Penny Black: For you - boy's 8th birthday card

Hi blogging friends!  Thanks for stopping by :-)

I made a quick little card for my girlfriend's son's 8th birthday.  I was very inspired by Susan Raihala's children's cards on this post here on her blog:  Simplicity and really loved the layout.  Susan is the "Queen of CAS" IMHO (in my humble opinion) and I learn so much from following her Blog.  Susan's cards are always so well-balanced - something I struggle with at times.

Getting back to my card........I know that you have seen this little Penny Black dog before on my Blog, but I just love him because he is so easy to colour and is a fantastic stamp for masculine cards.  I love his happy little face and he makes me smile everytime I look at him :-)

I stamped both the image and sentiment with Vintage Sepia ink and heatset it with my heat-gun to ensure the ink didn't run when I added OMS to it.  I coloured the image with my trusty pencils and OMS.  I wanted the present to have a little bit of dimension, so I cut out some little pieces of Olive Green Glitter cardstock and glued them on top of the present on the image.  I really love this range of glitter cardstock by Best Creations - you will get soooo tired of seeing it on my cards LOL!   I lightly chalked around the image with blue chalk (but you can't really see it in the photo - trust me - it's there). 

I then layered the image onto - yep, you guessed it - the same green glitter cardstock - then onto Kraft cardstock. The Kraft cardstock was embossed with one of the embossing folders from my Sizziz "Birthday set #3"; I ran it through my Cuttlebug using the same sandwich as for Cuttlebug folders, ie: A plate, B plate, folder with cardstock, B plate.

Well, that's my simple card - and I didn't even use any ribbon which was soooo hard as I kept thinking I should put one somewhere, but couldn't figure out where, so I left it off.  I guess I figured that if Susan didn't put one on her card, I didn't need one either; sometimes less is more (if you know what I mean!).

Challenges:

I am entering this card into the Splitcoaststampers 'Ways to use it' Challenge WT309 of 'Happy Birthday' where you have to use any sort of birthday products on your project, even if it's just a sentiment.

Thanks again for stopping by!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Dog - Penny Black 'For you' 3446E, Sentiment from Penny Black 'Make a wish' clear set 30-052

Ink:  Versafine Vintage Sepia

Designer paper:  Best Creations Olive green glitter cardstock

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Sizzix Textured Impressions #656504 Birthday set #3, heatgun, Kindyglitz red glitter glue, Kaisercolour blue chalk, Derwent Coloursoft and Prismacolor pencils, Odourless Mineral Spirits (OMS), paper stumps

Penny Black: Every which way - I will love you always, all ways

 

Hello blogging friends!  My desk has been a little hive of activity since I started playing with my new Penny Black: 'Every which way' stamp set that the postie brought me the other day.  I love this little set - such cute images.  I have long been admiring other people's cards made with Kraft Cardstock and thought I would try my hand at using it.  This was a very quick and simple card to make - perfect for your last-minute Valentines Day cards.

The Kraft cardstock was embossed with my Cuttlebug and Kimmy-Luvs embossing folder.  The dog was stamped onto white cardstock and coloured with OMS, Derwent Coloursoft and Prismacolor pencils.  I stamped the balloon part of the image again onto the back of my Best Creation red glitter cardstock, then cut the balloon out and glued it to the image.  I love how sparkly it looks.  The dog is popped up on 2mm mounts.  It's a good idea to use LOTS of them when you are popping an image onto embossed cardstock so that your image doesn't come unstuck and fall off (ie: less surface area for them to stick to).  I had that happen recently when a sentiment panel came unstuck after a few days when I was very frugal with my foam pads.

Here is closeup pic of the balloon - don't you just love the "sparkle"?!!

By the way, the little hairs and marks on the close-up are part of the cardstock - kinda looks like my card or my camera lens got all dusty!

For the sentiment panels:  as this sentiment is just one stamp and I wanted 2 separate lines, I masked the bottom line of the words off and stamped, then masked the top line off and stamped.  Here is a pic of the stamp set if I am not making sense:

Stamp Set Copyright Penny Black Stamps

I diecut the sentiments using one of the dies from my Spellbinders Tags Trio and popped them up on 1mm mounts.

To finish off, I tied some red and white Twine and punched a heart from the same red glitter cardstock and glued it to the centre.  I did add some Fray Stop to the ends of the twine to stop it from unravelling.  I think you could use this card for a Wedding Anniversary as well as for Valentines Day - and I think it could be used for either a lady or a man.

Challenges:

I am popping this card into the Splitcoaststampers Ways to use it Challenge WT308 of "i HEART you" where you have to use a heart anywhere on your project, as well as the monthly Sir Stampalot February Challenge of "All creatures great and small".

