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Hello There - Memo Pad

by Brenda Noelke on Nov 01 2024

Happy Friday, fellow crafters!! Brenda back with you today!! I've always loved new notebooks...oh, the possibilities!! The beginning of the school year was so exciting to me because we always got new school supplies!! So, I was super excited to see the composition notebook products in the October release!! I began by adhering a narrow strip of black cardstock along the left side of a panel of blue paper from the Memo Pad: Brights Fabulously Glossy A2 Card Front Pack. I used a corner rounder to round both of the corners on the right side. I rounded the right corners of an A2 card base and adhered the panel to it using liquid glue. Next, I die-cut the A2 Ripped Notebook Cover Plate Die from white cardstock. I stamped the numbers from the A2 Notebook Grid Stamp along the left edge of the die-cut with PFS Black Hybrid Ink. It was adhered to the front of the card. The sentiment is from the Hello There Word Die Set. It was cut from teal and black cardstock, stacked and adhered together with liquid glue, then added to the front of the card. A few Thunderstorm Gems add a bit of sparkle to finish off the card. I love how this turned out!! Did you always look forward to new school supplies?!? A brand new notebook still makes my heart happy!! Thanks so much for stopping by today!! Have a wonderful weekend!! Brenda

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Know You Are Surrounded By Love

by Brenda Noelke on May 15 2024

Happy Wednesday, fellow crafters!! This week sure is flying by!! Brenda here with an encouragement card featuring goodies from yesterday's release!! I started by white heat embossing the flowers from the Sweet Summer Bellflowers Stamp Set onto Bristol smooth cardstock. I watercolored them with Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers, then cut them out with their Coordinating Dies. For the background, I stamped the She Endured Background Stamp onto a panel of Bristol cardstock by coloring on the stamp with the same markers that I used on the flowers, spritzing it with water, then stamping it onto the panel. It was die-cut with the largest arched die in the Basic Die-cutting Die Set 1. I used the two largest arched dies in the same set to cut a frame from plum cardstock, then I cut the second largest arched die from vellum. The largest die in the A2 Rectangle Layering Die Set was cut from blue cardstock and the She Endured Background Stamp was stamped onto it with blue ink. All of the layers were adhered together with liquid glue and the flowers were adhered across the front of the panel. The sentiment, from the Swanky Sentiments: Sympathy Stamp Set, was white heat embossed onto plum cardstock. It was cut out with its Coordinating Die and popped up with foam tape. That does it for me today!! Thanks so much for stopping by!! I hope the rest of your week goes well!! Brenda

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The Sound of the Sea Helps Tides Rise

by Brenda Noelke on Apr 15 2024

Happy Monday, Picket Fence friends!! Brenda here with a shaker card created with goodies from the Ocean Odyssey Release that just dropped yesterday!! Such a fantastic release!! My card today features the Seahorses of the Sea Stamp Set & Coordinating Dies, the Beachcomber Fabulous Glossy A2 Card Fronts!! I started much like I do most cards, by stamping the seahorse from the Seahorses of the Sea Stamp Set onto white cardstock with PFS Black Hybrid Ink. I colored him with Copic markers, added highlights with a white gel pen and used the Coordinating Die to cut him out. Next, I created my shaker by die-cutting a panel of cardstock from the Beachcombing Fabulous Glossy A2 Card Fronts with the smallest rectangle die in the A2 Rectangle Layering Die Set and cutting an oval with a die in the Basic Die Cutting Set 1 Die Set. Can we just take a moment to appreciate how stunning this cardstock is?!? So beautiful!! I adhered the oval in the center of a panel of burnt orange cardstock that was cut out with the largest die in the A2 Rectangle Layering Die Set. Acetate and foam tape were adhered to the front panel, Tropical Breeze Sequins were added for the shakers and the layers were adhered together. The sentiment is also from the Seahorses of the Sea Stamp Set. Not only does the sound of the sea help the tides rise...it totally relaxes me!! The sentiment was stamped onto white cardstock with burnt orange ink and cut out with the Coordinating Die. The seahorse and sentiment were adhered to the front of the card with liquid glue and this card was complete. I LOVE these colors and who doesn't love a shaker card?!? Be sure to check out the fabulous Ocean Odyssey Release in the shop!! Thank you so much for spending part of your Monday with me!! Have a great week!! Brenda

