for the boys

I needed some more masculine birthday cards, so I decided to use the Moxie Fab World alphabet stickers challenge to direct the approach of the card’s design.

Using mask paper and alphabet dies to cut out the word “birthday,” I stuck the letters on a collage of paper strips and misted over them. After the paper dried, I found that I preferred the look of the letters that received a heavier misting of color (card with the cupcake) because the word stands out a little bit more. (The photographs aren't true depictions due to my limited skills.)

Since it takes me so long to make one card, I usually make two while all of my supplies are out. (I craft in my dining room.) The picture that follows is the second card in the duo, which is actually the first card made and my test run. I do like the way this misting over patterned paper looks and will probably use this technique again.

There’s still time for you to try your hand at this challenge. Submissions close on the 19^th.

nancy

supplies:

paper:  rustic white c/s (PTI); fine and dandy collection (MME)

stamps:  tag-its #10 and 2011 Birthday Tags (PTI); Cupcakes (HA)

ink: rich cocoa dye (Memento); celadon pigment (ColorBox); pumpkin pigment (MS)

dies and punches:  block alphabet, heart border, and star border (PTI)

extras:  mask tape; bluegrass Mister Huey’s color mist (SC); diamond stickles (Ranger); Tiny Type stickers (Cosmo Cricket); vintage cream and melon berry felt (PTI); stick pin

love and congratulations, amy and tim

My niece Amy and her husband, Tim, are expecting their first baby together. This was such exciting and hopeful news to receive and I wanted to send love and congratulations to the parents- and grandparents-to-be. To Tom and Mary Ellen, my brother and sister-in-law, I sent the card that I had made for the PTI July blog hop. I love that card (Are you allowed to admit that?) and thought it would be perfect for this occasion. I made a new card for Amy and Tim.

Back in May 2011, Melissa Philips wrote a post on love mail and shared some photo inspiration, including this envelope:

After visiting HensTeeth, I knew that I wanted to try adding some stitched flowers to a card. A year plus later, I’ve actually done so, though in a much different color palette than those I had remembered since the card needed to be gender neutral. The flowers are very sweet and work well with the Summer Fresh papers, but I do want to try this in the girlie colors that Viv uses in her Etsy shop.

For the stitched details, I am entering this into the Moxie Fab World stitching and sewing challenge.

nancy

supplies:

paper:  rustic cream c/s (PTI); Summer Fresh (Simple Stories)

stamps:  Mat Stack 2 Collection (PTI)

ink: onyx black (VersaFine)

dies and punches:  classic hearts (Spellbinders)

extras:  muslin (Jo-Ann Fabric); Nordic Holiday and Oxford glazed brads (Basic Grey); floss 304, 744, 800, 930, 963, and 3052 (DMC)

is it a challenge card or a challenging card

When I saw the Tuesday Trigger, I immediately envisioned the perfect card that would make me a Trigger Target. It made use of a Memory Box wreath stamp, gorgeous PTI autumn rose felt, sweet little berries that were a steal last year at Michael’s… but, wait, I had to burst that thought bubble before it got any bigger. I had no time for felt flowers; there were birthday cards to be made – for guys – which brings me back to the title of this post.

I, too, fall into that majority group of card makers, those who are challenged by masculine cards. I tend toward fussier cards with lots of layers and pretty colors, not something my brother-in-law would want to receive for his birthday. That fantasy in fall photo would not leave me be, though, so I decided to try to use it for inspiration for Jon’s card.

Three elements – the colors, the circles of the flowers, and the imbalanced weight – had the most influence on the card’s design. The colors started out as the four felt colors, but the rose shade, even though in a masculine pattern, pushed the card toward a more feminine feel. I ended up switching it to the orange dotted paper, which picked up the orange of the berries. The use of circles is fairly obvious with the layered circles visually capturing the shape and depth of the flowers. Lastly, the majority of the weight of both the wreath and the photo is found in one area. I tried to mimic that with the layered border running down the side of the card.

Generally, I am a very literal person and would have run with a wreath design, no explanations required. It was fun and challenging to push myself in a different direction with this Tuesday Trigger.

The many circles that ended up on this card fall right into Tip Top Shape #4 of Creative Paper Trade’s fourth challenge. Just like Cath, Andrea shares some stunning photographs as inspiration. I would love to see that waterfall in person.

I hope that any challenges you might face this week are no greater than those I experienced making Jon’s card.

nancy

supplies:

paper:  rustic cream c/s (PTI); Island Mist Double Dot pp (Bo Bunny); Dolled Up, Lost & Found Two Sunshine, and Six by Six Vanity Fair collections (MME)

stamps:  tag-its #10 and Birthday Basics (PTI)

ink:  rich cocoa dye (Memento); VersaMark

dies and punches:  simple circles border (PTI); standard circles large (Spellbinders); jumbo circle punch (Marvy Uchida)

extras:  clear embossing powder and gold Stickles (Ranger)

cQc#160: halloween

The colors in cQc#160 at ColourQ were a perfect fit with the paper collection I used for my Halloween cards. The black sparkle of the background paper and diamond-shaped tape worked really well for the touch of tailored elegance in these cards. I’m not sure why, but my Halloween cards always tend that way rather than cutesy or scary.

The constant whistling of the wind through the trees today makes it feel as if Halloween is already here. Hope of all you on the East Coast make it safely through this storm.

nancy

supplies:

paper:  rustic white c/s (PTI);  KP Halloween (K&Company); black c/s (Recollections)

stamps:  Month October (HA)

ink:  creamy brown chalk (ColorBox); pumpkin pigment (MS Crafts)

dies and punches:  Labels Eight and Labels Four (Spellbinders); spiderweb and bat (Martha Stewart Crafts)

extras:  vampire label stickers (MS Crafts); glitter on a roll (Recollections)

autumn wishes

While religious education classes are certainly no party, I still like to make little things for the girls in my class. In my way of thinking, this current item could fall under the category of party favor and fit Paper Nudge #3 at Creative Paper Trade.

Rather than hand out candy or anything else Halloween-related in RelEd this time of year, I made snickerdoodles for the girls and packaged the cookies in recipe card pockets à la Melissa Phillips.

Each time Michael’s has new recipe cards in their bins, I take a peak and see if there are any that can work as pockets. Because they area 4x6 inches in size, they also work great as journaling cards for Project Life.

There were a couple of extra pockets when I finished my assembly line. Rather than let them go to waste, I cut a piece of cardstock, stamped it, added a punched circle, and slid it into the pocket.

Now I have a couple of note cards for my stash and a few cookies to munch on, too.

nancy

supplies:

paper:  rustic cream c/s (PTI);  KP Halloween (K&Company); recipe cards (Michael’s)

stamps:  Rustic Branches and tag-its #7 (PTI)

ink: rich cocoa, tangelo and rhubarb stalk dye (Memento)

dies and punches:  limitless layers (PTI); starburst (Martha Stewart Crafts)

extras:  key tags (Staples); baker’s twine (MS Crafts): ribbon (Michael’s); glass beads (Cousin Corp); cellophane bags (Michael’s)

a wonderful year

Our religious education program is held in the parish school, so we, the catechists, end up sharing rooms with the “real” teachers the 16 weeks we are in session. Inevitably, something gets returned to the wrong place or the last tissue is used or some other minor occurrence happens that can be blown out of proportion depending on the teacher's personality or how her Monday is going. With Sandy, my current roommate, I have not experienced any blowouts.

This is the start my second year in the room of a teacher who is very welcoming to my students and me. (I was so happy for this change in rooms last year.) To let Sandy know how much I appreciate her approach, I write her a couple of notes during the year. Here’s a picture of the first card that I left on her desk on Sunday.

PTI’s Teach & Inspire was the starting point for this card. As often is the case, I was inspired by Melissa Phillips, this time the fourth card down in this post. I am very pleased with how my card turned out, which is not always the case. The mix of colors and papers, the subtly embossed “Teacher,” and the little apple came together just the way I had hoped. And because this card was hand-delivered, I was able to add a bow and beaded pin without worrying about postage.

I hope that you have people who welcome you into their world.

nancy

PS – I am entering this card into the following challenges:

* My Craft Spot Monday Challenge #73 – Emboss It!

* The Play Date Cafe PDCC153  – my first time joining in, so fingers crossed that I did it right.

* Simon Says Stamp Challenge – use dies and/or punches 

supplies:

paper:  rustic cream c/s (PTI);  This & That collection (Echo Park); Lost & Found Portobello Road collection (MME)

stamps:  Teach & Inspire (PTI)

ink:  simply chartreuse (PTI); rich cocoa dye (Memento); VersaMark

dies and punches:  heart border and journal tabs (PTI); apple (Martha Stewart Crafts)

extras:  ribbon (My Craft Spot); clear embossing powder (Ranger); mini paper clip (Tim Holtz); glass beads (Cousin Corp)

grateful for lauren

Challenges from Papertrey Ink and Creative Paper Trade gave the direction for this card, but its purpose came from Lauren, a high school freshman who volunteers as a classroom aide for religious education. Lauren was an aide in my fifth grade class last year. After a rocky start (Lauren’s sister and her friends were in the class.), Lauren ended up being a huge asset to me as an extra set of eyes and an organizer of supplies for our yearlong minibook project.

Because of the way our RelEd program is set up, I was certain Lauren would be volunteering somewhere else this year. August found me starting to panic and saying many prayers, trying to come up with a suitable person to be my classroom aide. Two weeks prior to the start of classes, my prayers were answered when I learned that Lauren was returning to me. I’ve already told Lauren how much she means to me, but I wanted to put it writing, too. Of course, I made a card.

The charge of MIM#86 is to decorate the inside of the card. Even if I’m keeping things simple, I usually add some little touch to carry the design inside. This card has the same pink heart border and a mix of sentiments from Autumn Acorns to tell Lauren what she means to me.

The pastel shades are from Creative Paper Trade’s second challenge, which includes color, sketch and shape challenges. The tag with its sweet sentiment is from one of Andrea’s digital tag collections.

I hope you have a Lauren in your life to make things a little bit easier.

nancy

supplies:

paper:  rustic white c/s (PTI); rustic love and from the heart digitals (Creative Paper Trail etsy); paper heart collection (Crate Paper)

stamps:  Autumn Acorns (PTI)

ink:  dune pigment (ColorBox); tuxedo black dye (Memento)

dies and punches:  heart border and counting my blessings (PTI); standard circles large (Spellbinders); swiss cheese border (EK Success)

extras:  pearl stickers (Queen&Co); glossy accents (Ranger)