Monday, May 18, 2020

Rick's Online BOGO Sale Coming Soon!



BOGO Sale
Friday, June 5, 2020 till Thursday, June 11, 2020

I am getting ready to kick off my Online BOGO Sale!  I am making plans now and have pulled all the retiring products I have for this sale.  And believe me there's a lot of dies, punches, stamps, and more that will be sold during this sale.  I will be holding the sale in a private Facebook Group that you will need to ask to join

The sale will kick off on Friday, June, 2020 at 1 PM CST with a live shopping event where I will walk you through all the items that are for sale.  The sale will go on both during and after the live event.  This year's BOGO sale will go from Friday, June 5, 2020 till Thursday, June 11, 2020.  So if you can't make the live you will still have plenty of time to shop and earn FREE items.  
I have also included a free gift with each qualifying purchase (while supplies last).

Requests to join the group will start being approved on June 1st.  

Guidelines on how it will work can be downloaded here!  I have tried to make this super easy for both you and I.  All the guidelines will be followed to the letter.  

Free As A Bird Card using Watercolor Pencils

Hello and welcome to my blog; today I am going to share with you a fun card using the Free as A Bird Stamp Set, and some tips & tricks on using Stampin’ Up!’s Watercolor Pencils.  I have been playing with watercolor pencils for a long time and had a love hate relationship with them until Stampin’ Up! ®™ came out with their own a couple years ago.  Now I am in hog heaven using them.  Here is a look at the card I made today.  

Free As A Bird Stamp Set, Watercolor Pencils, Tasteful Texture 3d embossing Folder, Rick Adkins, Stampin' Up!

The Birds in the Free as A Bird Stamp Set are so cute and are just begging to be colored with your watercolor pencils.  Do not be afraid just go for it.  Once you follow a few simple tips & tricks I have for you today you will be able to send these cute little birds to all your friends because they deserve it.  
Our Watercolor Pencils now come in two sets, of high-quality, smooth color pencils; that are perfect for watercoloring any stamped image.   One thing that will help you to achieve a great look with your pencils is the type of paper you use.  You can use Whisper White cardstock just like I did today, but you must treat it very nicely.  Meaning you cannot use an aqua painter on plain cardstock.  You can however use a Blender Pen for best results.  This is my preferred method for moistening the pigment and moving it around to fill in my line art image.  Aqua Painters or any other type of water brush holds and release way too much water for the smooth Whisper White cardstock surface.  

s A Bird Stamp Set, Watercolor Pencils, Tasteful Texture 3d embossing Folder, Rick Adkins, Stampin' Up!

Now if I do use a aqua painter or want to use more water to more the pigment around for a nice wash type background I pull out my shimmery white cardstock or watercolor paper for this.  But I did not need that today, so I just stuck with the blender pen and the plain whisper white cardstock.  
Another thing you need to consider is the type of ink you are using.  If you are using a die-based ink like I did today you must sit the cardstock aside for awhile to completely dry or heat set with a heat tool.  I choice to just sit it aside and let the ink dry and soak into the cardstock.  Stazon which is the preferred ink for watercoloring is not one of my favorite inks, so I am fine with letting the other sit and dry the card my take a little longer, but I am happy to wait.  

s A Bird Stamp Set, Watercolor Pencils, Tasteful Texture 3d embossing Folder, Rick Adkins, Stampin' Up!

My next tip and this one is the most important one is how and where you hold your pencil.  Yes, there are certain places to hold your watercolor pencil or any pencil in art to achieve the correct look.  Watercolor pencils are all about the amount of pigment you put down on the paper.  You may be wondering why I put this here.  Well it’s because the closer to the end of the pencil you are holding in your hand the more pigment you are putting down on the cardstock.  So, if you want a dark area of color come closer to the point of the pencil and color.  Which means the for lighter and mid-range color you need to come back further from the tip of the pencil.  A good rule of thumbs is to hold the watercolor pencil in the middle area of the pencil for a medium amount of pigment to be placed on the cardstock.  And for lighter areas you want to hold the pencil closest to the end of the pencil as you will see in the video.  

s A Bird Stamp Set, Watercolor Pencils, Tasteful Texture 3d embossing Folder, Rick Adkins, Stampin' Up!

Once I have the entire image colored, I will come back with my blender pen and wet the pigment and get it to move around the cardstock blending the darks mediums and lights together.  This is how I achieved the gradient look on my images today.  

Video Tutorial: 



I hope that you find these little tips and tricks helpful as you explore watercolor pencils and stamping.  If you need any of the supplies, you have seen today you can pick them up in my online store by clicking on the item in the shopping list below.  

