Happy Fourth of July!!

Hello all! Happy Fourth of July! For those of you following my blog I have been doing a Fourth of July series, celebrating the Red, White, and Blue.  Today I wanted to do a recap of those projects!

Hope everyone has a fantastic 4th of July weekend! Be safe and have fun!

Fourth of July Series: Cut it Up Challenge DT Inspiration

Happy Friday! TGIF!! Welcome back for another project in my 4th of July Series, I have had so much fun creating with the red,white, and blue!

Today I invite you to join in the challenge on the Cut it Up Challenge Blog and how appropriate the theme is Stars & Stripes, and as always you must use a die cut.

Here's my DT inspiration:

The background was stamped with my Tim Holtz Americana Silhouettes stamp with Distress Paint (as a resist) and inked over with Distress ink.  I love how this created the look of patterned paper.  As much as I love paper (you should see my craft room collection!) I really love making my own backgrounds! The flag is a Sizzix Tim Holtz Alterations Bigz die, cut from grunge board.  After running it through my Xyron Creative Station (5" Permanent Adhesive), I applied the various colors of Distress glitter to make the flag (with a bit of careful masking). 

The stars were cut from the same die in grungeboard and painted with Brushed Pewter Distress paint.   Chit Chat stickers were added for the sentiment!

The card was framed with ribbon-cut to size and run through my Xyron 1.5" Sticker Maker.  This is definitely my favorite tool to adhere ribbon! And of course a few additional stars (Tim's ideology line) were added, colored with alcohol inks.

Be sure to stop by the Cut it Up Challenge blog and see all the other talented designers' creations and join in the fun with us this week!

And of course stay tuned for more in my Fourth of July Series!

Fourth of July Series: Technique Junkies Showcase

Hello all! Welcome back to another installment in my Fourth of July series this month, celebrating the RED,WHITE & BLUE!

For this project I am featuring a fantastic stamp set from Technique Junkies

called Patriotic Fragments.

This set is amazing to work with- so many techniques come to mind!!

I used one of the flags to alter script patterned paper  by creating an embossed background and covering with distress inks (Barn Door and Faded Jeans).

I then stamped the words RED WHITE & BLUE in between the flags.

I added a die cut flag that was covered in clear crackle paint and then colored with Distress Stains.

The background piece was then die cut using the Tim Holtz postage stamp die and adhered to the sanded Kraft core card stock with Xyron homemade dimensional foam tape. I ran the flag piece through my Xyron Creative Station (loaded with 5" Permanent adhesive) and adhered it to the card front.  

The distressed look of these stamps is just perfect for this technique! 

Stayed tuned to my blog for even more samples from my Fourth of July Series!