colorwhimsy

Blue Christmas

I probably shouldn't named this post "Blue Christmas," because I now have the song in my head (Elvis version of course).  It serves me right.

The card itself is an easy one to make.  I combined some Dewfrost paper, stamps from the Snowy Eve clear set (cl142) and various shapes of clear rhinestones.  The snowflake jewels are so much fun because they come as individual snowflakes that are ready to embellish your cards.  You don't have to drive yourself crazy placing individual rhinestones into the shape of a snowflake.  I wanted the edges of my patterned paper to really show up on top of my Pool notecard, so I sponged some Versafine Deep Lagoon on the edges to darken them. 

Playing with Glitter

For something different, I thought I would post a card that uses a whole heck of a lot of glitter.  Normally I am a little hesitant to use loose glitter because it tends to go all over.  However, I played with some sticky decals that kept the glitter spillage to a minimum.

To make the card, I chose a Lagoon notecard, some Clearsnap Daisy Daze Design Adhesives, and some Ocean Spray glitter.

I then adhered the double-sided sticky decals onto the notecard and removed the paper cover.

I then sprinkled on the glitter and removed the excess.  I used a Kleenex to remove extra glitter and then wiped it lightly with a baby wipe to remove the rest of the loose glitter.  It seemed to work pretty well because I can touch the card without getting glitter on my finger.

To finish the card, I added a strip of Pool cardstock stamped with a greeting (Happy Bday Script B828) and layered it over a piece of Pistachio Soiree paper  The metallic shimmer of the Soiree paper adds a bit of shimmer that goes well with the sparkle of the glitter.  To embellish the card, I stamped multiple Periwinkle butterflies (B1161)onto white cardstock, colored them with Copic markers, and popped them up on the card.  Finally, a diamond jewel was added to each of the butterflies for extra bling.

I just wish the photo of the finished card was better.  The photograph doesn't pick up the glitz of the glimmer very well.  I even tried to take a picture in darker lighting so most of the reflection was just the glitter.  It still didn't capture the sparkle.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend!

Happy Fall

I should be finishing up preparations for the Memory Box class I am teaching tomorrow, but the Internet is calling me.  I thought I might as well share one of the cards that we will be making in the class.  The nice thing about the Tree Border stamp (D1277) is that you really can use it for any season you like.  However, since I am using it in my "Falling for Memory Box Class," I thought I better use some autumnal colors!

To make the card, I cut a piece of Mocha cardstock and a piece of white cardstock using my Labels 8 Nestability dies.  I sponged  Brocken Chna Distress ink onto the white cardstock to create a sky and sponged Antique Linen Distress ink to the base of the paper to form the ground.  I stamped the trees on top of the landscape with Versafine Vintage Sepia ink and then colored the "leaves" with orange, yellow, and red dye-based ink and a waterbrush.  To add a bit of an accent, I added some faux stitching around the scene with a brown detail pen and finished the card by adding a saying (Happy Fall B946) and some Twilight paper to a Vanilla Bean notecard.

Back to Bright

Sorry for the gap in posts.  I went away for a few days, but now I am back!

After posting a black Christmas card, I thought it might be a good idea to post something bright for a change.  Needing inspiration, I broke out my pack of Glitterati papers with all of its bright green and blue papers.

To make this card, I stamped the Twizzle Tree (E1284) onto Eggshell cardstock using brown Memento ink.  I stamped it a second time onto some green patterned paper from the Glitterati pack and cut out the circles. I paper-pieced the circles onto my original eggshell paper and layered the circle onto a larger scalloped circle.  To finish the card, I added a Thank You saying (B1055) as well as a bunch of berry pearls and layered all the pieces onto a Key Lime notecard.

Black Christmas Card

I may be wrong, but I do believe this is the first black Christmas card I have ever made!  I tried layering my scene onto various notecards that matched the colors of the houses, but I ended up liking the black card best.  Who knew?

To make the card, I stamped the Neighborhood (D1289) onto white cardstock using black Memories ink.  I colored the houses with Prismacolor pencils and then cut out each of the houses to create a scene.  To make the snow, I cut out a piece of Frost Soiree paper so that it would shimmer and then added some Stickles to the top of the snowbank so that it would sparkle.  To finish the snow, I stamped Merry Christmas (B927) using black Staz On ink.  Staz On often works well when stamping onto metallic papers.

