Hi! I am on the Mudra blog today with some more inspiration cards for the Mudra Challenge #19.
Here are the sneak peeks of my cards.
Please visit the Mudra Craft Stamps blog to know more.
Love,
Nandini
Hi! The current challenge is up at the Addicted To Stamps And More blog. This week is a photo challenge.
There are many inspiring elements here. I took the gorgeous shades of blue and the contrast with white into consideration.
I started with a scrap of blue handmade paper. I adhered it to a scrap of card stock since it was thin. I have found it easiest to use a glue stick to do this. I die cut it into a rectangle. The sentiment is from the Birthday Greetings stamp set by Altenew. This is fast becoming my go-to set for birthday cards! I stamped it with Memento ink and also flicked some on the white card base. While the card base was drying, I adhered the sentiment to the blue panel. I also die cut the Isabella Butterfly from Memory Box and adhered it to the panel. I popped up the panel on some foam tape and attached it to the card base.
To finish I added some half pearls from my stash. Here is a close up of the card.
This card is super simple and I put it together in half an hour. Which is a record of sorts for me! Usually I stress over every little decision. I think it is a great design for mass production and busting my stash of handmade papers.
I hope you liked my card and are inspired to create something beautiful. Please do visit the Addicted To Stamps And More challenge blog for more inspiration and to link your creations.
Looking forward to seeing you in our gallery.
Entering the card in the following challenges:
Fab Friday #133:
AAA Cards:
Love,
Nandini
Hi! I am back with my final card for the Altenew Educator Certification Program Level 1. I am very excited to complete the first level. And looking forward to doing the Level 2 classes.
My card is based on the Let It Shine class by Carissa Wiley. There are lots of tips and tricks for adding some bling and shine to your cards. I went with my all time favorite technique - heat embossing.
I took scraps of white card stock and die cut them into banners. I colored each with photo inks since I wanted intense colors. I stamped a sentiment from the Painted Greetings stamp set on each with Versamark and heat embossed with metallic copper, silver and gold EP. I splattered some Jet Black ink on a white panel and also stamped the sentiment from Birthday Greetings stamp set. The banners were popped up with foam tape. I adhered the panel to a black card base.
To finish I added half pearls on the banners. Here is a closer look.
I like how simple and bright this card is. Hope you like it too.
Love,
Nandini
Hi! Today's card is based on the things I learnt from the Seasonal Scene Building class by Nicole Magouirk.
I started with two cream panels. I diecut both with stitched dies. I also cut a window in the smaller one and traced it out lightly with a pencil on the larger panel. I used the balloon stamp from the Birthday Greetings stamp set and inked just the edges with some Altenew ink. After stamping, I used a damp brush to pull the color in. This gives a lovely transparent effect to the color. I have tried it before with distress inks, you can check out the card here. To my delight it worked as well with Altenew inks. The trick is to dry the ink completely before starting with the next color. That gives you the overlap effect. Otherwise the two colors mix and create a muddy mess.
I outlined the balloons with a black pen. I also added some more details with metallic inks. Here is a closer look at the balloons.
I stamped the sentiment with Jet Black ink below the window and popped up the panel on the larger panel. I mounted the whole thing on a kraft card base.
I hope you liked my card. Looking forward to hearing from you.
Love,
Nandini
Hi! I have now finished all my cards for the Altenew Educator Certification Program Level 1. So expect some quick post over the next couple of days!
Today's card is inspired by the For The Guys class by Jennifer Rzasa. This is a great class especially for people like me who find masculine cards challenging. Jennifer has given several ideas for cards appropriate for boys as well as men. I focused on the Pop Art technique for today's card.
Pop Art as a style has always fascinated me. My husband is an architect and as such both of us are very interested in different styles and genres of design. I love the bright colors and bold graphics that are typical of this vibrant style.
I don't have many non-floral stamps by Altenew. So I chose to go with the Birthday Greetings stamp set. I first stamped the balloon with distress oxide inks on white card paper. I masked the balloons and colored the background with Faber Castell brush pens. I love their vivid colors. To give the balloons a bit more definition I outlined each with a black pen.
I decided to go with a black cardbase since I wanted my card to be really bold. I die cut the balloon panels and mounted them on a larger panel. I also stamped the sentiment from the same stamp set and heat embossed it with gold EP. The black panel was then mounted on the card base with foam tape. Here is a closer look at my panel.
Entering this card in the following challenge:
AAA Cards: CAS Game #111:
Love,
Nandini
Hi! I am almost done with my cards for the first level of Altenew Educator program. I have had a blast doing my classes and learnt a lot. This is the latest card I made and I can see so many little tips and tricks that I picked up.
This card is based on the Easy Ink Blending Techniques by Amy Lee. I think it my favorite till date. It actually came together very fast and I absolutely love it!
