Year of Cheer Part 2

Posted on by debbrooner

Triple Champagne Foil Stockings '17 1

The new champagne foil is just lovely!  I used it to cut out the stockings and then backed them with silver foil.  Just in case there wasn’t enough glitz I used the Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper for the cuffs, toes and heels of the stockings. Since the DSP was so white  I didn’t like the effect of backing it with white cardstock so I used the Basic Gray and it worked well. The Hang Your Stocking stamps and Christmas Stockings Thinlits are lots of fun to use- just make sure to use the precision cutting plate when you are cutting the 2 largest stockings and the noel sentiment because they are very intricate.

Metallic Leaf Spigs Joy '17

I decided to use some of my non-Christmas dies for this card.  I used the leaf sprig from the Bouquet Bunch Framelits.  For the background I applied the Year of Cheer washi tape to the cardstock , placed it in an embossing folder, and ran it through my machine.   The sentiment and circle were gold embossed and punched out with a 2″ circle punch

Snowflake Gold Doily Merry '17

I really liked the way that the snowflake was used at the bottom of a tag shown in  the catalogue.  I backed my tag with silver foil, cutting it about 1/8″ wider on each side.  I used gold embossing powder and embossed the circle and the snowflake. I used a metallic enamel shape in the middle of the snowflake. And the plaid paper?  The Year of Cheer Specialty DSP, of course!

Year of Cheer Part 1

Posted on by debbrooner

Triple Joy Cheer '17 1

I love the Year of Cheer Suite!  So many glittery things, so little time. For the card above I used 2 of the DSP’s, the Cheers to the Year Stamp set, and gold and silver embossing powder.  Super fast and easy.

Copper Doily Joy '17 1

There are several items on this card that are not SU! but I am including it anyway because I like it so much.  The large label backing is a pearlescent card stock and I am guessing that the SU! Shimmery White cardstock would work as well.  The specialty DSP has both the copper and the pearlescent colors on it.  I cut out the doily with a die that I think got at Michaels, I think.  The “joy” and the circle were embossed with copper embossing powder.

Gold and Silve rDoily Peace '17 1

The metallic doilies are so pretty!    I gave the sentiment (retired) some dimension by cutting out 1 in silver paper and two out of Whisper White cardstock and then layering them together using Tombow glue.   Another fairly quick card.

More sparkle next week!

Christmas Card N Tags

Posted on by debbrooner

CardnTag Olive Front 17

CardnTag Olive Inside 17

Back in 2015 I was wondering if there was a way to do more with Christmas cards than just look at them. The idea of having a card that could enjoyed and also be used really appealed to me.  So with some fiddling with my Silhouette I came up with this card.

Card n tag 2015 front

2015 Card’n’Tag

Card n tag 2015 Inside I took it to a card swap at a scrapbooking event but I realized that it would be very difficult to recreate without an electronic cir cutting machine.

It wasn’t until this year that the idea came back to mind as I was playing with the Scalloped Tag Topper.  One of the reasons I used my Silhouette was because I wanted to have tags that had tag-shaped ends. With the tag topper I had my solution.

So lets get started with this card:

Cand n Tag cut and score .linesl step 1 '17

You will need a piece of card stock that measures 8″ x 5 1/2″.  Score it at 4 1/4″

Card n tag scored trimmed and tags '17 cut

To make the tags start by cutting 1/4″ off of both ends of the 4″ side of the card to the score line. This way you will have tags that are all 1″ wide. Now the tag ends need to be punched. Before punching them it is easier to fold all of the tags on the fold line so that you can fold the 4 tags you aren’t punching out of the way. Slide each tag into the punch and center it in the punch like this:

scallop tag topper up close

Now all that is left is the decorating of the cards.  It is easy to get confused about where everything goes so here are the pics of the 2 sides of the card.

Card n Tag finished. front '17jpg

Card na tag inside finished '17

The easiest way to stamp on the tags is to slide a piece of scrap paper under the tag you want to stamp and over the rest of the tags like this:

Card n Tag masking for tags 17

Here are some other cards using this technique.

Peace Wreath '16

Inside Card n TAg '16

There wreath is retired this year but the images stamped on the tags are from the Peace This Christmas stamp set.

