Sunday, September 29, 2013

Card - Flip Card - 1st try

I bought a cool tool last week.  The new Sizzix Flip Card Framelit set of 11 dies.  I bought the circle one set with scallop sides. The card is cut with one framelit and it scores the fold lines.  Then the pieces to coordinate on both sides are the next 2 framelits you use to easily cut decorative paper with an even border.  Then you have all kinds of  options for your central element.  I then cut a piece from the same designer paper with the scallop circle, then a piece of deep purple card stock with circle and it created the small holes around the edge.  I stamped a flower in purple and punched it out with a 13/8 circle punch.  The set has many different layers you can choose to create a wonderful central image.

This is the back.  I added a piece of white bond for the person to write their sentiment since there is not much room in the fold. 




Here's the card open and standing.  This design does limit you to portrait orientation but it quick and easy. Check out your local scrap book store and see if they have these in stock.  I'm really happy with my investment.



Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Card - No Greeting Flower

I made this card to offer some options to a friend who has requested several.  It's similar to this one.  I chose a bright burgundy card.  I embossed the white background with Stampin Up! Pretty Print Textured Impressions Embossing Folder then rubbed it with a coordinating ink pad.  I layered 2 silk deep pink flowers onto the left hand side.  I then added a small white button held in place with a Zot.

Card - No Greeting

I'm working on cards with no greeting for a friend who has requested several.  The leaf is a nature print with a real maple leaf and acrylic paint that I made several years ago.  I dug it out of my stash and mounted it onto a coordinating card.  It still needed something so I punched a piece of wine card stock which had been painted with gold acrylic paint which the Stampin Up! Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch. This card stock was left over from this card.  I strung some gold cord through the last few holes on the right hand side.

Monday, September 23, 2013

Card Club - Thank You & Gift Bag

I made thank you cards to go with the note cards.
I started with an ivory card.  With another piece of ivory card stock, I applied Not Quite Navy ink to my Fancy Fan Letterpress plate and ran it through the Big Shot to transfer the ink and emboss the paper a little. I cut these down to size and adhered them to the card front.  I stamped the Thank You from the Terrific Tag Set in Not Quite Navy on ivory card stock. I trimmed it with scissors and glued it to a piece of NQN card stock and trimmed it again. I glued a piece of ivory grosgrain ribbon to the back and adhered the tag to the card front.

Here's I packaged the note cards. I color printed the words on white card stock and then cut them with the largest Apothecary Framelit.
Placed the cards inside this cool black and white striped bag, placed the die cut on the front and simply stapled it all together.  Keeps everything in place.  Very Good!



Card Club - Thank You

I have several Stampin Up! digital CDs.  There are rules as to how you can use them. It's OK to make cards and give them away so that is what I did.  I made these for Card Club as a thank you.
I used images from Eventful Year, Madison Avenue, Sweet Summer, Fresh Vintage and Feeling Sentimental.  I colored some of them and use some as they came. Printed them on small ivory cards. These are great to include with a gift or to give someone a pick me up.  I matched them with ivory envelopes left over from another project.  I hope the girls enjoy them!

Card Club - Sept - Fall Leaf

Here's my card to give a nod to the change in weather here.  I chose a terra cotta colored card.  The striped paper is one of these, I colored a while back.  I punched a piece of brown card stock with the Martha Stewart Double Edge Pine Needles Trim punch then glued it down carefully to ensure no glue appeared on the card front.  I trimmed it to the card edges, top and bottom.  I cut the maple leaf and acorn with the Stampin Up! Autumn Accents die.  The maple leaf from fall designer paper and the acorn from the same card stock as the border.  I added cap on the acorn with a sharpie marker.  I stamped the SU birthday greeting on the same card stock as the card in Chocolate Chip and punched with the Modern Label punch.  It is adhered to the card front with 3D foam tape.  

Card Club - Sept - DSP Paper Strips

I started with a white card.  I selected several strips of designer paper in purple tones.  I trimmed as needed to go across the card nicely.  I flagged the ends but they could just be cut at an angle.  These were adhered to the card front aligning the tops as shown.  I added a strip of solid card stock in a coordinating purple color.  I added a color printed greeting on top of the solid.  I added a couple of silk flowers in purple and white held in place with a purple brad.  This is a great scrap buster technique but it's a bit time consuming as each card has different solids, flower, and brads.

