Addicted To Stamps And More #326...

Hi! One of my favourite challenges is up on the Addicted To Stamps And More blog. The theme for this week is

I recently completed Altenew Academy's All About Layering 3 class taught by the amazing Lydia Evans. It is the third class in this series and it is completely free! If you like layering stamps and want to know more about them, the All About Layering series is for you. The classes are amazing, with lots of tips for lining up the layers correctly to different techniques you can do with these type of stamps!

My card today involves creating a focal point by adding some light stencilling behind the flowers. 

The lesson shows the technique with a white card base with stencilling in a light grey ink. nstead of using a light card base, I used a dark navy blue one. The stencil is from Mudra Craft Stamps called Arabic Patterns. I taped it to a navy blue card base and stencilled with white Delicata ink. I really love the soft shimmer that this adds to the background. The sentiment is from the Painted Greetings stamp set, again by Altenew. I stamped it with Versamark and heat embossed with Silver EP. The flower and leaves are from the Perennial Beauty stamp set by Altenew. I stamped them with Altenew inks and then fussy cut them. The flower was popped up on some foam tape and I added the leaves to frame it. To finish, I added some half pearls from my stash. Here is another look at the card.

I hope you like this card and are inspired to enter our Anything Goes challenge at the Addicted To Stamps And More blog. Looking forward to seeing you in our gallery.

CAS On Friday Challenge #150 - Birthday:

The House That Stamps Built Challenge J2319 - Anything Goes:

Love,

Nandini

All About Layering 3 - Project #2...

Hi! My second post of the day is the homework for Day 2 of Altenew Academy's All About Layering 3 class taught by the Lydia Evans. I really love the simplicity of this look.

Here is my card.

I started by stamping a bunch of images from the Peony Bouquet stamp set by Altenew on some white paper. For the flower, I stamped only the layering images and omitted the outline. For the large leaves, I omitted the base layer and for the smaller leaves, I stamped only the outlines. I die-cut everything with the coordinating dies. The sentiment is from the Painted Greetings stamp set by Altenew and I stamped it with Mudra's Jet Black ink. 

After the card base was dry, I arranged the die-cuts the way I wanted and adhered them down with glue. The flower is popped up on some foam tape to give it some extra dimension. Here is a closer look at the die-cuts.

Notice the lovely splatters I got with the Jet Black ink. I diluted the ink with water and used it to create my splatters. Before this, I always had to dig out my acrylic or watercolour paints since none of the other inks gave true black splatters. I am in love with this new ink. It stamps really crisp and dark and dries very fast. Here is another look at my card.

I hope you liked my card. I am entering it in the following challenges:

HLS January Anything Goes With Dies Challenge:

ModSquad Challenge - Use Multiple Images:

Yes, Virginia... Show and Share:

STAMPlorations January CAS Challenge:

Love,

Nandini

All About Layering 3 - Project #1...

Hi! Altenew Academy's All About Layering 3 class taught by the Lydia Evans is a must-do if you like layering stamps and want to get the most out of them. The All About Layering series is amazing, with lots of tips for lining up the layers correctly to different techniques you can do with these type of stamps! And the best part - it is completely free at the Altenew Academy!

My card today is based on Day 5 where Lydia Evans shows how to add lots of texture to your card with a die-cut background and groups of smaller, die-cut flowers.

I started with the beautiful Flower Background die by Gina Marie designs. I die cut two pieces of white cardstock and glued them together to make it more sturdy. I adhered this to a top folding, white card base. After that, I stamped a bunch of images from the Altenew Mini Blossoms set and die-cut them with the coordinating dies. I used Altenew inks for the stamping I also stamped the sentiment from the Birthday Greetings set by Altenew with Mudra Jet Black ink. I am in love with this ink. It is very crisp and dark and dries quickly. My favourite black ink previously was Versafine Onyx Black. But since it is a pigment ink, the drying time is more and chances of smudging are high. And, of course, Mudra Jet Black ink is a made in India product!

I popped up the sentiment trip on some foam tape and then arranged the flowers and leaves around it, some with glue and others with foam tape. To finish, I added some tiny half pearls from my stash. Here is a close up of the die-cuts.

