Loving Thoughts

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a long overdue card for my Uncle.  He recently spent some time in hospital though is doing better.  He also sent me a photo album that use to belong to my grandmother.  It had some wonderful baby and family photos.  I'm so grateful he sent it to me.

The images are Stampin' Up Wetlands and Gina K Follow Your Dreams.  They were stamped in StazOn Timber Brown, Stampin' Up Mossy Meadow, Crumbcake and Always Artichoke, and Close To My Heart Whisper on Stampin' Up Very Vanilla.  The sentiment, also Stampin' Up Wetlands, is stamped in Early Espresso.  The embellishments are My Mind's Eye Sleigh Bells Ring wood dots.

My Uncle has always had a great appreciation for the out of doors.  While I'm not generally very pleased with stamped scenes, I quite liked these results.  I wish the birds were on a better scale, but I just couldn't leave them out.  I debated using a get well sentiment but because I also wanted to thank him, I thought 'thinking of you' was more appropriate.  I was absolutely thrilled when I came across these wooden dots, they are really lovely and work so perfectly with this card.

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

Gisèle

Glittered And Glamorous

Hello everyone,

Today's post is another ornament Christmas card for the Fall charity sale at the office.

The card base is a shimmery green of unknown origin.  The ornament is die cut with Spellbinders Nestabilities 2010 Heirloom Ornament from glossy paper that was smooshed with Red Pepper, Meadow, Clover and Snow Cap Ranger Alcohol ink, then covered with DecoArt Glamour Dust.  The embellishments are Recollections Rhinestone stickers.

This is another big and bold ornament that was going to be a challenge until I figured out the layers with yesterday's card.  All this space also allowed me to use some of the bigger, more sparkly embellishments in my stash.  The sparkle of the ornaments work so great with the glittered glossy paper.  It was really hard not to add sentiments to these two cards.  I love going big but it still seems like something is missing.  We'll have to see if these cards sell.

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

Gisèle

Glitter & Pearls

Hello everyone,

I'm having a wonderful time crafting these ornament Christmas cards.

The card base is a shimmery green of unknown origin.  The ornament is die cut with Spellbinders Nestabilities 2011 Heirloom Ornaments from glossy paper that was smooshed with Red Pepper, Meadow, Clover and Snow Cap Ranger Alcohol ink, then covered with DecoArt Glamour Dust.  The embellishments are Annabelle Stamps pearls and pearl drops.

If you're not going to use a sentiment, you've got to go big and bold.  This ornament is both of those.  This size ornament required some embellishments if only to fill up some of the space. When I first pulled out this die I was determining the appropriate size when it occurred to me that using the nesting layers was the perfect way to use up the space.  It also gave me some ideas for tomorrow's ornament card.

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

Gisèle 

Ornament Trio

Hello everyone,

Today's post is another wonderful glittering Christmas card.

The card base is a shimmery green of unknown origin.  The ornaments are die cut with Marianne Design Creatables from glossy paper that was smooshed with Red Pepper, Meadow, Clover and Snow Cap Ranger Alcohol ink, then covered with DecoArt Glamour Dust.  The embellishments are Annabelle Stamps pearls.

A trio is just right - design wise anyway.  I'm slowly making my way through all my ornament dies.  I love this ornament but have not used it often because it is really difficult to get it out of the die.  I recently picked up a Sizzix Precision Base Plate from Stampin Up and it really worked!  It's a little disturbing to place the die face down but the results were impressive.  This glitter glossy paper is a little on the sticky side, making it even more difficult to get out of the more intricate dies but not with this new plate!  Not one of my dies ended up in the garbage.

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

Gisèle

Pretty Pair

Hello everyone,

Another glittering ornament Christmas card today.

The card base is a shimmery green of unknown origin.  The ornament is die cut with Memory Box Classic Ornament and Luca Ornament from glossy paper that was smooshed with Red Pepper, Meadow, Clover and Snow Cap Ranger Alcohol ink, then covered with DecoArt Glamour Dust.  The ribbon is Hobby Lobby Decorative Trim.

I seriously debating using just a pair of ornaments on this card because that goes against the design principle of 'threes' but, I can still the 'Z-pattern' layout (another design principle) and in a stretch, the two ornaments against the green background, is a 'three'.  Like the earlier cards, the beauty of these cards are the simple layouts using awesome die cut from glossy paper and well glittered, smooshed paper.  Beautiful!

