Hybrid Cards for Cancer Center

These are cards made for the cancer center at our local hospital using images from the Strength and Hope digital stamp set.

For printing at home I like to use either Whisper White or Very Vanilla cardstock as it is a nice weight to feed easily through my printer and the inks show up nicely.

For this card, I put a white square punch behind the blue images so that I could add a mat.  Even though I was printing on Very Vanilla paper I filled the punch with Whisper White so that the printer would not add any ink in that space.  I was able to put 12 images on one sheet and then cut them out.

For this Crumb Cake card, I spaced the images further apart so I could punch them with the 2-1/2" circle punch.

Here are the details if you care to reproduce these:

1. Resize butterfly to width 132.
2. Resize words to width 140.
3. Resize the square punch to width 155, fill with Whisper White and add a size 6 mat.  Send the punch to the back.
4. Use the align functions to make sure they are perfectly centered and then group together.
5.  Copy and paste images to put 12 on the page.

These images are the same size.  The punch and matting have been deleted and they are spaced further apart to allow for punching.

The card bases are Baja Breeze and Crumb Cake  5-1/2" X 8-1/2", scored at 4/1/4".  Seam binding in the coordinating colors is attached with sticky strip and the digital images are adhered on top.

Class projects

Wow we have been so busy I have not had a chance to post either of my design projects for the Classes, Clubs and Camps Ustamp session.

The first is an interactive ABC book.

Here are a sampling of the pages.  This one is a magnetic matching page.

This one has magnetic ribbons.

There are cards for playing games.

And sliders.  Other pages have lift the flaps and others have pockets with matching cards.

The second project is a Father's Day gift set with notebook, bookmark, business card holder and pop up card.

I thought the pop up die fit the world and nautical theme of this project.

Spring Tulips

Yesterday we drove through Michigan State University's campus and the tulips, daffodils and magnolia trees were putting on a spring show.  Too bad I did not have my camera.  But I do have a few tulips blooming in the craft room that I do have pictures of:

I made this set using a tutorial shared with us by Jessica Luther on Ustamp.   Pink flowers are my favorite so I used Melon Mambo for the tulips and the Beyond the Garden DSP.

This was my first time using the pop-up cake die.  It is quite quick to make once you get the hang of it.  Karen Burniston the designer of the die has a great video with some extra tips for putting it together.

The flowerpot goes inside the box.   I thought the little pom pom trim was so cute around the sections.

I like how the flower sticks over the edge of the card front.

More Colored Embossing Technique Details

Today I have more details for two of the cards from the Stampin' Addicts Summer Mini Blog Hop.  You can follow the links on this page to see all the new goodies.

This card has three different embossing techniques.

For the button, I first covered it with gold embossing powder, heated it up and while is was still hot sprinkled a fine layer of Wild Wasabi powder on and heated it again.  The result is very cool metallic green.

The ribbon is also embossed.  I started with white organza and dragged it across the versamark pad until it was coated.  When it was heated the powder melted into the ribbon.  The ribbon itself melted a bit giving a unique wavy design and though it is hard to see it has a soft shimmer.

Colored embossing powder stands out beautifully on a dark background.  I added the colors one at a time to the inked background, tapping off the excess in between colors. 

I thought this next card came out quite nicely.  

The multicolored background is the same stamp, same technique as the first card but it looks very different on a light paper.  This one is embossed on watercolor paper which is nice and thick with a bit of texture.  

The shiny layer is thin copper dry embossed with the Square Lattice folder.  I rubbed the versamark pad lightly over the surface to ink up just the raised areas and then sprinkled Wild Wasabi embossing powder on it.  A very interesting combo of color and shininess.

Making the flower was very fun!  I cut a piece of whisper white cardstock in a spiral with the Table Setting die.  After coiling it up, I stuck it to a circle of Sticky Page adhesive.   I ran my versamarker around and around flower and embossed it with Melon Mambo powder.  Then I ran the versamarker around and around again but only on the edges and embossed with gold.  I used reinkers in Daffodil Delight and Tangerine Tango to watercolor the interior of the flower leaving a bit a white as highlights.

Beach Shadow Box and Sunset Cards Details

We had a wonderful Summer Mini Stampin Addict Blog hop over the weekend.  If you missed it please see this post.  You can still see all the terrific ideas by following the links. 

Today I am sharing the details of two of the projects featuring colored embossing powders.

This is an 8 X 8 shadow box frame purchased at a local craft store.  The space from the backing to the glass on the inside is about an inch so I had room for the surfboards and pail to stand away from the picture.  I put a 1/2" spacer at the back of each and secured them to the background paper.  

The fish and bubbles are embossed directly on the glass.  When stamping on glass be careful that the stamp does not slide or the image will not be clear.  Also stamp and emboss the images one at a time if using two different colors as I did here.

The turtle is a stamped impression.  To make this I stuck a 1-3/4" circle of cardstock temporarily on a strip of paper so I had a handle to hang on to while heat embossing.  I added 6 or 7 layers of embossing powder, heating in between each.  If you work quickly you can pour on the next layer of embossing powder while the last is still sticky.  Once it was thick I pressed the stamp, which had been coated with versamark, into the hot powder.  It only took a minute to harden and I then removed the stamp.

