Designing For Rudolph Days October

October 25, 2016December 11, 2016 linda12 Comments

are you ready for this month’s rudolph days challenge? i had a lot of fun creating this christmas card to add to my stash and i hope you’ll be inspired to work ahead on your cards.

i used valentine papers to create a pocket card featuring this sweet angel image and added a poinsettia that were all watercoloured with twinkling H2Os. i added stickles to her wings, ruffle and around the edge of the frame and a pretty pearl to the poinsettia centre.

the challenge runs until the last day of the month; be sure to visit scrappymo’s blog to view the rest of the team’s inspiring cards and the challenge rules to join.

thanks for popping by.

Field Of Pumpkins

October 14, 2016October 15, 2016 linda5 Comments

our neighbour’s field is full of bright orange pumpkins right now so i was inspired to create today’s small card and play along with two challenges.

linda @ snailzpace.wordpress.com field of pumpkins

i painted the sky, grass, fence and pumpkins with twinkling H2Os, matted the ‘painting’ and attached it to a watercolour paper base. a very CAS fall card that wasn’t exactly quick.

i’m submitting this card to the Sugar Pea Design Challenge that is using this inspiration photo:

and this is my second submission to the new CAS Watercolour Challenge:

thanks for popping by.

Krafty Fox

October 11, 2016October 12, 2016 linda5 Comments

i love fall and had a lot of fun creating this fall themed card that was inspired by the leaves, the woman’s scarf and the beautiful colours in this board for lawnscaping challenge #139:

linda @ snailzpace.wordpress.com lawnscaping challenge 139

i stamped this cute fox, tree trunk and clouds, all from the lawn fawn ‘into the woods’ stamp set on kraft and coloured them all with dry albrecht durer watercolour pencils; the leaves were punched and painted with twinkling H2Os.

i’ve been watercolouring for about seven years now and it’s nice to see a new challenge dedicated solely to watercolouring so i’m submitting my card to the CAS Watercolour October Challenge:

thanks for popping by.

Painting With Coffee

October 9, 2016 linda1 Comment

i like to have a cup of coffee while i’m painting and yes, i’ve occasionally dipped my paintbrush into my coffee by mistake so that, along with the inspiration photo, inspired me to create this card for the altenew inspiration challenge:

linda @ snailzpace.wordpress.com altenew challenge

this fun little altenew stamp set was included in a door prize that i recently won at a workshop. i painted yellow, green and brown twinkling H2Os across my paper, stamped the sentiment and coffee rings and splattered a bit with the brown paint. thanks for popping by.

Spirit Bear-ing Gift

September 28, 2016September 28, 2016 linda3 Comments

it took me a while to come up with an idea for this month’s Essentials by Ellen Pin-Sights Challenge – these are the inspiration photos:

linda.snailzpace.wordpress.com pinsights sept2016

since i struggle with shabby chic, i found elements that inspired me: the stone wall, the wrapped gift and the blue/white colour combos. i painted the stones freehand with twinkling H2Os, and also used them to paint the bear, grass and gift. i masked the bear to add the gift, popped him with foam tape and layered him between the die cut grass hills.

fun fact: the spirit bear is actually a black bear but is white.

thanks for popping by.

Bunny Burrow

September 22, 2016December 11, 2016 linda6 Comments

i had a lot of fun creating this second card for the My Favorite Things Card Design Superstar Contest – 2016 and it was quite challenging to execute the idea i came up with.

if you know me, you know i was introduced to bunnies when my daughter rescued one and then another of these adorable animals so this card was created with them in mind; bunnies share a special bond that sometimes can take time to develop but then they’re inseparable and even more cute.

i die cut MFT stitched snow drifts from kraft to create the burrow scene and to add the stitching lines in between the stitched circles, die cut with MFT Blueprints 12; i haphazardly sponged brushed corduroy distress ink and used green glitter foam cut with the MFT fresh cut grass die for the border.

the bunnies were stamped with grey ink and i painted the sky, clouds and bunnies with twinkling H2Os and added white flocking to the tail.

thanks for popping by.

