September Card Club - leaf cards with a paper clip and ribbon embellishment

For our second card I chose another leaf themed card which features embossed leaves (SU).  I love this punch because it makes such a large leaf!!  The leaf was layered onto two coordinating squares of cardstock which were layered and then the leaf added with 3D foam tape.  Then we added the round paper clip then slipped the ribbon into the side slot of the clip and secured the two ends to each other using double sided tape.  This leafy element was then added to our card fronts which had already been layered with our backgrounds of decorative papers.    Therese

 

September Card Club - Leaf die cuts tied with raffia and layered over a pieced background in fall colours and embellished with ribbon

It was so nice to be back to cardmaking with friends!!!! A wonderful evening of being creative together!!

For our first card we glued fall coloured rectangles to a background which had a very subtle leaf pattern.  We then added our gold lacy ribbon with double sided tape and over that we added the red and secured the ends to the back.  We adhered these large layers to our coordinating card fronts.  The leaf die cuts were embossed with the coordinating embossing folder (TH - Sizzix).  We tied our ivory raffia to the stem of the leaves and mounted them to our card fronts using 3D foam tape.  

Therese
 

All Occasion cards featuring a little frog and little bear with a balloon on layered backgrounds

 For the first card I trimmed a piece of coordinating background paper diagonally and adhered each piece in opposite corners on my green card.  I added little green dots in the gap using a pencil eraser and green ink.  The little frog (Clipartkey) was layered with a gold gift wrap and then a greenish brown cardstock which had distressed edges.  The frog was mounted to the card front using 3D foam tape.  

The second card features a cute little bear with a balloon (Pixabay).  Really like this image!!  I layered a foil pink paper and then a dark brown cardstock on the back of it.  I added a torn background paper to the red card front and then added the large focal element with 3D foam tape.  

Therese

Birthday card featuring a loon (digital) with a handpainted background

 I am making up a few cards for a friend who needs some for family birthdays!!  For this one, I trimmed the loon (CLKER) with a font greeting out of the sheet after it was laser printed.  I created the backgound using a piece I had prepared with Colourbox pigment inks a while back and added watercolour to it to create the landscape I wanted for my loon.  Next, I watercoloured my loon to reflect my background.  I added a black layer to my loon and adhered my background to a black card.  I added the loon to my card front using 3D foam tape and then added faux stitching to both of my elements with a fine tipped black Sharpie.  Really like how it worked out!!         Therese

All Occasion cards featuring cute little frong and elephants, ribbon and fun backgrounds

 The first card features a cute little frog.   I trimmed it close and added black dashes all the way around using a fine tip Sharpie. I trimmed a piece of coordinating decorative paper into a tag shape, added a black circle punchie which I punched with a hole punch.  I trimmed the bottom edge with a border punch (MS).  I trimmed a piece of coordinating decorative paper for my background.  I added the tag with the ribbon and secured the ends to the back with double sided tape.  I tied back on the trimmed end to simulate a bow on the front.  I added this large element to my coordinating card and then mounted my little frog on the tag over the ribbon using 3D foam tape.  

The second card features digital image of little elephants with balloons (Pixabay).  I paper pierced the four edges and layered them with a pale yellow like the balloons.   I embossed this elegant flourish (CB) in gray and mounted the image in the embossed rectangular opening!!  I mounted this large element to a pale yellow card!!  

Therese

All Occasion cards featuring florals, ribbon and metal accents

For the first card, I started with a handmade paper element featuring a stamped floral image (Magenta).  The image is embedded during the process of making the paper!!  Love the look!!  I watercoloured the flowers and added paper piercing to the edges.  I chose a hand decorated background from my stash which has a nice shimmery finish and embossed it with a floral embossing folder (CB).  I trimmed the bottom with an eyelet border punch (SU) and then added a burgundy gros grain ribbon just above the bottom edge.  I adhered the background to my card, added my floral image with 3D foam tape and used glue dots to adhere the little metal butterfly embellishement.  

For my second card, I started with a colour printed collage element featuring text and roses (Calico Collage) which I mounted on a shiny black cardstock and then added a little gold heart which I tied on with flimsy gold thread.  The background was trimmed, the flagged ribbon added and then mounted to a black card.  The focal element was added with 3D foam tape.  

Therese

All occasion cards featuring a cute little child with a sun balloon and some layered backgrounds

 I love this cute little child with its sun balloon (Pixabay) marching into its day!!!!  

Enough to cheer anyone up!!!

For the first card, I added paper piercing to the edges of hte image and then punched the left hand side with my ribbon/slots border punch.  I added red and yellow ribbon woven into the slots.  For my background I layered two pieces of torn decorative paper to piece of fun printed vellum and then adhered it to my sunshine yellow card.  I mounted the image with 3D foam tape.  

