18 Carrot Friendship {Happy Easter}

I can't believe Easter is on Sunday! It feels like it has arrived so quickly this year! I couldn't let the special day go by without creating a card with this absolutely DARLING stamp set from Pink and Main. This is one of those must-have stamp sets for me and I bought it back in January when it came out and FINALLY took the time to create with it! I adore the sweet bunnies and chicks and I have really missed coloring! 

To begin, I used the 18 Carrot Friendship Die to cut all of the pieces out. I cut a few extra eggs so I could use them as fillers if needed. Once that was done, I used the 18 Carrot Friendship Stamp Set to stamp the images in black. I had to run some errands, so I just left them to dry because I absolutely hate when I go to color the images and the black ink smears! Ugh!

When I got home, I colored the images using OLO Markers, along with a few Copic and Prismacolor markers to blend colors. I also have a cheap Caliart set that I used as well. I have found that the key with the cheap sets is to make a color chart (or fill in the one that comes with it) because the caps never show the true color. I only have a few sets of the OLO markers, so the extra colors come in handy to provide shading if need be.

It was so fun and therapeutic to color and I really need to do it more often. My daughter asked me the other day which companies I used to make critter cards for and I told her neither company is currently making stamps, but I really need to create with them more often because they're so cute and I miss coloring!

I added some white pen detailing, glitter, and a touch of gold on the pink egg with polka dots.  

I kept things simple and just added the images to one of the beautiful mats that you can create using the Eyelet Layer Frames. I cut it from white and then added some Seafoam Ink and splatter to the center of the mat using a blender brush and paint brush. I set the scene and then committed using foam squares. I layered it up onto a panel of Pale Peony cardstock and a white card base.

I had a few images left over so I added them to the inside along with another sentiment. I am seriously perplexed because by the time I was finished with the majority of the card, my stamp set up and vanishes so I couldn't use one of the included sentiments. I opted to use the Simple Spring Mini Sentiments Stamp Set for the sentiment on the front and this one on the inside.

I had so much fun creating this card and while I normally like to make religious Easter cards, this one was such a joy and a delight! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Seasonal Sympathy {and breaking all my rules}

It's never fun to need sympathy cards and I wish this one in particular wasn't needed, but here we are! A dear friend lost her mom a few weeks ago and is now awaiting the passing of her sweet dad! None of the cards I had in my stash seemed fitting for this time of year so I decided to make something new, a little more fitting of the season. Also, I'm breaking a few of my "rules" for sympathy cards, so come along as I dive into the creation of this card.

To begin, I created the background by cutting a 4 by 5 1/4 inch piece of Powder Green cardstock and embossed it using a cable knit embossing folder from Gemini Junior. I'm having a hard time locating it, so maybe it is discontinued. I added some Walnut Stain Distress Oxide Spray for depth and interest and set it aside to dry.

Next, I die cut all of the foliage, berries, and pinecones using some assorted sets. The brown leaves, the broad, thick leaf and pistachio colored leaves are all from the Into the Blooms: Anemones Die. The brown leaves are colored with Creamy Caramel ink from SU!, the broad leaf is colored with Stormy Sea (PTI) and Handsome Hunter ink from SU!, and the pistachio colored leaves are colored with Mint Julep (PTI) and Handsome Hunter (SU!). The large leaf cluster is from the Into the Blooms: Christmas Sprigs Die and is colored with Stormy Sea and Handsome Hunter.

I used the Into the Blooms: Pine Die for the pinecones. They are colored with Chocolate Chip ink (SU!) and then the berries are from the Into the Blooms: Bold Berries Die. I colored them with Antique Linen Distress Oxide ink with a touch of brown (whatever was left on a sponge dauber). I spritzed everything with a combination of Frayed Burlap Distress Spritz, Walnut Stain Distress Oxide Spray (linked earlier) and Antique Linen Distress Oxide Spray.

I set all of the foliage and things aside to let them dry. I die cut the middle size included in the new Love to Layer: Polished Points Die from Vintage Cream cardstock and stamped the sentiment. It is my go-to sympathy sentiment and is from the Vintage Garden Stamp Set. I stamped it with Walnut Stain Distress Oxide ink and added some ink splatters with the same ink. I used a sticky note to cover up the main portion of the sentiment and then just splattered it everywhere else.

