Have a Joyful Christmas

This week's challenge theme at Christmas Card Throwdown is "Slimline Card." I don't normally do slimline cards, but I decided to have a go at it for this challenge.

 

 

 

I went with a portrait slimline card, so I cut a piece of 110 lb. white cardstock to 8-1/2x7", then scored at 3-1/2" along the shorter side & folded that in half to create my card base. I cut a piece of Strathmore smooth bristol paper to 3-1/4x8-1/4", so I would have a narrow border on all sides of my panel once I put it on my card.

 

I stamped 5 of the images from Hero Arts' "Christmas Crystals" set (discontinued) onto my bristol panel, making sure to get them perfectly vertical. While this card is not exactly what I'd call clean & simple, I do consider it minimalist, so having my images lined up just right was important for me. I heat embossed the crystals with Wow White Pearl embossing powder. Because 2 of the crystals overlapped 2 others, I first heat embossed the larger ones, let that cool, then placed the panel back into my MISTI. I positioned the other crystals, stamped them with clear embossing ink, & heat embossed them. I think it actually worked quite well in the end! 😊

 

After I had heat embossed all my crystals, I used my Zig Clean Color Real Brush Pens to color them. I used just one color per crystal to keep things simple. I outlined a section with my pen, then used a wet paintbrush to spread the color towards the middle of that section. I did that one section at a time so the ink would still move freely. (I have found that if you let the ink sit long enough - even on bristol paper - it will set & won't move as easily.) For the crystals that overlapped, I made sure to use colors that wouldn't create mud. I applied the lighter color first (yellow & pink), & then painted in the darker color. I love how it looks like one crystal is shining through the other where they overlap - just as I had planned!

 

When I finished adding color to all the crystals, I had to figure out a greeting. After much playing around and hemming & hawing, I decided to use the "Joyful and Merry" stamp set & coordinating die set by Kristina Werner for Concord & 9th.

 

First, I die cut the Joyful from a scrap of bristol paper. I taped the word back into the negative space for support, & used my yellow & green brush pens to create a gradient of color over the word. Once the ink had dried, I removed the word from the negative & ran it through my Xyron machine to apply adhesive to the back. (Even after the ink dries, liquid glue can reactivate it, so I definitely wanted to stick to dry adhesive for this card!) For the supporting greeting strips, I heat embossed the words onto another bristol scrap, die cut them with a "Sentiment Strips" die from Pretty Pink Posh, and colored each strip with my purple brush pen.

 

I lightly tacked down the Joyful die cut to my panel, just to hold it in place while I worked. I positioned the upper greeting strip, & marked the edge of the "f" on the strip where it crossed. I cut that contour with my scissors, & adhered the strip with double-sided tape, tucking the cut end under the "f." There was a little hanging off the left side of the panel, so I just cut that off with my scissors. I repeated the process with the other greeting strip, curving the left end along the descender of the "y."

 

For the hangers on the crystals, I poked a small hole at the top of each one. I threaded a length of fine silver thread through each hole, wrapped it around the top of the panel, & taped both ends on the back.

I decided to double-mat my panel with silver foil & Midnight Navy cardstocks, both from Recollections. I first adhered my panel to the silver, and used one of my Perfect Paper Layers rulers (discontinued) with a craft knife to cut around the panel. This allowed me to get a perfect 1/16" mat. I cut my navy panel to 3-1/2x8-1/2" and adhered it directly to my card base. I added the matted panel, & that finished this card.

 

I had considered adding Glossy Accents or clear embossing powder over the crystals for extra shine. But I was afraid it might ruin the shading & highlights I had worked so hard to get by making the ink on each crystal a solid muddle of color. So I decided to quite while I was still ahead. 😉

 

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

• Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge: "Emboss It"
• The Paper Funday Challenge #86: "Anything Goes" (I am playing the optional "Die Cuts and/or Punches" twist)
• Creative Knockouts Challenge #568: "Embossing Delight"

Birthday Blessings

The optional topping theme for Seize the Birthday's Challenge #319 is "Rainbow of Colors." I used this card that I had saved on one of my Pinterest boards as my inspiration. I don't have the exact same die that that creator used for their card, but I do have a few nested hearts die sets. I combined one of the "Nesting Hearts Infinity" dies by Hero Arts with an old My Favorite Things "Snow Drifts" die (discontinued) to create my version.

 

 

 

 

I began by die cutting the heart from Strathmore smooth bristol paper. I taped it from behind in the die cut negative to make handling it easier. I then ink blended with Candied Apple, Mustard Seed, Peacock Feathers, & Wilted Violet Distress inks. I had to use finger daubers due to the tight quarters I was ink blending in. I made sure to begin with the yellow, since that color tends to get "eaten up" by surrounding colors when I ink blend. Thankfully I was able to keep that from happening this time. 😊

 

After I finished ink blending, I removed the heart from the negative piece, then used one of the "Snow Drifts" dies to cut it into sections. So that the pieces would line up evenly around the perimeter of the overall shape, I had to die cut a sliver between each pair of sections, rather than just die cut the sections & spread them apart. So each time, I taped the die down & ran it through my die cutting machine. Then I carefully lined the die up on the lower piece of that pair so the "top" edge of the die was a hair away from the cut line, taped it down, & ran it through my machine again. This took about a 1/16" wide slice of the heart out. Not easy, but I succeeded! To give the heart sections a little dimension on the card, I glued each to scraps of heavyweight white cardstock & cut around them with my scissors. I made sure to slightly undercut the white cardstock so that it wouldn't stick out past the edges of each ink blended section. I repeated the process one more time, & called that part done.

