from my ink pad to yours: Vibrant Vases

April 08, 2020

It's Really Just All About the White Space

Today I'm here with a brand new, exciting blog hop group: Around the World on Wednesday. What fun! Though I've long appreciated that fact that Stampin' Up! is an international company, that seems even more special now as we all work together - and alone - in our own ways to get through these difficult days. So, I'm excited to share with you all and then to point you towards some friends around the world that share my passion for papercrafting.

This month's theme is "All Things Crafty" - things I need for my creativity. Hmmm? My first thought is everything in my craft room? Well then, what was the first thing I HAD to stock up on when faced with staying home for possibly weeks? White cardstock! 3 packs! So that's it. I need white space. When I look through some of my favorite work, it usually has quite a bit of white space. Today I'm going to share a couple of cards using a favorite sketch that show that white space is anything but plain and boring!

Both cards use the stamp set Vibrant Vases:

This is my latest version, featuring the Ornate Garden Specialty paper, Ornate Floral embossing folder and Gilded Gems, along with the Vase Builder Punch and the Vibrant Vases stamp set.

I just had to do an extra photo so you could see the pretty sparkle of the Gilded Gems and Gold Foil AND the beautiful texture of the Ornate Floral folder.
The pretty Mint Macaron with gold foil filigree specialty paper provides the theme for the overall look of this card. I used it for both my border and vases.
The foil used as the "surface" in my circle is run through the embossing folder and then turned 90 degrees and run through a second time giving it a textile type texture. I butt the embossed gold foil piece up to a piece of Whisper White thick and apply regular tape from the back before cutting these with the largest Stitched Shapes circle die.
I backed up the circle and the vases with extra shapes so these pieces are quite firm.
Stems in the filled vase are also from the Vase Builder punch.
One of the things I really like about this layout is that the measurements aren't fussy. You need some strips cut to the measurement of your card height for the border and another strip cut the width for your sentiment. You can vary the width of these as you see fit.

Here is the original card I "cased". I first designed it while I was part of the Dirty Dozen Design Team over on Splitcoaststampers last year. We created projects that could only be shared with their fan club for 6 months. Since I haven't yet shared it on my blog, today is a good time to share it here since it was the starting point for the first card.

I used a retired Simple Stripes folder for my "surface" since I didn't yet have the Pinewoood Planks folder which would be another good choice. Pinewood Planks is current as I write this.
I was working from a inspiration photo of traditional looking blue and white vases and was thrilled with the contemporary spin lent by the See a Silhouette Designer Series Paper. The solid vase in the middle is just the back side of the pattern with the white stripe-ish pattern.
The greens were cut from Granny Apple Green with dies from Bouquet Bunch.

Bonus alternate:

That's it for me today. Please continue on the blog hop and check out my friend, Anne Marie Hile:

Angela Meiritz-Reid - NZ

Tatiana Tobin - AU

Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU

Cheryll Miller - AU

Satomi Wellard - JA

Melissa Gifford - AU

Danielle Kassing - NL

Manuela Geiswinkler - AT

Ximena Morales - DE

Aurélie Fabre - FR

Mikaela Titheridge - UK

Chris Smith - US You are here!

Anne Marie Hile - US

Brenda Nelson - CA

Tricia Butts - US

Elaine de Montmorency - CA

Sharon Burkert - US

Teri West - US

Cheryl Hamilton - US

I so appreciate your time as you visit my blog. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

Check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link at the top of my blog. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

***If you don't have a Stampin' Up! demonstrator I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog. Clicking on any of the items in the product list below will also bring you to my shop.

Please note that as of today, Stampin' Up! continues to ship product at this time of so many shutdowns. The shipping time may be considerably longer as they make adjustments for the safety of their employees. Please allow extra time for your order to arrive. If time is of the essence, you may also take advantage of their express shipping as you place your order.

Chris

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the April host code, TJ6Y3ZQG, I will send you a free gift (Noble Peacock Rhinestones or alternate) that will be featured in coming projects. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.

Product List

Vibrant Vases Photopolymer Stamp Set

[148656]

Versamark Pad

[102283]

Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder

[109129]

Heat Tool (Us And Canada)

[129053]

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock

[140272]

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[100730]

Gold Foil Sheets

[132622]

Ornate Garden Specialty Designer Series Paper

[152488]

Ornate Floral 3D Embossing Folder

[152725]

Subtle 3D Embossing Folder

[151775]

Vases Builder Punch

[147040]

Stitched Shapes Dies

[152323]

Uninked Stampin’ Craft Pad & Whisper White Refill

[147277]

White Stampin' Emboss Powder

[109132]

Blueberry Bushel 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[146968]

Granny Apple Green 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[146990]

Gray Granite 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[146983]

See A Silhouette Designer Series Paper

[149443]

Brick & Mortar 3D Embossing Folder

[149643]

Simple Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

[150034]

Bouquet Bunch Dies

[143659]

3/16" (1 Cm) Braided Linen Trim

[147808]

Pinewood Planks 3D Embossing Folder

[152320]

Posted at 06:00 AM in Daisy Lane, Vibrant Vases | Permalink | Comments (21)

March 25, 2019

Vibrant Vases but Subtle Colors

Here we are in the last week in March. And, it's my last week as a guest designer for the Color Challenge at Splitcoaststampers. The colors this week are Powder Pink, Soft Sea Foam and Early Espresso. Dessert, which is always optional, is designer series paper.

I have collected all of Stampin' Up!'s designer series papers in the color groups. The dots and stripes in these papers work for color challenges and can also be combined with papers in other designer series paper collections. For this card I chose Soft Sea Foam Stripes with Early Espresso dots and wrapped them up with a Shimmery ribbon in Powder Pink.
My focal point is a vase of flowers from Vibrant Vases.
The vase and flowers are both stamped in Early Espresso. I used the Dark Soft Sea Foam Blends to color the vase and flower outline.
The flowers have a 2 step type set up. I stamped the solid flowers in Powder Pink, then darkened the centers a little more with the Powder Pink marker.
The Vase Builder punch is great for punching out the vases in this set. I trimmed out the flowers.
I used a Whisper White stitched shape cut with a Stitched Labels Framelits die, as the base for my vase.
A few Artisan pearls finish off the card.

I had kind of a tricky time photographing the soft colors in this card, since didn't have daylight available. To try something different without my usual pale wood background, I put a few sheets of vellum over a sheet of pink rose paper. I'm not sure which picture I prefer but I think I have one more idea in my card photo bag of tricks.

I so appreciate your time as you visit my blog. Let me know what you think and come back again soon.

Chris

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the March host code, YDZJFZWA, I will send you the free gift of product that will be featured in my April projects. March orders are also eligible for a free Sale-A-Bration item . US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my March thank you card.

Product List

Dark Soft Sea Foam Stampin' Blends Marker

[148058]

Posted at 11:29 PM in Vibrant Vases | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 08, 2019

Beyond #simplestamping with Vibrant Vases

Today I am back where I left off a few days ago with Vibrant Vases. Same vase. Same flowers. And more Night of Navy. In fact, you could almost call this a celebration of Night of Navy. I've used it in all three cards I'm sharing today, some for a few challenges. Here's the first:

So this challenge calls for a clean and simple card with a bouquet.

This Vibrant Vases bouquet is done much the same as Tuesday's card but it is monochromatic, in other words all in one color, Night of Navy. I still used my "faux watercolor" technique of stamping light shades of the bouquet flowers to look a little like a light watercolor background.
I was actually using up a scrap which wasn't big enough for the whole front. So...
...I layered it and added a piece of trim I've had hanging on my "odds and ends" board. It was made with the Delicate Lace Edgelits die and I only let a portion of it show. I thought it kind of mimicked the design in the vase.

The Global Design Project is the challenge I drew upon my next card.

Once again, I used Vibrant vases and pulled something else from my odd's and ends board: an "L" shaped piece I had previously cut from a lovely Garden Impressions piece of paper.

I've made several cards with this layout with the "L" shaped border. Maybe it would even seem a little like a "garden path".
This time I thought the border would look good with the stitched tiny scallop edge from the Be Mine framelits. This set of framelits is getting a lot of attention during February with its variety of heart shapes. This little border shows that the set will have a lot of use even after the Valentine season is over.
The stamps in this set have two parts: outline and solid to fill in the outline. At first I tried just the solid in Crushed Curry. It was OK but I think it does look better with the Night of Navy outline.
The vase is stamped on a white scrap, punched out and popped up with a Stampin' Dimensional. The vase also has two parts the outline and the "solid" stamp. I used Night of Navy for both but stamped off the solid stamp so that I could get a lighter look.
The line under the vase is also a stamp in the Vibrant Vases set. It is great to keep your vase from seeming to float on your card.

After using this trio of flowers in a vase for a few cards I started to wonder what they would look like without the vase. I guess you could say this was my self imposed challenge. I practiced on a piece of scratch paper and determined that they would fit in the corners of the largest Stitched Shapes square.

The only way I could get a greeting from the Vibrant Vases set inside the bouquets was to turn the square so it had a diamond orientation.
The "roses" are stamped with Night of Navy and colored with the light Night of Navy and Balmy Blue Blends markers, along with the light Granny Apple Green on the leaves.
I added a little more texture with a piece of Whisper White embossed with Tin Tile.
Using Night of Navy means it's an opportunity to use some of my favorite ribbon: the 1/2" Night of Navy Gingham. My desire to incorporate the ribbon led me to trim off one corner of the floral piece. I just had to make room for the bow!

Do you like to use challenges when creating your cards? There are a lot of them out there. It can be hard to keep track of all of them so I track the challenges I enjoy using on a Pinterest Board: Current Challenges. I try to update it every day or two. Those pins near the top are the most recent, though you can be inspired by the older challenges too. Check it out and play along with some of them!

I really appreciate that you have taken time out of your day to visit my blog. Let me know what you think and come back again soon!

Stampin' Up! catalogs can be viewed with the Current Stampin' Up! catalogs link at the top of my blog. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

Chris

***If you need a Stampin' Up! demonstrator I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the February host code, 2MRXBEJM, I will send you the Glitter Enamel Dots . February orders also earn a free Sale-A-Bration item . US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my February thank you.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.

Product List

Posted at 12:09 AM in Vibrant Vases | Permalink | Comments (8)

February 05, 2019

#simplestamping with Vibrant Vases

I'm back from Arizona and it has been snowing since before I woke up. So it is a great day for stamping...and faux watercoloring! I checked out one of my favorite challenges over on Splitcoaststampers, the Color Challenge and saw this elegant combination:

I decided to play with Vibrant Vases for this challenge. I'm not sure I can quit at one card but for this quick post we will just look at first. I have some thank you mail to get ready to go out tomorrow.

I cut a skinny 3/8" strip off of the right side of my Very Vanilla card base and then layered a 1/2" strip of dotted paper from the Neutrals 6" x 6" DSP (Night of Navy) on the inside right edge. The DSP is on the edge of the part where you write or stamp your greeting.
The vase, greeting and flower outline are stamped full strength in Night of Navy.
I inked the corresponding "solid" vase stamp with Night of Navy but stamped off on scratch paper before stamping over the outline vase.
The solid flowers were stamped in Blushing Bride - at full strength.
After cleaning the solid flower stamp, I inked it again with Night of Navy ink and stamped it on scratch paper 3 times before stamping 3-4 times over the vase and the area around the vase. Though you can still see some of the flower detail I think it looks a little like puddles of watercolor. Very easy faux watercolor!

( I suppose I could add a few stems...)

I really appreciate that you have taken time out of your day to visit my blog. Let me know what you think and come back again soon!

Chris

***If you need a Stampin' Up! demonstrator I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.

Product List

Vibrant Vases Photopolymer Stamp Set

[148656]

Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad

[147110]