For the second card, I pape pierced the edges of the image using my pattern tracing wheel and then mounted to a piece of gray cardstock.  I trimmed the bottom long with deckle decorative paper scissors, embossed a line with my score tool, added three little yellow circle punchies and then little black dots with a fine time sharpie in the dots and all around the image.  I taped together a collage background of gray papers, mounted it to my yellow card and added my focal image with 3D foam tape.  So cute!!

Therese

Large all occasion card featuring a lacy heart, heart vellum and little red heart sequins

This large card started with a red base to which I added the shimmery hearted vellum.  I added the red lacy heart die cut with glue stick and then added, using 3D foam tape, the heart punchie (SU) which I embellished with shimmery paint.  To adhere the vellum to my card I simply added the heart sequins with tiny pieces of glue dots to the front and then added tiny pieces of glue dot to the back directly below those on the front so there is no glue showing anywhere.  It worked really well.  

Therese
 

Birthday card with a cute butterfly, paper flags and a coordinating botanical background

It is fun to make cards for grand children!!  For this one I started with an orange card and added this great botanical background which is not too busy.   I added the greeting and  flight path with a heart to the cute little butterfly from FLYCLIPART and then laser printed it.  Once trimmed from the sheet I distressed the edges and added four lines of paper piercing with my pattern tracing wheel.  I layered it with a green paper and then added little coordinating paper flags before mounting this large focal element to the front of my card.  It will make her smile!!

Therese
 

All Occasion Cards featuring a cute little bear (digital ), ribbon and layered & embossed backgrounds

 These two cards feature the same little bear (Pixabay).  They are a free digital which I colour printed a while back.  For my first card I added ribbon in two corners and then embellished them with square brads.  I added black dots using a fine tip Sharpie on the edges as well.  I layered this focal element on a heart embossed gray background which was layered onto a white card.  The second one I paper pierced with my pattern tracing tool then mounted it on dark brown paper.  I layered up a background using a dark brown strip in the center, then two strips of wavy edged yellow (tissue paper on freezer paper) and then green striped decorative paper.  All works very well together which highlights the versatility of these images!! 

Therese

All Occasion Cards featuring a gold embossed heart shaped leaf, some ribbon and decorative paper

 These two are from the same stash of card kits from May Card Club.  For my first card, I watercoloured and trimmed the heart leaf (Magenta) with deckle decorative scissors then layered it with green cardstock which I paper pierced with my pattern tracing wheel.  Added the little ribbon flags and mounted it to my card front which was embellished with decorative paper.  For the second one I added an extra layer of green and red cardstock in between the image and the layer, added the flags and used 3D foam tape to add it to my card front which was already layered with decorative paper.    Therese

All Occasion Cards - little embossed gifts with flagged ribbon for texture layered on coordinating backgrounds

 I found this kits from my May Card Club on my desk and made them up!!  They feature little gold embossed gifts (Hampton Arts) which I watercoloured, paper pierced with my pattern tracing wheel and then layered with coordinating cardstock.  I distressed the edges of the first one.  I added the little ribbon flags and mounted my focal element to my card front already embellished with coordinating decorative paper using 3D foam tape.  Therese

All Occasion Cards - flower and butterfly stickers on waxed backgrounds

These cards all feature flower and butterfly stickers which I bought locally.  The colourful square (3.5") waxed backgrounds I made a while back by melting wax crayons onto white textured wall paper.  Totally cool!!!  I watercoloured the stickers to coordinate with the backgrounds and then created cards around them.  The first one has an embossed front with torn decorative paper layered over it.  I added two little pieces of ribbon to the square before adding it with 3D foam tape.  The second one has a coordinating layer with a border punched edge.  I added a layer to the waxed square with a wavy edge on the bottom and some paper piercing above it.  

The third one has a turquoise background with a shimmery purple ribbon and I layered the waxed square with green cardstock.  The fourth one has a multicoloured cardstock layer on the back of the square, a shimmery purple ribbon and a pink polka dot background.  

Therese

 

All Occasion cards - torn background, watercoloured images - a cute bird & a tulip

 I am making all occasion cards for my stash!!!  These two feature digital images from MelonHeadz Illustrating.   I love her images and often print several at a time.  These came from my little box of extra images.  I watercoloured the images and then ran my pattern tracing wheel on all four sides. I layered them with cardstock and added a shiny layer to the bird between the image and the cardstock.   I added green oraganza ribbon to the little birdie one as there was enough space for it.  I trimmed the backgrounds shy of the four inches and tore them vertically before adhering them to the coordinating cards.  

Therese

Slow Stitching - one of a kind vest at the Ujaama Grandmas sale

 I bought this heavyweight vest at the "One of Kind Weareable Art" Ujamaa Grandmas sale last weekend.  This organization supports grandmothers in African who are raising their grandchildren because their children died of AIDS.  They are sponsored through the Stephen Lewis Foundation.  They had a wonderful selection of very unique garments and good amount of people interested in making purchases.  I love the colours and the hand stitching in French and English referring to the blue planet, blue skies and blue sea.  It has an inside pocket large enough for a phone and keys!!  I found two buttons in my daughter's button stash that remind me of sky and clouds and are the kinds of buttons we used to have when were were kids.  I will use them to create a unique tie in the front to keep the two sides together which will work well when the weather is a bit cooler.  

