A New Card for WOW Embossing Powders

Hi and Happy Wednesday, friends! What a week this has been so far! If you read my last post, you know that I was blessed by being selected to be a guest designer for the Saturated Canary for the summer!  A new release is scheduled for today too so if you're as big a fan as I am, you'll want to pop over there and check them out!

Today, I have a new card I made for WOW Embossing Powders using a digi from another of my favorite illustrators, Phee McFaddell.  I haven't posted anything using her images for a while now so I thought it might be a nice change of pace for you guys.  I also used LOTS of WOW Embossing Powder.

This card is a whopping 6" x 8", at least an inch bigger all the way around than the cards I usually make.  And believe it or not, I'm working on one even bigger than this using a Saturated Canary digi!! Well, I live in Texas... what can I say?! LOL!

I actually intentionally made the card large because I wanted plenty of the patterned paper (from DCWV's All Dressed Up stack), as well as the dry embossed oval to show behind my focal image.

I started by dry embossing a piece of white cardstock by inking my embossing folder with Quick Quotes Pink Cheeks Powderpuff Chalk ink. The ink transferred from the folder to the paper during the process. Next, I used dies to cut the oval from the embossed cardstock as well as a pink and a black mat.  Then I ran a Versamark Embossing stamp pad over the raised areas and applied WOW Bright White Embossing Powder over the entire area. After turning the oval over and tapping it to remove all the excess powder, I used my heat tool to melt the powder.  

I used Primary Ebony Powder to emboss the two flourishes which were made from chipboard with a Tim Holtz die.  I used the WOW! stamp set called "Gratitude" to create the greeting and the ticket and used a Shock Pink (RV04) Copic marker to color in the stamped and embossed images and fussy cut them to go on my card.

I added a mulberry paper rose, some velvet hydrangea blossoms from Petaloo, a glittery chipboard die cut from my stash and some pearls and Voila! A beautiful finished card fit for a queen (or princess, as the case may be).

  

Please visit the WOW blog to see some incredibly creative projects made by my talented teammates.  And if you're planning to attend CHA, don't forget to stop by the WOW booth and say hi to Suzy West and some members of the design team. That's it for today, peeps! Thanks for stopping by today.  I love reading your comments if you care to leave one.  Until next time...


Happy crafting!
Anniebee

Fairy Friends for Wow Embossing Powders DT

Hi, everybody! I know you think I ran off somewhere or worse. Not so... but much has happened since my last blog post. If you're a follower, you'll know that I finally found a new job after having been laid off for 18 months. Well, I was just getting comfortable with my position and learning a whole new business that I had known nothing about beforehand when our office manager and two of the inside sales guys up and quit! That put the operation in such a bind that the almighty "powers that be" made the hasty decision to close down the office portion of the branch and move that part of the operations to Louisville, KY. Soooo.... they laid me and my co-worker off with no notice whatsoever and no severance!! I was completely floored and disheartened at this unexpected turn of events. So, as you have probably surmised, I am searching for a new job yet again.

Needless to say, I haven't exactly been in a creative frame of mind since that day but I am slowly pulling myself up by my bootstraps and have decided to adapt that lovely French saying, "Que sera, sera" as my personal slogan. In case you don't know what it means, it translates to "what will be, will be". There is nothing I could have done to prevent it so I just have to have faith that there is something bigger and better waiting out there for me... somewhere. If my employment wasn't my only source of income, it would still be a huge inconvenience but as it is, it's devastating!

Anyway, I forced myself to work on something creative these past few days. Besides, I had 2 projects due this week for my WOW Embossing Powders DT so I had to get my act together whether I was in the mood or not! LOL!  Below is a card I made using bits and scraps of fabric supplied by my lovely team leader, Jen. She challenged us to use fabric in our projects this month which was indeed a challenge for me.  I have used fabric in other types of projects but not in my card making. When I opened the envelope she sent me, there was this really cute floral stripe, a couple of strips of the gold batik and the bright orange lace that all coordinated perfectly with this adorable little fairy digi I found at Sweet Coloring Pages and had colored up some time back but had never used on a card.  It was the perfect thing for this project so I set to work.

 I wanted to machine stitch the fabric to my card but my machine wasn't very cooperative and but for my Taurus tenacity, I would have abandoned that thought completely.  I finally got 'er done though and then just had fun embellishing.

The WOW Embossing Powders I used were Metalline Green and Primary Ebony. If you click on the photos to enlarge them, you'll discover that the fairy is talking to her little wormy friend popping out from his hole.  I apologize that I didn't realize when I was snapping the pictures that the leafy vine all but blocked him from view. He's not hiding so well when you see the card in person.

