Asian Encore

Hello everyone,

I warned that my mojo still had more Asian-inspired cards flowing. I actually came across this paper when I was putting away my scraps last night. All of these Asian-inspired cards have only used scraps from my DCWV Far East stack so when I came across this rather sizeable piece, I couldn't just leave it in the envelop.



The solid paper is Stampin' Up Always Artichoke. The printed paper is DCWV Far East Stack. The image is Stampin' Up Asian Artistry. All images have been highlighted with Sakura's Clear Star Gelly Roll pen. The embellishments are Multicrafts Keepsake Memories.

I absolutely love this card. I thought about adding a sentiment but I rather like the simplicity as is. When I first used this paper I had a difficult time pairing it with a solid paper that didn't over- or underwhelm it. I wish I'd thought of trying the Always Artichoke because it is perfect!

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Asian Inspiration Finale

Hello everyone,

Today's card is the last one in the Asian-inspired series I've been working on the past few days. I've really enjoyed crafting this series of cards and I suspect I've still got a few in me so I would expect an encore in the next few days.

The background paper is Stampin' Up Blush Blossom stamped with Asian Artistry in Blush Blossom ink and highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen. The two top elements are DCWV Far East stack, highlighted again with the Sakura Clear Star pen and layered on Stampin' Up Groovy Guava.

I have to say this card is so much more beautiful than I expected it to be. Neither Groovy Guava nor Blush Blossom have ever been my favourite papers but in this application they work incredibly. I can't recommend the Sakura Clear Star pen enough. Everything I've done with this pen has been remarkable.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Yet Another Asian Inspired

Hello everyone,

This is my second to last card in the Asian-inspired series I've been crafting.

The layers are Close To My Heart Barn Red, Stampin' Up Wild Wasabi and DCWV Far East Stack. The sentiment is Stampin' Up Well Scripted stamped in Nick Bantock Van Dyke Brown on Very Vanilla. The embellishments are Close To My Heart Mocha Opaques.

This is probably my least favourite in the series so far. I'm not sure if it's the colours, which I had a hard time picking or the sketch. Regardless, it is still a great card and it works great in the series.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Another Asian Inspired

Hello everyone,

Today's card is another in the Asian-inspired series that I've undertaken. I've actually already sold one of the cards that I blogged about on Saturday. I can't wait to try to replicate it. It may even be better the second time around.

The background paper is Stampin' Up Early Espresso stamped with Sweet Summer and highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen. The middle layer is Stampin' Up Perfect Plum textured with Cuttlebug's Oriental Weave dry embossing folder and highlighted with more Sakura Clear Star. The horizontal strips are DCWV Far East Stack. The sentiment is Gina K. Fanciful Tags. The embellishments are Amuse Creative Candy white Pretty Pearls.

Another beautiful card if I do say so myself. One of my favourite new Stampin' Up Colours is Early Espresso. I've yet to find something it doesn't work with and I love using it instead of Basic Black. I can't say enough about the Sakura Clear Star pen. Everything I've used it on has turned out absolutely beautifully. It's been a lot of fun experimenting with it and I can't wait to see what else it can do.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

More Asian Inspiration

Hello everyone,

This is another card in the Asian-inspired series I've been working on this weekend.

 
The background layer is Stampin' Up Bravo Burgundy textured with Cuttlebug's Oriental Weave dry embossing folder. The middle layer is Stampin' Up Always Artichoke. It is stamped with Hero Arts Decorative Bamboo which is highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen. The top layer is DCWV Far East stack also highlighted with Sakura's Clear Star Gelly Roll pen. The sentiment is Impression Obsession Thank You. The embellishments are Multicrafts Keepsake Memories.

Another card that I just love. The colours are so earthy and natural, it emotes a much different feeling than the cards from yesterday.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Asian Inspired

Hello everyone,

I've three cards for you today. I wanted to undertake a series of Asian-inspired cards which I could auction to raise donations for the Canadian Red Cross Japanese relief drive. I'm really hoping that my colleagues at the office will dig deep. The last two of the cards are completely my own design, while the first card uses last Sunday's Paper Players sketch which was just too appealing to resist.

The card base is from Recollections, the focal layer is DCWV Far East stack layered on Stampin' Up Basic Black. The ribbon is Michael's Special Value. The sentiment is Gina K Fanciful Tags. The embellishments are Kaisercraft pearls.

