Stamp Away With Me

Monday, February 2, 2015

February 2015 Release Week - Hello Ellie

Welcome back! It's day 2 of our February 2015 Release and I have more to share with you today! If you are just joining us, be sure to check out Day 1 here. The entire February 2015 Release will be available for purchase beginning February 5th at wplus9.com and at many of your favorite retailers as well.

I know that all of you are very excited to get a closer look at today's featured products...so I won't torture you any longer. Let's dive in!

Featured Products - Available February 05, 2015

Unforgettable
4x6" Clear Stamp Set
$14 USD

Unforgettable Companion Die
$14 USD

Bubble Talk
4x6" Clear Stamp Set

$14 USD

Bubble Talk Companion Die
$8 USD

PURE COLOR Storybook Collection

Yep, I just loved this little guy so much that I had to create two sets! Unforgettable features three little elephants that can all interact with the balloon included in the set in some way. It is filled with little accent images to dress up the ellies and some big bold sentiments that perfectly match the playfulness of this set.

This first card uses only the Unforgettable stamp set and was a concept that I had while illustrating the set. I knew right away what this finished design was going to look like and it came out exactly as I'd imagined. That doesn't always happen! LOL

I started by stamping my elephant and ballon onto my card panel using Memento dye ink in Tuxedo Black onto our White Cardstock. I then cut the clouds from the Sunshine Layers Die that I introduced yesterday from Inkadinkado masking paper. I also stamped the elephant and balloon onto the masking paper and hand cut them out. I laid down my masks and then airbrushed my background using the Copic Airbrush System. I added just the slightest hint of Y11 in random spots for sunshine and then filled in with B41 and little B91 for variation.

For the clouds, I added a little shading with C0 and N0, and then heavily "washed" it out using the 0 Blender Copic. Several of you requested a video based on the sneak peeks I posted of this, so stay tuned as I'll have one for you following the release.

I used the W series of Copics to color Ellie - W0, W2 and W5 - with R20 and RV11 for the cheeks and ears. I just love the balloon in Unforgettable! I wanted a big overside, very round balloon for this set. I colored it using R20, R24, R29 and a little R89. I did cover the whole balloon with a little Clear Wink of Stella, but as you all know...it's so hard to capture in pictures.

The sentiment is just perfect for this image, don't you think? I wanted a nice clean edge on the bottom, so I just masked off the "just sayin'" portion before stamping with Memories dye ink in black.

Next up is a card featuring the Bubble Talk stamp set. Bubble Talk features a little elephant blowing bubbles with both solid and open speech bubbles. There are several sentiments included in the set that can all fit into one of the open bubbles to create a variety of greetings.

How cute is that? I colored the elephant using the same W series of Copics. I added the grass and background as well using Copic markers. For the bubbles, I added a little blue, green and purple and heavily blended them using the 0 Copic similarly to the technique I used on the clouds above. I was trying to mimic the way colors swirl through bubbles as the light shines through them.

I then ran the whole panel through my Big Shot using the Holiday Apertures Die to create a little panel with a stitched border. I matted it with some Green Acres card stock adhered it to a white 4 x 5 1/2" card base. I used the Bubble Talk Companion Die to cut out the heart shaped bubble and stamped my greeting inside. I added a little doodling inside using a .3 Copic Multiliner and adered it to my panel using a little foam tape.

I decided to use this same color combo with Unforgettable and the Sunshine Layers Die to create a belated birthday card. This time I swapped out the Copics for our new PURE COLOR dye inks in Bo Beep and Beanstalk to create the background.

This time I used the sitting elephant colored in the C series of Copics, along with the little flower also included in the set. I stamped the elephant first and masked just the little portion of his trunk before stamping the flower. I just love how he is offering up that flower as a "bribe" for forgiveness. LOL

I die cut some Inkadinkado Masking Paper using our Landscape Borders Die. I die cut a white panel using the Sunshine Layers Die and laid down the bottom portion of my mask over the bottom half. I used a Ranger Mini Ink Blending Tool to softy sponge Bo Peep dye ink in for my sky. Then I laid down the top portion of the mask over the sky and did the same thing to create my grassy hill using Beanstalk dye ink. I repeated this onto another panel and die cut a circle from it using our Clear Cut Stackers: Circles Die

I added my "so very sorry I forgot" sentiment and then adhered the panel to a scalloped mat cut using the Sunshine Layers Die using foam tape. For something a little different, I cut my card base 1/4" smaller than my mat and adhered it to the back. This left me with a scalloped edge all the way around my card.

For my last card today, I used Unforgettable and Bubble Talk together along with the Sunshine Layers Die again.

This time, I decided to add a little hand doodling with a Copic Multiliner to my elephant to dress her up. This time, I colored her with the N Copic series, and once she was all done...she looked like she was ready for a party to me!

I decided to create a little shaker card filled with a bunch of Pretty Pink Posh sequins. I was inspired by the Holi Festival for the background of the shaker portion. I used Copics to create a wash of different colors - trying to emulate the colored powder beging thrown through the air. I think it comes pretty close.

That's it for me today. I still have more to share with this set, but I know the Design Team has more to share with you as well. I will be back a little later with the rest. I'm hoping to get a video filmed based on a watercolor sneak peek that several of you requested.

Design Team Inspiration

Giveaway Alert

It's time for another giveaway! Would you like to win the Unforgettable, the Unforgettable Companion Die, Bubble Talk and the Bubble Talk Companion Die before you can buy them? Just leave a comment below by 10:00 a.m. EST on 02/03/15 to enter and I will select one random winner from all comments. Winner will be posted on our Releaser Winners page by noon on 02/03/15.

I'll be back again tomorrow with more of the February 2015 Release along with more chances to win, so be sure to come back. Good luck and thanks for stopping by!

Sunday, February 1, 2015

Wplus9 February 2015 Release - Sending Sunshine

It's time for our first release of 2015!

As usual, I've been giving you some sneak peeks over on Instagram of our upcoming products and you all seem to be as excited about these as I am. The entire February 2015 Release will be available for purchase beginning February 5th at wplus9.com and at many of your favorite retailers as well.

Before the new products officially go on sale on February 5th, we are going to spend the next couple of days introducing all of the new stamps, dies and inks - showing you some fun ways to use them, and I've got to be honest, this release has really surprised me. I've struggled with the whole "cute" genre in the past. Well this release has a whole lotta' cute going on.

And...I LOVE it!

I am seriously having a hard time picking a favorite. I know that I shouldn't pick favorites, but I'm human too. This time it is hard. So excuse me in advance if I introduce each day as "my favorite".

Today, we are going to kick things off with my new favorite dies, a stamp set that compliments them perfectly and another die that rounds this trio out nicely.

Featured Products - Available February 05, 2015

Sending Sunshine
3x4" Clear Stamp Set
$6 USD

Sunshine Layers Die
$26 USD

Hey Hi Hello Die
$9 USD

Storybook PURE COLOR Collection

These guys are just FUN! In this first card, I've used several elements from the Sunshine Layers Die along with the Sending Sunshine stamp set. These guys are NOT a companion set, however they compliment each other perfectly.

When I was designing these, I knew that I wanted the die cuts to be detailed enough to be used stand-alone, but I still wanted to be able to accent them with stamps. So I created duplicate items in each the die and the stamps. You can use them together or alone. But you can not stamp the images onto the die cuts.

Most of the images in the Sunshine Layers Die have the trendy stitching detail on them, including the scalloped mat.

To create the rainbow, I die cut the image from white card stock and then used sponge daubers and Wplus9 PURE COLOR Dye Ink in Cranberry Crush, Wild Mango, and our newest colors releasing this month - Beanstalk and Bo Peep.

I used the same technique on the large "sunshine" die cut as well, this time using Cockleshell. To give it some weight, I cut 2 more out of white card stock and glued them all together. To add the shine, I covered the entire thing in glossy accents.

I finished off the sentiment by stamping "you are my" and "you make me happy when skies are gray" from Sending Sunshine in Memories dye ink in Black. I am just in love with the fun and quirky font in this set.

I liked the feel of this card so much that I decided to do one in a similar style but with a twist. I used several of the same elements but swapped out the rainbow for the sun also included in the die. I colored the inside of the sun using Wild Mango dye ink and the outer rays with Falling Star.

I used the same coloring technique for the "sunshine" die cut, using a sponge dauber to apply Bo Peep dye ink to white card stock. Our inks are wonderful for this technique. They apply so easily and dry so evenly that you'd never know they weren't colored card stock. The "HELLO" die cut is actually the negative space from the "Hey Hi Hello Die". I inked it in Wild Mango to make it match the inside circle of the sun.

I created the little "shaker" cloud by die cutting the smallest cloud from my panel and then again from Dove Grey card stock. I inserted the cloud outline back into place and filled the window with Martha Stewart Course Glitter. The rest of the sentiment was added in Wild Mango dye ink. This time I opted to stack the sentiment by masking off half of it when inking.

These cards are pretty different from my usual style but I just adore them. Both called for a little sprinkling of Pretty Pink Posh sequins. I think they are so much fun and they just make me smile. Which is a good thing...hopefully they'll have the same affect on their recipients!

This next card is a super clean and simple card that has a little more sophistication with a hint of whimsy.

This one was very simple to create. I masked off a square using some low tack painters tape and airbrushed the square in B00 (Frost Blue) using the Copic Airbrush System. I stamped and heat embossed a couple of clouds using the Sending Sunshine stamp set, and added a die cut cloud using the Sunshine Layers Die. I snuck in a sentiment from the Sending Sunshine stamp set and a silver embossed balloon from a set that I will share a little later this week - Unforgettable.

The Hey Hi Hello Die is one of those staple dies. Not only do you get the classic speech bubbles, but the resulting words that left over can be used as well like I shared in the card above.

But my go-to use for the speech bubble is in bold and graphic cards like this one.

I cut each of the speech bubbles from White and Sweet Gelato card stock. I inserted the resulting pink "hey" and "hi" back into their white counterparts. All of these were adhered to a card base stamped with the small dot chevron pattern from Borders & Backgrounds 4.

Finally, another favorite use for these is masking.

Here, I die cut the "Hello" speech bubble from Inkadinkado masking paper and adhered it to a white card stock panel. I then used two of the small circles from the Little Bitsstamp set and Little Piggy and Sweet Gelato dye ink. I repeatedly stamped the two circles all around the edges of the mask. I made sure to keep the stamping closer together around the edges of the mask and then gradually spread them out as I got further away. I used a Tsukineko sponge dauber to ink over the letters creating an ombre effect. These two colors are beautiful together and perfect for creating a seamless graduation of color.

That's it for me today, but now it's time to see what the Design Team has been up to. These ladies are amazing, so be sure to stop by! And if you see something you like, don't forget to leave them a little love while you're there.

Design Team Inspiration

Giveaway Alert

We can't have a release day, without a giveaway! Would you like to win the Sunshine Layers Die, the Sending Sunshine stamp set and the Hey Hi Hello Die before you can buy them? Just leave a comment below by 10:00 a.m. EST on 02/02/15 to enter. I will select one random winner from all comments. Winner will be posted on our Releaser Winners page by noon on 02/02/15.

I'll be back again tomorrow with more of the February 2015 Release along with more chances to win, so be sure to come back. Good luck and thanks for stopping by!

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Throwback Thursday: Borders & Backgrounds 2

Hello! It's Maureen here with a new feature for WPlus9 Design Blog. The third Thursday of each month I will be sharing a set of cards made using the same supplies, the same basic design elements and a "throwback" WPlus9 stamp set. Throwback you ask? I'm bringing back some of the older sets and showing new ways you can use them and/or how you can incorporate them into projects using new products as well.

This month my throwback set is Borders & Backgrounds 2. This is my all time favorite background set, the images are classic, timeless and gender neutral. It's one that I turn to time and time again.

I'm using Borders and Backgrounds 2 with the Pretty Peonies stamp set, the Pretty Peonies Dies as well as Hand Lettered Thanks.

My first card is a classic clean and simple design. I've offset the stark black and white with a pop of color on my flower. Rather than stamping the images, I heat embossed the outline with white embossing powder and then sponged over them with Wild Mango and Flamingo inks on the flower and Mojito and Appletini on the leaves. Borders & Backgrounds 2 was stamped at the bottom of this one layer card which grounds the flower and sentiment nicely.

My next card uses the same basic design elements but I've flipped the orientation of the card and added some more layers. This time I've stamped the images with Distress Inks and brushed over them with water and a paint brush. This technique gives such a pretty watercolored look without a lot of work.

Here I've stepped up the design even more by adding another layer and stamping Borders & Backgrounds 2 over the entire background. This time I've simply stamped the flowers in Wild Mango and Flamingo inks, rather than doing a technique with them.

As you can see, the same basic design elements as well as the embellishments were carried through from the simple one layer card all the way to the stepped up version of the design. It's fun to use the same supplies and design elements and see how many different ways you can use them. Make two of each card and you have a beautiful handmade card set, perfect for gift giving.

Thanks so much for stopping in. See you next month for another Throwback Thursday!