Althea's Friends {Lavinia World #42}

 Hey everyone, it's time for a new Lavinia World Challenges #42! The theme is anything goes using a stamped image (no digis) and the winner will receive a $15 gift card to Lavinia World.

I am so happy to share with you the new Fairy Cuts dies that coordinate with Lavinia stamps.  These dies are manufactured under license from Tracey Dutton of Lavinia Stamps Ltd.

I've used the following products, which can be found at Lavinia World, for today's project. 

Fairy Cuts: Mermaid 1 (coordinates with Althea)
Fairy Cuts: Fish Friends (coordinates with Fish Set)
Althea
Fish Set
Lavinia Stencil: Coral

I started out by stamping Althea with a pink ink pad and the fish with a black ink pad.  I then used the Fairy Cuts dies to die cut out each one.  These dies cut great and I didn't have any issues at all!

Color was added to the die cuts using gel pens, paint markers, and glitter markers.

Next, the watery background was created using Distress Oxides and the Lavinia Stencil.  I purposely curled the edges of the cardstock up so that it gave it more dimension.

This focal point was adhered to my patterned cardstock and my sentiment, a die cut from Frantic Stamper, was adhered toward the bottom.  

Now it's your turn and I hope you'll join us.  You can either upload your newly created project to the Challenge Blog or you can join our Anything Lavinia Facebook group and upload your project there.  

If you upload into the Anything Lavinia album, your project must include something Lavinia (stamps, paper); if you upload to the Challenge Blog, anything goes as long as you have used a physical stamp on your project.  

You can share your projects with us on the Challenge Blog, Facebook, Instagram, and our Anything Lavinia Facebook group:

Anything Lavinia

 Store ** Challenge ** Facebook** Instagram ** YouTube

Play in our Anything Lavinia Facebook Group
and/or our Lavinia World Challenge Blog

 Don't forget to include #laviniaworldstore on your projects and tag us at @laviniaworldstore so we can be sure to see and comment on your Lavinia projects!

Sign up to receive our Lavinia World Challenges and all the amazing inspiration from our Designers sent directly to your emails.

Please note that although we carry the full Lavinia range, we are not part of any other entity or Facebook group that carries Lavinia stamps. ONLY the cards posted to Lavinia World Challenges will be entered into the drawing for the Lavinia World prize.  Also note that the gift certificates are ONLY valid at the Lavinia World website.

Check out Lavinia World's YouTube Channel and their amazing video team! This wonderfully talented group creates how-to videos every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (and sometimes more often).  
SUBSCRIBE and click notifications so you don't miss a single one.

You have until Monday, Dec 28 to enter in either Lavinia World Challenges or Anything Lavinia.  The winner will receive a very generous $15 gift code to do some shopping at Lavinia World, the US largest retailer of Lavinia stamps.

Until next time..... 

Graduation Shaker {DRU}

inside

Hey everyone! 

Today I'm sharing a shaker card I created for the Dies R Us Inspiration team.  This graduation card is to celebrate the high school graduation of a friend of mine.

The following dies were used to create this fun shaker card:

Tutti Designs: Dotted Nesting Rectangles

Tutti Designs: Grad Silhouettes

Cheapo Dies: Grad Cap

Die-Versions: We Did It  

Frantic Stamper: Congrats

MFT: Caption Numbers (Any of these would also work.)

 I die cut each of the pieces beforehand.

In order to create a frame, I used the largest and third to largest die from the Dotted Nesting Rectangles set.

Save the center piece for the inside of the card.

The background was die cut from mirrored cardstock as was the main Grad Cap.  Be sure to save all the negative pieces of the Grad Cap to place them back.  My trick for doing this is to add a piece of regular Scotch tape on the back.  The sticky side is automatically facing upright, so all you need to do is add the negative pieces and they are permanently in place.

I partially die cut the Grad Cap a second time so I could fussy cut out the tassel in the appropriate color.  I then adhered this on top of the main Grad Cap.

I chose smaller numbers to commemorate the year, but any size can work.  

I added glitter to the frame I created using the Glueless Glitter technique that I talk about fairly often. The steps are simple: 1) add Versamark to the die cut; 2) cover with Clear embossing powder and heat set; 3) add Versamark over everything again; 4) Cover the area with your choice of glitter; 5) Heat set one final time.  You know it's ready when the glitter begins twinkling (that means it's melting into the embossing powder).  Easy, peasy!  

This photo shows the glitter having a bluish tint but's a silver holographic color. This was due to the angle I took the photo.  If you look carefully, you can also see that I have already added my acetate to the back of this frame. If I had taken the photo straight on, it would have captured my camera's reflection 😀.

Now you're ready to assemble.  I adhered the group of grads to my mirrored cardstock and added my shaker glitter (the same mixed sized glitter that I used on the frame) and some small seed beads.

Next, I added dimensional foam to the back of my glittery frame and adhered it on top of my mirrored cardstock.  I also added some dimensional foam to the back of the Grad Cap and adhered that in the upper right corner.  The year was adhered in the bottom left corner.  I used Cosmic Shimmer Specialist Glue (you can find this at DRU)  because it hold really well on  glittery surfaces and it dries clear.

