Card makeover 1
Posted: March 17, 2011 Filed under: CAS, With Gratitude 10 Comments
I mentioned in the last couple of posts that I had cast several cards aside because they didn’t work for some reason. They did not, however end up in the garbage, I photographed them and put them in the makeover pile as there was something in them worth saving.
The card above is the made over card. The card below is the rejected one. It was the reject that I was happiest with, the one that almost made the cut as it was, but it had a few issues. One was the badly stamped sentiment and the other was the edge of the sponging. I wish I had softly diminished the sponging instead of using a mask to create a line.
In the makeover I just used the leaf panel, sliced into three and popped up. Slicing is a very helpful technique to apply when making over a card. I was going to use a white card base but, inspired by Susan Raihala’s commitment to use up more of her coloured cardstock, I reached for a coloured card instead. I definitely do have plenty of coloured cardstock lounging around.
That is the first of the makeovers, the others will be harder to do as the rejects were not as pretty as this one!
Supplies:
Stamps: With Gratitude, Simple Sayings 2 (SU)
Inks: Versamark, Certainly Celery, Always Artichoke
Cardstock: Flourishes Classic White, Certainly Celery
Also: White e.p.
Less is More challenge 6: Off the Edge
Posted: March 15, 2011 Filed under: CAS, With Gratitude 16 Comments
The challenge at Less is More this week is a One Layer Card which includes stamping off the edge. I often stamp off the edge of my cards so you would think I could whip one of these out quickly. Sadly it took three attempts before I had something I was happy with. I have a growing pile of “blunders” that I have to turn into something attractive.
I masked with post-it notes leaving a long thin panel to stamp on. Before sponging I stamped the leaf four times, some without reinking. Then I sponged in four colours and removed the masks. I added the sentiment and three more leaves to complete the card. Who knows why I am stamping fall colours just as spring is appearing?
Supplies:
Stamps: With Gratitude, Thoughts & Prayers (SU)
Inks: Summer Sun, Pumpkin Pie, Really Rust, Close to Cocoa
Cardstock: Flourishes Classic Ivory
OLW 44 Marta’s Pinterest Inspires
Posted: March 14, 2011 Filed under: CAS 14 Comments
Many thanks to Susan at Simplicity for introducing me to Marta’s fabulous pinboards. Pinterest is a site where people catalog the things they love by “pinning” them on boards. Susan directed us to Marta’s boards so that we could find inspiration for this week’s One Layer Wednesday challenge.
I chose two inspiring boards. I’m not sure if that is bending the rules, but it ended up working for me, which is more than I can say for some of my cardmaking lately! I chose the pictures below.
I created the whole card without stamping which was not my initial intention. I wanted a funky font like the one on the mug so I scanned through the fonts on my computer and chose joehand2 which I printed onto white cardstock. The white mug is beautiful as it is, but my card was lacking a little with just the words happy birthday so I created my own yarn wrap with markers. This part was fun as I pulled out one Stampin’ Up marker after another and drew lines from bottom to top over the torn mask I had covering the words. I ended up using 52 markers and did not repeat a single colour.
Check out the other nifty cards linked on Susan’s blog.
Supplies:
Computer Font: Joehand2
Inks: 52 Stampin’ Up Markers
Cardstock: Flourishes Classic White
Pastel Panels
Posted: March 8, 2011 Filed under: CAS, Cuttlebug 22 Comments
The current challenge from Mandi and Chrissie at Less is More is to use pastel colours. I tried three different designs before settling on the one above. The totally pastel colour scheme gave me trouble, but that’s part of the challenge isn’t it? I have set aside the other attempts to transform into something else when inspiration hits.
I cut my cuttlebug panel in three strips and sponged in celery, amethyst and pretty in pink. I popped up the strips before adding some gingham ribbon and a little oval tag.
Supplies:
Stamps: Teensy Tiny Wishes (SU)
Inks: Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery, Almost Amethyst
Cardstock: Flourishes Classic white
Also: Cuttlebug Birds and Swirls folder, pink gingham ribbon
OLW 43 Shimmer
Posted: March 6, 2011 Filed under: CAS, Rollers 7 Comments
Susan’s challenge on Simplicity this week was to add a little shimmer. Once again this was indeed a challenge to me. I rarely add shimmer and could only think of one product I had which would provide any shimmer: some pearl ex powders from SU. I have hardly used them and have forgotten the techniques I once tried.
To make the top card I flicked around a bit of masking fluid first then rolled the dragonflies with versamark before brayering celery and bordering blue over the top of that. I shook pearl ex powder onto the coloured panel and it stuck to the versamark but also lightly to the rest of the area. You can see a bit of shimmer at either edge of the card but the string of shimmery dragonflies actually goes right across the card.
The card below was done in a similar order but I embossed a string of dragonflies first. After that I added a string in versamark and pearl ex and a few coming off onto the ivory cardbase.
All in all it was a fairly experimental exercise which is half the fun of challenges. As others have said in their posts there is a lot more shimmer to be seen in real life but there are glimpses in the photos.
