Archive for the ‘Copic Creations Challenge’ Category

Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock.
       ~ Will Rogers

Diplomacy is the art of letting someone have your way.
       ~ Daniele Vare

 

 

You know, I always run my cards by my family, who I have trained to oh and ah on queue. My daughter, well trained in critique diplomacy said – she hates it!

I immediately defended my card as my first venture with Magnolia stamps and began educating her on the virtues of Scandinavian style craft. I told Caitlin about how the stamps originate out of Sweden and showed her the Magnolia Ink magazine so she could appreciate the culture of the card. United Nations would be proud of my efforts at bridging the differences between American modern minimalism and Scandinavian ornate vintage, Caitlin, however, could not be convinced. She couldn't even bring herself to look at it! So, being the incredible diplomat that I am, I got my way – and I didn't even have to find a rock!

 

To those of you who love and create beautiful art with the Magnolia images, oh dears, do be gentle. Remember, it's just my first dabble at it. Being more than just a little intimidated, I did what any novice would do – I copied a master: Rachel Jakes. (I want to be like her when I grow up!)

 

I used so many sources for inspiration, I'm not sure I can even take any credit for this card.

First, Jen has this really fun sketch at i{heart}2stamp (I flipped it upside down and all around).

 

 

This week the My Time to Craft Challenge is "Pretty Pearls." Making a Scandinavian card without pearls would be like making German Chocolate Cake without coconut – it's almost a required ingredient. Besides that, they're so pretty.

I'm still keeping up with the Copic Creations challenges. Challenge number 26 is all about coloring black hair. The funny thing about coloring something black is (write this down – it's very important ) don't use the Black marker – it's too black. Suzanne Dean's tutorial, Coloring Images/Objects Black (very helpful) called for cool grays; C3, C5, C7, and C9. I didn't have C9, so I made a C9 with a 100 Black marker. (I know, I just told you not to use the Black marker – and it was very important.)

 

I touched the nib of my C7 marker to the nib of the 100 Black marker to pick up just a little bit of black and then colored the image with my C7 marker that now had just a little black mixed into it. I promise, you can do this without contaminating your markers. It works much like the way you might use a blender pen to pick up color from another marker, chalks, or ink refillers. By the time you finish coloring your image, the color you picked up with be gone from the nib, and you'll be back to your original color.

 

Here is a breakdown of the markers I used. If you're reading this in a reader like Google Reader or Feedblitz, or, if you one of the lucky ones with the new iPad, you may not be able to see this slide show (it's in Flash), so here's another link to it.

 

 

And, all together . . .

• Embellishments – Basic Grey Opaline half pearls, Prima flowers, Charm Me (from Oriental Trader)
• Fibers: Stampin' Up! White Taffeta and Silver cord
• Ink – Copic Markers (see above), Memento Tuxedo ink pad
• Paper – Neenah, American Craft (Letterbox)
• Stamp: Magnolia Tilda with Bike
• Tools: Nestabilities, Stampin' Up!/EK Success border punch

So, in the interest of good, diplomatic relations – where you do weigh in on the vintage Scandinavian vs modern American styles? Are you in Team Caitlin or Team Magnolia. I promise – I won't look for any rocks!

 

 

The flowers of late winter and early spring occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size. 
                               ~Gertrude S. Wister

 

I love this image from Cathy St. Clair at Paper Garden Projects. It's part of the Spring Blooms Digital Stamp set you can get for free here.

I did my research before coloring this flower and learned crocus blossoms can bloom as early as February. I've never planted them (not sure how they'd do in our Texas heat), but I can remember them pushing up even through the late snows in Mom's backyard garden back in Indiana.

Paper Garden Projects just invited me to be a part of her Paper Garden Projects design team – and I'm so incredibly, unbelievably, ridiculously excited. I love everything her store carries. Just follow the link on my side bar to see what Cathy and her team are up to and to visit the other incredibly talented Paper Gardeners.

I'm very picky about participating in design teams. I don't do many because my job is so demanding that, when I get a chance to play, I want to play with images I absolutely adore. I turned down an invitation from a different company to join Paper Garden Projects because I'm so enthusiastic not only for what Cathy offers (stamps, etc., from a variety of high quality manufacturers like Penny Black, Mo's Digital Pencil, Eat Cake; Copic markers; Neenah and Prism, Nestabilities . . . ) but also because of Cathy's great customer service.  I hope I do PGP justice!

 

For inspiration I turned to always reliable Mojo Monday Sketch challenge (MoJo133).

