Ellibelle's Crafty Wednesday - Midmonth Inspiration

Happy Wednesday and thank you so much for visiting! If you are here for Ellibelle's Crafty Wednesday challenge, then you are at the right place! Today I am sharing another card for the April theme which is

"Wings, Tails or Spring Blossoms". 

Feel free to choose one, two or all three! The linky tool has been added at the end of this post again, but as always it is also still accessable on the original April challenge post.

Off topic, but did you hear Mo Manning's Design team brought back their blogging challenge? I personally don't care much for Facebook challenges so I entered there only once while it was held on Facebook.  I don't know about anyone else but I find blogging a much better platform for those types of things. So I am really excited that their challenges are back in blogland and thought I'd spread the word to those who haven't heard!

But now back to my card ... I decided to combine this post with Mo's Digital Pencil Challenge (among some others) so I used the image Teen Fairy Mia for my card.  She's been colored with my Faber Castell Polychromos pencils (my choice of coloring medium for digital images) on Neenah 80lb card stock. 

Related Products:

Currently FREE SHIPPING at $50 or more at Scrapbook.com. 

Use Coupon Code FREESHIP423. Ends 4/18. 

I decided that I wanted some stencilling behind the image, so I tore a post it note into small pieces and layered them over the image where needed as a mask. The stencilling is hard to see in the photos as I used a really pale pink ink (Spun Sugar Distress Ink) for the stencilled design. The stencil is by Penny Black - Hypnotic. 

You can see more of the stencilling in the photo below. But isn't this image GORGEOUS!! You might also notice that I added some sparkles to the wings and the flower using my clear Wink of Stella glitter brush. I embellished with a pink button from my stash and white cotton twine. 

I rounded the corners and layered the image over a pattern paper by 7 Gypsies. Unfortunately I am not sure which paper pack it's from.  The "Happy Birthday" sentiment is part of a set given away for free by Scrapbook.com - Handmade Essentials. The "From the Heart" is a metallic sticker by Tim Holtz' Quotations.

If you are in the United States then I hope you took advantage of this offer, but if not, you might still be able to get it - the coupon code still worked as I type this (4/16). You do have to pay for promotional shipping which is $2.24, but that wasn't a deal breaker for me. Also, this is not a cheap quality set like those you usually find in the Dollar Bins. This set is made in the USA of premium photopolymer and stamps beautifully. I love how it also includes stamps for the back of cards or as as letter seal.


If you are interested in this set, be sure to add coupon code FREE3762 - this will take $10.00 off (the cost of the stamp) and then will show a shipping charge of $2.24 in the cart. Unfortunately this offer is only good within the United States. Here is what it looks like. 

On another note, Scrapbook.com currently offers FREE SHIPPING at $50 or more for US shipping adresses with coupon code FREESHIP423. (International costumers can use coupon code FIVEAPR423 to receive $5.00 off an order $50 or more). But please note: you can only use one coupon code at a time, meaning, if you'd like to get the set above for free you will have to place a separate order because a promotional shipping charge does apply for that set, and once you enter the free shipping coupon code it will remove the other coupon code for the free set. A bit confusing, right? But I think most retailers usually allow just one coupon code at a time. Note: The Free Shipping Coupon expires on 4/18. 

Mo Manning Teen Fairy Mia // Faber Castell Polychromos pencils // Handmade Essentials Stamp Set by Scrapbook.com // Wink of Stella // Spun Sugar Distress Ink // Penny Black Stencil Hypnotic // Tim Holtz Quotations Metallic Sticker Sheet

Challenges I am playing along with: 

Mo's Digital Pencil Challenge Blog - Anything 'Mo'/ option of Spring // Unicorn Challenge - Spots or Stripes // Crafty Friends Challenge - Birthday // The Fairy and The Unicorn - Anyting Magical Goes // Colour Crazy Challenge - Coloring // Craft-Dee BowZ - Handmade Bow // Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper  - Pattern Papers // Daisy Chain Challenges - Make it Feminine // Digi Doodle Studios Challenge Blog  - Hand Coloring 

Anything Goes (and I found lots of them!): 

Digi Choosday Challenge // Lemon Shortbread // Paper Minutes // Through The Craft Room Door // Tuesday Throwdown // Get Creative Challenges // Path of Positivity // Lil Patch of Crafty Friends // The Corrosive Challenges // A Gem of a Challenge  // Crafter's Castle // Crafty Catz  // Creative Fingers // Jo's Scrap Shack // QKR Stampede  // Simply Create Too // Crafting With An Attitude  // Creative Moments // A Bit More Time to Craft // Createful Heart Digis & Design Challenges // Happy Craft Challenge // Let's Craft & Create Challenge // Love to Craft // The Creative Crafters

As a reminder, the prize for my Crafty Wednesday challenge is this cute rubber stamp from my prize box:

To play along simply leave a link to your blog post with the linky tool below. Please remember to leave a link back to my blog in your blog post and the given themes must be followed in order to be entered into the prize drawing.