Supplies:
Stamps: Dragonfly roller, Paint Prings, Simple Sayings 2 (all SU)
Inks: Versamark, Certainly Celery, Bordering Blue
Cardstock: Flourishes Classic Ivory
Also: clear e.p., Pearl Ex powder
OLW 42 I’ve got the music
Posted: February 27, 2011 Filed under: CAS, Rollers 51 Comments
Jennifer gave us a musical challenge this week for One Layer Wednesday while Mandi and Chrissie at Less is More sent out a three square challenge. I don’t often combine challenges as that makes them all the more challenging but I had a picture in my mind as to how these two themes might work together.
For the music theme I wanted to create the feel of an aged piece of sheet music and combine it with the warm colours of the wood of a violin. Both my girls have lovely violins; one is over 100 years old and the wood is a warm muted colour, the other is under 10 years old and is a darker, shinier finish. I knew when creating this card I would have to get the musical elements right or they would tell me so.
I cut three 1½” squares out of a post-it note mask and used the SU roller “Music Notes” to fill all three squares. I didn’t re-ink it as I wanted the faded look. I then sponged in close to cocoa and ruby red before stamping my little violin stamp in the same colours. I coloured the violins with watercolour pencils and blended them with water, flicking a little around at the same time to add to the aged look. The treble and bass clefs and the sharp and flat were drawn with black watercolour pencil.
Supplies
Stamps: Music Notes roller(SU), Fiddle(Parlour Victorian Atlantic Canada), Thank You Kindly(SU)
Inks: Ruby Red, Close to Cocoa
Paper: Flourishes Classic Ivory
Also: FaberCastell Watercolour pencils
Three panel daisies
Posted: February 26, 2011 Filed under: CAS, Upsy Daisy 5 Comments
Here is another spring inspired card using the daisy silhouette stamp from Stampin Up. I clear embossed the daisies then brayered the whole panel with summer sun and and pumpkin pie. Before splitting the panel into three I stamped and restamped the daisy stamp in pumpkin pie. Each panel is popped up on stampin’ dimensionals.
I did try a couple of sentiments both on scraps and on the bottom of the card. None of them added to the design so I sliced the bottom off and left it without any text. This is the first card I have photographed with the new camera, I am not convinced my settings were the best but I will keep learning, practising and posting. I have high hopes. What is great is that the colour is exactly what is on the card.
Supplies:
Stamps: Upsy Daisy (SU)
Inks: Versamark, Pumpkin Pie, Summer Sun
Cardstock: Flourishes Classic White
Also: clear e.p.
Less is more challenge 3
Posted: February 23, 2011 Filed under: CAS, In Full Bloom 21 Comments
The third challenge from Mandi and Chrissie at the Less is More challenge blog is to make a clean and simple card with a spring theme. We have been having a few spring-like days around here but I am not convinced that winter is finished with us.
I pulled out a stamp set that I rarely use and applied a technique I often use: masking. I masked a rectangle area and stamped the flower and leaf stamps several times always overlapping the mask edges. I then used my new Faber-Castell coloured pencils to colour. After removing the masks I drew double broken borders with a black fine tipped marker and added the sentiment. The card base is white but has taken on a bit of a pink tinge in the photo.
Supplies:
Stamps: In Full Bloom, Simple Sayings
Inks: Basic Black
Cardstock: Flourishes Classic White
Also: Prismacolor premier fine line marker, Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils
OWL 41 It’s Christmas…
Posted: February 21, 2011 Filed under: All That Glitters, CAS, Holiday Sampler 9 Comments
Susan threw out a challenge this week to create a one layer Christmas card on white or cream using only green and red. I am certainly not in Christmas card mode, but it doesn’t hurt to start early. This one was finished before I realized I hadn’t checked if natural flecked cardstock was allowed in the challenge. Natural is indeed permitted so here is my masked and slightly sponged panel card. Before stamping and sponging I flicked masking fluid on the panel. Masking fluid is used by painters to mask areas they want to preserve as white while they are painting the rest of the painting. You paint (or flick) it on and when you’re finished you peel it off to reveal white spaces.
Not too much of a stretch from my usual but I did put the sentiment on top of the panel for a change. Thanks for dropping by.
Supplies:
Stamps: All that Glitters(Flourishes), Hugs and Wishes( SU)
Inks: Mellow Moss, Real Red, Always Artichoke (all SU)
Cardstock: SU Natural white cardstock
Snow Storm
Posted: February 19, 2011 Filed under: Branch Out, CAS, Stamped Landscapes 21 Comments
I came home and created this card last Sunday after walking my son down to the park to play hockey on the rink with his buddies. The snow was coming down very steadily and it was beautiful. I decided to try and recreate the scene on a card. I know spring might be showing its face in some places but I think we have a bit of winter to live through yet.
I started with two masks and then flicked masking fluid all over the panel. When the masking fluid was dry I removed a few very large blobs and positioned my horizon mask. Instead of sponging I used my new soft brayer to create the sky. I started at the left and moved toward the right as the ink ran out so I would have the impression of light and darkness. After the sky was done I moved the mask a couple of times adding trees and sponged snow drifts.
It really does look a bit like this during a snow storm; even after 10 years here in Canada, I still think it is a beautiful sight
Supplies:
Stamps: Branch Out, Ageless Adornment & a little tree stamp of unknown origin which really comes in handy at times
Inks: Brocade Blue, Going Gray
Cardstock: Flourishes classic white
Also: Winsor & Newton masking fluid
Heather Telford 