Easel Cards

Have you seen an easel card lately. Well I have just developed two different easel cards using Sparkle N Sprinkle stamps.

This first card is a round easel card using stamps from set209, Floral Berry.

Look how it is able to stand up. What a nice way to display this card if you were the recipiant

After working the round card up, I went back to a card design that I was having trouble finalizing. Well, the easel card made me come up with the final design using a stamp set called Medallions -Flowers Set208 from Sparkle N Sprinkle.

Here is the card closed.

Here is a side view of the card opened.

And here is a front view of tis card opened.

I love how this finally came together. These easel cards are easy, fun and really make quite a statement in their own right. If you look closely, you will see the vase in the background, behind the medallion flower. That flower is mounted on a transparency. I love the way this finally came together, don't you???

Well, that's it for now, thanks for stopping by, see you soon,

Barbara

Making Your Own Background Paper

I have been in a mode to clean out and "thin the herd" so to speak. In my endeavor to clean out and rearrange, I ran across a stamp that I love to use to make a great background sheet. So I made a few sheets of background and then made a card using a piece of that background paper.

I start out using white or cream CS. Next I ink up the stamp using a shadow ink from Memories, then I take a darker dye ink and run it along the edge of the stamp.(Sorry the Fresco pad is so grundgy looking, this is my go to green. Love the Fresco colors and there are 30 different colors in all and they all remind me of Tuscany) The stamp I use is from Hero Arts, 2005, so, it's not available anymore but I bet you have something similar in your stamp stash.

So, when you stamp your CS you will get a rectangle with a darker edge. Getting started, I start in the center of the CS and stamp.

Next I reink the stamp in the same manner, ink the rubber in a softer color and then ink the edge in a darker color of the same color family, turn the stamp in the opposite direction and overlap the new image onto the stamped image already on the CS. You want to continue in this manner til the CS is totally covered. I find that right angle stamped images look better than randomly stamped rectangles all over the paper. But, you may find that you like that look, so try it and see which you like better. Next, cut your paper into the background size that you need and you now have a great background piece in whatever color you need. You can stamp an image onto it or layer over it.

Here is the card I finished,using my own background paper. This really lends itself to so many possibilities, don't you think??

Well that is it for now, thanks for stopping by, see you soon,

Barbara

For Mother On Her Day

I made this card with my mother in mind. She has been gone for 17 years and I still miss her. My mother loved to sew and she made all my clothes til I was in high school. My mother was so gifted, she could even make her own patterns. In her later years she quilted and I have two of her masterpieces.

She was a great cook too!!! Boy, I remember her making jelly and jam and spaghetti sauce and goetta and fruitcake. (Yep I am a fruitcake lover. Now don't get me wrong, there are fruitcakes, and then there are fruitcakes.) The only other fruitcake I have tasted that compares to my mother's, is from Gethsemani Farms, close to Bardstown Ky. Yummie, if you like fruitcake.

So, with her in mind, as she always is, I made this card.

The stamp I used is from My Sentiments Exactly. I stamped it in Versamark and embossed it in black using Black Detail (EP171) from Sparkle N Sprinkle. Next I trimmed all the way around the dress and added a thin piece of pink ribbon to look like a sash. If you click on the pic, you will notice that I used pink ribbon at the bottom of the dress. I used my Spellbinders frame (S5-011) on pink cardstock. Affixed the frame onto white glossy cardstock and and the white glossy CS to the pink card. Last, using dimensional tape,I popped the dress up on the white glossy CS. Hope this inspires you to make your mother a Mothers Day card.

Well that is it for now, thanks for stopping by, see you soon,

Barbara

A Birthday Card

Over the weekend I went looking for my muse, she has been gone for a while. I guess I found her, but she is still a little shy. I decided to use stamps that have been sitting around for a long time. This stamp is one by Susie Toronto. I love her stamps. I only have two and I really cherish them. I decided to make this into a Birthday card, you know, there is a birthday always going on somewhere, so, Happy Birthday to You, whoever you are.

I stamped the birthday girl in India ink and colored her using Permapaque pigment parkers. These markers are great to use stright from the marker or squiggle a little of the paint from the marker onto a piece of plastic and using a watercolor brush and a little water, you can use the paint as a watercolor.

When I decided to layer the paper behind her, I tried to stay with the colors I used in the stamped image. I tore the paper which reminds me of ripping open packages.

Tomorrow, have a card that is just about finished, for the upcoming Mothers Day celebration. Stop in tomorrow to see what I have made for you.

Well that is it for now, thanks for stopping by, see you soon,


Barbara

Saturday's Retreat

Last Saturday I attended a retreat for the Altered Arts group that I am a member of. We learned 3 new projects. We etched metal, made fairies and learned soldering. I took a soldering class a few years ago and really needed a refresher in this so I was quite happy to revisit this technique.We started out with soldering.

