More Cheerful Floral Thoughts

 Hello everyone,

Today's post is another great 'thinking of you' card.

The card base is The Paper Studio.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up So Saffron.  The sentiment is Elizabeth Craft Designs Sentiments 1 - Celebrations stamped in Altenew Autumn Blaze on Recollections White and layered on more So Saffron.  The flower embellishment is of unknown origin.

This is another fresh and simple floral card.  I came across this piece of printed paper is my leftover bin.  I'm not a big fan of the colours but it works great for a simple card.  I chose this sentiment because the font struck me as simple as the images on the printed paper.  It wasn't difficult to coordinate colours as there was lots from which to choose.  I was pleased to find this great floral embellishment and it also works great with the printed paper.

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

Gisèle

Another Stylized Fall Forest

 Hello everyone

Today's post is another great 'thank you' card.

The card base is Stampin' Up Tangelo Twist.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up Not Quite Navy.  The sentiment is Elizabeth Craft Designs Sentiments 1 - Celebration stamped in Early Espresso on Recollections Vanilla and layered on more Not Quite Navy.  The ribbon if of unknown origin.

Tangelo Twist was another Stampin' Up colour that didn't do much for me until this card.  I love the orange and blue together!  Of course, there is plenty of this combination in the printed paper which I also think is great!  I think the font of the sentiment works quite well with the stylized trees, bringing everything together wonderfully.

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

Gisèle

Colourful Thoughts

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a colourful 'thinking of you' card.

The card base is Stampin' Up Very Vanilla.  The printed paper if of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up Bermuda Bay and More Mustard.  The images are cut from Stampin' Up Lucky Limeade, Really Rust and Bermuda Bay with the Sizzix Thinlits Wildflower Stems #1.  The sentiment is Elizabeth Craft Designs Sentiments 1 - Celebration stamped in Stampin' Up Soft Suede on Very Vanilla and layered on more Bermuda Bay and More Mustard.

This card couldn't have been any easier to craft.  It's a rather tall card base so I took advantage of using a long, skinny die cut for the leaves which are anchored by the sentiment panel.  The font of the sentiment is rather simple but works really well with the images on the printed paper.  The colours and the shape of the leaves were also inspired from the printed paper.  This is a card that is absolutely worth repeating!

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

Gisèle

Autumn Inspired

Hello everyone,

Today's post is an autumn birthday card.

The card base is Craft Smith.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on an orange and a dark grey also of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Elizabeth Craft Designs Celebration Sentiments 1 stamped in Altenew Lava Rock on Recollections White and layered on more dark grey.

I've had the elements of this card on my desk for a while but haven't had the time to craft it.  I love this autumn paper.  With the white (-ish) background and simple images, it's very light and airy.  I think it works so well with the font of the sentiment.  Though it's a little large for the card base, if I'd omitted the exclamation mark, it would have fit perfectly.  Notwithstanding, it's still a great birthday card.

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

Gisèle

Subtle Wishes

Hello everyone,

Today's post is another sweet and subtle birthday card.

The card base is The Paper Studio.  The images are Stampin' Up Pressed Flowers stamped in Altenew Mountain Mist, Sea Glass, Buttercream and Blush on Recollections White.  The sentiment is Elizabeth Craft Design Sentiments 1 - Celebration stamped in Altenew Lagoon.  The image/sentiment panel are layered on Close To My Heart Buttercup and Baby Pink.  The butterfly was retrieved from the leftovers bin.  The card is highlighted with Diamond Stickles.

I'm not one for stamping 'scenes' perse but I will admit that I readily enjoy crafting this style of floral card. It's not actually a scene so that's probably why I like the results so much.  This subtle card is really appealing even though it's a little more pale than I'd like.  I could have used the next darker ink tone but I didn't want it too dark either.  Finding just the right little butterfly was icing on the cake.

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

Gisèle

Mom's Birthday

Hello everyone,

Today is my Mother's birthday and I'm posting the special card I crafted for her.

The card base is a rust Bazzill.  The printed paper is Photoplay Here Kitty Kitty layered on a light yellow Bazzill.  The sentiment is Elizabeth Craft Design Sentiment 1 - Celebration stamped on Recollections Vanilla in Altenew Pure Graphite.  The punch are cat is made with Stampin' Up Going Grey and the Owl punch.

