One in a melon

I've got a quick post today to share a bright, cheerful card that's perfect for summer but would be cute any time of year.

Supplies:
Stamps: Orange You Sweet (Concord & 9th), Punny Man 2 (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Whisper White, Watermelon Wonder, Gumball Green card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: watermelon Wonder, Gumball Green (Stampin' Up!); Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Starburst punch (Stampin' Up!), Circles Collection dies (Stampin' Up!), black-and-white baker's twine (Stampin' Up!), foam tape (3M)

Isn't this a fun card to say thanks to a friend or to just let someone know you're thinking of them? It was easy to make, too, so you could create a bunch to have on hand or whip one up if you need a card on short notice.

I started by stamping the green circles on a piece of white card stock and then filling them in with the solid circle image stamped in red. I stamped the cluster of seeds to finish the watermelons, and then added a few larger seeds in the white spaces between the watermelons.

I matted the white card stock with a layer of red card stock, wrapped baker's twine around the panel, and tied it off in a knot. Then I adhered the panel to a green card base.

For the focal point, I stamped the sentiment in red ink, punched it out with a starburst punch, and added a few stamped seeds. I layered that piece on a green die-cut circle and used foam tape to attach it over the knot in the baker's twine. I decided to skip extra embellishments, but you could also add a few sequins or even coat a few of the seeds with something like Glossy Accents to make them shiny (just remember to leave extra drying time).

Thanks for stopping by!

June Christmas cards: Sparkly joy

For my June Christmas cards, I have a design that is easy to mass produce, nice and flat for mailing, and festive and sparkly to boot!

Supplies:
Stamps: Joyful Noel (Concord & 9th)
Paper: Whisper White note cards and envelopes, red glimmer paper (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko); Real Red, Mango Melody, Granny Apple Green, Coastal Cabana, Berry Burst markers (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Joyful Noel dies (Concord & 9th), Art Glitter Glue

These cards are pretty self-explanatory, but here's a quick rundown of the process. I started by stamping the wreath in the middle of each card base -- I didn't measure for perfect placement, just eyeballed it -- and then the sentiment in the middle of each wreath. I made six cards of this design and did all the stamping first so the ink had time to dry and wouldn't smear when I was coloring.

And while the ink was drying I die cut all the letters out of red glimmer paper. It doesn't look too impressive in the photo, but that sparkle really does add some "oomph." I glued a J and a Y on each card and then colored the little lights on the wreath. I could have added more sparkle by coloring the lights with glitter pens or by adding some embellishments, but I decided that I liked this simple "Joy" just the way it was.

I hope your day is filled with joy -- and a little sparkle! Thanks for stopping by!

Belated Father's Day

I'm a little late in sharing my Father's Day card this year -- or maybe I'm just really early for next year! -- but I thought it might spark ideas for masculine cards you may need for other occasions. (And my dad did get this card on time, which is the important part.) It's a simple layout that relies on cool patterned paper and a few die cuts.

Supplies:
Stamps: All the Fixings stamp and die combo (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Thick Whisper White, Real Red, Gray Granite card stock (Stampin' Up!); Galvanized Metallic Paper (Stampin' Up!); Welcome Home 6" x 6" paper pad (Carta Bella)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Screw brads (unknown), foam tape (3M), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)

I knew I wanted to use the All the Fixings stamp and die combo for my dad's Father's Day card, but I wasn't sure what to do for the rest of the card. I flipped through some of my paper pads and found this sheet that looks like a blueprint. It was perfect! I trimmed the sheet down to A2 size (4-1/4" x 5-1/2") and glued it to a heavy white card base.

To make the tools, I die cut the shapes from Galvanized Metallic Paper and Real Red card stock. Then I trimmed the "handles" off the red pieces and glued them onto the metallic ones.

I stamped the sentiment on a piece of gray card stock (I chose a shade that was close to the color of the metallic paper) and matted it with red to create a narrow border along the top and bottom. I added two screw-shaped brads on the left side of the strip and used foam tape to attach it to the card base. Then I just added the die-cut tools.