CardnTag Red Outside 17

CardnTAg Red Inside '17

I used the Merry Little Christmas DSP on both the Old Love and the Real Red card.The label dies that I used were not SU! ones but the Lots of Labels Framelits would work perfectly.  The sentiments were inked with Versamark  ink and embossed with white embossing powder

The stamps that I used for the Old Olive card are from the Peace This Christmas stamp set.  The Real Red card also used the Watercolor Christmas and Cheer The Year sets . I embossed one of the labels on the red card with the Quilt Top Textured Impressions Embossing Folder. The “to and from” was from the Labels of Love.

Happy stamping!

Stampin’Up! Quilted Christmas Suite

Posted on by debbrooner

Peaceful Star '17Wow!

I can hardly believe I am finally able to post here. It has been forever due to moving, getting settled, and then a huge power struggle with WordPress whichI think I won.

I also  became a Stampin’Up demonstrator, which has been lots of fun.  As a demonstrator I am able to preorder products from the holiday catalogue so I have been playing with the stuff I got.

The cards I will show you today are all from the Quilted Christmas Suite. What is in the suite, you ask?  Here goes! Stamps, dies, ribbon, felt embellishments, an embossing folder, and Designer Series Paper. Awesome.

I always like it when I can get more than one season out of a set that I purchase.  The stamp and dies for this suite will easily go into spring, summer and fall by just changing ink colors and papers.  I like that a lot.

For the card above I used the star die and cut it out of Whisper White card stock, then cut the whole thing out again from 2 of the DSP sheets and a sheet of Lemon Lime card.  It was easy to inlay the colored pieces inside the white frame, and your end up with enough pieces of the DSP to make another card as well.

Pool Party Lemon Lime star Block '17For this next card I used the stamps set.  I stamped the stitched star outline on to Whisper White card and then used the striped and dotted quilt pieces to fill the star in.  I  cut the outline and the block out of one of the green DSP sheets and glued it over the top of the stamped panel.  At the bottom of the card I used the tiny blanket stitch stamp that come with the set (be very careful- the blanket stitch and the cross stitch stamps are could easily go missing due to their size).

Quilted Flowers '17

I don’t know what happened to the color on this picture but I am still including it because it showcases a second design in the stamp and die set.  I used Pool Party card for this one as it is one of the colors that coordinates with the DSP.  This flower  shape is one of those that has two parts.  The first piece just cuts out the inside design.  This is how the 3 flowers on the side were cut. By adding the die that cuts the outside edge I got the flower that is shown on the top right-hand corner.

As I wasn’t thinking this card through from start to finish I ended up having to do some work-arounds to keep it from ending in the trash.  First I die cut the three flowers and then used lots of dimensional to pop it up from the DSP  I placed underneath.  I stamped the sentiment knowing that I would be using the embossing folder afterward.  So far, so good, or so I thought.  It became very clear that there was a problem when I tried to put the card  into the embossing folder. I was intending to emboss the entire front of the card but because of the dimension of the left-hand side of the panel the folder would only go so far before it got hung up on the thickness .  After giving myself the stern “you should have thought this through more carefully” speech I decided to roll with it and made a choice to just emboss a portion of the right-hand side of the card. That kind of worked but the embossing looked like it was just floating in space.  After I added a scored line right next to the embossing I was happier with it.

Triple Tree Merry Little '17

Besides the star and the flower stamps and dies there are triangle stamps and dies as well in the set.  The triangle is made the same as the flowers in that there are 2 pieces to it.  The inside piece doesn’t cut a triangle out but does cut what  looks like a stitching line around the edge.  The outside piece is the one what cuts the triangle out.   The DSP has 4 sheets of paper that  have rows of triangles in different patterns and colors which are the same size as the outside die. For a fun Christmas tree all you have to do is choose your favorite triangle, die cut it, add a stamped tree base and you are set (thanks to Mary Fish for this idea).

I used the stitched outline triangle and the patchwork stamps for the trees on this card and then cut them out with the outside die.  Cuteness.  You will notice that I used the embossing folder on both the Lemon Lime Twist card front and the Blushing Bride banner.   I use the embossed side for the green and the debossed side for the pink. Just remember to stamp your sentiment on the banner before doing the embossing.

Getting excited?  The holiday catalogue will come out in September, so you are almost there.

Price: $110.00

3×3 Valentines Cards 2015 Part 3

Posted on by debbrooner

Purple & Green Set croppedThank you, Corel Draw for this purple and green background.  I just happened to have the right green and purple card stock to match it.  Lots of stamping and lots of cutting files used.

