It's an ice cream kind of day...

 But then, isn't every day an ice cream kind of day? We go through a lot of ice cream in our house, considering there are only two people eating it! Both my DH and I love it and never seem to tire of having a little bowl of it for dessert.

Recently, my cardmaking sister sent me a die set that she had accidentally ordered in duplicate. (Yup, I've done that, too!) 

The die set features ice cream treats, and, of course, I had to make some cards with it right away.

This is the card I made to thank her for sending the dies. Doesn't that ice cream cone look yummy?

I love that it includes a little cherry die, which will be useful for cards that need a little cherry embellishment, even when they don't feature ice cream.

I did a little inking on the cone, which is cut in two layers -- the full cone and an additional layer for the top part of the cone.

The sentiment was printed with my computer, matted and popped up with foam tape.

The dot embellishments are Nuvo Drops.

This was the computer-printed sentiment on the inside.

The die set also includes a die for sprinkles, so I made another card and added some of those. Otherwise it was made in essentially the same way as the first card.

For this card, the sentiment was stamped, die-cut and popped up.

The dots are actually some old enamel dots I had in my stash. They were the right color and could be drips of melted ice cream, don't you think?

I stamped a fun sentiment on the inside. It's perfect for cards that feature sprinkles on ice cream!

I know this die set will be used a lot for making cards to donate. I always need card ideas for children.

Thanks again, Sis, for thinking of me! Go ahead and order more duplicate die sets. Personally, I love it when you do!!! he he

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

Cheryl

Cards from a 6" X 6" one-sheet-wonder...

 

These are the card bases I made following the cutting instructions for making four cards from a single 6" x 6" piece of DSP. The floral and the purple with stripes and dots were the two sides of the DSP that I used. If you'd like to see the tutorial and/or printout I followed, you will find it here.

I added an additional step to the tutorial, though. I matted each cut piece before applying it to another mat. That meant that I had to determine a different size bottom mat to use on some of the cards. I often don't even measure these mats. I simply glue my pieces onto a larger piece of cardstock and then use my small guillotine cutter to cut the excess away, leaving an equal border all the way around.

Here is a look at the cards, once I added sentiments and other embellishments:

On this first card, I placed the matted pieces fairly close together on the white mat. That way, I could use a fancy edge die to add the scalloped design on each side.

The sentiment was stamped, die-cut and popped up with foam tape.

I added only a stamped sentiment on the inside.

This card was very simple to make. I embossed a panel for the background, then added the matted floral strip at an angle. When that was done, I die-cut the stamped sentiment, popped it up with foam tape and added a die-cut bow for embellishment.

Once again, just a stamped sentiment on the inside.

For this card, I stamped the sentiment directly onto the white panel, then matted it with some purple cardstock. The mushroom house was die-cut and popped up with foam squares.

The mushroom house die set also cuts out a very tiny little mushroom, so I added it to the inside above the stamped sentiment.

I struggled a bit with adding a sentiment to this one. In the end, I decided I was short on anniversary cards, so I added a die-cut "best wishes" on a pale pink circle. This card is not my favorite, but it's okay. 

A stamped sentiment on the inside finished the card.

I loved the process of making these cards and figuring out how I could make each one unique. I purposely used sentiments for different occasions to help me think differently about each one.

If you've never followed one-sheet-wonder instructions before, the 6" x 6" size is a good one to try. 

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

Cheryl

Colorful daisies for Mother's Day...

 

This is such a simple idea for a card, but I think it results in a real eye-catcher.

I had some green, wood-grain-embossed card blanks, which made a great background for my flowers. I cut two layers of each flower (you could certainly do more layers!) and then did some ink-blending at their centers before glueing the layers together.

I used a leaf die to cut out three leaves for each card. I did a little ink-blending on them, too. I also cut some flower centers from gold metallic cardstock.

The sentiment was stamped, cut out and popped up with foam tape.

I love the look of the ink blending. It really adds some nice dimension to the petals.

On the inside, I added thin strips of the same colors of cardstock that I had used to create the flowers. The stamped sentiment was centered between the strips on the left and the right side of the white panel.

This card design could easily be used for a thank you, birthday, anniversary, get well, or thinking of you card. It's so versatile and fun to make. Different flower dies could be used--you just may want to make sure they're big enough to span the width of the card.

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

Cheryl

Telescoping technique for cards...

I had a sheet of punch-out images in my stash that were meant to be used for the telescoping technique. Because the images were so pretty, I decided to use them for Mother's Day cards. My only issue with the images was that there was only a 1/8" margin around all four sides when the images were stacked on top of each other. I really wanted a wider margin, so I split them up.

