Valentine (Stencil & Embossing Paste)

I occasionally participate in a challenge at the Inkspirational Challenges blog. This biweekly challenge appealed to me when I saw it so here is my card for Inkspirational Colour Challenge #100, Blast from the Past. I selected past color combination #55, green and pink, for this Valentine.

Glossy embossing paste was mixed with inks to produce the paste in two shades of pink as well as the green. A tulip stencil from my quilting collection was used for the image. Once dry, the image was cut with a circle die and adhered to another die cut doily circle in green. Both circles were edge-sponged. The sentiment was stamped on cardstock, cut as a banner and sponged. A piece of DSP was adhered to the pink card base. The elements were backed with craft foam and adhered to the DSP panel. The hearts were die cut and adhered. The inside of the card was lined with a panel of white cardstock stamped with hearts along the right edge.

Visit Inkspirational Challenges to join the challenge or view the creative designs.

Techniques: Stamping, sponging, die cutting, coloring & stenciling embossing paste
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

Materials are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted:

Stamps: "Snuggles and Smooches"
Inks: Certainly Celery, Old Olive, Blushing Bride, Strawberry Slush
Cardstock: Whisper White, Certainly Celery, Blushing Bride
DSP: English Garden Collection
Dies: Spellbinders Standard Circles; Our Daily Bread Designs Delicate Doily; Lil' Inker Designs Hearts Banners
Misc.: craft foam, Dreamweavers Glossy White Embossing Paste, TSC Designs stencil

With Sympathy

1/20/2016 Update: This sympathy card won Top Three at the AHSC #142!






LeRoy, one of my husband's Poker Club friends passed away two days ago, so my husband asked me to make a sympathy card for the family. I used the sketch provided by Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #142.

An embossing folder was sponged with two inks and run through the Big Shot to color and texturize a Crumb Cake panel. A tag was die cut and backed to match the tag on the sketch.

 

The sentiment was die cut from cardstock backed with Sookwang Be Creative tape and adhered to the panel. (I love this no-mess method to place adhesive on the back of a die cut image.)

 

A strip of cardstock was adhered across the bottom of the card front. Leaves were stamped on Crumb Cake cardstock, fussy-cut and adhered in a round cluster to match the sketch.

 

 

The entire panel was backed with craft foam and popped up on the card base.

 

The inside was lined with a panel of Very Vanilla cardstock, stamped with leaves in two corners. A verse of sympathy was also stamped on the inside.

Visit AHSC for creative card ideas!

Techniques: Stamping, sponging, die cutting, fussy cutting, embossing folder stamping

Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

Materials are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise indicated:

Stamps: "Vintage Leaves" and "Thoughts and Prayers" (inside)

Inks: Baked Brown Sugar, Not Quite Navy (retired)

Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake, Not Quite Navy (retired)

Dies: Lil' Inker Designs "Dotted Tags" and "With Sympathy" words

Misc.: Woodland TIEF, craft foam, Sookwang Be Creative tape

Hibiscus Thank You

Hibiscus in the state flower of Hawai'i but is also found in abundance in Florida, Arizona and other warm climates. The Hibiscus attracts hummingbirds, especially if the blooms are in shades of red. I recently purchased this Hibiscus die and have been eager to use it. My card was made for three challenges:

1. Can You Case It? #102 Sketch Challenge



2. Inkspirational #99 Designers Choice, Thank You with Something New. My "Something New" was the hibiscus die.



3. The Paper Players #277 Color Challenge: Tempting Turquoise (TT), Melon Mambo (MM), Real Red (RR), Whisper White (WW)



A panel of WW cardstock was texture embossed in a brick pattern, sponged with MM ink, backed with MM cardstock and craft foam. The focal image was die cut and paper pieced with all four colors of cardstock. The center of the white flower was inlaid with TT cardstock and sponged with MM. The leaves were paper pieced in TT but then colored over with a TT marker to darken them. The Hummingbird image was stamped with MM ink on WW cardstock, die cut then backed with a lacy die cut in RR and backed with craft foam.

The sentiment was stamped and punched from WW cardstock. It was adhered to another punched tag in RR and backed with craft foam. The pieces were assembled and adhered to the TT panel. then to the WW card base. The inside of the card was stamped with a small flower and the hummingbird image, leaving sufficient space to write a note.

Techniques: Dry embossing, stamping, sponging, die cutting, inlay with die cut, paper piecing, punch cutting
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")




Participate in the challenges at CYCI102, Inkspirational99 and PP277!

