Polar bear Christmas cards...

Did you know that polar bears aren't actually white? They have black skin and translucent fur that only looks white because of the way the light reflects off of it. Amazing, right? 

I found 15 other interesting facts about this beautiful animal on the Good Housekeeping website. Remember that magazine? We always had a current issue in our house when I was growing up. I should have read it more diligently so that I could have become a better housekeeper! LOL

I am fascinated by polar bears, and I couldn't resist buying a few dies so that I could add their image to some Christmas cards.

I made these two cards as a "try-out" session for using the dies. I loved how they turned out, so I'll be making lots more.

This card started with a 4 1/4" X 5 1/2" piece of red cardstock and a 4" X 5 1/4" piece of Christmas tree DSP.

The center tri-panel piece was cut at 4" X 8 1/4", scored at 2 3/4" and 5 1/2" and folded like a Z-fold.

I cut scraps of DSP and mats for each section of the tri-fold, making each layer 1/4" smaller in length and width. 

The bear and his scarf were die-cut from white cardstock. I colored the nose and scarf with markers and used a black pen to add definition to the eyes. 

He was then popped up with foam squares.

The die-cut sentiment was in my stash and was also popped up.

This is how the Z-fold looks when it's opened.

The center panel features some trees that I fussy-cut from the background DSP.

The sentiment panel was stamped, matted and added to the final section.

More scraps + more die-cut polar bears = another Christmas card! This time I also matted the piece of DSP on the base.

The sentiment (from my stash) had been stamped and die-cut. I just had to pop it up. The bear was glued directly to the DSP.

This time I added another bear to the center section. He looks so cute in his ice skates.

These cards are such a great way to use smaller pieces of coordinating Christmas DSP. I have already picked out the pieces I'll use for two more cards. I just have to find the time to get them put together!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Using some wildly patterned DSP...

Sometimes you find some wild DSP in your stash that you simply cannot figure out how to use. I had a scrap of said paper, and it had lain on my desktop for ages. I liked the jewel-tone colors in it, but the pattern was so big and bold, I couldn't imagine using it on a card. I like to embellish, but I figured any embellishments would get lost on this paper. 

Finally, I came up with a couple of ideas, and here's how they played out:

See what I mean about that DSP? I decided the key to using it was not to cover the entire card front with it and to keep the embellishments to a minimum.

The fancy edging was created with a die and tucked under the DSP before it was glued down. The sentiment was stamped, punched out and added to a fancy circle die-cut before being popped up with foam squares.

A simple stamped sentiment was added to the inside.

I used only a strip of the DSP on this card, matted with some burgundy cardstock and then some ivory cardstock. I added a banner sentiment, glued directly to the DSP, and a few bronze-colored gems to finish it. 

I added a strip of cardstock on the inside panel, along with a stamped sentiment.

I was pleased with the way these two cards turned out, so I decided to make a card with another scrap that was laying on my desk.

It was a narrow piece of Happy Birthday Scrabble tile DSP. It had lain there for weeks, and I just couldn't toss it in the trash. 

I started laying out this card front by placing some zigzag sticker edging down each side ot the card front. Then I added the striped DSP and finally the matted piece of Scrabble DSP, which was popped up with foam tape.

The stamped banner was also popped up and the die-cut leaves were tucked behind it.

A white panel was stamped with a sentiment and adhered to the inside.

Since it was a masculine card, I decided to use a sentiment that a guy might find funny. Hopefully, it won't be taken literally!

I enjoyed coming up with ideas for these scraps. The process really got my creatuve juices flowing. 

How do you deal with random scraps in your stash? Do you try to use them right away? Do you store them until you have a good supply to work with? Do you simply toss them out? I love getting ideas from others on how to handle them...because I have SO MANY!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Masculine birthday cards for young and old...

 

The thrift store gave me some random car stickers--I think they are VW Beetles--so I decided to use them to make a couple of birthday cards for boys.

These cards were part of my continuing effort to use scraps. The blue plaid and the strip were both scrap pieces laying on my desk. I cut the "Happy Birthday" and the number 5 from some glossy cardstock and glued them to the card front. The little clouds were in the same sticker set as the cars.

I used a leftover piece of sky-patterned DSP for the background on this card and added a strip of self-stick, fabric-like paper at the bottom to resemble a paved road. Once again, "Happy Birthday" and "3" were die-cut, but this time from some polka-dotted DSP.

Each card had a stamped sentiment on the inside.

This card is for the "mature" birthday celebrant. My first step was to cover the card front with some of that self-stick, fabric-like paper that looks a bit like pavement or, perhaps, stone. 

