Half gate-fold Easter card...

This card came together super quickly. It's a half gate-fold, which means that the top half of the card front has been cut off.

I bought these sweet little flowers at a local store called "ArtScraps." They sell all kinds of stuff including new and used craft supplies. They had a container full of these flowers and you could fill a little bag for just $2.50. They were in my favorite color combo, so I picked up a bag. You can see that some of them have a little glitter on them, but I think this just adds to their charm.

I've added some Viva Décor pearly white centers and a few leaves created with an EK Success punch. The adhesive-backed aqua trim was some that I got in one of the $1.50 bins at Michael's. I got it well before Easter, intending to use it on a number of my Easter cards, but this is only the second one I've used it on. It seems I always start down a particular path when making cards, but take multiple detours along the way.

My sentiment is a little rubber cling stamp, but I could not find the maker for the life of me. It was not on the packaging, as it was sent to me in a plain little Ziploc bag. I should have written the manufacturer on it as soon as I received it, but, of course I didn't!

The lacy ovals were cut with two Lifestyle Crafts nesting dies.

In this picture you can see the half gate-fold a little more clearly. I like this kind of card because I don't feel that I have to add an additional sentiment. I just write a brief personal note and sign my name behind the "gate."

Tomorrow my new bathroom will be fully functional. My brother is coming to install the sink for the second time. We had to pull the first one and re-order it because that first one was scratched. (We didn't see the scratches until after it was installed!)

Now, mind you we still don't have the door back on. I think we're going to have to cut it off a quarter inch or so because we raised the level of the floor with the tile. All these little details are driving me a little bonkers. Add that to my usual bonkers, and I'm pretty much a crazy lady!! I know my children will attest to that. ha ha

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

Easter chicks...

I got this little chick stamp from the $1.50 bins at Michael's a couple years ago, but haven't used it much. It was time to pull it out again.

I colored him with several of my ProMarkers, using three different yellows/golds and a couple of browns. I also added a light shadow beneath him with a gray marker. I'm entering this card into I ♥ ProMarkers' Challenge #262 Easter/Springtime.

The border punch is Martha Stewart's Scalloped Teardrop. I added a piece of self-adhesive sparkly trim across the top of it.

My banner was hand-cut after stamping "Happy Easter" with a CraftSmart stamp.

You can see that I've added a few yellow and blue sequins for extra sparkle.

The inside of my card is pretty simple with a computer-generated sentiment. My perfect 1/16" aqua border was created with my Perfect Layers rulers. I LOVE them, especially for shadow-type mats like this one. I can't hang a picture straight to save my life; I could never adhere a piece of paper straight with a border this narrow!

This is another card I made using some purple cardstock this time and a little purple and white baker's twine.

Speaking of chicks...

Here's one of my favorite 7-year-old peeps who spent last weekend with us. He wanted to make an Easter card for his paternal grandparents, so we went downstairs to my craft area and went to work.

He loves my Create a Critter cartridge and selected this cute little bunny, which we cut out at 3 1/2".

He created some grass for the bunny to stand on with a Fiskars grass border punch. I had a few extra butterflies on hand so he picked some out to embellish the front of his card.

He even stamped the sentiment  himself (CraftSmart stamp) at the bottom of the card. Pretty good for a novice stamper, don't you think? His centering skills are near perfect!

He decided to handwrite the sentiment on the inside. The wording is his very own. Pretty sweet, isn't it? We mailed it that very day, and I hope his grandparents in Vermont enjoy this sweet Easter card.

Well, that's it for me today. Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.
Cheryl

Sizzix Flip-its is one fun die...

My twin daughters gave me a gift certificate to Michael's for my birthday this year, and I decided to use part of it to buy a Sizzix Flip-its die. I'm really glad I did, because I've had so much fun using it to make some of my Easter cards. Take a look.

This card took just minutes to make. The die set includes the scalloped mats and several sizes of pierced circle and scalloped circle dies. Isn't it fun?

Here's a peek at the inside.

I left the inside circle blank to leave room for a short note and signature.  The flowers are from Petaloo with some added enamel dots for the centers. The pink trim is a Martha Stewart punch called Double Link Trim. The leaves are an EK Success punch.

Here's another card that I made with some free designer papers that came in a card-making magazine. The paper was quite thin, and I would not have been able to use a punch to get the scalloped edge. It worked perfectly with my Flip-its die, though.

For this one I added some gems and a tiny butterfly (Fiskars punch) to help focus attention on the sentiment. The sentiment stamp is a very old foam stamp. I have no idea what brand it is, but I like the font.

Once again, I left my inside circle blank for a handwritten note and signature. Of course I had to add another tiny butterfly for embellishment.

