Monday, March 31, 2014

April 2014 Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to the April 2014 Stamp of the Month blog hop, featuring artwork from over 50 Close To My Heart consultants using Balloon Talk, a set of 24 stamps.  Whether you've arrived here from {Sarita's} blog or are just getting started, simply click on the link at the end of each post to go to the next blog in the hop.

So I know what you're thinking.  A bubble text stamp set is PERFECT for creating scrapbook layouts.  It absolutely is.  But, I found another cool use.  I LOVE to read, and between fun reading, school reading, and work reading, I often find myself looking for another bookmark.  Sometimes, I'll grab a Post-it note when I can't find a bookmark, and those things are boring and expensive.  This bookmark makes perfect use of the "START HERE" bubble, providing a perfect little pointer right to the line you want.  By using magnets, this bookmark will stay on the page and can be placed wherever it needs to be in order to point at your next sentence (photos were taken before laminating in order to reduce glare).  I did the 'emboss resist" technique of loading the stamp with Versamark and then my color of choice, then covered with Clear Detail embossing powder and heated with my heat gun.  Then I sponged the white text with Pear ink.  This allowed me to get two colors, and to keep them both true.  I cut a patterned piece of paper to the width of the text balloon and scored the middle, and then cut Blush cardstock to allow a 1/8th inch border.  I mixed Blush Re-inker with Create-a-Shade Pearl Paint, and brushed it onto the Blush cardstock.  After everything was dry, I assembled the pieces, adding magnets to the inside to allow the bookmark to grip the page, though it would also work without the magnets.  Laminating the bookmark after applying the magnets will ensure they stay attached to your bookmark.

Papers: CTMH Blush cardstock, CTMH Chantilly
Inks: CTMH Pear and Twilight, Versamark Watermark
Tools and Techniques: CTMH Clear Detail embossing Powder, sponging, CTMH Create-a-Shade Pearl Paint, CTMH Blush Re-inker, Basic Grey Magnets
Stamp Sets: CTMH Balloon Talk


Remember, Balloon Talk is only available April 1-30, 2014.  Contact your consultant, or click here to get one for yourself.  Now hop on over to {Lucy's} blog to see what she is talking about!