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A Birthday Cupcake Just for You!

by Colleen Balija on Feb 06 2024

Hi friends! It's Colleen again and I'm sharing another birthday card using the new Wreath Building: Cupcakes for You stamp and Wreath Building: Centers and Foliage stamp. I'm also using the existing Layering Flora Happy Fern die and Tangerine and Sunlight Yellow flatback pearls! These sets are made to create beautiful wreathes, but I wanted to combine the Wreath Building cupcake stamp and Centers & Foliage stamp into one card. So, I decided to stamp the wreaths and place the cupcakes inside of each, building a lovely background! First, I stamped the solid circles from the Wreath Building: Centers and Foliage stamp in a dark shade of brown ink. Next, I stamped the tiny dots stamp from the set in a shade of yellow, deliberately offsetting the stamp for a playful effect! It's subtle, but those little details take your card to the next level! When I finished creating a background with the circles, I stamped a few of the mini cupcakes in the center of each circle. Then I stamped a few of the teeny tiny pieces of fruit (so adorable) from the cupcake stamp set to fill in the extra space between. I also stamped one of the leaves from the Centers and Foliage set (this set can be made into a lovely wreath as well!). Once the stamping was complete, I colored the cupcakes and fruit. Then I trimmed the panel, setting the outer part of the panel aside, and placed the center panel over a slightly larger dark brown panel. Then I adhered both over the outer part of the panel to create a fun effect that adds interest to a one-layer card! The remaining step was to add the sentiment, which was stamped in dark brown ink from the Cupcakes for You stamp, surrounded by the wreath stamped in yellow. I die cut the sentiment in a circle and placed it over the white Layering Flora leaf. The leaf helped the sentiment not get lost in that busy background. I finished with shimmer and glossy accents on the cupcakes as well as pearl sequins! I love how organic the card looks! Thanks so much for joining me today! To find the products used in my blog post, hover over the product name and then click on the link. Or visit the Picket Fence Studios shop!

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Valentine's Day Card- "Friends Give the Best Hugs Stamp set"

by Heejung Hunsberger on Dec 19 2023

Hello Crafty Friends, I made a cute card with the Friends Give the Best Hugs Stamp Set and the Welcome Home Bun Bun Die Set from the new Picket Fence Studios release. "I used a Paper Pouncer to apply a soft blue color in the background." "I used OLO markers to color the Welcome Home Bun Bun die set's carrot-shaped house that I had die-cut on white card stock. I am glad you took the time to read this post. I hope it has motivated you to unleash your creativity. Do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or feedback.I’m looking forward to sharing more content with you soon. Best regards, Heejung. SUPPLIES When you make purchases through affiliate links, it won’t cost you anything extra. I am grateful for your support!

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Happy Holidays from All of Us

by Brenda Noelke on Oct 10 2023

Hello, fellow crafters!! Brenda here with a holiday card featuring several products from the latest release!! The A Christmas Hello Stamp Set is one of my faves!! I started by stamping the A Christmas Hello Stamp Set onto white cardstock with PFS Black Hybrid Ink. I knew that I wanted to use one of the papers from the Holiday Traditions Foiling Toner Cardstock Pack for my background, so I colored the bird with neutral colors of Copics, then fussy cut it out. For the background, I trimmed a piece of paper from the Holiday Traditions Foiling Toner Cardstock Pack slightly smaller than A2. Although this toner paper is made to be used with foil, I loved it as the background for this beautiful bird. I spread Arctic Fox Paper Glaze Luxe onto a panel of white cardstock with a palette knife. Once it was dry, I die-cut the More Winter Snowflakes Dies from it and adhered them to the background panel. I trimmed the excess from the edges, then adhered it to an A2 card base. The bird was then adhered with liquid adhesive. The sentiment is from the Mistletoe Kisses Stamp Set. I stamped it onto white cardstock with PFS Black Hybrid Ink, fussy cut it out and popped it up with foam tape. I chose some iridescent snowflakes from the Christmas Flurries Sequin Mix and adhered those to the background to complete the card. This card has so much sparkle and shine, between the iridescent sequins and the paper glaze, it really packs a punch!! Thanks so much for stopping by today!! Have a great Tuesday!! Brenda

