Welcome baby boy card

Continuing on with the baby cards which is my theme for this week, this one is for a little boy. 

I am trying to use up some of my patterned paper that has accumulated over the years, so this card is made using Basic Gray and Smoky Slate colours.  A few layers with paper piercing added and the boat image from Moving Forward stamp set. 

 

Welcome baby girl card

I have had a little bit of spare time lately and have been having fun creating a few different cards with inspiration from Pinterest.  This week I have been making baby cards, not for any specific reason but just because I can.  

This card uses a variety of different products; embossing folders, star die cuts, the old favourite Bliss stamp set and Hearts a Flutter framelits. 

Lots of layers, and lots of fun to make. 

Something a little brighter

I popped in to visit a friend the other day and while checking out her craft room tidy up and various projects I mentioned that I was thinking I needed to get this lovely border embossing folder.  Then I was lucky enough to get to take home a couple of borders already embossed for me, so I had to find a project suitable for them.  The original design came from this website. If you check Nikki's version out, make sure you have a look at some of the other cards she has made.  Lots of inspiration on there. 

My card is made on Coastal Cabana cardstock too with leaves in Pistacchio and flowers in Wisteria and Summer Sun - a retired colour I can't do without. 

Seeing stars

While on a trawl through Pinterest I found a card similar to this, and knew I had to make one for myself.  The design looked quite easy and I had the star shape, just had to find some patterned paper that would suit.  Now I know a lot of people are similar to me in this regard - I have trouble cutting into a  sheet of patterned paper.  I actually have accumulated quite a bit, but I just don't like using it.  But I am coming around to the idea that if I don't use it up, I can't get anymore.  Motivation works.

I'm not sure what's going on with the photos, but the cardstock is actually a beautiful pale blue - Bashful Blue - and the paper a chocolate colour with blue highlights.  Blame it on the beautiful rain that's falling and watering our garden.  I tried photographing the card in various different parts of the house, with and without flash, and couldn't get the right colour.  So you will just have to use your imagination with this one.  It really does look good - crisp, clean and starry.  

 

Mask and sponge

A bit of an odd name for a title, but that's the techniques used in making these cards.  

They are made by using post it notes to mask off certain areas of the card and then stamping and embossing in clear or white, stamping again in a contrast colour and then sponging.  I actually masked off and sponged first and then stamped in white just to keep the embossed white brighter.  On the butterfly version I stamped a couple of the butterflies beyond the masked area and on the leaf card I kept the images contained in the sponged area.  Either way is quite OK, just depends of what you like.  I actually think keeping it all in the block looks a little better. Which one do you prefer?

  

 

A little milestone - thanks

I am not sure if any of you have noticed, but the visitor count to my little blog site has just reached over 10,000 visitors.  Now I realise that probably most of that would be from me and my family, but thank you anyway.  

This card was made for my sister's recent birthday, a country garden theme for a country dweller.  This would have to be one of my favourite cards made recently and it was fun to make as well.  Lots of stamp sets were used, and apart from the sentiment and butterfly, all were second generation images.  This means that the stamp was inked up and stamped on scrap paper and then stamped again on the card front for a more subtle and subdued effect.  There is also something elegant about the vanilla on vanilla colour scheme too in my opinion.  I just like the way it looks, and then the sponging sets it off as well.  Hope you agree. 

 

Have you had a chance to check out the 2014 catalogue yet?  There is a link to it on the left side of the screen if you want to look.  My parcel of goods only recently arrived, so hopefully soon I will be able to put up some cards made with new stamps.  

Female birthday

Well for a Stampin' Up blog there really isn't a lot of their product on the main part of this card.  SU do have a new flower die but it's much larger than this one by Spellbinders. The frame is by Nellie's and the leaf punch from Martha Stewart.  Apart from that the rest all belongs to Stampin' Up with Wisteria Wonder cardstock and  ribbon, and then the new embossing folder Decorative Dots (which you can earn as a freebie if you spend more than $90 in Sale-a-bration current promotion) and sentiment - Teeny Tiny Sentiments.  

 

This card is for one of my friends who also happens to be a Stampin' Up demonstrator and each year for our birthdays we try to make something just that little bit special for each other.  Thank goodness we don't have to post our cards to each other - not sure how this one would go through the mail. 

A sampler for a friend

Recently I had the honour of being asked by a friend to make another couple of samplers.  This is one for her mother's 80th birthday. 

Very similar to the previous one in colour but with a little more emphasis on the recipient's favourite pasttimes such as gardening and sewing.   Lots of flowers and plants, postage stamps cause that's the generation she came from when people used to send letters, water pump and chook cause she was brought up in the country, sewing machine, manequin and dolls because she loves to sew and used to make beautiful dolls, teddies because she's a grandma, keys because she makes you feel safe and holds lots of secrets,  tea cup and teapot because she will always make you feel welcome when you visit and heart, because she loves you. 

A lot of the stamps are from Stampin' Up but you will probably see a few others as well.