I felt the sentiment needed something extra, so I rummaged through my mini sentiment stamp sets hoping to find an accent that was fitting. I made some modifications to the original saying; it said Sending Prayers For A, so I just used a sticky note to cover up the unnecessary bits and then heat embossed it in gold. The sentiment is from the Just Sentiments: Get Well Mini  Stamp Set. 

I added the sentiment panel to the background using foam squares and off-set it near the bottom right. I knew I was going to need more room on the left side for the foliage, berries, and pinecones. 

I arranged them using foam squares and liquid glue until I was satisfied with the arrangement. I added some Rock Candy Glitter and Shimmer Spray-Sparkle. Now, if you've been around awhile, you will know that I generally don't add glitter to my sympathy cards. I decided to add it to this card to give it the snowy look I was going for. So, here I am breaking my rules! ha ha! I also usually don't like to add sequins, but I did add a trio of sparkling clear sequins around the sentiment.

I think they just work on this seasonal, winter design! I adhered the entire background to an A2 top-folding Vintage Cream card base using liquid glue. I did stamp an inside greeting and added a few extra berries and leaves to the inside, but I forgot to take a pictures. I am definitely trying to be more prepared and stamp the inside of my cards as I make them and not wait until I NEED them. This really came back to bite me during Christmas....I didn't even get around to stamping on the inside of many of them and I felt bad. 

Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Baby It's Cold Outside

Hello and welcome! I'm sharing a fun wintertime card using a variety of products! I fell in love with this sweet Snuggle Snowman and immediately purchased the die! It arrived when I was busy with other projects and deadlines, but I made some time to use it. I got it out of the package and was ready to get crafty, but got called away for other motherly duties. ha ha! Anyway, I ended up setting it aside and then inadvertently threw it away. I was so sad, but I bought another one and it arrived the other day. I couldn't wait to spend some time creating this card. I saved a snippet of wrapping paper from Christmas to use as my inspiration, but I didn't want it to necessarily be Christmas-themed.

I also bought the beautiful Eyelet Layer Frames, but thank heavens I didn't throw them away! ha ha! To begin this card, I die cut the largest frame included in the set using Seafoam cardstock. I set it aside to do the embossed layer. I pulled out an older embossing folder that I've had for a few years called Pine Bouquet from SSS, but it looks like it's retired. I cut the panel down so it would fit inside the frame. I added some Seafoam Ink over the top using a blender brush to add some dimension.

I attached it to the lace frame piece using foam squares and then added it to a top-folding A2 card base. I die cut all of the pieces for the snowman and got to work assembling it. I took all of my color cues from the wrapping paper, which was fun, because I don't think I would have come up with the hat combination on my own. I glued a red pom-pom from my stash to the top for some added whimsy.

I die cut the eyes and nose twice; once so they could be placed back inside the holes, and again to go over the top for some added dimension. I wanted to add Glossy Accents to those pieces and it's always easier when they are raised a bit. Everything for the snowman himself was cut from white and then I just added some black marker to the eyes and Canyon Clay ink to the carrot nose.

The scarf is cut from Pure Poppy with some Scarlet Jewel blending for depth and contrast. I glued it to the body using foam squares and added the hat with liquid glue. I did add some ink splatter to the body as well for that snowy look. Once the eyes were dry, I added a dot of white gel pen to each one.

The wrapping paper had the snowman holding a bunch of greenery, ,so I got to work creating some. I used the Into the Blooms: Swag Die and cut the pieces from white cardstock. I didn't cut anything that was too holiday or Christmas-y, like holly. I colored the pieces with Stormy Sea ink and then Garden Green and Handsome Hunter from SU! I gave them all a spritz or two of Hickory Smoke Distress Spritz.

While those were drying, I attached the snowman to the embossed panel using foam squares. I tucked the greenery around him using liquid glue and foam squares. The snowflakes are cut from the Build-a-Hat die and the smallest one is from the Bring Home the Holidays Die. I added some blue pearls to the center of each snowflake.