Since I haven't colored many (any?) flowers before with Copic markers, I turned to the Copic Creations challenge this week, CCC25, Flowers! The challenge runs through April 15 and it's sponsored by Paper Garden Project. It's not too late to enter for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate.

And, finally, Our Creative Corner is challenging us to use bows. Well, snap! You know I love the bows.

Here are the Copic markers I used and the rest of the recipe.

 

• Embellishments – Dew Drops
• Fibers – Stampin' Up! 5/8" satin ribbon
• Ink – Copic Markers (see above)
• Paper – Neenah, Stampin' Up! Barely Banana, Basic Grey Urban Couture
• Stamp: Spring Blooms Digital Stamp
• Tools: Nestabilities, Martha Stewart border punch
• Misc.: Tim Holz Crackle Paint (peeled paint), Tim Holz Distress Stickles (Rock Candy), Flower Soft

 

 

I'm putting together a little package for one of my dearest co-workers and sweetest friend to help her celebrate her first granddaughter. Knowing my friend, this little girl will be a true Texan, so any tribute to her needs to be Western and as rugged as little girls can be. I thought Mo's Digital Pencil  Bella and Bronte would be perfect, especially since the little granddaughter's name is Bella Grace!

Copic Creations is celebrating their one year Blogoversary – Congratulations! So, this week's challenge was to use one of our favorites among their featured techniques. I can't say enough good things about this site. There's so much valuable information for anyone who loves Copic markers. For this project I used tutorials for faces/skin tones, blonde hair, and coloring black images (the bottom of Bella's boots).

The frame used to be a black, cheapo frame from the Target Dollar Spot (one of my favorite places to find things stuff to alter). I coated it with crackle medium, and when the crackle medium dried just until it was a little sticky (not completely dry), I painted it with Making Memories Chocolate acrylic paint. Just to soften it a little, I sponged on Ranger's Walnut Stain Distress Ink. 

Here's Bella and Bronte again so you can see how I colored them a little better. I added just a little bit of Stampin' Up!'s Stampin Pastels (chalks) around Bella's face and Bronte's face and belly. I love how the chalks blend so softly with the markers.

• Embellishments – A button from my Mom's button jar
• Fibers – Stampin' Up! chocolate taffeta ribbon, Michael's ribbon
• Ink – Copic Markers (see above), Rangers Walnut Stain Distress Ink (on frame)
• Paper – Neenah. Stampin' Up! Baja Breeze and Pink Pirouette cardstock, Creative Imaginations Debbie Mumm
• Stamps – Mo's Digital Pencil Bella and Bronte
• Tools: Stampin' Up! Jewelry Tag punch
• Misc.  – SU Pretty in Pink and Blush Blossom Stampin' Pastels, Making Memories Acrylic Paint, Delta Dreamcoat Crackle

Stay tuned. I made a matching card that's stinkin' cute.

 

Grandmas don't just say "that's nice" —
They reel back and roll their eyes and throw up their hands and smile.
You get your money's worth out of grandmas.           

                                         Author Unknown

Grandma's are so special aren't they. I have such sweet, sweet memories of my Grandma Ethel Heaton (Mom's Mom) and Grandma Flora Black (Dad's Mom). Grandma Black made dresses for my doll babies and taught me how to darn socks on her sleepy porch. I can still see her strong fingers crafting a beautiful edge on her pie crusts. Grandma Heaton would navigate us around the country roads to her homestead in search of mushrooms and pussy willows talking the whole way about the days when she called the square dances. I can still see the homemade egg noodles drying on her kitchen table. My Grandmas always made me feel like they'd been waiting to see just me all day and I made their days complete.

 

I love how this image by Mo's Digital Pencil captures the pure bliss in the Grandmother's face – she's just lost in the joy of a dance with her grandchild. Ah . . . Grandma's are so special!

I used the Sketch for Mo's Dream Team February Guest Spot and, for inspiration, the soft colors and buttons from the Cupcake Inspiration Challenge #47. You KNoW I love Cupcakes! I don't know how Rachel Hope finds all these incredible cupcakes – check out the ones that inspired this challenge:

In honor of her sewing-themed cupcakes, I sewed the edges of my background paper and plaid strip. And, lastly, I followed Lauren Meader's tutorial over at Copic Creations Challenge #22 to color my lavender and gold ribbon to match my paper.

Here are the Copic markers I used.

The sheet music is from an old Baptist Hymnal I found at the Goodwill for 25 cents (what a find!). I sponged it with Stampin' Up!'s So Saffron Ink, and Stamped it with Stampin' Up! background stamp, Sanded, again using So Saffron Classic ink.

 

Most of this image is paper pieced – yes I did a Lot of cutting! If you've never tried the paper piecing technique, here's tutorial I wrote a while back.