Happy Stampin' 
Rick Adkins 


Use the Host Code on any order of $50 (before taxes & shipping) or more during the month and receive a gift from me in May as a Thank You. If your order is $150 or more, please do not use the host code.  You will forfeit your Stampin' Rewards if you do; and I want you to get those rewards.


If you place any size order with me during the month of May, you will receive the May Creative Stampers Tutorial Bundle from me as a little thank you.  This month's tutorial bundle features Birthday Bonanza Suite of Products from the January-June Mini Catalog.  The Creative Stampers Tutorial Bundle can either be earned for FREE with any size order or Can be purchased for $20 from me.

Stampin' Up! Shopping List: 


Sunday, May 17, 2020

Celebrate Sunflowers Note Card

Hello and welcome to my blog; today I am going to share with you little sneak peek of some upcoming products with a note card that I Made using the Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set, from the 2020-2021 Stampin' Up! Annual Catalog.  Here is a look at my project for today.  

Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set, Whisper White note cards & Envelopes, Daffodil Delight classic Ink, Old Olive Classic Ink, Stampin' Up!, Rick Adkins

Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set: 

The Celebrate Sunflower (New in the 2020-2021 Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog: will allow you to honor and celebrate friendships with heartfelt sentiments and a stunning set of sunflower images.  The stamp set features wonderful line art sunflowers and leaves that are perfect to color with your favorite coloring media.   The large sunflower image is great for a card front as well as elements on your cards.  I featured it today on my note card.  

Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set, Whisper White note cards & Envelopes, Daffodil Delight classic Ink, Old Olive Classic Ink, Stampin' Up!, Rick Adkins

This is a cling mount stamp set so it will stay in place on your block no matter what you are using it for.  There are eight stamps in the set four of which are line art images.  You have the large sunflower, which is one of my favorites, a smaller sunflower image with leaves attached, and two sets of different size leaves.  Along with some great mixed font sentiments.  The deeply etched images will give you excellent detail as you can see with my little note card today.  

Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set, Whisper White note cards & Envelopes, Daffodil Delight classic Ink, Old Olive Classic Ink, Stampin' Up!, Rick Adkins

Note Cards Perfect for Any Reason: 

I used the large sunflower to stamp all over my note card in Daffodil Delight Classic Ink.  I stamped it in a triangular pattern to add visual interest to the note card.  I then added the large leaf image stamped in Old Olive Classic Ink to fill in some of the white space on the note card.  This is a perfect example of some simple stamping.  Anyone could create this not card, from beginning crafters to someone that has been doing it for years that just needs to make a bunch of cards quick.  

Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set, Whisper White note cards & Envelopes, Daffodil Delight classic Ink, Old Olive Classic Ink, Stampin' Up!, Rick Adkins

I love to make note cards for some occasions because they are the perfect size to be tucked into someone’s lunch, bag, or anywhere.  Plus, they come in a pack of 20 with envelopes so you have plenty to work with.  Another great thing about them is they are ready for you to make and send, no cutting needed if you do not want to add any additional layers.  I only added one additional layer to my note card today.  I stamped the sentiment on a piece of Daffodil Delight Cardstock after stamping the sunflower image on it.  First, I stamped the sunflower off before stamping on the 1 1/16th x 2 ¾” piece of Daffodil Delight Cardstock.  Next, I stamped the sentiment in Old Olive Classic Ink and cut a fishtail banner on one end.  I added it to the note card with a couple Stampin’ Dimensionals.  

Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set, Whisper White note cards & Envelopes, Daffodil Delight classic Ink, Old Olive Classic Ink, Stampin' Up!, Rick Adkins

To finish off my note card I did stamp the large sunflower on the front of the envelope to have a matching presentation to the recipient.  I also stamped it on one corner of the flap.  

Get Your Hands On New Products Before June 3rd: 

Thanks for dropping by today, I hope that you have enjoyed my little simple stamping note card, and that you have been inspired to give it a try.  Remember that the products in the new catalog can not be purchased until June 3, 2020.  If you would like to get your hands on them early you can add them to your starter kit when you join my team this month.  The starter kit is always the best deal in the catalog; for only $99 you get to pick out $125 worth of products with Free Shipping.  Plus, you get at least a 20% discount on all orders while you are a demonstrator.  Think of it like buying a membership to Costco.  But, instead of just a membership card you get a discount on all your orders, plus you get to shop a full month early from any of the new catalogs.  

Three main reasons to Join!  

  1.        You Get at least a 20% discount on all your orders while you are a demo.   
  2.   2.  You get to join my fun Kinsmon Crafters Team and Private Facebook Group.
  3. .      Access to directions to all my online classes 

I All Ready Know I Want to Join!  Sign Me UP!