XO

September 22, 2016September 29, 2016 linda2 Comments

i’m playing along with the My Favorite Things Card Design Superstar Contest – 2016 because i love being challenged to step outside of my comfort zone, even though i initially stare at a blank card and my mind is equally blank.

linda snailzpace.wordpress.com MFT XO

i started with the background; i used a piece of 140 lb. cold press watercolour paper that soaked up a leftover puddle from ken oliver sepia colour burst so it was very diluted and pink. i splattered with pink twinkling H2Os and die cut the stitched rectangle from MFT Blueprints 29.

the X and O, die cut with the small circle and sentiment strip from MFT Blueprints 16, were painted with twinkling H2Os and then heat embossed with clear embossing powder until they looked lacquered. the MFT Blueprints 29 banner and heart circles were die cut eight times from background scraps and double sided adhesive paper so they could each be layered twice and glittered on top.

to finish the card, i painted the MFT Blueprints 16 die cut rectangle with the same twinkling H2Os.

thanks for popping by.

Happy Everything

September 18, 2016September 17, 2016 linda7 Comments

we’re half way through this month’s penny black and more challenge theme to add a sentiment. although our challenge rules require you to stamp a focal point, the one exception is penny black’s stickeroos.

the penny black butterfly stickeroo i’ve used is from the sheet, dear friend and i stamped the sentiment from the special wishes clear set; i painted the background and splattered with twinkling H2Os.

remember, you can use any company’s stamp for your focal point, just no digis please; a future guest designer will be selected from those who use a PB image and as always, there are some fabulous prizes to be won from: Penny Black, Sizzix, Sam, Marianne Design. visit the blog for some fabulous creations by my teamies. thanks for popping by.

A Christmas Carol

September 6, 2016 linda14 Comments

i’m starting to make more christmas cards because in three months they’ll need to be mailed out and i’ll be extra busy this year getting ready for my christmas present – a new knee.

i watercoloured these cute christmas carollers and poinsettias with twinkling H2Os, added stickles for the snow and used some festive christmas paper; the leaves were coloured with some metallic rub on paints.

i’m playing along with these challenges:

Jingle Belles: music
Marianne Design Divas challenge 8: anything goes with 3 marianne design products (marianne design christmas carols stamp, poinsettia die, daisy & leaves die, christmas wishes paper bloc)
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: stamp it
Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesday for August 2016: use stamps
Great Impressions: anything goes
Sunny Day Challenge 13: anything goes
thanks for popping by.

Fueling My Inspiration

August 30, 2016 linda4 Comments

i had just enough time to play along with the taylored expressions share joy challenge 50 and this one was a real challenge but i’m happy with the results.

i wasn’t sure i’d be able to find papers that coordinated with each other but once i finally made my selection, the card came together quickly. this card is off to my brother for his birthday, who is an avid formula 1 fan. i’m keeping my fingers crossed that he’ll get it in time given the canada post negotiations. i die cut the TE little bits balloons, watercoloured with twinkling H2Os, added some yellow hemp cord and popped them on with foam tape.

thanks for popping by.

Bring On The Cake!

August 29, 2016 linda2 Comments

i’m playing along for the first time with the ellen hutson Essentials by Ellen August Pin-Sights Challenge to be inspired by this photo:

my inspiration came from the bright pink and yellow flowers in the vase next to the two glass bottles with the out of focus background. i used four stamps from the WISH BIG stamp set to create this tall thin card, painting the sky and image with twinkling H2Os. finally, i matted it with some plaid memory box paper. thanks for popping by.

Designing For Rudolph Days Challenge

August 25, 2016August 25, 2016 linda12 Comments

as you know, i love making christmas cards year round so i was excited to be invited to design for scrappymo’s rudolph days challenge to create holiday cards on the 25th of every month.

i watercoloured this cute inky antics image with twinkling H2Os, added glossy accents to the ornaments and white flocking to the pom pom; to finish it off, i layered the wplus9 die cut merry sentiment.

the challenge runs until the last day of the month; visit scrappymo’s blog to view the rest of the team’s inspiring cards and the challenge rules.

thanks for popping by.

Cracking Me Up

August 22, 2016 linda2 Comments

i’m playing along with the taylored expressions’ share joy challenge 49: a sketch and colour combination.

i created this card for my husband; as a person with a disability, i rely on him for a lot of help. lately, i’ve been dealing with extra health issues and he always knows when i need a laugh. i used two different blue distress inks to paint the sky and i used twinkling H2Os and albrecht durer water pencils to watercolour the cute image from the easter doodles stamp set, no link found.

thanks for popping by.

Pretty Peridot Leaves

August 19, 2016August 30, 2016 linda6 Comments

i was inspired by Magenta Designer Mariëtte and her stencilling with gesso technique on this card so i played with stencils today – something different for me.

i watercoloured the memory box die cut leaves with ‘pretty peridot’ twinkling H2Os. after the gesso dried, which didn’t take long because of the small design, i painted yellow twinkling H2Os onto the cold press watercolour paper, then sponged dried marigold distress ink on top, splattered with both pretty peridot twinks and some water. to finish it off, i sponged shabby shutters distress ink through the diamond stencil.

i’d like to submit this card to these challenges:

Memory Box Challenge #15- Yellow Challenge
Simon Says Stamp: Work it Wednesday July 2016! use august birthstone peridot
4CC #312 – LEAVES

thanks for popping by.

Trick Or Treat

August 17, 2016August 17, 2016 linda8 Comments

i know it’s a bit early for halloween, but i can’t wait wait for the cooler fall weather and colours so i thought i’d create some fall cards only to discover i have more halloween stamps than actual ‘fall’ ones so that’s what i used.

for this clean and simple card, i watercoloured this cute penny black cat with twinkling H2Os, stamped the cobwebs and the sentiment and added yellow stickles to the dots and stars on his hat.

i’d like to submit this card to these challenges:
Critters and Creatures – Always Anything Goes with a Critter/Creature
One Crazy Stamper – Fall/Halloween
Cutie Pie Challenge – Cute + Work Rest Or Play

thanks for popping by.

Grumpy Penguin

August 15, 2016August 25, 2016 linda3 Comments

i enjoy making christmas cards year round but i usually make cards for my family at the last minute. thanks to the share joy challenges i’ve been playing along with, i’ll be ready with cards featuring funny little grumpy characters.

i chose the clean and simple challenge this time and watercoloured the sky and this little guy with two watercolour paints: sennelier and twinkling H2Os and used stickles on the star and for snow. thanks for popping by.

Grumpy Fox

August 9, 2016August 25, 2016 linda4 Comments

i’m having fun with these little taylored expressions holiday grumplings; they’re so funny and i love the sentiments in the set. i created this card for my husband using the share joy challenge 47 sketch:

SJC47

i watercoloured with twinkling H2Os, added glossy accents to the jingle bell and flower soft on the ground; the red dots are hologram peel offs.

thanks for popping by.

Wild Rose

August 8, 2016 linda13 Comments

i ordered this beautiful Magenta Wild Rose stamp when it was released this spring but it’s been waiting for me to watercolour; being the caregiver of a family member and my own health issues has meant i create when i can and i really appreciate when i get to do so.

i enjoyed losing myself in watercolouring with twinkling H2Os and matted the image since i didn’t feel like it needed anything else; clean and simple.

i’d like to enter this card into these challenges:

Simon Says: Fabulous Florals
Paper Creator – Keep It Simple
Just Add Ink #323…. Just Add F
Just Us Girls #355 – Word Week; watercolouring
Screen Shot 2016-07-09 at 2.58.55 PM thanks for popping by.

Freezin’ Season

August 1, 2016 linda10 Comments

with record high temps and humidity, i wouldn’t mind if it snowed right now to cool everything down; i think just colouring a winter card helped.

this is the inspiration photo for the taylored expressions share joy challenge 46.

i used the fruit colours and this holiday grumplings snowman that i chose with the $20.00 gift certificate i won in april. i watercoloured with twinkling H2Os, added stickles to the ground, glossy accents on his buttons and flower soft on his hat.

i’m also submitting this card to the jingle belles’ prompt since it was one of stephanie’s cards (ingenious inkling) that made me laugh when she used this grumpy guy. my three of something: i used red and white stripes on the image and two borders.

thanks for popping by.

Penny Black And More Mid July

July 18, 2016July 17, 2016 linda6 Comments

i made another masculine card for this month’s penny black and more challenge; this month’s theme is quite an easy one – it’s anything goes with a stamp so you still have plenty of time to join us!

i watercoloured this sweet teddy image from the penny black clear stamp set ‘a bear of all trades’ 30-108 with twinkling H2Os.

i hope you’ll come and play along – remember, you can use any company’s stamp for your focal point, just no digis please; a future guest designer will be selected from those who use a PB image and as always, there are some fabulous prizes to be won from: Penny Black, Sizzix, Stamp Addicts, Crafty Ribbons.

visit the blog for some fabulous creations by the rest of the team. thanks for popping by.

