Hello fans! 

It's time for another release from my favorite stamp company, Altenew.  Here's the link to see the July 2020 Stamps Dies Stencils Inks Video Blog Hop Release!  I am delighted to share one project with you from this release. The format of the release is a video hop from now on, (since I am not very tech savvy in making videos), I am not part of the hop. I love that Altenew embraces all designers by including all of us in a chance to still be apart of the release. 

Today, I am showing off the lovely stamp set called Courageous You.  The day I made this card, was on my 20th wedding anniversary.  I did not put it all together until I was done but there is a unintentional thing I did.  Can you guess what it is?? 

For my card today, I stamped my images on Altenew Watercolor Paper using Obsidian Black Ink. To color my images, I applied ink to a craft mat and painted with a brush and some water. I used the Enchanted Garden Oval Ink Set and Green Valley Mini Cube Set for my color palette. So pretty!

CLICK ON THE PHOTO TO ORDER YOUR STAMP TODAY!! 

As always, thank you for stopping by.  Stay safe & healthy!  Before I go, here is a  photo from my Wedding Day.  The wreath was a wedding gift that became a prop for many of our photos. Smiles. 

Hello Altenew friends. Today, the Altenew Educator Team is honoring our Heroes with a blog hop.  We want to thank you for your service in making our World a better place.  During these unprecedented times. I have seen the love and humanity of many people, in all walks of life, young and old, every profession. I will never again take for granted even the simplest things, like standing in lines in grocery store when I can actually stand by someone, smile and talk.  I won't take for granted the quiet time sitting at a table drinking a cold glass of water, waiting to be served a meal.  The list goes on and on. Thank you to all our heroes big and small, black and white!  

Now, lets talk stamping (my creative therapy).  Recently, I have been practicing my water-coloring, someday I want to grow up to be Erum.  She inspires me everyday with her beautiful coloring.  I hope I make her proud. 

I absolutely love the NEWER monthly subscription club, Paint A Flower.  I subscribe to it and look forward to getting a new stamp every month that is perfect for coloring.  Today, I am using Paint A Flower: Iris.  I am working on the no line coloring technique... I still need a lot of practice. I LOVE how pretty these turned out.  

Thank you for stopping by, I hope I have inspired you to try water-coloring too!  Be sure to check out the Paint A Flower Monthly subscription, treat yourself monthly to a new stamp set. 

​Inky hugs. 

Hello Friends. I am SO excited and honored to be apart of this months Altenew April Release Blog Hop party. You should have arrived from Kymona's Blog.

Last month, when May contacted me to pick out the products I wanted to design with, it was not an easy task, I loved them all.  Thank you Altenew for letting me review your awesome products! 

One of the products I am most excited about is the NEW Crafter’s Essential Stamping Mat! It's great for stamping, watercolor, ink blending, heat embossing, and everyday crafting!  It is also a great backdrop for your photos!! Smiles. ​

I absolutely love Altenew's layering stencils!  When I am in the mood to create a quick card on the go, I almost always grab a layering stencil.  They are easy to use and they create a WOW factor for even the simplest looking cards. I paired some of my favorite Altenew ink colors: Sunray & Snapdragon and Mountain Mist & Teal Cave.  

Oh my goodness!  Next up, is the amazing Dog Rose Panel and Die Bundle Set.  I love the versatility of this die set. As you can see, in Card One I used one die-cut panel, in Card Two I used two die-cut panels to fill the entire card front.  Combine the layers together and you will have a third option!  Talk about getting a big bang for your buck!! This is a MUST buy item!!

Well. some may say-- I left the best for last.  For me, I could not pick a favorite set.  Each card has its own uniqueness.  I also love the stamp set, called Statement Flowers paired with its very own die (love that).  I am a sucker for big, bold flowers that I can color.... or not!  As you can see in the first sample it is beautiful colored, but in the second sample it is beautiful with only a splash of color.  

Well, there you have it... I hope you enjoyed my creations as much as I do.  I hope I inspired you to create your own cards after you load up your shopping cart w/all the new products you're gonna want.  Be sure to hop along, leaving comments so you can get in on some prizes and giveaways!

Thank you for stopping by,  Stay safe and healthy and find sometime to create. 

Prize info: Altenew is giving away a $30 gift certificate to 3 lucky winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog by 3/11/2020 for a chance to win. We’ll also draw a winner to receive a $15 gift certificate from the comments left on each designer’s blog on the blog hop list below. All winners will be announced on the Altenew Card Blog on 3/14/2020.

There’s MORE! We will pick 2 of our favorite handmade creations from those who joined the linky party and they will each receive a $15 gift certificate to our store!