I'm bummed that I forgot to take a picture of the inside of the card. I stamped a sentiment (from the same set) that said "You're a little nuts, but we still love you!" and added a few die-cut hex nuts. My dad has a good sense of humor, so I think he appreciated it. :)

A quick note before I go: I know my blog posting has been sporadic, to put it nicely, and it will probably continue that way for the next few months. My sister and I are planning to buy a house (eep!), which is both exciting and terrifying. We'll have a lot of work to do, so I don't know how much time I'll have for card making and blogging. I do still have a number of cards I haven't shared, though, so I will work on getting those posted here and there.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hey, chick!

When I get a stamp and die set with a lot of characters (usually animal characters, because those are the best), sometimes I will stamp, color, and die cut a whole bunch of pieces and then mix and match them onto cards. That's what I did for this group of cards made with the Hey, Chick and Hey Birthday Chick sets from Stampin' Up!

Supplies:
Stamps: Hey, Chick; Hey Birthday Chick (Stampin' Up!); Tiny Words Birthday (Simon Says Stamp)
Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Soft Sky, Old Olive, Garden Green, Early Espresso, So Saffron, Poppy Parade, Real Red, Blueberry Bushel card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Chocolate Truffle Amalgam ink (Gina K Designs); colored pencils - PC924, PC921, PC942, PC901, PC1069, PC1084, PC947 (Prismacolor); Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Real Red (Stampiin' Up!); Sugar Cube (Taylored Expressions)
Accessories: Chick dies and Birthday Chick dies (Stampin' Up!), Frame in Frame 2 Cutting Plate (Taylored Expressions), Stitching Lines dies (Essentials by Ellen), Stitched So Sweetly dies (Stampin' Up!), Chicken Wire embossing folder (Taylored Expressions), Mini Clouds stencil (The Crafter's Workshop), blending brush (Picket Fence Studios), Gamsol (Gamblin), paper blending sticks (unknown), gold sequins (Craft Medley), Bubble Blower droplet (Trinity Stamps), red enamel dots (Eyelet Outlet), jute twine (May Arts Ribbon), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute), foam tape (3M)

To be honest, making cards this way can be a challenge for me. Once I have all the pieces cut and colored, I tend to get stuck trying to come up with card designs. I prefer to have the card design/idea in my head and then stamp the pieces I need. But ultimately I was really pleased with my end results -- keep reading for more details and closer pictures of the cards. (Note: The supply list above includes the products for all of the different cards; I didn't do separate lists for each card since I used so many of the same supplies on multiple cards.)

Since I used colored pencils to color the images, they aren't quite as bold as they would have been if colored with markers, and they're a little washed out in the photos. But I fell like I have a little more control with pencils, especially when the images are smaller or more detailed.

For the card on the left, I embossed a Crumb Cake card base with a chicken wire embossing folder. Then I die cut a red scalloped rectangle and stamped it with some red confetti, which is hard to see in the picture. I attached the rectangle to the card base at an angle and glued the die-cut sentiment to the left side. (The sentiment is die cut twice and then stacked together for a little more "oomph.") I used foam tape to adhere two chickens and finished the card with a few gold sequins.

For the card on the right, I decided to create a little scene. I used a stencil and white pigment ink to add clouds to a light blue card base (again, almost impossible to see in the photo) then glued a piece of green card stock -- with a torn top edge -- along the bottom for grass. I added a die-cut fence, streamers, and sentiment and then adhered the three chickens with foam tape. I even gave one of the chickens a little bow tie to spiff him up for the "party." :)

Inside each of these cards I added a panel of white card stock stamped with the sentiment "you're still a spring chicken" and the image of the hatching chick.

I think this is my favorite of the three birthday cards. I started with a Crumb Cake card base and glued down a yellow streamer and a red streamer. Of course then I had the idea to stamp the confetti, so I had to work around the streamers. But I think it still looks okay. I used foam tape to attach four chickens to the card base and finished the card front with a few droplets.

