TIPS AND TECHNIQUES

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Some last minute Ideas!

So...Holidays are here and many people buy gift cards.  I personally am not fond of gift cards.  I like to think that a person hemmed and hawed over an item trying to find the absolute right one for me.  I love trying to buy the perfect for you gift...running all over the place looking for just the right thing or even searching the Internet for the unfindable!  Hahaha .  But there are people who believe its better to let the recipient get what they want themselves so they are handed a gift card to their favorite place.  So why not make a special gift card holder card?  This is super easy made from a 4.25 x 11 piece of card stock for the base scored at 2 on the one side and 3.50 on the other and a piece of white card cut at 4 x 7 and scored at 2 on one side and 1/2 on the other side.  I can write out a tutorial if you'd like but if your a card maker I'm sure you can figure it out.  They are very easy to make.

When you attach the white to the inside.. the pocket for the gift card slips up to reveal your greeting.  One this one there is no special closure for the top flap of the card and the yarn wrapped around the bottom flap keeps the bottom together, no gluing.  


This one was made with the envelope punch board.  The little tabs on the front flap keep the card folded closed.  That is the only difference between the 2 cards.
Well I have more to finish so later!!!

HAPPY CARDING!!

More Christmas Tags 2015

Oh my goodness Christmas is only 9 days away!!!  What on earth have I've been doing???Well lets see first of all we had our annual family cookie baking day.  We made a total of 6 different types of cookies and then after we divided them amongst all of us we made a plate arrangement to take to our local Fire Department.  We have so much fun baking and gabbing!  Here's this years cookie donation.
I had also gone to "Dickens in Dundee" for their living windows, Christmas music, games, and of course a stop to see Santa with my grandkids.  It was a magical evening that included a carriage ride in the historic area.
Then there was shopping, shopping, and more shopping!!  I believe I'm close to being done...lol.  Still have to wrap, still have to buy Christmas dinner, still need stocking stuffers, still need grandkids to feel better.  Yep....they got sick over the weekend!  A virus called 5th disease.  I never heard of it but Drs. said it was common among school aged kids.  Figures my grandkids get everything!!!  Lets hope everything is gone by Christmas!
So now before I use all my tags up, I thought I should post a few more.  These are so much fun...it's like they are mini card fronts.  Each one a little different and each one having alot of thought put into it.   I use to just cut out ovals or tag shapes, stamp a 1 color object on the front and a to/from on the back.  Super simple and plain.  Now I take much more time....increased the sizes and do way more than a simple stamp.  I've been making most of my embellies' and I've even given sets away as little early Christmas gifts to neighbors and family.

I think for next year I'm going to start much earlier and make a bunch for gifts.  This year people only got 6 but next year I'd like to give out maybe 20 per person.  Guess I better start in May!  LOL!
Well until later.....................................

HAPPY CARDING!

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

2015 Simple ScrapTags

Ok looks like I can squeeze in 1 more post before Thanksgiving!  TAGS...I  Love tags.  Some of my friends think they're too time consuming and generally people don't save tags but I say "So What".  All those tiny scraps that I would be throwing out anyways can quickly be made into inexpensive tags.  The only extra embellishments I used were sequins.  All twine was left overs and just some have stickles.

I decided to give these to my sister as a little surprise mail. There are 4 different sizes because I used all scraps so the top folded ones are 2.5 x 2.4 the large ones are 2.75 x 6, the medium ones are 2.75 x 4 and the small ones are 2 x 2.75. 
So don't throw out those scraps!  As your cleaning up your work area just put a few tags together.  Slip them into a cello bag with a piece of decorative paper on top to staple the bag closed.  I'm giving my sister but you could easily just make a gift out of 8 tags in a bag!  Easy hostess gift.  You can never have too many tags...and when you do...give them as gifts!!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING AND HAPPY CARDING!!