My mom loves cats and when I came across this comic kitty paper with a red background, I knew I'd use it for her birthday card this year.  Ironically, I didn't have a cat embellishment that worked with the paper so I scoped out my punch art board on Pinterest and found this cute cat.  I think he's puuurfect for my Mom's card.

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

Gisèle

A Funky Tree

Hello everyone,

Today's post is another is this latest series of commissioned Christmas cards.

The image is Elizabeth Craft Designs Ribbon Tree die cut from Stampin' Up Whisper White and a green Bazzill, and highlighted with Star Dust Stickles.  The image is layered on Bazzill Countdown To Christmas and Nordic Pines.  The sentiment is Bonnidée C'est Noël stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Whisper White and layered on more Green Bazzill.

I shouldn't like this funky die cut Christmas tree as much as I do because it's a bit of a pain to put together but once I've got it on a card, it's just awesome.  The cut outs are perfect for glitter and in this case, I used quite a bit in the hopes it would mimic snow.  Funky snow!

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

Gisèle

Birthday Whimsy

Hello everyone,

Today is the birthday of one of my girlfriends.  I always enjoy crafting her special cards as I know she really loves them.

The printed paper is Ken Oliver Watercolored Memories layered on Stampin' Up Almost Amethyst and Lovely Lilac.  The image is Elizabeth Craft Designs Peel-Off Stickers affixed to watercoloured paper that was painted with LuminArte Autumn Skies, Bashful Blue, Caribbean Mist, Moonbeams and Stargazer Twinkling H2Os and highlighted with Lavender Stickles.  The sentiment is Close To My Heart For Every Occasion stamped in Lovely Lilac on Whisper White and layered on more Lovely Lilac.  The embellishments are more Peel-Off stickers which are highlighted with Lavender Stickles.

This is another photo that really doesn't do any justice to the card at all.  It has a very soft and washed feeling.  It is also very, very feminine.  The colours are just lovely.  I wish I'd managed a better placement of the embellishments but the silver swirls work pretty well with the butterfly.  I think the lavender sparkle of the Stickles adds just that little bit extra because the lavender colour isn't at all harsh and the glitter is awesome.  I really love this card!

Happy Birthday Eleanor!

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

Gisèle

Two Fish

Hello everyone,

And another wonderful painted fish card today!

The image is Elizabeth Craft Designs affixed to vellum and painted with LuminArte Dreamsicle, Ginger Peach, Mango Mamba, Mustard Green and Persimmon Twinkling H2Os.  The image is layered on watercolour paper painted with LuminArte Golden Jade, Sage, Summer Breeze and Olive Vine Twinkling H2Os, DCWV green and copper Foiled cardstock, and Bazzill Basics.  The sentiment is Verve Accent Notes stamped in Close To My Heart Sunset.  The embellishments are EK Success Shimmering Gold Dots.

I couldn't just paint one fish so decided to try a second in gold.  I really can't tell which card I like more.  This goldfish is pretty spectacular!  It took me a while to find this piece of background paper.  It's probably been in my stash for years as it was at the bottom of the pile.  It's got enough yellow to contrast beautifully with the orange in the fish.  The layering papers were also a bit of a challenge just because I had to find just the right shade and tone of green and orange.  Oh but I just love everything about it!

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

Gisèle

One Fish

Hello everyone,

The next couple of posts are more fun cards but with a totally different feel than the Cupcake Trio from yesterday's post.

The image is Elizabeth Craft Designs affixed to vellum and painted with LuminArte Blue Zircon, Bolivian Blue, Mustard Green, Mystic Blue and Teal Zircon Twinkling H2Os.  The image is layered on Ranger alcohol-inked glossy paper, Paper Accents Glossy Mirror Silver, and Stampin' Up Midnight Muse.  The sentiment is Gina K Pleasant Plurals stamped in Midnight Muse.  The embellishments are EK Success Shimmering Silver Dots.

I have quite a stash of alcohol-inked glossy paper because I tend to make up a fair number at once given the messiness of the technique.  As I really liked the effect with the butterfly card from Thursday's post, I thought it would work great with the fish.  It's a pretty amazing result!  The blues and greens are pretty spectacular!

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

Gisèle

Cupcake Trio

Hello everyone,

Today's card is just fun!

The images are Elizabeth Craft Designs affixed to vellum and painted with LuminArte Icicles, Mango Mamba, Poppy Red, Siam White and True Blue Twinkling H2Os.  The images are layered on Stampin' Up Whisper White, a textured blue of unknown origin and Bazzill Black Prismatic.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up All Holidays stamped in Pacific Point.  The embellishments are of unknown origin.

Who knew that painted cupcake stickers would be so cheerful!  I would have liked to have more variety in the bright and bold colours of my stash of Twinkling H2Os is limited.  I could have done soft and sweet (pun-intended) but somehow these primary colours seemed more appropriate.  I think it was the daisies that first drew me to these stickers as they were such a good excuse to see how well the Siam White popped!  The brads were very much an afterthought.  I got a couple of smudges (from a dirty brayer) that needed covering.

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

Gisèle

Butterfly Wings

Hello everyone,

One of my girlfriends recently lost her sister-in-law and I thought she'd like this particular card.

The image is Elizabeth Craft Designs affixed to vellum and painted with LuminArte Blushing Rose, English Lavender, Ice, Mustard Green, Mystic Blue, Plum Blossom and Royal Orchid Twinkling H2Os.  The image is layered on Recollections White, Paper Accents Glossy Mirror Silver and Ranger alcohol-inked glossy paper.  The sentiment is Gina Marie All Seasons stamped in Versafine Onyx Black.

As I was painting this butterfly I thought it would make a great birthday card for a young girl with all those pinks and purples.  Once I'd settled on the layers however, I knew this was the card I'd send to my girlfriend.  It's maybe a little more cheerful than a sympathy card ought to be but there is just something about it that feels right.

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

Gisèle

Black-Eyed Beautiful

Hello everyone,

As I was going through my stash of outline stickers I found this black-eyed Susan sticker and just couldn't resist.

The image is Elizabeth Craft Designs affixed to vellum and painted with LuminArte Burnt Umber, Dreamsicle, Golden Jade, Ice, Mango Mamba and Olive Vine Twinkling H2Os.  The image is layered on Stampin' Up Very Vanilla, Garden Green, Early Espresso, and a gold of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Denami Design Upright Happy Birthday stamped in Early Espresso.

I'm generally not attracted to yellow and black-eyed Susans are certainly not a favourite flower, but after yesterday's less than pleasing red roses, I wanted to do something entirely different.  I'm glad I did because this card is utterly wonderful!  This photo doesn't do justice to this card.  The brown really pops and the gold layer is a wonderful highlight.

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

Gisèle

Roses Three

Hello everyone,

Today's card is not my favourite of this series.

The images are Elizabeth Craft Designs affixed to vellum and painted with LuminArte Poppy Red, Jasper Red, Forest Green and Moss Agate Twinkling H2Os and highlighted with Wink of Stella Clear 999.  The images are layered on Stampin' Up Very Vanilla, a gold of unknown origin, and Bravo Burgundy.  The sentiment is Joy Crafts Sayings stamped in Early Espresso.  The embellishments are Multicrafts Keepsake Memories.

Until I glued these flowers to the background layers, I didn't think the painting was all that bad but against the Very Vanilla, all the flubs come to light.  I'm not too fussy on the flower placement either.  The smallest of the three is in the wrong place.  Unfortunately, once glued, the images are very unforgiving.  All that said, this isn't the worst card I've ever crafted.

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

Gisèle

Incredible Iris

Hello everyone,

I warned that I was quite finished with the painted vellum and outline stickers.

The image are Elizabeth Craft Designs affixed to vellum and painted with LuminArte Buttercup, Icicles, Mango Mamba, Olive Vine, Plum Crazy and Royal Orchid Twinkling H2Os.  The image is layered on Stampin' Up Whisper White, Elegant Eggplant and Garden Green.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up Bloom With Hope stamped in Elegant Eggplant.

I'm so very pleased with this card.  I just love the purple, green and white!  The way it pops is awesome.  Like yesterday's card, I kept the layout and design elements limited as I didn't want anything to detract from the flowers.  I'm not a confident about this painting effort but it's not too bad either.

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

Gisèle

Pretty Poppies

Hello everyone,

I loved yesterday's painted butterfly so much, I decided to try the same technique with some poppies.

The image is Elizabeth Craft Designs affixed to vellum and painted with LuminArte Cedarwood, Deep Coral, Ginger Peach, Golden Jade, Ice, Olive Vine, and Poppy Red Twinkling H2Os. The image is affixed to Recollections Vanilla and layered on Stampin' Up Garden Green, River Rock and Mossy Meadow.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up Teeny Tiny Wishes stamped in Mossy Meadow on Recollections Vanilla.

Something I've learned is that when you paint on vellum, it gets rather wrinkled.  In this case, I placed the image under a book overnight and though it's not perfectly flat, there is a little bit of texture that makes this even more interesting.  I just love these poppies!  The painting isn't too bad, better than if I'd tried markers!  This is a really simple layout without any added embellishments as I didn't want anything to detract from the image.  More to come!

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

Gisèle

Layers of Leftovers

Hello everyone,

Sometimes leftovers are the absolute best!

The image is an Elizabeth Craft Designs outline sticker affixed to vellum and painted with LuminArte Green Tea, Icicles, Twilight and Wine and Roses Twinkling H2Os.  The image is layered on a piece of watercolour paper smooshed with a variety of Stampin' Up watercolour crayons and Stampin' Up Blackberry Bliss and Recollections Mercury Glass.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up Express Yourself stamped in Tsukineko Mediterranean Blue ink on Very Vanilla.

Today's card all started with this tiny punched sentiment.  I don't recall on which card I originally intended to use it and it's been floating around my desk for months.  I also had this scrap of watercolour paper leftover from my sister's card from a couple of days ago.  I thought the blue ink of the sentiment worked well with the scrap piece and basically just ran with it from there.  I hadn't intended to use any type of image but once I had it all together, there was this huge space that needed something but nothing on hand worked.  I decided to customize an outline sticker and couldn't be more happy with the results.  I especially love how I was able to coordinate with the background element.  This butterfly was so much fun, I just had to try the effect with a few other stickers - more to follow!

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

Gisèle

Ornaments A Shimmering IV

Hello everyone,

Today's post is another ornament Christmas card that a colleague commissioned before Christmas.

The card base is a shimmery green of unknown origin.  The ornaments are die cut with Elizabeth Craft Designs 761 Ornament Set 1 from glossy paper smooshed with Ranger Clover, Wild Plum, Citrus, Watermelon, Cool Perl, Snow Cap and Pearl alcohol ink, covered with DecoArt Crystal Glamour Dust and Paper Accents Mirror Silver Glossy card stock.  The embellishments are Crystal Stickers 5mm Silver Glitter Domes.

The original ornament card series was crafted without sentiments and I decided this series needed at least one sentimentless card.  I used these particular dies because they're so intricate and without a sentiment, they pop even more.  I have to say, the mirrored silver overlay of of these ornaments is utterly striking.  The glittered embellishments are also wonderfully working both with the silver overlay and the glittering underlay.  There is no such thing as too much glitter on a Christmas card.

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

Gisèle

Ornaments A Shimmering I

Hello everyone,

I'm certainly not finished with Christmas cards and have two commissioned sets for you over the next number of days.

The card base is a shimmery green of unknown origin.  The ornaments are die cut with Elizabeth Craft Designs 762 Ornament Set 2 from glossy paper smooshed with Ranger Clover, Wild Plum, Citrus, Watermelon, Cool Perl, Snow Cap and Pearl alcohol ink, covered with DecoArt Crystal Glamour Dust and Paper Accents Mirror Silver Glossy card stock.  The sentiment is Penny Black Christmas Cheer heat embossed with Close To My Heart black embossing powder.  The embellishments are of unknown origin.

One of my colleagues bought all the green base ornament cards I had crafted for the Fall Charity card sale and asked if I could make her a few more.  I was so pleased to use up some of this difficult green shimmery paper that I was only too happy to get crafting.  I didn't have this glossy mirrored silver paper when I crafted the first sets of cards and against the glittered ornaments, its just amazing!  For all that I've complained about these green card bases, these ornament cards have turned out so much better than I ever thought.

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

Gisèle

Glittered And Gorgeous

Hello everyone,

Today's card is one that I designed for a girlfriend and I to craft at a crop in October.

The image is an Elizabeth Crafts Designs outline sticker glittered with Classic Red Glamour Glitter and a variety of Martha Stewart glitter.  The image is layered on Worldwin gold, Stampin' Up Whisper White and a shimmery green of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Hero Arts Very Merry Christmas stamped in Versafine Onyx Black.  The embellishments are Crafts Rhinestone stickers.

All that glitter just puts me in the happiest of places.  These types of images are incredibly time consuming and finicky but the results are so very worth it.  They make for utterly mind-blowing beautiful.  I kept the rest of the card pretty simple so as not to have to compete with this poinsettia.

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

Gisèle