Americana Card

Here is my final card for the 4th. To begin, I made a cream card base then covered it with the navy star paper which is from Jo Anns in their by the sheet bins. I then cut the cream strip that runs down the middle and hand stiched with embroidery thread the zig zag  strips in red. The red star print is from the Bo Bunny LIbery Collection. Then I stamped another cream piece with a firework stamp in red and navy blue and embossed them with clear detail powder. The flag is also a stamp on cream cardstock, cut out and then covered with coordinating glitter glue. The red scallop strip is cream with red spray ink. The frame is navy blue and tied with the same twine I stitched in.

Out of all that I made this is my favorite( and took the longest)!

Have a wonderful 4th!

USA Card

Here is the second card I created for the 4th of July. Because it doesnt say 4th of July specifically it could also be used for anything patriotic. This uses the Bo Bunny Liberty collection as well as navy cardstock from my stash. With my Cricut I cut out the letters and the stars. White card stock is the base and then I inked the red and blue pieces with Close to My Heart inks. I then added corrosponding glitter glue to the stars and Glossy Accents to the letters so they would stand out.



For the inside I cut a square piece of cream and inked it in red. The stamp is by Studio G. To get the multi colors in one stamping, I inked the colors onto the stamp sections using my sponge daubers.



I hope you enjoy and it inspires you to get creative for the summer holiday!

Patriotic Card

This is one of three patriotic 4th of July cards I made this year. This one is using the Bo Bunny Liberty collection and stamps from Close to My Heart and Studio G. There is also embossing on the front centiment although it doesn't show in the photo.

Mothers Day Project

This past month has been amazing! I was able to spend 12 days at home in California and was able to meet my nephew for the first time. Let me just say he is the most wonderful little baby ever!!! Since I was home and it  just happened to be Mothers Day, I made my mom this adorable mini album in a box. I love it because you really get to showcase the papers with the box construction and it provides a great home decor piece. This looks wonderful on a coffee table or displayed on a book case. As an added bonus, it keep the photos stored away from dust and light.



Above is a side view of the box and lid.



When you take the lid off, you see the paper bag mini album inside. If you look closely you will see that the right side of the box is only attached to the base of the box.



Because the side is not attached, it allows the spine of the album to lay flat with the base of the box. This gives you the illusion of  a book and allows you to
 flip through the album easily.
I must give credit to Kathryn at Life on the Scrap Beach (http://thescrapbeach.blogspot.com/) for creating this wonderful project and making the pattern available for purchase. The paper collection and embellishments I used were K & Co and the paper bags are the Celebrate It brand from Michaels. The solid card stock was just out of my stash. The Live, Laugh, Love stamp is from the current Close to My Heart Catalog.

Birthday Flowers Card

Here is a birthday card I made for a friend this past weekend. To my suprise I didnt have a birthday sentiment stamp, so I just made a fun card front instead. Knowing that she loves flowers and bright colors, I layered some punched flowers out of the Mango Frost 4x6.5 mat stack by Die Cuts With a View. In the middle each flower is a rhinestone. Along the bottom I layered some strips from the same stack and added a punched border for some flair. The stems are stamped and the butterflys were colored with inks to coordinate with everything. For the inside I used some corrdinating markers and pens from Martha Stewart and handwrote my sentiment and message.

Shabby Chic Tags

I just finished my tags for my very first tag swap! I am so excited now that all the nerves are out of the way. If you have never done one, a tag swap is pretty cool. Each person makes a set number of tags, (in my case 9). I kept one and mailed 8 off. Once all the tags are mailed to a central location, they get divided so you get 8 tags back, each one from a different person. For this swap there was a choice of 3 themes. Grungy, (think Tim Holtz), French Country and Shabby Chic. I opted to participate in the shabby chic since it was a new area for me and I had some wonderful ideas swirling.

These are photos of 2 of the tags I sent out. As you can see they are slightly different but using the same materials and general design. Each tag has a 4x6 kraft base and a 3/25x5 white matte with a punched border. The flowers were made from coordinating paper. I cut them out using a punch and my cricut and then hand finessed them. I am so pleased with how they turned out! The back is plain but I did sign each one with my name and blog site so I am hoping that those who get them pop by and leave a comment!

Happy Easter to My Peeps Card

This is a 4x6 Easter card I created to send to my family and friends this year. The colors are Hollyhock, Blush, Garden Green, White, Creme Brulee and Grey Flannel. All the colors and the stamp set are part of the Close To My Heart catalog that runs from Feb 2012 to July 2012. I also used a Martha Stewart punch set to create the pink border that overlays the green.  The pattern is eyelet lace. For the flower it is a piece of yellow paper from my stash along with the center flower and the pearl. It works great for any age and the colors are easily swapped for a more masculine feel. Enjoy and have a Happy Easter!!!