6 Heart Square:Silhouette:11 hearts (37852); Background stamp: Studio G; Script background: A Lost Art; Sentiment: Recollections

Heart Border:Silhouette:Border Hearts (24381), 5 Decorative Borders (55446); Sentiment: Stampa Rosa

Heart Border Tag:Silhouette: 4 Tags (50938), Borders Vertical Hearts(24484), 5 Bracket Tag (?); Background: Hero Arts; Sentiment: Hero Arts

Hearts Oval:Silhouette: 11 Hearts (37852); Backgrounds: Hero Arts and Studio G

Pink & Brown set croppedI love all of the fun little die cuts and stamps on these 4 cards.  The colors of the marbled paper caused me to use colors I don’t usually go for but I liked the result.

Heart Faux Post:Silhouette:11 Hearts (37852); Background: Hampton Art; Faux Post: Recollections

Heart Stamp:Silhouette:5 Piece Gift Tag Set (20963), Assorted Decorative Edge Strips (24404); Border: Hero Arts; Background:Hero Arts

3 Hearts:Silhouette: 3 Hearts (37919); Background:Hero Arts; Hearts: Hero Arts

Double Heart Label:Silhouette:11Hearts (37852); Dots: Stampabilities; Lace:Hero Arts; Sentiment: Recollections

Multicolor & Gray Set croppedThis background was another Corel Draw fill.  I loved all of the colors and the muted way they were presented.

Love Block:Silhouette: Love Title (55207); Background: Stampabilities; Border:Studio G

Heart Banner:Silhouette:Valentine Flag (54404); Script: A Lost Art; Flower: Hero Arts

Love Branch:Silhouette: 11 Hearts ( 37852), Love Branch Bird (25235); Swirl Background:Hero Arts; Floral Background: Hero Arts

Kisses:Silhouette:8 Piece Scalloped Heart Set (14251), Scalloped Border Large (2268); Stripe background:Studio G; Floral Background: Great Impressions

That’s it for now.  Next time- 4 more sets and I’ll be done with the tiny cards!

3×3 Valentine Cards 2015 Part 2

Posted on by debbrooner

Purple turquoise and Gray Set croppedWelcome to part 2 of my Valentine  series!

I love the background paper that I purchased at the Paper Source store.  The gray, mint green, lime, and turquoise go so well together.

Love Very Much: Silhouette: Heart (1887); Sentiment: Fiskars; Border and Background: Studio G

Double Heart:  Silhouette: 11 Hearts (37852); Heart Background and Doily stamp: Reflections

Triple Heart:Silhouette:Square Border Small (2588), 5 Label Shapes (31250), 11 Hearts (37852); Swirl Background:Hero Arts; Leaf Background: Stampendous

Cherish Heart:Silhouette: 5 Valentine Hearts (54315), Tiny Fancy Ribbon (56819); Background: Hero Arts; Sentiment: K & Co.

Yellow and Orange Set croppedI don’t think I have ever seen a yellow and orange Valentine before but the handmade paper pulled the cards together.

Heart Flourish with a Rose:Silhouette:Heart Flourish(36853); Background: Stampabilities; Rose: Hero Arts

Circle Border:Silhouette: 11 Hearts (37852); Leaf Border and Background: Hero Arts

Me & You:Cherish:K & Co.; Me  You: Inkadinkadoo

Double Heart:Silhouette: Two Hearts (37526); Sentiment: Fiskars

Salmon and Gray Set croppedThis paper is the same print as the first batch of cards only in a different colorway and comes closer to actual Valentine colors.

Love Heart:Silhouette:8 Piece Stamp Set (142472), 11 Hearts (37852); Word Heart: PSX; Background stamp: Studio G; Faux Post:Recollections

Filigree Heart:Silhouette: Flourish Heart (54690); Background: Stampendous

Cut-Out Heart:Silhouette 2 Hearts (16132), Assorted Decorative Borders (46224); Sentiment: Northwoods

Forever: Silhouette: 2 Flourish Hearts (38610); Background:Great Impressions; Heart Clusters: Stampa Rosa

That’s it for this week!

3×3 Valentine Cards 2015

Posted on by debbrooner

Purple and Turquoise Set cropped

It’s time for my  2015 3×3 Valentines cards.  Somerset Studio had a call for sets of Valentine cards in unusual colors and I was up for the challenge.  Once I got started it was hard to stop!  I ended up making 12 different sets so hopefully there will be a set that will be published.  I’ll post 3 sets for the next month.  Enjoy!

