Box of Chocolates

Remember the line from Forrest Gump - ". . . life is like a box of chocolates . . . "?  Well, that's what I think of whenever I look at this card.  Verses Rubber Stamps has come out with some fabulous new designs and this card features one of them so be sure to check them out online or in person at Stamp Your Art Out.

I made the background paper with a quick swirl of chocolate brown acrylic paint and pink shimmer mist.  The little gold "faux" brads were made using Duo Glue and Gilden Glitz flakes from USArtQuest.  And the cardstock is my favorite KaleidaPaper from Marco's Paper.  And the best part?  The embellishment is a gold foil-wrapped chocolate!  Add this to a tin of your favorite homemade or store bought chocolates and you've got the perfect girlfriend gift for any occasion.

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mother's birthday and she is quite the firecracker.  She loves to dance and strut her stuff so I decided the peacock (from Magenta) was the ideal image for this year's birthday card.  I stamped and embossed the image in gold (Judikins) on watercolor cardstock (Marco's Paper) and then painted it with watercolor paints (USArtQuest).  I matted the finished image with two colors of Stardream cardstock (Marco's Paper). 


 
Lately, mom's been a bit frustrated because she's "off the grid" and everything she wants to do seems to require internet access and/or an email address.  My siblings and I decided to help her get connected and we bought her a laptop.  To say she was surprised is an understatement.

It isn't often we can pull one over on my mother but with a little planning and some fancy footwork, we managed to really get her good this time.  We started her off slow - teaching her how to play solitaire and do some basic stuff in Word.  We're working on getting her on email and maybe even Skype so she can virtually visit her out of town family and friends.  Oh, the possibilities are endless and, while she admits to feeling a bit overwhelmed, she is really excited to be learning all kinds of new things.

If you're interested, you can leave her a quick birthday message via a comment on my blog because, of course, I know it will be one of the first places she'll want to visit wants she begins surfing the net!


Happy birthday, mom!

Alex the Patriotic Pup

With Mother's Day just around the corner, I decided to spotlight one of my "kids" for the MiTi at Marco's Paper yesterday.  I turned an easel card into a photo frame easel card by simply layering a piece of acetate over a decorated piece of cardstock.  By using brads to hold the acetate in place, you can easily change the photo by simply sliding it under the acetate.

We used the watercolor palettes and the fine liner tool from USArtQuest to make the card.

If you weren't able to join us yesterday, check back in the next day or so and I'll post my usual step-by-step instructions.

Happy Saturday!

Fallen off the face of the earth . . .

Just in case you were wondering, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth (yet).  I have been a bit busy lately and that is likely to continue for awhile so my posts will continue to be a bit sporadic.

I normally don't post cards from my classes but I thought this card (from a recent Cheaper by the Dozen class) was quite appropriate for today's post.  I will be at the Adventures in Stamping convention in Akron this weekend, doing lots of demos in the Marco's booth.  This card combines two of the demo topics - coloring with Copics and embossing with the new electric Sizzix machine.  I'll also have the new stamp positioner from Scor-It and the new distressing tool from Zutter so be sure to stop and say hi!  The flower stamp is from Magenta.

If you can't make it to the convention but live in the Dayton area, I'll be doing a free Make-it/Take-it at Marco's on Friday afternoon (04.30) as part of their Spring Spectacular.  You can check out all the cool happenings on Marco's website - scroll down to the week of April 25th.


 

Make-it / Take-it at Marco's Paper

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of hosting the Make-it / Take-it at Marco's Paper in Centerville.  We had several ladies join us to make this fun card, despite the cold weather and snowy roads left over from Friday night.

If you weren't able to join us, I've posted the supplies and steps for making the card below.
Supplies (all are available from the fine folks at Marco's Paper)

o 5-1/2” x 8-1/2” Carnival Cover cardstock – 80# pine

o 4” x 5-1/4” and 1-1/2” x 3-3/8” Cougar cardstock – 80# white

o 2-1/4” x 6” Kaleida Paper cardstock – 80# pink

o “Little More” rubber stamp by Rubber Cottage (RC-436D)
o Spellbinders Nestabilities – Long classic scallop rectangles (S4-145)
o Spellbinders Impressabilities – Pebbles (I2-1010)
o 10” of sheer pink ribbon
o Distress dye ink pads – Peeled Paint, Worn Lipstick, Scattered Straw
o Flower Soft – Sweet Pea or Spring
o Foam tape or pop dots
o Swirl punch from EK Success (PSM87C)
o Sponges

Emboss white cardstock with “Pebbles” Impressabilities plate. Arrange embossing plate so that it is on the raised design side of the cardstock. Sponge entire piece with pink, yellow and green inks. Remove embossing plate.