Really love the texture that the background has and the dainty blooms cascading down. Here is another look at the card.

I hope you like my card. I look forward to hearing from you.

Entering this card in the following challenges:

Colour Throwdown #527:

ModSquad Challenge - Use Multiple Images:

CAS On Sunday Challenge #150 - Birthday:

STAMPlorations January CAS Challenge:

HLS January Anything Goes With Dies Challenge:

Yes, Virginia... Show and Share:

Color My Heart Color Dare #327:
I used diagonal colours - Green, White & Grey. I also added the colour Blue. 

Love,
Nandini

Altenew Academy Project #25...

Hi! Finally, I am almost at the end of the Altenew Educator Certification Program! My last assignment is for A Touch of Texture class by Svitlana Shayevich. This is a mini class with four lessons that give various techniques for adding texture to cards. I concentrated on the lesson on dry embossing.

I die-cut several pieces of thick paper with the Altenew Dodec Star die set and glued them together. I also trimmed part of the pattern off one set to get a different piece. I placed them on a piece of watercolour paper over an embossing mat and ran the whole thing through my Big Shot a few times. The result is a beautiful, embossed piece of paper. The best thing is, you can use either side, depending on the look you want.

I placed a single die cut over the embossing and applied some distress inks with a stencil brush. This gave a soft colour to the raised areas while leaving the debossed area white. Here is a closer look at the coloured panel.

The shape at the bottom left is the die cut I trimmed off. 

To finish, I trimmed the panel and mounted it to a teal card base with some foam tape. The sentiment is from the Fresh Freesia stamp set. I stamped it with Versamark and heat embossed with Vanilla White EP. I trimmed the sentiment panel and popped it up with foam tape.

Here is another look at the finished card.

I hope you like my card and will give this great technique a try.

I am so happy that this is my last class needed for the Altenew Educator Certification Program Level 3. This has been one of the best experiences of my life. Each class I have done has helped me improve as a crafter. I have learnt many new techniques, rediscovered some old ones and also found new ways of using my supplies. And the best part has been the encouragement and support I have received from Virginia Lu and Nicole Picadura. Both of them have been really wonderful! I am looking forward now to completing the rest of the challenges.

Entering this card in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Clean & Simple:

Altenew January 2019 Inspiration Challenge:

Love,
Nandini

Altenew Academy Project #24...

Hi! I am here today with my assignment for the Stunningly Simple Watercolor Techniques by Lydia Evans. This was one of the classes I chose to do for my Level 3 of the Altenew Educator Certification Program. I am a big fan of Lydia Evans. Her cards are always beautiful and her videos are very easy to follow. The class gives several ideas for incorporating watercolour into your work. It also covers many watercolour techniques and mediums with tons of tips and tricks.

I decided to use the Dropped In Color technique to create a galaxy background. Here is the card I made with the background.

I started with a piece of watercolour paper. I sprayed some water to wet a section of the paper. After letting the water soak in for some time, I started dropping in the colour. I used the Photo Inks by Camlin in shades of green, blue and violet. I kept adding the inks till I was happy with the way they mixed. I mixed some Perfect Pearls with water and added that as well. This lightened the colour in places and also gave the background a lovely silvery shine. Once the paper was dry, I added some gold splatters.

For the flowers, I stamped the flower and leaves from the Striped Florals set on the same watercolour paper and cut them with the coordinating dies. I also wet them and then dropped some gold acrylic paint to make them pop. Here is a closer look at the flowers.

I trimmed my galaxy panel and popped it with some foam tape. This was attached to a dark blue card base. I also added a strip of gold paper below the galaxy panel. The sentiment is from the Painted Greetings stamp set. I stamped it twice. Once with black ink and then with Versamark and gold embossing powder with the panel slightly off-set. The sentiment panel was glued directly to the panel. I arranged the die-cuts on the card, popping up the flower with a piece of foam tape for some added dimension. To finish, I adhered a small white half pearl to the centre of the flower.

Here is another look at the card.

I had lots of fun creating this beautiful background and definitely want to make more with different colour combos.

Entering this card in the following challenges:

CAS On Sunday Challenge #149 - Flowers:

Yes, Virginia Show and Share:

Papercraft Challenge #29 - Bright Colours:

Kat Scrappiness Blog January Card Challenge - Anything Goes:


Love,
Nandini

Altenew Academy Project #23...

Hi! My second post today another card for Level 3 in the Altenew Educator Certification Program. I really enjoyed Background Magic: Background Stamps With Creativity by Laurel Beard. I love background stamps and have quite a few in my stash. But don't have any by Altenew. The beauty of the Altenew Academy classes is that there are several options discussed. So you are not restricted by your supplies. I created a one layer card with the masking technique and my custom background with the balloon stamp from the Birthday Greetings stamp set.

I started with a top folding white card base. I die cut a heart out of Stamping Mask Sheet by Mudra Craft Stamps. This is one of my favourite masking papers. It is very high quality and gives amazing results. I adhered the heart die-cut centred and towards the top of the card base. I stamped the balloon stamp several times with a block to cover the whole card base. The Altenew inks I used were the lightest in the group and with some of them, I used second generation stamping. You can see how beautiful and transparent these inks are. They create new colours where they overlap and I really love this effect. The highlight was stamped with the same inks as I wanted just a slightly darker shade. Here is a closer look at the stamping.

Once the stamping was done, I peeled off the masking paper. I will be able to use it several times again. I stamped the sentiment from the Birthday Greetings stamp set with Onyx Black Versafine ink. I also filled in the outline of the word 'Happy' with Jet Black Artists Marker. I wanted a frame around the sentiment to make it pop a bit more. So I took the smaller heart die from the nested set I used and embossed it with the help of my embossing mat. Here is a closer look at the sentiment.

I really love the frame that embossing with my die created. Here is another look completed card.

I hope you like my one layer card.

Entering this card in the following challenges:

Just Us Girls Challenge #471:

Yes, Virginia Show And Share:

Stamping Sensations January - Fabulously Feminine:

Moving Along With The Times 89 - Have A Heart:

Creative Knockouts #281 - In Stitches:

Dragonfly Journeys Challenge #132 - In Stitches:

Love,
Nandini

Altenew Academy Project #22...

Hi! I am back today with another card for Level 3 in the Altenew Educator Certification Program. One of the most interesting classes I have taken is the Easy As ABC by Therese Calvird. I have quite a few alphabet stamps and dies in my stash. Unfortunately, I haven't really used them much. So I was very excited with the techniques taught in this class which will enable me to use them more efficiently.

I created a personalised card for a friend who just opened her clinic. It was fun making the card with her name. And she absolutely loved it!

I started with a white panel and drew some guidelines very lightly with a pencil. The stamp set I used is the Filled Alpha. I mounted the alphabets on two small acrylic block so that I could stamp the letters close together. The alphabets were stamped with a light grey ink. Once the stamping was done, I erased the pencil lines. I used Artists Markers to colour the alphabets. Since I wanted very pastel colours, I used only the lightest shades of each group.

I trimmed the panel, rounded the corners and adhered the panel on a pale pink card base. The sentiments are from the Birthday Greetings stamp set. I stamped and heat embossed the 'Yay' on a die cut pink heart. Rest of it was stamped on a strip of white paper. Both the heart and the white strip were popped up on some foam tape. Here is a closer look at the card.

I hope you like this card and check out this great class at the Altenew Academy.

I am entering it in the following challenges:

Try It On Tuesdays - Something Old...Something New:

Stinkin' Inkers Challenge - It's News To Me:

I made the card for a friend who has just launched a new venture. Also, the technique is new to me.

Just Add Ink #440:

Used a new technique

The Card Concept #106 - Pink Party:

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Clean & Simple:

Just Us Girls Challenge #471:

Love,

Nandini

Altenew Academy Project #21...

Hi! I am now at Level 3 in the Altenew Educator Certification Program. It has been a great experience so far. I am really excited to complete my classes so that I can get to the final challenge.

Laura Bassen is one of my all-time favourite crafters. Her work is impeccable and I love her videos. She is so witty and funny, I often end watching them several times over! I was very excited to enrol in her class Clean, Simple & Colourful Techniques. This class is great if you want to learn how to incorporate colour into your projects. There are several techniques and some amazing tips.

