Distinctive Touches

Whimsy February Challenge - Metal

I've never been a heavy metal gal, but I sure did love the challenge this month for Whimsy Stamps!

We were challenged to use or create with "something metal" and you know me... not a rule follower... so I went my own way and created... something that LOOKS like metal.  LOL

Here's what I came up with.

Talk about a Viking Warrior! - She is the new Warrior Princess image from the February Whimsy release.  She belongs to the KennyK's fantasy series.  SO much fun to color! 

With all of the different layers and types of metal, I knew this would be perfect for the challenge.  I tried to make sure that each different type of material really looked like a different type of metal... from the bright helmet and shield to the cool sharpness of the ax to the deep warm clanging of the breastplate and armored skirt. 

I'm pretty darn excited about the way this one turned out... and I have the perfect person to send it to... a warrior in her own right. 

Want to play along?  Head on over to the Whimsy Challenge and join in the fun!

Supply List
Cardstock:	Raven and Stonehedge (Bazzill Basics) Gold Shimmer (SU) X-Press It Blending Card (Imagination International Inc.)
Patterned Paper:
Image(s):	Warrior Princess (Whimsy)
Ink(s):	Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Copic Markers:	skin-E50/E21/E34 eyes-BG15/BG18 lips-E93/E04 boots-E41/E53/E23 hair-Y32/YR24/E99/E23 shield, helmet, axe-C00/C1/C3/C5 axe handle-T1/T3/T4 skirt, breastplate,gauntlets-W1/W3/W5/W7/W9 shirt-N2/N4/N6 cape-BV00/BV11/B63/B66/B79 wings-V20/C3/C0 background-BG70/BG72
Dies:
Other:	metal brads

Whimsy January Challenge - Fancy Edges!

Today I'm participating in my very first Whimsy Challenge!  This month the challenge was to use Fancy Edges... something that I'm not always comfortable with.  I'm more of the straight-and-narrow type of gal. 

I used this month's new release Dreamy Dragon image from the Wee Stamps collection.  I wanted a "soft" look, so I stamped him with Potter's Clay.  I then used a variety of die cut shapes to create layers within the card. 

Supply List
Cardstock:	Iced Pink, Blush Dark Red, Sea Salt (Bazzill Basics) X-Press It Blending Card (Imagination International)
Patterned Paper:	Simply Stories (Summer Fresh)
Image(s):	Dreamy Dragon (Whimsy Stamps)
Ink(s):	Potter's Clay (Tsukineko)
Copic Markers:	Dragon - Y21/Y24/YR24/R81/R83/R85 Branch - E30/E23/E25/E57 Flowers - R81/R83/R85/R89 Sky - BG72
Dies:	Double Scallop Doily Die (Whimsy), Labels 18 and Label 23 (Spellbinders)
Other:	White ribbon

Head on over to the Whimsy Inspirations Blog to check out the other Challenge submissions and join in the fun!

 

Coloring Pastel - Make It Crafty

As many of you know, I am part of the Coloring Inspiration team over at Make It Crafty.  Each month, we share two coloring tutorials or challenges on the MIC blog. 

My latest post is HERE and takes you through my coloring process for the new Desiree image.  Here is the finished piece. 

Check out my post to see the step-by-step tutorial on how I colored her and exactly what my challenge was. 

I also want to announce that this is my last post for Make It Crafty.  It was just announced that I am the new Education Director with Imagination International Inc., and will be putting all of my time/efforts into the new job as I get started. I will still be visiting the MIC blog (and recommend you do too) for continued coloring inspiration. 

Thanks for stopping by today!

Comfort Zone! (CardMaker Blog Hop)

Welcome to the CardMaker "Comfort Zone" Blog Team hop!

After an informal conversation at CHA about our own personal card making styles and how we often wish we could create in similar styles to others, Brooke (our fearless and decidedly devious leader) challenged us all to "Get Out" of our comfort zone and create something that was completely NOT our normal style. 

Ummmm... Brooke, don't you realize that it took me YEARS to be able to actually identify my own "style" and finally embrace it?

