A Birthday Rose for You

In this pretty card we combined a few different techniques that are easy to copy for you at home. First of, we used the "Beautiful You" (D1741) stamp set from Close to My Heart. If you ever wanted to try the layered stamping technique, then this set is a great start for you. The set includes three different sized flowers, leaves and a couple of phrases. While you can purchase just the stamp set, you can also get a bundle with the matching dies included. The bundle is called "Beautiful You Stamp + Thin Cuts" (Z3384)".

We started out with a white piece of cardstock. To use the layered stamps you need 3 different shades of ink to make it work. We used CTMH bashful ink for the base stamp (the big one of the big flower). Next we used pixie ink for the medium flower stamp of the big flower. Last we used blossom ink for the smallest stamp of the big flower.

The stamps are perfectly lined up on the carrier sheet, so when you take them off and place them on your blog, make sure to keep the same direction on all of them. Line them up with the previous one and make sure to start with the lightest to darkest ink. Some stamps might work in reverse order of the ink colors, but I normally always go light to dark.

After we stamped one rose in two opposite corners, we used a black pen and ruler to create the lines around the piece. The leaves are stamped with the masking technique. We stamped the first rose part (bigger stamp) on a piece of sticky note and cute around it. We then covered the completed rose up with the sticky note and stamped the leave on either side. Don't worry to stamp partially on the stick note. Once you are done remove the sticky note and the leave appears to be behind the flower. Now we cut from the middle of the cardstock around the lines and the rose to create a frame. 

Next we placed the pixie colored cardstock on the front of our card base and adhered the design paper with the writing right on top of it. The rose frame was placed with foam dots on top of the design paper. A few decorations and this card is done.

Oh and the leaves on the inside are stamped with secondary stamping. You ink you leave up in fern ink, stamp it on the inside and without re-inking, stamp it again right next to it. This way you will get a dark and a light impression of your ink.

Sympathy Card in Shades of Grey

Sometimes less color is more especially when we are talking about a sympathy card. Here we used shades of grey to create an elegant card.

The card base measures 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" and we cut a piece of dark grey cardstock at 4" x 5 1/2". The grey cardstock is adhered to the front of the card base flush with the left side or if you choose in the center to create and even edge around it.

The white cardstock strip is cut at 2 3/4" x 5 1/2" and was stamped with a swirly flower image. We used a lighter shade of grey ink for the stamping parts on this card. A partial image of the swirly flower was stamped to the inside of the card as well as the phrase.

The strip is adhered to the grey cardstock. We used a black journaling pen to add faux stitching to the edge. A few sequins, a butterfly punched from embossed white cardstock and a flag that was stamped with sympathy was added and this card is done.

Happy Birhtday Tuscany Style

Do you ever had a stamp set that is so pretty because it has so much detail? I love these sets, but often they are even more impressive when you color them in. Well, not always do I have the time to color every detail, but this is a solution that will work for me too.

First of, we used a regular card base and added a piece of cardstock embossed with some beautiful vines to it. (Oh, before you adhere it to the base, make sure to add the ribbon to the bottom of the embossed piece so the ends can go on the back of it). Now to the stamping part: We stamped the Tuscany scene in a grey ink to a piece of white cardstock. We also had a little bistro scene that was stamped on a round piece. Don't worry if either stamp doesn't fit completely on the white card stock, just let the stamp hang over the edges.
The Tuscany scene was added with foam dots on top of the embossed cardstock while the round piece was adhered to a round scalloped cardstock piece. We used just three colored pencils to give the round stamped image a little dimension. A few embellishments and this card was done. Oh and don't forget the inside :-)

A Bunch of Thank You's

Here we used a really cute and versatile stamp set. It is called "Many Congratulations" (C1693) and it covers a lot of different occasions. For this card we used the flowers that come with the set.

Sometime we tend to overcomplicate things but this card is really not complicated at all. We used a regular 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card base and added a piece of dotted design paper cut at 4" x 5 1/4" to it.

The white cardstock piece is stamped three times with the flower stamp in black ink and adhered to a terracotta colored mat about 1/4" bigger than the white piece. To give the flowers a little more dimension, we used colored pencils to lightly shade them. A scalloped oval cut from golden glitter paper was added with foam dots and a little ribbon piece on top of the area where the flower met. "Thank You" was stamped on a matching oval and placed on the gold glitter piece.

Oh and don't forget to stamp and decorate the inside as well.

Take Heart

This card base is cut from a sheet of white cardstock at 4 1/4" x 11" and folded in half.
The front is covered with a black piece of cardstock cut at 4 1/4" x 5 1/2".

I used a green sheet of design paper cut at 5 1/2" x 3" and stamped the three flowers from the Close to My Heart "Many Congratulations" (C1693) set on it. 

I colored the flowers in with some alcohol markers. 

Next I cut two strips of gold mirri gold cardstock at 5 1/2" x 1/4" and added them to the back of the green design paper. Just far enough so you have a small border of gold showing on each side of the piece.
The brown ribbon is a two part piece. The long piece is added to the green design paper. The whole assembly is then adhered with a good strong adhesive to the black front (in the center).

