One Design...2 Ways, Part Two

Here's the second version of my note card.  This one shows off a tiny sliver of DSP along one edge of the card.  It's amazing how much this tiny piece can change a card.  My Spring Open House guests will choose between this card and the one in my previous post for one of their projects.  I wonder which one they'll choose.

I made sure to place my stamping over enough so that I had the proper space to add the DSP strip.

It has a third flower on the inside of the card, the same as the first design.

It's always fun to add an envelope liner to coordinate with your card.  I use these framelits so often that I probably shouldn't even put them away:)

So..... speckles or a DSP strip... which version do you like the best? 

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One Design...2 Ways, Part One

Here's a sneak peek at a card I designed for my Spring Open House Party.  I actually ended up making 2 versions of this card.  My Spring Party Open House guests will have to choose which one they'd like to make at the party.

Have you ever made a card, stepped back and looked at it, didn't like it and just set it aside.  I did that recently, then went back... fixed it and now I like it a lot! 

At first, I thought it was too plain.  Then, I added some tiny speckles and now I really do like it.  Sometimes, just a tiny change like this one is all you need to take a card from blah to beautiful.

Our new Blossom Bunch Punch is fun and easy to use.  I saved one of the 3 flowers to use on the inside of my card.  The flowers on the front of the card are completely covered with Wink of Stella.  For the inside flower, I just added my Wink of Stella to the center of the flower.

Come back soon for a second version of this card.  I think you'll like it, too.

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Vintage Timeless Elegance Card

Are you ready for another vintage card today.  We enjoyed making this one at my class, too.  It features our beautiful Timeless Elegance DSP.  

I kept this one simple and let the beautiful paper be the star.  The sentiment is heat embossed and the black strip is embossed with our Lovely Lace embossing folder, one of my absolute favorites.  

The color story is a striking Sahara Sand and Black --- very elegant!

I have two more cards to share with you from our class and then you will have seen them all, so be sure to come back for my next posts.  

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Cherry on Top Cute Little 3 X 3" Cards

I love our new Cherry on Top DSP.  I decided to make some cute little cards with it... 10 in all.  By getting a package of Cherry on Top CS, I worked with these 3 wonderful colors:  Watermelon Wonder, Cucumber Crush, and Bermuda Bay. 

I used a couple of greetings from my new Tin of Cards stamp set and lined each envelope to coordinate with the cards.

What a fun project!

I love the cute little Blossom Accents for each of our new In Colors!  They attach easily with Liquid Tombow adhesive.

The cards are now all up on display in my studio.  When the previous catalog retired, I took down each and every sample I had on display.  I'm creating all new displays and it's fun to see the displays grow and start to look fresh and new.  The very last card on the lower right has banners instead of greetings.  I went to stamp the greeting and the puppies bumped me and I dropped the stamp.  Ugh!  I couldn't bear to throw the card away, so I covered the smudge with banners.

By the way, I made nearly 50 different kinds of butterflies yesterday, as I continued to work on various projects.  Come back soon as I continue to share more projects.  I'm having a ball!

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Crushed Curry and Black... a Winning Combo

I love the look of Crushed Curry with Black.  It's just crisp and stunning.  Here's what I did with the combo for this card.

First, I stamped butterflies randomly over the top layer for the card, using VersaMark Ink.  Then, I heat embossed them with black EP.  I heat embossed a few butterflies onto the envelope, as well.
Once the embossed butterflies cooled, I sponged Crushed Curry onto Whisper White CS for the top layer of the card.  I added the same touch to the corner of the envelope.

Then, for an added touch of fun, I spritzed the entire top layer with my Shimmer Mist mixture.  It's always difficult to see it in a photo, but it's beautiful in real life.

I added vellum over a DSP layer for the envelope liner.  I pulled the card together with some taffeta ribbon and then stamped, embossed and cut out 1 more butterfly to attach over the ribbon.

Come on back for my next post and I'll share another Crushed Curry/Basic Black color story.

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Watercolor, Vellum And a Unique Envelope Liner

Today, let's play with watercolor and vellum... and let's do it in Blackberry Bliss... and don't forget a butterfly.  

The oval frame for the top layer on the card was actually left over from cutting an oval piece for another card.  I cut a smaller oval opening for the layer beneath it, to give a nice contrast and added dimension.  I watercolored the top layer, using BlackBerry Bliss reinker.

I used our markers to color the butterflies on the back of the vellum piece.  I did something unique for the envelope liner.  I added DSP under the cut vellum piece!  I like how the color and design of the DSP shows through the vellum.

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Crushed Curry Thank You

This beautiful card has a lot going on with it and it's all pretty, including a bit of water coloring.  I have painted the flowers with an Aqua Painter and I've added some water coloring to the Thank You tag, as well.  The most gorgeous thing of all about it is almost impossible to catch in a photo.  The top layer is covered with a gorgeous shimmer.

I stamped the flowers onto water color paper and embossed them with Gold EP.  I then painted them with an Aqua Painter, dipping it directly into puddles of ink right in the lids of the ink pads.  I used Crushed Curry and Calypso Coral inks for this.  This is my all-time favorite way to color images.  You can do a lot with shading, it's quick and super easy, and you use the inks you already have on hand.  You don't have to do it strictly on water color papers.  You can use Whisper White or Shimmery White CS.  Just don't overdo it with the water (which wouldn't look good, anyway).  I chose to use the water color papers here to add more texture to the card.

After embossing the Thank You onto a scrap of water color paper, I just added bits of color from the Calypso Coral ink pad, using the Aqua Painter.  The top, embossed layer of the card is covered with a gorgeous shimmer spritz.  I used a mixture of White Frost Shimmer Paint and alcohol, in a spritzer.  I got the paint from our Clearance Rack.

Lining the envelope just adds the final touch of elegance.  I really like how it all turned out.  I've enjoyed a lot of extra time in my studio this week and have really been having fun working on all kinds of projects.  Be sure to keep coming back to see what I'm up to next.

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Cards Using Coloring Techniques, Part 4

Today, we'll look at the last of my 4 cards featuring coloring techniques.  This one starts with an embossed floral image on Crumb Cake CS.  Leave me a comment or question if you'd like to know more about this technique.

Remember, I mentioned that I'm featuring 4 different ways to make unique coordinating envelopes for these cards.  This one features a CS envelope liner that is embossed before inserting into the envelope.  I love this new (Lovely Lace) embossing folder.  It is gorgeous!

... and, one last time, here are all 4 of the cards again for this Friday's class.  These were taken from my Coloring Techniques Journal, which features 15 coloring techniques.

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Retro Fresh, Part 4... a File Folder Card

Today's post finishes off a little series of cards using Retro Fresh DSP.  This one is a special card... a file folder card!  It's made with our Envelope Punch Board.  It is super fun and easy to make it.  I promise you.  Once again, I've made a coordinating envelope for my card.  I will add stamping and/or writing on the inside card before I send it, along with a little label on the 'file tab.'  Sometimes, I like to wait until I'm ready to send a card, so I can personalize it for the recipient. 

This card uses the ruffled stretch ribbon to be both an embellishment AND a way to hold it together.  A very special stamp is featured here, too, a personalized stamp.  You can order these stamps with your own wording in them.  They are photopolymer and super fun and easy to use for stamping.

If you haven't tried a file folder card yet, please do.  You don't want to miss out on the fun!

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Retro Fresh, Part 3

Here we go with yet one more card using Retro Fresh DSP.  This one features a 'tag' made using our wonderful, new Angled Tag Topper Punch.  I love this new punch!  The tag has a little sprig of ruffled ribbon at the top, in Baked Brown Sugar.  Instead of stamping the message directly onto the tag, I stamped it onto the wooden pieces and attached them to the tag.

And there you have it... a quick and cute thank you card for a fun friend.

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Retro Fresh, Part 2

Let's continue on with another card using our Retro Fresh DSP.  Who wouldn't like to get a thank you card like this one?  It has its own coordinating envelope, too.  The little wooden elements just add a fun touch as embellishments.

I really like working with the Starburst Framelits Dies.  They are just fresh and fun and perfect for layering.  So, that's it for today.  Short and sweet.

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Retro Fresh, Part 1

Remember my post about stamping on wood?  Well, here's some wood for you to stamp on that's already cut into really cute shapes.
So, are you hip?  If you're not sure, maybe you should try out our new Hip Notes stamp set.  It coordinates with our Essentials Wooden Elements.
Let's put the whole look together with some of our Retro Fresh DSP... on the card base and for the envelope lining.
The result... a fresh and fun card.

Click below to see a video and learn more these fun products:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BdS7IDxZahM

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Playing with DSP, Part 4

Today, we're up to Part 4 already in my series on Playing with DSP (Designer Series Papers) and I have another beautiful card ready to share with you.  It's another combo of black and white.  It has worked well to hurry up Spring by my making more cards for Spring but, unfortunately, I've succumbed to a severe chest cold and it has set off asthma problems with me... big time.  I need to catch a break here!  I'm trying to focus on the warmer weather when we have it and my stamping and not think about how badly I really feel.  Thank goodness for my Nebulizer!  

... and another view from my previous post...

That's all for now.  Come back soon to see how I wrap up my series on Playing with DSP.

We'll be making cards featured in this series, at my April 7 Monday Night Stampers class.

- Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogging world. 

- Click on the tab at the top of the page to see my class schedules and registration policies or click on the left for sneak peeks. 

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