February Hump Day Hop Theme: Leap into Action!

It's February! And, it's a leap year! What's more, is our Hump Day Hop happens to fall on February 29th, so of course I just had to challenge us to do something with the word "leap" in it! So what's the challenge? "Leap into Action!" What's it mean? I want you to make your Bombshells heroes. Now think about it...think about all of the different types of heroes there are. Firemen, policemen, super heroes, and advocates. Let me break down some fun ideas for you.  

-Use the "To the Rescue Bombshell" digis which feature firefighter, police woman and nurse costumes. All of these would work!

-Use Retro Cowgirl for some bull-slingin' action! Have your cowgirl save the day!

-Dress up any of your Bombshells like superheroes! Throw a cape and mask on 'em and help them beat the bad guys!

-Use your Bombshells as advocates for a group. For example, dress your Bombshell up in pink and make a breast cancer awareness card

-You can even go completely opposite of the challenge, and use "Rise & Shine." Make up a funny quote about not leaping or going anywhere.

Lots of ideas, and I'm sure you can come up with some awesome ones too! For the rest of the details, please go to THIS THREAD. It's also where you can sign up! I hope you will join in on this Leap into Action hop.I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Love Tokens BombShell Style

Love tokens have been around forever, be it a simple flower to the more recognized engagement ring. A lot of the simple joys of the tokens have been lost over the years with all the technology we have at our fingers tips - love letters for example.

Shakespeare's Othello has been labelled (aka blamed) as the one responsible for making Handkerchiefs into love tokens to be given between couples, often resulting in the token being used to prove love or infidelity. Before then, they were used for knights to carry the colors or crest of a lady for Luck or loyalty in a joust or battle.

and in this age of re-usability and Eco-friendliness, handkerchiefs are making a big comeback, especially for my family due to their sensitive skin - i find paper tissues just rub the skin raw in this weather. So I thought I would personalize some with my Bombshell stamps.

Stamp your images as desired - i used a selection of Bombshell Stamps with stazon inks - you could use other fabric ink-pads but I had these to hand, remember to iron them afterwards to set the ink. Use a light coating of ink on the stamp as it may bleed a little on the fabric. As I used white handkerchiefs, I used a bleach pen to get rid of any unwanted marks before I ironed them.

you could embroider the outline and colour them in that way but I honestly suck at that beautiful skill so I coloured mine with some fabric markers (remember to iron them to heat set them). a note about using markers on fabrics - expect a bit of bleed to try and allow for that when coloring.
I think a set of each would be a great gift for that person in your life that doesn't fit into the "Hallmark" stereotypes :)

I also made a Love Token wall hanging using an embroidery hoop and the awesome Koi Bombshell stamps. This would be perfect for a wedding present as Koi symbolize perseverance in adversity and strength of purpose - perfect sentiments for a marriage.

I did though manage to stitch a very basic outline with some gold thread for this Hoop Token for my hubby. It has our wedding date on it so maybe it will help him remember next time ;)
I stamped the two images and then used Gold embroidery thread to highlight some of the lights. I then marked in pencil the words I wanted and stitched over the line. I used half the thread thickness for the line and the full thickness for the word "soulmates" so it stood out more.

I finished it off with some Ribbons at the hoop bolt and now it hangs in our living room. I am considering spraying the outer hoop with gold paint to match but we'll see.

So I hope you have been inspired to use your stamps to create a love token for the special person in your life - just in time for Valentine's day.
Thanks for sharing in the Bombshell love,
Anam

Old Fashioned Valentine

    Here's a fun card for Valentines Day.  It has all your traditional Valentine's staples; hearts, doilies, gems, glitter, bows, and sweet messages and the most darling Cupid from the Bombshell Angel stamp set.  I couldn't resist giving him little pink cheeks - four of them.

Vellum Butterflies Tutorial

 As promised here is the tutorial on creating Vellum Butterflies.  I must admit that I did not create this technique.  I learned it on Youtube from Jennings644.  Here is how I do it.

You will need vellum, any weight
                      alcohol inks and felt stamper
                      embossing pad
                      gold pigment pad
                      gold embossing powder
                      heat gun
                      gold stickles
                      gold wire
                      Glossy accents
                      sharp scissors

Begin by choosing your alcohol colors and placing a few drops onto your felt pad.  I used three colors.Tamp the colors over the vellum.  They will dry very quickly.

Now, ink up your butterfly stamp. I used the large butterfly from the butterfly dreams set.  First ink the stamp with embossing ink, followed by pigment ink.  I know that you don't actually need both, but I find both work better for a gold emboss.

 Stamp your butterfly onto the inked vellum add your embossing powder and emboss.  Be sure to keep a close eye on your embossing, to much heat will girl your vellum.  (Ask me how I know).

As soon as the embossing is cool, cover the entire stamped area with Glossy Accents.  Do not worry about the anteannas you will be cutting those off.

Next, add your gold Stickles INTO the Glossy Accents, following patterns in the wings.  Use the tip of the Stickles bottle to push the glitter into the Glossy Accents. The Stickles will be mostly covered by the Glossy Accents.

Allow to dry.  This will take several hours.  I usually do this early in the morning and wait until evening to work on the butterflies or vice-versa getting to this point and finishing in the morning.

Once the butterfly is dry, fussy cut along your embossed edges being sure to cut on the outside of the embossing.

Next cut a short piece of gold wire and fold it in half.  I like to wrap the upper edges around the tip of skewer to create a curl in the antenna.

Flip the butterfly over and glue the antenna to the back of the butterfly.

Voila - You have now created a gorgeous jeweled butterfly.

Tea Box Tutorial with Kelli

Hello everyone welcome to this wonderful Friday!  Today I have to share with you a Tea Box tutorial.  One of my dearest friends is going through a rough time and she loves tea so I thought I would make this for her to cheer her up! 

January Hump Day Hop: Ring in the New!

Hello Bombshell Fans! Alison here with the latest Bombshell Stamps Hump Day Hop! Most of you know how this works...but in case you're a newbie, I give a challenge at the beginning of the month. And on the last Wednesday of the month (ahem....Hump Day), everyone who wanted to play along is a part of a fabulous Blog Hop. YOU can join in too! Just remember to use those gorgeous Bombshell Stamps of yours. :)

So what was this month's challenge? Ring in the New. What's that mean? I wanted all of our participants to create a project with something that was new to them. In other words, a new technique, using a new product, a new style....anything! Dare to experiment! I'm sure you are at the edge of your seat now, just itching to see what we've all come up with. I won't keep you here any longer. Here is the full hop list. Please be sure to visit everyone and leave 'em some love! And perhaps next month, YOUR bloggy will be listed here too!

Bombshell Blog: http://bombshellstamps.blogspot.com/ (you are here!)
Alison: http://alisonsrandomthoughts.blogspot.com 
Laura: http://craftylittlewoman.blogspot.com/
Alaine: http://missalaineousmosaics.blogspot.com/
Sparkly Mary: http://sparkly-train.blogspot.com
Meredith: www.papercanteen.com
Cheryl: http://inktrap.blogspot.com
Paula: http://heyheypaula-heyheypaula.blogspot.com/
Kelli: http://www.cajunstampingqueen.blogspot.com
Stempelientje: http://stempelientje.blogspot.com/
Glittery Katie: http://ferrishyn-frontier.blogspot.com
Kathi: http://kathstales.blogspot.com

Kathi's Sketches for your Inspiration!

Kathi is our Queen of Sketches here in Bombshell Land and she's kindly collected together ALL her sketches that she's designed for us in case you need some inspiration!

Sassy Sayonara

     This is a little something I whipped up last night for a few challenges this week.  I had this image leftover from another project and decided I wanted to use it on a card.  This sweet Peek-A-Boo Geisha is just such a fun image to color and comes with several different parasols. 

December's Random Winner!

Hey, gorgeous Bombshells of Blogland!  I'm back today to give away another prize!  Normally we would do the monthly random draw on or around the 5th, but because we did our Anything Goes award at the beginning of the month, I thought I would put some space in between those dates.

This month's winner is a former Guest Designer.  Put your hands together for Celina Anthony!  Celina's number came up and she is the lucky recipient of a $20 gift certificate to spend in the Bombshell Stamps Shop!  Congratulations, Celina!  Please email me at cvaladez@comcast.net and I will tell you how to collect your prize ;D

Take a look at Celina's winning entry and then pay her a visit at her blog to check out her other wonderful creations!

It's easy to add new Bombshell Stamps to your crafting arsenal.  Just enter one of the monthly challenges (Kathi's Sketch Challenge or the Guest Designer's Theme Challenge) OR sign up to create a project for our monthly blog hop.  We'll throw your name into the proverbial hat and see what comes up.  Enter as often as you like, just be sure to use a Bombshell image as your focal point on your design.  The other way to win is to just create a card, layout, altered item, etc using BSS images and post them in your favorite forum...the Bombshell Forum, Paper Craft Planet, Splitcoast Stampers, Flickr, etc.  I'll prowl the Internet and select an eye-popping project to receive the Prize Partrol Award.  The prize for each award is a $20 gift certificate to spend in the BSS Shop!  Now's the time to enter these challenges!

