Blue Christmas card

This week on the Mod Squad Challenge Blog the challenge is to make a blue Christmas card. It was like deja vu because I made a blue Christmas card last week! So I made a quick and easy one this week.

I sponged the background with Stampin' Up! Bashful Blue, Ballet Blue and Brilliant Blue. I stamped the Stampendous stamp with Brilliant Blue and the sentiment (Inkadinkado) with ColorBox Frost White. I embossed the sentiment with Recollections Snow embossing powder and used Stickles (Golden Rod) on the star to make it sparkle. I matted the card front with some blue cardstock and adhered it to a white cardbase.

I am also entering this in HIMCR - Any Holiday and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes.

Christmas card

I love playing with my Spectrum Noir markers. I can colour and get beautiful shading or I can make a background with them. In this card I did both.

I used the Gina K Designs digital image, printed it on Bazzill Basics Simply Smooth white cardstock and coloured it with TB1, TB3, TB4, TB5 and IG2. I used Stickles Star Dust on the gray part of the ornament to make it look like silver and sparkle.

I scribbled on my craft mat with TB9, TB6 and TB3 and spritzed with alcohol until the colours blended a bit. I used a piece of photo paper and placed it on the mat to pick up the colour.

I cut 2 scalloped ovals out of regular white cardstock and coloured the edges with TB5 and IG2. I used more Stickles on the outside of the gray oval. I trimmed the 'Joy' to fit inside the blue oval. 

When everything was dry I adhered it all together onto a white card base and added a small silver bow.

I am entering this in the following challenges:

Stamp TV Mix It Up Monday Challenge - Christmas Comes Early

Mod Squad Challenge Blog - It's my Favorite

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Anything Goes

Hiding in my Craft Room - Any Holiday

Recessed Christmas card

This is a card for the October Release Party Challenge. We had to make a card with a recessed focal image.

I printed the Gina K Designs digital JOY stamp on Bazzill Basics Simply Smooth white cardstock and coloured it with Spectrum Noir markers DR1, DR4, and DR6. I embossed the front panel with Baby's Breath Cuttlebug embossing folder, leaving an unembossed strip near the middle. I scored a line on each side of the strip and attached the AC Glitter ribbon in the middle.

I cut a hole in the panel so the focal image would show through. I matted the front panel with red cardstock and used foam squares to pop it up over the focal image. 

Thanks card

This card was made for four challenges. Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge is a color coordinates challenge. We have to use some of the following colors - Black, Slate, Orange Peel, Green Apple and Lavender. Hiding in my Craft Room asks us to use embossing. Mod Squad Challenge Blog wants us to use a real button and Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge is "O is for...". My 'O' is Organized Randomness!

I used a Sizzix Stampin' Up! embossing folder with some white cardstock and embossed the background. I took some scraps of orange, green and lavender cardstock and embossed them. I fussy cut the hexagons and adhered them on to the background in an organized random way!

I used some coloured brads from my stash to fill in some of the empty squares. I stamped the sentiment (from Hero Arts) with Adirondack Wildflower ink. This was an old ink pad that someone gave me. It used to have several shades of blue and purple but the colours have run together so it just gives a grayish slate colour now. I embossed another scrap of orange cardstock and cut out a small shape, big enough for the sentiment and the button. I cut around the sentiment to fit inside the orange shape.

I didn't have any baker's twine in the right colour so I used Spectrum Noir marker OR2 and made my own twine. I threaded it through the button, tied a bow and used a glue dot to fasten it to the sentiment shape. I used tape to adhere the sentiment and the sentiment shape and used foam squares to fasten the background onto an orange mat before taping it onto the slate card base.

Fall Birthday card

The two challenges that inspired me this week are Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge - Falling in Love with... and the Mod Squad Challenge Blog - Tag it. I love the fall colours, especially the oranges and browns so I made a card with fall colours and a tag.

I stamped the leaves (from an unknown set in my stash) onto white cardstock with Versamark ink and embossed them with Martha Stewart Copper embossing powder. I took the photo at an angle so you can see the shimmer on the leaves. I sponged some Really Rust Stampin' Up! ink all over the cardstock and used a kleenex to rub any ink off the leaves. I also used the same ink to make a small rectangle for the sentiment (Fiskars) which was also stamped with Really Rust. I framed both of these pieces with some orange American Crafts cardstock.

For the tag I used an oval scalloped die and cut and embossed some more orange cardstock . I stamped the leaves with the Stampin' Up! ink set - Pumpkin Patch. It has 5 separate colours that you can push together. I used various parts of the ink to get different colours for the leaves.

I used a piece of ribbon behind the sentiment and attached everything to the ivory card base. I attached a piece of gold thread to the tag and attached it to the inside of the card with a piece of Sookwang tape, leaving the covering on one side. I tucked the tag under the ribbon so it wouldn't swing too far. The recipient of the card can use the tag for someone else.

Sympathy card

Well, I completely missed World Cardmaking Day. I was at a meeting all day and then was out in the evening, too. Then I received the sad news that my aunt had died after a long battle with cancer. I knew I wanted to make a sympathy card and had just picked up some stamps from someone who was selling all of her craft supplies. The challenge on the Mod Squad Challenge Blog was to use pink in some way. At first I wasn't sure that pink would go well with a sympathy card but thought if I used a subtle shade it might work. Here is what I came up with.

I wanted to keep it fairly simple so I chose a couple of encouraging images. Flowers and butterflies always make me feel a little better and give me hope for tomorrow. I masked off the bottom of the flower image so it would fit on the square. I inked around the edge of each square very lightly. I embossed the white cardstock for a bit of texture and framed the small squares with the same pink that I used for the card base.

It's hard to tell from the picture but the piece of ribbon is a pale pink. I adhered everything together and popped up the sentiment with some foam squares.

For the inside I stamped the sentiment and the full flower image from the front of the card.

I used the following supplies:

Cuttlebug embossing folder

Hero Arts sentiment on front of card

Versafine Onyx Black ink

Martha Stewart Pink Dahlia ink

Chocolate Baroque flower stamp

Stampcraft butterfly stamp

Stampin' Up! sentiment inside card

pink and white card stock and ribbon from my stash

Christmas card

You can tell that September has hit as every day there is something scheduled! I missed last week's challenges but I have a card this week. It is a simple Christmas card. 

I started with a piece of white cardstock and used an embossing folder from Sizzix to make the frames. I coloured them in with Spectrum Noir marker LG5. I stamped the two images, both by Hero Arts, in Memento Tuxedo Black. I used another embossing folder from Sizzix to emboss LOVE and cut it out with the matching die. I stamped the sentiment, by Inkadinkado, in Colorbox Fresh Green pigment ink. I thought that frame looked a little bare with just the sentiment so I added the holly which is also Inkadinkado. I coloured in the holly with Spectrum Noir LG5, LG4 and LG2 and used DR2 for the berries.  I attached a piece of ribbon from my stash and then taped it on the card base.

I am entering this in:

Mod Squad Challenge Blog: Word Challenge - Holiday

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Finishing Touch

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes (with Hero Arts products, if possible)

Hiding in my Craft Room: Any Holiday

Fall card

Today I have a card I made for four different challenges. For the Hiding in my Craft Room Challenge we needed to use fall colours; for the Mod Squad Challenge Blog we needed to use stripes; for the Simon Says Stamp (SSS) Monday Challenge we needed to use a SSS product and for the Wednesday SSS Challenge we needed to make our own background.

I knew I needed to make my own background and needed to have stripes. We get extra brownie points if we use orange stripes and orange is a fall colour so I went with orange cardstock for my background layer. I  used the Simon Says Stamp Postage Stamp Edge Frame die to cut it out.

I wanted a little sparkle on the card so I used Perfect Medium and stamped some stripes. I actually used a rolling stamp that I had when I was a kid. It has little lines all along it. I stamped each stripe a couple of times so I was sure I had enough of the Perfect Medium on. I then used the Antique Copper Perfect Pearls to give the shine.

I used the smallest die in the set to cut out the cardstock for the greeting. I stamped the sentiment, from Inkadinkado Autumn Greetings set, with Stampin' Up Cajun Craze ink and stamped the leaf, by StampCraft, with more of the Perfect Medium. I used the Antique Copper Perfect Pearls on the leaves. I matted this with a piece of brown cardstock.

I wanted to put some twine on it but didn't have any in the right colour so I used Spectrum Noir marker TN4 and made my own. The postage stamp design made it easy to line up and it didn't slip out of place while I was attaching it. I used some foam tape to attach the sentiment onto the background layer and then onto the card base.

I took another picture from a different layer so you could see the shine!

Vellum and Acetate Christmas card

On the Mod Squad Challenge Blog this week, the challenge is to use both vellum and acetate on a holiday card. I knew I had some vellum but wasn't sure about the acetate. I found a piece that I think came from a package of some sort! Good thing I never get rid of anything! I am also entering this card in the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge which are both about using stamps in celebration of STAMPtember!

I started by stamping the ornament and topper from the Spellbinders Heirloom Ornament set onto vellum using Versamark ink and then embossed with Martha Stewart sterling embossing powder. I cut a piece of red cardstock the same size and marked around the outside with a Sakura silver metallic pen. Some of the silver got on the back of the vellum and in trying to take it off I realized it had turned the vellum a slightly different colour. I decided I would use my mistake and made a little border around the edge of the vellum which you can see in the picture. I glued the layers together at the edge with Zig memory system 2 way glue and the silver pen just about hides the glue. I attached a piece of glittery thread that I made into a bow with a mini Glue Dot and I matted the vellum layer with white cardstock.

I cut two pieces of red cardstock to fit the front pieces of my card base. I used two more of the ornaments, stamped with Versamark and sprinkled Glitter Ritz Warm Highlight Micro Fine Glitter over. I attached the pieces to the card base with Mono Adhesive.

So then I had to use the acetate in some way. I decided to have another ornament that could be used as an embellishment. I stamped another ornament onto the acetate using Frost White Color Box ink. I used more glitter and let it dry for quite a while before I fussy cut it out, leaving a small border. I poked a hole in the acetate, threaded another piece of the glittery thread through and attached it to the card. It could be taken off and used as a real ornament, especially on a mini tree.

Thanks for reading!

Harvest card

Family was visiting over the weekend so I'm finally getting around to posting my card. It is a harvest card for the Mod Squad Challenge Blog - A Fruitful Harvest.  I am also entering it in Hiding in my Craft Room - Freestyle and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

.
I decided to use pumpkins on my card which I coloured with Spectrum Noir markers and cut out. For the background I stamped the image several times with Versamark ink and used clear embossing powder to give a bit of a shine. I die cut a scalloped oval, and dry embossed it to bring out the middle. I used a Versamarker pen to colour the outside border and used clear embossing powder to match the background.

I used brown cardstock to create a small border around the background and wrapped some ribbon around the layers before they were attached to the card base. I popped up the oval with foam dots and used tape for the back pumpkins and more foam dots for the front two to give some dimension.

I used the following products:

Paper - White - Bazzill Basics Simply Smooth; Brown, Tan and card base from my stash
Ink - Memento Rich Cocoa, Versamark watermark ink and marker
Stamps - Inkadinkado Autumn Greetings set
Embossing powder - Recollections clear detail
Die cut, Ribbon - unknown
Spectrum Noir markers - CR10, OR1, GB5, GB3, DG3