Fall Leaves

I know it must seem a bit harsh to think about fall leaves now. I mean, are you ready for that at all? Not me! Seems like the summer just got started! This leaf stamp and saying is one of the newly released stamps from Impression Obsession! I love the swirls in the image and the solid stamp makes coloring the changing leaf fun! I just thumped a few different ink colors on each leaf to bring out different shades ! Then, when I put my card together, I went from light to dark to make it look like the progression of color.

Here's a close up!

Putting the card together was a piece of cake. I used my Nesties for the circles, my ticket corner punch for the corners on my piece of patterned paper cut out my leaves, added the saying - "To Everything There Is A Season..."and done! The embellies in the punched corners are hot fix nail heads (Kandi Kane)

Speaking of Impression Obsession, they have a brand new Guest Designer opportunity! Here are the details!

IMPRESSION OBSESSION GUEST DESIGNER CALL

How would you like to be a guest designer for one of the nation's largest rubber stamp companies? Impression Obsession is looking someone to put a creative spin on the great rubber and clear stamps that you know and love. We have more than 2,000 images in production at any given time and these images can be found at hundreds of stamp stores not only in the U.S. andCanada but six other countries worldwide!The guest designer position would be a three month commitment to help us with samples not only for our supplements and trade show displays but for our web gallery as well. Our store owners rely on the design team's creativity to seejust how many ways you can use I.O. stamps! If accepted, you will receive a handful of I.O. new releases to play with and create!

REQUIREMENTS:

1. Since our Senior Design Team uploads digital images to our gallery, we would hope you would be proficient in photo editing and be able to display your cards in an eye-pleasing way. Ninety-nine percent of the time, we use the artists images for our catalog and web gallery.

2. You would be required to make a minimum of 4 projects per month and display them on your gallery or blog giving credit to Impression Obsession.

3. Impression Obsession would have access to these designs for use on our web site, in our online gallery, for advertising, and in our electronic newsletter. We'll be sure to give you credit!

TO APPLY

Please send four examples of your best work to us at ioguestdesigner@gmail.com by August 30th. Don't forget to include a little bit about yourself, your name, address, phone number, email address, past design team work,when and where you've been published and blog or gallery address as well. Please note: Past work is not a requirement for a position with I.O. We are simply looking for talented designers. If you've never been on a team before or have never been published - that's Ok!.

Thanks for stopping by!!

p.s. Voting for the Paper Crafts Gallery Idol contest is still underway until Thursday at Noon MST. If you haven't voted! I'd love it if you checked out my card! I'm "outtoimpress" on the gallery! Click HERE to see all the cards. That page also has instructions on how to cast your vote!! Thanks guys!

IO: Day 5 of the New Spring Line Up!

Hi all! It's the grand finale for the CHA Sneak Peeks featuring Impression Obsession! I hope you've had fun seeing some of the new spring images and I hope it inspired some creativity -- that's what I aim for! Like I've been saying all week, all of the Impression Obsession design team is showcasing all of IO's newest stamps! You can click HERE if you want to see them all! And.... keep reading because you could actually WIN some too!

On to my creation!

Gosh, I love hydrangeas and when I saw these little numbers (Hydrangea Plant Small), I squealed. Aren't they darling? I colored them up with my Copic markers and used BV60, BV63 and BV66 plus YG21, YG23, and YG25 for the leaves. Now, the centers of these little blossoms were also fun. I decided to use some liquid pearls and add a little dimension! See?

The sentiment, also fun, is called Thanks Bunches. I literally used scraps from my scrap bin, add some die cuts, a button and some fun crinkled ribbon and... that.. my friends.. is it! Want to see some of the other new IO images for spring? Hop on over to see these ladies below and just know -- all the fun starts over on the Impression Obsession blog! 

• IO Blog 
• Daniela Dobson
• Dina Kowal
• Jeanne Streiff
• Jenny Gropp
• Julie Koerber
• Kittie Caracciolo
• Laura Fulcher
• Vicki Garrett

Here's some fun details about this week's hop -- if you comment on all DT blogs including the IO blog, you'll be in the running for a $25 Gift Certificate! If you comment each day, there will be an extra drawing just for those folks! So, hop on over to everyone and comment away. It could be your chance to get your hands on some of Impression Obsession's newest images!