 

I paired a "birthday" stamp from Simon Says Stamp's "It's Your Birthday!" set (discontinued) with the "blessings" from "Script Birthdays" (discontinued) by Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps (now Creative Worship). I stamped both in Versafine Clair Nocturne ink onto the front of my white A2 card base. Then I proceeded to smear black ink onto said card base, so I ended up restamping the greeting on a white panel.

 

I glued my heart sections to the panel. I began with the bottom-most piece so I could make sure not to cover my greeting with it. I was careful to space them correctly as I worked my way up to the top. The top piece was actually the most difficult to position & get the spacing even, for some reason. Thankfully I had kept the slivers I'd cut out, so I just placed that in between the top & second sections for spacing purposes. Before the glue on the top heart section dried, I used my tweezers to pull out the spacing sliver, lest it get glued in place.

 

The final step was to adhere my panel to an A2 card base. I used the same card I had smeared ink on, & just adhered the panel over that side of the card base. I just figure, waste not, want not! 😉

 

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

 

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday "Anything Goes"

613 Avenue Create February Challenge: "Anything Goes" (not playing the optional twist)

Happy Birthday #60

A friend commissioned me to make a birthday card for her husband. He is a woodworker, so she wanted a woodworking theme of some sort. I couldn't find any woodworking imagery per se (e.g. tools) that really worked for a birthday card, so I incorporated other elements.

For design inspiration, I perused my Pinterest board I have saved birthday cards on. I found this one, & liked the overall layout & how the greeting ran vertically rather than horizontally. So I decided to go that route.

I began with the balloons. I die cut the large balloon with a "Nesting Balloons" die from Paper Rose from cherry wood veneer paper that I've had in my stash for years. I die cut "60" from the balloon with the "Little Numbers" from My Favorite Things (discontinued), as the recipient was turning 60. I also die cut the numbers from gold mirror cardstock. I backed the balloon with kraft cardstock, & inlaid the numbers. I made sure also to add the inside bits of the numbers that had been die cut from the wood paper. For the 2 cardstock balloons with a woodgrain pattern, I first die cut the balloons, and then stamped the woodgrain with a slightly darker color ink, using the "Tree Ring Background" stamp from Concord & 9th. I cut another balloon from a plaid paper from Recollections, & a fifth from an inky technique piece that's been sitting on my desk for ages. I tied a string around the neck of each balloon, and set them aside while I worked on the rest of the elements.

For the presents, I decided to make them look like blocks of different species of wood. For the maple block, I just used a scrap of cream cardstock. I "dyed" another cream cardstock scrap with Seedless Preserves Distress ink, going direct-to-paper, for a purpleheart block. For the walnut, I used Walnut Stain to color a scrap of brown cardstock, again with the direct-to-paper technique. After drying those with my heat gun, I stamped the woodgrain pattern on each with darker shades of ink, using the "Designer Woodgrain" stamp from Hero Arts. Finally I stamped the gifts onto my scraps, using Sweet 'n' Sassy Stamps' (now Creative Worship) "All Wrapped Up" (discontinued) for the 2 larger ones & Lawn Fawn's "Birthday Before 'n Afters" for the walnut block. I also stamped each gift box onto a scrap of a contrasting cardstock. I fussy cut the gifts, and then fussy cut the ribbons/bows from the plain cardstock pieces to glue on top. I also stamped the "maple" gift image onto a scrap of kraft cardstock & cut out just the tag. After I'd cut everything, I "painted" the edges with a black felt-tip pen to camouflage the paper core, & glued the ribbons & tag to their respective boxes.

I die cut the "happy" word from navy cardstock with the "Happy" die from Winnie & Walter (discontinued). I also cut it 5 more times from scraps of navy. After I embossed the first die cut with the "Woodgrain 3D" embossing folder from Honey Bee Stamps, I glued them all together for a stacked, chipboard-type word. I gold heat embossed the "birthday," from Altenew's "Birthday Builder" stamp set, on a scrap of Bazzill Icy Mint cardstock, and cut it into a label. I glued it over the descender in the "y," and added a few layers of cardstock to the end of the label that hung past the letter, just to keep it level when I glued it to the card.

I found a piece of tone-on-tone blue paper in an old patterned paper pad from Momenta. I thought it looked like a page from a notebook like a crafter would work out designs in, so it seemed serendipitously perfect. I cut it down for my background, & adhered it to a white 5x6" card base. I used liquid glue to adhere all my elements, running the balloon strings to end behind the presents. And that finished this card! It was a lot of work & took a lot of careful thought to follow the woodworking theme, but I really love how it came out in the end.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Seize the Birthday Challenge #309: Anything Goes

Inkspirational Challenge #346: "Birthday"

Ellibelle's Corner: "I Spy with My Little Eye - Something to Celebrate"

The Paper Funday Challenge #78: "Anything Goes" (not playing the twist)

Season's Greetings (Faux) Postage

I have another floral-themed Christmas card for Christmas Card Throwdown's "Flower/Flourish" challenge. Nichol Spohr's work strongly inspired the look of this card, especially these cards she recently shared. While I didn't have any of the stamps or dies she used, I loved the overall look of her cards, & just put my own spin on her techniques.

I began by creating my faux postage stamps. I die cut the outer part from a scrap of white cardstock with one of the "Postage Stamp Squares" by Elizabeth Craft Designs (discontinued). I didn't have a square die exactly the dimensions I needed, so I used my paper trimmer to cut 3 squares from Strathmore smooth bristol paper. I stamped the poinsettia from Hero Arts' "Vintage Christmas Post" set (discontinued) on each square, varying the orientation & how much of the flower showed. I used the "2" from Sunny Studio Stamps' "Kinsley Alphabet" stamp set for the postage amount, & just drew a cents symbol with a black felt-tipped pen. I hit each square with my heat gun to make sure the ink was totally dry, and then colored with my Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers. Finally, I glued each square centered on its background.