MFT Camp Create Day 3

June 23, 2016 linda3 Comments

this is my favourite camp challenge because i love watercolouring images and backgrounds; it’s so relaxing.

i used another of the cute images from the MFT Snuggle Bunnies clear stamp set to create this card for day 3 of the my favorite things Camp Create – Wonderful Watercolor challenge. as of this writing, this adorable stamp set is out of stock, but you can sign up for email notification when it’s back in.

as usual, i watercoloured the background and images with twinkling H2Os and, since i was short on time, kept the card simple. thanks for popping by.

MFT Camp Create Day 2

June 22, 2016 linda4 Comments

i made this card for day 2 of the my favorite things: Camp Create – Sensational Sliders or use an action wobble, which is what i used – they’re so much fun.

since i can never have enough bunny images, i watercoloured one of the cute bunnies from the MFT Snuggle Bunnies clear stamp set and the sky with my twinkling H2Os and i used the Die-namics Blueprints 9 to create this tag; of course i added white flocking for the tail. thanks for popping by.

In Loving Memory

June 18, 2016 linda7 Comments

it’s so hard to believe it was seven years ago that my son passed away; it feels like yesterday and at times i feel like i’m stuck in a time warp, resisting the passage of time but knowing i have no control over it. the impact of grief might change over time, but it’s forever and i wish more people would understand that.

my son had a special fondness for elephants so i watercoloured the wplus 9 bubble talk stamp with twinkling H2Os and die cut and popped it on top of a background i created with dylusions ink spray and twinkling H2Os. the hearts were die cut, also painted with twinks and covered in glossy accents with a few extra bubbles added. i used black wow! embossing powder on the sentiment, masking part of it from the wplus9 ‘unforgettable‘ set. finally, i finished it off with polka dot washi tape.

thanks for popping by.

Absolutely Fabulous

June 4, 2016 linda2 Comments

i wanted to send a thank you card to one of the exceptional nurses who cared for me during my recent hospital stay so i used the My Favorite Things Wednesday Sketch Challenge – Sketch 283:

i flipped it horizontally so i could use some new MFT dies and it came together quickly: the arch from Die-namics Blueprints 16 and the new absolutely fabulous die-namics. the pretty pink paper is from memory box and i added some die cut stars. thanks for popping by. #mftstamps

Rainbow Frog

May 27, 2016 linda6 Comments

hello again; i’ve missed you! thank you for your kind words. while i was dealing with an ill family member, i ended up in hospital myself with pneumonia, thanks to my RA and wonky immune system.

i’m home now but since i don’t have much energy, i kept this card quick and simple, just in time to link it up to the anything goes theme at the Pink and Main Challenge #9.

i watercoloured the sky and frog with twinkling H2Os, but i created the rainbow with my albrecht durer watercolour pencils and covered it in wink of stella clear glitter. i added glossy accents to the splashes and puddle and finished it off with some twine and clouds.

thanks for popping by. i won’t get caught up on commenting any time soon, but i hope to pop by to see what you’ve been up to.

Feel Better Soon

May 6, 2016May 6, 2016 linda3 Comments

this is a scheduled post; due to a family emergency, i haven’t had much time to create or pop by to comment. i wanted to make a get well card and realized i don’t have enough images for these occasions (any excuse for shopping), but i do like this funny from the heart stamps called ‘sick chick‘.

from the heart stamps feel better

of course he’s watercoloured with twinkling H2Os and since it’s for a male, i left it clean and simple, using his favourite colours.

thanks for popping by.

Older And Wiser

April 23, 2016 linda9 Comments

i’m playing along with Pink and Main Challenge #8, which is this very pretty colour palette:

pink and main birthday owl copyright linda snailzpace.wordpress.com

i watercoloured this cute owl with twinkling H2Os, including painting the sky and stripes on his party hat; he’s one of the birthday owls in the pink and main ‘what a hoot‘ clear stamp set. i stamped a sentiment from the same set on the yellow textured paper, following the sketch from the sketch saturday challenge #409.

thanks for popping by.

Another Bunny Thank You

April 11, 2016April 11, 2016 linda12 Comments

i need another thank you card for the specialist vet that takes care of my daughter’s bunny so i used this week’s sketch at the Share Joy Challenge 30:

like last week’s card, i watercoloured this cute bunny from the Taylored Expressions Easter Doodles set with twinkling H2Os, added some flower soft to the tail and popped it on foam tape. i finished it off with the lady bug and sentiment from the same stamp set.

i’m also playing along with these challenges:
Critters and Creatures Linky Party 3 – Main focus must be a Critter or Creature
Cutie Pie Challenge – Cute + Woodland Friends
One Crazy Stamper Anything Goes (no digital images allowed)

thanks for popping by.

