I have been following along with the Card Maker Success Summit this week which is focused on Christmas in July.  It's been interesting and tremendous effort by Brandi Mahon to produce.  As with any workshop that I attend, there are parts I like, don't like, or just am not interested in - but I always figure if I take away one or two good things, it's been worthwhile.  So far have made three cards and have a couple of more that I'm going to try.

 

Laurie Willison made a stenciled card, but I didn't have any of the products she used - so improvised.  Her card was a one layer card using a rectangle stencil to make a white border.  I just cut out a rectangle and stamped my leaves and berries in light gray ink and then colored with pencils.  Used a striped stencil to make the background.  Added a few gold sequins, the little sentiment and some glossy accents to the berries.  Layered up my stamped piece and adhered to a white card base and done.

Therese Calvird made a lovely poinsettia card (doesn't she always!!!).  I made two cards from her idea.

I first watercolored a pink and green piece of wc cardstock-wanted enough for two cards.  After die cutting and layering my poinsettias together, I made the backgrounds.  Used the individual petal dies to dry emboss the background on the top card and a stencil for the second card.  A few gold sequins and a sentiment completed both.  I will enter my second card at CAS Christmas Challenge where the theme is poinsettia.

 Thanks for stopping by - hope you have a good week.

 

RAINBOW REPETITION

Repetition is our theme challenge this month at A Blog Named Hero and what better way than to repeat lots of hugs!!!

After cutting the sentiment from rainbow pp, I cut more from white cs to layer it up and also give it a black shadow.  Then it was just a matter of lining everything up on my slimline background.  The die cut and sentiment are both from the new Big Hugs Fancy set from Hero's summer catalog.  I stamped the "lots of love" with black ink and embossed in ultra fine clear powder.

Would love to see your "repetition" card in our challenge this month - and as always, there are two gift cards from Hero Arts up for grabs!

 

BUTTERFLY

This week's TicTacToe#122 board was designed by ME!!  I decided to go across the bottom with stencil, vellum and butterfly.  I wanted to do something with a vellum butterfly and finally decided on using alcohol ink on a piece of vellum.  I like the dull finish of vellum rather than shiny yupo paper.

 

My piece of vellum turn out so pretty, but after die cutting my butterfly, it was very floppy - which I didn't like.  So I added it to a piece of cardstock for more sturdiness.  Lightly stenciled the background and added some spatters of gold.  My sentiment is embossed in gold.  The card is a mini slimline - 3.25x6.25.

I hope I'll see you in the gallery this week - the winner will be a future guest designer.

Thanks for visiting today.

JUST MORE FLOWERS

My cards today are a mix of vellum and flowers for three different challenges - CAS Mix-Up (alcohol ink + vellum), ModSquad (vellum flowers) and AAA Birthday (embossing folder).

 

This card is for the AAA Birthday challenge - used an embossing folder on thick vellum glued onto a pale gray mini slimline card.  (BTW - no more worries about how to adhere vellum - just use Bearly Art glue - it's the game changer in the glue department for everything - all the other glues are in the trash!!)  Added the pink flower and a little sentiment and done.

 

On this card I stamped and white heat embossed the flowers onto thick vellum, used copic markers on the back to do my coloring - then fussy cut.  The card base is a piece from a 6x6 pad - it's gray with white outline flowers - I just scored it at 3" and folded.  Adhered the flowers again with glue - added the sentiment and some silver sequins and done.  This card is for CAS Mix-Up (used heat embossing, copics, stamping, vellum) and ModSquad.  The flowers are the Gina K and Hero Arts collaboration set.

 Thanks for stopping by today.

 

BABY GIFT

During the pandemic I needed something else to keep me busy and so took up knitting again - I am definitely not very good at it - like if I drop a stitch or have some other mistake, it all has to be ripped out and started over!  So over the course of the last year I have knitted lots of hats in all sizes which will be given to a homeless shelter when the colder weather arrives.  

This little hat though is for a little one born this past week to a sweet family that I know from church.  I think it turned out pretty cute.  Made the fun little tag to go with it.  Used my laptop for the text and that cute little sheep stamp which is very old.

I also made little gift bags for the older siblings - blowing bubbles and M & M's (hope Mom approves of the candy).

That's all for today.  Thanks for stopping by.

 

TICTACTOE CHALLENGE #120

Ashwini designed a great board this week for all the wedding and anniversary cards we all need to have on hand.

I chose to go across the middle with embossing, flowers and anniversary.

 

I had a new 3D embossing folder to try out - embossed on some rose gold metallic paper - used the debossed side and attached to a white card base. The little flowers and leaves were ink blended and the sentiment ink embossed onto the vellum strip.

I would love to see your card in our challenge gallery this week and you'll have a chance to be a future guest designer.

Thanks for stopping by today.

 

MORE MONOCHROME

Monochrome is our theme at A Blog Named Hero this month and I decided to go with one of my many alcohol inked backgrounds in blue.