The card base is from Recollections. The base layer is Stampin' Up Soft Sky textured with Cuttlebug's Oriental Weave dry embossing folder and layered on Close To My Heart Twilight. The sentiment is Stampin' Up Curly Cute layered on DCWV Far East stack and more Close To My Heart Twilight.

The patterned paper is more DCWV Far East stack layered on Close To My Heart Twilight. The base layer is Stampin' Up Soft Suede which was stamped with Asian Artistry in Nick Bantock Deep Turquoise. All images were highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.

I just love all three cards. They are each very different yet have the Asian feeling that I wanted. I love the simplicity of the Paper Players sketch and it was wonderful to work the paper into the sketch. The same worked with the blue card which just used a scrap of the DCWV paper. I have to say, I'm just in love with the Sakura Clear Star pen. It worked amazingly on the stamped image and I can't wait to try it again on another card.

I hope you enjoy these cards and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Happy Birthdays

Hello everyone,

Every once in a while I craft I card that I absolutely love and have to repeat it over and over. This is the case with today's cards. I tried one, fell in love, and made three more.

The card bases are all Recollections. The paper is Stampin' Up Sage Shadow, Apricot Appeal, Rich Razzleberry, Baja Breeze, Basic Black and Whisper White. The solid papers were dry embossed with Cuttlebug's Victoria folder. The image is Impression Obsession Cover-A-Card Flourishes which are highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen. The sentiments are Waltzingmouse Say It With Style, Stampin' Up Well Scripted and Perfect Punches, and Hero Arts Thoughtful Messages. The embellishments are Close To My Heart Bitty Sparkles and Licorice Opaques, and Amuse Creative Candy White Pretty Pearls.

I see so many possibilities with this simple, yet not clean, card. It all started with a visit to Heather's Stamping Haven and I have to say I'm mightily impressed with this stamp. I've got another that I've not yet tried but anticipate I'll love it just as much. Combined with the Clear Star glitter pen, this image is pretty incredible! As a side note, it was also rather fun to pull out some of my older Stampin' Up paper like Sage Shadow and Apricot Appeal.

I hope you enjoy these cards and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Once In A Lifetime

Hello everyone,

The son of a very good friend is getting married this summer and one of the more interesting things they're doing to renting a very rustic lot at which they'll have a very casual celebration of their nuptials. My friend asked me to see what I could do with for an invitation that would suit the celebration.

The background paper is BasicGrey Oliver layered on Stampin' Up Baja Breeze. The image, Stampin' Up Branch Out, is stamped with a variety of Stampin' Up and Tombow ink on Whisper White. The birds and butterflies are highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen. The sentiment is Stampabilities Changes on Whisper White and layered on Baja Breeze.

I really like this card. It may be just a little too casual for even an exceptionally casual wedding but I leave that up to the happy couple to decide. I'm not necessarily proposing this particular paper but I think that BasicGrey offers such wonderful paper which would work beautifully for this type of card. This has to be one of my most favourite wedding/anniversary sentiments.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Elegant Anniversary

Hello everyone,

Today's card, based on this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch from Karen Giron, is for my in-laws upcoming wedding anniversary.

The paper is all Stampin' Up - Elegant Soiree, Baja Breeze and Very Vanilla. The image and sentiment are also Stampin' Up Always Elegant and are stamped in Nick Bantock Charcoal Grey. Everything is highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.

I love everything about this card from the sketch to the colours to the image to the sentiment. The fabulous coordination is one of the great things about Stampin' Up products. I've been coveting this stamp set since I first saw it in the catalogue and I'm so glad I finally caved. I also love this paper so very much that I picked up two packs.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Baby Announcement II

Hello everyone,

I've been playing with my friend's baby announcement and have come up with a second version that I just love!

The elements remain exactly the same as previous - textured Bazzill, Little Yellow Bicycle Delightful Collection Blooms, Inkadinkado Baby Animals, Stampin' Up Curvy Verses, Stampin' Up Dusty Durango and Nick Bantock Charcoal Grey.

I love this little panda stamp and wanted to accommodate its size so I needed to expand on the focal layer. Expanding the white rectangle required enlarging the textured layer however, my supply of textured cardstock want limited. I like the separation of the two rectangles on which the focal layer is centered. I also like all the rounded corners. I love this card! It was well worth playing with the sketch.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Baby Announcement

Hello everyone,

Today's card is a prototype for a friend's baby announcement cards. A bunch of us girls are going to get together in the next couple of weeks to actually build them. It was so much fun designing this card I know we're going to have a blast building them.

The card base is from Recollections. The blue layers are Bazzill textures. The patterned paper is Little Yellow Bicycle Delightful Collection Blooms. The sentiment, Stampin' Up Curvy Verses in Nick Bantock Charcoal Grey, and the image, Inkadinkado Baby Animals in Stampin' Up Dusty Durango, are stamped on white Recollections paper.

I think this is a great baby announcement card. It has to be a simple layout because we've so many to make but I've tried to compensate with texture and really graphic paper. I think it is a pretty neutral card, I've at least tried to balance yin and yang. I may still play with the top layer as the Inkadinkado set has some great images that are just a tad too large for the panel.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Butterfly Birthday

Hello everyone,

I'm breaking into more of my recently acquired Close To My Heart papers. Tuesday's Inspirational Card Sketches had a great sketch that I just had to try.

The paper is all Close To My Heart - Black, Crystal Blue, Sweet Leaf and Wings. The blue layer is dry embossed with Sizzix Flourish texture plate. The butterflies, Sizzix Beautiful Wings embosslits, are more Sweet Leaf paper glittered with Crystal Glitter Ritz Warm Highlight Transparent Micro Fine Glitter. The sentiment is from Magenta. The embellishments are Close To My Heart Licorice Opaques.

I absolutely love this card. Every element I thought of, just worked with one another as I pulled the pieces together. It really is wonderful when cards virtually craft themselves. The colours works, the texture works, the images work and the sentiment works. How awesome!

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Happy Birthday

Hello everyone,

There are just so many creative options with my latest Close To My Heart order that I just had to keep on crafting. Sunday's Stars and Stamps sketch was right up my ally so there was little doubt I would use it for a card this week.

The paper is all Close To My Heart - Magnifique, Pacifica, Chocolate and Colonial White. The image is Stampin' Up Flower Factory. The sentiment is Hero Arts Small Greetings. All the flowers are highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.

This is exactly the card I pictured when I first saw the sketch. It took me a while to find the right flower stamp (does that mean too many stamps???) but this one works perfectly. I have to say I'm absolutely in love with the Sakura pen. It is so easy to use and is really impactful, though it doesn't show as well when photographed.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

So Sorry

Hello everyone,

A friend of a friend suffered a miscarriage last week so I made her a card. I just received some new and absolutely beautiful paper from Close To My Heart and used Saturday's Stamping 411 sketch as a starting point.

The paper is all Close To My Heart - Barn Red and Olivia. The sentiment is Gina K Framed Greetings stamped in Nick Bantock Chartreuse Leaf.

I'm sad to have had to make this card as this is such a difficult thing for anyone. I do think this simple sketch and the rich autumnal papers make this a really appropriate card.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Girly Birthday

Hello everyone,

Today's card is for my god-daughter whose celebrating her birthday this week. She's a bright and chirpy little girl and I wanted her card to reflect that sweetness.

The solid papers are Stampin' Up Pink Passion and So Saffron, both of which were textured with Sizzix Ivy Flourishes. The patterned paper is Cosmo Cricket DeLovely which is layered on another piece of Pink Passion. The ribbon is Offray Fun Dots. The image is Stampin' Up Perfect Punches. The sentiment is Stampin' Up Happy Moments. The image and sentiment are highlighted with Gold and Diamond Stickles.

This is a wonderfully cheerful card and I know my god-daughter will love it! I love the colours and think this is perfect for a young girl's card.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

For You

Hello everyone,

I've got two cards for you on this mellow Sunday afternoon. The images are some of the watercolour crayon techniques that I was playing with yesterday. I warned you that I've a ton of watercolour paper I need to use.

The background layer is Stampin' Up Really Rust. The patterned paper is BasicGrey Green At Heart. The image, Gina K Hope Grows, is stamped with More Mustard and Real Red watercolour crayons. The image is affixed to a layer of More Mustard and Really Rust paper. The papers were cut with Martha Stewart's Quilted Edge punch. The sentiment is Stampin' Up Just Believe in Early Espresso. The entire card is highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.

The background paper is Stampin' Up So Saffron. The patterned paper is BasicGrey Granola. The image, Impression Obsession Frills, is stamped with Elegant Eggplant, Always Artichoke and Garden Green watercolour crayons. The image is layered on a Elegant Eggplant paper and is highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen. The sentiment is Stampin' Up Vintage Labels. The ribbon is Michael's Special Value. The embellishments are Crafts Gem Chic from the dollar store.

I love these cards. Yesterday I was so frustrated by the watercoloured images but once I properly gauged the amount of water needed, they just came out beautifully. I think my new favourite tool is the Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen. It makes it so very, very easy to add some sparkle and the results are spectacular.

I hope you enjoy these cards and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Inspired

Hello everyone,

This week's One Layer Wednesday challenge is to find inspiration from Marta Dansie's Pinterest boards. I was inspired by one of the photos from her Craft and DIY board.

I was certainly inspired by all the colours in this chart but I also found the precision of the chart appealing. What inspired me most however was the watercolours themselves. One of my most favourite techniques is colouring images with watercolour crayons then spritzing them with water before stamping the impression.

The card base is from Recollections. The image is Impression Obsession Victorian Flowers which were coloured in Stampin' Up Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive and Garden Green watercolour crayons. The sentiment is Waltzingmouse Say It With Style which was stamped in Stampin' Up Early Espresso.

I will tell you that this is not my first effort with this card, in fact it is not my second or third. I have so much watercolour paper cut, you can expect to see a ton of cards with this watercolour technique. Don't ever believe someone who says that clean and simple cards are easy because they most certainly are not. Of course, the watercolour technique is it's own challenge. Too much water and the image just blobs. Too little water and the image doesn't stamp clearly. Still, I love the how these types of card turn out so it's all well worth it in the end.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

In The Mood For Christmas

Hello everyone,

I've no commissions on my plate at the moment and my stash is looking reasonably healthy so I decided that a Christmas card was in order.

The solid papers are Stampin' Up Early Espresso and Cherry Cobbler. The Cherry Cobbler is dry embossed with Sizzix Merry Christmas Phrases. The patterned paper is Fancy Pants On The Tree - Christmas Magic. The sentiment is Gina K Fanciful Tags. The embellishments are Close To My Heart Mocha Opaques.

I love everything about this card; the colours, the texture, the layout. It has somewhat of a vintage vibe due to the patterned paper. I also have to say that I just love Early Espresso and Cherry Cobbler together.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Birthday Greetings

Hello everyone

Today's card takes advantage of another of my flubs from this past weekend. I used Saturday's I {heart} 2 Stamp sketch as a jumping off point and last week's Fussy and Fancy Friday challenge was embossing which was the entire focus of the flub.

The paper is all BasicGrey Lemonade and vanilla Recollections. The image is embossed with Cuttlebug's With Love and painted with Shimmerz Blingz Gold Glimmer. The butterflies are Ranger Adirondack Watermelon and Shell Pink alcohol ink and Gold Mixative, applied to velum and cut with Sizzix Beautiful wings Embosslits. The sentiment is Annabelle Stamps Sentimental Bluebells stamped in Stampin' Up Melon Mambo. The flowers and butterflies are highlighted with Fruit Punch and Star Dust Stickles respectively.

I just love this girly, girly card. It has a vintage vibe which comes from combining the great BasicGrey patterns. If only men cards were so easy to craft. I still have a couple of flubs but I'm not certain how I could incorporate them into cards. I'll have to do some experimenting over the weekend.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Birthday Wishes

Hello everyone,

Today's card uses one of the flubs from my weekend of card making frustration. I've used Sunday's Card Positioning Systems sketch and today's My Time To Craft 'jewels' challenge when crafting this card.

The patterned paper is DCWV Pocket Full of Posies. The green layer is Stampin' Up Certainly Celery which was dry embossed with Sizzix Floral Expression texture plate. The lavender layer is Bazzill Bling. The image, Cuttlebug's With Love, was dry embossed on a Recollections card base and painted with Shimmerz Angel Wings. The sentiment is Lizzie Anne Say It In Script. The embellishments are Kiwi Oregon Raindrops.

This was one of my test pieces for last week's One Layer Wednesday shimmer challenge. I didn't want to just through it out so I repurposed it into, what I think is, a really beautiful card. I love pink and green together. It was also great to find paper and texture to match the image.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Lovin' It

Hello everyone,

I truly do love card making. It is my bliss. Unless it frustrates me. I've spent all weekend working on cards for this week's One Layer Wednesday Challenge which was to use shimmer, not glitter or bling. Well, I don't have any Shimmering H2Os, so I used Shimmerz and Shimmerz Blingz. It took me a couple of days just to figure out how to craft such a card. I eventually decided to dry emboss a card base and paint it with the Shimmerz, hoping to get the proper effect. The idea was sound, but the execution really was a challenge. I did have to add some bling as the cards just didn't work without it. Forgive me Susan. I'm posting the three best results of many, many attempts.