Thanks for joining us! Mark your calendar, there will be another IO challenge coming your way next week on the 17th!

~Julie

Impression Obsession DT Thursday!

Every other Thursday, Impression Obsession's blog hosts a different designer from their team to give them top billing and showcase some of their creations. I'm happy to say that today... I'm that designer! Even though the calendar still says August, fall images seem to be my favorite. I love the rich and rustic colors (that burnt orange is my favorite color!!) and the images that IO pumped out this past CHA were just what my stamp room needed! Want to see what I mean?

This image is one of my favorites. It's just so homey. This front porch looks like it has a story to tell with the weathered boots and aged wood door and floor. The stamp is called Welcome Mat and if you look at my actual mat to my card, you'll see I picked up the Wood Grain Cover-A-Card. I think this is a perfect background stamp to get that earthy/rustic feel! After stamping my image, really the fun began with my Copic Markers. I used a mix and I'll try to name all of the numbers - here goes - YR02, YR04, YR07, YG00, YG03, YG13, YR14, E08, E97, T2, T5, T07, R27, E33, E27, E37, YG63.

Add some stitching, some antique brads, some twine and that's pretty much it! With large and detailed images like this, it's hard to add much more and I figure, who would want to! ;-)

I will say, Impression Obsession has some fun and heart felt projects that the team is working on. And two of them are coming up in the next month or so to help out a VERY good cause - Operation Write Home. You can read up on the effort by clicking over to the Impression Obsession blog HERE.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope your Thursday is full of sunshine and smiles! My kids went back to school yesterday so... it's VERY quiet around the house. Almost too quiet!

Have a fabulous day!
~Julie

With IO.... Anything goes!

Hi all! I hope you had a wonderful holiday! As you can see, I have been a little M.I.A. I decided to take a little time off for Christmas and I have to say the downtime was wonderful! But, the creativity bug hit and now I'm back! Today is a fun one because the Impression Obsession gals have another challenge and with this one.. anything goes! Literally! How fun is that?

On to my creation! Today, I am showing off some fun images that will be released soon at CHA!

For starters, I stamped the Poppy Bouquet (J8955) and then colored them up with a mix of Copic markers. You can see I tried to use some fun shading with grey tones and I just love the vibrant look that created! There are three new stamps here -- not only the poppy cluster but the sentiment - Heartfelt Thanks (B3928) and that lovely black lace border called Crochet Border1(E13096) along the bottom as well. Add in some decorative paper, some rounded corners and a blinged up brad and... ta da! That's all there is to it!  A little birdie told me that these stamps will be live on the Impression Obsession store coming up this weekend-- so if you like what you see, you'll be able to find them then in the store!

Here's a close up to show you not only the new sentie but the detail on that border as well. I just love that lacey edge stamp!

If you want to know more about this week's Anything Goes Challenge, just head on over to the Impression Obsession Blog to find out more! You have until Wednesday, January 9th at 9 PM EST to  enter and there is a $25 gift certificate on the line! :-)

Need a little extra inspiration? Just head on over to see what the other Impression Obsession designers whipped up this week! You won't be sorry you paid them a visit!

• Daniela Dobson
• Dina Kowal
• Jeanne Streiff
• Jenny Gropp
• Laura Fulcher
• Vicki Garrett
• Kittie Caracciolo

Thanks so much for stopping by for a little visit! I'll be back tomorrow with even more fun. So, I'll see you then! :-)

Impression Obsession Challenge Is Going Green!

Hi all and happy Thursday! It's time for another Impression Obsession challenge and this one will have you turning GREEN! That's the challenge in fact -- and just as simple as that. You just need to use the color green or shades of green on your creation, and of course, IO stamps! :-)

I have to admit, I kind of chickened out on this one. While my main panel is green and the image has green in it - I couldn't help but add pops of pink and red! This one is just as easy peasy as stamping (Margaritas to Go) and coloring (I used Copics R32,R39, R27, R29, YG00, YG03, YG63, Y00,Y02, Y15). After I colored it up, I added some zig zag stitching, some bling, fun grosgrain ribbon, a Spellbinder's tag and a punched edge. The stamps are brand new-- just released last week at CHA. You can find the sentiment HERE. Too fun!

Want to make time for play time? All you need to do is use Impression Obsession stamps and there is a $25 gift certificate on the line -- fun stuff! Just click HERE to head on over to the Impression Obsession blog for all the details and when the contest ends! And, don't forget to hop on over to the rest of the DT's blogs to take a peek at what they whipped up!

Shirley
Jeanne
Jenny
Dina
Kathy
Daniela
Rosemary

That, my friends, is it! Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you back here soon! ;-)

The Color Purple... an Impression Obsession Challenge!

I don't know about you... but the color purple is one of my favorites and this week, the gals at Impression Obsession are challenging YOU to use it! There is a $25 gift certificate up for grabs if you use Impression Obsession images and play along!

On to my creation.... I wanted to use one of the brand new Cover-A-Card backgrounds as my focus because I just think it is beautiful all on its own!

This Damask Cover-A-Card background is one of the new stamps that will be released at Winter CHA in just a few weeks. I am not sure if you've ever seen the Cover-A-Card stamps but they measure 5-3/4" square which --just like the name says -- covers the card! Use it with the rocking Mega Mount and, you get a fabulous impression every time with a large stamp. I love that! I paired the stamp up with Silhouette 2 and just a portion of THIS sentiment called Live Every Moment. Cut the sentiment with a Spellbinders tag, sponge on some ink (Violet Mist Vivid!), add some black ribbon and mat it all up on some purple decorative paper and black cardstock and.. almost done! I did a little paper piercing, added a silver leaf edging and of course, put a dash of bling too! Voila!

You'll have to hop on over and see what the rest of the IO gals whipped up using the color purple!

Daniela Dobson
Deborah March
Dina Kowal
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Kathy Menzies
Kelli Richardson
Laura Fulcher
Shirley Ross

Be sure to mark your calendar, all of the IO gals are gearing up for a BIG week of peeks to get ready for CHA and all the fun starts January 23rd!! It will be fun, I promise!
Thanks so much for stopping by and Happy Thursday! I'll see you all back here soon! ;-)

Go Green!

Well, I don't have an ounce of Irish in me - at least not that I know of ;-), yet, for one day, we can all raise our glasses and hope that a little bit of luck is headed our way! That's why the Impression Obsession DT joined forces to get you seeing green!

This darling image is one of the new releases from Leigh Hannan called Clover Tree! Isn't it sweet? My daughter exclaimed that she needed a tree like that -- one that grows luck and money. Honey -- don't we all???

I stamped the image in permanent black ink and then went about coloring it with Copic markers. The tree was done with Yellow Green, and Nile Green. The trunk was colored with Sepia and then the stars were shaded with two shades of yellow. The entire image was also shaded with Cool Grey #1 and Warm Grey #1. The pot was colored with watercolor pencils and blended with a blender pen. Add some lime green accents with a Tombow (I used the Tombow fine tip for those teeny leaves and berries). Then, I went over parts of my image - the coins, the "berries" and the centers of my lucky clover with my Copic Spica pens to give it some glimmer!

Want a closer peek?After that, do a little paper piercing, mat it up, add a fun tag with the Impression Obsession Mini Messages set, add some fun scraps of decorative paper and a matching ribbon and ..... VOILA! Done!

There is a good reason to check out the Impression Obsession Webstore this weekend! The company's owner, Mitra, is lowering the free shipping threshold from $100 to $30. So, if there are stamps you've been waiting to buy-- there's no time like the present! This special promotion will run from 8:00 am (EST) Friday, March 6 through midnight on Sunday, March 8. So.... it's a quick sale! To see all the NEW images... click HERE for the rubber stamps, and HERE for the clear images!

Need a little more "green" inspiration? Check out the rest of the DT blogs!

Michelle Giraud
Dina Kowal
Daniela Dobson
Deborah March
Kelli Richardson
Laura Fulcher
Tina Werner

See you back here tomorrow with a two-fer! Two fun challenges to share with all my bloggin' buds!

It's Up in the Air!

Hi all and happy Thursday! It's time for another Impression Obsession challenge and this one? It's up in the air! That's right -- all you need to do is use a stamp that represents something that is literally up in the air! Think butterflies, birds, airplanes..... you name it! So dig through those Impression Obsession stamps or dies and join us. You could win a $25 gift certificate to the Impression Obsession store!