On the inside, I die cut the girl silhouette from black cardstock and the Congrats message from more of the mirrored cardstock.  Adhere both of these to the center piece you created when die cutting the frame.  Finally, add this piece to the inside center.  Be sure to leave a little room for a written message as well.

Here's one final look at the finished project: 

I hope you've enjoyed today's project.  Head back to the Dies R Us Blog tomorrow for more fabulous inspiration from the DRU Inspiration design team.

Don't forget to come join in the fun at the Dies R Us Challenge Blog.  There's a new challenge theme offered on the 1st and 15th of each month and one lucky randomly drawn winner will receive a $10 gift certificate to the Dies R Us Store.  For your convenience, all the important Dies R Us links are provided below.

click below for:

STORE 
 CHALLENGE BLOG
  FACEBOOK
  INSPIRATION BLOG

FRIENDS OF DIES R US PINTEREST PAGE

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Sending Hugs {DRU Inspiration}

Today I'd like to share a card I created for the Dies R Us Inspiration team.  

The following dies from Dies R Us were used to create this:

Sue Wilson Designs: Rose Oval

Frantic Stamper: Accessory Words #3

Tonic Studios: Mixed Edge Rectangle Layering Basics 

(any of these would also work)

I wanted to play around with a stencil to see if I could create an interesting background.  I used the AALL & CREATE stencil called Lushly Leafy. Although DRU doesn't carry any of their stencils at the moment, they do carry some of their amazing stamps.  I ended up creating two completely different backgrounds using this stencil.

The one in the upper right was created on watercolor paper and I used Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers to color in the stencil area.  It took a little bit of time, but it was relaxing to me and I love the results.

The bottom left background was created using white cardstock and Distress Inks.  I'll have a card for you next week using this background.  It's hard to believe that both of these were created using the same stencil.

Back to today's card.  After the watercolor paper had completely dried, I used my layering rectangles to die cut the black larger layer and the next size down to die cut my watercolored piece.

I used the same black cardstock to die cut my rose frame and my sentiment using the Frantic Stamper die set.

I played around with the sentiment a bit before I adhered it, trying to decide if I liked it centered of off to the side.  As you can see, I decided to center it.

Here's one final look at the finished project. Once the background was completed, this was a really quick and easy card to assemble.  I even have some smaller pieces of the watercolor background to use on another card in the future.

I hope you've enjoyed today's project.  Head back to the Dies R Us Blog tomorrow for more fabulous inspiration from the DRU Inspiration design team.

Don't forget to come join in the fun at the Dies R Us Challenge Blog.  There's a new challenge theme offered on the 1st and 15th of each month and one lucky randomly drawn winner will receive a $10 gift certificate to the Dies R Us Store.  For your convenience, all the important Dies R Us links are provided below.

click below for:

STORE 
 CHALLENGE BLOG
  FACEBOOK
  INSPIRATION BLOG

FRIENDS OF DIES R US PINTEREST PAGE

Thanks for stopping by!

Love You {DRU Inspiration}

Since it's Valentine's Day, I'm sharing a quick and easy Valentine's card with you that I also shared on the Dies R Us Blog.

The following dies were used to create my card:

Tutti Designs - Cross Stitch Hearts

Frantic Stamper - Accessory Words #3

I started out by creating my backing mats with two different digital papers layered on top of each other.  Then I printed it out to adhere my die cuts. I used Specialty Paper for the red, larger heart and pink cardstock for the smaller one.

Next I die cut my sentiment twice, once from the same red specialty paper and once from black.  Then I layered them on top of each other, offsetting the top layer.

Everything was quickly adhered to the backing mat that was previously printed. And finally, the card front was adhered to a white card base.

Hope you've enjoyed today's card.  Head back to the Dies R Us Blog on Monday for more fabulous inspiration from the DRU Inspiration design team.

Don't forget to come join in the fun at the Dies R Us Challenge Blog.  There's a new challenge theme offered on the 1st and 15th of each month and one lucky randomly drawn winner will receive a gift voucher prize to the Dies R Us Store.  For your convenience, all the important Dies R Us links are provided below.

click below for:

STORE 
 CHALLENGE BLOG
  FACEBOOK
  INSPIRATION BLOG

FRIENDS OF DIES R US PINTEREST PAGE

Thanks for stopping by!

Hey Y'all Mixed Media Tag {Scrapy Land #109}

Hey Y'all, it's the first Wednesday of the month and that means it's time for a brand new Scrapy Land Challenge.  The theme is always Anything Goes using any brand of die that Scrapy Land sells.

Today I'd like to share a mixed media tag/card and the following dies were used to create this tag:

Elizabeth Craft Designs: Planner Patterns
Sue Wilson Designs: Floral Collection-Layered Loops
Frantic Stamper: Hey Y'all

In addition to the dies, lots of embossing powders, washi tape, vintage book pages, Nuvo Embellishment Mousse, Nuvo Mica Mists, and Distress Inks were added to the tag.  I just kept adding and adding until I was happy with the results.  I even added a few of the negative pieces from the Planner Patterns die cut.  That's the beauty of a mixed media project - you can just keep adding various mediums to create something uniquely yours!