 

• Embellishments – EK Success Jolee's Jewels Crystallized Swarovski Elements Heart Lock and Key charm (what a mouthful). Chatterbox* Junkitz buttons.
• Fibers – Stampin' Up! 5/8" Satin Ribbon in Whisper White. Chatterbox satin ribbon colored with Copic Markers Y21 and BV02. Wrights Classics Lace (from JoAnn Fabrics).
• Ink – Copic Markers (see above). Stampin' Up! So Saffron Classic Ink.
• Paper – Neenah Solar White Ultrasmooth Classic Crest 80 pound cardstock. Chatterbox Parlor Scrapbook Walls*
• Stamps – Mo's Digital Image Mummu and Me. Stampin Up! Sanded
• Tools – Martha Stewart border punch, Creative Memories corner rounder punch, Nestabilities Classic Ovals Large.

*I bought these Chatterbox papers and embellishments years ago. I love them – the papers have this lovely linen look. Unfortunately, I honestly don't know if they're still available anywhere.

Hugs . . .

Shew, I have so much to tell you, so grab a seat and get comfy.

Have you figured out yet that I'm obsessed with Mo's Digital Pencil images? I can't seem to get enough. They're whimsical, poignant, funny . . . well, you can find an image for just about any mood you want to set. This one makes me just want to pinch those delicious chubby cheeks.

When I was a little girl I was constantly pulling at the corner of my eyes trying to convince my eyes to look like pretty China doll eyes. Don't laugh. I was convinced it would work, and, hey, I wasn't much older than this little baby girl. When I saw the Copic Creations Challenge this week was to create Ethnic Skin Tones(Challenge No. 20), I knew I wanted to take a stab at creating Asian skin tones. Well, okay, I'm not sure I succeeded, because my China doll doesn't look much different from my baby girl. Oh well, at least I gave it a stab. 

Here are the markers I used for the China doll (YR0000, YR00 and YR61 for her skin).

And here are the markers I used for the baby girl (E0000, E00 and E21 for her skin).

If you want a better idea of markers to use on Asian and other ethnic skin tones, be sure to check out the challenge; there are links for some great ideas and tutorials.

Once again, I really went to town mixing up challenges. They're just so much fun and they're such a great jumping off point for designing. I used the sketch from the Card Patterns Challenge #48.

And, I got my color theme from Mo herself, at Mo's Bronte and Belle Challenge Blog, Challenge #15.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot . . . here's the card!

• Fibers: Stampin' Up! Satin Ribbon
• Ink – Copic Markers (see above)
• Paper – Stampin' Up! cardstock: Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Almost Amethyst, and elegant Eggplant. Stampin' Up! Designer Series Paper in Almost Amethyst. Neenah Classic Crest Solar White.
• Stamps: Mo's Digital Image I Love It CG
• Tools: Cuttlebug Embossing Folder

Before I leave you, I have some very exciting, Stop-the-Presses news to share. One, is just a hint to stay tuned next week for a big ole' fun announcement. Oooo, that's just a tease, but that's all you get for now. 

The other news I have for you is that the Catty Cruise Line has weighed anchor again. The Catty Cruise is a blog hop of some of the most amazing paper craft artists highlighting the latest Stampin' Up! catalogs (aka Catty's). You will not want to miss seeing their beautiful creations – they're stunning. They're also very sweet and dear friends of mine, so be sure to leave them some love (comments), and tell them Linda sent ya.

You can jump on to the Catty Cruise at their home port, here, or just click on the icon below.

Anchors Away!

                                All you need is love.
                                All you need is love.
                                All you need is love, love.
                                Love is all you need.
                                         – John Lennon, 1967

As promised here's my answer to the next Copic Creations Challenge (CCC), Challenge #19, Fur. What a fun challenge.

If you click on the image, you'll see I added a little Crystal Effects on the puppy's nose, and a tiny bit of Flower Soft on the bird's nest.

I used the sketch from the Mojo Monday 120 challenge to make this early Valentine's card.

Okay, admittedly, I may have tried to accomplishment too much with this card. I'm afraid it may have come out a little on the busy side. When I showed it to my daughter she said, " Wow, my eyes don't know where to go." – not a good sign. Oh well – it was still good practice and the tutorials on the CCC site were, as always, great.

Such a busy card takes a lot of ingredients . . .