I just love this sentiment and thought it would be perfect for this card. It is from the Just Sentiments: Winter Wonderland Stamp Set and is heat embossed in white on a strip of Pure Poppy cardstock. I added it using strips of foam tape. The finishing touch is some Rock Candy Glitter which I made sure to add to the top of the pom pom for a realistic snowy look! I had so much fun creating this card and I'm so glad this cute snowman is finally here to stay! ha ha! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Teacher....{Looking} Forward to a Wonderful Year!

Can't stop, won't stop! ha ha! Thanks for joining me today for yet ANOTHER school-themed card! This one is scratching an itch I've had since April or May. I can't remember which company or designer(s) made cards with apples wearing glasses, but I have REALLY been wanting to make my own version! Back-to-School is the perfect excuse, don't you think? But now, I'm thinking how much I NEED to make another card with an apple wearing glasses AND a graduation cap! Of course, that will wait until the spring, but a girl can dream, right?

I mentally rummaged through my endless supplies to think which stamps and dies could help me achieve my dream! To begin, I found the perfect apple; this is the largest apple included in the BotaniCuts Apple Die along with the stem and two leaves. I used a slender blender brush and added some yellow ink to the center of the apple and then added red ink around the perimeter. I also added some of the red ink splatter over the top to give it a more realistic look.  I agonized over what stamp set I could use for the mouth; I didn't trust myself to hand draw it for fear of ruining the entire thing. I landed upon the Baby Face Sentiments Stamp Set and I think it turned out great!

For the eyes, I remembered I had seen two perfectly sized circles in the Patriot Die when I was making the flag for the card I shared the other day. I die cut them from black cardstock and then added the white part using a white gel pen. For the glasses, I used the Framed In Success Die and cut them three times from black cardstock and glued them together. I added some Glossy Accents over the top for the glossy shine! Actually, I created the glasses first thing so they would dry while I was working on the rest of the elements. 

I adhered the glasses using a small strip of black foam squares and then added the eyes with liquid glue; I find that placement is really important to achieve a cute face. Sometimes if the eyes are spaced to far apart it can look a bit goofy so I played around with placement before I committed with glue. ha ha!

I also used the Framed In Success Die for the frame, stars, and books. I die cut the frame three times from Kraft cardstock and then glued them together. I stamped one of the sentiments included in the Teach and Inspire Stamp Set....my all-time favorite school-themed stamp set. The books are die cut from white cardstock and then colored with dye inks and blender brushes.

I used the same sentiment die as my last card which is the Teacher Wafer Die cut from gold cardstock with a vellum shadow. I added glue to the bottom portion of the gold letters and adhered it to the frame. 

I trimmed a piece of notebook paper from MFT....I don't know the name....I will look and edit the post when I get a chance. I used the Watercolor Wonderful Stencil Collection and Aqua Mist ink on the notebook paper. I rounded the corners with a punch to complement the corners of the frame. The frame is added using foam squares and then I layered the book and apple in the middle of the frame with additional foam squares.

I cut the three stars from gold cardstock and added them around the frame. I covered up the apple and sentiments with sticky notes and added some black ink splatter. 

The entire panel is added to a top-folding A2 Pure Poppy card base using foam squares. I also added a piece of white cardstock measuring 4 by 5 1/4 inches to the inside with another sentiment from Teach and Inspire. I gave it the lightest spritzing of shimmer spray and called it good! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

You're Amazing, Teacher!

I just can't stop with the back-to-school themed projects! You could definitely switch out the sentiment on this one and make it an any occasion card, really! The inspiration for this card was the flag, silly as that sounds! I passed a school and saw the flag waving in the wind and I thought, oh, I should do a schoolhouse inspired card! While it didn't end up like that, it was definitely the starting point! ha ha! I had so much fun creating the clock on my last card I thought it would be fun to make a clock for my school card with the flag, but as you can see, there is no clock in sight! The clock just didn't work so I had to pivot, but I'm so glad I did because I really like how this card turned out....soft and summery, with a hint of autumn!