For the frame, I centered a Waffle Flower "Additional A2 Layers" die inside a "Scallop Rectangles" die from Pink & Main. I taped the dies together, & cut 5 frames from white cardstock. I glued them together, one on top of another, to create a more dimensional frame.

I cut a panel of white Hammermill cardstock to A2 size, and ink blended an ombre background with Shabby Shutters, Mowed Lawn, & Rustic Wilderness Distress inks. I only wanted my background stamping inside the framed area. So after I finished ink blending, I determined how much of the panel I needed to mask off around the framed area. It ended up being about 3/8", so I applied yellow Frog tape around the perimeter of my panel. I then stamped the "Crackle Background" from Simon Says Stamp with white pigment ink. I used a dry cloth to wipe the ink off the tape (so the ink wouldn't smear onto my panel), then carefully removed the tape. I thoroughly dried the ink with my heat tool, to ensure the embossing powder for my greeting wouldn't stick everywhere.

After deciding where to place my "postage stamps," I positioned my greeting stamp, from Honey Bee's "Pretty Poinsettias" set (discontinued). I stamped with clear embossing ink, and then heat embossed with Ranger White Super Fine Detail embossing powder.

To bring the card together, I first adhered my background to a white card base. I added my postage stamps, & finally adhered the frame in place. I hope I have done Nichol proud, and will definitely employ these techniques in future cards! :)

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

613 Avenue Create: "Anything Goes" (not playing the optional twist)

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: "Anything Goes"

Paper Funday Challenge #69: "Anything Goes" (playing the optional twist to make your own background)

Double Trouble Challenge #175: "Any Way You Punch It"

Orchid Happy Birthday

I created this card to send to a woman whose birthday is this month. She is battling cancer, so needs all the good vibes she can get.

I used Sketch #SC641 from Splitcoaststampers.com as the basis for my design. I began by die cutting the pieces for the Hero Arts "Color Layering Orchid in a Pot" stamp set (discontinued). The stem & flowers are especially fiddly, so by die cutting first I could make sure to have everything lined up with the die properly. I taped the pieces on the back into the negative space, to make it easier to stamp on them. I decided to go with purple for the flowers, & used a light brown for the stem pieces. I stamped the pot with teal ink, then - without moving the stamp or cardstock in my MISTI stamp positioner tool - added Peacock Feathers Distress Oxide ink with a sponge dauber to one side of the stamp. It took a couple of stampings to achieve the look I wanted, but this added a bit of shading to the pot.

I die cut a pink panel with Spellbinders' "Grateful Lattice" die (discontinued), & layered it on top of another panel cut from the same cardstock. I cut the curved edge with Simon Says Stamp's "A2 Card Curved Edge" die. I added that panel with a couple of other strips to my A2-size card base.

For the greeting, I pulled out the Hero Arts "Year Round Sentiments" stamp set (discontinued) - an oldie but a goodie. I stamped the Happy Birthday onto a strip of white cardstock with one of the purple inks I'd used for the flowers. To mirror the curve on the pink panel, I used an oval die to trace a curve onto the end of my greeting strip, then cut it with scissors. I adhered the strip to my card, and then glued down the die cut pieces to build my orchid. I am really happy with how this card turned out, & hopefully the recipient will be, too.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Stay Crafty with a Blog Named Hero April 2024 Challenge: "Anniversary/Birthday"

Double Trouble: "SomeThing, AnyThing, EveryThing"

Have an Ex-STRAW-dinary Birthday

The theme for the current Stay Crafty with a Blog Named Hero challenge is "Happy Anniversary." (Birthday-themed cards are also allowed.) I needed a birthday card for a friend of mine. She loves gardening, so I thought the "Strawberries Line Art" stamp set by Hero Arts would be perfect. I think she'll also get a kick out of the greeting!

I used Sketch #SC939 from Splitcoaststampers.com to guide the design for my card. I began by die cutting a circle from 140 lb. watercolor paper, then measured & cut off a portion, as per the sketch. I temporarily adhered the semi-circle onto my card background to make it easier to stamp on, & used my MISTI stamp positioner to stamp the image. While I had the image adhered to the navy panel, I went ahead & heat embossed the greeting, from the same stamp set, with Simon Says Stamp Antique Gold embossing powder. Finally, I removed the watercolor paper from my background, painted the strawberries with my watercolors, & used a white gel pen to highlight the seeds.

I adhered the image panel permanently to the background. I added a length of red-&-white checked ribbon as indicated in the sketch. For the 3 dots in the upper left corner, I punched circles from a scrap of white cardstock & glued them to my panel as a guide. I made a puddle of glue over each circle, then sprinkled on more Antique Gold embossing powder. After I let the glue dry, I melted the powder with my heat gun. To finish the card, I mounted the panel to a white A2-size card base.

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

Ellibelle's Corner/Ellibelle's Crafty Wednesday: "Anything Goes" (in conjunction with Double Trouble)

Double Trouble Challenge #165: "SomeThing, AnyThing, EveryThing"

Happy Holidays Shaker Card

The current theme for Christmas Card Throwdown's challenge is shaker cards. I decided to challenge myself further & make a shaker card using 4 stamps from Hero Arts' "North Pole Express" set & their coordinating dies to make one window. I'm happy to report I succeeded! :)

I did a test run for the image stamping & die cutting on scrap cardstock to make sure my idea would work before going to my "good" paper. This also gave me a template to help me line up my images on my card panels. I cut 2 pieces of Strathmore Smooth Bristol paper to 5-1/2x4-1/4". I positioned the first in my MISTI stamp positioning tool, & lined up my test run guide with that to place the first stamp. I stamped that in Versafine Onyx Black ink, and without moving my stamp, repeated on the second piece of bristol paper. I did this for each of the other stamps to create my train. Stamping both panels at the same time ensured that my images on the background would line up with the window on the front panel.

