Thinking of You

My dear friend and stamping buddy Carol has really been through the medical mill lately, and has had a variety of issues to deal with.  Hence the card . . .

After stenciling the flowers and butterflies, I felt the need for more definition around the edges.  So I used some coordinating markers around most of the edges to set them off a bit more.  I’m not sure it worked as well as I’d hoped, but I still think it’s an improvement.

Cardstock:   Bazzill Leapfrog, Strathmore #184 Mixed Media

Stamps:       Judikins Celtic Background

Inks:             VersaColor Cyan, Lagoon Blue, Marigold, Rubber

                    Stampede Wheat, ColorBox Chalk Yellow Ochre,

Olive Pastel, Moss Green, Encore Gold

Dies:            TKOnline Celebration Set: Thinking of You                 

Stencil:        Waffle Flower Butterfly Blossom

Emb Fldr:     Spellbinders Fabric Weave

Doo Dads:    Gold mini beads     

Rest

When my friend and fellow stamper recently had her hip replacement, this is what I sent her . . .

 

Fun Fact:  In my job as Staff Writer for RubberStampMadness magazine, I often pick up great tips from the artists I interview.  This one is a neat idea for lining up individual die cut letters evenly.

I happen to have a grid pattern printed on a piece of clear acetate which really came in handy here.

1. Die cut the label that the letters will be glued to.

2. Use low tack tape to fasten it behind the acetate grid.

3. Die cut the letters and arrange them on the acetate over the label.

4. With a strip of low tack tape, lay it down over the bottom half of the letters.

5. Carefully pull up the tape and adjust any letter that needs it.

6. Remove the label from the acetate, add glue to the letters and attach to the              label.

7. When dry, remove the tape.

Works wonderfully well!

Cardstock:   Bazzill Precious, Uncle Paul Bamboo Green,

Assorted Patterned Papers, Scraps White, Gold   

Dies:            Goodculler Stitched Rectangles, Memory Box 

Alphabet Soup, TEMU Flowers, DieNamics 

Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangles           

You're in My Prayers

This one began as a boo boo . . .

 

I was going for an artistically splotchy small background with various blues and greens.

Didn’t work.  I perked it up with clear embossing powder.  Not good.  Solution?  Cover up 90% of the mess with a flowery background floral die cut.  Embellish with a butterfly and a sentiment and we can look at it without cringing.  Yay!

 

Cardstock:   Unknown Textured Turquoise, Strathmore 

#100 Bristol Smooth        

Stamps:       Unknown “You’re in my prayers”

Inks:             Distress Peacock Feathers, various alcohol inks

Emb Pwdr:   Vippies Transcendence

Dies:            Hero Flower Garden, Memory Box Butterflies:

Vivienne, Darla, Cottage Cutz Nested Stitched

Scallop Square             

Get Well Soon

BLUE RIBBON #7

Green is a peaceful color and I thought it would be just right for the Get Well theme . . .

The wide, stitched frame helps balance the small size of the water colored background, plus the large scripted sentiment ties all of the proportions together.

Cardstock:   Bazzill Rain Forest, Lima, Strathmore #100 Bristol

Smooth        

Inks:             Distress Peeled Paint, Black Soot

Colorants:    Stamp Zia Olive Spray

Dies:            Papertrey Ink Pierced Feature Frames, Paper

Smooches Get Well Phrase, Tattered Lace “Soon”             

Doo Dads:    Waffle Flower Enamel Dots White

Welcome Home

My baby brother Gordy had a dreadful stroke three months ago.  After countless hours of PT, numerous tests of all kinds, and many steps backwards as well as forwards, he is finally coming home . . .

 

This second pic shows a view of the back where the message goes.  I put mine into a top-folded panel to add a little more interactive fun to the card.

 

I used one of Jennifer McGuire’s Bridge Card ideas for his card.  She has several videos on this super-fun technique and I highly recommend watching them.

 

Gordy lives in Washington, a state saturated with gorgeous evergreen trees, so I put an entire row of them on the card front.  The card stands up so very nicely for display yet it easily collapses to fit inside an A2 envelope.  Bridge cards have scores of design possibilities and I plan to try as many as I can!