Materials are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted:
Stamps: Bloomin' Marvelous, MFT All Occasion Sentiments
Inks: Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise, Memento Tuxedo Black
Cardstock: Tempting Turquoise, Melon Mambo, Real Red and Whisper White
Marker: Stampin' Write Tempting Turquoise
Dies: Spellbinders Circles and Lacy Circles; Die-namites "Hibiscus"
Punches: Word Window, Modern Label
Misc.: Craft foam, Spellbinders Brick Wall EF

Valentine Roses

Here's my first Valentine of 2016! It was inspired by the color challenge at Sunday Stamps #117 called "It's All about Love!" The colors are not named but I interpreted them as Melon Mambo, Blushing Bride, Baked Brown Sugar and Whisper White. Almost all of my cards must be mailed so I try to keep them reasonably low profile as demonstrated by this card.

A panel of Baked Brown Sugar cardstock was adhered to panel of Blushing Bride cardstock then adhered to a card base of Melon Mambo cardstock. On a panel of Whisper White cardstock, the flower images were stamped with Versamark ink and heat embossed using white embossing powder. The embossed panel was sponged with both Melon Mambo ink and Blushing Bride ink and wiped clean with a tissue. I sprinkled additional embossing powder without Versamark while applying heat so that I would have a soft mist over the colors.

The small hearts were stamped on the panel and the ribbon was added. A stamped heart was heat embossed on Melon Mambo cardstock, cut with a punch, backed with Dimensionals and adhered. The inside of the card was lined with a panel of white cardstock stamped with swirls of Melon Mambo and Blushing Bride ink.



Take time to visit the blog and join in the challenge at SSC #117!

Techniques:
Stamping, sponging, heat embossing, emboss resist, emboss misting
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

Materials are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted:
Stamp set: "Snuggles and Smooches"
Inks: Blushing Bride, Melon Mambo, Versamark, Memento Tuxedo Black (inside sentiment)
Cardstock: Whisper White, Blushing Bride, Melon Mambo, Baked Brown Sugar
Misc.: Sweetheart Punch, white embossing powder, Dimensionals

With Gratitude

1/19/2016 Update: This card was a winner of the Emerald Award at the Color My Heart #175 challenge.






At the urging of a friend, I decided to make a card for a challenge that is new to me: Color My Heart: Color Dare #175. The challenge colors are Glacier and White Daisy along with silver. Because any brand of supplies are acceptable, I selected cardstock from my stash that I thought suited the challenge quite nicely. It's always a trick to photograph cards decorated with foiled paper and this card was no exception!

On a panel of white cardstock, leaves were stamped using the stamping off technique to keep the background pastel. The flower image was stamped several times using Versamark ink and then heat embossed with silver embossing powder. The sentiment was die cut from silver foiled paper and a strip of the foiled paper was also adhered to the right side of the white panel. Sequins and a ribbon were added then the panel was backed with craft foam and adhered to a panel of cardstock that had been sponged with coordinating ink. This stack was then adhered to a white card base. The inside was stamped off using the same ink and stamped image as on the front. For creative ideas and challenge fun, visit Color My Heart: Color Dare!

Techniques: Heat embossing, stamping off, sponging, die cutting
Size: 5.5" x 5.5"

Materials:
Stamps: "Love & Sympathy" & "For All Things"
Ink: Soft Sky, Memento Tuxedo Black (inside sentiment)
Cardstock: Whisper White, Soft Sky, DCWV Silver Foil
Die: Lil' Inker Designs: Word Die "With Gratitude"
Misc.: Recollections Embossing Powder (silver), Pretty Pink Posh Sequins, ribbon from stash, craft foam

For You Birthday Card

Our friend, Fran, will be celebrating a birthday in a few weeks. Because she's a big fan of handmade cards, I knew I needed to have a card ready for her. I decided to use Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #141 for the design.

The card base was covered with stamped off flowers. The front of the card base was die cut with openwork flowers then backed with gold-imprinted vellum and white card stock. The large flower was punched four times: two from cardstock and two from the gold-imprinted vellum. The petals were rounded using a bone folder. The bottom flower is cardstock, sponged with gold ink and adhered to the card. The second flower is cardstock, sponged with Island Indigo ink and adhered to the first flower. The third and fourth flowers are gold-imprinted vellum sponged with gold ink and adhered to the cardstock flowers. The center was die cut, adhered and covered with Glossy Accents. This gold ink is the best I've ever used and it dries quickly.

For the sentiment, a piece of cardstock and a piece of gold-imprinted vellum were cut from the same die. The vellum die cut was adhered to the white cardstock die cut. The sentiment was stamped in white ink, punched from cardstock and adhered. The entire sentiment piece was popped up with foam tape. The inside of the card was lined with a die cut panel of white cardstock stamped with "Happy Birthday", leaving sufficient space for a personal note.

The AHSC blog is open to all for challenges!


