Lavinia World - Light As a Feather

Greetings, Blogging Friends!
Hope this finds you well, and enjoying life.
I had a very difficult time photographing today's project, but hopefully you'll be able to see what I did.

IT'S TIME FOR ANOTHER Lavinia World Challenge!
Details of our challenge:

Challenges begin every other Thursday with an Anything-Goes theme for chances to win a $15 gift certificate to the store, and badges for your blog. Use ANY brand clear or rubber stamp - no digitals. If your project features Lavinia World stamps, your chances to win double.

While "our" Lavinia World store is located in the US, it ships worldwide. Buy $25 and get free shipping! Lavinia World carries other coordinating products for your convenience (like Brushos, inks, art supplies and dies).

Store -- Facebook -- Challenge -- Instagram

Today's project is sparkly and full of shiny details. First, a background was created using watercolor pigments and metallics, and then stamped with Distress inks and Distress Oxide inks using the Feather stamp. This stamp's detail is exquisite!

I trimmed it down, die cut a frame from royal blue mirror cardstock to coordinate with the blue feather die cut. Various copper colored ribbons and twine were wrapped around the background paper:

The little Fairy Forager was stamped with Blue Belle Versafine Clair ink and heat set with clear detail embossing powder. Stamped on a little piece of left over background paper and loosely fussy cut, the fairy was placed on the slant, as though she is resting on the copper twine. 

The Feather, stamped in Warm Breeze Versafine Clair ink, was stamped once on turquoise vellum, and once on plain vellum, heat set with white detail powder containing glitter, and clear detail powder. The detail is extraordinary, and I apologize for the poor photography, unable to capture the crisp embossed images.



The vellum (with heat set feathers) is actually shiny and glistening, but when I photographed them, the camera picked up more shine than detail. Feathers were die cut from the blue mirror cardstock, and the copper glossy cardstock - each providing a complementary texture.

This photo was taken in the dark, without lights and no flash on the camera, to better show the stamp details:



The sentiment is PoppyStamps Fairy Loose Script, and was cut once from the blue mirror CS and once from white cardstock to help show it off. The "wings" portion was computer generated and lined with White Galaxy Opaque Marker.

I learned a lot making this project because it was full of new-to-me ingredients, and many unused items from my stash! Because I kept dropping things during my creative process, I deliberately adhered the framed panel on an angle:



Thanks for visiting! Hope I didn't write too much, but I also wanted to convey what was done to each layer.

Wishing you a lovely week-end, and many happy fairy days ahead!
Remember! ANY brand rubber or clear stamp is acceptable in the challenge, so hop on over and play!

Products:

• Lavinia World Feather, 
• Lavinia World Fairy Foragers
• Ken Oliver Liquid Metals, Colorburst Powders
• Inks: assorted Distress Inks and Oxides including Wilted Violet Distress Oxide, Warm Breeze and Blue Belle Versafine Clair inks
• Dies: SB "Feathers" S4-428, SB Grand Labels 23, PoppyStamps Fairy Loose Script
• Embossing Powders: Clear Detail, White detail with glitter
• Papers: Turquoise Vellum, White Vellum, Royal Blue Mirror, Copper Glossy, Copper cardstock (and white cardstock for the background)
• Misc: Copper ribbons and twine - Computer generated "wings" word.

Challenges I'd like to play in please:

1. Joy of Sets Tic Tac Toe (JOSTTT007) Last Column Copper Twine--Die Cut--Heat Embossing 8/3
2. Die Cuttin' Divas #429 Embossing Heat or Dry (dry embossed both SB feathers, heat embossed the two stamped feathers and the stamped fairy) 7/23 bottom of post
3. Creative Fingers Challenge #168 Anything Goes 8/12 (check chal 170)
4. Creative Crafters #17 Anything Goes 8/15
5. A Perfect Time to Craft #7 Anything Goes 8/1
6. ScrapyLand Challenge #117 Anything Goes SL dies (SB and PS listed above) 8/1
7. World Wide Open DT Challenge #7 AG DT 8/15
8. Dragonfly Dreams Challenge (July 7) Things With Wings 8/7

Stamping Hugs,

Christmas at Sweet Stampin' - Divinity Designs

Hello, my friends!