First, I added some lavender polka-dot DSP to each card front.

Then, as you can see, I used just two (of four) layers of the image on each card. All the images for each card are exactly the same, with one cropped smaller than the other. 

It wasn't advised on the sheet of images to mat them, but that is what I decided to do. It gives the layers a nice finished look.

I popped up each matted image with foam tape. I'm glad I only used two of the layers. Can you imagine how thick this card would have become had I put all four layers on one card? I know I could have put all the layers on without using foam tape, but I love a little dimension!

Here's a little closer look at those pretty hydrangeas. The sentiment was stamped, die-cut and added to the top layer.

A simple sentiment was stamped on the inside.

This card was made in the same way, but this time the sentiment was stamped, die-cut and matted before popping it up with foam tape towards the bottom of the card front.

It was a little trickier to cut the mats for these images because of their shape, but my small guillotine paper cutter did an admirable job.

I stamped a sentiment on the inside to finish.

These cards were surprisingly quick to make, and it can be done with a single hand-stamped image, too. Back in 2012, I made a card doing just that. You can see it here.

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

Cheryl

Leafy sympathy cards with vellum backgrounds...

 

This was a quick card to make. I die-cut a black frame to fit over a piece of embossed vellum. I was able to adhere the framed vellum to the card front with double-sided tape. The tape didn't show through the vellum because of the embossing (I think).

I die-cut a leafy branch and added it inside the black frame, letting a couple of the leaves peek over the edge of the frame.

The sentiment was stamped, cut out and popped up with foam tape.

I stamped a sentiment on the inside and added a small piece of another leafy die-cut.

For this card, I added a piece of the vellum directly to the card front, with no frame to box it in. Then I stamped and die-cut the framed leafy sprigs and adhered this to a navy blue rectangle.

The blue rectangle was adhered to a slightly larger white one, which was popped up on the card front.

The sentiment was stamped, die-cut, matted with the blue cardstock and popped up with foam tape.

Once again, I stamped a sentiment on the inside and added a small stamped and die-cut sprig.

It was very chilly here today. We even had a light dusting of snow on the ground this morning. Luckily, it was all gone by midday. I'm still holding fast to the weatherman's assurance that Spring is really here!

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

Cheryl

Butterflies for Mother's Day...

I don't know anyone who doesn't like pretty butterflies. I think maybe motherss like them most of all, because they are indicative of transformation. Mothers see their own children transform from babies into productive adults before their eyes. I know I am always amazed at the wonderful adults my children have become and the terrific work they do every day.

Here are a couple of simple Mother's Day cards I made using some colorful butterflies:

I used scraps for the butterflies and a couple of stamped and punched sentiments that were in my stash. The borders across the bottom were some old rub-on borders that were in my stash.

What I haven't done recently--and I need to do--is to die-cut many, many more butterflies and keep them handy for other cards. I had done that more than a year ago, but I've since used almost all of them, so it's time for a refill!

The wiings of each butterfly were lifted a bit by applying a short piece of a thin foam strip beneath each one. It gives such nice dimension to the card. The sentiments were also popped up.

You can see another rub-on border at the bottom of this card front. I actually used the colors of the butterflies in this border to create the die-cut ones.

Of course, I had to add a bit of sparkle with some gems, too!

I had printed out a couple of sentiments for the inside of each card. I keep a template in my computer files so that I can print four full-panel sentiments at a time, and that really helps speed up my cardmaking.

The trees are beginning to leaf out here in Minneapolis. We live near a parkway that has many, many flowering crabapple trees along its boulevard. It is so beautiful to drive the parkway when they are in full bloom--a yearly reminder of the beauty all around us, if we just look for it.

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

Cheryl

A spring wreath for Mother's Day...

 

I was going to use one of my wreath dies for this card, but then I saw a curved leafy frond die laying on my work desk. I thought, "I wonder if I can create a wreath with that?" 

Before getting down to the business of forming my wreath, I added a panel of DSP, matted with navy blue cardstock, to the front of the card base.

Then I cut four of the fronds from a scrap of green cardstock and joined them together in a circle toward the top of the card.

I also die-cut some small pink flowers and a white bow. I made sure to add a flower over any area where two of the fronds were joined together.

I added pink Nuvo Drops to the flower centers and a white Nuvo Drop to the bow's knot area.

The sentiment was stamped with navy blue ink and cut out. I ran a blue ink pad along each edge to give it some definition before popping it up with foam squares.

I stamped a sentiment on the inside and added a portion of a leafy frond and a single flower for embellishment.

I am making soup today--split pea with ham. I know it's not everyone's cup of tea, but we really like it. With some warm, crusty bread, it makes a hearty meal. 

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

Cheryl

A little birdie told me...

 ...to use that piece of patterned paper, rather than hoarding it!

For a long time, I had an 8" X 8" piece of DSP in my stash that was patterned with some pretty birds. Because each of the birds was quite large, I couldn't figure out how to use it for a very long time.

Finally, I decided to use a circle die and cut out as many of them as I could (four of them!) to use on cards. I came up with the card design you see above, where I have cut away a portion of the top of the card front.

I have some pastel pink, adhesive backed, polka dot fabric (yes, actual fabric) that I adhered to the front. I glued a piece of pale pink cardstock to the inside. It was important that the solid pink match the polka dot fabric because both would be visible from the front.

The die-cut circle with the bird was backed with a slightly larger circle of the same cardstock that was used to make the card base. It was then popped up with foam tape.

I added a pink vellum, two-layer, die-cut flower over one of the flowers in the paper's design, just for a bit more dimension. The flower center is a Nuvo Drop.

The sentiIment was stamped, die-cut and popped up with foam strips.

In this photo you can see how I cut the card base. I used the same circle die that I had used for the mat behind the bird image to partially die-cut the half-circle on the front.  This is called the "partial die-cutting technique," and there are many videos online showing how to do it. 

I used a ruler and a craft knife to cut to the left and right of the half-circle and then to cut along the score line up to the top of the card.

An arched rectangle die was used to cut the perfect size and shape for a stamped sentiment panel on the inside.

It was very satisfying to come up with a card design that showed off these pretty birds and to finally use up that piece of DSP. Do you ever get stuck for a while, not knowing how to use some of your supplies? I get a lot of bits and pieces from the thrift store, and I often have to leave them lay for weeks before I land on an idea for using them.

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

Cheryl

Paper-piecing fun...

 

I have a die that cuts this outline floral image from a larger piece of cardstock. I decided to make a couple of cards with it, but to paper-piece all the open areas in the flowers and leaves.

I used pink and purple cardstock for the flower pieces, along with a little bit of gold for the centers. I also used a dark green for the leaves. After seeing this color combination in the photo, I wished I had used all pastel colors.

The sentiment was stamped, punched out, matted and popped up on the card front.

I used a different die to cut a flower for the inside. I also stamped a sentiment to finish the card.

This time the colors were all pretty strong, except for the white. I didn't really like the plain white, so I added a tiny red dot to each "bud." I was much happier with it after doing that. 

Another difference with this card is that I applied the die-cut rectangle directly to the card front. If you look back at the first card, you can see that I applied it to a white rectangle first and then glued that to the card front.

I stamped and die-cut the sentiment and popped it up with a thin foam strip.

For the flower decoration on the inside of this card, I actually die-cut just a single flower portion of the entire die. I used a scissor to cut away the unnecessary parts, and then paper-pieced it the same as the flowers on the front.

I stamped the "Happy Birthday," and the card was done.

Paper-piecing is fun, but it definitely takes time and patience, especially when the pieces are tiny--like those that fill the leaves. I found it's helpful to leave the pieces in the die, add some glue to the back of each piece, lay the die over the die-cut and gently poke each piece into place.

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

Cheryl

Two rather crazy birthday cards...

Sometimes I like to go up to the edge of the deep end when making cards to donate. I like to see if a card that's just a little bit crazy will sell. I'm happy to report, these two did sell, but it took a couple of weeks for the colonoscopy card to lure a buyer. he he

Here's a look at both. They have the same layout, but one is a portrait card and the other is landscape.

The mats are actually a charcoal color, rather than black.

I cut apart a leafy die-cut that looked like the ones in the DSP and added parts of it to the sentiment panel.

I also added a few tiny turquoise gems for some sparkle.

The rest of the leafy sprig was added to the inside.

Both the front and inside sentiments  were printed with my computer.

The sentiment panels on both cards were popped up. I added the entire leafy sprig to the bottom of this one.

I saw these sentiments somewhere online--probably Pinterest--and I just had to use them. They both made me laugh, so I was pretty sure they'd make someone else laugh, too.

I liked the juxtaposition of having everything BUT the sentiment looking all dignified and respectable.

I decided to make this one a 50th birthday card, since that's the age when most people start getting colonoscopies. I know they are now suggesting folks start at 45, but I think it will take some time for that to become common practice.

These cards were fun to make. I may even make them again sometime!

Our summer is already shaping up to be a busy one. We have some graduations to attend and celebrate and a sightseeing trip planned. I hope those gas prices don't get much higher!

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

Cheryl