Birthday card with a cat

I made this card for a special little girl who is having a birthday this week!  She was visiting a few weeks ago and we made the handmade paper together so I thought it would be a good reminder of our time together to use the paper on her card. Here are the other cards I made.
I coloured the cat image using colour pencils - I love the orange and purple together.  I created a large white card to fit in a large envelope, added a large black layer, glued on two small sheets of handmade paper (orange and purple), added a black strip across the middle and then sewed all the way around the card using black thread.  I glued the cat image on the card and stitched all the way around it as well.  I punched out a laser printed greeting using the decorative label punch (SU), embellished its edges with orange colour pencil and layered a black punchie that had been cut in half in behind it.   I added this layered greeting to my card front using 3D foam tape.
Handmade paper is really fun to make and so cool that you can use paper scraps to make paper to use in your creations!!  It is a win-win!!
Therese

Masculine card

My DH's birthday is coming up!!  He will be away from home so I created this card and I will put it his bag before he leaves so he will be able to open it on his birthday.
I started with a green card front which I embossed with distressed lines (SU) and sponged them a bit with a light coloured ink to give them more contrast.  Next, I  layered on a torn piece of hexagon decorative paper and added some fiber at the top of the card.  I created the flag and a rectangle using coordinating paper and cardstock and stamped them with a vintage image in dark green ink.  I layered the flag over the fiber and attached it to the card front at the top using three mini brads which I embellished with a sharpie marker to get them the right colour.  I added a colour printed label greeting to the rectangle and adhered it to the card front using 3D foam tape.  All is all, a relatively quick and easy card!!

Therese

Bridal shower - cards for a gift

I created a dozen of these cards as a gift for my cousin's fiance who is having a shower very soon!!  I used some blue and taupe shimmery decorative paper and glued it to a white layer.  I pressed them under weight to get them to lie flat and then die cut them with the smallest Decorative Label die (SU).  I cut them all differently so each card would be unique.  I tied white vintage seam binding on one of the sides using a double knot and added a triple layered flower embellishment in the opening with 3D foam tape.  The flower embellishments have two white silk flowers and one mini flower punchie in kraft adhered together using a tiny white brad.
I made them thinking that on these occasions people are often in need of Thank you cards but did not put any greetings on them in case they get used for something else.  This gal is very organized so I would not be surprised if she was already prepared with what she needed though if the shower is a surprise she may very well appreciate the cards.

Therese

Bridal shower card

My cousin is getting married in the summer and they are having a shower for his fiance so I thought I would make some cards for a gift.  This is the card I made to accompany the gift.  Here are the cards I created to give.
I printed the love birds (CLKER) along with the word Celebrate on vellum and attached the oval frame using very small pieces of double sided tape. I sponged the edges of the vellum with a little bit of pink ink and stitched it to my white card front using white thread.
I really like this image of love birds - it is a bit grungy but has nice hearts on the bottom edge of the cage.
I only noticed later than this oval was die cut at the same time as this one as the designed are embedded in each other.

Therese

Heart Thank you card

Made this card for a couple of special people which we were with a couple of weeks ago and I wanted them to know how much I appreciate their invitation to participate in their event.
I found this pink frame in my die cut stash and thought it would work very well over vellum so I went looking in my digital images to find something that would work for this card.  I found this tree (CLKER) and thought it would be most appropriate for the occasion.  I added a little Thanks near the bottom of the tree and laser printed it.  I glued the pink frame to the vellum using double sided tape and then trimmed the vellum to leave a bit of frame all the way around. I sponged the heart in the tree along with the edges of the pink layer.
This was a quick and easy card!!  Really like the way it turned out!!

Therese

More cards made with ATCs

I have made a few more cards with my supply of ATCs (artist trading card) collected over the last 20 years!!  I am very happy with the results of incorporating these little piece of art into cards.

For this card, I added the layered pumpkin image (stash) to the ATC  and added a green layer to the back.  The ATC was created using distress inks on a craft sheet.  I layered the green card front with some decorative paper with gold embossing and mounted my main element using 3D foam tape.  I added the Happy Fall laser printed greeting.

