September Cards

Cards take me a long time.  I don't know why.  They just do.  I'm so glad that Lesley and Sarah create such beautiful cards.  It takes the pressure off of me ;)
Enjoy!

So many cards ...

I think that most of us find it difficult to fit scrapping time in once the weather turns nice (not that this year has been the best ... but still) and the school year comes to an end. 

Sometimes a little card helps to keep the creative juices flowing and takes very little time to complete.  Have a gander at all of the wonderful cards that the design team have created with the June kits ...

From Julia ...

 ... a sweet little All Occasion card with beautiful rolled flowers ...

From Mandy ... a shaped birthday card ...

 ... and a simple little card that could be used for a house warming ...

Lesley creates a card suitable for a crafty friend (making excellent use of the 7 Gypsies rub-ons that come with the "I Swear" kit) and even decorates the envelope to match ...

 Sarah banged out three bright and fun cards ...

 I love the banner made from stamped tickets ...

Using a die cut title as your main sentiment cuts down on your time and creates a striking focal point ...

It's kind of a crummy day here today.  Go make cards :)

Pretty Cards

From Mandy ...Sarah ... and Julia ...

All made with either the Resort Town kit, the Country Air kit or a combination of both.

Gluber Tutorial from Mandy

Here's a quick little step-by-step from Mandy on one of the ways to use the Cosmo Cricket Glubers found in the Resort Town kit ... 1. Cut 1/4 inch by 2 inch strips of paper. Fold them in half (but don't crease them) and stick them to the outside edge of the gluber. 2. layer another set of folded strips to the middle(I stapled them down to be sure they wouldn't come un-stuck). 3. Add a 2 inch circle to the middle with pop dots. *You can use this same technique to make a flower as well. :)

Birthday Card

Today seems to be Birthday Party Day. We've got two parties to attend this afternoon and evening ... with meals at both. Summer BBQ food is the best. I hate showing up empty handed, so I'm making a German-style potato salad with bacon and hardboiled eggs that I made once this summer already. My stomach is growling just thinking about it :) I'm also going to try my hand at Devilled Egss. I think I've only made them two or three times before, but as I recall, they're not rocket science.
I've gotten one card out of the way and one left to do. This one uses the Lotza Paper Boyz kit and although it's a little on the masculine side, I think it's general enough to suit just about age.
I recently purchased a Big Shot for when I get the crop area set up in my store front, and am finding myself using it all of the time. I wish I'd gotten one years ago. I've had a Silhouette for several years, but I love that you can cut shapes from Grungeboard, wood veneer, felt or fabric with the Big Shot.The "Happy" and kraft label are both Sizzix dies and I used a Martha Stewart border punch for that fun double loop border.
Off to finish my edibles! Have a great weekend and stay cool :)

Cards, cards, cards

Feast your eyes on all the cards made with the June kit.

Starting off with Julia's ...
A great "shabby chic" card using inks and paints to alter the flower and envelope.

Jill's card uses a few supplies from the add-on and a sweet little rub-on phrase from Melissa Frances (a great alternative to a stamped sentiment) ...

I love the Jillibean Soup cardstock as the base ...

Jill's second card also uses items from the add-on. What a great idea to cut out the banners from the patterned paper to create a sun.

With so many patterned papers featuring banners this season, it's a great way to get extra mileage from your scraps.
Edited to add ... Jill's second card had been Removed For Publication :)

I wanted to try something new with this card. Floral arrangements are always so striking when all of one variety and colour of flower is used, so I thought I'd use the same idea for the background of my card ...

I used the doily stamp from the October Afternoon Thrift Shop set with clear embossing ink and clear embossing powder on the backside of the Basic Grey patterned paper. As a nice surprise, when heat embossed, the stamped image takes on several different colours.

The sentiment is stamped on kraft cardstock and then attached to the ribbon such that only the scalloped edges show on the top and bottom. I added in some Jenni Bowlin pearl accents that have been floating around in my stash for awhile.

The problem of finding an envelope for this big, fat card is solved by using the little brown bags that come with your kit embellishments.
I used the Hero Arts Flourish Design Block stamp on the lower portion of the front of the bag. Clear embossing ink is applied to the stamp and the bag laid on top. I used my fingers to smoosh the bag onto the stamp so that the image would be slightly distressed once the clear embossing powder was applied and heat set. If you wanted a more crisp image, you would use a brayer rather than your fingers to stamp your image.

The top edge of the bag is folded over twice and a strip of Hambly transparency attached such that it slightly overhangs the fold.

Obviously, this isn't a card that would be sent through the mail, but given in person.

My second card takes advantage of the beautiful Websters patterned paper. I tried adding a few embellishments , but all it really needed was a title and a bit of a crystal flourish.

I added Diamond Glaze over the letters to bring them out a bit.

The inside is finished to hold a gift card or money.

I had a background stamp from Cornish Heritage Farms that was so similar to the brown patterned paper that i just had to use it to embellish the top of the envelope.

I again used one of the brown bags as my envelope. A little more simple this time. The top is just folded over and bound with a piece of trim.

Rather than affixing the trim to the envelope, I measured to find the length that would slip on fairly easily without being sloppy and stitched the ends together. A big blob of glue on the back of the flower both attaches the flower to the trim and holds in the stray bits from the ends of the trim. Allow to dry before slipping back over the bag.

So that should give you a few new ideas for summery and wedding cards. Also, a great way to use packaging for envelopes.

I've started adding a few sneak peeks of the July kit to the website but there will be many more to follow once I've had time to play.

And I can't wait to reveal July's designers. I'm so excited to see what they do with these kits :)

"Happy" card

I usually don't get around to making cards until I need them. Like ... 20 minutes before I need one, I get a bee in my bonnet.

My Will had a birthday party on Saturday for his friend Willow (cute ... right?), so of course, I didn't get to the card until about 5 minutes before we should have been leaving.

For whatever reason, I tend to grab Sassafras to make cards when I'm in a hurry. This one uses bits that I had laying out from my Sunday Brunch kit, a few scraps of cardstock and a Jenni Bowlin Bingo card that I've had for awhile now. I thought the colours of the Bingo card matched perfectly with the adorable sheet music patterned paper from Sassafras. Too perfectly though. So I matted it with a contrasting cardstock and mounted it using adhesive foam. A quick "7" cut from the Jillibean Soup paper (again mounted with more foam adhesive) and some buttons glued here and there and we're done.

Please notice the wet glue popping out from the button holes. I told you ... I was in a rush!

As is pretty standard with my cards, this one is a crazy size ... 6x6. If I'm just shoving it in a gift bag, I don't bother with an envelope and just use whatever size cardstock scrap I have for a base.

More Projects

I've just been puttering around with the March kit this weekend. Trying some new things, scrapping an old photo. Pretty much just playing.
This photo is my brother and I from back in the day. I want to say 1981, but I may be wrong.
Lots of Cosmo Cricket Joyride on this.

The chipboard letters and circles are from the 1st add-on kit.

And a wee yo-yo made from the chenile fabric in the main kit.

For this little card, I used one of the card bases from the 1st add-on. The cream coloured paper is actually from the rub-ons packaging. I cut one of the rub-ons in 3 pieces to get the most out of it. The little frame was cut from one of the Studio Calico stickers in the 1st add-on.

I don't know how many of you follow Kristina Werner's blog, but she always has great tips of new things to try on cards. Recently, she cut a window in the front of her card and stamped a sentiment on vellum, which she then placed in the window.

I decided to just stamp right on the inside of the card using a stamp from the Hero Arts Essential Messages set. I don't heat emboss overly much, so I could have been a lot neater with the embossing powder. Oh well ... next time :)

Another thing I've been wanting to try lately is making a fabric cuff. I love this chenile so much. It's just so fuzzy and nice to touch that I thought it would make a pretty cuff.

Please disregard my dry, white arm and hand. Mama needs some moisturizer and a bit of sun!

Rather than using a button and having to make a button-hole, I used a hook and eye and sewed on one of the gorgeous Prima flowers from the store.

A Few Cards ...

... to share.
I love how Jennifer used the u-turn symbol as a "u" or in this case, a "you". That Cosmo Cricket paper just begs to be cut up into the little shapes. Jennifer's second card makes use of her embossing machine to add texture to her front. The thin border of patterned paper behind the embossed paper ties into the green doily rub-on.

The adhesive backed Studio Calico rip strip makes quick work of duplicating a pleated ribbon.

My cards aren't as elaborate as Jennifer's.

A strip of patterned paper, a rub-on along the bottom, a thin piece of rip strip between and a chipboard piece are all I added.

And just a quick trim around the edge of the rub-on.

I love the wide trim but it can be overpowering on a small project. I punched old book paper and misted it with Shimmerz.

Sea Monkey on the lower layer, Before Dawn on the middle.