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Your Friendship Is A Blessing - Million Little Things

by Brenda Noelke on May 17 2023

Hello, Picket Fence friends!! Brenda here sharing a card created with one of my favorite sets from the May release!! I stamped the stunning floral image from the Million Little Things Stamp Set onto white cardstock with no-line coloring ink. I colored it with Copics, then used the Coordinating Die to cut it out. I used a yellow gel pen to add some color back in to the stamen that I lost when coloring with my Copics. For the background, I die-cut the Slim Line Pierced Blanket Cover Plate Die from white cardstock and adhered it to a slimline white card base. The floral die-cut was popped up onto the background with foam adhesive. The sentiment is also from the Million Little Things Stamp Set. It was stamped with PFS Black Hybrid Ink and cut out with the Coordinating Die. It was adhered with a combination of foam tape and liquid adhesive. A combination of Butterfly Bush, All About the Pinks and All About the Purples embellishments perfectly match the colors in the floral arrangement. That’ll do it for me today!! Be sure to check our the entire May release…it’s SOOOOOO GOOD!! Have a great Wednesday!! Brenda

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It's Time For Fun - Easter Shaker Card

by Brenda Noelke on Mar 08 2023

Hello, fellow crafters!! Brenda here with a fun Easter shaker card to share with you today!! I'm sooo ready for Spring and this card just screams "Spring!!" with its soft pastel colors!! I began by stamping the Peter Bunny & Friends Stamp Set onto white cardstock with PFS Black Hybrid Ink. I colored the image with Copic markers and fussy cut it out. (There is a Coordinating Die Set available, but it is out of stock right now.) Next, I white heat embossed the Easter Egg Time Stamp Set onto a panel of white cardstock and blended pastel colors of Distress Oxide Inks onto the panel with Life Changing Blender Brushes. I die-cut a circle into the panel with the 3.0 Connected Circles Shaker Creator Dies. I also die-cut a larger circle from a shaker sheet using the same die set and adhered it to the back of the ink-blended panel. I applied foam adhesive to the back of the panel, added Hop and Bunny Honey embellishments, then lined up the circle die-cut and adhered it so the eggs matched seamlessly with the background. The panel was then adhered to a white A2 card base. The Peter Bunny & Friends image was adhered to the front of the card with liquid adhesive. The sentiment, also from the Peter Bunny & Friends Stamp Set, was white heat embossed onto black cardstock, trimmed into a narrow strip and popped up with foam adhesive. I just love this bunny in the mug and those Hop and Bunny Honey embellishments are absolutly perfect for Easter cards!! Thanks so much for spending a bit of time with me today!! Have a good one!! Brenda

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Santa Scene Card

by Brenda Noelke on Oct 13 2022

Hello, Picket Fence friends!! I hope this finds you all well!! I love sending funny Christmas cards to friends who have a good sense of humor!! When I saw the Name Off the Good List Stamp Set, I knew immediately who I would send it to!! I LOVE when that happens!! Let’s get to my card!! I began by stamping the Santa and sentiment from Name Off the Good List onto white cardstock with black hybrid ink. I colored Santa with Copic markers, then cut it and the sentiment out with the Coordinating Dies. For the background, I die-cut the A2 Evergreens On a Hill Cover Plate Die from heavyweight white cardstock. I mixed Winter Snowfall Paper Glaze with a bit of Sparkle Paper Glitz and spread it onto the bottom of the panel with a palette knife. I added some Leaf Green Paper Glaze to the trees with my finger, to create some texture. Once that was dry, I adhered it to an A2 size panel of dark blue cardstock, then a white card base. I diluted some Winter Snowfall Paper Glaze and splattered it onto the background with a paint brush. That dried pretty quickly, then I adhered Santa and the sentiment with foam tape. The snowflakes are from the Letters to Santa Mix and were the perfect finishing touch for my scene!! I love how this turned out!! How about you…do you like humorous or traditional cards for Christmas? I like to tailor them to the recipient and, like I said, I have the perfect person in mind for this one! Thank you so much for spending a bit of your day with me!! Tomorrow is the 14th and you know what that means…it’s RELEASE DAY!! YAY!! Have a great Thursday!! Brenda

