Mini Monday #simplestamping make

Just realised I didn't share this little #simplestamping By The Bay beauty at the time... although I did mention it... 

Same as this narrow notecard here... but with the stitched rectangle and mat removed...

Gulls inked up in Gray Granite and Pumpkin Pie legs & beaks using markers... and background scene Aquapainter watercoloured using Pool Party & Sahara Sand... Greeting in Gray Granite too...

And here is a Narrow Notecard mini trio for you...

The middle sea shell one being shared here...

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By The Bay Trio...

So a By The Bay trio for you today... which rounds off my By The Bay week...

This stamp set is great for masculine, feminine, or gender neutral projects because of the realistic art style and serene imagery. It was designed with colouring techniques in mind, so break out your Stampin’ Blends, your Aqua Painters, or Blender pen, and get colouring! Or even without colouring... as demonstrated beautifully by the Thinking of You card (top left)

And I promise you that I have moved onto other stamp sets!!... but I have just caught out with a lack of photos taken and/or edited ... and a very busy few days!!!

But remember you can only get By The Bay with a £45 order during the Sale A Bration promotion (which runs now until 31st March but only while supplies last)... and it is yours for free!!

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She sells... sea shells... on the sea shore...

So... out of interest... is this (title) a tongue twister used all over the world? Or is it a UK only thing!!?

Another quickie Narrow Note Card  from the By The Bay display... greeting from Home to Roost as it was out and it seemed more relevant to the little scene... 

Now... initially... this image had me stumped... and I definitely didn't see a sea shell... but more on that another day...

And this one does qualify for the Stampin' Up!  #simplestamping challenge... simple little Gray Granite stamping of the sea shell and greeting on Shimmery White card... Aqua Painter watercolouring of sand and sea using Sahara Sand and Pool Party

Simple... quick... but effective little card... 

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Mini Monday - By The Bay #3

Thanks for all your lovely feedback on my By The Bay makes over the last couple of days... so I have another... though just a quick post today... but I will be back with more details on these makes shortly...

This lovely little Narrow Notecard (a product which I had forgotten about for a while!!)... features the gulls in the stamp set... and a bit of Aqua Painter water colouring...

All set on another of the Rectangle Stitched dies Shimmery White card die cut... as it is the perfect size for these notecards...

Really love these gulls...

And this also almost counts as a #simplestamping card... for which Stampin' Up! have given us the brief of...  stamps, inks and paper (aka card) on a notecard...  just the die cut rectangle that stops it meeting the brief then! Oh well... excuse for another day then...

Though maybe after I have finished by accounts and tax return!!! Why oh why do I leave it all so late every year!!

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Floral Statements Duo

Couple of simple little Floral Statements cards that I made earlier in the year ...

First up... Memento Black stamped HELLO image plus Aqua Painter water colouring... on a simply blank Very Vanilla notecard...

And second up ... a white embossed THANKS on a Crumb Cake panel...with a bit of Aqua Painter colouring in... mounted onto a Powder Pink mat and then onto a Thick Very Vanilla A6 card blank ...with a Powder Pink felt In Color Bitty Bow to finish off...

Actually this is the card that I made and then decided to start Whisper White aqua-painting before colouring in... as in this card here...

Watercolour Pencils #2 - Colour Blending

Another quick and simple card from my Watercolor Pencils Introduction class...   I am truly having great fun for this class and am loving coming up with different ideas on how to use your pencils... a real value investment in a box....

But wait... there is no purple colour pencil in the Watercolor Pencils box...

So instead... take your Pacific Point and Rich Razzleberry pencils and shade over each other before adding your water to blend them out... and this is what you get...

It will of course be different every time depending on how much of each colour you add... and what base you use ( I used Watercolor Paper with my Aqua Painter here) but these Helping Me Grow flowers are perfect for practicing a bit of blending... as the differences make the flower heads look all the more realistic...

And please ignore the "smidge"... I really should always take my photos before my classes...

And some Bonus Tips for you....

(1) I cut my Watercolor Paper down into 2" squares... that way I get 6 panels from each sheet... plenty to play around with... and a great size for making up into a small square card (10.5cm Square - or 4 1/8" [alternitavely 4 1/4" Square from US standard card size!])

(2) I used Memento Black ink as these stamps are photopolymer... and left the stamped panel a short while to dry just in case! Or dried off with the aid of a heat gun in class.... though I would always use Staz On black ink for watercolouring with rubber (ie wood or clear mount) I could also have used Archival Black ink... but again I would make sure things had dried just in case!

(3) in case you don't spot... the flowers are stamped to the bottom right corner of the Wisteria Wonder panel using Wisteria Wonder ink...

Candy Cane Christmas & Candy Cane Lane

So whilst I had the watercolor paper and aquapainter out... I had to produce another card...

Another cut out house from my favourite Candy Cane Lane papers...

Greeting same as on yesterday's birdhouse card too

Finished off with 3 trees stamped from the Candy Cane Christmas set... in Crumb Cake , Real Red & Early Espresso

Simples but very effective in the flesh...

Aqua Winking...and Birthday Blooms

Remember this card... well seeing as it was SO popular both here in the flesh and on Pinterest... I decided to re-make all the cards in the set for my class using the Aqua-painter and the Gold Wink of Stella....

And as I demonstrated the technique at class...a  new expression came to mind...  aqua-winking... lot easier to say than the following....

1. Scribble your Gold Wink of Stella on a clear block (or piece of plastic or ceramic plate or something smooth and slippy...)

2. Pick up your Gold from the block using your Aqua Painter and aqua-wink (watercolour) as required ... note just add a drop of water if you want the colour to be even more subtle!!

3. Go over with your Clear Wink of Stella if you want even more shine...

4. Use Staz On cleaner to clean your clear block when you have finished (as the gold stains!!)

Don't forget to paper tole the flowers too... makes a huge difference to these cards... though unfortunately somewhat too subtle to see on the photos!! So you will have to trust me...

SU! Supplies
Stamps - Birthday Blooms
Inks - Gold Wink of Stella, Always Artichoke, Mint Macaron, Pool Party, Archival/Staz On Black, Versamark & White embossing powder, Gold embossing powder
Tools - Aquapainters, Curvy Corner Trio Punch, Heat Gun
Papers - Birthday Blooms
Embellishments - Gold Bow Clips, Striped Mossy Meadow Cotton Ribbon
Card - Always Artichoke, Pool Party, Hello Honey, Shimmery White, Watercolor Paper, Thin Whisper White

Go here for the lowdown on which white card was used on which card... I am definitely still loving the Shimmery White card best for watercolouring and aqua-winking...