Ride the Waves Pup Card by Dori Mendiola

 Happy Thursday AI Friends!

Today I have two cards for you that both fit the Round and Round Challenge.  The first one is an interactive rocking card and the second is more to show you how many ways you can use your dies and stamps, just add some imagination.  

Let's start with the rocking pup:

I used the Pup floating in the inner tube from the #4900 - Reel Great Guys stamp set along with the beach toys from the #5509 - Beach Accessories stamp set.

I stamped the images onto copic friendly paper with Memento black ink and colored them with my copic markers listed below.  I die cut the beach toys with the corresponding dies and fussy cut the pup in the inner tube.  I cut off the water beneath the tube since I was making my own water. 

I cut a 5 1/2" circle out of heavy weight cardstock and scored in half to make the base.  I then cut waves with dies I had in my stash.  I positioned the blue waves together and taped the back side.  I die cut these layers with the same round die, lining up the halfway mark of the circle die to the top wave.  I also placed a smaller circle over the waves for the middle circle panel.  I die cut a sand layer using the bottom edge of the circle die.  I glued the outer layers together onto the circle base card. 

To create the middle circle and the mechanism for the pup to rock, I cut a white base panel with the circle die that is just larger than the one used to cut the middle of the waves.  I cut the cloud panel from the smaller circle die used to cut the inner waves.  I punched a dime size hole in the darkest wave and cut two larger circles (approx. 1") from scrap white cardstock, making sure they will be hidden under the pup.  Adhere one of these scrap circles to one side of a pop dot and feed the dot into the hole from the back side of the wave.  Adhere the other scrap circle to the top of the pop dot and then glue the pup onto that disc, hiding it under the pup.  Place foam tape onto the back side of the darker wave, making sure that you don't hinder the disc from moving.  Adhere this layer to the white/cloud panel, matching up the waves to the circle base.  Test it out and see if your pup rocks.  Place foam tape to the next layer, again making sure that it doesn't hinder the pup.  Adhere to the white/cloud panel, matching up to the outer waves.  The lighter blue waves are adhered directly onto the middle blue layer.  Adhere your wave bubbles to the base card and then adhere the white scene panel to the base.  Add your beach accessories, sun and sentiment.  Your card should rock and so should your pup.  See the video below.

Baseball card

This next card was made for my grandson's birthday.  He loves baseball.  

I used the #5054 - WC Little Boys stamp set and flipped him by stamping a mirror image.  I wanted him to be right handed.  😂  To create a mirror image, I stamped him onto a silicone embossing mat that came with my die cutting machine and then placed my white copic friendly paper over the top and pressed.  The image is just as clear as the original stamp.  

  I used the #5510 - Sports Accessories for the cap, bat and ball.  For the ball in his hand, I used a hole punch and a marker to draw the stitches.  

Okay, now for the crazy part, can you guess which die sets I used for the stitches on the larger baseball? 

I should have made this a contest to see if anyone could guess OR maybe I'm not as creative as I think I am.  😂😃  Probably the latter, but I wanted to show you that you can use your dies in soooo many different ways.

First of all, I used the 5064 - Double Stitch circle die for the baseball.  Then for the half circles, I used two of the #5726 - Nested Circle dies together to create the thin circle frame.  Lastly, I used the eyes/brows from the #5339 - Santa and the #5340 - Snowman GCH for the red stitches on the ball.

Now, would it have been easier to draw the ball, probably, but I can't draw.  😂

Well, there you have it!  Thanks for joining me today.  I hope you create something fun for the Round and Round challenge and enter for a chance to win a free stamp set.  We love to see your creations!

Have a great day and keep creating!

Copics used:  Pup - N0, N1,  B0000

                                                 E21, E23, E50, E51, E53  

                                                             B21, B24,   YG21, YG23, YG25  

                                                      Baseball - E00, E01, E11, E51, E53, E55

                                                                      T0, T2, T4   R22, R24,    Y23 

                                               B21, B23, B24 

"Sow Kindness, Harvest Friendship" and "Game Day!" Cards by Diane Mason

  Hello, and welcome back for Watercolor Weekend!

