Asian Inspired Tag and a Cute Little Purse

If you didn't get to join in on the Treat Yourself Crop week before last at Card Swaps...then you missed out on a lot of fun challenges! I still have a lot of things going on in my life right now so I was only able to do two of the challenges. Meredith asked us to make a tag using a specific technique of coloring and embossing. The idea is to ink your background and then stamp it in another color. You then stamp your main image with versamark ink and then clear emboss. Then you apply a darker ink all over your tag. The embossed area will reject the darker ink causing the lighter ink and stamping to show through. For Meredith's full tutorial click HERE.

I was inspired by the Japanese Shinto wood charms for my tag. I used 3 different colors of distress ink, a Japanese script rubber stamp, a Japanese crane rubber stamp and a Japanese symbol rubber stamp. For my tag base I used a kleenex box that I cut the tag shape out of to give some stability as if it were wood. I then cut two more tag shapes out of a manilla folder. After inking both pieces I then placed one on each side of the tag cut out of the kleenex box. The back of the tag is inked with black walnut distress ink to help make the tag look like wood. I then chose to top off my tag with a Japanese Omamori Tassel knot. For a tutorial on how to make one, click HERE.

The second challenge I did was hosted by Margaret. She had us make these adorable little purses.

I kept mine super simple but you can embellish them as much or as little as you want. They are super simple to make. They would be absolutely adorable for a bridal shower or to house a small gift of jewelry or something for someone. You can find the tutorial on how to make these adorable purses HERE.

If you missed the crop this time....don't fret! The next one is coming up in November.  There will be lots of challenges, games, a blog hop, prizes, not to mention all the fun and inspiration!

Thanks for stopping by!

Cherry Blossom / Memory Box Die

Have you ever CASE on a card that you saw on Pinterest or maybe someone's blog? I recently pinned a card on Pinterest that I fell in love with its simplicity and wanted to make one just like it. Using the cherry blossom die and woodland branch die from Memory Box, I was able to do just that. I used kraft cardstock for the base and the mat. The mat I crimped in my paper crimper going in one direction and then turning it and crimping it again in the other direction. It is a simple but I think elegant look.

You can see the original card that inspired this HERE.

Thanks for stopping by!

CardSwaps Treat Yourself Blog Hop

WELCOME  to the Treat Yourself Blog Hop!

There is an awesome crop going on over at the CardSwaps forum on CardMaker's site this week. Challenges and games will be posted August 8-11, 2012 and you have until 11:59PM EST August 14, 2012 to get your projects posted to the appropriate thread. If you haven't participated before, don't worry! There are many members and myself that will be around to offer support and encouragement. You can find out all you need to know in the forum. At the end of the hop, you will be taken to the crop and I do hope you join in. Collect the letters along the way and unscramble them to be entered into the drawing for a prize for one lucky hopper! You will be given details at the bottom of the post. Don't skip ahead!!! 

You should have  arrived here from Jane's  blog, I hope. If not, go back and check out her blog and see the amazing creation she has made especially for this blog hop. While there be sure to leave her some love with a comment and grab her letter that you will need for the Unscramble It game.
The blog hop "theme" goes with the crop title of "Treat Yourself". The type of project was left  up to the hostesses of the blog hop, as long as it somehow conveyed a way the hostess "treats" herself. We were also asked to share something about a way we unwind or our favorite way to treat ourselves. I had to think about that for awhile as I wasn't sure how I really treated myself to be honest. Then I thought about time with the "girls". I have 4 friends whom I have known for years and have remained close to in spite of our busy  hectic schedules of work and raising kids. We manage to schedule some girl time together now and then which usually means a lunch or dinner date followed with maybe some shopping or seeing a movie. This brings me to my project...

I really didn't have anything stamp wise or image wise that I could use to show time out with the girls so I knew I would have to think outside the box for this one! Then I remembered something that occurs just about every time we get together for lunch or dinner. A couple of years ago the 5 of us decided to try a new restaurant for our girls night out dinner. Once the waitress took  our drink order she set some coasters down in front of each of us and said she would be right back with our drinks. My eyes zeroed in on those chipboard coasters and I immediately started thinking of all the things I could make with them. I started snatching them up as I was telling my friends what all I could do with them. When the waitress returned, you could tell she had a puzzled look on her face as if she was trying to remember if she had set down coasters already or not. That's when one of my friends spoke up and let her know she wasn't going crazy but that I had taken them and put them in my purse to take home to craft with. I sat there waiting for the coaster police to come out and take me away , when to my surprise the waitress said, "I do the same thing! Here have some more." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a big stack that she handed over to me. From that time on when we meet for lunch or dinner, my friends are grabbing up their coaster and handing them over to me!