The card base is Stampin' Up Perfect Plum. The border is Cuttlebug's Frill dry embossing folder which was painted with Shimmerz Angel Wings. The top and bottom of the border was scored with a Scor-Pal tool. The sentiment is Stampin' Up Wonderful Words, stamped in white and heat embossed with Stampin' Up Clear embossing powder. The embellishments are Close To My Heart Pearl Opaques.

The card base is Stampin' Up Really Rust. The image is Cuttlebug's With Love dry embossing folder which was painted with Shimmerz Blingz Gold Glimmer. The sentiment is Impression Obsession Vertical Greetings, stamped in Stampin' Up Early Espresso and heat embossed with clear embossing powder. The embellishments are Multicrafts Keepsakes Memories.

The card base is Recollections. The image is Cuttlebug's With Love dry embossing folder which was painted with Shimmerz Angel Wings. The sentiment is Papertrey Ink Signature Greetings stamped in Nick Bantock Prussian Blue. The embellishments are Close To My Heart Bitty Sparkles.

These are certainly not my most favourite cards ever crafted but I don't totally hate them either. I will chalk them up as experiments that I won't necessarily try to replicate. It was interesting to see the difference between the coloured card bases and the white card base. I quite like the monochromatic-ness of the cards but I'm not convinced the Shimmerz was the best option even though it was the only one I had.

I hope you enjoy these cards and come back to SPI.

Gisèle

Congratulations

Hello everyone,

Today's card was commissioned by a colleague for another colleague who recently got a promotion. I know the recipient quite well so this card was really fun to make.

The background and printed papers are BasicGrey Green At Heart. The middle layer is Stampin' Up More Mustard which was dry embossed with Sizzix Flourish Blooms plate. The sentiment, stamped in Nick Bantock Damson Plum on Whisper White, is Stampin' Up Well Scripted. The embellishments are Multicrafts Keepsakes Memories.

I love this card. All the colours were drawn from the printed paper which is just lovely, of course it is BasicGrey. Even with multiple layers, this is a very simple card. It suits both the giver and the recipient perfectly.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Challenges Galore

Hello everyone,

It sure feels great to get to some blog surfing. There are some pretty spectacular card making blogs out there. I found two new challenges today and used them and two old favourites to craft this card. Monday's Craft Your Passion Challenge asked for a girly girl card. This week's Papertake Weekly Challenge was 'anything goes' and Desert Islands Crafts Challenge was to pick three items from the itinerary. I chose two or more patterned papers, pearls and a birthday theme. Today's 365 Cards challenge was a really interesting Q&A recipe - favourite colour (blue), favourite design technique (smooshed alcohol ink), favourite embellishment (pearls), least favourite colour (yellow) and favourite card size (6 1/2" x 5").


The background paper is BasicGrey Urban Prairie as is the top layer. The blue layer is glossy paper smooshed with Ranger Pearl Mixative and Butterscotch, Cloudy Blue, Cool Perl and Stream alcohol ink. The sentiment is Annabelle Stamps Sentimental Bluebells stamped in Nick Bantock Deep Turquoise on Stampin' Up Whisper White. The embellishments are also from Annabelle Stamps.

I love everything about this card. Using my least favourite colour was a challenge but as soon as I turned to BasicGrey, I was inspired. This card was so much fun to craft. I usually have a hard time when I use a lot of challenges on one card but this one just worked.

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Birthday Greetings

Hello everyone,

I managed some blog surfing today and came across a couple of appealing challenges. Friday's Less is More provided a recipe to use three squares. Saturday's Waltzingmouse Sketch Challenge provided the sketch.

The background paper is BasicGrey June Bug. The vertical element is Verve Filigree Fantasy stamped in Nick Bantock Prussian Blue on Close To My Heart Colonial White and layered on a piece of glossy paper which was smooshed with Oregano, Sail Boat Blue, Purple Twilight, Cool Perl, Clover alcohol ink and Blending Solution from Ranger. The sentiment is Annabelle Stamps Sentimental Bluebells. The embellishments are Amuse Creative Candy white Pretty Pearls.

I love this card. The background paper is that mix of blues, greens and purples that I love. The layout is also one that I could use all the time. I don't know why I like this layout so much I suspect it is because it is all neat and tidy. Look for another card with this background paper as all those connecting points just cry out for glitter!

I hope you enjoy this card and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle