Hippo Birdie to You

One of the neat features of the Live Love Cards community is the Birthday Card Exchange Group. Anyone who is a member can sign up, and exchange birthday cards with other members who have the same birthday month as you. I created this card for another member. Because she lives in Australia, where it is summer right now, I didn't want to go with a winter theme. So, I took my design inspiration from only the sketch from the current Fusion Challenge.

I rotated the sketch so it's a landscape format, but kept the focal point/greeting relationship basically the same. I cut a piece of Canson XL Mixed Media Paper to 4.25x5.5" to start, and die cut one long edge with the curved die from Avery Elle's "Custom Panels" set. Then I trimmed the other long side so the final panel measured 3.75" tall.

I used my MISTI to stamp the hippo, bird, and party hat from the Essentials by Ellen "Wish Big" stamp set onto my panel. I stamped the hat first, masked it, and then stamped the hippo so it looks like he's wearing the hat. I also used one of the banners from Avery Elle's "Build a Banner" stamp set (apparently discontinued). That particular stamp actually has 2 banner pieces, one above the other. I masked the top one, so that only one would stamp, and stamped the other on my panel. Finally, I positioned my greeting (from "Wish Big") so it would follow the curve of the banner, and stamped it. Then I colored my images with my Prismacolor colored pencils, using Gamsol on a paper stump to blend and shade the colors. When I'd finished the coloring, I used a fine-tip black marker to draw the pole for the bird to hold the banner and also go over the letters, which had gotten kind of washed-out when I colored over them. I then adhered my panel to a pink A2-size card base.

Inside of card with "Squash Fold"

For the inside, I followed this "Smash Card" tutorial I'd found on Pinterest. The patterned paper is from my stash. (Sorry, but I don't know who made it--it's eons old anyway.) I cut & folded it, following the instructions. After adhering it to the inside of my card base, I worked on the greeting. I die cut a purple mat with a Spellbinders "Scalloped Labels One" die (apparently discontinued0, and cut a white piece with a "Labels One" die. I stamped the inside sentiment, from Simon Says Stamp's "It's Your Birthday," again using my MISTI to make sure I got it straight & well-stamped. Then I adhered the white to the purple, and that to the inside of my card. Hopefully the woman I'm sending this to will get a kick out of it!

I'm also entering this card in the following challenges:

Ellen Hutson Mix It Up: Using Essentials by Ellen & Avery Elle products
Creative Knockouts #176: "Celebration
Through the Craft Room Door: "Anything Goes"
613 Avenue Create: "Anything Goes"