Sunday, February 26, 2017

SK Sea & Cats: Sandy Kraken Birthday





This is probably one of my favorite cards in the Sea & Cats Stash kit. There's just something about a wide stripe that makes my heart happy - and even more so when it's paired with a sparkly kraken and a whimsical birthday greeting.

For this card, I used the Mini Stitched Scalloped Rectangles dies from My Favorite Things. I purchased this set of dies during a Black Friday sale, and I'm so glad I did. I love how sweet the scallops look and how well the different sizes layer together. I can see myself using this die a lot (along with the mini rectangles), which I got at the same time.

The scallops added a "cute" touch that fits so well with the adorable Lawn Fawn designs. That's something I find myself looking for often, I think. If a stamp is edgy, I aim for an edgy die or layout. Something as sweet as Lawn Fawn calls for sweet detail like scallops.

To finish my card off, I added a few enamel shapes, echoing the aqua background on the small rectangle and the pink blush on the kraken's face.

Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Friday, February 24, 2017

SK Sea & Cats: Kitten Birthday Duo

Today's card is a break from the nautical and a splash into the wonderful world of cats. A kitten celebration seems perfectly fitting for a birthday, and a neutral teal-inspired palette keeps it fitting for both guys and gals.

I colored one kitty into a Siamese and another into a taupe-brown with a hint of white. One of my dear childhood friends had two cats just like these, and it was fun trying to figure out the best way to make them recognizable. I softened the background and gave it a little focus with some distress ink blending. And, lastly, a trio of enamels added a bit more visual interest.

Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Thursday, February 23, 2017

SK Sea & Cats: Bigfoot Birthday


It wouldn't be a birthday card without a monster-ific creation featuring Bigfoot! Since I'm planning this card to be a part of a small birthday set, I kept it very simple with minimal layering and embellishments. That way, I can recreate the same design with another stamp or two, and have a cohesive-looking birthday gift set.

Though I chose boy colors with aqua/teal and grey, the scallops add a softer touch. A palette change to pinks/purples would work with this design just as well. The enamel star could be replaced with a heart or a bow to make the card feel more feminine.

Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

SK Sea & Cats: Bubble Birthday


Card 3 in my Sea and Cats Stash Kit features yet another adorable Lawn Fawn squid, along with a sentiment from PTI's Birthday II mini stamps.

I kept this card a little more on the masculine side - as it feels like it would be fitting for a boy birthday card. So, a palette of green with some sparkly enamel dots as bubbles worked perfectly for what I had in mind.

Being a boy card, I kept it very simple beyond that, adding just a sentiment and a small circle to ground the images.

Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

SK Sea & Cats: Squid Thanks


 The second card in the Sea and Cats stash kit features an adorable giant squid and tiny boat from Lawn Fawn's Lovable Legends stamp set, along with WPlus9's Dockside (retired) sentiment. I also used a navy polkadot paper and die-cut a stitched rectangle out of a white cardstock panel for my scene. If I was making this card again, I would probably cut another panel to make the sea and sky look different - but I'd already adhered everything together when I thought of it.

This card is very simple and easy to put together. I like how the rope "thanks" matches the nautical theme of the squid and boat. As a last touch, I added a pink anchor to the end of the "T" to tie in the pink cheeks on the squid.

Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Monday, February 20, 2017

SK Sea & Cats: Nautical Retirement


 The first card in my Sea and Cats Stash Kit share is a retirement card, using the WPlus9 Dockside stamp set (now retired). I was inspired by the nautical patterned paper that featured some classic colors  (navy and aqua) along with coral, pink and taupe. The softer colors made the palette feel neutral, which was just perfect for the retirement card I wanted to make.

I used some Lawn Fawn inks along with a couple of enamel dots as an embellishment.

Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Sunday, February 19, 2017

Mermake a wish


Today's card features a digi stamp from The Greeting Farm. This particular stamp was offered as a freebie in one of their newsletters a little while back, and I've been meaning to color it and use it on a card for ages now.

For my coloring, I tried something new and combined Copics with my Prismacolor pencils to add an extra touch of texture. I like how it turned out, and how it added a bit of extra depth to the image - particularly the hair. I'll have to experiment with this combination method again. I've seen a couple of artists use it in YT videos with absolutely brilliant results.

A bit of ribbon, enamel shapes and a pretty mint background - and that's all there was to it.

Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Friday, February 10, 2017

Some Odd Girl: Valentine's Blog Hop!


Welcome to my stop on the Some Odd Girl Valentine’s Day Blog Hop! You should have arrived from Ria’s blog but if you just stopped by then head back to the beginning to get started so you don’t miss any stops.
Whenever I think of love, my mind always goes back to old vintage photographs of happy couples. I like the warmth of the tones and how it seems to capture a moment in time. So, I decided to make a vintage photograph featuring the Grands couple. I used my Warm Greys Copic marker - and it was an interesting challenge to make sure there was enough contrast to make all the details stand out. I also brushed the images lightly with a blending tool using Gathered Twigs distress ink. I used Gathered Twigs along with Pumice Stone on the background, too. A bit of gold glam on the "Love" die cut and a couple hearts tie everything together.

Be sure to check in and comment on each blog, including this one, to be the most eligible. Since we’re spreading the love so hardcore, everyone gets 14% off at the Some Odd Girl shop using code SOGLove! But, we'll also be choosing 2 lucky winners from those of you who comment on every blog, each receiving a $14 spending spree in our shop. 
Here’s our hop list...
Elle * You are here
Alexis

Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Thursday, February 9, 2017

SCS - Home is my Land

In July 2016, I was chosen to be one of the Design Team members for Splitcoast Stampers for a 6 month term (until December 2016). Not only was  surprised and humbled, but I had an absolute blast creating 6 projects each month. The projects were exclusive to the forum paid supporters (it's one of the fab perks of being a donor), but I'm now allowed to feature them in my blog and I wanted to share.

The theme for my first month was "This Land is My Land". As a child, I moved around a lot - even across continents. So, for me, my land is my home - which is family. I wanted to illustrate this idea of moving, and I thought a caravan was just perfect. For the background, I used a paper from Carta Bella's The Great Outdoors 6x6. For the stamp, I used Avery Elle's Home Sweet Home.

This was my favorite card for July.

Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

Stash Kit - Sea and Cats

Today, I'm sharing the stamps that I'm using in my Sea and Cats stash kit (read about my stash kit project here). I've named this kit Sea and Cats because it includes some nautical elements and a kitty stamp set. I don't think I'll be combining the two ideas necessarily (though the idea of a seafaring kitten does sound fun), but I will be using elements from all sets to create birthday cards.

Here are the stamps that I'll be using in this kit:





WPlus9 Dockside (large set from 2013, now retired)



I have also selected various patterned papers from my stash, with a combination of darker (muted) blues/teals/greens and a few bright pieces for the kitten cards.
Lastly, I'm using up some enamel dots:



Thanks for reading!
~Elle~

Wednesday, February 1, 2017

SOG Monthly Challenge - February

Some Odd Girl is starting a new monthly challenge, and I just had to jump in and make a card! I used the lovely Cupid Mae digi, and some Valentine supplies I had sitting around. I chose a darker skin tone and color for this Cupid, and tied the colors together with red and white doilies.

Click here to check out what the other Oddies made, I guarantee you'll be impressed! :)

Thanks for reading,
Elle