Impression Obsession - more September products

We've got more projects to share from Impression Obsession's newest release! Again, I'm so excited to be able to share these new IO products with you! 
This is another stencil that I designed for IO - the full design has 3 rows of these trees but I blocked off just one for my design here. I used masking tape to isolate the trees, covering up the little star tips with little bits of washi tape. The trees are inked with Distress Oxide inks, then splattered with some dilute gold pigment ink. When that dried I removed the tape and used sharp colored pencils to color the stars and tree pots. 

I made sure my trees would match the striped paper from the new paper pad - this is basically a swatch sheet of the colors in the collection! I had this metal eyelet bar in my stash from 100 years ago, and it was a perfect fit there, so I pulled out the old tools and added it on. 

One more project using the paper pad - I made these earrings using the snowflake paper in the collection! The glass pieces are 12mm across, and these snowflakes were a perfect fit. Another idea for upcoming craft shows! I have a tutorial on SCS here.

IO Products:

STEN007-A1 Christmas Tree Stars stencil

PP008 Winter Fun paper pack

September 15th & 16th the Impression Obsession Team will be sharing  projects with NEW September Release stamps, dies, stencils and paper packs! You can find a list of participants on the Impression Obsession Blog each day. We will be giving away THREE Impression Obsession Gift Certificates for the event, so the more you comment through our Release Celebration the more chances you'll have to win!  Comments for each of the event days will be open until Tuesday September 20th at 8pm CT, and our winners will be announced on Wednesday September 21st on the Impression Obsession Blog.

Here is the link list for the rest of the projects - lots to see! Enjoy, and have a great day!

IO Stamps Blog

Angela Bode

Anna Wight

Dina Kowal <<<<<< you're here!

Giovana Smith

Jeanne Streiff

Laura Fulcher

Laura Williams

When you shop through the affiliate links used here, the company sends a small commission my way at no cost to you as thanks for the referral.
It's a lovely way to partner with these companies that mean so much to our creative community. Everybody wins!

Impression Obsession August Red Rubber Kit!

Checking in as promised with a brand new red rubber set for you - this month's stamp kit from Impression Obsession pairs beautifully with the July kit - so if you're inclined to use them together, now's the perfect time to buy! These holiday images are beautiful standalones but they're great for repeating patterns and backgrounds too - I think they'd make gorgeous wrapping paper. Of course I had to take them even further outside the box and do a jewelry project today! 

 I still have July products out on my desk since we just got those. When I used the rounded rectangle labels, I cut myself a template so I could make quick work of positioning and stamping sentiments or tags. I was thinking those label sizes were about right for shrink plastic charms, so I thought I'd try that out for today's post. You can see the template in my MISTI below.

There are 6 sizes, and I planned my stamping so the image would fall over 2 tags at a time. (This is a great stamping method for mass producing tags as well - I might have to remember that for craft shows coming up!

I stamped using the IO Hybrid ink on the smooth side of the shrink plastic, and heat set it just enough to dry the ink but not enough to activate any shrinkage. My coloring was done with Copic markers and a white paint pen on the opposite side (rough/back side), and I dragged a couple of brown hybrid ink pads across the smooth side and stamped a dotted background when I was done.

The shrink plastic die cuts really easily - this is the package I have, in case you want similar results! I used a 1/4" hole punch for the holes.

For some reason I don't have the instructions with my package any more, so I just guessed on the temp and timing, but here are the pieces after baking! The brown came out a little darker than I expected, so I might rethink that step next time. 

Here are the earring pairs - I tried to use a different technique and design for each one! They're incredibly lightweight, and they went together quickly!

Love love love those tiny pinecone beads and charms!

The poinsettia designs feature handmade beads... I accidentally flipped the larger poinsettia when I punched them but I like it better, so pretend I meant to do that! Happy oops.

IO Products:

August 2022 Limited Edition Red Rubber Kit

DIE1195 Rounded Rectangle Layers

CC444 Tiny Polka Dots

So August 1st & 2nd the team will be sharing new projects with the August Limited Edition Red Rubber Kit You can find a list of participants on the Impression Obsession Blog each day through the event. We will be giving away TWO Impression Obsession $25 gift certificates for the event so the more you comment through our August Kit Hop the more chances to win! All comments for each of the event days will be open until Tuesday August 9th at 8pm CT and all winners will be announced on Wednesday August 10th on the Impression Obsession Blog.

Thank you for visiting me - here are my friends' links!

IO Stamps Blog

Anna Wight

Dina Kowal <<<< that's me!

Giovana Smith

Jeanne Streiff

Laura Fulcher

Cheers!

When you shop through the affiliate links used here, the company sends a small commission my way at no cost to you as thanks for the referral.
It's a lovely way to partner with these companies that mean so much to our creative community. Everybody wins!

Convertible Craft Dangles on Etsy

I added an item to my Etsy store - I've been playing around with this design idea for a week or so! This is a convertible dangle that can hang on a zipper, glue pin, or scissor charm. I've got a few different ones available and each one will come with a handmade wrapped wire pin and a leather fob. The clasp on the dangle lets you attach it to either one.

Here's one of the designs on my Tonic mini scissors. The ones in my store are all stamper themed, but I have charms for other themes as well. Custom designs are available too (prices will vary). The leather loop is about 2" long.

If you have a favorite color or a different design idea, let me know! I'm working on custom listings today.

When you shop through the affiliate links used here, the company sends a small commission my way at no cost to you as thanks for the referral.
It's a lovely way to partner with these companies that mean so much to our creative community. Everybody wins!