Floral Love Panel:Silhouette: 5 Label file (31250); Background stamp: Tim Holtz “Heartfelt”

Doily Valentine: Silhouette: Doilies Set (41836), 3 Set Doily (18006), Scallop Border  (2274), Assorted Tags (26283); Sentiment: Recollections

Bracket Frame: Silhouette: 11 Hearts (37852), Frame:Fancy (3234)

Foursquare: Silhouette: Assorted Tag Frames (26283); Background stamp: Great Impressions; Heart stamp:Inkadinkadoo, Sentiment: Northwoods

Copper & Purple Set croppedFor this set I used up some of my favorite paper.  It is a sheet covered with copper gilding and it is beautiful!

Hearts Card: Silhouette: Hearts Card (38404); Hearts background stamp:Reflections; Sentiment: Fiskars

Stacked Hearts: Silhouette: 11 Hearts (37852); Background: Memory Box; Sentiment: Inkadinkadoo

Bird Heart:Silhouette: Bird on Branch+ Cutout Heart Card-2 files welded together (54849); Script: A Lost Art; Sentiment: Northwoods

Wavy Hearts:Silhouette:Abstract Card With Hearts (55189); “Cherish”:K & Co.

Orange & Green Set croppedThe background for these cards is a funky green, orange and black marble paper that I had never used.  I’m not quite sure why I bought it in the first place but I decided to give it a try for these cards.

4 Panel Heart: Silhouette: Artistic Heart (7407), 3 Borders (11652); Sentiment: Northwoods; Flourish stamp: Inkadinkadoo

9 Patch:Silhouette: 11 Hearts (37852); Banner: Recollections; Grid Stamp: Studio G

Label Border:Silhouette: Assorted Decorative Edge Strips (24404), 8 Piece Scalloped Hearts Set 3 (14251); Cherish Sentiment: K & Co.; Flower Border stamp:Studio G; Background Stamp: Stampabilities

I Love You: Silhouette: 4 Artisan Borders (41118), 11 Hearts (37852); Leaf Border stamp:Studio G; Sentiment: Craftsmart

Stick To It- Tapes of All kinds

Posted on by debbrooner

I love  tape! Any kind will do, whether it is Washi Tape, decorative tape, handmade tape, or print and cut versions.  Even small bits can add a real oomph to a project.

Washi Tape and White Flower Sympathy '14 cropped Pink Green Washi Thank You '14 cropped Hip Hip Hooray '14 cropped Blue Washi Create '14 cropped

Up first-real Washi Tape cards.  I am especially fond of applying the tape to the cardstock and then running the piece through my Cuttlebug with an embossing folder. The embossing gives the tape just a bit more dimension.

Watercolor Leaves '14 cropped Enjoy Tapes '14 cropped Arrow Washi Hello There '14 croppedThe second type of tape I use Decorative Tape ( Scotch brand).  It is shinier than the Washi tape but comes in some really fun patterns, like this arrow pattern which reminds me of Frank Lloyd Wright’s stained glass windows.

Pink Green Carte Postale '14 cropped“Faux washi” is also fun to make and use.  Any artist paper can be used by applying double-sided tape to the paper and then trimming it down to the width of the tape.  Here I used a transparent pink rice paper.

Faux Washi Tape '14 cropped Bouquet original color '14 cropped

Silhouette has several files for washi tapes.  They can be cut out of any solid  paper or cardstock or can be filled with designs or patterns and treated as Print and Cut files. I used white cardstock and printed these tapes to match my embellishments.  I like the slightly thicker look as a result of using cardstock instead of paper.

If you need ideas for the use of tape Pinterest is a great place to look.  So what are you waiting for?  Grab some tape and start embellishing!

My cards have been published!

Posted on by debbrooner

Stampers Sampler Publication!I am very excited to have some cards published again it has been a while since that has happened .  That is the upside.  The down side is that Stamper’s Sampler sent me a badge to put on my page but I can’t figure out how to get it where I want it.  Frustration big time!  Here is the link for the 2 page spread:http://stampington.com/the-stampers-sampler“><img src=”http://stampington.com/badge/2014/jan/images/sam.jpg Hope it works!

Next blog entry:  Use it up or throw it out.   “It” being stamped images, die cuts, projects started but never finished…the list goes on and on!

See you then.