Tomorrow marks the first day of fall here in the U.S. After a long, hot summer, many of us are eager for the cool, crisp air, vibrant autumn leaves, football games, and harvest celebrations that this season brings. To celebrate, I have two cards for you today that capture the essence of this colorful season.

"Sow Kindness, Harvest Friendship" Card:

I love decorating my home for fall with all the rich autumn colors and cozy seasonal décor. When I think of this time of year, I picture vibrant leaves, pumpkins, and harvest-inspired touches—and that’s exactly what inspired my first card today! The 5507 – Harvest Together Set is perfect for capturing that feeling, with two adorable scarecrows (boy and girl), cheerful crows, a sunflower birdhouse, and plenty of fall sentiments to choose from.

I just adore the happy little girl scarecrow from the 5507 set! For this card, I wanted to build a scene with the scarecrow girl, the birdhouse, and the perching crow. I like to imagine the crow isn’t afraid of her at all—instead, he’s more like a little friend. She looks absolutely delighted to see him!

Whenever I create a scene, I always start with a quick “blueprint” to plan out how I’d like everything arranged.

Once I finalized the layout of the scene, I stamped the images onto Canson XL watercolor paper. I began by inking the scarecrow girl with 947. Using my placement blueprint, I inked the crow’s body with 565/969 and its beak and legs with 026. Following the same blueprint, I inked the birdhouse with 947. Before stamping it, I applied Post-it tape masks over the scarecrow and crow where the birdhouse would overlap. After removing the masks, the birdhouse appeared behind the scarecrow, with the crow perched on the roof. Finally, I used a damp brush to pull color from the stamped images, adding contours and shadows.

Here is a list of colors I used for this card:

• Crow: N25 (body), 025, 026 (feet and beak)
• Scarecrow Girl: 850, 910, 912 (face and hands)
• Cheeks, Nose, Eyebrows, Neck String: 905, 925
• Hair: 025, 026
• Shirt: 947 (plaid)
• Pants: 177
• Apron: 990, 992 (apron), 925 (patch pocket)
• Sunflowers: 022, 026 (petals),177, 133 (leaves and stems), and 969 (flower centers)
• Hat: 905, (hat), 925 (patch)
• Basket: 977, 969
• Apples: 856 (red), 025, 026 (yellow),133, 177 (green), 969 (stems)
• Boots: 947
• Birdhouse: 856, 565, 969, (house), 977 (roof), 990, 992 (trim, stand and post), 969 (woodgrain)
• Foliage and grass: 177
• Sky: 526

To ground the images, I added grass from the 4051 – WC Foliage Set 1 and foliage from the 5476 – Foliage Set 5, both inked in 177, to complete the scene.

Next, I used the largest stitched oval from the 5065 – Oval Double Stitched Dies to cut a window from an A2-sized piece of patterned paper. I centered the painting behind the opening and adhered both onto a brown cardstock base.

For the sentiment, I stamped “Sow Kindness, Harvest Friendship” from the 5507 set with VersaFine Vintage Sepia ink onto yellow cardstock, then die-cut it with a banner die from the 5952 – Portfolio Template Die Set. I trimmed the right side of the banner and popped it up with foam tape for dimension.

For the inside of the card, I stamped the sentiment in Vintage Sepia ink onto a stitched white cardstock rectangle and added a strip of patterned paper along the bottom edge. The fall leaves were die-cut from colorful paper scraps using the 5783 – Fall Leaf Frame Die Set.

I love how this sweet fall card came together! With its cheerful friendship theme, it’s the perfect card to pop in the mail to a friend and send a little Happy Autumn cheer! 🍂✨

“Game Day!” Card:

Obviously, fall means football! For years after graduating college, my husband and I would load up the car and head back to our Midwestern alma mater to cheer on the Missouri Tigers. Those trips hold so many great memories. So, when I spotted the striped overlay stamp for the giant drink tumbler in the 5928 – Stay Hydrated set, I immediately thought it would be perfect for dressing up this sassy gal in black and gold—ready to head off to the game and cheer on the Tigers!

Here is a list of colors I used for this card:

• Hair: 025, 977
• Cheeks: watery mix of 856
• Lips: 837
• Face, Hands, and Ankles: 910, 920
• Shirt: 025, 026
• Top: 025, N25 (stripes)
• Sunglasses, Purse, Pants, Shoes: N25
• Drink Tumbler: 025, 026 (cup), N52, 565 (lid & straw)
• Football: 947
• Megaphone: 025, 026 (megaphone), Winsor & Newton Ink – Silver (handle and mouthpiece.
• Shine marks on sunglasses: Dr. Ph. Martin’s Bleed Proof White

To create the football field background, I die-cut a piece of green cardstock using the largest die from 5062 – Rounded Rectangle A2 Double Stitched Dies. I added three 1/8-inch strips of white cardstock for the field lines and die-cut the line numbers from white cardstock with the 5562 – Journal Letter Die Set.

Since I planned to adhere the field to a black card base, I wanted to add a pop of visual interest and tie in the team colors of black and gold. To do this, I traced around the outside edge of the largest rounded rectangle die onto yellow cardstock to create a mat, then hand-cut it with scissors.

The megaphone and football, both from 5510 – Sport Accessories, made perfect embellishments for this sporty card. For the sentiment, I typed “Game Day!” on my computer, printed it onto white cardstock, and die-cut it with a banner die from 5952 – Portfolio Template Die Set. I also matted the banner with yellow cardstock for an extra touch of team spirit.

To finish, I popped up the sassy girl with her tumbler, the megaphone, football, and sentiment with foam tape for dimension.

I always like to finish the inside of the card. For this one, I stamped a sentiment from the same set (5928) in VersaFine Onyx Black ink. To carry the football field theme inside, I added a strip of green cardstock for a pop of color. Go Tigers! 🐯 🏈🖤💛

That’s all for now—thanks so much for stopping by for Watercolor Weekend! I hope you enjoyed today’s fall card projects. If you feel inspired to create your own version of this card and show off your team spirit in your team colors, be sure to tag us on social media—we’d love to see it! Until next time, Happy Painting!

Vacation Vibes by Dori Mendiola

Happy Thursday AI Friends!

Wondering if you've seen the five new paper packs from Art Impressions yet.  If not, make sure to visit the Art Impressions website.  These paper packs were designed to go with the five new fun AI People stamps sets.  However, I wanted to show you how versatile they are and how you can use them with some other stamp sets.  They make such fun backgrounds.  All you need to do is add some images to them and your card is complete.  I used the #6100 - Lounge PP, #5187 Happy Trails stamp set for the couple on the beach, added a few accessories and the card is full of fun and relaxation.  

Total Vacation Vibes!

I began by stamping the images with Memento black ink onto copic friendly paper and coloring them with my copic markers listed below.  The couple are from the #5187 - Happy Trails set and the accessories (beach ball, hat and cooler) are from the #5509 - Beach Accessories and the #5510 - Sports Accessories.  The sun and the cloud are from my stash.

The accessories come with corresponding dies but the beach chair couple, I had to fussy cut. 

I used the largest #5062 - Rounded Rectangle A2 Double Stitch die to cut the background and then placed a layer of foam underneath to pop it up on the card base.  I also popped up the sentiment cloud, the couple and the accessories for added dimension.

Hope you look through your stamp sets and find other fun images to use with these papers.  Such a great way to add a scene as your background.

Thanks for joining me today.  Have a wonderful day and keep creating!

Copics used:  N0, N1, N2

E000, E01, E11, E21, E23 E25, E51, E53, E55, E57

R20, Y32, G40, G24

B0000, B91, B93, B95