Tag Archives: Shabby Chic

How to Embellish a Shabby Chic Card

How to Embellish a Shabby Chic Card with Reneabouquets for Throwback Thursday

Hello, Friends!  Would you like to learn how to embellish a Shabby Chic Card?  I thought it might be fun for  you to see how I create that wonderful shabby chic vibe using fancy trims, florals and embellishments.  So that’s the theme of our Throwback Thursday tutorial this week.

Does your mojo ever hit a speed bump?  You know those days when you want to create, but you just can’t seem to focus in on what you want to make?  What do you do when that happens to you?

Although I almost always have a list of projects I want to make, sometimes I walk into my studio and just draw a complete blank.  When this happens to me, I have a plan of action that almost always seems to get me over the speed bump.  Want to know what I do?

What to Do When Your Mojo Hits a Speed Bump

Lemoncraft-Grow Old with Me-Shabby Chic-Tea Party in a Box-Reneabouquets-Kathy Clement-Kathy by Design

Organize.  Yep…that’s right.  Choose a small area of your studio or crafty space and start organizing it.  It had been a while since I had sorted and organized the papers in my Iris Cart bins.  So I chose 2 carts and proceeded to organize those papers.

First, I put all my Christmas papers into storage under my work table. Then I sorted my paper collections into themes: floral, baby, masculine, etc.  And lo and behold, in the midst of doing that, I ran across this lovely paper collection from Lemoncraft.  Suddenly I  knew exactly what I wanted to make: a tea party in a box card with a tea theme!  Yay!

Tea Party Fit for a Queen

Lemoncraft-Grow Old with Me-Tea Party in a Box-Reneabouquets-Kathy Clement-Kathy by Design-Photo 01

Before I  knew it, I had pulled this peach tulle trim and vintage lace from my stash of Reneabouquets goodies.  A quick dip into my flower stash earthed up these apricot and pale yellow flowers.  Then I remembered these divine tea ephemera pieces that my friend Becky had sent me.  Easy peasy!  I’ll show you how to put this pretty card front together in today’s video tutorial.  And, it’s way easier than you think!

A Peek Inside

The tea theme on the front of the card inspired me to create a Tea Party in a Box inside the card.  And then I remembered that I have this sweet teacup die and stamps in my stash.  Why not invite them to the party?

Decorate the front of your flap page with a die cut teacup complete with embossed sentiment and lacy doily.  Oooh…that was fun!

Since I had my stamps out, I decided to stamp a little sentiment pocket inside the flap.  And, why not make a bookmark while I’m at it?

My friends, this is a tea party fit for royalty!  Wouldn’t this make a great Mother’s Day gift?  I might just have to send it to myself!

How to Embellish a Shabby Chic Card Video on YouTube

If you’d like to watch me embellish this card and share my thought process, please enjoy this video on my YouTube channel.

I hope I shared some tips, techniques and ideas that you can use in your next crafty adventure.

You can find a linked supply list below this post.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cheerio,

kathy

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Prima Miel Square Tag Mini Album Tutorial

Prima Miel Square Tag Mini Album Tutorial by Kathy Clement Kathy by Design Photo 01

Prima Miel Square Tag Mini Album Tutorial for Throwback Thursday

Hello, Friends!  Oh, I have the sweetest little Prima Miel Square Tag Mini Album Tutorial to share with you for our Throwback Thursday project this week!  This idea popped into my head while I was working on some projects for our daughter’s wedding.  We are just 3 weeks away from that happy day, and I’m making all the little table favors.  (I’ll share those with you after the wedding!) Y’all know how much I love tags, and I’ve made quite a few tag albums in the past.  This design borrows ideas from some of those, but it also has some fun new twists that I find to be very exciting!

Prima Miel Square Tag Mini Album by Kathy Clement Kathy by Design Photo 02

The base for this little beauty is a pack of G45 Ivory Square Tags.  How fun is that?  This shabby chic gem is super easy to construct.  You can use any paper that you happen to have in your stash, so go check out your Closet of Inspiration and Delight and see what’s waiting to be transformed into this charming project.

A Peek Inside

Prima Miel Square Tag Mini Album Tutorial by Kathy Clement Kathy by Design Photo 01

If you have the G45 Square Tag Die, this album comes together in a snap.  Simple cut 12 tag liners for the covers and pages.  If you don’t have the die, you can cut designer paper to 4 1/8″ x 4″, round the corners and only the ivory dome will show.  You can ink that or leave it as it is.  If you don’t have ivory tags, kraft tags would work just as well.

The tutorial shows you how to assemble the album base, line the pages and add the interactive elements.

Even though this album is small, it works well with the scale of this paper.  And, there’s a surprising amount of room for photos and journaling.

The Pop Up Page

I even managed to fit in a pop up page!  Here’s how to  make it:

  • First, cut a 10 1/2″ x 3 3/4″ panel of designer paper.  Score at 5 1/4″ and fold a mountain fold.
  • Next, fold the right hand side of the paper back toward the center fold and crease.
  • Then fold the left hand side of the paper back toward the center fold and crease.
  • You will now have 4 panels: 2 with valley folds and one with a mountain fold.
  • Place adhesive on the outside edge of the left hand panel and adhere to the page base.
  • Now place adhesive on the outside edge of the right hand panel and adhere to the base.
  • The mountain fold should be centered between the 2 pages.
  • Now close the album and crease.  Easy peasy!
Tag Pockets

Look at these cute pockets!  We will use a G45 Regular Kraft tag to make them.  They are so quick and easy to do that you will want to add them to cards and projects all the time.

