Card Concept Thanks

Hi friends! It's time for a new challenge at The Card Concept.  I took my inspiration for this clean and layered card from the dots and the bright, happy colors.

I pulled out the Making a Statement set, wanting to use the scallop frame to make a little thank you card.  I then stamped the flowers and cut them with the coordinating Loopy Blooms Die Set before layering them together.  I had intended to use an umbrella sticker from a sticker sheet I had, but it wasn't quite the right size, so opted to use the leafy stickers from the same sheet.  I embossed the background in polka dots, then layered everything up to finish off.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Be sure to hop on over to The Card Concept to see what the other designers are sharing today, then come play along with us.

Enabler's List
Stamps: Making a Statement (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Take Note (Doodlebug), watercolor paper
Ink: broken china, worn lipstick, fossilized amber distress oxides (Ranger)
Accessories: Rounded Scallop Frame Die, Loopy Blooms Die Set, Rounded Rectangle Die (A Cut Above by VERVE), leaf stickers (WRMK), dew drop, polka dot embossing folder (QuicKutz)

Little Ones Count

It's Monday again and time for a brand new Mojo Monday sketch.  Here's my take on it. Measurements are below. For more inspiration, hop on over to the Mojo Monday blog to see what the other designers are sharing today.

Teacher appreciation week at the boys' school is quickly approaching, so I thought I'd get a head start on my crafting.  I pulled out the Teachers Count  stamp set and stamped the numbers background on a circle die cut, then stamped the sentiment over it in black. I layered my papers, matting each with white, then decided to bring in a little pop of color with a red apple, stamped and then cut with the coordinating Apples Die Set.

I didn't measure when I made my card, but here are the measurement I used to create the sketch, if you like to have them. Thanks so much for stopping by today.

Card Base: 4.25" x 5.5"

Layer 1: 4" x 5.25"

Layer 2: 0.5" x 4" or ribbon

Layer 3: 2.5" x 3.5"

Layer 4: 2.5" x 2.5"

Layer 5: 2" circle

Enabler's List

Mojo Monday  494 Sketch

Stamps: Teachers Count (Verve Stamps)

Paper: Take Note (Doodlebug), watercolor paper

Ink: marina mist, real red, pear pizzazz (SU!), onyx black (Versafine), Copic marker

Accessories: Apples Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), circle dies (Spellbinders), ribbon (SU!), glassy glaze

Mojo Birthday Wishes

Hi friends! It's another Monday morning and that means it's time for a brand new sketch over at Mojo Monday. I hope you're inspired to play along - I always love seeing what everyone does with the sketch.

I started my card making a background with faded jeans and wilted violet distress oxides.  I did several layers, then brought in the flowers from Joyful Blooms, first stamping with water to lift some of the ink away, then coming back and stamping randomly in the same shades of blue and purple.  Lots of spritzing, some stenciled on texture paste and some splatters all went into the finished product.  I embossed the sentiment in white and used some of the leftover pieces when I cut my panel down for the vertical strip in the background.

The flowers are stamped onto watercolor paper in faded jeans and wilted violet distress inks. I then watercolored the centers with watered down distress inks.  The outer flowers are cut with the coordinating Joyful Blooms Die Set and the inner flowers are fussy cut and popped up on dimensionals.  I added some Sprightly Sprigs die cuts, dusted in glitter and a bit of cheesecloth to finish off the dreamy look to this.

For those of you who like measurements with your sketch, here are the dimensions I used to draw up the sketch...

Card Base: 4.25" x 5.5"

Layer 1: 4" x 5.25"

Layer 2: 0.5" x 5.25" or ribbon

Layer 3: 3.25" x 4"

Layer 4: 1.5" circle

Layer 5: 1.75” circle

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you have a fabulously creative week. For more inspiration with the sketch, be sure to hop on over to the Mojo Monday blog to see what the other designer's are sharing today.

Mojo Monday 493 Sketch

Enabler's List
Stamps: Joyful Blooms (Verve Stamps)
Paper: watercolor paper
Ink: wilted violet, faded jeans distress oxide (Ranger), Versamark
Accessories: Joyful Blooms Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), gesso, lace trim, polka dot embossing folder (QuicKutz), cheesecloth, glitter, white embossing powder, paper distresser, faded dots stencil, texture paste

Easter Basket Ensemble

Hi friends! Today I'm popping in with a few little goodies I made to fill the boys' Easter baskets. They've been super sick the last couple of weeks and were so bummed that they had to miss our annual Easter egg hunt at a friends house last weekend. So I thought I'd add a little bit of handmade goodness to their baskets.

I started with some quick little half size cards. I scored a 4.25" x 5.5" piece of tiptop taupe cardstock in half, then added some designer paper just a smidge smaller for the front of the card.  The tall bunny from Hip Hop Bunnies is stamped in early espresso and then colored with Copics and cut with the coordinating die from the Bunny Hop Die Set.  I stamped the Easter Wishes sentiment on a die cut circle, layered the pieces and was done.

