Cupola birthday cards

 I just love how this one came out! It is for a  3 yr old boy. Found the chipboard lion in my stash (no telling how long I have had it since I can't remember it). Thought how cute that would be and really didn't feel the need to color an image. I knew exactly which paper I was going to use and had even made a paper pack with it! I thought it would look cute with that talk balloon and since I didn't have any, I had to make my own.

It's pretty easy to draw one and then cut it out. I used a pencil so I could erase whatever I missed. Hunted through my stamps to find the words. Didn't have it exactly - it said just saying hello. So I cut the hello off! The ribbon which I have been hoarding is from Gina K!  And here is the inside of the card.  Cut the label thing out of the patterned paper and used a couple of cute brads before I put it together. The Happy Birthday is glued on after as I wanted it to look noticeable. Sure hope he likes it. Now onto another card actually going to his Mom for her birthday.

 This is a lalaland image and just had to have it. I misplaced the copics I used again - I am getting pretty feeble minded lately! The colors matched another paper pack I put together that I wanted to use.  That laticey look is a Martha Stewart edge punch, Just love how nice it looks. Amazingly enough I made the entire other card and this card front without stickles! Alas! I did use them on the inside of this card though along with glossy accents (on the hearts). There is just a tiny amount of stickles next to the greeting/saying. I used leftover pieces from the front to decorate the inside. The colors are not usual for me - I am not a pastel person, usually my colors are very vivid. But I liked how this one came out and feel pretty sure she will like her card, too.

Now to answer a couple of questions. What is "card creator"? There are 2 basic sets and they are dies for use in manual cutting machines (cuttlebug, spellbinders, sizzix, vagabond). They make a2 sized pieces for layering onto an a2 sized card base ( 4 1/4 x 5 1/2) If you get both sets, you will have rectangles in 1/8" increments to layer on the base. There are also a couple of dies for use on making a rectangular label to go with your card. The dies are absolutely perfect!! Just pick out a size and run it through your machine. It doesn't come any easier than that. The edges are perfectly perpendicular (90 degrees) and the sides are perfectly straight. It makes card making a breeze. They also have a couple of fancy cuts that are card creator dies. There are quite a few dies in each set. There are stamps that work with the dies, however, I am really not interested in them right now so I can't tell you how well they work. But the dies are simply wonderful!! You can find them only at www.stampingscrapping.com. At least for now only, since the lady who owns the site designed them. Since they are made by spellbinders, maybe you would find at least a link from their site - I do not know. 

OWH bunches of cards

OK! Let's see how many blogger will let me post for you. I made a bunch of birthday cards today - they are all alike. That is a first for me. I took a photo of them on my worksurface. They may be all alike, but they are definitely not the same colors! Had a blast with my Tim Holtz distress inks. Everytime I do things like this, I find combinations that I never would have thought of! It's just so much fun to get so very messy. I used those card creator dies again and cut a bunch of tops, then embossed them - this is a cuttlebug folder. Thought I needed to add just a touch, so they each have a tiny flower on pop dots.yes - there are 8 of them!! And here is one left over from the last post:

This saying I stamped ages ago and it was just in a box with some other stuff. Figured while I was adding strips of paper, I might as well "frame" this. Those butterflies are really sequins I found ages ago . They are very shiny and all kinds of colors even though two of them look black, they aren't! I kind of like this arrangement and may just do it again on purpose, next time!

This one was done entirely with that card creator (well almost). I had used these papers on a scrapbook page and figured that I could make a card from the leftovers. The smile is a stamp that I punched out after stamping with a circle punch. Thought this whole thing went together like a breeze!

This one is another Tim Holtz distress ink creation. And while I was at it, I colored some cardstock with the direct ink pad to paper and cut it out with a butterfly punch! Can't get over how quick this one was also!!

This is the last of the paper stack I made and I also stamped and copic colored the center square. It is bright and I did enjoy doing it. No blending at all since this was so small. I even added some dashed lines which I don't really like to do with a pen, but I did. Hugs to you all, I will be posting several birthday cards for family (as soon as I get them made!). I am so far behind, oh well!! Hugs again, Barb F

 

 

More OWH cards

This one is Edwin and was colored awhile back, so alas, no copics listed. I made this card from one of my scrap packs that I put together for the last card class I took. The idea was to take your scrap paper and put it together to make a card with (you could put it in baggies or clip them) and then when you are ready to work, it is all picked out and you don't waste time looking through all your paper. I can tell you it worked super well for me. I put together all of the loose small cardstock. Made a couple of cards with the same papers and have another one left to make before I toss the tiny left overs. I just found a pack that went with the image I had colored. Got to tell you that "card creator" die set (I bought both the A & B) is just the best thing since sliced bread!! It takes a little learning curve to know which one you want to cut, but the cuts are perfect, making putting them together so easy. You will find them and a video about them at stampingscrapping.com. Edwin's hat would have been cut off so I  used that technique about cutting around the part you don't want to cut and placing the die behind it. If you do a search on youtube for out of bounds nestibilities you might find the video. That is the newer peacock distress ink. Love that color

This is the second card made with the same paper. I had colored the center square previously. It is a stamp. Love it and never had quite the place to put it! Of course you recognize the technique for the background. Again, I used the card creator dies! Sure made this card easy.

Awhile back I bought some of that sticky backed canvas in the ATC (artist's trading card) size just to try it. I used Tim Holtz stain and really didn't like the result. Until I put this card together! The butterflies were made with that Hero Arts punch and die set of butterflies. I do use that one a whole lot. The strips above and below are Tim Holtz stamping cardstock that I colored oh so subtley with distress inks. That cardstock is so absolutely beautiful to work on that I hoard it!! Normally I wouldn't put rust and pink together but somehow it seemed to work here. Guess it's because there is every color of the rainbow!!

I cut a bunch of Tim Holtz snowmen out and they have a snowflake on the same die, so I had a lot of them. Decided to just make a design with them. Sprayed the front with a sparkly spray, but it really doesn't show much, even in real life. Just a clean and simple card.

This tag with the cows was made on the computer in MSWord. Learned how at creativepassionclasses.com in the free got glue class!! It was such a fun class that I can hardly wait for her new one to start and its a pay class!! Anyhow, it was done in a program I had and also in photoshop elements which I didn't have but am now thinking about. The cow images are a digital stamp that I can't remember where I bought. Then we have some flourishes that I found had fallen out of their package and decided to use, punched out a couple little hearts and that is another butterfly from the same Hero Arts set. Not a usual layout, but I think its ok.
I did actually download a couple more, but blogger isn't going to let me upload anymore today. Sorry - I will try again soon and maybe add some more for you to see. Lots going on besides trying to get OWH cards mailed. So hugs to you all, Barb F