I won't bore you with the details of how I switched gears a thousand times, so let's just dive into how I created it! To begin, I used the cute flag dies included in the Patriot Die to create Old Glory on the cute pole. I cut everything from white cardstock and then used blender brushes and dye ink to color the pieces. The pole is cut from silver cardstock and then I glued everything together with liquid glue. I set that aside to dry and got to work on the the flowers. I used the Into the Blooms: Coneflower Die. I didn't participate in the release when these were introduced, so this was the first time I used them and I am hooked! The bee was left over from another project so I added it to the flower using liquid glue.

I had the notebook and pencil leftover from the previous school-themed projects I've shared over the last week or so. When I was making the acorns for one of the cards, I also made this cluster of white flowers so it was fun to use it on this card.

Fort he sentiment, I die cut the main portion in gold using the Teacher Wafer Dies and then the shadow from vellum. I glued them together and let them dry. The "You're amazing" portion is heat embossed in gold on a strip of Kraft cardstock. I dug through my mini sentiment sets until I found something that would accent the teacher word nicely. This one is from the Just Sentiments: Everyday Mini Stamp Set. It's not one I use very often, but I really should because it has some of those sentiments that can be used for just about anything!

For the background, I used the Cascading Stars Hot Foil Plate with Spellbinders Champagne Foil. I love the champagne foil more than gold because it's not quite so yellow. I had fun adding the elements to the background. The sentiment is strategically attached with liquid glue applied ONLY to the areas where they touch something else.

I added some black ink splatter and then trimmed it down to fit inside the frame. I wanted the card to have additional dimension, so I added the entire framed background to a top-folding A2 card base using foam squares. I think I'm going to save this to be used for teacher appreciation next May, but I had so much fun creating it while getting in to the back-t0-school frame of mind! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Simon Says Stamp Celebrate Release {Flower Power}

I'm thrilled to be helping with the Celebrate Release from Simon Says Stamp!  My card for today features the new Flower Power stamp set that features an assortment of daisies and flowers in all kinds of sizes and a few leaves and hearts.  It also features quite a few uplifting and encouraging sentiments so I was happy to be able to sneak two onto the card without it seeming odd or busy!

I had thought up the design for this card one night when I couldn't sleep, so once I had time to sit down and get busy, it came together quite easily. To begin, I cut a bunch of 1/4 inch strips of scrap cardstock in rainbow colors (omitting purple). I cut a panel of white cardstock measuring 3 3/4 inches by 5 and then glued the strips using liquid glue. I like using liquid glue on projects like this because it gives me a little "wiggle room" (literally) to get the strips placed neat and straight.

When it was all said and done, I only used two blue strips, so I decided to heat emboss the "hugs and happy thoughts" sentiment on the teal cardstock using white detail embossing powder.

I cut a slightly narrower panel and got to work building the flower pattern using the included images. Once I had what I wanted, I got to work coloring them with an assortment of alcohol markers. I don't do much coloring at all anymore so many of my Copic markers have dried up, so I had to use a few from my inexpensive set I got on Amazon. I added some black ink splatter for added interest and detail.

I attached the teal sentiment underneath the colored panel and then adhered it to the panel with the strips using foam squares. I mounted the entire thing onto a white card base using additional foam squares. I added some Tim Holtz Rock Candy glitter to the flower centers, leaves, and the smaller flowers. I added a trio of sparkling clear sequins to finish it off! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Simon Says Stamp {Be Bold Release}

 

Hello and welcome, friends! I've been busy behind the scenes working on some fun projects to share with you over the next few days, but for tonight, I'm excited to share two cards I made for the Simon Says Stamp Be Bold release! 

My two cards feature the new Lush Vines die set paired with a few sentiments from an older SSS stamp set that I got last year called Vintage Garden. I bought it specifically for the sentiments and the sympathy sentiment in particular. I was happy to use two of the ones I haven't used before for this pair of cards.

It's been a hot minute since I've done an ink blended background using Distress Oxide Inks. I chose two of Kristina Werner's color combos she did a year or so ago for spring. I just love the way these two backgrounds came out.

I die cut the Lush Vines from heavyweight cardstock and then added ink using finger daubers. The Lush Vines die set comes with two different vines; one small and one with the two stems.

This card uses both vines PLUS a little sprig os the smaller vine to add some extra fulness. I added the sentiments and a trio of sparkling clear sequins for some sparkle and shine. The release is now live! Thanks for fluttering by!