Next I worked on some sweet little triangular treat boxes.  I had been thinking about something I could hide their little Lundt chocolate bunnies in and came across a tutorial from a couple years back by Sam at Pootles. I decided to leave off the extra mat around the designer paper because they're 5 and won't notice anyhow!  {grin}  I stamped and die cut the carrot and hand trimmed the some bunny loves you sentiment into a flag.  I finished off with seam binding ribbon.  My chocolate bunny was a bit thicker, so the bag doesn't close flush like in the tutorial, but I think it still looks super cute.

Finally, my boys are a little bit obsessed with post it notes. They like to make little notes and stick them up all over the house. So I decided to make some little post-it note holders like I had made a while back.  I used the same papers as the other bunny projects, stamping the Hopping by to say hi sentiment directly onto the designer paper.  The bunny is colored with Copics and cut with the coordinating die.

Post-it Holder Instructions:
Starting dimensions: 3.25" x 7.25"
Score at 3.75" and 4"
Use envelope punch board to punch at 0" and 2" on the 3.75" end (this will be your back panel)
Keep the same side up, but spin cardstock 180 degrees and punch at 0" and 2"
Use a paper trimmer or Xacto knife to cut off the excess to create the file folder look on both ends
Round the two right angle corners with the reverse punch on the envelope punch board
Decorate

I added a 3.25" x 2" strip of designer paper to the top inside of the back panel before punching, and then another strip of the same dimensions to decorate the front.

All in all, I think the ensemble turned out pretty cute.  I made up two of everything, and I'm excited to see what the boys think when they see them in their baskets.  I hope you all have a fantastic weekend! Thanks for stopping by today!

Enabler's List
Stamps: Hip Hop Bunnies (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Hello Spring (WRMK), tip top taupe (SU!), watercolor paper
Ink: early espresso (SU!), markers (Copic)
Accessories: Bunny Hop Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), stitched circles stax (MFT), envelope punch board (WRMK), seam binding (SU!), post-it notes, Lindt chocolate bunny

Java Joy

Hi friends! I'm popping in with a coffee card. I made this card a while ago after seeing a sketch on the Coffee Lovers Cardmakers blog.  With spring break and then sick kids home from school all but 1.5 days of the past 2 weeks, this is the first time I've had to blog it.

Anyhow, about the card... I found the perfect scraps from my pile for a clean and layered card and put the pieces together just so, then accidentally upended my Archival Black ink pad right on top of it. Whoooops! So then I had to bring on the grunge to try to cover it up.  The crafting session ended up with me accidentally upending that same black ink pad a total of FOUR more times!  I'm a slow learner, I guess.  (wink)

I loved the listen to your heart strip, and thought it paired perfectly with the java cup from Better With You. I paper pieced it, coloring it in with watercolor pencils to match the colors in my paper strips. For the side panel, I stapled two strips of patterned paper together with a tiny attacher and then accidentally dropped my black ink pad on it.  I stamped the coffee ring stamp along the side to cover up my booboo, but it felt too black and dark then, so I fingerpainted with gesso to try to soften the colors a bit. But once the gesso is out, no surface is safe from being grunged up in my book!  {grin}

I painted some gesso onto a scrap I cut from a coffee sleeve, then stamped the java joy sentiment and the coffee rings stamp to fill it up a bit. The back panel is crumb cake cardstock grunged up with walnut stain and vintage photo distress oxides with a bit of black and white prima oil pastels mixed in. To make each layer more distinct, I outlined them all with a black marks all stabilo pencil and then painted around them with a watercolor brush. A bit of distressing around the edges and my card was done.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Enabler's List
Stamps: Better With You (Verve Stamps)
Paper: designer paper scraps (MME and BasicGrey), coffee sleeve, crumb cake
Ink:  walnut stain, vintage photo (Ranger Distress Oxide), oil pastels (Prima), black Archival (Ranger), watercolor pencils (Prima), gesso
Accessories: paper distresser, heart punch (SU!), tiny attacher (IdeaOlogy), black marks all pencil (Stabilo)

Looking Up Card Concept

Hi friends! A new challenge kicks off at The Card Concept today.  We're welcoming some fabulous designers to our team, so head on over to give them a shout out and see what everyone came up with for this dreamy inspiration.

I loved those white flowers and had the idea to make a mixed media background and make little white dots of paint all over it.  So I painted a background on watercolor paper using broken china, spiced marmalade and worn lipstick Distress Oxides.  I spritzed with water and dried and reapplied until I was happy with the effect, then used some collage medium to adhere a piece of printed tissue paper to the front.

I had some make-up applicators that kind of look like q-tips that I came across in my craft closet, so thought they would be perfect to add some white gesso dots with.  I taped three of the q-tips together and then dipped in gesso and pounced all over my paper.  It wasn't as distinct as I was hoping for, but I like the cloudy, dreamy look it achieved, and didn't want to cover up all that pretty color with white!