Splitcoast Tutorial: Colored Glass

This week's tutorial over on Splitcoast is a throwback technique called Colored Glass - the tutorial actually ran first in 2012 during the Holiday Blitz event, but sometimes those tutorials get missed and it's nice to see them again and use the technique for a non-holiday project.

I was searching everywhere yesterday for a pack of Tim Holtz charms I still have not found, but I found a box of mini salt shakers that I bought years ago. The jar part of the shaker is about a 1" cube - they are soooo teeny and cute! I think at the time I was making salt shaker snowmen or something like that...? Anyway, in my current upcycle phase, I was thinking they'd make adorable pendants! 

The tutorial uses ModPodge and dye ink and I wanted that to work but it was humid and the ModPodge started to gap in patches, so I ended up starting over with alcohol ink instead. Tip - heating the glass will stop the ink from flowing and allow you to get some texture in the ink! I ended up with alcohol ink in just the upper portion of the bottle, which I like. I filled the bottle up with sand and tiny shells.

I threaded some 20g wire through the holes of the shaker and bent them across the top of the cap, then created a bail by bending one wire up to create a loop and wrapping both ends around. 

I glued the top to the jar with E6000 glue.

The little beaded dangle was created with a looped strand of waxed thread - you string a seed beed onto the left side, a small jump ring around both strands, then a seed bead on the right side and a small jump ring around both strands, and repeat until you have the length you want. Cute and easy! The sand dollar charm is from Joann's - always check their sales!

Speaking of upcycling - I made (and sold!!) this necklace this weekend - I'm having so much fun with this mixed media style!

 

When you shop through the affiliate links used here, the company sends a small commission my way at no cost to you as thanks for the referral.
It's a lovely way to partner with these companies that mean so much to our creative community. Everybody wins!

Impression Obsession - Discontinued Dies

There are so many amazing dies at Impression Obsession - this special feature lets them have the spotlight. We hope you're inspired! The team is especially featuring dies that are in our clearance section - you'll see that they are marked down 50% there already!

I thought a jewelry project would be fun! I hope you like it - I'll apologize now for not taking process photos - we are having an electrical issue in the room where I create (none of the outlets work) so I had to move to another room. I'll try to explain the process, and when things get repaired I'll do a video.

Here is the die set I used - there are coordinating stamps, but I made these pieces without them - the shapes stand alone well enough, and I didn't need the stamped detail. You can still grab this die/stamp set of 4 dies for half price! 

I needed 4 cuts of each key, so it was nice to have them all on one base for easy cutting. I cut the pieces from heavy (140#) watercolor paper, and glued them together to create a sturdy stack. I painted each key with a coat of metallic brown/bronze acrylic paint. Next I added a couple of coats of Ultra Thick Embossing Powder, and then sprinkled other powders little by little until I had a vintage patina that I liked. I used a Verdigris powder, black, pearl, and gold. 

I had made these house beads from polymer clay - I'm not even sure I was done with them, but since the project has a primitive feel, I like how this looks. I created a wrapped loop with 18g copper wire and hammered it for strength, then attached the keys at varying heights using bits of chain and jump rings. The turquoise bead is another handmade one.

The keys are quite stiff and sturdy, and very lightweight! I might just wear this tonight! Be sure to check out the other designers' blogs for inspiration - see the I.O. blog for all the details!

In other creative news - I scored this antique Hamilton drafting table on a local auction site for $10! It's 70-80 years old, and it's enormous. Needs a little care, but I think it will be a fun project. 

This is a busy week with graduation and all the activities that surround it - one day at a time! Cheers!

When you shop through the affiliate links used here, the company sends a small commission my way at no cost to you as thanks for the referral.
It's a lovely way to partner with these companies that mean so much to our creative community. Everybody wins!

Fall/Winter Coffee Lovers Blog Hop - Super Sponsor!

It's time for the Coffee Lovers Blog Hop, and I'm honored to be a Super Sponsor again! Keep reading to find out how you can win a coffee-themed charm bracelets or one of two $10 gift certificates to my online store, and receive a special coupon code for 20% off your order!

In case you're new to my blog, I'll tell you a little about me...  I'm a working artist (see my commissioned pet portraits HERE), have my own line of stamps , and I'm the Artist in Residence at Splitcoaststampers, among other roles behind the scenes. I love to create, and I love sharing what I learn in the process. I have an online store where you'll find prints of my original artwork as well as notecards, handmade beads and jewelry and other items. I've been blogging here for 15 years!

We're just wrapping up a holiday event at Splitcoaststampers today, and one of today's challenges was to have a window on or in your card... I wanted to combine one of the challenges with my coffee card, so I searched through Evernote for images that had coffee and a window together - and that's why I used this fox stamp today! This image is part of a series from Katzelkraft, and they're all delightful. I got this one from Topflight Stamps. The sentiment is from AJVD - possibly retired. Dies: IO Slimline Sentiments Flag and Spellbinders Essential Label Etched Dies

Be sure to check out the Coffee Lovers Blog for instructions on how to participate for prizes - this is the bracelet that's up for grabs! I love these sweet charms, and that coffee bean bead is one of my handmade exclusives! 

Two more winners will win a $10 gift code to my online store, and you can use the code below for 20% off your $20+ order for the whole next week - now is a great time for shopping! Clicking the graphic below will automatically apply the coupon to your cart.

Thank you for visiting me today - enjoy the hop!

When you shop through the affiliate links used here, the company sends a small commission my way at no cost to you as thanks for the referral.
It's a lovely way to partner with these companies that mean so much to our creative community. Everybody wins!