To the Moon and Back by Laura Fulcher

Greetings friends.  Memory Box has new celestial dies, and they were perfect for me to make a card for my mom.  I am sure I am not the only one who has a mom that says "I love you to the moon and back to them."

I first started by making some galaxy backgrounds.  After all, why not make several for future cards?

To make the backgrounds, I used a Ranger felt applicator and sponged various colors of alcohol inks onto Yupo paper.  Yupo is  synthetic paper that works really well with alcohol inks since the ink sits on top of the paper rather than absorbing into the paper.   I used various alcohol inks including inks from Ranger and my Copic refills.  It didn't matter that I mixed both brands on my Yupo.  Here is what they looked like:

Next, I sponged each of the papers with black Copic refills.  I tried my refill 100 (black) as well as the 110 (special black) and C9 (Cool Grey 9).  They all looked the same, so use whatever dark alcohol ink you have on hand.  Here are some of the backgrounds once they were sponged with black alcohol ink:

You get similar galaxy looks for all of the backgrounds, but you can see a hint of the first layer of color peeking through each of the black second layers.

Whenever I have seen people making alcohol ink galaxy backgrounds, they often splatter the black ink with watered down white acrylic paint to create stars.  Instead of doing that, I put some Copic blending solution into a spritz bottle and lightly spritzed each of the black cards to create the splatters.  I thought it worked really well.  You could also use blending solution from Ranger.  Another option is to try regular rubbing alcohol from the drug store.  I have had mixed results with rubbing alcohol and my alcohol inks.  Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't.  I tend to use blending solution for consistent results.  In any case, rubbing alcohol works great for cleaning up any messes you might make with this project.

Here is a close up of the finished galaxy background on the card:

To finish the card, I cut out the rocket and moon using white cardstock and colored the pieces with Copic markers...  C3, Y13, R27, YR68 and stamped a sentiment from the new Outta this World clear stamp set.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

 

 

Supplies

 

99975 Roaring Rocket craft die

99974 Deep Space Planets craft die

CL5221 Outta This World clear stamp set

Modern Leaf Circle Frame, Singing Birds and Left Gate Background by Jean Okimoto

 

The Left Gate Background's off-cut unexpectedly creates the perfect background for the new Modern Leaf Circle Frame and a pair of Singing Birds.  Add some glittery Honeycomb Square hexagons, washi tape from Birch Press Designs -  and a greeting from the Bird Sanctuary Clear Stamps - and you have a card!

Hello again, Jean Okimoto here with a design that would surely win the "Smallest Piece of Washi Tape on a Card Challenge" if we ever have one.  I spent way more time than I'll admit trying to work a bigger piece of that pretty pale lavender tape into the design - but it always looked excessive.  I fussed and fidgeted with it over and over again, but one little piece won.  So that's how we got here!

The background is the negative portion that remained after I diecut the Left Gate Background for an earlier card (above).  It's the watercolored background behind the leafy Left Hutton Gate (the watercolored circle was cut separately with a Circle Basics die).

Trim the top, bottom and right edge of the off-cut with portions of a Rectangle Basics die for crisp, even edges without measuring.  

Cut Modern Leaf Circle Frame from watercolor paper.

Attach adhesive label paper or a sticker sheet to purple and chartreuse felt and cut two of the Singing Birds.  The paper backing stabilizes the felt and keeps adhesives from soaking through.  Cut the birds again from watercolor paper and layer them for extra dimension.

Stamp the greeting - from the Bird Sanctuary Clear Stamp Set - on the smoother side of watercolor paper with Pearlescent Jade Brilliance.  Dry the ink, then diecut the greeting with the 1-¼" Square Basics die.

Cut turquoise glittered cardstock with the Honeycomb Square.

Attach everything to an A-6 (4-½" x 6-¼") card of watercolor paper.  Add a bit of the washi tape from Birch Press Design.

Thanks for stopping by - join us for Laura's great card tomorrow!

 

 

Supplies

 

99994 Modern Leaf Circle Frame craft die

99953 Singing Birds craft die

99921 Honeycomb Square craft die

99981 Left Gate Background craft die

30088 Square Basics Set

CL5201 Bird Sanctuary clear stamp set

30086 Rectangle Basics Set

Snow Bunny, Spring Bunnies Cupcakes and a Carrot by Jean Okimoto

Let the Deep Edge Dies Snow Bunny -  and cupcakes from the Spring Bunnies Clear Stamps -  brighten someone's day.  Washi tape from Birch Press Design adds dotty accents and a splash of color to the big bunny.  Sparkly pink gemstones are the finishing touch.  Hi, Jean Okimoto here, with a basic design that's easily transformed to greet any occasion.  

Pick your favorite cupcake flavor - raspberry, lemon, blueberry, lime or carrot.  I hope it's carrot cake today.

