My Art - Dad's card

My Dad's 80th birthday card!! I count myself very fortunate that he is doing well considering the health challenges he faces and that he is still living with my Mom independantly in their own home. He knows he has limits but still finds ways of doing the things he most loves to do which I think goes a long way to extending life.
I added a thin layer of cherry wood to the top part. My Dad was a carpenter most of his life and wood has been an important part of his life. This particular piece is from a night light my husband is buidling for our newest grandchild.
I stamped the covered bridge (SU) onto shimmer paper I made - so fun!! Layered it on cardstock and added a ribbon and embossed greeting!! Really like the way it turned out!!!
Thrifty Tip: Make your own shimmer paper!! Add some mica enhanced product to rubbing alcohol in a mister bottle and spray away!! I have sprayed it on black, red and white! You can spray it on any colour!!
I used regular drug store rubbing alcohol. Mica enhanced product includes the following - shimmer acrylic paint (SU) does an awesome job. My SU demo recommends the white frost or the champagne mist. I used white mica powder that I bought a LONG time ago for highlighting friendly plastic. Others have used shimmery metallic acrylic paint, Pearl Ex, Perfect Pearls, etc. with good success. Be sure to spray from about a foot away and give it several light layers of shimmer. I used about 1/2" teaspoon of mica powder to 4-5 tablespoons of rubbing alcohol. Your level of shimmer will be more or less depending on how much mica product you use so experiment until you find a level that suits you.

Have fun and if you have not yet finished your Christmas cards - add some shimmer!! You can spray your cards once they are finished to add just a bit of shimmer but be really careful if you have any unprotected stamping on the fronts. Too much shimmery alcohol may make the inks bleed!!

Therese

My Art - All Occasion - embossed birthday

This set of cards featured an embossed birthday greeting that was easily coloured using watercolours, pencil crayons or chalks! Works great for a class where there are different skill levels. We layered decorative paper at the top and an embossed layer over it at the bottom. The top edge of the bottom layer was trimmed with decorative scissor and I added a line of pierced holes as well. The coloured greeting was layered onto a coordinating layer and we punched the corner and added a ribbon accent. Quick and easy! Always good for the last card in a large cardmaking session!!
It was a great class and everyone had a good time. It is always good to spend time with friends being creative!! The bonus is that you have some unique gifts to give!!

Therese

My Art - All Occasion - quotes

This set of cards featured quotes - there are so many great quote stamps out there now!! The quotes were stamped in brown on white and we embellished them with decorative scissors, push pins and chalk!! The bottom of the card is embossed with an embossing folder I created. I wanted the embossing to go all the way across the bottom of the card. To create the embossing folder I cut wavy lines in a piece of cardboard that was wider than the 5.5" I needed for the bottom of the card. I created a cardboard folder to hold my embossing layer and glued every second strip to one side and all the other ones to the other side. It worked very well but cardboard does not hold up to a lot of use as does the plastic ones that are commercially available. I am very happy with the results and expect I will probably create more as I want a look that is not yet commercially available!!
Decorative paper and silk flowers complete the look of this card!!

Therese

My Art - All Occasions - acetate

I created the top card for the class because it required less time to finish. The bottom card was my first try at this design. It has the advantage of a colourful image but does not have the contrast of coloured cardstock which adds appeal to the second card.
I sandwiched the acetate between the flap on the left hand side and the layer I added on the inside to hide the double sided tape which also adds some interest because it shows through the acetate!! Layering the white embossed image on the acetate layer can be tricky. I started with the white layer which I glued to the inside of the card front. Lay it, properly centered, on the inside of the card with double sided tape well to the center facing up and close the front over it. Perfectly positioned!! Now just add double sided tape to the back of the image and position it on the front of the card evenly centered on the white layer. I added a decorative fiber tie on the right hand side to add some dimension to this card.

Love the clean lines of this card and it has a elegant look done in a colour and a neutral!!

Therese