One Stamp 5 Ways

The final challenge of the Holiday Style class is to use one stamp or stamp set in 5 different ways.  Since I've been either sick or working the past several days, I haven't had time to create 5 cards yet.  However, I did manage to get the first one done and I plan to add the rest as soon as I can get them finished.

The stamp set I am using as my main focus is Deck The Halls from Papertrey Ink.

I'll be back later with the details on this card, as well as the other 4 I plan to make.  :)

Sparkly Lights

I'm back for day 7 of the Holiday Style card class from Online Card Classes.

Day 7 focuses on Shimmer & Shine, so I pulled out some glitter embossing powder that I've had FOREVER to use on this card.

 I have to tell you, this northern lights technique is a lot harder to accomplish than I thought it would be.  I wasn't entirely happy with how mine came out either, but once I added the glitter embossing powder, I liked it a bit better.  Mostly, I didn't like how the colored parts look so straight and uniform across the background.  Anyway, the sky was done using Distress inks and sponge applicators for the colored portions.  Then, I was having trouble adding the black areas of the sky, so I ended up water coloring it using black Distress ink and water with a large paint brush.

Once I gave up on perfection, I set the panel aside to dry and worked on die cutting and coloring the other elements of my card.  The yeti and trees are from Lawn Fawn.  The camp fire is from Purple Onion Designs.  And I used an Avery Elle die to cut the snowy hills.  Everything was colored with Copic Markers, and some elements were popped up with foam tape.

The other thing I'm not totally thrilled with is how the glitter in this embossing powder completely hides the colored background if you turn it at an angle.  This is a holographic glitter so it appears to change colors as you turn it in the light.  So I guess it still has a bit of a northern lights feel about it no matter how you look at it, but I like the direct, head on view the best.

Overall, I still think it's a super adorable card, and it DEFINITELY has shimmer and shine!  But I think I'll need to practice my "northern lights" some more before I'll be happy with myself.

However, it's all about that little Yeti anyway, and he's the cutest little Yeti ever!  :)  Don't you think?

Bye!

Warm Whimsical Wishes

Day 5 of the Holiday Style class is centered on Cute & Whimsical cards.

I don't pull out my Lawn Fawn stamps often enough, and they definitely say "cute" and "whimsical".  So I pulled out my Making Frosty Friends stamp set for this card.

To start with, I stamped out my scene on scratch paper with the images overlapping to get a feel for what order I would need to stamp everything.  Then I used my "rough draft" as a guide for lining up my stamps on my Misti and stamping them out in order.  As I stamped each image, I would cover it with a mask before stamping the overlapping images.

After all the images were stamped out, I used Distress inks and ink blending tools to sponge the blue sky background.  Next, I used the Falling Snow stencil from Simon Says Stamp and Texture Paste to add the snow to the background.  Once the "snow" was dry, I peeled off my masks and colored my images with Copic markers.  I forgot to use a good blending paper, so I didn't do any blending.  I did use the colorless blender to soften the tummies of the birds and add dots to the ear muffs.

Here you can see the snow texture better and some of the coloring detail as well.  I gave the top hat a blended look simply by leaving part of it lighter gray and coloring over the rest with a darker gray.  It's not actually blended, but gives the impression that it is.

My hubby asked me to make a card for a friend of his who is going through a rough patch right now.  It's just a little thinking of you, but I wanted him to know that our FAMILY is thinking of him.  So the characters I used are representational of our family.  My husband, myself, our son, and our two dogs.  Each is colored with the favorite colors of the person, and the scarves on the birds match the collars on our dogs.  I don't know whether Ken will pick up on all of that, but it's there nonetheless. 

Warm wishes to all of you too!  It's certainly been cold here the past few days.  Wherever you are, think warm thoughts.  :) 

Oh!  I almost forgot!  The sentiment is from the Hero Arts Holiday Sayings stamp set.  Bye!

Just The Classics

I'm back with another card inspired by the Holiday Style class from Online Card Classes.  

The theme for day 3 is Classic & Elegant.  I don't know about elegant, but I think that sleds are definitely classic!  Don't you?

This first one will be my Daddy-O's birthday card next month.  All the products I used are from Papertrey Ink except for the Stickles on the sled.

I popped up the sled with foam tape for some dimension and the evergreen sprigs were popped up slightly with two layers of glue dots.

I love the sentiment combo on the inside of the card!  :)  Happy brrrrrrr-thday!  LOL

This second one will be for my boss's birthday, which is the same week as my Dad's.  All products on this card are from Papertrey Ink.

I popped up all the little pine sprigs with foam dots and adhered the button on with glue dots.

I used the same sentiments inside as before and added another pine sprig.

I think all the green and red add to the "classic" feel of these cards as well.  What do you think?

Splatters and Snowflakes

So, I recently won a giveaway on Jennifer McGuire's blog for a free spot in the Holiday Style class from Online Card Classes.  Thanks, Jennifer!  Thanks, OCC Folks!  :)

Day 1 was all about Clean & Simple cards.  I really loved one of the inspiration cards and wanted to try creating a similar background.  This was the result:

 First of all, let me say that I wouldn't have thought of this design as being "clean & simple" since there is so much going on in the background.  However, I loved the look of the original and figured I could create something similar.  I LOVE the results of my efforts!  

First, I used VersaMark ink and white and silver embossing powders to emboss the snowflakes onto my water color card stock.  Then, I used Distress inks and water with paint brushes to create a color wash all over the paper.  I had to partially dry it with my heat gun several times, and once I was happy with that much, I used a paint brush to flick on drops of the ink for a splatter effect.  I also used some Mister Huey's silver mist to flick on some drops of silver sparkle.

My panel warped quite a bit from all the water, so once it was dry, I pressed it between the pages of a book for a while to flatten it back out as much as possible.  I trimmed it down and mounted it on a velum card base (something I've never done before).  To hide the ugly side of the water colored panel from showing through inside my card, I cut a piece of white card stock just a teeeeeny bit smaller than my panel and adhered it inside the front of the card.  I also used a white panel on the inside back as a place to stamp the inside.

For the front sentiment, I die cut a stitched banner from Lil' Inker Designs and embossed a sentiment from Papertrey Ink with silver embossing powder.  I thought it needed just a little something more, so I used a Papertrey die to cut out the little snowflakes from some silver card stock and glued those down with Ranger Multi Medium Matte.  To adhere my velum sentiment strip to the card front, I used very tiny dots of the same glue on the backs of the larger letters in the sentiment and also behind the die cut stars.

The sentiment on the inside is also from Papertrey and was stamped with PTI's Hawaiian Shores and Memento's London Fog ink.

I enjoyed water coloring on this card, which is something I don't often do because I'm too impatient to wait for things to dry.  But I have to say, the end result is pretty groovy!

TTFN!

N is for Nuptuals

I'm playing along with the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and the theme this week is words that start with the letter N.  For this project, I'm going with Nuptuals.  ;)

One of my co-workers is getting married and I turned her wedding invitation into an ornament for their Christmas tree.  I sliced it into quarter inch wide strips and then curled them around a pen to create coils.

It looks especially cool because their invitation had a pattern on the back side which shows through inside the coils.  The print from the front of the invitation is on the outside of the coils.

If you turn the ornament to look at it from different angles you can read the names of the bride and groom, the wedding date and location, and any any portions of the text that are visible from that angle.

And a special gift needs a special box.  I picked up this cute gift box from Hallmark and created the tag using stamps and dies from Papertrey Ink.  I adore their Petite Places line of stamps and dies!

These tiny buildings are so fun to create!  And each one also comes with a die that will cut a fold-able, 3D  paper building that can be stamped and then folded into an actual little building!

And last, but not least, is the wedding card.  I used the same little church die and some of the coordinating Scene It background dies.  Those little "doves" are from the PTI In The Meadow die set.  I used patterned paper from PTI and flower sequins from Pretty Pink Posh.

I believe the sentiment is from a PTI set, but I can't remember which one at the moment.  And it is stamped onto a banner which is also a PTI die cut.  

I had so much fun playing with these tiny churches and backgrounds!  Someone else needs to get married so I can pull them out again!  :)  TTFN!

Coloring Hedgehogs

Just a quick post for the 30 day coloring challenge over at The Daily Marker.  