I have not mastered attaching jump rings yet. You need 1-2 more hands to get this set right. I did find a tool that actually will hold the piece, freeing your hands for other actions. Love it. I am looking forward to using it on the next soldering project.

Jump rings are not supposed to be laying flat.Isn't this just pitiful (LOL). I WILL master this. Soldering is really not hard but it takes a lot of practice to really master it.

This is a piece of glass that I bought at Michael's and I soldered tape onto it to make it look like a gift. It just needs a bow. I am working on that .

Hard at work on my soldering. You really need more than 2 hands.

Next we learned to make Fairies out of chenille, yarn, a bead, fabric strips and florist tape.

They need wings and then they will be true fairies. Aren't these cute?? I love these and they are so easy to make.

Last but not least we learned to etch metal. This works well with brass, tin, copper but does not work on aluminum. Muriatic acid, peroxide and baking soda for the rinse and after 15 minutes or so you have an etched piece.This is not hard to do but you really need to work in a ventilated area and wear eye protection and wear rubber gloves. Here is the end result:

The day was perfect and we had a great time learning 3 new projects.

My thanks to Angie, Carla, Beth and Sandi for their hard work in getting their classes together and for their time.

Well that is it for now, thanks for stopping by, see you soon,

Barbara

Is it an envelope??? (part 2)

Friday I posted a cute little box that I made from an envelope die cut that I own. Thought you would like to see how this is done. So here we go.

I started with 4 identical envelopes that I cut from an Accucut Die that I own.

Next, from only 2 of the envelopes, I cut off the sides that look like wings.(This particular die automatically punches holes in the top and bottom flap portion of the envelope.) I made the cut at the score line on the two sides.

From the remaining two envelopes, I left about 1/4" from the score line cutting off the rest.

So, now with the sides trimmed or cut off, this are what my pieces looked like.

On the two pieces that have a 1/4" left on the sides, I attached redline tape to the 1/4" tab, both sides, both pieces.

Next you will want to line up your pieces in an alternating fashion. Starting with a piece with a tabs then a piece with no tabs, etc. I removed the redline tape and attached each piece to the next piece at the score line until I had all 4 pieces attached to each other.

Finally to make the box shape. Fold at each of the score lines on the sides and attach that last tab to the side with no tab and your box has now taken its shape.

Finally, to finish the bottom, fold the flaps in at the score lines and add redline tape, this makes the bottom permanently closed. Since the envelope I am using has holes punched in the flaps I then cut a bottom using the same cardstock that matched the panels I added to the front to further finish off the bottom on the inside. However you can use cardstock to match the box if you prefer.

With the bottom completed, I wanted to change the top flaps, so I trimmed them down so they were about 1" from the score line. Next I took a border punch and punched the border on that smaller flap.

(I should have changed the top flaps before I attached the last flap to make the box shape, but you know, sometimes, we see other things to do after the project is almost done. At least I do. Now you know you may still be able to make the change to the top at this late stage in the process.)

The last two steps were to add a decorative panel to each of the 4 sides and add a handle. When I made the handle I used the border punch again and punched a strip and adhered it to the inside of the box and now you have a really cute box made from envelopes.

And who would have thought these panels started out as envelopes?????

(Sorry for the quality of all these photos.)

This box would be ideal for a treat box at a table for a kids party or for adults or whatever. If you leave the top tabs untrimmed you can fold those tabs, add a bow at the top and it will look nice for a beautiful gift inside. You know, part of the present is in the presentation.

Well that is it for now, thanks for stopping by, see you soon,

Barbara

Is it an envelope ?

I saw an interesting tutorial, using a die that normally makes an envelope. Using 4 envelopes you can end up making a box. Since I knew I had an envelope die I set off to try this. As luck would have it, my envelope die is way too big. So as I looked at all the dies I have, I ran across a smaller one and tried the technique. Here is the end result.

 After I made the box, I used patterned paper for the background panels and then added a stamped flower on each panel and to further enhance the box I added leaf ribbon. This will make a nice small gift box or a little treat box. I will post more info on how to make this cute box and include photos to show how easy it really is to do, on Sunday.

Tomorrow I will be getting ready for my brothers wedding so I will be to busy to post.

Well, that's it for now, thanks for stopping by, see you soon,

Barbara

The Wedding Card

Saturday, my brother is getting married to a wonderful lady. So, I just had to make a card for them. She will be wearing a cream dress and her flowers will be a pinky rose color. So, with those colors in mind, here is the card I made to give to them Saturday.

They are getting married in a small chapel and the reception will be following the ceremony at one of her favorite restaurants.
Sunday they fly to Miami and Monday they board ship to go on a cruise.

Sounds like fun to me.

Here's a toast to the bride and groom!!!!

Well, that's it for now, thanks for stopping by, see you soon,

Barbara