Thanks for stopping by!  I have a couple of other Valentines/Love cards on the go - watch this space!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Penny Black - Every which way 30-008 clear set

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo black

Designer paper:  Best Creation red glitter 12" x 12" cardstock

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Cuttlebug Kimmy-Luvs embossing folder, Spellbinder Tags Trio S3-147, red and white twine, Fray Stop, Odourless Mineral Spirits (OMS), Prismacolor + Derwent Coloursoft pencils, paper stumps, Cardstock:  American Crafts Kraft, KW Doggett Knight white

Punches:  Carl CP-8 Heart duo, Stampin' Up corner

Stampendous Party Balloons and Nellie Snellen border set MFD-023

Hi and thanks for stopping by :-)

I made a clean and simple boy's birthday card - well, I actually made this card twice!!  I had finished colouring up my image, then proceeded to ink up my sentiment with the black ink pad, but somehow dropped the ink pad on top of my image.  Oops :-(   Do you think I was grumpy??!!  So, it was back to the drawing board........  At least, it was a quick and easy image to colour - if it had been something very detailed, my head may have exploded!!  Note to self:  add sentiment before colouring images!!  Anyhow......

I used the Splitcoaststampers Inspiration Challenge IC266 - the Stephen Joseph Gifts website - as the basis for my colours from this particular item on the website.  I really loved the colours and the circles reminded me of balloons and my circles border die.

I am also playing the Splitcoaststampers Fan Club January Challenge - but as the Challenge is only open to Fan Club Members (ie: you have paid to join the SCS Fan Club), part of the rules is that you are not allowed discuss the Challenge Themes and details outside the Fan Club  - which is not to exclude you (my Blogging friends), but merely following the rules.  I joined a few months ago so I could put something back into the website which I love so much!! 

I coloured the image with Derwent Coloursoft and Prismacolor pencils + OMS.  I added some fine crystal glitter to the highlights on the balloons, plus the coloured dots around the strings.  I decided to underline the sentiment with my red and yellow pencils because it seemed a little "lost" and I wanted to draw your eye to it.

Here is a close-up piccy of the balloons:

The gorgeous blue border was diecut with my Cuttlebug and one of the border dies from my NEW Nellie Snellen border set MFD-023.  You use the same sandwich as for Spellbinder Nestabilities.  I love this particular die - it is so suited to masculine cards, so I can see myself using it alot.  This particular set is not on Fat Cat's Card Corner's website at the moment, but I'm sure it will be very soon.  You can find all their other Nellie Snellen dies at this link here.  Note that I was careful to attach the border evenly so that the edges matched.  You can always trim down the sides of your card to even things up.

I added a Scor-Pal line above the border - I often do this to just "finish" the edge before I attach it to the rest of a card.  Lastly, I corner-punched the top corners of the white cardstock.  I thought about adding a ribbon, but in the end decided to keep things simple.

And here is my stepped up version:

I stamped the image twice, then cut out just the balloons and popped them up on mounts (dimensionals).  I used various sizes of mounts so the red balloon is the lowest in height and the blue balloon is the highest.   After diecutting the blue border and adding the Scor-Pal line, I ran the blue cardstock through my Cuttlebug using my Swiss dots embossing folder.  The ribbon was attached in 2 separate elements and the bow itself was made with my Bow Easy.  Here is a close-up piccy so you can see the dimension of the balloons:

Thanks again for stopping by!  

Jocelyn

ETA:  In response to Shaz's question: I use Google Picasa (free download from the Internet) to add my details on my photos. 

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Stampendous 'Party Balloons' CRY008 cling rubber, Sentiment from Penny Black 'It's your day' 30-046 clear set

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo black

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Nellie Snellen Border-2 MFD023 die set, Swiss dots embossing folder, mounts (dimensionals), Derwent Coloursoft + Prismacolor pencils, paper stumps, Odourless Mineral Spirits, Scor-Pal, Bow Easy, ribbon, fine crystal glitter, Designer Dries Clear adhesive (for glitter), cardstock:  sky blue, KW Doggett Knight white

Punches:  Stampin' Up corner punch

CAS Birthday card using Craft Concepts Budding Vine embossing folder

Hi and welcome to my Blog :-)

My BIL's sister recently turned 70 and this is the quick and simple birthday card I made for her.   The beautiful embossing folder is called Budding Vine" by Craft Concepts - I really LOVE this folder - one of my favs - but honestly, if you didn't have this folder, you could use lots of other ones, eg: Craft Concepts Cottage Floral, Cuttlebug Textile or Jamara etc, Crafts Too Damask, or there are some lovely similar ones by other manufacturers.

Once I embossed the pink cardstock, I then cut the pink cardstock card base to size.  I have found by experience, particularly when you use a folder that is very detailed, that it "shrinks" the cardstock, so that if you had it just the right size for your base, it won't be anymore!!   I popped the embossed panel up on foam tape as I wanted a little bit of dimension.

I added the ribbon in 2 separate elements and the bow itself was made with my Bow Easy which are now in stock at Fat Cat's Card Corner.  The sentiment panel was diecut with my Oval Nesties, and the sentiment itself was stamped with Dusty Plum pigment ink and heat-embossed with Satin Pearl clear embossing powder which I really love for my heat-embossing - it doesn't turned out as "shiny or glossy" as regular clear embossing powder.  I ran my ink pad around the edges of the panel and popped the panel up on 2mm mounts (dimensionals).

Lastly, I added the 3 pink rhinestones.

