Category Archives: Jessica Lin

Watercolor a Festive Christmas Door with VersaMagic

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By Jessica Lin

Skill: Advanced
Time: 1.5 hours

Hi everyone! It’s Jessica here and I am so excited to share today’s project with you. Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year and I love making Christmas cards. I decided to build a doorway scene today using Stampin’ Up’s At Home with You stamps and dies. After die cutting, the door actually opens, making this a special and interactive Christmas card.

Step 1:
The stamp set I am using today is At Home with You from Stampin’ Up. It features a door and various elements that are great for building specific scenes for different occasions such as Christamas, Thanksgiving, or birthdays. I stamped several images with VersaFine Clair Nocturne ink. It’s a pigment-based ink that is waterproof and great for being the outlines of watercolored images.

Step 2:
After die cutting the stamped images with coordinating dies, it’s time to watercolor. I decided to use VersaMagic Red Magic, Red Brick, and Delicata Ruby Red for the door. I pressed some ink onto an acrylic block and watercolored with a waterbrush.

Step 3:
For the door frame, I watercolored with VersaMagic Gingerbread and Jumbo Java.

Step 4:
Then I added VersaMagic Mango Madness to the window and the candle. Don’t forget to color the door knob, too! I used VersaMagic Niagara Mist with a hint of Aspen Mist. The candle shade is colored with the same colors as the door knob.

Step 5:
Finally, for the plants and wreaths, I watercolored with VersaMagic Hint of Pesto, Delicata Emerald Green and Ruby Red. Delicata ink pads are shimmery and add the perfect touch of Christmas spirit to these images. I wish you could see the shimmer in person!

Lastly, I colored the planter with VersaMagic Wheat ink pad.

Step 6:
Since we are building a front door scene, I embossed the background cardstock with Stampin’ Up’s Brick & Mortar embossing folder. I love the realistic brick textures of this embossing folder; it’s one of my all-time favorites.

Step 7:
Then I added a piece of 4’’ x 1 ½’’ wood patterned paper as the foreground. I also added yellow patterned paper to the inside of the door; this door die actually cuts around the door frame so that the door can open! Isn’t it a fun, little mechanism?

Step 8:
You can then add a Christmas greeting that will be revealed when you open the door. I decided to keep it simple and stamped a “Merry Christmas” sentiment with VersaMagic Nocturne ink pad.

Step 9:
The At Home with You stamp set also comes with a door mat image. I stamped it several times on burlap paper with VersaMagic Nocturne ink pad.

Imagine Supplies:

Other Supplies:

  • Stampin’ Up! – Stamps & Dies – At Home with You
  • Stampin’ Up! – Embossing Folder – Brick & Mortar
  • Waterbrush
  • Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor Cardstock

Create a Mini Halloween Bat Treat Box 

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By Jessica Lin

Skill: Beginner
Time: 20 minutes

– Hi everyone! It’s Jessica here. Halloween is right around the corner and today I have a really quick & easy treat box idea for you. If you are interested in making mini treat boxes and dressing them up for Halloween, Christmas, or Easter, just keep reading!

Step 1:
Die cut a piece of Mint Macaron cardstock with Design a Treatbox die from Stampin’ Up. Fold along the score lines to create a mini treat box.

Step 2:
Die cut a piece of black cardstock with the bat wing die from the same set. Then spritzed it with a generous layer of Sheer Shimmer Craft Spray in Frost. The shimmer spray really adds a whimsical touch to the bat wings! You can compare it with the die cut in the back without the Sheer Shimmer Spray. Doesn’t it look so different?

Step 3:
Then I added a smiley face to the tab of the treat box with irRESISTible Pico Embellisher. The fine-tip nozzle was so easy to use to create fine details.

Step 4:
Die cut the box labels with mint patterned paper and white cardstock. The “trick or treat” sentiment is from Mama Elephant’s Meowlloween Extras set. I stamped it with Brilliance Starlite Black ink pad.

Step 5:
Since this is a mini treat box (holds 2 Hershey kisses), no tape or glue is required for the box assembly. Simply fold along the crease lines and hold it together with the flaps’ openings. This no-glue project is ideal for mass production and you could create many party favors in a short time!

Once the box is assembled, adhere the label dies to the front and slide the bat wings die between the top tabs. You could also create Christmas or Easter treat boxes with the other dies in this set.

Imagine Supplies:

Other Supplies:

  • Stampin’ Up! – Dies – Design a Treatbox
  • Stampin’ Up! – Tool – Mini Cut & Emboss Machine
  • Mama Elephant – Stamps – Meowlloween Extras

Blend Delicata Inks to Make a Beautiful Fall Florals Wedding Card

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By Jessica Lin

Skill: Intermediate
Time: 1 hour

Hi everyone! It’s Jessica here. Fall is right around the corner and I have a fall floral card to share with you today. I decided to do some layered ink blending using shimmery Delicata ink pads. They are pigment-based and mostly used for stamping. However, they ink blend beautifully, too! Be sure to check out the shimmery effects of these ink pads at the end of this post.

