VIDEO: One Embossing Folder, Five Ways!

*Compensated affiliate links used where possible at zero cost to you. No posts are ever sponsored or paid.*

In this world where eggs are $9, I'm on a mission to stretch things! Especially complete luxuries like craft supplies. So I have some stretches for you today!

I feel like people think Valentines themed products can be limiting, but I disagree. The imagery of Valentine's day is all-year imagery - hearts and flowers. But this time of year, we see hearts and we think pink! So I'm taking a different approach to help you transition those fun Valentine purchases into more versatile cards.

The color theory in this first project is one you can apply to ANY layering stencil you have. I'm using this layering heart and flower stencil. All I did was choose two warms and two cools, as you'll see in the video. I also have a very fun and easy trick for lining up layering stencils. These stencils are clear, which I think is the easiest to use. 

I did all my stenciling on top of a card panel embossed with this 3D embossing folder - I think this would be great for St. Patrick's Day because it almost has a shamrock pattern. It's hard to see the pattern in this flat photo - but you'll see it better in the video. I used a sentiment set from this same release, and I separated that with ink blended circles I cut with infinity dies. I added these gems - matching the colors to where they are on the card.

I have to say - using 3D folders is dramatically easier with the universal platform/plates. I struggled SO hard with shims and all sorts of nonsense that came with my machine whenever I tried to use them. Every since Vic on Splitcoast suggested this and I bought it my life is infinitely easier!

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This next card actually is one of FOUR looks you can get with exactly the same process! It's so fun! I used this gold paint, my gel plate, and the same 3D embossing folder and sentiment. All I had to add was a little gold glitter paper to have a really elegant card (plus three more you'll see in the video!)

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10% off the whole store at A Colorful Life Designs - LydiaFan10
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Here's the video! Come back for CAKE!

So I made this INCREDIBLE coconut cake this week my friend Bev found on TikTok. As a matter of fact I had a piece with some Earl Greyer this cold morning and it was a DELIGHT. You need to read my notes though.

I realized with this and the tomato bisque recipe I posted yesterday that I've probably exceeded my recommended daily allowance of coconut this week. Sorry not sorry!

I hope you have a great weekend! Loveyameanitbye.

VIDEO: Zebra Madness + Watercolor Smudging

*Compensated affiliate links used where possible at zero cost to you. No posts are ever sponsored or paid.*

You know how there are some categories of images that you can't resist? Here are some of mine:

• Mail themed stamps
• Leaves
• Bunnies
• Text stamps
• Owls
• Big florals
• Platypi
• Zombies
• Monsters
• Zebras

So I'm in trouble today, because this sassy little zebra is out and he's RIDICULOUSLY cute. The set he's in has some baby themed elements, but I didn't make baby cards and I could not stop putting zebras on things!!

This first card was so fun to make. I stamped all the zebras, and then used the matching die + masking paper to mask them all off. I ink blended Sprout all over them, and then at the very edges of the card, ink blended Buttercup to make the center of the card glow. EEK they are cute. The sentiment is from this set. PS - they have a sale going on ink cubes and full sized ink pads FYI.

Now the technique on the next two cards is what I show you in the video below so I won't bore you with the details - it's a technique I have another video for, using a different medium, and that video is linked in today's video. It works great with either medium! This new amazing lattice style die I cut with white cardstock and glued it onto a black card base to tie in with my sassy zebra. The sentiment is from the same set. Love the little halo created by masking with the die cut here and smudging with these watercolor crayons, too.

This card was done with the same technique, but with Post-it tape and watercolor crayons instead of a die cut. I love this look so much. The sentiment is from this set. You'll see this in today's video as well. The way I do it, there's "light" in the center of each section, making it look sort of rounded.

I love a good literary quote too - that's sort of this week's theme! So this beautiful botanical set was perfect for a clean and simple card with one of my favorite writer's quotes. I just stamped and die cut it for a little dimension and stamped the sentiment.

Here's the video - come back for an amazing quick cucumber salad recipe if you're a cucumber fan! 

Here are all the supplies I used today:

Marabu Art Crayons | BLICK Art Materials [ BLIC ] Safari Friends Bundle [ C&9 ] Seasonal Branches Bundle [ C&9 ] Triple Step Blooming Heart Bundle [ C&9 ] Plaid Card Front Thick Die [ C&9 ] Plaid Card Front Thin Die [ C&9 ] Sprout Ink Pad - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] Buttercup Ink Pad - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] Ink Cubes Bundle - Concord & 9th [ C&9 ] Adhesive Remover [ C&9 ] Scotch 3M POST-IT MASKING Labeling... [ SSS ] Avery 6465 Removable Multipurpose... [ AMZUS ] Pre-Cut & Scored Cardstock [ CTC ] Art Anthology BIG CRAFT MAT 24x36 311473 [ SSS ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSP | HA | SSS | ELH | MFT | UNT ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] LightView 2in1 LED Magnifier for... [ BRG ] Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC [ ELH | SSS ] Crafter's Companion GEMINI... [ SSS ] Scor-Pal MINI SCOR-BUDDY Scoring... [ SSS ] Storage Envelopes, Medium 25pk,... [ ELH ] CheckOutStore Stamp & Die Clear... [ CHC ] Extra Large -50 pk, Avery Elle Stamp... [ ELH ] Mermaid tidy towel case and glue... [ ETS ] Lawn Fawn STAMP SHAMMY Cleaner LF1045 [ SSS | CST ] Airtable: Organize your stamps & dies [ ART ]