Wrap ribbon around front of embossed panel and secure on back side with tape, trim off excess ribbon (save for later use on card front). Adhere embossed panel to front of card.

Cut scalloped rectangle and punch (2) swirls from pink cardstock. Stamp verse on white panel with green ink; edge piece with green ink and adhere to pink scalloped rectangle. Adhere panel to card front over ribbon using foam tape. With excess ribbon, loop around ribbon on card front and tie a knot on the right side of the card.

Adhere one swirl at top edge of verse panel with foam tape. Adhere second swirl on top of first swirl, offsetting the image to create a flower. Place a dot of glue in the center of the flower and add a small bunch of Flower Soft for the center.

We used the Wizard machine but the Impressabilities and Nestabilities will work with other die cut/embossing machines.  If you're having trouble getting a good impression, try spritzing your cardstock with Paper Glide first.

Check your calendar for Saturday, March 6th - I'll be hosting another Make-it / Take-it at Marco's.  Check back later in the week for a sneak peek . . .

Sketch 5 - Card #5

When you run out of pre-printed card fronts, what do you do?  Check your stash of scrapbook papers and handmade papers.  As you can see, I also raided the button box for this card.

I purchased the handmade paper I used on this card from Marco's Paper awhile ago.  But, I stopped by today and they have an amazing selection in the storefront next door to their main store.  So, if you're in the area, be sure to stop by soon and check out the array of huge sheets (approximately 24" x 36") of cool papers they have in stock right now - some with fibers embedded in them, others have neat textures - and they are only $1.00 per sheet! 

Marco's Make-It / Take-It Slider Card

It's time for a break in the "Cards with Versatility" sketch postings.  Last week, I had the pleasure of hosting the Wednesday make-it / take-it project at Marco's Paper in Dayton.  Those of you who attend know that I tend to do cards or projects that are a little more involved and this one was no exception.  Thanks to all of you who not only came to play but were willing to trust me for that "aha" moment when the confusion subsided and the pieces all fell into place to create a really cool slider card that incorporates a hidden element.

This is the finished project.  The supplies you will need are listed below and are available from Marco's Paper (http://marcopaper.com/).  And, you get free shipping during the month of November for orders over $50!

• 5-1/2” x 8-1/2” navy cardstock with white specks
• 2-1/4” x 3-7/8” navy cardstock with white specks
• 2-7/8” x 4-1/2” white cardstock
• 3-7/8” x 5” white cardstock
• Memento dye ink pads – Paris Dusk, Summer Sky and Tuxedo Black
• Memento marker - Tuxedo Black
• Colored pencils or markers
• 1/8” hole punch
• ½” circle punch
• 6” of 1/8” wide ribbon
• Paper trimmer (slide style)
• Redline tape
• “Christmas Characters” clear stamp set – Inkadinkado (# 98408)
•  “Let it Snow” clear stamp set – Impression Obsession (# CL195)
• Scoring board or bone folder and ruler
• Acrylic block (for stamps)

NOTE: The first two photos use white cardstock instead of the navy for illustration purposes only. When making your card, please be sure to follow the directions that indicate when to use navy and white cardstocks.

With cardstock positioned so that the 8-1/2” length is horizontal and measuring from the left edge, score navy cardstock at 4” and 8”; fold on score lines.

Using slide-style paper trimmer; cut a line in the front panel ½” from the fold line (4” line); starting and stopping ½” from each edge. Cut a second line in the front panel ½” away from the 8” fold line; starting and stopping ½” from each edge.

Apply ¼” redline tape to the narrow flap but do not remover liner paper just yet – this will be done last.

Stamp upright snowman image on right hand side of smaller piece of white cardstock with black ink. Stamp verse on left hand side of smaller piece of white cardstock with navy ink. Randomly stamp snowflake all over panel with light blue ink.

Stamp fallen snowman image on right hand side of larger piece of white cardstock with black ink. Draw a snowball in flight just above the snowman. Color images as desired.


Punch a small hole in right hand side of larger piece of white cardstock and add ribbon.

Adhere smaller white panel to card front, centered between cut lines.

Punch notch on right hand side of card (front and back) using half of ½” circle punch.

Position smaller piece of navy cardstock over left hand side of front image panel and tuck top and bottom edges to the back side through the slits. Place redline tape on top and bottom edges (back side) of navy panel.

Align larger piece of white cardstock with top and bottom edges of navy piece and with left ends of slits; adhere to navy piece only.

To complete card, remove liner from tape at bottom edge of card and seal card edges.

When you pull the card, the navy piece on top slides from left to right to expose the hidden message and cover the first image.

Happy crafting!