Love Your Life Bee Themed Card for the RRR April 2020 Blog Hop
Hello, Friends! Here’s a sunny bee themed card to brighten your day! Welcome to the RRR April 2020 Blog Hop! You should be coming here from Karen’s beautiful blog. Today we’re working with the Spring Rainbow Assortment from the April Ribbon Club.
The inside is decorated with more patterned papers and punch out elements from the Authentique Poised Collection. My digital bee images are from Gecko Galz. Flowers are Little Birdie Wendy Sunshine and Lemonade and Yellow Crackle (out of stock). I embossed a panel of cream cardstock with an old Anna Griffin Cuttlebug folder to serve as a place to write my greeting.
Now hop on over and see what paper pretties Cherry has in store for you this month. Be sure to finish over on the RRR Blog where you can answer Bonnie’s question of the month. Maybe you will be the lucky winner of your very own April Ribbon Club Assortment!
If you don’t want to risk missing out on this gorgeous ribbon assortment, you might want to subscribe to the monthly ribbon club. You can find all the details and sign up HERE.
Bewitching Halloween Card Folio with Gecko Galz Free Image of the Month
Hello, Friends! Happy Monday! Quick question…can a Halloween card be beautiful? Because I think this Bewitching Halloween Card Folio might just be the prettiest Halloween card I’ve ever made.
This was a custom order for one of my sweet Etsy customers. The image is Gecko Galz free digital image for September, and I think it is gorgeous. Paired up with Graphic 45 “An Eerie Tale” papers, Amazing Paper Grace die cut layers, Little Birdie Flowers and RRR Elderberry Seam Binding Ribbon, it has put a spell on me!
TIP: Die cut a second layer of gold metallic paper, then adhere behind the patterned paper die cut so that it is slightly off set. This creates instant depth and dimension, and really makes things pop!
TIP: Shop estate sale jewelry for interesting pieces. The “frame” for the owl in the left hand corner was a mismatched earring that I picked up for a song. I adhered the owl chipboard behind the piece, securing it with a bit of chipboard backer. Then I added Prills around the edge to add extra interest.
Bewitching Halloween Card Folio: A Peek Inside
An Eerie Tale is the most beautiful Halloween collection of all time, in my opinion. Just look at those gorgeous roses against that black background!
Tuck a 4″ x 6″ pocket folio into the shallow pocket on the card.
Then tuck some spooktacular Halloween treats into the pocket. There’s room to write your ghostly greeting on the ephemera card.
Here’s the image, in case you want to play along in this spooktacular image challenge:
I’m entering this card in the Gecko Galz September Image Challenge. Every month GG provides a free digital image for you to use in the challenge. To receive it, sign up for the Gecko Galz monthly newsletter HERE.
I hope I shared some tips, tricks and inspiration that you can use in your own Halloween crafty adventures. If so, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section below. You’ll also find a linked supply list below the signature of this post.
Thanks for stopping by!
Cheerio,
kathy
Supply List
Graphic 45 An Eerie Tale Collection (retired, but you can find bits and pieces in a Google search)
Laserowe Love Lavender Date Card Folio Tutorial with Gecko Galz Challenge Image
Hello Friends! Summer is winding down, although you would not know it by consulting the thermometer. It’s still very hot and humid here in North Carolina. It was time to cut the blossoms from my lavender yesterday morning. While I was gathering up those fragrant blooms, I remembered this lovely Laserowe Love Lavender Date paper. It’s been patiently waiting its turn in the Closet of Shame. I decided it was time to make something beautiful with it. I also had a gorgeous free image from Gecko Galz printed out and ready to go. (Subscribe to their newsletter…they give away loads of free digital images! )
There’s something captivating about this image. It makes you feel serene and happy when you look at it. I wanted to create a card that enhanced the peaceful expression on the woman’s face. I chose soft colors and simply, shabby chic accents to achieve that goal. The end result is a card folio that feels like a framed portrait, and I just love the way it turned out.
Laserowe Love Lavender Date Card Folio Tutorial: The Basics
This card is quite a bit larger than my normal 5″ x 7″, measuring 6 1/4″ x 8 1/4″ with a 1/4″ top fold spine. Since I haven’t done a card tutorial in a long time, I thought I would share a video tutorial for making the base and decorating the card cover.
Learn how to layer this Little Birdie Floral Cascade in the video tutorial.
I dug deep into my vintage button stash looking for these rhinestone beauties. Then I tucked a few more “finds” into the floral cascade. These vintage clear buttons catch the light and add a subtle touch of sparkle to the card.
Laserowe Love Lavender Date Card Folio Tutorial: A Peek Inside
After building the card base, line it with panels of the Lavender Fields and White Cardstock. This is beautiful to look at, but it also helps to strengthen the card base. Once that is done, add your layers of designer paper. Then you can put your interactive elements in place.
