Michelle Perkett Studio DT Aloha Blog Hop

Aloha!

Today, you are in for some awesome treats as we celebrate the Michelle Perkett Studio first Design Team's departure with a Blog Hop!  It's been six months since this wonderful group of people began designing all kinds of wonderful challenges for us, so we wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of them for all of their wonderful inspiration!  You'll be able to see all kinds of eye candy from all over the world on this blog hop.  Isn't it great how we're able to see so much talent from all over the world thanks to the internet?
If you came here from Pattie's Blog, then you are in the right spot.  If you get lost along the way, you can always go back to Michelle Perkett's blog for all of the stops.

Since I wanted to really highlight Michelle's new image, Leilani, I made this pocket card on a 5" x 7" base.  I will post a tutorial tomorrow telling you all of the measurements of this card.  The DP and stickers are from a page kit from NRN Designs I had bought a couple years ago but could never find a good use for them.  Thanking the design team is an excellent reason to use these yummy papers! 

Leilani was colored with my favorite medium, colored pencils, and blended with tortillions (paper blending stumps) and baby oil.  The highlights were made with a white Sakura gel pen.  The "lace" behind the image is actually a paper doily.  They are so beautiful, and they also don't make as much bulk or weight on the card like ribbon does.  Leilani is popped up with foam adhesives, and the flower stickers by her feet are also from this page set.  The DP is "attached" with some white gel pen faux stitches.  The fibers are from my stash and Little Black Dress Designs.  Don't you just love this 3M Smart Kraft floral ribbon?  This was some blog candy that I won from a blogger in Australia.

The pockets hold a special card thanking the DT.  The DT includes Pattie, Tammy, Nancy, Rhonda, Lynne, Terri, Jean, Ileana and the originals; Jana, Carlie, Kerrie, Gini and Cabio.  What a fabulous group of talent!  They gave us lots of challenges to our own talents that many of us didn't even know existed.  I'm sure they will continue to inspire us in their future endeavors!  We can't begin to thank you enough for introducing us to Michelle's wonderful digi stamps!!!!  The challenges you gave us not only made us think outside the box, but showed us that we all have an inner child waiting to be released.  I love all of the different types of images that Michelle offers, and the DT has helped to open my eyes differently to ones that didn't first appeal to me.  I'm so happy that this wonderful group of women has helped to broaden my horizons much more than I could have ever imagined!

Don't forget to stop over by Michelle Perkett's Etsy shop to see all of the other images that she has available.  If you're like me, you'll want them all!

Your next stop in the hop will be at Pauline's blog.  This is another blogger from Australia that has some really gorgeous creations for you to enjoy!  Don't forget to stop back tomorrow for some more eye candy and the tutorial for the pocket card!  Since the Hawaiin name for Lee is Li, I will sign off a bit differently today.

~~  Li  ~~

Challenges:
Aly's Sunday Challenge - Under or By the Sea
C.R.A.F.T. #61 - Hot & Spicy Colors
Crafty Creations - Summer Lovin'
Crafty Ann - Lazy Hazy Days of Summer
The Crafty Pad - Ribbons and Flowers
Dutch Dare - Anything Goes
For Fun - Colors of Summer
Fresh Brewed Designs - #13 Inspiration Challenge
Raise the Bar - A Sticky Situation
S2G Papercrafting Contest - Summertime Fun Summer Accessory
Shelley's Images - Vacation Time
Stamping Vacation - Pick 3

Sunburned Olive Card

Well, thanks to our wonderful Blogger, I missed another challenge deadline, but at least I can post the card now.  I made this card for the Michelle Perkett Studio Challenge which called for you to use the colors red, white, pink and kraft.  I love this color combo, so I knew I had to enter this challenge!  Unfortunately, Blogger was doing weird things on Sunday & Monday.  First, it wouldn't let me post.  Then it wouldn't let me add or make any layout changes.  This one was new to me.  When I went to the layout,  there were no add a gadget buttons, no save button, and most of the gadgets were missing.  I couldn't even edit the gadgets on this page or from the main page.  Now it's not letting me change the alignment.  Oh well, that will teach me to get my cards done earlier next time!

Anyhoo, I used Michelle Perkett's digi called Olive for this card.  She was colored with colored pencils and blended with baby oil.  The pail and shovel have Ranger Glossy Accents on them to add some more dimension.  The little crocheted flower is from my stash.  Olive is popped up with some foam adhesives.

The DP is made by The Paper Patch and is called White Summer Dots on Raspberry.  The corrugated paper as well as the solid papers are also from my stash.  The yummy white iridescent paper is from some blog candy I won from the Paper Temptress.  The pearls are from Michael's and that gorgeous butterfly ribbon is more blog candy, but this is from a blogger in Australia!  Isn't it just too darn cute?

