Beach card

This week on the Mod Squad Challenge Blog our task was to create a project inspired by all things coastal. I decided to do a beach themed card.  I am also entering the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Anything Goes.

I started with some watercolour paper and cut it on a slant to make a cascade card. I dabbed some ink onto an acrylic block, added water and painted the water and sand. I made a darker line at the top of the sand to show that the sand was wet from the water. I stamped the images onto paper, scanned them into my computer, traced, offset and cut them out with my Silhouette Cameo. I then stamped onto the cutouts and sponged the edges. I stamped the sentiment with black ink. I probably should have used brown ink but I wanted to colour in the sun and wasn't sure how the ink would react to the Spectrum Noir markers. I also added a bit of colour to the shell stamp. I used tape to attach the sentiment and used foam squares for the other images.  

Here are the products I used:

Paper - Hilroy watercolour paper, Bazzill Basics Simply Smooth

Ink - Tim Holtz Salty Ocean

      - Adirondack Cabin Fever

      - Stampin' Up Peach Parfait and Elegant Eggplant

      - Memento Tuxedo Black

Stamps - Inkadinkado Turtle, Fish and Seahorse

            - unknown Shells and Sentiment

Spectrum Noir markers - CT2, CT4, GB5, OR1

Masculine Birthday

I didn't have too much time to make a card this week because I was away. So I came up with a quick and easy card for the Mod Squad Blog challenge: Masculine Birthday. What took me the longest was finding the right paper for the image I had in my head!!

It was hard to get a good picture of this because I wanted to show that the paper at the bottom had some shimmer but I also wanted to make sure you could see the pattern. 

I used a brown card base, cut the patterned paper at an angle and attached it. I used some tan cardstock, stamped a cracked paint pattern on it and trimmed it to an arrow shape. I used a darker brown shade of cardstock, stamped a diamond shaped pattern on it and trimmed it. I attached the two pieces together with a brad and used some foam tape to adhere them to the card.

I stamped the sentiment above the two arrow pieces and I was done!

Here are the items I used to make the card.

Cardstock: American Craft and Bazzill Basics

Patterned paper: DCWV

Cracked paint stamp: Stampin' Up

Diamond stamp: Hero Arts

Sentiment: Jennifer Ellory, Bake a Cake set

Ink: Chestnut - Recollections; Rich Cocoa - Memento; White - ColorBox

Brad, tape and foam squares: from my stash

Sparkly Pink Paper Pieced Birthday card

A very long name for a card! I am entering it in four challenges: Mod Squad Challenge - Pretty Pieces; Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - In the family; Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Make it Sparkle and Hiding in my Craft Room - Keep it Simple Sweetie.

I started by stamping the cake image using Memento Tuxedo Black ink. It is from a set called Bake a Cake by Jennifer Ellory. The two layers are paper pieced with some patterned paper from Provo Craft Celebrations paper pad. I stamped the candles with Stampabilities Cotton Candy ink and stamped the sentiment with Tuxedo Black. I cut and embossed the sentiment with a Spellbinders Shapeabilities die from the Labels and Tags set. While the paper was still in the die I sponged on some Cotton Candy ink, took it out of the die and gently sponged some more on the edges.

For the background I used a piece of a Wilton Fondant Imprint Mat, which is usually used for cakes you eat! I cut a piece off of the big sheet and inked it up with the Cotton Candy ink and laid a piece of pink cardstock on top and pressed down lightly. It gave a nice tone on tone effect.

I coloured in the striped part on the cake with a Spectrum Noir BP2 marker and used the same marker to colour a piece of ribbon. Then I added some glue to the ribbon and sprinkled on some Glitter Ritz Warm Highlights glitter. I attached the sentiment with a couple of sparkly brads over the ribbon.

I layered the background with some black cardstock and popped up the cake with some foam tape. For some extra sparkle on the candle flames I added a bit of Diamond Stickles.

For the In the Family challenge my family is the Pink family! I am not sure if it is simple enough for the Keep it Simple challenge but it isn't too fancy either!

