Three Final "Background Check" Cards

"Background Check," Online Card Classes' latest offering, officially closes tomorrow. *Heavy sigh!* It's been fun, as all their classes are, and I've learned a lot. Even as this class comes to a close, I can't wait to hear what their next class theme will be!

I posted about the background for this card here. I decided to make it an encouragement card, inspired by Laura Bassen, to send to Send a Smile 4 Kids. I stamped the "happy mail" from Simon Says Stamp's "Sending Happy Thoughts" set on a piece of dark teal cardstock, and heat embossed it with Ranger Super Fine Detail White embossing powder. I die cut the "Sending" die, also by Simon Says Stamp, out of white cardstock. If I were to do this again, I would probably use a darker color for more contrast, but I think it came out OK anyway. After adhering my "happy mail" panel on the background, I used tiny drops of Ranger Multi Medium Matte on the back of the "Sending" die cut to glue it down. To try and make the "Sending" stand out a little more, I applied a coat of Glossy Accents to it. All that was left then was to adhere the panel to a white A2 card base.

For my second card, I decided to go more masculine. I created the background for this card based on Kristina Werner's lesson on Day 5 of class, using embossing folders. I used the "Riveted Metal" embossing folder by Sizzix/Tim Holtz. I placed a piece of silver cardstock in partway, and ran it through my Spellbinders Grand Calibur. Then I flipped the cardstock around, and embossed the other end, leaving a blank space in the middle. For the greeting, I die cut one of the "Many Thanks" by My Favorite Things from a piece of light blue cardstock. I then spritzed that with After Midnight Dylusions spray ink. I applied little dots of glue to the top & bottom of each letter on the back, and adhered it in the blank space on the background panel. I let the glue dry for a few minutes, then stitched 2 lines with my sewing machine across the "thanks," to add some more texture, minus any bulk. Finally, I adhered the panel to my A2 card base.

My final card came together pretty quickly. I loosely based my design on one Kristina Werner did on Day 6 of class. I stamped my greeting, from Echo Park's This & That "Graceful #2" set, on a piece of white cardstock, and white heat embossed it. After die cutting it with the coordinating die, I swiped a Hero Arts Soft Pool ink pad (the same color I used in the bottom row of diamonds) over the banner. I wiped the excess ink off the embossing, and set that aside to dry for a bit. To add a bit of texture, I pierced holes in between the rows of diamonds, and stitched cross stitches with some Queen & Company baker's twine. I stapled the banner with my Tim Holtz tiny attacher tool, and mounted the finished card front to an A2 card base. I am entering this card in Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday "Tie It Up" challenge.

Four "Background Check" Cards

Tomorrow is the last full day for live access to Online Card Classes' "Background Check," before they archive everything. :( It's been a fun class, and I've learned new techniques, gotten a few backgrounds done, and made some cards from those backgrounds. These are 4 of those cards.

My first one was inspired by some that Kristina Werner did on Day 3. (I told how I did the background in this post.) I die cut a piece of vellum with the largest of Spellbinders' "Classic Ovals SM" dies, and heat embossed it with Hero Arts' "Looped Flower" background stamp & Ranger Silver embossing powder. I die cut another oval, using the same die set, from white cardstock. I stamped the greeting, from Simon Says Stamp's "Summer Garden" set, on that, and heat embossed it with silver as well. I glued the vellum piece onto my background, using dots of Ranger Multi Medium Matte, & hiding the adhesive behind the embossed spots on the vellum. Then I glued the greeting panel on top, and added a few Pretty Pink Posh 4mm & 6mm Sparkling Clear sequins. I also cut a thin strip of silver cardstock, and adhered it along the right side of the panel, then mounted the whole thing to a white A2 card base.

My next 2 cards were inspired by Laura Bassen, and were actually really simple to put together. For the first, I die cut a window in my background, using a Spellbinders "Standard Circles SM" die. I positioned the background on the front of a white A2 card base, and traced where the window was. I then stamped my greeting, from Simon Says Stamp's "Big Birthday Wishes" set, within that circle, using Versafine Onyx Black ink & clear heat embossing. I cut a piece of fun foam slightly smaller than the background, and cut out a hole where the window would go. Then I adhered that with a strong, double-sided adhesive tape, and mounted the completed card front to my card base.

