Paper Crafts by Laurel

Christian, Mother, Paper Crafter, Blogger

Zig Watercolored Peonies

 

Zig Colored Peonies. I mean seriously, does it get any better than that? I am here today playing along with the current Ellen Hutson Pin-Sights Challenge! I’ve chosen a very beautiful inspirational piece perfect for Summer weather. Bright colors, beautiful images (attached below)… I pulled out the Mondo Peony stamp set ( EH ), coordinating die ( EH ), Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers ( EH ), BRISTOL paper ( EH ) and got to work. If you want to see a quick clip on how to easily use Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers, check out this video.

 

I stamped the peonies with Versamark ink and then heat embossed using Ranger’s Silver Pearl embossing powder, which ironically isn’t silver at all, lol – its a beautiful creamy white( EH ).  Then, I watercolored the florals the traditional way using the Zigs. Meaning, I added some color to the paper and blended out the color with a wet paint brush dipped in water.  Once the images were dry, I die cut them out and placed them on my card, some flat to the paper and some raised up with some double sided foam tape.  The sentiment is from the Lovely stamp set ( EH ).  And don’t forget the shimmer, lol! I used the Spectrum Noir Sparkle Clear Overlay Glitter Pens ( EH ) on the cardbase! If you look closely at the Charcoal ( EH ) card base, you’ll see it sparkle! 🙂

Here is a look at the inspirational photo over at the Pin-Sights Challenge. I think there is something I want from every photo in this collage, lol! I do hope you’ll head on over and play along because a randomly selected participant will win a $50 shopping spree to the online store! You have until July 4th to play along!!!!

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today and spending a little time with me!!! 🙂

Goodies used:

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Mystery Box Destash for Charity

UPDATE: SOLD OUT WITHIN 24 hours! Excited to make that donation to charity! THANKS TO ALL!!!!!

It’s the time of year that I go thru my craft room and begin the purging process!  I have seen a few of my crafty friends purge using mystery boxes and thought I’d jump in on that bandwagon.  Crafting supplies should never go unloved so I need to re-home a large lot of my crafty goodies. 50% of the proceeds will be donated to a charity I support.

I have hand filled 9 medium sized Priority Mail boxes with crafting love (used medium size boxes as each box contains a large 6×8 stamp set). I mixed and matched a nice variety of stamps themes and brands and even threw in extra goodies (each box will include several Nuvo Drops and one ink pad. In addition, I have tossed in more  extra goodies – see next paragraph)…. 

Box Contents: Each box will contact AT LEAST 12 stamps/dies sets.  Some stamps come in the storage pockets and some dies have the magnetic sheets and some don’t. Some have been used and some haven’t. It’s a “mystery” what you will be receiving but rest assured, you won’t be disappointed. I hand packaged each box carefully.  I am re-homing stamps, coordinating dies and stand alone dies from: Lawn Fawn, Memory Box, My Favorite Things, The Ton Stamps, Ellen Hutson, Paper Smooches, Neat & Tangled, Lil’ Inkers, Concord & 9th, Brutus Monroe. Some are unused and from recent releases and some are used and released 1-2 years ago. Also included in each box are at an assortment of extra goodies such as  Stencils, Mixed Media pastes, glitters or embossing powders.  

I estimate the value of the contents of each box ranges from $300+. I am asking just $120, which includes the cost of shipping.  50% of the proceeds will be donated to a charity I support.  All sales are final and no returns accepted. I apologize to all of my international friends, but these boxes are for USA shipping only. Payments must be made via paypal and within 12 hours of an email response from me stating availability.

If you are interested in purchasing one of the boxes, email me at laurelkbeard at gmail dot com. I will update the post when I sell out, which I predict will be quickly. I have also shared the post on my social media sites as well.

Have an amazing day!!!!!

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Anemone Bouquet

Good morning. Today I have a very simple watercolored Anemone Bouquet to share with you all today! I heat embossed the floral image (vase and bouquet are separate images so I did a little masking) with Hot Chocolate Embossing Powder from Nuvo ( AMZ | SSS ) and did some watercoloring with the Mission Gold Water Color Palette     ( AMZ | SSS ). I flicked on some black irRESISTible Texture Spray ( ELH | AMZ ) and Gold  irRESISTible Texture Spray ( ELH ). As a finishing touch, I added a few dew drops.

