Love the New Colors from Altenew Alcohol Markers Release!

Hi Friends! Wanted to share a card I made with the newest set of Alcohol Markers released by Altenew called Firewood Garden.

I ended up turning this "Splendid Bouquet" into a bouquet of stargazer lilies lol! The petals looked a little plain (in retrospect, I think this is because I didn't put enough color on the main flower, but I was trying to differentiate it from the darker, smaller flowers in the background) so I added dots in the style of stargazer lilies. 

All three sets of colors in this Firewood Garden set are well matched - the dusty mauve, mustard yellow, and citron green are such a great combination to use. Sometimes when buying sets you end up with a few colors or shades you don't think you're going to use often, but not this case with this one!

Don't forget to stop by the Instagram Hop for more inspiration and prizes!

Thanks for stopping by!
-Kelly

Firewood Garden

Using Acrylic Markers on Dark Backgrounds - Fun to Play With!

Hello Friends! How long has it been since you've played with acrylic markers? It's been a hot minute for me, and I have to say I've forgotten how fun they are! 

I thought they would be perfect for a charcoal sympathy card, and I love the intensity they have on the very dark cardstock. 

It's a bit freeing from working with alcohol markers where you're spending a lot of time blending the colors and shading together. This is just pure coloring! You can still add details with these markers by layering a different color on top of your first color. Like the leaves for example, where I've added a few lines and dots to break up the solid color. 

If you're in the mood to try something new, I'd recommend picking up a set of the Altenew Acrylic Markers - they're quite inexpensive and come out to around a dollar per marker! There's a whole Instagram hop going on if you're looking for additional inspiration and/or prizes.

Thanks for stopping by!
-Kelly

Altenew February 2024 Release Blog Hop + Prizes!

 

Hello Friends! These cards were sneak-peeked in the January hop, and now that the Graceful Gardenias set is released, with the rest of the February goodies, I'd like to share a bit more about them. You may have come from the amazing Jaycee, but if not feel free to start at the beginning with Altenew.

Project Kit - Graceful Gardenias

This large gardenia (my favorite flower, I carried them down the aisle at my wedding and the smell was heavenly!) is detailed enough to be well-illustrated, yet open enough to add your own spin on coloring (see the light polka dots on the orange petals).

The sentiment really says it all, and I love that it's quite substantial. You could absolutely save these three lines for the inside of the card. But on the front, it's a nice secondary sentiment. The Fancy For You die is a staple in my craft room from an old release (but it's still in stock!)

Splitting the giant gardenia in two was a good way to get something for the top and bottom of my card (vs just the middle).

For a second card I inked up the other gardenia in the Graceful Gardenias set and wanted to make a quick card out of it.

I stamped the gardenia first on the base of the card, and then used the coordinating die to place over the stamped image and sponge ink around it. 

Then I added a bit more pizzaz to the gardenia by inking the polka dots a little darker on the orange petals. I rotated the gardenia die 180 degrees from the card base so you'd be able to see the leaves poking through.

Giveaway Prizes

$300 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $100 gift certificate to 1 lucky winner who comments on the Altenew blog, and a $50 gift certificate to 4 winners from all the comments on the designers' posts! Please leave comments by 02/13/2024 for a chance to win. Winners will be announced on the Altenew Winners Page on 02/15/2024.

You've reached the end of the blog hop (congrats!) but if you'd like to revisit any of the stops, here is the complete list:

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Thanks for stopping by!
- Kelly

Altenew Inspiration Challenge - Street Art Can Be a Great Resource for Cardmaking!

Hello Friends! I'm so excited to be hosting the Altenew Inspiration Challenge for the whole month of February!

It's a color challenge that's based on one of the most beautiful pieces of street art I saw this summer. Head over to their blog to read all about it and hopefully play along!

Here are some photos of how I was inspired by the street art:

Sure hope to see your creations in the gallery!

Thanks for playing!

-Kelly