Make a Wish

I don't know about you, but I find it difficult to create birthday cards that are neutral enough to be given to men. So when I do manage to pull one off, it's always worthy of a big ol' pat on the back!

Today's card certainly fits the bill. While it's certainly very gender neutral, it still offers elements that appeal to the ladies (hello, glitter!) and a color scheme that definitely appeals to the gents. When it was all said and done, I was quite proud of myself for this one. (But I must admit that Whitney helped! *wink*)


Make a Wish recipe
Base: cream card
Paper: DCWV - glitter cardstock; SU - vanilla
Ink: VF - onyx; SU - riding hood red
Stamps: Hampton Art - Happy Birthday
Misc: ScorTape; Stickles; glitter; pop dots

Masculine Card

I've had this Papertrey set for quite a while and just haven't sat down and played with it. My supply of ready-made blank cards has dwindled, so I decided to make a few. This design lends itself to many uses - thinking of you, sympathy, birthday, get well, etc. I opted not to stamp a sentiment of any kind on the front or inside of the card until I'm ready to send it. I adapted my layout from this card by Dawn McVey.


Cardstock/Paper: SU - Patterns Pack DSP III (hostess), very vanilla, chocolate chip
Ink: SO - timber brown
Stamps: PTI - Through the Trees
Misc.: SU - antinque brads, ticket corner punch; SEI - twine ribbon; Zig - glue pen; glitter; ScorTape

Valentine

'Tis the time of year to make a little something for your Valentine. I whipped this one up using a technique called Emboss Resist. Several stampers have demonstrated this technique recently (check out this one). In fact, Nichole Heady over at Papertrey issued a challenge using this technique. While I didn't get my card done in time to participate in the challenge, it was fun to learn & use a new technique with such great results.

Cardstock: SU - riding hood red, very vanilla, Candy Lane
Ink: SU - creamy caramel, pink pirouette, riding hood red; VM
Stamps: SU - Happy Hearts; PTI - Text Style
Misc: SU - clear embossing powder, pink pirouette grossgrain; PTI - rustic twine; ScorTape; Magic Scraps - red glitter; Stampendous - white ultra fine glitter; misc. buttons; Zots

20+ Days of Cards: Day 20

Today wraps up the holiday cards I made as gifts. This last card is literally a gift in itself. Again, I used Jennifer McGuire's tutorial for incorporating money into the design. Who said money doesn't grow on trees?? *wink*

Cardstock/Paper: SU - not quite navy, baja breeze, sage shadow, chocolate chip
Ink: VM; SU - handsome hunter, always artichoke
Stamps: Luxe - swirls; PTI - 2009 Holiday Tags
Misc: SU - heat & stick powder; Stampendous - crystal snow; Reflections - pearls, stars; Michaels - velvet ribbon

20+ Days of Cards: Day 18

Unfortunately, I neglected to photograph all of the cards that went into the gift set so you won't get to see all 20. However, I still have plenty of things to share over the next several days.

I don't know about you, but I give a lot of gift cards these days. While I hate that it feels so impersonal, I feel like I'm saving the recipient a trip & a return. So to spice things up, I try to make the packaging fun. Just before Christmas, Jennifer McGuire posted several tutorials on the Hero Arts blog for gift card holders. I thought they were wonderful and set out to make them myself.

Today's card is a creative way to give money. Jennifer's tutorial can be found here.

Base: SL - frosted card
Cardstock/Paper: SU - delicate dots, whisper white, real red, basic black; DCWV - mi casa
Ink: CB - frost white, platinum; SU - handsome hunter
Stamps: SU - Solemn Stillnes, Happy Winter
Misc: MM - black mini brads, blue brads; Reflections - star; MS - chunky glitter; SU - crystal effects; pop dots; black pen

TIP: When using a frosted or acetate card base, be sure you have the right kind of ink to stamp on it. I didn't, which means that despite my best efforts the ink never dried properly.

For My Valentine

I was so pleased with how my DH's Valentine came out that I thought I'd share.

Background: white card
Cardstock: dk. red, lt. pink, white
Stamps: SU-Happy Hearts
Ink: SU-ruby red, bravo burgundy, regal rose, rose red
Misc.: Flair-velvet ribbon, silver curly que, red jewel brads, tacky tape, Stickles-crystal, pop dots


A few close-ups



silver curly que w/ red jewel brads









the crystal Stickles on some of the hearts

On we go

On we go with a few more cards from Christmas. You'll be happy to know that we've finally reached the end of that group. And mom's coming to scrap this weekend, so maybe I'll have something recently-created to post. {Note-I left this one stranded in Drafts; it helps if you actually publish a post. Duh!}

Birthday
Background: DCWV-lt. yellow
Cardstock: white
Stamps: SU-Fun Filled
Ink: black, SU-really rust
Misc.: fibers, tacky tape, glitter, SU-watercolor pencils, Zig-yellow







Birthday
Background: DCWV-lilac
Stamps: SU-Birthday Best, Fresh Fillers
Ink: black
Misc.: fibers, tacky tape, glitter, glitter glaze, SU-watercolor pencils & blender pen, purple staples