Happy Father's Day

Hello everyone,

Today's post is the Father's Day card I crafted for my husband.

The card base is Recollections White.  The printed paper is Stampin' Up Country Club layered on Recollections Black.  The image is Stampin' Up Clubhouse stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White and coloured with Faber-Castell pencil crayons.  The image was cut with the coordinating Stampin' Up Golf Clubs die.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up Delightful Dozen also stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White and layered on Poppy Parade.  The golf ball brads are Eyelet Outlet.

My husband is an avid golfer, to say the least, so I couldn't resist picking up this golf-themed Stampin' Up bundle.  I just love everything in it.  I layered the golfer on two extra die cuts which gives it just a little bit more depth overall.  I braved colouring the image but found it not too bad as the shading was already incorporated in the stamped image.  I debated adding the golf ball brads but had them so decided to just go for it.  Hubby will be pleased!

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

Gisèle

Just Delightful

Hello everyone,

Today's post is another great cat card.

The card base is Recollections White.  The images are from Wish stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White and coloured with Faber-Castell watercolour pencil crayons.  The image panel is layered on Recollections Black and brown of unknown origin and BasicGrey Porcelain.  The sentiment is My Sentiments Exactly Handwritten Sentiments also stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White and layered on more Recollections Black.  The embellishments are Crafts Rhinestone stickers.

This Wish stamp set was borrowed from my cardmaking neighbor.  I couldn't resist this cute kitten and I loved the anticipation of a tussle with a ball of yarn.  How delightful!  I spent quite a while colouring.  First trying crayons then, a variety of watercolour pencil crayons.  I do so wish colouring came easier to me.  These are really simple images and shouldn't have caused such anxiety.  I love how well the sentiment applies to the images.  It's a wonderful result!

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

Gisèle

For You

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a very pretty card.

The card base is Stampin' Up Garden Green.  The images are Stampin' Up Embrace Life stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White and coloured with a variety of Faber-Castell and Prismacolor pencil crayons.  The sentiment is Close To My Heart For Every Occasion also stamped in Versafine Onyx Black.  The image/sentiment panel is layered on piece of Ranger alcohol inked glossy paper and Stampin' Up Orchid Opulence.

This is a great purple and green card.  The entire colour scheme for this card is based on the alcohol inked paper.  This is a stamp set that I really like but don't use that often.  I was feeling quite brave when I broke out the pencil crayons.  These image are actually really easy to colour, not requiring much complicated shading.  The hardest part was actually fussy cutting the larger flower.  It's a great result.

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

Gisèle

More Romantic Wishes

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a cooler version of yesterday's birthday card.

The card base is The Paper Studio.  The images are Stampin' Up Bordering on Romance stamped in StazOn Jet Black on Recollections White and coloured with a variety of Faber-Castell and Reeves watercolour pencil crayons.  The sentiment is Close To My Heart Happy Birthday also stamped in StazOn Jet Black.  The image/sentiment panel is layered on Recollections Black and a white of unknown origin.  The embellishments are Crafts rhinestone stickers.

This is one of my favourite images to colour because it's not terrifically complex.  I used black for layering again and the wide white reveal the width of the card base is really effective.  I could have added more rhinestones but I truly love this card as is.

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

Gisèle

Romantic Wishes

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a beautiful hand coloured floral birthday card.

The card base is The Paper Studio.  The images are Stampin' Up Bordering On Romance stamped in StazOn Jet Black on Recollections White and coloured with a variety of Faber-Castell and Reeves watercolour pencil crayons.  The sentiment is Rubbernecker Happy Birthday also stamped in StazOn Jet Black.  The image/sentiment panel is layered on Recollections Black, Close To My Heart Orange and Recollections White.

I was so pleased with yesterday's colour combination I decided to repeat it with this card.  I also love the reveal of black as it just makes the image/sentiment panel pop.  I chose more warm colours for this card and kept the layout simple.  This is actually reminiscent of cards I've crafted in the past and I love it every single time.

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

Gisèle

More Winged Wishes

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a birthday card with a European feel.

The card base is The Paper Studio.  The image is the Artful Stamper stamped in StazOn Jet Black on Recollections White and coloured with a variety of Faber-Castell and Reeves watercolour pencil crayons.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up Itty Bitty Greetings stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White.  The image and sentiment are highlighted with Star Dust, Lavender and Gilded Gold Stickles.