Special offer: Save 15% off on ALL Stamp & Die Bundles from 3/5/2020 at 12:01 AM EST until 3/6/2020 at 11:59 PM EST. No code needed to enjoy this sale! Not valid on previous purchases. Excludes February 2020 release products. ​

​Now, let's check out my inspiration for this hop!  You should have arrived from Teri's Blog. 

• Step One: Apply ink using a dauber to the floral sprig.  Don't worry if you overlap colors. That is the beauty of doing a watercolor technique.  Let the OCD rest for the night. If you want you can spritz water before stamping.  I used a stamp platform and stamped a few times. 
• Step Two: Using stamp set Season's Greetings, add some extra leaves. 
• Step Three: Stamp the smaller floral and leaf sprig using Clear Embossing Ink, apply Gold Embossing Powder, heat set. 
• ​Step Four: Stamp sentiment with Clear Embossing Ink, apply Gold Embossing Powder, heat set.
• Step Five: Flick ink with Watercolor Markers. 
• Step Six: Finishing by assembling onto layers of cardstock to complete your card & be sure to add some clear sequins for texture. 

BONUS TIP: create a coordinating piece of cardstock by inking a piece of white cardstock with your favorite Altenew Ink color.

Your next stop is Maryam's blog!  

Thank you for stopping by, have a wonderful day! 

Welcome friends to our monthly Build-A-Flower Release Blog Hop.  I am so honored to be a guest designer today. It's an honor and a blessing to be asked. You should have arrived from Caly's Blog.

I absolutely love the monthly Build-A-Flower subscription plan.  This is a monthly subscription plan for their Build-A-Flower set (BAF). When you signed up, you are guaranteed a spot in their monthly BAF releases and will receive a set each month - at a specially discounted price! 

Today, I am showcasing how you can create clean and simple cards by using just a few of the images, if you are new to layering stamps this is a great way to get your feet wet and to try simple layering as a newbie--- as you practice, you can move onto the full images. Altenew new does an amazing job with providing layering guides and often has videos as well.  Don't forget to visit the store for the FREE layering classes that Altenew offers, (there are three).  

So lets take a look at my cards that I created for today'e release... ​

For my first card, I did some simple layer stamping and some water-coloring. I love the artsy feel you get when you combine both techniques together. As you can see I did not get a perfect impression when stamping with the layers, I purposely did that because I like white space on flowers and leaves. 

For my second card, I did no line stamping and water-coloring. This card is super simple but it certainly make a huge impression. Its clean, simple and masterful. 

For my last card, I created a fun focal point using a round acrylic block as my stamp.  I applied ink directly to the block and stamped it onto my card panel. I added some fun layer stamped leaves and sentiment.  I just love the clean look this gives and that its a 5-10 card to make, so if needed I can mass produce a few to always have some thank-you's on hand. 

Well, I hope this inspires you to look at your layering stamp sets a bit differently.  Sometimes less is more. Smiles. 

To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $30 gift certificate to 6 lucky winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or Altenew Scrapbook Blog for a chance to win.

We’ll also draw a winner to receive a $15 gift certificate from the comments left on each designer’s blog on the blog hop list below. All winners will be announced on the Altenew blogs on 10/7/2019.

Thank you for visiting. Have a wonderful day! 

Welcome to the September Altenew Release Hop.  I am so excited to share that I am guest designer this month's new releases. There are lots of new stamps, dies and stencils to see today along the hop.  You're totally going to love all the new goodies Altenew has added to their collection. You should have arrived from Caly's blog. 

Today, I am featuring three elegant, sophisticated and classy Holiday cards with a beautiful stamp set called Modern Poinsettia and a really fun covered die set called Layered Snowflake Stars.  Enjoy! 

• Stamp: Using my Modern Poinsettia Mask Stencil I stamped two Poinsettia's  overlapping with Altenew Obsidian Black Ink onto Neenah Solar White Cardstock.

• Color: I colored the leaves with Altenew Enchanted Gold Ink. (I applied ink onto my Altenew Craft Mat and painted the leaves with a brush and a very small amount of water). I also used colored pencils to add some shadows and depth to my leaves.  

​

• Assemble: I cut around the top of the flowers to cut away the white space, then applied the flower panel to a black card. I then finished the card with a white embossed sentiment, some gold ink splatters and some mini pearls. 

• ​Stamp: I stamped three Poinsettia's using Altenew Antique Gold Ink onto Neenah Solar White Cardstock. While the ink was wet I used an ink dauber to spread the ink around to distress/color the ink. I cut the second and third flower into smaller parts so I could attach them as layers to create a 3D flower. 