Thought you might want to see Olive a bit closer.  Her sunburn still doesn't show up as well as it does in person.  You can see the Glossy Accents on this picture better.  Some of the texture on this gorgeous white Paper Temptress paper shows up better.  I probably should have included the bottom part of this digi showing the sand, but I already cut it off before I tried it on the card.  That poor sand dollar probably wouldn't look so alone with the rest of the image.

~~  Lee  ~~

The Learning Community for Crafters

Do you ever make a card and wish that someone would honestly tell you that something wasn't right?  Have you thought about adding a ribbon or a flower to a certain spot, but thought it might throw the balance of the card off?  Maybe you've forgotten how to use a color wheel and need some help picking the right colors.  I do love getting all of the wonderful comments on my blog about my creations, but where do you go when you really want some constructive criticism about your work?

Now, there's finally a place you can go to that lets you give and receive constructive criticism!  Also, if someone says they like your art, they are asked to be specific about why they like it not just it's gorgeous, or nice work.  Wouldn't you really love to know what you did made your creation stand out?  How would you like to have people tell you honestly that they don't like the position of the bow, but maybe if you made it smaller or centered the bow it wouldn't detract so much from the main image?  What do you think?  Are you ready to check this new site out and try your hand at commenting on some cards to help others out?   

This is what the founder of the Learning Community for Crafters has to say about why she started this new site: 
"When I first started learning to use new products or techniques I had wished I had someone I could ask for advice or get tips on how I could do something better.

I began entering 'challenges' thinking I would get some feedback on my work. However the feedback I received was always positive and upbeat, and really sometimes my project really didn't deserve the comments it was receiving. I just wanted some honest feedback. Tell me how I can improve!

After putting the idea out about how I felt I found other people felt the same way. So I have decided to create this community where we can come together and offer each other 'CONSTRUCTIVE' crticism.

I am setting this up as a learning centre and have some bigger plans for it in the future. I am starting this on NING to begin with and if it grows and you are all finding it is a helpful resource then I will look at expanding it elsewhere.

If you have any suggestions, comments or more ideas please contact me.

Hugs & Take care
Zoe  xxoo"

Enough reading, why don't you pop on over to the Learning Community for Crafters and check it out?  If you're a member of any other Ning network, you will use the same password that you use on sites like Papercraft Planet or SNR Card Universe.  It doesn't cost you anything to look, so why don't you go on over and give it a look!

~~  Lee  ~~

Blog Candy Winner Announcement!!!

What a great party we had this past weekend for the Operation Write Home Blog Tour!  We got to meet some new people, picked up some free digis from some very generous people and best of all we got to see some more outstanding cards.  If you're just stopping here and don't know what I'm talking about, then hop right on over to the Operation Write Home Stars and Stamps Blog HERE to see the cards that were featured this weekend on the Blog Tour.

I've been pretty much MIA since Saturday due to some family committments and my health problems.  Needless to say, I'm sorry I wasn't able to get more cards posted.  I did have my DGS draw a name today from all of the names of commenters and the extra chances for the followers.  I really need to check into the random picker so I'm not spending so much time writting all of the names and then checking to see if any of them were also followers so they could be entered twice in the drawing. 

So, without further delay, the name of my Blog Candy winner is:

DOLORES

of The Corner Studio!!!!!!

Congratulations Dolores for winning a menagerie of assorted embellishments, ribbons, brads and more!!!!! 

For those of you that may recognize the name but can't remember why, you'll be happy to know that she is the mother of the amazing president of OWH, Sandy Allnock!  Dolores is a new cardmaker thanks to the nudging of Sandy, but she certainly didn't need any help with the talent end of cardmaking!  She is also a painter, so thanks to Sandy helping her set up a blog, I'm sure we could all nudge her a little to show us pictures of her work! hint, hint!

 I want to thank all of you that participated in this Blog Tour, and I look forward to hearing from all of you in the future.  If you aren't familiar with Operation Write Home, please take a moment and check out the organization.  We are always looking for more cardmakers or perhaps you'd rather make a contribution to this very worthy tax-deductible organization!

~~  Lee  ~~ 

Goodbye Cornish Heritage Farms!

For those of you that haven't already heard, Cornish Heritage Farms will be closing their doors.  They have decided that now is the time to venture into a new endeavor in Missouri, so they have sold the farm and will be moving in mid to late August.  The business is up for sale, but as of now they still don't have a buyer. 

