Let's Craft and Create Challenge #149: Patriotic Please (USA or red, white and blue)...

The summer months seem to be flying by. I can't believe it is already time for another challenge over at Let's Craft and Create. I hope you'll join in on the fun.

If you're not keen on making something patriotic or red, white and blue, you can always choose the "Anything Goes" option.

Here's my DT card for this challenge:

I used a "scribble lines" die to make my red stripes. I was hoping that the waviness of the lines would be reminiscent of a flag's motion in the wind.

I chose to use 13 stars to represent the 13 original colonies. I have a little star punch that was perfect for the job!

Finally, I used a 2" number die for my 4 and cut the "th" from another number die set.

Here you can see how I've used a Wink of Stella brush pen to add some sparkle to the "4th".

I picked the word "Happy" from one of my stamp sets (SO MANY of them contain this word!) and stamped it in blue on my fishtail banner.

My card is blank inside so that I can write a personal note.










In order to make my "scribble" lines easier to glue down, I decided to create a glue sponge.

I chose a small locking container out of my stack of food storage containers. I had an old piece of dense foam which was still in good condition. It had actually served as the pad for a chair. I simply took it out of its cover and cut it to size with a big scissor.

Once I had my sponge ready, I took a partial bottle of older (and thicker) craft glue, thinned it with just a little water and poured it into the bottom of my container. Then I wet my sponge, wrung out the excess water and put it into the container with the glue. After locking down the cover of my container, I turned it upside down to allow the glue to run down through the sponge and soak into it.

After a couple of hours I opened my container (see the glue on the lid?) and tested my glue sponge by pressing some small pieces of paper onto the top of it and then placing them down onto another piece of paper. It worked! They glued down firmly with no mess.

I then took my scribble lines die cuts and pressed them onto my glue sponge before placing them on the front of my card. So easy! I'll be using this sponge to glue all my intricate and/or tiny die-cuts from now on.

One little tip: Choose a sponge that is slightly taller/thicker than your container. Mine is, and it actually compresses a bit when I put the cover on. This way, I'm not trying to fit a die-cut inside the container when I'm applying the glue. I simply press it onto the top of the sponge.

Now I hope you'll head on over to Let's Craft and Create and see all the wonderful projects my teammates have made. I know you'll be inspired to dig out your red, white and blue supplies and make something special!

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