Warm Holiday Hugs - Altenew | Pastel-Look-A-Like Coloring

Hello everyone! I hope your weekend has been delightful.

I promised I would share a little bit about my upcoming plans for this blog, so let's get to that first. So much change is in store, but I'm going to try and break it down a little :)

INSTAGRAM

Guys, the day is finally here...I'm sooo excited to announce that I have finally joined Instagram! I plan to share all the latest updates from this blog, crafty/life moments, and whatever other random whims come along. I am probably the least social media savvy person you will meet, so it might be a rough ride to start, but I hope you'll join me anyway! 

You can find me at

@ivana.creates

Also, huge spoiler alert in regards to my upcoming name change -  I'm launching

#letsmakesomethinglovely 

and hope you'll join in! It's where you'll be able to find all of my posts, but I hope you'll join me there too!

I'm super excited to see you all in insta-land! Let's be friends, okay?

NEW BLOG DESIGN

A brand new, shiny blog design is coming your way in the next month (or two)!! It's long overdue, and very, very much something I have been meaning to share for a while now. 

But you know...life happens!

I can't promise that it will be a  super smooth transition but I will do my very best.

Nonetheless, I hope you'll all hang in there with me as I go through some tiny growing pains! You may find the design different from day to day, as I tweak and get it lookin' just right ;)

But I promise it will be worth it! The new blog will have better categories and labels, so you can find projects with ease. Actually, this feature is already partially implemented at the top of each post. But with the new blog, it will generally be a little bit easier to browse and thus more fun to visit (I hope).

I'll also be linking up social media so you've got everything in one place.

NEW BLOG NAME + DOMAIN

This was by far the hardest decision! I've been toying with the idea of different blog names for some time, and friends, it has not been easy to part ways! PaperGirlCrafts has been my blog name since I started this little blog...Over 8 years ago! But with the new direction I'm thinking of, it's time for a little update! You can now type in www.ivanacreates.com to be directed to this blog, but if you type in my old address, you will still be redirected here :) Wondering about #let'smakesomethinglovely?
That will need to wait just a wee bit longer!

NEW CONTENT

Along with the new blog, will come new content!

But this is where I need your help. I have some ideas for exciting, fabulous content, and many big plans for 2019 collaborations, series and features. But I'd love to hear from you - what would you like to see?

On my mind is  a WHIRLWIND of ideas:

-  'CAS - clean and simple' cards (or as simple as my style can possibly get! lol), 

- Monday Favorites every month with a few things I'm crushing on at the moment, 

- Tuesday Tutorials every month, which feature a quick and easy GIF image that walks you through some of my steps, and if all goes well, 

- A YouTube channel with full tutorials and process videos. 

- And lastly, I hope to include a little bit more about 'behind-the-scenes-life' - organization and decor, recipes, travel, etc!

So...What do you all think?

I'd love to hear your inputs and what you'd like to see....Do you like the setup of the current posts, or would a different style make them better? Do want to see more product pictures, or more detailed images? Do you want to see more projects (other than cards)? 

No idea is too crazy and I'd love to hear them all!

It would make my heart so happy to make this little place of the internet somewhere you can visit, get inspired, learn something new, and make lifelong friends. But most importantly, I've long wanted to give back everyone who has supported me over the years, and I can't think of a better way than creating a space such as this.

I hope you'll join along in this journey! :)

And now, after that long-winded share, here's my project for today!

To start my card today, I used PTI's Rustic Wreath to stamp a circle frame onto the card base, which I loosely watercolored in rich and soft Autumn shades. I then added some splatters to the card with the leftover peach color on my brush. 

I used Altenew's Floral Frame stamp and die set for the beautiful floral clusters, coloring them with my Spectrum and Copic markers. (Hint: These lovely stamps are currently half price on SB.com!) Typically I would use shades that are a lot closer in tone, but in this instance I decided to try colors with a bit more tone separation, intending to blend them. Well, this never happened. BUT...I love the look! It has this pastel-esque quality to it that I love so much, without the mess of working with oil pastels.

On the second flower at the bottom, I used colors that are bit closer in tone and also a different coloring technique - one that is a little more linear. I like the look of both, but I think the top is a more dramatic look and I sort of love it! Notice, that I left some tiny bits of white specks here and there, which I think, only adds to the pastel crayon look. 

To finish off this sweet card, I added cozy mittens tied up with string, and a warm sentiment. All stamped, cut and stenciled with PTI's Holiday Hugs kit.

I used ink colors of Terracotta Tile and Saffron Spice for this card. 

Thanks for your visits, sweet friends! Stay tuned for all the change that's coming this way!

Wishing you all a warm, happy season, and a blessed Thanksgiving.

Ivana