I do not know who made the sentiment - it has a number on it, but no Company name.  I tried Googling it, but came up with nothing - I suspect it might be an Australian stamp manufacturer - it's been in my stash since dinosaurs roamed the earth - I forgot I had it, but I love how "swirly" it is and ties in with the Budding Vine embossing folder!   If you do know the stamp manufacturer, please leave me a comment and I will update my post.

And here is the same card which uses Bazzill Bling "Icy Teal" cardstock (not sure of the actual cardstock name - it's just what I call it!).  And of course, I changed the pearls on the sentiment panel to Bliss SB718 and the ink I used for the sentiment was Versacolor Laurel Leaf pigment.  I made this card for my sister-in-laws 60th birthday.  The Bazzill Bling cardstock looks so sparkly IRL - but I think you can see some of the "sparkle" from the photo.

Thanks again for stopping by!

Jocelyn

Card #1 Recipe:

Stamps:  Best Wishes E238 (unknown brand name)

Ink:  Colorbox Dusty Plum pigment

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Spellbinder Oval Nestabilities, Craft Concepts Budding Vine embossing folder, Bow Easy, pink organza ribbon, satin pearl clear embossing powder, heat-gun, foam tape, 2mm mounts, Kaiser pink rhinestones SB701, cardstock: pink, white

Penny Black Frosty the Snowman in his Cuttlebug Winter Wonderland

 

Hi and welcome to my Blog :-)

I made another CAS Christmas card for my stash.  Now I know it doesn't snow where I live at Christmas-time - but I just LOVE snowmen and snowflakes.  There's just something special about them that really floats my boat.  And I collect things that have snowmen or snowflakes on them - stamps, paper, ornaments - oh, I could just let my head go if my wallet would allow it!  And I just LOVE this Penny Black stamp - the snowman looks so joyous and I smile everytime I look at him.

I did actually colour him a little with a light blue and grey Derwent Coloursoft pencil plus OMS, but it doesn't show up all that much in the photo - but hope you can see it a little.  I added some orange pencil to his nose.  I added some Polar White FlowerSoft with Aleen's tacky glue along the bottom then used the end of a blunt sewing needle to add little dots of the glue to the snowflakes surrounding him, then added FlowerSoft.  I find it easier to use a sewing needle to make small dots than using the glue straight from the bottle and getting big, messy blobs.

Here is a little close-up of the FlowerSoft:

The embossing folder is one of the folders from the Cuttlebug Winter Wonderland set.   The blue snowflakes are the leftover punchies from using my Martha Stewart Snow Flurry edge punch.  I love how you get several different sized snowflakes from using it - so handy for embellishing a card.  I added blue rhinestones to the centres and popped all these snowflakes up on 2mm mounts (dimensionals).

The ribbon was attached in 2 separate elements and the bow itself was made with my Bow Easy.  I diecut a white snowflake using my Snowflake #2 die and added a blue rhinestone to the centre, then added some Frosted Lace Stickles.  Here is a close-up:

Thanks for stopping by.  I'll be back tomorrow with some Vintage-style gift bags.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Penny Black Frosty PB-3248H, Sentiment (retired) from Elzybells

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, embossing folder from Winter Wonderland set, Cuttlebug Snowflake #2 die, FlowerSoft Polar White, Aleen's tacky glue, Derwent Coloursoft pencils, OMS, paper stumps, Frosted Lace stickles, Kaiser blue rhinestones, gingham ribbon, Bow Easy, 2mm mounts, Cardstock: white

Punches:  Martha Stewart Snow Flurry edge, Stampin' Up corner

Cuttlebug Season's Greetings - CAS Christmas cards

Hi and thanks for taking the time to visit my Blog :-)

I whipped up a couple of CAS (Clean and Simple) Christmas cards where I let the embossing folder do all the hard work and then simply embellished them.  You can find this Cuttlebug 'Season's Greetings' embossing folder at Fat Cat's Card Corner.  I corner-punched the cardstock BEFORE I ran it through the Cuttlebug - if you do it the other way, you will squash or mark your embossing.

I added some light blue rhinestones to the snowflake centres, then added the silver-edged sheer blue organza ribbon in 2 separate elements - the bow was made with my Bow Easy.  I threaded a Snowflake charm with silver cord then threaded the cord through the blue ribbon bow centre and tied a knot which is hidden underneath the bow centre.  I did add some Fray Stop to the edges of the silver cord and the blue ribbon - you can find Fray Stop at Spotlight, Riot Art and Craft or even you local supermarket. 

And here is the white version:

I decided to layer the white embossed panel onto Bazzill Bling Aqua cardstock (not sure of the actual cardstock colour name - that's just what I call it!) - which matched my sparkly aqua ribbon perfectly - then layered that onto more white cardstock.  The layer borders are very small - only because I kept trimming to make them even, then kept trimming because I trimmed one crooked, and had to make that straight which then made that border narrower than the others, so I kept trimming, trimming.........sheesh, don't let me prune your rose bushes or you will have no garden left LOL!!

The ribbon was again attached in 2 separate elements and the bow was made with my Bow Easy.   Because this ribbon frays terribly, I added Fray Stop to it first, let it dry, THEN cut it - that way, it doesn't fray at all.   I diecut a snowflake, added Opal fine glitter, then glued this to the bow centre, then added a Kaiser Lagoon rhinestone to this snowflake and rhinestones to the snowflake centres on the embossed panel.  Here is a wee close-up of the snowflake.

Easy peasy for mass producing and great to have on hand for those unexpected cards you always need at the last minute.  I don't know about you, but I always get a few cards from people I didn't expect - usually in the week before Christmas - so I always like to have a few "extras" on hand for those times.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great weekend!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Card #1 - blue

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Season's Greetings embossing folder, silver snowflake charm, Bow Easy, organza ribbon, silver cord, Fray Stop, Kaiser light blue rhinestones, Cardstock:  light blue

Punches:  Stampin' Up corner

Card #2 - white

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Season's Greetings embossing folder, Cuttlebug Snowflake #2 die, Bow Easy, metallic aqua ribbon, Fray Stop, Kaiser Lagoon rhinestones, Opal fine glitter, Designer Dries clear adhesive (for glitter), Cardstock: white, Bazill Bling Aqua

Punches:  Stampin' Up corner

Penny Black: Message from above - a Thank You card

Hello and thanks for popping in :-)

I made this 'Thank you' card for a friend in the USA who has taught me so much about cardmaking and specifically, how to colour using Prismacolor pencils and Odourless Mineral Spirits aka Magic Coloured Pencil.

It is a simple, one-layer card (OLC) which are my favourite type of card to make.  The image was coloured (as you would have guessed) with OMS and Prismas plus Derwent Coloursoft pencils, and I added some pink glitter to the flower petals, the bird's tummy (bit hard to see in the photo) and there is lemon glitter around the edge of the letter.

The dry embossing was coloured lightly with pearlescent chalks using pink, lemon and blue, and I added these same colours around the image as well so it all ties in together.  They look so pretty IRL as they are shimmery.

The tiny pink hearts next to the sentiment are my all-time favourite little leftover punchies from my Arrows Border punch which I use all the time; I glittered these with Kindyglitz Crystalina.

I am entering this card into the My Time to Craft Challenge #113 of 'Quick and Cute' - where they want you to make something that is quick and easy.

I am also popping this card into the Splitcoaststampers Ways to Use it Challenge WT286 of  'Just One' where you are to stamp on a single sheet of cardstock.  There's nothing I love more than just getting back to basics with a card and having no layers.

That's about it for me - hope to see you again soon!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Penny Black 'Message from above' 2617J, Sentiment from Wendy Irving Expressions J6412.01 clear set

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo black

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Sizzix Textured Impressions embossing folder from Hello Kitty® Spring Set #2 (656149), Odourless Minerals Spirits, Prismacolor pencils, Derwent Coloursoft pencils, paper stumps, I-Kan-dee Pearlescent chalks, Art Institute pink and lemon glitter (Shabby Chic set), Art Institute Designer Dries clear adhesive (for glitter), Kindyglitz Crystalina, Cardstock: KW Doggett 'Knight' white, pink (for tiny hearts)

Punches:  EK Success Arrows border

CAS Matchbox Sympathy card using Craft Concepts Budding Vine embossing folder

Hi and welcome to my Blog :-)

Over at Splitcoaststampers, this week's Clean and Simple Challenge CAS91 is 'With Sympathy', so I set to work to make a simple card to have on hand.  This card came together so quickly and easily - I love it when that happens!  

Recently, when I was at my local Riot Art and Craft shop (Aussie store), I found these blank white Matchbox cards (they are A2 size and come in a pack of 8) and thought they looked nice.  Of course, you can make your own.  I couldn't find a tutorial on SCS or by Googling it so perhaps it is called something else in the USA (?).  Anyway, I think by the extra photo of the opened card, you could see how to make your own plus I added some directions/measurements below.  Note that this card already came with the scalloped edge on the LH flap. 

I embossed the RH flap of the card with my gorgeous Craft Concepts Budding Vine embossing folder (LOVE this folder!) and the LH flap was embossed with one of the narrow folders from the Cuttlebug 'With Love' set.

The ribbon actually ties around the card, and you slip it off to open the card.  I diecut the tag using one of the tags from the Spellbinder Ribbon Tags Trio, then threaded the ribbon thru and tied it at the back of the card.  I made a bow with my Bow Easy and glued this to the ribbon but made sure I didn't touch the cardstock in the process otherwise the ribbon/sentiment wouldn't slip off the card - the bow is meant to look like it is around the daisy stems.

I punched two tiny hearts using my EK Success Arrows border punch (the leftover punchies when you use the punch look like tiny hearts) and glued them to each side of the sentiment.  Lastly, I added some fine white glitter to these hearts plus the centres of the daisy flowers on the LH panel.  This is a really white glitter - it doesn't have the blue/pinky tones that some white glitters have - and I prefer my really white one for Sympathy cards to give an understated look.

Here is a photo of what the card looks like when you slide the ribbon off:

The inside of the card simply says "With Sympathy".

And here is a close-up of the sentiment panel so you can see the tiny white-glittered hearts:

For your info if you were going to make your own Matchbox card from scratch:  

* the LH flap is 1-1/2" wide

* the RH flap (which tucks under the LH flap a little) is 4-1/4" wide

* the card bottom (base) is 5-1/2" wide

* the height of the card is 4-1/4"

Take a sheet of cardstock 11-1/4" long (x 4-1/4" wide), and use your Imperial Scor Pal/Scoring Board to score lines at 1-1/2" (which will be the LH flap) and 7" (which will be the RH flap).  

Don't forget that if you are going to use a border punch on the LH flap, you would need to add extra width to that flap so that once you have punched your border, the RH flap would still tuck under the LH flap, otherwise it will be too narrow and won't tuck in.

The good thing about this style of card is that you can turn it around and have the small flap at the RHS instead, or vertically so that the small flap is at the top, or the other way up so that the small flap is at the bottom.  Very versatile and something a bit different to the norm - and easy.

If you need any clarification of the measurements etc, please don't hesitate to EMail me - or leave me a comment and I'll edit this post.  My addy is at the top LHS of my Blog.  Make sure you put "cardmaking" in the Subject Line so your EMail doesn't get spammed!

Thanks again for stopping by - hope to see you again soon!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Sentiment from Wendy Irving Expressions J6412.01 clear set

Ink:  Stazon Jet Black

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Bunch of Daisies embossing folder from 'With Love' Cuttlebug set, Craft Concepts Budding Vine embossing folder, Spellbinder Ribbon Tags Trio, Bow Easy, white organza ribbon 10mm - 3/8" wide, .008 fine white glitter, Designer Dries clear adhesive (for glitter), The Paper Mill White A2 Matchbox cards PMAZMW - Riot Art and Craft

Punches:  EK Success Arrows Border

Unity A Beautiful Sight - A Winter Wonderland

Hi and welcome :-)

I made this clean and simple DT Christmas card with a new Unity stamp called 'A Beautiful Sight' that Fat Cat's Card Corner sent to me this week.  The words behind the tree are from the Christmas song:  Winter Wonderland - which is one of my favourite Christmas songs.  I know it's Summer here at Christmas, but I still love all things "snowy" for my Christmas cards.  And I especially LOVE white and gold Christmas cards - they just seem to speak "elegant" which I hope is what I achieved with my card.  It is very, very difficult to take good photographs of gold on a card - I tried outside in the sun, but the gold looked all dark and miserable or reflected so much sunlight, the white background all but disappeared, so did a compromise and photographed it in my home with reflected sunlight from my kitchen window but with the overhead kitchen downlights on to show up some sparkle.  Not easy - but I hope you get the idea of what it really looks like - and it is much nicer IRL!

The snowflakes embossing is one of the folders from the Cuttlebug Winter Wonderland set (there are 6 folders in the set).  I stamped the tree with gold pigment ink and heat-embossed it with gold embossing powder, then diecut the panel with my Deckled Rectangle Nesties and popped the panel up on 1mm mounts (dimensionals).

I diecut two snowflakes and popped them up on 2mm mounts, then added a dot of gold pearl dimensional paint in the centres - does take quite a while to dry though (at the time of writing this post, it's now some hours since I did it, and it's still not quite dry - probably will take overnight). You can get this paint at Riot Art and Craft Stores, and comes in a little bottle about the size of Stickles/Kindyglitz and isn't expensive.

The ribbon was attached in 2 separate elements and the bow itself was made with my Bow Easy.  I'm pretty sure the ribbon came from a $2 Shop and was on a reel that had a couple of metres.

Challenges:

It's been ages since I played one of the Stamp Simply Challenges by Sharon Johnson and this week's challenge is:

Stamp Simply #163 – Tis the Season for Clean and Simple

where Sharon wants us to make a clean and simple card with Christmas or Winter in mind.

Thanks again for stopping by - hope to see you again soon!
 

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Unity 'A Beautiful Sight' Itty Bitty rubber stamp IB48 (comes as rubber mounted with cling cushion)

Ink:  Versacolor gold pigment

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Snowflakes folder from Winter Wonderland set, Cuttlebug Snowflake #2 die, Spellbinder Deckled Rectangle Nestabilities, gold embossing powder, heat-gun, Bow Easy, gold dimensional fabric paint, 1mm/2mm mounts, Ribbon 1-1/2" - 38mm wide, Cardstock: white

House Mouse Sleepy Stocking: Clean and Simple Christmas Hat

Hi and welcome to my Blog :-)

I made a clean, quick and simple card using just the hat and one of the sentiments from my House Mouse 'Sleepy Stocking' set.  This particular set isn't up on Fat Cat's Card Corner's website yet, but keep an eye out - I'm sure it will be soon (there are already some House Mouse sets listed here).   I coloured the hat with Prismacolor and Derwent Coloursoft pencils plus OMS, then added some Polar White FlowerSoft - I LOVE the texture that the FlowerSoft adds - it is such cool stuff!!

The main image panel is up on 1mm mounts (dimensionals).  The ribbon is a much brighter green IRL - more like Irish Green - but being sparkly, it was rather difficult to photograph.  The green and red cardstock underneath the main image panel is also a bit brighter IRL.

The embossing on the white cardstock is a Cuttlebug Embossing folder called:  Season's Greetings  although my cardstock was smaller than the folder, so some of the writing isn't on my cardstock.

Lastly, I added a green pearl either side of the sentiment, and a red pearl to the diecut snowflake on the ribbon.

Although I have already made a card for the SCS Inspiration Challenge IC253 - see this link for the deets - I was so inspired by the John Lewis Department Store, that I made another card.  This card was inspired by this red and white Christmas ornament here.  I really liked the red & white combo and the red border, which made me think of my new Eyelet Nesties and how I could layer some red cardstock underneath to make a border.  I did end up adding the green cardstock layer and the green ribbon - the card ended up needing a little "pizazz".  I would love to get the round Eyelet Nesties one day - I think I would use them alot - in fact, I would love to see similar Nesties but with snowflakes or stars instead of the circles.  Oh well, it's nice to dream.......

Thanks again for stopping by - hope to see you again soon!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  House Mouse Sleepy Stocking JSHM006 unmounted rubber set

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Snowflake #2 die, Season's Greetings embossing folder, Spellbinder Eyelet Nestabilities, sparkly green ribbon, Bow Easy, FlowerSoft Polar White, Aleen's tacky glue (for FlowerSoft), 1mm mounts, Prismacolor pencils, Derwent Coloursoft pencils, OMS, paper stumps, Kaiser pearls:  red and green, Cardstock:  red, green, KW Doggett "Knight" white

Punches:  Stampin' Up corner

Sympathy card using Cuttlebug and Sizzix embossing folders

Hello and welcome :-)

I found myself needing to make a Sympathy card during the past week for a lady whose husband passed away.  It's never easy making a Sympathy card and I like to keep things simple.

I corner-punched the cardstock first (if you do it after the embossing, it squashes and marks the embossing - maybe that's a 'no-brainer' but I have often done it after, and then wished that I hadn't!!) - then used one of my narrow embossing folders from my Cuttlebug 'With Love' folder set.  I added the Scor-pal line so I could butt my Sizzix Textured Impression embossing folder up against the line - that way, I knew the embossing would be straight.  I have found that if I do the embossing first, then add the Scor-Pal line afterwards, it is almost always crooked.  Even if you squash the Scor-Pal line a little, you can just re-do it.

The ribbon was attached in 2 separate elements and the bow itself was made with my Bow Easy.  The sentiment panel is up on 1mm mounts.  I only had really wide organza ribbon, but folded it in half and it turned out looking OK - though it was a bit fiddly to hold it folded in half while I was putting it through my Bow Easy!

I added some very fine white glitter to the flower centres as well as the punched hearts on the sentiment panel.  It's a really white glitter which I prefer for my Sympathy cards - this glitter is not like Kindyglitz Crystalina which has the pinky-blue hues in it.  Adds that bit of "something" but still understated and not over-the-top (well, that is what I hoped to achieve).

I'm popping this card into this week's Splitcoaststampers Inspiration Challenge IC253 where the inspiration for your card comes from the John Lewis Department Stores website.  While I was thinking about what to make for this card - and thinking of a bunch of white flowers - I came across this image of beautiful white freesias.  As soon as I saw them, I thought of my Cuttlebug 'With love' narrow bunch of flowers folder and my Sizzix Floral Flourishes folder - the stems and unopened buds on the freesias reminded me of this Sizzix folder: hence my combination of the two folders.

Thanks for stopping by - hope to see you again soon!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Wendy Irving Expressions J6412.01 clear stamp set (I believe this set is retired but is still in stock at a few stores - bit hard to find though)

Ink:  Stazon Jet Black

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, With Love embossing folder set, Sizzix Textured Impressions Floral Flourishes and Vines #656259 (comes as a set of 2 folders), Scor-Pal, 1mm mounts (dimensionals), Spellbinder Oval Nestabilities, Designer dries clear adhesive (for glitter), Bow Easy, white organza ribbon, Cardstock: white

Punches:  Carl CP8 Heart (has 2 different-sized hearts), Stampin' Up corner punch

Elzybells: A little Winter magic!

Hello and thanks for dropping in!  Here is a quick little one-layer Christmas card using my favourite Cuttlebug folder from the Winter Wonderland set.  I really love the embossing on this particular folder - it's just so pretty.  It is available at Fat Cat's Card Corner here.  I actually started this card in August - but only just got around to colouring the image - it's just been sitting on my desk buried amongst all the other stuff (you know how it is LOL!!!).

I coloured the image with Prismacolor pencils and OMS, plus I used a Lyra Skin tone pencil for the face which I recently bought from my local Art Store.  Lyra pencils blend beautifully with OMS.  I added some Liquid Applique to the coat and ear muffs and let that dry overnight before I applied my heat-gun to make it "pop".  I did actually paint over the Liquid Applique (once it had cooled) with white acrylic paint because the Liquid Applique comes out an off-white colour which looked kind-of "dirty" against the white cardstock, then added Kindyglitz on top to make it sparkle.  I lightly chalked around the image with blue chalk.

The snowflake on the ribbon was diecut using the Cuttlebug Snowflake #2 die set, and the snowflakes dotted around the embossing were punched from my Martha Stewart Snow Flurry edge punch (they are the leftover punchies when you punch a border with it), and these snowflakes are up on mounts.   I added tiny red rhinestones to the centres.   Here is a little closeup:

I attached the ribbon in 2 separate elements and the bow itself was made with my Bow Easy.