Once everything was done I poured some crushed sea shells in to the bottom.  I just love the 3D effect this created!

The powders made a lovely sunset on this card:

I started with a 3-3/4"X5" piece of glossy white cardstock and placed a 2 1/2" circle punched from a post-it note at the bottom.

I inked the background with versamark ink by pressing the pad on the paper until it was covered.  Then starting at the bottom I sprinkled on Tangerine Tango embossing powder, thickly at the bottom and gradually thinning it out.  Then I used Melon Mambo to fill in the remainder of the background.

After heating I removed the mask and sponged Daffodil Delight for the sun and Not Quite Navy near the top to mellow the pink and give a more natural look to the sunset.   I stamped the Sail Away image in Staz-on Jet Black over the top and added sails that were paper pieced from white cardstock.

The ribbon is made by running a line of sticky strip near the top and pleating Basic Black Satin Ribbon.

Here are the cardstock measurements to complete the layers of the card:
      Basic Black base- 6" X 9-3/4", folded in half
      Beyond the Garden DSP -  4-1/4" X 5-5/8"
      Basic Black layer - 3-7/8" X 5-1/8"
Note:   This larger card does not fit in a A4 envelope.  I used a 5-1/8" X 7-1/4" non-SU envelope.

Colored Embossing Powder Techniques

Welcome to the Stampin' Addicts Summer Mini Blog Hop.  There are more than 20 stops in the hop each featuring a different product from the Summer Mini Catalog.  You may have arrived here from Barbara's blog where she showcased the beautiful bright Beyond the Garden Designer Series Paper.  If you get lost at any point you can see the all the hop stops by clicking HERE.

I have been having a great time experimenting with the new colored embossing powders.  They are available in the bold bright colors of Wild Wasabi, Melon Mambo and Tangerine Tango which are perfect for summer projects.  From embossing ribbons and buttons to stamping on glass, metal and dark cardstock these powders can be used in many creative ways.

I thought the melon and tangerine would make a lovely sunset so for this first card I masked a circle for the sun and covered the remainder of the paper with versamark ink.  Starting at the bottom I added the tangerine powder and blended it with melon as I went up the card.  After heat embossing, I sponged the sun with Daffodil Delight ink and stamped the sailboat with Staz-on Jet Black.  The sails are paper pieced with Whisper White cardstock.

One of the great things about colored embossing powder is that it stands out on dark colors.   For the background sections of the card, I used the Bella Toile stamp on a piece of Night of Navy cardstock.  Starting with one color I poured embossing powder on in little blobs, shook it off, and applied another color.

The button and ribbon are also embossed.  The button was first covered with gold embossing powder, heated and while it was hot sprinkled with a fine dusting of Wild Wasabi and embossed again.  The ribbon is white organza that I ran over the versamark pad and coated with wasabi powder.  When it was heated, it melted and curled slightly giving a very cool effect.

I chose brushed gold for the card base to complement the shininess of the embossing and the little touch of pink thread is the new white baker's twine colored with the Melon Mambo marker.

This next card has a couple of unique techniques.  I embossed a piece of copper with the square lattice die and used the wasabi powder to emboss the raised design.

The flower is cut with the table setting die and the edges are embossed with Melon Mambo and gold.  To do this I ran the versamarker along the edges of the flower reaching in about half way.  I embossed this with Melon Mambo.  Then I ran the marker along the edges again but only at the upper edge and embossed this with gold.  After is was cool I used reinkers in Tangerine and Daffodil to add color to the inside of the flower.

The Belle Toile background is done the same as the dark background of the second card but has a very different look when embossed on watercolor paper.

My last project has a few more ideas for the powders.  The surf boards and pail are embossed on shimmery white cardstock giving the look of fiberglass.  These pieces have spacers behind them so they sit away from the back of the frame allowing the seashells go in back and in front of them.  This shadow box has an inch of space between the glass and the background so it was perfect to add the standup elements and the seashells.

The fish and bubbles are stamped on the glass giving a 3D effect and the turtle is a stamped impression.  To make the turtle I covered a circle of cardstock with multiple layers of embossing powder heating in between each and quickly placed the stamp (covered with versamark) into the hot melted powder.

I will have all the measurements for these projects, close up photos and tips for making these starting Monday after the hop.

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you have been inspired to use these pretty new powders in different ways.  Now it is time to hop on over to Cindy's blog and see what amazing things she has done with the Flower Garden embossing folder.

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Petal Cone Easter Table Favor

Here is a fun idea for an Easter table favor and place card.

Once again I used my trusty petal cone die.  What would I do without it??

A large Cadbury creme egg sits on top of flowers cut with the Fun Flowers die.

To make this:
1. Cut two petal cone pieces from Daffodil Delight.
2. Fold in half, place the score line at the 3 1/2" mark on the cutter and cut the tip off.

4.  Assemble the petal cone with sticky strip.
5.  Secure a length of ribbon inside the opening letting it drape over the edge.
6.  Attach a butterfly cut with the Beautiful Wings embosslit using a mini glue dot.
7. Cut two flowers with the Fun Flowers die.  Clip in between each petal of the larger flower. Curl the petals over a pencil.
8.  Adhere the egg to the flowers with a large glue dot.