Simon Says...Thank You

My August Simon Says Stamp card kit came in the mail yesterday but I was too busy to play. Nevertheless, I thought I would share a card I made using the April kit. Since the card was going to a music teacher who had worked with Mark for his Senior Project, I thought I would swap out the washi tape in the kit with I roll I had with a musical theme. Here's the card:

To make it, I cut a standard sized A2 card, scored it at the top and ran it through my Cuttlebug to get the embossed dots. Because I wanted the music notes to really pop, I cut a strip of white card stock and adhered the washi tape to it. I added a piece of black card stock that I had punched with the postage stamp punch to ground it. For the Fancy Pants envelope, I used a Spellbinders die to cut out the half circle on the envelope. This was the hardest part of the project. The envelope was so thick that I must have run it thgrough the Cuttlebug half a dozen times! Once I got the circle cut, I stamped my sentiment added the star and embroidery floss and adhered it to my project.

And, because I have more than enough washi tape to last me a lifetime, I used some to decorate the envelope.

So what's the perfect gift for a music teacher? An iTunes card, of course!

Supplies:
Cardstock, envelope and embelishments: Simon Says Stamp April card kit.
Tools: Spellbinders (Classic Circles) EK Success border punch (Postage stamp)
Misc.: Washi tape from my stash

It's a Boy!

That was the news that came out of London this week as the future King of England was born. I have to admit that I was secretly hoping for a girl just to test Parliament's recent decree allowing a female heir to the throne. But 2013 seems to be the Year of the Boy --especially around here. I welcomed a new grand-nephew in March and am awaiting the birth of his cousin -- another boy -- in October. That makes four grand nephews to love! So being surrounded by Baby Boy Fever, I thought I would share a card I made to welcome the newest addition to our family. Here it is:

This card couldn't be simpler to make once I selected the paper. To create it, I cut a standard A2 size card and opted to score it on the side. I know, I usually favor a top score but I wanted to round the corners on the right. Next, I adhered the pattern paper (My Mind's Eye Lost and Found) and ribbon onto the card base and stamped the sentiment. I stamped the onesie onto a complimentary pattern and added the bear. (The thing I like about this stamp set is the different motifs to choose from to personalize the onesie.) Finally, I did a little fussy cutting, popped the onsie with some foam adhesive, rounded the corners and my card was done. Easy peasy!

So, Royal Watchers...did you hear that Will and Kate named the new prince George Alexander Louis? I thought that Spencer would figure into one of the middle names but I guess it wasn't regal enough!

Supplies
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink
Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye Lost and Found (Portobello Road)
Stamps: Stamps of Life (Onesie4baby)
Ink: Colorbox
Ribbon: Recollection

Lest We Forget...I Scrapbook Too!

It's been a long time since I have shared a scrapbook layout on the blog. And there's two reasons for that. First, I have been making many more cards than layouts lately and if I wasn't making cards, then Hallmark would be getting rich. The second reason comes down to the basics. I just find it easier to photograph a card than I do a layout. So often, I get a glare from the photos that streaks across the page making a photo less than ideal to post. Guess I just have to become more knowledgeable about using Photoshop.

Anyway, today's layout highlights a very special story around my Mom's 80th birthday. My sisters, brother and I had planned a small surprise party for her with family and very dear friends. However, due to final exam schedules, the party was planned for the week after her birthday. Since her birthday fell on a Saturday, I didn't want her to be alone so I decided to give her a surprise outing. The only hint I gave her ahead of the day was to tell her she needed to wear comfortable clothes. When she arrived at my house, I presented her with a hand-made card (of course!) that revealed the secret. We were going to spend the day in New York City where I was going to take her to lunch and for a ride on a jet boat. What made this more special was that a year earlier, when she was on a cruise to the Caribbean, she was signed up for a jet boat ride as one of her shore excursions. However, something went wrong and the shore excursion was cancelled. My mom had really looked forward to that ride (she is an adventurer at heart) and was really disappointed when the tour operator cancelled it. I was so happy to give her this special gift of an outing. Here's my layout:

The layout uses papers and embellishments from Pebbles Hip Hip Hooray collection which I was lucky enough to have won during a CHA sneak last year. I only added a few things: American craft cardstock, word stickers from October Afternoon's Cakewalk collection, and some stamping. Here's a closer look at the title:

The journaling reads: Going on a jet boat ride was something you always talked about doing. Your 80th birthday seemed like the perfect day to surprise you with a ride on the Beast!

To create the banner, I strung a piece of twine across each of the two pages and added a mixture of the Pebbles Glitter Flag banners to it. I only put adhesive on the backs of the banners. I tied each end in a bow and anchored it on the ends with a dab of Glossy Accents.

As for the the October Afternoon stickers, they matched the layout perfectly. Here's a closer look:

If you are every in New York City, I highly recommend a trip on the Beast!

Supplies:
Cardstock: American Crafts;
Patterned Paper, Letter Stickers and Embellishments: Pebbles (Hip Hip Hooray);
Stickers: October Afternoon (Cakewalk);
Stamps: Technique Tuesday
Ink: Jenni Bowlin (Cough Syrup);
Twine: Martha Stewart

First Online Card Class Card

I signed up for the Summer Card Camp 2 from Online Card Class. Unfortunately, things have been pretty busy around here and I haven't been able to play along as much as I want to. (I do have life-time access to the class so that is a plus!) I did manage to make a card that combines a sketch, color combination and technique highlighted during Week 1.

To create the multi-colored sentiment, I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig to duplicate Jennifer McGuire's technique. I topped the flower and the center of the leaves with Diamond Stickles for a little extra something.

Off to catch up on Week 2 assignments!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink
Stamps: Hero Arts (Envelope Pattern); Simon Says Stamp (Happy Every Day); Papertrey Ink (Happiness in Bloom);
Inks: My Favorite Things  (Orange Fizz; Blu Raspberry, Jelly Bean Green, Sour Apple; Razzle Berry
Tools: Papertrey Ink Dies (Happiness in Bloom, Mat Stack 3 ); EK Success Corner Rounder;
Misc.: Diamond Stickles; Recollection Rhinestone Sticker

First Design Team Post at Scrapper's Playground & a RAK

My first Design Team Post is up at Scrapper's Playground. Want to see what I made from all of these supplies?

Head on over to their blog. And, if you leave a comment there and come back here to tell me you did, I have an extra 6x6 pad of My Mind's Eye The Sweetest Thing Lavender to give away to one lucky person. RAK closes on Sunday, July 21.

Sending Birthday Wishes

Today's card was inspired by Maile Belles. She often does an offset design with clean and simple stamping so I decided to give it a try.  Here's my card:

The paper is from Basic Grey's Hipster line. When I saw this particular pattern, I thought that Papertrey Ink's  Happiness in Bloom set matched perfectly. Lucky for me, I had just purchased it!

This is a top-fold card.First I adhered a strip of patterned paper down the left side., Then I trimmed about an inch off of the side of the Soft Stone cardstock and began stamping. I used liquid glue to adhere the strip of TIm Holtz Core'dination cardstock. I then popped the entire panel on foam adhesives. Yes, I used a lot of dimensional adhesive on this card but the impact it adds made it worth it.

I am submitting this one to The Birthday Linky Challenge.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Soft Stone); Tim Holtz Core'dination (Shattered)
Patterned Paper: Basic Grey (Hipster)
Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Happiness in Blooms)
Ink: Papertrey Ink

Simple Summer=One Layer Card

I was inspired to create a one layer card for the simple summer challenge on the Hero Arts blog. Since I had several thank you cards to make, I knew this was a good idea for mass production. I pulled out a really old v vintage stamp set that I bought at Scrapper's Playground many years ago. The sentiment came from another oldie but goody Hero Arts set. Add to that some kraft cardstock, VersaMark ink and white embossing powder and, well, it doesn't get much simpler than that.  Here's my card:

The stamped image at the top of the card is actually made from just two stamps. To make it easier to mass produce, I positioned them on my Fiskars stamp press.  I added the sentiment separately. This card would definitely qualify for a 10-minute dash!

Supplies
Cardstock: Stampin' Up!
Stamps: Hero Arts (CL386 Stencil Art; CL148 Happiness Messages)
Ink: VersaMark; American Crafts Zing embossing powder (white)
Tools: EK Success Corner Rounder; Fiskars stamp press

10-Minute Craft Dash #21 and Exciting News

I needed a quick card for my friend who was having a 4th of July BBQ so I decided to challenge myself with the 10-Minute Craft Dash. This weeks challenge was to make a card that features stars in under ten minutes. For those of you who don't know me in real life, let me just tell you that I am a slow crafter. Making a card in under ten minutes is way out of my comfort zone. But I managed to pull this one together in 9:52. It definitely helped to have a plan limited number of supplies out on the table ready to go. Just so happens that also works for Simon Says Stamp Patriotic challenge. Here's my card:

To create the focal image, I stamped the stars with VersaMark ink, added clear embossing powder and zapped them with my heat tool. To add the red and blue, I swiped the Tim Holtz distress inks on a craft mat. After spritzing each color with a little water, I painted it onto my image for a really simple resist technique. I stamped the sentiment with StazOn ink, added a few sequins and gems and took a deep breath!

Now for my news....I have been chosen to be a card designer for Scrapper's Playground, my local scrapbook store! I will be making two cards a month for them. I just submitted the first one and will let you know when it is posted.

Supplies
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink;
Stamps: Stampin' UP! (Simply Stars); Hero Arts (Celebrate Everyday -- sentiment);
Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Barn Door; Salty Ocean); StazOn (Jet Black);
Misc.: Stamp 'n Stuff Embossing Powder (clear); Darico sequins; Recollection rhinestones