Focus on Faith Bright Butterflies! by Sara Furr

 Blessings, my dear AI friends!

Welcome to the first edition of "Focus on Faith", for the month of May. 

Today, I have a bright and colorful creation using an alcohol ink background that I created like 2 years ago and never used, so I pulled it out and decided to have a play with it.

 I can't tell you what exact colors I used here, because it was so long ago, but I can tell you that I used Tim Holtz Alcohol inks in a Blue, yellow, and blue, and blending solution on Yupo paper. You just apply some blending solution to the Yupo paper here and there,  and then add drops of alcohol ink here and there,  and let it spread on its own, or you can use a blower tool to push the ink around,  or just keep turning your cardstock side to side to keep the ink moving until it dries. So much fun!

Once my alcohol ink blending was all dried, I applied alcohol lift ink through a stencil, and then wiped off the ink with a paper towel, and it lifts off the alcohol ink and leaves behind the stenciled image.

 I took that background, and I strategically placed the butterflies from the "Butterfly set" on the lighter areas of my background and then stamped out the butterflies and greeting with black Archival ink. I thought these butterflies were perfect for this because they are bold images.

I distressed the edges of the Yupo paper and then I die cut the pretty eyelet border rectangle from the Decorative Journal Page 1 die set and I cut it in half and used it on either side of my stamped panel to add a decorative border. I added some sequins to the panel and added foam tape to the back. I created a 6x6 card base from black cardstock and a matting frame also. I used the black to mat my piece of neutral dsp from the Father's Day Paper pack, and distressed the edges of both and adhered them together and popped them up on my card base with foam tape. To create my decorative strip, I used a piece of white scalloped edge lace and machine stitched a strip of the mint green stripe dsp, also from the Father's Day Paper pack to it, and adhered it to my matted dsp and then popped up my focal panel over top.

Have you ever played with alcohol inks? They are so much fun to play with, and they create something totally unique! If you don't have alcohol inks, you could try something similar with watercolors or dye inks on watercolor paper. You would just have to use bright or strong colors as your base, and make sure it is completely dry before trying to lift the ink through a stencil with a damp paper towel.

Please let me know if you like this technique. Thank you so much for stopping by and I hope you got inspired to have a play with your alcohol inks or if you don't, to try them.

Many blessings my dears, 

Sara Furr- The Crafty Farm Chick

These are all the supplies I used: Links to Ai products are below.

Art Impressions products:

#5200- Butterfly Set

#6072- Father's Day Paper pack

#5768- Decorative Journal Page 1 Die

4774-Stamp positioner

Archival black ink

Other products used:

-Alcohol inks in pink, blue, and yellow.

-blending solution 

-air blower

-Yupo paper

-stencil

-alcohol lift ink

-Paper towel

-scissors to Distress cardstock edges

-white scalloped lace

-sewing machine

-sequins

-die cutting machine

-foam tape, adhesive

For My Friend by Reneé Matarese

Hello Ai fans!

Today I'm sharing a new release with you.

I used the new

6188 – FG Daisy Border
along with one of the current BEAR Freebies (an assortment of little bears to choose as a freebie when you spend $30 or more on the Art Impressions Website)

My card was created with the current Feeling Crafty challenge in mind.

Just enter your project using Kraft paper and Art Impressions products and you'll be entered to win a free stamp set from Art Impressions. 

These daisies are so pretty and they look wonderful in other colors too.

I'll always be here for you by Sharon Caudle

 Hello AI Fans! 

I'm here today to show you a card I made using #6155 Ornate Margin Dies along with #6164 Peony Margin Set. I created a slimline trifold along with a belly band to hold it closed. I created the belly band by stamping the Peony Margin Set onto a Copic friendly paper and coloring it with Copic markers. I then used a paper trimmer to cut it down to size and folded it around the card to make sure it fit. After adhering the ends together, I added a white silk bow to finish it off. Those gorgeous papers are from #6182 Valentines Series 2 Cover PP and the beautiful sentiment is from #5949 Encouragement Sentiments Set. 