Please remember: this is a public blog, meaning any papercraft you link up or any comments left on this blog will be visible and clickable by third parties. The blog owner is not responsible for republished content from this blog on other blogs or websites without permission. 

This post contains some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support! 

Allsorts Challenge 513: Use Yellow

Hello and welcome! It's time already for a new theme at Allsorts challenge. This week Lynn is our host and she chose the theme of "Use Yellow Somewhere". We're having a wonderful prize by Woodware to give away this week to one lucky randomly selected winner. It could be you - but only if you play along :-)

To make my card I followed this week's sketch from Freshly Made Sketches and used this cute image (Baby Fairy Bee) by Mo Manning. I colored it with my Faber Castell Polychromos  pencils on Neenah 80lb card stock. I used a chickenwire stencil for the honeycomb background with Mustard Seed Distress Ink to add some interest to the background. The yellow stripe on the right side was done with Distress inks as well, and I used a dotted stencil (Penny Black Oscillations Stencil) to add a simple design.


Stencils at Scrapbook.com

 Sentiment is from the set Label Maker by MFT. This specific set is retired but this one by Altenew is similar and it also comes in a spanish version. I stamped it with Versafine Clair Nocturne ink. A button and white cotton twine finish off this CAS card. I also covered the wings with a Wink of Stella clear glitter brush for some sparkle.

Mo Manning Baby Fairy Bee // Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils // Neenah 80lb Cardstock // Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush // Penny Black Oscillations Stencil //  TCW Chickenwire Stencil // Mustard Seed Distress Ink // Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink // Scor Tape // MFT Label Maker Sentiment - retired - Similar by Altenew

Related Products

I am also sharing my card here:

I used this sketch from Freshly Made Sketches

 Ike's World - CAS // 2 Sisters On The Blog - CAS // A2Z Scrapbooking Linky Party - Color it in // Aud Sentiments Challenge - Any sentiment except Happy Birthday

Anything Goes Here: 

Simon Says Wednesday // Crafting By Designs // Crafty Creations // Creative Moments // House That Stamps Built // Crafty Sentiment Designs // Digi Choosday Challenge // Lemon Shortbread // Through The Craft Room Door // Artistic Inspirations // Path of Positivity 

Thank you so much for visiting! Hope you're having a fabulous weekend! 


This post contains some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, at no additional cost to you. Thank you so much for your support!

Bunny with Daffodils // Flashback Friday

I don't usually share a card on Fridays, but I came across this cute stamp when I was sorting through some stamps and realized I hadn't ever used it since purchasing it from ebay a few years ago. And I will be needing a few Easter cards soon so I decided to ink  it up. In fact I think I will try making and sharing a card made with my retired and rarely used stamps on Fridays whenever time allows.

For this card I used the stamp No. G1946 by PSX.

My card front is Bristol Vellum Paper (not to be confused with the milky transparent vellum sheets) and I used Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink for stamping.

I colored with my Faber Castell Polychromos. The sentiment is another oldie (this one is by Penny Black) - I do like using this sentiment on spring themed cards. The butterfly is part of Penny Black's Flowing Butterfly Die, it's meant to be used together but for my card I simply cut each butterfly off the cluster to use separately. I cut it out with white card stock but inked it up with Broken China and Blueprint Sketch distress oxide ink. Stickyback Rhinestones were added to the butterfly's body and I used some May Arts Jute Twine in Parrot Green around the bottom. The green designer paper is from my paper stash, this specific one is ancient by Stampin Up. For my card base I used Hero Arts Dove White card stock. I've been running low on my white paper for card bases and wanted to give this one a try. For anyone interested this is a 100lb bright white card stock works perfect for the purpose and it runs $7.99 for a pack of 25. It will cost less to get a ream of Neenah Classic Crest 110lb card stock which most of you know is a great quality as well.