This time I added the die-cut sentiment inside the card, and since those chickens are definitely ready to party, I also stamped "Let's get the party started." Perfect!

And here are a couple of non-birthday cards from the bunch. For the card on the left, I used a die to add two lines of faux stitching along the bottom of the card front -- and I love that it looks like chicken tracks! I used a scalloped frame around the middle chicken and attached that chicken with foam tape to help it stand out. I added a twine bow around the frame and played off the red in the chickens by adding two red enamel dots in the upper left corner.

For the card on the right, I made another little scene. This time I added a few stalks of corn and a tree stump on the "grass." I added two chickens, one on top of the other, on the stump, and I realized when I was done that it looks like they're trying to peek over the corn -- maybe to find a way to escape the farmyard. :) I finished this card with a little die-cut sign and hatching egg and twine wrapped around the top of the card.

Inside these cards, I stamped "You're a good egg!" which I think could be used for a variety of occasions, such as thanks, congrats, or encouragement/thinking of you.

Do you like to make cards by first stamping and coloring a bunch of pieces? Or do you prefer designing cards one at a time? Thanks for stopping by!

Postcard art: watercolor rainbow, painted paper collage

For the past several years, my neighborhood art supply store, Wet Paint, has done a Summer Postcard Project. "Friends and fans" of Wet Paint are encouraged to create an original piece of art on a postcard and mail it to the store, and they display all of the postcards in the store windows. I've thought about participating several times, but either I forgot about it, or I wasn't sure what to make, or I didn't really think of myself as an artist. You know. Well I decided that this year I was finally going to create at least one postcard for this project. And last week I made -- and mailed! Don't forget that part -- two postcards! They're bright and colorful, and I love how they turned out.

This first one was inspired by artist Josie Lewis, whose art is filled with rainbows and bright colors. I follow Josie on Instagram, and she issued an "assignment" to create a piece using washi tape and watercolors. I really liked the painting Josie made as her example of washi and watercolor, so I used that as my inspiration.

I used the skinniest washi tape I have and applied it around the edges of the postcard to create a border. Then I added five more strips radiating out from the bottom right corner. Once that was ready to go, I used my sampler watercolor pallet from Beam Paints and a flat brush to paint all the colors in my rainbow. (The postcard is made with watercolor paper, so it can hold up to the paint.)

I wanted to add a little sparkle, so before I pulled off the washi tape, I used my gold watercolor (also from Beam Paints) to add some shiny splatters. Once everything was mostly dry (I used my heat tool to speed up the process), I carefully peeled off the washit tape. I was worried that the paint got under the tape in a few spots because it wasn't sticking very well, but all the lines came out pretty clean. So happy!

My second postcard was a tribute to children's book author and illustrator Eric Carle, who passed away a few weeks ago. Having worked in childcare for nine years, I read many of Eric Carle's books many, many times, and they were always class favorites. So when another artist I follow on Instagram, Lauren Blair, announced that she was going to be doing a live follow-along workshop creating painted paper collages in honor of Eric Carle, I knew that was my next postcard.

I pulled out some of my acrylic paints and several sheets of lightweight card stock and started painting. I did try mixing colors on several of the sheets to create texture and interest, but I ended up blending them too much. Oh, well.

While the painted pages dried, I worked on the background of my postcard. Using a pencil and ruler I lightly drew lines across the postcard, and then I used a black Micron pen to write out the names of some of Eric Carle's books. When I filled up the paper, I went back and erased the pencil lines.

Once the paint was dry, I started cutting out shapes to create my butterfly. I played around with the arrangement and then started gluing everything onto the postcard. The placement of my butterfly was a little higher than I had wanted, to I cut out a few tiny butterflies to fill up some of the open space.

Before I mailed the postcards, I sprayed both of them with a matte sealer to help them hold up in the mail. (They don't have to go very far, so I'm not too concerned.) Now I need to walk by the store to see if they made it and are on display -- and I might just make one or two more!