• Diecut: I die cut Layered Snowflake Stars Cover Die A with gold cardstock and also with black cardstock. 

 

• Assemble: I adhered the diecut elements to a white card base. Using the black diecut pieces I filed in random stars to create a fun background piece for my card.  Next, I added the 3D flower, along with some twine, a sentiment and some black ink splatters. 

• Stamp: I stamped a black Poinsettia using Altenew Obsidian Black ink on Neenah Solar White Cardstock.  I added some Nuvo Gilding Flakes to give it some fun interest.

• Diecut: I diecut a black piece of cardstock using Layered Snowflake Stars Die A

​

• Assemble: Using the diecut panel as a template only I adhered the small cutout pieces only to add some stars to my card base. I finished the card with a Gold embossed sentiment, some black twine, gold, silver and black ink splatters and a small strip of gold glitter tape. 

To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 6 lucky winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or Altenew Scrapbook Blog by 9/10/2019 for a chance to win.

We’ll also draw a winner to receive a $20 gift certificate from the comments left on each designer’s blog on the blog hop list below. All winners will be announced on the Altenew blogs on 9/13/2019.

Thanks for stopping by, have a wonderful day! 

Hello Friends!  I am so excited to be apart of the 2nd Educator Blog Hop in History.  Today, is all about Love & Friendship. I pulled out a few of my favorite stamps.  My HERO set today is a newer set I bought, called Springtime Azalea.  There are so many possibilities with this set. Today, I am showcasing three different ways to 'color' the Azalea.

If you’ve been following along, you’ve just arrived from Amy Hill's Blog. If you find a broken link, you'll find a master list of the hop links at the Altenew Card Blog and at the end of my post. 

As you all know by now, I recently became the 17th certified educator in the country to teach Altenew- What an honor and blessing! I enjoyed the program and learned so much.  I loved how I could work the course at MY OWN PACE. For me, I worked quickly, because when I commit to something, I give 100% and I was eager to hold the title so I can share MY LOVE for Altenew.  If you want to know more about the program, check it out HERE. There is a great deal on the classes to help you get started. 

So now, lets dive into my projects! I hope you like my fast, simple, clean and simple designs. I was so excited to be able to capture some photos outside between rain storms. Enjoy!! ​

First up, I pulled out my scrap bucket, gotta love it when you can use some small cardstock pieces. This card can be created in less than 10 minutes.  Gotta love that. To give it some dimension, I popped up a couple of the flowers using foam squares.  I also added some texture by clear embossing the sentiment. 

Next, I did a one layer card. I pulled out my NEW favorite black ink, Obsidian.  I am obsessed with it. It's so rich and bold.  To color my flowers I used the layering pieces in the set. So easy and fun.  I purposely dabbled ink on the images to create a soft look, leaving white area.  Love that look!  I added some shadow & dot coloring using my Copic's. Finishing it with some sequins and a beautiful sentiment. 

Now for my final card for today.  Again I did a one layer card. This time I pulled out my colored pencils.  I added some distressing to the edges with a blending brush and some Altenew Ink. I finished it with some hand dots and a lovely sentiment. 

THREE beautiful cards to inspire you. Please don't stop here... you want to complete the entire hope BECAUSE you need to...

• ​Altenew is giving away a $30 gift certificate to 3 lucky winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Blog by 7/26/2019 for a chance to win. ​
• We’ll also draw a winner to receive a $15 gift certificate from the comments left on each designer’s blog on the blog hop list below. All winners will be announced on the Altenew blogs on 7/30/2019.- to qualify on my blog you need to leave a comment stating which card you love the most, 1, 2 or 3 and why. Smiles. 

So there you have it, thanks for hopping along  ... next stop Erum Tasneem! 

Here is a full list of the hop if you happen to get lost along the way!  Thanks for hopping with us today, I hope you found lots of inspiration!!

​Altenew Card Blog
Terri Marie Koszler
Michelle Ochoa Murray
Maryam Sharara
Amber Rain Davis
Irina Fonina
Teri Wilson
Francine Dodwell
Patty Mello
Nenette S. Madero
Vicki Finger
Nandini Karmarkar
Amy Hill
Christine Pennington<<<<<YOU ARE HERE! 
Erum Tasneem  

Hi friends!  Its been awhile.  I took some time off for family and to prep and prepare for my BIG certification class for Altenew.  Spring & Summertime in Minnesota are busy times and I have less time to craft.  I have also been working extra hours at my day job. 