Orders for stamps will be accepted until July 15th, 2010.  They will then be closed on Friday, July 16th for inventory and will reopen, but they will only be selling the remaining inventory until their last day on Thursday, August 5th, 2010.

Hurry on over to Cornish Heritage Farms and get your stamps while you still can.  Please join me in wishing Liz and Richard your best in their new journey!

~~  Lee  ~~

OWH Independence Day Blog Tour!

Welcome to another stop on this wonderful Independence Day blog tour sponsored by Operation Write Home!  If you arrived here from anywhere other than the OWH Stars and Stamps Blog, you'll really want to go to their blog after you're done reading my post to see what all the other bloggers have created to feast your eyes on this weekend.  There are all kinds of events planned throughout the weekend as well as lots of blog candy and other fun!

Many of you are already acquainted with Operation Write Home, but if not, you should be!  This organization collects hand-made cards from all over to send to our soldiers that are serving overseas, so the soldiers have something nice to send home to their family and friends.  We always need card makers who can donate a few cards or even fill up a USPS Priority Flat Rate box.  This is an excellent way to get those beautiful cards that you've made out of those stuffy boxes!!!! ;O)  If you are interesting in sending cards, or maybe you want to find out more info about the organization because you would like to make a tax deductible contribution to help with shipping and other costs, then click on Operation Write Home. 

I'll be posting more cards throughout the weekend, but the first one I've made follows the guidelines to make a red, white and blue birthday card.  I decided to something different and make my own design paper for once.  This happened by accident when I stamped a couple star images from an Art Impressions stamp and decided to continue stamping and see what I got.

The stars were all stamped on the cardstock that I won as blog candy from the last OWH Blog Hop.  I wanted to stay with the theme, so I decided to stamp it in blue ink instead of black.  The background color was added with four different colors of blue colored pencils that were blended with a blending stump dipped in baby oil since I don't have any Gamsol (OMS).  

The trees from Stampscapes were also stamped on the white card stock with the Memories dye ink.  Originally, I was going to stamp the eagle from Mostly Animals onto the cardstock, but I had seen another blogger recently that had stamped directly onto mulberry paper and I liked the effect.  The background was also colored with the colored pencils, and then the highlights were added with a white gel pen.  The stars on the corners aren't brads.  They are small die cuts that I applied Ranger's Glossy Accents to and let them dry so they would look like brads.

Some people have asked me how I got the edges to look frayed when I work with mulberry paper.  It's a real easy technique.  You just take any small paint brush that has been dipped in plain water and make an outline with the wet brush around the stamped image (or the stencil or shape).  Let the water absorb into the paper for about 20 seconds or so and then hold the paper on both sides of water line and gently pull it apart like you would stretch a rubber band.  Make sure you don't tug on the big chunks of fiber that hang out like the piece on the right side of the pictures.  Take some sharp scissors and cut the big pieces at an angle so you're just leaving a tip hang out of the side.  After you have all of the pieces apart, just gently pull the edges out by pulling the fibers between your thumb and pointer finger to make it look hairy.  If the paper has already dried, you can rewet the mulberry paper and try it again.

Next, I wanted to add a slider to the ribbon, but I didn't have any that fit the scene I had stamped.  So I just flipped one of the American Crafts Elements over and added a rub-on that was also from American Crafts.  The scene was double matted and applied on top of the single matted design paper with some Creative Memories tape and was then glued onto a card base.  I used Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive to the ribbon so it would stay secure.  Since the cards are first shipped from us to a shipper, and then unpacked and checked and then repacked for the soldiers, it's very important to make sure any embellishments are secure.  Also, it's very important that you don't use glitter on the cards for the soldier's safety.

I usually stamp a little something in the inside, or you can keep it blank for the soldiers to write to their family or friends.  The Happy Birthday sentiment is made by PSX and was also stamped with the Memories dye ink.  The edges were inked with a dauber like the front of the card and then both of the pieces were matted on more blue card stock from Hobby Lobby.  Star stickers were added to the corners to give a pop of red in the inside.

Well, that was long enough for this post!  Come on back later and see what else I have created for the OWH Independence Day Blog Tour.  You'll also want to know the details about my blog candy!  You'll have to leave a comment to win, and if you would like to become a follower, your name will be entered twice in the random drawing.  I'm working on putting together a bunch of embellishments, papers and ribbons that will work great for your OWH cards!  I'll pick a winner from the hat on Tuesday, July 6th, so make sure to come back & see if you won!  Happy Blog Touring!!!  Click on OWH Stars and Stamps Blog to go back to the tour guide!   Remember not to drink and drive on this holiday weekend!