• Embellishments: Stampin' up! Sweet Pea Stitched Felt, Nut Brown Flower Soft

• Fibers: Stampin' Up! Ribbon Original Flirty (retired)

• Ink, Copic Markers –
  • Dog: E00, E29, E31, E37;
  • Eggs/Dog Collar: BG45;
  • Cat: W00, W1, E5, W7;
  • Bird: R85 & Y21;
  • Sky/Grass: B20, G24, BG10

• Paper: Stampin' Up! cardstock: Regal Rose, Chocolate Chip and Tempting Turquoise; Stampin' Up! Designer Series Paper Love Me (retired) Neenah Classic Crest Solar White

• Stamp: Mo's Digital Image, Coexist

• Tools: Stampin' Up! Circle Cutter and Coluzzle system, Martha Stewart Picket Fence Edge Punch, Nestabilities Classic Scallop Circle, Cuttlebug embossing folder.

I created the sentiment on my computer using Quigley Wiggly font and RGB code R68, G28 and B28 to match the Stampin' Up! Chocolate Chip paper.

I'm loving these challenges. Hmmm . . . which one shall I tackle next?

One of my "Vigor and Vim in 2010" goals for the new year is to participate in all the Copic Creations Challenges. I love, love this digital stamp from Mo's Digital Pencil, Boughs for the Wreath, so I knew immediately what I wanted to do for Challenge #18 – Pine Trees/Branches. I took my color inspiration from this amazing card by Linda Heavens. Linda used colored pencils, but, of course, I wanted to tackle it with my Copic markers and the Copic air system Santa brought me (thanks Tom!). 

• Copic Markers: I used BG10 and B00 colors with the air system to get the blue sky. Hats and scarf: E04, E09, E0000 with E00, E3, E31. Face: E0000, E00, R81. Boots: W0, W3, W7. Jackets: G99, YG63. Boughs: G28, G24, G21, and a little B29.
• Paper: Basic Grey Fruitcake Marachino Cherry, Archivers ANW Crestwood Bright White Cover, Stampin' Up! Almost Artichoke and Soft Suede cardstock.
• Glitter: Stampendous Crystal Snow, Twinklets Diamond Dust
• Tools: Spellbinders Nestabilities

  

I followed the instructions in Susan Tierney Cockburn's book, Paper Bouquet to make the pinecone and boughs with the following ingredients:

• Paper Bunch tool kit
• Paper Bunch punhes: small pear, mega fern, and pine bough.
• I air sprayed the punched out branches with G28 and the pinecones with E29.

Onward and forward to the Copic Creations Challenge #19 – Fur!

Oooo, tomorrow we're supposed to get about an inch of SNOW here in Central Texas. I'm so excited. I know, I'm easily entertained, but we don't see much snow here in the Austin area. So, it's a perfect time to jump into the fun of the Copic Creations Challenge #17 to color snow/snowpeople. This is only my second card using Copic markers – I Love! – so I'm learning a lot as I go. These Copic Creation Challenges are great for a newbie like me because the site offers tutorials for the challenge and beautiful inspiration.

The stamp sets are two of Anna Wight's stamps at Whipper Snapper Designs: Spirit of Christmas and Winter Quilt. Oh, I love Anna Wight – I've been stalking following her photography, gorgeous paper craft art and stories about farm life at Sweet & Sassy Notes for years.

Here are the Copic markers I used from my small collection:

I followed the instructions in Susan Tierney Cockburn's book, Paper Bouquet to make the pinecone and boughs. The pinecone and boughs used the following ingredients:

• Paper Bunch tool kit
• Paper Bunch punches: small peaer, mega fern, and pine bough,
• modeling paste,
• Pearl Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist,
• Ivory Flower Soft, and
• Stampin' Up! cardstock: Old Olive, Garden Green and Chocolate Chip

You can purchase Susan's books, the punches, tool kit, and Flower Soft at Scrappily Ever After in Temple, Texas. (Of course, she offers mail order – watch for her monthly sales.)

The rest of the recipe is:

• Paper: Stampin Up! Very Vanilla and Chocolate Chip. Stampin' Up! Holiday Treasures Designer Series Paper (retired).
• Ink: White Signo gel pen. Ranger Walnut Stain Distress Ink. Stampin' Up! Close to Cocoa and Creamy Caramel Classic Ink for sponged distressing. And, I spritzed on Walnut Ink.
• Fibers: Celebrate It Basic Ribbon from Michaels (until I can get my hands on the new Stampin' Up! 5/8" satin ribbon – yum).
• Tools: Spellbinders Nestabilities Classic Scalloped Ovals Large and Classic Ovals Large. Stampin' Up! 1" square punch.
• My Mom's sewing machine with some basic beige thread. (Yes, I need to improve my sewing skills).

Bundle up everyone, and stay warm . . . hugs,