My Sketchbooks

One of my favourite things is my sketchbooks where I practice my colouring techniques and also colour combinations. I started with the black sketchbook from Wal-Mart and it is good for my Copics and Prismacolor pencils but I had to get another book for using watercolours.

 This image is from the smaller book and using a set of watercolour pencils that I picked up at Wal-Mart. They were really cheap but I still get some good shades using them. I am thinking of either getting a better set of pencils or a set of watercolours.

 I coloured this image using my Copics in the black book. When I am colouring I write down the colours on the side so if I like the combinations then I can go back and find it again. This came out of the first two I coloured, I loved the colour combination that I made but since I didn't write it down I have no idea which markers I used.

 Sometimes I just like to play with my plain coloured pencils from Michaels and see what I can achieve without using the odourless mineral spirits to blend. This was one of those attempts, overall it is pretty nice but you can certainly see the lines of the pencils more than using the blending method.

I have a pretty large collection of Prima doll stamps and I do use them for cards and tags but I love using them in my sketchbooks as they are nicely sized and I can get some good blending area with them. And of course they are super cute as well, I can't wait to play with the new decade dolls that are going to be released and the great little jewellry that Prima has as well.

Valentine's Cards

These are the last two Valentine's cards that I needed to finish so I could send them out to family. Both the stamps are older ones from my stash as is the patterned papers. The cards started with a sketch from Mojo Monday but I changed a few things up along the way.

 I coloured the Tilda image with my Prismacolour pencils and I am pretty pleased with it. The pencils were easier to get into the little details of the image, something that I have always had issues with my Copic colouring.

This CC Designs image I used my Copics to colour and got to practice the flicking technique for the hair that I have been working on. I think I still need a bit more work but I like the dimension that it gives to the image. I was glad to be able to create these cards for my family and I hope they enjoy getting them.

Christmas Cards

Since I didn't get many Christmas cards made last year (none) I am trying to make a few each month so I have some to send out this year to family and friends. I went with some very simple cards for this round of cards using items I already had on hand.

This is simply peel off stickers on card stock trimmed and put onto a card front with a little ribbon from my stash.

This one is dies with patterned paper behind the cut outs. I think the dies are from Memory Box but since I took them out of the packaging I can't be sure. To finish it off I added some twine bows and a little dashed outline for the edge of the card.

Simon Says Stamp February Card Kit

One of my favourite things to get every month is the Simon Says Stamp card kit. The box is always full of great product and new things for me to try out. I have had previous card kits and always ended up cancelling them after a few months as they were always either too paper heavy or the embellishments and stamps were lacking. These card kits are the perfect mix of both.

This is the February kit, I got a nice selection of 8x11 cardstock for my card bases as well as a great variety of 6x6 paper to use as well. I find that it is enough to make a at least 5-6 cards without having a lot of excess paper left over. The stamps are always a full size set and if you miss a kit you can buy the set separately. This month the goodies to play with were a full size container of embossing powder, a gold gelato, some sticky backed canvas and rub ons. They even include a sheet of cards made from the kit as inspiration and a yummy lollipop each  month as well. Who doesn't love getting candy in the mail each month, lol.