Clean and Simple Stamping #257

Posted on by debbrooner

Clean and Simple Stamping 257 cropped

This card has a larger curved edge than the sketch but I liked the results anyway.  I am going to try something new this time and give you a tutorial, complete with pictures, to show how I made this card with my Silhouette.  Some of the pics aren’t the best but this is my first time for this so extend some grace my direction, okay?

Step 1: Draw a rectangle that is 5.5″ wide by 8.5 ” high.  This will give you a standard 5.5″ x 4.25″ card.  I colored this rectangle gray so it would be easier to tell what is what later on.

step 1 cropped

Step 2: bring in  the desired doily and resize it so that it is slightly larger than the card.  I made mine 5.55 x 5.55 inches.  Place it on top of the card base, lining up the bottom of the doily with the bottom of the card.  I have colored the doily so you can see it easier.

number 2 cropped anti alias

Step 3: I made another rectangle by starting it on the upper left-hand of the card base and dragged it halfway down the doily, then sending it backward one step so that it is between the doily and the card base..  This rectangle and the doily will be the 2 pieces that will be welded together. This new rectangle is peach colored.

number 3 cropped anti alias

Step 4:  I no longer needed the card base so I removed it.

number 6

Step 5:  I highlighted both the peach rectangle and the doily and hit the “weld” button and tada- a card with a fancy border!

number 8 cropped anti alias

I used the My Mind’s Eye “Memorable” 6×6 pad, Pumice Stone Distress ink, and the Hero Arts /Sizzix Stamp and Die Cut Butterflies set.  The doily is #18185.  I added some Distress Stickles and yellow embroidery thread to dress it up a bit more.

Thanks for giving this a peek!

Da Font is Da Bomb!

Posted on by debbrooner

I recently downloaded a font called Peony from the DaFont site. It is a free font and is really fun. Each letter is a different, seamless design.
Peony Letter B Washi Tape croppedUsing my Silhouette,  my Amy Chomas pen holder, and a black pen , I typed the letter B across the middle of the card front, which made the vine design.  I then added washi tape and a stamped embossed panel. This card was fast and has a  good amount of white space for those of you who want to keep things simple!

DaFont: Peony; Hero Arts: Art of the Card-Untitled Love

Peony Letter M Create croppedThe ginko pattern is the letter M from DaFont as well.  After drawing it with my silhouette I filled the image in with a black pen then added some machine stitching and thin black washi tape.  The flower was made using patterned paper and the Sizzix Flower 6 die.  I cut the sentiment out of white cardstock ,colored it with red pigment ink, and  then embossed it.

Silhouette: Create Title #4094

What other fun fonts do you use?  Let me know!

Deconstructed DS 112 and 113 Challenge

Posted on by debbrooner

You get 2 Deconstructed challenge cards this time because I didn’t get 112 done until after the deadline.  I’ll start with 113.

Deconstructed DS 113 croppedI came up with  a technique I hadn’t thought of before.  I decided to place a row of pearls at the bottom of the card and I wanted them evenly spaced.  Most of the time I just eyeball it but the more pearls there are to be placed, the more likely that they will go wonky.  I laid my row of pearls (still on their backing) where I wanted them on the card and then placed a sticky note directly below them.  I then made little tick marks to show where each pearl was to be placed and then put the pearls on  the card.  The sticky note ensured that not only were the pearls evenly spaced but that they were all the same height.  Wish I had have thought of that a long time ago!  Here is the picture with the sticky note in place:Deconstructed DS113 closeup of post a note '13 cropped

All of the papers are from American Crafts “Color Crush” 6×6 pad.

I white embossed both the turquoise hexagon and the sentiment and then used an embossing folder to add dimension to the sentiment hexagon.

Sentiment: unknown; Hexagons: Hero Arts Hexagon Stamp and Cut ;Martha Stewart edge punch: Lattice Arch; Cutttlebug embossing folder: Swiss Dot

Deconstructed DS112 croppedThis is DS112.  Love the colors of the striped paper! All of these papers were from the My MInd’s Eye 6×6 pad called “Memorable”.  I really liked this pad because the papers are two-sided.  There are lots more color options that way.

Sentiment: unknown; leaf die cut: Sizzix Little Leaf; Stickles

Summer Card Camp 2 Sketch and Color Challenges

Posted on by debbrooner

Butterfly You Inspire Me '13 cropped

I always enjoy Jennifer McGuire and Kristina Werner’s online classes and their Summer Card Camp 2 did not disappoint. This card used one of their sketch and color combos from week 3.

I had just picked up the Sizzix Stamp and Die Set really cheaply at Michaels so this seemed to be a good time to try the set out.   I stamped and die cut the butterflies out of white cardstock and colored them by tapping my Distress Ink pads on my craft mat and picking up the color with a water brush.  I used the white cardstock purposely so that the colors of the ink would be true but I didn’t want the outer edges to be so white so I used the Frayed Burlap Distress Ink to color the edges.  Much better!

The sketch used twine to wrap around the center of the card but since I happened to have purple thread on a bobbin I decided to sew the lines on instead.  My machine was not exactly behaving itself so the stitching is a little wonky but that’s the way it goes sometimes.  I still like the result.

I cut out a banner and swiped it through the puddles of Distress Inks to color it, dried it with my heat gun and then stamped the sentiment.

Both the butterfly and the sentiment were mounted on dimensional adhesives and then added some bling with rhinestones.

Octagon Butterfly Inspire '13 cropped

As I said, my machine wasn’t exactly cooperating with me for the stitching so I ended up making two panels and then trimming them to get the best results.  I had this small piece of embroidered panel left and another butterfly from the same Sizzix set so I decided to make another card.

It was a  “look into my drawer of stuff I haven’t used yet” kind of day so I pulled out my new Heidi Swapp hexagon stencil and used Broken China and Seedless Preserves to add color. I like the contrast between the hazy background and the not-so-hazy butterfly panel.

Butterflies: Sizzix Stamp and Die Set; Distress Inks: Milled Lavender, Seedless Preserves, Broken China, Frayed Burlap: Sentiment: Hero Arts CL351; Heidi Swapp Stencil;

Silhouette Sketch Cards 2

Posted on by debbrooner

dandelion sketch '13 cropped This is round 2 of the cards I have made using  sketches from the Silhouette Store.  I am really getting to like these sketches.  They are kind of like having a rubber stamp that can be made into any size.  And they don’t take up space in my stamp drawer!  I am still using the Amy Chomas pen holders (see this post: https://ifthegluesticks.com/2012/07/25/silhouette-ske…as-pen-holders/) and love them.  I will say one thing however, while I ordered both the small holder and the large holder it is the large one that I use all the time.  I can’t seem to find pens small enough to fit in the small holder.  Something to think about.

This could have made up as a one layer card by stamping a border under the definition and using a bit of yellow stickles on the dandelions.

Dandelion Sketch #32314; Laughter Definition: Stampabilities Definitions

Gray be grateful sketch '13 croppedOkay, this card has it all.  Sketched flowers, rubber stamping, distress ink, die cut banner, dimensional adhesive, and letterpress using an embossing folder.  Gasp. I started out by sketching the floral motif and then used a Hero Arts shadow stamp to highlight the blossoms. It still looked like it needed something so I brayered the concave side of an embossing folder with distress ink and ran the panel through my Cuttlebug.  Since I cut out my banner in white cardstock I was able to use the same ink for it that I had  used for the background.  When I placed the banner on the card I found that the background was showing through the word cutouts so I traced the banner on another piece of cardstock and inked it with the purple ink.  That looked much better!  I glued the bottom (purple) banner directly to the card and then used dimensionals to add the top banner.  Lots of fun.

Flower Motifs: #43709; Banner Words-Life: #37895; Hero Arts Scalloped Solid; Paper Studio: Horizontal Script; Distress Inks; Pumice Stone, Ripe Persimmon, Dusty Concord, Shabby shutters.

turquoise 4 flower sketch '13 croppedI sketched these little guys  and then stamped the dots on the blossoms.  I like the wonky kind of look I get with this technique.  Remember what I said about being able to make these any size?  The original file  for each flower was a little over eight inches.  I scaled them down to an inch and a half.

Flower Sketches: #30091, 30092, 30093, 30094

orange dot sketch '13 croppedThese cheery dots just screamed “use the word ‘happy'” , so I did.  Sketched dots, distress ink and rhinestones made a very fun panel. The  nice thing about having the word happy on the outside of the card is that the inside can say “birthday’, “day”, etc.  Very handy, especially for me as I never seem to have the right sentiment at the right time.