So that's it for me today! Thank you so much for stopping by for a visit and until next time - stay crafty!

Scenes of Spring: From the Alps to the Garden by Simone Carr

 

Hello Watercolor Friends,

How amazing is this new release? I absolutely love it!

The house I chose reminded me of the beautiful homes in Bavaria near the Alps, so I wanted to recreate that charming look in my scene.

I started with Canson Watercolor Paper placed in my stamping platform. I stamped the daisies first using Distress Ink Antique Linen. Next, I stamped the house using Tombow N95, only coloring the bottom half of the balcony since I planned to add flowers there later. I then stamped the mountains using N95 as well.

Once all the main images were stamped, I began coloring. I started with the daisies, then moved on to the house using Tombow 947 and 969, making sure to leave some white space along the balcony for the flowers. I used a brown TwinTone marker to draw in lines for a wood texture. The windows were colored with 565, and I used the TwinTone Brown to define the panels. I added shutters to the lower windows using 177. For the door, I drew in a small window, colored it with 565, and used 177 for the door itself.

After the house was complete, I stamped in flowers and foliage around it to build the scene. I saved the mountains and sky for last. To finish, I used white paint to add extra flowers on the balcony, as well as small highlights in the grass, tree, and shrubs.

Materials Used

Stamps & Dies

• 6185 Swiss Villa Set
• 6188 FG Daisy Border
• 5198 Mountain Set
• 5009 Mini Flower Set
• 5372 Mini Foliage Set
• 5010 Tree Set 1
• 5126 Foliage Set 4

Paper

• 5939 Fairy Garden Patterned Paper
• Canson Watercolor Paper

Inks & Mediums

• Distress Ink – Antique Linen (foreground flowers)
• Dr. Ph. Martin’s Bleed Proof White
• TwinTone Marker – Brown

Tombow Markers

• N95 – House (stamped)
• 947, 969 – House, Roof
• 177 – Tree, Grass, Flowers, Door, Shutters
• 027 – Bottom of Mountains
• N65 – Mountains
• 565 – Mountains, House Shading
• 636 – Foreground Flowers, Balcony
• 856 – Balcony Flowers
• 993, 985 – Flower Centers
• 985 – Flowers at the House
• 526 – Sky
• 992 – House Trim

For my second card, I chose to feature the tulips. I stamped the tulips first onto Canson Watercolor Paper using Tombow N95. Next, I lightly penciled in my horizon lines to help guide the scene, then stamped the hot air balloons in the background.

I began coloring the tulips with 993, then added 933, and deepened the shading with 925. I continued building the scene by coloring the balloons and surrounding elements, keeping the background soft so the tulips remain the focal point. All colors used are listed below.

Materials Used

Stamps & Dies

• 6186 FG Tulip Border
• 5789 Hot Air Balloon Set
• 5389 Mini Foliage Set
• 6187 Thinking of You
• 5063 Large Double Stitched Rectangle Die
• 5064 Double Stitched Circle Die (2nd largest – used for frame)

Paper

• 5892 Easter S2 Patterned Paper
• Canson Watercolor Paper

Other

• Foam Tape

Tombow Markers

• N95 – Tulips & Balloons (stamped)
• 993, 933, 925 – Tulips
• 993, 025, 373 – Hot Air Balloons
• 856, 947 – Accents
• 177 – Foliage

Blooms for Mom by Gennette Houghton

Hello, and Welcome to Watercolor Weekend!  May is the time of year here where the garden nurseries start gearing up for the season just in time for Mother’s Day.  There is something about all of the flowers that let you know the warmer months are here and everything is coming out of the deep sleep of winter.  We are usually not out of the woods here until around the end of May, I have seen frost clear into June, and as early as August.  Spring and Fall are my favorite seasons, the colors of both can be extraordinary.

For my 1^st card I used 5981 My Joy Set, I inked my stamps with Distress Ink in Pumice Stone and stamped off once.  I started with a circle die to use as my guide, tracing the inside with a pencil on my watercolor paper.  I took both of the flower sprigs, overlapping the stems just a bit to fill the outside of the circle.  I then used the stamp positioner to place my butterflies, leaving the very bottom one off.  For the stems and leaves I started with 126 and then shaded with 177.  The flower petals I used 676, focusing most of the color to the center and shaded areas.  For the centers, I started with 055 as the base, I then used 025 to paint a “C” on the shaded area. I use just a bit of 026 right at the bottom of the “C” to add a bit more depth.  For the butterflies, I started with a black micron for the bodies and antennae. For the pink butterfly I used 725 and 947, the blue butterfly I used 526 and 565, the yellow butterfly 055 and 025, and the purple butterfly I used 636.  I then added a background with a mix of 526 and 177, and then decided to add a bit more of the 177.  I then went through and added 565 for a shadow throughout the whole scene.  I die cut my image with my original circle die, and then used a matching green cardstock and cut that out with 6045 Scalloped Circle Dies, using the largest.  5939 Fairy Garden Paper Pack is what I used to mat my card base and then assembled my card.

 For my 2^nd card I used 5744 SF Picket Fence.  I stamped this also in Pumice Stone and stamped off once.  I have a piece of acetate that is cut down to 2 ¾ x 4 ¼ that I use as a guide for the scenic foundations.  After stamping on my watercolor paper, I place and center the guide over my image and trace out some guidelines with a pencil.  This helps to keep the edges clean so you are not trying to fill in unnecessary space.  For any edges that I am stamping in flowers or foliage, I use post-it tape along the guide.  I started with the house, keeping everything towards the left edge light, focusing more of the color towards the front of the house.  For the roof, trim, and porch, I used a mix of 947 and 177.  Then I shaded with 565.  For the dormers and door I used 312, adding extra details in with the same color.  For the door knob I used 969.  I started with a pencil and ruler on the windows to draw in some guides for the panes of glass, and then used a mix of 249 and 565.  Adding in some more 565 for the shadow areas, and then decided to add a bit of 177 as reflections.  For the tree trunk I started with 947 and then shaded with 969.  I put in a wash of 249 on the back hills, and 177 on everything towards the front with the exception of the shading by the porch where I added in some 249.  I shaded the path with 565, and added 526 to the sky before putting any foliage in.  For the birdhouse I used 969 on the pole, 947 and 969 on the roof.  For the hole and perch I used 969, 312 and 565 for the main part of the house.  I shaded both the fence and trellis with 565.   These are the sets and colors I used for the foliage and flowers.

 

4964 WC Branches Set / 969

5372 WC Mini Foliage Set / brush line 249, shaded with 565

Tree foliage 126 and 177 together

5126 WC Foliage Set 4 / Vines, by the mailbox mix of 126 and 177

House, Trellis, fence, front corner 177 (vines)

4052 Flower Set 1 / daisy bunch 905

Salvia 565

4051 Foliage Set 1 / grass, mix of 126 and 177 

For the shadows in the pathway, I stamped both the vines and salvia in N60 stamping off once first.

Bleed Proof White

 

I then matted my card base with paper from 5832 Gnome Paper Pack.  After cutting my image down leaving a bit of a white border I then matted it onto a dark brown cardstock and assembled my card.  Thanks for joining me today, I hope you enjoyed my creations! Until next time! Create….Share….Inspire!

 

Friends Are Like Flowers by Janet

Today I'm sharing a card I've made with the new 6188 - FG Daisy Border set. This is part of a new line called Countryside. There are three different floral borders and two more sets with a total of 4 houses that are sized to nestle into the floral borders. These are really charming sets and work wonderfully alone or together, depending on on the scene that you are wanting to compose.

I stamped the daisies on Canson XL WC Paper from the store. I really enjoyed coloring the pink and yellow daisies with polychromo colored pencils. After that I applied a wash of metallic light blue watercolor. Similarly I applied a light green wash of watercolor at the bottom of the daisies. Once the paper dried fully, I stamped the sentiment and heat embossed it with black embossing powder. 

Once complete, I created a 5" square bright pink square card base. I cut out a pink shimmer cardstock mat using 6047 - Scalloped Squares Dies. Then I cut out the daisy piece and layered it on top of the scalloped mat. This grouping was adhered to the center of the card base. 

I love how this turned out. Pencils create a different look to watercolor or alcohol markers. It's bright and rich but also adds texture since the pencils conform to the texture of the watercolor paper. This is such a nice composition and made easy with Art Impressions products designed by the amazingly talented Bonnie! 

Thanks for visiting the Ai Blog and my project today. I hope you enjoyed my take on the set. You can find all the Countryside sets at the Ai store. You'll find your favorite stamps, dies, papers, and accessories at there!

Happy Crafting!

 

May 2026 Monthly Challenge: Girl Enchanted by Butterfly by Debbie Hedges

 Hello Ai fans and welcome to our May Challenge featuring Debbie Hedges.

Happy May everyone! Mother’s Day is coming up and summer is just around the corner!

For my May project, I created a small scene with a little girl in a meadow. I inked the little angel (#5578) without her wings (Shadow Grey Archival Ink) and stamped her slightly to the right of center. I painted her with a violet dress (#8) with a pink sash (#67). For her hair , I used sepia (#45), her skin in pale pink (#47), added a little bit of extra pink on her cheeks and added her eyelash with my Micron. I also used the fine tip of my sepia pen to add a few accent lines in her hair.

I added a hill in the background in pencil. I then painted the line in green (#15) and added a green wash, keeping it lighter at the bottom where I will stamp grass and flowers. Using the mini foliage set, I stamped bushes along my hill line, leaving some blank area near the little girl. I stamped the bushes twice on each side before re-inking to have some light and dark areas.

Using post-it- tape to protect her shoes and I stamped a grass line on either side of the little girl to create the foreground. I used the teeny tiny grass, but also randomly stamped a few of the grass from #5826 to use for wildflowers. The wildflowers are a mixture of daisies using Dr. PH Martin’s Bleed Proof White and also a flower from Bible Journal Flower Set. I used my stamp positioner and only inked one flower in aubergine (#93) to add to the top of a few of the longer grass blades. For the daisies, I dabbed white paint to make the daisies in different sizes. Once the paint dried, I added yellow (#43) centers. Then I added a green wash below the grass, leaving light and dark areas.

Sky was added next, leaving light and dark areas with sky blue (#75). In the left upper corner, I stamped leaves to give the impression of a tree near the little girl. The last step was to add the butterfly. It is simple to create by stamping a single heart flower (#4868) in the color you want your butterfly. Then with my Micron, I added the butterfly body in black.

I still use Marvy Le Plume markers for my projects.  Most of these can be converted to Tombow colors, but choose colors that work for you. These just happen to be some of my go-to colors for any project I work on. (Here is the link for the Tombow conversion chart: https://www.artimpressions.com/shop/art-impressions-most-loved-color-conversion-chart/)

I hope you’ll give this project a try and please be sure to post your project so we can all enjoy it! Also, don’t forget to enter the Monthly Challenge for a chance to win a free stamp set! Happy Mother’s Day and happy stamping!

Now let's see who won our April Challenge!
Can I just say...It was a good day to be named Bev....lol!
We had 2 Bevs win this month.

Our Lucky Random Winner was: #9
Bev.O.

Please contact Leah at Feedback@artimpressions.com

to claim a free stamp set of your choice!!

This month I decided to give away 2 freebies.

The winners of a freebie from me are #6

Bev. S.

and #4 Cindy P.

