Sparkly Thursday's #8--Stickles

Here we are at the last of my Sparkly Thursday's! I had so much fun sharing all my sparkly goodies...hope you all enjoyed them too!
This week the product focus is on stickles! I must say this is probably the one sparkly product that I use the most.

A few things about stickles:

• it is a glitter glue
• comes in LOTS of colors and styles~ regular stickles, Tim Holz Distressed stickles, glitz stickles and ice stickles (here is the link to Ranger that shows them all)
  
• I tend to use the regular and glitz stickles the most as the distressed ones are a bit "chunky" for most of my projects but I do like them too!
• only downfall that I have found really is drying time--but I deal with this by always adding the stickles last and leaving overnight or at least a few hours before moving/touching
• applies very easily

I catalog stickles on a sheet of cardstock with their names so I can see for easy reference (and since I'm Susana's DT--I first marked the ones I got from her for my reference)

These are some of my most favorites! I must say Diamond and Stardust are the ones I use the most.

You can see projects I've used stickles on: HERE!



Thanks for joining me the last 8 weeks on Sparkly Thursday's!

 

Sparkly Thursday's #7- Shimmerz

Only one more week of Sparkly Thursday's left! I hope you have enjoyed these as much as I have--it's been fun to get sparkly!
Today's product focus is Shimmerz! 

Shimmerz Paints has a blog that has lots of inspiration and tips!

A few things good and not so good about Shimmerz from humble me~

The good~

• lots of fun colors
• reasonably priced
• easy to use
• lots of sparkle

The not so good~

• there is a slight odor
• for me, these tend to dry up but if you add just a bit of water they do mix back up an work fine
• sometimes even after mixing there are "chunkier" areas of sparkle than others

I really do like shimmerz but tend to grab my Inspirations Paint more often now. But like any sparkle product there are times that I just want shimmerz! It's all in your preference.

Just like my other sparkly products, I always paint a bit on a piece of cardstock with the name so I have a reference of what it looks like. 

To apply shimmerz, I just shake it up really well, mix it with my brush well and then apply with a small paintbrush. It can be applied alone or over most coloring mediums. It cleans up easily with water.


This is the image I was working on yesterday that I didn't like ( I love the image, just didn't like the way I colored her--but now I do like her, go figure)--I have used 4 different colors of shimmerz on her...it really does add a nice sparkle.

To see more projects I've done with shimmerz, click HERE!


Be sure to come back next week for my last Sparkly Thursday on Stickles!

Sparkly Thursday's #6- Creative Inspiration Paint

**lots of posts today, be sure to scroll down to see my A Touch of Christmas Card** 
 

Time for another Sparkly Thursday!! This week the focus is on one of my most favoritest products, Creative Inspiration Paints.
These wonderful jars of shimmer and sparkle just make me happy!!

Marti did a wonderful tutorial on these this week, check it out HERE!


A few things about these wonderful jars of sparkle~

• lots of beautiful colors for every project
• easy peasy to use--I just use a paintbrush to apply them--alone or over other coloring mediums
• applies so nicely--easy to get a nice, even coverage
• dries quickly
• really sparkles and shimmers without "chunks"--it's almost creamy I guess is how I would describe it
• very reasonably priced

I really tried think of a downside to these but truly couldn't. I seriously just {heart} these paints!!

You can see projects I've done with these paints, here!
Be sure to come back next week for another sparkly Thursday with the focus on Shimmerz!


Also, don't forget to check out the blog candy on Susana's store blog, Follow Your Heart! It ends tonight so be sure you enter!! And don't forget to come back tomorrow for a FUN blog hop to release the new Aurora stamps!!

Sparkly Thursday's # 5- Smooch

Welcome to another Sparkly Thursday!! I think I have about 3 more weeks of sparkly things to show you...hope you are enjoying them!!
This week's focus is on Smooch! It's more pearly vs. sparkly but it does have a touch of sparkle. 

Suzanne has done a wonderful video on using Smooch--click here! 
A few things, in my humble opinion, about this fab product-

• Super easy to apply with the small brush
• dries quickly
• lots of fun colors
• a perfect accent for so many things
• Only thing I struggle with is using it in larger areas but that's not that often

Here's what I do with all my "sparkly" goodies...make a sheet of what they look like with their name beside so I can refer to it when working on a project.

