Bellarific Friday - Photo Inspiration

It's Bellarific Friday today over on the Stamping Bella blog. This week's challenge was to be inspired by the photo below. I loved the color combo of the peachy pink drink and blueberries. I wanted to use a sassy Uptown Girl so I chose one that I hadn't stamped yet called Madison Has A Margarita. She is too fun! I just adore her curly hair and the hand on her hip. 

I stamped the image in Simon Says Stamp Intense Black Ink onto my go to X-Press Copic paper and colored her up. The design in the glasses inspired me to make her dress sparkly. I grabbed my black and silver Spica markers and used a dot technique in the shadow areas to give the appearance of tiny sequins. To up the illusion a little more, I used a white gel pen to add a few more dots and then a couple "sparkle" marks. It's amazing how much that makes the image pop and it's so easy to do! I also decided to add some rose gold stickles to the ruffles of her dress because why not add more sparkle! Here are the Copic colors I used in this image:

I used a stitched scalloped edge die to cut a fun border on one side of the colored image. To tie in more of the peachy pink color, I chose a piece of gray card stock that had rose gold foil dots. I also cut a strip of rose gold foil and layered those pieces under my image panel. For the sentiment, I heat embossed it onto a piece of coordinating blue cardstock and positioned it to overlap the image a little. I couldn't leave the little glass alone, so I colored on some clear Spectrum Noir sparkle pen and then covered it in glossy accents. Here's a closer peek of the details:

Be sure to check out the Stamping Bella blog to see what the rest of the BellaBabes came up with. Also, if you would like to participate in Bellariffic Fridays for a chance to be entered into a monthly drawing to win some Bella Bucks click on the link below for more details.

Next week's Bellarific Friday challenge is free form. All you have to do is use a current Stamping Bella stamp. I hope you join along and create something with us! Have a wonderful weekend!

Bellarific Friday - Use a Die Challenge!

Happy Saturday! Today I'm sharing my card for this week's Bellarific Friday Challenge. We were asked to use a die cut in our design. I love dies so this was an easy and fun challenge for me. I chose one of the new January release stamps called Fairy Tale Squidgies. They are just the sweetest couple!

'

For this card, I decided to pull out my Daniel Smith 238 watercolor dot card. If you've never tried these watercolors, I highly recommend them. Typically they come in individual tubes of watercolor paint and they can be pretty pricey so the sampler sheets are a great deal. Easy to store too! I slid mine into page protectors to keep them safe from potential water spills on my desk. You may think a drop of paint wouldn't last very long, but you'd be surprised. I've had mine for over 6 months and I still have lots and lots left. They are such a high quality that it doesn't take much water to reactive the colors so they last much longer that you'd think. 

Below is a picture of what the dot cards look like. I colored a little bit next to each dot so I'd know how the color would turn out when I painted. I'm a big believer of trying different mediums including watercolor palettes. I think I have like 5 or 6 different ones. Each one of them is special in their own right. One day I'll have to do a review of all of the different palettes I have. 

Anyhoo, back to the card, lol! I stamped the image onto a piece of Smooth White Bristol card stock in black Versafine ink and heat embossed it with detail clear embossing powder. This give you a little "bumper" when water coloring so that the colors don't bleed as easily. After coloring the image, I used the corresponding Cut It Out die to cut out the image of the little couple. (You can also get a stamp and die bundle which saves you 15%.) 

For the background, I used a cloud mask that I made using a cloud die cut. I applied the color with my Copic airbrush system. This method creates the softest looking clouds.

For the castle, I used a fun new die from My Favorite Things. I cut out the castle from a piece of Neenah Desert Storm. For the bricks, I placed a stencil over the pieces and used an ink blending tool to apply brown ink. I then adhered it all together and added a little red flag on top. 

