Happy PINK Birthday

Recently I gave a PINK by Victoria Secrets gift card. Oh, how I love those hot pink and white polka dotted gift cards so I thought it would be fun to create a card to match.. Here it is:

To begin, I cut a standard A2 card, scored it, and adhered black and white washi tape to three sides. I cut another piece of white cardstock to measure 4" x 5 3/8". Using the Stamping Layering technique that I had seen Laura Bassen use in a recent Online Card Class, I stamped the the triangle background onto the white cardstock with white ink. Once that dried, I stamped the neon pink circles, overlapping some for added interest. See how the pink makes those triangles pop! After letting that dry, I stamped the sentiment in VersaMark ink and added black embossing powder. 

I decided that the polka dots needed something to ground them. Since I didn't have any pink cardstock in the right shade, I swiped the ink pad across a scrap to customize my own. I used a border punch to add the scalloped edge.After adhering it to the stamped image, I added a thin scrap of black cardstock for a finished look.

Finally, I felt that I needed a little more black so I used the outline stamp on the medium circles. I used foam adhesive to adhere to the card front. Here's a closer look!

I hope Victoria Secret's approves!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Bazzill (Marshmallow); Papertrey Ink (Black);
Stamps: Hero Arts (Tiny Flags; Many Dots); Papertrey Ink (Think Big Favorites #12);
Ink: Color Box (Frost White); Hero Arts (Neon Pink); VersaMark;
Tools: Fiskars border punch (Scallop Sentiment);
Misc.: Zing embossing powder (black); Sandy Lion washi tape.

Happy Mother's Day with my Silhouette

Happy Mother's Day. I was looking for some quick cards to get in the mail this week so I turned to the Silhouette that Sal gave me for Christmas. I love it and, for the most part, it makes for quick and easy cardmaking, despite the learning curve. But, not this time. The cards I am sharing today took hours and maybe a dozen pieces of cardstock before i got the lacy pattern to cut correctly on my machine. I quickly came to realize that a clean cut is all about getting the settings right. And, with three numbers to play with (and the pre-set combination failing for this intricate cut) it took A LOT of tries. (For those who are interested, the setting that finally worked for me was 2/33/4 -- Double Cut.) Here is the card I made for my Godmother:

My card was inspired by this card on the Silhouette blog. It was a free cut of the week, so I guess that makes up for all the cardstock I wasted. LOL! I created the watercolor background using Tim Holtz distress inks and watercolor paper. There is something about this technique that makes me feel like an artist! The sticker is from a Simon Says Stamp card kit that I am trying to use up.

Once I got the cut right, I thought I would make a card for my mother. This time, I was inspired by the colors in Basic Grey's Highline collection. This may just be my new favorite color combination! Here's the card:

I will be sharing more of my Silhouette creations in the coming weeks.

Supplies
Cardstock: American Crafts; Tim Holtz watercolor paper;
Silhouette Cut: 59440
Blue Card
Ink: Tim Holtz distress ink (Salty Ocean; Broken China; Squeezed Lemonade);
Embellishments: Basic Grey candy buttons; Lawn Fawn Sticker (Daphne's Closet).

Pink Card: 
Ink: Tim Holtz distress ink (Picked Raspberry; Ripe Persimmon; Squeezed Lemonade); Color Box Frost White; American Crafts pen;
Stamp: Papertrey Ink (Four Square);
Embellishments: American Crafts banner sticker (DIY Shop); My Mind's Eye enamel dots.

NSD: Royal Fever

Wow! It's been a while! The year is just racing by and it seems that life gets busier and busier. I have been creating a huge number of cards.lately, which has left little time for sharing them.  However, since today is National Scrapbooking Day, I thought I would share a layout.

Did anyone have "Royal Fever" while the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were on their tour of New Zealand and Australia. I was scoping out Kate's outfits on a daily basis. I just love her style. I have a long history of doing this and many coffee table books of Princess Diana to prove it! I even got up at 5 a.m. to watch Diana and Charles get married. With no Internet back then, what choice did I have!

With that said, I thought I would share a layout today about my visit to the Princess Diana exhibit that I went to when it was in Connecticut. Here's the layout:

Since I created this at a crop, I kept supplies to a minimum. I used just one collection pack (which included all of the banners), Gold Thickers, grey alphabet stickers, assorted brads, stamp, twine and a Maya Road envelope to serve as a frame for my journaling.  Here's a closer look at the journaling and stamping.

My fascination with all things Royal may be a little extreme but here are the facts:  Diana was born on my sister Diane's (pictured above in the pink coat) anniversary. She married Charles on Diane's birthday. William was born on my birthday. And, Diane saw Charles and Camilla on a walkabout while on vacation in Madrid! Yes, we are a little over the top! What about you? Are you a Royal Watcher?

Supplies:
Pattern Paper: Fancy Pants (Country Boutique):
Stickers: American Crafts Thickers; Basic Grey alphabet;
Stamps: Technique Tuesday;
Ink: Stampin' Up!
Embellishments: My Minds Eye brads; Maya Road envelope; twine
Tools: Fiskars border punch