Techniques: Stamping, sponging, die cutting, stamping off, punching
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

Materials are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted:
Stamps: Fabulous Florets; MFT All Occasion Sentiments
Inks: White Craft, Island Indigo; Memento Tuxedo Black (inside); Tsukineko Delicata Gold
Cardstock: Whisper White, Island Indigo
DSP: Vellum stack
Dies: Spellbinders Eyelet Circles, Resplendent Rectangles; Frantic Stamper Floral Card Band
Punches: Word Window, Blossom
Misc.: Craft foam, Glossy Accents

Life in the Desert

Today's card was designed based on the Atlantic Sketch Challenge #140.

I live in the Sonoran Desert (Arizona) and have been wanting to use my cactus stamps for a while. I wanted to use elements that are reminders of the desert: the sun, a tiny Cactus Wren (state bird), a cactus in bloom and sun-bleached wood. The photo above was taken on my porch to show the San Pedro cactus in the background. I chose to use the cantaloupe colors rather than tan, because the desert often has a sandy pink look to it.

The cactus and its blooms were stamped, sponged and fussy cut. The fence and the stamped sentiment were also cut by hand. The sun was die cut. The cactus wren was stamped directly on the card. The wooden fence and sun were popped up using foam tape. The inside of the card was lined with white cardstock and stamped with more Cactus Wrens. Clear Wink of Stella was added to the sun and the flowers.

AHSC welcomes card makers and paper crafters so visit their blog!

Techniques: Stamping, sponging, fussy cutting, die cutting
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

Materials:
Stamps: Lil' Inker Designs "So Prickly" stamp set
Inks: SU! Crisp Cantaloupe, Early Espresso, Certainly Celery
Markers: SU! Early Espresso, Garden Green
Cardstock: SU! Whisper White, Crisp Cantaloupe
DSP: SU! Into the Woods Collection, Lil' Inker Dip Died Ombre Collection
Misc.: Foam tape, Wink of Stella (clear)

Serene Silhouettes Sympathy Card

12/30/2015 Update: Serene Silhouettes won a Top Three position in AHSC #139.







This week I noticed that my stash of both Get Well and Sympathy cards was depleted so decided I needed to make a few to keep on hand.

The design for this card was inspired by the sketch at The Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #139.


I also entered these "Anything but Christmas" challenges:

Mod Squad Challenge

Inkspirational #98

All Sorts #342/343

Images were stamped in black on white cardstock, die cut, edges sponged with black ink and adhered to gray cardstock squares. A banner was cut from striped DSP. The three squares were adhered with foam tape to a panel of dotted vellum. This was adhered to a panel of pink cardstock and then adhered to the gray card base. The card base opens on the side, which I prefer for landscape
cards because the card stands up better than a card that opens at the bottom edge. The inside of the card was lined with a panel of white cardstock and stamped with a coordinating image and a sentiment. In keeping with the sketch, three pearls were added to the upper left side.

Deadline to join the challenge is Sunday evening, December 27, 2015, so stop by the AHSC blog!









The other challenges have varying deadline dates so drop by and visit Mod Squad, Inkspirational and All Sorts.
Techniques: Die cutting, sponging, stamping
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")
Materials are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted:
Stamps: Serene Silhouettes stamp set
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Cardstock: Whisper White, Smoky Slate, Pink Pirouette
DSP: Winter Wonderland Designer Vellum, black & white stripe from stash
Dies: Banner Framelits & Simon Says Stamp Double Stitched Squares
Misc.: Martha Stewart stick-on pearls & CTMH foam tape

Scalloped Rainbow

12/23/2015 Update: This card was voted "Top Three" in the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge!






Using the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #138 for
inspiration, I created the following birthday card. My aunt will be 89 in March so I think I will set this aside to mail to her in a few months. I wanted the card to be feminine and pretty and the sketch helped me achieve that.

Scrap pieces of watercolor paper were colored with watercolor paints in colors of red/pink, orange, yellow flecked with orange, green, blue and purple flecked with pink. The variegation on the scallops does not show up well in the photos. The pieces were then die cut into scallops, flowers and leaves and adhered to the card front panel. A strip of glimmer paper was adhered. The sentiment was stamped, punched and adhered to a die cut blue watercolored label. The label was backed with thin foam tape.

A panel of blue watercolored paper was adhered to the card base. The card panel was then adhered to the blue panel using craft foam.


The inside of the card was decorated with a few die cut flowers and a birthday stamp.