I cut a piece of patterned paper from my stash to the same size as my bristol panels, & used low-tack painter's tape to attach it temporarily to the back of one of my bristol panels. I lined up one of the coordinating dies over the stamped image on the bristol, & die cut it through both the bristol & patterned paper panels. I did this process for each of the other images, and then removed the tape attaching the two panels. I adhered the patterned paper panel to the front of the bristol panel, making sure the die cut openings lined up. I adhered a piece of acetate to the back of this panel, & added 2 layers of foam tape to create the well for my clear seed beads. I added the beads into the well, and adhered a second piece of acetate to the back to seal my shaker. This is a tip I got from Nina-Marie Trapani, which both helps shaker bits move more freely & makes it easier to line up the shaker over an image panel.

On my other bristol panel, I used my Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers to color the images. I adhered my shaker panel over that, making sure to line up the window opening with the images. I used liquid glue to stick the "inner" pieces of patterned paper from the die cuts to the shaker window. I stamped my greeting, also from "North Pole Express," in Lawn Fawn's Guava ink onto a scrap of white cardstock & cut that into a banner. Finally, I adhered my banner in place & added my card front to a white A2-size card base. I am so happy with how this card came out, & as a bonus, I have 4 more of these images that I can color & add to another card!

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

Stay Crafty with a Blog Named Hero October challenge: "Holiday/Celebrate"

Send a Smile 4 Kids: "Holiday/Celebration Cards 4 Kids"

My Favorite Things: "Ready, Set, Christmas"

613 Avenue Create: "Anything Goes" (not playing the optional twist)

Peaceful Lighthouse

This card took quite a bit of pre-planning & also focus while I was making it. Thankfully, I was able to use the masks from the Waffle Flower "Lighthouse Stencil-n-Stamp" set I used for the bulk of my design to help me determine where to position everything before I started stenciling & stamping.

Once I had my design worked out, I began by ink blending the sand area with Distress inks. I used Antique Linen first, and then darkened/warmed it with Tea Dye. I added Chipped Sapphire over the area to the far left, just to differentiate that spot & make it look "rocky."

I positioned the sand & lighthouse masks to protect those areas, & then ink blended the sky with Mustard Seed, Wild Honey, Worn Lipstick, & Chipped Sapphire Distress inks. That was probably the easiest part of the whole card! After I had all the colors down, I added the light beam with that stencil & Lawn Fawn's Yeti white pigment ink.

For the water area, I taped the Hero Arts "Waves" stencil (discontinued) in place, & masked above it with yellow Frog tape. I ink blended with the same colors as the sky, minus the Chipped Sapphire. Then I removed the stencil. The white areas that the stencil had covered seemed a bit too stark, so I blended over them with the same colors as before to try & get a tone-on-tone effect. That didn't give enough contrast, though, and the colors actually looked kind of "mushy." So I positioned the "Waves" stencil back where I had had it, & inked over it with Chipped Sapphire, making sure to go dark enough that it covered the underlying colors, rather than just blending with them. It's a rather stylized look, but I think it came out OK.

I removed just the lighthouse mask, & stamped the lighthouse with Versafine Onyx Black ink. I stamped it about 3 times, just to get a good solid coverage. The area right above the sand mask didn't really stamp due to the thickness of the mask under the bottom of the stamp. Fortunately I was able to use a black marker to fill in the missing part. I also stamped the birds in black. I used the stencil to add the light in the windows. I blended yellow & pink ink to the top part where you can see through the glass to the sky behind. To add a little something extra in the corners, I pierced holes & made French knots with a pale rose embroidery floss. Finally, I matted the panel with blue cardstock & adhered it to a white A2-size card base. I decided a greeting on the front would detract from the scene, so I'll just write a personal message inside.

I'm entering this in the following challenges:

Stay Crafty with a Blog Named Hero August Challenge: "Anything Goes"

Double Trouble Challenge #146: "SomeThing, AnyThing, EveryThing"

Cozy Christmas Card

The Fall | Winter Coffee Lover's Blog Hop inspired the theme of this card. I used one of the coffee cups from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps' "Holiday Cheer" digital stamp set for the focal image. The design is based on Sketch #SC571 at Splitcoaststampers.com.

I sized the cup image in Photoshop, then printed it onto a panel of Canson Montval 140 lb. watercolor paper. I used my watercolors to paint it, and fussy-cut it out.

I used my We R Memory Keepers Frame punch board to create the frame for the image from white cardstock scraps. The watercolor paper I used for the cup has a bit of thickness to it, & I didn't want it to stick above the surrounding frame. I made a few frames, all the same size, so I could stack them for dimension. I did have to trim a bit from all but the topmost frame, just so their edges wouldn't stick out at all from behind. After I had cut all the frames, I stamped my greeting - from Hero Arts' "Cozy Penguin" set - onto the bottom of the front frame. Then I glued all my frames together.

I cut a backing layer from scrap cardstock the same size as the outer perimeter of the frames, & adhered 2 pieces of patterned paper from my scrap stash to that, positioned so they would show through the window in the stacked frames. (I wanted a countertop & wallpaper look.) I glued my frames on top, & glued down my coffee cup, so it appears to "sit" on the counter. I adhered a panel of patterned paper from graphic45's "Christmas Carol" 6x6" pad to a white A2 card base for my background, & then glued my framed image onto the card.

