All content (including text, photographs, and design work) is © Shelly Kuck.
My original artwork is for personal inspiration only and may not be copied for publication or contest submission.
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Slideshow

Monday, June 30, 2008

Special Day

It is a special day, in fact a special week.  There are new Hanna Stamps! being released. on Friday July 4th and there will be sneak peeks all week.  I chose to use Wedding Day for 2 projects today.  The white card was embossed with the Cuttlebug swiss dots folder and then spritzed with a mixture of perfect pearls and water for a shimmery finish.  I backed the white folded card with Prism Razzleberry Medium CS.  The bride was stamped using TH Distress Black Soot ink, colored with copics and cut out.  The ribbon is May Arts. 

 

HSDT_SP_Wedding_SaK

The matchbook is 2 1/8" x 4 1/2"  Score at 1/2", 2 7/16" & 2 3/4"

HSDT Matchbook Favor_SaK

Friday, June 27, 2008

What's Shaken?

This is a combined challenge for today's Limited Supply Challenge over at Splitcoast to use brads on your main image as well as for the Hanna Stamps Challenge which is masking today. Be sure to stop by the Hanna forums for the details and include the key words HSC23 when uploading. I stamped Sophie and then stamped the grass from Spring Time. I also added a tropical drink to her hand from the Riley in the hammock stamp. I left the mask on and sponged the background with Soft Sky ink. The sun if from the Hanna Passport set. The image is colored with copic markers. The flocked yellow flower brad in her hair was layered with a rose colored brad and I added a flower brad from the same Making Memories collection to the sentiment panel. The words are from a new sentiment set called Just what I wanted to say. DP is by The Paper Studio I believe....

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

I have redecorated

I hope you like the looks of my new blog header and background. Beth from Freckled and Fun designed it for me. She is a joy to work with and can be your Personal Interiorer Blog Designer too! I am out of town but should be back to stamping and sharing tomorrow or Friday. Let me know what you think about the new look!

Kittie Kits!

Good morning! I just know you have been holding your breath waiting for my big surprise! Well you can exhale now, cause I’m about to tell you. Actually there have been little clues dropped the last couple of days. You just needed to look closely!

It’s been a year in the making. Last June, Jeanne, Kittie and Sherry sat around Kittie’s pool talking about her stamping style. It was before Kittie’s stint with design teams and even before the Dirty Dozen. To be exact – it was a year ago to the very week. they brain stormed the idea of Kittie making little kits with images and tools to help others learn her techniques to create the scenes she is so famous for.

I am so happy to announce that the day has finally arrived – INTRODUCING (a little drum roll please)

Kittie Kits by Kittie Caracciolo - CAUSE A SCENE exclusively from Rubbernecker Stamp Company

Kittie has designed two Master Kits, one for Landscape Scenes, Master #1

KCCS Landscape Master

and one for Beach Scenes, Master #2

KCCS Beach Master

Along with these two Master Kits, Kittie has also handpicked her favorite Rubbernecker images to be incorporated into accessory kits to accompany the Masters. The images have been resized and reworked for the exclusive kits.

The ones below accompany the Landscape Master #1

landscape accessories

and then these accompany the Beach Master #2.

beach accessories

If you paid close attention over the last few days, you would have seen that Kittie has been uploading cards made with the images, dropping hints along the way about the new images.

Sherry made a sample with the Landscape Master #1 and the accessory set with the cabin.

KCCS Cabin in the Woods

She started the image by painting water on the top half of the watercolor paper, and applying a wash of Broken China Distress Ink. Once that dried, painted the bottom half of the watercolor paper with water and applied a light wash of Shabby Shutters. Once that dried, stamped the trees, masked them and stamped the cabin. Leaving the mask on the cabin, stamped a few evergreen trees in the background. The cabin and tree trunks were water colored and the grass was given another layer of green. While the grass was still wet, she stamped the grass sprigs on the grass and let them run to add some dimension to the ground. The leaves were stamped with various images from the Kit, and then the flowers were added. To finish the card, she used Soft Sky which was sponged on the edges with Weathered Wood and Old Olive.