Another photo below, here you can see the colors I used for this image. It's so much fun layering all the pencils to achieve the color I want. But it does take time.

PSX G1946, Penny Black Sentiment (both retired but probably available on Ebay or Etsy)

 Bristol Vellum Paper// Hero Arts Dove White Card Stock // Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink //  Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils  // Penny Black Flowing Butterfly Die // May Arts Jute Twine // Tombo Mono Multi Glue // Scor Tape // Sticky Rhinestones // Broken China Distress Oxide // Blueprint Sketch Distress Oxide 

Find Spring-Themed Stamps at Scrapbook.com

I found some challenges to join:

Retro Rubber Challenge - I  used the diagonal twine, leaves, dies (I had this stamp for about 2-3 years but it's been released in 1999 - before I even began this hobby) // Little Red Wagon - Hop to it // Simon Says Wednesday - Anything Goes // Crafty Friends Challenge - Spring // Addicted to Stamps - CAS // CCEE Stampers - Color with Pencils // Crafty Gals Corner - Spring // Try It On Tuesday - Say it with Flowers // Unicorn Challenge - Spring // Alphabet Challenge - A is for Animals

Thank you so much for stopping by! I will be back again tomorrow with my design team creation for Allsorts challenge. 

This post contains some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, at no additional cost to you. Thank you so much for your support!

Midmonth at Penny Black and More Challenge

Today we're sharing our midmonth creation at the Penny Black and More challenge blog, reminding you that there is still a little time to join us! Our theme is "Going Round in Circles". As usual, we have some wonderful prizes again and I hope you had a chance to join us, but if not there are still a couple of weeks left to play along! And remember you may enter up to 3 times for more chances to win!

I thought this cute stamp set was perfect to use for our "circles" challenge! The chicks are all from the Penny Black set "Chick to Chick", it's an older set but I found it HERE on Amazon and it ships free with a $25 order. I am still having fun with my  Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils and using the layering and burnishing technique. A few weeks ago I had asked on Instagram comparing two images (a pencil colored one and a copic colored one) and most people preferred the pencil coloring. So I am continuing working with pencils and learning color combinations etc. I know I could just use mineral spirits or baby oil, but I prefer the layering technique more, even though it takes longer to complete.

Related Products:

These chicks have all been fussy cut using my Cutterbee scissors. Some  Wink of Stella glitter was brushed over the flowers.
The striped paper is an old one (but favorite) from Stampin up. I've been hoarding it long enough and it was perfect for this spring card. Sentiment is an old wood mounted one by Penny Black, stamped with Versafine Claire Nocturne ink. I tied some striped twine around the card to finish it off. Card base is Stampin Up's kraft card stock.

 Penny Black Chick to Chick // Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils // Bristol Vellum Paper // Versafine Claire Nocturne // Similar Twine // Prima Flowers //  Wink of Stella Glitter

I'm sharing with these challenges:

 Mod Squad Challenge - Layered Looks // Moving along with the Times - Bugs (stamp includes a little lady bug) // Challenge Up Your Life - Winter Goodbye // Crafty Calendar - For a Child // Penny Black Saturday Challenge - Anything Goes // Send a Smile for Kids - For Kids // Addicted to Stamps - Spring // A Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes // Crafter's Castle - Anything Goes // 2 Crafty Critter Crazies - Critters // A2Z Scrapbooking Linky Party - Color it in // A Bit More Time to Craft - Anything Goes // Classic Design Team Open Challenge - Anything Goes // Craft-Dee BowZ - Bows // Crafty Animals - Animals // Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper - Pattern Papers // Creatalicious Challenges  - Anything Goes // Createful Heart Digis & Design Challenges - Springtime // Creative Craft Cottage Challenges - Spring Fever // Daisy Chain Challenges  - Spring is in the Air// LeAnn’s World 10 - Anything Goes // Make My Monday - Going Round in Circles
Lost Coast Designs - Round and Round

Thank you so much for visiting! Hope to see you over at the Penny Black and More challenge blog. We have some wonderful prize to give away from Penny Black and Lost Coast Designs!

Amazon shopping links below for those of you interested:
This post contains some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support!