Once everything was adhered to the tag, I added the completed tag to the card base.  Now I have plenty of room on the inside to add my message to the recipient.

Scrapy Land is also having a new Design Team Call.  You can find out all the details here.  Looking forward to seeing all your amazing projects.  Best of luck to everyone who is interested in joining our team!


Now it's your turn😀.  You have until March 17th to play along with the Scrapy Land Challenge #109 and have a chance to win one of two $10 gift certificates from Scrapy Land.  We can't wait to see what you create!

Congrats {Scrapy Land #108}

Happy Wednesday!  It's time for a brand new Scrapy Land Challenge today.   The theme is always Anything Goes using any brand of die that Scrapy Land sells.  There are two winners and you have until March 3 to join us.

For today's card, I used one of the brand new Triple Layer Collection dies from Sue Wilson Designs called Fuchsia.  (They are already sold out of this die at the moment, but you can see other dies in this collection here.) I now want all of them 😍.  They are so fun and easy to put together; the hardest part is deciding on your coordinating colors.

I also added the Sue Wilson Designs Basketweave die from the Background Collection. (Other dies from this collection are here.)  The Pinpoint Hearts are from Poppy Stamps.  My sentiment is by Frantic Stamper.  The mats and the card base were die cut using the Sue Wilson Designs Shadow Box Collection - Stitched Square Peg Board die.

You will definitely be seeing more projects created using these new Triple Layer dies. 😀

Now it's your turn to play along with us at the Scrapy Land Challenge.  You can create any type of project - from mixed media to CAS to layouts....anything as long as you include at least one brand of die that Scrapy Land sells (you can see all of them here).

Love You {Scrapy Land #107}

It's Wednesday and time for a brand new Scrapy Land Challenge.  The theme is always anything goes as long as you use at least one brand of die that Scrapy Land sells and there are two winners for each challenge.  You can visit the Scrapy Land Challenge blog for all the details. 

Today's card combines lots of digital elements with my die cuts. The dies used for this card were:
Sue Wilson Designs: Shadow Box Collection - Stitched Square Peg Board
Frantic Stamper: Accessory Words #3
Taylored Expressions: Palm Tree (any of these would work as well)

The digi elements used were Tiddly Inks: Be Cool and Love Each Other Penguins and several Kathy Winters Designs (blue digi papers, sun, background palm tree, sandy island) that I've had for years.

To start out, I created the beach scene using all the digi elements using Word.  You can layer the elements and as long as your focal point is a .png (transparent background) and not a .jpeg (white background), you're good to go.  After printing out my scene, I colored the penguins Copic markers.  I also colored my sentiment (Frantic Stamper) with Copics and gave the letters an ombre effect.

All the layers were die cut using the Sue Wilson peg board die set.  I love how one of the dies actually cuts out all those little holes as well as the stitching around each layer.

I cut the front palm tree from white cardstock and then colored it with Copics.  There is also a stamp set that coordinates with this die, but I didn't use it.  I just free handed the details on the palm tree.

Now it's your turn to play along with the latest Scrapy Land Challenge.  You have until Feb 17 and it can be anything from CAS to altered art, mixed media, scrapbooking, you name it.  Just be sure to use at least one brand of die that Scrapy Land sells.  We can't wait to see what you create!

Journey {Scrapy Land #84}

It's time for a new Scrapy Land Challenge and I decided to create a monochromatic scrapbook layout.  I used the following dies to embellish this layout:

Frantic Stamper: Journey
Frantic Stamper: Sphinx and Pyramid
EK Success: Travel
Die-Versions: A Little Lime font

The papers are digital and are by Carta Bella (Transatlantic Travel).  I started off by printing the digi paper twice.  The first one is the base page for the layout and the second printing was so that I could die cut from it.

The "Journey" sentiment was die cut five times (four from white cardstock and once from the printed paper) so that I could get a lot of dimension.  I also used a COpic marker to darken the sides.  I could have die cut one more layer from black cardstock to get basically the same effect.  The Sphinx was die cut twice, once from the patterned paper and once from black cardstock.  I added a pop dot under his chin for more dimension.

The Pyramid was also die cut from both black cardstock and the printed cardstock for a shadow effect.  The bottom right corner is pop dotted for a more realistic look.  I chose this die as there is a glass pyramid in front of the Louvre Museum.

Le Louvre was die cut three times for more dimension (2 times from white cardstock and once from the printed cardstock) and the edges were highlighted with a Copic marker.

The geo tag, which points to Paris on the map, is part of the EK Success Travel set and was also die cut multiple times for added dimension.

I enjoyed creating this "non-traditional" layout and you will probably be seeing more in the future.  😄




Be sure to check out all the new designers' projects and then upload your own project to the Scrapy Land Challenge.  There are two winners, each of whom will receive a $10 gift certificate to go shopping at Scrapy Land.  The theme is Anything Goes using any brand of die that Scrapy Land sells.  You have until March 4 to play along with us. 😀