Quirky Skeletons

Just popping in real quick to share a new company

(new to me, anyway) and their adorable stamps.

The company is called AALL & CREATE.
They're a European company, and I had to find a US retailer to get their

stamps. A simple Google search led me to Simon Says Stamp, who delivered 

these stamps super fast.

The stamps sets are called, Quirks #73 and Quirks mini #104.

The fun part about these images is how versatile and cute they are to play with.

Like sweet skeleton paper dolls. 

I honestly thought the devil horns were vampire fangs at first.

Still a good accessory to have on hand, though.

I have a box of pre printed cards and can never figure out how to use them.

Well, I figured it out. I added Distress Oxided ink to the card base and then

added washi tapes and splatter to ground the skellie focal point. 

I think she's my favorite, so far.

Just keeping it simple to let the stamps shine.

  

The bowler hat and the cat are some of the best accessory stamps that come 

with these sets. 

I popped on some coveted MS Halloween paper and some washi tapes

to ground the skellie and his kitteh. Trying to keep it as simple as

possible, which is quite difficult for me.

I am loving this new rubber and I'm sure these guys will surface

frequently around here. 

  

Always ODD

I managed to find my way back to my blog!

And I made some cool schtuff, too!

I've been dying to play along in some swaps and challenges.

I miss participating in themed challenges. I find the prompts so helpful

when I don't know which way to go when crafting.

I finally played along with one of my favorite challenges at

Oddball Art Stamps. 

The theme this month is 

Goblins, Fairies, and Ghouls, Oh My! 

I love Lizzy's artistic take on fairies and zombies.

She has such a cute and adorable way of drawing weird shit.

I love it. 

This little rotting lass is called, Fiona Feary. 

I matched her up with a fun sentiment stamp from 

Viva Las Vegas stamps.

I'm always trying to use up paper scraps and projects left for dead.

This card base has been in a stack for months if not years.

I know, kinda gross that I have schtuff lying around for years, but

in my defense, it was chaotically organized and I always knew of it's presence.    

I added some die cut elements that were in keeping with her

color scheme. I love me some BG and BV Copic markers.

 Kept it really simple by cutting a black doilie in half,

and then cutting one of the halves in half. I layered it all

and glued them in three spots for a nice background.

My new thing is Nuvo drops. I just wish they dried faster.

I added a bunch for that sparkle element that I can't seem to

ever leave out of any fairy project. Dead or not, she's gotta have bling.  

I's like to enter this fairy card in the following challenges:

Oddball Art Stamps - Goblins, Fairies, and Ghouls, Oh My!

Color Crazy Challenge - Anything Goes

Cardz 4 Galz - Mythical of Fantasy

Crafty Gals Corner Challenges - Anything Goes

Artistic Inspirations Challenges - Anything Goes 

More Aurora Wings Springtime Beauties

Two days in a row?! Right? 

Don't get used to it, but I'll keep trying to create

and share here as often as time allows.

I have another Aurora Wings Mother's Day card to spotlight today.

I chose to use one of my favorite mermaid images,

The Princess of the Sea .

I colored this beauty using Toner Grays and Blue Green Copic markers.

Pretty much my go to coloring medium. And BGs being some of my favorite

hues in the Copic collection.  

 I used some coordinating background paper and cheesecloth

for an ocean feel. Even tossed in some sequins for sparkle,

along with Stickles for more bling factor.

My MIL loved it.

I'd like to enter this card in the following challenges:

Aurora Wings Challenge - Black, White, splash of color (optional)

Crafty Creations - Anything Goes 

Double D Challenges - Bling it Up (see mood board)

Coloring in Scrapland - Anything Goes with hand colored image 

I'm not entering these cards in any challenges, but wanted to share them.

I chose this image for Grandma's card. 

This adorable family is called, Mushrooms.

Colored with Cool Grays and Violet Copic markers.

Kept this one in Grandma's favorite color, purple.

I really like how the foiled card plays nicely with the grays.

And as usual, this is Stickled for sparkle.