  • Stamps: Kittie Kits - Cause a Scene Master #1 and Rubbernecker Accessory Kit from Rubbernecker Stamp Company
  • Paper: Canson 120 lb. Watercolor Paper; SU Soft Sky and Old Olive
  • Ink: Ranger Tim Holtz Peeled Paint, Shabby Shutters, Weathered Wood, Fired Brick, Broken China and Vintage Photo Distress Ink; and Adirondack Pesto
  • Accessories: Water Brushes; Ribbon; Tsukineko Sponge Dauber

Kittie will be at the Rubbernecker Booth during Stampfest Orlando to demonstrate her Kittie Kits and to give demonstrations. If you are planning to attend, we hope you stop by the booth to visit and say hello!

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Confessions of a ribbon addict

So, my ribbon was out of control.  Organized, but taking up way too much room.  I decided that they just took up a lot of wasted space with the cardboard spools they come on. I emptied over 100 spools of ribbon, 3 drawers and 2 large craft storage jars that contained ribbon that was purchased by the yard.  The round tab punch spools are in floss keeper 3 ring binder sleeves that I chopped in half and cut off the 3 ring binder part.  They came in a package of 3 protectors with 20 pockets per sheet from Joanne's.  I now have 120 little spools stored in them and can see what I have at a glance, no more dumping out a whole jar full to find what I need.  The spool ribbon was rewound on ribbon cards that are 4" x 6" and are made by Cropper Hopper. They come 10 per pack and were $2.99 Awesome deal considering how much ribbon you can get on each one and even better when you have a 40% off coupon!  There is a slit in the middle to put the end of the ribbon in and I used straight pins to secure the loose end.  They do sell plastic clips for this purpose, but I chose the cheaper route and I think the straight pins hold the ribbon in place better anyway.  These will all fit on the bottom tier of my clip it up as shown in the last photo.  I still have 2 drawers of spooled ribbon(mostly SU! that held 15-25 yds each and take up most of the spool, not just a yard or 2 on a big spool with air in the center) and 2 drawers with floss binders that hold my small scraps and fibers.  On that note, I am off on a road trip to my friend Juliana's new home to help her unpack her stamp room and get organized after their recent move.  Check back for more space saving tips, I am thinking of bringing you a storage solution each Wednesday.  (if I remember - HA!)

Here are some of the spools I emptied, the 1st batch was already out in the garbage and I wasn't digging them out.

Ribbon Storage _SaK 001

A ton of my pretties all neatly organized.

Ribbon Storage _SaK 002

Here's one of the Cropper Hopper cards.  They are heavy duty plastic.  I ended up stapeling 2 end to

end to make use of the hanging room on my Clip it up. 

Ribbon Storage_sak 002

Floss sleeves containing 120 spools of loose ribbon I had:

Ribbon Storage _SaK 003

Waiting for my Clip it Up to arrive.  The Cropper Hopper cards all fit nicely in a Longaberger Notions Basket.

Ribbon Storage _SaK 004

I still have 132 spools of ribbon(yep, I counted) in these 2 drawers because most contain 25 yards which

is more than I was willing to rewind onto the ribbon cards.

Ribbon Storage_sak 001

Here's a shot of the floss binders that I leave in the iris cart drawers open faced.  There is a photo of

2 in the drawer, 1 on end and one closed.  The zip baggies in the binders are 3 1/2" x 5" and perfect

for ribbon scraps and fibers.

Ribbon Storage_sak

And finally, here's the Clip it Up holding my ribbon, stickers, rub on's, grungeboard

and more.  My top tier was on backorder but is in transit now.  I am not sure what

will go on that level, but I am sure I will have no problem filling it up.  

CIMG6125 

Here is the  clip it up with the top tier add on in place.  The bottom unit comes with 80 clips and the

top one with 40.  I have about 10 empty clips left and ready to add some things.  I will show you close

up's of some of the plastic storage containers and their contents another day.

CIU_Sak CIU2_SaK

                                                        

Sunday, June 22, 2008

FS72 Seek your dreams

Today's Featured Stamper on Splitcoast is Lost in the 60's.  What a fabo gallery.  I didn't get very far before deciding on a card to case.  Images used are all available from Innovative Stamp Creations Art 4 Frames II stamp sheet.  I masked the bird and used 2 different flourishes.  The larger flourish was also used on the round scallop punch.  The DP is Teresa Collins.  I finished the card with a shimmer mist of Perfect Pearls pearl color and water.

