Gnome-one like you! by Reneé Matarese

Hello Ai fans!

Today begins a three week obsession!  I'm suddenly feeling the need to craft with mushrooms!!  I think I know why.  My mom has been ill and I've had my Spring and Summer consumed with helping out with her care. I didn't plant any flowers, create any pots or even buy any hanging baskets.  I have MANY perennial flowers but I think my yard is lacking in color this year. I think this was my escape. Over the next three Sundays you're going to see 3 different cards made with the 5125 – WC Elves Set.

This time I combined the elves set with

5000 – Gotta Garden Set. 
I used the Gnome, the gloves and the garden utensils from that set.

I also used 5133 – Flag Double Stitched Die and 5063 – Rectangle A2 Double Stitched Dies on my card.

Copics used:

E00, E02

Arteza Real Brush Pens:

101, 111, 112, 115, 117, 118, 121, 127, 128,

137, 146, 153, 154, 167, 173, 177, 181, 190

HUGE Ai Birthday Sale! 32% OFF July 11 ONLY! PLUS, Challenge 260 Birthday Cards!

Our BIG news is here! To celebrate our 32nd birthday, we are gifting YOU a HUGE sale! Enjoy 32% off your entire purchase today (July 11) only with coupon code BDAY32! Shop everything on your wishlist, as this is our biggest sale ever!

COUPON CODE: BDAY32

Please note: Must enter coupon code at checkout, valid July 11, 2019 only and expires at 11:59 PM PT. Not valid on gift certificates. Valid on retail orders only (not valid on wholesale orders). 

We are so blessed to be in business for 32 amazing years. The best part is our amazing fans and customers! We are convinced that Ai fans are the most enthusiastic, kindhearted and hilarious stampers out there! 

You can also join the celebration by entering our card challenge! The design team is here to share some fabulous inspiration featuring birthday cards, let's take a look! Remember you can visit the designer's blog by clicking their name, and find the stamp sets they used at artimpressions.com!

Carol with Lifetime Set


Crystal with Hamster Wheel Cubbies


Jessica with Succulents Set and Gotta Garden Set


Jil with Office Party Set



Niccole with Never Too Old Set

Renee with Holy Moley Set

Sharon with Never Too Old Set

Aren't birthday cards so fun to make? They're even more fun to receive! Make a special birthday card for someone in your life - or just to have on-hand for when a birthday sneaks up on you! Join our challenge, you have until July 17 to enter!

✻ Please make a new card or creation. You can make any crafty item you wish; this is not limited to cards!

✻ Limit two submissions per person. You will receive extra votes if you use Art Impressions stamps!

✻ The Ai Challenge is open to everyone, international submissions are welcome!

✻ Include a link back to the Ai Blog or grab our button on the top right of our sidebar!

✻ Share the Ai love by clicking and commenting your fellow crafters.

✻ Make sure to get your link up by the deadline to enter your creations.

✻ Good luck and happy stamping!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Happy Stamping!

I Wet my Plants By Jessica Shier

Hey Ai Fans!

Today I'm sharing a card using the Gotta Garden set. I know some of us are still experiencing freezing temperatures and snow falls, so hopefully this will remind you that spring is around the corner. Plus don't we all have a crazy garden person in our lives that would be tickled by this stamp set!? I know I do!

I first stamped the gnomes and the crazy garden lady, from the Gotta Garden set, with black ink and then colored them in, using copic markers, colors listed below. I also fussy cut those 4 images out using a craft knife to get into the smaller areas around the garden hose. 

The background I drew and colored with copic markers. I also drew the sign and trimmed it out then embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder. This set has so many good puns so I tried to incorporate as many as I could! I adhered the sign and the 2 gnomes on to my background and then stamped the "It's Birthday Thyme" with Salty Ocean Distress Oxide ink. 

I used one of the Art Impressions 4265 Action Wobbles behind this happy gardener, which makes me laugh every time she wobbles! She is just so excited. I love the bit of interaction these wobbles add to a card design!

I also used one of the gnomes on the inside. Which I had to cut and color again because I lost one, he is still MIA. I stamped two more sentiments that are full of puns and die cut them using one of the Flag Double Stitched Dies. 

Copic Markers Used:

W9, W6, W3, W1, W0

C1, Y18, Y02

R29, R17, R05, R02

E77, E74, E59, E51, E35, E34, E31, E15

G99, G94, G46, G17, G14

YG67, YG63, YG03

B12, B00

Thank you so much for stopping by today!

Happy Stamping!

Gotta Garden Set By Cheri Burry!

Hi Ai Fans!

This "Gotta Garden" Set from Art Impressions is just perfect for anyone you know that has a green thumb! I'm great at outdoor plants and creating baskets or planters but give me a houseplant and I will kill it every time LOL!

I made a cute Watering Can Box card using a cut file from the Silhouette Store to showcase this cute pair of Gardeners! I love that box cards can fold flat for easy mailing but look so cute when standing up!

I also created a card using the "Gotta Garden" set and papers from the Pebbles Garden Party 6x6 collection. Both images have Spectrum Noir Glitter pen added to them as well as Silver Wink of Stella. I also used my Brother Cut N Scan to "fussy" cut out the images.

Copics Used:

E00, E11, E21, E41, E42, E43, E44, E47, E51, E53

Y21, Y32, Y35, Y38, YR14

YG63, YG67, YG95, YG97, YG99

R24, R27, R29, RV04, RV06, RV09

C1, C3, C5, C7, B21, B23, B24

Happy Stamping!

Supplies:

Crazy Gardening Lady by Dana Warren

Hello AI fans!!

It's finally starting to get warmer and spring tulips and such are blooming. If you or a friend are gardeners then AI's Gotta Garden is the perfect set to have on hand! 

I started my card by stamping the lady, tools, and gnome on white cardstock. Then I used my spectrum Noir AquaBlend Watercolor pencils. I used Anthracite, Oregano, Apricot, Cypress, Rose, Umber, Ginger, Ebony, Fossil Grey, Midnight Gray, Strawberry, Carrot, Pineapple, Black Umber.  Instead of using water to activate the pencil I used a basic alcohol blender marker. This gives similar results, but a lot easier, no guess on how much water to use. The pencils will stain your pen just so you are aware!

I fussy cut out the gnome/tools and then used a square die to cut out the lady. From my leftover stash, I found some paper that I had used some green ink of some kind to make a splatter background. I cut it into a square and added it and the lady square to a black card base. 

Next, I stamped and white heat embossed the Crazy Gardening Lady sentiment below the squares. Then I added the gnome and tools with foam tape.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Happy Stamping and Gardening!! 

Challenge 228 Perfect Pastimes WEEK 2! PLUS, Free Stylus Pen with $50 Order!

Hello, Ai Fans!

Before we jump in to our challenge, we have a fun promotion to share with you! For a limited time, we are offering a FREE Art Impressions Stylus Pen with any order over $50! This retractable ball-point pen double as a stylus for your touch-screen gadget and comes in a fabulous purple color! Simply add the pen to your cart, shop for other goodies, and apply the coupon code FREEPEN to your $50 order. Hurry, offer expires March 28th! Shop today at artimpressions.com.

Limit one pen per order. Not valid on wholesale orders. Expires 3/28/18.

Last week Cheri wowed us with a fabulous step card tutorial! This week, the whole gang is together to share their creations with the new additions to our Work & Play line! Take a look here! Click the designer's name to find more info on their personal blog, and shop for these new sets at artimpressions.com!

Cheri with Whisk It Set

Dana with Gotta Garden Set

Diane with Perfect Duet Set

Jil with Office Party Set

Renee with Whisk It Set

Sharon with Gotta Garden Set

Don't miss out on our current challenge! This challenge, Perfect Pastimes, is about showcasing the simple everyday! Our character stamps are usually busy doing something fun, from gardening to bowling to drinking coffee... This is a great chance to bring out your favorite people stamps out! We look forward to how you interpret our challenge! You just might win a prize!

Here are the Challenge Rules

✻ Please make a new card or creation. You can make any crafty item you wish; this is not limited to cards!

✻ Limit two submissions per person. You will receive extra votes if you use Art Impressions stamps!

✻ The Ai Challenge is open to everyone, international submissions are welcome!

✻ Include a link back to the Ai Blog or grab our button on the top right of our sidebar!

✻ Share the Ai love by clicking and commenting your fellow crafters.

✻ Make sure to get your link up by Wednesday, March 28 at 5:00 p.m. PST to enter your creations.

✻ Good luck and happy stamping!

An InLinkz Link-up

NEW Work & Play! 4 Fabulous Clear Sets! Plus Challenge 228 Perfect Pastimes!

Hello, Ai Fans!

Life is all about balance! That's why we celebrate the everyday in our new 2018 Work & Play release! All our multi-tasking, organizational experts out there will enjoy our new Office Party Set, with funny sentiments for your favorite Girl Boss! Growing old together has never looked so good in our Perfect Duet Set, great for anniversaries and celebrating lifelong love! Bake up something sweet with our Whisk It Set and so many loving sayings. Spring is just around the corner and a great time to share our Gotta Garden Set with your green-thumb friend. Watch our Creativation video introducing our four new sets! Also, take a closer peek at the fun sentiments and grab your favorites at artimpressions.com today!

 

Now it's time for an adorable tutorial by Cheri!

Hi Ai Fans!
Today marks the New Release of the "Work and Play" stamp sets over at Art Impressions. I am using the "Whisk It" set on my front stepper card today!

I  love when Art Impressions does a stamp set as there are so many different combinations that you can make with all the images and sentiments.

I started by gathering up all of my supplies. I decided to use papers from the Doodlebug "Cream & Sugar" 6x6 collection.

 Cut a piece of pink cardstock at 4 1/4" x 11".  Next score the cardstock on its long side at the 1 1/4", 2 1/2", 4 1/4", 6" and 8 1/4" score lines.

Fold the lines with mountain and valley folds as in the picture. I used my bone folder to get crisp folds on the score lines. Next, cut a piece of cardstock at 4 1/4 x 5 1/4 to use as a card base.

Stamp your images with your preferred method. I happen to love my Misti for this! Makes it so easy! If you don't get a good first ink impression just ink and stamp again. Colour with your favourite colouring medium. I used my Copic Sketch markers, which happen to be my favourite medium!

You can either fussy cut out some of the images either with scissors or like me I used my Brother Cut N Scan machine.

Now that I have everything coloured, cut out and ready to go, I'm ready for the fun of assembling my card.

I matted some Designer paper with Blue Green cardstock and added Crystal Stickles to the cake and cupcakes.

I was getting frustrated with my card base as it kept sliding open too much. I decided to add a piece of cardstock that was 4 1/4" x 6 1/2". I scored one end at the 1" score line and folded it. Then I glued it to the inside of the stepper card bringing it underneath. 

I added a border edge poapped up with foam tape and now I have what I call a Front Stepper Easel card! Solved the problem though now didn't it LOL!

Then I just added my main image and all my little cut out images with some foam tape for dimension!

When you "undo" the easel part everything folds flat so you can stick it in an envelope!

Copics Used:

E00, E11, E15, E17, E19, E21

RV10, RV11, RV25, RV29

BG45, BG49

Y13, Y15, Y17

YG23, YG25

N0, N1, N2, N4, N7, N9

Happy Stamping!

What a delicious card, Cheri! Love the "Front Stepper" card layout, too! Such a cute way to showcase all those fun little images!

We're hosting a new challenge this month! Perfect Pastimes is about showcasing the simple everyday! Our character stamps are usually busy doing something fun, from gardening to bowling to drinking coffee... This is a great chance to bring out your favorite people stamps out! We look forward to how you interpret our challenge!

Here are the Challenge Rules

✻ Please make a new card or creation. You can make any crafty item you wish; this is not limited to cards!

✻ Limit two submissions per person. You will receive extra votes if you use Art Impressions stamps!

✻ The Ai Challenge is open to everyone, international submissions are welcome!

✻ Include a link back to the Ai Blog or grab our button on the top right of our sidebar!

✻ Share the Ai love by clicking and commenting your fellow crafters.

✻ Make sure to get your link up by Wednesday, March 28 at 5:00 p.m. PST to enter your creations.

✻ Good luck and happy stamping!

An InLinkz Link-up

We can't say goodbye until we honor the winners of last week's challenge!

Top spot goes to...

Katie O!

Congrats, Katie! Your Birdhouse wreath is so creative and makes for a lively Easter Card! Email annelise@artimpressions.com with your address to claim your prize pack!

Honorable Mentions go to...

Amy Marshall!

 Susan!

Congrats, you two! Amy, your Easter egg watercolor design is so clever! And Susan, we love your sepia toned antique Truck! Be sure to email annelise@artimpressions.com with your address and select a stamp set of your choice!

Thanks for joining, we hope you enjoy our NEW Work & Play and share in our challenge this week!

Happy Stamping!