~~  Lee  ~~

Enjoy Life's Moments w/Mermaids

Well, my electricity is back on for now, so I'll keep this one short.  I've been really lax on posting cards for the Michelle Perkett Studio challenges, so I made it a point to make a card that would fit this challenge.  This  week's challenge was to use cutting like punches, spellbinders, whatever kind of cutting tool that you have and they also wanted to see some form of fussy cutting. 

Well, I think I did all the fussy hand-cutting you could do!  This mermaid is called Harmony...isn't she dreamy?  I cut the flowers out on both of the mermaids and added dimension with Pop Dots.  The images were all cut out, colored with gel pens and Stickles and then added to this yummy American Crafts metallic textured card stock.  The waves and lighthouse on the front are die cuts and the rest of the stuff was cut out by hand with some Stickles added for dimension and to give the mermaids company with all of their shine.  The writing on the gold Denami sun is by moi' and it was also hand cut and outlined with Stickles. 

The inside picture shows the Just Breathe mermaid that you can get at Michelle Perkett's etsy shop.  This image is a relaxing figure that needed to be teamed up with Harmony.  She is swimming with a couple of Michelle's fish that I seperated for this card.  The Brilliance ink pad didn't stay on this card stock, so I added some depth and wave textures with a Sea Brights Pool ink pad.  To get the card stock to show on both sides, I cut out two pieces and then cut along the front pieces so you can see the sun from both pages.  I also wanted to use this gorgeous trim that was from my stash, so it was perfect to go between the two layers.

~~  Lee  ~~
Challenges:
Michelle Perkett Studio - Cutting
Crafty Creations - Add some shine
Sew Many Challenges - Anything Goes
Daisy Doodles Creative Challenges - Summertime
Die Cut Dreams - Life's a Beach!
Ooh La La Creations - #57 Simply Summer
Magical Crafts - Double Double
ABC Challenge - X is for Xtra Dimension
Kah Wink E Dink - Free For All
Digi Doodle Shop's Best - Anything Goes
Bunny Zoe's Crafts - Nice and Girly
CCEE Stampers - Summer Card w/Flowers
Speedy the Cat's Friends Challenge - #9 3+ Flowers on a Card

Color Wheel

If you need an introduction to the color wheel, why not hop over to the Sunflowers and Dragonflies Creative Designs Blog and catch their quick tutorial on using this essential tool.  Do the terms monochrome, analogous, complimentary or triadic have you in a tizzy?  If so, then run, do not walk, to this short instruction that will make others wonder why your cards look so great!

~~  Lee  ~~

Weekend Sale at Michelle Perkett Studio

I know I've been MIA lately, but I wanted to let you know about a sale on Saturday & Sunday, June 19th & 20th, at Michelle Perkett Studio.  She's offering 40% off on everything in her Etsy shop on these days!  Michelle has a great variety of digital images, so I bet you'll find lots of things there that you can turn into a beautiful work of art in your paper crafting.

While you're at it, why don't you check out the Michelle Perkett Studio Challenge and Inspiration Blog.  This week's challenge is called "A Stitch In Time," and they want to see stitches in your creation.  This can even be faux stitches for those that are sewing-challenged, so you don't have an excuse to sit this one out!  Grab some images from the sale, or even grab a freebie over at the NEW Crafter's Digital Art Center. 

~~  Lee  ~~

OWH Blog Hop BLOG CANDY WINNER!

Now for the announcement that everyone has been waiting for; the winner of the blog candy!  My grandson drew the name from the hat and when I checked the winners blog, I knew I needed to offer the alternate prize to another winner instead of holding onto it for the next blog hop.  So without further ado, the winner of the 1st choice for the BLOG CANDY is:

Grammykrob

at Pass It On

The alternate winner has been chosen, but I want to wait to announce it after Grammykrob has a chance to pick her choice of prizes.  Come back later to see who won the alternate prize.

UPDATE - The winner of the Michelle Perkett Studio $10 Gift Certificate is:
Tammy

from My Craft Central

If you haven't already received my email, please contact me with your address as soon as possible. 

THANKS to all that stopped by for the Operation Write Home Memorial Day Weekend Blog Hop and I especially want to thank those that took the time to comment!  This event is for an awesome cause, and we couldn't do all of this without you, so give yourselves a big pat on the back!  Please keep those cards rolling in to OWH even if it's just a flat rate envelope full.  We need to support our soldiers!!

Won by Tammy @ My Craft Central

To refresh your memories, the winner gets to pick their choice between the Art Warehouse clear acrylic stamp set pictured below with some assorted goodies I'm throwing in or the $10 Gift Certificate to Michelle Perkett Studio digital stamps!!!!!

Won by Grammykrob @ Pass It On

~~  Lee  ~~