Indigo Hills 2 Card Inspirations - DT projects for Pinkfresh Studio

Hi there friends,

I hope you are enjoying your well deserved Christmas holidays with your loved ones! 

As Christmas is pretty much over, I've prepared less seasonal cards for you! I've paired some stamps and dies with the Indigo Hills 2 collection. My main inspiration was the beautiful watercolor foliage in the collection; I've pulled the colors from those images.

OK, let's see what I've come up with.

As you can see, I love purple haha! You can see the watercolor foliage I was talking about above on my first card, all those lovely colors peeking through from under the die cuts. 

All three cards are on an A2 size top folding card base. For the first one I cut a 4.5x5.25" piece of purple patterned paper from the Indigo Hills 2 collection. I then die cut a bunch of flowers and leaves from purple/aubergine and light gray patterned papers. I've used the lovely Dainty Blossoms die set. I then arranged them in a semi circle, and and marked where I wanted to have my sentiment. I white embossed it (this sentiment is part of the My Favorite Things to Say stamp set, which is probably one  of the most favorite sets of the Design Team)! I need more of these sets because I hate having to look for sentiments in hundreds of stamp sets, ha!

I adhered the purple panel to my card base and glued down the die cuts. I added some ink splatters in navy and plum as well as some dark blue enamel dots.

For my next card I stamped the images from the Lush Greenery stamp set on watercolor paper, using black ink. I then selected a bunch of watercolors that I felt matched the Indigo Hills 2 colors. I didn't use a whole lot of water, so these colors are more saturated and vivid. I do like both looks! Once done, I die cut the two images and placed them on my card base, using foam tape. 

I die cut With Love using the Do All Things With Love die set and glued it down in the middle. I added a few enamel dots around the greenery as well as paint splatters.

For my third card I cut a 4.25x5.5" piece of ombre purple patterned paper and a slightly smaller light gray one, then layered them onto my card base. Using the Inked Florals die set, I die cut all shapes from white card stock. I normally die cut after stamping but these images florals you have to build up and without the help of an outline, I can't figure some of them out to save my life haha! I stamped all images from the Inked Florals stamp set in black ink. I stamped the blooms with inks that matched my other 2 cards, and used watercolors to add color to some smaller leaves and flowers.

I played around with placement a little bit and eventually settled on this one. I stamped the sentiment from the My Favorite Things to Say stamp set in lavender color. I then glued down all the stamped images using liquid glue. The last, biggest piece, I added on foam dots to create some dimension. Last but not least I placed some enamel dots here and there. As you can see, enamel dots are one of my favorite embellishments. Usually without them I feel like my project is not finished. It's a good thing that I have about 12 Indigo Hills 2 kits remaining from a class, so I can steal the enamel dots from them haha.

That's it guys! I hope I could inspire you with my cards today! I love these colors, they make me happy!

Thanks for stopping by today! Enjoy the rest of your holidays!

X

Guesting on the Altenew scrapbook blog + Giveaway!

Hey lovelies,

First of all, Merry Christmas guys! I hope you are having a wonderful holiday season with your loved ones!

I'm so excited and honored to be guesting on the Altenew scrapbook blog! Thank you Altenew for the awesome opportunity!

In case you're new here, here's a short bio about myself:

I am a Hungarian living in Germany with my Dutch boyfriend and our 10-year-old son. I've been crafting ever since I remember...I tried every craft under the sun, from glass/porcelain/silk painting, bead weaving, mosaic in all form, to cake/cookie decorating and lots more. I need to craft to keep sane! Scrapbooking has been my main focus since early 2015 and this year I've added card making to the mix as well. I love love love patterned papers and all colors of the rainbow, so you won't be seeing me use a lot of white and solids except maybe on cards!

For today's blog post I've made 2 layouts and a bunch of cards that are similar in design yet all a bit different. I've worked with the Reflection scrapbook kit which is my favorite from Altenew. So much so that I am on my second kit now! 

For my first layout I've embossed a lot of flowers from the gorgeous Frosted Garden stamp set. I used Altenew Pure White Crisp embossing powder on 2 different patterned papers from the kit, then using the Frosted Garden die set I die cut them all. 