The ATC used for this card is the orange rectangle which illustrated a quick paste paper technique.  The double layered dragonfly image (stash) worked really well with it so I mounted it on the left and punched slots on the right.  I added a piece of fiber which I found with the dragonfly.  I used a red card front which I layered with this very cool wax crayon/wallpaper background.  It was a bit short so scallop punched the edge and layered in a strip of orange cardstock.  I ran the ends of the fiber to the inside of the card and adhered them with double sided tape.  Added a laser printed greeting.

I created the background paper for this card using a laser print of this scan from my sister Sylvia's blog.  I added blue and purple watercolour with a brush and later stamped it with a daisy (Magenta) in a dark purple ink.  I glued the decorated paper to a blue card, added the ATC and a colour printed greeting punched with the decorative label punch by Stampin UP.

What a wonderful little piece of art!!   I used a black card front, layered it with coordinating origami paper and added a black ribbon across it just below the half way mark.  I added a laser printed greeting to the ATC and adhered it to the card front using 3D foam tape.

This ATC demonstrated the shadowed faux batik technique in lovely shades of green.  I added a little leaf (partner to the pumpkins) with 3D foam tape to complete my main element.  I used a yellow card front and added a double embossed background in the perfect colours for this layout.  I adhered the main element to my card front using 3D foam tape and later added a layered greeting (laser printed window punch over a modern label punchie).

Another lovely ATC - faux tintype!!  I used an ivory card front, layered on a gold embossed decorative paper and tied on a gold cording.  I added the ATC and the punched greeting using 3D foam tape.

I have enough cards now to make up several packs of cards!!
I really love these cards!!

Therese

Cards made with ATCs

 I have an overflowing binder of ATCs which I have collected in the last 20 years!  Wow!  I cannot believe it has been that long!!

I have decided to create cards with some of them which I will be donating to a local event as a fundraiser.  It has been fun to go through the binder and remember the exchanges and the people!! Some of the people are still around and we have several Yahoo groups in common.  Others, I have not ``seen around`` for quite some time though they used to be very active.
For this first card, I simply added an alcohol ink background to a green card front and adhered the ATC over it.  I added a little oval (SU) laser printed greeting as well that overlaps the ATC and the background.  I was amazed to find a background that coordinated so well.

 For this card, I trimmed the two side edges of the ATC to the main image leaving an even margin all the way around.  I die cut a filigree circle (SX) out of gray cardstock, cut it apart and used the pieces to frame the ATC.  I really like how that worked out. The background is one I had prepared for another project and in the end decided to do something else.  It has the laser printed brick pattern (CLKER) on the left hand side and an embossed pattern on the right hand side which I created using a TH embossing folder and a small hammer to just emboss the area that I wanted. I sponged the embossed area and the edges with blue and black ink and added some black watercolour to the mortar lines.  I added a black ribbon through the arched openings on the sides and glued the ends to the inside front of the card.  I used my slot punch (SU) to make a very slight opening on the spine for the ribbon.

For this card, I used the ATC as it was created and added a copper key using a tiny copper brad.  I used two scraps of double embossed cardstock to create a background and layered a piece of coordinating vintage seam binding over where they joined.  Layered all the pieces onto a dark brown card front and added an oval (SU) sponged laser printed greeting.

 For this card, I also used the ATC as it was created, added a white on black stamped background (SU) and layered them to a pink card front.  I added a pink strip of cardstock over the join and added some faux stitching to it using a black fine tip Sharpie.  Found a laser printed greeting in my stash, added a black layer and adhered it to my card front using 3D foam tape.

 For this card, I used the ATC as it was created (scraped acrylic background), added some blue decorative paper strips to the side and flagged their ends.  I added a black ribbon and a laser printed greeting in the same manner as I did for these cards.

