Winter Scene

Last week I could hardly contain my excitement over Christmas.  I just can't help myself.  Christmas always brings back fond, warm and cozy, happy memories. 

I have been keeping journals the last few months.  Mostly I have been rewriting verses with the hope that they would sink in.  Sometimes I add my own thoughts or little prayers to my almost daily verse writing.  And sometimes I feel inspired to add pictures of some sort. 

I needed to start a new notebook and since I will be running into the month of January I didn't want it to be all Christmas looking and decided to go into snowflakes and such.  Because I live in the desert, it is very difficult to find snow.  So, I went online and found some beautiful winter pictures.  I don't like the cold of winter but I do love the snow.  I found some really great winter scenes at this website.  http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?_adv_prop=image&fr=yfp-t-701&va=winter

I took the above picture and added Stickles.  Both Crystal and Icicle Stickles and some Liquid White Pearls.  I used my newest little toys (Big Shot by Stampin' Up) and (Tim Holtz Alterations Townscape) the other day and cut out a row of houses on colorful paper.  I covered the houses in Crystal Stickles and added the Liquid White Pearls to the roof tops and house fronts to give it dimension and make it look like snow.  I then added the Townscape cut out to give the picture a pop of color.

I hope you enjoy this wintry image!

America The Beautiful

The Created By Hand challenge http://quietfire.ning.com/group/createdbyhandchallenge/forum/topics/fireworksmetallics-1 this week is fireworks/metallics which gave me the perfect excuse to pull out my alcohol inks which I haven't used in a while.  I also used some glossy paper which I haven't used in a very long time.  Glossy paper, alcohol inks, and metallic inks is an excellent combination for a shimmery background.  I didn't have any fireworks stamps or pictures so I used some of my Tim Holtz idea-ology Salvage Stickers - Seasonal collection.  I first used pool colored alcohol ink with Silver metallic ink (Ranger Inks) with my applicator and dabbed it all over my glossy paper.  I then added my stickers.  I first went over with Barn Door red and used perfect pearls blue sapphire.  I then painted liquid white pearls over the entire image.  I finished it off with True Blue Stickles and Icicle Stickles (Ranger Ink).

A Little Grunge

I didn't plan it this way. I was playing with blue colors and an alcohol ink called Lake Mist and with Gold Metallic Ink and just dabbing with the Tim Holtz Ink Blender and this really cool color came on the paper.

I wanted to try out the new tissue paper tape that I purchased and see what I could do with that. So I put that down and stamped color on that as well. After I put the color down, I was trying to think which of my stamps would be a good addition. It definitely wasn't on the feminine side like most of my cards are so I didn't want a flower or a heart.

I then thought of my Circle Circus (SU) set and stamped in Brilliant Blue (SU). I remembered the bird that I had punched out a few weeks ago and knew that would be an excellent addition to this card. I quickly dabbed some more Ranger Ink Alcohol Ink Lake Mist on another sheet of paper and punched out the stem with the leaves. The frame for the Birthday Greetings was punched using Scallop oval puncher (SU) and covered in Cracked Vintage Photo paint.

First ATC Swap

I am a little late. This is my first ATC swap and hoping that it is okay.

We were suppose to use as much of Tim Holtz' products as possible. I used Tim Holtz' I See Paris Cling Mount Stamp Set. I first distressed the top layer paper in Old Paper and then inked up the Eiffel Tower in Walnut Stain. I then stained the second later in Chipped Sapphire. I was very happy and surprised the other day when I tried out Chipped Sapphire for the first time. The outside of the packaging looks more like light purple than blue or sapphire but this is the pretty color that I got when I inked up my paper. I then wanted to add something new so I used Vintage Photo Crackle Paint.

For the main part of the card I stained Antique Linen on the paper and inked the stamp in Walnut Stain. I then wanted to paint a little on the card because that is my new favorite thing to do. So I mixed Adirondack Pearl Metallic Dabber and Antique Linen re-inker drops and painted over the image. It looks like a glaze over the image. Then for a little more I added a touch of Tattered Rose Distressed Stickles.

I saw this a week or two ago and thought that it was perfect for someone like me who has a difficult drawing without some help. So I took one of my punchers, put a grunge board in it and traced around the bird with a pen and then cut it out. The first bird was stained with Forest Moss. The sparkly eye was added with Waterfall Stickle. I did this a second time and stained once with Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink and a second time with Distress Stickles.

Dabbers and Adirondack Alcohol Ink

Friday was like Christmas for me. My latest Ranger Ink order came so I spent Friday night playing with some products that I have been eyeing up for a while. I ordered Tim Holtz Textured Fades Emboss Folders - Damask/Regal Flourishes. It is a two-set embossing folder package. The example on the left is of the Damask Embossing Folder. I used a Pearl Dabber and a Sail Boat Blue Dabber on top of the embossing paper. Both of these are also new for me. I have been wanting to order them for a while but kept pushing it off. I then got some very positive feedback about the dabbers from my fellow on-line blogger, http://cards4ubylouise.blogspot.com/. I heavily dabbed on the outer edge of the larger centered card and then once again dabbed first using the Pearl Dabber. I then stamped my message and floral image. Before I dabbed again with the blue dabber I colored in using my alcohol inks. It made a very interesting effect. (To see a larger image of the card, double click on image and then you can click on the back arrow to come back to this post.)

I colored in the flowers and stems using Adirondack Alcohol Inks and Tim Holtz Refillable Pen. To add ink to the pen you need to use a tweezers and on the larger end pull at the base of the nib. However, do not pull on the nib itself but on the base. Once it is out take the tip of the alcohol ink and add in ink for about 3 - 5 seconds and then put nib back (you'll want to use the tweezers again). You need to then go to the smaller side and this time with the tweezers pull the nib out and once again add the ink for 3 - 5 seconds. Lay the pen down and wait for 5 minutes and then the nibs should no longer be white and you can start using the pen.

The priorities for Linda's Cozy Craft Corner is Customer Service and Great Prices. Please contact me regarding bundling a package together for you for even better prices. For the products above and more, please check out my Etsy store (www.lindascozycraftcorne.etsy.com).

Are you interested in a Tim Holtz or Ranger Ink product? If I have not shown it on my blog or have not listed on my Etsy store, please feel free to enquire to Lindascozycraftcorner@yahoo.com. Even if I don't currently have the item available, I might be able to order that item for you. If I can't obtain that item for you, I will try and direct you to another company that has that product. For example, perhaps there is a color or embossing powder that I do not currently have in stock. I have access to many different colos and would be happy to order a color that you need. Please feel free to contact me for Grungeboard products and Ideology products that I can make available. However, if I receive enough orders, I will be very happy to order it or add it to the next order that I place.