I then created my background. This is one of my go to designs - 2 partial wreaths/circles on opposite sides of the layout. I chose a black and white striped paper and added some white card stock at the top and one of the patterned papers from the Reflection kit at the bottom. I covered up the edges with flowers.

I placed my photo inside the bigger wreath and decorated this area with a few wooden buttons, stickers, tags and chipboard pieces. I also added my title and journaling here. 

I was actually planning to add my journaling in the bottom wreath but then I found this chipboard about traveling which was the perfect fit for my page, so I glued that down there instead. I also stamped my date here. Done!

I wanted to go green with my second layout because I haven't made a green layout with this kit before. I started out by covering a heavy weight white card stock with the Dotted washi tape. I've never been a huge washi tape fan, as in, I haven't used them often on my pages, but ever since Altenew came out with these wide washi tapes, I'm hooked. They are so versatile! I believe this is my first time using one on a layout though. 

I then cut green stripes from one of the patterned papers and covered the bottom of my page with them. I distressed the edges a bit to give them some dimension. I don't like flat layouts, I'm all about dimension and texture. I fussy cut out lots and lots of roses from two patterned papers and layered them on top of the green stripes. I used different adhesives to do this, liquid and foam, again, to create a more dimensional look. 

I tucked my photo behind the roses. It seems I forgot to add the date even though I specifically asked my aunt when this photo of me and my cousin was taken ha! We were 4 and a half years old! One of my favorite childhood memories, harvests at my grandparents' vineyard. Since I've been living in Germany, I've only been able to go once...Anyway. Back to the layout! To finish off my page, I added my title and a few chipboard and wood veneer pieces as well as some wooden buttons.

As for my cards. I love love love the Mega Alphabet dies so I thought I'd make some cards with one of them. Namely, the B. I thought I'd make some birthday cards because for some reason I never find any when I need one! But of course, I don't have a single Happy Birthday sentiment from Altenew haha! So, I went through all my stamp sets to find sentiments that make sense with the letter B :). Here's what I've come up with:

All 6 cards are A2 size and top fold. On my first two I used the Watercolor Stripes and the Cross Stitch Canvas cover dies. The stripes I backed with a purple patterned paper and glued it on my card base. The other one I left white. I then covered some white card stock with the stunning Gilded Ombre and Glitter Flurries washi tapes. I fussy cut out lots of flowers and die cut two letter B's.

I added some foam tape to one of my B's and before gluing it down, I tucked some washi flowers under it. I white embossed a tiny sentiment which I then placed on my B, using foam adhesive. On my other card I used liquid adhesive to glue down my B and layered some flowers over it, at the bottom. I embossed my sentiment on patterned paper and added it on top of the flowers.

For my next duo I used the Peach Gold washi tape, a black and white floral patterned paper from the Reflection kit, the Cozy Flannel and the Cross Stitch Canvas cover dies, and last but not least my favorite Layered Floral Elements die set. These are products I use a lot, because they are so versatile. 

As you see, I pretty much did the same thing as before, just decorated my letters with different supplies. 

On my last duo I used my favorite patterned paper from the Reflection kit to create the card fronts. I had plenty of fussy cut roses left from my layout so I used those here. And I used the Dotted washi tape to cover my letters. 

For a little something something I added some gold metallic tangled thread behind the letters.

That's it guys! I hope I could inspire you in some small way! Should you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask, I'm always happy to help!

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Altenew is kind enough to sponsor a giveaway here on my blog! You can win a $20 gift certificate if you leave a comment below! Comment away :). I will try to announce the winner on January 1, 2019 - but it could be a bit later because we will be travelling to Iceland that day.

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Thank you for stopping by today! Have a wonderful day!

X

In the spotlight: Destination China by Lene Lok at Spellbinders

Hi guys,

Today I'm sharing a few projects with you that I've created with the new Spellbinders/Lene Lok Destination China collection!