I followed pretty much the same procedure for my second card, using a Spellbinder's "Labels Four" die for the window. I heat embossed my greeting, from My Favorite Things' "Simply Fabulous Sayings," on a piece of dark blue cardstock, using Ranger Super Fine Detail White embossing powder. I added foam tape to my background this time, and adhered it over the blue, before mounting it to my white A2 card base. I finished up by adding some White Opal Liquid Pearls.

Kristina Werner inspired my final card as well. I used one of the stamps from Echo Park's This & That "Graceful #2" stamp set for my greeting. I masked off the "Happy" with painter's tape, and inked up the rest with Hero Arts' Soft Granite. After removing the tape, I stamped the greeting on a strip of white cardstock, using my MISTI. I ended up having to repeat the process, since the first stamping wasn't dark or even enough. Then I masked off everything but the "Happy," and inked it up with Hero Arts' Butter Bar. I stamped that twice as well, and then cut the cardstock into a banner shape. I inked the edges with Wild Honey Distress ink, and stitched along the top with some light grey thread. Finally, I adhered my greeting, and mounted the completed card front to an A2 card base. I will be sending all these cards to Send a Smile 4 Kids.

Two More Backgrounds

Online Card Classes' "Background Check" class ends this week *sniff*. I've created several backgrounds during class, and even turned a couple of them into cards! Here are two more backgrounds.

Laura Bassen had a lesson for Day 5 of class on using a stencil and embossing paste over an ink-blended background. I used Distress inks in Mermaid Lagoon, Shaded Lilac, and Cracked Pistachio for my background. I must admit, I wasn't sure how the Cracked Pistachio & Shaded Lilac would blend, since the lilac has red, which is the complement of Cracked Pistachio's green. But I guess because both colors are so light, I didn't create any real "mud"! I started out with Mermaid Lagoon at the bottom, going about halfway up the panel. Then I added the Shaded Lilac, and finished with Cracked Pistachio at the top. I did go back over each "border" between the strips of color, with both colors involved, to get a smooth blend. I also made sure to use a light hand when inking. That's a trick I'm still trying to get used to.

After I'd finished inking, I taped the "Pointed Star" stencil by Jenni Bowlin over the panel, then spread Golden Light Molding Paste through the stencil. Once I had the coverage I wanted, I removed the stencil and cleaned it, my palette knife, & non-stick craft mat immediately. (This is important, to keep the paste from hardening and becoming pretty much impossible to remove from your stencil & tools.) Then I set the background aside to dry.

Shari Carroll's lesson on Day 5 inspired my second background. She demonstrated faux letterpress. I've tried this technique before with embossing folders & dye ink, usually with less-than-stellar results. She showed it using a background die and pigment ink. So I decided to give that a try.

I used 110 lb. white cardstock for this. You really need a good, heavyweight cardstock, to avoid having the die cut through the paper. This can happen, even with setting up your die cutting "sandwich" for embossing. (Ask me how I know! LOL) I don't have many background dies, but thought the "Butterfly Magic" from Spellbinders would make a pretty background. I used a piece of painter's tape to tape the die to my embossing mat, and some temporary adhesive to keep my cardstock in place underneath. I inked the die up with Stampabilities' "Light Pink" pigment ink, then carefully lowered it onto my cardstock. I then ran that through my Spellbinders Grand Calibur. Even though I did get some ink spots outside the lines, I still am very pleased with how this came out! Now I just have to turn my backgrounds into finished cards. Stay tuned...! :)

Wish Big

My brother turned 39 last week, but we aren't able to get together to celebrate until this weekend. So I've had a little extra time to make his birthday cards. ;) I made this pop-up card for one, and plan to include a gift card on the slider tag, that he will find when he "opens" the card!

To create the card, I followed the instructions in this tutorial on Splitcoaststampers. I chose a patterned paper from Me & My Big Ideas for the front, and adhered it to a piece of lightweight white cardstock, just to add stability to it. I then cut & scored the front, following the instructions.