Monday, November 23, 2015

Santa's Watching

So Christmas is quickly approaching and although I have all my cards done (not addressed, yikes!  That would be too productive for me!  LOL) I know alot of you are scrambling for last minute cards.  This one is adorable and very similar to one I saw on Splitcoast.  They did more stamping and I did more sponging.

The base is cherry cobbler 4.25 x 5.5 the next layer is from a paper pack from Hobby Lobby a Kraft color with dark green music notes.  I sponged with some Corduroy distress ink from Tim Holtz around all the edges.  The trees are from Lovely as a Tree and stamped with Tombow markers.  Santa is stamped with a Dew Drop ink pad in copper and also sponged.  Ribbon is just a sheer silver.  I brought the card to our card night and some of the ladies preferred using a Stampin Up ink pad Soft Grey for the Santa because it showed more detail.  I should have taken a picture but I forgot.  They also used a Cherry Cobbler ribbon.
Well that's it for now.....Today I'm making homemade French Onion soup!!  Roasted the bones for the stock yesterday and today the house smells yummy!  My kind of comfort food on such a cold snow covered day!  If I don't get another post in I want to wish you all a HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!  I am so thankful for my family and our health and I'm thankful for all of you who keep coming back to check out my blog!

HAPPY CARDING!

Saturday, November 21, 2015

WINTER PINE BRANCH

Have you ever made a card....decide to blog about it .....and then think????  Did I do this one already?  My mind seems so confused today.  I had to look back on some previous post to see if I did this one yet.  CRAZY!!!!
  Ok well its a clean and simple one.  Once again I saw it on pintrest.  Boy I have got to stay off that site.  I pin wayyyyy to much stuff!!  LOL  Well this one originated on Splitcoast by ceedee.  She used a Stampin Up stamp which I do not own and she used Stampin up inks.  I only own 2 of those Black and Old Olive.  So my card I used white card 110# Recollection and a stamp by Hero Arts.  I used Tim Holtz distress inks in Corduroy and Evergreen to smudge the edges of my ovals which were cut from Creative Memories cutting system.  The emboss folder is from Darice.   There wasn't any name on the Merry Christmas stamp but I got it from the dollar bin at Michael's years ago.  This card can be whipped out in no time making it quite ideal for large amounts of cards.

Well that's all for now...I'm going to keep watching all this beautiful snow we are getting.  12" and still counting.  I live in a heavily wooded area so it is simply gorgeous out there!  Enjoy your Saturday wherever you are!

HAPPY CARDING!!

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

C.A.S. OR K.I.S.S.

So I was thinking of Clean and Simple (C.A.S) Cards and noticed that alot of people also post Keep It Simple Silly (K.I.S.S) Cards.  I'm assuming that they are about the same type of cards.  But I also noticed that alot of those cards posted seem to have quite a few additions to the cards.  Or maybe my interpretation of simple isn't what everyone else thinks is simple.  I think I'm a little more simple when it comes to simple cards.  LOL  A great example of that is the card I have for today.  I wanted simple, I want clean and I wanted quick.  Something that even my granddaughter could accomplish and yet still look terrific.  This is what I came up with....................

I started with your basic 4.24 x 5.5 Whisper White card base.  Then I went through the scrap basket and found some reds and greens.  I punched some circles from 2 different size punches and randomly scattered them on the card front.  I then made the embellishment from scraps also using a large oval punch, a medium label punch and a small oval punch .  Layered all three together and adhered it to an empty spot on the card.  add a little stickles and done.  Can't get much simpler.  I think I'll have my granddaughter do these for her other grandma and great grandma.  They'll love it.  