 

Cardstock:   Neenah #110 Solar White, Bazzill Rain Forest, Scraps

Green, Black, Marcos Jute

Stamps:       CC Rubber Stamps Fibers

Inks:             Distress Peeled Paint, Mowed Lawn, Tea Dye,

Spun Sugar, Weathered Wood, Zig Clean Color Lemon

Yellow, Haze Blue, Oatmeal, VersaColor Chateau Gray

Waterclrs:    Zig Clean Color Lemon Yellow, Haze Blue,                                                                 Oatmeal, Tombow 055, Inktense Saddle Brown

Dies:            Impression Obsession Town Builder, TEMU Christmas

Trees, Tree Design, DieNamics Stitched Snow Drifts            

Stencil:        Printworks Clouds

Feel Better Soon

Here’s another example of Jennifer McGuire’s wonderful Pop Up Inlay technique . . .

 

Alternate portions of the leafy die cut have been popped up and in real life, the dimensional aspects are really cool!  Given the multiple pieces of the main image, I thought that setting it onto a quilt-like panel would continue the piecework theme.

 

Cardstock:   Bazzill Rain Forest, Strathmore #140 Watercolor        

Stamps:       Annette Watkins Feel Better

Inks:             Distress Faded Jeans, Peeled Paint, Crushed Olive

Emb Pwdr:  Vippies Transcendence

Dies:            Gina Marie Leaf Quilt, Gina Marie Stitched Rounded                                                  Squares, Poppy Grosgrain Bow             

Doo Dads:    Fiskars Decorative Edger Scissors         

Get Well Soon

My married friends Carol and Gene have been through the mill health-wise over the last several months, so I decided they were owed a rather large Get Well card . . .

Once again, I put the We R Memory Keepers Rotating Precision Press to work and had me a wonderful time! Except I wish I'd seen the crooked middle word "Well" before it was too late . . .

 Cardstock:   Bazzill Ivy, Strathmore #140 Watercolor 

Stamps:       Stampin’ Up Itty Bitty Backgrounds, Outlines Bits &

Pieces Set #1, Prickly Pear Blobby Flowers, Concord

& 9th Blooms Fill-in Set, Neat & Tangled Calathea

Inks:             ColorBox Gold, Moss Green, Memories Snowy

                     Evergreen, Memento Tuxedo Black

Emb Pwdr:   Sparkle ‘n Sprinkle Gold Coast

Dies:            EK Success punch Flower, Purple Daisy Get Well Soon, 

Memory Box Circle Basics Set, Punch Bunch Flower Center, Momenta Cut & Emboss: Corner

Doo Dads:    Hero Metallic Decor: Gold

Get Well

My dear friend Anna gave me a die set she was ready to let go of, and I am really happy to add this one to my collection . . .

After the flowers were die cut and colored, I felt they needed something more.  I thought it would be neat to highlight the embossed grooves that outline the petals.  But no marker is skinny enough to fit into those grooves without smearing the petals as well.  Then the lightbulb turned on and I thought maybe I could use a gel ballpoint pen to outline the grooves.  Gel ink takes a little longer to dry than regular ink so I figured that would give me time to add embossing powder and heat it.

Lo and behold I was right!  This solves numerous problems with trying to get metallic or embossed highlights into small areas.  There are times I want to highlight a stamped earring, or belt buckle, or trim, or anything else too small for an embossing pen.  So it’s going to be lots of fun putting this little trick to work on future projects!

Cardstock:   Stedner Bright White, Strathmore #140 Watercolor, 

Scrap Dark Green, Black

Stamps:       Unknown Splatter

Inks:            ColorBox Gold, VersaMark, Xyleyw Gel Pen Gold,

Waterclrs:    Inktense Pencils Poppy Red, Hot Red, Dark Aquamarine,

Thistle

Emb Pwdr:   Ranger Gold, Stampendous Shabby White

Dies:            LeCrea Design Frame Roses, Paper Smooches 

Get Well Phrase, Tattered Lace Everyday Sentiments: 

“Soon”             

Hugs

Get Well Category - Blue Ribbon

I love working with acetate and have used it many times along the way.  It’s fun to add some dimensional elements to a piece of acetate and then use pop dots to suspend it over the card front.  Shadows and depth are thus created and it makes for a very unique card.  But what I don’t like is the shiny hard surface on the acetate.  Happily, after some research, I came up with a much nicer alternative . . .

