Spectrum Noir Colorista Adult Coloring Class

Hello Friends! I hope this post finds you all happy and well. I'm buzzin' in today to share another FREE coloring opportunity with you. This one is given by the very popular Spectrum Noir brand and will be hosted by the lovely and talented Sara Davies. For those of you who shop with HSN, you'll recognize that face and name! She is amazing. You can read more about the FREE 8-week course HERE. It sounds like it's going to be loaded with helpful information and there will be lots of free downloads to color, too. I have downloaded the first coloring page and it is gorgeous! Class starts on August 15th so, you've still got plenty of time to sign up and gather your supplies. Hope to "see" you there!

Happy Coloring!

Blessings~

The Daily Marker 30 Day Coloring Challenge ~ Day 18

Hello Friends! So here we are at Day 17. I did a little something different today. I, like many of you, have a nice collection of card stock. I have 6 different brands of white card stock and since it's time to re-order, I thought I would do a little stamp out and color comparison. Because I really don't want to have 6 different brands of white card stock. I don't mind having two. But, six is too many. So, I set up my MISTI  and stamped out a little scene. These are not going to be made into cards, they were just for comparison purposes.

MY GOAL: I wanted to see how well I could blend the pencils on each of the different card stocks.


I used My Favorite Things Black Licorice Hybrid Ink for all of the stamping. The colored pencils I used were: Faber-Castell Polychromos, Prismacolor and Spectrum Noir. And I used a stamp set from Jane's Doodles. I don't know the name of it, it's one of the goodies that was included in the box I received from Jennifer McGuire.-You can read that post HERE.

So, let's take a look at what I discovered. Just a little disclaimer: I did this comparison for myself and these are the results that I got. I am not saying one card stock is any better than the other, I am just trying to find out what will work best for me.

Okay...the card stock that I used was: Solar White(Neenah) Stamper's Select(Papertrey Ink)  Whisper White(Stampin' Up!)  Georgia Pacific(Walmart)  Recollections(Michael's)  Layering Weight White(GinaK Designs) 

Well, the pictures aren't really telling the whole story because of the paleness of the colors I used. But, I used the same colors on each of the images. And I only used Gamsol on the ground underneath the rabbit. I was surprised at the results! The card stock that I have been using for years, was not the one that yielded the best results.

Here are my top three...

And here's a shock for me, the best results were achieved on the Georgia Pacific! All three brands of pencil blended very well and very smoothly. My second favorite was Papertrey Ink. And surprisingly, Stampin' Up's Whisper White did quite well, also. The Recollections and Neenah, showed pencil marks and I had to use a lot more pressure to get the pencils to blend. That's a problem for me, because I have carpal tunnel on both wrists and having to apply excess pressure, causes fatigue and sometimes pain. So it was really nice to find an alternative. The GinaK Designs card stock is lovely and does best, in my opinion, when I used Gamsol for blending.

So there you have it! Georgia Pacific card stock is a staple in The Hive. I use it for all sorts of things and I will always have it on hand. Other than that, I know which white card stock I will be ordering from now on.

Thanks for the visit!

Blessings~

From The Heart Stamps Monthly Challenge!

Hello Friends! This is my second post for the day! I almost forgot to post the card I made for the Stamp of the Month Challenge over at From The Heart Stamps. If you've not visited this Shop, put it at the top of your list of things to do! It's loaded with super cute digital stamps and they have a monthly FREE stamp Challenge. Click HERE for more information.

Now let's get to the card I created. I used the Cornucopia image that I colored for the 30 Day Coloring Challenge.

I sponged a little Antique Linen Distress ink onto the cutout image, because it was just too white against the patterned paper I selected. Then, I created a simple card to showcase the Cornucopia. The greeting is from a set I purchased from Flourishes a while ago and guess what? The set was illustrated by Marcella Hawley who is now the owner and illustrator of Power Poppy images! I've been following her work for a loooooooong time. But, I digress...I stamped the greeting with brown ink and embossed it with clear embossing powder. Then I used a punch to punch it out. I also used a scalloped punch for the matting. After everything was adhered, I added a few, okay more than a few, Pretty Pink Posh sequins, they are my favorite!

That's it from me. Don't forget to buzz by From The Heart Stamps and check out the cute goodies they offer!

Blessings~

supplies~ 
digital stamp: Cornucopia(From The Heart Stamps)
stamp: Greeting-Autumn Blessings(Flourishes)
card stock: 80# Neenah Solar White, 80# Neenah Desert Storm  Dark Chocolate(GinaK Designs)
patterned paper: Brenda Walton Stack(K&Co.)
ink: Gathered Twigs, Antique Linen Distress Ink(Ranger)
dies: Stitched Rectangle(Simon Says Stamp)
punches: Oval and Scallop(Stampin' Up!)  Dotted Scallop Border(EK Success)
bling: 4mm Pumpkin, Marigold, Mossy Green, 6mm Raspberry, Gold sequins(Pretty Pink Posh)  Clear Wink of Stella(Zig)
coloring medium: Essentials, Nature sets(Spectrum Noir)  Prismacolor colored pencils
other: Crystal Effects(Stampin' Up!)  Fine Detail Clear embossing powder(Simon Says Stamp)  ScanNCut2(Brother)

30 Day Coloring Challenge 3 - Day 25

Hello Friends! I realized that I needed to create something in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month. And I knew just what I wanted to color...