SO lets talk about my final step to becoming fully certified to teach Altenew.  I gathered 4 friends in my home and we created 2 complete cards.  I spent time talking to them about the company and teaching them a few things I learned from the 25 classes I took to become certified. 

I shared some history about the company.  Altenew started in April of 2014, around the time Fun Stampers Journey started.  At the time that I discovered Altenew, I was a coach with Fun Stampers Journey and was all in.  If you don't know this about me, I am VERY loyal when I commit to something so I did not waiver although I cheated by following and watching Altenew grow into one of the most loved and well known retail companies there is today. I admired them from afar. Smiles. Altenew, is known for their amazing designs and culture.  Did you know they have stores in 39 countries?  I find that impressive!  They are mostly known for flowers, in which I love, but have other fun sets as well.  I shared the build-a flower program that I joined.  You get a stamp and die set monthly delivered to your door for only $29.99 plus shipping and tax.  I shared the top five stamp sets currently;  Beautiful Day, Painted Flowers, Peony Bouquet, Vintage Flowers and Vintage Roses.  I also shared how Altenew sends random thank you gifts to their customers from time to time, my last one even has my name as a stamp in the set. Now, that my friends is customer appreciation!! 

Next, I talked about Photo-polymer stamps. How they have changed over the last 10-15 years. We talked about conditioning em with erasers, a sanding block or embossing ink, (my favorite technique). 

Each guest paid $40, this covered the cost of two stamp sets, Beautiful Day and Wallpaper Art- I waived my class fee of $15 as a gift because they were helping me out with my certification. I also gifted them with the Masking Stencil for Wallpaper Art as a bonus. These ladies have been with me for awhile and I appreciate how they continue to stamp with me. 

Next, we worked on a practice sheet that I came up with.  I am not sure if others have done this before but it was something I did on my own.  I wanted to show them how they can use the layers to make a variety of flowers. They used three colors and they used the NEW Obsidian Black. The numbers correspond to the layer number.  Each box is a different combo, in the end there are 8 different flowers.  As I told them, even no color is beautiful as a black and white element on your card. As you can seen in the card we made we used the outline for a background to add some interest.  I am sharing the blank practice sheet if YOU want to give it a try as well. 

For our second card, it was all about how to watercolor the easy way. I taught how to let the water do the work for you!  How to simply the process.  I briefly taught them masking with the amazing Altenew Masking Stencils-- their faces were priceless. 

1. Hot press watercolor paper, not cold press. 
2. Empty water brushes. Jars, cups of water. 
3. Embossing to created 'wells'. 
4. Pre-wetting 1-2 petals, adding color and allowing the water to move with gentle encouragements with your damp brush. 

Here are their beautiful faces and beautiful cards. As you can see they did amazing on both their cards. I am so proud of how well they did .  Such a joy to spend time with them. 

As I shared, I gifted them with the Masking Stencil, they will be able to make this card at home. 

Thank you Virginia for attending our class on a Friday night. It was a honor and blessing to have you with us and to be able to ask you questions and to get your expert advice and opinions.  I am so thankful for being able to represent Altenew. 

Here are my class handouts with all the products they used to create their cards.  thank you for stopping by my blog, please say hi so I know you were here. 

Blessings, 

Hey Crafty Friends! 

Today, I am feeling a bit unsettled.  Bittersweet to be done will all my course work for my Journey to Certification with Altenew.  I have loved learning and doing the classes. I will miss the structure.  But, I am so excited to be done so I can focus on where I will go from here.  What style of design do I want to focus on the most and to be known for?  I am a bit uneasy showing this one- because I am not gonna lie, its WAS WAY out of my comfort zone.  I LOVED making the backgrounds but struggled with designing cards.  I threw 4 away that will never be seen.  I want to revisit this technique more- but need the right products to pull it off.  For me, I need large word stamps and dies!  As you know, I am a focal point, clean and simple white space designer so this looks cra cra to me.  Smiles.

But..... I must admit I freakin' LOVE it. It needs to be framed. It's not just a card, its a piece of amazing artwork if I do say so myself. 

So, lets dive into the how, did you make that Miss Christine?

