Happy birthday!

Hello and welcome back! Today's card is for a special birthday - a cousin is turning 60! Birthday celebrations are hard to plan during these difficult times, so I wanted to make an extra special card for her. Here it is:

I loved these dies when they first came out, but still hadn't taken them out of the package - not unusual for me! I still have some of the Grapefruit Grove foil paper from last year in my stash, so I decided to layer that with some Basic Black cardstock for the butterflies. I used a multi-purpose adhesive sheet on the back of the black cardstock so it would stick better to the foil layer - some glues just don't work well on that foil paper. There's some very subtle stamping on the Pool Party layer just to add a bit of texture, and the sentiment is also layered with some of the foil. I felt like it needed just a little something else, so I added the ribbon. The butterflies that got trimmed off from the front were added to the inside.

This card is for the birthday challenge at Stampin' Up Only Challenges.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

--Cindi



Supplies used (all Stampin' Up!):

Stamp sets - Peaceful Moments, Beauty Abounds
Paper - Merry Merlot, Basic Black, Whisper White, and Pool Party Cardstock; Grapefruit Grove Foil Paper (retired)
Ink - Merry Merlot, Pool Party
Accessories - Whisper White Polka-Dot Tulle Ribbon
Tools - Big Shot, Butterfly Beauty Dies, Layering Circles Framelits, Multi-purpose Adhesive Sheets, Stampin' Dimensionals, SNAIL, Multipurpose Liquid Glue

PCC 265 & TTTC 021 - Sending Love & Hugs

Hello and welcome back! Today's card is for the challenges at the Paper Craft Crew and TicTacToe Challenge.

And here is today's card:

For the TicTacToe Challenge, this card uses the left column - butterfly, purple, die cut.

No matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to get away from using some retired elements in my card making. I really miss the Washi Tape punch and the background DSPs. :(

The sentiment is from Sunshine Sayings. I stamped the individual words on a strip of Whisper White cardstock and used the Washi Tape punch on each end to trim them down. The vellum piece is embossed with the Fluttering TIEF to continue the butterfly theme.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

--Cindi

UPDATE - I have also entered this card in the tic-tac-toe challenge at The Paper Players. I've used the center column in this challenge. Simply add a birthday sentiment inside the card - love and hugs are always good for birthdays! 

Supplies used:

Stamp set - Sunshine Sayings
Paper - Whisper White Thick Cardstock; Whisper White, Wisteria Wonder, and Elegant Eggplant Cardstock; Vellum Cardstock; 2011-2013 In Color Backgrounds DSP (retired)
Ink - Elegant Eggplant
Tools - Big Shot, Bold Butterfly Framelits, Butterflies Thinlits, Stitched Shapes Framelits, Fluttering TIEF, Washi Tape Punch (retired), Multipurpose Liquid Glue, SNAIL, Stampin' Dimensionals, Mini Stampin' Dimensionals

TTTC003 & PCC249 - Anniversary

Hello and welcome back! Today's card is for the challenges at TicTacToe and Paper Craft Crew. 

And here is my card:

As you can see, for the tic-tac-toe challenge, I have used the top row across (blue, butterfly, bow) and the middle column down (butterfly, twine, stitching). I kind of like this monochromatic look!

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

--Cindi



Supplies used:

Stamp sets - Watercolor Wings, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper - Whisper White Thick Cardstock; Soft Sky, Island Indigo, and Whisper White Cardstock
Ink - Island Indigo, Soft Sky, Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories - Island Indigo Bakers Twine (retired), Basic Rhinestones
Tools - Big Shot, Stitched Shapes Framelits, Bold Butterfly Framelits, Butterflies Thinlits, Washi Tape punch (retired), SNAIL, Tombow Glue, Stampin' Dimensionals 

CYCI #104 - Sketch Challenge

Hello and welcome back! Today's card is for the sketch challenge at Can You Case It?

And here is my card:

The most amazing thing about this card is that I created it because (unfortunately) I had a need for some sympathy cards. It has been a rough month around here. And I created it without considering entering it in a challenge, so I hadn't even looked at any sketches. Then I pulled the one for this week's CYCI challenge and the sketch was almost exactly like my card! What are the odds?!

Anyway, here are the details. The card uses a Crumb Cake base, and the edges are sponged with Crumb Cake. The scallop circle and smaller circle use older patterned DSP in Soft Sky with a Tea Lace Doily in between. The butterfly was die cut from Soft Sky cardstock, then a small scallop circle of Old Olive and a flower cut from some vintage trim were added on top. The sentiment is from Petite Pairs and is stamped in Early Espresso.