I'm also entering this card in Double Trouble's Challenge #125A: "Deja-BREW."

Season's Greetings

This week's challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is to use the colors blue, red, & white on your card. Other than black, those are the only colors you can use. I created this card, inspired by that challenge & Kristina Werner's lesson on Day 2 of Online Card Classes' "Holiday Card Workshop 2022."

I stamped the plaid design with My Favorite Things' "Plaid Background Builder" set (discontinued) & Candied Apple Distress Oxide ink onto a panel of Bazzill Icy Mint (pale blue) cardstock. Then I adhered that to my white A2 size card base.

For the snowflake, I used Hero Arts' "Color Layering Snowflake." I stamped the first layer with Hero Arts Cornflower ink, & the second with Lawn Fawn Forget-Me-Not ink. For the third layer, I used Ranger White Super Fine Detail embossing powder. I kind of wish (in hindsight) that I'd used a dark blue embossing powder instead of white, but I still think it looks OK. I just feel the dark blue would have popped more. Next time! :)

I stamped the greeting, from Hero Arts' "Finch Greetings," onto white cardstock with Forget-Me-Not ink, & fussy cut it out.

I laid the snowflake & greeting onto my background, & just felt the card needed a bit more. So I got some white holographic sewing thread & made a messy nest to put behind the snowflake. I used my ATG adhesive on the back of the snowflake to tack down the thread. Then I glued that to my card with liquid glue, just so it would hold very well over the Oxide ink. I glued my greeting down, centered below the snowflake, & that finished this card.

Happy Birthday with Rainbow Scoops

The current challenge at Double Trouble is to make your own, "YouNique," background. I have a great need of birthday cards in the coming weeks, so I decided to make a rainbow ice cream birthday card. Who wouldn't want to celebrate their birthday with a 7-decker ice cream cone? :)

I first die cut the ice cream scoops & cone with the coordinating dies to Hero Arts' "Color Layering Ice Cream" (discontinued). I set up my MISTI stamp positioning tool so I could stamp the scoops in assembly-line style. I had a template using the negative space from one of the cardstock scraps that I'd cut the pieces from. I positioned the base stamp for the cone & scoop in place, & stamped that layer for each one, changing colors as I went. Then I positioned the detail layer for each, & stamped those in slightly darker colors. I made sure, after a tip from Jennifer McGuire, to let the base layer on each piece dry a bit before stamping the top layer, just to keep the detail layer from mushing into the base layer.

For my background, I cut a piece of pink cardstock to 3-1/4x8-1/4". I used the word stamps from Winnie & Walter's "The Party" set (discontinued) and Lawn Fawn Ballet Slippers ink to stamp my background pattern. After I had finished stamping, I glued my cone & scoops to the panel.

I stamped my greeting, from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamp's "Happy Birthdays" set (discontinued), in Versafine Clair Morning Mist ink onto a scrap of Bazzill Icy Mint cardstock. Finally, I glued that down & adhered my panel to a white slimline card.

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

Creative Knockouts Challenge #458: "Something to Say"

My Favorite Things Slimline Challenge: "Rainbow"

613 Avenue Create's June Challenge: "Anything Goes" (not playing the twist)

Die Cut Divas' June Challenge: "Summer Days" (what is more summery than ice cream?)

A Banner Hello

I have had the gold die cut strips, made with Spellbinders' "Octagon Strips and Accents" dies (discontinued), for several months. I had made them to use on a project, but that ended up not working out. They were too good to chuck, though, so I held onto them. The other day, I finally decided this was The Time to use them.

I used the outer die in the set to cut 2 backing pieces of peach pearlized cardstock, & glued the gold die cuts to those. I used the same die with the corresponding insert to cut another strip from purple cardstock. I wanted something to break up the gold banners, and give me a third element. I cut a third peach piece to back the purple strip for continuity, & glued them together.

For the background, I applied Golden's Light Molding Paste through Hero Arts' "Deco Pattern" stencil. I left kind of a ragged edge towards the bottom right corner, so I could add a die cut greeting. I die cut the greeting from Hero Arts' "Hello Stamp & Cut" set once from gold & once from the purple I'd used for the third strip. I glued the purple down to my background panel, then layered the gold on top, offset so the purple provided a shadow.

After I decided how long I wanted my banners, I cut each strip to length. I wanted to stitch them, but with the thickness of the layered banners, I couldn't stitch straight through to the card front. So I poked holes along the top of each banner, & stitched with white thread. Then I used liquid tacky glue to glue just the tops of the banners along my panel, lining up the stitching lines & letting the rest of each lift up. Finally, I matted my panel with a light teal cardstock that I'd adhered to a white A2-size card base.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Double Trouble Paper Crafting Challenge #114: "YouNique Technique"

Dies R Us Challenge #195: "Dad's Day/Masculine"

Paper Funday Challenges Challenge #42: "Anything Goes with Optional Twist: Masculine" (playing the twist)

Creative Knockouts Challenge #458: "Something to Say"

Happy Father's Day

If you think it may seem a tad early for Father's Day, you might be right. But, such cards for Send a Smile 4 Kids need to be in to their volunteers by May 15, so they can sort & ship them to children's hospitals in time for the children to give or send them to their fathers. I created this one to donate to them, using Sketch #SC867 at Splitcoaststampers.com as my design inspiration.

I stamped the image, from Hero Arts' "Li'l Hoot" set (discontinued), onto 140 lb. watercolor paper & painted it with my watercolors. I was undecided if I wanted to leave the background the plain white of the watercolor paper, paint it like a night sky (going around the image), or fussy cut the image and glue it to another paper. I finally opted to fussy cut & glue, but then had to decide if I wanted a solid or patterned paper. Choices! I ended up die cutting a circle from navy cardstock & splattered it with white paint for the look of stars - and got some streaks that I thought could be comets or shooting stars.

