Come back kid! That's my dog!

Greetings Earthlings!

While I was working on this challenge for Mo's Digital Challenge, I got a serious case of ear worm.  I'll get to that later..

Mo's challenge this week was autumn colors. It didn't take much to get me into this as the weather here has been very fall-like for way too long!

I used an image that I had used in another Mo challenge - B & W. It was much easier this time around!

The digital image I used is called Fall Pup.

I have been playing with 'dots' as ground cover and even sometimes sky. I wanted this card to have more fall colors so that is what I used for the ground. Kinda an impressionist version of fall leaves covering the ground..

I wanted the sky to look cold - like it is here! I used Memento inks, London Fog and Summer Sky, applied with a foam blender.

I colored the image with my Copics.

I also wanted to be able to enter this card in an OWH challenge on their blog Stars & Stamps. I needed something round to qualify..


I needed a round sentiment and nothing I had worked.. Can you believe it? I don't have enough stamps! LOL!!

I ended up making this sentiment in PSE. Feel free to download it. I haven't ever posted something for you to download so I hope this works...

PNG

JPEG

I'm thinking you should be able to click on the image to bring it full size for you to save it. (fingers crossed!)

I ran some burgundy card stock through my Texture Boutique with a Cuttlebug embossing folder. Then I used some brown Stickles and felt leaves to finish him off.

Back to the ear worm.. It's your own fault if you follow this link... You have been WARNED!

Party on, Wayne!



Mo's 100th Challenge!

Greetings Earthlings!

I just had to make something to celebrate Mo's 100th challenge! Oddly enough, this week's theme was CELEBRATE.  She's got some great candy for the winners, too! Why not come and join us?

I love the kids Mo draws.. I knew a birthday card would be a good choice - and throw in a cat to make it even better! Here's Maya's Balloons.

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I used my trusty Copics to color in the image. I highlighted the balloons with Ranger's Glossy Accents. The DP is from DCWV. I don't remember where I got the brads but they were a bit dusty.. The sentiment was cut out using Nestibilities and popped up using foam tape.

Congrats to Mo and her team on 100 challenges!

Party on, Wayne

Sing Your Art Out

Greetings Earthlings,


Welcome to "Sing Your Art Out" sponsored by Hambo Stamps!
You should have arrived from Carla's Corner. 

If you just stumbled onto this hop, you can go to the Hambo Blog to start at the beginning to make sure you are eligible for the hopper prize! A prize will be awarded to one participant whose song-themed creation tickles the Bacon Bits’ fancy in a singin' wingin' way!  Another prize will be awarded randomly to a hopper who comments on all the blogs along the hop. The winners will be announced on the Hoedown blog, as well as on the Hambo company blog, Talk to the Ham, on Wednesday, September 21. 

If you get lost or want to skip around, I have a complete list at the end of this post.

Today Hambo friends, customers, and the Bacon Bits Design Team are bringing you fun creations that depict song titles!

Gimme a beat!!!!!!!!

Ice, Ice Baby!

I combined two  fun images from Hambo stamps Ice Hole Set and Igloo/Ice.

Since I wanted this to look COLD I thought printing it in blue would be cool. (Yes, pun intended!) So I kept the penguin black and changed the rest to blue using Photoshop Express. Here's what I came up with:

I used my Copics to add color to the image. I needed a lighter B91 so I made my own blend! I've been wanting to try this for a long time and I finally got the nerve. I used one part B91 various ink to one part colorless blender. I had already bought a few 'empty' markers so I put the blend into one with a syringe I found at an art supply store. (And my husband wonders why I love to 'browse'!)

Here are the Copics I used:

Note the one I labeled -B91..

I used a card base by DCWV and applied Distress Ink Stormy Skies on the edges of it with an ink blender.

I used a reallllllly old Marvy corner punch on the main image too. It is my favorite corner punch. I think it adds just the right detail without being over-powering.

I embellied with some snowflake buttons - one of which I cut in half (with my 'crap' scissors). I also used some silver snowflake brads. I cut the 'brad' off with side cutter pliers (stolen from hubby.. shhhhh).. then used foam tape to mount them. I rarely leave the 'brad' part on because I don't plan ahead and I don't like the 'arms' of the brad showing on the inside of my card.

I hope my song choice doesn't become an earworm for you today.. I know I couldn't get it out of my head while I was creating!

"..word 2 yr muther.."