I'm headed to the post office to mail a couple of these cards, and will distribute the others at upcoming funerals. :(

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

--Cindi

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

More convention swaps

Hello and welcome back! Today I have for you the card I made for Amanda and Robbie's 3 x 3 "love notes" swap. This swap appealed to me because of the small number of cards I needed to make - only 16! So, here it is:

You would think that because it is so small, it would be quick and easy to make. You would be mistaken! It was definitely a labor intensive card, but well worth the effort. Here's what it looks like on the inside:

This card was inspired by the project we made at this month's technique club that my upline has. We made a full-sized card, but I adapted it to make this little gem.

Here's how to make the butterfly:
Using the Watercolor Wings stamp set, stamp the two bolder images for the small butterfly with Daffodil Delight and Crushed Curry on Whisper White cardstock. Die cut with the small outline from the Butterflies Thinlits dies.  On a separate piece of Whisper White cardstock, stamp the same two images using Delightful Dijon and Tangelo Twist. Use Early Espresso to stamp the smaller accent image. Then die cut this with the small lacy framelit from the Bold Butterfly Framelits set. Stamp the body on the butterfly with Early Espresso. (Note: wait until after cutting to stamp the body, so it lines up correctly.) Sponge the edges of the solid butterfly with Crushed Curry and the lacy butterfly with Tangelo Twist.

To make the card:
Cut Bermuda Bay cardstock 3 inches by 6 inches and score at 3 inches. Using the largest "scalloped" circle from the Circles Framelits, trim off the bottom of the front. (Note: be sure to only roll the sandwich into the Big Shot far enough to make the cut, then back it out.) Use the small outline framelit you used above to cut out a window in the card front. Now you can emboss the front with the Decorative Dots embossing folder, using the score line as a guide. Use the window as a guide to adhere your butterfly to the inside of the card and then stamp the antennae and the sentiment.

You could adapt this card for many occasions, and it would be the perfect addition to a gift bag or a bouquet of flowers.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

--Cindi

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Can You Case It? 54 - Designer's Choice Challenge

Hello and welcome back! This week's challenge at Can You Case It? is a Designer's Choice Challenge, which means pretty much anything goes! You can use any colors, stamp sets, designs - the sky is the limit! So, without further ado, here's my card:

And here's the inside:

I was inspired to try this design when I saw a video tutorial on Split Coast Stampers by Julie Davison, a Stampin' Up! demonstrator from Central Illinois. It's hard to tell from the photo, but this card is kind of 3-D.

I got my first box of product from the new Occasions Catalog and the Sale-A-Bration brochure this week, so I absolutely had to use some of it for this week's card. I used Julie's tutorial, but changed the dimensions just a bit so my card would be a bit wider. It will still fit in a standard A2 envelope.

I used some Pool Party Core'dinations cardstock from my stash for the base. Stampin' Up! doesn't sell this any more, but you could use any 12 x 12 cardstock. I cut my cardstock at 5-1/2 x 12, and scored along the 12-inch side at 4, 7-1/2, 8, and 11-1/2. Instead of a circle punch, I used one of the Window Frames Framelits to add the opening. Everything else followed Julie's tutorial. I like the extra dimension you get from the pop-up.

For the front of the card, I was very excited to try my new Butterfly Thinlits. There are several technique videos out there that show the best way to cut these butterflies out with minimal effort, but my favorite tutorial is by Patty Bennett. All you need is some wax paper and a dryer sheet, and your butterfly will pop right out. I layered my Crushed Curry butterfly with one cut from vellum paper, and then added the baker's twine bow.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

--Cindi

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Paper Plunge 14

Hello again! Today's card is this week's entry for The Paper Plunge challenge. It's time for a different kind of fold. A search on Pinterest turned up tons of ideas, but I liked this one. It's called a Twist Fold. It creates an interestingly shaped card with a space for a gift card. I found a great tutorial by Dawn Olchefske that explained how to make it.

Twist fold card - Paper Plunge 14

Stampin' Up! products used:
Stamp set: Label Love (inside the card)
Paper: Very Vanilla and Sahara Sand cardstock, Blueberry Crisp DSP (retired)
Ink: Pacific Point
Accessories: Artisan Label punch, Lovely Lace embossing folder, Beautiful Butterflies die (retired)

My next project will be to create an envelope for this card, since it is not a standard size. 

That's it for today. Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

Cindi