Just For Fun June Challenge

June snuck up on us and it is time for a new challenge at the Just For Fun Blog.  

Fellow designer, April Williams, loves different techniques and chose the theme of “Use A Stencil”

My card features a technique that April taught me.  It involves using a stencil and adding Color Bursts or Brushos.  You layer the stencil over your cardstock, sprinkle small amounts of the watercolor powders, then spritz with water.  Very carefully remove the stencil and let dry.  This makes a fantastic background.

The Stamptangle Dolphin from Just For Fun was colored with Tombow Markers and cut out.  I left a little white border to help it stand out more on the colorful background.  The JFF sentiment, Happy to Sea You, was inked with one of the Tombow colors, cut out with a circle die, and a second color run around the edge.

Head on over to the Just For Fun Blog for all the challenge details and more inspirational projects.  I can’t wait to see what you do with a stencil.

Here' To Warmer Weather

Since some of my followers are still buried in snow, here is a card to warm you up.  The same colors and Just For Fun images from my challenge post, along with a few additional ones, were used on this card.

An older frame image was stamped and sponged with distress ink and fussy cut.  The JFF Chambered Nautilus, Flip Flops, and Mother and Baby Dolphins were stamped on these cut out pieces and layered on a background created with Distress Oxide Inks.  The Stamptangle Seahorse and Sand Dollar were stamped in brown and lightly colored.  They were fussy cut and popped up over the other images.  The Happy to Sea You sentiment was added to the corner.

A little cording and various layers were added to complete this card.

Here is to warmer days.

Just For Fun March Challenge - Movement

Just For Fun Rubber Stamps Blog has a new challenge for the month of March.  The challenge theme is “Movement”!  Something on your card should wiggle, jiggle, slide, roll, flip or fold.    

There are so many different ways you can create movement on a card that it was hard for me to decide what I wanted to do.  I decided on a Waterfall Card.  I have always thought they look so fun but have never made one before.  This was my chance.  I chose a beach theme (Just For Fun has so many stamps for this) but you can use any theme and it really is a lot easier to make than it looks.  You can find a complete tutorial for one here.

The JFF Chambered Nautilus, Flip Flops, and Mother Baby Dolphins, and Palm Trees images were used on the flipping panels.  These were sponged with Distress Ink and layered on blue. 

The Summer Dreams sentiment from the Seasons Word Block was used on the pull down tab, along with the Stamptangle Seahorse, Sand Dollar, and  Pacific Scallop in the background.

The background was embossed with a Spellbinders’ folder and sequins, brads, and ribbon were added embellishments.

For more details and inspiration for this challenge, head over to the JFF Blog, here.

Just For Fun Rubber Stamps August Monthly Challenge

It is time for a new monthly challenge at the Just For Fun Rubber Stamp Blog.  The theme for the August challenge is

For inspiration, I decided to create my “stripes” with a die.  I die cut the top white layer with two different dies, creating the angled stripes and the oval center window.  This was sponged with red ink on the edges and added to a red layer, also inked on the edges.

The Lighthouse image from Just For Fun was stamped on watercolor paper and lightly colored with Zig Watercolor Markers.  This was die cut with an oval die slightly smaller than the window and added to the card center.

Head to the Just For Fun Blog for more inspiration and details.  We would love for you to join the challenge with your own striped creation.

Scenic Lighthouse

I am partial to scenic lighthouse images and Just For Fun has this lovely Lighthouse image.  It is a simple design and I decide to add just a little enhancement for this card.

The Lighthouse was stamped on watercolor paper.  Using Kuretake ZIG Watercolor Brush Pens, a little color was added to the sand, grass, and the lighthouse.  I did not want to distract from the image, itself.

I recently purchased a pad of Graphic 45’s Sun Kissed Design Paper and this was perfect for the background layers.  I love the sea turtles.

Thank you for stopping by.  Don’t forget there is still time to enter the July monthly challenge of Red, White, and Blue.  Get the detail and enter your project on the blog, here.

E. Marie

Split Sillhouette

I wanted to share an easy silhouette card.  Just For Fun has so many great silhouette images and today I used the Dolphins-Palm Silhouette.  It was stamped in black and I love to use my Tim Holtz Stamp Platform with these solid stamps.  You can stamp it several times to get a dark, crisp image.  It was cut into three rectangles, splattered and distressed, and layered on white rectangles.

The background layer was created by smooshing white cardstock into various spritzed Distress Oxide Inks on a craft mat.  After this dried, it was die cut with an old Spellbinders’ Frame Die.  The three image rectangles were layered on top of this.

Have a great week.

Beach and Coffee

Happy Memorial Day.  So many families are spending this long weekend at the beach so I thought I would create a card with a beach theme.  It is also time for the 2018 Spring/Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop so I mixed it up with a coffee theme, too.  Coffee is a vital part of my relaxing weekend.

I used the Coffee Background from Just For Fun Rubber Stamps.  It was inked with various Distress Inks to coordinate with the colors I planned to use for the sunset.  This was stamped first and then the same colors were sponged on top.  Darker blue and brown were sponged around the edges.

JFF's Adirondack Sunset image was stamped in brown twice.  The first image was sponged with Distress Inks to coordinate with the Coffee background.  On the second image the sun was sponged with Distress Ink and the chair was colored with Copic Markers.  These were both fussy cut and layered onto the inked image.

Using dark brown Memento Ink, the “May your day be filled...” sentiment from JFF was stamped on a white rectangle.  Distress Inks were sponged over and around it.  It was layered on blue, along with the Adirondack Sunset Image and then layered on top of the Coffee Background.  A small Sizzix coffee cup was die cut, sponged with ink, and added with fiber.

Have a wonderful week.

E. Marie

Waves, Bubbles, and Turtles

It has been a bit chilly so I am ready for some warmer beach time.  I’m thinking waves, bubbles, and sea turtles.

This card starts with the Loopy Loop Memory Box Die.  This was cut from white cardstock and layered on a large blue circle, cut with a Spellbinder’s Circle Nestability Die.

The Just for Fun Sea Turtle Seascape was stamped on decorative paper, then die cut with the Loopy Loop Die.  The center section was added to the center of the white die cut on the card front.

The same decorative paper was used for the card background.  The Voice of the Sea sentiment, also from JFF,  was stamped on the bottom of the card.  Some Hero Arts sequins from my stash were added.

Hope you have a fantastic week.

E. Marie

Not Lost

The new Lighthouse Silhouette is today’s featured image.  Instead of using the usual black for this silhouette image, I chose to use a dark brown.  The image was stamped with Rich Cocoa Memento Ink on decorative cardstock from K & Co.  This was die cut with Spellbinders’ Valiant Honor Card Creator Etched Die and ink was sponged around the edges before removing the die.  This was added to layers of dark brown and light blue.

The sentiment, Not All Who Wander are Lost, goes so well with the lighthouse, that guides the way.  It was heat embossed in light blue to coordinate with the light blue layer.

There are still a few days left to enter the current sketch challenge.  Find more information here.

E. Marie

Just For Fun September Challenge

It is time for a new challenge at Just For Fun Blog and for September we have a sketch challenge.

I decided to turn the sketch sideways and created this lovely sunset silhouette using one of Just For Fun’s brand new images, Seashore Grass Silhouette.  Distress inks were sponged onto white cardstock to create the sunset background and the silhouette was stamped in black with Memento ink.  Tiny Flying Birds were added in front of the sun.

The silhouette was layered on a piece of yellow and I stamped on part of the JFF Enjoy Life sentiment.  This was  wrapped with twine and knotted at the bottom. 

We would love for you to join the challenge and see what you create.  You can find all the detail on the blog here.

Also, check out all the new stamps in the Just For Fun store.

E. Marie

Needed - Beach and Lottery Ticket

Any teachers out there that have recently returned to work?  I know you can totally relate to the card I am sharing today. 

I created the background using some new Oxide Distress Inks, lightly spritzed with water on a craft sheet.  The color was picked up with a piece of cardstock, drying in between layers.  This piece was trimmed and layered on green and blue.

The Hammock in Palms image, from Just For Fun, was stamped in black on top of the background and colored with Tombow Markers.  The image was stamped a second time on white cardstock and the leaves were colored and fussy cut.  They were slightly curved and popped up over the first image.  This gave it some great dimension.

I used a fun JFF sentiment, Needed Immediately..., stamping it in a “beachy” color and layering it on green.

Teachers, we probably will feel more like this later in the school year, but it is always a good time to be at the beach.

E. Marie

Sunset and Shells

E. Marie here, posting a card of the beach.  I just spent some time at the beach with my daughters and had such a wonderful time.  I wanted this card to show everything I love about the beach – the beautiful colors of the sunset over the ocean and walking in the sand gathering shells.  Distress Oxide Inks were used to provide all the coloring by picking up a mixture of the spritzed inks from a craft sheet on kraft cardstock several times.

Once the cardstock was dry the main image, Tropical Sunset from Just For Fun Rubber Stamps, was heat embossed in black on a rectangular piece and added to layers of black and pink.  The bird and shells, from JFF's Beach Unmounted Sheet were also embossed in black on lighter colored scraps and fussy cut.   

These were popped up along the bottom of the card and the JFF sentiment, To Watch A Sunset..., was stamped in black at the top.

The color on the card was so fun to create and a perfect background for these images.

E. Marie

Just For Fun August Challenge

When you work for the school district and August sneaks up, you start trying to figure out where your summer went and what else you can squeeze in before the school year starts.  Definitely time for one more trip to the beach.

With the beginning of August, a new challenge at the Just For Fun Blog also begins.  Our team chose the perfect challenge theme for this month – Hot, Hot, Hot!  I can so relate to this as I am sitting in my house waiting for them to come install my new air conditioner.  I am also excited to spend time with my daughters at the beach soon, so that is what my card is all about.

Awhile back fellow designer, April Williams, showed me a colorful technique with embossing folders.  I used one of my samples to create the sunny background for this card.  I added various layers and a die cut with lots of open sections.  Then I added my stamped images and sentiment.  The flip flops, beach chair, and sunglasses all come from Just For Fun Rubber Stamps Beach Unmounted Sheet.  The sentiment is from their The Seasons Word Block.  I also added a few jewels.  Not sure if they are water droplets or sweat.

We would love to have you enter this new challenge.  You can find all the details and the link, along with more inspiration on the Just For Fun Blog.

 E. Marie