These Hope Ribbon digis from MelJen's Designs. I had just received the Primary set of Spectrum Noir colored pencils and it had these dreamy pink pencils in it, so that's what I used. I printed the images onto my favorite white card stock and die cut them. I colored them and blended the colors with Gamsol and a blending stump. I put them back in the die and dusted on pink ink. I added a pink scalloped mat and some clear Wink of Stella and that was all there was to it!

That's it for me! Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings~


supplies~ 
digital image: Hope Ribbon(MelJen's Designs)
card stock: Cryogen Iridescent White(Paper Temptress)   Pink Pirouette(Stampin' Up!)
ink: Spun Sugar Distress Ink(Ranger)
dies: Petite Oval, Scallop Oval Nestabilities(Spellbinders)
bling: Clear Wink of Stella glitter brush(Zig)
coloring medium: Primary set(Spectrum Noir)
other: Gamsol(Inky Antics)  blending stumps(Hobby Lobby)
 

30 Day Coloring Challenge 3 - Day 20

Hello Friends! It's going to be a quick post for me this evening. I think I'm suffering from eye strain. My eyes are so sore and they feel tired! It's from all this coloring and blogging! LoL! Okay, lets take a look at what I worked on today..

Well, I jumped on the band wagon and purchased a Brother ScanNCut 2. It took me a few minutes to set it up and learn how to do the basics. I definitely need to set aside some time to learn how all of the features work. It did a really great job cutting out my digital images. It's going to virtually eliminate the need for me to fussy cut or buy dies to coordinate with stamp sets.

click to enlarge

It did a pretty good job, right?! I still have some learning to do, but it's not bad for my first cut. And then I colored one with Spectrum Noir colored pencils. I used Prismacolors on the apples and the eggplant, though because I don't have reds and purples in my Spectrum sets.

I used no blending solution on this. The Spectrum Noir pencils blend beautifully and very smoothly with no solution. After I finished the coloring, I added some Crystal Effects to the apples and a tiny bit of clear Wink of Stella to the cornucopia.

That's it for me today. Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings~

supplies~ 
digital stamp: Cornucopia(From The Heart Stamps)
card stock: 80# Neenah Solar White
bling: Clear Wink of Stella(Zig)
coloring medium: Essentials, Nature sets(Spectrum Noir)  Prismacolor colored pencils
other: Crystal Effects(Stampin' Up!)  ScanNCut2(Brother)

30 Day Coloring Challenge 3 - Day 15

Hello Friends! It's no secret that I absolutely adore the images from Power Poppy. This week, they are sharing sneak peeks of their Holiday Designs. There are some beautiful things going on over there. Take a moment to buzz on over. You will not be disappointed.


Sooo...I have a friend who loves sunflowers. I decided to create a card for her today. And I used a digital image from Power Poppy, called Sunflower Power. This is not the first time you've seen this image, I've used it before and you can see that post HERE. I really love it, so it will probably make another appearance or two or five... :)

This time I printed the image onto smooth white card stock and colored it with Spectrum Noir colored pencils. I love how effortlessly they blend. I used no Gamsol and no blending pencil, instead, I used the pencils themselves, including the white pencil, to add highlights. LOVE this technique! It makes coloring on the go sooooo much easier. No bothersome bottles of blending solution to fiddle with...just my images and my colored pencils. To finish the image, I outlined it with a pale blue Copic marker.

After I completed the coloring, I added my signature sparkle with a clear Wink of Stella glitter pen.  Then, I decided to add some seed beads to the center of the flower for interest and texture. I'm pleased with how all that turned out. I adhered the beads with Glossy Accents.

 The card design is super simple. I find that I'm liking that more and more these days. The finishing touch was a few Pretty Pink Posh sequins to highlight the greeting. WHICH, by the way is from a different Power Poppy digital image set called Easy, Breezy Coneflower. I love being able to use the sentiments on any image because they come as a separate file. VERY cool!

 That's all I've got for today. I'm still not feeling 100% yet. Soooo...off I go to rest awhile.

Thanks for stopping by today! I appreciate it.

Blessings~

supplies~ 
digital stamp: Sunflower Power, Hey Friend from Easy, Breezy Coneflower(Power Poppy)
card stock: 80# Neenah Solar White    Summer Sunrise(Papertrey Ink)
patterned paper: Sunkiss Collection(Prima)
dies: Stitched Rectangle(Simon Says Stamp)
bling: 4mm Sparkling Clear sequins(Pretty Pink Posh) Clear Wink of Stella(Zig)
coloring medium: Essentials, Nature sets of Spectrum Noir colored pencils  Copic marker
other: seed beads from Michael's