new blog address!

Hello, friends! Well, my new blog is now ready! From now on, I will be posting at...

INKlinations
www.lisacarrollblog.blogspot.com

There are feed/follow/subscription buttons already set up, so don't forget to add me to your readers and change your bookmarks!

I hope you like it. :) Have a wonderful weekend and I'll see you over at INKlinations on Monday with some very exciting news!

~Lisa

new card, new year, new blog!

Hello, friends! Did you think I had completely abandoned my blog altogether? :) Since my last post back in April, a lot has happened in my personal life. I ended up encountering challenges that I never imagined I would ever have to face. As a result, I had no time or desire to create much at all, let alone blog about it. So, I had to take a much-needed break and leave the blog indefinitely, to avoid self imposing even more stress upon my life at that time.

However, we have finally settled into our new house here and things are gradually on the upswing. I'm certainly happy about getting to spend more time in my craft room these days! In fact, I'm so excited for the new year and all the possibilities it brings, that I've decided to totally revamp my entire blog - a fresh new look... a blog "face lift", if you will. But more on that later.....

Here's one of over a dozen cards I made on World Cardmaking Day. Did you participate, too? It was the first time I had been creatively productive in months. Like a breath of fresh air. The card's nothing special, since I was challenged by my hubby and oldest son to make 25 cards that day... they needed to be, easy. ;)



The flowers are from the Hero Arts/Sizzix stamp & die combo set called "Floral". For an avid fussy cutter like me, these sets are a dream come true! The dies are 'cookie cutter' style (like Nestabilities), with the cutting edge on the inside perimeter of the die (UNlike Nestabilities). So you can see your stamped image and position the die over it perfectly. No stamp positioners needed! Some sponging to create a focal point, one of my fave color combinations, and it's done. :)

As for my new blog: in addition to the face lift, I've decided to create a new URL (web address)... something that was easy to remember and not blog title-specific. So look for my post about that early next week, hopefully (it's still being tweaked as I type). I know it's a pain to have to change your book marks and feed readers, but I promise this will be a one-time thing. :) I can't wait to reveal it!

I look forward to the new year and the hope it brings. May 2012 find you healthy and blessed beyond measure. Happy new year! See you soon!

SUPPLIES
stamps: Hero Arts
inks: SU Cool Caribbean & Wild Wasabi, Ranger Distress Fired Brick, & Memories black
paper: SU Cool Caribbean & Basic Black, Georgia Pacific white
misc: Hero Arts/Sizzix dies, Eclipse masking paper, corner chomper, and pop dots

simple embossed friends

Hello, there! Hope you and yours had a blessed Easter! We enjoyed the day relaxing and eating... I love to cook big holiday meals. :)

Here's an easy design I like to use for quick-but-not-plain cards... white on white heat embossing, one (or two) simple image(s), and a large sentiment. It all comes together for a nice, cohesive look (click to see larger):


Yes, I know the main panel is crooked. LOL I noticed it while I was photographing it. I tried to fix it, but at this point the foam tape I used to under it was well-adhered... it just wouldn't budge. :/ Oh well! Handmade cards are rarely ever perfect, right? And it was still made with the same amount of love. :) Anyway, this grand sentiment set from Hero is gorgeous... I use it quite often! And I'm very fond of the small/large solid/open flowers, too. So many possibilities for techniques and designs with them.


You can see that the white-on-white heat embossing gives an elegant touch without making the card look busy. I used the large open flower on the background to coordinate with the small solid flower in the sentiment/focal point. And we all know that I just can't make a card without some kind of matting... black being my favorite. ;)

So I have a moving update - we've postponed the move for another 30 days. Things have come up and we're now looking at other possibilities for relocation besides AZ. Maybe even staying here in TN after all. So I'm getting a chance to take a breather for a bit. Thinking I'll do some serious stamping! ;)

As always, thanks for reading... have a wonderful week!







SUPPLIES
paper: Georgia Pacific (white) and SU! (black)
stamps: Hero Arts CG249, CG251, and CG277
ink: SU! Soft Sky, VersaMark, and Colorbox black pigment
misc: black and white embossing powders and foam tape

kraft many thanks (new basicgrey stamps!)

Hello, again! Today I have a card that features one of the new BasicGrey stamps made by Hero Arts (click to see larger):


This pretty label image comes from the Luscious Frames clear set. I love how well its dotted flourishes coordinate with the Magical Background cling. :) I stamped the frame with my Creamy Brown chalk ink pad again... the perfect color when using kraft card stock! To really make the image stand out, I did a bit of fussy cutting and added a few teal flowers that were stamped/punched out and adhered with pop dots. Some easy paper piercing around the frame once again helps to reinforce the circular/dotted theme.

As always, thanks for reading. I hope your week is off to a wonderful start! :)







SUPPLIES
paper: The Paper Studio (kraft) Georgia Pacific (white), and teal is either JoAnn's or Michael's
stamps: Hero Arts CG211, CL509, and CL490
ink: Memories (black and white), Colorbox (creamy Brown), and Ranger (Broken China)
misc: Corner Chomper, Hero Arts gems, paper piercer, and pop dots

kraft best wishes (moving/new home card)

Hi there! :) So how has your spring been so far? A little confused over here... one day it's gorgeous and sunny with a high of 75, and the next it's dark and rainy and barely gets up to 45! Definitely keeps ya on your toes. Regardless of the temps, however, the trees and flowers are all starting to bloom, and everything's green again. I love it!

A friend of mine and her brood recently relocated out of state and away from family. I can certainly relate to that! I wanted to make her a card letting her know that I was thinking of her (click to see larger):


I knew these adorable house stamps from Hero Arts would be perfect. And Colorbox's Creamy Brown chalk ink is a great match to your kraft card stock!