A very simple card with some relaxing watercoloring I did early one morning. Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Goodies used:


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**Video: Layered Waves – The Ton’s Summer 2017 Release Blog Hop

Layered Waves and a video! I don’t mind if I do! Welcome to The Ton’s Summer 2017 Release blog hop. You should have arrived to me by way of Tae Eun Yoo. The Ton has 24 new stamps for their new Summer 2017 Release, which includes up to four free gifts with purchases.  All products are available NOW!

When I saw the Waves stamp set from The Ton Stamps, I about fell off my chair! Well, I probably WOULD have fallen off my chair had I not been sitting on the floor! It’s brilliant, unique and a flat out a must have! For me, it’s just about all I needed to create a unique card set!

I first sat down, and started stamping with them the traditional way, in the three layer process. Then I thought, why not try and create a watercolored scene with it! So allow me to introduce to you “a wave caught in a storm” – 🙂 I made the one on the bottom first and then thought I’d try and recreate it on video!

You can watch the video right here on the blog or over on my youtube channel in HD by clicking HERE!

A few close ups of the watercolored waves made on video:

Now let’s take a look at the other cards I made stamping the layered waves the traditional way, stamping each layer one by one. I used distress inks for this but added a bit of texture to that third layer.

For the third layer, I stamped it with GESSO! I did this because it really gives that layer some texture and dimension and brings that final layer to life! I simply brushed on some white gesso with a paint brush, stamped and let it dry! I immediately cleaned off my stamp and brush by running it under warm water, not allowing time for the gesso to dry on my stamp. See the texture on that third layer?  Down there towards the bottom?  Nom Nom….. I am loving that.

A few more photos:

And a look at all the cards I created using the Waves stamp. I really couldn’t put this stamp down. My parents are here visiting and my mom went thru all of my cards and took all of my wave cards (except for the Father’s Day one because that’s for my Daddy). The sentiments used on the cards are from the Penned Sentiments stamp set

The next person on the hop is Mayline Jung!

GIVEAWAY:

Three $25 gift certificates to The Ton’s shop will be given away to random commenters from the hop participant blogs. To quality, just leave comments on all blog hop participants posts by Monday, June 12th. Winners will be announced on The Ton’s blog. (Gift certificates will apply only to The Ton stamps, dies, ink and gilding.

Goodies used:


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Quick Clip Video: EASY coloring with Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers

How about a quick clip video showing you some easy coloring with the Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers? I remember when I first got them. I tried them out and I didn’t like them. GASP! I went to a crafting resale group to sell them off and a friend said STOP! Try a different paper! I did and the rest is history! I love them…. It is so important to use the right kind of paper when using the Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers. Bristol paper is the PERFECT paper for them.

So let me show you a quick clip video I made for Ellen Hutson showing you how I quickly colored this card using the Zigs! The stamp set I used is a beautiful set from Honey Bee called Zen Bouquet.  You can watch the quick clip video here or over on my youtube channel in HD by clicking HERE.

And a few close up photos of the card:

The water did all the blending for me. I just scribbled on the color and sprayed the mess out of my card panel, lol! I am a very lazy crafter so  I always try to find ways to simplify and I think watercoloring with the zigs this way is EASY PEASY I tell ya…

What makes the Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers unique:

  • REAL Brush tip  (other markers have felt tips)
  • Water based ink inside (makes fun for watercoloring techniques)
  • Can use WITH  water (As I did in the video today or by blending out the color with a paintbrush as I did for THIS card and THIS card)
  • Can use WITHOUT water by just using the brushes themselves to blend (more intense colors with this method)
  • Sold individually or in sets of 12,24, 36, 48, 60 and even 80
  • I recommend BRISTOL paper when using the Zigs

Super quick post and video from me today. Thank you so much for stopping by and visiting with me today! 🙂

Goodies used:


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*Video: Naturally Inspired Stamp of Approval Blog Hop: Rainbow Cards

Welcome to Day 3 of the Naturally Inspired Stamp of Approval Blog hop! I have TWO cards and ONE VIDEO to share with you,  All the hoppers participating in todays hop are linked at the end of this post. And there are prizes! More on that in a bit!  The Naturally Inspired Stamp of Approval collection will be available tomorrow, June 7th to all those on the wait list!

