Elegant Thoughts

 Hello everyone,

Today's post is the last of the 'thinking of you' cards that I crafted for a recent commission.

The card base is Recollections Grey.  The printed paper is Marianne Design Winter Dreams layered on Stampin' Up Going Grey and a white of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Greeting Set die, cut from Stampin' Up Basic Grey.  The card is highlighted with Platinum Liquid Pearls.

I love this Marianne Design paper collection.  The colours are wonderful and the detailed images are beautiful.  The shades of blue and grey in this particular piece were particularly inspiring.  The careful trimming facilitated the placement of the die cut sentiment whose font works perfectly with the printed paper.  I'm actually very satisfied with the Liquid Pearl dots and wish they'd always come out so well.

I hope you enjoy this card and this 'thinking of you' series and come back to SPI again soon.

Gisèle

Thank You Coffee

 Hello everyone,

Today's post is another 'thank you' card in the commission I've crafted.

The card base is Recollections Vanilla.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on a medium blue Bazzill and Stampin' Up Early Espresso.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Vertical Greetings stamped in Early Espresso on Recollections Vanilla.  The embellishments are Stampin' Up Subtle Candy Dots.

Not all corporate 'thank you' cards have to be serious so when I came across this paper I knew I'd use it in this commission.  I love the pile of coffee cups and was thrilled to have this vertical sentiment in my stash. It couldn't be more perfect for this card and the final result is just fantastic!

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

Gisèle

Elegant Holly

 Hello everyone,

Today's post is a simple Christmas holly card.

The card base is a vanilla of unknown origin.  The image is Impression Obsession Holly stamped in Close To My Heart Topiary on more vanilla of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Flonz Merry Christmas 808 stamped in Stampin' Up Cherry Cobbler.  The image/sentiment panel is layered on more Cherry Cobbler.  The embellishments are Crystal Stickers Red Glitter Dome stickers.

I truly love using holly images for Christmas cards and I've a ton of options from which to choose.  I don't use this particular one all that often because it is extremely intricate.  It would be best to use a green Versafine ink but I only have black.  I love the three red glittering 'berries' which, if I may say so myself, are very well placed.

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

Gisèle

Another Vintage Winter Scene

 Hello everyone,

Today's post is another lovely winter scene Christmas card.

The card base is an ivory of unknown origin.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on a red Bazzill.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Triangle Trees stamped in Stampin' Up Early Espresso.  The embellishments are TPC Studio Holly Jolly.

This printed paper is obviously from the same collection as yesterday's card I just have no idea to which company is should be attributed.  It does have the look and feel of a Heartfelt Creations collection. I love the pop of the deep red layer.  I used these rather large embellishments because I don't have to worry about mailing bulk.  The red in the embellishments works wonderfully with the red Bazzill layer.  This was yet another very quick and easy card.

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

Gisèle

Vintage Winter Scene

 Hello everyone,

Today's post is a wonderful vintage styled Christmas card.

The card base is an ivory of unknown origin.  The printed paper is also of unknown origin layered on Stampin' up Early Espresso.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Christmas Sentiments stamped in Early Espresso on Recollections Vanilla.  The ribbon and pearl snowflake embellishment are both of unknown origin.

I do love crafting vintage styled cards be they birthday or Christmas or any other occasion.  I find the style so appealing and love mixing traditional and modern elements.  This card is a perfect example with the organza ribbon and pearl snowflake button.  The bow is a little lopsided but with the sheer ribbon, it's not quite so obvious.  As these cards won't be mailed, I didn't worry about any extra bulk.  I really love this result!

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

Gisèle

Floral Wishes

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a great floral birthday card.

The card base is The Paper Studio.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on a yellow Bazzill and Recollections Black.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Vertical Greetings stamped in Altenew Jet Black on Recollections White.  The embellishments are Recollections Rhinestones.

This wasn't my favourite piece of printed paper until I put it together with the pink, yellow and black.  Again I used the banner for the sentiment, only wishing I had centered it just a little better.  Thank goodness it's not a straight font to begin with.  The embellishments are a lot more obvious than in this photo.  It's a great result.

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

Gisèle

Seasonally Non Traditional

Hello everyone,

Today's posts is a great non-traditional Christmas card.

The card base is Stampin' Up Blackberry Bliss.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on shimmery ivory of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Christmas Sentiments stamped in Close To My Heart Outdoor Denim on Recollections Vanilla and layered on a metallic purple of unknown origin.  The embellishments are Recollections enamel dots.

