Congrats!

Being in need of some Guy Cards, my next few posts will feature some fun with masculine layouts.  This one is a birthday card . . .

A jazzed-up , super cool owl perched on a twiggy frame over a wood grain panel, some branches and a textured background.  Toss in a perky speech bubble and I think we're all set!

The message inside reads, "Another year older, another year wiser".  Made to order for the owl image, I'm thinking . . .

Cardstock:   Marcos Jute  

Stamps:        Hero Designer Woodgrain, Good Stamps Carved Owl,

                           Vap Scrap “Congrats!”       

Inks:               Gina K Charcoal Brown                 

Watercolors:   Intense pencils Poppy Red, Iris Blue, Sicilian Yellow,

                              Zig Clean Color Bright Yellow, Light Blue

Emb Powder:   Distress Black Soot

Dies:              Spellbinders A2 Distressed Edges, Simon Says Sketch

                           Frame, Simon Says Talk Bubble           

Emb Folder:   Spellbinders Blistered

A Day to Celebrate

I had some fun with Gelatos for this one . . .

After scribbling directly onto the Tiger Marble background stamp, I misted lightly and then stamped.  The result was a wonderfully mottled look with lots of variation in color intensity.  Just what I was after . . . how I love it when the look I want actually happens!

FYI - the card has a lot of sparkle to it which, unfortunately, the camera doesn't show.

Cardstock:   Bazzill Velvet, Champion Snow Day, Strathmore #90

                           Watercolor paper

Stamps:        Stamp Camp Tiger Marble, Hero Thanks, Day to Celebrate   

Inks:               Ancient Page Plum Wine

Colorants:    Gelatos Black Cherry

Emb Powder:   Judikins White Diamond

Dies:              Mama Elephant Peek a Frame, McGill punch Mini

                           Library Pocket, Penny Black Bamboo Foliage, Wplus9

                           Banner Trio, We-Buys Cute Chrysanthemum: 

                           the bugs only                    

Stencil:          Simon Says Mosaic Heart 

Doo Dads:    Wendy Vecchi Embossing Paste White, USArt Effectz 

                           Opal Essence

Love, Hope, Blessings

One of our tenants is moving on and as he took immaculate care of the place, we're sorry to be losing him.  Here's a little kindness to let him know he'll be missed . . .

If you've been following my blog for even just a week, it should be abundantly clear by now that texture is totally the name of my game.  Whether it is stamped, embossed, or added in the form of embellishments, I cannot resist bumping things up a bit and having something wonderful to run over with my fingers.

One of my favorite ways to add texture is shown on the cream layer (as well as with the words):  I've edged it with VersaMark and then dipped the edges into Ranger's Gold embossing powder.  That stuff is amazing!  While I frequently like the look of smooth embossing powder, it can get predictable and therefore boring.  Enter Ranger's gold powder, which cures to a grainy and pebbled finish.  The look is just awesome, especially on images that are larger and more solid.

Cardstock:   Marcos Jute, Beckett Moonlight, Generic Brown

Stamps:        MJ Barber Chevron Open, Fred Mullett Wild Ginger, Red

                           Rubber “Blessings”, Making Memories “Love”, “Hope”

Inks:               Gina K Charcoal Brown, Distress Brushed Corduroy,

                           Peeled Paint

Emb Powder:  Ranger Gold, Stampendous Shabby White

Dies:              Spellbinders A2 Distressed Edges                      

Emb Folder: Taylored Impressions Weathered

Congratulations

My young former neighbor Ashley, whom I used to babysit, is graduating high school this month.  Hard to believe how quickly she has grown up!

I went with her school colors which are navy and gold.  Wrapping the neck of the tassel with gold thread made it stand out more and kept with the color theme.  The diploma was lightly aged with Distress Old Paper ink to suggest parchment.  She's a very bright young woman and I am expecting great things from Ashley

Cardstock:   Bazzill Admiral, The Paper Cut White Matte Coate      

Inks:               VersaMark, ColorBox Gold, Distress Old Paper                

Emb Powder:   Ranger Gold  

Dies:              Darice Graduation Theme, Tim Holtz Alphanumeric,

                           Spellbinders Sentiments One: “Congratulations”                

Emb Folder: Spellbinders Blistered

Doo Dads:    Navy tassel, brad     

Another Year Wiser

These beautifully drawn owls are loaded with wit, charm, and most assuredly, a ton of wisdom as well . . .

When it comes to using a rather delicate die cut - such as these thin-needled pine sprays, I like to use a double-thickness of cardstock for more body and greater dimension.  After cutting two equally-sized pieces of cardstock, I run one of them through my Xyron to apply an all-over coating of glue.  I then stick it to the other piece of cardstock and run the double layer through the die cutting machine.  This avoids the need to try and glue two delicate die cuts together - something I am no good at doing.  It also means one pass through the die cutter instead of two.  A time-saver for sure!

TIP:  Most dies will cut doubled  #80 cardstock with one or two passes.  Intricate designs will do better with a metal shim for added pressure . . .

Cardstock:   Marcos Jute, Generic Dark Green

Stamps:        Judikins Birch Trees Background, Sideshow Stamps

                           Owl Border, Endless Creations “Another year older . . .”      

Inks:               ColorBox Sepia Black, Gina K Charcoal Brown, VersaFine

                           Olympia Green

Pencil:           Prisma White

Emb Powder:   WOW Clear Matte Dull  

Dies:              Impression Obsession Pine Branch, Spellbinders Classic

                           Squares, Small 

            

Old Friends

This card features a used dryer sheet, a paper towel and a new dried die powder named Mango Blaze whose lovely claim to fame is that it contains mica.  So it shimmers and gleams wherever it's applied.  

Gorgeous stuff for sure . . .

Five more dried die powders were used on this card front.  They were scattered over a used dryer sheet which I wanted to use because I loved its texture.  I laid the sheet over a paper towel to absorb the extra water and color.  Yet the sheet was so thin and lacey, it didn't retain much color.  But the paper towel sure did, so after heat drying them, I used spray adhesive to attach the two.  To add more body, I attached them with more spray adhesive to a piece of cardstock, and then die cut the stack with a deckled-edged die.  I hope the camera picks up some of the glimmer . . .

Cardstock:   Bazzill Limeade, Dryer Sheet, Paper Towel, Generic

                           cardstock White         

Stamps:        My Sentiments Exactly Pear with Names, Stampers

                           Anonymous Pear, Red Rubber “It takes a long time . . .”

Inks:               Distress Pine Needles, Mowed Lawn, Twisted Citron, Forest

                           Moss, Vintage Photo            

Colorants:    Dried Die Powders:  Bister Green, Blue, Yellow, Nuance

                           Jade, Bright Yellow, Pixie Powder Mango Blaze

Emb Powder:   B’Muse Aztec Gold, Stampendous Ivory Pearl  

Dies:              Spellbinders A2 Distressed Edges, W+9 Pears, Spellbinders

                           Framed Tags One, Memory Box Cascadia Butterfly Trio 

Doo Dads:    Oriental Trading Pearl Bronze

Just For You

This one was a major struggle to pull together and I have no idea why.  All of the elements are very beautiful, so I was thinking this would come together in a snap.  I worked with it off and on for a week and wasn't making any real progress.  But I have learned something significant in the process, so the struggle was entirely worthwhile . . .

Starting with a splotchy background I loved, I got a little glitzy with the border on the left.  After toning it down with a stick-like overlay, I was ready to add a design and some text to the rest of the card.  I tried a several small trees, and two versions of some text. 

No go.  Very frustrating. 

For some reason, I pulled out an extremely large leafy die and slapped it down.  Voila!  That did it.  I can see now that my earlier attempts were on the timid side and they got lost in all the pattern and texture.  So the lesson I learned was essentially this: 

Go big or go home.

I shall remember this approach in future . . .

Cardstock:   Neenah Desert Storm, Generic Vellum, Dark Brown

Stamps:        Unknown “Just For You”

Inks:               ColorBox Gold, VersaMark, Gina K Charcoal Brown                

Colorants:    Copic T6 Toner Gray, E37 Sepia, E89 Pecan

Emb Powder:   Ranger Gold 

Dies:              Poppy Stick Frame Border, Hero Palm Fancy Die, 
                           Tattered Lace Everyday Sentiments: "Just for You"                   

Stencil:          The Crafters Workshop Mini Cubist

Doo Dads:    Sparkle ‘n Sprinkle Fantasy Gold, Dreamweaver Translucent 

                          Embossing Paste, Wink of Stella Gold