Well until next time...............................
HAPPY CARDING

Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Simple Christmas Cards 2

First I wanted to start with a tip that I forgot on my last post.  As I was blinging up those cards, I noticed my silver glitter gel pen stopped working.  Dang it I didn't have a spare, it was nighttime, no stores are open and I wanted to get this done!  For the heck of it I put the pen, tip side down, into a cup of very very hot water for about 5 minutes or so while I cleaned up a bit.  Low and behold.......it WORKED!!  The pen started writing and I was able to finish my project.  I checked it again today and so far so good...still working!  So a quick fix could be hot (very hot) water.  May not always work but it did that time for me.
So now cards.....again super simple.  This time I was just browsing through some emboss folders and noticed I had a few with winter scenes on them.  No idea why I bought them. (impulsive I'm sure) So I thought????????????Hey just emboss card bases and the residents at the nursing home can color or watercolor.  Maybe add some bling?  Hmmmm the possibilities????  So here's the starter card for them to work on.  







Since the basic card is white any color can be used for the embellishments.  In my sample I decided to use blue.  I made alot of different sentiment tags for them to use in various colors so the sky's the limit!  I also used chalks for coloring mine but they will have a choice of colored pencils or watercolor paints.

I also added some Stickles to some of the snowflakes.  These are so cute and definitely can be considered 0 layered cards.  Why didn't I thinks of these before?  I could have made all my Christmas cards in 1 week instead of months.  LOL

So I still have some ideas up my sleeve so stay tuned!
HAPPY CARDING!




Monday, November 9, 2015

Quick Change Christmas


Hello!!!  Yes it's been awhile.  Life has taken a busy detour and prevented me from even looking at other bloggers :(  I've got alot of catching up to do!  Today is a down day so I thought it would be a good idea to get some blogging done.  Hopefully I'll get this posted today.  The last few days I've been battling a cold that has just left me darn right tired.  Ok enough excuses (lol)....on with the cards!!
Although I have plenty of cards done for this year to send out, my friend June and I do crafts at a local nursing home. (I believe I've mentioned that before)  She had done a few card classes while I was up at my summer place (how dare she!  LOL) and wants to hold another later this month so we got together to put together samples and start cutting the kits.  June C.A.S.E.D. the first one which took us the longest cutting out.  Only due to measuring and gabbing!  LOL  Anyway super cute and can be left in it's simple state or blinged up.  It's your basic 4.25 x 5.5 card base and we used the  Mary, Joseph, Jesus stamp from a Stampin Up's set that I believe is retired.  
original



slight bling






















I guess my slight bling doesn't show up well but if you really look hard you can see there's some glittering.  I used just a bit of Stickles on the card on the right.

This next one could NOT be simpler!!  We used the scallop edge Sizzix flip it die and designer card stock from DCWV.  Since we did all the cutting all they have to do is adhere the circles and stamp their sentiment on the first one.  We needed to try and add different levels to the cards since the spectrum of abilities varies.  Then I upped the anti with the second one using some little snowflake sequins!  I also added another circle to the center and put a snowflake on that too.  


original outside










2nd one with little bling



inside original























So these aren't too bad for a super simple card .   Now this last one is just like the above ones except that I used more of the pieces from the die set.  Instead of the designer cardstock used as the base I used a solid cardstock.  Then the layers were cut from the designer cardstock, added some bling and we have a more complexed card for those who can do a little bit more.

The inside of this looks pretty much like all the others.  So all together we have 3 different levels so I think I covered every ability!

Well that's it for now.  We still have a few more super simple cards coming so check back they should be uploaded soon.  Until then have a glorious Monday!

HAPPY CARDING!!