Happy Stampin' 
Rick Adkins 


Use the Host Code on any order of $50 (before taxes & shipping) or more during the month and receive a gift from me in May as a Thank You. If your order is $150 or more, please do not use the host code.  You will forfeit your Stampin' Rewards if you do; and I want you to get those rewards.


If you place any size order with me during the month of May, you will receive the May Creative Stampers Tutorial Bundle from me as a little thank you.  This month's tutorial bundle features Birthday Bonanza Suite of Products from the January-June Mini Catalog.  The Creative Stampers Tutorial Bundle can either be earned for FREE with any size order or Can be purchased for $20 from me.

Stampin' Up! Shopping List: 


Saturday, May 16, 2020

Stitched All Around Copper Dotted Treat Bag Customer Gifts

Hello and welcome to my blog; today I am going to share with you one of my customer gifts that I sent out recently.  Each week I offer a new Deal of the Week for people that place a qualifying order using a host code.  Next to the last week in April I offered a pack of Basic Rhinestones to anyone that ordered that week.   Once I close out the host code for the month I order all the products that were offered during the month then once they come in I have been trying to create a really cute packaging idea for each product.  This time I used the Copper Dotted Treat Bags and my packaging, along with some other products.  Here's a look at how I packaged the Rhinestones.  


Copper Dotted Treat Bags, Follow Your Art Designer Series Paper, Basic Black Satin Ribbon, Rick Adkins

Tips & Tricks: 

Once I figured out how I was going to decorate my little gift bags I started prepping all the supplies.  I decided to use the Follow Your Art Designer Series Paper as my belly band.  When I cut the designer series paper a certain way I can get five belly bands from one sheet of paper.  I cut cut each belly band at 3" x 7".  So I start by cutting one from the either the bottom or the top and then flip it around and cut the other four in the opposite direction.  Once I had everything cut I simply wrapped it around the treat bag after placing the pack of Rhinestones inside.  I secured the belly band with a strip of Tear & Tape in the seam on the back.  

Copper Dotted Treat Bags, Follow Your Art Designer Series Paper, Basic Black Satin Ribbon, Rick Adkins
 
Once I had the belly band wrapped around the treat bag, I then wrapped around some of the Black 1/2" Satin Ribbon around and tied it in a pretty little knot.  I wanted to add a little texture and pretty to the bag, and to make it look a little more like the gift it is.  I then stamped the Thank You sentiment from the Stitched All Around Stamp Set in Tuxedo Black Ink.  By using the black ribbon I also tied in the black from the ink color as well.  Plus black goes with everything.  

Copper Dotted Treat Bags, Follow Your Art Designer Series Paper, Basic Black Satin Ribbon, Rick Adkins

I then took the Layering Circle Dies and cut out the stamped sentiment and a Blushing Bride Circle so that I could layer them up together.  I used a Stampin' Dimensional on the stamped circle and a couple behind the Blushing Bride Circle so that they not only pop the sentiment up but secure the ribbon in place so that the ribbon does not move to much.  And that finishes how I decorated the treat bags.   The Copper Dotted Treat Bags, the Follow Your Art Designer Series Paper, and the Black 1/2" Satin Ribbon are all on the last chance list and I personally think that you should stock up on them before they are gone, since they are while supplies last.  

Copper Dotted Treat Bags, Follow Your Art Designer Series Paper, Basic Black Satin Ribbon, Rick Adkins

I think these treat bags are perfect for so many gift packaging ideas and can be decorated in so many different ways.  Thank you for dropping by today I hope you have a wonderful weekend.  I will be sharing a new project tomorrow with you so make sure you drop back in to see what I have tomorrow.  If you need any of these supplies you can pick them up in my online store.  I will also tell you that the Follow Your Art is on sale at about 60% off so it's a super great deal right now.  

Happy Stampin' 
Rick Adkins 


Use the Host Code on any order of $50 (before taxes & shipping) or more during the month and receive a gift from me in May as a Thank You. If your order is $150 or more, please do not use the host code.  You will forfeit your Stampin' Rewards if you do; and I want you to get those rewards.


If you place any size order with me during the month of May, you will receive the May Creative Stampers Tutorial Bundle from me as a little thank you.  This month's tutorial bundle features Birthday Bonanza Suite of Products from the January-June Mini Catalog.  The Creative Stampers Tutorial Bundle can either be earned for FREE with any size order or Can be purchased for $20 from me.

Stampin' Up! Shopping List: 


Template Designed by creativeworkerbee