Build a simple pocket on the top half of the card by cutting your cardstock 3″ longer than the length of the card base. Then score and fold.
TIP: Create “gussets” for your simple pocket by cutting 1″ x 2 7/8″ scraps of paper. Score on the short side at 1/2″ , then fold and adhere to the pocket sides. This makes it easier to fill the pocket. Of course, you can always just glue the sides to the base if you are in a hurry.
I broke out my Envelope Punch Board to make mini envelopes for this card. These both measure 2 1/2″ x 3 1/2″ . A purple tea bag is tucked inside the envelope to go with the vintage enameled demitasse spoon and the honey stick.
The bottom half of the card has a sweet little flip page that’s secured with a ribbon closure.
Turn the flip page to find a hidden pocket with a little surprise tucked inside.
This envelope holds a lovely little button card made from a bit of ephemera.
The sentiment panel is hand stamped, then matted on more of the soft green and lavender papers. I explain how I did this in the video.
Laserowe Love Lavender Date Card Folio Tutorial Video
If you’d like to learn how to build the card folio base and watch the cover design come together, please enjoy this video tutorial.
I’ve loaded this beauty into my Etsy shop. It would make a lovely gift or a bit of home decor. You can find it HERE.
I hope I’ve shared some tips, tricks and techniques that you can use in your own crafty adventures. If so, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section below.
Gecko Galz Guest Designer: Beachy Blues Digital Collage Card
Hello, Friends! Today I’m guest designing for the fine folks at Gecko Galz. This Beachy Blues Digital Collage Card has me dreaming of the walking barefoot along the shore. It’s the perfect card for Gecko Galz August Shabby Chic Seaside Challenge.
I’ve combined some old Pion Design papers up with a gorgeous digital image from By the Shore and the beach clock from Time Flies. The end result is a dreamy beach scene. Little Birdie flowers, blue micro gingham ribbon and lots of pretty shells that I gathered along our North Carolina shores frame the card. I feel like I could just walk right into the image on this card front.
TIP: Thin white acrylic paint with a little water, then spatter lightly all over the card front. It adds such a lovely shabby finish to a card, To me, the spatters look like bubbles in the water.
Beachy Blues Digital Collage Card: A Peek Inside
Of course, there are pockets inside the card. You have to have a place to tuck in all those beachy treasures!
I’ve stitched a little shell bookmark and topped it with some natural fibers, charms and ribbon.
This darling magnet features another image from the By the Shore Digital collage sheet. Stitching natural fibers around the edges give it just the right beachy finish.
I hope I shared some tips, tricks and techniques that you can use in your own crafty adventures. If so, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section below.
Gecko Galz Guest Designer: Beach Buddies Mixed Media Card
Hello, Friends! I’m back with another Gecko Galz Guest Designer post. This Beach Buddies Mixed Media Card is made to go along with their Shabby Chic Seaside Challenge for the month of August.
When our kids were little, we would save up all year for a week at the beach. This was better than Christmas or birthdays or anything else I can remember. Watching our kids dig in the sand, frolic in the waves, search for beach treasures filled my heart with joy. The beach is the perfect spot for a family vacation! This lovely image from Cuties by the Shore Digital Collage Sheet brought all those wonderful memories back to me.
TIP: Cheesecloth adds great texture when sandwiched between paper layers. Create the “tide pool” with the anchor frame.
First, heat emboss the anchor frame with Versamark Embossing Ink and Stampendous Aged Gold Embossing Enamel.
Next, adhere the back side of the frame to slightly crumpled and stretched piece of cheesecloth.
Now, fill the frame with little shells, sand and chipboard fish.
Beach Buddies Mixed Media Card: A Peek Inside
I’ve been cleaning out The Closet of Shame, and found this pretty lighthouse paper. The color tones were a perfect match for the Gecko Galz image and the Laserowe Love papers, so I used it inside the card. Create a little pocket for a sentiment card on top. Decorate with a fussy cut anchor from the paper collection.
This 3″ x 5″ gift card wallet is a real product mashup.
First, cut an 8 1/2″ x 5″ panel of navy cardstock for your base.
Line the cover with lighthouse paper and then a smaller panel of the distressed dots pattern.
Now, die cut a clock image from Gecko Galz “Time Flies” Digital Collage sheet.
Then heat emboss the anchor with both aged gold and Chunky Rust.
Layer the elements together on the front of the gift card.
Finally, add brads to the corners. (These are ancient…I think maybe from Canvas corp???)
Room for a little note, and a gift card inside.
I hope I’ve shared some tips, tricks and techniques you can use in your own crafty adventures. If so, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section below.