Monday, October 19, 2015

Just an Update

So Hello!!!  I'm finally home from our summer home an it is all locked down for the winter.  :(  I am so going to miss the fabulous sunsets and the waves crashing on the lake lulling me to sleep.  You just cannot believe how relaxing it can be up there.  No real phones and cell phone reception is mediocre.  I do not have Internet up there so there is nothing to distract me and believe me I am easily distracted!  LOL  While I was up there this time I took a class at the Nature Center on making fall wreaths from stuff you find in the woods.  This wreath cost nearly nothing.  You can get a foam wreath form from the dollar store (mine was a 9").  Everything I used was free from the great outdoors!  I was so pleased with my finished wreath that I decided to share it with you.
Excuse the hook but it was the only thing I could find on the wall to hang it with so I removed all the jackets and hence the hooks..LOL  
Anyway it was so much fun and I met some really great ladies.  I was informed that during the winter months they all get together a couple of times making crafts from nature and they invited me back.  Unfortunately my cabin is not heated for those cold (no freezing) winter days so I will not be able to attend tho their winter wreath sounds gorgeous.  Maybe I can con my sister into letting me use her place for a weekend.  Hers has heat!!  lol
The only other fun things I did was attend a few fall fests and ran around to multiple farm markets picking up things I wanted to stock up on for the winter.   Ok Ok....I admit I did go to Oscars stamp store Once!  Yes only Once!!.  I picked up a few Tombow Markers that I didn't have and I copied Pats list of Tombow markers they use for coloring ALL their Northwoods Stamps.  She said these are the must have marker colors all the rest are just because you want it but you don't need it.  I will re-write the colors at a later date but for right now here is the list from  my phone.

So now if you don't own any Tombow you don't have to fret over which colors you should start out with!

Well now I can now try and get some other crafty stuff done around here for the up coming holidays.  

Later!!
HAPPY CARDING!!!

Sunday, October 4, 2015

One more Halloween

Oh my gosh!!!  Another Halloween???  Relax...this is the last one!  I'm getting a bit tired of Halloween cards too.  Although I think they are cute I get real antsy and want to move on to Christmas.  LOL
I decided to try a Grid card.  The Grid stamp is of course from Northwoods and so is the cube stamp with the Halloween images.

When I stamped the grid it was just black and white.  Boring...heeheehee so I added orange to all those white squares.  This card really only has 1 layer.  Green green from Recollections was used for the base.  Images were stamped in black and the only coloring I did was using Tombow markers on the stars and the purplish watercoloring behind the 5 images.  Some orange sequins added as my bling and I'm done!  Simple simple simple.  I bought a few of these cube stamps in different themes and can't wait to give those a try too.  Well until next time.....and who knows what I'll be sharing!


HAPPY CARDING!

Thursday, October 1, 2015

Envelope fold Christmas

A few posts ago I made a Birthday card using an Envelope fold that was new to me.  I mentioned that I would also do a Christmas card and here it is...


The paper I used was from a Stampin up Christmas pack.  I'll have to look it up.  I also made the flowers on the front with scraps of the Christmas paper and some cherry cobbler scraps.  The punch for the main pieces was a retired Stampin up flower punch that I do not know the name of but you could probably use the Pansy punch for similar effects.  The smaller flowers in the middle of large flowers was from a Martha Stewart 5 petal flower punch.  McGill pine was used for the leaves.  I then used a flourish swirl die for added dimension. I also misted all pieces with glitter mist just for a touch of sparkle.  I so love Sparkle! The inside sentiment is a Northwoods stamp.  If you sit down and make a few flowers these card go together really quickly and the fold is so easy.  See my previous post for instructions.
Hope you liked it.  I'm definitely going to make some more!
Til next time......

HAPPY CARDING!









Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Flip it Christmas

Well I'm back from a much relaxed time out.  I was at the cottage and it is always so nice when I don't have the phone ringing and everyday hustle of normal home life.  We went to a few festivals and weather was picture perfect.  We were even able to watch parts of the eclipse between clouds.  It was so awesome.  I only made a few cards as I was more motivated to go to festivals and antique shops.
  First up...I mentioned that I would do a Sizzix Flip it card in a Christmas theme and here it is:


Wish I could tell you what paper I used but I can't.  There was no name on it and I got it at the LSS in Door County, but isn't it cute?  All little hats and mittens and I love that they threw in the color blue with the reds and greens.  The snowman stamp is one of the cube stamps from Northwoods.  Those little guys are just so adorable.  The inside sentiment is also from Northwoods.
  The next card is using the same paper.  Old olive is the base and cherry cobbler is the first layer.  

This set of snowmen are also Northwoods stamps but individual ones, each approximately 2x2.  I decided not to color these since the background paper is so busy so instead I just added some bling to their pompoms on their hats.  I sponged alittle  Old Olive around the edges.
That's it for the snowmen cards.  Stay tuned for another Christmas card tomorrow.
Til Then......


HAPPY CARDING!!













Thursday, September 17, 2015

More from Halloween Weekend

This is going to be short and sweet since I'm only minutes away from hitting the road again and going back to the cabin for awhile.  There are a bunch of fall festivals that I always attend and I sure don't want to miss out this year!  LOL  So real quick here are the rest of the Halloween cards we made over last weekend.



Top left card is a new Die June bought.  The original card we saw was for Christmas but we turned it into a Halloween card.  I think the background paper we used was a bit busy but kids would like it.  The card on right is a simple Z-fold and I really just literally slapped this one together with scraps.  Bottom cards as you can tell we used Stampin Ups owl punch.  Love that punch!  We  C.A.S.E.D  that card from the Internet.  The middle card is a typical 4.25x5.5 tent card laid on it side and we removed the top 2".  The last card is another Flip it card.  Loving these dies!
Well that's it ....gotta go...LOL.....CRAFT FAIR TIME!!
Hope I don't spend a fortune!  Heeheehee...yeah right!

HAPPY CARDING!!








A Weekend Of Halloween

Well our weekend was productive!  June and I made all our Halloween cards, played around with some new Dies, shopped at both of Oscars Rubber stamp stores and spent way too much money but.....we had a real good time.  Though our eating habits weren't the greatest I was able to drag June around to some special highlights of Door County.  (She's never been there)  Our adventure included the Door County Bakery for Corsica bread, Al Johnson's Swedish restaurant with goats on the roof for Swedish pancakes, The Door County Confectionery for un-needed but yummy candy (for us and the grandkids lol), The Yum Yum Tree for Capt. Baileys Ice Cream, Koepsels for smoked fish and cheese, and Kitty O'Rieleys for corned beef Mac and Cheese. Whew...I'm exhausted all over again!  Anyway......we made cards in the evenings between star watching (not for long...it was freezing out!) and Kahlua! heehee.
Ok...back on track....First up.  Circle Flip it cards.

Super simple with the flip it die.  I think the only stamping we did to these was the Happy Halloween inside the card LOL.  Next up was a technique card.

We used black for the base and glossy for the 1 layer.  We first we masked off a border top and bottom then we stamped the birds on a branch and added a circle of yellow, then masked off the yellow to add orange around the circle as well as bringing some of that orange across the middle section.  Keeping moon mask on glossy paper we then swiped some deep purple covering over the orange and then added a little black to the edges on left and right.  Removed the masking tape from the top and bottom and the moon and then stamped Happy Halloween.  I really like this card and it's 1 layer!!   I'm going to be making more of this type in the future.
Well dinner time is creeping up so until next time....

HAPPY CARDING!!

Monday, September 14, 2015

A weekend at Oscars

LOL...Not The Oscars!  Oscars Door County Rubber Stamp and Scrapbook Event!  My friend June and I went up to my cottage so that we could attend a coloring class sponsored by Oscars and taught by the Northwoods Stamp founders and creators Pat and Paul Niemuth.  We signed up for the Halloween Extravaganza.   Sooooo much fun!!!  We learned their glittering techniques and the bluish purple hue that surrounds all their finished stamped images.  So ridiculously easy with right products!  All images were stamped with black color box and embossed with a 50/50 blend of detail black and detail clear embossing powder.  They say it makes the black not so flat looking.  They also used their watercolor paper available on their web site and at Oscars. (see Northwoods post for links to both stores.)  All coloring was done with Tombow markers.  I personally have not found a better water color paper EVER.  I highly recommend it.  Though I shall say I usually only use Tombow markers and Tim Holtz markers.  I cannot guarantee the out come if you use other markers.  Some people who have Stampin up markers or Marvy may want to experiment and share a pack to see if those markers work as well on the paper.  I know I have used my markers on some regular smooth water color paper from the art section at Michael's and I cannot get the blending to work.  I instead end up with really sharp edges that just won't blend out.  Everyone has different experiences so it's kind of trial and error but Tombow definitely work on this paper.  Also they NEVER use a blending pen.  Only a brush and water.  Here are the 4 we did:

I wish the sparkle picked up in the photos but trust me they are sparkly!  I kind of wish now that June and I took some of the Christmas classes just for the fun of it.  It was such a treat meeting Pat and Paul!  Well that's all for now.  O need to gather up my other Halloween cards so I can show you the rest of our weekend.  Til then........