For the moon, I stamped Reindeer Run (B1288) onto Eggshell cardstock using Brilliance Coffee Bean ink.  I then cut out the reindeer using a circle punch and added a small dot of red pencil to the nose of the first reindeer (I needed a Rudolph).  The reindeer stamp doesn't have lines between the animals, so I drew some of my own using a fine detail black pen in order for it to look like Santa's sleigh.

To finish the card, I popped up the moon using foam mount tape and added some stars using a Stardust pen.  Finally, I added another layer of Frost Soiree paper and a Licorice notecard.  After all, nothing says Christmas like black. :)

Cards for Men

I know that I'm not the only one who struggles when making cards for men.  I try hard to do things other than stamping a tie on a card and calling it a day.  One thing I do know is that I don't usually invest TOO much time on cards for men since I have a sneaking suspicion my cards  live a short life before they hit the trash.  That being said, I was pretty pleased with this card.  It doesn't have to be for a man, but I think it works as a masculine card.  Plus, it is a snap to make!

To make the card, I brayered Some Kaleidacolor Creole Spice ink onto white glossy paper then stamped the Cattail Birds (D1297) three times onto the paper using Black Memories ink.  I then layered my glossy paper onto some Mango cardstock, added my saying (Just a Note B851), and placed everything on a Licorice notecard.  Done!

Another thought about this card....I think you could easily change the saying to make a nice sympathy card.  After all, sympathy cards are hard to make too!

Happy Fall

The Bubble Tree stamp (D1272) allows you to color the leaves for any season, but I just love coloring leaves for fall.  I hope you can tell from the picture that I used patterned paper from the Twilight paper collection to color my leaves.  In order to do this, I stamped the tree with brown ink onto patterned paper and then used a Versamark pen and clear embossing power to cover the leaves.  When I used a heatgun on the leaves, I was able to add a terracotta pigment ink on top, and the leaves resisted the color.   I then cut out the tree and layered it onto more of the same paper I used to color the leaves.  To finish the card, I layered everything onto Vanilla Bean cardstock pieces, more of the Twilight 6" x 6" patterned paper, and a mango notecard.  I also added some brown satin ribbon as an extra embellishment. 

Fall Landscape

I really like the Tendril Collage (D1269) because it looks great using fall colors, but you can also change the color scheme to blue and silver to make a wonderful winter landscape.   Since I could feel a bit of autumn in the air today, I thought I would focus on fall colors.

To make this card, I sprayed a nonstick craft sheet with Butterscotch, Terracotta, and Cranberry Colorwash sprays.  I really like the Colorwash sprays because they give you such vibrant colors.  I spritzed the Colorwash colors with extra water the blend the three shades then placed a piece of 90lb watercolor paper on top of the craft sheet to pick up the color.   I heatset my paper with a heatgun and then stamped the Tendril Collage on top with black Versafine ink.  Once I cut out the collage, I decided to give my scene a bit of sparkle with some gold Twinkling H2O paint added to the sun and the top of the hill.  To finish the card, I added some canary jewels, a piece of Twilight paper, and a layer of gourd cardstock to a licorice notecard.

Has anyone felt fall yet, or is it just me?  Maybe it is just wishful thinking on my part.

I love all the Memory Box owls, and this one (Scalloped Owl C1293) is perfect for Halloween.  To color the owl, I stamped him onto 90lb watercolor paper using brown Versafine ink.  I then colored him with Gold, Nutmeg, and Persimmon Twinkling H2O paints.  It is hard to see the shimmer from the photo.  Here is a close-up that shows the sparkle just a bit better:

I cut out my owl and then layered him onto the Tendril Branch F1037 that I stamped in Chestnut Roan ink onto a Jack O Lantern notecard.  I added a strip of paper from the Twilight pack and adorned some of the stars on the paper with black gems from the Halloween jewel pack.  Finally, I stamped Happy Halloween B930 onto the card with black Versafine ink.

Spiderwebs

For today's card, I made a quick and easy card using the Web Crawler (E1270) stamp.  I stamped the spiderweb three times onto white cardstock using black Memories ink and then edged the webs with black and yellow inks to match the background paper.  I layered the webs onto Paprika cardstock and then tied some yellow string around each.  To finish the card, I added some Twilight paper and layered everything onto a Paprika notecard.

Hey, have you guys entered the current Memory Box contest yet?  You could win $100 in Memory Box Bucks!!!  If you need a reminder of the contest details, you can check them out here.

Good luck!