Here's one last card with some slightly different flowers and some tiny rickrack for embellishments. These flowers are also from Petaloo. I simply added a little color to the petals and some stickles to their centers.

This Sizzix die set is quite versatile. I've also used it to help make some standard card shapes, but I'll share those with you in another post.

We got a little over 3.5" of snow last night, and they say there is more on the way later in the week. I'm not too down in the dumps about it, though. I think it will melt away soon, and we can certainly use the moisture here in the Minneapolis area.

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

Butterflies for Easter...

Richard Buckminster Fuller is quoted as saying,

 

"There is nothing in the caterpillar that tells you it is going to be a butterfly."

 

I love this quote and think of it from time to time. It reminds me that we all have hidden talents and capabilities - some we don't even recognize in ourselves. We need to encourage our friends, children, other family members and each other to spread our wings and fly!

 

Okay, enough of my sermonizing. LOL Now on to my cards for today.

 

 

I made this Easter card using my Marianne Creatables butterfly die (LOVE it!) and a Spellbinder's Fancy Tags 2 die.

 

First I used the butterfly die to cut the shape out of my patterned cardstock so that I would have a white background for my butterfly. I thought it might get lost in the pattern otherwise. Then I cut the butterfly out of the same paper as my teal/aqua mat.

 

I know it's a little hard to see, but I've added a tiny pearl to each antenna on the butterfly and to each flourish on my sentiment tag. I also inked lightly around all the outside edges of my patterned cardstock.

 

Here is the inside of my card. I've added a couple of tiny butterflies cut with a Fiskars punch. The red scalloped border that you see is actually part of the flower-patterned DSP. I thought it looked cute on the inside.

Now...what to do with my butterfly off-cut? Here's how I decided to make use of that, too.

 

 

 

This time, I created a solid background for my patterned butterfly. I've always loved a teal/red color combo, so I was really happy with this card - especially after I put that red flower (EK Success punch) near the sentiment.

 

I added flat-backed gems to the butterfly's body this time, and one to the center of my little red flower, too.

 

 

The inside of my card featured side borders of patterned and red cardstock and another little red flower. My inside sentiment was computer-generated.

 

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

Cheryl



Lucky me...

Where I live, St. Patrick's Day is celebrated with parades and parties, green beer and clogging in the Irish pubs and lots of merriment.  I don't usually send cards for the occasion, but this year, I thought I'd make one for my sister. Here it is:

As you can see in the photo, I also made a matching envelope with my Envelope Punch Board. I've discovered that the perfectly sized envelope for an A2 (5 1/2" X 4 1/4") card begins with an 8" X 8" piece of paper. The first score is made on the punch board at 3 1/2", and the next score is lined up with that one, and so on.

The sentiment banner on the front was cut with one of the dies from the Ribbon Banners-Straight die set by My Craft Spot. I added a wee bit of Washi tape and a green gem to the circular end of it.

My focal point Shamrock was made with some translucent green paper (I think it may have originally been packing paper) and a small heart die. I used a green ProMarker to draw in my stem and added a green gem to the center.

I happened to have some green Washi tape that coordinated nicely with my patterned paper, so I added a little strip of it to create a base for my  Shamrock.

The Shamrock (having only three leaves) is a national symbol of Ireland and is from the clover family of plants. The four-leafed clover is actually a rarity, but is considered to be "lucky" when found.


I ran my plain green mat through my Cuttlebug in my Swiss Dots embossing folder. My white scalloped mat was cut with a Lifestyle Crafts die.



The inside of my card was created with the same DSP and cardstock as the front. I added another little shamrock made with a small heart punch and a small flat-backed gem.

My sentiment is my own and was computer-generated.

I'm entering this card into the Dies R Us Challenge Blog's Challenge #22 - Shades of Green.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing my one and only St. Patrick's Day card. And I hope your St. Patrick's Day is full of merriment and good luck!

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

Thank you banner die - perfect for quick cards...

Recently, I purchased a couple of Die-Versions banner dies, and this was one of them.

This die cuts so beautifully, and even though it is a very delicate shape, the die-cut falls right out of the die. It is sized to fit across an A2 card (5 1/2" X 4 1/4").  As you can see in the photo above, it is perfect for this size when it is used as a landscape card. 

I've added a few black sequins for bling. The flower was a white Petaloo flower that I've colored with my ProMarkers. The foliage was cut with the Memory Box Fresh Foliage die, which I cut apart to get just the pieces I needed.

Here's another way to adhere the banner die for a little different look. Some more colored Petaloo flowers and sequins, and another card is done - lickety split!

For this final card, I once again hung my banner across the length of my card. This time I added two flowers with leaves. Before you ask what kind of weird-colored leaves those are, look at the little flowers in the DSP. They are the same strange color, and I was only trying to match it.