HAPPY CARDING!


Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Northwoods Coloring workshop

Oh my goodness guys I'm so excited.  I am a big fan of the Northwoods line of rubber stamps and the Local stamp store near my cottage frequently sponsors workshops featuring Northwoods stamps and the coloring techniques for the stamps by founder Pat Niemuth.  It just so happens that Pat and Oscar (owner of local stamp store) have been friends since High School.  In fact Pat got Oscar started with her store up north about 25 years ago.(give or take)  So being friends...Oscar is able to get Pat to come up to Door County and teach the coloring of Northwoods stamps.  I am usually not up there when Pat comes to town but this time..............................WooHoo.........I'm going to be there and I signed up for the Halloween stamp coloring class.  We will be making 4 different cards and learning a wonderful technique.  Class is on Saturday the 12th.  I will post all 4 cards and let you all know how it went.  I wish I could afford all the classes.  This is an entire weekend of cards!  I think there are 4 different coloring classes each with a different theme and then there are 2 or 3 of the DreamWeaver classes where you learn the technique of using stencils and paste and gold leaf.  All the classes would be worthwhile but I have to budget myself.  I just spent a mint at the expo last week.   I have a ton of the Northwoods stamps and have always admired how Pat did the coloring for her display boards like this one:

I love how she does the bluish shadow around her images.  She also uses Art Glitter on all her cards which she had previously used Stickles.  You really need to check out this line of stamps.  She use to sell these at Archivers until they closed down and now she sell them online at her online store.  As far as I know Door County Rubber Stamp Store is the only current store that carries the entire line of these stamps year round.  To see more of Northwoods stamps go to:   http://www.northwoodsrubberstamps.com/default.aspx
The Halloween Boards are awesome and I can't wait to start coloring!!
I shall be returning the 13th so hopefully I'll get something uploaded the 14th.

Later!!
HAPPY CARDING!

Thursday, September 3, 2015

New Stamping to me

Today I'm so excited to share with you my new love of stamping!  Stamping tiles that is!  I was at farmers market up north where they not only had farm goods but they also had crafty stuff.  One of the booths had these adorable coasters with images on them.  I looked closely and I realized one of the coasters actually had been stamped with a stamp that I already have!  Hmmmm...interesting...and they were selling for $19 per set of 4.  Hmmm...again!  So I thought????? I bet they used Stazon.  So as soon as I got home I dug out some stamps, went to the Home Depot where you can get a stack of these 9 for $3.99.

The one on the left is actually the same size as the one on the right it's just that the left is stacked 9 high.  These are 4x4" square tiles with no glaze on them ideal for coasters.  Not all the tile in the pack are the same, some are holier than others but they all work.
You must use Stazon for this project.  I am not sure how permanent other inks would be.   Wipe the tile with a dry cloth then ink your stamp and firmly press onto tile holding for about 10 seconds.  Lift straight up and set tile aside.  When all your stamping is completed, place tiles on the wire rack inside your cold oven.  Set temperature to 350* and bake for about 25 minutes.  Leave door closed at all times.  After 25 min. turn oven off and let it totally cool down BEFORE opening door.  Usually takes about an hour to cool down.  Tiles may still be quite warm after that (mine were).  I left mine in the oven after I turned it off for like 3 hours because silly me decided to clean!  LOL Then remove tiles to another cooling rack.  When tiles are completely cold attach little felt or cork pieces to backs so not to scratch furniture.  Put a set together with some ribbon wrapped around them and Voila!  Awesome gifts!!!
I cannot wait to try a whole bunch!!!  Guess what I'm giving for Christmas!!
Have fun with these!