This card features a shaving cream background ATC.  I layered it onto pink, added green vintage seam binding and a laser printed greeting with sponged edges to create my main element.  I found some paper in my stash (left over from my clock project) that coordinated so cut some strips and used them as a background over a dark pink card front.

For this card I used the ATC as it was created, layered it over a white embossed background layered onto a red card front.  Added a long border punched greeting to finish it off.

I really enjoyed the process of using ATCs to create cards!!  I have quite a few more to go!!  Will get as many as I can done for this event and will do more for donation to another event when the need arises!!  I have quite a few cards to refurbish as well which will also be donated.  Being new to this community I will have to find an organisation who would be open to my donations.

Leave me a comment if donate refurbished cards to a local group!!  Look forward to hearing from you!

Therese

Paper cast card for a swap

Joined a swap on AFTCM which involved creating a card that featured a paper cast made out of toilet paper.  I have made paper casts from bond paper in the past but have never tried this method so I did a bit of online research and found this tutorial.  I used an unmounted Magenta rubber stamp which I placed design side up on a plate.  I placed one sheet of toilet paper over it and used a wet sponge to mould it to the surface of the stamp.  I repeated this process six more times.  To get fine details in the final piece it is necessary to really get the paper into the recesses of the stamp so I used a little brush to tamp down the paper and left it overnight to dry.
Once dry, I applied a little bit of watercolour to highlight the flowers, leaves and ribbon. I was careful not to add too much water as it would dissolve the details in the paper cast.  I dried it with my heat gun and sprayed it with hair spray to protect it.  I trimmed the outside edge into a large oval shape.
I used a dark pink card front, added a black label and mounted a blue embossed frame over it which had been cut with the same label die (SX).  I added a dark pink ribbon across the middle and glued my paper cast over it framing it nicely in the opening.  Paper casts created with this method would be prone to delaminating so I added a few stitches through the paper cast to attach it more securely to the card front.  To finish it off I added a layered greeting using a word window punchie (SU) over a modern label punchie (SU).  I did find some tutorials which recommended adding glue to the water you used which would help prevent the delamination and would add some strength to the paper cast which may be a good idea for next time.  On hindsight, I expect that chalk would have been a very effective way of adding colour as well.
It is always fun to try new things!!  

Therese

Candy Cane Christmas cards

A few more Christmas cards for my stash!!  I found these candy cane felt ornaments at a discount store a while back and thought they would be perfect for this month's Christmas cards.  I am working on making Christmas cards every month so I will have what I need by the time the first of December rolls around.
I traced the ornaments onto red cardstock, trimmed the shapes just a bit smaller when I cut them out and glued the felt ornaments to them using white glue.  Once they were dry I filled in the filigree spaces using red glitter glue.  I had to be careful to ensure that I did not get glitter glue onto the top of the ornaments - slow and easy was best.  Inspired by a red and white layout of Christmas cards in a magazine I took out of the library I decided to use just those two colours.  The polka dot and striped papers are from the same collection and I added a border punched (SU Eyelet) piece of white cardstock over the join between the two pieces.  I tied a short piece of red ribbon in the top hole on the ornament and glued it onto my card front.  I used a two step scalloped circle punch to create the red and white scallops and added a round stamped greeting (SU)  in red to create my layered greeting.  I glued it to my card front overlapping the white border using 3D foam tape.
These came together fairly easily and I really like the colour combination!!  I made six of them which brings my total to 60 so far this year.
If you are wanting to get started on making Christmas cards you should check out my sister's Christmas Card Challenge on her blog!!  