Here's how tiny the brush/applicator is...easy peasy to work with.

To see projects I've used Smooch on, click HERE! 


And a little birdie told me that there are NEW colors coming out this month of Smooch and Smooch Spritz!! Be sure to check those out!



Come back next Thursday for one of my most favorite sparkly things, Creative Inspiration Paint!

Sparkly Thursday #4- Smooch Spritz

It's Thursday!! Time to get sparkly!!

This week we're talking about Smooch Spritz! I have to admit that at first I wasn't too excited about trying this product but once I did...I'm in love!!

Things that I love:

• Easy to shake and spray! If you spray just a tad onto a scrap paper first then you tend to not get as many "big blobs"
• Gorgeous colors and shimmer/sparkle
• Easy to mix and combine colors
• Can use a little or alot for different effects
• washes off skin fairly easy--don't ask how I know

I tried to think of something I don't like to be fair in this....I guess that it is a spray and you tend to get overspray but it's not enough of a downside for me.


I sprayed some of each color onto white cardstock so I could have a reference of the colors.

I photographed the swatches at different angles so you could try to see the shimmer/sparkle.


Another fun thing that I thought of is to use your punches! You can use both the punch itself (adhered with removable adhesive) or the negative space to act as a stencil of sorts with this fun spritz. After they dry--which is really pretty quickly, punch out with a circle or shape of your choice and voila' an easy, sparkly embellishment.

I used my snowflake and heart punches here to show you but you could do so many wonderful things--flowers, stars, borders, etc!!


Here's a few cards I've done recently with the smooch spritz on the background.

I just used one color on Nora--vanilla shimmer

I used vanilla shimmer and gold glow on Belle. I absolutely love this color combo!

Here's a few more *ideas* I thought of for each color:

• vanilla shimmer- good base coat before adding another color--lightens it, ice, snow, ice cream
• cherry ice-Valentine's Day backgrounds, hearts, flowers,ornaments
  
• frosted grape- could make grapes out of circles, stars, flowers, mystical background for fairies and such
• gingersnap- stars, candles, sunshine, ornaments
• gold glow- stars, hearts, candles, angel halos
• electric blue- ornaments, snowflakes, stars, borders, skies
• silver foil- ornaments, stars, mixed with gold glimmer and vanilla shimmer for a cool background,
• emerald sprinkle- trees, leaves, ornaments, shamrocks, 

Thanks for coming by for Sparkly Thursday!! I'm taking the next two weeks off for the holidays but then I'll be back on January 7, 2010 with our next sparkly featured product, Smooch!

Sparkly Thursday #3- glitter pens

Welcome to another Sparkly Thursday!!

Today's featured sparkle is glitter pens. There are tons of different kind of glitter pens on the market but the two that I use the most are Copic Spica Glitter pens and Sakura Stardust Glitter pens.

I found these three reviews of these pens~~ Amy's and Linda's on the A Muse blog and this Craft Critique one.

I'm sure there are others but those are some that I found easily.

I tend to grab the copic spica pens more often as they are clear glitter vs. the metallic look of the stardust ones but both have their purpose and it boils down to what you like. I really think the copic spica clear is a must have though-it just goes on so nice and well, clear with sparkle!

Here's some examples of each~ (really hard to photograph!)

These really didn't photograph well...the copic spica really do have some sparkle!

Main thing I was trying to show is the difference in the clear pens. Both of the boots were gone over with the clear pens. The stardust changes the color slightly and the spica just sparkles.

I used similar colors with each type of pen. I think you can see the difference in the "clear" pens on these...the trim of her hat, the pom-pom and the trim of her dress were all done with the clear pens. I also like the gold in the spica better as the gold looks yellow to me in the stardust.

Thanks for stopping by for another Sparkly Thursday!! Come back next week for Smooch Spritz! I LOVE this stuff!! Have a sparkly day!

Sparkly Thursday #2- Glitter

I think most of us started our sparkly journey with glitter. I know many people don't like to use glitter as they feel it's too messy but it's still one of my favorites, although I tend to grab stickles more these days.
Not much to really show about glitter but a Sparkly Thursday couldn't be complete without it.