For the focal panel on the card front, I stamped the cake, candles, & one of the greetings from the "Wish Big" stamp set, designed by Julie Ebersole for Essentials by Ellen. I used Memento Tuxedo Black ink, and colored them with colored pencils, blending that out with Gamsol on a paper stump. Finally, I matted the panel with a light blue cardstock, and adhered it to the slider portion of the card front.

For the inside/back of the card, I used a piece of light blue cardstock. For the portion that shows through when you pull the slider tag, I stamped a greeting from Simon Says Stamp's "Big Birthday Wishes" in Hero Arts Navy ink. And that finished off this card. Hopefully he will like the card itself, and not just the gift card that will be attached! LOL

I'm entering my card in Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday "Anything Goes" challenge.

Deepest Sympathy

I recently found out that one of the sons of Heidi Swapp, a major figure in the paper crafting world, passed away suddenly. Persnickety Prints has been encouraging card makers to create handmade sympathy cards, which they will deliver weekly, to show her and her family that we support them. This card is the one I created.

I used one of my backgrounds I made for Online Card Classes' "Background Check" class, which I wrote about in this post. I decided to use one of the "Daisies with Bracket" images from Fred, She Said for the focal image. These images are meant to go with Spellbinders' "Labels One" dies. I decided to step it up a notch and used one of the "Decorative Labels One" dies. I die cut it from copy paper, and scanned it into my computer. Then I used that image to size the bracket image. I added a greeting from a set by Doodle Pantry (discontinued), and printed it onto another label I'd die cut from 140 lb. watercolor paper.

I colored parts of the image with 2 of my Zig Clean Color pens. I wanted to keep the card relatively simple, but still with some interest. Once I'd finished the coloring, I adhered the label to my background, which I'd trimmed down to 3.75x5.25". I matted that with a piece of dark teal cardstock, and adhered the completed card front to a white 4.25x5.25" card base. I only hope this will bring at least a little comfort to the Swapp family.

"Background Check" Backgrounds

Online Card Classes has been having their latest class, "Background Check," during this past week. The format is a little different from past classes. Instead of creating cards each day, the instructors devoted the first 2 days of each three-day segment to demonstrating background techniques. Days 3 & 6 were the only ones when they actually created cards using the backgrounds they had created. So I have a few backgrounds that I have not turned into cards just yet.

My first background was inspired by Jennifer McGuire's demonstration on Day 1 of class. I applied Hero Arts' Soft Pool, Pool, & Green Hills dye inks to a piece of white cardstock, using the direct-to-paper method. I then inked up the "Damask" background stamp by Impression Obsession with Versamark ink, and stamped that on my background. The pattern only appears when you heat it with a heat tool, but I like the soft, subtle effect.

Kristina Werner had a lesson on Day 2 on stamping over pigment ink with dye inks. She used a border stamp, but I didn't have any that was suitable for this technique, so I opted for one of the "Rounded Diamonds" stamps from Avery Elle. I stamped the diamond shape 9 times on a pale grey cardstock, using Hero Arts' Unicorn pigment ink. After that had dried thoroughly (which took a LOOOOONG time) I inked up the stamp again with Hero Arts inks in Bubble Gum & Soft Pool, and Simon Says Stamp's Sunshine ink. (Not all at once, of course! LOL) I stamped with each color over the white, slightly offset, so I ended up with a two-tone effect. I did find out, though, that even though the pigment ink is dry to the touch, the dye-inked stamp will still pick up the white, so you have to clean the stamp between each stamping.

Laura Bassen's lesson on Day 2 was on plaid stamping. I used the stamps from Clearly Besotted's "Basic Stripes" and Hero Arts Soft Granite ink to stamp the plaid pattern in my first background. Once I'd finished stamping, I used Distress inks in Dusty Concord, Salty Ocean, Mustard Seed, & Abanoned Coral to blend color over the pattern. The Dusty Concord came out a little too dark, but I think the overall effect is pretty cool!

For my second plaid background, I decided to go for a more feminine look. I used the same stamp set, and Hero Arts inks in Bubble Gum, Soft Pool, Butter Bar, & Soft Lilac for most of the stripes. For the green stripes, I masked off either side with painter's tape, being careful not to press too hard so it wouldn't rip my paper when I pulled it up, and inked with Twisted Citron Distress ink & my mini ink blending tool.

Day 4 of class was devoted to "Die Cutting Techniques for Backgrounds." Kristina Werner demonstrated a DIY cover plate technique. For my card, I used 3 different dies: the cloud die from Mama Elephant's "Landscape Trio," and the scalloped dies from Pretty Pink Posh's "Stitched Borders 2" & "Stitched Borders 3." I first cut a 4.25x5.5" panel from white cardstock. I die cut with the largest die, a little more than 1" from the bottom. Then I moved the die up about 1/4", and cut again. I repeated the process with the two other dies, moving up the panel, and making sure to keep the pieces in order as I cut.

I inked the upper edge of the bottom piece with Mustard Seed Distress ink, the second larger piece from the bottom with Wild Honey, the next one with Spiced Marmalade, and the top piece with Fired Brick. My idea was a sunset (or sunrise) illuminating clouds. Finally, I attached each inked piece with foam tape to another A2-size card panel, using the narrower die cut pieces as temporary "placeholders" to get everything spaced correctly.

I'm not sure yet what I'll do with most of these borders, but it's kind of nice to know the cards I will make are already started! :)

Christmas Hope

I've been participating in Online Card Classes' "Background Check" class this past week. On Day 1, Kristina Werner did a lesson on watercolor backgrounds. I combined that with another lesson by Jennifer McGuire on emboss resist (Day 2), to create the background for my card. The design is inspired by one of the finished cards Jennifer did for Day 3 of class.

I began by stamping the "Small Snowflake Background" (discontinued) from Our Daily Bread Designs onto a piece of 140 lb. watercolor paper, with Versamark ink. I heat embossed that with Ranger Super Fine Detail White embossing powder. Then I taped the panel to a cutting board that I use for watercoloring. I chose Distress inks in Squeezed Lemonade, Mermaid Lagoon, Chipped Sapphire, and Seedless Preserves. Starting with Squeezed Lemonade, I smooshed some on my non-stick craft mat, and spritzed it with a homemade Perfect Pearls mist. I spritzed my watercolor paper with plain water, and picked up some color with a brush and daubed it onto different spots of the paper. I moved on to Mermaid Lagoon, following the same process, daubing it in different areas. I decided at that point my paper was a bit too wet, and I wasn't getting the color intensity I wanted, so I dried it with my heat tool. Then I went on, alternating with Seedless Preserves & Mermaid Lagoon, and finished with Chipped Sapphire.

I still didn't have the color intensity I wanted, so after drying it again, I used my mini ink blending tool to blend Chipped Sapphire, Mermaid Lagoon, and Seedless Preserves over most of the panel. My idea was kind of a night/galaxy sky look, to go with the snowflakes, which I think I finally got at least close to.

I next die cut a circle out of that panel, with one of the "Stitched Circles" dies by Simon Says Stamp. I die cut the "hope" using one of the dies from WPlus9's "Seasonal Sentiments" set, spanning the die across the die cut circle. At that point, I figured out the circle wasn't large enough to accommodate my stamped greeting, so I enlarged the circle with the next larger die. I also die cut the "hope" out of white glitter paper, die cutting a heart out from the "o."

I die cut a corresponding circular window in the front of my A2 card base, then sandwiched a piece of acetate in between that and the embossed/inked background panel I'd done. I ran the glitter "hope" die cut through my Xyron Sticker Maker, then adhered it in place over the acetate window.

For the rest of the greeting, I used one of the stamps in WPlus9's "Pretty Patches Christmas" mini set. I had to cut it in 2, to get it to fit. I mounted the pieces on my MISTI, and stamped the greeting with white Staz-On ink onto the acetate. Thanks to MISTI, it turned out perfectly the first time! :)

I die cut 3 hearts from the white glitter paper, and glued them around the window with a little Ranger Multi Medium Matte. Finally I lined the inside of the card with dark blue cardstock, to help the white stamped greeting pop when the card is closed.

I'm entering my card in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp's Monday "No Ordinary Paper"
Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday "Anything Goes"
Our Daily Bread Designs "Anything Goes with ODBD Stamps"

Merry Monday #167 "Hearts"