Stamp the cupcakes - from the Open Studio Spring Bunnies Clear Stamp Set - on the smoother side of watercolor paper with Nocturne VersaFine Clair.  Emboss it with detail clear powder.  If you like Onyx Black VersaFine - you will LOVE Nocturne.  It's a deeper, darker black that's great for solid images and delicate, detailed designs too.  

Press the inks from the Bouquet Kaleidacolor inkpad onto a large acrylic stamp block.  Paint the cupcakes, dry the inks, and diecut it with the coordinating die from the Spring Bunnies die set.  Paint it carefully and neatly inside the lines - or quickly and outside the lines,  as I did.

Diecut a second piece from watercolor paper and attach it behind the stamped piece for more dimension.

Stamp, emboss, paint and diecut a carrot. 

Diecut the Snow Bunny  from textured white cardstock.  Attach Birch Press Designs Dot Lime Tape to a scrap of white cardstock and cut the ear and midsection accent pieces.

Paint a dot of pink ink and two dots of a black marker onto watercolor paper and diecut the eyes and nose.

Crease one of the arm pieces and attach the carrot in the fold.

Stamp the greeting on a top-folded 5-½" square gray card with Sunshine VersaFine Clair.  Attach the diecuts and gem stickers.  

Enjoy using  the Snow Bunny and Spring Bunnies sets throughout the year - not just for their namesake winter and spring seasons.  They're great for birthdays, thank yous and baby cards - and whenever you want to make someone smile.  Hope this brightened your day!

Thanks for visiting - see you again this evening...

 Supplies

 

30097 Snow Bunny craft die

32220 Spring Bunnies die set

CL5220 Spring Bunnies clear stamp set

Spring Greetingsby Melissa Rusk

Happy Spring! We have finally had a few days that feel like Spring around here so I thought it was time to celebrate that with a card.

I die cut the beautiful Forget Me Not Blooms die in white card stock. I colored the stem in a green with a Copic marker. For the flowers I used a purple glitter pen from Nuvo to make them pop and sparkle. So much fun!

I added a few strips of fun washi tape from Birch Press Designs as the base of my card design. Then I stamped my greeting from the Spring Bunnies stamp set and glued the flower to the card. A pretty and simple card to send off a little Spring to someone who needs it.

Thanks for stopping by the blog today!

 

Supplies

 

99997 Forget Me Not Blooms craft die

CL5220 Spring Bunnies clear stamp set

Spring Bunnies Dies, Spring Bunnies Clear Stamps and Half a Dozen Eggs by Jean Okimoto

An assortment of chocolate Spring Bunnies and a Birch Press washi tape egg venture a bit outside the box here today now that spring has officially arrived.  We hope!  Hello, Jean Okimoto here, with a just-in-time Easter design for you.

It's easy to create some great custom-colored washi tape backgrounds for diecutting.  Just attach them to bright cardstock and let a bit of the background show through the lighter areas of the tape.  Cut it with a die from the Half a Dozen Eggs set.  I love how these three tapes - from Birch Press Design - were instantly transformed into a coordinating backdrop of greens and blues for my bunnies.  (Yes, half a dozen usually means 6 - but the smallest egg somehow slipped away from the others during the photos.)

The pressure of diecutting washi tape also bonds the tapes securely to the cardstock backing.  These pretty tapes won't be peeling away or curling before they reach their destination.  

Cut an extra egg from the smoother side of textured cardstock for a background layer with textural contrast.

Don't you just love the different personalities reflected in the expressions on the bunny faces?  It's a great stamp set for any occasion - look at those cupcakes!

Stamp the bunnies  - from the Open Studio Spring Bunnies Clear Stamp Set - on the smoother side of watercolor paper with the new Pinecone VersaFine Clair.  Emboss it with detail clear powder.  

Here's an embossing tip that I've shared in classes - wave the heat tool a few inches from the backside of the stamped, powdered image for a few seconds to preheat the embossing powder first.  Complete the embossing from the right side - as usual - for a quick, glossy finish without overheating or scorching the image.

Instead of applying watercolor pencils directly to the stamped image - and risk scraping the embossed design -  scribble them  onto a scrap of watercolor paper and use it as a palette to dissolve and blend the colors first.

Color the bunnies, blot them to be sure they're dry, then cut them with the coordinating die from the Spring Bunnies Die Set.  Diecut an extra layer of plain watercolor paper and attach it behind the stamped layer for dimension.  Attach everything to a top-folded A-2 card of textured green cardstock.  Add yellow gem stickers.

Big thanks to everyone who took last weekend's PAPER AND INKOLLAGE class at Impress!  I appreciate your driving, ferrying or flying from Canada, Spokane and cities near and far for my class.  Hope you liked the cards - and enjoy using the "extras" on future projects.  Thanks too - Ann, Shari, Erin and Laura - for helping everyone fill their shopping baskets.

Have fun creating spring cards - thanks for stopping by!