Stamps: Altenew Dearest Friend
Ink: Altenew Jet Black and Embossing
Cardstock/Paper:  Nupo | Neenah Solar White | Arches Hot Press Watercolor  | Grey and Black (I used my stash)
Other: Altenew Artist Markers and Refills | Tim Holtz Alcohol Inks | Clear Embossing Powder | Nuvo Sequins |Sparkle Silk ( I used mine from Fun Stampers Journey) 

Steps: 

• Apply a variety of Alcohol Inks on Nuvo paper. I used Altenew Coral Berry, Frosty Pink, Forest Glades and Frayed Leaf.  I also used Ranger Cranberry, Eggplant, Lettuce and Gold Mixative.
• Stamp flower images from ​Dearest Friend with Altenew Jet Black on a panel of Arches Watercolor paper, any cardstock will work- I wanted the off white look. I re-stamped with Embossing ink and applied Embossing powder. Heat set. I love the raised look it creates and how professional it looks.
• Color with your favorite medium- I used Altenew Artist Markers Coral Berry, Frosty Pink, Grapevine, Frayed Leaf, and Evergreen.
• Hand-cut around the flower bunches to apply to your Re-inker background panel.
• Stamp a sentiment on a scrap piece of cardstock, with Altenew Jet Black Ink. Apply to s strip of background.  Since the Yupo paper is 5 x 7, you will have pieces and parts to use. See photo above for leftover pieces I have for other projects. 
• Assemble as shown, I added a black and grey mat to frame it all and to make the entire card pop. My card base is Neenah Solar White 110 lb. (its all I use for bases). 
• Finish with a few sequins for that final touch of texture and some sprinkle of sparkle for shine. 
• Lastly, sit back and admire your ART.  I did. :-) 

Well folks, this is my last project for my coursework.  But it does not end here!  I will also be completing the final coursework with a mock workshop with my friends to hold the title of FULLY certified with Altenew.  I don't know where this will lead me, I hope it opens up many opportunities to teach and design.  I have found my forever home with Altenew.  I love the company inside and out.  Erum, Virginia and Nicole, THANK you for being my support of cheerleaders, thank you for the encouragement along the way and believing in me.  I've learn a lot and I have grown a better artist.  A HUGE thank you to all the instructors as well.  

Until next time! 

♥ Christine 

Hey friends! 

EEEEEEk, I love this card so much!  Water-coloring has become an obsession with me.  I still need a lot of practice.  I decided to pull out Pattern Play Circles again- it's my only Altenew background stamp, smiles.  I have several on my wish list!  I also pulled out one of my favorite stamps, Beautiful Quotes. My hope is to always bring joy and encouragement to others through my card-making- this stamp does just that. 

I absolutely loved the class, Stunningly Simple Watercolor Techniques. It's always fun to watch others color.  My BIGGEST take away, ah, ha moment-- WET the back of your card panel before placing it on a craft mat- this reduces the warping you can get when using lots of water. By adding water to the back, both sides dry simultaneously so there is less warping. 

Don't forget, from one of my other courses, HOT PRESS watercolor paper is the KEY to success.  The tooth is not as rough as cold press and you get a better result in my opinion.  Lets dive into the how, did you make that Miss Christine?

Stamps: Altenew Beautiful Quotes & Pattern Play Circles
Ink: Altenew Permanent Black , Embossing,  Lagoon and Volcano Lake
Cardstock/Paper:  Arches Watercolor Hot Press | Neenah Solar White 110 (card base) |  Scrap of Ivory 
Other: Rose Gold Embossing Powder | Watercolor Brushes |  Nuvo Ivory Seashell Crystal Drops | Sparkle & Copper Silks ( mine are from Fun Stampers Journey)

Steps: How did you make that Miss Christine?

• Brush or spray water on the back of a watercolor paper panel. 
• Brush watercolor mixture of water and Lagoon Ink on the panel. Create a ombre' background- start with the darkest color on top and end with a very little tint of color. If you add too much color add more water- if its too light- add more ink.  Let the panel completely dry before moving on. 
• Stamp back ground Pattern Play next with embossing ink on the dried panel, add Rose Gold embossing powder, then heat set.  
• Mix water and Lagoon ink on a craft mat and color some of the circles.  I like to apply clean water to each circle and dab colored ink -- let the water do the work... it will follow the water and because we embossed the colors stay confined as long as you don't put a HUGE puddle of watercolor inside the circle.  If you get too much - use a dry cloth to soak up some of the water. 
• Flick Sparkle and Copper silk randomly. 
• Stamp sentiment on Ivory cardstock with Volcano Lake.  Add foam tap to the back and attach to the card panel. 
• Assemble to card base and finish with some faux Nuvo Crystal Drop pearls. 
• My card is 4 x 5 1/4, this allowed me to add the sentiment strip that is 4 /1/4 long and it still will fit in a standard A2 envelope. 

I hope you love this card as much as I do--- its unique and so pleasing to the eye.  Thanks for stopping by, I have one more course to do and then it's exam time. 

♥ Christine