Please email me at Renee@artimpressions.com
with your full name and address and I'll send you a photo of the freebies I have available for you to choose from.

Now for our new monthly challenge, here are the rules.

 ✻ Please make a new card or handmade crafty creation using either stamps, dies and or designer paper from Art Impressions. You can make any item you wish; this is not limited to cards! (unless specified)

✻ Limit two submissions per person.

One random winner will receive a free stamp set from Art Impressions and one random winner will receive a freebie stamp from me.

 ✻Please include your first name and last initial on your submission. You may include your entire last name, but it's not necessary.

✻We love to comment on your entries, but keep in mind if you use a private group or a platform that you need to sign up for, we probably won't be able to.

✻ The Ai Challenge is open to everyone, international submissions are welcome!

✻ Include a link back to the Ai Blog or grab our button on the top right of our sidebar!

✻ Share the Ai love if you can, by clicking and commenting on your fellow crafters.

✻ Make sure to get your link up by the deadline to enter your creations.

✻ Good luck and happy stamping!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Plant Memories Card by Tasha

 Happy Friday Art Impressions friends!

Tasha here sharing a new card created with the pretty 6186-FG Tulip Border Stamp Set. I love tulips and this clear stamp makes it so easy to add a boarder of tulips to any card or project.

I started by stamping the tulips before using a scalloped rectangle die to cut the center card. After, I colored the images with Copic Markers and blended yellow ink around the border to bring in more color. The purple and yellow colors look fantastic together!

The stamp set includes a sentiment, but I used a greeting from the 5734-Friend Sentiment Set. I like the playful font style and it fit perfectly in the center. To add a little extra detail, I added two little bee embellishments to two ends. 

Lastly, I attached a purple scalloped layer to frame the center card before adding a piece of plaid pattern paper. I also attached silver glitter paper, purple card stock and tan card stock to complete the project.

I hope you enjoyed today's card and will be inspired to create a fun floral design. 

 

Feeling Crafty Challenge #426 Week #2

Hello Ai fans and welcome to week #2 of our

"Feeling Crafty" challenge.

This one couldn't be simpler.
Use kraft paper on your project somewhere.

Our Featured Designer last week was Tasha. 

Next we have Lynn with a beautiful graduation card.

Janet created a lovely spiritual card using

6150-His Love Set

I made a Floral Shop Box.

I also used the new 6188 – FG Daisy Border along with
6046 – Scalloped Oval Dies
5727 – Nested Oval Dies
5063 – Rectangle A2 Double Stitched Dies
and
6012 – Basic Yellow Paper Pack

(also the current freebie bear that can't be linked)

Sharon's fun retirement card can be found HERE.

Dori created a fabulous "hidden pocket" card. Visit her post to see what's hiding inside!

Diane's stunning masculine card used

6068 – Hiker Foundation

Jami's first card used

5521 – WC Animal Planters
and
6058 – Baby Boy Paper Pack

Her second card used

5130-On The Sparrow Set 
and
 6045-Scalloped Circle Dies

We hope you've enjoyed our Design Team projects.

So many different styles to choose from.

Now, let's see what YOU come up with!

 ✻ Please make a new card or handmade crafty creation using either stamps, dies and or designer paper from Art Impressions. You can make any item you wish; this is not limited to cards! (unless specified)

✻ Limit two submissions per person.

✻Top Spot Winner and Lucky Random Winner each receive a free stamp set from Art Impressions

 ✻Please include your first name and last initial on your submission. You may include your entire last name, but it's not necessary.

✻We love to comment on your entries, but keep in mind if you use a private group or a platform that you need to sign up for, we probably won't be able to.

✻ The Ai Challenge is open to everyone, international submissions are welcome!

✻ Include a link back to the Ai Blog or grab our button on the top right of our sidebar!

✻ Share the Ai love if you can, by clicking and commenting on your fellow crafters.

✻ Make sure to get your link up by the deadline to enter your creations.

✻ Good luck and happy stamping! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter