Monchroromatic and masculine

 I don't usually think of a Christmas card as "masculine," but I guess this one fits the description. The central image is "Christmas Emphemra" from Stamplorations -- it's a set of watercolored Christmas images in ATC sizes you can build a card around.  I used two shades of kraft, adding an embossed texture (Marianne Crafts) to the darker one.  Sentiment is embossed on a piece of vellum with torn edges, using an EP called woven tapestry.  Added a couple of brownish brads to hold the vellum in place.

This card is entered in these challenges:

Rudolph Days -- Christmas

Double D Challenge -- monochromatic

Jingle Belles -- Masculine Christmas card

CRAFT #638 -- Christmas

Can You Handle the Pressure -- Use an embossing folder

ABC Christmas -- K is for Kraft 

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2221 -- Anything Goes

Word Art Wednesday #545 -- anything goes

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday -- Anything Goes

For an antique guy

 We have lots of family birthdays in the spring, so I make lots of birthday cards. This one is for my FIL, who may or may not have seen one of these in action in his younger days.

The Model A die-cut is mounted on a snippet of a houndstooth print (which was the most masculine pattern I found in my stash), which is in turn mounted on a black snippet. A piece of black grosgrain ribbon runs across the bottom of the houndstooth, and it's attached with three brads. There are also brads for hubcaps on the car.  The sentiment is black-embossed.

This card is entered in these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday -- masculine

CRAFT #636 -- birthday

Die-Cut Divas -- anything goes

Word Art Wednesday #541 -- anything goes

Snippet Playground #427 -- use snippets

Spring wildflowers

 I tried a new watercolor technique, where you create blocks of color, then sprinkle a little table salt while they are still wet. It's quite a cool affect. After the paint dried, I brushed off the salt and stamped some wildflowers and the sentiment.

This card is entered in these challenges:

Simon Says Monday  -- Wild and wonderful

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday -- anything goes

Time Out #212-- spring

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2217-- anything goes

Pattie's Creations # 193 -- anything goes

Word Art Wednesday #541 -- anything goes 

Floating strips

 

The current Butterfly Challenge features the technique known as floating strips. I remember seeing this technique a long time ago and wanting to try it. It's really very easy -- you cut strips of paper, glue them on a clear sheet with space between each strip, then mount the clear acetate on a card with mounting tape.

This  technique is an excellent way to use up snippets if you have some with colors that work well together, too. In fact, my card is entirely made from snippets, including the floating strips, butterfly, and sentiment panel.

This card is entered in these challenges:

Butterfly #169 -- floating strips, butterfly, flower, colors of flax and fawn

Pixie's Snippet Playground #426 -- use snippets

Word Art Wednesday #539 -- anything goes

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2216 -- anything goes

 

 

More recycling fun

A few weeks ago, I shared a card where I had recycled a foil-lined tea bag packet by embossing it and coloring it with alcohol inks.  I tried it again, with a different embossing folder and different colors of alcohol ink to create this Christmas card.

The foil was embossed with a snowflake pattern (it's an old EF and has both SU and Sizzix logos on it).then colored with pink and blue alcohol ink. In addition to recycling the foil packet, I also recycled an envelope from junk mail -- it's the turquoise matting under the embossed piece. The sentiment and tiny flakes stamped on the card are from a Whimsy Stamps set.

This card is entered in these challenges:

Jingle Belles -- recycling (teabag packet and junk mail envelope)

Can you handle the pressure? --use an embossing folder

ABC Christmas -- I is for inky (used lots of alcohol ink)

Word Art Wednesday #539 -- anything goes

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2215 -- anything goes

Bunny cuteness

OK, I'm not really certain that cuteness is a word, but it's a cute bunny, right?

This is really a very simple CAS card. The image and sentiment are both from a now-closed digi company called From the Heart. The image is colored with pencils and has a border I doodled and sponged some green along. The sentiment was printed directly on the flowered paper. The only embellishment is an acrylic dot.

This card is for these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday -- Easter/Spring

The Paper Shelter #506 -- pastel colors

Double D challenge -- Easter

Creative Inspirations -- Hoppy Easter Animals

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2214 -- anything goes

Pattie's Creations #193 -- anything goes

Word Art Wednesday #537 -- anything goes
 

Recycle time

When I saw that Simon Says Stamp's challenge this week was Recycle, I knew exactly what I wanted to try.  I got the idea from a Facebook group I'm in. Someone posted a card with an embossed foil bit that she said was (doing this from memory, might not be quite exact) the foil seal from a jar of coffee. I don't bar coffee in a jar, but she got me thinking about what I could use. Then I realized the teabags I use come in a little foil packet. (Bigelow and Kroger Private Selection brands) When I cut off the crimped sides and unfolded it, I had a nice strip of strong foil.

I ran the foil through the Cuttlebug with a Sizzix EF. Then I dropped some alcohol ink on the strip, added some blending solution, and moved the strip around the get the colors to spread and blend.  It was super easy and it really looks cool IRL. From there, I cut one of flowers from a Tim Holtz die set in white, put it on top of the foil, and matted the foil on purple card. 

The sentiment took some careful stamping because I had to tape off the flourishes that are part of the stamp while inking it up. 

This card is for these challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday -- recycle

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday -- anything goes

Word Art Wednesday #537 -- anything goes

Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2213 -- anything goes