I have had the banner for some months now. I even forget what I created it for, that it apparently turned out not to work on. But I recently found it in my leftovers box, so decided to pull it out and finally try to find something to use it on. At any rate, I tested the greeting, from the Essentials by Ellen "12 Days Companion Greetings" set (discontinued), against it, & it fit like a glove! So I stamped that in Versafine Onyx Black ink, using my MISTI stamp positioning tool to help me get the greeting curved - and stamped - accurately.

I adhered a cream cardstock panel to my white A2 card base, & added a strip of patterned paper that I had found in my scrap stash. I cut the excess off the strip at the top & bottom. I lightly taped my focal circle to my grid mat, to help me center the greeting banner at the bottom. I used liquid glue to tack the banner to the bottom center of the circle. When the glue had dried enough that the banner wouldn't fall off, I picked up the circle & now-attached banner & glued them to my card.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Creative Knockouts #449: "Winged Things or Furry Friends"

Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge: "Wild and Wonderful" (owls are wild birds, right?)

The Paper Funday Challenges April Challenge #40: "Anything Goes" (not playing the optional twist)

Joy and Peace Wreath

 

The theme for Creative Knockouts Challenge #431 is "Time to Be Merry." I needed a few somewhat-quick Christmas cards to finish up my supply for this year, and found this one on Pinterest for inspiration. I liked how the wreath was incomplete & the greeting nestled into the open area. I pulled out my Large Wreath Builder template from Gina K. Designs & my MISTI stamp positioning tool to create the wreath on my card.

I cut my white cardstock panel to 4-3/4" square. Before I started stamping the wreath, I went ahead & heat embossed the greeting (from Hero Arts 2020 My Monthly Hero kit) with Ranger's Gold Super Fine Detail embossing powder. I then placed my panel in the wreath template, which I had taped into the corner of my MISTI. I also taped the 2 smaller guide pieces in place in the template, so they wouldn't shift as I stamped.

I used a combination of images from Lawn Fawn's "Deck the Halls" & Gina K. Designs' "Holiday Wreath Builder" sets to stamp my wreath. I began with the poinsettia flowers, figuring they were the largest element & so a good place to start. I stamped the one in the lower right, below the greeting, first, then worked my way around until what would have been the next-to-last turn in the template. That took me to just above the greeting on the upper right, so I stopped before making the last turn in the template. I continued stamping images in the same way, until I'd filled out the wreath. Finally, I went in with a few extra little stamps, just above & below the greeting, to bring the ends of the wreath closer to the text.

I cut a panel of red cardstock to 4-7/8" square, to give me a 1/16" mat all around my stamped panel. I cut  a 5" square of kraft cardstock to mat that, and adhered it to a white 5" square card base.

I'm also entering this card in 613 Avenue Create's December challenge: "Anything Goes w/Optional Twist - Any Holiday" (playing the twist).

Two Slimline Holiday Cards

The current Slimline Challenge at My Favorite Things is a Christmas theme. I created 2 cards to enter.

I used the new-to-me Hero Arts "Color Layering Snowflake" stamp set for my stamping. I stamped the first layer in Lawn Fawn Kiddie Pool ink, followed by Hero Arts Tide Pool, & ending with My Favorite Things Blu Raspberry. The snowflakes are kind of finicky to line up, but I finally managed.

After I'd finished stamping, I die cut Winnie & Walter's "Joy" (discontinued) from the center of my panel. I also die cut it a few more times from a light purple cardstock. I adhered my panel to my card base, and then inlaid one of the purple die cuts in the negative space. I went ahead at that point & inlaid the stamped center of the "o" as well, just because it's easier to do it then than having to shove it through multiple layers of die cuts. I stacked the rest of my purple die cuts on top of the first, using liquid glue to adhere them. Finally, I glued on the stamped joy die cut. I never tire of this two-tier eclipse technique. It just looks so cool!

My second card is portrait-oriented. I used components from the "Snow Globe Gala" digital stamp set from Doodle Pantry (discontinued) with Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps' "Winter Friends" digital stamp. I created a blank slimline-size "canvas" in Photoshop, and copied my image components onto that canvas. I positioned everything, as well as a greeting from "Snow Globe Gala," and then printed the composite image onto a panel of Cheap Joe's 140 lb. Kilimanjaro watercolor paper. I used my watercolors to paint the image. I colored the round decorative pieces with a silver paint pen. Finally, I adhered a teal layer to a white card base, & added my main panel.

I'm also entering my second card in Christmas Card Throwdown's "Snow Globe" theme challenge.

Merry Christmas

The October Color Challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is to use red & brown on your card. One of my favorite stamp sets is Hero Arts' "Color Layering Cardinal." I decided to pair that with the "Woodgrain" embossing folder from Tim Holtz for a woodland-style card.

To stamp the cardinal, I used all Memento dye inks. I began with Tangelo for the first, most solid, layer, & then stamped over it with Lady Bug, to give me an orangey-red color. I used Rhubarb Stalk for the second layer, followed by London Fog for the third. I stamped the face details with Tuxedo Black. I also stamped the feet with Tangelo + London Fog, and used Lawn Fawn's Walnut ink for the branch.

I cut out the pieces with the coordinating dies, & glued the feet to the bird's body. I decided to frame the focal image with a circle. So I die cut a mid-tone brown cardstock circle, & a second lighter-colored circle to mat it. I glued the bird & branch to the front circle, trimmed off the overhanging parts of the branch, then glued the whole thing to the mat.

I embossed a panel of brown cardstock with the "Woodgrain" folder. I stamped the greeting, from Hero Arts "Color Layering Snowflake," in Walnut ink onto a scrap of the same cardstock I'd used for the circular mat, then cut that into a strip. I inked the edges of the greeting strip with Gathered Twigs Distress ink, to help it stand out & not look so bland. I also added foam tape to the back to give it just a bit of dimension.

To accent the greeting & bring a bit of red down towards that part of the card, I used Lady Bug & Rhubarb Stalk to stamp 3 berry branches from "Color Layering Cardinal." After I die cut them, I adhered the bottoms to the foam tape on the back of the greeting. I added the assemblage to my embossed panel, using liquid glue behind the branches. Finally, I added my panel to a red mat that I'd adhered to a white A2-size card base.

I'm also entering this card in 613 Avenue Create's October Challenge: "Anything Goes."

Happy Birthday

 

My aunt's birthday is coming up, so I decided to make her a card. Because she lives in Florida, I wanted to use Hero Arts' "Color Layering Hibiscus" stamp set & coordinating dies (discontinued). To get inspiration, I did a search for that set on Pinterest, & found this card by Yana Smakula. I liked the frame idea, so decided to use that & build my card around it.

I first stamped out my flowers & leaves. I used photos of hibiscus flowers to guide my color choices. For the second layer of the pink hibiscus, I used the same pink ink I had for the first layer, just stamping it multiple times to build up the color. For the stamen, I used gold embossing powder on the orange hibiscus, & yellow on the pink ones, just for a little something different. However, I apparently didn't stamp the flowers exactly "right," & the dies wouldn't line up properly. So I fussy cut those. Thankfully, I was able to die cut the leaves. Lesson learned - die cut the flowers first and then stamp!

I cut my white frame first, since I knew it would be the larger element. I used a paper trimmer to cut the main piece, then used a Waffle Flower "Nesting Squares" die to cut out the opening. I then cut another frame piece from black cardstock. Before I cut the inside window, I marked where I wanted the happy to die cut. I used the happy die from Spellbinders' "Happy Birthday Banner" die (discontinued) & partial die cutting to cut the word from where the window would go. Then I used a craft knife & ruler to cut the remainder of the window. The "Happy Birthday Banner" cuts the word both right side up & upside down (connected to each other), so you can fold it over a string to make a banner. So once I'd cut away the excess of the window, I folded the upper part of the letters over, & glued them to the back of the lower part, to provide a little more reinforcement. I stamped the birthday, from Altenew's "Birthday Builder" set, on the white frame, & adhered the black frame behind the white.

For some added interest in the background, I embossed a white panel with the "Lumber" 3-D embossing folder by Tim Holtz for Sizzix. I matted that with black, adhered it to a white A2 card base, and arranged my flowers, leaves, & frame. I glued everything down flat, except for the flower in the upper right corner, which I popped up with foam tape.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

 

Aud Sentiments Challenge #277: "Anything Goes Plus a Sentiment"

Dies R Us Challenge # 171: "Anything Goes with Any Brand of Die that DRU Sells" (used Spellbinders die"

Floral Happy Mother's Day

  

I created this card for my brother & sister-in-law to give our mom for Mother's Day. I used Sketch #SC741 at Splitcoaststampers.com for my design.

After I sized it in Photoshop to fit the sketch dimensions, I printed the "Coneflowers and Butterfly" digital stamp from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps onto a piece of 140 lb. watercolor paper. I used my watercolors to paint it, following a reference photo for the flowers I found online. I also printed the greeting, from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps' "Mother's Day Sentiments" digital stamp set, onto a strip of white cardstock, & rounded the corners with my 1/8" We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper.

I die cut the image panel with a "Nesting Oval Infinity" die from Hero Arts. I adhered it & the greeting to a panel of blue patterned paper from Die Cuts with a View's "The Citrus Matstack." I added that to an orange panel from the same paper pad, & adhered a strip of an orange dot paper along the right side. That finished this super-easy-to-put-together card. And yes, our mom loved it!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Aud Sentiments Challenge #247: "Flowers + a Sentiment"

613 Avenue Create's May Challenge: "Anything Goes" (not playing the twist)

Repeat Impressions Theme Challenge #M521: "All About Moms"

Punny Mother's Day Card

 

I have always loved a good pun, & when I saw this card on Pinterest, I thought, I've got to make one myself. I used the "Color Layering Orchid in a Pot" stamps & coordinating dies from Hero Arts (discontinued) for my flower. Because of the relatively large sizes of the various elements, I made my card about 4-1/4x7-1/4"

I found some reference photos for orchids online, & one that had yellow & magenta petals with white centers intrigued me. I began by die cutting the main orchid image, so I could get the flowers & stems placed correctly. I stamped the first flower layer in Hero Arts Lemon Yellow. I used Hero Arts Raspberry Jam for the magenta, & heat embossed the centers with Ranger White Super Fine Detail powder. I stamped the stems with Lawn Fawn's Doe ink; & used Hero Arts Lime Green, Lawn Fawn Freshly Cut Grass, & Hero Arts Pine inks for the leaves. I stamped the dirt with Memento Espresso Truffle ink, & finally the pot with Lawn Fawn Moonstone. I then die cut the pot, leaves, & dirt with the coordinating dies. I used a small strip of lightweight cardstock as a backing piece to glue the pot, dirt, & leaves together, to make them easier to handle & position.