On to my creation!

I have had this stamp for a while and only used it once (eek!) so when this challenge came up, I knew I could have some fun with this one! I paired the Fireflies stamp with a sentiment that I think is a perfect match! It's called You Light Up.  I started by stamping my image on white card stock and coloring up my fireflies with Copic Markers to match my decorative paper (My Mind's Eye). I stamped the top of the jar onto decorative paper so that I could paper piece that for some extra color. After I created my sentiment flag, I did add THIS die cut border called Border Duo 1 Die Set. And... don't forget the bling on those little bugs! See?

Add a die cut circle, a button with some baker's twine and that, my friends, is it! Need some extra inspiration for this Up In The Air challenge? Well, head on over and see these lovely ladies below!

• IO Blog 
• Dina Kowal
• Jeanne Streiff
• Jenny Gropp
• Julie Koerber  – You are Here!
• Kittie Caracciolo
• Laura Fulcher
• Vicki Garrett

You have until May 22nd at 10 PM EST to play! So click on over HERE for the official rules and to link up your creation when you're done! Get those fingers inky and I'll see you back here real soon! 

~Julie

Impression Obsession's Sneaks!

Hi all! In just a matter of days, CHA will be underway and crafters from far and wide will get to see the latest and greatest in the craft and hobby industry! It's a blast and one company you'll find there is... Impression Obsession! To get ready for the unveil of all of their new stamps for spring, the IO design team is taking this week to share some sneak peeks from IO's brand new spring catalog!

On to my creation! I just love this image called Dogwood Dress Form - so pretty and feminine!

I picked that up, stamped it in Rich Cocoa ink and then colored it up with Copic Markers. I used R81,R83,R85, BG000, BG0000, YG63, YG61, and YG0000. I used some really old Basic Grey Paper called Porcelain. I just love the shades and thought the colors were perfect.

I used Spellbinders Labels Twenty for my background shape. Add in some seam binding ribbon, some bling and... ta da!

I have to say that I love this little accent stamp from Dina K Designs -- too cute don't you think? It is called Thread Spool. I stamped it using Vivid's Taupe ink. Add some stitching and that's the icing on the cake!

If you want to see more of the latest offerings from IO, just hop on over and see these fine ladies below. The fun begins over on the IO Blog, so be sure to make a stop there too! 

• IO Blog 
• Dina Kowal
• Jeanne Streiff
• Jenny Gropp
• Julie Koerber
• Kittie Caracciolo
• Laura Fulcher
• Vicki Garrett

Here's some fun details about this week's hop -- if you comment on all DT blogs including the IO blog, you'll be in the running for a $25 Gift Certificate! If you comment each day, there will be an extra drawing just for those folks! So, hop on over to everyone and comment away. It could be your chance to get your hands on some of Impression Obsession's newest images!

See you back here tomorrow for more fun!  

~Julie

 

Eat, Drink and.... Be Scary!

Hey all! It's time for another Impression Obsession challenge and this one... is downright scary! :-) All you need to do is pull out your Impression Obsession stamps out and make up a Halloween card!

I chose some of the new Leigh Hannan stamps for my card. I just LOVE these little skeletons that are all ready for a party!

I stamped my skeleto n crew -- Skulls About Town -- out on Flourishes Classic White cardstock using Memento Tuxedo Black ink and then colored with a mix of Copics and Copic Spica pens. Add some bling, a fun ribbon side, a beautiful silk ribbon and a fun little clip with my sentiment - Eat Drink and be Scary! - and... done! For my background paper, I actually took some scraps of Halloween paper and - on the top piece - I stamped the Cover a Card Harlequin background stamp, embossing with black detail powder.

Here's a close up of those cute little skeletons! If you want to know more about the challenge and how your work could be featured on the Impression Obsession blog... just click HERE.

And, don't forget to see what the rest of the DT whipped up for this spooky challenge! ;-)

Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Laura Fulcher
Shirley Ross
Katarina Menzies

Thanks for stopping by! See you all back here soon!

Let's HOP!

Are you ready for some fun? The Impression Obsession and Flower Soft Design Teams are playing together in a fun-filled HOP! Aside from seeing a little bit of cardmaking eye candy, there are also fabulous prizes on the line!

HOW TO WIN: As you make your way through the hop, make sure you comment on each and every post. Four random winners will be picked from those blog comments! Two $25 gift certificates from Flower Soft and two $25 gift certificates from Impression Obsession will be given away!! Winners will be announced on the Flower Soft and IO blogs on Wednesday August 18th! Now, if you didn't start at the beginning of the hop, be sure to start hopping from the Flower Soft Blog!

Moving on to my creation! I just used a little big of Flower Soft on a brand spanking new IO image just released at CHA called Winter View.
After stamping the image, I colored it up with Copic markers and used R46, R59, Y21, Y23, C01, C03, C05, B000, E33, E31, E25 and YG63. After coloring, then the Flower Soft fun begins! Lining the window wells and the base of each tree with a bit of Flower Soft Glue, I used the Flower Soft Diamond Range in Polar White. This is just incredible because it really does look like snow! After it was done drying, I did add a little bit of glitter glue here and there for a little sparkle!

Here's a close up! It's fine and fluffy and just adds that little extra something! What's fun is -- a little goes a LONG way!
Want even more inspiration? Do you like video tutorials? How about Challenges? Make sure and check out both Flower Soft TV and the Impression Obsession blog!!

For the next hop on the IO-Flower Soft tour, click on over and see Linda Beeson!

Thanks for stopping by!

New Years Resolutions.....

It may only be December 1st, but 2011 is really just around the corner! And, like the millions that will look at January 1 and make some wishes for the new year, the Impression Obsession Design Team is putting some of their ideas... on paper in the form of a challenge!

You can read all about the December 2nd challenge HERE. The goal is to make a card based on your New Years Resolutions. Use IO stamps and you could win a $25 gift certificate to the Impression Obsession store!

On to my creation! You might look at my card and say... Hhhhmmm? Well... this image is really at the heart of what I want for 2011 -- to keep in better touch with those I love. Life is too short... you know?
This stamp is part of a set called Letters Mingle Souls. After stamping on white, I colored it up with Copic Markers (RV32, RV34, Y21, Y23, YG63, G40, V01, V04, E25, E31, C01, C03 and B000 to highlight around my letter). Mat it up with some decorative paper (Kaiser Craft), some fun ribbon (May Arts), crocheted lace, and some decorative stitching and.. done!

Here's a close up...

And that, my friends, is it! What are some of your New Year's Resolutions? Do you have any unusual ones that you might like to share? Just leave me a little note, I'd love to hear! Make sure to stop by and see some of the other IO gals and what kind of goals they have for the new year!

Jenny
Jeanne
Deborah
Dina
Laura

Thanks for stopping by! And, just a little FYI -- the Impression Obsession 20% off sale is still going on! Just click here to find out more.. or shop! ;-)

See you back here soon!

Easter Treats!

Hi all! Hope you are having a fabulous weekend! I was in my craft room the other day trying to dream up some goody bags for my daughter's class for Easter and this is what I came up with.

Now... will I be adventurous enough to actually do 22 of these babies? Hhhhmmm.... we'll see! I used some spring theme paper that I had in my stash for the base and it is just a 4" by 8" piece that I cut on an angle and then scored 3-3/4" from each edge lengthwise. I did this so that my pouch would be dimensional and not just a flat fold. (You'll be able to see what I mean when I show another photo below).

The rest is just decking it out! I used a Marvy oval and Marvy oval scallop punch for my main image and layer. Then, I created a topper for my little pouch by folding a 4 by 4-1/2" piece in half so that the finished measurement was 2 by 4-1/2". Then, I just angled this piece in my paper cutter to create the fun angles at the top- just cut an angle by marking a dot 1/4" in on both sides of the fold and using your paper trimmer to cut from that mark to the corner of the flap. I hope that makes sense!

For my stamping, I used one of the NEW Sarah Phelps clear sets from Impression Obsession called Easter Bunny. You can find it HERE. There's also a smaller set too with some similar images that is just as cute HERE.

I stamped with Versafine Black Onyx and then colored with watercolor pencils blending with a blender pen. I actually stamped the bunny's shirt on a pink piece of paper and paper pieced it I just wanted the color a little more bold there.

Here's a close up!

The rest is easy! Add a tag with some gold embroidery floss. I stamped the saying from the set on a 1-1/2" circle that I punched and matted it on a scalloped circle that I punched out of dp with a SU punch. Add some pink satin ribbon as an accent and then punch two holes at the top of your flap so that it goes through not just the flap but your pouch as well. Thread the ribbon through and tie in the back....

Like this!There you have it! A fun and easy little treat bag for the little ones (and maybe big ones) in your lives!

By the way, the Impression Obsession sale ends at midnight tonight! I know the site was down for a bit yesterday but it's back up now!
It's all going on at the Impression Obsession Webstore. Free shipping on orders more than $30! To see all the NEW images... click HERE for the rubber stamps, and HERE for the clear images!

See you back here soon!

What a Hoot!

Hi all and Happy Wednesday! If you didn't notice, Impression Obsession introduced a brand new stamp line recently for their Fall/Winter line up called Zenspirations, designed by Joanne Fink. I have to tell you, I am in love with these whimsical designs. I guess I am not alone because today the IO Design Team decided to have a hop centered around these fabulously fun stamp sets! On to my creation!

For my creation, I picked the set called What a Hoot! And... isn't this little lady cute?

I just think she's darling! For my card, I stamped using Memento Tuxedo Black and then colored her up with Copic markers using YG23, YG21, E37, E31, R83, R81. The base was shaded with C3, C1 and C00. I also accented her eyes with a white gel pen.

And... speaking of gel pen, I also accented this fun sentiment too! See?

Would you like to win a $25 gift certificate? All you need to do is visit these lovely ladies' blogs to see their Zenspirations creations!

• 
  Jenny Gropp
  Daniela Dobson
  Dina Kowal
  Laura Fulcher
  Julie Koerber -- you are here! 
• 
  Don't forget to leave a comment over on the Impression Obsession Blog as well! The drawing is TONIGHT at 10 PM Eastern. Good luck! Thanks so much for stopping by. I'll be back with a new creation before the week is over,so I'll see y'all back here soon! ;-)
  
  ~Julie

Supplies:

Stamp Set: Impression Obsession What a Hoot!
Card Stock: Flourishes Classic White
Decorative Paper: My Mind's Eye - Vanity Fair
Markers: Copic Markers
Ribbon: Pink Cotton Linen
Embellishments: Kaiser Sparklers in Fern
Pen: Ranger Inkssentials White Gel Pen
Spellbinders: Blossom Nestabilities Die, Grand Scalloped Square (for decorative border) & Grand Calibur Die Cut Machine

New Stamps from IO!

As we speak, Impression Obsession is unveiling some of the latest designs with a fall and winter theme at CHA! So, while Mitra and the IO gang mans the booth and shows off these new stamps, the IODT is showing you what you can create with these new goodies! And guess what? If you join us this week and leave some comments on the designer's blogs, you could win a $25 gift certificate to the Impression Obsession store! What fun!

On to my creation!

When it comes to some of my favorites from Impression Obsession - I love the sentiments, the Cover-A-Card backgrounds and now.... some of the new stamps that have coordinating dies! This card above is almost a 10 minute card and I love just how fresh and fun it is! I used one of Kalani Allred's new sentiments called Be Thankful (B3815). After stamping the words using Memento Teal Zeal, I used some light blue paper and then stamped the Cover-A-Card background called Circle Fusion 1 (using the same Teal Zeal ink). After I layered it all up, added a button, twine and bow. I stamped the Large Solid Leaf Stem using Pistachio Memento ink and then used the coordinating die cut called Branch Die and then matted it with some glue dots so that it would be sticking up out of the bow. And that, my friends is it! A little old... a little new -- just for you!

Here's the DT line-up for today! Be sure to stop by and see what they whipped up for this fun-filled CHA Sneak Peek week!

Daniela Dobson
Dina Kowal
Jeanne Streiff
Jenny Gropp
Julie Koerber
Laura Fulcher
Vicki Garrett

Want to know how you can win? Just click HERE and head on over to the IO Blog for all the fun details! I'll be back tomorrow with some more IO fun, so be sure to tune back in!

~Julie

Impression Obsession gets.... shimmery!

What happens when Impression Obsession stamps collide with Shimmerz Paints? Well, you're about to see! The IO gals are making Shimmerz shine this week with a peek at some newly released stamps and some old time favorites

For my card, I wanted to ink up these candy jars by Leigh Hannan. They just really remind me of those old fashioned candy shops that I used to go to as a kid! Remember rock candy? Gosh, you can hardly find it anywhere any more!

Here's a peek at my card!

I stamped with Brilliance Black ink on white card stock ,heat set and then started coloring with a mix of Copic markers and watercolor pencils. After that, I sponged on some Antique Paper distress ink (Ranger) and then.... the fun began!

I colored over the green sections with Key Lime Shimmerz. The lids of my jars were colored with Silver Bells Shimmerz. The rock candy was colored with spots of Opal Shimmerz. I wanted to add some chunky glitter on top of that, so I grabbed some Icicle Stickles just to add a bit of texture. This is one sparkly candy jar!

Here's a close up so you can see how the Shimmerz looks on the candy. I love how light weight this paint is. It just glides on and is transparent enough that it adds color without taking away from your image underneath!

You can also see I added some Crystal Lacquer to my gumballs to make them all shiny.

After you color it up, add a sentiment .. Every day with you... and mat it up with the help of some Nestabilities, Basic Grey Lemonade, and a fun button and.... done!

You'll have to head on over to the Impression Obsession blog to see what some of the other DT members cooked up with IO and Shimmerz!

Thanks for stopping by!

Fun with Stamps & Stencils!

Hi all! Today the Impression Obsession Design Team is whipping up some fun with the BRAND NEW IO Balzer Design Stamps! Hop around and you'll see the fun you can have when you use these stamps with  Crafter's Workshop Stencils/Templates!   Want to know what's fun about this concept? Each stamp works independently. Each stencil works independently. Each stencil has a matching stamp set and they can ALL work together. Think of all the fun possibilities!

For my creation, I used The Clear Stamp Butterflies Set along with the matching 6 by 6" stencil (you can see the bottom of this post for all the links!) When I saw the words Tell your Story and Journal and Create, I just knew I wanted to cover a journal with all of these pretties!

I started by covering my journal (just a $1 composition book I got at Target) with all kinds of aqua decorative papers. You can see in the top right corner, I used THIS Cover-A-Card Graph Paper background, stamping it in Memento's Teal Zeal. In the upper left corner, I just used the Layered Beads Template Stencil and some pearl acrylic paint that I sponged on. I have to tell you -- I love the glimmer this technique added. Photography really doesn't showcase it well enough. I think I will take an afternoon to make my own pearlized background papers thanks to these fun stencils!

For my focal piece on the journal, I used some of Impression Obsession's new dies. This one is meant to be used with the Shake It Pouches -- but I decided to be a rebel and use it for layering up this beautiful butterfly! This die is called the Circle Shaker Frame Die.  After I was done stamping my butterfly, I did accent the wings with a white gel pen.

Check out a few close ups!

On the butterfly above, you can see how I stenciled over the butterfly wing using the same pearlized acrylic paint!

And for the icing on top, I added these fun little butterflies to accent the ribbons I'll use to save different places in my journal. I just attached them to some seam binding ribbon thanks to a few glue dots. The butterflies are also a new die from Impression Obsession called Butterflies Die.
Want to see what the rest of the IODT whipped up using these fun new stamp and stencil combos? Hop on over and see.....

Julie Fei-Fan Balzer --- leave a comment here for a chance to WIN goodies!
Mitra Friant
Jeanne Streiff
Daniela Dobson
Laura Fulcher
Vicki Garrett
Jenny Gropp
Dina Kowal

Where can you find these goodies? Click for the links below! Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you back here soon!

Clear Stamp Bird Set 6x6 Layered Bird Scene Clear Stamp Flowers Set 6x6 Layered Flowers Stencil Clear Stamp Circles Set 6x6 Layered Circles Stencil Clear Stamp Butterflies Set 6x6 Butterflies Stencil Clear Stamp Tickets 6x6 Layered Tickets 6x6 Rubber Stamp Circles 6x6 Layered Beads Template

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