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

Gisèle

Christmas Ornament Simplicity

Hello everyone,

Over the next few days, I'll be posting a series of fairly clean and simple ornament Christmas cards for the Fall charity card sale.  I'm fairly determined to keep them sentiment-less.

The card base is a shimmery green of unknown origin.  The ornament is die cut with Elizabeth Craft Designs 762 Ornament Set 2 from glossy paper that was smooshed with Red Pepper, Meadow, Clover and Snow Cap Ranger Alcohol ink, then covered with DecoArt Glamour Dust.

I think the beauty behind this card is the sheer simplicity of this delicate die cut ornament against the green background.  The glitter makes this ornament really sparkle and pop.  The glossy paper used for the bottom layer adds just a little more shine.  I debated adding embellishments to the swirls and snowflakes but decided to keep it just as is - simple.  Given I'm really not that fond of the shimmery green paper, you see an awful lot of it but the eye is drawn to the ornament which is really lovely.

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

Gisèle

Christmas Ornament

Hello everyone,

The charity card sale is coming up and we need a few more Christmas cards.

The card base is a shimmery green of unknown origin.  The ornament is die cut with Memory Box Drop Ornament and La Rue Ornament from glossy paper that was smooshed with Red Pepper, Meadow, Clover and Snow Cap Ranger Alcohol ink, then covered with DecoArt Glamour Dust.  The ribbon is Hobby Lobby Decorative Trim.

I have a ton of this green shimmery paper that I find terribly difficult to work with so I decided to use it for card bases.  The charity card sale generally requires both French and English cards, but by going without sentiments, language is a non-issue.  Once I decided to go sentiment-less, I figured I needed to go with a beautiful bold image and this ornament really works.  The sparkle is really amazing and over the alcohol ink is one of my favourite techniques.

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

Gisèle

Happy Birthday Hubby

Hello everyone,

It's my darling husband's birthday today!

The vertical layer is Cosmo Cricket.  The image is A Muse Putter stamped in Stampin' Up Early Espresso stamped on Recollections Vanilla and coloured with Tombow N57, 856 and 977.  The sentiment is Close To My Heart Joyful Birthday also stamped in Early Espresso.  The image/sentiment element is layered on Recollections Kraft.  The banners are die cut from Sizzix Banners Framelits from Early Espresso.  The golf ball brads are of unknown origin.

My husband's birthday is always the perfect excuse to craft a golf birthday card.  This is really the only golf stamp I own but I love it because it's so very easy to colour.  Banners are really becoming one of my favourite elements to add to cards.  In this particular case, I thought it was inspired to use the golf brads that I've had in my stash forever.  This card is wonderfully repeatable and I think I will try it again for the charity card sale.

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

Gisèle

Autumn Tri-Fold

Hello everyone,

I was commissioned to craft a Fall wedding card for a colleague who was very intrigued with the recent tri-fold cards I've posted.

The card base is Recollections Vanilla.  The printed papers are Cosmo Cricket.  The vertical elements are Recollections Kraft textured with Quickutz Leaves embossing folder, painted with LuminArte Ginger Peach, Burnt Umber and Hot Cinnamon Twinkling H20s, and highlighted with Wink Of Stella Clear 999.  The image is Penny Black Delicate Florals stamped in Stampin' Up Crumbcake on Recollections White and painted with LuminArte Ginger Peach, Burnt Umber, Hot Cinnamon, Rose Gold and Olive Vine Twinkling H2Os and highlighted with Wink Of Stella Clear 999.  The sentiment is Bonnidee French Wording #1 stamped in Early Espresso and highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.

I'm not 100% certain about this card.  The tri-fold is great as are the images and colours but I think the painted and embossed element isn't working as well as I'd envisioned.  If I have a chance, I might make another attempt but used stamped images on those vertical element.  I also misplaced the sentiment as its cut off when the card is closed.  I'd like to experiment with placing on a brad swivel.

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

Gisèle

Kraft Magic Butterflies

Hello everyone,

I just had to repeat yesterday's card using Kraft cardstock.

The images and sentiment are Joy Crafts Clear Stamp Sayings stamped in Ranger Glacier White on Recollections Kraft and heat embossed in Stampin' Up white.  The butterflies are painted with LuminArte Autumn Skies, Playful Peony, Persimmon and Jasmine Twinkling H2Os.  The focal element is layered on Recollections White and more Kraft.

