Craft Challenge Blog #714

 Hi Friends!

This week's challenge for the CRAFT Challenge Blog is: Not A Card

The sponsor I was assigned for this week is Sheepski Designs <== check out their Etsy shop. 

I chose to work with their design ===> Beach Hut Holiday

 I had a few ideas for a non-card project for this design but one goal I have in my studio this year is to use supplies that I have in my room. I have a stack of wood pieces that I cut up to make things out of and this is the perfect project for one. 

I started the project off by bringing the design in Silhouette Studio. I made a rectangle box in the software that is the exact size of the wood block. I size the graphic to fit as best as I could. I set up the registration marks for the Print & Cut feature. 

I have them rotated on the screen because the paper is 8.5"x11" inches and will be placed on the cutting mat in this orientation. Yes, I could have done it landscape but it just seems easier to me to do it this way. The red rectangle is where the Cameo will cut the paper. The white portion of the graphic does not need to fill the rectangle because it will not be printed. I center the graphic how I would like it and sent it to the printer. Once printed I had the Cameo cut it out. I verified that the cutout design fits on the wood block as I would like and it does. 

 

I decided to use watercolor to paint this and I just feel that medium works well with the scenery in the image. I did not print this out on watercolor paper which is really the best paper for the job. However, I know I will have some issues and will still be able to make them work for the project. 

The graphic does not fill the whole cut out so to make up for it I just used the paints to extend the sand and water to the left and right edges. The issues from not using watercolor paper is that the paper can sort of pill from the moisture which I had happen in the sky. I was adding different shades of blue and some white to break of the solid color a bit. Once dry, I used a sand eraser to sand off the rough spots. The other issue with the paper is that it will curl and become wavy. I have fixed this sometimes but just running it through a die cut machine (Not to be confused with a Cricut or Cameo as they are not die cutting machines but rather electronic cutters.) A die cut machine with a firm sandwich can flatten really well. Just take care to not have the image against a plate with cut marks in it as it will add texture to your picture. In this case, I didn't do that at all. I used Mod Podge to adhere to the block with glue and used a brayer to roll it down smooth. 

I decided to add a phrase to it before I glue it to the block.

 

Once this was set to dry for a few hours, I simply tied some twine that seemed appropriate for a beach scene around the block to serve as a hanger. 

I will spray it with a sealer another day. It's still really cold here and I will wait until the warm temperatures arrive to spray it outside. 

There you have it!

~Paula

Please Note: This post contains product links so you can easily find any supplies and/or tools you may be interested in. Any product linked in the above description is NOT an affiliate link. I am not affiliated with those companies but I encourage you to shop small businesses as much as possible. The links below could be affiliate links. As an affiliate, I may be compensated for a purchase made using my link. However, no additional cost is extended to you

 

Craft Challenge Blog #713

 Hello there friends!

This week's theme for the Craft Challenge Blog is: Easter/Spring

The sponsor is All Dressed Up! <=== Their Etsy shop link. 

The design I have chosen to work with is found here: Easter Bunny and look how darling it is!

I loved this design so much I made two different cards with it. 

The green card, I used alcohol markers to color the image. The result is more blended and smooth.

For pink card I used watercolor pencils and purposely wanted to give it a more sketchy kind of feel. I tend to do this when working with animals to represent the fur. 

Both cards I made the same. Cut the frame around the image using scallped dies by Dress My Craft, color, and use sequins a patterned paper from my collection. 

You can view and/or participate in the challenge here: CRAFT Challenge Blog. 

~Paula

Please Note: This post contains product links so you can easily find any supplies and/or tools you may be interested in. Any product linked in the above description is NOT an affiliate link. I am not affiliated with those companies but I encourage you to shop small businesses as much as possible. As an Amazon Associate, I may be compensated for a purchase made using my link. However, no additional cost is extended to you.

 

Craft Challenge Blog #712

 Hi there friends!

Sorry for the quiet days on this blog and on social media. I was attending two events and have now increased my skills and friendships too. I love attending the paper crafting events and taking classes. You can learn so much even when you see someone do something you already might know about but maybe they do it a different way or have a new spin on it. It is a great way to keep creativity flowing too. 

Today kicks off the newest challenge on CRAFT Challenge Blog. This week's theme is: Christmas. You can see the blog post and enter the challenge too if you would like.

I love that we do Christmas throughout the year. It gets me ahead in my Christmas card making and gives me new ideas too. For my design team entry I submitted this: 

This week's sponsor is Polkadoodles and you can find this design available here ===> Snowdrift Friends

For this design, I used my Silhouette Studio Software and Cameo to use the Print & Cut feature to cut out the design. I chose to use colored pencils to color the animals because I wanted that pencil color look to them. I used Alabaster White Embossing Powder by Brutus Monroe to emboss the sentiment from Crafter's Companion Snow Queen Stamps. I stencils the snowflakes using a light purple Distress Oxide ink and the snowflake stencil is by Hero Arts and can be found here: Scrapbook.com

All other materials were in my collection. The links provided in my description are not affiliate links. They are just to point you in the right direction. 

Please Note: This post contains product links so you can easily find any supplies and/or tools you may be interested in. Any product linked in the above description is NOT an affiliate link. I am not affiliated with those companies but I encourage you to shop small and local businesses as much as possible. The links below are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I may be compensated for a purchase made using my link. However, no additional cost is extended to you.

Below contains links to materials and tools I used in this project that I can find on Amazon. 

Happy Crafting Friends!

~Paula