Sail Shaker

 Greetings! Alison here. For one of my most recent FB Lives for Doodles Paper Playground, I created a card that used Stampendous' Gift Occasions die set. You may have also seen that card here on my blog. If not, check out the FB Live HERE, or the blog post HERE. I like to try to have at least one sample to show my viewers before we get started with the project, so that's what I am sharing today with you. I created this card just to show folks what was in store for the evening's Live, and I have to say, I am really happy with how it turned out.

The Gift Occasions die set comes with 4 fun designs plus one extra plain rectangle die. I won't go into full details on how to make this, because I do cover the entire process in the FB Live. In this shaker, I used the "Clearly in Love" Sparkle Blend, which is just perfect for giving the feel of waves in the water. On the background panel of the card, I used a few sequins from the "Ladybird" Sparkle Blend, just to add some more pops of red.

I like using clear Sparkle Blends for things like this because it doesn't take away from what's inside the shaker. It only enhances it. Clear Sparkle Blends like this will always be a staple for my shaker cards. My background paper is from Lawn Fawn, and I used a die set from Simon Says Stamp for my sentiment.

This card is giving me warm, summery vibes and I love it. Quite a change from the bitter cold we have on Long Island today. Please be sure to visit the Sparkle Blends Shop on Esty to see the all of the available Sparkle Blends, as well as joining the Sparkle Blends Fan Club on Facebook. I'll have a new FB Live on the Doodles Paper Playground FB Page this Thursday at 8PM EST. Thanks for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!

Giant Sequin Rainbow

Hey everyone!  It's EK.  Did you know that little girls like rainbows? I mean really like rainbows...and they don't have to be so little to love them. Today I am finally placating my 12 year old daughter and creating this giant (and yes I mean 8x10 giant) rainbow on wood panel for my rainbow obsessed kiddo.

To create this giant rainbow, I pulled seven (plus one) packages of Sparkle Blends sequins from Doodle's Paper Playground.

Now I will warn you, I tried to cut a corner on this project, so it didn't turn out how I had hoped or planned, but my kid loves it and I thought it was still worth sharing despite my personal disappointment in it.

I started with an old already painted wood panel. This was painted up for another project that I just never got around to. But I really thought all of these blues and teals would make the perfect background for a rainbow.

Using a water soluble white pencil, I sketched a rainbow onto the panel.

Using some craft glue, I added the 'violet layer' using the Rosey Gold Sparkle Blend.

The 'indigo' layer got a layer of With A Bang Sparkle Blends.

For the 'blue' section, I added Baby Shark Sparkle Blends, and Oh Christmas Tree for the 'green' section.

I pulled out the Birthstone Collection Citrine Sparkle Blends for the 'yellow' row and Candy Corn for the 'orange'.

Finally I adhered Ladybird Sparkle Blends for the 'red' row.

At the bottom of each rainbow I added a rainbow I sketched in a cloud using my water soluble pencil.

I filled the clouds with Gold Rush Sparkle Blends.

Here is where I messed my project up. Instead of using Golden Clear Tar to coat the sequins, a product that would have dried clear and shinny, I used some Liquitex Matte Medium. I used it all the time on art journals and mixed media projects and it always dries clear. However, I don't used it this thickly, and come to find out when it is thick, it dries cloudy.

Despite the cloudiness, I still think there is something really special about this project. And more importantly, my rainbow loving 12 year old things it is perfect.

White the project may not be perfect, I hope it makes you think about using your sequins in unique ways.

Oh, and if you want to save 10% on your order feel free to use the code EKGORMAN10. 

Cheesecake Shaker Card

Hello! Today, I am sharing a card that my husband made. If you have been a follower of mine for a while, you know that he enjoys crafting with the kids and I. For the past couple of months, we've been having a crafting afternoon, where we each make cards using new Sparkle Blends from Doodles Paper Playground. He came up with this card (using Ladybird) all on his own, and I didn't do anything on it. I taught him a few techniques, but he did everything himself.

He created a cloudy background and then layered a beautiful tree stencil on top with a brown glitter gel. As it dried, he used a punch to cut his layers of grass, and he die cut his cake (from Stampendous' Birthday Numbers Dies Set) several times to create a shaker. He also stamped out his tree stump (from Lawn Fawn).

This Sparkle Blend is so cute, and I adore those ladybirds (which is what the UK calls ladybugs). I love how Gene has them crawling up to the cheesecake. He made a cheesecake, because at the time, it was only a few days before International Cheesecake Day, and he looooves cheesecake. He even used Nuvo drops to make his cherry topping!

Gene added a lot of texture and dimension with foam tape, the texture paste, the ladybugs, and all of his other little details. And I like that it's not a birthday card.

He worked really hard on this card, and I am so proud of him for trying so many new techniques at once. His design was solid from the beginning, and I had nothing to do with that aspect of the card. He's a fast learner, and he had a really good time playing with all of these things. I can't wait to see what he makes next! I'd love it if you let Gene know what you think of his card. I hope you’ll visit the Sparkle Blends Shop on Etsy to see all of the currently available sequin mixes. Sparkle Blends are made in small batches, only once, so once they’re gone, they’re gone for good. You can use my code, “ALISON10” to save 10% off of your order (not including Bundles). Thanks so much for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!

Hey Lady, Happy Birthday

 Hey Lady, Happy Birthday

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I used images from the Lawn Fawn Hey Lady stamp set.

I stamped them on watercolor paper and used Mission Gold water colors.

Then I die cut them.

I die cut both my base panel and top panel.

Laid out the sequins and placed my top panel.

I decided to bunch the leave to one side, kinda layering them up.

I created a layered banner for the birthday sentiment.

I added sequins and a fimo lady bug to the front to finish off the card. 

For this project I used the LadyBird Sparkle Blend.

I love the polka dot sequins and little fimo lady bugs in this mix!

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There are more great Sparkle Blends over at the 

Doodles Paper Playground Etsy Shop!

You can use my code FAWN10 for 10% off your order.

There is also a Facebook group where you can share 

creations you have made with Sparkle Blends!

Come check it out, share some inspiration!

Sparkle Blends Fan Club

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Now, Get Out There and Create Something Amazing!!

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