Polka Dot Sketch: #19374; Sentiment: 38773; Distress Inks: Picked Raspberry, Dusty Concord, Ripe Persimmon, Shabby Shutters

purple happy happy sketch '13 cropped And finally, this card.  Am I happy happy happy with the white gel pen that I used to shadow the letters? No, no, no.  This copy is for my portfolio so no one will receive a card this messy!

I typed the word “happy” in my Silhouette and then played with spacing of the letters until they touched. Using white cardstock  letters and words is really a good idea.  Just a bit of ink in the color you need and you have coordinated your card elements.

I used 3 different inks for the flowers and loved how they coordinated with some cardstock I had on hand.  I used the middle value of the purple inks to edge the flower panel.  It is not  obvious but it does help give it a finished look.

Flower Sketches: 44160, 44161; Distress inks: Milled Lavender, Dusty Concord, Seedless Preserves

Wall Quilts Finally Done!

Posted on by debbrooner

shot from stairs

A while ago I purchased  these wall decorations from JoAnn’s and put them up on the wall.  They were just the frames and were meant to be nested.  I made the rookie mistake of trying to put too few in too large of a space.  They just looked bad!  They stayed that way for quite a while because I wasn’t sure what to do to make them look better.

Then while I was in a quilt store I had an epiphany (in their restroom) !  They had framed 2 quilts and they were really fun.  I realized that that was what my wall needed.

A long time ago I purchased a book by Diana Swim Wessel titled Inspiration Odyssey.  In it she had 2 pages of sketches (she called them “Silhouettes”) that were all square and would work well for the size of quilts I would be making. Here is a sample of her sketches:

EPSON MFP image

And here are some close-ups of the quilts that range in size from 11″ to 5.5″

left panel cropped middle panel cropped right panel cropped

I had never really done any hand quilting before so I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it!  I do have to admit that I mostly did shadow quilting but it was fun anyway.  I am thinking of trying hexagon English Paper Piecing next since I now have a lot of colorful scraps left over.

Basically putting these quilts into the frames was like covering buttons.

Side view of frame

                                                                                                      Side view of frame

Back of frame

Back of frame

 

Quilt laying on the frame (quilt is laying face down)

Quilt laying on the frame (quilt is laying face down)

 

Foamcore board placed on quilt. Board is 1/8' smaller than the frame

Foamcore board placed on quilt. Board is 1/8′ smaller than the frame

 

Foamcore and quilt pushed down into the frame

Foamcore and quilt pushed down into the frame

 

Quilt is glued and duct taped in place. Very ugly!

Quilt is glued and duct taped in place. Very ugly!

 

Finished quilt frame

Finished quilt frame

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kraft Cardstock Mania 4

Posted on by debbrooner

This is the last of my Kraft + color posts. Hope you have gotten some ideas to try for yourself.

kraft plus blue croppedThis is hands-down my favorite of all of the cards.  It is fairly flat so it could be sent through the mail without any problem. This was pretty much a Cuttlebug card- the honeycomb background, the sentiment, the poppies, and the embossed dots on the side of the card were all done with my mighty bug.  I am not a big fan of a lot of the Tim Holtz stuff but the Papillon  stamp set is awesome.

Cuttlebug: Honeycomb; With Love; Friends Forever

kraft plus turquoiseThis one looks a little wonky because it is.  If you tilt your head a little to the right…never mind, it doesn’t help.

I am choosing to leave this one in because of a technique that I have started using a lot.  I have been gluing gold Momi , which is a medium weight , gold crumpled paper.  It looks like this:gold momi paper cropped

When it is glued to a piece of cardstock and then run through an embossing folder it looks like it has actually become part of the cardstock.    It almost looks like the cardstock is gilded.

Inkadinkadoo: Illuminata; Cuttlebug: Paper Lace 2

Now for two completely random pictures-

storefront chevrons croppedI love the way this store used chevrons.  There is a card idea ready to pop out.

bell pepper oddity croppedOkay, this is weird, I must admit.  Does anyone know what this is?  Is there anyone else out there who photographs their trash?  This reminds me of a Jeffrey Dever polymer clay piece.

My next series will be dealing with small wall quilts so it won’t be paper related.  However the ideas could certainly be used for paper arts.  Stay tuned.

 

Kraft Cardstock Mania 3

Posted on by debbrooner

kraft plus red  This red card uses the negative space left after cutting out the flower shape.  It always looks like this type of design is really hard and took a lot of fussy cutting or gluing, but the fact is it couldn’t be easier.  Cut the flower design out of Kraft cardstock, back with your favorite designer paper (or in this case marbled paper), add other embellishments and the card is done. Adding dimensional adhesive to the flower panel gave some extra interest to the card.

