GETTING MISTY

It was fun going to the post office this week with new toys arriving!  One packet had Dylusions ink spray, another had Mister Huey's Color Mist and another had a Hero Arts stamp set and some gems.  What inspiration!

This card started out with a piece of soft green cardstock that I trimmed to fit the space.  After using my Fiskar's edge punch on the right side, I rounded the corners on the left side and placed it in a cardboard box for misting.  First I sprayed it with Dylusions Cut Grass, then with Mister Huey's Orchard and Opaque White.

The designer paper is from the Mabel collection by My Mind's Eye, cut to fit the card and corners rounded.  Punches were used for the leaves and flowers from scraps.  Once the inks were fully dried, I assembled the card as shown using dimensionals for the misted piece and the oval.

Now I know firsthand why misting is all the rage lately--it's just plain FUN!

EMBOSS RESIST CHALLENGE

This card was created for the Emboss Resist Challenge HERE.  I'm glad this wasn't also a CAS challenge since I used three layers and added the flowers and butterflies to fill the empty space.

First, I stamped the Hero Arts large flower background on the card base with Versamark, embossed with clear ep and sponged Peeled Paint Distress Ink on the edges.  The next layer is a dsp pattern from My Mind's Eye.

Next, I stamped the Bible verse, clear embossed it and sponged with a mix of  Peeled Paint and Wild Honey Distress inks.  After stamping the flowers and painting them with the same distress inks, I attached it with SNAIL and added the butterflies (SU Embosslits Beautiful Wings.)

Finally, I attached the top layer to the card with dimensionals and placed gold beads on the butterflies and 2 flower centers.  Unfortunately, I needed this card and Bible verse for a sympathy card today.

CAS-ual Fridays Challenge

This week's challenge was to make a CAS card using trees or flowers.   You can see the other entries HERE.

This flower was done with red cardstock strips that were quilled to form the petals and buds.  Pearls were added to accent the centers.

Quilling is a fun way to make flowers and other images--try it!

NEW BABY HAS ARRIVED!

Sometimes you want to say something special, but don't have a stamp for it.  There's no reason why you can't just write something on the card, even if you have to practice on scrap paper first.  This bouncing baby boy was delivered last week, so this shaker card will be going out tomorrow.

The inside is stamped with SU "Congratulations," and I added a brief welcome in my own handwriting again.

Penmanship doesn't have to be perfect to make a card more personal!

A HAPPY HELLO

Inspiration for this card came from a new pad of paper from Die Cuts With a View, "The Green Stack" which I picked up at AC Moore last week. The design is from a sketch HERE at CAS-ual Fridays.

First, I used my Scor-Pal to make diagonal lines, highlighting the pattern on the animals.  I then cut out two circles and mounted them on the card front, one with glue dots, the other with dimensionals.  The greeting is from a Hero Arts clear stamp set.

Rounding the corner and adding the lime green embroidery floss finished the card, keeping it clean and simple.

SUMMER PASTELS

To get the watercolor look on the base cardstock, I used three Distress Ink pads (Peeled Paint, Broken China and Tea Dye.) I smeared a patch of each color on an acrylic block, added some water and used a wide paintbrush to swipe across the card.

Next, I took white cardstock (cut down to 5 x 3 3/4") and used the CB butterfly to make the cutout. Then I stamped the Hero Arts "Manuscript Background" at different angles and applied Broken China distress ink to the edges. Before attaching it to the card, I placed it in position and marked a few tiny dots down the middle of the butterfly before stamping with black ink. I had planned to use one of the Pocket Silhouettes, but couldn't find it*; so I used this image from the SU "Autumn Days" set.

The sentiment is from another SU set, which I mounted with SU dimensionals. After adding a variety of gems from a collection I purchased at Michaels, I mounted the overlay to the card with SU dimensionals.

We are finally getting some much needed rain here--good stamping weather!


 *My "Tower" is in need of cleaning up so I can find things easily again...

WDW Photos

A few select photos have been posted to my family blog HERE if you'd like to stop by!

Herringbone Design

After watching Beate's video tutorial, this card was a cinch to put together!

AC Moore had designer papers on sale for 40% off, so I took advantage of the opportunity to purchase some My Mind's Eye 6x6 pads. I used one of them for this card, cutting strips of various widths. Besides having nice designs, the pages are also reversible in these pads.

If you watch the tutorial on Splitcoast Stampers, the rest of this card is pretty much self-explanatory. I plan to use this for our next Mothers Class.

I'M BACK (Almost...)

Check back tonight for some news and new posts!

Greetings from WDW!

Having a magical time at Disney World! The weather has been perfect, and it's been wonderful to spend so much time as a family. The grandchildren have been having fun both at the parks and at the pool.

Haven't missed stamping (sorry...)

Shaker Card Tutorial

I recently came up with an easier way to make shaker cards. I love using pouches from Impression Obsession that are thin for mailing, but deep enough to hold most fillings. (To follow this tutorial, each step comes after the photo.)

I start by assembling all the supplies I'll need. I also wiped a dryer sheet on the inside of the pouch to remove any static that might make the beads cling to the cup.

After stamping and coloring in the image, I peeled back just 1/2 of the protective liner on the back of the pouch. Holding the liner up away from the card, I attached the bottom of the pouch to the cardstock as shown. Notice the other half of the liner sticking up from the pouch.

Holding the cardstock away from the unattached portion of the image, I added the beads.
With the filling in place, I pulled the liner completely off and carefully pressed the cardstock to the pouch, keeping it upright so the beads stayed in the bottom.
Then, I added a small piece of double-stick tape in each corner of the top of the image cardstock and placed the overlay (which I ran through a CB folder first) over the pouch, forming a "sandwich" of image, pouch and overlay.
Finally, I attached the "sandwich" to a red card. I plan to embellish and add a greeting later.

I hope this helps make it easier for you to enjoy making shaker cards!

Sympathy Cards

Sadly, today I needed to make not one, but two sympathy cards.

For the top one, I used a Bible verse from my collection of Our Daily Bread Designs stamps. They have a wonderful variety of verses in beautiful fonts. I left the inside blank to write a personal note.

The second card has a Stampin'Up saying, and "With Sympathy" (also SU) on the inside.

I used Tim Holtz distress inks on the white edges of each saying. The blue/green butterfly was also sponged with Peeled Paint and Broken China distress inks. The other was stamped on coordinating background paper from K & Co.

When making sympathy cards, I like to put whatever encouraging verse I've used on the outside so that if the card is displayed, people will be reminded of their source of comfort.

CASE-ing the Catalogs--Repeating

The apple card on page 96 of the SU Idea Book reminded me of the value in repeating an image 3 times (or sometimes 5, usually an odd number.) Here's a card that repeats one of the blossoms from the SU "Growing Green" set.

With Spring around the corner, I thought yellow flowers would be appropriate. After stamping them on a scrap piece of dsp and cutting them out, I painted them with yellow Twinkling H2O's. For the centers, I used green mini beads held down with Crystal Lacquer. Once they dried, I mounted them on the card with dimensionals.

The ribbon on the side was glued down in one flat strip. The "bow" is actually another piece of ribbon, knotted and attached with a glue dot. Very handy way to do that for those of us who are "bow impaired!"

The greeting was stamped, cut down and mounted onto the card. Then the flower strip was mounted over it with double-stick tape so that just the words would "peek" out.

CASE-ing the Catalogs--Scallops

I got the idea for this card from the Christmas card on p. 69 of the SU Idea Book. Since I used such a dark cardstock for the base, I went bananas with the scallops to lighten it up. It makes me think of all those crinolines we used to wear under our full skirts--remember???

The stamp I used is "Elizabeth" from Stampin'Up and a Hello! stamp from Hero Arts. The brown gems add a little sparkle.

Watercolored Flowers

Last week I taught the Mothers Class how to watercolor using markers. We first made a palette by scribbling, very precisely, of course;) on a non-porous surface such as the lid of an ink pad or the back of an acrylic block. We then used our brushes to pick up the color to apply to the image.

For the class, I die cut some watercolor paper using a Nesties label die. They stamped the image in class with India Ink Black, a good ink to use that will not run or bleed. For shading, we added more of the same colors to parts of the petals and the envelope. Then we spread some gray ink at the bottom to "anchor" the image.

As a final touch, we added gold Stickles to the centers of the blossoms and mounted the finished label to the card with dimensionals. Some dsp, self-stick ribbon and a Bo-Ho Blossom all added to the finished look.

CASE-ing the Catalogs

Thanks to the card shown on P. 110 of the SU Idea Book, here is the card we'll be doing in Mothers Class next week. Since I wanted to use blue for the card base, I used blue chalk in the one flower. There is also a blue gem in the center, surrounded by mini-pearls.

The stamp sets I used are Fabulous Florets for the flowers and Abundant Hope for the words inside and out. I also used a crimper for the green floral strip, and added three larger pearls beneath it.

Just for variety's sake, I also made another card using the same pattern but different flower and greeting. Isn't it amazing how the same sketch can look so different!

HERE'S A TIP: When I need to make sure I stamp a greeting perfectly straight, I mount it on an acrylic block with grid lines etched into the other side. When I go to stamp it, I look at the grid line instead of the stamp itself. Works every time!

NEW SERIES

Here's the first card for a new series I'm featuring called, "CASE-ing the Catalogs." (CASE stands for Copy After Someone Else.)

The idea for this card came from Page 12 of the 2011-12 Stampin'Up Idea Book. I especially liked the texture on the long strip. It is shown there vertically, but I turned it around to make a horizontal card. The stamped piece was on a card I received from one of my Silver Stamper friends (thanks Alice.) The rest was added using the bird punch for the leaves and a Martha Stewart edger punch.

Enjoy!

CASE-ing the Catalogs

Here's another CASE of a card in the SU 2011-12 Idea Book, page 74.

What drew me to this card was the color combination of the red and lime green, which I also carried through in the embroidery floss on the side. Although I basically used the same color scheme, I did move the side strip to the opposite side and placed it under the label image instead of over the point.

I like the idea of cutting the words apart and placing them where I want them. That's nothing new, but I always forget to do it.

It's also handy to make a card with just one set, don't you think?

FEBRUARY BLUES BASH #14

Today was the day to "Leap into Leap Year." For photos and further details, click HERE.

HI!

Here is my card for the Impression Obsession challenge using their stamps and the word "Hi" (or hello, etc.) The diamond impression folder was the ideal backdrop for this coffee mug with the diamond design. Since I don't have an I.O. "Hi" stamp, I used letter stickers instead.

This is one of the images from the set, "Smell the Coffee." For another card using the same set, go to my January 21, 2011 post HERE and scroll down 6 posts. For other entries using I.O. stamps, click HERE. I bet none of them feature purple coffee!

(Next time I think I'll use SU's Early Espresso and Crumb Cake cs.) Hmmm...now I'm hungry...