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Seasonal Christmas Flowers Poinsettia Cards

by Brenda Noelke on Sep 22 2022

Hello, crafty friends!! Brenda here with my first blog post as a member of the talented & amazing design team!! I’m super excited to be able to share some of my creations with Picket Fence products!! I’ve always been a huge fan!! I’ve really been enjoying creating with the latest September release!! One of the first sets that caught my eye was the stunning Seasonal Christmas Flowers Stamp Set!! The poinsettia is such an iconic holiday symbol and I couldn’t wait to color these!! I began by stamping all of the images in the Seasonal Christmas Flowers Stamp Set with Black Hybrid Ink. After coloring them with Copic markers, I cut them out with the Coordinating Die Set. I’ve always loved the contrast of black with bright red poinsettias, so I trimmed a panel of black cardstock to 4” x 5.25”. I adhered the leaves and holly with liquid glue and popped the poinsettias up with foam tape. I diluted some Snowdrop White Glaze with water and splattered it over the panel and poinsettias with a paint brush. Once that was dry, I adhered it to a panel of white cardstock, then an A2 panel of red cardstock, before adhering it to my card base. The sentiments, from the Swanky Christmas Sentiment Set, were white heat embossed onto black cardstock, then cut out with the Coordinating Dies. I love these fonts!! They were also popped up with foam tape. For the finishing touches, I dotted some Golden Sparkle Paper Glitz onto the centers of the poinsettias with a stylus and added a combination of Dancing Reindeer & A Classic Christmas sequin mixes. Thank you so much for spending a bit of your day with me!! Have a great Thursday and I’ll see you soon!! Brenda

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Stretching Your Stencils with Ink Lifting featuring Picket Fence Studio's Shadow of Leaves

by Bonnie Crane on Jul 22 2022

I have a set of cards featuring Picket Fence Studio’s GORGEOUS 6 by 6 and Slim Line SHADOW OF LEAVES STENCILS using an easy ink lifting technique.

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Cats Are Family with Erica

by Erica Andersson-Burke on Jun 08 2021

Hi guys! It's Erica back on the Picket Fence blog with a card I made with the darling Cats Are Family stamp and whilst I didn't use it, it has a coordinating die set. It's purr-fect, if you ask me. I stamped up the biggest image in the set with Black Hybrid Ink on Copic friendly ink, on Neenah card stock. Naturally I went with a rainbow theme for the books the cat is perched on. I mean, duh, right? LOL. The cat was coloured grey as I have a stray cat living with me, who's grey and I call him Carlos The Cat. He's very cheeky and likes to perch on top of our gate post, taunting The Cheeky Chicas (my dogs) The final thing I added was a shadow from the books and the cat, as we live in sunny Spain and I love sunshine. Oh, and the sentiment in the top right corner was stamped with Black Hybrid ink. I almost added sequins, because cats love bling and round things, right? But I managed to resist! That's it from me for today but thanks for stopping by! If you would like a colouring tutorial for this, let me know in the comments and I will start working on it. Lots of love and happy crafting from Erica