Here are the images used and my mask

FS72Bird Dreams_SaK 003                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Nestabilities on sale at ISC!

We all enjoy a great sale, especially when it's on something you've wanted for a long time, but couldn't afford it. Now is your opportunity! Nestabilities, Spellbinders fabulous Dies are now on sale.

Innovative Stamp Creations 15-16% OFF Spellbinders Nestabilities diecuts!Discount has been applied on the shopping cart! OFFER ends Sunday 6/22/08. Some nesties are in stock others will arrive next week! Have fun shopping!

Friday, June 20, 2008

Hanna PJ Party/Riley Releases

Card MakingThe PJ party was really hopping last night in the Hanna Forum.  Kristi announced the release of 20 new Riley & Sophie G. stamps and there were give aways.  I know there was a limited supply of unmounted stamps to go aroud so if you are interested, run on over to Hanna Stamps and snatch them up.

My first card is for Amanda's Hanna color challenge from earlier today.  I couldn't show you earlier because the Riley's were a surprise for the party. 

HSC22 Color Inspiration_SaK

This card was inspired by my bedroom colors and was the first challenge posted for the PJ party.  Here is a photo of my bedspread and valance.  The split photo shows my floral spread on the left and the striped valance on the right.  DP's are by BasicGrey, the trim from the fabric store (a steal at .59 cents a yard!) Image is from Small Breed and was colored w/ Copics.  The bow on the topiary is May Arts.

 

 

The next challenge was to use stars on our card.  I used star DP by The Paper Studio, star punch outs using The Paper Studio DP as well, star brads and patriotic Hanna.  The Pledge of Allegiance is by Stampabilities.

HSCPJ2 Star Theme_SaK

We were to use our PJ's as inspiration or use one of 3 samples posted.  I chose to use one of the inspiration pairs seeing as my jammies are solid black!

 

Thursday, June 19, 2008

ISCC6 Sketch Challenge

WIN a FREE ISC Stamp Sheet of your choice!
Super easy, use ISC stamps only on your design, then post your link in the comments section on the Innovative Stamp Creations Blog
A random name will be chosen and announced on the blog!

Ends: 6/29/08 (c6)

Sketch ISCC6 

 

I used stamps from several different sheets for this card.  The flourish is from Artsy Victorian, Bird/Art 4 Frames II, Sentiment is from Textures & Sentiments and Music from Summer Elements.  This color combination just kind of happened, but I really like the Soft Sky/Plum/Artichoke combination.  The layers were spritzed with a combination of Perfect Pearls/Dusty concord Reinker/Water. The bird is on a polished stone layer using Butterscotch, Meadow, Eggplant & gold.  The edges of the soft sky layer were sponged with Tim Holtz Milled Lavender ink.

 

                                                                                                                     

Accomplish Great Things

I have a step by step tutorial for you today using images from several different

Innovative Stamp Creations sheets.

The face image is by Artist Cindy Roland from a newly released sheet called Thoughtfulness. Ready?

Stamp face using Versafine Smokey Gray ink on Whisper White CS.

ISC Great Things_SaK 001

Color flowers from Textures Sentiments & Flowers using Watercolor crayons (Summer Sun, Pumpkin Pie & Real Red) Mist and stamp.

I added an additional flower to the right edge later to fill in.

ISC Great Things_SaK 002

Sponge face using Tim Holtz Distress inks (Tattered Rose & Worn Lipstick)

ISC Great Things_SaK 003

Stamp background words from ATC Elements II on lightweight vellum using VF smokey gray and a stamp positioner. I stamped off on scrap paper once before stamping on the vellum for a lighter shade.

ISC Great Things_SaK 004

Add a torn strip (1 1/2" x 4") of Real Red CS to the left edge of the vellum and stamp background words after stamping off on scrap paper with smokey gray ink. Then, the sentiment from Art Phrases using Stazon Jet Black

ISC Great Things_SaK 005

Add photo corners, mat on red and then a black card base. I toned down the lg. black brad with Adirondack alcohol ink/gold mixative, layered the flowers and mounted them on the card with foam dimensional tape.

ISC Great Things_SaK 006

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Faux Layer Silhouette

I was inspired by a painting at the Dentist office yesterday and today's sketch on SC was very similar.  So, I stamped the Swirl Flourish in craft vanilla ink on a caramel layer and spritzed it with a mixture of walnut ink crystals and water.  After it dried, I used a reverse mask using the largest classic rectangle nestability.  Adhered it to my caramel layer with removable adhesive and painted the opening with sand acrylic paint.  When dry, I flipped the nestability over and embossed around the edge.  The foliage (just leaves) was inked using Tim Holtz Vintage Photo ink, stamped off and rock n rolled in the same ink for the shading.  The sentiment was stamped on a strip of torn vellum that I sponged the edges of as well.  Oh, used my reverse mask somewhat offset to sponge around the rectangle too.  The brad is by K&co. and the chocolate ribbon is May Arts.  All images are available from Rubbernecker Stamp co.  The Just Leaves and Swirl Flourish are from the Jeanne Streiff collection.  Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek, have a great Wednesday!

>

And the Blog Candy Winner is.....

Slots

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

8 17 13 10 2
8 6 6 4 22
10 9 8 2 21
5 3 12 5 8
5 13
Timestamp: 2008-06-18 10:32:45 UTC

Michelle Adams said...

Hi Shelly, LOVE your card! I wonder if that stamp is going to be available at Rubbernecker online? I remember you said you got it at the convention...Hmmmm...Just love it! Thanks so much for the chance to win!!!

Congratulations Michelle, contact me and I'll tell you how to redeem your Rubbernecker Bucks!


Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Want some Blog Candy?

SmileyCentral.com

Want a chance to win some Rubbernecker$$$bucks? Just leave me a comment on this post to be put in the random drawing. The winner will be announced on Wednesday. Be sure to stop by Candy's blog as she is also offering Rubbernecker Bucks today!

It’s Treasure Hunt Tuesday at Rubbernecker, and also RBC Challenge Tuesday. The treasure, if you find it, will be a free image! However, to receive the image a purchase of any size is required, and your treasure must be claimed between 4:00 am PST and 9:00 pm PST today. (That’s 7:00 am to 12:00 am on the East coast.) The first clue will be found on the Rubbernecker Home Page SmileyCentral.com
When you head over to the Rubbernecker Home Page, check out these great deals:
*** Each month you can qualify to win $100 coupon good for Rubbernecker or Stamp Oasis stamps! For every $20 you spend, your name is entered once into a drawing.
*** For every $50 you spend on Rubbernecker, Stamp Oasis or KK Originals stamps, you get to choose a FREE stamp!
Are you ready for this week’s Rubbernecker Blogger Challenge (RBC14)
The rules are simple. Link your finished challenge project on Jeanne’s blog using a Rubbernecker, Stamp Oasis or KK Original image and you’ll be entered in a monthly drawing. Enter as often as you like throughout the month.
***No Rubbernecker stamps? You can play anyway!!! You won’t be entered in the drawing but we’d love to see your artwork!
***No Blog? That’s OK too! Just link your project from any online gallery!!!
Rules, past challenges and blog button can be found –>HERE
All qualifying entries will be entered into a monthly drawing for
a $25 Rubber Bucks Certificate from Rubbernecker Stamp Co.
This week’s Challenge is a Color Challenge - Black, White and a pop of any color.

Check out the Rubbernecker DT’s challenge cards!

Sherry , Kittie, Linda,
Jeanne, Broni , Candy, Leigh, Tami

My card has a white base matted with black and then white stamped with Baroque Background. I tied the layers with an eggplant and gold ribbon and then the main image layers are on dimensionals. I stamped the Mother & Child image on a window sheet with Stazon Jet Black and rock n rolled the edges with Stazon Royal Purple. The little bit of color under the window sheet is Prism Wizard Medium. I added a gold photo corner brad to the bottom right of the layer. Images available from Rubbernecker Stamp Co.
RBC14 B&W challenge_SaK 001