Silhouette: Flower Rectangle #33935; Cuttlebug: With Gratitude

kraft plus purpleDo any of you have a basket full of die cuts or stamped pieces that never quite make it to the front of a card?  Well I do, and this card is the result of determination on my part to use several pieces in my basket.  The paisley square, the background lace, and the sentiment were all lost pieces looking for a home.  I colored the lace with Distress Ink and then layered it over a gold metallic paper so that it pulled the background and the paisley square together. The glittery sentiment matched the green PearlEx paint on the square- yay!  I had had the purple ribbon for a very long time and hadn’t used it because the color never seemed to match anythingI was working on.  It was really a serendipitous thing that it was exactly the right color as well.

One more week of Kraft Mania left.   I would love to see what you have been doing with your Kraft cardstock!

Stampendous: Paisley Texture Cube; Silhouette: Floral Lace Background #3924; Cuttlebug: Friends Forever

 

Kraft Cardstock Mania 2

Posted on by debbrooner

kraft plus pinkWelcome to the second installment of my Kraft cardstock series.

This pink one could almost be called a one-layer card.  I really like the stamped layered effect which gives some depth and interest.  I used all of my ink choices on this card: distress, pigment and archival.  That way all of my ink pads would not be jealous…The pearly finish of the pink cardstock contrasts nicely with the matte Kraft cardstock.

Text: Tim Holtz French Market; background stamp: Tim Holtz Multimedia; Butterfly: Inkadinkadoo Mindscapes.

Kraft with orange croppedFor the big butterfly on this card I used my Silhouette and cut a butterfly pattern 3 times, with each cut slightly smaller than the last.  I stamped the largest and smallest ones with Tim Holtz’ Papillon stamp then glued them all together on the bodies only.  I used the same stamp set for the 3 small butterflies on the bottom.

The Kraft background was embossed with a new folder I just got called “Cindi Loo”.  Now I ask you, what could be more fun than using a great folder with a really fun name?

Butterfly Cutout: #12423; Cuttlebug folder

Five more cards to go!  See you next week, and may all your butterflies be on your cards not your stomach.

Kraft Cardstock Mania 1

Posted on by debbrooner

kraft plus white

There is just something wonderful about Kraft cardstock for me.  It has just enough color to add interest to a project and is neutral enough to not detract from any other color I wish to add.  So here I sit with a dozen sheets of Kraft cardstock and a sense of anticipation. For the next 3 weeks I will be showing you the cards I have made using this awesome media.  I hope you like them and that they provide a springboard for your own creative process.

The first card using a Queen Anne’s Lace stamp is crisp enough to add interest without adding any color at all.  I cut out the Hello with my Silhouette ( not sure what font I used- sorry) and used Tim Holtz’ distress ink for the ‘thinking of you’ sentiment.  I am not very good at adding more than 1 sentiment to a card so this is my first attempt at doing so.  Adding several pearls finished it up nicely.

Inkadinkadoo stamp “Meadow”; Hero Arts “Everyday Sayings”kraft plus yellow croppedOne of the things I promised myself that I would do was to go through my stash of die cuts and use a bunch of them up.  I used Wild Honey Distress Ink to color the banner and some white flowers that I had cut long ago and used another  Distress Ink for the “awesome”.  In order to ground the flowers I used an embossing folder border along the bottom of the card.  This card was not my most favorite but it was okay and again I used 2 sentiments.  Whoot whoot!

Cuttlebug “Just My Type”; Silhouette “Spring Flowers 1” #8179; “spring Flowers 2” #8180; “Embrace Banner #37895; “Awesome” #37880;

Washi Tape Cards, Baby Bib Cards

Posted on by debbrooner

I  finally picked up several rolls of Washi Tape.  The transparency of these tapes is really a lot of fun and it doesn’t take very many rolls to come up with a great card. I added some quick Silhouette words (celebrate #2641, Find joy #13097) and these cards are ready to mail .

This cute card is one from the Silhouette store (# 12170).  After I made the little girl card I decided that it really needed a pocket to add more interest.  The little boy one has the pocket.  Better, no?  It was very easy to do.  I just made a copy of the bib itself then used the knife tool to cut a line where I wanted the pocket to be and the pocket was ready to cut.