Sparkle and shine

While I was making one of my alcohol ink cards I ended up with some leftover die-cut letters, specifically the letters of the word shine. I really wanted to use those letters on a card, and this was what I came up with:

I love how this card turned out! I covered the letters with Glossy Accents so they look shiny, and I found the die-cut sparkle in a tray of random unused die-cuts. I didn’t have a small enough alphabet die set for the word and, so I searched through my word dies for a size and font I liked and created the word myself. The end of the phrase, on your special day, was from a stamp set.

I put the elements together on a white card base and added a gold die-cut crown at the top and some scallops at the bottom. I didn’t think the card needed any embellishments, but I did finish it with a wavy white frame for a little tone-on-tone texture.

Thanks for stopping by!

Alcohol ink cards, Part 1

As I mentioned in my last post, I’m back to share the cards I made with the alcohol ink panels I created. I ended up with quite a few cards, so I’m dividing them into two batches. Today’s cards feature rainbows, hearts, and some bright birthday cards. There are a lot of photos, so I’ll keep the details to a minimum. If you have any questions, just leave me a comment.

I like how all the cards turned out, but my favorites are definitely the rainbow cards.

Stay tuned for the second batch of cards in my next post. Thanks for stopping by!

Cheers to fifteen years

Today marks fifteen years of my blog. Crazy. That simultaneously seems like so long and no time at all. I wasn’t sure how to mark the occasion, so I decided to do what I do best: make a card.

This card is perfect for the occasion for a couple of reasons. First, this shade of blue is one of my favorite colors. And second, the panel with the fireworks is upcycled from an old desk calendar. I love to find ways to reuse things, especially cool or pretty papers.

I don’t think this card needs much explanation, but here are a few details. I used gold foil card stock to die cut the frame, the scalloped circle, and the numbers. I die-cut the word “hooray” twice and layered them together to give the sentiment a little more heft. And the pennants on the award ribbon are also trimmed from the desk calendar, which is great because I knew it would perfectly match the background panel. 

Whether this is your first time here or you’ve been following along for years, thanks for stopping by!

Kaleidoscope collection

A couple of weeks ago I needed to make a birthday card for a friend’s mom. She loves hummingbirds, and I thought of the perfect products — several items from the Kaleidoscope collection (49 and Market) that I’d purchased as a bundle, but never used. I have rub-ons, ephemera pieces, layered frames, and washi tape. And since I was making one card, I figured I’d make a couple extra. Here they are:

I think they turned out really pretty. It amazes me when I see other people do collage so (seemingly) effortlessly because I always struggle with this kind of layering. My brain wants to do it the “right” way. It’s helpful with a collection of products like this because everything coordinates, so at least I don’t have to second guess that part.

Everything on these cards is from the collection except the gray card bases, the linen thread used for the bows, and the word “birthday” on the pink card. That’s a stamp and the only stamping I did on the front of the cards.

For each card I started by using the rub-ons to add interest to the solid-color panel. Then I chose which ephemera pieces I wanted to use and played around with the arrangement. Before I glued them down, I added two or three washi tape “stamps” to the background. I finished each card with a linen thread bow to add a different texture.

I had a lot of fun making these cards, and I’m looking forward to creating more. I think these would make great card sets, too.

Thanks for stopping by! 

Stenciled birthdays

I love the different things you can do with stencils and ink blending, but I seem to use my stencils more often with texture paste or for gel printing. So a few weeks ago I decided to pull out some stencils and my Taylored Expressions inks and create a collection of backgrounds to use for birthday cards.

Here are the completed backgrounds. I tried to use stencils that I either hadn’t used yet or hadn’t used in awhile. The only stencil I used for more than one background was a layering tie dye stencil because I wanted to try a couple of different color combinations. And one of the backgrounds — the multi-colored floral in the bottom row — uses more than one stencil. Before I stenciled the flowers, which I knew would leave a lot of white space, I used a script stencil with Crumb Cake ink to add light text.

I decided to focus on my Taylored Expressions inks for a couple of reasons. First, I only have about two dozen colors, so I wouldn’t be so overwhelmed trying to decide on color combinations. And second, all those ink pads live in one storage basket, so it was easy to bring the basket to the table and have them all right at my fingertips.