Allsorts Challenge 511: Favorite Stamp or Die

Hello and welcome! It's time for another theme at Allsorts challenge, Kath is our host this week and picked the theme of "Use your favorite stamp or die". This should be an easy one I think, although for me I can't say I can ever decide on a definite favorite. Love so many of my stamps and I just cannot choose. Now if I were to be asked to pick a favorite stamp company, there would be no question to that as it's been Penny Black stamps for a long time and still is.
So digging through my Penny Black stamps I decided on this beauty called Botanical Notes. I don't think this stamp needs much more than some coloring and a sentiment to make a pretty card. Maybe even no coloring needed ... just stamp over an inked background and it would already make a beautiful card!

The sentiment is also one of my favorites  from the Penny Black stamp set "Snippets", I love using it with butterfly stamps. As you can see I stamped it onto a piece of torn vellum paper using jet black Stazon ink which is a must for stamping on vellum (heat embossing would be another opion).

The image  Botanical Notes has been stamped with Versafine Clair Nocturne ink using my Tonic stamp platform on Bristol Vellum card stock. Then colored using Faber Castell Polychromos pencils. I inked up the edge with Mustard Seed and Antique Linen distress inks and added some gold cord as an embellishment.

       Penny Black Botanical Garden // Penny Black Snippets // 

Versafine Claire Nocturne Ink // Stazon Jet Black Ink // Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils // 

Tonic Stamp Platform // Stickles Diamond Glitter Glue // Wink of Stella Glitter // Bristol Vellum Paper // Vellum Paper

I stamped the butterfly a second time, colored and fussy cut and attached it to the card with a glue dot in the center then bent up the wings for a 3D effect. Some diamond stickles glitter was applied to the flower center and wink of stella brushed over the butterfly.

I am also sharing with these challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Monday - Feminine // Fab 'n' Funky - Butterfly // Moving along with the Times - Bugs // Penny Black Saturday Challenge - Anything Goes // Addicted to Stamps - Spring // Crafty Catz - Spring // Craft Rocket Challenges - Flowers // Crafting With An Attitude - Anything Goes // Imagine That Creative Playground  - Anything Goes // Sasayaki Glitter Challenge Blog - Flowers // Moo-Mania & More - Close to Nature // Sweet Stampers - Spring


Thanks so much for visiting! Hope to see you over at the Allsorts challenge blog. We're giving away two cute clear stamp sets this week to one lucky winner!

Amazon shopping links below for those of you interested:

This post contains some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support!

Penny Black and More - March Challenge

It's the first Sunday of the month and it is time for our March theme at Penny Black and More challenge! Our fun theme this month is "Going Round in Circles". Hope you can join us! You do have all month long to play along and remember you may enter up to 3 projects for more chances to win! 

Can you spot my circles?? I hope so, maybe I should have inked them up a bit. I wanted to do the spotlight technique for this card, and chose the stamp set "Sunny Wishes" by Penny Black along with a sentiment from the Penny Black set " Snippets". 

I stamped the image twice, the second time I used a couple of small circle dies to cut out parts of the image where I would add color. I didn't want to leave the rest of the image completely uncolored so decided to add some brown tones. I wish it was more of a lighter brown (or light sepia tone), but as I am teaching myself color combinations with my Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils, it turned out too dark. But I thought it was still nice, and it takes a long time to color, so there was no way I was going to throw away the card. 

I used Versafine Clair Nocturn ink to stamp both the image and sentiment. The strip paper strip is from my scraps and the brown card base is by Stampin Up. I embellished with natural jute twine by May Arts and a sticky pearl. Some Wink of Stella clear glitter was brushed over the spotlighted blossoms and butterflies.

Penny Black Sunny Wishes // Penny Black Snippets // Versafine Clair Nocturn Ink // Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils // Tonic Stamp Platform // May Arts Natural Jute Twine //
Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush

I am also joining these challenges:

Paper Minutes - Spring 

Mod Squad Challenge- Stripes

Simon Says Wednesday - Anything Goes

TIME OUT Challenges - Unique (I hope my card qualifies for this theme as it's not a technique I use often)

Alphabet Challenge - Y for Yarn, String or Twine (week1)

Penny Black Saturday Challenge - Anything Goes with Penny Black

Inkspirational  - Use Your Stash
A Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes
Catch The Bug - Anything Goes
Crafter's Castle - Anything Goes w/option of glitter
AAA - sentiment plus 3 from wheel below (I picked stamped image, colored pencils and circle die cuts).

Thanks so much for visiting and I hope to see your entry over at the challenge blog. This month we have prizes by Penny Black from their New Release and also a prize by Lost Coast Design, so plenty of reasons to play along!





This post contains some affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you purchase something through the links, at no additional cost to you.