Wednesday, June 29, 2011

The Tree of Life

I had a request for a set of masculine Sympathy cards. I kept them very simple and focused on color.

I was picking through my stacks of paper and pulled out the Walk in the Park DSP. Both of the patterned pieces are from this pack.


The leaves on the Old Olive print were a perfect match for the tree. Old Olive pairs nicely with Chocolate Chip, so I used that as the base.

The gray print that I used on this card is one of my favorites. I know gray is a neutral color, but I love to use it when designing. It's so pretty!

It's often during sad times that we need to send a sympathy card, but sending one that is handmade with your personal thoughts or memories may be something the recipient cherishes. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Thoughts & Prayers
Paper: Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Basic Gray, Going Gray and Whisper White Cardstock; Walk in the Park DSP
Ink: Chocolate Chip & Basic Gray Classic Ink
Accessories: Lots of Tags Die, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Puppy Love

When you think of puppies, what do you think of? Puppy breath, toys, lots of licks and...lots of newspaper. Carrie Gaskin over at Artistic Avenger ran with the idea of newspaper and incorporated the Newsprint DSP into her card.

How cute is that? Of course, I needed to do my own version ;) I took her basic design and switched it up a bit. That scalloped square in the middle? I made that using my Scallop Edge Border Punch. So, if you don't have the die, you can still make it work.

I love all the little pieces of this card and how they come together. Hope you like it too! Thanks for stopping by.

Stamps: D is for Dog
Paper: Poppy Parade, Crumb Cake & Very Vanilla Cardstock; Newsprint DSP

Ink: Chocolate Chip Classic Ink
Accessories: Petal Cone Die, Scallop Edge Border Punch, Circle Nestabilities, Brown Gingham Ribbon, Brown Brad, Sponge and a Hole Punch

Saturday, June 25, 2011

D is for Dog

If you've ever had a pet and lost one, you know how hard it can be. Having a great vet and vet hospital is helpful during this difficult time.

One of my customers has just gone through this and wanted a thank you for her vet and the hospital that helped her. I came across this card from Carris Gaskin over at Artistic Avenger and thought it would be perfect.

If you noticed, I actually stamped on this petal cone. This stamp set has little paw prints and I thought they would add the perfect touch. Hope you like it!

Stamps: D is for Dog
Paper: Crumb Cake, Chocolate Chip and Whisper White Cardstock; Sweet Pea DSP
Ink: Crumb Cake & Chocolate Chip Classic Ink
Accessories: Petal Cone Die, 1/16" Circle Punch, Green Brads, Circle Nestabilities, Chocolate Chip Grosgrain Ribbon and a Hole Punch

Friday, June 24, 2011

Pumpkin Spice & Something Nice

Orange is not one of my favorite colors...it's often just a bit too bright for me. It was definitely not so in this case.

I saw a card similar to this one, where the designer trimmed down a sheet from the Sweet Pea DSP Pack. (Unfortunately I didn't save the link.)

This button is a Designer Big Button. They are quite larger than a standard button, but as a focal point on a card, they work. I pulled my ribbon through the holes and tied a knot. Love the look! Hope you like it too ;) Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Afterthoughts
Paper: Chocolate Chip & Sweet Pea DSP
Ink: Chocolate Chip Classic Ink
Accessories: Petal Cone Die, Fun Flowers Die, Scallop Trim Border Punch, Designer Big Buttons-Sweet Stitches, Brown Button, Sheer Brown Ribbon, Orange Ribbon, Linen Thread, Hole Punch and a Glue Dot

Thursday, June 23, 2011

A Pixie Pinwheel

OK, enough of all that masculine stuff! Here's a fun summer card using the pinwheel technique that I've seen popping up everywhere.

Although it looks very tricky to make, it's actually so easy. The hardest part for me, was finding a patterned paper that I liked the front and back of for the pinwheel design.

1. You're going to cut a square the size you want your pinwheel to be. This one is 3"x3".

2. Next, you take a pair of scissors and cut toward the center from each of the corners-Do Not cut all the way to the center. You want to leave some uncut paper.

3. Fold one corner toward the center and press on the back edge. Continue this clockwise until all of the ends overlap in the center.

4. Lastly, grab your paper piercer, pierce through the edges in the center of the pinwheel and add a brad. This holds everything in place.

These are so fun to make and you can make them different every time! My design kind of resembles a present. Too cute! I would love to see your pinwheel if you decide to make one, so be sure to leave me a link. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Bring on the Cake
Paper: Crumb Cake & Sweet Always DSP
Ink: Chocolate Chip Classic Ink
Accessories: Scissors, Paper Piercer & Mat Pack, Brown Brad and a Glue Dot

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

I have a great dad!

