Playing with Fish again

I have quite taken to Ocean Commotion. At first I knew I had to have it, but didn't know what to do with it once it was here. I am now finding that there are things that I can do with it, and the Polished Stone technique background was one of them.

Have you seen this technique? Basically you put on a pair of disposables gloves (trust me on this), saturate a cotton ball or makeup sponge with rubbing alcohol, drop a couple of drops of dye reinkers in coordinating colours onto it and a drop or two of metallic (Encore in this case) reinker and dab all over a piece of glossy white cardstock.

The alcohol makes the metallic ink sort of run around the cardstock in a random fashion and the effect is quite pretty and not a little like a quartz stone with a vein of metal running through it.

Anyway, after reading a discussion about Polished Stone on a mailing list I'm on, I realised it had been a long time since I did this myself, and voila, here it is.

You can't actually see the silver streaks running through the fishy background in this photo, and it really is incredibly subtle even in real life.

An idea that I have borrowed from a blog I was visiting the other day (Karen Thomas' Luv To Stamp - lovely work there!) was to use my Crop-A-Dile to emboss dots for the bubbles, then I used a little Two Way Glue to stick some Dazzling Diamonds glitter onto them.

Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Ocean Commotion
Ink: Black Stazon
Cardstock: Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue, Not Quite Navy, Glossy White
Other: Scallop Edge Punch, Crop-A-Dile, Two Way Glue, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, Classic Stampin' reinkers in Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue and Not Quite Navy

And an update: A few days ago (well, maybe a week or so) I posted this card, which was a little unfinished at the time. I have since had another look at it and used some advice from Pauline to finish it a off bit better.

Thanks Pauline!

Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Ocean Commotion
Ink: Real Red, Ballet Blue, Pumpkin Pie
Cardstock: Ballet Blue, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, Basic Black, Old Olive, Whisper White
Other: 1-1/4" Square Punch, 1-3/8" Square Punch

Brightening things up

I have had this colour scheme in my head for the past few days and finally last night found time to play with it. I can't even remember what I saw that made me think of it. So far three out of three people that I showed it to (ie. my family) said "well ... um ... it's bright". That's the point!

It looks a little "unfinished" on the left hand side, but that's because I haven't decided what message to put there to balance the fish.

The hardest part was cutting out those little fins ... I wouldn't be making these in bulk!

Remember that this set is only available in the Summer Mini, and only until the end of March; contact me if you would like to buy it for your own.

Images © 1990-2008 Stampin' Up!®

Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Ocean Commotion
Ink: Real Red, Ballet Blue, Pumpkin Pie
Cardstock: Ballet Blue, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, Basic Black, Old Olive, Whisper White
Other: 1-1/4" Square Punch, 1-3/8" Square Punch

More from Liz

At our recenty Girls Nite at Deb's house, Liz again got into her creative streak ... and she has been so kind as to allow me to photograph her creations to share on my blog; because she's using current Stampin' Up! stuff, they all qualify to be shown here!



This card is a case of the one I made at our last GNI, however Liz has used only the current "In Colors" (which are only available until the expiry of our current catalogue, so if you like them, get in quick!).

Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Ocean Commotion
Ink: Groovy Guava, Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi
Cardstock: Groovy Guava, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White
Other: Scallop Edge Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals



I like this one! In fact, I'm planning on CASEing it myself! Again, Liz has only used "In Colours", and don't they work well together!

Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Big Bold Birthday, Warm Words
Ink: Wild Wasabi, Groovy Guava, Purely Pomegranate
Cardstock: Groovy Guava, Purely Pomegranate, Whisper White



A birthday card with a definitely masculine colour scheme.

Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Big Bold Birthday
Ink: River Rock, Chocolate Chip, Soft Sky
Cardstock: River Rock, Chocolate Chip, Blue Bayou, Whisper White



And lastly a card using my personal favourite Eastern Blooms. At first I had this up the wrong way, but Liz had designed it so the message is sideways at the top of the card, not the right way up at the bottom of the card. And Liz has used her scrap from the scallop edge punch, just like I've been doing! Waste not, want not.

Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Easter Blooms
Ink: River Rock
Cardstock: River Rock, Always Artichoke, Blue Bayou, Whisper White
Other: Scallop Edge Punch, Scallop Circle Punch

Thank you again, Liz, for allowing me to share these.

Something fishy ...

I think this little set (only four stamps) is so sweet ... and a little different from the usual flower stamps that I have in abundance *g*.

This is a card I made at our recent Girls Nite, which was an achievement in itself as I usually have no idea what to make and end up watching what everyone else is doing. I love the seaweed stamp especially. I ended up liking this card so much I used it at a recent workshop (hi Lesley!).

I don't know if you can see it in the photo, but I have stamped the seaweed a few times across the bottom in matching Rose Red ink.

And the green strip of cardstock? Leftovers from making the scalloped edging (you need to see the scallop edge punch in action to see what I mean). I just can't help recycling the smallest pieces of cardstock *g*.

If you like this stamp set (the other two stamps are an angel fish and a shell), please remember to arrange your purchase before the end of March, as this is currently only available in the Stampin' Up! Summer Mini Catalogue. Contact me for further information.

Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Ocean Commotion
Ink: Rose Red, Old Olive
Cardstock: Rose Red, Old Olive, More Mustard, Whisper White
Other: Cutter Kit, Scallop Edge Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals

Girls' Nite In

Every so often, one of my friends will call for a Girls' Nite, where we stamp, chat, snack, chat and maybe stamp some more. These Nites are a great way of escaping from "real life" and just having some time to be yourself, and can be invaluable halfway through the summer school holidays *g*.

Our most recent Nite, held here at my place, resulted in some great cards from Liz, which she has kindly allowed me to show you.



Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Embrace Life
Ink: Wild Wasabi, Groovy Guava
Cardstock: Wild Wasabi, River Rock, Whisper White



Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Live Your Dream
Ink: Groovy Guava, Chocolate Chip
Cardstock: Always Artichoke, River Rock, Whisper White



Supplies used:

Stamp sets: Ocean Commotion, Short & Sweet
Ink: Groovy Guava, Blue Bayou
Cardstock: Soft Sky, Blue Bayou, Whisper White

There is one more card, but sometimes Blogger doesn't play nicely and won't let me upload the cards the right way up, grrrr. Next time ...