 Now hop on over to Hey Hey Paula  for another great sing-along song!

Here's that list I promised:

Talk to the Ham - Hambo blog - http://hambostamps.blogspot.com/
Gloria - http://girlgonescrappin.blogspot.com
Karin - http://karin-withaniforpaper.blogspot.com
Debbie - http://inklingtostamp.blogspot.com/
Dawn A. - www.alwayscrafting.blogspot.com
Bonnie - http://theluckyclucker.blogspot.com/
Jen - http://jetstudio.blogspot.com/
Lynn - http://creativecraftsbylynn.blogspot.com/
NoraAnne - http://www.robinsonsnest.blogspot.com/
Lindsay - http://awaytosayhello.blogspot.com/
Karen - www.busybusyhoneybee.wordpress.com
Libby - http://stampinlibby.blogspot.com/
Carla - http://scrappypug.blogspot.com/
Dawn M. - http://art-orsomethinglikeit.blogspot.com/  (That's little ole me!)
Paula - http://heyheypaula-heyheypaula.blogspot.com/
Mary - www.mystampinhide-away.blogspot.com
Jenn - http://www.jaxbeanstalks.blogspot.com/
Paige - http://www.shewhomuststamp.blogspot.com/
Marcie - http://www.cardmakinchaos.blogspot.com/
Leslie - http://thecrookedstamper.blogspot.com/
Pat - http://patacakespages.blogspot.com
Beverly - http://beestamper.blogspot.com/
Yolanda - http://yolanda-imaginemakeshare.blogspot.com/
Judy - http://jarfullofjoy.blogspot.com/

Party on, Wayne!

I'm a Hambo Hoedown Guest Designer!

Hambo has given me the great honor of being a guest designer this week! The image they gave me to play with is called House 2.

The challenge was to use something from around the house that you don't usually see on a card... Whoa... I've seen lots of unusual things on cards so this one stumped me for a while..  I was cleaning my desk and letting my mojo simmer... desk, pens, scissors, glasses, rubber bands, paper clips.. PAPER CLIPS!!!!!!!!!

My first idea was to make the house look like it was stucco. I colored the image using Copics but I was pretty sloppy. I kept well within the margins because I knew my 'trick' would make the color bleed.



Then I took a piece of terrycloth towel and soaked it with my bottle of colorless blender.

Once the fabric was soaked I held it to the image for a full second, then moved it to a new place..repeating until the image was covered.

This caused the ink to bleed into the white areas. This is why when want to use this technique you need to do it FIRST. Once you're done with this you can remove most of the bleeding using your Copic coloress blender marker.

Then I used the original stucco color to dot in the places where there was still white showing..

Then I colored the rest of the image as usual with my Copics. I toyed with the idea of adding a different texture to the stones on the pillars using a different fabric but I chickened out. I hadn't left any white space to bleed into...

Here comes the paper clip part..

I decided this little place needed a picket fence. I lined up the image on my cutting pad and then put on a strip of double sided sticky tape. I kept the image on the pad to help me line up the 'fence posts.'

There was ooooodles of sticky stuff still exposed so I used flour on a paintbrush on it to take care of the sticky-ness..

I used some Momento Summer Sky ink on a blender to add a little definition to the sky. I assembled the card as usual. The sentiment is one that I made using Photoshop Express.

Here's the final result:

Here are the Copic colors I used:

For starting out stumped, I think it came out pretty well! This is my first opportunity to be a guest designer and I thank Hambo so much for the opportunity!!

Party on, Wayne!

Hambo Hoedown #32

Greetings Earthlings!

An exciting week in progress here.. Kitchen remodel is underway so the kitchen is completely ripped to pieces.. not convenient. Then, late last night the handle on the toilet broke. I can't run to the hardware store because of workmen coming and going... argh.

ON TO THE FUN STUFF-

Here is the image I got free from the great folks at Hambo Stamps. I entered their challenge last week so they sent me this week's image in my email. Very cool.

This week the challenge was to use 'the rich hues of autumn'. We could choose the 'hues' we felt were autumnal..

I did a lot of manipulating with this image. I made some taller, skinnier, fatter...

I printed it out and colored with my Copics. I really enjoy fall colors so this was my favorite part..I felt the background was a bit stark so I scribbled E40 all over it..

