In Memory of Bill Blog Hop...

Hi. Today I am here as part of the blog hop to support Sue Trembeth during a difficult time. Sue is a beloved member of the design team at The Rainbow Card Challenge Blog. Her elder brother Bill passed away from esophageal cancer some time back. Losing a loved member of our family is always tough. My thoughts and prayers are with Sue and her family during this difficult time. 

The theme is periwinkle, the color of esophageal cancer awareness. Here is my card.

I started with a panel of watercolor paper on which I stamped the flowers from the Lil Inkers Inky Flowers stamp set with Versamark ink. I heat embossed the flowers with white embossing powder. After the heat embossing was done, I used distress inks in shades of blue and violet for ink smooshing. I allowed the panel to dry and then added some more ink to the flowers with a brush to make them pop a bit more. Here is a closer look at the left side of the panel

And the right side

I kept the rest of the card very simple. After trimming the panel, I mounted it over a black mat on a grey card base. The sentiment is from the Forest Friends stamp set by Pinkfresh Studio. I heat embossed it in white on a scrap of black paper.

Here is another look at the completed card.

Your next stop is the awesome Mary Ellen Driggs. You can also start at the beginning. Here is a list of all the stops of the blog hop.

Mynn Kitchen
Rocky Crafter
Em Fairley
Nandini Karmarkar - That's me!
Mary Ellen Driggs
LeAnn Skinner
Lee Ann Barrett
Gietje Boja-Ligthart
Ewa Pas
Jacqueline Mantle
The Rainbow Card Challenge Blog

Love,
Nandini

Addicted To Stamps And More Challenge #376...

Hi! A new challenge is up at the Addicted to Stamps & More challenge blog. The theme this week is the easiest and most popular theme.

My card today is based on one of my older card designs. This is a great one for mass production. The original cards were made as invites for my 20-year school reunion. They were given to all the teachers and staff. Here is the card I made.

I started with a piece of white cardstock panel. I scored diagonal lines across the panel with the help of my scoreboard. After scoring, I inked the panel with distress inks. To finish, I adhered the panel to a black card base and added the sentiment. The word die is from Mudra Craft Stamps.

Here is another look at the card.

And the original cards that were sent out.

I hope you liked this card and are inspired to create something beautiful. I look forward to seeing your creations in our gallery. Please visit the Addicted to Stamps and More blog to link your creations and also get more inspiration from my talented teamies.

Love,

Nandini

Happy Little Stampers February Challenge...

Hi! Welcome back to another challenge at the Happy Little Stampers Anything Goes with Dies. You can create anything, as long as you use dies.

My inspiration today is another easel card. I really enjoy creating cards with fancy folds. For this one, I used some beautiful pattern paper that I found in a local store in Panjim. Called Paperworks this store is a one-stop-shop for all things paper. It is very similar to Chimanlals in Mumbai; in fact, I believe it is owned by the same family.

I hope you find my card inspiring and pull out your dies to play. You can check out the Happy Little Stampers Anything Goes with Dies challenge blog for more inspiration and also link your creations. Looking forward to seeing your cards in our gallery.

Love,
Nandini

Rainbow Card Challenge - Fiercely Fuschia...

Hi! I am here today with the February challenge at the Rainbow Card Challenge. Every month we have a monochromatic or rainbow-colored photo inspiration. Here is this month's pic.

I am not a very pink sort of girl. But I had fun creating the inspiration card as I got a chance to play with some new products. I used the new Shilpi Alcohol Inks for my background. The owner of Shilpi, Shilpa Kenia, was kind enough to send me some inks and Yupo paper some time back. I absolutely loved them! The colors are gorgeous and the quality is great. I can't wait to get more of these fabulous inks! Here is the card I made.

I started with a piece of Yupo paper and randomly squirted the inks. I then added some blending medium to move things and left the piece to dry. I just love the vibrant colors. Here is a closer look.

I die-cut the Framed Flower Branch out of white cardstock and adhere d it to the background. I adhered the panel to a piece of black foam cut slightly larger and adhered that to a top folding card base. The sentiment is from the Birthday Greetings stamp set by Altenew. I heat embossed it with metallic pink embossing powder. To finish, I added some half pearls from my stash. 

Here is a look at the completed card.

I am so happy with this card! I hope you find it inspiring and look forward to your creations in our gallery. Please do visit the  Rainbow Card Challenge for more inspiration and to link your cards to the gallery.  I would also highly recommend the new Shilpi Alcohol Inks. There is a whole range of products that you can check out here. Their quality is great and I am always happy to support Indian brands.

Entering this card in the following challenge.

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes:

Love,
Nandini

Papercraft Challenge #26...

Hi! Welcome back to the February challenge at the Papercraft Challenge blog. We celebrate Valentine's Day in February, so this month's theme is Love / Valentine's Day. There are so many creative possibilities with this theme! I am looking forward to going through all the lovely creations in our gallery. If you want some inspiration, do visit us at the Papercraft Challenge blog where the DT has a great array of fabulous creations for you. You can also visit the Papercraft Business site for some great tools that can help you take your papercraft business to the next level. Like the awesome Papercraft Business Planner that helps you keep track of your favorite challenges!

A challenge is even more fun if there is a prize to be won. This month the winning prize is this cute Whale You Be Mine stamp set by Lawn Fawn.

My inspiration card for this challenge is a simple design with lots of texture. I created this card as part of my homework for the Mission: Inspiration class by Nicole Watts for Altenew Academy. If you are like me and spend lots of time on the net searching for inspiration, this is the class for you!

Here is my card.

I started with a piece of watercolor paper and the Sunburst stencil by Altenew. I applied the Mixed Media Paste by Little Birdie through the stencil and allowed it to dry completely. Made by Itsy Bitsy India, the Mixed Media paste is a great product. Applied directly it works as texture or embossing paste. It can also be diluted with water and used as gesso. I applied some Sparkle Paste, also by Little Birdie around the center of the panel. 

Here is a closer look at the panel. 

I trimmed the panel slightly smaller than an A2 card and adhered it with foam tape on a top folding ivory card base. The sentiment is from the Love Scale stamp set by Pinkfresh Studio. I stamped it in pink and die-cut it with the coordinating die. I popped it up with foam tape over a heart die-cut out of pink handmade paper.

I love the shimmer that spotlights the heart.

Here is another look at the completed card.

I hope you like my sweet and simple Valentine's Day card. I look forward to your entries in our gallery.

You can get more information about Papercraft Challenge Planner here. It is an invaluable tool for all crafters who love taking part in challenges. The Papercraft Business site also has tools that can help you take your business to the next level.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Love,
Nandini