Here's just a few things I thought of to share about wonderful glitter:

• it comes in so many colors
• lots of different sizes, there are super tiny crystal glitter all the way to big chunky glitter so it depends on the look you want
• before you apply your glue, rub either an anti-static cloth over your paper or a dryer sheet to remove the static electricity so the glitter doesn't stray far.
• use a glitter clean up cloth for easier clean up
• one lesson I learned the hard way---don't have any fans on..LOL!
• use a quickie glue pen to get small areas and to use different colors in small areas
• there are lots of options of glitter for snow....makes a gorgeous effect 

Thanks for stopping by for Sparkly Thursday! Stop by next Thursday for glitter pens!!

I don't have a card right this second to share with you, got carried away looking at blogs and cutting new rubber.  I'll have a new creation soon!
Have a sparkly day!

Sparkly Thursday #1- Sparkly Fluff

I thought about waiting to do this since today is Thanksgiving for us in the USA, but then I wanted to get this series started so I decided to go ahead and post it. Hope everyone has a wonderful day, and if you celebrate Thanksgiving, enjoy and be blessed!

This isn't really a "tutorial" as much as it is just telling about the product and showing some ideas.

So let's get started!! The sparkly product today that is in the spotlight is Sparkly Fluff.  I found this review on the product: Craft Critique review.
My own little review is that I love this stuff!! At first I was a bit skeptical as I had lots of fun flock. I mean, that's what I thought this was like. Which in a way it is similar, as it's fuzzy but for us sparkle lovers the extra WOW is in the added little bits of sparkle in Sparkly Fluff.

I only have 3 colors right now but in doing this Sparkly Thursday, I have ideas for lots more of the wonderful colors that are available!! How fun would the gold and platinum be on a Christmas tree die cut or stamp as the garland?? or Appletini green as some sparkly grass for a fairy?? the ideas are endless and so many colors to choose from!!!

I'm sure everyone does things differently but here's how I use this wonderful, sparkly product!

Stamp and color your image. I chose not to color this image so you could see the steps better.

Collect all the supplies you'll need: quickie glue pen (love this pen as it is so easy to work with), a tidy tray or if that is not available a tupperware container or even an empty clamshell that stamps come in work great. I also use a little plastic spoon (I stole this one from the kids lunchables, but any little spoon would work) to help apply the sparkly fluff as that way I tend to control it better and not wear quite as much. I also never do a sparkly project without my glitter clean up cloth!!

Apply your glue to the areas you want to use the sparkly fluff. I wanted to do the hat trim. I usually do a small area at a time. See how the glue is blue when it's wet--it dries clear.

Next take a spoonful of sparkly fluff--I used cotton candy pink--and pour it onto the glue spot.

Take your spoon and tap it down a bit, then I pour the excess back into the container. Then tap your cardstock a bit to get all the stray pieces off.

There you have it..a sparkly fluffy hat pompom! Continue these steps until you have the effect you like.

When done, use a piece of the glitter clean up cloth and clean up your tray, if using a container, you can empty the container of sparkly fluff in there and leave it if that works for you. I've started doing that with my flower soft.

And that's it! Easy peasy! Below are just some images that I colored and added sparkly fluff to so you could maybe get some ideas and inspiration!! Thanks for coming by and I hope that you enjoyed my first Sparkly Thursday! Come back next week for Glitter!!

Cotton Candy Sparkly Fluff on the hat and scarf trim.

Baby Boy Blue Sparkly Fluff used on this cuties little jammies.

Cotton Candy Sparkly Fluff for a fuzzy, sparkly elephant!

Baby Boy Blue Sparkly Fluff for Snowbunnybella's trim!

Hard to photograph but I used Sugar Sparkly Fluff for Miss Anya's bubbles!

Coming Soon--Sparkly Thursdays

I was going to do one big tutorial on sparkly things but then decided that instead, I will do a short series on sparkly things every Thursday. That way I can look around and see if there are other tutorials on the products and such.
I will start next Thursday with Sparkly Fluff.
Can't wait to sparkle with ya!