Christy says “Is it possible to have a clean haunted house?  I’m thinking this painting with bleach technique coupled with paper piecing is just the trick to make this haunted house comfortable for the ghosts and goblins.”

And I agree! Although maybe just one cobweb was left for aesthetics. :)

Here’s what she did:

1. Stamp the haunted directly on to orange cardstock with embossing ink, coat with fine detail black embossing powder, and apply heat to melt the powder.
2. Once this image is set, pour a small amount of bleach into a glass bowl, use a detail paint brush to apply the bleach to the area of the embossed image where you desire a color change.  (In this case, I chose the house siding.)  The raised embossed lines help keep the bleach from running into other areas, isn’t that the coolest?  This slight discoloration makes the house stand out just a touch from the rest of the layout.
3. While the bleach is drying, stamp the haunted house image onto white cardstock with black ink.  Using detail scissors cut out the eyes of the owl, bat, cat, and ghost, apply a little glue to the back and paper piece them directly on to the orange cardstock in the appropriate position. I instantly fell in love with those darling little white eyes peeking out from all directions.
4. Stamp the haunted house image onto brown cardstock and then again on yellow cardstock with black ink.  Carefully inspect the roof of the house.  Do you see the paper piecing?  Again using detail scissors cut out those portions of the roof and attach to the orange cardstock image with glue, making sure you line everything up properly.
5. Now stamp Hank on his Hoover image onto white cardstock with black ink and color.
6. The Halloween greeting was stamped on yellow cardstock and attached with a short piece of brown string around Hank’s neck. He is one proud puppy flying around the neighborhood spreading his Halloween cheer.
7. Layer the card with various cardstock and add a touch of goo at the base with the Martha Stewart border punch.

eat cake graphics stamps used:
3056-I Hank (the dog) on his Hoover
6037-S Haunted House

Christy sent this card in and I just love it! I think her use of black really makes things pop. And her sprinkled background truly looks like fairy dust!

She said that this card features an embossing technique used to create custom background paper.

1. Ink up the “Box of fairy dust” image with embossing ink and stamp 3 times down one side of the card.
2. Sprinkle fine detail clear embossing powder over freshly stamped images and heat dry.  Repeat this process on the opposite side of the card.  Although it doesn’t look like much right now, be patient!
3. Using foam applicators and various colors of Distress Ink by Tim Holtz ink all over the “just embossed” cardstock.  The clear embossing will now begin to pop off the paper as ink is applied.  When inking with the foam applicator always move in a circular motion and begin this motion off of your paper slowly working toward your paper.  This will eliminate any awkward square markings and leave behind a nice smooth color.
4. Then stamp the “Pixie Poppy” image and color with Copic Markers.  A few paper layers and die-cut embellishments give this card a little bit of magic.

Give this clear embossing technique a whirl, you will love it!

eat cake graphics stamps used:
1153-G Pixie Poppy
9048-C Box of fairy dust

Christy hand-crafed this journal using chipboard coasters – I think this is way more fun than using them for drinks!

The coasters were painted with Tim Holtz crackle paint and set aside to dry. The fence and Penny were stamped, colored with Copics, and cut out.  Once the coasters were dry the Pine Tree was stamped directly on the coaster that was being used for the front cover.  She attached the fence and sat little Penny just perfectly on the top.  The title was cut out of a magazine.

She says, “this will be the perfect summer journal for my daughter to record all her favorite camping memories.” I couldn’t agree more!

eat cake graphics stamps used:
1018-E Penny sits
6035-I Summer fence
7017-M Pine tree

Christy wrote…

This card was created for my daughter to send along to her grandma. Spending the night at Grandma’s house is always a treat and it will be fun to remind Grandma that she really IS magical and she really DOES make her granddaughter feel like a fairy.

The card uses the Gran’s got hot chocolate image, although the cups of hot chocolate were cut off and replaced with none other than Grandma’s best box of fairy dust. Isn’t it grand to alter images to create a special scene? And of course my daughter, who really believes she is a fairy was stamped with Pixie Poppy. The images were colored with Copics and cut out. The glittery silver ribbon was added with 3 heart brads to give the layout that added magical touch.

I love this card…makes me wish my grandmas were still here.

eat cake graphics stamps used:
1094-M Gran’s got hot chocolate
1153-G Pixie Poppy
9048-C Box of fairy dust

Christy wrote…

This card was an attempt to use coloring to demonstrate the movement of Stuart and his puppy. The first image was ever so lightly colored with Prisma Colored Pencils, the middle image was colored a little darker with Prisma Colored Pencils and Gamsol. The final image, giving the impression that Stuart and his puppy are right in front of you was colored with Copics. May this card encourage you to used various mediums to give images the idea of movement.

Once the images were colored they were cut out and placed in order. Going around the outer edges of the cut images with a black fine point pen made them just pop right off the paper. Appropriate shadowing and a few black dots gave a nice grounding effect. The ribbon used was a nice carry though of color movement. A few pieces of the same ribbon were cut and tied onto a large circle brad. The frayed tiny pieces were just the right touch. It was fun to brainstorm a new embellishment using what I already had.

What a great idea to go from faded image to vibrant one. I think the black outline really pulls things together and ties in nicely with the Dymo tape words. And of course it’s always nice to be able to use something you already have in a new way! Wahooooo!

eat cake graphics stamps used:
1074-G Stuart and puppy Scooter fly

Christy wrote…

A card to welcome all the discovery that can be made when warm weather arrives! The main image, colored with Copics, is Stuart the bug-ologist. He is standing on a layer of stamped stones, with some of the stones cut out and attached with foam squares for a more 3D effect. Joining him on this outdoor adventure is Aunt Annie & Jr Ant. Can you spot them? Any outdoor adventure isn’t complete without a cold drink for refreshment, so the bottled water image was fun to place just perfectly among the stone pile.

I just love the use of the black Dymo tape for the word “Discover” and the little frog that seems to have parked himself on Stuart’s head! Such a fun summer card!

eat cake graphics stamps used:
1132-I Stuart the bug-ologist
5009-G Aunt Annie & Jr Ant (set of 2)
9037-B Bottled water

Other stamps & supplies used:
Martha Stewart punch, Stamps by Judith

Christy told me she recently had some instruction in the “art of doodling” and for this project she thought she’d give it a try. The “hi” was hand-drawn using some of her new “art of doodling” knowledge. Using a masking technique a few Little Sylvie images were stamped around the greeting as if they were playing a game of peek-a-boo. The fairies were colored with Copics and it gave the overall card a wonderfully simple touch of color.

Doodling is so much fun – with pen in hand and a moment to spare, maybe a long phone call or sitting, waiting for an appointment… Now just think if that were channeled into something fun!

Great job Christy! Thanks for sharing your new found instruction in doodling art.

eat cake graphics stamps used:
1091-D Little Sylvie (a wee one)

This card celebrates love using “Main Squeeze” image. Oh don’t Herbert and Mildred look so happy.

Christy colored the image with Copics and adhered to the main card base with foam squares. The hearts around the edge were stamped and colored with Sakura Glaze gel Pen. Can you see the shiny coating the glaze pens create? I sure can. I think I’m going to have to try one of those markers myself!  The sentiment was attached with thread and a few frayed edges give the card a softer feel.

What a lovely card and adding those shiny little red hearts was a grand idea!

eat cake graphics stamps used:
1016-J Main Squeeze

Other stamps used:
Stamps by Judith

Christy says this card came about because of a silly joke, so the card sentiment of course could be changed to fit other occasions as well.

The image was stamped and colored with Copics.  The tiny graduation hats are computer generated, cut out, and glued to the heads of those intelligent robots. The black ribbon was added to the top and the 2010 is hanging down with a little yellow safety pin.

She adds, “While this is a silly card, its seriously filled with wonderful graduation wishes.”

Thanks for the project Christy. When I first drew these guys I thought they were just silly. Apparently I was wrong since they are all sporting mortar boards – this most certainly means they must have passed all their exams!

eat cake graphics stamps used:
1053-S The Boys (stick robots)

Going Going Gone! I don’t know about you but that’s how my time has been going these days.

Christy stamped Mr. Billingsworth inside the square appropriately displaying the idea of flying by. A simple masking technique was used to capture the portion of the Mr. Billingsworth she desired for each square. The squares were then cut out and layered with colored cardstock and adhered in order to the card base.

eat cake graphics stamps used:
1027-G Mr. Billingsworth

Other supplies used:
square stamp – Stamps By Judith