For the grassy hill, I used a Lawn Fawn stitched hill die and then drew on little patches of grass using my Copic markers. I adhered all of the scene pieces and added my little couple in the front. The sentiment was stamped in black Versafine ink and heat embossed with clear embossing powder. I grabbed a few sparkling clear sequins from Pretty Pink Posh to add a little sparkle. Because I can't stop at just "a little bit" of sparkle, I also applied Spectrum Noir clear glitter pen to the princess and some blue stickles on the knight's plume.

Here's a close up of the details:

I'll admit, I'm definitely more proficient with shading with my Copics but I like to try getting that contrast with my watercolors. Practice makes perfect, lol! Be sure to check out the Stamping Bella blog to see what the rest of the BellaBabes have done. Also, if you would like to participate in Bellariffic Fridays for a chance to be entered into a monthly drawing to win some Bella Bucks click on the link below for more details.

Next week's Bellariffic Friday challenge is a photo inspiration challenge using the image below. I hope you join along and create something with us! Have a wonderful weekend and I'll be back soon! 

Happy Valentine's Day - Stamping Bella Stamp of the Month

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope everyone is having a day filled with hugs and love! Today's card uses the Stamping Bella stamp of the month called Uptown Girl Catherine Nibbling Chocolate. And who doesn't want to nibble chocolate? She is just the cutest and I absolutely love her frilly dress! And guess what? She's 20% off all month long! 

I started by stamping the image in Simon Says Stamp Intense Black Ink onto a piece of X-Press Copic paper. My color scheme was inspired by the traditional colors of Valentine's Day. I've been practicing coloring pleats and I'm not sure this is completely successful but definitely getting closer! Practice makes perfect! Here are the colors I used:

After coloring, I trimmed the piece down and matted it with a piece of pink foil paper. I then chose a fun heart pattern paper for my background to tie in the colors of her dress. I wanted to add a little bit of texture so I grabbed a piece of lace trim from my stash. I taped the edge of the lace onto the back of the matted image and then adhered that to the card base. It added a nice little girly touch!

To finish my card, I picked out a handful of translucent enamel hearts and scattered them around the image. I then added a little bit of purple stickles to the lacey trim on her dress. It dried a bit brighter than I was wanting but in the end I think it worked well with the heart paper in the background. Here's a closer look at some of the details.

Be sure to pop over to the Stamping Bella shop to pick up Catherine. Clink the link below. Have a wonderful day and I'll be back soon! 

Bellarific Friday - Sketch Challenge

Happy Bellarific Friday! I hope everyone has had a great week. It's definitely been a long one and I'm so looking forward to having a weekend to play in my craft room. This week's challenge over on the Stamping Bella blog was to use the following MojoBella sketch and below is what I came up with. 

I just love the Stamping Bella new release and I knew I had to color up this adorable stamp called Tropical Squidgies. What's neat about this set is that you get three stamps: the sentiment and the image in two different sizes. How cool is that? I used the smaller size to fit the sketch. I stamped it onto a piece of X-Press It blending card with Simon Says Stamp Intense black ink. I then grabbed a myriad of Copics to bring the little squidgies to life. Here's a snap of the colors I chose:

After coloring the image, I cut the piece down to fit the sketch. I was really inspired by a new paper pack I bought from Pebbles Inc. called Sunshiny Days. It has these beautiful tropical colors and prints and went perfectly with the Tropical Squidgies. I cut three different designs into sizes that fit with the sketch. I then layered them up and adhered them together. I grabbed a piece of pink grosgrain ribbon that matched the flower and tied it around the entire card. I taped it down and then adhered the entire piece onto A2 size white card base. My finishing touches were some enamel dots and a little bit of glossy accents on the girls sunglasses. Here's a little close up of the details:

Be sure to check out the Stamping Bella blog to see what the rest of the BellaBabes created using this fun sketch. Also, if you would like to participate in Bellariffic Fridays for a chance to be entered into a monthly drawing to win some Bella Bucks click on the link below for more details.

Next week's Bellariffic Friday challenge is to use a Stamping Bella "CUT IT OUT" die on your card or simply ANY DIE OR PUNCH you are inspired to use. I hope you join along and create something with us! Have a wonderful weekend and I'll be back soon!