Okay, my lovelies!  That's it for me!  See you in the Winner's Circle!

Tutorial – Mini Notebook Cover

Hi!  Ms. January here.  Today I just wanted to share a quick and easy tutorial with you. 

I recently bought some little scratch pads/notebooks to have handy in my desk drawer.  But they were completely plain, so I decided to make covers for them.  Here’s what I did…

The notebook measures 3”x5”(7.6cm x 12.7cm), so I cut a piece of cardstock 3”x12”(7.6cm x 30.5cm).  Then I scored the cardstock at 5”, 5 1/4”, 10 1/4”, and 10 1/2”(12.7cm, 13.3cm, 26cm, and 26.7cm). 

(the stars mark the inner score lines on the cardstock)

You can choose whether you want to decorate the cover before or after you attach your notebook.  The notebook should be adhered to the cardstock in between the inner score lines.

Then you can finish any decorating of your cover, and choose what kind of closure you want.  I chose to use magnets for my closure.  I put a piece of magnet under the paper on the front…

And on the inside of the flap…

And here is the finished notebook…

I used Harley Bikes to decorate my cover.

Thanks for looking!

Ms. January's Challenge - Let's Play Tag!

Hello! Laura, Miss January here I'm so excited to bring you a new challenge this month! The challenge I have chosen is "Let's Play Tag!" All you have to do is either make a tag using your Bombshell Stamps, or make a project that includes a tag. Then don't forget to link up your creation back here before the end of the month. I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Here are some creations from the DT...

Ms. January using Harley Bikes

Celina using Butterfly Queen

GlitteryKatie using Mi Amor

Alaine used Alter Skulls to tag it.

Cheryl using Mermaid Treasure

Alison using Mermaid Treasure

Stempelientje using Bombshell Angel

Meredith using Homeward Bound

Kelli using Retro Cowgirl and Bombshell Patterns

Sparkly Mary using Butterfly Dreams

Please play along for a chance to win BOMBSHELL goodies- we wanna see your tags!!
Details HERE!!!

Meet Ms. January -- Laura Boyd!!!

So sorry this is late! Time seems to have slipped away and was aided and abetted by my natural spaciness!

So without further ado...

Laura Boyd is our talented Ms. January, who shows a definite flair for design and coloring.

Get to know her better by reading her interview!

1. Brief info about yourself, including your name, where you live, your family (if you want), etc.

Hi, I'm Laura. I live in rural Ohio with my wonderful husband of almost ten years and our two children, ages 7 and 3. I'm a stay-at-home-mom and I homeschool my daughter, so I'm kept pretty busy!

2. How long have you been stamping and/or crafting?

Well, I've been playing with stamps since I was a little girl. My mom taught me how to cross stitch when I was really young, so I've been crafting for a long time. I've only really been making cards and scrapbook layouts for the last few years.

3. What are your favorite Bombshell sets and why?

I love all of the Bombshell sets I have! But I love Bombshell Angel for the versatility that it offers and I love Rose's Portrait for her classic beauty.

4. What kind of projects do you like to do?

I primarily make cards, but I also love altered art, canvases, bookmarks, tags, ATCs, the list keeps going...

5. What are your favorite coloring mediums?

I love my Copics. I also love Distress ink. I'm also really starting to like paints (both acrylic and watercolor).

6. Describe your crafting "style".

Eclectic. My style ranges from cutesy to macabre and most places in between.

7. Describe your crafting process. Do you start with a stamp set? A sketch? A technique you want to use?

Unless it is for a sketch challenge I usually start with the stamp or image and then I just go from there.

8. Do you have any other hobbies?

Reading, writing(fiction and poetry), video games, cooking, baking, sewing, genealogy, and I love music!

9. Free for all including little facts, etc. about you.

• I'm short(only 5' 1”).
• I love Greek food.
• I'm a big Doctor Who? fan.
• I have a huge crush on the actor Bill Nighy.
• I'm a night owl.
• I have a decent size comic book collection.
• My secret dream is to open my own bakery. I guess it's not secret anymore. ;)

Now that you've learned more about Ms. January, here are some examples of her wonderful artwork!







Now that you've seen some of Laura's lovely artwork, I know that you'll want to see more! Here are links to her Bombshell Gallery and her blog!