Thanks for stopping by!

A manatee-rific trio

We are in a heat wave in my neck of the woods (it's like we jumped from spring to the middle of summer), and an ocean vacation would be so amazing right about now. Sadly, there are no beach days in my immediate future, so I'll enjoy making ocean-y cards instead.

Supplies:
Stamps: Whale Done, We'll Walrus Be Friends (Stampin' Up!); Manatee-Rific (Lawn Fawn)
Paper: Under the Sea, Manatees, Otterly Awesome, Sand Dollars & Starfish patterned papers (Dare 2B Artzy); Whisper White, Blueberry Bushel, Calypso Coral, Pool Party, Grapefruit Grove card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Blueberry Bushel (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Stitched Squares and Layering Squares dies (Stampin' Up!), Shadow Box Ocean Add-On dies (Lawn Fawn), Wonky Stitched Circles dies (My Favorite Things), Calypso Coral baker's twine (Stampin' Up!), Whale of a Time sequins (Stampin' Up!), foam tape (3M), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)

I made these cards for a friend who requested a card with manatees (one of my favorite animals). I do have a few manatee stamps, but I remembered that I also had these patterned papers, which are all part of the Seas the Day Collection from Dare 2B Artzy. I had purchased a few of the individual papers at a stamp show a couple of years ago but hadn't used them yet. This was the perfect occasion!

I started by hand cutting several of the manatees from one of the sheets of paper (I even used a partial image for the card on the left). I paired them up, arranged them on die-cut shapes, and stamped punny sentiments to make focal points for three cards. I chose coordinating card stock colors for the card bases and used more of the patterned paper for the backgrounds. I attached the focal layers with foam tape and finished off the cards with sequins and little die-cut shapes.

I think these cards all turned out pretty cute -- and I think my friend agreed, because she decided she wanted all three!

Thanks for stopping by!

Flowers for summer

I know the first official day of summer (in the Northern Hemisphere) isn't for a few more weeks yet, but June 1 always feels like the start of summer. So to celebrate the change of seasons, I'm sharing a fun textured, flowery birthday card.

Supplies:
Stamps: Inside Greetings - Birthday (Sunny Studio)
Paper: Sahara Sand, Pear Pizzazz, Garden Green, Calypso Coral, Blushing Bride, Daffodil Delight, Very Vanilla, Early Espresso card stock; vellum paper (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Early Espresso, Sahara Sand (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Window Box embossing folder/dies (Sizzix), Iridescent Sequin Assortment (Stampin' Up!), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)

Isn't that fun? This is a special embossing folder that creates the embossed stone wall and die cuts the window at the same time. Then there are separate dies to cut out the flowers and butterflies. The two sides of the window can be opened and folded back, but I decided to leave them closed for this card. I also glued a piece of vellum behind them to look like frosted glass.

I wanted to add more depth and help the "stones" stand out in the background, so I used the same color ink refill as the card stock (Sahara Sand) and put a few drops in a little dish with a tiny bit of water. Then I used a paintbrush to lightly apply the ink to the embossed portions. I was purposely not very careful about applying the ink; I think that gives it a more rustic, realistic look.

Then I die cut and arranged the flowers and greenery using a variety a of card stock colors. And I was really excited to discover that the colors in the Iridescent Sequin Assortment totally matched the colors of the flowers, so I added those as flower centers and glued a few tiny around the tall flowers by the window. I added a banner strip stamped with "happy birthday" and adhered the panel to an Early Espresso card base.

I had a few flowers and a butterfly left over, so I added them to a panel of Very Vanilla card stock for the inside of the card. (Sorry it looks white. I didn't have good lighting for these photos.) The sentiment I used actually started with "Even if we can't be together, know that I am," but I wasn't sure I wanted that line since sometimes I deliver birthday cards in person. I thought the sentiment read just fine without that part, so I just inked up the last three lines and stamped it on my panel.

Thanks for stopping by!