I have come to accept that my style is simple, cutsie and colored.  Yup, that's me... with rarely a deviation from the standard. 

So HOW was I going to accomplish this challenge?  Comfort Zone... heck, I would have to get out of my time zone, my end zone and my oh-zone to do this one.

And after all of that fussing and worrying, here's what I created: 

Check it out peeps!  No Stamping, No Coloring, No Cutsie!  OMG... I actually think I love it!  (Although all white cards are a pain in the butt to photograph!) 

How's THAT for changing up my style? 

Make sure to head on over to the other designer's blogs to check out how they tackled this challenge.

CardMaker Blog
Anya Schrier
Carolyn King
Colleen Schaan (you are here)
Kimberly Crawford
Trudie Sjolander

__________________________________________________

Supply List
Cardstock:	Express It Blending Card
Patterned Paper:	NA
Image(s):	NA
Ink(s):	NA
Copic Markers:	NA
Dies:	Folk Art Hearts Die (Sizzix)
Other:	Satin Ribbon, White Fabric Flower, Pearl Hat Pin, Embossing Folders

Make It Crafty Challenge - Coloring on Kraft!

It's time for another Crafty challenge... or should I say... "KRAFTY" this time???

The new coloring challenge is up over at the MIC Clubhouse and it's all about Coloring on Kraft paper! 

I decided to abandon my Copics for the day (well, sort of...) and I pulled out my new Pan Pastels.  I was super excited about using these on the darker Kraft paper...the colors were sooooo smooth and blendable.  I need to find a really tiny applicator to get into those super small areas, but other than that, it was a snap!  I even pulled out my Copics (yes... I couldn't give them up completely) and added a few details to pull it all together. 

It's time for you to get Krafty and Colorful...  head on over to the MIC Clubhouse challenge area to find out more deets!  And check out the Gallery for more samples from the DT. 

Thanks for stopping in today... go out and Get Krafty!

___________________________________________________________
Supplies Used
Kraft Paper, Deep Blue and Tropical Cardstock, Sandcastle background digi, Mermaid digi, Pan Pastels, Copic markers

Make It Crafty Challenge - Rainbows!

There are some pretty big changes going on over at Make It Crafty!  A new store site, a new inspiration team (joining the current coloring team), a new inspiration blog, and a new clubhouse! 

The MIC Clubhouse is the place to go to share your MIC creations (the gallery), chat with other MIC lovers, learn new coloring techniques, and find out the latest coloring challenges. (And yes... there are still prizes for the top 3 challenge winners!)

Speaking of challenges, the next challenge is posted HERE... and it is a doozie! 

Coloring Rainbows!

I wanted to do something a bit different (yeah, I can never just follow the rules...)  So I did a "rainbow sunset" sort of thing.  It looks really cool in person, but when I took the photo, the blends look horrible!  Yikes!!! 

As I was coloring this, I focused on trying to get one color to blend smoothly into the next.  Some colors (V and BV) were much easier than others (Y and YR and R)... the key to smooth blending was using the flick and really keeping it wet... that was the hard part since I didn't want the color to run into the rest of the image.  (I colored the background first.)

Copic Colors used:
Red - R22
Orange - YR04
Yellow - Y02
Green - G43
Blue - B91
Indigo - BV00
Violet - V12

Leaves/Grass - G12/G03/G03/G17/G29
Tree - E43/E57/E79
Plants - YG01/YG06/YG23/YG17
Birds - B21/B24
Flowers - Y02
Clouds - B41
Sun - R27
Rocks - C1/C3/C5/C7/W5/W3/W00

There are more DT samples to get you started on coloring rainbows HERE... head on over to the clubhouse gallery to check them out... and then GET COLORFUL! 

Make It Crafty Challenge - The Dark Side!

Are you ready for another coloring challenge? 

The Make It Crafty Coloring group has come up with a really fun one this time! 

We were challenged to color the same image twice... once normal - and the second time... "DARK"  Now, you could take this in a few different directions, but I went with a "dark side" making my sweet little gal, a real vamp.

