With so many events coming up, I knew I would have to make some cards. Here is the first on I made: a wedding card for the first wedding.
Happy Crafting!
August 2015 will forever be known in our house as "The August of Insanity!" Of the 5 weekends (technically) in August, 1 was full of birthday celebrations for my mom and sister and 3 were full of weddings. Yes 3. And one hasn't even happened yet! At least I had one August weekend off. Though I used that weekend for dress shopping for the weddings... With so many events coming up, I knew I would have to make some cards. Here is the first on I made: a wedding card for the first wedding. I know it doesn't look like a traditional wedding card, but the couple that were married are very outdoors-y, so I thought I should go with a lightly 'camo' look. I white heat embossed the large ampersand, then used distress inks and my favorite 'smooshing' technique to create the center piece. The piece behind it is dry embossed vellum. I love how it turned out! All the softness of vellum, but with a unique texture. I mounted both layers with foam tape onto a top-folding kraft cardstock base. A quick "Congratulations" stamp on the inside, and the card was complete! I really like how it turned out, I think I'm going to use this design for some more wedding cards! It's super customizable, so I can use the wedding colors for each couple.
Happy Crafting!
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In keeping with my goal of sending a card to friends who have gone through an illness or a surgery, I made another card for a friend who had knee surgery this summer. I stepped out of my comfort color zone and used pastels for this card. I usually lean toward bright, bold colors, but I wanted to try something new for this card. I really like how it turned out! It's soft and colorful without being overwhelming. The white embossing matches nicely without popping off the page like it does with brighter colors. I used the Sprigs stamp set from Penny Black and the Sincere Sentiments set from Stampin' Up. The background was made with Distress Inks using my smooshing technique.
Although I like making and sending cards to my friends, I'm hoping that I don't have to make any more "Thinking of You" cards - I hope everyone stays healthy and strong! I do get to make some wedding cards soon, so I will share those when I can. Happy Crafting! A wedding doesn't always have to be a big, expensive, extravagant event. One of my brides, Marie, chose to do a small destination wedding and have a local reception a few months later. Her mother (who is a friend of my parents) contacted me last spring about making the invitations for the local reception. Of course I jumped at the chance! Marie had sunflowers at her wedding, so I wanted to find a way to incorporate those into the design of the invitation without getting too 'theme-y'. Is that a word? It is now! The mother of the bride and I settled on this design; bold and elegant, but simple and fun. I love it! (Names and contact info have been changed on the invitation to insure privacy) As you should know by now, I'm slightly obsessed with distress inks. I was so excited to be able to incorporate them into this project to create a soft watercolor look. I heat embossed the sunflower stamp with black embossing powder, then used the distress inks and a paintbrush to paint the sunflower with bright yellows and oranges. A few things I learned from this project: 1) Watercolor paper is really the best thing to use with any technique that uses water. Unfortunately, I haven't found a watercolor paper that goes through the printer and shows the printing well, so I used a heavy cardstock. It worked well and they looked great, but I'd love to find a 'printable' watercolor paper. 2) Along those lines - don't overwork the colors. I had to be careful with my brush to avoid the paper from pilling with the amount of water I was using, which was good because the more I messed with the colors, the less I liked the outcome. Less is more! 3) If you are using black embossing powder, do yourself a HUGE favor and use an anti-static powder tool. For some reason, black embossing powder sticks to EVERYTHING!!! Another option is to use black ink and clear embossing powder. 4) If everything is not dry before you start to assemble, it will smear and you will have to do it over. Ask me how I know... Congratulations to Marie and Matt on their wedding, their reception, and beginning their life together!
Happy Crafting! I'm not very good about sending out cards. Ironic, I know. I've made a resolution to at least send cards when someone is sick, recovering from surgery, or experiences a loss. I think those are the times when a handmade card is most appreciated. Several of my friends had surgeries this summer (I already talked about one here), and I made some cards to wish them a speedy recovery. This card went to a co-worker who had knee surgery in June. She is also a card maker, so I felt a little pressure while making this card. I'm very pleased at how it came out - I was experimenting with techniques and colors and it all came together! I love it when that happens! I used my newest background stamp with white embossing powder to create the background, then I took out some distress inks to color it in. I wet the paper first, then used a brush to pick up some ink and drop it onto the paper. I let the color go where it wanted to, adding more color and water as I went. It looked muddy while I was making it, but it dried beautifully! I love distress inks! The friend I made this card for is also a card-maker, so there was a little bit of pressure to make this card a good one. I know she appreciated it, but I always like to present my best work.
Have you sent out any cards this summer? If not, you should! It feels great to drop a card in the mail and know that you will soon brighten another person's day. What? You don't have any cards on hand to send? You can grab some of mine at my Etsy shop! (Remember, if you are local, contact me for a code for free shipping - I will hand-deliver your order!) Happy Crafting! |
Blogs I read:
Becky Higgins Bits & Pieces KWerner Designs Jennifer McGuire Ink I Could Make That Linny's Vault Pintester Categories
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