Feminine and Masculine Metallics!

Hello stampers!

Today's metallic challenge entries show just how versatile metallics can be to create both feminine and masculine cards!

First we have this gorgeous feminine card by Lyn Smith:

Lyn says:

"I started with the Cuttlebug embossed piece of plumber's weatherproofing tape (like thick aluminium foil with an adhesive back). I'd already coloured it with alcohol inks, so I built my card around this piece".

"I started with a cream card and sponged Tim Holtz Antique Linen ink on the edges. Next, I sponged the same ink onto an old dictionary page and distressed the edges. I also stamped the damask stamp from the Stampin' Up 'Friends 24/7' set randomly over the page, but you probably can't see the stamping as it's mostly covered up. I sewed this to a green piece of cardstock and distressed the edges, then sprayed the sewn piece with Bronze Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist. I attached my Cuttlebugged piece of weatherproofing tape to the left side of the sewn piece and added a strip of silver metallic braid along the top".

"I stamped a Scrappy Cat bird silhouette stamp onto white cardstock, then sponged it with Tim Holtz Shabby Shutters ink and added a Making Memories green gem brad to the large flower. I stamped the Prima frame stamp with Versamark ink onto black cardstock, then silver embossed it, cut the frame out and layered it over the bird image using dimensional squares. I added a metal hanger to the top with a green brad and tied a scrap of ribbon through the hanger. Stamped the EK success greeting and sponged it with Shabby Shutters ink and glued it into the metal frame, then attached it to the bottom of the Cuttlebugged weatherproofing tape with green brads".

"Lastly, I layered 2 Prima flowers and sprayed them with the Bronze Glimmer Mist and added a tiny pearl and a metal thingy to the centre!".

Next we have this man-tastic masculine card by Fiona Shultz:

Fiona says:

"I have made a birthday card, featuring a copper embossed Kaisercraft 'Rewind' stamp in the background corners, as well as copper embossing on the staples to match the background detail".

"I also used Tim Holtz 'photograph' component stamp on the tag and the middle layer (clear embossed), but also used the film strip edge of that stamp on some acetate to make my own film negative. I attached it using metal photo turns, and also included a photo anchor to the corner of my tag".

Awesome work ladies!

If you haven't already done so, pop on down to this post and leave a comment to be in the draw for my 600th post giveaway!

While you're blog hopping, check out some very exciting Darkroom Door news here.

And don't forget to come back here tomorrow for the next Gothic Arch challenge theme! :)

~Sarah~

600th POST!!

Woot woot! 

This is the 600th post here at Inkurable, so to celebrate, I'm giving away this great set of Gel-a-tins Alphabet stamps to one of my lucky readers!!

These clear rubber stamps are guaranteed for their quality and the set includes the full alphabet (not just what you see here in the pic).

All you need to do is leave a comment on this post by Midnight Sunday 28th Feb 2010 AEST and answer the following question:

If you had $1000.00 to spend on new stamping supplies, what would you buy?!

I'm looking forward to seeing your answers!

~Sarah~

Time for some more Metallics!

Hello stampers!

Can you believe - this is my 599th post! Woweee! I wonder what will happen at 600?

I'm here today to share some new metallics entries with you!

First we have this ultra cool tag from Jenene Evans:

Jenene says:

"First I cut a tag from a Craftworks metal sheet, punched holes, applied Metal Effects Copper paint, then Green Patina ageing solution. I Stamped a brick stamp from 'My Stamps' onto some of the background. After stamping with Archival Brilliance Graphic Black onto card the 'slightly altered' stamp (Art Declassified) and the Pear (Collections) with Cosmic Copper & boy (Stampotique), I cut out the shapes, applied some 'Moon glows' Startburst stain (Saxifrage Olive copper) around the edges and glued to tag. Lastly, I stamped 'X' (Darkroom Door) with Cosmic Copper to go in lilttle frame, and tied onto the  bottom of the tag along with some other embellishments".

Awesome Jenene!

Next we have this great card from Lynne Quinn:

Lynn says:

"I have cuttlebuged silver foil to look like rippling water, than added metallic ink, Ice stickles on the swan, and metal clips on both corners".

Looks great Lynne!

I can't wait to see what else lands in my inbox! :)

~Sarah~

Gothic Arch Inspiration - 21st Feb 2010.

