Category: Alcohol Inks - Crystal Komara

Pink Adornment Pumpkin

8/25/2023

Hello friends and happy Friday! I hope you have fun things planned for the weekend ahead! Today I am on the Birch Press Design blog with this card using the new Adornment Pumpkin dies.

I looooooove how this card came out, if I do say so myself! While the pink alcohol ink pumpkin is a little more vibrant than I had initially intended, it works. That's the thing with alcohol ink, you never quite know what you're going to get and they can be a bit unpredictable in how they move and dry as you blow them around.

Card details:

*A full list of supplies is located at the end of this post.

The base of this A2 sized card was made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth alcohol ink. Using Layer Plate A (the top layer) of the Herbarium Plate Layering Set, I die cut this from white cardstock and then mounted a sheet of magneta cardstock behind it before adhering it directly to the card base. I die cut the solid pumpkin from a scrap piece of an alcohol ink background I had in my craft bin and then die cut the frame using pink glitter cardstock from the 6" x 6" Glitzy Glitter paper pack. I adhered the two layers together with a fine tip liquid glue.

I created a pumpkin stem from espresso brown cardstock and leaves from both green cardstock and green glitter cardstock. There was a lot of piece work here using these smaller contour dies. Next, using the new Oval Leaf Branches Contour Layers, I die cut leaves from pink glitter cardstock, espresso brown carsdstock and the same green and green glitter cardstock used on the leaves. Then I pieces all the layers of the leaves together (again, a little bit time consuming here to do all these small details, but SO worth it in the end). Then it was just a matter of adhering all the small branches and leaves into a pattern that was pleasing to the eye.

I stamped the sentiment "forever grateful" in magenta ink on white cardstock and used oval punch to punch it over before adhering it to the pumpkin with 3M foam adhesive. This sentiment is from the Brush Sentiments clear stamp set.

I love using non-traditional colors to create holiday or seasonal cards. Pink is perfect in lieu of traditional orange pumpkins.
Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

XO, Crystal

Products used:

You might also enjoy:

Shark Week!

7/12/2023

Shark Week 2023 continues today with a special Shark Week Instagram Hop! So, please head on over to my Instagram to see all the other amazing shark themed cards that were created for this event from a variety of designers. Plus, there are some jawsome prizes for all who hop along with us!

Here is the card that I created for today's Instagram hop:

Card details:

*All supplies that I used are linked at the end of this post for you convenience.

The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I then cut a 5 1/4 x 4" piece of the same white cards and using the Wavy Nested Frame dies by Whimsy Stamps, I cut a large hole using the 2nd largest Wavy Nested Frame die in the center of the cardstock. I placed a sheet of ocean themed paper from the Slimline Under the Sea paper pack behind the Wavy Nested Frame die.

I created a blue alcohol ink background on white Yupo paper, using Glacier Ranger Adirondack alcohol ink by Tim Holtz. Once that dried, I die cut the letters "shark week" using the Bold ABC letter dies from Whimsy Stamps. I also die cut these letters three times from white cardstock to layer them for thickness (and a slight shadow peeking out from behind the blue letters). I adhered the die cut letters to the center of the card.

I stamped one of the shark images and the girl on the inner tube from the Snark Attack stamp set from Whimsy Stamps. I fussy cut the images and then colored them with Copic Markers. I adhered the images to the card with 3M foam adhesive for added dimension. Lastly, I added a layer of Nuvo Crystal Glaze to make it look like the images were wet.

Happy Shark Week friends! Be sure to come back on Friday for my final shark themed card!

XO, Crystal

Supplies used:

Duh Nuh

7/10/2023

Hello chum and welcome to Shark Week 2023 here on my website! I've got some jawsome cards to share with you over the next few days featuring a variety of shark themed products, so let's get swimming. . . if you dare! : )

This card features the Snark Attack stamp set from Whimsy Stamps and an aqua alcohol ink background amidst the words "duh nuh" (aka the theme music from "Jaws.")

Card details:

*All supplies are linked at the end of this post for you convenience.

The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I cut a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of the same white cardstock with an oval shaped die cut hole in the middle. On a separate sheet of 5" x 3 1/2" Yupo paper, I created an alcohol ink smooshed background with Turquoise alcohol ink from Tim Holtz. Once the background dried, I adhered it behind the die cut oval.

Using the Bold ABC letter dies from Whimsy Stamps, I die cut the letter "DUH NUH" from teal cardstock. I die cut the letters three times each in order for me to stack them for dimension (in lieu of foam adhesive). I adhered the letters across the center of the card. I stamped the two sharks in Memento Tuxedo black ink and colored them using Copic Markers. I added a layer of Crystal Effects over the sharks to give the appearance they were wet or shiny. I then adhered the sharks to the card using 3M foam adhesive for dimension. Lastly, I stamped the sentiment "tourist season is my favorite" in Memento Tuxedo black ink on thin strips of white cardstock. I adhered the sentiment strip (after cutting it in half to fit) to the lower right side of the card with foam adhesive.

I hope you'll come back tomorrow for another shark card in honor or Shark Week 2023!

XO, Crystal

Supplies used:

You might also enjoy:

Mood Board Elegance

11/21/2022

Hello friends and happy Monday! Today I am sharing another card that I created inspired by this month's mood board at Joy Clair Designs because I am soooo in love with the gorgeous color palette! Ooh la la! It is pure fall elegance.

First, let's take a look at the November mood board again:

Here is the card I created that was inspired by the mood board colors of peach, mustard, raspberry, eggplant and gold.

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock. On a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of Yupo (polysynthetic paper) I created the alcohol ink background using Tim Holtz Ranger Adirondack alcohol inks. I used the colors lemonade, salmon, raspberry and valencia. Alcohol inks are one of my FAVORITE backgrounds to create. The colors are always so stunning and well, honestly, you never know what you're gonna get!

Once the alcohol ink background dried, I adhered it directly to the card base. Then, I printed out the sunflower image from the Such a Blessing digital stamp set. I printed the image in yellow ink on Neenah White cardstock. Next, I fussy cut the sunflower out and adhered it to the left side of the card. I used Scotch 3M foam adhesive to adhere the sunflower to the card.

Next, I stamped the sentiment, "hello my friend" in magenta ink on white cardstock. This sentiment is from the Thankful For You stamp set.
Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

XO, Crystal

Follow Us
Also, be sure to sign up for Joy Clair Designs newsletters. You will receive notifications of new releases, sales and exclusive offers to subscribers. You can also follow the team’s creations from Joy Clair Designs on Facebook Page, Joy Clair Stamp Projects Facebook Group, Instagram , Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube!

Felicity Snowflakes

11/2/2022

Hello friends! If there is one thing I love when it comes to cardmaking, it's the alcohol. Ink, that is! ; ) Initially I never thought I would have enjoyed working with alcohol inks as much as I have because, well. . . they're messy. They stain. They are a tad unpredictable in outcome and all that just terrifies me. Yet, somehow I learned to love them and now can't feature them enough on my cards.

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I cut a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of Yupo (polysynthetic paper) and "ink blew" Ranger Adirondack alcohol ink in the color Stream over the Yupo paper. That's it, just one ink color was all I used! As it moves around and dries, you get puddles of ink that look like other darker and lighter colors, but I assure you, I used just one color. Nice and easy!

Using the Felicity Snowflakes dies, I cut the outer layer from vellum cardstock and the top thinner layer from white cardstock. I adhered the two layers together with liquid adhesive and then I adhered the snowflakes to the card with a small pop dot (which you can actually see through the vellum, it's too hard to hide).

Using the Contempo Christmas Greetings stamp set and coordinating die, I stamped the sentiment in Versamark ink on white cardstock and heat embossed it with turquoise embossing powder. I used the coordinating circle die to cut out the sentiment. I adhered the sentiment to the card with Scotch 3M foam adhesive for added dimension.

Now that I think about it, you could make this same card in ANY color! Red or green alcohol ink would be very traditional, but I'm also thinking pinks and purples for a pop of pizazz too!

Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

XO, Crystal

Honey Butterfly

10/13/2022

Hello crafty friends! I know you don't know me from Adam, but today I am sharing a card that is quite outside of my comfort zone. It's my first attempt at sort of a mixed media type look. Even though looking back, I didn't fully embrace the "grunge" and I could have done some distress work, I'm happy with the end result and I think it's a good start to build from!

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. On a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of Yupo paper, I ink blended some Ranger Adirondack alcohol ink in lemonade. I set this piece aside to let it dry. On a separate sheet of white cardstock I printed out the beautiful geometric butterfly image from the You Fill My Day digital stamp set. I printed this image large at about 40%. I colored the butterfly with yellow, orange and gold Copic markers. I found a scrap piece of gold foil honeycomb vellum and I adhered that directly to the dried alcohol ink Yupo background. I fussy cut the butterfly and then I adhered the butterfly to the card with Scotch 3M foam adhesive for added dimension. I sliced off about 1/3 of the left side of the butterfly. I printed the sentiment out on a thin strip of white cardstock, notching the right end at an angle. Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the butterfly for added sparkle.

I hope you have enjoyed this card. I love using alcohol inks to create unique and bold background on my cards. Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day! For more inspiration, you can follow me on my website, Instagram, Facebook and on my YouTube channel.

Follow Us
Be sure to sign up for Joy Clair Designs newsletters. You will receive notifications of new releases, sales and exclusive offers to subscribers. You can also follow the team’s creations from Joy Clair Designs on Facebook Page, Joy Clair Stamp Projects Facebook Group, Instagram , Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube!

XO, Crystal

Find Joy

10/12/2022

Hello friends! Today I'm sharing a card that is filled with love, joy and alcohol! Ink, that is! ; ) I was really pleased with how this card came out, since I had ended up pulling a random piece of alcohol ink background from my scrap bin. It is so cheerful and uplifting!

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. On a sheet of 5 1/4" x 4" Yupo paper, I created an alcohol ink background in peaches and pinks. Honestly, I keep about 50 alcohol ink background pieces on reserve in a bin to pull from and it makes creating cards kind of quick and easy! This background was one of those "pre-made" pieces.

For the center focal piece I used the Kinsley Heart Layering Plates. Layer C (bottom layer) was cut from peachy/orange cardstock. Layer B (middle layer) was cut from gold glitter cardstock and Layer A (top layer) was cut from pink cardstock. I used the 6" x 6" paper packs in both Sunny Orange and Berry Reds for the cardstock. The glitter paper came from the 6" x 6" Festive Glitter paper pack. I adhered the three layers of the heart together with a fine-tip liquid glue.

I used the Find Joy and Outline die to create the sentiment. The shadow or outline of the word "find joy "was die cut from white cardstock. The thinner inside was cut from pink cardstock from the same Berry Red 6" x 6" paper pack. I adhered the two layers together with a fine tip liquid glue. Lastly, I adhered both the heart and sentiment to the card with 3M foam adhesive for added dimension.

Alcohol inks are a great way to add interest and uniqueness to your cards! Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

XO, Crystal

Rainbow Thank You

6/20/2022

Hello friends! Today I am on the Joy Clair Designs blog sharing this rainbow of floral happiness! What is it about rainbow colors that always just seem so vibrant and cheerful!? I mean, how can you not look at this card and smile?

I have used the beautiful Spring Bouquet Slimline digital stamp set to create this card. I also pulled an alcohol ink background from my "stash." There is a lot going on with bold colors in this card, so I mimicked the color of the flower to coordinate with the background color for a more cohesive effect.

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock. On a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of Yupo paper, I "blew" Ranger Adirondack alcohol ink in the colors Raspberry, Valencia, Lemonade, Lime and Amethyst. While this alcohol ink background was drying, I printed out the flowers from the Spring Bouquet Slimline digital stamp set onto the Neenah white cardstock. I colored the flowers in rainbow colors using Copic markers. I trimmed the edges of the slimline digital stamp so it would fit an A2 sized card. I adhered the flowers directly to the center of the card (once the alcohol ink dried) and then added the sentiment strip. I printed the "thank you" onto Neenah White cardstock and also colored the sentiment in rainbow colors. I adhered the sentiment to the card using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension. Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the flowers for even more sparkle!

I just LOOOOOOve how this card came out! I hope that it adds a little brightness and color to your day too!
Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day! For more inspiration, you can follow me on Instagram, Facebook and on my YouTube channel.

XO, Crystal

Be sure to sign up for Joy Clair Designs newsletters. You will receive notifications of new releases, sales and exclusive offers to subscribers. You can also follow the team’s creations from Joy Clair Designs on Facebook Page, Joy Clair Stamp Projects Facebook Group, Instagram , Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube!

Truly Inspired Mood Board

4/13/2022

Hello readers! Today I am on the Joy Clair Designs blog sharing another card that was inspired by this month's beautiful mood board. In case you missed it, on the first of every single month, we share a mood board that is designed to inspire YOU to create. Mood boards (also commonly called “inspiration” boards) are a combination of colors, images, textures and patterns that can offer guidance or direction. If you feel like you don’t know where to begin a project, try looking at a mood board and let the creative juices flow.

Here is the April mood board:

Here is the card I created using the Spring Rose digital stamp set from Joy Clair Designs:

Ironically, when I created this alcohol ink background, I didn't initially love the ink colors. When I work with alcohol inks, I typically create a whole bunch of backgrounds at one time (maybe 40-60 pieces) and I save them. Then I can pull from these pieces to create "quick cards." Well, this piece was one that I almost threw away because I just "wasn't feeling it." After coloring the flowers, I searched through the bin of pre-made alcohol ink pieces and wouldn't you know, the one I didn't like was nearly a perfect fit! It's funny how that works out sometimes.

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. The alcohol ink background was created on a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of Yupo paper using purple and pink alcohol inks. I printed out the two flowers from the Spring Rose digital stamp set onto Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I colored the flowers with Copic markers and then fussy cut each flower out. I adhered the two flowers to the card using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension. I printed the sentiment from the You Are Loved digital stamp set. I used an oval punch to punch out the sentiment before adhering it to the card. Lastly, I added a coat of Clear Wink of Stella to the flowers for added sparkle.

This month’s mood board is inspired by the fresh, fun and bright colors of spring! For some of us, March does mean the start of spring, while for other geographic locales, they’re not quite there yet! Either way, let these colors start to put a little spring in your crafty step! We would love to see YOU create using this mood board as inspiration too!

Feel free to use similar colors in whatever brand of cardstock you have readily available. We’d love for you to use your Joy Clair Designs stamps if you have them! And if you don’t have any yet CLICK HERE TO START SHOPPING TODAY!

Be sure to tag us on social media using the following hashtags so we can see your cards or other papercraft projects:
#joyclairdesignsmoodboard
#joyclairmoodboard

Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day! For more inspiration, you can follow me on my website, Instagram, Facebook and on my YouTube channel.

XO, Crystal

Birthday Peony

3/7/2022

Hello readers! Today I am sharing another way to use the Adornment Peony dies from Birch Press Design. Last week on Valentine's Day, I shared this very traditional card and today I chose to create a very different look using alcohol inks as the focal point behind the outline dies.

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. Using Layer Plate B of the Flora Layering set, I die cut this layer from white cardstock and adhered it to the base of the card.

For the alcohol ink peony: On a 4" x 6" piece of Yupo Paper, I added drops of raspberry and sherbet alcohol inks and blew the ink around. Then I added drops of lime and citrus alcohol ink. Once this dried, I used the base shadow layer of the Adornment Peony dies to die cut the base out. On white cardstock, I die cut the top layer of the Adornment Peony (notice the white shadow outline around the flowers). I adhered this thin outline die using a fine tip liquid glue.

I adhered the peonies to the card using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension. Lastly I stamped the sentiment "happy birthday" in pink ink on white cardstock. This sentiment is from the Contempo Greetings stamp set. I die cut the sentiment using the coordinating Contempo Greetings dies. I adhered the sentiment to the lower left corner also using 3M foam adhesive for added height.

I hope you have enjoyed today's card! Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

XO, Crystal