Both the image and sentiment are by Elzybells Art Stamps UK who are closing on the 30th September.  These particular images have sold out, but there are still alot of other stamps - including Christmas ones - that are still available but you'd better be quick!!  I still can't believe they are closing - it is such a shame :-(

Challenges:

I am entering this card into the Crazy 4 Challenges C4C56 of "Bling".

And the Allsorts Week 71 Challenge of Plain and Simple.

Plus I am also popping this card into the Splitcoaststampers Free for All Challenge F4A21 of Snowflakes and Pearls from July - which was what I was originally started making the card for.

Anyway, that's about it for me.  Thanks for visiting - I'll be back in a few days with a Vintage Christmas card!  

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Elzybells Ice Skater 10-080, Sentiment from Elzybells 20-053 Mini Messages - Winter

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Snowflakes ef from Winter Wonderland set, Cuttlebug Snowflakes #2 die set, OMS, Prismacolor Pencils, paper stumps, Lyra Skintone pencil, white liquid applique, white acrylic paint, Kindyglitz Crystalina, Bow Easy, gingham ribbon, 1mm mounts, Kaiser rhinestones SB711 red (largest rhinestone on ribbon), Basic Grey Bling-it red rhinestones (tiny red ones on snowflakes), Kaisercolour chalks, heatgun, Cardstock: white

Punches:  Stampin' Up corner, Martha Stewart Snow Flurry edge

Cuttlebug Winter Wonderland - Hanging Christmas Baubles

Hi and welcome to another scheduled post whilst I can't access my computer for 2 weeks (sniff!!).

Another quick and simple Christmas card using one of the embossing folders from the Cuttlebug Winter Wonderland set - available here from Fat Cat's Card Corner in Queensland.  

Not much to explain.  The sentiment was heat-embossed with gold embossing powder and the stars next to the sentiment were diecut from my Cuttlebug Snowflake #2 die (which includes snowflakes and stars).  I added some fine gold glitter to these stars.

The ribbon was attached in 2 separate elements, and the bow itself was made with my Bow Easy.  The star on the bow was punched with a Carl CP-1 star punch and was glittered with gold glitter.

Thanks again for stopping by - this should be my last scheduled post (hopefully) and things will be back to normal and I will be able to come and visit you all again.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe: 

Stamps:  Sentiment from Inkadinkado Silhouettes 97289 Clear stamp set (retired)

NOTE:  Edited to add:  Thanks to Nanette for alerting me to the fact that the original stamp set name I listed (Hot off the Press 'Christmas Art' HOTP 1006 clear set)  was incorrect.  It is definitely by Inkadinkado!


Ink:  Versacolor gold pigment 

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Hanging Baubles embossing folder from Winter Wonderland set, Cuttlebug Snowflake #2 die, Carl CP-1 Star punch, fine gold glitter, Art Institute Designer dries clear adhesive (for glitter), Bow Easy, ribbon, Stampin' Up corner punch, gold embossing powder, heat gun, Cardstock: white, gold, burgundy

Cuttlebug Winter Wonderland - Burgundy Christmas Baubles

Hello and welcome :-)

This is another scheduled post whilst I have no access to my computer for 2 weeks :-(   Hopefully, I will get a few extra cards done during that time.

Anyway, back to my card:  I did a similar one a couple of weeks ago which was white (see here) and this is the burgundy version.  Not much to explain - so quick and easy.  All I did was round the corners with a corner punch and add the ribbon.  The ribbon was done in 2 separate elements and the bow was made with my Bow Easy (I LOVE my Bow Easy!!).  The star was punched and I added some gold glitter.  Note to self:  add glitter to star BEFORE gluing to card so you don't spend an hour getting all the gold glitter out of the ribbon and the embossed parts of the card - duhh!! 

This embossing folder is part of a Cuttlebug set called "Winter Wonderland" and is available here at Fat Cat's Card Corner in Queensland.

Back in a few days with another scheduled post!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:  

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Baubles embossing folder from Winter Wonderland set, Carl CP-1 Star punch, fine gold glitter, Art Institute Designer dries clear adhesive (for glitter), Bow Easy, ribbon, Stampin' Up corner punch, Cardstock: burgundy, gold 

Penny Black Celebrating - my DH's birthday card

Hi and welcome to my Blog :-)

I made this quick little card for my DH's birthday this past week.  Now that he has the card in his hot little hand, I can post it here.  I tried to colour the cat in similar colours to our own cat - Ruby.  There is a photo of Ruby on the LHS of my Blog if you want to see her.  She is such a character and fetches just like a dog (mainly with pipecleaners or hair scrunchies), and if she wants your attention, she will drop something at your feet or your lap, stand back and miaow at you for you to throw it.  She is one cute puss!


Anyway, enough waffling and onto the card!  I diecut the circle from the blue cardstock first then ran the cardstock thru my Cuttlebug using my new Indentz embossing folder (which I sourced from the UK). 