Well those coasters have been sitting on a shelf in my craft room collecting dust so I decided it was time to finally use some of them for this blog hop. I made a post it holder using a coaster for the base and one for the top. In fact just this past week I was treating myself to a luncheon with the girls so I made one for each of them. The one I have pictured here was made using a Spellbinders butterfly. I cut the butterfly out of the piece of DP used to cover the top and then repositioned the butterfly to look as if the butterfly just came right out of the paper. I used some Lumiere paint to paint the coaster so that the printing of the coaster would not show through where I cut the butterfly out. The basic design of the post it note holder is not my own original idea but is from someone I follow on you tube. You can find her directions HERE if you would like to make one of your own. 

Supplies I used:

2 chipboard 3 1/2" square coasters

Designer Paper & Cardstock

Elmer's Rubber Cement Glue

Score Tape

Spellbinder's Butterfly die

Sizzix Leaf Branch die

Lumiere Pearl White Paint

Colorbox Lavender pigment ink

Pearls from my stash

Unscramble It game for hoppers... You will be unscrambling a word once you have collected a letter at each blog you visit. The hostesses can play along, because they don't know any of the letters but their own. Once you collect ALL the letters, the last hostess (Lora) in the blog hop will direct you to the thread in the forum where you can find all the details you need to enter the drawing. All hoppers collecting all the letters, unscrambling the word or phrase, entering the game by following the directions in the forum, and leaving feedback on EVERY blog in the hop WILL be entered into a random drawing held on August 15, 2012. ONE lucky hopper will have their name drawn and will win a prize!! Fun, right?? The winner will be posted in the forum on the game thread for Treat Yourself Unscramble It! So, make sure you visit every blog and find the letters. Your hints are... it’s a phrase, it has three words, and it’s a way to keep balance in one's life.

My letter is...

i

Now, be sure to hop on over to Margaret's blog next to see what she has created and to collect your next letter. Hope to see you over at the crop joining in on all the fun with the challenges and games!

The list of hoppers, in case you got lost somewhere on the hop:

Brooke Smith (CardMaker Blog)   :   http://www.cardmakermagazine.com/blog/
Jane   :   http://jane-notsuchaplainjane.blogspot.com/
Susan   :   http://lilbitofme-susan.blogspot.com/
Margaret      http://mmora-lilyana-365.blogspot.com/
Trudy Sjolander   :   http://truesgiftsfromtheheart.blogspot.com/
Golda   :   http://goldapete.wordpress.com/
Meredith   :   http://whatsnextma.blogspot.com/
Jeanette   :   http://jeanette9677.blogspot.com/
Colleen Schaan   :   http://www.distinctivetouches.com/
Laura   :   http://ljjonescircus.blogspot.com/
Ivanka   :   http://ivankascardstudio.blogspot.com/
Marlene   :   http://www.marlenescubbyholecreations.blogspot.com/
Anya Schrier   :   http://aschoss.blogspot.com/
Angelina   :   http://angel-artdesign.blogspot.com/
Ana   :   http://anaggarciam.blogspot.com/
Ashley   :   http://www.stampingwithashley.blogspot.com
Lora   :   http://www.lorabrinkman.com/

Christmas Wreath Card

Wow! Two posts in one day from me....and back to back ...LOL! Sorry about that. I meant to add this to the previous post and I no sooner clicked on the publish button when I realized I hadn't added this card to the post. So I decided to just make a separate post for this card. I promised myself I would try very hard to have my Christmas cards done early this year. Of course I say that every year and I always end up at last minute trying to get them all finished up and mailed. I'm thinking about designs though and I had fun making this one.

The wreath is made with the Martha Stewart pine branch punch. I punched several out in white cardstock and then placed them around a circle shape I had cut out with a Spellbinders die. I wanted to keep it simple and more of a white Christmas type of theme. Therefor I chose to have the only color be the red embellies on the wreath and bow. The border design was made using a Martha Stewart border punch. I had fun making the wreath and plan to try it out in green next.

Thanks again for stopping by!