Here's "Light" Adele - golden hair and golden skin... sugary sweet right? 
And here she is as "Dark" Adele - pale skin, dark eyeshadow above red glowing eyes, black lips and nails... and a ripper tattoo!  The hair was a new color combo for me and while I like it on smaller images, I think it just got too muddled here.  It was also tough to take a photo of this one since the hair had so many layers of ink it got shiny and it ended up feathering at the tips.  I couldn't use a flash and the photo ended up a bit off white. 

This was really a fun challenge.... making me think about how I wanted to portray the two different characters. 

Head on over to the MIC Blog and Gallery for more information on the challenge and to check out what the other designers did.  It's a GREAT way to stretch your coloring skills!  (And there are prizes!)

Thanks for stopping by!

________________________________________________

Supplies Used
Cardstock - Make It Colour Blending Card (MIC)
Copic Colors Used "Light"
    Skin - E000/E02/E04/BV20
    Hair - Y11/Y21/E53/E33/Sepia Multiliner
    Eyes - B12/B26
    Lips - R05
Copic Colors Used "Dark"
    Skin - YR30/E50/E70/BV20
    Hair - V93/V95/RV99/W7/W9/100/Wine Multiliner
    Eyes - R35
    Lips/Eyeshadow - N6
    Black multiliner for tattoo

Make It Crafty Challenge - Creating Movement!

WOW... talk about a CHALLENGE! 

The design team just posted the next challenge for Make It Crafty and it's a tough one...

"Color something to show or create movement"

Phew... I was sweating bullets on this one, but I finally pulled it together and got to work.

Here's my sample - it's just the colored image.  Remember, you don't have to make full card projects to enter the challenge... it's not a design challenge, it's a coloring challenge! (See the MIC BLOG for more info and details on entering.)

I wanted to give the impression that this little hula girl's hips were swinging back-and-forth quickly... swishing the grass of her skirt from side-to-side. 

I colored the skin, hair and flower portions first and then got to work on the skirt.  To create the look of movement, I needed to keep the grass of the skirt (especially around the edges) fairly light.  I used YG11 over the entire skirt... covering even the hair and legs.  Since the color was so light, it lightened up the hair and skin underneath the moving areas... showing those areas just peeking through the moving grasses. I then darkened the area of the original grass skirt because it would be more dense. 

There are some really cool takes on this challenge from the DT!  Head on over to the MIC gallery and check them out... and then grab your favorite coloring medium and GET MOVING!!!

 _____________________________________________

Supplies Used
Image: Hula Girl Digi (Make It Crafty)
Paper: Make It Colour Blending (Make It Crafty)
Copic Markers
skin E21/E34/E25
eyes B12/B24
hair B41/C3/C5/C7/C9/black multiliner
skirt YG11/YG13/G14/G09
flowers RV52/RV55/RV66/RV19
grass G82/G24/G46/G16

 

It's Easy... Being Green! - Coloring Challenge

(Winner of my Copic Coloring Guide Level 2: Nature will be announced tomorrow at 9:00 AM!!!)

In the meantime, it's time for another Make It Crafty Coloring Challenge!!!

Remember, the challenges are all about coloring... trying new things, and challenging yourself to think outside the box.  No need to make completed projects for the challenge... just show us your coloring skillz!  Each challenge runs for 2 weeks and winners will receive a $20 store credit!

The challenge this time... is Coloring Green!  Just in time to celebrate St. Paddie's Day!

Here's my card for the challenge.  I decided that I wanted to make EVERYTHING in the image green... including her skin!  (Yikes!!!)  I gave her a bit of jaundice I think... LOL  (Okay Okay... I didn't make the rocks green... but I tried that in the first attempt and they just looked like mossy mounds and there was absolutely no distinction between them and the background.)

I used just about every Copic Green, Blue-Green, and Yellow-Green available...  what fun! 

Head on over to the MIC Gallery to check out the other DT samples of Coloring Green and then grab your favorite coloring medium and Go Green!