Here's a close-up, so you can see what I'm talking about.

This die is going to come in handy when I need a quick thank you card (which happens more often than you might think). I ordered another banner die when I bought this one, but I'll show you that one in another post.

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

Geranium get well card...

I always plant geraniums in a couple of large planters by my front door. I often also plant a few in my front flower garden, but they're almost always red. The most prevalent colors for geraniums seems to be the various shades of red and pink, with a few white ones thrown in for good measure. When I was going to color this image, I did a little hunt online for other colors of geraniums, and I found some that looked like this:

I used my ProMarkers to color it and then put it away in my images file. Recently, I pulled it out and matted it on a piece of black cardstock to be the focal point of a get well card. I'm not even sure anymore where I got this image. It could be digital or from a stamp I borrowed. I'm sorry I am unable to give credit where credit is due! If you happen to recognize it, please let me know in the comments.

The color of the card base matches the fuchsia pink in my geranium pretty closely. It actually looks quite dramatic IRL. The dotted line that you see around my green mat was done with one of the dies from the Dots & Dashes set of border dies by Paper Smooches. Don't you think it adds a nice detail?

I stamped my sentiment with Versafine ink onto a Spellbinder's Fancy Labels die-cut. There are three labels in the set, and this one is my favorite. It provides just the right spot for two fuchsia pearls.

On the inside of my card, I added a white rectangle matted with black so that I would have a place to write a personal note.

I hope you are enjoying a wonderful Spring day, wherever you are. It is 60+ degrees here today (and even much warmer in the sun), so I've been enjoying an opportunity to paint a little towel rack outside that will go in my new bathroom. It is so much easier to do those kinds of chores outdoors.

It won't be long now and our bathroom will be back together and looking better than ever. I can't wait!

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

Another red and green card for the Merry Monday weekly challenge...

I couldn't help myself. I just had to make another red and green card for the Merry Monday Weekly Challenge #148. This one took much longer than my previous card, but I'm happy to add another to my stack of cards for Christmas 2015:

I actually really love this red and green plaid paper. It and the red snowflake paper come from the same Christmas stack--a 12" X 12" Recollections paper pad called "Sugar Plum." It has lots and lots of pretty papers, so I know it'll help me create hundreds of cards.

The holly vine was cut with a Darice die, and I added some white pearls with a Viva Décor pen. I'm really liking this Darice die, along with several others that I purchased a while ago.

The little alpha tags were cut with an old Cuttlebug die set that I purchased used when I first got my Cuttlebug years ago. I haven't used these dies much, but I thought they would make a festive banner for this card, especially after I backed each one with some green glitter cardstock.

I also added some double-sided foam tape behind each tag to hold it in place.

The inside of my card was decorated with some more of that pretty plaid paper. Doesn't it look like it might be the perfect pattern for Santa's flannel pajamas?

The stamp is from a set by Penny Black called "Christmas Cheer." My red card base (white on the inside) was a Recollections pack of 50 cards with envelopes that I got at Michaels. It was highly discounted after February 14 as part of their Valentine's sale. Love when I can take advantage of those sales!

Well, maybe now I should get busy on some Easter cards. I need about 15 of those, too. Yikes, I'd better get a wiggle on!

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

A card for Merry Monday...

I am trying hard this year to keep my Christmas card making under control so that I have all the cards I need by the middle of November. Not sure I'll be able to pull it off - I need about 85 cards - but I'm giving it the old college try. I've made about 18 or 20 so far. Here's one that fits nicely into Merry Monday's challenge #148: Red and Green.

This card was pretty quick to pull together. First I used my Dee's Distinctively Merry Christmas die to cut the words out of the green DSP. Then I also cut them out of some white cardstock and placed those into the negative space. Some of the tiny cuts (like the itsy piece in the top of the letter "s") were a little tricky to get back in, but all in all it went pretty smoothly. I had put some double-sided tape on the back side of the cutout, so when I added the white die-cut, it was held firmly in place. I just had to make sure I got it in right the first time!

The embossed panel was made with a Darice 2.5" X 12" Snowflake embossing folder and the Fiskars Apron Lace border punch. I added a little Versamark ink to the raised images by gently rubbing my ink pad along the top of the cardstock. I used some sparkly clear embossing powder for a little bling.

I added some red enamel dots around the sentiment to accent the little red dots that are already in the pattern of the paper.

On the inside of my card I added a few sparkly snowflakes (Recollections punch) and a glittery strip (glitter rubbed onto double-sided tape) at the bottom. The sentiment stamp is by Hero Arts.

Have you started making any Christmas cards yet? If you have another system for getting them done without too much stress, I'd love to hear about it.

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