First - thank you for staying with me - it's been a rough few months, and I'm slowly recovering. My fumble fingers are beginning to coordinate with my Mojo, and my strength is kind of getting normalish. I had a body-wide exacerbation which then triggered an unexpected, unpleasant infection. The ways our bodies respond to certain "stimuli" is just amazing (as many of you know first-hand). The most difficult thing is being patient with myself and flexible enough to be satisfied with what can be accomplished, even if it is, seemingly, a big Nothing.

Enough of that!

Today begins a new challenge at 

Christmas at Sweet Stampin'!

My brilliant teammates have fantastic samples to share! The challenge is ANYTHING GOES for ANY Christmas theme craft project. June's Challenge is open until July 6 and has an optional theme of non-traditional colors.

My non traditional color is BROWN.
How fun! I used a Christmas Tree Collage image that has been in my stash for 4-5 years and has never seen ink! How could I be so cruel?
I'm so pleased with the quality and details in the stamp, that I'll be buying more from this company.

My first brown card has an oval frame.



I began by creating a background paper with this beautiful poinsettia stamp, embossing powder and Ken Oliver Liquid Metal Heavy Metal Brushos. I both painted and splattered with them.

Here's a close up of the "Heavy Metals". I painted them around the tree's star halo, and a little on each ornament:

The frame is glittered, of course, and covers portions of the stamped collage:

The second card features the Cracked Glass technique. The image was stamped and distressed with inks. The background paper was also stamped with a Music background stamp. Here are the pieces before assembling:

I smeared Judikins embossing ink on the dried image, and heat set several coats of clear EP on it. Next it was put in the freezer for 45 minutes, and then "cracked". Black Soot distress ink was smooshed into the cracks. 

You can see the glassy effect here. The entire panel shines like that:



Hopefully you can see some of cracks here:



I love this stamp! How could I have neglected it for so long?

Will you come play, too? Remember, the non-traditional color is optional.

Two cards, one stamp, one brown color:

Some Products:

• Stamp (on both cards) Divinity Designs Christmas Tree Collage with VersaFine Clair Acorn Brown Ink

Oval Card:

• Me and Carrie Lou Poinsettia (apparently they are only sold at Violette's a brick-and-mortar store in Lakeland FL)
• Ken Oliver Liquid Metals Heavy Metals watercolors
• Vintage Brown Cosmic embossing powder
• SB Classic Oval die set
• SB Fleur de Elegance 5x7 oval die set

Rectangle Card:

• Embossing Ink (for cracked glass technique)
• Clear embossing powder (for cracked glass technique)
• Scattered Straw, Aged Mahogany, Black Soot Distress Inks
• Tutti 123 Arched Fir Branch die
• Tonic Studios English Picnic Rectangle die set
• MS Doily Trim punch
• Judikins Music Background Stamp

Challenges I'd like to play in please:

1. Merry Little Christmas Challenge #11 Anything Christmas Goes 7/1
2. The Holy and Ivy Christmas Challenge #51 Anything Christmas Goes 6/16
3. Christmas Cards All Year Round (June) Garland-Leaves or Christmas Flowers (one card has stamped poinsettias, the other has golden garland die cut) 7/1
4. Classic DT Open Challenge #6 June  AG for DT 7/1
5. Love to Craft Challenge Blog #35 Anything Goes 7/1
6. Crafting by Designs (June) Anything Goes 7/1
7. Artistic Inspirations #216 Anything Goes 7/2
8. Use Your Stuff #362 "Vintage" 6/17

Stamping Hugs,

A Contemporary Christmas

YAYYYY! You're here! And just in time!
(I hope you're enjoying a week that is holding promise and anticipation.)

Double YAYYYY! Autumn has finally arrived to our neck of the woods!

Pssst! I'd like to remind you not to forget to sign up on my blog for my blog candy! 

It is for my regular bloggy visitors such as yourself.

And...

Oh yes! It's time for a new Cardz 4 Galz challenge!

Badges are awarded for the Spotlight Winner and Top Picks.

The theme is A CONTEMPORARY CHRISTMAS - 
so get crafting and show us your modern take on Christmas!

There are many traditional elements incorporated into my modern take of Christmas, 
including snow, presents, a tree, snowflakes and ribbon!

It's been years since I played with acetate, so I stamped some modern presents with VersaMark and heat set with some SNS white detail EP. Painting the back side of the embossed presents with SNS Brushable Glue, I then applied some SNS microfine glitters:  Jasper Blue Velvet GM2012, Orchid Rose Velvet GM2016.