_____________________________________________________

Supplies:
Make It Colour Blending Card (Make It Crafty)
Pear Crush and Raven Cardstock (Bazzill Basics Paper)
Tropical Waterfall and Summer Dreams from the Island Collection (Make It Crafty)
Sentiment (Hero Arts)
Tuxedo Black Ink (Tsukeniko)
Copic Markers:
Skin - YG0000/E50/E53/E71/E04 (yeah, I know... challenging!)
Dress - YG21/YG23/YG25/YG17/YG09/G09
Hat - YG000/YG01/YG03/YG06
Shoes - G40/G82/G24
Hair - G00/BG11/G41/BG32/BG15/BG07
Hills - G20/G12/G28/G42
Trees - G14/G03/G17/G28
Water - BG0000/B00/B21
Sky - BG70/BG72
Rocks - C00/C1/C3/C5/W5/W3/0

Make It Crafty Challenge - Coloring Autumn

You all did such an amazing job with the Make It Crafty Coloring Spring challenge that we decided that we needed to challenge you to color FALL!  That's right.  I know it's nowhere near the time for fall... but it's always fun to think about the beautiful shades and jewel tone hues of autumn. 

Head on over the the MIC gallery to see what scrumptious creations the other DT members created. 

Here's my Autumn Coloring Creation...

It was so much fun to plan and color this scene!  I used The Vally Above digi background and added the Hot Air Balloon flying high over the river.  (It wasn't until I posted the card into the gallery over at MIC that I realized that no one was IN my balloon... Ooops, guess it got away from someone!  LOL

Don't forget to fly on over to the MIC gallery to check out the challengers and join in the fun!

 _______________________________________________________

Supplies Used:The Vally Above and Hot Air Balloon digi images (MIC)
Beauty Digi sentiment (Tiddly Inks)
Make It Color Blending Card (MIC)
Raven cardstock (Bazzil Basics) Copic Markers
mountains: C1/BG70/B0000/C3/BV20/BV31
water: B000/B41/W3/B91/B34
fir trees: G43/G16
rocks: C00/C5/W5/W7
houses: E11/E33/E25/E39
foreground trees: Y23/E97/E07
mid trees: Y21/YR24/Y28/E99/YR09
distant trees: Y11/Y38/YR61/Y26/YR27/R08/0
grass/field: BG90/E81/BG93
basket: Y32/Y26/Y28
balloon: V20/V22/V25/V28 and R43/R24/R46/R89/RV99

Make It Crafty Challenge - Spring Colors!

I really enjoy spring... it means my favorite season (summer) is not far behind!

This week our Make It Crafty team is challing you to color with spring in mind.  Whether you see specific colors, patterns or textures, we want to see how YOU color spring! 

Here's my sample:  I LOVE the way this card turned out!  I don't usually do kiddy-wampus layers, but I just had to add a touch of tilt to this one. 

I used the Timber Top Ridge background and added the Geeky Love couple to complete the scene. 

I wanted to keep the colors vibrant  - so I stuck with yellow greens and greens for the foliage and fully saturated colors for the images. (see below for a list of colors used)

Spring has sprung here in Georgia and I am ready and waiting to pull out those flip flops for summer.  In the mean-time, I'm going to go color! 

Thanks for stopping by.  Make sure to head on over the the MIC gallery for more springy inspiration... and don't forget to enter your own artwork in the challenge!

_______________________________________________

Supplies Used:
Make It Color Blending Card (MIC)
Raven and Blue Jeans cardstock (Bazzill Basics)
Timber Top Ridge and Geeky Love Digital Images( MIC)
Wild Thing sentiment (Verve Stamps)
Tuxedo Black ink (Memento)
Black multiliner (Copic)
Copic Markers
grass:YG21/G43/G14/G46
Leaves: YG21/G43/G14/G05/G16
tree: E33/E17/E29
rocks: c1/c3/c5/c7/w7/w5/w3
skin girl: E50/E21/E04
skin boy: E41/E21/E34/E04
jeans: B91/B93/B95/B99
boy sweater: Y00/Y11/Y04/Y35
boy shoes: c1/c3/c5
boy hair: E33/E39
Girl sweater and skirt: R81/R83/R85
girl hair: Y32/YR24/E97
flowers: Y13/Y38
sky: Boooo
clouds: B91

Make It Crafty Challenge - Coloring Red!