Thanking A Vet

April 4, 2016 linda6 Comments

i’m playing along with the Taylored Expressions Share Joy Challenge 29: Sketch and Color Challenge:

Taylored Expression bunny

i used three of the four colours and followed the sketch to create this thank you card for one of the vets who goes above and beyond in her excellent care of my daughter’s bunny. i watercoloured this little cutie from the Taylored Expressions Easter Doodles set with twinkling H2Os, added some flower soft to the tail and popped it on foam tape.

thanks for popping by.

Make Mine Chocolate Too!

March 25, 2016 linda8 Comments

since my daughter adopted two bunnies, i’ve learned a lot about how precious and sweet they are. every easter bunnies are thought to be the perfect gift, but 80% are abandoned. bunnies are adorable, but require a lot of care and commitment and the decision to give one, or more, a forever home should only be made after researching what they require. i support the make mine chocolate campaign and enjoy chocolate bunnies too.

i painted everything with twinkling H2Os and used these dies: poppystamps grand bunny, memory box lavish branch and memory box butterfly delights. of course i added pink stickles to the flower and butterfly centres.

i’d like to submit this to these challenges:
Memory Box Challenge #10- Blossoms and Bunnies
Poppystamps Challenge #18 – Spring Fling
Pink & Main Challenge #7 – Spring

thanks for popping by.

Hello, Sunshine

March 19, 2016 linda5 Comments

finally, the sun’s been out a bit more lately and now we get an extra hour of daylight, which means better light for colouring; it’s about time! i’ve tried daylight lamps, but they’re just not the same.

i created this notecard with inspiration from these three challenges:

Colouarte’s Monthly Challenge #9 – Green Valley

My Favorite Things Sketch Challenge 272:

My Favorite Things Colour Challenge:

i coloured everything with twinkling H2Os, mixing some to get colours close to the MFT swatches. i usually use my twinks to colour images, but i love using them to create backgrounds as well. the MFT die cut sun was popped on foam tape and i added a sentiment from the BB Sunflower Sweetheart stamp set, retired now.

thanks for popping by.

Make A Wish

March 13, 2016 linda3 Comments

the last time i used this adorable teddy image from the Buddly Crafts Birthday Wishes clear stamp set i used neutral colours, so i had fun creating a more feminine card this time.

as usual, i watercoloured with twinkling H2Os and used my favourite banner dies to pop the pennants on foam tape; i love these pretty papers from Studio Light by Janneke Brinkman #17. to finish off the card, i added clear glitter on teddy’s hat stars, glossy accents on the plate and punched stars to the border.

thanks for popping by.

Twinkling H20 Basics by Leslie “O” Inventor

February 28, 2016 linda2 Comments

i love watercolouring images and although i have a good supply of different companies’ products, my favourite is colourarte’s twinkling H2Os which i’ve been using now for years.

i know from reader comments that many people have them but they’re not being used; did you know you can use them on your rubber stamps? here’s a helpful how to video: Twinkling H20 Basics by Leslie “O” Inventor.

thanks for popping by.

Text Tree

February 21, 2016 linda4 Comments

it’s unusual for me to post daily but i was determined not to wait until the last minute to play along with the jingle belles for a change. the prompt this time is all about “celebrating fab fonts, lovely lettering and all things terrifically typographic with a prompt we’re calling, “Text Me“.

i used an older kaisercraft stamp inked with versa color on a background i created by brayering distress inks and splattering with twinkling H2Os; of course i had to add yellow stickles to the stars. i made three of this design just because it was a quick and easy card since i didn’t use a coloured image. thanks for popping by.

Friendship Bookmarks

February 20, 2016 linda4 Comments

while i was having fun with the monster stamp set, i made two bookmarks to submit to the Avery Elle challenge and this month’s theme: AEI♥U Challenge 33–Friendship!

these little cuties were watercoloured with twinkling H2Os on hot press watercolour paper and the backgrounds were brayered with distress inks. since the blue monster had his hands up in the air, i added splatters because i think he’s throwing confetti.

thanks for popping by.