As most of you know, I nearly always (unless I'm doing a clean & simple design which is rarely) decorate the insides of my cards as well as the front because I think it just makes them appear more finished.  

I had these cute fairy dimensional stickers that were perfect to go inside the card.  I inked the edges of a white circle to create a place for the giver to write their own heart-felt sentiments.

So there you have it... my first creative endeavor in almost a month! It's not the last though. I have already completed another card that I will post in the next day or two and an altered project for our WOW team post scheduled for this coming Saturday. I'm also working on a few more cards that I will post as I get them finished in between my job search sessions. I would appreciate your prayers and positive thoughts for finding a new position. Thanks so much for dropping by today and please don't forget to visit the WOW Blog today and Saturday to see my projects as well as those created by my talented teammates posted there.  Until next time, thank you for your patience and understanding.

Happy crafting!
Anniebee

My first project for WOW!

Hi, everybody! Well, I didn't have a chance to post the extra projects I mentioned but I'm hoping that this one will make up for my very brief absence. I am finally ready to reveal my first design team project for WOW! Embossing Powders!!! I have been so excited about this new company and I am both honored and humbled to have been selected as a member of their first U.S. design team. You won't believe the talent of the other members of this international team.

I have always loved using embossing powders to add dimension and interest to my greeting cards but there are soooo many other ways to use them and Suzy West, the U.S. Marketing Director for Wow has developed her own line of absolutely delicious colors making them even more fun and adding even more creativity to your paper crafting! You really should try them.

For my first project, I wanted to do something completely different than anything I had seen being done by my teammates and other crafters around the web. I found a really pretty square acrylic plate charger at Hobby Lobby and thought it would make an interesting base for creating a 3D altered art project. I liked the fact that it wasn't the typical round shape like most of them are.

First I cut a piece of scrapbook paper to the size that would fit perfectly in the depressed area intended for the bottom of the plate and rounded the corners with my Corner Chomper. The paper is from an 8" DCWV stack called The Colorful Life, which was designed by Donna Estabrooks. All the pages in this little stack are very colorful and very artsy-fartsy, as I like to say. I'll be making another project with these papers that should be ready to post in a couple of weeks so stay tuned for that.

Next, I took the beautiful little fairy, which is a digital image created by none other than Phee McFaddell, colored her with my Copic markers in colors that would coordinate well with the background and cut her out. I stamped the butterfly outline from WOW's Build a Butterfly stamp set in Top Boss embossing medium onto white vellum paper and again on white cardstock in black Memento ink. I used WOW Earthtone Grape Regular embossing powder on the vellum and after heat setting it, I colored both layers with my Copics and cut them out. I mounted the vellum layer on top and added purple flat-back pearls for thebutterfies' bodies.

Then I added a rhinestone flourish in pale pink on the background and started arranging the flowers, most of which are from Petaloo, the way I wanted them before I began to adhere them to the surface. I made the turquoise rose from organza ribbon and glued a half-back pearl in its center. After affixing all the flowers, I placed the butterflies where I wanted them and Voila! I had made a sort of framed diorama that can be hung on the wall or displayed on a plate easel.

Be sure and stop by the WOW blog and see what my very talented teammates have created to inspire you to try this wonderful new line of embossing powders and stamps for yourself.  Monday is my day to post on the Wow blog and I'll have a cool layout to show you so if you love to scrap, you'll definitely want to check it out.

Thanks for visiting today. I hope you enjoyed seeing this little project as much as I enjoyed making it. As always, your comments are encouraged and appreciated.  And don't forget to ask your local scrapbooking store to stock WOW! products!

Until next time....
Anniebee

A Brand New Paper a la Mode Challenge at The Outlawz in Celebration of reaching our 1000 member milestone

Hi, everybody!  In case you haven't been by here in a few days, I have been posting projects left and right! Between Friday morning and Saturday morning alone, I posted 5 new projects!!! That's definitely a record for me but I really enjoyed all of it except for the typing part. I took Sunday off to rest up and to get ready for all the posting I'll be doing in conjunction with the 1000 Member Party that's kicking off at The Outlawz tonight! Woo hoo!! I have been talking about it for at least a week now and the time has finally come! You really need to check it out because we are having some very fun games with fantastic prizes  in addition to the regular challenges and special party challenges and a blog hop! If I wasn't on the design team, I would definitely participate in every activity I possibly could. The $100 gift certificates donated by our fabulous sponsors, Oozak and SCACD, are well worth joining, not to mention all the other prizes donated by our very generous sponsors just for this celebration.

The theme of the Paper a la Mode challenge for the party is to use fall colors without using a fall theme. In other words, use a fall color palette but don't use a typical fall image or sentiment. I made a card using shades of green, gold, and orange with just a tiny touch of turquoise but the image I used is a fairy by Phee McFaddell, one of my new favorite illustrators, and the sentiment is for a best friend's birthday. So without any further delay, here is my card.

I don't know that it's my favorite card ever but I was pleased with the results, especially the coloring on the image. And here are the details, in case you're interested.

Materials and Supplies:

Case cardstock - Core'dinations
Glittler cardstock for mats - DCWV Glitter Stack
DP - K & Company Handmade Adhesive Paper Pad (4.75" x 6.75")
Image - Phee McFaddell (colored with Copics)
Lacy borders - Sizzix die
Dark orange miniature rose blossoms - Recollections
Greeting label - Spellbinders Shapeabilities (Fancy Labels)
Greeting stamps - JustWordz Everyday Sentiments
Tan chalk ink for distressing
Die cut shapes for writing spots inside - Nestibilities Labels Eleven die
Gold and white gel pens for detailing
Ribbon from my stash

So there you have it! I hope you enjoyed seeing my little card and I hope I inspired you to create your own project for our challenge. Don't forget to check out all the games as well as the other challenges and the blog hop will be coming up soon so watch The Outlawz main page for that announcement. Thanks for stopping by. As always, your comments are welcome and appreciated.  Until next time...

Happy crafting!
Anniebee

A New Paper a la Mode Challenge at The Outlawz

It's Saturday again, which means that it's time for a new Paper a la Mode challenge at The Outlawz!  This week flew by super fast and the weekend was here before I knew it.  It's so hard for me to believe that it's September already and that Christmas is less than 4 months away!  I need to start planning my Halloween and Christmas cards soon or I won't get them finished in time.

Now, on to this week's challenge.  It was my turn to select the challenge theme and as tired as I am of the summer heat and the severe drought we have been having, I chose Autumn as the theme for the challenge projects.  Fall and Spring are my favorite times of year but I'll even choose Winter over Summer!  You'd think since I was born and raised in the great state of Texas, I'd be used to it, right?  Not so much!  I just can't tolerate the heat and humidity and the worst part about it is that it lasts so long.  It started getting hot at the end of May and we probably won't see an end to it until some time in October.  We have had a bit of a reprieve this past week, however, with temps in the high 80s and low 90s.  Anyway, my point is that I'm sick of summer and ready for Fall so I created a card featuring a beautiful Fall Fairy.  This is another image from my new favorite artist/illustrator, Phee McFaddell.  This lovely creature is called "Heart Fairy".

Isn't she wonderful?  I adore all of Phee's images and have already colored quite a few of them but I haven't even made a dent in the number of images she has on her site.

Materials and Supplies:

Card base - dark moss green Core'dinations cardstock
Mats -  Violet Core'dinations cardstock
DP  on inside - K & Company Jubilee Collection
Heart Fairy - Phee McFaddell
Background image - Dover Publishing (free image)
Coloring -  Copics, of course!
Gold and Glaze gel pens
Labels on inside - Spellbinders Nestibilities Labels 11
The greeting was hand printed by me with an 025 Copic Multiliner onto vellum paper and cut to fit the space beneath the heart fairy.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:

I just love how this little project turned out.  I 'll be using both the background image and the Heart Fairy again, I'm sure but there are so many more of Phee's images I am dying to color that it will likely be a while before you'll see them again on my blog.  Thanks so very much for stopping by.  We'd love to have you join us at The Outlawz and play along with us in the challenges.  We have a different one each day of the week and our generous sponsors provide some awesome prizes.    Enjoy your weekend and I hope you get to do something creative!  Until next time...

Happy crafting!
Anniebee

A New Project for JustWordz Stamps

Good morning and happy Friday, everyone! The weeks have been flying by lately, haven't they?  Or is it just me?  Well, because it's Friday again, that means it's time for a new project for JustWordz Stamps!  This week, I have a new card for you and this just happens to be one of my favorite ones EVER!  I'm going to cut straight to the chase this time and show you the card.

 This is the sneak peek that I sent to Kim so she could display it on her blog. Beginning next week, she'll have our entire projects posted and not just a sneak peek. 

This is the front of the card, showing the tag in the photo above as well as the sentiment.  This gorgeous image is by an artist who goes by the name of Phee McFaddell and who is now one of my favorite illustrators.  

It's another easel card.  This shows the card opened up.

I'm having so much fun figuring out all the ways in which I can use the Everyday Sentiments stamp set to create my own greetings and sentiments for my cards and other projects.  

They are just so versatile and I love being able to mix and match them to say exactly what I want to say and they are so easy to use.

Isn't this butterfly fairy beautiful?  I have colored several other images from the same artist that I will be showing you soon.  They are very detailed and sometimes I have to wear a magnifying visor to color them.  They are worth the extra effort though.

Now I have some fantastic news to share with you!  Kim is releasing 2 new sets of JustWordz stamps in about 3 weeks and she is offering a special pre-order price to anyone who orders them now.  Here are images of the new sets.  The first set is called "Party Time" and the second set is "Christmas Season".  I'm so excited about them and can't wait to start playing with them!  I can already think of dozens of ways to use them.  

Be sure and visit Kim's blog to get information on pricing and while you're at it, visit the blogs of my teammates to see their awesome creations.  You can find links to their personal blogs in my left sidebar.  

Materials and Supplies:

Card base - Core'dinations 

Gold foil cardstock mat - AC Specialty Paper

White textured cardstock - Recollections

DP - DCWV Old World Stack (8" x 8")

Image - Phee McFaddell (obtained from Sweet Coloring Pages) colored with Copics and gold metallic Jelly Roll pen

Die cut flowers - K & Company

Golden brand Pearl Glaze and Judikins Diamond Glaze - used on fairy's wings

Die cut tag, leafy vine and shaped sentiment mat - Spellbinders

Pearls - Recollections

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

I hope you like my card as much as I do.  It was so much fun to make that I plan to make more using the different images from Phee McFaddell.  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.  Tomorrow will start a new Paper a la Mode Challenge at The Outlawz so come back then to see another new project.  Until then...

Happy crafting!

Anniebee

Happy Friday and a new JustWordz Design Team Project

It's Friday again already and the beginning of a new month as well!!  I find it incredibly hard to believe that there are less than 4 months left in the year!!!!  Holy moley!  Where has this year gone???  As ready as I am for summer to be over and fall to begin, I'm not prepared for all the hubbub that goes on around the holidays.  Well, as I can't turn back time and I can't wish the days away, I'll just have to be content with it being the 2nd of September.  With each new Friday comes a new project for JustWordz Stamps and this Friday is no different.  We had a fantastic turnout for our first blog hop last weekend and we gave away some pretty cool prizes so if you missed it, I'm sorry for you and I hope you'll be able to attend the next one.  For now, I have something a little different for you.  Kim asked us to create tags this week but that was the only guideline.  We could use any kind of theme for our tags that we wanted... sort of an "anything goes" kind of thing except that it had to be a tag.  I just can't say enough about the versatility and ease of using these stamps.  I'm not sure now how I ever got along without them and I'm really looking forward to seeing what Kim has in store for us next.

It had been a while since I made a tag but I had so much fun with this one, I made a second one that is completely different.  I'll save that one for another time but for now, I'll show you the one I made for my DT project.

Be sure to visit the JustWordz blog to see what Kim and the other DT members have created this week.  You can find links to their blogs in my left sidebar.

Tools and Materials:

Base tag - 7 Gypsies Walnut stained cardstock tag
DP - K & Company Jubilee
Image - Ina Jane downloaded from Sweet Coloring Pages
Image colored with Copics
Sentiment - JustWordz Everyday Sentiments
Sentiment label - Spellbinders Shapeabilities Fancy Tags
Leafy vines - Sizzix colored with Copics
Flowers - small retro flower punch
Flower centers - Recollections pearls tinted with Copic #Y38
Distressing - Dark Pink and Lime Green Studio G Chalk Inks
Butterflies - Martha Stewart small butterfly punch
Brown and white cardstock used for sentiment and butterflies - Recollections
DP used for butterflies - K & Company Que Sera Sera
Small pearl strips used for butterfly thorax - Recollections
Assorted fibers and ribbons - my stash

I am entering this tag in the following challenges:

Sweet Magnolia Honey Bee' Corner Technique Challenge #1 - use 3 dfferent textures


That's all I have for you today.  I'll have a new Design Team project for The Outlawz Paper a la Mode Challenge tomorrow and I hope you'll come back to see it.  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and that you find the time to do something creative!  Until next time....

Happy crafting!
Anniebee