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Slimline Tree Scenery

by Sandi MacIver on Apr 28 2021

Hey crafty friends, Sandi here with a new Slimline Tree Scenery card for you. I love Picket Fence Studios Slimline Die collection and when the new inserts came out this month I just had to give them a go along with a few other new goodies of course. The Tree Scenery Slim Line Die Cutting System insert was my first choice with it's beautiful branches and tiny little bunny dies that I just had to include. Card Details: Start by die cutting the smaller rectangle as your card front. Use the Details of a Wing Slim Line Stencil and blend Distress Oxide Inks in Speckled Egg, Evergreen Bough and Black Soot to get a light background effect. Next, splatter it with white and gold ink. Cut the tree out of the slimline piece and cut it again from watercolor paper. Using Gansai Tambi watercolors, color the tree adding teals, purples greens and pinks. Once dry, cut the circle away from the water colored tree and glue the tree over the one on the card. Matt the art piece i coordinating purple before attaching to the white card base. Embellishing the Card: Use the circle die from the Slim line Scallop Framed Dies - to cut the gold circle outline which is inlaid around the tree. (these new inlaid dies are fabulous for card highlights and there are hearts in this set as well). Glue on gems from the new Reflections Gem Mix. This is where I got the colors for the tree, therefore, they coordinating beautifully. The Sentiment: Gold heat emboss the sentiment from the NEW Fancy Daily Sentiments onto a piece of black cardstock and die cut it out with the coordinating die set. Use small pieces of foam tape to attach it to the left side of the card. I love the dramatic feel of this card, hope you do too. used for the Picket Fence Studios Slimline Tree Scenery card: Want to find the products I used? I have them listed below. Compensated affiliate links used at no cost to you. Thank you for your support.

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Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember is here!!

by Erica Andersson-Burke on Sep 07 2020

Hi stampers! Today's post is extra exciting as today is the day the Picket Fence Studio's STAMPtember collaboration set will be revealed! It's full of sassy and fun sentiments, as well as a thirst quenching lineup of cocktails image to colour in! Due to Covid and slower post, I did not actually get my set at the time of writing this so I have used a digital download. I do apologise if they sizes are a little off, I'm quite severely technologically challenged and my printer is a piece of crap, but I have done my best. The fun thing about printing the stamps off, instead of stamping them traditionally, is that I was able to foil some of them. For instance, this card is very CAS but with the foil, it really sparkles! All it needed were a few sequins from The Pink Lady Sequin Mix, and ta-da, done! I used an ombré pink and gold foil on this one, and on another one I used Hot Pink. For this card I coloured the images in with Copics before foiling the outlines, as I wasn't sure if the markers might scratch off the foil. This one I trimmed down with a stitched rectangular diecut, and added it to a card base with a gold leopard patterned paper. To bring in the colour of the patterned paper, I used sequins from the Irish coffee Sequin Mix. As I printed off the entire set each time, I had a lot of sentiments. A few of these I foiled in Turquoise foil, and I ended up using one of these on my third card. These cocktails are not foiled, just coloured in, and then that was trimmed down. This strip I wrapped around an already made background. The background is ink blended with Distress Oxide inks and Life Changing Blender Brushes. On top of this I used the Flourish Circle Stencil with Glimmer Paste to make it extra fun. Foil is really hard to photograph well, but I have tried showing off both that and the Glimmer Paste. I do wish I could show you this in real life though! It's so sparkly! The next card is also done with the Flourish Circle Stencil, only this time with rainbow foil on black card stock. The effect is fantastic! This one I finished off with just a sentiment strip. My final card is also a pre-made background, where I ink blended some Distress Oxide colours on a panel and then made gold water colour by mixing some Golden Rose Paper Glaze with water. With this, I then drew fat lines of gold across it to add some fabulous shimmer. The sentiment 'Wine is to women as duct tape is to men. It fixes everything' cracks me up. I'm not a wine drinker but I have many, many friends who swear it is the only thing keeping them sane in these weird times we live in now. Well, with that, I am all done for today! Thank you so much for stopping by, I really hope you found some inspiration here with me. If you want this set, make sure to hop on over to Simon Says Stamp and nab it right away, as once it's sold out, it will not be restocked. Link below to the Simon Says Stamp EXCLUSIVE Picket Fence Studios STAMPTember set Happy Waters https://www.simonsaysstamp.com/product/Picket-Fence-Studios-Stamptember-2020-Exclusive-sss302210c-sss302210c/2393 Happy Waters Stamp and Die Bundle https://www.simonsaysstamp.com/product/Picket-Fence-Studios-Stamptember-2020-Exclusive-sssd112253c-sssd112253c/2393 Lots of love and happy STAMPtember, everyone!! Crafty hugs from Erica

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No-line colouring rose from Michelle

by Michelle Lupton on Sep 04 2020

Hello! It's Michelle here today, and I'm sharing a card using the no-line colouring technique. I stamped the rose image in very pale ink, then coloured it with Derwent pencils. I fussy cut around the left edge of the rose and adhered it to a pink card base with a strip of red cardstock. I stamped and white embossed the sentiment from Fancy Sentiments onto matching red cardstock, and added it to the front of the card, along with some Gin and Tonic sequins. IMPORTANT NEWS!!! Click HERE to shop the sale! Thanks for visiting :)

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New Release Projects with Larisa

by Larisa Hohman on Sep 02 2020

Hello! Larisa here and today I'm sharing a few projects using some of the new goodies released a couple weeks ago. Let's get started! For my first card, I used the NEW A World With Octobers stamp set. As someone who absolutely loves fall, I have to say, this stamp set is a MUST. I just love both of the sentiments on the set and that it can be used for Halloween or just fun fall card. To create my card, I stamped my images out on Copic-friendly card stock and colored them with Copics using the no-line coloring technique. Then I die cut the panel into a stitched square and layered that on top of some kraft card stock. I added a few patterned paper page flags underneath my panel and adhered the whole thing to some green plaid paper. Such a fun and simple card. Love it! Card Details: A World With Octobers Clear Stamp Set Copic Colors: Orange: YR04, YR16, YR18 Brown: E43, E47, E49 Green: YG21, YG25, YG67 Yellow: Y21, Y26 Red: R35, R56, R59 For my next card, I used the oh-so-sweet Your Friend Dear Stamp Set and paired it with the NEW Evergreen Stencil. I have to tell you, I had so much fun creating this card! To begin, I stamped out my image on Copic-friendly card stock and colored it up using Copic Markers. Then I created a mask, layered that over the top, and used distress inks to add my trees to the background. Then I removed my mask and colored in the ground using Copics. I also added some definition to the trees with my YG67 Copic Marker. I die cut the whole thing into a stitched square and layered that on top of a kraft card base. Then I added a sweet sentiment from the New Songbirds Set. Card Details: Your Friend Dear Clear Stamp Set Evergreen Stencil Songbirds Clear Stamp Set Copic Colors: Skin: E000, E00, E11, E04, R20 Hair: Y21, Y26, E87 Red: R24, R56, R59 Blue: B21, B24, B26 Orange: YR04, YR16, YR18 Tan: E50, E53, E55, E57 For my final project, I used the NEW Songbirds Clear Stamp Set to create some fun little tag pockets. I had the little kraft pockets in my stash and decided these little birds would be the perfect way to embellish them. First, I die cut some white tags from a die in my stash and added some ribbon and clothes pins to the top. Then I trimmed a piece of patterned paper to fit the front of the pocket and adhered that together. I colored up my birds using Copic Markers in fun, bright colors and die cut them out in a circle. Then I used foam tape to mount them on top of some scalloped circles and placed those on top of my pockets. A few glitter embellishments, some washi tape, and some stamped sentiments finish these little pockets off. Card Details: Songbirds Clear Stamp Set Copic Colors: Blue: BG10, BG11, BG13 Pink: R00, R11, R20, R22 Yellow: Y21, Y26 Green: YG21, YG25, YG67 Additional Products Used: Black Hybrid Ink Pad Life Changing Blender Brush Set Thanks so much for stopping by! Have a great day!!!