I was really drawn to the generation stamping technique and decided to give it a try. I did struggle to get it right, mainly because I couldn't find a workable combo of colours. But after several trial runs, I finally made my card.

I started with a piece of white cardstock. The diamond stamp is from the Simple Shapes stamp set by Altenew. I used several shades of green, blue and teal Altenew inks for stamping.  To make sure that the stamping was well aligned, I used my stamp positioner. Once the diamond pattern was stamped, I placed the oval outline stamp from the same set and repeated the process. The tiny dot stamp is from the Altenew Filled Alpha set. 

Here is a close up of the stamping.

I trimmed the stamped panel and also rounded the corners with a corner rounder. The sentiment is from the Altenew Birthday Greetings stamp set. I stamped it on a dark blue strip of paper and heat embossed with white EP. I popped up the panel with some foam tape and adhered it to a dark blue card base. The sentiment strip is also popped up on foam tape.

Here is a look at the completed card.

I hope you liked my card. I am entering it in the following challenges:

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Clean & Simple:

Just Add Ink #440:
I have two new things on my card. The Altenew Simple Shapes stamp set is new. I recently bought it and this is my first time using it. The technique of creating a background with generation stamping is also new to me.

Allsorts Challenge Week 503 - Make It Masculine:

Watercooler Wednesdays Challenge WWC204:

Sparkles Monthly Challenge #112 - New Year, New Stash:
The Simple Shapes stamp set is brand new.

Cute Card Thursday Challenge #565 - Banish The Blues:

Love,
Nandini

Addicted To Stamps & More #324...

Hi! I am here today with my first post for the Addicted To Stamps And More challenge for 2019. I hope you guys had a great start to the new year. The challenge this week is to create a CAS card, a theme very close to my heart.

I created a set of cards with a brand new stamp set by Mudra Craft Stamps called the Cross-stitch Rose. 

I had mentioned the concept of a cross-stitch style stamp set to Varshitha some time back and I love the design that she came up with. Unlike a lot of other, similar sets the Cross-stitch Rose stamps are super easy to line up. I would advise you to practise a little on some scrap paper before actually stamping on the card base. Using a stamp positioner is also helpful. 

For the large bloom, it is easiest if you stamp the darkest layer first. I just found it easier to line up the layers from the darkest to the lightest. The leaves are very easy to stamp. I die-cut a bunch of white panels with a stitching die and used a mix of Altenew mini ink cubes for the stamping. The sentiment is from the Perennial Beauty stamp set by Altenew. I stamped it with dark grey ink. To finish I added some sequins from my stash.

Here are the individual cards.

Altenew Warm & Cozy mini ink cube set:

Altenew Glacier Caves mini ink cube set:

Altenew Sea Shore mini ink cube set:

Altenew Red Cosmos mini ink cube set:

Here is another look at all the cards.

I hope you liked my cards and will give this set a try. You can link your creations to our gallery here. Also, check out the beautiful creations by the rest of the DT. I am sure you will be inspired by them. Looking forward to seeing your gorgeous creations in our gallery.

Love,
Nandini

Playing With Plaid...

Hi! I was cleaning up my stash and came across a half finished plaid card base. I think I had started it when I got my first set of Altenew inks. Since I wanted to enter the challenge at Pixies's Snippets, this worked perfectly! Here is the card I created.

I just added the stitching lines with an old Itsy Bitsy stamp set. The sentiment is part of the Graphic Greetings series by Taylored Expressions and is called Birthday. I stamped it with Versamark ink and heat embossed with silver embossing powder. I blended some pink colour around the edges to make it stand out. To finish I cut a mat out of some translucent cream paper and popped up the sentiment on foam tape. I also added four half pearls from my stash at the corners.

Love the way this card turned out. Entering it in the following challenges:

Pixie's Snippets Playground - Challenge 342:
The challenge that started it all! I have been following Di's big giveaway posts fairly regularly and wanted to add my snippets card to the gallery.

Watercooler Wednesday WWC202:

Cute Card Thursday Challenge 563 - Anything Goes:

Incy Wincy Designs - Celebrate 10 Years:

Love,
Nandini