Step 1:
Stamp the large floral image from Stampin’ Up’s Layers of Beauty set with VersaFine Clair Sand Dune ink pad. This color is becoming my favorite for stamping outlines. The soft, neutral tone creates an entirely different feel compared to black image outlines.

Step 2:
This particular stamp set coordinates with the Layers of Beauty decorative masks. I started with stencil 1 and ink blended with Delicata Golden Glitz. You could use the full size ink pad or the Quartet ink pad, which includes Golden Glitz, Silvery Shimmer, Celestial Copper, and Bronze Burst.

Step 3:
For stencil 2 and 3, I ink blended Bronze Burst and Celestial Copper. These two shades are similar, with Celestial Copper having a redder hue. I thought they contrasted too strongly against the golden base layer, so I ink blended Bronze Burst lightly to the base layer as well.

Step 4:
For the leaves, I ink blended VersaMagic Sage for stencil 4 and Hint of Pesto for stencil 5. Once the ink blending is completed, I die cut the floral image and mounted the back with foam tape.

Step 5:
I prepared a card base using Neenah Desert Storm cardstock. Then I embossed a 4’’ x 5 ¼’’ panel with Stampin’ Up’s Distressed Tile embossing folder. To create some background depth, I ink blended the corners of the embossed panel with VersaFine Clair Sand Dune ink pad.

Step 6:
Finally, I stamped the sentiment with VersaFine Clair Sand Dune ink pad and added matte white enamel dots from The Rabbit Hole Designs.

Here’s the finished card! I tried to capture the shimmery effects of the Delicata ink pads but the photo does not do it justice. It’s mesmerizing and so pretty in real life, I hope you will give ink blending with Delicata ink pads a try!

Craft Supplies:

Imagine Supplies:

Other Supplies:

  • Stampin’ Up! – Stamps, Die, Mask bundle – Layers of Beauty
  • Stampin’ Up! – Embossing Folder – Distressed Tile
  • Neenah – Paper – Desert Storm
  • Foam Tape

Stamp with Memento Luxe Create Custom Backgrounds 

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By Jessica Lin

Skill: Beginner
Time: 30 min

Hi everyone! It’s Jessica here. Today I have a simple coffee card to share with you. I like to include die-cutting and embossing in a lot of my projects, but I thought today I would focus on the basics – stamping with just ink and paper.

Step 1:
Stamp the coffee stamps using Brilliance Coffee Bean and VersaFine Clair Warm Breeze ink pads. The stamp set I am using today is from Stampin Up’s Latte Love set, but you can use whatever coffee stamps you may have.

Step 2:
To create a simple, patterned background, try stamping the same image at various angles using Memento Luxe Wedding Dress ink pad. For a more subtle, tone-on-tone look, you could use VersaMark ink pad instead. These two ink pads are my favorite for stamping background patterns.

Step 3:
For the sentiment, I decided to use VersaFine Clair Pinecone since the VersaFine Clair ink pads are great at capturing fine details in sentiment stamps. I also fussy cut around the stamped image.

Step 4:
I added a bow using some twine I saved from previous gift packaging, and adhered both the sentiment and the latte images with foam tape. And that completes today’s coffee card! Thanks so much for stopping by, and I’ll see you in my next tutorial!

Imagine Supplies:

Other Supplies:

  • Stampin’ Up! – Stamps – Latte Love
  • Stampin’ Up! – Paper – Chocolate Chip cardstock
  • Foam Tape

Beginner Friendly 3D Christmas Card Using VersaMagic Ink Pads

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By Jessica Lin

– Hi everyone! It’s Jessica here. Today I am sharing a simple way to create 3D Christmas trees for your holiday cards. It is beginner friendly with minimal supplies, and I think it’s perfect to mass produce as well.

Skill: Beginner
Time: 30 min

Directions:

Step 1:
Start by stamping Christmas tree images with VersaMagic Aloe Vera and Tea Leaves ink pads. I used stamps from Stampin’ Up’s Perfectly Plaid set, but any small Christmas tree image would work for today’s technique. For each 3D Christmas tree, you would need three layers. You could stamp each design three times for each layer, or only stamp the top layer for quick mass production of cards.

Step 2:
Next, use the matching paper punch to cut out the Christmas trees. If you only stamped the top layer, be sure to punch out 2 additional cutouts with white cardstock for each 3D tree you are building. Since I am making two 3D trees today, I would need 4 more white cutouts.

Step 3:
Score each Christmas tree cutout in the middle. I lined up the top and bottom of the cutout to the score guide to score.