This is the card my son gave to my husband for Father's Day. These images were the reason I bought these stamp sets. My husband isn't really into golfing, hunting, boating or most other themes that masculine stamp sets come in.

What my husband does have an appreciation for is art. We both enjoy abstract art, so these images are perfect for creating mini works of art. You could make the same card in different colors and it would have a totally different look.

I promise this will be my last masculine card for a while. I have some super pretty girls stuff coming up! Thanks for stopping by.

Stamps: My Hero, My Father (Non-SU!) & Grunge Me (Non-SU!)
Paper: Wild Wasabi & Whisper White Cardstock
Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive, Garden Green & Basic Gray Classic Ink
Accessories: Corner Rounder & Dimensionals/Pop Dots

The Best Dad

This is the card I gave my husband for Father's Day. It is a CASE of another Nichole Heady card. The simplicity of the card is perfect for a masculine theme.

My colors on this card: Pear Pizzazz, Old Olive, Baja Breeze and Not Quite Navy. These all pair up so nicely together.

I'm not sure if you noticed or not, but I pulled out my Scorepal and scored a couple of lines on the bottom of the card. It's perfect for a masculine card in the sense that it adds some dimension without adding ribbon ;)

Hope you like it!

Stamps: My Hero, My Father (Non-SU)
Paper: Not Quite Navy & Whisper White Cardstock
Ink: Pear Pizzazz, Old Olive, Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy & Basic Gray Classic Ink
Accessories: Scorepal & Dimensionals/Pop Dots

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Pop Art Dad

Doesn't this look like a piece of Pop Art? I think so...all the fun colors and a bit of grunge! This is another CASE of a card made by Nichole Heady. She has such a great sense of style.

Although the stamp sets used on this card are not SU!, all the paper and ink are. I originally went with more muted earth tones for the different colors, but ended up with these brighter ones: Real Red, Only Orange, Daffodil Delight, Green Galore, Basic Gray and Tempting Turquoise. I love the pop they give against the Basic Gray.

Hope you all had a great Father's Day!

Stamps: Grunge Me (Non SU!) & My Hero My Dad (Non SU!)
Paper: Real Red, Only Orange, Daffodil Delight, Green Galore, Basic Gray, Tempting Turquoise and Whisper White Cardstock
Ink: Basic Gray Classic Ink
Accessories: Alpha Blocks Die (Non SU!) and Dimensionals/Pop Dots

You Rock!

Who says Petal Cones are only for girls? I think this one proves that theory wrong. I got a request for a male teacher thank you card and petal cone. There are no buttons or bows...so it's perfect.

This is one of the few non-SU! stamp sets that I have. I saw all the fun geometric images and had to have it.

This is a CASE of a Nichole Heady card. I kept the design exactly the same, I just changed the colors. I settled on Marina Mist and pulled out my trusty Color Coach to see what would coordinate. Old Olive was one of the 'Getting Started' combination colors. Pair it up with Basic Black and you have a masterpiece.

I had fun playing with all the designs in this set. Hope the teacher loves it!

Stamps: Grunge Me
Paper: Marina Mist, Basic Black and Whisper White Cardstock
Ink: Marina Mist, Basic Black and Whisper White Classic Ink
Accessories: Petal Cone Die, Paper Piercer & Mat Pack, Circle Nestabilities, Hole Punch and Black Satin Ribbon

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Simple Beauty

Well, I think I saved the best for last. This set was my favorite of them all.

It was inspired by this card that Jen Sannes made over at SCS. I kept the same simple design, but gave it a couple Julie touches.

What drew me to this card was her subtle use of color. She had used Dusty Durango for her pop of color, but I chose to use Rose Red. I adore this color and as you can see, it works perfectly with the Soft Suede and Very Vanilla. They are a match made in heaven *swoon*.

A button finishes off the card. I have never had much luck securing buttons over the ribbon, so luckily, this button lended itself to being tied with my ribbon. I ran the ribbon up through the holes and tied a knot. Love it!

This card would be great for any occasion, but for me, it's definitely the perfect wedding card. I just happen to have one coming up, so I see myself making another.

Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Warmest Regards
Paper: Soft Suede, Rose Red & Very Vanilla Cardstock; Thoroughly Modern DSP
Ink: Chocolate Chip Classic Ink
Accessories: Petal Cone Die, Fun Flowers Die, 1 3/8" Circle Punch, Paper Piercer & Mat Pack, Brown Buttons, Chocolate Chip Satin Ribbon, Very Vanilla Satin Ribbon, Linen Thread, Hole Punch and Glue Dots

Friday, June 17, 2011

Packed with Polka Dots

What girl doesn't love some polka dots? I sure do and when I saw this cute little ensemble, I knew I had to recreate it.

I was talking to a girlfriend last night and she's considering buying some basic supplies to get started with card making. It got me thinking, what are the necessities?

I made a few teacher thank you cards last year with a friend who had grabbed what she had and headed over: cardstock, ribbon and flowers. She had gotten all of these for free at a Bazzill warehouse clearance and didn't know what to do with them. We put together a simple design similar to this one and they were a hit. All she really needed from me was a little guidance and a stamp.

If you are considering card making, look around your crafty space and you may already have some of these basic supplies. You may just need that go-to stamp set. SU! has plenty of those and I'd love to help you pick one out. Feel free to email me if you need a creative director. I'm your girl! Thanks for stopping by.

Stamps: Afterthoughts
Paper: Basic Black & Very Vanilla Cardstock; Love Letter DSP
Ink: Basic Black Classic Ink & Vintage Photo Distress Ink
Accessories: Petal Cone Die, Fun Flowers Die, Scallop Border Punch, Black Satin Ribbon, Linen Thread, Fabric Flowers, Clear Rhinestone Brad, Red Button, Sponge and Glue Dots

Thursday, June 16, 2011

So Saffron Savvy

My card was inspired by this beautiful creation by Mercedes Weber. The simple design and color scheme define sophistication.

This print is from a sheet in the Sweet Pea DSP pack from a while back. Many of us have it, but how many of us use it? It is full of fabulous prints, both masculine and feminine. Many of the sheets, like this one, can be trimmed up and used as the base for your card.

I would have never thought to pair up So Saffron, Basic Black and Crumb Cake. Thank you Mercedes for inspiring me to try something new. I hope you all like my take on it. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Clearly for You
Paper: Crumb Cake & Basic Black Cardstock; Sweet Pea DSP
Ink: Basic Black Classic Pad
Accessories: Petal Cone Die, Fun Flowers Die, Scallop Trim Border Punch, Corner Punch, Hole Punch, Paper Daisy, Designer Buttons-Subtles, Black Satin Ribbon, Linen Thread and Glue Dots

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

No 147: Bashful Bird

I got the inspiration for this card from the fabulous Jackie Wright. You can see her card here. She made her card in about 64 seconds, mine took a little longer.

First, I switched up the base color and went with Bashful Blue. It needed a vintage-y look, so I inked it up. For this technique, I opened up my stamp pad and just started dropping it on the cardstock in different directions. I did the same for the petal cone before I assembled it. This gives it a different look that what a sponge does. I think that worked better for coordinating with this piece of DSP.

Next, I stamped the bird from the Nature Walk set and cut it out. It was then popped up with pop dots to give it some dimension. Finally, I added a layer of Early Espresso, some Rik Rak and it was done.

Once again, this print is from a whole sheet of the Botanical Gazette DSP that was just trimmed down to a portion that would fit a card. It doesn't get much easier than that ;)

Hope you like it!

Stamps: Nature Walk & Because I Care
Paper: Bashful Blue, Early Espresso & Very Vanilla DSP; Botanical Gazette DSP
Ink: Early Espresso Classic Ink
Accessories: Petal Cone Die, Fun Flowers Die, Large Oval Punch, Hole Punch, Brown Button, Linen Thread, Shear Brown Ribbon, Brown Rik Rak, Dimensionals/Pop Dots and Glue Dots

Monday, June 13, 2011

The Cherry Cobbler Gazette

This card is a CASE of Ilina Crouse's card seen here. The design was simple and the colors were gorgeous! See those yummy red raspberries, that print is trimmed down from a full sheet in the Botanical Gazette DSP.

To go along with the card, I created a coordinating petal cone. The vanilla was a little plain, so I spruced it up by stamping a butterfly on the cardstock before putting it together. It's adds a nice little touch.

On a final note, did you notice anything different about the flower on the petal cone? There's a brad in the center and it's one I've never used before. It's taken a year, but I finally ordered the Antique Brads. This brad added the prefect vintage-y feel to the design.

Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Nature Walk & Because I Care
Paper: Cherry Cobbler & Very Vanilla Cardstock; Botanical Gazette DSP
Ink: Cherry Cobbler Classic Ink
Accessories: Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch, Petal Cone Die, Fun Flowers Die, Antique Brads, Cherry Cobble Seam Binding, Mat Pack & Paper Piercer and Glue Dots

Sunday, June 12, 2011

SC336: Shades of Spring

I got a request for (6) teacher thank you sets: one coordinating card and petal cone. So, I sat down and went through all my papers to find patterns that would work for both.

This first set uses the Shades of Spring DSP.
The colors are fun and fresh and work
perfectly for my customer's request for something Spring-y.

My inspiration for the card was this sketch challenge over at SCS. This was an easy one. I just needed a pattern that would work on its own.


If you follow my blog, you know I LOVE to make these petal cones, so I am enjoying making them with different colors and DSPs. I hope you like them...thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Swirls & Curls Verses
Paper: Orchid Opulence & Very Vanilla Cardstock; Shades of Spring DSP
Ink: Orchid Opulence Classic Ink
Accessories: Petal Cone Die, Fun Flowers Die, Mat Pack & Paper Piercer, Purple Buttons, Linen Thread, Very Vanilla Satin Ribbon, Hole Punch and Mini Glue Dots

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Nursery Suite-Baby Girl

This is the companion to my Nursery Suite set for a Baby Boy that you can see here. I had a request for a Baby Girl Altered Composition Book and this is what I put together.

I love playing with papers and colors and making these books allows you to do both. This is made with the Nursery Suite DSP that includes this Regal Rose Circle Doily and a Baja Breeze Square Doily.

If you are a scrapbooker, this paper pack would be a perfect addition to your pages. It is currently on the Last Chance list and will be gone once it's out of stock. Email me or check out my website to order this item. It works perfectly with feminine or masculine projects. Hope you like it!

Stamps: Whimsical Words & A New Little Someone
Paper: Regal Rose, Barely Banana and Very Vanilla Cardstock: Nursery Suite DSP & Sweet Stitches DSP
Ink: Regal Rose Classic Pad
Accessories: Swiss Dots Embossing Folder, Slim Jim Sizzlets, Scalloped Edge Punch, Paper Piercer & Mat Pack, Yellow Brads, Pink Rik-Rak, Yellow Tulle and Dimensionals

Monday, June 6, 2011

My Sew Pretty Butterflies

It finally happened, I got together with my sweet friend Nicole and we broke out her sewing machine. How fun! I think I could be hooked. I also think I know what I want for my next birthday present (psst...hint to the hubby ;)

I went through all my card samples to gather some ideas, but I settled on a card I saw in the Occasions Mini. That card used various sized hearts that were stitched up the middle. I switched it up and used butterflies. I think they worked perfectly with this DSP.

This was also the first time I used River Rock on a card. Up until now, I considered it a neutral color, but now I see it as a really pretty light green.

Have I inspired you to add some sewing to a project? If I have, I'd love to see it. Be sure to leave me a link. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Tiny Tags
Paper: Always Artichoke, River Rock, and Rose Red Cardstock; Springtime Vintage DSP
Ink: Always Artichoke Classic Ink
Accessories: Sewing Machine, Thread, Scallop Edge Border Punch, Jewelry Tag Punch, Beautiful Butterflies Die, Buttons, Embroidery Floss, Linen Thread and Small Glue Dots

Sunday, June 5, 2011

SC335: All Pieced Together

I promise that my next post will have different colors than green and brown...ha ha! What can I say...when you're inspired, you gotta roll with it.

I saw this sketch challenge over at SCS and was up for the challenge. You needed to take three patterned papers and piece them together to create a frame. I chose the Woodland Walk DSP because the whole pack has the same color combo, so it would be easy to coordinate.

I created my frame first and then worked on the rest
of the card. This one did not come together easily. I sat down with it on three different occasions over a
couple of days.

I struggled the most with the focal image. I was going to stamp it, but couldn't find anything I liked. I tried the owl punch, that didn't work either. I finally pulled out the XL Fancy Flower Punch and that was the ticket. I think it pulls everything together. The sentiment is from Bella's Bloom. This has truly become one of my favorite all-time stamp sets because it is so versatile.

I love how it turned out and I hope you do too. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Bella's Bloom
Paper: Early Espresso, Wild Wasabi and Very Vanilla Cardstock; Woodland Walk DSP
Ink: Early Espresso Classic Ink
Accessories: XL Fancy Flower Punch, Paper Piercer & Mat Pack, 3/4" Circle Punch, Brown Button, Linen Thread and a Small Glue Dot