Okay - I believe you need to know yourself in the kitchen - and what I know about myself is there are some processes I don't have the patience for, and one of those is canning (with limited exceptions - I do love making marmalade.) But I found this AMAZING process for making a cucumber salad that is now a favorite. It's basically a quick and dirty pickling process - but you pickle haters - it doesn't make pickles - it makes a sweet/tart cucumber salad sort of like those you find in Japanese restaurants - or at least the ones here. I love it. This was in our old 4H cookbook from junior high, and I copied it into my "cookbook" that I really need to update - it's a notebook with page protectors that has a bunch of stuff I'll never cook from magazines and stuff - I need to just whittle it down to my faves and probably get it all into google drive.

But anyway - here's how it goes.

• Thinly slice two cukes - I've used regular cukes and English ones - just whatever you like or have.
• Thinly slice a red onion. (Don't sub another onion - onions are very task-specific)
• Season the cucumbers and onions with a teaspoon of salt (I use Real Salt - it's much less salty than table salt, so you may have to adjust) for an hour in a salad spinner or colander. I wear gloves and toss the veggies and salt to be sure the salt is evenly distributed. Toss the liquid after an hour or so.
• In a small saucepan, mix 1 C. white vinegar, 1/2 C. water, 1/2 C. sugar.  Heat on high and stir until sugar is dissolved and it's clear - 3-5 minutes.
• Pour over the veggies (yes, while it's hot), and stir in 2 TBS fresh dill, finely chopped. Cover and stick in the fridge, if you don't eat it all when it gets to room temp. So yummy.

This dish is great with something with a high fat content, like brisket or pulled pork, IMHO. Or anything fried, or with dumplings, etc. One of my fave Chinese restaurants in the late 1900s served something similar to this except with chiles in it prior to every meal.

But let's talk about dill for a moment. Despite everyone's grandmother in Texas growing dill and using it in their pickles, I have NEVER been successful growing dill - it literally dies as soon as I get out of the car after buying a plant. Is there a native Texas variety I'm missing? I have a very green thumb, so this is frustrating, and with the exception of basil, herbs do very well here - as a matter of fact, they are the only things in my yard that survived #SixDaysinTexas. So I'd love your Texas dill tips.

Loveyameanitbye.

CURRENT COUPON CODES
15% off anything at Marker Universe or any of their other sites - Understandblue15.
10% off the whole store at A Colorful Life Designs - LydiaFan10
5% off at LBC here with code LYDIA5
Phone stand for filming link below in the banner - 20% off sitewide with code UNDERSTANDBLUE

VIDEO: The Light From Within + Brussels Sprouts Recipe

*Compensated affiliate links used where possible at zero cost to you. No posts are ever sponsored or paid.*

It's kit day! YAY! And the new kit is Hawaii themed and gorgeous! I'd advise speed if you want this one. The reaction to the countdown has been quite something, so check it out here before reading on. Our vacation to Hawaii was my very favorite vacation ever. The temperature there doesn't vary between night and day - there can be such extreme temperatures here - that it was so perfectly relaxing - it was just mid-80s all the time on Oahu. There were these awesome street chickens that hung around by the Starbucks I went to, and the little, ultra casual restaurants were such fun. The hiking was great, the beaches were stunning - and because we didn't go near Honolulu after arrival, there was no crowded tourist feel. I'd live there in a heartbeat.

But I digress. 

There are two AMAZING color layering sets this month that I used together on my first card. The first is this gorgeous waterfall Heroscape, which you can see in its original intended use here. But I used it with the color layering Volcano Heroscape set, and turned the water into lava flows! I LOVE IT SO MUCH. I used Dandelion and Neon Orange ink for the lava portion, and then I die cut the waterfall, stamped and die cut the volcano from the volcano set in the same colors and ink blended the sky and die cut clouds from the volcano set with all the same colors. The beautiful, retro Vintage Paradise set girl was colored with Graph-it markers, die cut and I used the sentiment from a brand new set from their Unity collection from the Spring catalog. (You need to see this catalog - pay special attention to the frogs and the cute Lifestyle collection.)

