July Class at My Favorite Things

I have some big news!  I am teaching classes at the MFT Boutique in Eustis, FL!  I still can't believe it, but I'm very excited and happy to have been invited!  It's like a dream come true!!  This post is going to be long so I'm going to get right to the cards from my July class.

The first card is a Box in a Card fold using the Splendid Swans stamp set and dies from MFT.  This stamp set is peaceful and beautiful and I really like the variety of swans, the cattails, vines, lily pad and lily that are included. I cut the base card using Wild Wisteria card stock.  The layers are Neenah Solar White and Lavender Fields.  To add some tiny dots to the Lavender Fields layers I used the Itsy Bitsy Polka Dot background stamp and Sweet Tooth Pigment Ink Pad.  If you like dotted paper, you need this stamp.  It is fabulous!  I know I will be using it all the time.  Here is the front of the card...

The sentiment box on the front was cut with Stitched Rectangle Scallop Frames and Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangle STAX, and the swans and cattails were cut from No-Line coloring card stock and colored with Copic Markers.  

When you open the card and push on the right side, a box forms with a scene inside.  I really enjoy making little scenes so this is one of my favorite folds.  

The oval window for the little scene and the oval for the sentiment were cut with the Inside/Out Stitched Oval STAX Die-namics.  I used the Splendid Swans, Grassy Fields, Puffy Clouds and Stitched Circles STAX Die-namics to complete the inside of the card.  Here is a close up...

The second card was a fun celebration card with a flap fold. It's always fun when margaritas are involved, right?  I cut 2 margarita glasses using the Margarita Shaker Window Die-namics.  The glass extends over the edge of the front so there is a matching glass inside of the card.  The inside of the glass is inked up with Sour Apple Hybrid ink and covered with Clear Wink of Stella so it shimmers and looks especially delicious!  The front of the card was inked using the Geometric Stars Stencil and Sour Apple, Summer Splash and Lemon Chiffon Hybrid inks.  I used the same colors to ink up a piece of card stock and used Cheers Die-namics to cut out the sentiment.

Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville song came into my head when I was making this card so I had to include the parrot from the Polynesian Paradise stamp set!  He was colored with Copics and attached to a circle cut with the Stitched Mini Scallop Circle STAX.  I used a Copic marker to color around the edge of the circle instead of making another layer.  The opposite side of the flap has a matching circle with green around the edge that says, Sip, Sip, Hooray from the Spirited Sentiments set.  I had to cut the stamp in half so it would fit but no worries, it is really easy to position the two pieces back together.  The polka dot paper is from the Birthday Blowout paper pack.

The last card is a beachy friendship card using one of the crabs and the umbrella from the Just Beclaws stamp set and the clam from the Beach Buds stamp set.

The frame was cut using the Stitched Square Scallop Frames and the Stitched Mini Scallop Square STAX.  I love how they look together!  Stitched Sentiment Strips Die-namics was used for the sentiment and the happy little star is from the Beach Buds set.  The ocean water was cut from metallic card stock using the Ocean Waves Die-namics and colored using the polished stone technique and alcohol inks.  If you've not heard of this technique, google it, there are  video tutorials that show you how to do it.  This technique worked well and gave the water some shimmer and shine!

I really enjoyed teaching this class and meeting some new friends.  I hope you like my cards!  Thanks for stopping by.  Make time to stamp, it's good for you!!

Janet  

Astronaut Girl

Today I have a card that I made for my daughter-in-law a while ago.  On one of their visits we took a trip to Kennedy Space Center and we found out that when she was little she loved everything to do with space travel and wanted to be an astronaut!  I thought the MFT set by Birdie Brown called Space Explorer would make a great card for her birthday.  My only problem was that I wanted the astronaut to be a girl.  I stamped some astronauts and had a go at changing the face so it looked more like a girl.  Adding eyelashes and a smile worked!

I stamped, colored and cut out the astronaut, all the planets, the rocket and plenty of stars. I cut the box card using Lawn Fawn's Scalloped Box Card Pop-up Die and navy card stock.   Then I used white acrylic paint to spatter white spots to make it look like deep space.  Next, I assembled the box and attached a planet and the rocket to the back of the box card.  Everything else was put onto acetate strips and then added to the box.  I wanted the little astronaut to look like she was taking a space walk so I added a piece of silver cording between the rocket and her space suit for her life line.  

Here is a front view...

This card was fun to make and my daughter-in-law loved it!  If you have a stamp set that isn't exactly what you need, see if you can make a little change that will make it perfect!

Try to find some creative time every day!  It's good for you!! 
Thanks for stopping by,
Janet  

By the Beautiful Sea

Since making the castle bridge card back in February, bridge cards have become one of my favorites!  They are so versatile and you can make lots of different things with them, especially when you add hidden insert tabs like those used in a shadow box card!!  The inspiration for this card was a card I saw on Pinterest made by Monica Maier.  I made a beach scene using the Life is Good stamp set from Lawn Fawn.  It is a cheery little set that is fun to use and to color.  Who doesn't love a day at the beach?!

Before starting assembly I stamped the background with a tiny honeycomb pattern in a color close to the card stock I used.  I stamped some seagulls from the Life is Good set in black ink, too.  I cut some waves using a retired wave die from MFT.  They have this one now and it would look just as good!  I put some insert tabs spaced evenly into the U shape of the bridge card onto which I attached the waves. Next I cut some hills using Lawn Fawn's Stitched Hillside Borders out of a camel colored card stock for the sand and glued them on to form the bridge card.  I just love how the stitching detail looks on my beach!!  I just found Scrapbook Pal for ordering stamping supplies.  They are great!  They have discounted prices, they ship quickly and they offer free shipping on orders over $25!

Next I cut out two little sailboats using the sailboat die from Impression Obsession (IO).  I cut them out of white card stock and used Copics to color the bottom of the boats.  The last step was to stamp and color the cute little beachy elements from the Life is Good set.  I stamped them onto Papertrey Ink's Select White card stock.  It is heavy weight so it's good for die cutting and works well for blending with Copics.  Here is a close up...

I hope  you liked seeing my card today.  Thanks for stopping by, wishing you a happy heart and a happy day!!
Janet

Seaside Seagulls

I have a quick post for you today.  It's kind of a continuation of yesterday's post.  I made another master board using the same technique and materials except I used the Seaside Seagulls stamps from MFT!  They are so adorable and they made great guy cards!  

I stamped the seagulls using Momento Tuxedo Black ink randomly all over the watercolor sheet.  Then I used Copics to shade and color the seagulls and wooden perches.  I used Wilted Violet, Cracked Pistachio, Mermaid Lagoon and Salty Ocean Distress inks to watercolor the background.  For more details and specific sizes and products used, please see yesterday's post.  I put the Nuvo Jewel Drops all around the seagulls on this one!   

Here is a pic of the inside of my card!

Thanks for stopping by, try to stamp as often as you can.  It's good for you!

Janet

Roses For You

I like to have cards on hand to send when I need a quick thank you card or I hear someone is having a bad time.  I used the master board idea to make these.  Here are two of the thank you cards that came out of the effort.  I ended up getting 12 cards from one master board.

The process was pretty simple and I really liked the outcome.  I started out stamping the rose, leaves and little circles from Simon Says Stamp's Roses for You set all over a piece of 9 x12 sheet of white watercolor paper.   I used Canson 90 lb. watercolor paper from Micheal's,  Versafine ink and white embossing powder.  

Next I took out my Ranger Distress Inks and smooched them onto my craft mat.  I added a little water to each color to make them softer.  Then I put the color on randomly using a water brush.  The colors I used were Picked Raspberry, Abandoned Coral, Squeezed Lemonade, Cracked Pistachio and Evergreen Bough.  Once the background was finished, I painted in the roses and leaves using the same colors but didn't water them down as much so the colors would be more vibrant.  I added Festive Berries, Wild Honey and Mowed Lawn to the color palette to change the flowers/leaves up a bit. It didn't take a lot of time to do this and I found it very relaxing and fun!  Here is how the master board looked when it was finished.

Here is a close up, I avoided painting in the little circles so there would be pops of white throughout.

I then cut the master board into 12 pieces 2"x 4 1/2".  I cut a mat out of white card stock using the Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangular Stax from My Favorite Things.  I used my cutter to cut a 1 1/4 x 4" rectangular opening in the mat 5/8" from the right side and from the top. I stamped random sentiments in black and then attached the layers using foam tape.  To finish the card off I added little translucent drops using Nuvo Jewel Drops.  I like the way they catch the light.  

And here is the inside...  

I hope you like my cards today.  I have another version of the same design that I will share tomorrow.

Have a happy creative week!
Janet 

More Baby Cards!

Yikes there are lots of new babies lately!  So many of my friends are becoming the happy grandparents of little ones!  That means I've been busy making baby cards!  My favorite stamps and dies for making baby cards right now are still the Bundle of Baby Clothes dies and the Welcome Baby stamp set from MFT!  The first card I have to show you was for a family who had twin boys.  When I was looking for good paper to use, I realized that the Doodlebug 6x6 pads had miniature designs that were perfect for my little clothes!  The pad I used for this card is called Hip, Hip, Hooray. The tiny robots, monsters, plaid and stars and the bright colors made this card!  

To add some interest to the background I stenciled on some puffy clouds using the cloud stencil  from MFT. Next I cut out and assembled all of the clothes, and cut the clothesline and the clothespins.  After deciding on placement, I glued the clothes to the line using glue at the top of each item and a piece of foam tape at the bottom of each. The word congrats finished off the front of the card.  It comes from the More Essential Sentiments stamp set from MFT.  For the inside of the card I added two bibs and this adorable sentiment.

For my second baby card I used the robot paper for a onesie, I used the same little monster outfit as on the first card and then used the stars papers for a t-shirt and bib,  I used the same cloud stencil for the background but added grass and bows to the clothesline. 

On the inside of this card, I used the stencil to make a cloud background and added the sentiment.  There are some really adorable messages in the Welcome Baby stamp set!

Here are a couple of close ups...

I hope you enjoyed seeing my cards.  If you are using the Bundle of Baby Clothes dies and are looking for smaller scale patterns, check out the 6x6 pads from Doodlebug.  There are lots of really good designs for both boys and girls!

Thanks for stopping by, have a good weekend and stamp as often as you can...it's good for you!!

Janet

Card for Sweet Baby Girl

I like making baby cards!  They just make me happy!  A friend's daughter is having a little girl very soon and I was invited to the baby shower.  It was fun, fancy and very feminine!!  Some of the gifts were a lace teepee, a soft fluffy swan shaped rocking seat and a baby version of the little black dress...so adorable!!  Here is the card I made using the Bundle of Baby Clothes die from MFT! .  This die set has lots of little clothes and embellishments.  I cut the little dress from a flower patterned paper. I like that the 6x6 pads have smaller patterns, they work really well for baby clothes.

I made a dotted swiss frame using one of the Stitched Mini Scallop Square STAX  and I cut the hole for the shaker with the Peek-a-Boo Circle Window both from MFT.  Make sure to do the cutting first and the embossing second!!  Don't ask why I'm telling you this!!  Inside the shaker I used the softest colored shaker items I had in my stash.  I love the little iridescent pink hearts and tiny yellow stars. I got them in an assortment from Micheals.

I know the new mom likes pretty little girly things so I wanted the inside of the card to be pretty, too. I used the scalloped square dies again, some girly papers in pink and yellow and cute little flowery bibs.  The Bundle of Baby Clothes dies are a lot of fun to play with.  Whenever I use them, I find myself making lots of different outfits, mixing and matching different colors and patterns. The good news is I have lots of outfits ready made when I need a quick baby card!  

Aren't the flowery bibs adorable?  I really like the sentiment, too!  It comes from the Welcome Baby stamp set from MFT.

The enamel hearts on the front and inside the card are from Doodlebug.  These are the tiny hearts. They are perfect for adding a touch of color and shine just where you need it!  There are larger ones, too!

Thanks for stopping by!  Make time for stamping every day, it's good for you!!

Janet