HAPPY CARDING!!











Wednesday, September 2, 2015

NEW ENVELOPE FOLD BIRTHDAY CARD

Hello!!  Ready for a super simple adorable fold???  I'm not sure if this is new or just new to me but it's an Envelope fold card.  I know what your thinking...envelope fold cards have been around forever! But wait!!!  Those are cards that look like an envelope and you open it up into a full size sheet of paper like a letter.  That is not what this is.  This card looks like an envelope, yes, but the triangle flap is the only thing that opens revealing the interior of the card.

It is made with an 11x11 sheet of double sided paper.  Fold in half one way crease, then open..rotate.. and fold in half the other way and crease.(as in photo 1) Open it back up and with the printed side that you want on the inside facing up, take each corner and bring to the middle and crease.Pic 2)  Turn over so folded triangles are now facing down and fold the card in half and crease.(pic 3) Take 1 of the loose triangles (either side is fine) and flip it to the opposite side gluing the 2 triangles together.(pic 4&5) This is making the front flap of the card.  Open the flap to put your sentiment and decorate the outside of the card.(pic 6)  Punch a hole in the card through all layers near the point.  Add ribbon and tie a bow to close the card.  This card when finished measures 3 14/16" x 7 14/16".  Odd size I know, but it's still a cute card that you could just hand to a person instead of mailing.  Then you can go all out on the embellishing!  You could even slide a gift card inside.  Super cute.
TADA!!!And this is the finished card!


I have no idea why my camera is making the color so goofy looking...I swear it's really cute in real life!  LOL
 I'm going to make some Christmas cards with this fold too.  Can't wait!!  So stay tuned I'll be posting them soon.

HAPPY CARDING!!

Monday, August 31, 2015

FLIPPIN' HALLOWEEN

Hi are you ready for another Halloween card??  Since I need 10 (I think) and I only have the 3 Neverending ones... I have a ways to go.  I also get bored when I make all the same cards so today I'm making a circle "Flip it" card using Stephanie Barnards dies from Sizzix.  You can find all her dies through a link at her blogsite.  http://stephaniebarnard.blogspot.com/

All the papers I used were scraps from the Neverending cards I made earlier.  The stickers were also left overs and I believe I got them at Michael's for a whopping $1.99.  They were really big sheets too.  Look for them in the Halloween section not the regular scrapbook section.  The original die does not have the extra flap on the right.  I extended it with the help of my friend June so it could be a larger card.
I love these Sizzix dies.  Every piece is included so you don't need any measuring!!  My kind of card!  LOL  I think I'm going to make another one but this time put a bit more effort in it.  This one was more of a "What's on Hand" card.   So stay tuned!!

HAPPY CARDING!!

Sunday, August 30, 2015

Neverending Halloween

Halloween will soon be upon us.  Do you have your ideas ready??  I have a bunch rolling around in my head now I just have to get them organized and put into card form!  LOL  My start is with super simple "Neverending Cards".  We've all done them at one time or another and they can be simply decorated for Halloween.  Just use Halloween patterned paper and a few Halloween embellishments and "TADA"! Done!



Here are 3 that I have completed.  These are 6x6 cards so I'm going to have to get bigger envelopes but that's ok the little goblins that are going to receive these deserve a cool envelope too!  Well that's it for now.  I still have alot of Halloween cards to do and I have to get ready to go up to the cottage again.  Hopefully I'll be able to get 1 or 2 more post on the blog before I go.  By the way I know I haven't left directions for these cards but I figure most people know how to do these.  But if not and you need directions just let me know and I'll get right to it!!
Til then and next time............

HAPPY CARDING!!