Step 4:
After scoring, fold the stamped Christmas tree cutout in half, and apply On Point Glue to the top of the folded crease. Then adhere it to a blank (or stamped) cutout. Be sure to hold the folded layer in place for about 20 seconds before the glue dries. Repeat this process to adhere the second layer to the third tree cutout.

Step 5:
Now that the 3D Christmas trees are made, it is time to prepare the card base. Trim a piece of patterned paper to 4 x 2 ¼ inches and a cut a 4 ¼ inch piece of gold glitter washi tape. Trim one side at an angle to create a banner shape and adhere both pieces to the card base.

Step 6:
Finally, stamp the sentiment using VersaMagic Ocean Depth ink pad. Adhere the 3D Christmas trees using Tear-It! Tape and embellish the card with a few rhinestones.

Here is a finished card where I stamped all 3 layers of the 3D Christmas trees. I love how easy it is to create the 3D element, and it is mail-friendly, too! I hope this tutorial inspires you to get a headstart on making Christmas cards for this year. Thank you so much for stopping by, and I’ll see you in my next tutorial!

Imagine Supplies:

Other Supplies:

  • Stampin’ Up! – Stamps – Perfectly Plaid
  • Stampin’ Up! – Punch – Pine Tree Punch
  • Stampin’ Up! – Paper – Pool Party cardstock
  • Plaid Patterned Paper
  • Gold Glitter Washi Tape
  • Park Lane – Embellishment – Blue Adhesive Backed Rhinestones

Watercolor with Sheer Shimmer Spray to Create an Elegant Wedding Card

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By Jessica Lin

Skill Level: Intermediate
Time: 1 hour

Hi everyone! It’s Jessica here. I am so excited to share a wedding card idea with you today. We will be creating a romantic wedding scene by watercoloring some images. If you like adding shimmer and sparkles to your card, be sure to keep reading to find out how you can watercolor with the Sheer Shimmer Sprays!

Step 1:
The focal point of today’s card is the bride and groom images from Stampin’ Up’s Here’s to Love set. I stamped the images on watercolor cardstock with VersaFine Clair Morning Mist ink. Most of the time the VersaFine Clair Nocturne ink is my go-to for stamping image outlines. However, I wanted to create a softer look today, and I thought this dark gray color is a great alternative to the usual crisp, black ink. I also did a little bit of masking on the bride’s right arm, so that the groom’s suit outline does not overlay on top.

Step 2:
Now it is time to add some color. I wanted to try watercoloring with the Sheer Shimmer Spray to add some additional sparkle, since the card layout is quite simple. There are several metallic options to choose from for the Sheer Shimmer Sprays. I chose the color Sparkle, which is clear with a golden shimmer. I painted the bride’s dress with 2-3 coats, letting each coat dry before applying the next layer. For the groom’s suit, I mixed the spray with Memento Tuxedo Black ink. (What a coincidence with the ink’s name, ha!)

Step 3:
Then I stamped the floral images from Stampin’ Up’s Happiness Abounds set using the same gray ink. I mixed Memento Summer Sky ink with Sheer Shimmer Spray to color the base layer of the flowers, and added shadows with Paris Dusk. This color combination is so lovely and the perfect dusky blue for a wedding palette. The Imagine Craft Mat is also a great tool for mixing colors. Since the Memento inks are water-based, I can apply the ink directly onto the craft mat and clean the surface with a quick water rinse at the end.

Step 4:
The leaves were colored with Memento New Sprout and Bamboo Leaves ink. I hope you can see the shimmer from the spray a little better in this picture. It is hard to capture the fine sparkle on camera, but the shimmering effect is truly mesmerizing in person.

Step 5:
I also splattered some white acrylic paint droplets to add additional textures to the colored images.

Step 6:
Now we are ready to die cut the images. The coordinating Blossoming Happiness dies are compatible with the Mini Stampin’ Cut and Emboss Machine.

Step 7:
Finally, I stamped the “congratulations” sentiment with Delicata Silvery Shimmer ink. It complements the gray image outlines nicely and also adds a subtle shine to the project.

You might have noticed that I paired my stamping tool with Altenew’s SlimGrip Sticky Mat now. This Sitcky Mat is a game changer and I love how easy it is to line up narrow sentiment strips.

Here is the final card once I assembled all of the elements. You can recreate this layout with any floral stamps that you may have. I hope you enjoyed today’s tutorial and the tips and tricks about watercoloring with Sheer Shimmer Sprays!

Imagine Supplies:

Other Supplies:

  • Stampin’ Up! – Stamps – Here’s to Love, Happiness Abounds
  • Stampin’ Up! – Dies – Blossoming Happiness
  • Stampin’ Up! – Tool – Mini Stampin Cut & Emboss Machine
  • Foam Tape
  • Watercolor cardstock