January 4, 2020

New Year’s Resolutions

Amy Jasper As You See It Challenge, simple and cute, Techniques 2020, block stamping, card, do the impossible, markers, occasions, quick and cute, watercolor wash, watercolour 0 Comments

I know, I know, nobody really takes New Year’s Resolutions seriously these days. The problem is that we are all gungho to make change and be better, but we often don’t have a plan to make those changes stick. I don’t have the answer for that problem. I can barely stick to a plan in a day, let alone stick to one for a year! I keep trying to find that thing that will turn on the part of my brain that gives me discipline and perseverance. I’ll let you know if I ever do.

In the meantime, I feel like we have to keep trying. Where would we be if we just stopped trying to be better. Nobody would invent things, nobody would make new discoveries, and we probably wouldn’t have any stamps!!! It would be disaster!

I don’t have any official New Year’s Resolutions, but I do know that I will continue to push to be healthy, to be more organised, to spend less time on the internet and more time with my kids, to declutter my house, and to share more of my love of stamping. There are a lot of things that I am always working on. I don’t know that I want to focus on just one thing. And it certainly doesn’t have to be decided for my whole year.

Being healthy is important to me and that’s why I’m drawn to the Do the Impossible stamp set in the new catalogue. I also have some athletes in my life that I can make cards for, using this stamp set.

If you were on my blog yesterday, you would have seen this set altered for a card I designed to give to my niece. That card was pretty involved and shows how making your own cards allows you to personalize it to the recipient. I wanted to show you another design with the same stamp that you can easily replicate. (Because not everyone wants to lay down all that extra ink or even knows what cross-country skiing is!)

The fanciest part of this card is the colour wash background behind the joggers. If you want to see that technique in a Facebook Live video by clicking HERE.

If you don’t want to get caught in the Facebook vortex, the technique involves applying ink with Stampin’ Write Markers to an acrylic block, spritzing it with water using your Stampin’ Spritzer, then “stamping” that colour onto your watercolour paper with the block as your stamp. You might need to blot off some excess water to take control of the look you’re going for, then let the colour wash fully dry before carrying on with the rest of your card.

The rest is simple stamping. Here’s the supply list: Sahara Sand cardstock, Peaceful Poppies Designer Series Paper, Whisper White cardstock, Watercolor Paper, Daffodil Delight Stampin’ Write Marker, Crumb Cake Stampin’ Write Marker, Coastal Cabana Stampin’ Write Marker, Stampin’ Spritzer, Clear Block E, Daffodil Delight cardstock, Jet Black Stazon Ink, Do the Impossible stamp set, Black Stampin’ Mini Dimensionals.

Do you have a New Year’s Resolution? I hope it involves stamping. You know that if you’re in Canada, you can order all you stamping and paper crafting supplies from my Online Store, right!? And that there’s a bunch of new products AND it’s time for Sale-a-bration when you get free stuff just by purchasing stuff that you were already going to get anyway!! How awesome is that!! Go to my ONLINE STORE and have a look!

January 3, 2020

Do the Impossible

Amy Jasper As You See It Challenge 2020, alter it, card, challenge, do the impossible, markers, masking, woodland folder 2 Comments

My niece is a competitive cross-country skier and has qualified to compete in the Biathlon World Youth Championships in Switzerland this month! Her entire family (my brother, his wife, and the two daughters) all compete in biathlon. I think they’re a little crazy, but I am crazy proud of all of them and their determination and discipline to compete.

The card I made for today’s blog post is for my niece for her birthday (shhh, it isn’t until February). I am so pleased with how I was able to use an image of a jogger and make it look like a skier with a little extra simple drawing skills.

I had this As You See It Challenge to get me started:

For my card, I used the “Do the Impossible” stamp set from Stampin’ Up! One of the images is of two people jogging together. I inked up only the one with the long hair and stamped on Smoky Slate cardstock with Tuxedo Black Momento ink. Then I used a Basic Gray Stampin’ Write Marker to carefully draw in the lines for ski poles and skis. The skis were a bit difficult to get the angle right, but I think it came together. This sketch-style image makes it very forgiving to add to the image like this.

I coloured her ski suit with the Poppy Parade Stampin’ Write marker, trying to make it look like her Canadian racing suit. I even wrote “Canada” on the lower leg, just like the suit has (I thought that was pretty clever, LOL!).

I gave her a headband to keep her ears warm by using that Basic Grey Stampin’ Write Marker again. I used it for her gloves, boots, and some detail on her skis as well. I coloured her hair with a So Saffron Stampin’ Write Marker, but I coloured her face and neck with the Ivory Blends Marker, adding a touch of colour with the Light Petal Pink Blends Marker.

To create the snowy background behind my skier, I stamped the image again on a sticky note and fussy cut it so I could place it over my image to use as a mask. Then I tore a piece of cardstock and lay it over the upper part of my skier and sponged Craft White ink. Then I added a bit more light sponging of the Craft White to the edges of the Smokey Slate cardstock. I stamped the snowflake image from the “Colorful Seasons” stamp set with Craft White ink. The snowflake sequins are from the October 2019 Paper Pumpkin kit!

The rest of the card is pretty self explanatory. I sponged a bit of Craft White ink on one side of a strip of Real Red cardstock before stamping the sentiment using Tuxedo Black Momento ink. Just to the left of that you can see my subtle peeking of silver paper – this is patterned paper from the Feels Like Frost Designer Series Paper pack (not available to purchase again until September). Behind all of this, I have a piece of Smoky Slate cardstock that was dry embossed with the Woodland Embossing Folder from Stampin’ Up! and matted with a thin matte of Basic Grey Cardstock on a Thick Whisper White card base.

And if you have ever seen my cards before, you KNOW I used Stampin’ Dimensionals to pop up some of these layers. Oh yes!!

This card layout could easily be simplified by taking out the extra drawing and the sponging. I think I might make another one with the two joggers from the original image in the Do the Impossible stamp set from Stampin’ Up! I’ll make sure I add a link to this post when I share it!

Now, stop looking at card ideas on the internet and go stamp something!! Why not try the challenge at the As You See It Challenge with us? Don’t forget to share it! We love to see your creations!!

December 6, 2019

Christmas is Family

Amy Jasper As You See It Challenge, Christmas 2019, Christmas, Sale-a-bration, Sale-a-bration 2020, Shaker card, Shaker Domes, The Gangs All Meer 4 Comments

What brings you joy during the holidays? For me, it’s spending time with my family. I love the time together playing games, opening gifts, sitting by the fireplace, and just existing together.

My card today is inspired by the As You See It Challenge: it’s a fill in the blank!

At first, I wasn’t sure what I would do on a card for this one. How would I depict family on a holiday card?

Then I remembered a stamp set that I got in my pre-order for the upcoming Stampin’ Up! catalogues! “The Gang’s All Meer” stamp set will be available from the Sale-a-bration Brochure in January.

I realized that there are five people in my immediate family and this image has five meerkats!! I saw someone put Santa hats on the critters for a card, so I decided to give it a go!

I stamped the meer cat family on some Whisper White cardstock with Tuxedo Black Momento ink. I used my Stampin’ Blends to colour the image: Light and Dark Crumbcake for the cheerful crew, Dark Balmy Blue, Light Night if Navy, and Dark Night of Navy for the background, and Poppy Parade for the Santa hats.

The Santa hat image is from the Playful Penguins stamp set from Stampin’ Up! I stamped them on Whisper White cardstock, coloured them, then fussy cut them and adhered them to the little heads. The pompom on the end of the hat was cut separately, so I could attach it in different ways to the hats. That way, I could make the hats all a little bit different.

I used the Snowfall Accents Puff Paint to create the falling snow on the background, heat setting it to make that puff paint puff!!

Then I had another thought! Would the meerkats fit in the Stampin’ Up! Shaker Domes? YES, they do!!

Now, I was REALLY excited!!

I used the Snowglobe Scenes dies to cut the hole in the piece of the See a Sillhouette Designer Series Paper by Stampin’ Up!. I used about a teaspoon of pickling salt as snow in my dome and layered my pieces together over the Night of Navy card base and a matte of Gold Glimmer Paper.

The base of the shaker globe is created with Basic Black cardstock, cut with the same die set and my die cutting machine. I also used the Subtle embossing folder to give it some texture. I wrapped a piece of Linen Thread around the base of the globe and secured it on the backside before adhering the globe base to the card with Stampin’ Dimensionals. I tucked some leaves under the globe base that I punched out of Garden Green cardstock and a random scrap of Perennial Essence Designer Series Paper. You might also notice the pine bough on the left side, which is a sticker left over from my Christmas Countdown Calendar kit.

Finally, I stamped the sentiment from “The Gang’s All Meer” stamp set in Poppy Parade ink on Crumb Cake cardstock. I flagged the end and tied a Linen Thread bow on it and adhered it over a strip of Real Red cardstock, also flagged on the end.

If you like these products, you can click on the SHOP option in the top menu of this page and seek them out on my online store. If you are visiting my page from anywhere other than Canada, you won’t be able to shop with me, but you can look for demonstrators in your area. I know they would be happy to help you!

“The Gangs All Meer” stamp set is not yet available. Watch for it in January when the new catalogues come out!

Now get Stamping!