loved making it!

Also, I recently got the Glitter Ritz micro fine glitter.. So exciting! This is the first card I got to use it on, just a little bit though. It's awesome, so much finer than the glitter I usually use. And so shiny! I used it for the green "branches" (couldn't find a better word..) of the Christmas tree. 

I sprayed just the front of the card (by masking the inside) with the pashmina color of Tattered Angels glimmer mist spray, so it looks darker (and sparkly! but not in the photo) than the paper was originally. The square is regular white cardstock wrapped in the awesome Hanko paper (I am terrible at remembering specific paper and ribbon names :/ ).

Whoever is opening it undoes the ribbon, and tah-dah!...

You can see lots and lots and lots of Stickles and just glitter... :D Here are some close-ups:

The sign "Good Luck" Is a combination of white opal Liquid Pearls and the same white glitter that I used on the edges of the tree. :)

To make the tree outline look really snowy, I stamped it with white pigment ink, and then put white glitter on it. For the Christmas tree "ornaments" I just painted little circles with acrylic paints and then put stardust Stickles over them for the sparkle. :)

The heart on the pot is actually cut out separately and outlined with a ruby red Liquid Pearls. I also layered an extra piece of paper in between the heart and the pot so the heart pops a little more. :)

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

• Creative Card Crew - anything goes
• Creative Cowgirls Challenge #2 - anything goes
• Stamps R Us #11 - anything goes
• One Stitch at a Time - anything goes
• Sugar Sweet Paper Treats december - anything goes 

Products I used:

• Stamps: Printworks - Jolly Tree
• Inks: ColorBox - frost white 
• Stickles glitter glue: cinnamon, waterfall, turquoise, lime green, orange peel, stardust, purple
• Jewel Glitter Ritz: lime green
• Tattered Angels glimmer mist - pashmina
• Fiskars scissors - ripple
• Liquid pearls: white opal, ruby red

My Father's Birthday!

This card is a month late (thus the HouseMouse stamp with the tortoise!)... But I hope he enjoys it, still. :)

Recently, my friend told me her art teacher in high school forbid them from smudging colored pencils when coloring... And that apparently art professors (at least at Cal Poly) don't smudge it, either. Not even with special solutions for smudging pencil! I thought it was a little weird, because Prismacolor pencils, smudged with Turpenoid, give a nice result... So, for this card I actually challenged myself to not use Turpenoid! Here's how it came out... :)

Not bad, hm? :) I actually think that it looks a bit brighter than it would have if I did it my usual way... This is a HouseMouse stamp, and I cut it out, every little grass leaf, (took me forever, but totally worth it!) and used a tape roller to glue it on the baby blue paper. The brown paper was Cuttlebugged and then I mounted the baby blue paper onto it. The white dots are pearl-looking like beads, just glued.. :) And of course, ribbon; and some Stickles for the sentiment. :)

And this.. is the inside!

These images are also colored without Turpenoid intervention, even though I was so tempted to smudge the color on the little lion's face! :) The writing is in Russian.. It's glittery, but you cannot see that in this photo. And the dots are Stickles, just to fill up the background somehow. :)

On this close-up, you can see that both the lion and the bird are embossed. Makes them pop a bit on the flowery background. :) Finally, the edges were cut with some shaped craft scissors.

And... That is it! :) I would like to enter this card in the following challenges:

• Paper Pretties - embossing
• Anything Goes - emboss it
• Fairy Tale Challenge - everything goes

Products I used:

• Stamps: HouseMouse - Slow Pokes; Autumn Leaves - Mindy's Zoo
• Inks: Vintage Photo Distress; Versa color - royal blue; Memories - black
• Embossing: D'Vine Swirls Cuttlebug folder
• Denami clear embossing powder
• Prismacolor pencils
• Stickles glitter glue: cinnamon, waterfall, golden rod, turquoise
• Fiskars scissors - ripple

A (Late) Halloween Card

This is the second time I enter a card into challenges! Very exciting for me! :) 

I absolutely love House Mouse images, so when I accidentally found specifically a House Mouse challenge blog... I knew I had to make a card, and a design idea popped into my head a second later, so I got on it. The challenge was to make a Halloween-themed (or -colored) card and use a House Mouse stamp. And.. Here's the result: 

I don't have any pumpkin stamps, so I freehanded and painted the pumpkin with acrylics. It is mounted on the vellum, and the mouse (such a cutie!) is actually mounted onto the pumpkin. Hope he doesn't wake any time soon, or it will give him a big fright... :) The mouse was colored with Prismacolor pencils. The bow is there just for a little embellishment.

I am going to give this card to a friend, so I will also decorate the inside, and will update this post later. (No time to decorate it before the the challenge closes for this week...)

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
House Mouse challenge #81
Crazy4Challenges - square card
Lexi-s Creations, #26 - anything goes

Birthday Cupcake

No more wood-burning (at least not for a long while..), and meanwhile.. back to cards! :)

This one I made for a friend of mine who loves food and especially cakes. Thus, practically all of the stamps I used were cakes... Mmm, yummy! :)

I cut the light lime paper out with craft shaped scissors, cuttlebugged it, and used Stickles for the border. It is mounted on the black-gold paper, so the card doesn't look too flat. :) The cupcake, I stamped, colored with my Prismacolor pencils and the stamped the top again (Stamp-a-ma-jig aligns it perfectly!) and embossed it. (Can't tell it's embossed form this picture though...)

I did the same procedure with the little cakes, also added some Stickles. The skeleton is embossed, too. :) The hardest part was writing... I do not own a white pen (yet!), so the best I could do was paint all of the words with acrylic white paint.... Which was not too fast. But it worked! :)

Products I used:

• Birds and Swirls Cuttlebug embossing folder
• Studio G clear stamps (the skeleton); Inkadinkado Birthday Cupcake clear stamps
• Denami clear embossing powder
• Inks: Colorit black pigment; Vintage Photo Distress; Versa color: orchid, orange, fresh green, baby blue, royal blue; Color Box frost white