My initial goal with these backgrounds was simply to adhere them to card bases and then add die-cut birthday sentiments for quick cards. That worked out for a couple of the cards, and then, of course, I started to make things more involved. But ultimately, I was pleased with all of the cards. Here they are:

When I finished turning the stenciled backgrounds into cards, I had a couple of leftover birthday die cuts I hadn’t used. So I pulled out some patterned paper and created two more cards.

I’ll just have to do this a few more times, and I’ll have a good stash of birthday cards!

Thanks for stopping by!

Snarky birthday cats

Recently I did a card sketch challenge with the theme of Polaroid photos. I had an idea for a birthday card Tim Holtz’s Snarky Cats stamps, so I went with it:

Ha ha ha! These cats crack me up. For this card I started by stamping the cat on a piece of a piece of white card stock, making sure I had enough space around the image to add the frame. I also stamped the bow tie, party hat, and balloon on scraps of card stock. I roughly colored in the images, not worrying about blending or leaving little white spots. (The sketchy style of the stamps lends itself well to this type of quick coloring.) It’s hard to tell in the photo, but I also colored around the cat with a very light blue so the background wasn’t just white. I fussy cut the three accessories and set them aside.

To make the Polaroid frame, I simply took a rectangular piece of black card stock and used a square die to cut out the middle part. I embossed “happy birthday” in white along the bottom of the frame and then glued it on to the panel with the cat image. I glued on the accessories (letting the hat and balloon go over the edge of the frame), drew a line from the balloon to the cat’s tail, and set the completed panel aside.

I chose a card base to coordinate with the color of the bow tie and then stamped balloons all over the card front. I finished the background with a splatter of Dr. Ph. Martin’s Bleed Proof White. When that was dry I used foam tape to adhere the focal panel to the card base at an angle. I added a few blue sequins for a little bling.

But what really brings the card together is the inside. I used a panel of white card stock and stamped the sentiment “Look, I’m not saying that you’re old, but if you were milk I’d sniff you first.” Ha ha! Of course I had to stamp a little milk bottle in the corner, and for fun I added a few more balloons around the sentiment.

I really liked how this card turned out, and since I already had the stamps out I decided to make one more Snarky Cat birthday card:

I used the same images for this card, but I skipped the Polaroid frame this time. Instead I used an old gel print for the background. I trimmed the gel print to the size I wanted and then stamped the cat near the middle. This was just for placement and to make sure I didn’t lose the details of the cat’s fur sticking out. I also stamped the balloon string on the gel print, as well as multiple “happy birthday”s. Finally I spritzed the background with some turquoise Dina Wakley Media Gloss Spray and set it aside to dry.

Meanwhile I stamped the cat, hat, bowtie, and balloon on white card stock and colored them using alcohol markers. I did a little more blending this time, but my coloring was still pretty casual. Then I fussy cut all the pieces and adhered them to the card front, placing the cat over the image I stamped earlier. (I guess I didn’t wait until the spray was completely dry because I got a little smudge on the cat’s face.) I glued the panel to a black card base and added three pink sequins. Inside this card I stamped “Get your party on!” It’s not really snarky, but it seemed to fit the colorful card front (although I’m not too sure this cat is ready to party).

Thanks for stopping by!

Birthday cards for kids

I am in serious need of rebuilding my birthday card stash so I’ve been trying to make a few birthday cards whenever I don’t have another card project to work on. Today I’m sharing some birthday cards that would be great for kids (or kids at heart!).

Bright colors and fun patterned papers always make great birthday cards. On the left card I added a die-cut sentiment and a few punched balloons. On the right card, the focal image is from the pack of patterned paper; I just cut it out and matted it with black card stock. I added a strip of yellow polka dot ribbon to both cards.

Last Christmas I received my first House-Mouse Designs stamp set, and it’s sized perfectly for an easy birthday card. I stamped the image twice on white card stock and colored them with colored pencils and Gamsol. Then I die cut the images into panels for two cards — one more boyish (above), and one more girly (below).

The last two cards aren’t necessarily for kids, but the colors and style of these cards fit well in this post. And they’d be great cards for older kids, tweens or teens.