Blue and Brown card

This week I am combining 3 challenges in one card. The challenge at the Mod Squad Blog is I've Got the Blues!, on the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge we are to be inspired by the letter J and the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge is Anything Goes. I looked at this chair stamp and thought the fabric looked like Jacquard so that is my J inspiration!

I started by stamping the chair image (Stampendous) on some blue cardstock with Memento Rich Cocoa ink. I cut it out and embossed it using a scalloped oval die. I am not sure of the manufacturer as I purchased the set second hand. I cut out a larger oval from brown cardstock.

I stamped the sentiment (Inkadinkado) with Rich Cocoa onto a piece of cream cardstock and cut it out with a small die from the set and embossed it. I sponged around the outside with some Martha Stewart Blue Sky ink and then went around the edge with some of the Rich Cocoa.

I  laid everything on the cream card base and it looked a little bare so I used a stamp from the Mini Images Compilation set by Quietfire Design to make a background. I stamped the image with the Blue Sky and Rich Cocoa in lines, trying to match the ends of the stamp. I adhered the blue cardstock onto the brown and onto the card base with Tombow Mono Adhesive and used Pop Dots on the sentiment.

Shadow stamping

I tried a new technique this week for the Mod Squad Challenge - Shadow Stamping. I didn't do a very good job but I don't have time to make another card so this will have to do. I am also entering it in the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Mid-Summer and the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Emboss It.

I started with a piece of blue American Crafts cardstock made into a cardbase. I embossed it with a Cuttlebug embossing folder and inked up the raised edge with Salty Ocean Tim Holtz Distress Ink. I cut a piece of white AC cardstock to fit inside the border and inked the edges with the Salty Ocean. 

I stamped the branch with Green Pamass Pigment ink, the bird and wing with Stampin' Up Cajun Craze and shadow stamped them. The stamp set is from Stampin' Up.  I think I should have made a bigger shadow because this just looks like I smeared it when I stamped. Oh well, more practice needed! I stamped the sentiment (Impression Obsession , Inc.) with Memento Tuxedo Black. I thought the sentiment was appropriate for a bird!

It looked a little stark with just the white so I smeared some Blue Sky Martha Stewart ink over the whole white section. It doesn't show up very well in the picture.  I added a couple pieces of ribbon from my stash to finish it off.

Okay, so I just watched the video by Gina K. I definitely should have watched this before making the card!!

Christmas in July

Today I have a Christmas card for the Hiding in my Craft Room challenge.

I made a never ending card because I would like the spirit of Christmas to be never ending! People seem to be in a happy, generous and peaceful mood, which is echoed in the sentiment I used.

Basically I cut two pieces of plain cardstock 6" x 6", scored, attached them together and then cut the patterned cardstock to fit all of the smaller sections. I added the sentiment and a yellow rhinestone for the bird's eye and I was done.

If you would like the details of how to make this kind of card leave a message in the comments and I can send them to you or you can look on you tube.  I know there are lots of good videos.

Patterned cardstock - from the SEI Winter Song collection
Sentiment - Hero Arts
Ink - Rose Art washable marker
Rhinestone - Recollections

Here are images of some of the other 'sides' of the card.

Fruitful card

We're at the end of strawberry season here in Nova Scotia. To me, nothing says summer like a glistening bowl of juicy red strawberries. So when the challenge this week on the Mod Squad Challenge Blog was to have fruit on the card I knew I was going to use strawberries. We also had to use kraft, black and white on our card.

I used a stamp that I think is Studio G. It has one strawberry and the words You are Berry Berry Special. I masked off the sentiment, stamped the strawberry twice and then masked the strawberries and stamped the third berry. I used Spectrum Noir markers to colour in the berries. I stamped the sentiment and punched the border.

I used a piece of ribbon over the join between the red and black cardstock although it's hard to see in the picture. I attached the red and black onto a kraft card base with tape and then popped the white piece up with some foam tape.

Here are the products I used:

Strawberries stamp - Studio G (?)
Sentiment - Hero Arts
White cardstock - Bazzill Simply Smooth
Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black
Spectrum Noir markers - DR3, CR8, CR10, CR3, LG4, CG4, TN2, CG2
Punch - Recollections
Red, Black and Kraft cardstock - American Crafts
Tape - Tombow Mono Adhesive
Ribbon and foam squares from my stash

Textured card

On the Mod Squad Challenge Blog this week the challenge is to put some texture on your card. So I thought of my crimper to make a crimped layer and some feathers for some soft texture. Here is my card.

I crimped a piece of orange cardstock with my Fiskars crimper, cut a piece of textured tan cardstock slightly smaller and picked out a couple of feathers from a bag from the dollar store. 

I stamped the sentiment (Stampendous Birthday Assortment) with Recollections Chestnut ink onto a piece of cardstock. I rounded two opposite corners and added two brads from my stash.

I assembled everything together, using some pop dots to raise the sentiment so the back of the brads didn't get in the way.  A quick and easy card!

Mini card

This week on the Mod Squad Challenge Blog the challenge is to make mini cards. I am just getting this in under the wire as I have been away.

Since it is a mini card I decided to make it a note card and thought the perfect note was a music note! The note is from a stamp from Recollections. It has a treble clef and four notes so I masked off all but the one note and stamped it with Memento Tuxedo Black. I used the same ink for the sentiment which is from Hero Arts.

I used a background stamp by Anna Griffin All Night Media and used Tim Holtz Picked Raspberry Distress ink. I stamped off first on scrap paper because I wanted a subtler background. For the card base I used a Cuttlebug embossing folder from the Just my Type Borders set. Since it was just a border I had to emboss and then line it up and emboss again all the way down the front. It ended up a little bit crooked as you can see.

I layered the two smaller pieces with black cardstock and adhered all the layers with Tombow Mono Adhesive. I used a piece of string and made my own baker's twine using Spectrum Noir marker BP6. I threaded the twine through a button, tied a bow and attached it with a mini Glue Dot.

Graduation card

This week I made a card for my nephew's High School Graduation.  There were three challenges that my card would work with:
Mod Squad Challenge Blog: Charmed, I'm Sure!!
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: I ought to use this more

The thing I ought to use more is different card layouts and shapes. I was inspired by the Congrats! Grad card in the latest issue of CardMaker magazine. I was giving a gift card to my nephew and this card is made to hold a gift card. I used blue and white for the school colours. 

I started with a white piece of Colorbok textured cardstock and made the cuts where indicated in the magazine.  I then used some blue American Crafts cardstock and embossed it with a Cuttlebug embossing folder from the Wedding Suite set. I cut it up and adhered it to the card. I used my Silhouette Cameo and cut out the 2014 and the grad hats. I inked up the 2014 with some VersaMark ink and used Clear Recollections Detail embossing powder to heat emboss the numbers. I wanted to give them a bit of shine which I think you can see in the first picture.

I used a sentiment from the Art Gone Wild Inspirations set and stamped it with Stampin' Up Brilliant Blue ink onto a piece of white cardstock.  These stamps have a border around them so I used Spectrum Noir marker TB5 to colour in the outside border. I think it matches the blue cardstock quite well.

I used my Cameo again with a white Sketch pen and drew Congratulations onto a blue piece of cardstock and mounted that onto a white piece. I tied a piece of gold cord around the white piece and tied another piece of cord onto it. For the charm challenge, I took two of the grad hats, inked the tassle with Tsukineko Brilliance Galaxy Gold and joined them together with the gold cord in between. I frayed the end so it looked like a tassle. I mounted that onto a blue piece and adhered it onto the left hand side of the inside of the card.

I used a 1 1/2 " circle punch from EB tools to cut out 2 blue circles. I scored them, folded them in half and glued one half onto the back of the middle section. I folded the other half onto the front of the card and glued just the top edge so that the gift card can go in the middle.