Saturday, August 22, 2015

A Horizontal Christmas

Good Morning to you all!  I'm having an exciting day meeting up with my Lady friends for a day of shopping at the Expo.  Can't wait to see all the new products out there to include in my cardmaking!  It's going to be a fun day!
Here's another Christmas card.  Sometimes we see some busy paper and think.....wow.....what am I going to do with that?  I absolutely loved this paper but I too wasn't sure what I was going to do or how I could make it work since every piece you cut out would look entirely different from the rest.  What really helped is that since I'm at my summer home and I only brought 3 main solid colors to work with and some basic black, white, and cream It made it a lot easier.  First I decided the horizontal pattern would be on the bottom and I found the least busy sheet of pattern paper from the Christmas pack from Hobby Lobby for the top.
I did the same pleat on the bottom as I did on my previous post "A Little Ruffle Christmas".  I used black cardstock for the base.  I used very little embellishment due to the business of the paper.  The only regret is that the back of this paper is white and I should have inked it with some Tim Holtz corduroy ink so it wasn't so bright.  Well maybe next time.  I am sure I will be making alot of these cards due to the simplicity.
I'm going to be working on another new fold next.  Can't wait to see how it all goes together so check back in a few days for a very cute birthday card.

Til later
HAPPY CARDING

Friday, August 21, 2015

A little ruffle Christmas

So I finally for a NEW fold!!!  I love fancy folds and it is so hard to find something new out there.  Well I found one.  It was in one of my Cardmaking magazines from the UK.  The card base is cream and typical 4.25" x 5.5".  A piece of pattern paper was attached to the front leaving no border so it was a 4.25 x 5.5 piece.  The Hunter green stock was cut 3" x 10".
With the green laying on table lengthwise, measure in 3" from bottom left and place a small mark.  Then on right side measure from top right corner down 1.5" and mark.  Now cut the angle between the 2 marks.  With angle part facing down and straight 10" edge on top place in score board and score at 3",  3.5", 5", and 6 1/8".  accordion fold starting at 3" score mark and making that a mountain fold. Wrap a piece of ribbon to the top of your folded piece and then attach to card base pattern paper using a strong adhesive.  2 trees were stamped out and cut out and placed on left side of card with dimensionals. a small bow was added to the right side and 2 small red sequins were added to the folds.  I'm making a bunch of these!  On the 2 cards  to the right I tried white inking the edges of the folder piece but didn't really like it so the next 2 are left plain.  I like that a whole lot more!
Whew..............................A few more left!  Wonder if I'll get them all posted before I leave again on Wednesday?  Hmmmm????  Not sure. But I will try!

Later
HAPPY CARDING!

Monday, August 3, 2015

Tiny Poinsettia Card

I love playing around with punches and making flowers.  Some that I have made are more elaborate than others.  Most are sort of "Grungy" looking.  A bit of Tim Holtz influence.  Some are purely simple.  For this card I wanted poinsettias.  Most of the dies I have found are a bit large and if I were to use a stamp I would have to fussy cut which I hate doing.  So I just gathered some reds and greens in cardstock and 3 different size flower punches.  1 is a 4 petal punch from Martha Stewart and 1 is a 5 petal punch from Paper Studio.  Of course this would have been a whole lot easier to just use a poinsettia punch if they had one but I guess it doesn't exist so we have to adapt.  Its amazing how the flower punches automatically look like poinsettia's just because you use red paper and use green for the leaves.  Anyway I think this turned out great, and they are only the size of a quarter!

I used a standard 4.25 x 5.5 cards base in 110# cream card stock.  Cut 1 piece of pattern paper 4.25 x 5.5 and tore the right side to remove about 1.5" .  I then inked the torn edge with red the coordinating piece was 2" x 5.5".  I used a border punch for the Kraft paper border on the left side of the card and then added my 3 flowers.  Merry Christmas is stamped on Kraft paper and embossed.  Cute but simple.  I'm going to try a few more of these but maybe use green pattern papers instead.
Well there you go....Christmas card #4.  Up next #5
Till then

HAPPY CARDING!!!