Graffix Acetate Matte is an almost clear substrate that can be used where vellum often is but it’s sheerer.  It will take ink and other media and has a softly diffused surface with a gentle gleam instead of a hard shine.  Still, I’m also checking out tracing papers to see if there are any truly sheer ones.  But in the meantime, I am really happy with the way this card turned out. 

Cardstock:   Unknown Wheat, Grafix Matte Acetate, Canson

Montval Watercolor #140     

Inks:            Distress Peeled Paint, Rusty Hinge

Dies:            Memory Box Double Stitch Rectangle Cut Out,

InLoveArts Potted Cactus, Recollections Word Fetti:

“Hugs”, Impression Obsession Dragonfly Set

Doo Dads:    Wink of Stella Clear

Hope

My former priest Fr Paul is retired now and was doing well.  However, he recently entered a rehab in order to deal with some dizziness issues.  So I sent him the following card . . .

 

The colorful background is actually a recycled gift tag I made for a friend.  She returned it to me in case I wanted to use it for someone else.  So I made a few changes, starting with die cutting the word “Hope”.  I kept the chad from the letter “O”  because I needed it to cover up the hole I made for the gold cord used to attach the tag to the gift. 

In rubber stamping, there’s a work-around for nearly every situation we encounter.  How I love our hobby’s forgiving nature!

Cardstock:   Neenah Emperor, Hanko Momi Washi Champagne Gold         

Inks:             Vivid Red, Orange, Purple, Plum, Pilot Marker Gold

Emb Pwdr:   Ranger Gold

Dies:             DieNamics Single Stitched Line Rectangle Frame, Memory

  Box Butterflies Darla, Vivienne, Frantic Stamper Slimline

  Frames Set: “Hope”          

Thinking of You

My friend Mary is dealing with a variety of health issues, so I unearthed my Background Box and came up with this one . . .

While I absolutely love any images which feature mosaic elements, the most fun thing about the background is the gold dots.  They are neither rivets or brads but drops made from tacky glue.  There are a number of brands that make this kind of glue which is easy to find and costs no more than any other glue.  Depending on the size of the drops, it takes about an hour for them to become firm enough to embellish. 

Tacky glue remains sticky even after it’s cured and is the ideal substrate for glitter, embossing powder, or in this case, gold leafing.  You simply put a few flakes of the leafing over the cured drops and smooth it over with your fingers or a Q-tip.  The excess can be brushed away.  The leafing adheres perfectly to the glue dot which becomes very firm in a few more hours and can be mailed without fear of squishing. 

Cardstock:   Bazzill Raven, Marco’s Antique Linen White, Hanko

  Momi Washi Champagne Gold

Stamps:       Technique Junkies Mosaic Scallops, All Night Media 

 Thinking of You

Inks:            Superior India Ink Black, ColorBox Black

Colorants:   Zig Clean Color Mid Green, Olive Green, Geranium

  Red, Deep Red

Emb Pwdr:   Distress Black Soot

Dies:            Tim Holtz Stitched Rectangles, Stampin Up Rose                 

Doo Dads:    Gold leafing, Tacky glue    

To This

When my former priest Father Gregory had a massive heart attack early in the year, it was gratifying to see the results of prayer at work.  His recovery began the very next day and has steadily continued, to the great relief of all who love him.  So my card’s layout was very specific . . .

I figured a battered heart followed by a perky, healthy one would tell the story of his wonderful recovery.  There were many miraculous incidents that took place throughout this serious event and we are deeply grateful to God for all of them.

Cardstock:   Neenah Desert Storm, Little Black Dress patterned paper,

Scraps Red, Orange, Green        

Dies:            Darice Nesting Hearts, Simon Says Sketch Heart,

Lil Inker Stitched Mats Squares, DieVersions A Hint of

Lime font, Carl punches Leaf, Flower                  

Doo Dads:    Wink of Stella Clear

Thinking of You

Had a little experimental fun with this one . . . this card was my maiden voyage with OLO markers.  They cost about the same as Copics but you get twice the ink!  The ink delivery system is uniquely efficient and instead of only about 65% use of what’s in the barrel, you get as much as 92% use!  The ink flow is noticeably smoother and it’s so much easier to cover an area without unwanted overlaps that deepen the color.  I’m definitely sold!

Another idea I tried was to cover the flower centers with clear plastic raindrops.  I wanted to attach them with my ThermoWeb glue dots as they are very strong.  I knew that my smallest size of glue dot was still bigger than the raindrops so I decided to add some glitter to cover the sticky overage.  For a change, the camera actually managed to pick up some of that sparkle so I hope you enjoy the effect.

The background is spattered with both black and white gesso which has added a really neat texture.  I don’t think it’s visible, however.  Sob . . .

Cardstock:   Bazzill Pear, Strathmore #140 Watercolor        

Stamps:       Yvonne Albritton Wild Roses, Crafter’s Companion

Get Well Soon

Inks:             ColorBox Black

Colorants:    OLO Alcohol Markers Evergreen, Forest Mist, Red

Grapefruit, Vermilion, Copic Toner Gray No. 1,

Colorless Blender

Emb Pwdr:   Judikins Black

Dies:            Wonky Stitch Rectangle Stax                 

Doo Dads:    Kat Scappiness Sparkling Clear Droplets, Sparkle

& Sprinkle Glitter Fantasy Gold       

The New You!

My dearly beloved friend Vangie has been suffering from a bone-on-bone situation with her hip and is about to get things surgically corrected.  So a card depicting her newly found and exuberant physical freedom was certainly in order . . .

 

I went for an art deco feel for this one and had me a good time popping everything up for added dimension.  She and her husband are cat people, currently own eight of them and all are black.  So I added in a very spooked black cat who seems to be looking at us and asking, “What the heck has happened to Vangie?  She’s freakin’ me out!”  If he knew how she’s been suffering over the last several months, he’d understand . . .

 

Cardstock:   Paper Parachute Night Light Papers, Unknown White,

Bazzill Raven, The Paper Cut Orion Variety set: White,

Scraps Green         

Stamps:       Silver Crow Swimming Lady

Inks:             ColorBox Black

Colorants:    Prismacolor Peach Beige, Warm Grey

Emb Pwdr:   Distress Black Soot

Dies:            Hero Palm Fancy, Marianne Creatables Leaves,

Frantic Stamper Ten Fun Felines, Impression

Obsession Vases Set, DieVersion font Noodles              

Doo Dads:    Wink of Stella Clear, Silver, Around the Block Black

                      Frills sticker, Gamsol 

Back in the Swim

Get Well Category – Blue Ribbon #2

The text was what turned this layout that was suggestive of a living room arrangement into a Get Well card . . .

Regretfully, I’ve forgotten who blogged a way to do realistic reeds but the process is simple:  take a piece of Kraft cardstock that is long enough to make your reeds.  Score it crosswise at varied intervals.  Lightly scrape an ink pad over it in one or two colors. The scored areas will pick up more color and will look like the natural joints that reeds have.  Cut the panel into very narrow strips and arrange to your liking.

Cardstock    Bazzill Raven, Marcos Jute, Beckett Candlelight, Scrap

Black 

Stamps:       Fiskars brayer Mesh, Fred Mullett Boarfish, Sunfish,

Comotion Indian Pottery

Inks:             Superior India Ink Black. Distress Fired Brick, Peeled Paint

Emb Pwdr:   Judikins Detail Black

Dies:            Family Treasures punch Oval Scallop, Cheery Lynn

Expandable Quilling Strips           

Doo Dads:    Brads Red, Green, Fiber Black    

Thinking of You

When it comes to guy cards, some may feel that the design options are limited.  But I think there are numerous images that can always work for anyone and for any theme.  My favorites usually come down to leaves . . .

I admit to having a serious collection of leaves in countless styles and designs and it’s always fun to pull out a few and go to town with them . . . I think there are a million ways to work with leaves and I plan to try all of them out!

Cardstock:   Strathmore Ultimate White

Stamps:        Unknown Thinking of You

Inks:               Distress Shabby Shutters, Mowed Lawn, Crushed

Olive, VersaFine Olympia Green

Dies:              AlteNew Tropical Leaf Mix, Arich Rounded Corners

Stitched Rectangles, Gina Marie Stitched Rounded Squares 

Emb Fldr:      Taylored Expressions Weathered

Doo Dads:    My Mind’s Eye Just Splendid Wood Dots