Hi stampers!

Well, our Inkurable Stampers 2010 Gothic Arch Challenge is in full swing, with the first 3 of 24 challenges having been revealed! If you missed them they are:

* Butterflies

* Lace

* Crowns

If you haven't joined in yet - never fear! You can join at any time as the deadline is not until the 31st December 2010! If you'd like to know more information about the challenge, check out the details here. The 2010 Gothic Arch challenge is in addition to our regular monthly challenge. :)

At last count, we had 52 lovely arches in the group pool (you have to log in to see them all) and 31 people have joined the group so far! If you haven't joined yet, then pop over to our Flickr group and sign up! It's free, easy, and most of all, fun!

So, this week I have chosen 2 arches from the group to share with you all!

First is this stunning ATC sized Crown Challenge arch from group member "Smifferoo":

Isn't it just gorgeous??!

Smifferoo says:

"I stamped the HRH with one of the stamps from the 'crown princess' set by Delish Designs. Little girl image by Crafty individuals. I added some german scrap, and a definition of 'Royal' torn from an old dictionary".

Just Stunning!

Next we have this gorgeous Crown Challenge arch by Vicky Fernando:



So pretty!

Vicky says:

"The background was painted white, then stamped with white Brilliance ink & embossed with clear embossing powder, then painted over with watercolour paint. The dancer (Non sequitur) was stamped onto white watercolour paper, coloured in with gel pens, and mounted with foam tape. The "queen of hearts" is from Non Sequitur, chipboard hearts are from Collections (covered with Brilliance ink), & my crown (an old Studio Astarte clear stamp) was stamped onto shrink plastic using Brilliance pearlescent coral ink, & shrunk!".

Awesome Vicky!

I would show you more, but Flickr is being a bit temperamental today and driving me batty! 

Fore more fabulous Gothic Arch inspiration, head over to our dedicated Flickr Group and feast your eyes on the group pool!

~Sarah~

Even more Metallics!

Hello again everyone!

Here are the latest bunch of Metallic challenge entries!

First we have this card by Shirley Henry:

Shirley says:

"The card size is 14x14cms. I added tarnished brass distress stickles to the frame, gold cord and the square metal brads. Metallic rub ons were used on the chipboard butterfly".

"The Owl (Inkadinkado) was stamped onto white vellum and again on folded white square card. Turned the vellum over and coloured with crayons and aqua brush. Owl on the card was also coloured with crayons. and aqua brush using slightly darker colours".

"The vellum was attached with double sided foam squares. The frame was made using kraft card and cutting out the centre with spellbinder label die. Frame dry embossed with the forest branches folder. Tarnished brass distress stickles was rubbed over the frame for a metallic sparkle. Flourish is Grungeboard inked with walnut stain distress ink. Copper alcohol ink was then dabbed on top.
Flowers have tarnished brass distress stickles rubbed on".

"Chipboard butterfly was inked with peeled paint distress ink and metallic rub on in emerald was rubbed on. Ferns are punched. Gold metallic cord wrapped around bottom of frame a few times. Square metal stick on brads added to two corners and centre of one flower. Yellow pearls added to butterfly and top flower".

Wow Shirley - lots of Metallics on there!

Next we have this card by Helen Sherrock of New Zealand:

Helen says:

"I stamped gold clock faces on black card, then meticulously painted the hands off old watches, gold. I glued them on to the faces. I cut a piece of foil type stuff (known as "Punchinella" or "Sequin Waste") and joined that - along with a stamped butterfly (on gold metallic paper) to my card. I used brads which I painted to look aged and also painted faux rusting".

"I used gold stickers for the word "Dream" then added acrylic ageing to them. My butterfly is stamped then I used chalks and coloured pencils to emphasize it".

Nice one Helen!

Last but not least we have this tag from Chloe Schmitt:

{Photo Removed for Publication - Congrats Chloe!}.

Chloe says:

"I decided to alter a plain Kraft tag using stamping and a few other embellishments. I stamped the tree stamp (from Grant Archival) using black ink, then layered over that a Fancy Pants 'Love' stamp. I stamped this in Versamark and embossed with gold embossing powder. I also embossed a chipboard heart with the gold and added that alongside the tree image. To finish I knotted a metal key through ribbon and embellished with a button threaded with gold metallic thread".

Lovely work Chloe!

That's it from me for tonight! Keep those entries rolling in! :)

~Sarah~

More Metallics!

Hello stampers!

I'm back today with some new Metallic challenge entries!

First we have this ATC from Jeanie Callaghan from the USA:

Jeanie says:

"Over the last few weeks, I have made several pieces of painted paper using a wonderful tutorial shared by my online card group. Acrylic paints are used for this method and my preference is for the metallic paints. As I used the finished paper to make cards, envelopes, etc., I was left with lots of scraps of all sizes. My “Here Comes the Sun” ATC contains slivers from several of those painted background papers containing metallics, as well as some gold paper, and some silver painted tissue background paper that I have used previously. This is the first time I have used this large sun stamp. I used a Tsukineko ‘Brilliance’ archival pigment ink pad ‘cosmic copper’ to stamp the image".

Lovely work Jeanie!

Next we have this card from Tammy Ruddy:

Tammy says:

"I chose gold and metallic green as my colours. I stamped Hero Arts Antique Writing on Kelly Panacci paper and embossed with some random glitter gold powder I had in my drawer. I stamped Inque Boutique Majestic Flight stamps on white card and embossed with Zing metallic green powder. I mounted the paper and a random frame with ribbon on DCWV cardstock. I added mixed green and gold ephemera to the frame and tiny gems to the bird".

Very beautiful Tammy!

I'm looking forward to seeing more Metallic entries in my inbox! :)

~Sarah~

Gothic Arch Challenge #3 - Crowns.

Hi stampers!

It's Gothic Arch Sunday - OOPS - on Monday!! LOL! Sorry I didn't make it back to the blog yesterday, but I have been a busy little bee!

So, it's time for our third Gothic Arch challenge theme, and this fortnight's theme is CROWNS!

Crowns have been a popular image in stamping and scrapbooking for quite some time, and I bet that you all have at least one crown stamp in your stash! (I have heaps!). But never fear if you don't - you don't have to use a crown stamp on your Arch - as log as some sort of crown is on there somewhere that's cool!

So with all the crown stamps in my stash, you'd think I would have used a crown stamp on my arch - but nope! Not this time! LOL! Here is my example arch for this challenge:

The text background stamp and the fairy stamp are from Stampotique, and the tree branches and flying birds are Tim Holtz stamps.

I coloured the background using Aged Mahogany and Black Soot Distress Inks on a craft mat, and stamped the 3 stamps in Jet Black Stazon Ink.

I stamped the fairy onto white cardstock with Blazing Red Stazon (which I think is more pink than red, but hey, that's just me) and then outlined the details with a black Sharpie. I used Rock Candy Distress Stickles on her wings, and her crown is a Scrapware chipboard crown that I coloured with a silver Krylon pen. She was mounted to the arch using double sided foam mounting tape. Here is a close up:

The fence is Scrapware chipboard which I inked with Black Soot Distress Ink. I added some black German Scrap Border to the bottom of the fence for some added depth and detail.

The words were done on my computer, printed out, and then adhered to the arch. I then outlined each word with black pen.

Now it's your turn!

When you're finished, upload your Gothic Arch to our dedicated Flickr Group, and don't forget to include info about how you made your piece - I could choose your arch to showcase here on the blog next week!

Please note that the Gothic Arch challenges are in addition to our regular monthly challenge. If you're new to the blog and you'd like to know more about our year-long Gothic Arch challenge, check out the details here.

Happy Stamping!

~Sarah~

*** PRIZES FOR METALLICS CHALLENGE! ***

Hi stampers!

I bet you're all busting to know what's up for grabs this month! Well, wait no more! Here are the prizes that you could win this month by entering the Metallics challenge:

Major Prize:

A gorgeous paper crafting kit from Wicked Princesses - RRP over $50! Kit features some yummy Heidi Swapp clock stamps:

Inkurable Newbie Prize:

A gorgeous set of "Harmony" Rubber stamps from Darkroom Door:

Inkurable International Prize:

This very cute set of 3 Clearly Impressed "They Could Be Magic" stamps (which come with 3 colouring tips) from The Stamping Queen:

A big thanks goes out to our sponsors for offering such lovely prizes!

So what are you waiting for? Get stamping! :)

~Sarah~

SALE AT WICKED PRINCESSES!

10% OFF STOREWIDE!

This weekend only! Feb 12th-4th 2010.

Pop on over to Wicked Princesses to grab yourself a bargain!

~Sarah~

Our first Metallic entries!

Hi everyone!

I'm here today with our first two Metallic challenge entries!

First we have this card by Vicky Fernando:

Vicky says:

"I started by taking an old book page & wiping some Teal Stazon directly to the page. I then stamped the Darkroom Door image (from the door set) onto the coloured page using Jet Black Archival Ink. I took a small Stampbord piece & coloured it using the Teal Stazon ink, and I then stamped a portion of the same image using black Stazon ink onto the Stampbord. Using my craft knife, I scratched away at the surface of the Stampbord to reveal the white highlights, inked the edges with Encore metallic copper ink, and covered the block with Diamond Glaze".

"I added the stampbord piece to the stamped image, and layered the page to some teal coloured Bazzill Cardstock, inking the edges of same with the Encore metallic ink. I then added the copper coloured ribbon, and the thread".

"The words (from the Prague Darkroom Door set) were stamped onto black cardstock using the Encore metallic ink & covered with clear embossing powder. The edges were inked with the same ink and they were stuck using some foam tape. This was then stuck to a folded piece of dark green Bazzill cardstock".

Lovely card Vicky!

Next we have this piece by Jeanette Waters from the USA:

Jeanette says:

"I stamped the Fairy with Vintage Tea Dye Distress Ink and colored with Copics. The background is made using a designer paper with writing and I added the words Love and Believe. Then everything got distressed with Antique Linen and Vintage Tea Dye Distress Inks. Before adding the picture panel,
I distressed a gold candy wrapper and used it as a layer".

Great work Jeanette! What a cool way to add some metallic to your projects!

Stay inky stampers!

~Sarah~

TSQ's "Because I can" SALE!

The Stamping Queen is currently having a "Because I can" Sale! It's on now until Wednesday 17th of February, so pop on over to grab a great bargain!

There is 20% off the following lines:

• Art Declassified
• Cherry Pie Art Stamps
• Crafty Individuals
• Kaisercraft
• Stampsmith
• Sunday International
• Tuscan Rose

The prices of their magazines have been slashed as well so don't forget to check them out.

Follow this link to become a fan of TSQ on Facebook! There will be special deals for Facebook followers!

Enjoy!

~Sarah~

Please welcome guest sponsor Wicked Princesses!

I am pleased to announce that Wicked Princesses has come on board this month at Inkurable as a guest sponsor for our Metallics challenge!

Wicked Princesses is an online scrapbook store that was opened in 2008 but has recently been taken over by new owner (and regular Inkurable stamper) Krissy Christie!

Wicked Princesses specialises in scrapbooking kits to suit all sorts of themes and styles. They also have a range of embellishment kits, alphas, cardstock, stamps, and handmade flowers. Brands available instore include Sassafras Lass, Websters, Carolees Creations, Heidi Swapp, and Purple Onion Stamps just to name a few!

There is also a Forum, and a Blog so you can stay up to date with all things Wicked!

There is FREE postage on all Australian orders over $100, and they have Lucky Order # prizes every month!

Please join me in extending a great big Inkurable welcome to Wicked Princesses, and then pop on over and check out the store!

~Sarah~

*** WINNERS FOR THE PAPER ART DOLL CHALLENGE! ***

Hello stampers!

It's time to announce the winners of our paper art doll challenge!

Our prize structure has changed this year, so if you haven't read about it, or would like to refresh your memory, check out this post.

The lucky winners of the Paper Art Doll challenge are as follows:

Major Prize:

TANIA DAVEY!! The amount of work that went into Tania's paper art doll just couldn't be ignored! Fabulous work Tania! You have won a whopping 50 UNMOUNTED STAMPS from Paper Forest Designs!

Inkurable Newbie:

VICKY PHELPS!! Vicky's awesome Baby Goth Paper Art Doll was so cool and incredibly detailed! Way to go Vicky! You have won a $25 gift voucher from The Stamping Queen!

Inkurable International:

GIOVANNA FROM ITALY!! I just loved Gio's "Art doll in a Box"! Great work Gio! You have won a Photo Stamp of your choice from Darkroom Door!

Congratulations ladies!

Thank you to everyone who entered the Paper Art Doll challenge! I'm so glad you enjoyed getting out of your comfort zones and giving something different a go!

I'm looking forward to seeing your entries for this month's challenge!

Stay inky!

~Sarah~

THE THEME FOR FEBRUARY 2010 IS.........

METALLICS!

Your task this month is to create something (anything!) using metallic colours or metals in your design!


Dictionary Meaning: Me*tal*lic (adjective): of, relating to, or resembling metal or metals.

For example, you could use gold or silver inks and embossing powders, or you could use metal mesh or aluminium foil! Don't forget about copper, bronze, and even rusty metal! Anything metal or metallic goes!

Here is my example:

The background paper of my card was stamped with Darkroom Door ornate background stamp from the "Ornate Elements" set, and then heat embossed using "Pewter" embossing powder.

I used a silver Krylon pen to outline the background paper. I attached some beaded trim to the card, and wrapped some silver German Scrap border around the fabric part of the trim.

Here is a close up of the card:

I adhered a thin metallic silver ribbon to the centre of the top part of the card. I cut out a fairy collage image and attached a silver Making Memories Circular Tag Maker Rim around the outside, and then mounted it to the front of the card using double sided foam mounting tape.

Now it's your turn!

You have until midnight 6th March 2010 (Australian EDST) to send me your entries! Entries must comply with the challenge details and the participation guidelines set out in the sidebar to the right. As always, if you have any questions, please let me know!

I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone comes up with!

Happy Stamping!

~Sarah~

Gothic Arch Inspiration - 7th Feb 2010.

Hello stampers!

It's Gothic Arch day again, and time to share some of the inspirational entries that have been uploaded to our Flickr group! This fortnight's theme is "Lace", and we have seen lots of lovely lacy entries!

If you want to know more about our Inkurable Stampers 2010 Gothic Arch Challenge, check out the details here.

So far we've got 26 gorgeous arches in our group pool, and 28 group members! It's great to see so many people joining in the fun! Don't forget - it's never to late to join in! You have until the end of December 2010 to complete all your arches!

I've picked out 3 arches to share with you today!

First we have this lovely "Butterflies" challenge arch from Kathy Kristinnson from Canada:

Kathy says:

"My arch shape is cut from watercolor paper then coated with gel medium to add the gold tissue. I then rubbed it with Tim Holtz's Tea Dye Distress Ink".

"The flourishes are stamped with Jet Black Stazon and the stamp is from Inkadinado. The butterfly fairy is from iTkUPiLLI's. I then added a punched border by Fiskar's".

Gorgeous work Kathy!

Next we have this lovely "Lace" challenge arch by Shirley Henry:

Shirley says:

"I stamped mesh background stamp from The Art of Life set (Stampin' Up) a few times to cover the white arch, using Frayed Burlap distress ink".

" The tulips (Darkroom Door Essential 2) were stamped with Worn Lipstick and Peeled Paint. Four more tulip flower heads stamped and cut out. Two were adhered with foam tape to centre tulip slightly off centre for a 3D effect. Then one each on the other two flowers".

"White lace was sponged with worn lipstick distress ink. Pearls added to lace. Sentiment also from same Darkroom Door set stamped in worn lipstick and punched out with word window punch (Stampin' Up).  A smaller pearl was added to end of the sentiment".

Very pretty Shirley!!

Last one for today comes from Godelieve Tijskens of Belgium:

Godelieve created those gorgeous lace pieces by stamping and heat embossing in white onto Vellum.

Godelieve used the following stamps for her design:

- Darkroom Door (Plaid Background)
- Hero Arts (lace)
- Art Journey (girl, speckles, spiral sentiment)

Fabulous work Godelieve!

There's lot's more inspiration where these came from, so make sure you pop over to our Inkurable Stampers 2010 Gothic Arch Challenge Flickr Group and check out all the entries!

Happy stamping!

~Sarah~

Last minute rush!

Hi there stampers!

Not long to go until the deadline for our paper art doll challenge! You only have until midnight tonight (AEDST) to send in your entry!

I have quite a few new entries to share with you today, so get comfy! :)

First we have this "Pussycat Doll" (LOL!) that was sent in by Helen Sherrock from New Zealand:

Helen says:

"I didn't have a face stamp so used a cat face and made a Pussycat Doll! I stamped the cat face on paper, and stamped a cat label (minus the writing) for the body".


"I stamped 2 leaves as legs, then I drew a cat body around the stamps. I have put brads on her legs and shoes. I coloured her in with colour pencils, gel pens and used glitter glue for her hair. She has a pompom tail and black card with gel pens for shoes".

Great work Helen! (Now I can't help imagining it sing "Don't ya wish your feline was hot like me?"! Baahahahaha!).

Next we have a lovely art doll journal page by Gina from Italy:

Gina says:

"I printed template from enchanted gallery. I created the dress with black and fuchsia tissue paper, then I stamped it with a Toga stamp. I glued cotton hair and hand drew the face". 


"Then I glued her to my Moleskine, stamped background with Aladine hand-writing stamps and some flourishes from Toga stamps".

Nice work Gina!

Next we have an Art Doll Card by Joy Rumble from New Zealand:

Joy says:

"My paper doll was one I found in a Fairy book & I scanned it. I used a Darkroom door Daffodil stamp - only one whole flower,the rest all pieces cut out. I coloured them with water pencils, & have Dimensional Magic on the petals & leaves to represent dewdrops".

"Hair was coloured with Versacolor Topaz, as were the edges of the base card & other edges, along with Fluid chalk Chestnut Roan. Tree leaves (Rubbadubbadoo stamp) were that as well. Palm leaves are from Lucy's, colours are Evergreen & Encore (meltallic) Honeydew. Cuttlebug Goochie script was used on the brown card, Versa mark was swiped over the script & then Perfect Pearls "Sunflower Sparkle"  brushed on. Butterfly is also a Cuttlebug, Naturals, using coloured card coloured in with a tombo as were the rose & wee flowers. Wee Diamantes used for centres & on butterfly. The doll was also coloured in with a Tombo".

Lovely work Joy!

Last but by no means least is this Love-ly art doll by Karen Dimmock:

Karen says:

"In honour of my grand daughter Zara, I am calling my doll "My Valentine Princess", as Zara means Princess and she is my little Princess!".

"I downloaded a template from "The Enchanted Gallery", and coloured my doll with markers and a waterpen. I used some Stampin' Up stamps as well as some Tim Holtz inks, some flowers that I coloured with the Matisse inks and of course some Bling".

Gorgeous work Karen!

Phew! That's it for tonight! If I get any more entries before midnight I'll post them in the morning. Tomorrow will be a busy day on the blog! We'll have a Gothic Arch update, as well as our latest monthly challenge details!

Stay tuned!

~Sarah~

Baby Goth Doll!

Hello stampers!

Sorry it's been a few days since I've posted! Time just got away from me this week.

Today's entry was sent in by Vicky Phelps:

How cool is she??!

Vicky Says:

"I have hand drawn and hand painted my baby goth doll, and I have used random stamping all over the piece after she was cut out and assembled".

Here is the back:

Stamp used: Wrought Scroll from Stampington & Company, and Darkroom Door "Artist" rubber stamp set.

Very cool Vicky!!

Stay inky!

~Sarah~

Art doll in a box!

Hello stampers!

I hope you all had a lovely weekend, and are enjoying having your kids back at school (if you have them!).

Reminder - the challenges here at Inkurable now go from the 7th of the month to the 6th of the next month, so you still have 5 more days (including today) to send me your paper art doll! :)

Today's art doll in a box was sent in by Giovanna from Italy:

Gio says:

"I printed the template from The Enchanted Gallery. "I hand drew the face of the doll and stamped with Toga stamps, along with the arms".

"The skirt is made of several layers of paper tissue, stamped with Papermania stamps, to whom I attached a piece of lace".

"I stamped the tin box and the doll with a beautiful plate of stamps from Papermania, plus a stamp from Creative Expressions. Then I've covered it with wax from a candle and stamped to get an impression on it".

Gorgeous work Giovanna!

Now, if you're looking for some more stamping activities over the next ten days, then you might want to check out what's happening over at Scrapz.Biz:

Happy stamping!

~Sarah~