The August technique challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is to create a teepee card. (Because there were 5 Saturdays in August, this challenge ran through today.) To my knowledge, I have never so much as heard of a teepee card, so went looking for a tutorial. (The challenge hostess did provide a link to a video tutorial, but I found another one by Sam Calcott at Mixed Up Craft that was easier for me to follow.) I discovered a benefit with a card like this is the base can be made from a lighter weight cardstock, as long as you add the mats & layers with a good, strong glue. So I used Beacon 3-in-1 glue for the main construction on my card layers.
I began by creating the panels for my card base. Initially, I was going to have it be from sprayed/ink-smooshed panels. So I cut three 5x5" squares from Strathmore Mixed Media paper - a heavyweight paper that can take a lot of water well. I pulled out my never-before-used Distress Oxide sprays in Milled Lavender, Seedless Preserves, & Blueprint Sketch to color my panels. I quickly gave up on the Milled Lavender, as it was just too pale to compete with the other two colors. After I finished spraying, I dried the panels with my heat gun & did a bit of ink smooshing with Villainous Potion Distress Oxide ink to add a bit more contrast. I also added water droplets with my Distress Sprayer. I didn't pick up the water with a cloth, but rather just dried the panels with the water on them for a less-bleached look. Finally, I used Frozen Fog Distress Mica Stain to add a shimmery spritzing to my panels.
I glued the panels together, positioned as per the tutorial, & quickly ran into my first problem. Apparently, if you use one-sided cardstock like I basically did, it does matter which way the cardstock layers face. I managed to glue one panel facing the wrong way (so the back showed when the card was popped up, rather than the front). 😝 Because I used a strong glue to adhere my panels together, I had no way to undo my mistake. Rather than start over though, I just shifted course. I was able to cut the triangular layers that would go on top from my "ruined" card base, & cut new card base pieces from solid cardstock. Problem solved! So I went ahead & cut my triangular mats to size from Recollections Silver Foil cardstock & glued those mats & layers to the card base. I also added 2 small bits of Velcro where the one side overlapped the other to keep the card closed when it's upright.
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| Angled view of card |
My original idea for decorating was to use ornaments & make it a "Christmas tree." So I stamped & die cut several ornaments using the "Holiday Style" stamps & dies from Sunny Studio Stamps. When I looked at them on my card, though, I just wasn't feeling it. So I shifted course again & decided to die cut snowflakes from white glitter cardstock. Fortunately, I had a large enough scrap of glitter cardstock in my stash to accommodate several snowflakes. I die cut the snowflakes with the "Paper Snowflakes Mini" set by Tim Holtz (discontinued). I used matte Perfect Paper Adhesive glue to adhere them all in place. I did keep Sam Calcott's tip in mind to have overhanging bits on a particular side, so they don't overhang the card edges when it's folded flat. (That would necessitate using an even larger envelope.) In the end, I only had the one large snowflake overhanging an edge, but it's still a good point to keep in mind.
For the greeting on the front, I used the "Season's greetings" from Honey Bee Stamps' "Pretty Poinsettias" stamp set (discontinued). But wait - the greeting says "Joy to you." Yep - another course shift. I stamped the Season's greetings in Villainous Potion Distress Oxide ink, die cut it with the coordinating die, & adhered it to my card with liquid glue, with the card laying flat. I put an acrylic block on top to keep the greeting from popping up, & left it for a couple of days. When I removed the block, I noticed 2 problems: a bit of the ink had bled (presumably "encouraged" by moisture coming through the cardstock from the glue) & when I propped the card in its display position, the greeting slanted. I had aligned it parallel to the bottom of the triangle, not even thinking that that side would slant when the card was popped up. Again - liquid glue = no clean removal. I was in no way about to start over, though, so I found the Joy to you greeting in Simon Says Stamp's "Holiday Greetings" set (discontinued). I stamped it - again with Villainous Potion - & die cut it with a Hero Arts "Nesting Oval Infinity" die. I die cut 2 more ovals & layered them behind the greeting oval for more stability. I made sure this time to add liquid glue only around the edge of the oval, where it shouldn't affect the ink. Finally, I used a combination of double-sided tape & liquid glue to adhere it to the card front, covering my messed-up greeting. This time, I made sure to have the card propped up so I could level the greeting correctly. And that FINALLY finished this card! It was quite a journey with a few twists & turns, but I wouldn't hesitate to make another, especially now that I know the pitfalls to avoid!
I am also entering this in the following challenges:
613 Avenue Create Challenge: "Anything Goes" (not playing the twist)
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