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Fireburst Stencil in action with Erica

by Erica Andersson-Burke on Jul 07 2020

Hey guys! It's Erica, aka The Stencil Addict, back on the blog today! Today it's all about the Fireburst Stencil. This first card you might have seen already, but just in case you haven't, I have included step-by-step instructions here: Step 1: Make COLOURFUL background. I used Copics, and simply swiped them back and forth on the card stock to create this vivid rainbow. The markers in the photo are the exact ones, in order. Step 2: Spray your stencil with Pixie Spray and let it cure for a few minutes. Place over background where you want to create the pattern. Protect your project by covering the edge with Washi tape or something similar. I have used PostIt Tape here. Step 3: Pick out your Paper Glaze choices. I used Golden Rose and Black Pansy for this one. Work fast and apply the glaze. Thin if you want just shimmer and a little texture. Add lots if you want more texture. My base layer was Black Pansy. Step 4: For extra pizzazz, add a thin layer of another colour on top. I used Golden Rose here to add some gold shimmer. Step 5: Stamp sentiment on it and hey, presto! Done! For this card I used one from the After The Storm stamp set and stamped it up in Black Hybrid Ink with the help of a MISTI. On the next card I ink blended some fiery colours first, using Atelier Inks from Ink On 3 in Bee Sting Yellow, Marigold Orange and Marilyn Red, using Life Changing Blender Brushes. Leaving the stencil in place, I also added some Black Pansy and Golden Rose Paper Glaze around the edges. The middle I left clear so I could stamp up a sentiment. Because it's so fiery I thought the sassy 'My hobbies includes having no time for bullshit' was perfect. It's one of two in the Do Not Take Any Shit set. The final card is done with only Paper Glaze and the stencil flipped 45 degrees. It's so dramatic and elegant against the white background! I did make a bit of a mess at the top right corner, but never mind. To finish off the card I heat embossed 'happy birthday' from Fancy Sentiments, in gold on vellum. This strip I wrapped around the background and then adhered it to a card base. Well, that's it from me for today! I hope you found some inspiration here with me, and will try some of these techniques for yourself. Lots of love and happy crafting from Erica

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After The Storm Two Ways with Erica

by Erica Andersson-Burke on Jun 16 2020

Hi guys! It’s Erica back on the Picket Fence Blog today, with a couple of cards using the brand new After The Storm stamp set. Both cards are coloured with Copics and stamped up with the Black Hybrid ink. Because the After The Storm stamps are brand new, I used a Mini MISTI to make sure I got good stamp outlines. I wanted to create really dramatic and dark clouds, but not make them all grey or black. On a scrap piece of paper I scribbled all the grey copics I planned on using, then used some blues over them to see how they reacted. This scrap piece became my guide to how to colour in the clouds. For the rainbow I used one single marker for each section. On the second card I started with a lighter Grey Copic (C5). On the first one the darkest one is C7. On this one I used a more pastel colour scheme for the rainbow. I have also used two markers for each section to get more dimension. I added two more colours, plus a darker shade, to colour in the umbrella, as well as some browns for the bench. Once the colouring was done, this card was complete as the sentiment is already stamped up on it. To add more drama to the first card, I cut out a mask and placed over the coloured image. Then I ink blended some Chipped Sapphire that was left on one of my Life Changing Blender Brushes to add a soft dark sky behind the clouds. The final touch for the background was splattering some Golden Rose Paper Glaze on the card for some shimmer. I mixed a tiny dollop of it with water and splattered it with a paint brush. I keep one specifically for this as it dries rather hard, and this paint brush is no good for anything else now. The sentiment for this card is one from the After The Storm stamp set, and it says ‘Rainbows only form after a storm’. To create this effect, I masked off the ‘rainbow’ and stamped the rest of the sentiment with Black Hybrid ink. Then I masked off the ‘rainbow’ part in sections and stamped each section in a different colour. I have used Atelier Inks from Ink On 3 in Marilyn Red, Marigold Orange, Bee Sting Yellow, Goddess Green, Peacock Blue and My Jam Purple. If you look closely, you will notice that I have used the colours in the same order as my rainbow is coloured. Nice little touch, eh? Well, that’s it from me for today. Thank you for spending this time with me, I hope you found some inspiration here and if you want to add this gorgeous stamp set to your stash you can find it RIGHT HERE. Lots of love and happy crafting from Erica

