Cozy Little Cabin by Reneé Matarese

 Hello Ai fans!

Happy Tuesday.

Today I'm sharing my card that I created for the On the Border challenge.
I needed a thank you card for an old friend who loaned our family her cottage
this summer.

I used gold paint and 2 different border dies from Art Impressions to
give my card a little something extra special.
(links below)

I also used a foundation stamp so all of the guess work was done for me.

Copics used:

W2, W3, G12, G40, R35
Ohuhu:

B21

Party Animal! by Janet

I'm celebrating a birthday with my card today. We are also a little more than half way through the current Ai Challenge - Furry Friends. We hope you upload your cards featuring one of your favorite animals. With so many to choose from, this one should be no problem at all! Just link your card up to the Furry Friends Challenge post and see if you win. It's a lot of fun to participate in!

My card features a cute giraffe. I've always loved giraffes and this one is all set to celebrate with a banner, party hat, and balloons. He is definitely stealing the show on this card! He is found in the 5400 - Baby Critters Set. This set includes dies so it's a cinch to cut the animals and party accessories out if you prefer that over staging them on as a one layer scene. I like cutting the animals out because you can make them pop on foam tape which gives the card a lot of dimension and interest.

I stamped the giraffe and colored him with Copic markers. I chose to color the pennants and balloons in blue and red. His hat follows the same theme. The set has star ornaments but I turned them around and made them part of the balloon bouquet instead. I used the 6048 Scalloped Rectangle Die on a leaf design from 6025 Floral Shop PP. I also used the 5724 Nested Rectangle Set to cut out the green, gold, and pink mats for the card. Finally I stamped a sentiment from the set on a piece of white cardstock. This guy is certainly ready to give it his all to party with the guest of honor!

Thanks for stopping by and spending time with me and Art Impressions today. Please visit the Ai store to pick up your favorite stamps, dies, papers, accessories, and supplies, including all the supplies I used in this card. 

Happy Crafting!

Cozy Cottage Floral Card by Reneé Matarese

The current challenge here on the Art Impressions blog is Artful Architecture.

I was inspired to make this floral card and, you'll never guess where this house is from.

I used the 6111 – Spooktacular Set. You can find links for all of the other products below in my InLinkz. 

This was so fun to make. I love thinking outside the box and using stamps and dies in new ways.

I think this spooky little cottage looks a little less spooky when it's nestled among beautiful daisies.

This card is perfect for so many occasions!

The front simply says "For my friend," so depending on what you stamp or write inside, it could be used in a lot of different ways.

 

Hello Sunshine! by Janet

Today I've created a fanciful spring card with a pink bunny, spring tulips and cheerful paper patterns. The fun fold makes this card perfect for the current 3D challenge on the Ai blog. It's a horizontal double z-fold card that is perfect to showcase the beautiful paper patterns in the 5742 - Easter Journal PP.

The scallop shapes decorating the front and interior are from the 6046 - Scallop Oval Dies and 6048 - Scalloped Rectangle Dies. The sentiment piece inside is made with 5724 - Nested Rectangle Set.

The cute bunny and watering can are made with the 6106 - Spring Keepsake Set. The sentiment is also from the set. To make the main front piece, I stamped the watering can first and then I stamped and cut out the bunny and mounted it on foam tape so that it has dimension and appears closer to the front than the watering can. Copic markers were used to color these pieces. I used a Signo Pigment Ink Gel for the white accents. 5745 - Flower Set 6 was used to stamp the tulips in the watering can and adds some simple decoration to the interior sentiment piece.

While this card opens up widely, it still folds up to an A2 size and fits nicely into an envelope for mailing. It stands up well and has a big presentation. I had a lot of fun making it and I hope you have been inspired by the adorable images and spring colors and patterns in my project. 

Thanks for joining me on the blog today. As always, find your favorite stamps, dies, papers, and accessories at the Ai Store!

Happy Crafting!

Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest   

Sweet Frogs! by Simone Carr

 Hello Ai fans!

Welcome to my first Watercolor Weekend!

I can’t even tell you how excited I was when I saw the new Story Tile Template Die and stamp set release! The Story Tile Template Die works beautifully with so many sets you may already own, making it such a versatile addition to your collection.

Let me show you what I created. For my first card, I used the Frog Set (5283). 

I ran the Story Tile Template Die through my cutting machine twice using Canson Watercolor Paper. Before stamping, I laid out my images on the tiles to see how they would fit and to decide on the overall layout. I highly recommend this step since the tiles only fit together in a specific way.

Once I was happy with the placement, I stamped the images using Archival Ink Shadow Grey and began coloring.

For the frogs, I started with 173, then added 195 in the shadow areas. To deepen the shadows further, I used 177, and finished with 133 for highlights.