And speaking of relocating out of state: yep, you guessed it.... we're moving AGAIN! This time, back to AZ. It's been a long time coming. We've been trying to get back there for a while now, and we're excited to be closer to our families once again, for good. :) So, I have a few posts set up and ready to go while I'm in the process of getting us all packed and moved. And with that, I'll see you in AZ! :D

Thank you once again for reading and for commenting. It always makes my day! xxoo







SUPPLIES
paper: The Paper Studio (kraft) and Stampin' Up! (Real Red and Pink Pirouette)
stamps: Hero Arts CG139, F5295, H5328, and CL488
ink: Colorbox (Creamy Brown), Memories (White), and Stampin' Up! (Pink Pirouette)
misc: Hero Arts pink and red pearls, Stampin' Up! scalloped edge punch, and pop dots

tangerine thanks and belated valentine

Good morning! Is anyone else just itching for spring? ;) My card today has a very warm, bright palette that's sure to melt away any winter time blues:


I love these bold citrus-y colors! And I love the stamp I used to create the flowers... it's the Hero Arts Large Blossom stamp, and was one of my very first purchases from the 2011 catalog. However, once I got it home I was quite intimidated by it. It's so beautifully detailed, but I really wanted to do more than simple stamping or embossing with it. So, I embossed the image on watercolor paper (I prefer the hot press variety for the smoother texture), colored a few of the larger flowers in the image (one green, to cut into "leaves"), and then cut them out and popped them up on pop dots. This helps to retain the lovely detail, yet utilize the image in a different way other than just as a boxed silhouette image.


After watercoloring with inks and a brush, I also added a bit of Perfect Pearls for shimmer. While I LOVE the look of watercolor, it's not a good technique for the Type A in me. The splotchy look - even though intended - usually drives me nuts, so I end up over-fussing with it to smooth it all out. Ha! Here, the Pearls helped serve two purposes. I also really love the sentiment! The fonts are so elegant, so I really wanted the card to reflect that. TIP: If you're cutting out a detailed embossed image with thin lines such as this, the embossing can sometimes flake a little in spots. Using a gel pen to replace those lines proved to be a very good fix!

And now my belated valentine. Better late than never, right?! ;)


This was the first of four that I was going to make for my kids to include with their Valentine goodies. However, the design ended up being too time consuming for me to repeat three more times, ;) so I went with a different, more simple project idea. The valentine-y stamp I used is the Heart Flourishes Cling background from last year's Hero Arts catalog. Can you spot it? ;) The sentiment is an oldie but goodie, from the Thinking of You Messages set. All die cut shapes were made with my Cricut.

Can't believe it's the last week of February! Seems like the months are just flying by faster than ever, and spring really will be here before you know it! Be sure to take a minute to hug your loved ones and do something special for YOU. :) See you soon with another card... and thanks for reading!







SUPPLIES
"Tangerine Thanks"
paper: Hero Arts notecard, Arches white hot press watercolor paper, white Georgia Pacific, and Stampin' Up! Pumpkin Pie
stamps: Hero Arts CG271, CG277, and CL477 (background)
inks: VersaMark, Stampin' Up! Pumpkin Pie, Really Rust, Old Olive, and Always Artichoke
misc: embossing powder, Perfect Pearls (white), and pop dots
"Sending Hugs & Kisses Valentine"
paper: The Paper Studio and Georgia Pacific
stamps: Hero Arts CG169 and CL140
inks: Stampin' Up! Real Red and Memories black
misc: Base Camp Cricut cartridge, gingham ribbon, and pop dots

masculine friend - with a FLOWER stamp!

Hello, again! Back today with that masculine card I promised. :) The original of this design was made for a man named Mike who worked with Hero Arts and recently passed away from brain cancer. Prior to his passing, many over at the Hero Arts Flickr group created cards to send to Mike to maybe thank and encourage him in his final days. I whipped up my card and mailed it out right away, without pausing to photograph it. So here's a duplicate I made later to share here (click to see larger):



This design is also based on a similar card I made a while back that you can see here. Sometimes coming up with a design on the fly can be difficult. So just like using sketches or CASEing, there's no shame in referring to something you've already done once before to help make the process go faster. The only thing different about this card from Mike's is that this one has a different sentiment (from the new Thank You For Being My Friend set). It was an honor to make a cardc for a person like Mike whose involvement with Hero Arts brought joy to so, so many... directly, and indirectly. :)




Can you tell that I actually used a flower image - the new Small Solid Flower Cling - for the leaves?! I don't know if anyone else has already used this stamp in this way, but I couldn't believe it just dawned on me one day, "Hey - that kinda looks like a tree..." I love it when an image is so versatile! :D To get the graduation of color, I used the rock and roll technique with chalk inks. I think the seamless blending you get with the chalks looks great when doing this technique. And see that trunk? That's what you get when you mask off all of the other trunks on this stamp - the Tree Trunks Design Block. Another new 2011 Hero stamp I knew I had to have. ;)

To me, this has a masculine feel due to the ruggedness of the kraft card stock, the ambiguity of the images, and the neutral color scheme. However, I know hearts and Stickles might not seem masculine, but what can I say? I'm a girl and I love hearts and glitter! LOL At least I went with a more neutral color for the Stickles, like copper. ;)

Thanks for reading! See you soon... be sure to hug the ones you love today.







SUPPLIES
paper: kraft note card, Georgia Pacific white, and SU! Close to Cocoa
stamps: Hero Arts S5208, S5477, CG251, and CL487
inks: VersaMagic Sage & Spanish Olive, and SU! Close to Cocoa dye & Whisper White pigment
misc: rectangle Nestabilities, white embossing powder, Stickles in Copper, and pop dots