When I made these cards I wanted to use up some leftover paper from making valentines. For the card on the left I die cut the word “celebrate” and two shadow layers from two of the paper patterns. I embossed an aqua card base with the Bursting Dots embossing folder (Taylored Expressions) and added the layered sentiment with foam tape. I finished the card with a few pink pearls and a strip of silver glitter card stock along the bottom edge. For the right card I die cut several balloons out of the patterned and coordinating solid papers. I adhered them across a lime green panel and used a black marker to add the strings. I added a die-cut sentiment and several dew drops, matted the panel with back card stock, and attached it to a white card base.

Thanks for stopping by!

Wild and precious life

Today I've got a quick post to share another card featuring Distress Oxide inks. In my last post I mentioned that I had made several panels using Distress Oxide inks, and I shared a couple of cards where I used the panels as backgrounds. This time I used the panels for the die-cut images on the card.

I love this quote from Mary Oliver, and I think it's perfect for a birthday card. I also like to pair it with images from nature, and this time I chose a dragonfly and leaves.

The pink/purple Distress Oxide panel seemed perfect for a dragonfly. This dragonfly is from a Tim Holtz die set, and it has three layers. Normally I would cut each layer from a different color, but in this instance I cut them all from the same panel. You do get some natural color variation, but the different layers don't stand out as much. For the leaves, which are also layered, I cut the outlines from a part of the panel that was slightly darker, and the backing layer is a little lighter.

For the card base I used Crumb Cake card stock stamped with the Circular Grid Bold Prints stamp from Hero Arts. It reminds me of the rings of a tree. The leaves are glued directly to the card base, and the sentiment piece and dragonfly are adhered with foam tape. I finished the card with a few clear droplets.

I will have one more post featuring the Distress Oxide panels I created, so stay tuned (spoiler alert: there will be an underwater/beach theme). Thanks for stopping by!

Backgrounds with Distress Oxide inks

I've been wanting to do more with my Distress Oxide inks lately. So I bought a few more colors to add to my collection, I stamped some swatch cards, and of course, best of all, I spent some time playing. I cut a couple sheets of white card stock into quarters and experimented by blending the inks on the card stock and also by "smooshing" the ink -- applying ink to my glass mat, spritzing with water, and then placing the paper in the wet ink to pick up the color. After the panels were dry, I got to work making cards. Today I'm sharing two of the finished cards; I'll share the others in future posts.

Note: I just realized I didn't make any supply notes for these cards, so I don't have specific product names. If you have questions about the supplies I used, leave me a comment and I'll do my best to get the info for you.

With both of these cards, I used the Distress Oxide panels as card backgrounds. For the first card (left) I used blues and purples with the ink smooshing technique. I think I overworked the background a little because the colors are more blended together than I intended. But it's still pretty! I applied light blue stencil butter through a butterfly stencil to add the focal images. When that was dry I stamped the Xs along the right and left edges and attached the panel to a black card base. I added a black die-cut "celebrate" for the sentiment and finished the card with a few sparkling clear sequins.

For the second card I applied the Distress Oxide inks on the card stock using bending tools. I don't do a lot of ink blending, so I'm not very good at getting a seamless transition between colors. Oh, well. After I did the blending, I spritzed the panel with water, let that dry, and then used the same ink colors to stamp a few doodle-type images. Then I stamped some other images and small words using black ink. Finally I used a clear paste and a stencil to add some subtle texture.

When everything was dry, I added a die-cut circular "wish" sentiment and adhered the panel to a black card base. Again, I finished the card with a few sparkling clear sequins. I really like how all the different elements of this card came together.

Thanks for stopping by!

Using up some scraps

After I made my January Christmas cards, I had a bunch of skinny strips leftover from the alcohol ink panels. I don't usually save those tiny strips, but these were too pretty to just toss. Instead I used a double-sided adhesive sheet, lined up the strips, and created a couple of striped panels. I finally turned those panels into two birthday cards:

One of the striped panels was almost the size of an A2 card so I used it as a background (card on the left). I cut the Birthday Message Cover Plate die (Hero Arts) out of holographic card stock, adhered it over the background and attached it to a white card base.

I used foam tape to add a sentiment strip near the bottom of the card front. Then I finished off the card with several blue rhinestones clustered around the sentiment strip.

For the second striped panel, which was smaller than the first, I die cut two large butterflies using the Detailed Butterflies, Mini dies (Sizzix - Tim Holtz). I cut the outlines for those butterflies out of black card stock and glued the layers together. I also cut out some tiny butterflies using the Intricate Mini Butterflies die (Memory Box). I arranged the butterflies around the stamped sentiment on a light purple card base and adhered them using liquid glue (and foam tape behind the wings of the large butterflies). I added a strip of the alcohol ink panel and a twine bow toward the bottom of the card front and finished with a cascade of droplets.

Thanks for stopping by!

Blue birthdays

I am always in need of more birthday cards. I try to keep a good-sized stash on hand so I can choose a card that fits the recipient. So when I sat down to turn some backgrounds into cards, I knew birthday cards were the way to go.

For the cards I'm sharing today, both of the backgrounds were foiled using stencils from The Crafter's Workshop along with Transfer Gel Duo and Deco Foil from Therm O Web. 

To coordinate with the green numbers on this background, I die cut three balloons using two different shades of green card stock. I taped a piece of white crochet thread to the back of each balloon and then attached the balloons to the panel. I wrapped each piece of string to the back of the panel and secured them before adhering the panel to a white card base. I used a white paint pen to add details to the balloons and finished the card with a sentiment strip and blue rhinestones. I had the perfect sentiment for inside the card: "Age is just a number (in your case a really high one)." 

The foil on this panel is pearlescent, so I chose light blue foil card stock for the accents. I used the A2 Thin Frame Cover Plate die (Taylored Expressions) to cut out the frame and the Big Birthday die (Honey Bee Stamps) for the sentiment. I cut the shadow die for the sentiment out of vellum to help it stand out a little more. The panel is adhered to a white card base, and I decided to skip the embellishments because there's already a lot of shine happening on this card.

Thanks for stopping by!

A quick challenge card

I do the majority of my stamping and crafting on the weekends. I find that I have a really hard time mustering the energy to do much of anything after I get home from work during the week. I'd like to change that, though, so one day last week I managed to sit down after work and make a quick, clean and simple birthday card.

The inspiration for this layout came from a sketch challenge. My current favorite craft shopping site is A Cherry on Top, and I discovered that they have weekly sketch challenges for scrapbooking, art journaling, and card making. Last week's card sketch really appealed to me, so I gave it a go.

The main elements of the sketch were six circles, the sentiment in the middle of the card, and splatter images behind the sentiment. For my card I used the Wonky Backdrops stamp set (Ellen Hutson) for the circle image as well as the cluster of stars. Since the circle was larger than those on the sketch, I overlapped them when stamping to make sure they'd all fit. The ink colors are from the Party Collection - Date Night inks (Catherine Pooler), and I arranged them in rainbow order so the colors would look ok where they were layered. Then, using black ink, I stamped the star cluster a few times in a swoosh across the middle of the card.

Before I assembled the card, I splattered it with Pearl Shimmer Splash (Brutus Monroe). (I was experimenting with flicking the applicator, so I got some lines as well as dots.) I adhered some looped silver thread at the middle of the card front and then used foam tape to adhere the strip with the sentiment over it. I finished the card with a few iridescent droplets mixed in with the stars.

This card really didn't take long to make, and the best part was that it was randomly chosen as the challenge winner. Woohoo! I'm going to try to enter more of the card sketch challenges and maybe even a few art journal ones, too. Thanks for stopping by!

Deco Florals

Today I'm sharing a few cards made with the Deco Florals stamp set (Pink & Main). I made these cards last autumn and never posted them, partly because I wasn't crazy about them. They're not bad, just not favorites. But I decided I should post them anyway, so here goes.

With these two cards my goal was to make masculine and feminine cards with the same layout and using the same images. I chose a neutral leaf to stamp on the focal panels and a graphic-style image for the backgrounds. For the feminine card I added a scalloped square behind the focal image as well as some metallic watercolor paint splatter. I embellished both cards with clear droplets.

For the third card I tried to stay kind of neutral, but I think these flower images lean a little to the feminine side. I used a Toffee card base and a large white die-cut stitched rectangle. I stamped the images at the top of the white panel in red, yellow, and blue, and added a dark brown die-cut sentiment at the bottom. I embellished with a linen thread bow and clear droplets.

Thanks for stopping by!