The ribbon is tied separately and adhered with two glue dots. I always adhere my bows with a glue dot on each side of the bow. This way the bow stays nice and straight on the card.

The "Take Heart" tag is stamped on a piece of white oval shaped cardstock. I matching scalloped edged oval is adhered with foam dots to the white and both are adhered with foam dots to the card.



For the inside of the card I stamped my phrase and one of the flowers in a light ink. 

Best Fishes for your Birthday

Here is a cute masculine card for all the fisher men in your live. 

The card starts with a 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" card base. The green cardstock is cut at 5 1/4" x 4" and adhered in the center of the card front. I stamped the phrase in black ink in bottom corner before adding it to the base.





The blue cardstock is cut at 3 1/4" x 4 1/2" and the white stamped piece is cut at 3" x 4 1/4".

I stamped the image in black ink and adhered the blue bakers twine to the bottom of the piece before I adhered it in the center of the blue cardstock.
The blue cardstock is added with foam dots to the green part slightly offset and above the stamped phrase. 

 The fish was stamped on a piece of white cardstock and colored in with alcohol markers. I then cut it out and added it with foam dots to the card. A small rhinestone finishes off the front.

For the inside I stamped my phrase and a little bucket in black ink. I added a strip of the green and blue cardstock used on the front to the inside as well.  

With a black pen I added some fishing line and a little hook at the end. 

Hey and while I was add it, I stamped the little bucket on the envelope as well.

Butterfly Recovery

 Butterflies make a wonderful card to lift someone spirit. Combined with tangerine and yellow colors a perfect match.

I used a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card base and adhered a piece of Close to My Heart "Tangerine" cardstock to the center (cut at 4" x 5 1/4").

The background is stamped on a piece of white cardstock measuring 3 3/4" x 5". I stamped the blocks in tangerine and lemon ink by Close to My Heart. To make it more interesting I used a doted stamp to create some extra texture (ink Almond)

The phrase on the outside and inside are from a retired Close to My Heart stamp set. I know, how can I used them if you can't get them anymore? Well, we all have so many set and I keep all my phrase set since you can never have enough of them, right? Sometimes I see a card and I love the stamp, but don't have it in my stack or can't get it anymore either. So what to do? Well I look through my stamps and see if I can find a similar one or one that I can use instead. I am sure you will find something too that works for you.

 The butterflies are punched out from a sheet of Close to My Heart "Basic Fundamental Paper Pack" (Z3353). This set of fundamentals is a really great one. Neutral colors and designs, perfect to go with colored cardstocks.

I adhered the butterflies with a glue dot. Two of the butterflies are cut out from silver mirri cardstock. 

I used a black pen to add some doodling and the little antennas.

Celebrate the Good Thymes

Having a thymes stamp laying around? Well let's put it to work shall we? This card is made with a card base 4 1/4" x 5 1/2". I covered the front with a pieces of light grey cardstock. I cut two pieces of design paper at 4" x 2 5/8". I stamped the thymes image on one piece all along the bottom. 

Adhere the stamped piece to the bottom of the grey cardstock and the other one to the top. Make sure to leave an even border around it. I placed a piece of silver glitter trim over the middle. Now about the wrap, I cut it at 3" x 5" and folded in half. Before I adhered it to the card I stamped the tips of the thymes to the bottom of one side. I lined the front piece up with the card and adhered the back side to the card.

The little tag was combined of two punched out pieces. I created the phrase from three different stamps....remember you can always carefully cut the clear stamps apart and use them separately. Later place them back together.

I raised the tag with a few foam dots only placed to the left side of the tag so the wrap piece can tuck underneath. Decorate with a few rhinestones and sequins and don't forget to stamp the inside. 

Get Well Card - Color Choice

This is the last card from our April class. While every student received the same pieces, it was up to them to decide if they rather liked the white on the front or the tangerine.

The card is a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" white base. I used the Close to My Heart Tangerine cardstock and cut my pieces at 1" x 5 1/2" and 2 1/4" x 5 1/2".
The white cardstock strips are cut about 1/8" smaller but still measuring 5 1/2" on the long sides.

For the middle piece I used some design paper from the Close to My Hearts Fundamental package which had the look of watercolors. We used the matching Tangerine ink to stamp lettering on the design paper. 

The flower used for this card is from a die set from Elizabeth Design and is cut out of white cardstock.

If you like the white paper on the outside, simply adhere the white strips on top of the tangerine ones flush with the edges on the left and right side. If you decide to have the tangerine on the outside, adhere the white strips underneath the tangerine and leave the white strip sticking out about 1/8" on either side.

Stamp the "Get Well" phrase and the inside phrase on the prepared strip and the inside of the card. We use a grey ink for these phrases.

Now to assemble, lay the left (smaller) strip loose on the card front to the left. Place adhesive on the back of the design paper and line it up so the left side of the design paper would be disappearing under the left strip. Now you can adhered both strips to each side on the front of your card by using foam dots. 