I then used the spiced marmalade and worn lipstick to make another background to stamp and emboss the flowers from  Brighter Days in white on.  The inner flower is cut with the coordinating Scalloped Flowers Die Set and the outer flower is fussy cut.  I layered these on dimensional foam, then cut some white flowers using the Sprightly Sprigs Die Set.  I scraped a little gesso on these with the q-tips and dusted with glitter before layering over a big nest of thread.

The sentiment is also from  Brighter Days and embossed in broken china onto vellum.  I roughed up the edges, then stitched to my background before layering everything together and adding to my distressed card base.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you have a fabulously upward looking kind of day!

Enabler's List
Stamps: Brighter Days (Verve Stamps)
Paper: watercolor paper, vellum, white
Ink: broken china, spiced marmalade, worn lipstick Distress Oxide Inks (Ranger), Versamark
Accessories: Scalloped Flowers Die Set, Sprightly Sprigs Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), sewing machine, glitter, gesso, tissue paper (Ideaology), thread

Chosen Friend

Hi friends! It's Monday again. How was your weekend? Ours always seem to go by in a blink... these boys keep us going from sun up to sun down!  Another Monday morning means another Mojo Monday sketch. This one is a simple sketch with clean lines that you can dress up or down as your crafty soul desires.  Hope you enjoy it!  I'd love to see what you create.

I pulled out the newly re-released Love Deepens set and some scrap papers from my ever growing pile.  Loved the springy feel to them.  The God chose you sentiment is stamped in espresso ink on cream cardstock, then I lined up the Friend sentiment to finish the sentiment.  I hadn't done some sponge distressing in a while, so pulled out my trusty antique linen and walnut stain inks to distress all the panels.

While searching for the mini butterfly punch I used for the butterflies, I came across a bundle of tea dyed teeny tags and just had to use one.  Why is everything so much cuter in miniature? I masked off the world's in the world's best sentiment, and just stamped the best on the tag in cajun craze.  I added a bit of linen thread and tied in a bow.

The butterflies are stamped from coordinating patterns and I accented them with flatback pearls for the bodies and then a healthy dose of glassy glaze and glitter for the wings.  I little wide grosgrain ribbon finishes things off.

If you like the measurements for your sketches, these are the ones I used...

Card Base: 4.25" x 5.5"
Layer 1: 4" x 5.25"
Layer 2: 3.75" x 4.25"
Layer 3: 2.75" x 3.25"
Layer 4: I used 5/8" ribbon, but the sketch measurements would be 4" x 0.5"
Layer 5: 2.5" x 3.5"

Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you have a wonderfully creative week. For a little more inspiration with the sketch, hop on over to the Mojo Monday blog for a peek at what the other designers are sharing.

Enabler's List

Mojo Monday 492 Sketch

Stamps: Love Deepens (Verve Stamps)
Paper: dp scraps (MME), cream, vintage tea dyed tag
Ink: antique linen, walnut stain (Ranger Distress), cajun craze (SU!), espresso (Altenew)
Accessories: butterfly punch (Martha Stewart), glassy glaze (Ranger), glitter, ribbon, linen thread (SU!), flatback pearls

Birthday Blessings

Hi friends! It's the first Monday of a new month and that means it's contest time at Mojo Monday. Come play along for a chance to win a stamp set of your choice from Verve Stamps. We add a winner for every 50 entries, so enter as many cards as you like to increase your chances.

My card started out with these pretty little rolled flowers I picked up on a recent shopping excursion. I loved the colors together, so used three of them in place of the circle in the sketch and picked out some paper scraps to match.

For the sentiment I knew I wanted to use this birthday blessings stamp from the Love Deepens stamp set.  I misplaced the artwork for this stamp set a while back and had to discontinue it when we switched manufacturers. Happily, I recently found the artwork hiding in the recesses of my computer and was able to re-issue it.  It's available again in the shop and has some of my favorite sentiments for Mother's Day, birthdays and anniversaries.  So I stamped the sentiment on a white strip of cardstock and added a bit of the aqua houndstooth pattern as an accent before hand trimming the angle.

The butterfly is a die cut ephemera piece from Pink Paislee.  I watercolored using Altenew ink pads in colors to match the card, then added in some white gel pen accents to make things pop.  The card base is embossed with my favorite stars and swirls folder.

I rarely measure anything and choose sizes based on the stamps I want to use and the scraps I have on hand. But since I made my card first and then drew up the sketch, I happened to measure things out. Here are the measurements I used on the sketch if you like to have them.

larger rectangle panel - 3"x 4"

smaller rectangle - 2" x 3"

angled rectangle strip - 1.25" x 4.25" and trimmed to fit

circle - 1.5"

Thanks so much for stopping by today! For more inspiration with this sketch, head on over to the Mojo Monday blog to see what the other designers are sharing today.

Mojo Monday 491 Sketch

Enabler's List

Stamps: Love Deepens (Verve Stamps)

Paper: designer scraps, white

Ink: cool berry, ruby red, volcano lake, lagoon (Altenew), white gel pen

Accessories: stars & swirls embossing folder (Sizzix), flowers (Recollections), Nuvo Crystal Drops (Tonic), ephemera (Pink Paislee)