Addicted To Stamps & More #318...

Hi! The new challenge is up at the Addicted To Stamps & More blog. This week the theme is

I made a Christmas card as inspiration.

I used the Kaleidoscope technique again. The original technique is by Jennifer Mcguire and you can find the post here. Since I don't have the wreath builder template by Gina K, I made my own out of some sturdy file board. Then I dug out the Christmas Decors set by Mudra Craft Stamps and Warm Wishes Tia by Some Odd Girl. I used Altenew and Memento inks to stamp the snowflakes and created my own kaleidoscope background.

I trimmed the panel and die cut a window towards the top right corner. The sentiment is from the Christmas set my Mudra Craft Stamps. I stamped it with Memento ink and then heat embossed with Ranger's Holographic EP. The blue sequins are from my stash. I created the shaker and then mounted the whole thing on a bright blue card base.

Here is a closer look at the card.

I hope you are inspired by my card. I look forward to seeing your creations in our gallery. Please do visit the Addicted To Stamps & More blog for more inspiration and to link your entries.

Entering this card in the following challenges:

Rainbow Card Challenge - Design Team Call:
I am keeping my fingers crossed for this DT call! My style is very Clean & Simple. I love bright colours and messy backgrounds. I am a complete technique junkie and enjoy finding new ways to use my supplies. I love the idea of a colour challenge as it will make me stretch my boundaries. And I love the challenge graphic!

Cardz 4 Guyz Challenge #207 - Winter Blues:

That's Crafty Challenge - Winter Wonderland:

Incy Wincy Designs - Christmas:

Love,
Nandini

Make My Monday #84...

Hi! The new challenge is up at the Make My Monday challenge blog. The theme this time is Winter Foliage. I decided to use the Kaleidoscope technique that Jennifer Mcguire shared some time back. You can find the original post here. She used the wreath builder stencil by Gina K to create her cards. Since I don't have it, I created my own template. Here is the card I made.

I used the Autumn Splendor stamp set by Sunny Studio and the Christmas Trimmings stamp & cut set by Hero Arts along with a bunch of inks from Altenew, Memento and Wendy Vecchi for the stamping. The process takes a bit of time and I had to figure out the placement etc. But once I got it, the stamping went pretty fast. And I love the results! I made another card today using the same technique which I will share later this week.

Here is a close up of the card.

The sentiment is from the Christmas Decors set by Mudra Craft Stamps. I first heat embossed with white EP and then added another layer with Ranger's Enchanted Gold to give it some shine.

I hope you liked my card and are inspired to create something beautiful. Please do visit the Make My Monday challenge blog for more inspiration from my talented teammates and to link your creations.

Entering my card in the following challenges.

Incy Wincy Designs - Christmas:

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Make Your Own Background:

Love,
Nandini

Shake It Up!

Hi! I am here today with a birthday card that I made for a very close friend. Her daughter is turning 21 and she wanted a special card for her.

I decided to make a shaker card for her. I was very inspired by a card I found on Pinterest by Nicole Gavaldon for Lawn Fawn. You can find the original card here. And here is the card I made.

The starting point of my card was some pretty gift wrapping paper that I bought some time ago. It has some water coloured polka dots that I love. I adhered it to a piece of cream cardstock and then trimmed it to fit on a 4.25" x 5.5" card base. I die cut a panel from the same cream cardstock and also die cut a heart-shaped window towards the top. I used the Sweet Cakes stamp set by Simon Says Stamp. I stamped the little table and the candles at the top of the cake with Versamark ink and heat embossed with Ranger's Gold embossing powder. I inked the cake image with my Zigs as I wanted to get the same watercoloured look as the polka dots. I stamped it a couple of times to get some shading. I die cut the images with the coordinating dies.

The sentiment was also stamped with Versamark ink and heat embossed with Ranger Gold Tinsel embossing powder. I used a mix of sequins from my stash to create the shaker element. I want to especially mention the liquid craft glue that I used from Itsy Bitsy to adhere the OHP sheet to the paper. This is a fantastic glue which dries clear, is super strong and works with almost any material!

I adhered the shaker panel to the card base and the die cuts over the shaker window. I punched out three small flowers and added them to the cake. To finish, I added gold sequins to the centres of the flowers.

Here is a closer look at the card.

I really loved this card. Waiting to hear from my friend now, after she gives her daughter the card.

I am entering this card in the following challenges.