I've used this printed paper before and I've loved the results every single time!  The colours are those to which I'm generally drawn so it makes it pretty easy to put a card together.  I love the banner anchoring the sentiment.  The points of the purple banner mirror the coloured strips on the printed paper.  I trimmed the printed paper carefully so it was at least somewhat centered.  I'm really pleased with the results.

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

Gisèle

Lovely In Lilac

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a lovely vertical birthday card.

The card base is The Paper Studio.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Close To My Heart Gypsy and Stampin' Up Mossy Meadow.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Vertical Greetings stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections White and layered on more Mossy Meadow.  The embellishments are Michael's.

I've always been drawn to a purple and green colour combination.  This printed paper not only uses both but the long delicate stems prompted the vertical aspect of this card.  I don't have that many vertical sentiments and this one is really fun.  The pearl embellishments are fairly large so I wouldn't be able to use them for a mailed card.  I do love how they accent the sentiment.

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

Gisèle

Navy Argyle Wishes

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a simple layered birthday card.

The card base is Stampin' Up Night of Navy.  The printed papers are of unknown origin layered with a white of unknown origin.  The sentiment is cut from Recollections White with Impression Obsession Happy Birthday die.

I was so happy with yesterday's card that I decided to repeat it with this argyle paper.  This is a favourite die.  It's got a wonderful font and in white, it really pops against the printed paper.  I love the blue and white colour combination because it's very fresh.  I intended this card to be masculine so I didn't add any extra embellishments.  It's a great result.

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

Gisèle

Yellow Gingham

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a very striking birthday card.

The card base is Recollections White.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Recollections Black.  The sentiment is cut from more Recollections Black with an Impression Obsession die.  The embellishments are My Mind's Eye Remarkable "Handsome" enamel dots.

I've always found using yellow a challenge but I couldn't resist this lovely gingham paper.  I love the slight reveal of black, along with the bold font sentiment also in black.  I debated using yellow banners but doubted I could find a good colour match.  The black banners work just fine.  It's a great result.

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

Gisèle

Christmas Skiers

Hello everyone,

This post is a more non-traditional Christmas card.

The card base is Stampin’ Up Baja Breeze.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Recollections Black.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Christmas Sentiments stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on Recollections Vanilla and layered on more Recollections Black.  The ribbon is American Crafts.

This is such fun winter paper.  It has a very retro style which was a lot of fun to use on a card.  There were a lost of colours with which to coordinate and I loved using the blue card base.  I carefully trimmed the paper and because the font of the sentiment is quite bold, the layout was kept quite simple.  A simple flat ribbon treatment finished the card nicely.

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

Gisèle

Teacher Thank You IV

Hello everyone,

Today's post is the fourth in the teacher thank you card series that a girlfriend commissioned.

The card base is Stampin' Up Creamy Caramel.  The printed paper is DCWV Rock Star Stack layered on Recollections Black and more Creamy Caramel.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Vertical Greetings stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on a white of unknown origin and layered on more Creamy Caramel and Recollections Black.  The embellishments are Fabricland.

I love the font of this sentiment.  It is very 'teacher'!  I also love that it is vertical.  I've never been a fan of Creamy Caramel.  It's really a disgusting brown.  It did however coordinate perfectly with this piece of printed paper.  I think the smaller offset against the black makes this particular Creamy Caramel example quite palatable.  A great result.

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

Gisèle

Blooming Spring Flowers

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a really pretty spring tulip card.

The card base is Recollections White.  The images are Stampin' Up Tranquil Tulips stamped in Altenew Evening Grey, Lavender Fields, Frayed Leaf, Forest Glades, Moss, Maple Yellow, Citrus Burst, Crimson and Coral Bliss on Recollections White.  The image panel is layered on Close To My Heart New England Ivy and a red Bazzill.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Vertical Greetings stamped in Altenew Moss.

Again, I'm so craving spring I'll take images of tulips as opposed to the real ones at this point.  I love the more fun aspect of these tulips and the subtle grape hyacinths are just lovely.  The more fun stamped images work great with this funky styled vertical sentiment.  All together, it's an awesome card.

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

Gisèle

Sweet Santa V

Hello everyone,

Today's post is another pair of teacher Christmas cards.

 



The card bases are Stampin' Up Mint Macaron.  The printed paper is Stampin' Up Home For Christmas.  The printed paper on the left-side card is layered on a white of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Christmas Sentiments stamped in Altenew Jet Black on a white of unknown origin and layered on Real Red.  The embellishment is Jolee's Boutique Christmas Candy Cane Repeats Dimensional Stickers.  The printed paper on the right-side card is layered on Real Red and Early Espresso.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Christmas Sentiment stamped in Early Espresso on a white of unknown origin and layered on more Early Espresso.  The ribbon is Multicrafts and the embellishment is a Maildor Cooky sticker.