I am pondering creating a yellow brooch which will reference the yellow sun, the yellow canola and grain fields and the yellow fall leaves.  It will need a bit of green which would represent the tree lines which intersect the fields.  It is what I love most about living on the prairies and really says "HOME" to me.  Therese

Slow Stitching - last two apples

I have finally finished slow stitching the apples I started a while back.  I love how they look and am anxious to get them into a quilt though as of yet I do not have a plan of how that will happen or picked the fabric to put between them.  For the most part I had my stitching reflect the design in the fabric as to not provide too much distraction from the apples.  Stitching the stems in brown went well and I see that I have three leaves going in one direction and three in the other!!  A happy accident!!  

Therese

 

Slow Stitching - a little sewing kit in a case

This idea came to me a while back and after a bit of internet research I found that it is not a new idea!  Turning eye glass cases into sewing kits is such a good idea.  This small kit is best suited to small projects like I have been doing - 6" square or so.  It is easy to fold up the project and include the skeins of thread you are going to need.  The two buttons hold a rare earth magnet so there is always a safe place to put your needle. It includes a needle threader as well.   There is a wool layer on the bottom which easily keeps your pins and needles in place.  The little leather sheath covers a regular sized single edged razor blade and the little hole in the fold allows you to cut your thread safely in a jiffy!! All you need in a very portable and enclosed space!!  Perfect!!  Therese

Slow Stitching - little butterflies coloured with Inktense colours.

I worked on this project a few weeks ago and am just getting it blogged.  My daughter decided to experiment with Inktense pencils for adding colour to her embroidery designs.  After she ordered them we played with them for a bit at the lake while we were camping and again a bit more than past weekend while visiting for her birthday!!  

I had found this video by Helen Godden where she was using Inktense pencils on sized muslin fabric with very good success - no bleeding of the colour into the fabric.  Wanting to use fabric already in my stash I decided to see if I could replicate her results with homemade sizing.  I used a tablespoon of cornstarch to 3 cups of water which is a recipe I found on line.  I applied it to my fabric with a brush and let it air dry before ironing it smooth.  I did several pieces while I was at it.  

It ironed out very nicely and I used a gray Micon 01 marker (.25mm) to trace my butterflies (clipart laser printed on paper) onto my little strip of cotton fabric.  I had originally thought I should buy the lightest colour of gray marker (Michaels) but at the last minute changed my mind.  I should have kept to my first choice as this one was a bit dark.  In the end, I was able to add colour to the butterflies and with some care not have the colour run.  You can see below that the blue (#2) and the last one had the colour run a bit so the amount of starch/sizing was not enough to prevent the running of the inks.  I will keep at it and see if there is any level that will work.  After they were dry I used two strands of embroidery floss to stitch all the way around the butterflies and was able to cover the dark gray line with thread.  In the following photo only the red one at the top has been stitched but the last one has them all finished.  The ink becomes permanent on fabric after drying and/or being heat set.   Not sure where this little piece will end up but I expect there will be a few more experiments as time goes on.    Therese

Large sympathy card featuring a large red poppy, lace, ribbon and a layered greeting

This large card features a large poppy (Calico Collage) which I just love!!  It is coloure printed trimmed with a white edge and mounted onto a gray decorative paper.  I created a soft green card and added the soft background to it after adding a length of lace and a black ribbon.  I mounted the poppy using 3D foam tape and then added the layered greeting - printed greeting, large oval (SU) and a black scalloped oval (SU) - with it as well.  

Therese
 

Large all occasion cards with collage backgrounds, embossed vellum and little candles

 These cards are off to my Card exchange partners for the month of September!  They are large cards with collage backgrounds created right on the front of my cards - yellow and light aqua!!  I just used scraps from my stash and cut what I needed to make the collage happen.  Good scrap buster!! I don't usually create the background right on the card but it worked really well.  I watercoloured the candles to coordinate.  They are handmade paper focal elements which I made a quite a while back.  I used white bond paper scraps for the handmade paper base and added the images -  stamped on white tissue paper with black permanent ink -  before I couched the sheet which embeds the images perfectly and they do not show once the paper is dry.  I added white eyelets in the corners and then mounted these layers onto a light aqua scrap which I embossed (CB), scored a line using my Scoring tool, trimmed across the bottom with scallop decorative scissors and then used a push pin to pierce each scallop.  I found the three strips of paper in my scraps - two blues and a yellow.  I taped them to each other and then trimmed them into four, flagged one end and then mounted them on the back of the candle focal element.  Next, I embossed two strips of vellum (SU) and mounted them to the back of my large element and then mounted each of these to my card fronts!!!  Love how they turned out!!

Therese