This is perhaps my least favourite card in this commission.  I found the image appealing at first, but once I had it stamped and coloured, I couldn't get much enthusiasm for it.  I decided to cut the image, which helped somewhat but I think it's so far out of my comfort zone that it just doesn't do much for me.  Even Stickles didn't help.  It's not a bad card by any stretch but it's not one that I'd ever repeat.

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

Gisèle

An Asian Trio

Hello everyone,

Today's post is another lovely trio of birthday cards.

The card bases are Craft Smith.  The images are Stampin' Up Asian Artistry.

The flower card was stamped with StazOn Timber Brown on Recollections Vanilla and coloured with Faber-Castell watercolour pencil crayons.  The sentiment is Verve Amazing Wishes stamped in Stampin' Up Early Espresso on more Recollections Vanilla.  The image and sentiment are layered on a Groovy Guava banner.

The bird card was coloured with Stampin' Up watercolour crayons then stamped on Recollections Vanilla and layered on Stampin' Up Lucky Limeade.  The sentiment is Close To My Heart Word Puzzle stamped in Old Olive on more Recollections Vanilla.

The grass card was coloured with Stampin' Up watercolour crayons then stamped on Recollections Vanilla and layered on Stampin' Up Midnight Muse.  The sentiment is Kaisercraft Occasions stamped in Altenew Desert Night on Recollections Vanilla and layered on more Midnight Muse.  The embellishments are Close To My Heart Blue enamel dots.

This is a stamp set that I actually use fairly often because I love each of these images.  The flower colours beautifully and is very forgiving.  The bird and grass images are perfect for watercolour crayons.  I'm always really pleased with the results.

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

Gisèle

Multiple Blooming Wishes

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a trio of birthday cards.  They all stem from the same set but turned into three very different and lovely cards.

The card base of the branch card is The Paper Studio.  The image is Stampin' Up Bloom With Hope stamped in StazOn Jet Black on Recollections White and coloured with Reeves and Faber-Castell watercolour pencil crayons.  The image is layered on Stampin' Up Mossy Meadow and Midnight Muse.  The sentiment is Gina Marie All Seasons stamped in Versafine Onyx Black.  The ribbon is of unknown origin.

The card base of the daisy card is The Paper Studio.  The image is Stampin' Up Bloom With Hope stamped in StazOn Jet Black on Recollections White and coloured with Reeves and Faber-Castell watercolour pencil crayons.  The image is layered on Close To My Heart Sunny Yellow and Stampin' Up Mossy Meadow.  The sentiment is Penny Black Special Wishes stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White.  The embellishments are Echo Park 'Have Faith' enamel dots.

The card base of the purple flower is Craft Smith.  The image is Stampin' Up Bloom With Hope stamped in StazOn Jet Black on Recollections White and coloured with Reeves and Faber-Castell watercolour pencil crayons.  The sentiment is Stampendous Retro Happy Birthday stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White.  The image and sentiment are layered on Stampin' Up Elegant Eggplant which was textured with the Cuttlebug Oriental Weave embossing folder.  The ribbon is American Crafts.

I've been quite pleased with my personal challenge to use images for this commission.  I've been a little concerned that I'll run out before I'm finished but that will force me to be even more creative.  I rarely look at more than one image at a time so it's been fun to look at full sets at once.  Once I'd stamped and coloured the images, this trio came together pretty easily and the results are great!

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

Gisèle

Butterfly Pair

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a birthday card with a lovely pair of butterflies.

The card base is The Paper Studio.  The image is Outlines Lilly & Layla stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White, coloured with a variety of Reeves and Faber-Castell watercolour pencil crayons and is highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.  The sentiment is Rubbernecker Happy Birthday stamped in Versafine Onyx Black.  The image/sentiment panel is layered on a textured yellow Bazzill and more Recollections White.

I love the simplicity of this image.  It's was wonderful for colouring.  I also loved that the layout of the image allowed the placement of the sentiment in the design 'sweet spot', making this a very quick and easy card to craft.  The blue/yellow/white is a wonderful and fresh colour combination that I love using.  This is a great result.

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

Gisèle

Tall Flower In Pink

Hello everyone,

Today's post is part of the birthday card commissioned series I'm currently crafting.

The card base is The Paper Studio.  The image is Hero Arts Tall Flower stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White and coloured with Faber-Castell 427, 429, 467 and 470 watercolour pencil crayons.  The sentiment is Rubbernecker Best Wishes also stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White.  The image and sentiment panels are layered on Recollections Black.

I really had to dust off the watercolour pencil crayons for this card.  I don't think I've used them in years!  They work very much like watercolour crayons.  I coloured very lightly and used only a little bit of water to smooth out the lines because I wanted a very soft card.  I really like the pop of the sentiment in the design sweet spot!

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

Gisèle

All Italian VI

Hello everyone,

Today's post is the first of a bunch of Italian birthday cards I'm crafting for this hostess gift.

The printed paper is Bella Blvd Classic Calendars layered on Close To My Heart Lagoon.  The image is Stampin' Up Thanks For Caring stamped on Whisper White in Altenew Forest Glades, and coloured with Faber-Castel Watercolour Pencils.  The sentiment is Microsoft Word printed font layered on more Lagoon.  The image and sentiment panel are layered on Recollections Black.

This is one of my favourite printed papers.  I love all the flourishes and the colours are just wonderful.  You can coordinate this paper with absolutely any colour combination.  I used the black on the image layer to ensure it didn't disappear against the strong background.  I often lament about my colouring abilities but I don't think I did too back with this one.  I had hoped that the watercolour aspect of these pencil crayons would help this endeavor.

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

Gisèle

Happy Father's Day

Hello everyone,

Father's Day is just around the corner.  Today's post is the card I crafted for my husband who is an awesome father!

The images are Inkadinkado and A Muse Putter stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White and coloured with Faber-Castell and Chameleon markers.  The sentiment is Close To My Heart Say It All stamped in Versafine Onyx Black.  The image is layered on Bazzill Blue and Recollections Black.  The embellishments are Kaisercraft black pearls and Stickopotamus stickers.

I always have a great time crafting cards for my husband.  His cards are actually really easy as there are a lot of different themes that I can run with and one of my favourites is golfing.  This golf card uses the colour scheme of Mizuno, my husband's favourite golf company.  I also picked him up a gift card from his favourite golf store.  I know he'll be pleased.

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

Gisèle

Girly Goodness

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a wonderfully girly birthday card.

The textured card base is DCWV.  The printed paper is Docrafts Papermania Lucy Cromwell.  The image is Stampin' Up Happy Moments stamped in Close To My Heart Slate on Whisper White, coloured with Faber-Castell pencil crayons, and layered on Close To My Heart Baby Pink and more Whisper White.  The sentiment is also Stampin' Up Happy Moments stamped on Whisper White.  The image is highlighted with K&Company Gold Gel Extreme, Wink of Stella Clear 999, and Lavender Stickles.

I really like these lovely banners and I think the bird cages and butterflies are so girly.  I love how the stamped image and sentiment are in the same style as the images on the paper.  I think I did a pretty good job at the colouring although to be fair, this wasn't a very complex image to colour.  I debated adding more Stickles but decided having them just on the image really makes it pop.  A great girly card!

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

Gisèle

Poinsettia Collection IV

Hello everyone,

Today's card is the fourth in the latest poinsettia collection I've been crafting for a friend.

The printed paper is BasicGrey Jovial layered on textured Bazzill.  The image is Penny Black Joyous stamped in Towbow and Faber-Castell markers on Recollections Vanilla and layered on Stampin' Up Basic Black and more textured Bazzill.  The sentiment is Hero Arts Holiday Sayings stamped in Versafine and highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.  The ribbon is Crafts and Multicrafts.  The embellishments are Queen & Company Marble Wizard Rox.

I was so happy with the last card which I crafted with this image that when my friend asked for poinsettia cards I knew I would use this stamp again.  This time I decided to use a number of different colours on the flowers.  The unfortunate thing with this stamp set is that it's an acrylic and even though I've repeatedly conditioned it, I'm still not fussy with the stamped image.  I've even tried previous inking with VersaMark and it's still not great.  I'm not sure if the problem is mine or the stamp.  I'll have to keep playing with it and see.  I'll keep you posted.

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

Gisèle

More Painted Poinsettias

Hello everyone,

Today's Christmas card uses another poinsettia stamp in the Penny Black set I've been enjoying.

The printed paper is K&Company Yuletide layered on Stampin' Up Old Olive and a red of unknown origin.  The image is Penny Black Joyous stamped in Tombow 098 and 856 and Faber-Castel (yellow) on Recollections Vanilla and layered on more Old Olive.  The sentiment is Hero Arts Very Merry Christmas stamped in Mossy Meadow ink.  The ribbon is American Crafts.

I love how I managed to find a printed paper that coordinates so well with the image.  It's speaks to the inordinate amount of Christmas paper in my stash.  I think this is a great image.  It is rather unique in that you don't often see a vertical, single poinsettia as a stamp.  I think this will be amazingly versatile and can't wait to see what I can come up with.

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

Gisèle

More For Mother

Hello everyone,

The original card was posted on May 12, 2010.

I wasn't completely unhappy with the original card but after four years there was a reason it was still in the stash.  I think it was because the Taken With Teal butterfly and black sentiment were too stark and harsh.  The refashioned card uses a Marianne Design Collectable stamped in Stampin' Up Whisper White with Faber-Castell markers and Basic Grey, heat embossed with Close To My Heart Silver Pearl and highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.  The butterfly was layered on Recollections and a origami paper of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Kaisercraft Occasions stamped in Basic Grey on Recollections and heat embossed with more Silver Pearl.  The embellishments are Doodlebug Baby Girl and Baby Boy Assortment mini pearls.

I don't think I really improved this card.  The Recollections layer under the butterfly is still to harsh but my choices were limited because of the challenge to hide that black sentiment.  I also think the pearls should have been clear sparkles which would have complimented the sheen in the ribbon and the Sakura coloured spaces on the butterfly.  There is just too much going on in this redo so instead of putting in back in the stash, I'm going to send it to my mother-in-law (sorry Barb).

I hope you enjoy this redo, more as a what not to do, and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Scene of Sympathy

Hello everyone,

I thought I would try a little different sympathy card.  It's one I've been thinking about for a while.

The images are Stampin' Up Scene In A Garden and Branch Out stamped on Recollections Vanilla.  The image was stamped and coloured in Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Pear Pizzazz, Certainly Celery, Wild Wasabi, Pool Party, Baja Breeze, Marina Mist, Faber-Castell markers, and Rebhan watercolour paints.  The butterflies were highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.  The scene is layered on a piece of brown of unknown origin and a green from Generations Traditional Stackers.  The sentiment is Gina K Garden Silhouettes stamped in Early Espresso.

I don't often craft cards with scenes as I'm terrible at colouring.  This is the second attempt.  I'm not all that confident in the scale but I really wanted to see if it could work.  It's not bad.  I used a variety of colouring mediums because I find I'm so much better with inks and watercolour paints than with markers.  I know practice would resolve the marker issues but try as I might, I'm never happy with the results.

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

Gisèle

Vintage Butterfly

Hello everyone,

Today's card is for another girlfriend.  She appreciates anything handcrafted.

The printed paper is Momenta layered on Close To My Heart Garden Green and Garnet.  The image is Heartfelt Creations Butterfly Medley, stamped in Stampin' Up Crumb Cake on Very Vanilla, coloured with Faber-Castell watercolor pencil crayons and layered on more Crumb Cake.  The butterfly is highlighted with Sakura Clear Star Gelly Roll pen.  The sentiment is Rubbernecker Happy Birthday stamped in Early Espresso.  The embellishments are Close To My Heart Mocha Opaques.

I can't remember where I found this Momenta 6X6 paper pad but it is awesome!  It is full of these wonderful vintage botanical sheets that are going to craft some really beautiful cards.  The watercolour crayons were a bit of a challenge as I was either too we,t or too dark, or too outside the lines.  Arrrrrggggghhhhh!

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

Gisèle

Go Sens Go

Hello everyone,

Today's card is for a colleague who is a huge Ottawa Senators NHL fan.  He is going to love this card!

The image was coloured with Faber-Castel pencil crayons.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up Delightful Dozen stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections white and layered on Real Red, Basic Black and Bazzill Gold Foil.

This card couldn't have been any simpler.  Actually it could have been if I'd had enough colour ink in my printer to actually print a colour image.

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

Gisèle

Fantastic Fathers II

Hello everyone,

Today's card is for the husband of one of my colleagues.  She asked for something water related so I decided to play with the rowboat stamp again.

The patterned paper is My Mind's Eye Wild Asparagus Birthday Boy Plaid.  The solid papers are Stampin' Up Early Espresso and Soft Sky.  The image is Gina K Follow Your Dreams stamped in StazOn Timber Brown on Whisper White and coloured with Faber-Castell Watercolour Pencil Crayons.  The sentiment is Stampin' Up Delightful Dozen.

I love this card.  I think my colouring is improving.  I used the watercolour pencils after which I went over them very lightly with a watercolour pen.  I really love the effect.  It doesn't have to be absolutely perfect because the watercolour are so forgiving as long as you don't apply too much water.  I really hope this is what my colleague had in mind.

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

Gisèle