Since my boyfriend had to travel to China on business a couple of times this year I actually have plenty of photos I could scrap using this collection! For now I only did one but I bet I'll do more in the future. I actually found the perfect picture to use with the gorgeous Shapeabilities Lanterns Etched dies since the  lanterns in the picture look like one of the lantern dies, ha! I went with a color combo that I never use for scrapbook pages but thought it would be a great fit for a China inspired layout.

I die cut a bunch of lanterns using two of the dies - there's three in the package. The oval ones I backed with patterned paper and also paper pieced some elements on top (top and bottom of the lantern and the tassel). Two of the other lanterns I folded together at the embossed lines. The other two I left as is, then I die cut another two lanterns from patterned papers, cut off the top and bottom, then folded them together. Once done, I glued these patterned paper bits on top of the white lanterns. This way I could add some variety to my page.

I then wrapped some gold thread around the top of the die cuts and hung them from the top of the page. I used foam tape and liquid glue to attach them to the background. I added gold enamel dots here and there.

I then used the Shapeabilities Chinese Traditional Fence Etched dies to create my next element for the page. I only used one of the patterns to fill the "windows" and die cut this shape three times. I then cut a strip of red patterned paper in the height of the fence die, and glued the 3 pieces on top (note that the 3 pieces are wider than 12", so I trimmed off the sides). I attached this strip to the background that I previously created using a black and white striped patterned paper and black paper.

I went through my stash and took out all red embellies that I thought would fit this page: chipboard frame, labels and a flair button. I also picked 3 wood veneers which I then embossed with WOW! Rich Pale Gold embossing powder. For my title I used some gold glitter foam alphas.

Next up is a card duo. I was only planning to make one card with the beautiful Shapeabilities Chinese Coin Window Etched dies as well as the awesome Shapeabilities Lucky Clouds Etched dies but I really should know myself better by now...I have serious problems with throwing away die cuts! Like, really serious problems. I keep everything! Chances are I'll never use them again though, so I'd better make the most of them now! 

I die cut the window from this pretty floral paper as well as from white and gold glitter card stocks. I glued the patterned paper on my A2 size top folding card base, then added back the white window plus some of the little gold glitter pieces. I also placed the gold glitter circle frame on top. You can get this frame if you use both circle dies in the the pack. I embossed my sentiment with WOW! Gold embossing glitter. To finish off this card I glued down a light pink bow at the bottom of the window. I'm obsessed with bows lately, I want to add them to all my projects!

Next, I die cut four panels using the Shapeabilities Lucky Clouds Etched dies : 3 different blues and a white. I actually had other plans with this white one but changed my mind and layered my window die cuts I had left from the previous card, on top. First the gold glitter one, then the patterned paper one. I only glued this cluster down in the middle for a more airy feel. I die cut the Hugs sentiment 5 times and glued them together (this die is part of the Hugs Expressions Stamp and Die set). I then masked off the top half of the word with washi tape and embossed the bottom half with WOW! Gold embossing glitter. I added some gold tangled thread behind the sentiment for some texture. Last but not least I placed a few gold enamel dots on my card.

For my next card I used the 3 blue die cuts I cut earlier. I glued down the lightest blue panel onto my A2 size top folding card base, then started to piece the clouds back into place, using all 3 colors. I created the Hugs sentiment the same way as above, except on this one I used the WOW! Atlantic Seaspray embossing glitter. 

When I work so much on a background, I like to keep the card simple so the background can shine. So I only added some twine and enamel dots with my sentiment.

My last two cards feature the Shapeabilities Lanterns Etched dies again. I just love these lanterns! I created two A2 size top folding card bases from white card stock then added some patterned paper accents (do you see the little lanterns on this paper?!). On the left card I cut off a little bit at the bottom and used a punched border to fill up the space. To secure it, I used my sewing machine. 

I stamped my sentiment in plain black ink. I backed two lanterns with red paper, then I glued them down onto my card front. For one of them I used foam tape, for some additional dimension. Again, I used enamel dots to finish off my card. 

My last card is even more simple. After gluing the patterned papers down, I just added some "decorative" machine stitched details. I stamped the sentiment in black ink, added a lantern, enamel dots and done! 

I hope I could inspire you in some small way!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Have a wonderful day!

X

SUPPLY LIST:

Spellbinders supplies:

• S4-976 Shapeabilities Chinese Coin Window Etched Dies
• S4-978 Shapeabilities Lucky Clouds Etched Dies
• S4-979 Shapeabilities Lanterns Etched Dies
• S5-392 Shapeabilities Chinese Traditional Fence Etched Dies
• SDS-54 Hugs Expressions Stamp and Die set

Other supplies:

• Solar white Nenaah card stock
• Patterned paper (Basic Grey, Dear Lizzy, Amy Tangerine)
• Gold glitter paper
• Wood veneer
• Chipboard frame
• Enamel dots
• Stamps
• Embossing powder, Embossing glitter
• Gold thread
• Pink cotton bow

1 paper 2 ways - Part 1 - DT layout for Paige Evans

Hi there friends,

I'm back today with a layout I've created for the Paige Evans Design Team!

This is part 1 of 2 blog posts where I focus on the same patterned paper, namely Paper 23 of the new Whimsical collection. 

Like I mentioned in my previous post, I fussy cut a lot of papers a while back so I'm using some of those on today's layout. 

I actually used two sheets of Paper 23, and fussy cut a large circle from one and a small one from the other. I glued down the big circle first and added some stitching details using my sewing machine. I then adhered the smaller circle to the background as well, this time using foam adhesive. I die cut a circle from a patterned paper to back my photo, then using foam tape, I placed this on the background too. 

I added a chipboard circle in the middle of the smaller scallop, and glued down my title around it. I love that there are rainbow alphas and this gorgeous light pink too in the same foam alpha sticker pack! 

Since my page was already quite colorful and busy, I didn't want to add a whole lot of embellishments. I decided to tuck some flowers under my photo on the left side. Some of these I fussy cut and others are from the ephemera pack. Two fussy cut banners finish off this cluster.

I added a rainbow scallop rub-on border at the bottom, as well as a rose gold one from the sticker pack. I also used another rub-on here. I really love the rub-ons in all of Paige's collections. They are so versatile, the designs are always awesome and the quality is great. One of my favorite product in each collection! 

To finish off my page, I added some enamel dots and paint splatters.

I hope you find some inspiration in this page! I'll be back with the second idea using the same paper in January! 

Until then, love X

SUPPLY LIST:
Whimsical collection: Paper 1, Paper 3, Paper 14, Paper 23, Enamel shapes, Ephemera pack, Rub-ons, Mini foam alphabet, Card stock stickers

Altenew December 2018 Stamp/Die/Paper Pack Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hi there crafty friends,

I'm super excited to join another Altenew release blog hop! There's so many gorgeous new products, I can't wait for you to see them!

You should have arrived here from the lovely Therese's blog!

Alright, let's get right to it, shall we?! All my cards are A2 size top folding cards (either portrait or landscape orientation).

First up is the gorgeous Nature Snippets stamp set. On my first card I've used different colors to stamp my images. I know winter is only starting, but I'm already thinking of spring! I need colors! The layering is pretty straight forward and it's all explained on the packaging. Once done stamping, I drew in a few black lines for a bit of a different look. I stamped my sentiment and added a few enamel dots.

On the next two cards I used muted colors that remind me of winter. I cut a patterned paper panel for both cards. These papers are from the new 6x6 Pastel Dreams paper pack. I stamped both card fronts at the same time, so they look exactly the same. I then used a darker shade of brown and teal to stamp 2019 for sentiment. To finish them off I added some enamel dots. I need more of these enamel dots packages that's for sure!

Next I've used the Delicate Primrose set. I stamped two panels at the same time, using different colors. On one of them I used various colors (again, spriiiiing!!!), the other one I kept monochromatic coral. By the way, did you guys see the new Pantone color of the year? I'm so happy about it! Pantone is catching up on the coral trend haha!

So I will be honest here, these cards did take ages. There was a lot of masking involved, so some patience is required :).  I stamped the blooms first so that they are in the foreground, then I fussy cut a bunch of blooms from copy paper and used temporary adhesive to add them to my panel. Then I stamped the leaves. Once done, I used the Dainty Swiss Dots stamp set and clear embossing powder to add texture to the colorful panel. For the coral panel I used my favorite Cross Stitch Canvas cover die to add texture. I also used this die on two white panels for my third and fourth cards.

