May 30, 2021

Camping is in Tents

Amy Jasper Techniques 2021, blending brush, campology, embossing folder, nature, Stampin' Blends Markers, stitched rectangles dies 2 Comments

I have a lot of great memories of camping with my family. We never had a trailer or RV – always a tent.

When I was 12, we hiked the 78km West Coast trail. I complained a LOT, but what an amazing adventure! We would hike about 10km each day (my oldest brother carried my backpack for me for some of the trek), then pitch our tents and eat our meal by the open fire and dry out our clothes. In the morning, we’d pack everything up again and carry it to the next tenting spot.

The best camping ever is backpacking. No vehicles. Very few people. A minimalist experience where you can fully appreciate nature and all of its scary and beautiful glory!

I love camping, but I have to admit, I’m a bit of a snob. I get very annoyed at campers who play their music without any consideration of the other people in the area. Many campers prefer the sounds of the wind in the trees and soft buzzing of the busy insects as they maintain the balance of the ecosystem.

I’m also not a fan of big RV’s and their loud generators that are strategically placed far away from themselves because of the noise. Which, of course, means that the noise is closer to my tent. My tent! With its thin fabric walls that provide shelter from the wind and rain, but absolutely no protection from the noise pollution of a generator or music.

If you are someone who camps in an RV, offer me some of the ice cream from your freezer and I just might forgive you for stealing my peace and quiet. 🙂 Better yet, consider powering-up with solar panels, if you can. This is better for the environment, your camping neighbours, and your bank account.

But, enough about my camping snobbery. Let’s get to the card I want to show you!

I created this one with the Campology stamp set from Stampin’ Up! and it will be the card that I give to my Dad this Father’s Day. He’s the one who passed on his love of nature and the outdoors to me. I feel incredibly blessed and privileged to have the positive experiences that I did.

Here are some of the products used:

Thick Basic White, Basic White, and Misty Moonlight cardstock
Tasteful Textile Embossing Folder, Stitched Rectangle Dies, and Tasteful Labels Dies
Campology Stamp Set
Mossy Meadow Ink for the trees, Misty Moonlight Ink with a Blending Brush
Tuxedo Black Momento Ink to stamp the tent image
Light Night of Navy, Dark Balmy Blue Blends Markers and the Color Lifter to colour the tent
Old Olive Watercolor Pencil and Blender Pen for the grass
Versamark Ink, Black Embossing Powder and the Heat Tool
Dad stamp is from the Batter Up Paper Pumpkin stamp set
Black Baker’s Twine

After the card was completed, but before the DAD sentiment was attached, I used the Light Night of Navy Blends Marker to flick the spatter of colour over the card. Some of these I tapped with the Colour Lifter Blends Marker to soften them so they would appear out of focus.

Are you a tent camper or an RV camper? Maybe you’re in the middle somewhere and have a tent trailer or a camper van. What matters in the end, is that you’re getting out to enjoy nature and have a little break from the world!

Oh, and don’t forget, if you camp with an RV, offer some ice cream or freezies to your tenting neighbours on those hot summer days. They will love you for it!

April 25, 2021

Birdies for You

Amy Jasper simple and cute 2021, blending brush, markers, quick and cute 0 Comments

This sweet Sunday design has a little bit extra with fancy score lines, some ink blending, and coloured ribbon.

I started with a Gray Granite cardbase and layered a strip of Rococo Rose cardstock. I created the grid pattern on the square piece of Very Vanilla cardstock with my Simply Scoring Tool, then used a Blending Brush with Rococo Rose Ink to emphasize those score lines with a bit of colour. The little birdies from the Quite Curvy stamp set were stamped with Tuxedo Black Momento ink to look like they’re standing on the grid lines.

After adhering the Pearlescent Paper behind the vanilla piece, I coloured a section of the Pool Party Sheer Ribbon using the Dark Blackberry Bliss Blends Marker and wrapped it around the two layers, adding a Heart Charm into the knot before tying a bow.

The final touch was to stamp the sentiment on the strip of Crumb Cake cardstock, flag the end with my Paper Snips and adhere it to the card with Stampin’ Dimensionals.

This was one of the 10 cards offered as part of the Stamp Camp event in January. Registration for the next stamp camp (only available in Canada) ends April 30th and features the Hand-Penned stamp set from the upcoming 2021 – 2022 Annual Stampin’ Up! Catalogue. Click on Events and Classes in the menu on the top of the page to find out more.