Reds...  a dreaded hue for some color artists.  I always tell my students that red is stubborn and needs a little extra lovin' to behave.  LOL

The challenge at Make It Crafty for the next two weeks is to COLOR RED!  Pick your medium...  pick your image... pick your shade... just pick red.  Just in time for Valentines Day!

I colored up this simple card for the challenge (simple layout... more challenging coloring).  I merged Sophie Daydreaming and Park Bench for Two digis to create the scene. 

There are a LOT of different ways to tackle coloring red, so I decided to share a photo tutorial of how I colored her sweater - to give you an idea of my coloring process.

Colors Used:

Step 1: Apply a base coat of the lightest shade.  (R22) Leave any highlights white.

Step 2:  Add shading with a medium/medium dark maker.  (R46) 

 

Step 3: Add a bit of lighter marker (R24) and blend out slightly.

 

Step 4: Add darker shading (R39) and then blend backwards with lighter markers (R46/R24).  I don't ever come back in with the very lightest until the very last step.

 

 Step 5: Add more shadows with darker R59.

 

Step 6: Blend backwards (R39/R46/R24) Using very little ink and letting layers dry a bit in between to avoid over-saturating the paper.

Step 7: Using the lightest color (R22) very gently go over the white highlighted areas.  Do not go over multiple times or try to blend.  Keep these very light.

Step 8: Add cast shadows with RV99 and a tiny bit of B39.  Do NOT blend out. 

Step 9: Here I added texture to her sweater by spritzing a dish towel with colorless blender and holding it onto the colored image.  (Notice I colored her skin already... if other areas are colored, be VERY careful so as not to texturize an area you want smooth.) I also have a tiny bit of bleeding in between her arms.  I am not going to try to fix this with the colorless blender as it will only make it worse.  I am going to be coloring the bench dark browns, so that should cover up the stray red marks.

And then... I colored up her skirt and hair...

 And then I gave her somewhere to sit...

And finished off by airbrushing in a sky.

There you have it... it's not as hard as you might think... just give it a try! Head on over to the Make It Crafty Gallery for other "coloring red" samples from the DT and to upload your own!  I wanna see...

Have a Colorful day!

The Grass Is Greener...MIC Challenge (w/Video)

I'm back with another great challenge from Make It Crafty!  This time, we are thinking spring (or summer) and challenging you to create GRASS! 

That's right...  Bermuda, Crab, Blue...whatever type of grass you want! 

For this challenge, I paired up the new Fairy Poinsettia and Sitting Flowers digi images to create a colorful scene.  Of course, I like to color BIG... so this is printed full size on an 8.5 x 11 sheet of Make It Colour cardstock.  (I cut the top 1.5 inches off when I cropped the photo). 

I filmed myself coloring this image and have turned it into a speed coloring video for you all. I hope you enjoy!  (If you have ideas for other tutorials or speed coloring videos... just let me know.)

 

You can visit my Youtube channel for even more fun Copic coloring HERE. 

And don't forget to head on over to the Make It Crafty Gallery for the newest challenge and for some amazing samples of "Coloring Grass" from the DT members and guests. 

________________________________________________________
 

Supplies Used:
Fairy Poinsettia and Sitting Flowers digi images (Make It Crafty)
Make It Color Blending Card (Make It Crafty)
Printer
Copic Markers
    skin E00/E21/E33/E93/V22
    hair C3/C5/C7/C9
    dress and flower centers RV10/RV52/RV55/RV66/RV69
    wings E00/B00/B41/B45
    flowers V20/V22/V25/V28
    grass and stems G40/G43/G46 and G20/G21/G24/G28 and G14/G16
    colorless blender for texture
Copic Multiliners (olive, purple, pink, wine)