I started with a white card base. I blended some Peach Perfect ink in a circular motion. I also added a touch of Mango Smoothie to brighten the color. I then added splatters with gold acrylic paint and Jet Black ink. While the base was drying, I stamped and die cut the little buds image from the Striped Florals set. My original idea was to use only one or two images. But when I started arranging the die cuts I realized they made a gorgeous wreath. The sentiment is from the Birthday Greetings stamp set. This set is fast becoming my go-to set for birthday cards! I heat embossed the sentiment with some gold EP. I also pressed the buds on the Versamark pad and heat embossed them with the Enchanted Gold EP .
I arranged the die cuts over the blended area and then glued them down taking care to bend the paper slightly to give it more dimension. The sentiment strip was popped up on foam tape and mounted over the wreath. Here is a closer look at the card.
And a tilted view to show off the lovely sparkle.
Entering it in the following challenges.
Color Throwdown #485:
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Floral Frenzy:
Allsorts Challenge Week #459 - Bring On The Bling:
I used metallic gold and glitter EP.
Love,
Nandini
Hi! My second post for the day as part of my cards made for the Altenew Academy. I made a card based on the Irresistible Inking Techniques class by Sarah Naumann.
Here is my card.
I started with a large acrylic block which I inked with the Warm Gray mini ink cubes. I spritzed it with water and then stamped on watercolor paper. For some reason, the color changed when the paper was dry. This is still a big mystery. But I liked the result. I stamped the images from the Mini Blossoms stamp set and stamped with Jet Black ink. Once it was dry, I used Rose Petal and Sea Shore mini ink cube sets to color the images.
I used the Filled Alpha stamp set to stamp the sentiment in Jet Black ink. To finish I added a few sequins from my stash and mounted the panel on a black card base. Here is a close up.
This is one of my favorite cards. I love the technique and also the watercoloring. The black ink did bleed a bit. So I will be careful in the future.
Entering this card in the following Challenge:
CAS Watercolour March Challenge:
Love,
Nandini
Hi! I am really enjoying my classes at the Altenew Academy. I love the fact that these classes not only teach new techniques, but also give a fresh insight into familiar ones!
Today's card is based on the Celebration Stencil Techniques class by Laurel Beard. My love affair with stencils started when I was in college. I studied Textile Design and we used to make stencils manually with sheets of acetate and a simple cutter. This was before ready to use stencils were available. I have also designed a few stencils for Mudra Craft Stamps based on Arabic designs.
You can find examples of my cards with these stencils here and here.
Unfortunately I don't have any Altenew stencils. But that is not an issue since you can stretch your dies by using them as stencils. Any dies work for this and intricate dies work particularly well.
I used the Dodecagram die to create my card.
I first inked a piece of watercolor paper with some distress ink. I cut the die out of a sturdy piece of paper and placed it on the inked panel. Since the die cuts a thin outline, I placed the negative piece of paper as well and taped it down. I then applied green distress ink through my 'stencil'.
Initially I planned to add some flowers over the stenciling. But the panel looked so good, I decided to keep it as is. The sentiment is from the Birthday Greetings stamp set by Altenew. I stamped it with Jet Black ink. To finish I added some gold sequins from my stash.
Here is a closer look.
I love this simple card and would love to make it in different color combinations.
Entering this card in the following challenges:
AAA Cards CAS Game #110 - Ombre:
Muse Challenge #257:
I was inspired by the 3 blooms forming a rough triangle in one corner and the sentiment stamped in bold black in the opposite corner.
Love,
Nandini
Hi! I have been busy trying to finish my work for the Altenew Educator Certification. The courses are really great. And it is fun to put the concepts to work.
Today's card is based on the Clean & Simple Boutique Cards conducted by Jennifer Rzasa. It is a great course with loads of tips for adding that extra special touch to your cards.
Here is my card using a few of ideas from this course.
The starting point of this card was the beautiful pattern paper that I discovered in my local paper shop. I love the ornate design and the gold accents, which unfortunately didn't photograph well.
Since the paper is rather thin, I glued it to a piece of scrap paper. I used the Banner die by Itsy Bitsy to cut the banners. I also used circle dies to cut a gold frame for the window. The sentiment is from the Painted Greetings set by Altenew. I stamped it with Versamark and heat embossed with glittery red EP by Wow!
I couldn't resist adding the shaker element which makes the card extra festive. The sequins are from my stash.
Entering this card in the following challenges:
CAS On Sundays Challenge #128 - Celebration with sequins:
HLS March Anything Goes with Dies:
TIME OUT Challenge #104:
I used red which is probably the strongest and boldest color in the color wheel! And combined it with gold.
Love,
Nandini
Hi! I am on the Mudra blog today with some inspiration cards for the Mudra Challenge #19.
Here are the sneak peeks of my cards.
Please visit the Mudra Craft Stamps blog to know more.
Love,
Nandini