To recap for those that may not know – Stamp of Approval is a quarterly hand picked, exclusive collection of products that were designed just for the box. The stamps and dies in the Stamp of Approval Collections  won’t be released for individual sale for several months over at the Catherine Pooler store.    Be sure to subscribe to the Wait List so you will be emailed the purchase link when the collection goes on sale! 

I was in an rainbow mood when I started designing and Catherine Pooler inks are absolutely PERFECTION!   My first card features the new Birds of a Feather stamp set! I instantly thought adding some colorful feathers to a card front would be very eye catching! Any sentiment would work for this design but I had birthday on the brain!  I also have a video to go along with this card. You can watch the video here or over on my blog in HD by clicking HERE.

I did a little two toned stamping on the feathers to create some dimension on the feathers. I am in LOVE with the font on the word BEST. Aren’t you??? 🙂 It’s from the Simply the Best stamp set.   If you look carefully, I have a little plaid styled border over there on the right! That’s a stamp from the same Birds of a Feather stamp I used for the feathers. 🙂

 

Why stop at one rainbow card when I could make two!!! This next card features the GORGEOUS Medallion Mix-Up stamp set! This is a larger stamp set full of stunning medallions of different designs and sizes. I LOVE IT I LOVE IT I LOVE IT!  I figured the DT would blow my mind with their creations and I was right. I thought I would try and do something different with the medallions. Why not a rainbow using rainbow colors?  So I masked off the bottom portion of the largest Medallion image, inked it up with various colors of Catherine Pooler ink and stamped!

A colorful rainbow was born. The sentiment is from the fabulous Simply the best stamp set and YES – A coordinating word die!! LOVE LOVE! Speaking of, do you see that sparkle on that die cut?  Uh huh… That’s an embossing powder created exclusively for Catherine Pooler called Wanderlust! NOM NOM!!!!

The Naturally Inspired collection has got you covered! You’ve got stamp sets, dies (both coordinating and stand alone), embossing powder and a NEW INK! That’s right! A NEW INK COLOR exclusive to this collection. It won’t be released for individual sale for many months! I used it but I’m not saying which color yet…. I’m mean like that, lol!!! You might be able to spot it.

What keeps you naturally inspired???  Me? Nothing in particular. I find inspiration everywhere I look. My mom taught me beauty is everywhere! All I have to do is open my eyes!

BLOG HOP ORDER:

Catherine Pooler
Taheerah Atchia
Laurel Beard – YOU ARE HERE
Lydia Evans
Ingrid Blackburn
Heather North
Cynde Whitlow

BLOG HOP PRIZE: 
One winner will be chosen at random from each day’s comments and announced on June 9 on Catherine Pooler’s blog. Each winner from each day will win the entire collection! If you already purchased it, no worries!  You will be issued a Gift Certificate worth $100 towards a future purchase. To enter the giveaway, let us know what inspires you in the comments.

The collection goes on sale TOMORROW!  Be sure to subscribe to the Wait List so you will be emailed the purchase link when the collection goes on sale!

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Floral foiling card without heat

Have you ever wanted to foil without heat? Today, I am participating in the current Mix It Up Challenge over at the Ellen Hutson CLASSroom using the Courage stamp set and die that was designed to support Breast Cancer Research Foundation. This stamp set is a floral layering set that also comes with a coordinating die set.  Layering stamps sets usually freak me out! I feel inept when trying to use them. This floral set is VERY easy to layer and it doesn’t require the use of a stamp positioning tool like the MISTI.

