If You Were Milk - Snarky Cat

Hello there!

I'm back with another card. This one is very quirky and snarky. I have used the oh so funny Snarky Cats by Tim Holtz. The cat I used in this one went perfectly with the sentiment, its face says it all.

What you need...

Stamps:

Tim Holtz Snarky Cats (CMS392) - Stampers Anonymous

Stencil:

Circle Extraordinaire (ST-122) - My Favorite Things

Ink pads:

Dried Marigold - Tim Holtz Distress

Squeezed Lemonade

Twisted Citron

Tuxedo Black - Memento

Embellishments:

Midnight Mix Sequins - Little Things from Lucy's Cards

Washi tape:

Black/white houndstooth - MT

Card stock:

white

Extras:

Adhesives

Masking paper - Inkadinkado

What you do...

1 Cut a piece of white card stock 4"x 5¼" (10.5cm x 13.5cm) and position the stencil so it sits central. Use the stencil to get an idea where you want the cat to go. 

2 Ink up the cat and stamp so it sits near the lower right corner. Stamp the cat again onto some masking paper and fussy cut out. Place over the original cat.

3 Replace the stencil and blend the inks, starting with Dried Marigold followed by Squeezed Lemonade and finishing with Twisted Citron. Remove the masking paper.

4 Add a strip of Washi tape across the bottom of the panel so it lies at an angle and immediately under the cat.

5 Stamp the sentiment at the top left of the circle.

6 Mat the panel onto a white 4¼"x 5½" (11cm x 14cm) top fold blank. Add some black sequins to decorate.

I always use a quick drying dye ink to stamp the image onto the card panel and masking paper otherwise it can smudge when you ink blend over it. If you have a stamping platform, keep the cat stamp on the platform and after removing the mask, stamp over the cat with a crisp, rich ink such as Onyx Black by Versafine. This will really make the original stamped image pop with the risk of smudging.

Sometimes if you don't use a quick drying dye ink on the original image, the masking paper can pick up some of the ink and transfer it onto your card panel if you have to reposition it. Not good.

I hope you like my snarky little card, I have the Christmas version too, so I'm looking forward to playing with that one.

As always, thank you for stopping by and take care. 

Hey! Friend

Hello there! I hope you are all keeping well.

Nuvo Glimmer Paste! Why, oh why didn't I play around with this stuff when I first purchased it? It's been in my stash for some time and I don't know whether I was a bit frightened of it or just didn't have the inspiration. I'm in love!

I recently purchased the Avery Elle Loads of Hello stamp and die set and thought that these large words would look great over a stencilled background, but with some extra sparkle. This gave me the kick start I needed. Hence, I got on a roll creating a few cards using this wonderful stuff.

What you need...

Stamps: 

Loads of Hello ST-21-11 - Avery Elle

Dies:

Loads of Hello D-21-11 - Avery Elle

Stencil:

Rectangle Trio - My Favorite Things

Ink pads:

Dried Marigold - Tim Holtz Distress Oxide

Picked Raspberry

Wilted Violet

Onyx Black - Versafine

Glimmer paste:

Nuvo Moonstone - Tonic Studios

Card stock:

White

Embellishments:

Crystal Confetti - The Stamp Market

Extras:

Adhesives

Die cutting machine - Sizzix

Blending brushes - Picket Fence

Nuvo Media Spatulas - Tonic Studios

What you do...

1 Cut a piece of white card 10.5cm x 13.5cm, place the stencil towards the top and secure in place with low tack tape.

2 Start at the top of the stencil and blend Dried Marigold ink, followed by Picked Raspberry then Wilted Violet. Allow the ink to dry.

3 Using a spatula, spread some of the Moonstone paste evenly over the stencil. Scrape away the excess and place back in the pot. Remove the stencil. Put the lid back on the pot and wash the stencil and spatula immediately. Allow the paste to dry.

4 Stamp the 'hey!' and 'friend' with black ink. Die cut the 'hey!' and die cut again twice more in white card. Stack the die cuts lining up each layer. Trim the 'friend'.

5 Create an 11cm x 14cm top fold blank and attach the stencilled panel onto it either with foam tape or some layers of scrap card stock. Attach the 'hey! with the 'friend' underneath to the right. Finish with some of the Crystal Confetti.

I am so proud that my photo captured the beauty of this shimmery surface, of course it still isn't as wonderful as in real life. 

It's important that you close the pot of paste and wash your stencil and spatula straight away. This stuff dries quickly and rock hard and will damage your stencil and spatula. I placed a small piece of Press & Seal over the top of the pot before adding the lid. Cling film could also be used.