Recently I rang KW Doggetts (an Australian paper company) for a Sample Pack of different brands of smooth white cardstock specifically to use for the Gamsol Magic/Magic Coloured Pencil technique.  They were very helpful and generous with what they sent me - and all for free!!   I had a great old play and found that their brand: "Knight" smooth cardstock was magical - the colours blend out so beautifully and perfectly, and this is the cardstock I used for this birthday card.  And it's so white.  Much whiter than Beckett Radiance.  It was an absolute joy to colour!!!  In fact, I was so impressed, that I rang and placed an order and asked for 12" x 12" size which is very practical for my square cards 'cos I can just cut them in half.  My order was ready in a day and I was able to go and pick it up from their factory which is only about 20 mins drive from where I live.  They have a retail store where you can grab a box and fill it up with different coloured/brands of cardstock/vellums for a set price - ahhh, it was heavenly!!  I have no connection to them, but thought it was worth mentioning if you love using the Gamsol Magic technique, but don't know what cardstock to get if you are in Australia.  You can just ring up and ask for a sample pack and then you can decide what weight (ie: gsm) you like to use.  I believe they have offices in some of the other States of Australia.


I lightly coloured the background with blue chalk (which you can hardly tell from the photo!).  I added Art Institute transparent light blue glitter to the balloon.  The tiny hearts next to the sentiment are the leftover punchies from my EK Success Arrows border punch.

The fawn cardstock border was made with a Threading Water punch, and I added a Scor-Pal line above it.

Thanks again for stopping by.  Have a great weekend!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Penny Black 'Celebrating' 1472E, Sentiment from Crafter's Companion 'Popcorn the Bear' Bunches of Love set  

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo black

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Indentz 'Happy Birthday' embossing folder, EK Success Arrows border punch, Fiskars Threading Water punch, AI blue glitter (from Shabby Chic set), AI Designer dries clear adhesive, Spellbinder Circle Nestabilities, Scor-Pal, Kaisercolour chalks, OMS, Prismas, fawn and blue gingham ribbon, Cardstock: royal blue, fawn, KW Doggetts Knight smooth white 

Cuttlebug Winter Wonderland - White Christmas Baubles

Hi and welcome to my little world :-)

I thought I would have a little change of scenery from making Vintage cards to make some quick and simple cards for Christmas using one of the folders from the fabulous new set by Cuttlebug called "Winter Wonderland".  It is available here at Fat Cat's Card Corner.  I have made a couple of others which I will upload here to my Blog over the coming weeks.

The gold snowflake on the ribbon was diecut using my Cuttlebug Snowflake #2 die and gold cardstock, then I glued some very fine gold glitter to it.

The longest part of the card was waiting for the glittery snowflake to dry!  Here is a little close-up of it.  It was lovely and sunny here today, so I was lucky enough to catch a little bit of sparkle in the photo!

I am popping this card into the Clean and Simple Challenge CAS75 of 'Dry Embossing' over at Splitcoaststampers.  It's great that there is no time limit to play the challenges at Splitcoasters so you get to see lots of people's cards made for each challenge.

I am entering this card into the Our Creative Corner Challenge of "It's Embossable" where you can use any type of embossing on your card, eg: heat, dry etc.  Wish me luck!!

Thanks again for stopping by!  Back in a few days with a birthday card.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Accessories:  Cuttlebug, Winter Wonderland embossing folder set, Cuttlebug Snowflake #2 die, fine gold glitter, Art Institute Designer dries clear adhesive (for glitter), Bow Easy, ribbon, Stampin' Up corner punch, Cardstock: white, gold

Stampendous Bee Daisy - bee happy on your birthday!

Hi and welcome to my Blog :-)

I had to make a quick card for my niece's birthday later this week, so this is what I came up with.

The beautiful embossed frame is by Craftwork Cards which I bought from The Craft Barn in the UK.  They come in packs of ten with all sorts of designs and are perfect for square cards which I love to make, and I love that they have the scalloped edge too. 

I coloured the bee with OMS and Prismas, then glued on black and yellow Fun Flock using Art Institute Designer dries clear adhesive, then added clear glitter to his wings, pink to his antennae, plus pink and lemon glitter to the flower.  I lightly chalked around the image too.  The tiny lemon and pink hearts are the leftover punchies from my Arrows Border punch (but your probably already know that by now if you follow my Blog 'cos I use them ALL the time.....lol).

Here is a little close-up of the flocking.  I keep wanting to "feel" the little bee - he's so soft and furry!

I'm popping this card into the Splitcoaststampers CAS75 Challenge of dry embossing.  See this link for the deets.

Thanks again for stopping by.  Have a great week!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Stampendous CRE214 Cling Bee Daisy, Sentiment: from Crafter's Companion 'Popcorn the Bear' Bunches of Love set

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo black

Accessories:  Odourless Mineral Spirits, Prismacolor pencils, paper stumps, Stampendous Fun Flock: Lemonade Yellow and Black, Art Institute transparent glitter: pink, crystal and pink (from Shabby Chic set), Art Institute designer dries clear glue, Kaisercolour chalks, EK Success Arrows border punch, Stampin' Up corner punch, Craftworks cards embossed frames: mixed bouquet, ribbon, Bow Easy, Cardstock: white, pink, lemon