Backside:

Front side:

Little dancing present popped up on card:

A little Mediterranean Star EP to pretty-up my round frame:

BOO BOO REVELATION TIME!

I love sharing my BOO-BOOs with you!

I VersaMarked my "modern" IO Swirly Christmas tree, and stamped onto some inexpensive watercolor paper. Because I wanted a sparkly tree, SNS Sparkle EP was heated. It is a semi-transparent powder with semi-transparent glitters. 
It worked pretty well
EXCEPT
a white EP with glitters would have worked better...
or perhaps a clear EP with white mica powder and glitter.
OR
A white pigment ink UNDER the Sparkle EP instead of VersaMark.

Why?

Because a tiny bit of the color seeped UNDER the heated EP. Since the EP is not opaque, some of the color bled through the paper under the image, dulling the embossed image.

I've only used my Color Burst Powder colors one other time.
WHAT? WHY?

I forgot about them LOL

See how dull the white image appears?

Brilliance Sky Blue ink was used on the dry embossed white area and the sky around the tree:

Here is my clean-and-simple version.
Is this considered CAS?

See the difference in the bright white embossing powder for the sentiment compared to the semi-transparent powder used for the tree?

Thanks for stopping by today!

On a Personal Note:

We gratefully receive the Gentleness of Autumn here in central, rural Florida.
Our mornings have dipped into the 50s - 60s (15-20C), while our afternoons glide into the low 80s (27C).
Before the sun rises, I open the sliding glass doors to the screened lanai, breathing in the dewey freshness.
All is quiet, undisturbed - SILENT.  Our Barred Owl community has apparently retired for the day.
Barely hearing the highway traffic a few miles away, I hear ripened acorns drop from the oak trees, on the barn's metal roof, for some hungry squirrel to discover and hide as their winter reserve.
But then, a single Barred Owl tentatively shares his greeting, erupting into bold cackling, making me giggle at heart. If you have ever heard the guffaws of these incredible birds, you know what I mean.


During the evening, he and his mate have been quite vocal with their neighbors.
There are several owls in the area. Frequently they are right outside the house.
Their conversations are incredibly lively, from softly muffled background singing, to something that resembles outright laughter! I wish this sound bit picked up how lively they become! (wait about 15 seconds into the sound bite)

Everything smells fresh as the dew sets, and a neighbor's rooster begins to rouse the neighborhood.

Slowly, one by one, other birds awaken.

Some resent the intrusion on their last hour of sleep,

others quickly awaken to get an early start.

Before long, it sounds like an orchestra deafeningly tuning all their instruments simultaneously!

And now, the Sun finally animatedly reveals her multi-color glory.

This is Autumn in my Florida.

Products Used:

• Images: Great Impressions G245 Presents, Impression Obsession Swirl Tree J2004 Leigh Hannan, Hero Arts Christmas C1722
• Sparkle N Sprinkle: Embossing Powders (White Detail EP298, Sparkle EP107, Mediterranean Star EP429), Embossable Acetate, Brushable Glue, Microfine Velvet Glitter (Jasper Blue GM2012, Orchid Rose GM2016), VersaMark Ink
• Die Cuts: Spellbinders Grand Stately Circles, Spellbinders Grand Circles
• Inks: VersaMark (for embossing powder, Brilliance Sky Blue (for falling snow), 
• Embossing Folders: Crafter's Comp Elegant Snowfall, Regency Swirls by Die'sire, Craftwell Delicate Dots
• Watercolor: Color Burst Powder Watercolors

Challenges I'm supporting with these cards:

1. Christmas at Sweet Stampin Challenge (Wed Nov 9) "Anything Goes Christmas" 12/7
2. Crafty Gals Corner Challenges #97 "Use a Sentiment" (my 2nd card) 11/16
3. Inspiration Destination #111 "Anything Goes" 11/16
4. The Crafty Addicts #28 "Anything Goes with the Winter Blues"11/23
5. A Snowflakes Promise #32 "Seasons" (Christmas) 11/14
6. Cardz4Guyz #145 "Oh Christmas Tree!" 11/14
7. Holly Jolly Christmas Challenge #84 "Trees or Christmas Trees" 11/13  (10)
8. Craft-Dee BowZ (Nov) Anything Goes with a hand-made bow 12/1 
9. Crimbo Crackers #119 Shaped Christmas Cards 11/17 (sep post end of month? several challenges announced at once)
10. Sweet Stampers Challenge #1 "Christmas" 12/10

Happy Hugs,