I cut a piece from one of my seaside scene papers. I believe it was 2 3/4" X 4". I matted it in black and centered it on the card front. I stamped "Happy Birthday." punched it out and popped it up on the bottom corner of my scene. I die-cut a seashell, added a few details with some ink, a blending brush and a beige marker. The seashell is also popped up with some foam tape.

To finish the scene, I die-cut some seagulls and glued them on.

I added a panel with a stamped sentiment and a strip of the self-stick paper on the inside.

I find it calming to create cards with scenes of the sea. Maybe that's why I make so many of them! I just hope that you're not tired of seeing them here on the blog.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

You're like a rainbow...

 

This card idea came to me one day when I was thinking about one of my granddaughters. She truly is like a lovely rainbow, and I wanted to somehow make a card to express that (even though I didn't give this card to her).

I happened to have a rainbow die-cut that had been left over after making the cards in this post. I needed to use it before all the parts and pieces of it got lost in the mess on my desk!

I started by using a cloud stencil to create a somewhat stormy sky with blue ink on a white panel. Then I printed a sentiment with my computer before using a cloud die to cut it out along with a couple more clouds.

I also cut out a few seagulls to add to the scene.

I adhered the rainbow and arranged the clouds beneath it, popping up the one with the sentiment on it.

Once done, this panel was added to a blue A2 card base.

I still had a small portion of another rainbow on my desk, so I added it on the inside to the white panel with my computer-generated sentiment.

I know a lot of cardmakers create really unique, one-of-a-kind cards with their own sentiments and design ideas. I don't do that nearly often enough, but it definitely feels like an accomplishment when I do!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Personalized birthday cards...

I recently got a stamp set that is just too much fun. I made two cards with it so far for two of my grandsons who had birthdays this month. I'm happy to report, they loved the cards!

This stamp set is available on Amazon here. It can be used for birthdays, retirements, weddings, births, graduations and anniversaries.  

For these birthday cards, I printed a photo of each grandson and adhered it in the 2" X 2" box to personalize the card. You could also stamp an image there or add some fitting die-cut images, stickers or ephemera.

The yellow sun was added with one of the optional stamps in the set. I like the pop of color it provides.

Each card is 4 1/2" X 6" in size. This size seemed to best fit the stamp set. 

On the inside I added a die-cut pocket in which I could add some cash or a gift card. On the white panel, I stamped some stars and a couple of sentiments.

These cards were very quick to make, and I plan to use this set to make several cards for other occasions which I can donate to the thrift store. 

We celebrated our grandson Patrick's (the blond pictured in the second card) birthday last night. He turns 19 on August 20th and is heading to Massachusetts for college in just a few days.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Using up more scraps and stickers...

 

I have a die that cuts the white frame you see in the photo above. It also cuts a stitched rectangle for each of the open spaces in the frame. I thought it would be fun to cut the frame and then select a few scraps of DSP--a different one for each opening--and cut them out to adhere back into the frame.

I glued the white frame to a card base and then glued the appropriate DSP rectangle into each open space. Once that was done, I started adding some stickers to embellish these spaces.

The sentiment was stamped onto a white scrap of cardstock and cut to fit over the DSP in the tallest rectangle, leaving a narrow border of the green patterned paper beneath it.

I had a few of the tiny flower stickers left over so I used them near my stamped sentiment on the inside.

I really like how this card turned out. I think this idea could work well for Christmas cards, too. I could use some of the holiday ephemera in my stash, or maybe even some small die-cuts. I'm definitely going to give that idea a try!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Sunburst technique on a masculine card...

I have an entire bag of strips of metallic colored papers. Most of them are about an inch wide, but some are wider, some are narrower. They have a layer of fibrous metallic threads embedded in them, giving them a unique metallic luster. They are all in masculine colors, so I thought I'd use some of them to make a masculine card. I cut a 6-inch length of each strip and then cut them diagonally from a top left corner to the bottom right corner, creating elongated triangular shapes.

I glued the bottom piece of striped DSP in place and made a small pencil mark at the center of its top. Then I started with my triangular pieces, placing the point of each at the pencil mark and gluing them tightly against each other.

When I reached the DSP on both the left and the right, I stopped and added a 1/4" piece across the card to hide the seam. Then I trimmed all the extra paper off the edges of the card base with a scissor.                                   

The sentiment was die-cut and glued to a die-cut circle. The circle was then glued to a die-cut starburst which had been cut from some copper glitter cardstock.

I added some very thin (1 ml) foam tape to the back of the starburst and added it to the center of the radiating strips.

I stamped a sentiment on the inside and added a narrow strip of the glitter cardstock.

This was such a fun technique. It can be made to look feminine or masculine and is a great way to use paper scraps. I also want to try it for a child's card. I have a "superboy" stamp and a fairy stamp, and I think they'd be perfect to stamp on the circle.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl