A Couple of Thank You Cards

Last month when my daughter went on her Girl Scout trip I thought a lovely thank you card was needed to let the two adult leaders know how much we appreciate their willingness to put up with six teenagers for 6 days.  Thus, two of this card were made.  Here's the details:

• The background die cut was made from patterned paper using my Heartfelt Creations Decorative Lace Border die.  I use wax paper between the die and the patterned paper to make this intricate die cut pop right out of the die.  It does create quite the confetti pile, but the result is well worth the effort!
• The flowers are made by stamping with my Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossoms stamps in brown Archival ink and then die cutting using my matching dies.  Clicking the link and then the tab on the Heartfelt Creations page will take you to videos that show you how to do this stamping and cutting technique.
• The flower centers were made using my A Penny Saved prills and I just love how they blend to add to my somewhat monochromatic look on this card.
• The green floral pieces were cut out of cardstock scraps using my Our Daily Bread Designs Fancy Foliage die. 
• The sentiment was created using Word and then die cut with my Spellbinders Labels 18 die.  A little Worn Lipstick Distress Ink around the edge ties it into the rest of the pink colors.  A piece of vintage seam binding as a ribbon/bow accent was added to the card.  

I think these ladies felt special and I was really happy with how the card turned out.  I'm going to post this card over at Word Art Wednesday's Challenge # 140: Anything Goes.  Come on over to see the amazing art posted and join in on the fun.

A Thank You Tag

We recently hosted a comment party to give away a few pieces of blog candy.  One winner has yet to contact me-

CREATE OUT LOUD


My hope is that this lovely lady will email me at viralscrapa AT gmail DOT com and provide me with mailing information so that I can get the prize out to her.  Thank you to everyone who commented to win.  Your encouragement and participation is greatly appreciated. 

Which leads me to today's post- a thank you tag to include with our second winner, Diane Loughrey.  Diane won the Spring Distress set of ink pads and stains.  I couldn't resist thanking her for participating. 










Here's the tag details:

• The patterned papers are Stampin' Up's Attic Boutique.  
• The flower was stamped and cut from colored cardstock with  my Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossoms set.  The flower has some Glass Shards Glitter applied with my Crystal Accents to create the dimensional glint on the flower.  The center is made using my Good Earth- Earth Elements.
• The sentiment was stamped with a Simon Says Stamp sentiment stamp in brown archival ink.  The frame is cut using my Stampin' Up Apothecary Accents Framelit die.
• All papers are edged with some Vintage Photo Distress ink.
• The floral die cut is from my Spellbinders Floral Flourish cut from green cardstock. 

Diane has emailed to say she received her package last week.  I'm watching to see what she creates with her new supplies!

Brandy's Back with One Fabulous Encouraging Card!

It's been a while since I have had the pleasure to share a creation by my bestie, Brandy.  She's the reason this blog started-we were going to blog together.  Then life got in the way and I blogged her projects for her.  Then life happened and the flow of pictures from her finished work went dry.  Well, she forwarded this picture to me a couple of weeks ago.  I thought I would share it with you because Brandy once again hit it out of the park!

Brandy used her Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossoms dies to cut out many different flowers.  The dress form is a diecut, not sure what she did to alter it.  I see some of Heartfelt Creations Classic Leaf die cuts and Spellbinders Floral Flourish.  I think that the sentiment frame is cut with Spellbinders Labels 19 square dies. 

What do you think?  Fabulous, yes!?  I'm so glad to have gotten this picture to share with you.  I hope it inspires you!

I'm entering this card in Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday challenge: Spring Flowers.   Come on over to see the beautiful spring flowers and enjoy the fun.

Grateful

Yep, I finished up that MME Ooh La La for Her paper pad.  This card was made with all the same elements as the card earlier in the week.  The grateful die cut came in my care package from Loly.  The flowers were cut using my Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossoms dies.  The center is a bit of Peacock Feathers Distress Glitter applied with a little Crystal Accents glue. The pearl accent was a sale purchase from Hobby Lobby.  I've added a few nice cards to the stash.  I should be more thankful and grateful for the graces and gifts given to me by family and friends.  I intend to put these cards to good use!

So Very Thankful

Another card created from the care package sent by Loly.  The thankful die cut was the perfect anchor for this card.  I wanted a strong color mix to highlight that die cut so I used my MME Ooh La La for Her paper pad.  The flowers were cut using my Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossoms dies.  The center is a bit of Peacock Feathers Distress Glitter and plain white glitter from the stash each applied with a little Crystal Accents glue. The white glitter picked up a bit of color from that patterned paper and I really like the finish there.  The pearl accent was a sale purchase from Hobby Lobby.  


A simple card with a nice result.  That paper pad is almost finished.  I'm going to keep it on the craft table to see if I can't finish it out. One less item in the stash!

I'm linking up over at the Inspiration Journal's April Monthly challenge: A Few of My Favorite Things.  I simply adore my Heartfelt Creations flower dies.  Also, I'm linking up over at Word Art Wednesday's Challenge #128: Anything Goes.  Come join the fun or just stop by to look at all the amazing talent on display just waiting to inspire and/or encourage you.  

A Bright Happy Birthday

I mentioned in this post that a blog friend sent me a care package with goodies.  Not because I particularly needed care, but simply because she cared!  Loly kindly included some die cuts including Happy and Birthday that I could mix and match on cards.  This stunner was created using patterned paper from Stampin' Up's Attic Boutique bought on clearance earlier last year and sitting in the stash. The flower was cut using my Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossoms dies.  The center is a bit of Peacock Feathers Distress Glitter applied with a little Crystal Accents glue.  Such a cute and simple card.  I think I might make more!

An Encouraging Sign

Work has been filled with stress lately- pressure to get things done, pressure because things aren't going right... all kinds of pressure.  I've been doing my best to ward of the inevitable lapse in creativity that often comes with this kind of pressure.  One way was to sit down (after making no time to craft at all this weekend) and make this sign for my desk.  The quote comes from a lecture given in 1976 by Clyde Kilby.  It's like he knew what kind of being I would become and decided to make me a list (I like lists!).  Of course, he didn't know me and wouldn't necessarily know what I'd become- just that we are all so similar.  There's comfort in that too.

The quote was created using Word. I have previously spoken about the process I use to create this kind of word art.  I found a tutorial on the web that explains how to use the text box feature.  I use all these methods for my word art.  Here's an image that shows the text boxes used to create the quote:

I used four different boxes set to "No Fill" and "No Line" so that when they overlap they don't obscure the box next to it.  I simply play around with font type and size until I get a feeling that the quote looks like art.  I'm not super pleased with the "forget" box placement here- a little too high.  However, I didn't notice until I had the project together.  After everything is just right, I print out the quote onto white cardstock to make the frame.  Here's the other details on the project:

• The quote frame was cut using my Spellbinders Labels 18 die and then some Worn Lipstick Distress Ink was applied using my Ink Blending Tool while the die was still in place around the cut.  
• The flowers were cut out of the MME Ooh La La 6 x 6 paper pad using my Tattered Blossoms dies. I used a combination of pearl accents and flower shaping techniques to shape and 3d those flowers.  
• The light green lattice die cut was made using my Heartfelt Creations Raindrops on Roses die.  
• The leaves are a combination of Holly Berry stamped and die cut leaves that I distressed with Peeled Paint and Vintage Photo Distress Inks and from my Our Daily Bread Designs Fancy Foliage, Spellbinders Foliage and some other dies I've long since forgotten where they came from.
• The background dark green was punched using my Mini-8 Flower punch and edged with a little Vintage Photo Distress Ink.
• A little pink vintage seem binding bow finishes off the top and a couple of pearl swirl accents add some depth to the project.    

What do you think?  Should I forget about myself and get back to work?  I'm going to take that to heart and try to set aside some crafting time this weekend.  Crafting can be the best kind of work, yes?

I'm linking this project up over at the Shabby Tea Room's Week #212: Pretty in Pink challenge, Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge: Anything Goes, and the Inspiration Journal's monthly challenge: A Few of My Favorite Things.   These are some of my favorite places to go and see inspiring creations that should light my creative fire.  Come join me!

Heartfelt Creations- Tattered Blossoms

This is the third of three cards from the Heartfelt Creations card class that Brandy and I missed at the CK convention last April.  I think it is late enough in the year to require the "last" modifier.  Where has the time gone?  It seems as though I've had plenty to distract me with work, kids stuff and a prolific card making "season".  I am happy to say that the stash is smaller than when I started the year.  Keep it up and I might actually make a dent.




When I first looked at the card kit, this card was the least appealing to me. The picture in the kit did not do it justice. Also, the shaped flower pot without a structured rectangle to make it uniform- I was just suspicious. Truthfully, this card opens weirdly to me- down and out rather than up and out. However, the finished beauty of the flowers and other accents totally make up for it.








The flowers are the usual- Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossoms which were pre-stamped/cut for the class. I applied some Peacock Feathers Distress Ink with a Fantastik. After shaping the flowers and layering them, I used the provided Glass Shards Glitter with my Crystal Accents to create the beautiful dimensional embellishment. The centers are made using my Good Earth- Earth Elements. This really pops in person. Everything was edged in Vintage Photo Distress ink and placed as instructed. I'm telling you, if you attend a CK convention near you don't hesitate to sign up for a Heartfelt Creations class. Even if you don't attend, you'll enjoy the cards!

Heartfelt Creations- Decorative Blossoms

Still catching up from April's CK Scrapbook convention.  Brandy and I signed up for a Heartfelt Creations card class that was after lunch.  Then we promptly made plans to have lunch with one of Brandy's coworkers.  What a lovely lunch we had onsite at the hotel restaurant!  We moseyed out to our class with a contented satisfaction.

We'd had a great weekend of classes, bff time and crafting.  The first warning bells rang as we walked by the classroom, door flung wide and spied the Heartfelt Creations teacher lecturing at the top of the class.  We chit chatted for another minute or so.  Then came the almost simultaneous- what classes are left??? questions from both Brandy and myself.  Then a- isn't that the card class? followed by the frantic rush to pull out class tickets and realize we'd missed our class!!  The folks at Heartfelt Creations were gracious enough to hand us the card kit as we settled in for our last class.  The great thing about Heartfelt Creations' classes is that they provide just about everything you could need.  I had to use my own ink and my own glue, but otherwise this kit has all the supplies needed. 

The cool features in this card include the rather unique corner die detail.  The background mat was cut by placing the corner die strategically such that the lacy embellishment was left in the patterned paper.  The lighter patterned paper (with a corner flower print) was then slipped under the lacy die cut and glued in place.  It's a very simple technique with an elegant result.  The flowers were pre-stamped and pre-cut for the class and I think are the Tattered Blossoms stamps and dies.  A very similar design can be found at the Heartfelt Creations website here which includes a product list and simple instructions.  I created this close up of the flower to highlight a new technique.  Small pieces of irregularly shaped acryllic, Glass Shards Glitter, was sprinkled over Crystal Accents to create an almost crystalline look to the flowers.  The result is very eye catching in person.  I had to up the contrast and lowlights in this picture to even get them to stand out.  As usual, their stuff really delivers.  I've left this card without a sentiment so that I might put it to whatever use I ultimately identify.

Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossoms Stamps and Dies
Decorative Blossom Corner Die
Bella Rose Die
Timeless Amour Paper

Heartfelt Creations- Encouraging Card

Brandy has been at it again, my friends.  Don't you just love the richness of her creations?  This little gem was created for a coworker who is moving on to bigger and better things.

Each flower was first stamped onto colored papers.  Because Brandy wasn't feeling well (that darn back!) she chose to hand-cut each flower before shaping and layering the flowers to create the lifelike look.  I'm sure you, like those who gasped out loud when first viewing this lovely card, are wondering how she was able to get that sheen on the flowers.  Me too!  That is a thin layer of Glimmer Glaze applied to the finished flower.  The finished look is really stunning and the picture doesn't do it justice at all.  There's so much detail in this creation that it's very difficult for me to identify everything.  A small list of supplies is found below.  I believe that Brandy's inspiration is this beauty from the Heartfelt Creations website. 

Great job, Brandy.  This is one for the portfolio if I ever saw it.  The colors, the richness of the design, the tattered "vintageness"... wow.  This card has me making up words...

Heartfelt Creations Tattered Blossoms
Heartfelt Creations Vintage Floret
Heartfelt Creations Butterfly Medley