Color Therapy featuring Cottage Garden Alcohol Markers

Hello. Altenew is working a little color therapy in your life with some alcohol marker art on Instagram today.  I used the newer Cottage Garden set to create my "flame stitch" background. If you are not familiar with the term "flame stitch" I have included a photo below to show the stitch. The Cottage Garden markers also fell right in line with the Altenew Inspiration color palette.

I used a white panel of cardstock to create my flames with the markers. Then covered the panel with two-sided adhesive and sprinkled glitter over the panel, pressing it into the adhesive. I then ran the panel through my die cut machine with the Crossstitch Canvas die to give it a stitched look. Adding foam tape to the back of the panel I mounted it to a dark green card.

Using the Stencil Art: Natures Splashes add-on die set I cut- out four white leaf clusters, glued and stacked them together for dimension. Then using the Craft-Your-Life: Wings & Petals kit, I die-cut the larger butterfly from white cardstock and the base butterfly from velum coloring it with the Y301 alcohol marker. The greeting is from the Scripty Sentiments die set. The shadow layer was white cardstock that I colored with the G965 alcohol marker.

It was fun to think of different ways to use alcohol markers other than coloring Altenew's beautiful images traditionally.

One more with a different feel but still sporting a butterfly from the Hope Butterfly set.

 

I started with a Bristol Smooth top folding card for smooth ink blending. I die cut the leaf from the Nature's Splashes add-on die set, making a mask with tape. Then taped off the area I wanted to blend and chose three soft ink colors that matched the Cottage Garden marker set.

After removing the tape, I placed dots of C030 marker on the leaf edges to help define the leaf silhouette. I then stamped, heat embossed and colored the Hope Butterfly with the alcohol markers from the Cottage Garden set.

Using a rectangle die I cut the center of the card out and Heat Embossed the greetings from the Sulfur Cosmos set. Then popped the panel up with foam tape. So head on over the my Instagram @SentSue and hop along with us for some fun prizes. These cards also fit the gorgeous inspiration photo for the Altenew January Inspiration Challenge.

Altenew: A Year in Review

 Hey there. I just couldn't quit playing with the new sets from my Black Friday order and all the inspiration from the Year in Review challenge. 

The Zero-Waste Chocolate Flowers die and stencil has so much to work with. My card started with a white panel that I embossed with the Dotted Geo Cover die. Then using a greeting from the Sulfur Cosmos stamp set I heat embossed the greetings. April Leithner's color palette was my inspiration.

Altenew Inspiration

 Hello again. I just had so many new sets from this last order that I needed to play with. LOL. The Altenew Year in Review challenge helped with the inspiration.

Tenia's inspirational photo drew me in with the pink, orange and yellow. I used the Sulfur Cosmos stamp and stencil to create my card. This is one of my favorite color combos!

Altenew Happy-Mail Postcard

 Hey there. When Altenew sends out your order they include a fun postcard to color from one of their beautiful stamp sets. My latest card came with the Tulips & Friends set images. I hate to waste the coloring so I try to make it into a card and figured I would use one of the color palettes from the Year in Review Challenge.  I used my new Cottage Garden alcohol markers to color the image and Emily Midgett's color inspiration.

The sentiment is from the Scripted Sentiments die set.

I did a soft tone-on-tone stencil pattern from the Sulfur Cosmos stencil set on the card base.

Altenew Year in Review Challenge

Hello. This is always a fun challenge because you can go back and pick-out your favorite Altenew color palettes from the year to make new cards. I am working with Emily Midgett's pallette.

I started with an orchid panel that I ink blended with two shades of orchid ink. Then I ran it though my die cutting machine with the Dotted Geo Cover die. I then used a creamy, pale-yellow cardstock to die cut the Prickly Pear flowers and added a bit of ink to the edges, cut leaves and using the fabulous key-hole system glued the focal point together.

The greeting came from the Sulfur Cosmos set that I stamped and embossed using the same two orchid ink colors. I die cut several greetings from orchid cardstock and layered them behind the stamped image to give it dimension. Finally, I added a few clear Nuvo drops for accent.

Guess What? It Is Stamptember!!

 Hey there. I am super excited to help one of my favorite stamp companies, Simon Says Stamp, promote their biggest party of the year STAMPTEMBER!

I got to play with the new stamp set Lovely. I have always loved big, bold greetings.

SSS Lovely with Altenew Dainty Flowers

SSS Lovely and Sending Happy Thoughts

SSS Lovely and Altenew Fresh Freesia

SSS Lovely, Sending Happy Thoughts and Geo Flower Builder

SSS Lovely and Stampers Anonymous Modern Christmas

SSS Lovely and Simple Stencil Trio, Altenew Dainty Flowers

I hope you will check out all the fun new products from Simon Says Stamp for STAMPTEMBER. There are so many fun gifts with purchase that you can earn.

Altenew July Inspiration

 Hello. I love Tenia color palette this month for the Altenew Inspiration Challenge. Such bright, fun colors. Happy colors.

Stamps: Altenew Bamboo Rose and Sweet Bouquet

Stencil: Altenew Bubble Wrap

Extras: washi tape, Sequins and Nuvo Drops

Simon Says Stamps Monday Challenge is all about adding a sentiment to your project.

Signature Elements

Hello. I was thinking about what makes my card "read" Sue Symens? Can you tell I have made a certain card by just looking at it? Altenew July Inspiration Challenge has a designer that I have often admired her cards, and usually I can pick her cards out just by looking at them. Why? She uses signature elements.

Tenia almost always uses washi tape, staples, good amount of white space and an elevated image. I tried to think of what I use most on my cards. Whites space, raised panel, usually off-centered image and sometimes a washi flag or stripe of washi down one side. I am not sure what others see but those are things I used today to honor Tenia in my card.

Using Altenew's Captivating Blooms set to stamp my image on both the card base and the ink blended panel.

I was inspired by Carly's card I saw on Instagram this morning.

So, what are your Signature Elements?

Are there some in my cards that jump out at you? Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge is all about summer fun.  

 

Playing with Stripes

 Hello. I have made several cards lately using cardstock strips. Today's card was for the new Altenew June Challenge.

I used the Altenew Bold Alphabet dies along with the Indoor Garden stamp set. This was such a fun color palette to work with. The birthday die is from Papertrey Ink.

I went a little crazy...

 Hello. Sometimes when you get new toys you just can't quit creating. Speaking of which there is probably more to come with these great versatile dies from Altenew.

One of my cards that I made for last month's Inspiration Challenge got picked as a favorite. With the prize of $30 I ordered these dies. Great basics that will be staples in my collection. I created 3 cards today for this month's inspiration challenge.

My first card uses the Archways Die set and the Lable Love stamp set. I used a technique where I ink blend a panel then place an adhesive sheet over and add glitter, pressing it into the adhesive sheet to create your own custom glitter paper.

The next card was created by making a pixelated image of a hibiscus flower. I found this image online and using the Grid Cover Die I tried to duplicate a portion of the flower.

The greeting is from the Versatile Greetings set and the original image that I was inspired from is below.

 

It is funny but several of these dies have been on my wish list for a while. My final card for today uses the Window Sphere die, Bold Thanks die and the Archways die set.

This one was pretty straightforward with an ink blended panel and some die cuts. Just a small tip, you can use your die to get the right curve for you greeting with you stamp positioner.

The greeting is from Simon Says Stamp set Tiny Words.

Well that all I have for today it was so much fun to create all of these cards with the Inspiration photo in mind. Thanks for stopping by Sue.