Please visit the AHSC blog and consider joining in the weekly challenge!
Techniques: Stamping, die cutting, water coloring, punching
Size: 5" x 6.5"
Materials:
Stamps: Sweet 'n Sassy "Love Birds" (sentiment on card front); SU! "Flower Patch" (sentiment on inside)
Inks: Koh-I-Noor watercolor set, Memento Tuxedo Black 
Paper: SU! Whisper White cardstock, SU! water color paper, SU! Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer paper
Dies: Lil' Inker Designs "Fanfare Scalloped Border" & "Perky Posies"; Spellbinders "Labels Twenty"
Punch: SU! Modern Label
Misc.: Craft foam, CTMH thin foam tape

Christmas 2015 Fun Fold

These are the cards I made for family and friends this year. They are all in the mail so that task is out of the way for another year!

First, I made wallets/money holders for my nephews. They will hold cash or checks perfectly. Instructions to make these can be found HERE. The only change I made to the original instructions was to add the indentation on the front with my envelope punchboard. The photos were taken with them standing open like a tent card. The materials used:
Envelope Punch Board, SU! Scalloped Tag Topper Punch
SU! cardstock: Shimmery White, Garden Green and Real Red
SU! ink: Real Red and Garden Green
DSP: Nordic Noel Collection (retired)
Stamps: MFT "Hand Lettered Holiday"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Measurements for making the following fold are at the bottom of this blog post.

All of the following cards were made with a fun fold but I used two different paper designs. The card base was cut and scored to create the fold. For each card, panels were cut from Basic Black to mat the design. Three panels per card were cut from "Silent Night" music paper and adhered to the black panels. One panel per card of Very Vanilla was cut for the inside, sponged with gold ink and stamped with the shepherd image. (I used the MISTI tool for all stamping to ensure a solid image.) Additional gold ink was sponged for a glow where the star would be placed. The panels were adhered to the corresponding black panels. The sentiment was stamped and the card sponged with gold then attached to the black panel.

Here is a photo showing one card folded and then another unfolded:












The DSP was cut, the edges sponged and then adhered to a black panel. All the pieces were adhered to the Old Olive card base. The star was die cut and adhered. On the cards with the Christmas tree, a star was punched and placed atop the tree. For the poinsettias, the centers were embellished with clear Wink of Stella. For additional writing space, a panel of Very Vanilla was placed along the back of the card.

This photo demonstrates how the card can be set standing up:

The final photo shows the front of each card. They are identical except for the change in the DSP:

Techniques: Stamping, sponging, die cutting, punching
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

Materials are Stampin' Up! except for the inks:

Stamps: Every Blessing

Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black & Tsukineko Delicata Golden Glitz

Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Basic Black, Old Olive, Gold Glimmer

DSP: Home for Christmas Collection

Die: Stars Framelits (star inside)

Punch: Itty Bitty Accents (tiny star on tree)
Misc.: MISTI

There is a You Tube tutorial available HERE. I wanted the card to be a perfect A2 size so changed the measurements as follows:
I started with a piece of cardstock 4.25" x 11". On the long edge, one inch in from the bottom, I made a cut from 2.75" to 8.25". I scored at 2.75" from the top edge of the card base to the 1" cut. At 5.25" I scored from edge to edge to create the center fold. I scored again at 8.25" from the bottom edge up to the 1" cut. Fold and decorate. It is now the exact size for an A2 envelope.



May the Lord Bless You

12/16/2015 Update: This card placed in the Top Three at the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #137.





Using the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #137 as inspiration, I made a card of encouragement. This is a tile card, where the card looks as if nine tiles are imprinted with one image. A tutorial for the technique can be found HERE. I used different dimensions than used in the tutorial.

To create the tiles, a square piece (3.75" x 3.75") of cardstock was scored into nine squares (each 1.25" x 1.25"). The stamp was inked and the cardstock pressed on the stamp, taking care to avoid stamping into the scored gaps. Using a mask of scrap paper, the card was sponged to give each tile an individual look. A very light pencil line was drawn in the four scored lines to give a shadow effect.


A panel of cardstock was texture embossed and a piece of twine was wrapped and tied. This was adhered to the card base. The tiled square was adhered to a panel of DSP and backed with foam to raise it for adhering to the panel on the card base. Three pearls were added and the sentiment was stamped directly onto the card. The inside was stamped with a butterfly, leaving sufficient space for a personal note.

Stop by the AHSC blog and join the challenge!

Techniques: Tile card, stamping, sponging, texture embossing

Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")






Materials are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted:
Stamps: SU! Best Thoughts, Gina K Designs Bounty of Blessings (sentiment)
Inks: Crisp Cantaloupe, Pistachio Pudding, Stazon Jet Black
Cardstock: Shimmery White, Crisp Cantaloupe
DSP: Pistachio Pudding DSP stack
Misc.: Pistachio Pudding thick twine, Dimensionals, MS pearls, Darice EF