Altenew Academy Project #11...

Hi! The month of May has been a very busy one for me. With the summer holidays on, the time for crafting and blogging is almost non-existent! Though I will miss having the kids at home, I am also looking forward to the start of the school year in June.

I have started taking the classes necessary for Level 2 of the Altenew Educator Certification Program. The class that excited me most is Magical Marker Techniques by Sara Naumann. I was lucky to buy the Artist Markers Set A in Destash. This is a completely new medium for me. So I was a bit apprehensive about investing the money. But I loved the class and enjoyed my first few attempts at using the Artist's Markers.

Here is the card that I came up with:

I started with a plain piece of white cardstock. I used different shades of pink and blue to create a plaid background. The idea was to have a less than perfect, artsy feel. So I just hand drew the lines. I die cut the background with the Banner die by Itsy Bitsy. I also cut a larger banner from the white cardstock.

Here is a closer look at the banners.

I used the outline image of the flower from the Peony Bouquet stamp set to add some texture to the background by stamping with a slightly darker ink.

The sentiment is from the Birthday Greetings stamp set by Altenew. I stamped it with some Memento ink. This is where the thin nib really came in handy. I used it to fill some dark pink color into the outlined 'Happy'.

To finish, I stamped some of the leaf and berry images from the Peony Bouquet stamp set and cut them out with the coordinating dies. I colored them quickly with the markers and they were ready to go.

Here is a closer look at the sentiment panel.

I popped up the sentiment panel on some foam tape and added the die cuts. To finish I added some sequins from my stash.

I love the way this card turned out. And I loved working with the Artist Markers. I have ordered a few more already and look forward to playing with them.

Entering this card in the following challenges:

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Use More Than One Stamp:

I used several stamps from the Peony Bouquet and the Birthday Greetings stamp sets by Altenew.

HLS May Anything Goes With Dies Challenge:

CAS On Friday Challenge #133 - Birthday Card:

Sunday Stamps Challenge SSC179 - Sweet Visions:

Love,
Nandini

Make My Monday Challenge #71...

Hi! The new challenge at the Make My Monday is up. The theme this time is 'Hint of Summer to Come'. A bit funny since here we are in the middle of summer with scorching hot days! I am looking forward to the monsoons which will start next month.

I made a few floral cards as inspiration.

I used the Perennial Beauty stamp set by Altenew to stamp the large flower with Altenew inks. I love this stamp since the flower is so large and it is very easy to align the layers. The leaves are from the Peony Bouquet set. The sentiments are from the Painted Greetings set and stamped with Versafine Onyx Black ink. I love this ink since it stamps very crisp and dark in one shot. 

I used a grey card base and some black matting to finish the cards. I love the way these cards turned out. I hope you like them too and are inspired to create something beautiful. Please visit the Make My Monday blog for more inspiration and to link your creations.

Here are close-ups of the individual cards.

I used a mix of pinks from the Altenew inks. I love that they work so well with each other. 

Entering this card in the following challenges:

Inspired By All The Little Things #85:

All Sorts Challenge Week 467 - In The Pink:

The Card Concept #92 - Bold Bloom:

I used the Sea Shore set of Altenew mini ink pads for this flower.

Entering this card in the following challenges:

Freshly Made Sketches #336:

Time Out Challenge #109:

AAA CAS Game #115:

Love,
Nandini

Ombre with Sparkle Paste...

Hi! The current challenge at Mudra Craft Stamps blog is an all-time favourite theme - Anything Goes. I made some card sets as inspiration. You can check out the details here.
I have always loved using stencils. And Mudra has a very nice, exclusive collection of designs. I combined the stencils with some Sparkle Paste that I recently purchased from Itsy Bitsy.

I mixed the paste with a drop of Camlin Photo Ink to create the colours. The inks mix beautifully with the paste. I also got a gorgeous teal colour by mixing equal parts blue and green. The 'Thanks' die is by Mudra Cut3. Here are the other cards I made.

Dark Blue

Light Blue

Foliage Green

Violet

I loved the Sparkle Paste. It is very easy to use and gives a gorgeous, smooth, sparkly finish. It also dries quite fast and is easy to clean. I love that it mixes well with inks. It is slightly on the higher side price wise. But I made total six cards with full coverage and there is still a little left, enough for two more cards I think. I hope Itsy Bitsy is planning a larger jar size.

Here is a look at all the cards together.



I am entering these cards in the following challenge:

Simon Says Monday Challenge - Ombre:

Love,
Nandini

Addicted To Stamps And More #291...

Hi! The new challenge is up at the Addicted To Stamps And More blog. This week is the easiest theme of all.

I created a set of cards for this challenge.

This is a great design for creating multiples, especially if you use a stamp positioner. I used the Striped Florals set by Altenew to stamp the images in Versafine Onyx Black ink on a white card base. I love this ink since it gives a crisp image every time. I used the base stamps from the Circle Scribble Flowers set by MFT to stamp different colors of distress inks over the black images. The sentiment is from Sentiments 1 stamp set by Elizabeth Craft Designs. I stamped it with Versamark on black paper and heat embossed with white EP. I mounted it with some foam tape on the card base.

I hope you like my cards and are inspired to create something beautiful. I look forward to seeing your creations in our gallery. Please do visit the ATSM blog to link your creations and also to get inspired by rest of the design team. 

Love,

Nandini