Winged Heart Cards

A couple of exchange cards!!  I had fun playing with these die cuts (TH) which I cut several years ago on a visit to Linda's house using the Tim Holtz Winged Heart die.  They have been sitting in a clam shell on my shelf and the other day I thought I would dig them out and see what I could create with them.  I found pieces cut from silver, gold, black, red and sheet music so started layering them and I came up with these two options. I layered the sheet music behind the hearts and filled them in with clear dimensional paint.  On the one, I embossed the red wings and highlighted them with black ink. I added rhinestones to the crowns using Sharpie markers on the clear ones on the right because I did not have any the right colour.  While my hearts were drying, I cut a couple of labels (SX) from handmade decorative paper (brown paper bag and coffee) I had made for this card.  I stamped them with different text backgrounds to give them a bit more texture.  I layered them onto black embossed layers which had been sponged with pigment ink and embossed with clear embossing powder.  I finally layered all theses elements onto kraft card fronts.  They needed a bit of something so I went looking in my stash for greetings that would work.  I found these little ticket ones that I had printed a while back and simply sponged them with ink to help them coordinate with the card elements and added them to the card fronts using 3D foam tape.  The greeting is from When the Scrap Hits the Fun.
I like the funky grunge look of these cards!!  I enjoyed stretching my creative muscles and creating something that is a bit out of the norm for me.

Therese

Serendipity card with 3D bee

Have been making cards for several exchanges I am participating in.  This one features a blue green serendipity background I made a while back.  I trimmed it to size and used my new Deco Framelits (SU) to cut a hole in the middle of it and attached it to my card front using 3D foam tape. For the center I layered a colour printed flower image onto white and adhered it in the space using more 3D foam tape.  I added a length of white vintage seam binding across the card layering it below the image and tied a short piece to the left hand side to simulate a bow.  I found this bee on my desk that was left over from this little book project and it looked perfectly at home with my flowers so I attached it to my card front using a piece of 3D foam tape.
So, this card has a lot of texture and dimension!! I will be sending it on its way in today's mail.

Therese

Paper and egg shell mosaic tag

I joined a tag swap on AFTCM where we had to make a tag with at least some green and use a paper mosaic technique.  I really like doing embedded paper shapes so I decided to use chevron punchies (SU) for the background of my tag.  After punching a variety of green chevrons from scraps I created a cardstock layer using a variety of green strips and then glued the chevron punchies onto the background in an orderly fashion.  To emphasize the chevron motif I embossed the background using a chevron embossing folder.  Because it is a tight design it embedded my chevron punchies very nicely into the background.  I punched the left hand side with my scallop border punch (SU) and cut a large black tag that it would fit on.   I have been wanting to try out the egg shell mosaic technique so I dug out a heart from my die cut stash and covered it with glue and egg shells - a little bit at a time.  I used white eggshells but am now thinking that brown eggs shells would give a very nice effect as well.  I left my mosaic to dry overnight and coloured it using red alcohol ink.  I thought it needed a bit more depth so I added red reinker and combined the two using alcohol on a cotton swab.  Once that was dry I sprayed it with hair spray to seal it and give it a nice glossy finish.   Once my heart embellishment was dry I started working on a layout.  Decided to add a strip of sheet music below the heart - it needed to be sponged with a bit of antique linen Distress ink to soften its look and highlight its torn edges.  I glued my heart on with double sided tape and moved on to my quote.  I used a set of alphabet punches to create my quote and used a fine tipped glue bottle to adhere them to the tag.  I added an ornate key charm next to the quote using a mini brad.  I added some handmade washi tape to the top of the tag and tied on four lengths of 1/8" ribbon.
Very happy with how it turned out and I love the texture and depth in the egg shell mosaic heart so I will be using that technique again!!

Therese

Card making with my granddaughter

 My eldest grand daughter was visiting for a few days and we made some cards!!  She is an avid crafter and loves to make cards.  I dug out basic supplies - cardstock, my stash of extra images, a few greetings and we got started.  Whenever I craft with her, I commit to using supplies she can manage, so we used coloured pencils on our images, decorative scissors and scissors for distressing our edges - a technique I taught her in a previous cardmaking session.  This time I decided to introduce the Big Shot and embossing folders.  She informed me that she uses embossing folders at home in the Cuttlebug so she felt comfortable with them.
For my first card, I coloured my sunflower image with coloured pencils and added a bit of a background while I was at it.  I trimmed the edge using "Deckle" decorative scissors, layered it onto a yellow rectangle which I distressed with my scissors.  I mounted this element to my embossed card front

 and added a colour printed greeting which I embellished with coloured pencil.

My second card features black and white decorative paper which we found on the inside of a used envelope when we were shredding paper for papermaking.  I coloured the image with colured pencils, added faux stitching to the edges with a fine tipped Sharpie marker and layered it over my decorative paper which is layered onto black and adhered to a white card front.  This image is from Beccy's. I left some place on the bottom in case I decided to add a greeting over and above the quote provided with the image.

 For my third card, I coloured my flowers (SU) with crayons, added some texture to the background with a green pencil crayon over the blue I had originally used to colour the background.  I added faux stitching with a Sharpie, layered it onto yellow and distressed the edges with my scissors.  I adhered my image to my blue embossed card front using 3D foam tape, added a strip of yellow cardstock below it and mounted my laser printed greeting over it.  This card is already winging its way to the US as a RAK to a wonderful lady getting ready to celebrate her 90th birthday.

For my last card, I lightly coloured this golfing image and added lots of colour to the border so it would pop a bit.  I trimmed it with "deckle" scissors, glued a greeting to the bottom edge and layered it over strips of green and black cardstock that simulate ribbon.
We had such a great time and did a wide variety of activities - went for walks, did some baking and cooking, made a few cards and lots of small sheets of handmade paper, played with Lego and Jenga blocks.   She is a wonderful little girl and I am fortunate to now live close enough to have her visit.  We will be doing it again!!

Therese

Hand decorated gift wrap

I decided that the gift I created for my god daughter needed some special gift wrap so I created some. She is a crafty person so I know that she will see the value in reusing the beautiful paper in her creations!!
I started with a piece of white heavy weight paper, used the items on the left - a piece of plastic canvas, some mesh, a swirly tile and a piece of white wax crayon  - to created some texture on my paper.  I simply place my item under the paper and rubbed my crayon (laying on its side) over the paper.  Just moved things around and kept rubbing until I had covered the majority of the surface area.

 You can see here with my paper at an angle the wax which has been applied to the paper.  You cannot see it unless you look against the light.  I love doing wax resist!!
So next I applied some colour washes in yellow and red until all the surface was covered and I liked the play between the two colours.  It left it to dry and used my left over acrylic paint to play on several other pieces of paper which will become decorative paper I will use in a another project.  Nothing goes to waste!!

Here you can see a section of the paper I created.  The white wax has resisted the colour and creates texture and design on the surface of the paper!  I have taken digital photos of my paper which I can use later for printing,in digital collages or mixed media artwork.  It is your work so why not record and use your own work in your art.

Very happy with this and I am off to wrap my gift!!

Therese

BEE Attitudes book

Our god daughter is being confirmed this week and I made her a little book to help her incorporate into her life the Fruits of the Spirit!!
The cover features the Law of Attraction which highlights the fact that you are the co creator of your life.  You use your thoughts, words and actions to create in the physical world.  The earlier in life that we realize that we are in charge of our lives and responsible for our choices and their consequences the sooner that we can consciously choose the thoughts, words and actions that will bring us what we seek in life.

 For these two pages, I laser printed the words and quotes onto a 4.25" x 11" piece of white cardstock. I sponged them with yellow, blue and green ink and used hand cut stencils to add some texture to the pages.  I folded it in half to create a page that is 4.25" by 5.5" and sewed the bottom and open side with my sewing machine which created a pocket.  I cut several tags (2" x 4.25") with "I choose" printed at the top which she can use to record her insights and for reminders to herself.  They can be stored in the pocket.