Less Is More Challenge #383 - Dimension:

Pixie's Snippets Playground Challenge #338:

Allsorts Challenge Week 492 - Pretty Papers:

Mix It Up Challenge MIUCB #19 - Anything Goes + Aperture:

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge #362:

Love,
Nandini

Happy Diwali!

Hi! Today is Diwali, the festival of lights. I wish all of you a very happy Diwali and a fantastic year ahead!

I want to share a special card on this occasion.

This card is part of the set I made for my DT post on Mudra Craft Stamps. 

I inked a paper with distress oxide inks in red, orange and pink. I stencilled over it with dark brown distress ink through the Deco Pattern stencil by Mudra. I trimmed the panel to fit a standard A2 card and die cut a rectangle from the centre. I used the frame to make another card. The gorgeous sentiment die is the Cut3 Diwali die by Mudra Craft Stamps. I inked a scrap of paper with the same distress oxide inks I used for the main panel. I added some gold splatters for a more festive look. The base layer was cut from gold foil paper. I die cut the sentiment twice, once from black and again from the inked and splattered paper. I stacked them together and then adhered the sentiment to the inked and stencilled panel. The small sentiment is from the Diwali Decorations stamp set by Mudra. This stamp set coordinates perfectly with the Diwali die. So there are lots of options for your Diwali cards.

Here is a close up of the sentiment.

Love the way this card turned out!

This was the card I shared on the Mudra blog where I used up the frame left over after die-cutting. So I got two beautiful cards at one time.

I hope you liked my card. Entering it in the following challenges.

CASology Week 320:

I used three colours that compliment each other - red, orange and pink.

CAS(E) This Sketch #296:

Less Is More Challenge #383:

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Make Your Own Background:

Cut It Up Challenge 160 - Clean & Simple:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes:

Love,

Nandini

Addicted To Stamps And More #316...

Hi! This week is one of my favourite themes at the Addicted To Stamps And More challenge blog:

I recently bought the Wreath Turnabout stamp set by Concord & 9th. I decided to use it to create two similar cards with two different colour schemes.

This is a super simple stamp set to use. Once you do the basic steps needed to align the stamp, working with it is a breeze! Here is a closer look at the cards.

I used the inks from the Rose Petal mini ink cubes by Altenew for this card. 

I used the inks from the Sea Shore mini ink cubes by Altenew for this card. 

Once the stamping was done, I die cut the sentiment from the stamped panel with the Spellbinders Just For You set. I adhered some coordinating cardstock behind the sentiment and then popped it up on some foam tape. 

Entering this card in the following challenges:

Less Is More Challenge #383 - Dimension:

Cardz For Guyz Challenge #206 - Into The Woods:

Words To Craft By W2CB #58:

Mix It Up Challenge MIUCB #18 - Anything Goes + Monochrome:

Love,
Nandini

Inktober at Mudra Craft Stamps...

Hi! I am on the Mudra Craft Stamps blog today with some cards with layered stamping. Also, check out a quick Diwali card using the newest layered dies from Mudra. These cards are part of the inspiration for the current challenge.

Here is a peek at the cards.

Please visit the Mudra Craft Stamps blog for more details on how I made my cards and also to link up your entries.

Love,
Nandini

Altenew Academy Project #16...

Hi! Today's card for the Altenew Educator Certification Program Level Two is based on a very interesting class. Color Your Day taught by the ever amazing Therese Calvird talks about adding colour to your projects in innovative ways. She speaks a lot about colour theory, using the colour wheel and also drawing inspiration from different objects.

I have always been fascinated by the work of Andy Warhol, one of the most famous exponents of the Pop Art Movement. I chose this picture of Elvis Presley as my inspiration. 

I love the contrasting colours layered against each other. Here is my card.

I chose the Perennial Beauty stamp set because it has a more loose style. I used a mix of pigment inks and distress oxide inks for stamping. I used my heat gun to dry the inks between each layer and also added a layer of white pigment ink before stamping with colour. The sentiment is from the Fresh Freesia stamp set.

Here is a closer look at my pop art flower.

To finish, I trimmed the panel and popped it up with foam tape on a teal card base. I avoided any splatters or embellishments as I wanted the whole focus to be on the flower.

While I had my supplies out, I made one more card using only distress oxide inks.

I just layered the distress oxide inks, heat drying between layers. The effect is more subdued and honestly, I like both equally. Here is a closer look at the flower.

I used a kraft card base for this card and the sentiment is from the Painted Greetings stamp set.

I hope you liked my take on pop art. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Love,
Nandini