Card Club - Sept - Four Squares


I started with a taupe card which worked well with the designer paper I had selected.  I chose 2 designer papers which coordinated as I wanted to alternate them on this card. I chose a taupe script paper and a red, black and taupe floral which worked well.  I cut the DP with one of the framelits from the Stampin  Up! Apothecary Set.  This one I have not used as much as the others.  This set is worth getting!!! I cut a piece of background card stock in a coordinating color in this case black. The piece is 3.75" square.  I printed the large birthday greeting in a coordinating color, for this card in black. I glued the black background square to the top of the card front. I decided to 3D and add some focus to one of the wavy squares.  I punched a coordinating daisy and mounted it to the bottom right hand square with a red brad.  This square was then mounted with 3D foam tape to the background square.

Card Club - Sept - Bold Circle Trio

I started with a Kraft card which worked with the center circle.  I stamped the greeting in blue ink that worked with the center circle.  I used the Stampin Up! You're Amazing Happy Birthday single stamp greeting. Love that cling mount.  I added a strip of white textured card stock above the greeting.  I punched a green textured card stock 1.25" circle and a blue circle same size.  I added texture to the blue one with the Cuttlebug Traffic Jam embossing folder. I glued the three circle evenly across the card. 

Saturday, September 21, 2013

Challenge - Card - Christmas Tree

I'm submitting this card to the current challenge at 52 Christmas Card Thrown Down which has a theme of Christmas Trees.

I started with a white card.  I cut a piece of decorative paper with is double sided - white and red chevron and solid red on the other.  I cut it into a 1/3 to 2/3 split and taped the pieces back together.  I was going for a country feel so I added the greeting in a cross stitch font color printed on white.  I added a button on the left with a glue dot.  I added a die cut Christmas tree (Sizzix yellow die) in dark green on the right hand side.  I added a ripped snowbank on top of the tree trunk and trimmed to the card edges.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Card - Challenge - Color Combo

I made this card for color challenge.  I chose the dark green, the plum and the eggplant color. 
I selected a dark green card.  I cut a piece of designer paper with the right muted tones of plum and stamped it with a leaf in Handsome Hunter ink to create a background which connected to the green card. The stamp I bought at a garage sale so I have no credits as to designer.  I trimmed the DSP to leave a small border.  I made a Stampin Up! Decorative Label punchie in the same green as the card.  I added an offset in the deep eggplant color.  I cut an oval in the plum with my Creative Memories oval cutter.  The greeting is printed in green on white and cut the the next size down in the CM oval cutter. The greeting has been mounted with 3D tape. I've included the color combo image I was working with.

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Photo - Royal Tyrell Musuem - 25th Anniversary

I took a trip to Drumheller this week specifically to visit the Royal Tyrrell Museum. I've been visiting this area of Alberta for years and I've visited the museum at least 4 times. The museum celebrated their 25th Anniversary in 2010.   It is never a disappointment but this visit was excellent.  They have added an education centre, a garden, programs, more hands on exhibits, some fun stuff and some exhibits feature mirrors which I thought was an excellent addition!
The top photo is the great Tyrannosaurus Rex found in southwestern Alberta by 2 teens fishing.  Insects in cased in amber, a fern from the Cretaceous Garden, underwater creatures from the Burgess Shale made 12 times larger than their actual size.  The Mosasaur was a marine reptile like a crocodile that lived in the Bearpaw Sea which was an inland sea that spread from the Arctic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico during the Cretaceous Period, essentially splitting North America in half. Taking the photo was difficult as the area was darken as in underwater.  The Stegosaurus rounds out the set of photos in the bottom right.

Saturday, September 14, 2013

Photos - Trip to Drumheller


I took a trip to southern Alberta this week, mostly to see the Royal Tyrell Museum - more about that in the next post. I chose not to travel on the QEII and took the smaller highways to Drumheller.  What a pleasant drive!  The sun is shining, the water holes are full reflecting the blue sky, the birds are swimming and I totally enjoyed the day!  It was hot so I'm glad I got an early start.

I love the top left shot which is cresting the hill on Highway 56 and all of a sudden you are in a different world. The swan was in Camrose on Mirror Lake.  The wind turbines were near Torrington, AB on Highway 27. The grain harvesting was in full force in this area.  The train was in Stettler.  The patio is at the McDougall Lane Bed and Breakfast.  Great place.

Is that a bone in the mud in the background? See just above Drumheller, I think so.  I did not see it when I took the picture but there it is!

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Calendar - Damask Gift Calendar for Christmas Giving

I up-cycled this Damask calendar with all you need to quickly finish the calendar.  I added decorative photo corners cut with the Cricut and the Picturesque Cartridge.  I've cut them from metallic and pearl card stock.  I've combined
the silver and gold,
the white and blue and
the copper and black.
I then added enough mounting squares to adhere the photos and the corners.  Ready to go!  Just add your pictures.  The kids, the trip, the celebration, the anniversary, the wedding pictures or anything else you can think of or what to remember!  See my calendar page for further details.

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Calendar - 2014 Tall & Slim for Gift Giving

My 2014 Tall & Slim calendar is ready.  This calendar allows you to create a gift in a jiffy!  Add thirteen 4x6 photos and it's ready!
I used black card stock.  Printed the calendars on 24lb bond paper and trimmed to size. Added a Zutter binding. You can check my calendar page for more details.

Monday, September 9, 2013

Photo - Devonian Botanic Gardens

I took a trip to the Devonian Botanic Gardens on the weekend.  It's a large property and a good thing I went early as it rained later in the day.
The background for this collage is a copper pot in the Arid show house which had this terrific patina on it.  I do water drops every chance I get and they had just irrigated so there were plenty.  The Koi fish is in the brook in the Kurimoto Japanese Gardens.  I've been trying all kind of options with my camera and this one worked out really well. The fish was about 12" long. I saw 4 different ones in the waters there. In the Butterfly show house I got this pic of a very nice warm colored butterfly.  He was just sitting there so I got a lot of shots.  The bottom picture is of course Bird of Paradise.  I think this is the first one I've seen in real life.  It's beautiful. 

Friday, September 6, 2013

Card - Challenge - Text

I made this card for the Home Card Challenge on CST.  The challenge is to include text on the card.  I chose the new Stampin Up! Pretty Print Textured Impressions Embossing Folder on white card stock.  I rubbed the raised parts with a navy ink pad.  Trimmed it to leave just a small border and adhered it to the card front.  I mounted a layered silk flower arrangement of 4 layers just to the left of center.  I chose a gold brad to hold the flowers to the card front.  Love this color combination. 
I hope Yahoo works out the kinks in this upgrade they have rolled out.

Sunday, September 1, 2013

Gift - Sewing Note Cards

I made these note cards for my niece.  I found these wonderful envelopes with sewing patterns on them and decided to make cards to go with them.  I searched on line for vintage sewing patterns. The art work on these patterns is quite remarkable. I selected 4 that coordinated with the greetings I had selected. Then I added the "sew" greetings to them.  The cards are smaller than A2 so I cut down my card stock then color printed them on the white cards.  I think they look fabulous.  She sews so I hope she likes them.

Card - Flourish Birthday

I made this card for my niece's birthday.   I'm going to see her today so I thought I would get a card ready.  I started with a warm brown card and I added a layer of DSP from a scrap and I don't have the credit information.  I tied a piece of caramel seam binding to the this piece, taped the ribbon on the back to keep it in place then adhered the layer to the card front.  I cut a piece of the same paper as the card with the Stampin Up Deco Label framelit.  I added a Spellbinder Scallop Oval (large) in the same paper as the background layer.  I stamped a butterfly on a piece of ivory card stock and cut it with the corresponding SB Smooth Oval.  This layer was all assembled then mounted to the card front with 3D foam tape. 

Christmas Card Challenge - Sept - Foliage

The theme for my Christmas Card Challenge for September is Foliage.  That could be Poinsettia, Pine Boughs, Trees, Wreaths, Holly & Berries, Pine Cones, Mistletoe, Evergreens, and much more. 
I chose boughs for my card.  I started with an ivory card. I put a piece of muted striped DSP onto it.  I stamped my ornament with warm red ink on the same ivory card stock.  The ornament is from the Stampin Up! Tags till Christmas set.  I punched out the ornament with the matching punch. I wrapped a piece of ivory crochet cotton around the hanger, knotted it then adhered the ornament to the card front with 3D foam tape. I pulled the string up and placed a hole in the card front aligning so it would be covered by the bough later.  I pulled both ends of the strings through the card front and taped them to the inside.  I cut the bough from warm green card stock with the Impression Obsession die of a branch/bough (DEI021-N). I chalked it with a couple different shades of green to add some depth. I glued it to the card front with quick dry adhesive applied with a small pointed tip making sure to cover the start of the string. It needed something more so I added 3 small dots of ivory card stock on the right hand side.