Lighthouse Masculine Birthday Card, Part 11 of Recent Cards

This may be one of my all-time favorite cards--and it's for a guy. Amazing! I usually struggle so hard to create something that looks masculine.

After getting my white 5 1'2" by 4 1/4" card base, I added a brick red mat (5 3/8" x 4 1/8") and a black one that is 5 3/16" x 3 15/16". Then I went to the Elegant Edges Cricut cartridge and and started with the E. E. equivalent of the Top Note which I cut at 4 3/4" in a brick red cardstock. I also cut the shadow in white. The lighthouse stamp is from Studio 112. I stamped it with black and also inked the edges and rounded the corners. Looking for something masculine and somewhat nautical, I took three strands of thin jute and braided them, placing the cord below the lighthouse. After stamping the sentiment, I curved the ends using a circle punch. Before placing the frame onto the card, I put it on foam tape and also added two small black brads. As I said earlier, I really this card. I hope you do, too.

Rounded Petals Flowers Birthday Card, Part 10 of Recent Cards

I like the rounded petals card ideas so well that I created a card with two flowers.

I turned the 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" card sideways so that the flowers would fit and I'd have an easier time with the sentiment. The stripes (all from the same Recollections paper) are 1 1/8" squares with two corners rounded. The shadows are 1 1/4". I let some of the petals go off the edge and then went back and trimmed them. The sentiment, two 5/8" buttons with green floss, and three small purple brads complete this cheery birthday card. I hope you like it.

As Special As You Are Birthday Card, Part 9 in Recent Cards

In browsing Pinterest I located a sweet card that I just loved.  I took the idea, went to the Doodlecharms cartridge and located my favorite heart, and I was off. The hearts and mats are cut at 1 1/4".  For the hearts used two different red prints and a small piece of the background paper. The tan-ish green-ish mat is a piece of self adhesive cardstock from DCWV. I cut two "buttons" from the same paper, added a piece of white floss, and adhered them. The stamped sentiment reads: "Hope this day is as special as you are."

Many thanks to splitcoaststampers.com for the lovely card which gave me the idea.



Corner-rounded Flower Happy Birthday, Part 8 of Recent Cards

Hi, everyone. Several of the cards I've seen on Pinterest have included a flower with petals made from squares that have two corners (diagonals) rounded with a large corner rounder. After trying one with one layer and liking it a great deal, I decided to add my own twist.

I started with four sets of four squares. The solid red ones (used as shadows) are 1 1/2" and 1 1/4". The print squares are 1 3/8" and a 1/8".  After cutting the squares, I rounded the corners, then layered the prints on top of the solids. I embossed the card background, then placed the larger petals on the card. I glued well, but not near the petal edges so that I could slide some leaves (Spellbinders) under the flower when I was finished. I layered the smaller petals on top of the larger ones (using foam tape for dimension), added a 1/2" circle for the center, and slipped the leaves in under the petals. A piece of ric rac and a stamped sentiment, and I was finished.

Pull out your corner rounder and give this a try, then let me know what you think.

Envelope Birthday Card, Part 7 of Recent Cards

In the vein of using a Cricut image to replace a Stampin' Up product I don't have, I created this very different but nice masculine birthday card.

I started with an image from (you guessed it) Pinterest. Thanks to splitcoaststampers for the inspiration.

 

My card is an gray A2 card. I added two sets of mats, using a gray/black polka dot and white. The larger white mat is 4 1/16 x 5 5/16". The larger dotted mat is 3 7/8 x 5 3/8" . The smaller white mat is 4 1/2" x 3 1/4", the smaller dotted mat is 4 5/16" by 3 1/16".  I cut the 2" envelope with the Walk in My Garden cartridge and used a Paper Studio cupcake embossing folder. To help the embossed cupcakes pop from the page a bit, I once again used some ink (silver) on a foam spouncer brush. A Studio 112 stamp added just the right sentiment to this birthday card.

 

Have a Cricut? Use it to improvise for the things you don't have.

Thoughts and Prayers, Part 6 of Recent Cards

Do you ever create a card that you just love, and the more you look at it, the more the appreciate how it turned out?  For me, this is one of those cards. Once again, I'm indebted to Pinterest for a great idea.

 

The original is one that was posted by tenealwilliams.com.au.  Her tree is a Stampin' Up stamp which I do not have. Since I do have a Cricut and a number cartridges, I decided to use a tree from  Heritage.  I switched from blue to tan (once again a piece from Tim Holtz Kraft Core), cut a 2 3/4" tree, left the tan mat smaller and shifted to the right, and stamped a different sentiment. Mine isn't as fancy as Teneale's but I really love it--and I was able to use something I already had. Hope you're encouraged to do the same.

Triple Birthday Wishes, Part 5 of Recent Cards

Once again, it's Pinterest to the rescue. This time my inspiration came from takingtimetocreate.blogspot.com.  Here is the inspiration card.

 

My take on this idea turned out like this.  I used a 1" circle punch, three different purple prints from various DCWV packs, a solid purple for the sentiment shadow, some silver ricrac and the Spts and Dots embossing folder. A cardztv.blogspot.com Happy Birthday stamp and some black ink formed the sentiment. Hope you find some inspiration.

 

 

It's Time for Another Birthday, Card 4 in Recent cards.

One more in the recent card collection--this time a masculine birthday card.

 



This A2 card is made from Tim Holtz Kraft Core paper pack, a really great stack. I used a Paper Studio (Hobby Lobby) embossing folder that has a collection of clocks. I discovered that if I inked the bottom of a craft paint foam spouncer--the kind that has a wooden handle and a very flat edge on the sponge, I could rub the ink across the surface of the card and apply it to only the raised portions.
I embossed the light tan marbled paper then inked the clocks with a brick red ink. To complete the front, I added two strips, one in the mat paper and one out of Kraft paper. Then I added to metal brads and the sentiment, "It's time . . ." The inside reads "for another birthday. Hope it's the best ever.

Wish Big birthday card, Part 3 of recent cards.

One of the card ideas that I saw on Pinterest came from bronheslop.wordpress.com. Here is her card.

 

 



I don't have the Stampin' Up stamp she used, but I have one that says the same thing. I switched up the color scheme, used Plantin Schoolbook to cut the circles, and embossed with a herringbone embossing folder. My card looks like this.

 

 

I put a navy shadow behind each circle. The teal and green papers are from a Tim Holtz Kraft stack. I placed two small ribbon loops on the right rather than the left. The inside sentiment reads, "Hoping those wishes come true today and in the future."

 

Thanks to Bron for the idea.

 

"Tea Set" Thinking of You Card, Part 2 of Recent Cards

One of the seldom mentioned Cricut cartridges that has become a personal favorite is Heritage. I used it to create this card for a friend who recently moved away.

The background mat is from a Recollections black and white stack. The black tea set (@ 2 1/2") tall, along with its white shadow, is from Heritage. I used a postage stamp edge punch to edge both of the strips. A Fiskars clear stamp and some black gems complete this simple but classic card. The inside sentiment reads: "with the warmest of thoughts."

Enjoy.

Caught a Bug? Part 1 of Recent Cards

I've recently discovered the wonder of Pinterest. The ideas there are incredible. Needing to do a number of cards quickly, I found some inspiration, and went to work. I'm going to post several over the next few days.

Card 1 is my own design, a 5 1/2 x 4 1/4" get well card with a quart jar containing a small bug. I used Cricut's "Walk in My Garden" for those. To give the jar some shine, I covered the white part of it with Glossy Accents. The scalloped circles are from Spellbinders. I trimmed the smaller ones off on one side. The black/gray flower print is from Recollections. I also used a red/black marble print paper for the mat and the bug and some medium gray and white for the other portions. The inside sentiment reads: "Let it go, and get well. Soon."

Hope you enjoy it and that it gives you some inspiration for brightening the day of someone who's ill.