Dogwood Blossoms

Appropriately the theme for this week's Pattie's Creations challenge is Easter.  I associate Dogwood blossoms with Easter time because they were always blooming right about that time when I was growing up.  So for this Easter challenge, I've chosen the Dogwood Branch digi as the focal point of my card.

I've colored the image with Copic markers and added Sparkle N Sprinkle's Sunny Daze glitter to the flower centers.  The sentiment is one I created on my computer and printed on vellum.  Since ink on vellum stays wet longer, I covered it with Clear embossing powder and heat set it.

Pearls were added to the corners of the sentiment (which also hides the glue dot on the back) and a bit of twisted ribbon is layered between the main panel and the Lacey Dots border (from Die-Versions).  I adhered the ribbon with 1/8" piece of double sided tape.  Since it is twisted, bits of the adhesive were left uncovered here and there.  A great way to cover up the sticky areas is to cover it with a semi-transparent glitter.  I covered it with Cloud Nine velvet glitter, which is a micro fine glitter.  It gives it just a hint of sparkle too.


I created the handmade dogwood blossom after viewing this video tutorial.  I improvised a bit since I don't own a balloon punch, but I do own several sizes of balloon dies from Lifestyle Crafts  :-).   (Bet you never would have guessed it was made from a balloon shape.)  I painted Twinkling H2Os over each petal and allowed to dry before assembling.  The center of the blossom is covered with Art Glitter Gala Glitz (gold) and the leaf is a Spellbinders die (Foliage).

You have two weeks to upload your Easter project to the PCDC Blog.  Be sure and visit the rest of the team to see what they've created for you as well.

Happy Easter!

Sew thankful for you

This card and tag techniques from the Tim Holtz Chemistry 101 on-line class I participated in.  The dress form was created using a Unity Stamp and the Brushless Watercolor technique and then distressing the edges with Distress Ink (Scattered Straw).  The purple tag was created with Distress Inks and then misted with Smooch Spritz (Vanilla Shimmer).  The spool of thread is also a Unity stamp that I heat embossed and fussy cut out.  I applied a heavy dose of Art Glitter (pink gala glitz) to the heart and added the Ruler Ribbon as a finishing touch.

The card base is Kraft resist paper that I inked up with Distress Inks and then flicked with water (the blended, spritz and flick technique).  I attached the tag with removable tape so the recipient could use the tag for a book mark or for whatever they choose.

I had so much fun taking the class.  I'm sure you'll be seeing a lot more of the techniques we learned (or relearned) as time goes by.

I'm entering this in the following challenge: Oozak (anything goes)

Art Glitter Design Team 2012 Audition

(Please scroll down for today's Digi Makeover Challenge post)

For those of you that have been following my blog, you know I love trying new things.  That's exactly what I did for this card.  I made a dimensional flower using acetate and glitter.  The first thing you need to do is stamp your image onto the acetate with a permanent ink (Staz-On or Archival) and let it dry completely!  The rubber stamps I used are from Heartfelt Creations and I stamped several different sizes of the flowers.

Once the ink was dry, I adhered the stamped acetate to a double sided adhesive sheet (there are several brands out there, but mine was the Miracle Sheets from Viva Las Vegas Stamps).  Cut out the images and peel of the protective layer.  Begin applying the glitter to the back side of the flower.  I used a combination of Art Glitter Gala Glitz (gold) and PK Glitz glitter (eggplant, burgundy, and gilded fern).  Make sure you burnish the glitter into the background really well with your finger tips.  This helps it adhere to the adhesive better.  I bent each of the petals slightly for a more dimensional look and layered three different sizes of the flowers to make one complete flower.  A Swarovski crystal was used for the flower center.

The word art is printed on vellum and is from Paper Makeup Stamps.   A Lifestyles Crafts die (nesting doily rectangle) was used to cut out the sentiment and I completed the project with a bit of ribbon.  This was definitely a fun project to make and I plan on making many more projects using glitter as it is SO shimmery in person.

Good luck to all who apply for the Art Glitter design team!