My project with the main kit is the subject of my video today! It's an adorable set of recipe cards for classic Hawaiian cocktails! The images from the main kit are stamped on each card and colored with Graph-It markers - (coupon code good for the whole site in footer). I paid for a recipe card template here and then just modified it. For the belly band, I created the background as I show in the video with a distressed inking technique with Pool Party and Splash Hero Hues, and cut it and some kraft cardstock with the same Circle Infinity die, and added the colored and die cut images from the main kit and glued that scene to the belly band. Here's the gift set. 

And here are the cards - Rum Runner, Jungle Bird, Zombie, Navy Grog, Hurricane and classic Mai Tai.

Here's the video, then come back for one more card and the giveaway!

Finally, I had to do a "blue Hawaii" card with this stunning Aloha cover plate and the beautiful girl from the Vintage Paradise set. The background is actually just my brayer cleaning sheet from a recent Gel Press live I did in my class group. Dies like this make cardmaking so simple. 

So here's what you get in the main kit this month - remember the sand embossing powder?? IT'S BACK! Along with hibiscus washi tape - eek!

And here are all the add-ons. 

As usual, they'll be giving away a shopping spree, so be sure and leave me a comment - have you been to Hawaii? If so, tell me what you loved. If not, tell me which island you'd visit first!

Here are all the products I used today. Come back for a yummy brussels sprouts recipe!

February Kit [ HA ] Get Them All February Add-Ons [ HA ] Waterfall Heroscape [ HA ] Volcano Heroscape [ HA ] Hero Arts Clear Stamps EMPOWERMENT... [ SSS ] Water Ripples Bold Prints [ HA ] Vintage Paradise [ HA ] Aloha Cover Plate [ HA ] Hibiscus Flowers Bold Prints [ HA ] Island Fruits Bold Prints [ HA ] AF428 Splash Reactive Ink - Hero Arts [ HA ] AF426 Pool Party Reactive Ink - Hero... [ HA ] DI199 Nesting Circle Infinity Dies... [ HA ] Graphit — Marker Universe [ MRK ] 2021 Spring Catalog - Hero Arts [ HA ] My Sweet Petunia [ MSP ] Pre-Cut & Scored Cardstock [ CTC ] Art Anthology BIG CRAFT MAT 24x36 311473 [ SSS ] Heavy Base Weight Card Stock- White [ GNK ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] LightView 2in1 LED Magnifier for... [ BRG ] Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC [ ELH | SSS ] Crafter's Companion GEMINI... [ SSS ] Scor-Pal MINI SCOR-BUDDY Scoring... [ SSS ] Storage Envelopes, Medium 25pk,... [ ELH ] CheckOutStore Stamp & Die Clear... [ CHC ] Extra Large -50 pk, Avery Elle Stamp... [ ELH ] Mermaid tidy towel case and glue... [ ETS ] Airtable: Organize your stamps & dies [ ART ] Beach Car Fancy Die [ HA ] Hero Lifestyle Luau Accessories [ HA ] HIbiscus Fancy Die [ HA ] Waterfall Heroscape Frame Cuts [ HA ] Volcano Heroscape Frame Cuts [ HA ] Vintage Paradise Frame Cuts [ HA ]

Our most famous chef in town at one of my favorite restaurants - Uchi - was nice enough to share his recipe for brussels sprouts at a social media event I was invited to there. Literally up until the very moment I ate them that night, I LOATHED Brussels sprouts and was committed to never ingesting them, but I trust Tyson Cole completely, and so I tried them. Oh my word are they good. I've made them several times since - and warning - it's a bit of a process, but it is well worth it. If you want to make the sauces ahead of time, that will save you some time. But holy heck are these good. You'll have TONS of sauce left over - particularly the chili sauce, so plan to have egg roll bowl, spring rolls or cold noodles that week as well. HERE is his recipe, with my modifications. You do what you want - you're a free being! :) 

Looking for a happy place to see and share cards? Jennifer McGuire has started an upbeat and happy Facebook community! Come check it out here! 

The rest of the team has some inspiration for you today - here is the list! Be sure and leave comments for your chance to win!

Hero Arts
Channin Pelletier
Dana Joy
Daniel West
Debi Adams
Emily Midgett
Ilina Crouse
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Libby Hickson
Lydia Fiedler
Maria Willis
Michelle Short
Mindy Eggen
Pocono Pam
Seeka

Special Guests: 

Nichol Spohr
Jenn Shurkus
Mitsyana Wright

Loveyameanitbye.

CURRENT COUPON CODES
15% off anything at Marker Universe or any of their other sites - Understandblue15.
10% off the whole store at A Colorful Life Designs - LydiaFan10
5% off at LBC here with code LYDIA5
Phone stand for filming link below in the banner - 20% off sitewide with code UNDERSTANDBLUE