I do so like this white against the Kraft and the colour seems to pop more than on yesterday's black version.  I'm still not as happy with this card as the first two quasi black magic attempts.  The white seems to overtake the colour.  I will still try this again but definitely using different butterfly images.  Again, I didn't add any embellishments because the card just didn't need anything more.

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

Gisèle

Black Magic Butterflies

Hello everyone,

I'm not quite finished playing with the quasi black magic technique.

The images and sentiment are Joy Crafts Clear Stamp Sayings stamped in Ranger Glacier White on Stampin' Up Basic Black and heat embossed in white.  The butterflies are painted with LuminArte Autumn Skies, Playful Peony, Persimmon and Jasmine Twinkling H2Os.  The focal element is layered on Recollections White and more Basic Black.

I love the pop of white against the black and the little hints of colour but I'm not as happy with this effort as I was with the last two cards.  I think there is too much white and not enough colour.  I suspect if I'd used a different image, I'd be much happier with the results.  Goodness knows I've enough butterfly stamps there is an abundance from which to choose.  I decided against adding any embellishment because these three strong elements are more than enough for the eye to take in.

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

Gisèle

Take Two

Hello everyone,

So I was so very happy with yesterday's card that I just had to give it a try on some kraft cardstock.

The image is Stampin' Up Bordering on Romance stamped in Ranger Glacier White and heat embossed with Stampin' Up white embossing powder on Recollections Kraft.  The image is painted with LuminArte Deep Coral, Mango Mamba, Moss Agate, Mystic Blue and Razzleberry Twinkling H2Os.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up You've Got This also stamped in Ranger Glacier White, heat embossed with white embossing powder and cut with an EK Success punch.  The embellishment is Teresa Collins Candy Cane Lane enamel dots.

I decided to replicate, exactly, yesterday's card only using kraft instead of black.  The black card was pretty spectacular but this one is truly wonderful!  The colours are just a little stronger even though they're exactly the same.  I have to say, I don't think I like one over the other.  They're both just stunning!  My plan, while I was playing, is to try this technique on some Christmas cards.  I can't wait to get started.

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

Gisèle

Take One

Hello everyone,

After I finished the Painted Poinsettia card a few weeks ago, I got to thinking about trying a quasi black magic technique.  I didn't just want to try it on black cardstock but I wanted to see what I could do with kraft cardstock.  Instead of pencil crayon, I wanted to try Twinkling H2Os.  Today's card is take one.

The image is Stampin' Up Bordering on Romance stamped in Ranger Glacier White and heat embossed with Stampin' Up white embossing powder on Basic Black.  The image is painted with LuminArte Deep Coral, Mango Mamba, Moss Agate, Mystic Blue and Razzleberry Twinkling H2Os.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up You've Got This also stamped in Ranger Glacier White, heat embossed with white embossing powder and cut with an EK Success punch.  The embellishment is Teresa Collins Candy Cane Lane enamel dots.

Oh my goodness!  This is one utterly incredible card.  I really liked the twinkling H20s on Soft Suede but on black, it's incredible!  The shimmer of the paint, which you don't see very well in this photo, is beautiful.  The pop of white and colour against the black is really amazing.  I love, love, love this card.

Don't forget to come back tomorrow for Take Two.

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

Gisèle

Shattered On A Wire

Hello everyone,

Once again, while in the 'thinking of you' mode, I decided to see if I could craft something more along the masculine side.

The layered papers are Jim Holtz Kraft-core Shattered cardstock.  The background image is Stampin' Up Work of Art stamped in More Mustard on Recollections Vanilla.  The image is Penny Black Birds On Wire stamped in Early Espresso.  The sentiment is Rubbernecker Best Wishes also stamped in Early Espresso.

I had my brother in my when I was pulling this card together.  The colours are inspired by Mardi Gras (he lived in New Orleans for many years) and the birds are reminiscent of the view from his 8th floor balcony.  It quite a simple card but lots of interest with all the patterns and the birds really do pop without the need for any more embellishments.

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

Gisèle

Bright And Cheery

Hello everyone,

While in the 'missing you' mode, I decided to craft something bright and cheerful.

The printed paper is Cosmo Cricket DeLovely layered on Stampin' Up Basic Black.  The images are Stampin' Up Thanks For Caring stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White, coloured with yellow Sakura Glaze pen, and layered on more Basic Black.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up Whimsical Words also stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White and layered on Basic Black.  The embellishments are My Minds Eye and Eyelet Outlet enamel dots.

This super sunny yellow is so bright and cheerful I can't image it not putting a smile on someones face when they receive it.  As I so often complain, I can't colour by any stretch of the imagination but I thought it was pretty safe sticking to a single colour.  I can also find it a challenge to use yellow but paired with white and yellow, its always works.  This card turned out utterly incredible!  I just love  it!

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

Gisèle

Missing You

Hello everyone,

I've recently sent my daughter off to University and I'm missing her so I thought I'd craft her something special.

The paper is Black Ink Creative International Papers Red Decorative Papers.  The image is Local King Rubber Stamp stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White.  The sentiment is Altenew Scribbled Flowers stamped in Close To My Heart Tulip.  The ribbons are Crafts.

I stamped a number of panda images before I got into the groove of this card.  Simple and sophisticated with some texture and a bit of shine.  I love the simple font of the sentiment and the red pops wonderfully with the red paper and ribbon.  It's perfect for my girl!

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

Gisèle

Tri-Fold Wedding

Hello everyone,

Today's post is for a wedding card that was commissioned by a colleague.  I was already in the tri-fold mode so I decided to see what I could come up with.

The card base is Recollections White.  The solid papers are Stampin' Up Going Grey, Recollections Foil, and a shimmery silver of unknown origin.  The outside grey strips were textured with Quickutz Leaves embossing folder, painted with LuminArte True Blue and Bolivian Blue Twinkling H2Os, and highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.  The images are Verve Love Story and Artful Elegance stamped in Stampin' Up Pacific Point on Recollections White, and highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.  The sentiment is Penny Black Full of Life also stamped in Pacific Point on Recollections White.

Whenever I get a commission with a lot of elements requested, I often wonder how I'm going to put it all together.  This card request was for charcoal grey, platinum, cobalt blue, center fold, birds, the Penny Black sentiment all for a September wedding which is to hold money.  I almost freaked out until I started pulling together the elements for this tri-fold card.  It was a great way to make all the requested elements become a very cohesive card.  I didn't think I would, but I actually really love this card.  I only hope my colleague will as well.

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

Gisèle

Tri-Fold For Him

Hello everyone,

After crafting a great card for my Grandmother, I just knew I had to craft one for my Grandfather.  Any excuse...

The card base is Recollections Vanilla.  The printed paper is Stampin' Up Elegant Soiree layered on Soft Suede.  The sentiment is Waltzing Mouse Say It With Style stamped in Soft Suede on Recollections Vanilla.  The embellishments are Recollections Cork Dots.

Elegant Soiree is one of my all time favourite Stampin' up papers and I thought it would be perfect for a masculine tri-fold card.  The multiple patterns work particularly well for this style of card.  I know, like my Grandmother, my Grandfather will appreciate the intricate simplicity of this card.  Using only the wonderful prints of this paper allowed me to keep everything else on this card extremely straightforward.  He'll love it and I know they'll both get a kick out of getting similar cards.

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

Gisèle

Tri-Fold Paisley Thoughts

Hello everyone,

I just couldn't resist crafting a couple of more tri-fold cards.

The card base is Recollections Vanilla.  The printed paper is Stampin' Up Spice Cake layered on Pool Party.  The sentiment is Rubbernecker Best Wishes stamped in Soft Suede on Recollections Vanilla.  The embellishments are Doodlebug mini pearls.

This card is for my grandmother who has had some medical issues over the last while.  I've crafted her a couple of 'thinking of you' cards just to let her know that she's on my mind.  She was an incredible crafter and in particular, a quilter.  I thought she'd really enjoy this tri-fold card because it's evocative of a quilt.  This printed paper strikes me as vintage and I think she'll really like it.

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

Gisèle

Tri-Fold Garden Love

Hello everyone,

I had so much fun making yesterday's card that I just couldn't resist making a few more.  Practice makes perfect.

The card base is Recollections White. The printed paper is Stampin' Up English Garden layered on Hello Honey.  The sentiment is Rubbernecker Best Wishes stamped in Soft Suede on Recollections White.  The images are Stampin' Up Garden In Bloom stamped in Close To My Heart Blush and Sweet Leaf, and Stampin' Up Barely Banana, Brocade Blue, Certainly Celery, Crumbcake, Crushed Curry and Midnight Muse.  The images are highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.  The embellishment is of unknown origin.

This is my sister's birthday card.  I think it turned out better than yesterday's card.  I love the tagged sentiment!  I love the printed paper!  I love the folds!  I love the images!  I just love this card!

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

Gisèle

Tri-Fold Garden Bees

Hello everyone,

Though I still have more of that wonderful poinsettia paper to work with, I have to put it aside to take care of a few personal cards.  I needed some inspiration so I did some Pinterest surfing and decided to expand my horizons and try something new and different.

The card base is Recollections white.  The printed paper is Stampin' Up English Garden layered on Soft Suede and Hello Honey, and highlighted with Wink of Stella Clear 999.  The sentiment is Rubbernecker Happy Birthday stamped in Soft Suede.  The butterfly is die cut with Sizzix Bold Butterfly Framelits from watercolour paper coloured with a variety of Stampin' Up Watercolour crayons.

I crafted this card for my girlfriend's birthday.  I don't do fancy folds or lots of frills but when I found an English Garden tri-fold card on Pinterest, I decided to try something new.  I'm so very glad I did!  I love every single sheet of this Stampin' Up!  It was great to be able to use three different patterns on this card.  The butterfly is a leftover from the butterfly cards I crafted over the past couple of weeks.  I didn't intend to use it on this card but it worked to well with all the colours in the paper that I couldn't resist.  More tri-fold cards coming.

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

Gisèle

Prancing Through The Poinsettias

Hello everyone,

Today's Christmas card is a bit of a jumble.

The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up Real Red and Mossy Meadow.  The Mossy Meadow strips are textured with Embossalicious Die'Sire Holiday Holly and highlighted with Xmas Red Stickles.  The image is Sweet 'n Sassy Christmas Silhouettes and die stamped in Stampin' Up River Rock on Recollections Vanilla and highlighted with more Xmas Red Stickles.  The sentiment is Verve O Christmas Tree also stamped in River Rock on Recollections Vanilla and highlighted with Xmas Red Stickles.

I originally cut these squares for a card a few days ago but I couldn't get it to work the way I intended.  I decided to put them aside to mull over and come up with a better layout.  I also stamped and cut the image a few days ago when I first pulled out the stamp set.  It doesn't work as well with the paper as I'd like but I think the placement is rather interesting. As I said at the start of this blog, the cards a bit of a mash but it's still a fairly decent card.

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

Gisèle

Poinsettia and Pine

Hello everyone,

Today I've got another Christmas card using the fabulous poinsettia paper that was donated.

The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up Soft Suede, Real Red and Mossy Meadow.  The image is Sweet 'n Sassy Christmas Silhouettes stamp and die, stamped in Always Artichoke.  The sentiment is also Sweet 'n Sassy Christmas Silhouettes stamped in Always Artichoke in Recollections Vanilla.

When I used yesterday's poinsettia stamp I came across this Christmas Silhouettes set and thought it would be interesting to see how they work with this printed paper.  The writing background on both has them 'speaking' so nicely with each other.  Notwithstanding the multitude of layers, this is a really simple card that is wonderfully on the masculine side.

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

Gisèle

Painted Poinsettia

Hello everyone,

Today's charity Christmas card is one of those that just amazed me once I'd finished it.

The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up Soft Suede.  The image is Sweet 'n Sassy Poinsettias stamped on Soft Suede in VersaMark, clear heat embossed, painted with LuminArte Olive Vine and Poppy Red Twinkling H2Os, and highlighted with yellow Sakura Gelly Roll pen.  The sentiment is also Sweet 'n Sassy Poinsettias stamped in Soft Suede on Recollections Vanilla and layered on more Soft Suede.  The embellishments are Doodlebug mini pearls.

For some unfathomable reason, I've never clear heat embossed then painted Soft Suede.  It's absolutely amazing!  It has some really incredible depth that you just don't find with white and vanilla.  I've little doubt I'll be trying this on other coloured cardstock, if only to see what happens.  This stunning embossed and painted poinsettia is amazing against the printed paper.  One of those cards I could craft over and over again.

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

Gisèle

Popping Poinsettia

Hello everyone,

Today's Christmas card is a very simple die cut poinsettia similar to this card I did recently.

The background is Stampin' Up Soft Suede textured with Craft Concepts Merry Christmas embossing folder, layered on Real Red and sprayed with Vanilla Smooch Spritz.  The poinsettia is die cut with Cottage Cutz Winter Poinsettia Bouquet cut from Stampin' Up Mossy Meadow and a red of unknown origin.  The poinsettias are highlighted with Gilded Gold Stickles.

I had intended to use the same printed paper as I did on yesterday's card but when I placed the poinsettia over the paper, it didn't stand out all that much.  I chose to use this particular embossing folder because there is no need to add a sentiment.  Over all, a great Christmas card.

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

Gisèle

Poinsettia Greetings

Hello everyone,

I've crafted a few Christmas cards for the Fall charity card sale at the office.

The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on a red of unknown origin and Stampin' Up Old Olive.  The image is Penny Black Joyous stamped in Old Olive and Ruby Red on Very Vanilla and layered on more red of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Cornish Heritage Farms Vintage Christmas Expressions on Very Vanilla and layered on more Old Olive.  The embellishments are EK Success Swarovski Elements.

This wonderful poinsettia paper was in the box of donated papercrafting supplies and is truly spectacular.  There was a large enough piece that I'll be able to craft a wonderful set of Christmas cards.  I had a few challenges with this stamp.  It's acrylic so doesn't take marker well at all.  I used a Stampin' Up ink spot to apply the ink.  I wasn't originally intended to use a tag punch for the sentiment but the shape works particularly well with the layout of this sentiment.  I hope I'll remember it next time when I come across a sentiment like this one.

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

Gisèle

Banners And Butterfly

Hello everyone,

I still had one more watercolour butterfly that I just had to use.

The printed papers are Carta Bella Beautiful Moments. The sentiment is Sweet & Sassy Stamps Scripted Birthdays stamped in Stampin' Up Soft Suede on Whisper White.  The butterfly is die cut with Sizzix Bold Butterfly Framelits from watercolour paper washed with Stampin' Up watercolor crayons.  The embellishments are Forever In Time Pearl Diamond Gem Strips.

I chose these particular papers (which are from my scrap bin) because they worked so well with the colours in the butterfly.  I didn't originally plan to use banners but I'm loving them and, though they're not rounded like the those in the paper, I thought they still worked pretty well together.  I like it when everything works together.

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

Gisèle

Just Spectacular

Hello everyone,

When I was crafting the butterfly for Monday's card I ensured I made a few extras.

The image is die cut with Sizzix Butterfly Framelits from watercolour paper smooshed with Stampin' Up Watercolor crayons.  The sentiment is Rubbernecker stamped in Close To My Heart Outdoor Denim.

Sometimes keeping things simple makes things spectacular!  This card is spectacular!

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

Gisèle

More Black And White

Hello everyone,

I've had so much fun with the donated black and white scraps that I couldn't resist playing with yet another piece.

The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up Basic Black.  The image is Stampin' Up Sweet Summer stamped in Versafine Onyx Black and Close To My Heart Tulip on Whisper White and layered on more Tulip.  The sentiment is Verve Love Story stamped in Tulip.  The card is highlighted with Diamond Stickles.

I can't ever remember crafting so many black and white cards.  As I've recently discovered, I love using a pop of colour with this combination. I even stamped the image on the envelop, something I rarely remember to do.  I thought this image worked great with the patterned paper, another thing I just love doing. I was so happy with the abundance of Stickles on yesterday's card that I just had to use it again.  Overall, another hit card!

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

Gisèle

Sparkling Holly

Hello everyone,

Today's charity card uses more of the donated holly paper that I love so much.

The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up Real Red and Old Olive.  The sentiment is Hero Arts Peace & Joy Ornament stamped in Mossy Meadow on Recollections Vanilla and layered on more Real Red.  The embellishment is Martha Stewart Glittered Holly Leaf Stickers.  The card is highlighted with Diamond Stickles.

The image doesn't do justice with the Stickles because this is one glittering card!  The berries are utterly perfect for Stickles.  This is a very simple cards that uses the Stickles to make it spectacular.  The sticker is a little large in scale but I think placing it in the sweet spot makes it OK.  There is cute little bell on the sticker but it's not really visible in the photo.  Not only does it look good but it sounds good too.

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

Gisèle

Simple Holly Days

Hello everyone,

I felt the need to craft a couple of Christmas cards and this donated holly paper was too hard to resist.

The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up Old Olive and Real Red.  The sentiment is Inkadinkado stamped in Mossy Meadow on Very Vanilla and layered on more Real Red.  The embellishments are Martha Stewart Cottage Christmas Ornament Stickers and Eyelet Outlet jewels.

This card was wonderfully simple.  I love how the ornament sticker coordinates so well with the vintage-style paper.  I thought it was inspired to 'hang' the ornament off the flourish in the sentiment.  I looks really great!  The donated holly paper makes me so very happy and there is quite a bit of it so I'll be able to make at least one great set of Christmas cards.

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

Gisèle