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Quick WaterColor Trees And Bushes Sunset Card with Erica

by Erica Andersson-Burke on May 26 2020

Hi guys! It's Erica back on the PFS blog today. Sadly my May Release stamps are still on vacation ie somewhere in the postal system. So I thought, I'd stop in with a card I made with an older, but fabulous, new-to-me stamp: Watercolor Trees and Bushes. I haven't used this one yet, and now I can't see why not??? It's so lovely, and you can do so many techniques with it too. I decided to indulge my current obsession, which is doing Copic coloured backgrounds. With the chisel end of the Copic, I drew fat lines of all these colours and then blended them in to create a vibrant and vivid sunset. The bottom bit is done with just one green marker to give a bit of colour behind the hill that I stamped at the bottom. This panel was a bit bigger than the card I had planned on doing, so I trimmed it down to 5.5". The width was already 4.25". With the help of my MISTI, getting a good solid imprint with the Hybrid Black ink was easy peasy! I only added the hill and one of the tree clusters from the stamp set. I didn't want to crowd the card and also to leave space to stamp one of the sentiments from the stamp set. Because I can never leave a card simple and as it is, I mixed up some Golden Rose Paper Glaze with water and splattered this all over the panel too. It's possible I went in a bit crazy, but gold splatters is one of my favourite details to add! When this was all dry, I adhered it to a card base and that was it! If you don't have time to wait for the splatters to dry naturally, you can speed up the drying process by using your heat tool on it. Just make sure you do it gently and don't rush it too much or your paper will warp. Thank you so much for stopping by today! I hope you found some inspiration here with me. Lots of love and happy crafting from Erica

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Face The Sun In Bright Colours with Erica

by Erica Andersson-Burke on Apr 28 2020

Hi everyone! How are we doing? Keeping safe and occupied or going stir-crazy? It’s ok to swing back and forth between the two, I know I do! These are trying times and we can only do the best we can do deal with the situation but please do be safe and stay home if you can! Today’s card is a sort of juxtaposition of my feelings, in that it’s a flower but coloured in very non-natural colours. At least for this kind of flower. I love the Face The Sun sunflower, and yes, I’m well aware that I say I love all the flowers! LOL! I can’t help it, big flower lover over here. I started out by stamping it on a Neenah card base, directly, with the Hybrid Black ink and of course with the Mini MISTI to get a super detailed image. This stamp has so many fine details I’d definitely recommend using a stamping platform tool of some sort to make sure you get all the little bits stamped. Scanning my Copic Hex Chart, from Sandy Allnock, I picked out teals markers to colour the stem and foliage bits. Instead of colouring it as I normally do though, I decided to try something new. I have drawn one line with one colour, starting with the darkest, and then with the next colour I have slightly overlapped it, without making any attempts at blending them. I wasn’t sure how this would turn out but I must admit, I love it! Next it was time to colour the actual flower itself and the only choice was another bold colour! I went for an array of deep red, fushias and light pink. The petals I coloured in the same way as the stem and foliage and it turned out pretty cool too. I also added lots of white highlights with a white Posca pen. I have had zero luck finding a gel pen that doesn’t dry up on me right away so I’m sticking to the Posca pens from now on. Of course I could have stopped there but did I? No, ma’am, I did not. I decided to shade the flower in grays and a light blue to make it pop. It didn’t exactly turn out as I was hoping but I’m not hating it either. The only thing left to do was add a sentiment. I picked one from the Face The Sun stamp set, and it says ‘Spread seeds of happiness, joy and love’. Which I thought was quite perfect. Looking for the silver lining in every situation makes it easier to deal with it, at least I find that. Well, with that, I’m done. I hope you found some inspiration here today. Lots of love, germ-free virtual hugs and happy crafting from Erica