I found a version of the Fruits of the Spirit that was appropriate for her age and laser printed them on white cardstock.  I also created an affirmation tag for each of them that she can write on and store in the pockets created by the pages.  I wanted the theme to be BEE Attitudes and that is where these bees came in!!  Each page features flowers of some kind, a bee and one word.
I created each page, one at a time.  I started by embossing the quarter sheet, adding the flowers and embellishments and sewing on the word.  Once all my pages were finished, I placed a pair of them

back to back and sewed down both sides and across the bottom creating a pocket for the affirmation tags.  I had eight pages which gave me four double sided pages.  I added the bees with 3D foam tape once the pages were sewn.
For my first page, I embossed a quarter sheet of green cardstock with distressed lines, added some layered punchie flowers and finished them off with hand cut stems and leaves.  I sewed on my word.
On this page, I used a polka dot embossing folder (SU), added flowers created using red five petal punchies (SU) layered with yellow flowers with red circle punchie centers. I added some green swirls cut from a small die made by Sizzix.

 For this page, I added half of a white scalloped die cut (NS) on the left hand side and a layered die cut flower (SX) on the right hand side of the embossed cardstock.  The largest one on the back is from the Tattered flower die (TH) cut from shimmery hand decorated paper which I received in a prize package.  I sewed on the word.

For this page, I layered several scalloped circles (NS) and attached them to the embossed cardstock (QK) using a white mini brad.  I applied a piece of tape to the back of the cardstock so that the prongs would not interfere with getting the tags in and out.

 For this page, I added a layered die cut flower over the embossed cardstock (CB) and inserted a little leafed branch (SU) die cut just under its edge before sewing on the word.

 For this page, I added three layered flowers created using five petal punchies (SU) in red and blue flower punchies with yellow circle punchie centers over the embossed cardstock (SU) along with some little green leaves left over from cutting the swrirls and then sewed on my word.  For these ones I lined up the blue flower petals with the dips instead of the petals on the red ones.  It gives them a different look than the red and yellow ones above

For this page, I added two rows of black and white washi tape over the embossed cardstock and then sewed on my word.  I created a flower using a corrugated cardboard flower punchie (SU) layered with a red five petal punchie and several smaller circles for the center.  I added three green swirls which I cut with the small swirl die (SX) I used earlier.  I adhered it to my page using double sided tape.  This is my favorite page!

 This page features a large flower created using three scalloped circles and a couple of flower punchies.  I glued the flower over the embossed cardstock and then sewed on my word overlapping the flower.

The back page is blank on both sides and holds blank tags.  It is created using a 4.25"x 11" of white cardstock folded in half and sewed just like the front cover to create a pocket.  This will give her some space to do her own art and personalize her book.

I used my Zutter Binding machine to punch the holes  in all the page and used a 3/4" black wire binding to bind my pages together.  To add a bit of texture I tied some fibers to the wire binding.



I am hoping she will make the book her own by embellishing the pages, adding fibers and maybe some charms to the binding and making use of the tags.
I am very happy with how this little book has turned out and how quickly it came together.  I do admit I have been percolating this idea for some time and it certainly contributed to how quickly it came together.
We are so happy to be close enough to participate in this event and be there to celebrate with her family!!

Therese

Confirmation Card

Made this card for our god daughter who is being confirmed very soon.  I love the way it turned out!!   The decorative paper is from a Hawaiian paper collection I received from my daughter.  I love the colours.  I used several sheets from the same set to make my Mahalo cards last month.
The papers were cut and layered onto the red card front and the join was covered with a piece of lime green vintage seam binding with the ends glued to the inside of the card using double sided tape. I have always loved this very graphic image of a dove and knew it would be perfect for this card.  It is available for download from CLKER.  I laser printed it on white cardstock and watercoloured the image adding layers of paint until I got the intensity I wanted around the edges and a good blend where the colours met.  I sealed it with hairspray to keep the watercolour from rubbing off.  I created the little tag using a red tag die cut and a white circle punchie which I hand lettered with a fine tip Sharpie, watercoloured to coordinate with the card and then embellished with clear dimensional paint.  Once it was dry (overnight) I added a little hanger and attached it to my card by adding it to the knot when I tied a short piece of seam binding to the front to simulate a bow.
I love it when a project comes together easily, looks better than I had imagined it would and is perfect for the occasion and person it will be presented to!!

Therese