House Mouse Tent Topper Card and Grand Madison Window Die Card

Hello! I meant to post these awhile ago. I actually have been making cards lately...well a few but just haven't been getting around to posting them. Things have been kind of chaotic and hectic in my life for awhile. Anywho....the card pictured above was made using the Grand Madison window die from Poppy Stamps / Memory Box. I fell in love with this window die and have pinned many examples of it being used on Pinterest. I have a lot of ideas for it and sure hope I find time in the near future to try out all of those ideas. The sun and sunrays were made with Colorbox pigment inks. The landscape is a die also by Memory Box called Country Landscape. The DP is by Basic Grey.

The next card below was for a challenge I hosted over on Card Swaps on the CardMaker site. The challenge was to make a tent topper card. The image I used is called O Happy Day....a House Mouse stamp by Stampabilities. I colored the image with Prismacolor color pencils. Embossing folder is by Cuttlebug and the cardstock is by Bazzill.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope everyone is having a wonderful summer and staying cool. It has been a hot summer so far here in the Midwest!

Sunshine Cards / Country Landscape Memory Box Die

Do you picture a card in your head but when you sit down to make it, it just doesn't come out the way you pictured it? Most often that is the case with me but not this time. This design came out exactly the way I imagined it. I originally planned to make another starburst card like the two I made last month using yellow patterned paper to help resemble sunshine. The more I thought about it though, I decided to ink it and create my own rays of sunshine.

I had decisions to make though...what time of day for my sun rays...early morning...later in the day etc. Should I round my corners, keep them square, sun cut to fit the card or hanging off the edge etc. Soooo...I decided to make two cards using all the ideas instead of choosing.

This card has the darker rays, rounded corners and the sun coming off the edge.

The next card has squared corners, lighter color rays and the sun cut to fit the card. I think I like both equally!

Here's how I made both:

I took a scrap piece of white cardstock and cut the narrow strips to help make my rays. I then took some Elmer's Rubber Cement Glue and ran some glue on one side of the white strips...covering them completely. I love Elmer's Rubber Cement. It can be used for both a permanent glue and a repositonable tacky glue. It also does not wrinkle or warp your paper. Putting the strips aside to dry and become tacky I then cut the remainder of my pieces I needed to make my cards. The card base is 4 1/4" x 5 1/2". The mat that the sun rays are on is 4" x 5 1/4". My sun is cut from a Spellbinder die and measures 2 1/2" in diameter. The bottom piece used for cutting the landscape and stamping the word "Sunshine" measures 2 1/4"  x 4"before cutting the landscape. All pieces were cut from white cardstock.

My white strips were now dry and tacky and ready to postion on my 4" x 5 1/4" mat. Once I had them into postion I proceeded on to ink my rays. Using yellow pigment ink I inked the mat all over using a direct pad to paper method. I then took a stencil brush and stenciled Rose Coral pigment ink all over on top of the yellow. Still applying ink with a stencil brush I now took Apricot pigment ink and stenciled color from about the middle of the rays and out to the edges. Continuing on I then stenciled Old Rose pigment ink around the edges and then I blended all colors for a smooth transition of light to dark on the outer edges. All four colors of ink used are pigment inks by Colorbox. For the lightter rays I used less ink and more for the darker rays. Once inked I removed my white strips for masking to reveal my white stripes between the rays. For the sun I inked the circle all over with the yellow pigment ink and then blended in some Apricot pigment ink all over.

I then used the Country Landscape die by Memory Box to cut the landscape border on my 2 1/4" x 4" piece. I then stamped my "Sunshine" sentiment which is a clear dollar stamp that I picked up at JoAnn's. I then adhered my sun ray mat to my card base, pop dotted my sun into place and then pop dotted my landscape border on top of that for dimension.

It was a pretty simple and quick card to make. I have a ton more ideas that came to mind using the Country Landscape border while working on this card that I can't wait to try. Also thought this card would be cute with a silhouette of a rooster in front of the sun. Makes me think of the days when I was little and would visit my relatives on the farm.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful week!

Red, White and Blue Tag / Memory Box dies

Have you discovered Memory Box dies yet? I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE them! They are my latest craze and I can't seem to get enough of them. They carry such a fun and unique line of dies that cut very nicely and are fun to work with.

I made this tag for a challenge that I hosted over at Card Swaps on the CardMakers site week before last. The challenge was to make a card or a tag using any shades of red, white and blue. There was a twist though....you could not make a USA patriotic card. The carousel birdcage, perched bird, woodland branch and flowers are all dies from Memory Box. The pine branch is a Martha Stewart punch.

Have a great week!