I also used one of my favorite Hero Arts stamps - the lovely Togetherness Bouquet.  I stamped on vellum and embossed in white - used the coordinating die to cut out - HA dies are so easy to use and leave just a small edge.  I cut a piece of double sided adhesive roughly in the shape of the center flowers and adhered to the inked background.  The background piece is popped up with multiple layers of cardstock.  Added the sentiment and a few enamel dots and done.

This month's challenge has ended and there's a new one coming on 1 July so be on the lookout for it - as always two gift cards from Hero Arts are up for grabs.

Thanks for visiting today.

ANYTHING BUT A CARD

The Altenew Educators have a blog hop going and what an array of creative ways to use Altenew products.  I was really taken by Virginia's idea of recycling a gift bag.

 

I covered the logo on the bag with three layers of washi tape so the black lettering wouldn't show.  I had some watercolored papers in my stash and die cut some hibiscus flowers and leaves.  Decorated my bag and a little tag with these.  I think this turned out to be pretty cute and I had fun making "anything but a card"!!

Thanks for stopping by.

 

AQUA AND BLACK

The Color Hues challenge this go around is to use aqua and black. 

 

I began by swiping four shades of aqua across a piece of watercolor paper.   Then I lightly spritzed it with water.  Stamped the flower first, then masked and did the leaves.  With each stamping I sprinkled clear embossing powder and heat set so it would be shiny and very black.  Trimmed my piece to 3.75"x5" and mounted on a black card base.  Added a few enamel dots to the flower center and also a few scattered around.  No sentiment on this one - will wait until I need it for a special occasion.

 Thanks for stopping by today.

 

TWO OLD BATS

The June Two Old Bats Challenge is an "anything goes" theme, but as always, a card may use their challenge board for inspiration. 

I had the great spooky house die and the little flying witch and combined them with the orange sky, yellow moon and bare trees.  Used DO inks to blend my background.

Thanks for stopping by.

BLUE FLIGHT

Made a card today for three challenges - CAS Mix-Up (watercolor and flight), MFT slimline challenge plus things with wings and Let's Squash It (watercolor and nature).

I made my card a mini slimline (3.25x6.25).  First I smooshed a piece of wc paper with blue - did only one part in the darker colors so that I would have part of it for the very light hazy background.  Trimmed down a piece for the background and ran thru with 3D embossing folder (interpret it as swirly winds or leafy stems).  Layered this up on the card base, added the butterfly, sentiment and sequins and done!

Thanks for visiting my blog today.

TICTACTOE#118

Felicita had created an easy board for you today at TicTacToe Challenge #118.  I chose right across the middle with CAS, free and any color.

This is a mini slimline (3.25x6.25).  I watercolored two pieces of wc in pinkish and green.  Then die cut the hibiscus flowers and leaves so I had enough for three arrangements.  Did an arrangement with two of the flowers for the front of the card.

Then made a pop-up for the inside of the card.

Once I had the pop-up piece for the flower figured out, this was an easy card to make.

Would love to see your card(s) in our challenge this week - and have chance to become one of our future guest designers.

SUNSHINE

After I finished photographing my cards for the Twofer Challenge, I realized my sun ray background was sort of in the same place - altho on the black one it's more in the upper right and the yellow one more centered.  My thinking is that the sun ray design is the focal point on the orange/yellow card and merely a background for the sunflower which I consider the focal point on the black card.  So two different designs.

I used a sun ray die that I bought from Ellen Hutson ages ago.  To begin, I smooshed a piece of watercolor paper with DI oranges and yellows.  Also did a small piece in greens for the leaves.  Used these to make the sunflower and then the sunny background.  Hunted through my stamps to find the "brighter" sentiment and stamped it in gold.  

Thanks for stopping by and hope you have a sunny day.

MONOCHROME

Monochromatic colors, shade, tones are the theme for the June A Blog Named Hero Challenge.  One of my latest Hero Arts purchases is the Succulent Bouquet from the summer release.  It's the perfect size for a mini slimline card.

 

I stamped my bouquet in black ink and embossed with clear powder onto watercolor paper.  Loosely watercolored with gray (only the flowers) and die cut when dry.  I added shimmer to the flowers, but it doesn't show up in the photo.  Adhered to the card base (3.25x6.25), only gluing the large flowers.  Added the sentiment, silver sequins and black Nuvo drops in the flower centers.  In case you're interested, a #7 coin envelope works perfectly for this size card.

I hope to see you in our challenge gallery this month - there are always two gift cards for the winners.

Thanks for visiting today.

 

TICTACTOE #116

This week's TicTacToe#116 board was created by LeAnne - so many fun ways for inspiration.  I chose across the center - blue, circle and floral.

I recently bought this lovely floral 3D folder and used it for my floral element.  I first die cut the circle and then embossed.  I used a circle cover plate on the card front for more circle texture.  The butterfly was die cut from a scrap of alcohol inked paper.  Added the little sentiment and done.

Looking forward to seeing your creations in our gallery this week - winner will be a future guest designer.

Thanks for stopping by.