Meditating Mushroom is colored in Warm Grays and Yellow Red Copics.

I cropped the image for quicker coloring and better fit on the smaller

4.5 X 5.5 card. I added some Stickles to his 'bumps', 

and then covered them with clear Nuvo drops for an interesting texture.

 Used some lace and sequins to finish this one off.

Last, is little Poppy Sprite. Also cropped.

So sweet and fun to color using Cool Gray and Red Violet Copic markers.

Grosgrain ribbon, metal embellished ribbon, and black half pearls

compliment this foiled background paper and cute image perfectly.

Thanks for dropping by today.

I'll be back tomorrow with another project for your amusement.    

    

Aurora Wings for all the mothers!!

It has been a long time since I have created using Aurora Wings images.
Far too long, but life really gets in the way of creative time if you let it.

But now that I have cracked the door on my pent up mojo, the flow of 

creativity is starting to pour out. 

I've been wanting to join in on some challenges, and was inspired by the 

current challenge AW theme of black, white, and a splash of (optional)color.

I decided to make all five of my Mother's Day cards using Aurora Wings 

images in this theme.

First up is the adorable Jasmine Sprite.

With so many cards to make, I decided to crop the images, which

also helps to create more visual impact on the smaller cards. 

Plus, it doesn't take as long to color the images.  

I kept it pretty simple with Copic coloring, some coordinating background paper,

and a big fancy ribbon. Added some Stickles for some sparkle, too.

I did make five cards to give away, but this one was one of my favorites,

so I held onto it. Good thing too, since it was the ONLY Mother's day 

card I received. Don't even get me started...

I'll be back tomorrow with another Mother's Day card.

I'd like to enter this card in the following challenges:

Aurora Wings Challenge Blog- Black and White with optional color

Lemon Shortbread challenge - Anything Goes

Tuesday Throwdown - Crop your image

Addicted to Stamps - Ribbons Galore

Corrosive Challenge - Anything Goes

Stamping Sensations - Close to Nature

Let me introduce you to the Gent

Man, where does the time go? Seems only yesterday I was trying

to get back into creating and blogging more often. Then, radio silence.

Well, I'm back! 

This time I should be around a bit more often since I am on the newly

founded SpeshInk Design Team, 

supporting and creating art using the current line of stamps created by 

Mark Gould for Chocolate Baroque.  

I chose to start by creating an insert page for my art journal.

I picked up a pack of these from Tuesday Morning on the cheap. 

They came in three different colors; manila tag, black, and kraft. 

I had the bright idea to use a black page, and then I heat embossed The Gent 

image with black powder. Now, how the heck was I gonna color this thing?!

I decided to give it a go using some Stampin' Up watercolor pencils.

Since my selection was limited, I was challenged to come up with a flesh tone.

I ended up using browns, oranges, yellows, and white. 

Not sure it worked all that well, but it does convey a flesh-ish tone.   

It toned down quite a bit once I used some water to blend it out.

I created the background using Distress Oxide inks.

I love these inks. They blend like buttah, and I love the

oxide effect that is achieved simply with water.  

 I have a bunch of mustache brads that I rarely use, so I was

determined to get one on this project. I used it to cross the "t". 

Pretty cute, if I do say so myself.

I added some washi tape and hardware to the upper corner.

I tried to keep it pretty flat along the left hand side as it will be added 

to my art journal, which already has issues closing.

 I added some silver gear die cuts, and broke out my Distress crayons

to add distress and grunge all over the place. I love the black crayon. It's perfect

for adding dimension and shading on projects like this.

Lastly, I added black and white splatter to give an over all cohesiveness to the page.

That's it for me today.

Be sure to pop by the SpeshInk blog to meet all of the new DT talent, and

prepare for the next installment of art made with these awesome stamps.

I'd like to enter this project in the following challenges:
A Inky Mess - Anything Goes Mixed Media
Altered Eclectics - Anything Goes mixed media

SanDee&Amelie Steampunk challenges - Steampunk/Industrial
Avenue 613 - Anything Goes/Mainly blue
Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers - E is for Engineering