The tulips were colored with 933, intentionally leaving some lighter areas, followed by 925, and darkened with 905 where needed.

For the leaves, I used 177, again leaving some lighter areas for dimension.

The daffodil was colored with 025, followed by 985, and 933 for the center.

The mushroom stem was colored with 992, with 912 and 565 added for shading. The mushroom top was colored with 856 and shaded with 565.

I used 526 for the sky, and a black TwinTone marker for the eyes and to add definition wherever needed.

To assemble the card, I glued two frames together for added dimension, then cut a third frame from 6033 Inspirational Patterned Paper and adhered it on top. The layered frame was attached to an A2 card base, and finally, I glued the tile pieces into place to complete the design.

Materials Used

Stamps & Dies

• 5283 Frog Set

• 6158 Story Tile Template Die

Paper

• 6033 Inspirational Easter Patterned Paper

• Canson Watercolor Paper

Tombow Markers

• 933, 925, 905 – Tulips

• 025, 985, 933 – Daffodil

• 177 – Leaves

• 133, 173, 195, 177 – Frog

• 856, 992, 912, 565 – Mushroom

• 526 – Sky

Bonus Card – Materials Used

Stamps & Dies

• 6106 Spring Keepsake Set (Frog)

• 5424 Pond Set

• 5283 Frog Set (The Fly)

• 6048 Scalloped Rectangle Die

• 5724 Nested Rectangle Die

• 5952 Portfolio Template Die Set

Paper

• 6072 Father’s Day Patterned Paper

• Canson Watercolor Paper

Tombow Markers

• 173, 195, 098, 131, 177 – Frog & Lily Pad

• 177, 947 – Cattail

• 565, 526 – Water & Sky

Hoppy Spring! by Reneé Matarese

 Hello Ai fans!

I've always loved frogs, possibly because they're green, which is my favorite color.
This newest frog from Art Impressions is just the most darling little creature ever!

I layered up lots of Ai dies to add some fun dimension to my card.
We've been in a deep freeze here in the northeast. I can't wait for spring and flowers
and green grass again.

Love-ly Lavender Floral Card by Lynn Dionne

 Happy Wednesday Ai Fans!

Watch video tutorial here!

Today we will be using the Ai Floral Bouquet Set (5917) which contains four beautiful floral bouquets! Let's begin by stamping with some clear embossing ink and embossing the image with some detail white embossing powder onto some white cardstock.

Next, we will color the floral image using the Zig Clean Color Real Brush Pens in the following colors: Blender, English Lavender, Deep Violet, Turquoise Green, Persian Green.

Once the coloring is complete, we will spatter this panel using the Deep Violet pen and a spritz of water.

Now we can die cut the heart layers using the Ai Nested Heart Dies (5721) and some pattern paper from the Ai Encouragement PP (5955) and let's also add some sparkle cardstock.

Next let's create the background panel using the beautiful Lawn Fawn Quilted Heart Border. We will die cut this a few times using some patterned paper from that same paper pack and add a backing on each of the borders with some sparkle cardstock.

Now let's cut a plaid rectangle and add these borders by equally spacing them along this panel. I'll show you a little trick for lining these up perfectly in today's video!

Now it's just a matter of adding some additional layers in white, teal, and another piece of patterned paper.

We can pop-up the heart in the center of the card and add a few pretty sparkly gems for added dimension and interest!

This card was inspired by the current Art Impressions "Love, love me do!" Blog Challenge which is to create something Valentine's related. Please join us in the fun new challenge...we would love to see what you create!

Thank you so much for joining me today!  Have a fun and crafty day!

Ai Floral Bouquet Set (5917)

Ai Nested Heart Dies (5721)

Ai Nested Rectangle Dies (5724)

Ai Encouragement PP (5955)

Fall drinks by Reneé Matarese

Hello Ai fans!

It's time for pumpkin spice and everything nice, hot apple cider and hot cocoa.

Which one do you prefer?

I'm a cocoa girl myself.

I love Fall weather, colors and all of the activities that go along with it.
I can't wait for to host Thanksgiving.
My card is pretty simple this week, but imagine the joy it

could bring someone when they open their mailbox and find this, 

especially if you tuck a gift card into it.

Happy Retirement card by Sharon Caudle

 Hello AI Fans!

I've got a retirement card to show you today that features the fun stamp set #4932 Pack Your Bags. I stamped this overloaded retiree with a Memento Tuxedo Black Ink onto some Copic friendly paper and then colored him up using the markers I listed below. I then cut him out using #5724 Nested Rectangle Die Set. Then sentiment came from #5187 Happy Trails Set.

I love the paper in 6072 Father's Day PP so much! The colors and designs of this paper are truly gorgeous! I used two different pieces for this card. The backpack print as the main piece, and then I used the second piece to cut out a scalloped mat behind the main image, just to add a little something extra. 

So that's it for me today! Thanks so much for stopping by for a visit today and I hope I was able to inspire you to create! Don't forget to grab your paper and glue and join in our current challenge! You still have a couple of days! Until next time - stay crafty!!

Copic markers used:

E000, 00, 11, 34, 70, 71, and 74

G40 and 43

R20, 21, and 22

BG70, 72, 75, and 90

T1, 2, and 3

B00

Birdhouse Village by Sharon Caudle

 Hello AI Fans!!

You still have time to enter the current challenge "Show Mom She's Special"! I created this card without a sentiment so you could use it for anything you want! It's always good to have cards like this in your stash for times when you need a card quickly. It would work perfectly for the challenge, don't you think? I stamped the images onto a Copic friendly paper and then colored them with the markers I've listed below. Those cute flowers are in the set too, and I just stamped a bunch of them and fussy cut them out to place around the birdhouse bases to ground the image. Of course I popped some of them up for dimension. LOL  For the background paper, I used a beautiful piece from 6033 Inspirational Easter PP. 

 

So that's it for me today! Thanks so much for stopping by for a visit and until next time - stay crafty!!

Copic markers used:

RV91 and 95

R81, 83, and 85

G12 and 24

Y35 and 38

E11, 13, 33, 51, 53, and 55

B00 and 01

For Mom by Janet Axtman

It's always a treat to discover unexpected versatility in our stamp sets! While putting away my Easter supplies, the lovely lily from the 6029 - Easter Lilies Set caught my eye with its potential for a Mother's Day card.

Inspired by a similar circular background created by Tina Smith, my card began with cutting nine 1" circles using the 5724-Nested Circle Dies. One of these circles was then cut in half. To add dimension, I gently brushed the edges of each circle with Victorian Velvet and Shaded Lilac Distress Oxide inks, creating a soft two-toned effect.

Next, I selected a piece of lilac polka dot cardstock from the 5939-Fairy Garden PP, cut to 3 1/4" x 4 1/2" with a die from 5726-Nested Rectangle Set. This was adhered to a white A2 card base, leaving a consistent 1/2" border.

The circles were then arranged onto the polka dot panel using foam tape for added lift. Starting with the center row and working outwards allowed for even spacing. The half circles were positioned on either side of the middle row. I appreciated the small border Tina left before the circles began, a detail I incorporated as well, enhancing the overall background.

Before focusing on the lily, I used the new 5910-Large Letter Die Set to cut out two M's and an O for the "Mom" sentiment and set them aside.

The elegant lilies in a vase image from the Easter set were then stamped and colored with Copic markers. After carefully fussy cutting the image, I arranged it on the circular background along with the die-cut "Mom". Finally, I scattered lavender, iridescent, and gold sequins across the card for a touch of sparkle.

Thanks for joining me here today. I hope you enjoyed seeing how I created the background using circles and big letters. Please make a visit to the Ai Store this weekend for all your card making needs and don't forget to image all the different uses a stamp set can have to extend your dollars and collection.

 

Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest 

Just a Mermaid and Her Treasures! by Reneé Matarese

 Hello Ai fans!

I've loved this little mermaid since the moment I saw her.

How precious is this card for a little girl's birthday?

Or a big girl...we can all love mermaids!

I know we often hear about octopuses collecting little trinkets and sparkly things but I kind of feel like mermaids probably do that too. I made sure to deck out her space with all sorts of shells and treasures.

Even though my card has a lot going on, I feel like she is still the star. The dies that come with this set cut a little opening in her arms to hold her beloved conch shell or treasure chest or anything else you might think she'd enjoy.

I recently did an Easter craft at school and took one of my chalk palettes. It reignited my interest in them. I used them to add some subtle color to my embossing folder and die cuts.

Do you repurpose items from around your house for your cards? For the fish netting here, I used a sleeve that 3 heads of garlic came in.

This last photo is just for fun. When my daughter saw my card she remarked that it looked like our tissue box.  LOL! Maybe Joel uses Kleenex too and was inspired by the box for his paper! 

P.S. Let me tell you! I DID NOT SPEND ALMOST $9.00 on this tiny bag of shells that I added to my card. Over 10 years ago, these were gifted to me by a co-worker. I can't believe they're still available and I can't believe how expensive they are. Thank goodness for Art Impressions VERY reasonably priced 5329 – Beach Mini Dies. I can color those however I like and make as many as I want.

I made a second, slightly different version because I remembered that I had the nautical wax melt stamper and wanted to add that. I like this version too.

Copics used:

G40, BG02, BG07, E34, RV42, RV52, R000, R85, Y04, Y15

Marvy LePlume:

R810 IVORY, R812 APRICOT, OR821 BEIGE