 

 

 

Supplies

 

32220 Spring Bunnies die set

CL5220 Spring Bunnies clear stamp set

30072 Half a Dozen Eggs

Thank You Card by Isha Gupta

Hello and Welcome! It's Isha with you today. I love spring for it's fresh feel. Everything looks light and airy especially after all those dull, grey winter days. So today, I have a fun and cheerful card for you :)

To start, I die-cut the Woodland Glimpse Collage die onto a white mat layer. I then created a background behind it using watercolor onto some Yupo paper. I adhered the background to the back of this panel.

I then die-cut the Drifting Side Butterfly using white cardstock. I then sponged the solid part using some distress oxide inks. I then added wink of stella clear glitter pen to the outer layer of the butterfly . I then adhered the outer layer to the solid layer.

Finally, I stamped and embossed the sentiment onto a piece of black cardstock and adhered it to the panel. Now I adhered this panel to a white cardbase.

I then added 3d foam to the butterfly and adhered it to the card. To finish I added some sequins.

Here is a closeup to see the details.

Hope you enjoyed this card. Have a wonderful crafty day!

 

 

Supplies

 

99900 Drifting Side Butterfly craft die

99962 Woodland Glimpse Collage craft die

CL5202 Snetimental Iris clear stamp set

Puppy Birthday Card by Laura Fulcher

Greetings friends.  I don't know about you, but I love making dog and cat cards.  I tend to have a lot of animal lovers in my life, and pet cards are always well received.

For today's card, I paired the new Long Dachshund die along with the new Perky Puppy die.  They are so cute!  I wanted to make a scene with the two of them, so I added the speech bubbles from the mini Dog Gone clear set and a present from the Spring Bunnies clear set.

To decorate the die cut dogs, I cut them from white paper and then colored them with the following Copic markers:

To add a bit more of a decorative element, I mixed a couple of different strips of washi tape from Birch Press Design with varying patterns and colors (Block Pink Tape and Stripe Black Tape).  As a finishing touch, I added a saying from the Wishing You Sentiments clear set:

I hope that you have a wonderful week!

 

 

Supplies

 

99966 Long Dachsund craft die

99967 Perky Puppy craft die

CL5206 Wishing You Sentiments clear stamp set

CL5220 Spring Bunnies clear stamp set

CL5223 Dog Gone clear stamp set

Forget Me Nots by Penny Ward

 

Hi Memory Box friends. Penny here today with a bouquet of Forget Me Nots. The new Spring release is filled with all sorts of goodness like these flowers and the gorgeous Hutton Gate die cuts. Use this intricate die up, down, on the side...so many choices!!!

 

Start with a White cardstock base and then start layering.

I die cut the Left Hutton Gate from White cardstock and layered that onto a Blue die cut Left Gate Background.

 

 

Adhered it to the card with foam adhesive. I die cut the Forget Me Not Blooms three times from coordinating Peach cardstocks. The branches I die cut from Olive cardstock and added just a touch of shading with a Spectrum Noir marker.

 

 

Finally I stamped the sentiment from the Prayers set, then die cut that with the smallest of the Stitched Oval Layers.

 

Pretty simple really, but it makes a wonderful keepsake for someone going through a rough time.

 

Happy Crafting,

 

 

Supplies

 

30069 Stitched Oval Layers

CL5208 Prayers Sentiments clear stamp set

99997 Forget Me Not Blooms craft die

99978 Left Hutton Gate craft die

99981 Left Gate Background craft die

To the Sweetest by Donna Sledzik

Hello everyone!

I hope you're having a great weekend.  Today I have a cute card which can be used as a Easter card or an all occasion card, and the best part of all, it's quick and easy!

To make this card I stamped the bunny in the center of a piece of white cardstock.  I masked the bunny and then stamped the cake stand to make it look as if the bunny was standing on it.  I colored the stamped images with colored pencils and mounted this to a piece of black cardstock, and then adhered it to a piece of green cardstock.  

I used foam adhesive to glue it to a white notecard, that has washi tape adhered on the right hand side of the card.  I stamped the sentiment underneath the mounted image.

To finish the card I added a pom pom to the bunny and a few black epoxy embellishments.

Thanks for stopping by today!

 

 

 

 

Supplies

 

CL5220 Spring Bunnies clear stamp set

Easter Peeps by Sharon Harnist

Good Friday to you, Peeps!  Sharon Harnist back with you again today, with some more Easter card inspiration!

Who doesn't like some iconic Peeps over Easter celebrations?  These were easy to create with the adorable Sweet Bunny die, by just die cutting a few different colors of cardstock, plus white.  I placed foam tape behind the bunny heads to mount them to the card base, then placed the eyes and noses die cut from white bunnies back into the colored bunnies. I love the one pink nose on the blue bunny!  :)

To make my Peeps look like they were sitting in a pretty box, I die cut the Curved Happy Easter from pretty pastel patterned paper and green cardstock, then layered the two together, offset just a bit:

Thanks so much for joining me today ... Wishing you a wonderful weekend and Happy Easter next week!

 

 

Supplies

 

99905 Sweet Bunny craft die

99349 Curved Happy Easter