Turtle Love with Festive Friday #FF0077

Happy Friday! I hope you have had a good week!

Today there is a new challenge up at Festive Friday! We are celebrating International Polar Bear Day! If you are new to the FF Challenges, you can choose any three items (or more!) from our list to inspire your creativity. Your card does not have to be about polar bears, as you can see from my submission this week! For my card today, I chose blue, silver, water (via a stencil), and a sentiment from the list.

I started with a stencil from Brutus Monroe and used my DOX inks and blending brushes to mimic water. I then stamped Turtle Family (also Brutus Monroe) - both sentiment and turtles - in Hero Arts Intense Black and colored with Copics. I cut two circle rings from silver glitter cardstock and hooked them together. A few fun sequins, and the card came together quickly!

I hope you will join us for this challenge. Remember, you can choose any three from the list, for any occasion or theme! The challenge is open until Monday, February 15.  

For more inspiration, visit the rest of the FF Team:

Ann Schach

Beth McCullough

Sharon Hashimoto Burkert

Melanie Hungerford

Helen Jennings

Stephanie Lanzalotto

Melva Peters

Missing My Friends and Family!

Hello crafty friends!
I'm missing you all - and missing my family. Wasn't there just the strongest hope that summer and July would bring fewer COVID cases, and maybe some normalcy? Doesn't look like "normal" is even a thing anymore.

So my card today from Brutus Monroe fits perfectly with how I am feeling. That, and it's my last post as a DT member for them! I have loved the past four months - they went by so quickly!

The animals are nowhere in sight! It's quiet on the farm. I thought this was a cute way to say "Missing You." I used Farmhouse Friends, stamping in Raven ink, and I colored with Copics. I have a handcut stencil that I used for clouds -- I have probably had it for over 12 years! But it works like a charm and makes luscious fluffy clouds! I used a sponge dauber to make them. I cut one of the Farmhouse Friends sentiments apart and popped the words up with mini dimensional foam tape. I think it turned out really cute. This one is going to my sister!

Have a GREAT Fourth of July weekend, everyone!

Creating With the June Die of the Month from Brutus Monroe

This week some of the DT at Brutus Monroe are sharing projects made with the June Die of the Month: Flower Burst!

I knew when I saw it that I wanted it to have a sparkly background, so I paired it with some of the pink sparkle cardstock in my stash. I added some pearls to the flower center, and a sentiment from Extra Sentimental cut with the Circle Foundation dies.

It's a beautiful cover plate and can have many different looks. Check out the Brutus Monroe Facebook page and Instagram for more inspiration using Flower Burst!

Turtle-y Goodness!

Hello everyone!

I ADORE this month's Stamp and Stencil of the Month from Brutus Monroe! I might be a little biased, as I have a pet turtle. You can read more about him later in the post. But first! Let's get to my card for today, which is full of cuteness and sparkly goodness!

This adorable turtle duo is the stamp for the June Stamp Club Membership. I love having a little something new each month, and this membership takes care of that! And it's only $5 including shipping! 

I stamped my image with Raven Detail Ink, and then colored in with alcohol markers. I fussy cut them out, and popped them up on the beautiful shell stencil from the Stencil of the Month Club. I used two Simon Hurley ink colors: Clear Skies and Minty Fresh. Perfect colors for the sea! 

And here is my sweet turtle, Raph. He is Raphael the Ninja Turtle and is a red eared slider! He is about the size of a large salad plate. We have had him for over 25 years. 

 Thanks for stopping by today! I hope to see you back soon!


 

A Sparkly Birthday Greeting with Brutus Monroe!

Hey all! 
Today I am sharing a sparkly birthday greeting with Key Lime Glitter Glaze, Mixed Media Tread Stencil, and a sentiment from Super Sentimental -- all from Brutus Monroe!

I used a part of the stencil with the glaze. I stamped my sentiment and hearts with VersaFine Clair Nocturne ink. I added a purchased flower from Prima and some black satin ribbon for embellishments. A simple greeting with some zing!

Let's Shellebrate!

Hello friends!

Today I am sharing images from the adorable SEA YOU SOON 6x8 stamp set from Brutus Monroe. Such fun images and so many things to compliment the set.....like the gorgeous SEA SPARKLE 6x6 paper pad. What amazing designs to create your underwater scenes!

I stamped on PERFECT BLEND ALCOHOL MARKER CARDSTOCK with RAVEN DETAIL INK, and then colored my mermaid with alcohol markers.

I used two of the paper designs with my mermaid, and added a few metallic sequins here and there for added sparkle. You really must check out all of the mermaid and underwater goodies, because there are so many fabulous products!

Shop HERE!

My inspiration came from this week's Color Throwdown:

 

A Special Day

Before I share my card today, I want to recognize the special day that it is here today in the USA. Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States for honoring and mourning the military personnel who had died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Thank you to all of our military families who have sacrificed for our freedom!

It is also my mother-in-law's 90th birthday! What a milestone. And a wonderful lady!
So today I made a thank you card honoring both special days.

I started with several DOX inks and my blending brushes to create a circular rainbow background. I then stamped the tree from TREE OF THANKS with Raven ink. I used a couple of pieces that I had cut from the bottom of the blended ink panel to "ground" the tree. I blended another piece using blues and greens, and stamped one of the Thank Yous. I then cut it out using a Foundation Circle and attached it to the card with foam tape.

What do you think?

A Conversation About Rainbows

Rainbows: A Symbol of hope and love, and a bunch of HAPPY color! I have always loved the colors of a rainbow together. I have moved to a brighter palette than the primary colored (ROYGBIV) ones, because I love pink, but I love those too. I have since I was little. I think right now rainbows are making everyone feel like there is hope.

This week on the Brutus Monroe team, we all made projects with a wide rainbow spectrum. It's really fun to see all the different projects and how fabulous they are! Today I am using the CONVERSATION DIE, several different watercolor panels, and a sentiment from SUPER SENTIMENTAL.

I had six different panels that I watercolored, and cut each with the die. I had a ton of fun fitting all the different colors in, and deciding the placement of each watercolored section. Once the pieces were all glued in, I stamped the sentiment in the lower left "speech bubble." I added a colored sequin to match each section, and then adhered them to different sections so they would show up. The entire panel was then mounted on a white cardstock base.

What do you think? It's a fabulous die with so many possiblities! I can see it with some fun shaker mixes too!

Artist Trading Cards with Brutus Monroe!

Hello everyone! Today I am sharing some of those FUN Artist Trading Cards - or ATCs! If you have never made them before, it's just like a miniature canvas for your art. And -- you can add them to a card later if you want! I have a binder or two full or them from stamping friends over the years, and they are so fun to browse.

Today I am using one Mixed Media stencil - GEARS - and making two different styles. I used sentiments from TREE OF THANKS. One style uses APRICOT GLITTER GLAZE in the background, and the other uses blended inks to look like mixed metals. 

 I taped my stencil down on white cardstock and applied the glaze with a palette knife. Once dry, I stamped two sentiments on vellum and embossed using RAVEN embossing powder.

On the second duo, I used a Blending Brush for the blended ink background, and PENNY embossing powder for the sentiments. I added some Penny EP in a few places on the cards, and then used Copper Metallic cardstock for the mat.

Do you like making little mini masterpieces? They are 2.5x3.5 inches and so fun to make!

Let's Shake It Up Under the Sea!

Today I am going to highlight one of my favorite techniques - a shaker card! That plus a little mixed media makes me super happy when I am creating.

I am using the Fish Bowl 4 x6 stamp set from Brutus Monroe for my images. I started out by doing a light watercolor wash for my background in blues and greens. While that was drying, I applied Key Lime Glitter Glaze to a chipboard Under the Sea panel. I sprinkled some blue glitter from the Tropical Collection Glitter Set into the glaze, and used a palette knife to spread it around.

On my watercolor panel, I traced the inside of the glittered frame, and then arranged my fish inside the frame. I stamped in Raven ink and then colored in my images using alcohol markers. To make my shaker, I cut a piece of acetate (I used to be a teacher, and actually use transparencies for overhead projectors!) to fit my frame and attached it using Tissue Tape. I added foam tape around the edges to hold in my shaker mix.

Now here is where people differ on their shakers. Some put the mix in the top and add the bottom panel, and some put it in the bottom and add the acetate panel. It doesn't really matter; whatever is easiest for you! I had a mixture of sequins, confetti, and teardrops in "sea colors" in my stash, so I used that for my shaker mix.

I decided the front of the panel needed "something," so I found some jewels and sea buttons in my stash. I cut off the back of the button, and hot glued everything to the front. I tried white glue and glue dots, but they didn't stick as well as I wanted them to, so my Glue Gun came out!

The fish and sea creatures in this set have such personalities!

I loved creating this mixed media underwater shaker scene, and I know the recipient will have fun with it - it's going to my granddaughter, who loves the ocean! All the products from Brutus Monroe make creating so easy and fun!

Do you like making shaker cards? Leave me a comment and a link, so I can come visit and see yours!

Challenges:
Colouring in Scrapland - ANYTHING GOES/OPTION SPLASHES  
Get Creative Challenges - #91 MAKE IT SPARKLY

Creating With Surface Sprays

I love mixed media creations, and today I am sharing a card using Surface Sprays from Brutus Monroe!

The colors I chose today are Aubergine and Cabbage. I love purples and greens together. I sprayed loosely across my cardstock and let the colors run where they pleased. The depth of color changes depending on the amount of spreading that the colors do. Once it was dry I embossed with an embossing folder for some additional texture.

I found the little flowers and foliage bits in my "save for later" drawer, and they matched perfectly. I added an enamel dot to the flower center. The sentiment from Cozy Coffee is embossed and is perfect for the mixed media background. I added a little strip of black and white patterned paper for interest.

I love it! It's fun art that I let go where it wished. That's creativity - and good for the soul! You can shop the sprays HERE.

Birthday Bears from Brutus Monroe!

Hello everyone! 
I tend to make all occasion cards the most, so that they can be tailored to whatever I need it for. The one occasion I make the fewest of is birthdays. Isn't that crazy? You can always use birthday cards. I guess the ones I send say generic things like "For You" or something. 

Well today, I have an ADORABLE little bear with balloons to share -- and a sentiment for a birthday!
This little guy is from BIRTHDAY BEARS by Brutus Monroe. There are four bears and a cute bunny, along with birthday items and cute sentiments!

I also chose a happy rainbow patterned paper to go with my bear. It's from the Bold Rainbow Paper Pad 6x6. Super bright and fun!

I stamped my images with Raven Black ink on white cardstock, and then colored in with alcohol markers. I love his little heart cone! This is already on its way to someone to tell them Happy Birthday and "make a wish!"

Shop HERE for all your Brutus Monroe products!

Spread Joy, Not Germs! It's A Blog Hop!

My hope for you today: That you can forget about everything worrisome, scary, sad, hard, and crazy, and fill your tank with color, inspiration, creativity, and JOY! That's why my blog is called Joy in a JAR. My intials are JAR and this is my little haven of joy - papercrafting! 

What a wonderful opportunity to be a part of this blog hop. Thank you to Catherine Pooler Designs and The Hedgehog Hollow for the organization and work that has gone into this hop! It's going to be AMAZING. 

If you are here from CRYSTAL KOMARA's blog, you are in the right place. If you get lost, the full hop list is at Catherine Pooler Designs and The Hedgehog Hollow (links above). If you started here, keep going around! There are sooooo many prizes to be had and just spectacular projects to see. Read on to find out about my giveaway, and how you can be eligible to win one of the sponsor prizes!

I am sharing a joyful coffee card from Brutus Monroe's Cozy Coffee stamp set. I started by making a watercolor background with Frayed Burlap and Weathered Wood DOX ink.

My images are stamped with Raven ink and colored using Copic markers. I LOVE this ink for coloring. It's dark, clean, and doesn't smear. I added some fun embellishments from my stash to accessorize my cup.

We have 31 Sponsors!! Prizes will be randomly drawn from all the blogs and all the comments. Leave as many comments on as many blogs as you can! Some of the companies are offering discounts and freebies, so keep hopping!  

Deadline to enter is April 24 for prizes. Winners will be announced on Monday, April 27 on Catherine and Alexandra's blogs.  Remember to leave a comment to be entered in the prize drawings! Brutus Monroe is giving away a $50 Gift Certificate!

My GIVEAWAY -- I am giving away a jar of Rainbow Sparkle Embossing Powder from Brutus Monroe! Random drawing from all comments.

Next up is the super talented Amber Trubiak! I know you will LOVE what she has in store for you. Happy Hopping!

No Probllama with Chroma Glaze!

Today I am sharing my favorite color - PINK! And if it can't be giraffes, then it should be goats --- or LLAMAS! 

I am using PUNCH CHROMA GLAZE from Brutus Monroe. This glaze is so easy to work with. You just need some kind of spreader (I have used old credit cards, hotel keys, palette knives, and plastic silverware!). I started by taping my stencil to my craft mat. The stencil I chose is RANDOM DOTS. The different sizes and placement just seemed to fit these zany llamas.

It has a beautiful shine to it and dries pretty quickly. I would suggest air drying, because it can lose some of the shine with a heat gun. That intense heat changes the texture and look somewhat, so I prefer to let my glazes and pastes dry naturally. 

The llamas are from the LLAMA FRIENDS stamp set. Super cute with five different llamas and four sentiments:

I stamped with Raven Black ink, and then gave them some highlights, and a touch of pink to match the background, with alcohol markers. I embossed the sentiment on vellum with Raven Embossing Powder. A few sequins and some silver thread for bling, and it's ready to send! What do you think? Pink Llamas for you?

You can shop for all Brutus Monroe products HERE.