The white flower cutout is placed with a little adhesive on the front. If you choose the white as your top layer, you might want to add a little color to your flower with colored pencils. A little rhinestone in the middle of the flower will finish of this card.

For any questions or if you like to join any of my classes, please feel free to contact me.

All Occasion Card - Butterfly Smiles

It is funny, sometimes I have an idea of a card in my head and I have to search for the matching papers and stamps and sometimes I start with the perfect stamp and then look for the rest.

Well this card wasn't at all plant this way, but it turned out to be one I really love. I had this wonderful stamp from a Catherine Pooler collection that I thought was perfect to use.


Next I was comparing colors and going back and forth with design papers until it just came to me. The white cardbase measures 4 1/4" 5 1/2" with the fold to the top. I used Close to My Heart cardstock of the following colors: Sea Glass (Color of the Year 2017) and Slate grey. Sea Glass piece is cut at 4" x 5 1/4", Slate piece is cut at 3 3/4" x 5" and finally a piece of white cardstock is cut at 3 1/2" x 4 3/4".

I also used the corresponding ink colors. I first stamped the long watercolor strip in Sea Glass and the two top smaller stripe bundles. I also stamped on smaller stripe bundle on the inside of the card. I then filled in the spaces with the same stamps but the Slate grey ink.

The phrases are stamped in black ink to the front and inside of the card. Assembling is really simple. Adhere Sea Glass cardstock in the center of the cardbase. Now adhere the Slate cardstock in the center of the Sea Glass one and finally ad the white cardstock with your stamped images in the center of the grey one.

The butterfly was punched out of some silver glitter paper and is added with some silver metallic thread and glue dots to the card.

Sympathy Card - Sea Grass

For this card you need a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" white cardbase.

I started with a pieces of slate grey cardstock measuring 4" x 5 1/4". I used a stitched dies to cut out the center square. 

I stamped the phrase in black ink in the lower right corner before I adhered the "frame" in the center of my cardbase.

For the inside panel, I cut a piece of white cardstock about 1/4" smaller than my die cutout. Since I didn't use a lot of water for the background, using regular white cardstock is fine. 

 Our Close to My Heart Watercolor Paint (Z3132) has just the right colors for this project. Actually the set includes 36 colors so plenty to choose from to find your perfect match.

Using a wide brush I started with the orange, then the blue and at the end the green color. Make sure to let the paint dry really good otherwise your stamped image will be ruined.

Ones my piece was dry I stamped the sea grass image in black ink on it, well and the cute little dragonflies.

I adhered the watercolor image to the cutout stitched element and place them back in the opening raised by some foam dots.

A few matching blue sequins spread out on the front are all this card needs.

For the inside we used a matching phrase and the same sea grass stamp. This time we stamped the grass in a light green. This adds a settle image to the inside.

If you like ad a little black pen doodling and this card is done.

For more information on this projects or others seen here on the blog, please contact me.

Male Birthday Card - Sailing and Lighthouse

Masculine cards are always a bit more challenging to make. I don't know what it is about them, but it just takes more creative thinking to make them.

I usually search for the perfect stamp set to use for the project. Well you can't go wrong with lighthouses and sailing boats right? While I have a few new sets with fish or golf that will come up here on the blog, this is the one we created in class in April.

The cardbase is a 5" x 6 1/2" card. The brown paper is cut at 3" x 6 1/2" and the design paper is cut at 2" x 6 1/2".

Before you adhere the papers to the cardbase, make sure to wrap the the bakers twine around the bottom of the brown cardstock. Close the ends with a knot and adhere the cardstock flush to the left side of your cardbase. Now add the design paper flush with the right side.

For the pictures, I cut two square pieces of cream colored cardstock at 3" and stamped the images in chocolate brown ink on it. I used a sponge and the same ink to go around the edges of the squares. 

While the lighthouse square is adhered directly to the base, the sailing boat was raised with some foam dots. 

The happy birthday is also stamped in the brown ink on the inside of the card and the little tag for the outside. A leftover piece of the design paper decorates a little the inside including some doodling.  

The front is finished of with some matching sequins and there you have it :-) 
For question or if you like to attend my classes, please feel free to contact me.

April Card Class Projects

Here is my monthly view on the cards we created in April. Like always I try to pick card topics that are important to the ladies in my class. This been said, you can always pick a design and simply change the phrase or poem to you liking's.

Masculine birthday cards are always a challenge, but this beautiful stamp set with the lighthouse and sailing boat is a perfect match. 









The next card started out with this beautiful phrase (and wait until you see the inside phrase :-) ). Simple colors, a watercolor look and a sparkling butterfly make all the difference in this card...don't you think?

Since the weather here in Michigan had been a bit challenging in the past few week to say the least, we needed a pop pf color. 
A play of color and pieces makes this set really interesting. Same parts but you pick the outcome.








Last but not least we ones more pulled out our watercolors and created the background for this card. Stitched dies and a simple sea grass stamp was all that was needed to make this card.

For more details and instructions check back on the upcoming Wednesday to find out more about these cards.
If you have questions or like to attend any of my classes please feel free to contact me.
Stay tuned for more ....