Thursday, June 30, 2011

Trendsetting Spotlight-Sassy!

Hey everyone! It's time for the Trendsetting Spotlight! Each Thursday we feature a card made by someone who has participated in a previous week's TSG challenge. You can find this week's challenge from Iwona HERE.  This week the spotlight is shining on Sassy!

Sassy pic

Sassy made this fabulous card for Jessica’s challenge to use 3 different stamp sets.

Sassy

She used Forever as the focal image, the pretty carnations.  The little mouse if from the Once Upon A Time set.  The sentiment is from Sweet Pea.  I love hos she added the ribbon and bling to really add character to the card!  Be sure to stop by Sassy’s blog….Sassy Moments to see more gorgeous creations!

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Wednesday Trends - sponged sky

Hello!
Iwona (Chupa) here, with a little tutorial for this week's Wednesday Trends feature.
I chose to show you, how I sponge a cloudy sky.
There's many ways to do it, some of the common ones include using punched/die cut scalloped shapes, to sponge around. We all know that the clouds in nature show nothing near the regularity of the punched scallops, thus I like to use the template that follows a more random pattern.
I cut my border by hand, from a piece of cardstock. That strip of card has been my trusty companion forever, and after countless times that I used it, it's still in good shape :)



As you can see, I've got one end cut for my clouds, while the other one is a torn paper. I use the other side for grass - it gives a soft, slightly irregular finish.

I normally sponge with the same brand of ink - Versa Color cubes. Most of the time, I'd use the beautiful teal shade of Celadon to 'paint' the sky with... mmmm LOVE that colour!
I find the inks with soft spongy surface (like Versa Color & Versa Magic), the best to work with (I even use an old cube of PTI's Tea Dye ink to saturate it with Distress Ink, and sponge the edges of the paper with the cube). The ink is my personal choice though, and I know that everyone has their own preferences.



(you can see how the cube has some 'fluff' from the sponge on it... I use it only for this purpose, so I don't bother too much if it gets a little messy)
Let's get to our project. I started with the image - I chose the adorable girl from Blossom By Blossom, and coloured it with Copics - of course ;)



I start with the top layer, holding the template firmly against the paper, and working the sponge in circular moves above it. I like to slide the template sideways a bit as I go, so that I don't get the straight line.



As I'm building up the layers, I keep skewing the template, and often let the clouds from different levels meet. The more irregular the pattern, the better!



After I'm finished, I often go over the whole sky with the sponge, pressing very lightly. This evens out the colours, tones down the brightness of white clouds.



Here's the finished card!

Photobucket

Thanks for visiting, I hope you enjoyed :)
Photobucket

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Trendsetter Tuesday - Iwona!

Hey there everyone!! Hope you enjoyed last week's blog hop challenges, and are ready for some craftiness from this week's Senior Trendsetter, Iwona Palamountain...aka Chupa!
Iwona is a beautiful woman with a fabulous sense of style and eclectic way of putting amazing creations together!  Here are a few recent cards that really show her amazing talents:
This gorgeous card uses one Iwona's own stamp sets!  She designed the Flying By stamp set for TSG.  Her choices of paper and paper piecing make you feel like the little girl is flying off the card.
 This card from last week's release was by far one of my favorites of the whole week!  I love everything about it: the spectacular coloring, gingham sky, polka dot clouds.  Leah from Freeze the Moment fits perfectly in the Vroom car! I love it when stamp sets mix and match like that!
And last but not least, this beautiful scrapbook page of her adorable daughter, Zuzia, reminds us of how "stampbooking" is a wonderful way to preserve memories of our loved ones.  Chupa stamped and colored the sun, clouds and little birdies from the Under The Weather stamp set to make a gorgeous page that her daughter will cherish later.
Be sure to swing by Iwona's blog, Random Act's of Creativity to see multitudes of amazing creations!

Monday, June 27, 2011

TSG113: A Challenge To DIE For!

This week our challenge is brought to us by our Trendsetter of the week Iwona and let me tell you, it’s one to simply die for! She is challenging us to use at least three different dies or punches on your card/project.

To be eligible for the giveaway, you are to create a card that uses three different dies/punches and then come back to the TSG Blog to add your name and a link to your project in the InLinkz that is located at the bottom of this challenge post. This challenge is open until the winner has been announced on the following Monday (July 4). The winner will get a $5 gift certificate to use in the TSG Web store!

By participating in this challenge, you may also find yourself in the Trendsetting Spotlight that shines on the TSG Blog every Thursday. We will be on the look out to find challenge cards that stand out and show Trendsetting qualities. TSG stamps are not required to participate in the challenges but are appreciated :)

You do not need to have a blog to be able to participate in the TSG Challenges! You can simply add the URL link from your project after it has been uploaded to your online craft gallery. If you upload your card to an online craft gallery, please use the keyword TSG113 so we can check out your beautiful work!

Need some inspiration to help you get started? Check out these great cards made by the following Trendsetters!
~ Iwona
~ Christine
~ Tammy
~

Winner from last week's TSG112 sketch challenge: Alyna
Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:6
Timestamp: 2011-06-27 05:34:58 UTC
Congrats! Email me to claim your prize :)

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Week In Review (June 20-26) & Card Give Away!

What is Week In Review (WIR)?- WIR is where we showcase cards made by the Trendsetters and myself throughout the week. Not only to you get to see gorgeous projects made using TSG stamps, but you also have a chance to WIN one of these cards! Leave a comment on this post and next WIR I will choose a winner using a random number generator. That person will then get to pick out their favorite card and the Trendsetter that created it will send it to them :)


Winner from the June 6-12 WIR: Joan V.
Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:6
Timestamp: 2011-06-26 03:20:04 UTC

Congrats Joan! Email me with your info and which card you
would like and that will be sent right out to you :)


Jessica
Jessica
Jessica
Jessica
Ann
Ann
Ann
Jessie
Jessie
Jessie
Jessie
Iwona
Iwona
Iwona
Iwona
Iwona
Iwona
Iwona

Torico
Torico
Torico
Christine
Christine
Christine
Corinna

Corinna
Corinna
Corinna

Karen
Karen
Karen
Karen
Danielle
GreatToSeaYou_DLounds
Danielle
YoureTheBestHisbiscus_DLounds
Danielle
FabulousDayBunny_DLounds


July Release Winners!

The Fairy Best Blog Hop Challenge: dassi87
Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:23
Timestamp: 2011-06-26 02:41:20 UTC

Vroom / Hibiscus Blog Hop Challenge: Barb Turpin
Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:16
Timestamp: 2011-06-26 02:42:54 UTC

Make A Splash Blog Hop Challenge: Helen Philippousis
Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:5
Timestamp: 2011-06-26 02:44:37 UTC

July Release Party Chat Winner: Candace M.
Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:200
Timestamp: 2011-06-26 02:46:40 UTC

Congrats to all the winners! Email me with your info to claim your prize :)

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Join us tonight for the release party chat!

Are you guys ready to party?! Tonight is the night you have been waiting all week for! After the release party RIGHT HERE in the TSG forum, all four of the brand new stamp sets will finally be available for purchase :)