I colored some cute little hedgehogs from Lawn Fawn.  :)

I scraplifted this idea from this card by Jennifer McGuire.

For the shaker, I used some tiny heart confetti, Pretty Pink Posh sequins and some glitter.

Here's a close-up of my hedgehogs.  I colored them with Copic markers.

Now it's off to bed.  Nighty night!

Happy Bee-day and World Card Making Day!

I made a fun card for a friends birthday!  :)  I love how it came out and thought I'd share.

I used some fun patterned papers from Papertrey Ink and Lawn Fawn for the background panels.  The cute hexy circle is from Simon Says Stamp.  Doesn't it make a fun background for these adorable bees form Papertrey Ink?  The bees and the cute sentiment are from the Honey Bees stamp set.  I diecut the bees from Summer Sunrise paper and stamped them in black ink.

Oh, the stitched flag is from Lil' Inker Designs and was perfect for this size of sentiment.  And the awesome sunflower is from My Favorite Things.  I love how the petals are embossed with lines on them.  It really makes them appear to have some extra texture and dimension.

The sentiment inside is from the Boutique Borders: Birthday mini stamp set from PTI.  I just HAD to add another little bee here because they are so cute!  Plus it helps pull the inside and outside together.

I thought I'd share this for World Card Making Day!  I'm a little late to post it since WCMD was yesterday, but I didn't have time to sit down with my laptop, because I was too busy making cards!  :)  I have more to share, but it's time for bed, so I'll have to work on that later.

Happy [belated] World Card Making Day!  TTFN!

Yeti Hugs?

I wanted to share this card really quickly before I hit the hay.  My friend, Angie, recently slipped and fell at work and hurt her back.  She's been slowly improving with help from a chiropractor, but I thought I'd cheer her up with a fun and cute card.

I think this little Yeti from Lawn Fawn is probably my cutest stamp of all.  He's so happy and adorable you just can't see him and not smile, right?  I knew my hubby had this cute little stuffed Yeti that I put in his Christmas stocking once, so I went to get it for the pictures and realized that my stamped and colored yeti is a perfect match!  It's hard to see his hands and feet under all that fur but they are blue like the yeti that I colored with my Copics.  (My hubby is a believer of the Yeti and Bigfoot myths, so I occasionally humor him with silly gifts like this and cards made with this stamp set.  In fact, he's the biggest reason that I HAD to have this stamp set when it was released.  :)

Here's a close-up of the card.  The awesome background die-cuts are from Papertrey Ink, and the patterned papers are from a 6x6 paper pad by My Mind's Eye.  I white embossed the sentiment, but I felt like it didn't quite POP as much as I wanted, so I stamped a shadow of it with Green Hills shadow ink from Hero Arts.

The inside sentiment is from Papertrey Ink as well; from the Inside & Out: Well Wishes stamp set.  This is also stamped with Green Hills shadow ink.

Now, as I was checking my email just a little while ago, I found a comment that was left on my last blog post inviting me to visit Word Art Wednesday so I thought I'd check it out.  It is a Christian card makers blog and the focus is on uplifting others and sharing scripture.  I think this card certainly qualifies as uplifting, so I thought I'd go ahead and link it up.  :)  

Thank you, Karen L. for the invitation!  

Now it's off to bed for me.  Nighty night!

Autumn Blessings

I have a super quick post today.

I'm playing along with Papertrey Ink on their September Blog Hop Challenge.

I've been meaning to try the chalkboard technique for ages and finally got around to it, thanks to their inspiration photo and the challenge.  It's acutally the PERFECT challenge photo to match the story behind this card!  :)

A friend and co-worker of mine recently had to move her mother into an assisted living apartment that's actually not far from where I live.  Her mom has been struggling with this transition in her life, and is struggling to adjust.  She had to leave the home she's been in for quite some time and move to a different town, which is never easy for someone to do in these situations.

I thought I'd send her a little "housewarming" card to hopefully boost her spirits.  The town I live in is truly lovely and has the "hometown" spirit of a much smaller town than what it actually is.  It's a wonderful, safe community and I hope that she will come to love it here.  I grew up not far from the home she recently left, and I've only been here for 5 years.  My family has truly blossomed here and feel that we have found "home".  (Although, I still hate Illinois weather!)

I added a cute little bumble bee on the inside and stamped him again on the envelope, which I forgot to photograph.  BTW - these photos are not as good quality as I usually post because I took them with my Hubby's cell phone.  My camera battery was dead.  O-well!

The majority of the products I used are from Papertrey Ink.  The inside sentiment is from a set called Find Joy from Hero Arts, and the curly trail behind the bee is from a set by The Craft's Meow called Beautiful Spring.  Everything else I used is PTI.  And I found that ADORABLE owl mug at Cracker Barrel a few months ago.  They have the best stuff in their Country Store!  ;)

TTFN!  And be sure to give your parents a call, just to say hi and let them know you love and appreciate them.  BYE!

Filled with Good Times

Just a quick post today.  I made this card for my big brother's birthday.

I used a label stamp from the Papertrey Ink Craft Beer Collection to stamp a custom background page.  The rest of the stamps are from the City Station mini stamp set, and the dies are part of the scene it collection.  I found a sparkly black ribbon in my stash to create a "road" for the pick-up truck.

These images are so fun to play with!  I couldn't resist using the little dog, even though the gas station isn't a place you usually see dogs.  My theory is that Fido is sitting outside the door waiting for his master to come back from paying for his gas.  Then he'll hop in the back of the truck and enjoy the breeze on the ride home.  Makes me think of the old Lassie show for some reason.  o_O

The truck is popped up on foam adhesive and I tucked a small piece of foam tape behind the garage door so it will stand open slightly.

For the sentiment on the inside of the card, I used the same stamp that I made the background paper with for the front of the card.  I like the play on words; Let the good times "roll".  :)  The little scooter is from the Main Street stamp set, but the fire truck and pick-up come from the City Station mini set.

I thought this card was a great example of stamping on die-cuts, so I'm sharing this on the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge blog.  This week's theme is Stamp And Punch/Die Cut.

Simon Says Stamp is one of my favorite online stores!  I love their exclusive stamps and dies, but they also carry lots of other brands I use as well.  Check them out if you haven't already.  :)

On my way to the sleep clinic now.  My son is having a sleep study tonight and I get to go sleep in am awful recliner in his room.  Yay!  Stiff Neck City, here I come!  :-P  

But I'm actually looking forward to the study.  I'm hoping we'll finally be able to treat his sleep apnea effectively after this.  He was having 30+ apnea episodes each hour while he sleeps!  (That means he stops breathing while he sleeps.)  Because of this, his brain doesn't get any rest because he keeps partially waking up.  He has had 2 sleep studies already, and both times he had absolutely no REM sleep what-so-ever.  REM is the restorative phase of sleep.  That's when your body heals itself, and is the most restful.  It's also the dream phase of sleep.  My son has always claimed that he doesn't dream, but I assumed he just didn't remember his dreams.  Looks like the kiddo was correct!

Please say a prayer for Jacob that we'll finally get some good results.  If we can successfully treat his sleep apnea, it will change his life!  Right now, he's tired, withdrawn, irritable and generally unhappy from lack of sleep.  He can't focus in school, falls asleep in class, and has trouble understanding and doing his school work.  Sleep deprivation is a terrible thing, and I hope we can control it after this.

Nighty night, everyone!

Birthday Songbird

Here is ANOTHER card that was accidentally saved as a draft instead of published!  I don't even remember who I made this one for or when!  O-well.  Enjoy!  :)

Here is a birthday card I made for a friend using my new stamp and die sets from Papertrey Ink called "Songbirds".

Products Used:

Stamps by PTI:

Songbirds, Inside & Out Birthday II

Dies by PTI:

Songbirds

Papers by PTI:  Stampers Select White, Smokey Shadow, Tropical Teal, Orange Zest, Raspberry Fizz, Hibiscus Burst, Simply Chartreuse, Aqua Mist, & Tropical Teal patterned paper

Inks by PTI: 

Ripe Avocado, Terracotta Tile, Raspberry Fizz, Hibiscus Burst, Orange Zest & Simply Chartreuse 

Other Ink:

VersaFine Black

VersaMark

Embossing Powder by PTI:

White Filigree Detail

And some random orange rhinestones