I die cut HUGS from one of the panels and LOVE from the other. I die cut these words several times from white card stock too. I then layered them up and glued them on my card fronts. I stamped a few more flowers and leaves and die cut them using the coordinating dies. I created two clusters of flowers in opposite corners on both cards. I used foam adhesive to attach the blooms, to add some dimension. To finish up the cards, I added some enamel dots and black faux stitching to the white cards. I stamped and embossed the Sending You sentiment for the color cards. 

Next up a bunch of cards with the Ruffled flowers stamp set and the Mega Friend die. On the first two I used gray inks to stamp my images and some patterned papers from the Pastel Dreams paper pack to add some color. I die cut Friend from two different patterned papers, I offset them a little and glued them down. I stamped the rest of the sentiment in gray ink. A few colorful enamel dots finish off this card. I die cut some circles from patterned paper, gray and white card stocks, using the Halftone Circles Nesting dies. I layered them up, adhered them to the card front, and trimmed off the access. I stamped a couple of coral blooms, fussy cut them, and using pop dots I adhered them to the circles. I also placed some gold thread behind them. I added my sentiment on top of them. Of course I had to use some enamel dots here too!

Same stamp and die sets are used on the next two cards. I stamped some colorful blooms with gray outlines on a white panel. I die cut Friend from it. I actually was going to add back this die cut, on foam, but it was no visible at all. So instead I decided to go with 2 for 2 cards. Again :). I added a gray panel behind the white card and attached it to my card base. I was debating if I should add something else but eventually I just kept these cards simple. For the colorful cut out I created a gray panel. I stamped some of the flowers in two corners, using embossing ink, then embossed them with clear embossing powder. I glued down the die cut and added a coral flower on the F using foam tape. Done!

Last but not least I made two cards using the new Verdant Walk patterned paper pack. On the left card, I added an A2 size piece of patterned paper to my card base. I then fussy cut out some floral images and using foam tape, I glued them on the card front as well. I white embossed a sentiment on a black card stock strip and attached it to the bottom of the card. I wrapped some twine around the card, above the sentiment. For the card on the right I again die cut some circles from patterned paper and card stock and layered them up. I used foam tape to glue them down. I added twine and a sentiment, done!

And now the fun part...Giveaways, yay! Read on to find out how you can win! Good Luck!

Prizes: 

1. To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 6 lucky winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card blog and/or Altenew Scrapbook blog by 12/18/2018 for a chance to win. 6 winners will be announced on the Altenew blogs on 12/22/2018!

2. I will also draw a winner to receive a $30 gift certificate! I will announce the winner on 12/18/2018.  Comment away!!!

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GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED!

Thank you all for your sweet comments! I apologize for not answering all, I'm only able to answer from my phone and it takes ages. For some reason answering from my PC hasn't worked for months and I can't figure out why :(. I'm really sorry!

My winner is Kathleen Callahan! Congratulations!!! Please contact me at mzs6666@googlemail.com so I can tell you how to pick up your prize! XXX

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Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope I could inspire you in some small way!

Your next stop is Zinia!

Have an awesome day!

X

Blog Hop list:

Altenew Card Blog

Jennifer McGuire

May Sukyong Park

Kristina Pokazanieva

Therese Calvird

Zsoka Marko  --- YOU ARE HERE! 

Zinia Redo

Laura Jane

Virginia Lu

Kathleen Graumüller

Erum Tasneem

Laurie Willison

Svitlana Shayevich

Emily Midgett

Lilith Eeckels

Alex Syberia

Sveta Fotinia

Kelly Janes

Nicole Picadura

Reiko Tsuchida

Altenew Scrapbook Blog

Vicky Papaioannou

Rubeena Ianigro

Olga Moss

Sandra Dietrich

Dana Gong

Agnieszka Malyszek

Norine Borys

Amanda Korotkova

Kymona Tracey

Cynde Whitlow

Lydia Evans

Isha Gupta

Enza Gudor

Aya Elsheshtawy