I am definitely going to use this paste for Christmas cards.

I hope you like my card, I will be back soon with the others I created, two use the remaining large words from the stamp and die sets in a different colour scheme and the third uses some cute cacti stamps.

I am entering this make into the Crafty Creations Challenge #419 - Anything goes. Click here to take you to the challenge.

Keep safe and well and thank you for stopping by.

Lucky Gnome - 3D Silhouette Project

Hello there!

I'm back again with another make (two in one week - wow!). 

As usual, I made a St Patrick's Day card for some good friends of mine, but this year I wanted to do something a little different.

I recently saw Lori Whitlock showcase some of her 3D pop up cards. She had created a cute gnome complete with a rainbow, pot of gold and clovers.

What you need...

Digital Die Image:

Decagon Pop Up St Patrick Gnome #344207 - Lori Whitlock (Silhouette)

Card stock:

Pink

Blush pink

Orange

Yellow

Lime green

Green

Pool

Purple

Black

White

Gold glitter - Neutrals Glitter Paper Pack #10420 - Concord & 9th

Die cutting machine:

Silhouette Cameo

Extras:

Stickles Yellow - Ranger

Stickles Frosted Lace

Adhesives

What you do:

1 Purchase the image and load onto your Design Page.

2 Ungroup the images and separate into colour groups and send to cut.

3 Assemble the rainbow/cloud layer, the gnome layer and then the pot/clover layer and set aside. I added some Frosted Lace Stickles to the cloud and Yellow Stickles to the gold coins.

4 Assemble the base and attach each layer.

5 Stick the panels onto the side wrap and fix to the card base, making sure everything lines up.

You can find full video instructions on how to assemble this type of card here.

This isn't a very big card and when folded flat will fit perfectly into and A2 (US) or A6 envelope, which is great for posting.

There are lots of other adorable 3D pop up cards available, some with a rectangular, circle and hexagonal base. There are also lots of themes/occasions to choose from.

After watching Lori's video I found it really easy to assemble. Just remember to use a strong adhesive and make sure everything is lined up.

I must admit I'm not a fan of leprechauns, so this cute gnome was ideal.

I hope you like this adorable little card, I might have a go at doing some of the others she has in the range.

Thank you for stopping by and I'll be back soon. I've been making quite a few cards recently (miracle).

Spring Roses Mother's Day Card - Altenew & Concord & 9th

Hi blog friends!

My, it's been a while hasn't it? I hope you are all still keeping safe and well in this crazy world.

To be honest I haven't really been making cards for personal use, the craft magazines have been keeping me exceptionally busy and after finishing those projects, I just wasn't in the mood. 

Anyhoo, with Mother's day coming up, I knew I had to get creating. I am a big fan of Altenew and last year I purchased their beautiful die set called Spring Roses. 

This die set consists of three quite large clusters of roses. I knew that I wanted to make my Mum a card using these dies. I teamed them up with some bold lettering by Concord & 9th and some subtle stencilling.

What you need...

Dies: 

Spring Roses - Altenew

Double Cut Alphabet - Concord & 9th

Stencil:

Basic Spots - Clearly Besotted

Ink pad:

Sprout - Concord & 9th

Card stock:

Key Lime - Silhouette Self Adhesive

Leaf Green

Mint

Black

Solar White 110lb - Neenah Classic Crest

Embellishments:

Lucky Dip Night - Little Things from Lucy's Cards

Extras:

Adhesives

What you do...

1 Die cut the larger of the double cluster of roses once each in Black, Mint and Key Lime. Use a small piece of Leaf Green to cut the small cluster of spiky leaves.

2 Cut a 10.5cm x 13.5cm piece of the white card and with the Sprout ink, stencil an area of spots in the centre of the card, blending to a fade.

3 Attach the roses to the lower right corner. Then infill with the Leaf Green, Key Lime and Mint die cut pieces.

4 Die cut the 'MUM' from the Black card and adhere above the rose cluster and add some black gems.

5 Mat the panel onto an 11cm x 14cm top fold blank.

I was debating as to create the roses with pink card, but I'm glad I went with the Mint colour. My Mum loved it. Remember to keep all the extra die cuts to create another card. 

Before I started to infill the roses, I noticed it looked really good with just the outline of the flowers over the stencilled background, I will have to do that one in a future project.

I will sign off for now, I do have a 3D St. Patrick's Day card I did for some friends which was created using my Silhouette, so I'll be back soon with that one.

I am entering this make into the Crafty Creations Challenge #419 - Anything goes. Click here to take you to the challenge.

Thank you for stopping by and see you soon, keep safe!