Prima Miel Square Tag Mini Album Tutorial on YouTube

If you love tags like I do, you might enjoy a stroll through my tag archives HERE.

Do you think you’ll take this sweet little tag album tutorial for a spin?  I hope you do!

You’ll find a linked supply list below this post.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cheerio,

kathy

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Tiara Trifold Shabby Chic Gift Box Set

Amazing Paper Grace DOM July 2022 Shabby Chic Gift Box by Kathy Clement Photo 01

 Tiara Trifold Shabby Chic Gift Box Set June 2022 APG DOM and Stamperia Garden of Promise

Hello, Friends!  Today I’m sharing this Tiara Trifold  shabby chic gift box set made with the June 2022 Amazing Paper Grace Die of the Month.  Little boxes of all kinds delight me.  It has been far too long since I last made one.  But as soon as I opened this gorgeous Die of the Month, the idea began forming in my brain.  I’ve paired this delightful die up with Stamperia’s Romantic Garden of Promise paper collection.  Oh, what fun I had putting this project together!   

I’ve prepared a short video tour of the project for you with lots of tips and ideas for using this marvelous die. There’s also a complete photo array of the project  at the end.  So I won’t overwhelm you with a lot of information here.

This little box has so much room for goodies!  If you’re interested, I might try to work up a tutorial showing you how to build the walls, inner box, trifold card and inserts.  Just let me know in the comments below, and I’ll see what I can do!

Tiara Trifold Shabby Chic Gift Box Tour with Tips on YouTube

I also wanted to let you know that Spellbinders is having a wonderful 40% off sale this weekend.  Woo-hoo!

If you’d like to join the Amazing Paper Grace Die of the Month Club, you can do that HERE.

You can find a linked supply list below this blog post.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  Wishing all of you a safe, happy and festive 4th of July!

Cheerio,

kathy

Trifold Tiara Shabby Chic Gift Box Supply List

Shabby Chic Throwback Thursday Tutorial with Reneabouquets

Julie Nutting French Flea Market Spellbinders Picot Petite Circles Spellbinders Picot Petite Ovals Reneabouquets Printed Beautiful Board for Throwback Thursday Kathy Clement Photo 01

Shabby Chic Throwback Thursday Tutorial with Reneabouquets

Hello, Friends!  Welcome to this Shabby Chic Throwback Thursday Tutorial!  Today we’re working with some gorgeous Reneabouquets Printed Beautiful board and Julie Nutting’s 2017 French Flea Market Collection from Photo Play.  We’re going to chat about some important design principles while we make a beautiful card together.

Julie Nutting French Flea Market Card with Reneabouquets Printed Beautiful Board by Kathy Clement

Does this ever happen to you?  See a gorgeous paper collection.  Fall in love with gorgeous paper collection.  Allow the gorgeous paper collection to fall into your cart.  Take the gorgeous paper collection home.  Put it neatly away.  Forget about it for 4 years.  Find it while you are cleaning out the Closet of Shame.  That’s pretty much how this card unfolded.   Please tell me I am not alone in this.  But better late than never!  Let’s dig in and get our craft on!

Card Making Design Principles to Remember

Many people tell me that they struggle when it comes to working with patterned papers.  So I thought that in today’s video tutorial I’d share a few simple principles that I follow when selecting patterned papers for a card.

  • Begin by finding a good background paper.  You want something that sets the tone for your card.  For instance, a bold geometric print would not work very well with these Shabby Chic images.  But this soft floral print is perfect.
  • Now, pick a couple of patterns that play well with the background.  I chose a neutral toile and a very soft script.  The toile is a large print, so you might think it shouldn’t work.  But because it is such a neutral color, it blends beautifully.  And the soft script pattern reads almost like a solid.  So these three patterns harmonize well together.
  • Then you need to add a pop of color.  So I chose the large rose print and die cut it with an oval shaped die.  The rounded corners provided visual relief from all the square corners. That is also a good tip to  keep in mind.
  • The final layer is the soft microdot print.  I chose this panel because it allows my focal images to pop.

Make sense?

More Design Tips

Another great tip for card design is to add dimension to your individual layers with foam tape or waste chipboard pieces.  This depth lends the illusion that you could walk right into the vignette on the page.  You also want to think about texture when making a card.  Machine stitching, mulberry flowers, shell buttons, metallic string, and ribbon all have different textures.  Mixing textures makes for a more interesting card design. I’ll share a few more design tips in the video tutorial below.

A Peek Inside

Don’t you just love this paper collection?  I can’t believe it took me so long to use it.  (She hangs her head in shame.)

A magnetic flap element gives me a spot to add a journal card .  You can tuck a photo or write a note here.

The pocket is the perfect spot to tuck in a little gift ensemble.

And this little tea wallet is not just a stylish addition to the card.  It’s a great way to clean up some paper scraps!

Shabby Chic Throwback Thursday Card Tutorial on YouTube

If you’re ready to see this card come together, please enjoy this YouTube tutorial.

I hope you enjoyed making this pretty card with  me.

You’ll find a linked supply list below the post.

To see previous Throwback Thursday projects, please click HERE.

To leave a comment on this post, click on the blue REPLIES button located beneath the title at the top of the page.  I always enjoy hearing from you!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Cheerio,

kathy

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Please note: Throwback Thursday projects use older, retired paper collections, dies, stamps, etc.  Many times these items are no longer available for purchase.  If an item used on this card is not listed below, it is because I could not find it for sale online.  Thanks for understanding!

 

Laserowe Love Lavender Date Card Folio Tutorial

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.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cheerio,

kathy

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