I tore the image out and also tore some of the papers. I scribbled with Copics on the edges of the tears too, it made them stand out a bit more. More scribbling on green card stock because I didn't have the right color of green. I only have about 65 shades of green but NONE were right!

A few felt leaves and a bow and I was done.  I'm not entirely sold on the bow, though. It might be removed..(ok, ripped off in disgust...)

Here are the Copics I used. An amazing number of markers for such a small simple image!

Party on, Wayne

You want Dimension? You got it.

Greetings Earthlings-

I had fun making this card for the Hambo Hoedown #31 this week. I used the free alien spaceship image that they gave me for participating in last week's hoedown. I also used an older free image I got a while back from them.

The challenge:

This week's challenge is brought to you by ALIEN SPACESHIP (she says in a voice that echoes and resonates throughout space!) from another DIMENSION. That's right! Add some dimension to your project this week - no flat cards! Your creations will be out of this world!

I love dimension, I often fear my cards will be too lumpy for the mail. I see a lot of cards on-line that must be sent in boxes because they are so 'thick' with flowers and bows...

I printed the image twice. On the first one, I colored the planets (asteroids?) and just the outer 1/4 of the perimeter of the spaceship image. Not much of the ship will show when I'm done. I fussy cut the ship and planets from that layer.

On the next layer I colored the spaceship completely then cut it out.

I took a piece of Core’dinations  nightfall (black) card stock and ran it through my Texture Boutique with the swirls folder. I sanded the paper to bring out the lighter core color. I wasn't happy with the darkness of the black when I finished so I took my Prisma colored pencil and colored the black darker.. Then I wasn't happy with the core color - it wasn't bright enough. So I used a white pencil on that portion... Then I finally had the dramatic contrast I was looking for.

I layered the print with the planets and ship on the textured paper, then used foam tape to attach the second image of the spaceship over the first. This added more dimension to the card.

I mounted all this on a bright green card. It just felt wrong not to use a mat behind the image but nothing I tried seemed to look good. Then I used a fine black pen and 'stitched' a border on the card and the sentiment. That made me feel better. :-)

I also outlined the border of the sentiment with a 'lavender' (I think it's more dark purple!) Spica glitter pen*. Then I adhered the sentiment to the card.  I thought it looked a bit dull so I also added Spica glitter pen* to the words. I decided it was time to leave it alone before I messed it up... 

I used Sticko 3D star stickers to liven things up. I also remembered I had a few alien 'buttons' from Favorite Findings that I got on clearance at Michael's and overlapped one on the sentiment.

Still not happy, I added a THICK layer of Glossy Accents to the top dome of the ship and the green lights.

This is one lumpy card but still thin enough for the mail! Yay!

Party on, Wayne

*The SPICA glitter pens from Copic won't flake off and endanger any soldier that will get this card for Operation Write Home.

 

I used a rubber stamp!

Greetings Earthlings-

I made a birthday card for Jerry. I didn't get to it in time though so I knew it'd be late.. :-(

I actually used two RUBBER stamps for this! I use digital stamps for 99% of my projects. These are unmounted RUBBER stamps - they take up way less storage space.

I've had these stamps for a while. They're from Eat Cake Graphics. The image is called Cupcake the Dog. They have a variety of sentiments that would go well with him but I love the "Am I too late for cake?" I think it suits his expression well.

I don't usually use this many colors on a card but I wanted to make this one a party on paper! The swirl stickers and some of the dots are from Sticko. The rest of the dots I made with  Viva Pearl Pens. I used a Nestibility to cut him and his mat out. I fussy cut the sentiment. The glitter on the hat is from a variety of Stickles. The fancy corner is made with a punch from EK Success. As usual, I used Copics to color him.

Since I knew there was NO CHANCE this card would end up in my stack for Operation Write Home, I decided to use some of my glitter on the sentiment.

Glitter is FORBIDDEN on anything that comes anywhere near my OWH cards. The glitter can flake off and be seen in night vision gear. I certainly don't want our heroes spotted because of glitter!!!! I almost never use glitter and if I do I always clean my work area as if I had a hazardous material spill as soon as the card gets in it's envelope. Even if I don't see any glitter anywhere...I don't even use the Stickles on OWH cards because they haven't passed MY 'can I scrape it off?' test.

Before I started making cards for OWH I used glitter on a majority of my projects. I love the bling! So I have lots and lots of it in lots and lots of varieties gathering dust.. But that's a small price to pay for our soldiers!

Party on, Wayne.