I die cut the letters for "Y'Orchid" with Lawn Fawn's "Quinn's Capital ABCs," pulling in the apostrophe from "Quinn's 123s." Then I stamped them with the coordinating stamps & Raspberry Jam ink. I stamped the first part of the greeting using Papertrey Ink's "Polka Dot Parade" alphabet stamps (discontinued). Initially, I was going to use those for the "Happy Mother's Day" at the bottom as well, but they were too large, so I opted for Lawn Fawn's "Claire's ABCs" instead.

After I stamped the top & bottom portions of the greeting, I glued down the die cut & stamped letters. Finally, I glued on the orchid, letting the very top overlap the "Y'Orchid" word slightly. My mom really got a kick out of this!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Aud Sentiments Challenge #274: "Flowers + a Sentiment"

613 Avenue Create's May Challenge: "Anything Goes" (not playing the twist)

Repeat Impressions Theme Challenge M521: "All About Moms"

Holiday Tags

 This is a slightly different post from me, since I'm not writing about a card. Instead, I'm sharing 6 holiday tags I made for the 10th annual "25 Tags of Christmas" challenges.

 

 

Tracy McNeely's tag on Day 26 inspired my first tag. I didn't have the same dies she used, but I have Sunny Studio's "Merry Sentiments" stamp set & coordinating die, which I figured is a good substitute. I first die cut 3 bulbs, keeping the negative cardstock as a stamping template for my MISTI stamp positioning tool. I put tape behind one of the die cut openings, sticky side facing up, & stuck one light bulb into that spot. I positioned the most solid stamp, and picked it up with the MISTI door. I used Lawn Fawn Jalapeno, Memento Lady Bug, & Hero Arts Tide Pool inks for this lightest layer. For the darker layer, I used Memento Cottage Ivy, Love Letter, & My Favorite Things Blu Raspberry inks. I stamped the base of each bulb with Memento London Fog & Gray Flannel, and silver heat embossed the filaments.

I die cut my tag with a Scrapbook.com "Nested Tags" die from Strathmore Mixed Media paper, and cut another from plain white cardstock as a backer. I inked the main tag with Shaded Lilac, Dusty Concord, Blueprint Sketch, & Chipped Sapphire Distress inks, and added a bit of Black Soot Distress ink around the edges for some drama. I spattered the tag with silver pearlescent watercolor. I glued on my bulbs, & used a silver paint pen to draw in the "cord." After I adhered the tag to the backer, I used metallic silver embroidery floss to tie on 3 small silver jingle bells at the top.

 

My second tag was inspired by Carol Mayne's penguin tags on Day 1. I printed Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps' "Festive Penguin" digital image onto a piece of Canson XL watercolor paper, and painted it with my watercolors. I die cut it with a scalloped circle die, & used another die 2 sizes larger to cut 2 green scalloped circles. I glued the green circles together for greater stability, & then glued the image circle on top. I punched a hole with a 1/8" hole punch, and threaded through a length of baker's twine.

 

 The inspiration for my 3rd tag came from Ardyth Percy-Robb's tag on Day 3. I die cut the poinsettia bract & leaf pieces from red & green cardstock scraps with the Poppystamps "Blooming Poinsettia" dies. I used Aged Mahogany & Pine Needles Distress inks on finger sponge daubers to add shading to the pieces. After curling the petals & leaves by running them over my bone folder, I adhered the center of the smaller flower layer to the larger with a tiny glue dot. I used more glue dots to adhere the leaves to the flower.

I embossed a white die cut tag with one of the "Bloom" embossing folders (discontinued) from Lifestyle Crafts, and glued my flower to that. I added red organza ribbon, & tied it with metallic embroidery floss. Finally, I glued some gold sequins in the center of the poinsettia for some bling.

Kim Heggins' tag on Day 1 inspired my 4th tag. I printed the "Winter Birds Trio" digital image (discontinued) from Bugaboo Stamps onto a 1-1/2"-tall strip of Canson XL watercolor paper, and painted it with my watercolors. I die cut a tag from a patterned paper from my scrap stash, & another from mint cardstock to go on the back. After adhering them back-to-back, I die cut the bottom with one of the "Stitched Borders 3" dies from Pretty Pink Posh. I then adhered my image panel with ATG tape. I stamped the greeting, from Lawn Fawn's "Winter Sparrows" set, onto the same mint cardstock, & added that under my image panel. I decided the image panel blended in to the background at the top too much, so I added another strip of mint above it. I threaded some cream satin ribbon through the top hole, and that finished this tag.

 

This tag's inspiration came from Carol Mayne's elegant creations on Day 4. I heat embossed the Essentials by Ellen "Mondo Poinsettia" (discontinued) in gold on white cardstock, and cut it out with the coordinating die. I heat embossed my greeting, from Hero Arts' "Color Layering Christmas Tree" stamp set, with the same gold onto a panel of burgundy cardstock. I matted that with a gold foil patterned paper from my scrap stash, that I had backed with white cardstock for more stability. Finally, I glued on my poinsettia.

For my 6th & final tag, I used Karen Bull's tag on Day 13 for my inspiration. I stamped the truck & presents from Stampendous' "Truck Tidings" (discontinued) onto Canson XL watercolor paper. After I painted the images with watercolors, I cut them out with the coordinating dies. Because the truck die also cuts out the side window, before I removed the paper from the die, I added double-sided tape behind the window to keep it attached to the truck body. I used the same tape to adhere the presents "into" the truck bed.

I die cut an oval from blue cardstock with a We R Memory Keepers die, & added a strip of brown cardstock to the bottom for a dirt road. I positioned that in my MISTI, and stamped the greeting. I ran the oval through my die cutting machine again with the same die, to cut the overhanging piece of the brown strip. I glued the truck in place & added the oval to a red mat. Finally, I used my Crop-a-Dile II to punch a 1/8" hole & threaded through a length of red satin ribbon.