I also have a video to go along with my card today. You can watch the video here on the blog or over on the Youtube channel in HD by clicking HERE! You’ll hear me joke at the beginning of the video about a bug that crawled across my screen when doing the voice over….. FULL disclaimer: I am a complete pansy when it comes to any sort of bug. Or rodent.  Reminds me of the time there was a stink bug and me. And the 2 1/2 hours it took me to suck it up with my vacuum because I was to scared to get close to it. ANYWAY…. Onward to the video…

I used Altenew inks for stamping and a glue pen similar to the Quickie Glue Pen to add the foiling. The Quickie Glue Pen dries tacky so the foil sticks right to it!  This is a nice way to add some foiling to your projects without having to purchase a laminator.

I might have gone overboard on my dots. I joked in the video that I gave my card chickenpox, lol! So if I were to do it again, I would add fewer dots. Less is more as the say – sometimes hahaha! 🙂 Except when it comes to coffee, or chocolate….

Thanks a bunch for visiting with me today!!! 🙂

Goodies used:


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Peace, Love & Happiness

Peace, Love & Happiness all in one card! Isn’t that what we all want for each other? I adore this stamp set from CAS-ual Fridays. The floral peace sign is fantastic and there are many ways I have seen this colored. I chose to apply a wash of pearlescent paint across the entire card after heat embossing the image directly onto my card panel. Once that was done, I just used one of my circle dies and mounted it onto the card base with some foam tape! Easy peasy!!!

Don’t forget! Any time you shop at CAS-ual Fridays, you can save 15% by using the discount code below!!!!!

Goodies used:


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Floral Bouquet Colored Three Ways

Floral Bouquet colored three ways is what I have for you all today.  Hi there!!!! I’m back with the sweet folks over at The Foiled Fox today with a trio of cards using the same floral bouquet stamp set but colored three different ways. I’m using the Penny Black Freshly Cut stamp set on all three cards.

Let’s take a look at each card up close and personal! The first card, I stamped the image in white pigment ink onto watercolored cardstock, sprinkled on white embossing powder and heat set. The little butterflies are from the Concord & 9th Buttery Beauty stamp set. Then I took two colors of distress ink (Hickory Smoke and Black Soot) and pressed the ink pad directly to my card, rubbing it all around until I got the coverage I wanted.. The embossed lines of the images will resist the ink. Once all the ink was applied to my card, I spritzed it with water and set aside. Seriously! The water did all the blending for me.

Next up is a very colorful version! I used just two colors of Color Bursts on this card (colors linked in supply list). Again, using watercolored cardstock, I stamped the image with a waterproof black ink. I liberally sprayed the card panel with water until it was soaking with water! Then I gently tapped out the color onto the card panel. The water will move the powder like magic. IF you want to move the color around more, grab a paint brush and move it around OR you can spray more water! This was the quickest card to make of the three.

And finally, my final card. This card uses traditional watercolors. I used the Gansai watercolors and quickly added some color the the image.

So there you have it! Three cards with the same design, just colored in different ways… Thanks again to the folks at the Foiled Fox for letting me hijack their blog again today! I’ll see you again soon!!!

Goodies used:


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Painting with Embossing Powder

Today I wanted to do some painting with embossing powders for the current Pin-Sights Challenge over at the Ellen Hutson CLASSroom. (Forgive my delay in posting and the incomplete post that was initially published. My son is incredibly sick and I didn’t have the change to complete my post until now). ALL the supplies I used is linked at the end of this post.

Painting with embossing powders is a fun way to get lots of color and shine to your projects. On the woodgrain background, you’ll notice a few different colors and because it is heat embossed, the imagine is shiny and raised! Deer sitting on a bundle of floral sprigs I thought would make a nice scene. And they are lovey dovey deer too!

For my second project,  I created a focal background image by again painting with the embossing powders and laid out my scene around the image.

You can see the shine from the embossing powder very clear in the photo below!

I am working with WOW embossing powders today and I just adore them! They come in a variety of colors and finishes! Many designers have been showcasing projects using the WOW embossing powders over on the CLASSroom blog so I hope you’ll head over there for more inspiration on how to use your embossing powders.

Goodies used:

Card#1:

 

Card #2

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