This is another really cute pair of cards.  All the layouts in this series are pretty straightforward.  There were just too many cards to craft really complex cards (not that my cards are all that complex).  I love the bit of sparkle incorporated in the candy cane embellishment and the reindeer sticker is perfect for a teacher card.

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

Gisèle

Blue Bayou Duo

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a duo of non-traditional winter cards.

The card base is Stampin' Up Blue Bayou.  The image panel was stamped with Impression Obsession Cover-A-Card Snowflakes stamped in Close To My Heart Twilight on a white of unknown origin.  The panel was layered on Paper Accent Glossy Mirror Silver and more white.  The card was highlighted with Recollections Rhinestones and Diamond Stickles.

The card base is Stampin' Up Blue Bayou.  The image is Inkadinkado Winter Trails stamped on a white of unknown origin with Stampin' Up Lost Lagoon and heat embossed with Close To My Heart Silver Pearl.  The embellishments are Mark Richards 3mm Silver Metals.

I couldn't resist crafting a pair of winter cards for this series.  This duo was a bit more of a challenge to craft without using sentiments.  I needed to hold exercise some restraint to be satisfied just using images.  Adding embellishments, Stickles and using heat embossing helped with the overall result because it added interest.  I'm actually quite happy with this pair.

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

Gisèle

Whimsical Thanks

Hello everyone,

Today's post is another fun and sweet thank you card.

The card base is a white of unknown origin.  The printed paper is BasicGrey layered on Stampin' Up Soft Seafoam.  The images are Impression Obsession Large and Small Flourishes stamped in Close To My Heart Twilight on a white of unknown origin and layered on Twilight paper.  The sentiment is Verve Thankful Accents stamped in Versafine Onyx Black.  The card is highlighted with Diamond Stickles.

I've always loved BasicGrey papers.  They're fun and unique.  I was thrilled to coordinate this particular piece with the new Soft Seafoam paper from Stampin' Up.  I think this is a colour I'll use much more than I first thought.  While these Impression Obsession flourishes are a little more formal than I'd like for this paper, I thought the simple lines would work.  It's not too bad in the overall scheme of things.

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

Gisèle

Daisy Thank You

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a lovely delicate floral thank you card.

The card base is Stampin' Up Wisteria Wonder.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Close To My Heart Honey and a white of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Greeting die, cut from Close To My Heart Honey.  The metal butterfly embellishment is of unknown origin.  A Jolee's Boutique Swarovski crystal was affixed to the butterfly.

 This card is little more traditional and even a little on the vintage side.  I love the random daisies and they are the perfect scale for this sized card.  It took me a bit to find a card base colour that worked and I wouldn't normally choose a purple but the daisy petals have a hint of purple and with the white layer, I thought it worked really well.  Though you can't really tell, I used the crystal to hide a brad hole because I forgot to add a brad before I'd adhered the paper panel to the card.  It works!

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

Gisèle

Funky Floral

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a wonderfully funky floral thank you card.

The card base is Stampin' Up Bermuda Bay.  The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on a white also of unknown origin.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession stamped in Versafine Onyx Black on more white of unknown origin and layered on more Bermuda Bay.  The card is highlighted with Diamond Stickles.

This is a really funky piece of printed paper.  It's a really mash of informal flowers using rather formal design elements.  I used a circle punch for the sentiment to be consistent with the printed paper.  While the flowers on the printed paper are perfect for adding Stickles, I think adding them to the sentiment was probably a little too much.

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

Gisèle

Blossoms and Butterflies

Hello everyone,

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

The printed paper is Kaisercraft Flight of Fancy layered on Stampin' Up Bermuda Bay.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Greeting Set die cut from more Bermuda Bay.  The card is highlighted with Diamond Stickles.

I've always loved this sheet of printed paper.  The colours work so well and there are lots of coordinating options.  I chose Bermuda Bay for this card because it is such a really happy colour.  I had a lot of fun with sentiment die cuts for this commission.  They really make for quick and easy cards.  Adding some sparkle with Stickles just makes me happy!

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

Gisèle

On A Bed Of Flowers

Hello everyone,

Today's post is a really quick and easy birthday card.

The printed paper is of unknown origin layered on Stampin' Up Perfect Plum.  The sentiment is Impression Obsession Die 166-F cut from more Perfect Plum.  The pearl embellishments are of unknown origin.

This is such a simple card.  The paper is lovely and die cuts makes crafting so very easy.  It was simply a matter of finding a coordinating solid.  I use the angled sentiment placement on many of the cards in this commission.  The more bulky pearl embellishments were also angled to highlight the embellishment. 

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

Gisèle