lazy days...

 

• LOTV 'waterlily' stamp
• SU! 'express yourself' stamp (sentiment)
• SU! 'labels collection framlits' and 'bigz alphabet typeset'
• 8x8 card blank
• craftwork cards 'digi cardstock' 
• purple, green and patterned cardstocks
• Memento ink 'tuxedo black' and 'grape jelly'
• copics markers
• stickles glitter
• white satin ribbon

 

 

I thought this fun image for a big birthday card I wanted to do. I stamped the main image and coloured it with copics. I die cut this out with a larger purple mat to layer behind. I also die cut the numbers from green and patterned card sticking them together offset to create a drop shadow effect. I then cut and matted my patterned paper, added the ribbon tied in a bow and glued onto the card. the image and numbers were stuck down with foam pads for dimension. finally, I added glittered accents to the image for that extra special feel. 

 

Mx

paper piecing...

I thought I would introduce paper piecing for this tutorial Tuesday. It is essentially a way to fill in your stamped images using cut pieces of paper. It can be a great way to introduce colour, pattern or texture into an image and can help to coordinate with the background papers in a card too.

 

stage 1-stamping

 

stage 1 is to stamp the image you will use. You need to position it on your card blank or matt and stamp again onto the paper you will be using to fill the image.

 

stage 2- cut and colour

The next stage is to cut the section of the image you will use out of the paper. Depending on the image, this can be a little tricky so choose carefully. You will also need to prepare the image on your card blank by colouring any pieces you wont cover with paper. I have also chosen to cut the card down with a scalloped edge and added a strip of the same paper to the edge inside the card. This helps to tie  the rest of the card in with the image and make a feature of the pretty paper.



stage 3 - stick down to complete



 the final stage is sticking the paper onto the stamped image. The trick here is to line them up perfectly so the paper sits inside the stamped outline. If you are worried about getting it right, choose a glue which gives you a bit of wiggle time.

 

inside completed to match

 

 I repeated the same process with the handbag to complete the decoration inside this card. This example is quite a simple one using only one paper to show you how it works. But, once you have mastered the basics, you could use several different papers to fill the various parts of your image to create cards like the ones below.

 

 

 

Mx

made in monochrome...

 

• white and black plain card
• SU! 'summer afternoon' and 'crazy about you' stamps
• SU! 'hello you' thinlits dies
• SU! 'whisper white' ink pad

 I thought the strong sentiment in the sketch would work well with a bold monochromatic colour scheme. I cut a black mat to fit my white card blank. I stamped the image in white in the bottom corner. I then die cut the 'happy' sentiment and added this to the card with the 'birthday' stamped just below. I think the simplicity of this card is quite effective.

 

sketch #112

Mx

big blooms...

 

• 6 x 4 card blank
• SU! 'flower patch' and sentiment stamp (sorry I got the sentiment 2nd hand with no name label)
• memento ink pads

I kept this card really simple with the bold flowers as the main feature. I stamped the different flowers and leaves to build up the image and finished it off with a sentiment stamped in the corner.  

'anything goes'

Mx

simple silhouettes...

 

• 6 x 4 kraft card blank and coloured cardstock
• SU! 'just believe' stamp
• SU! 'elegant butterfly' punch
• archival ink 'sepia'
• twine

I cut 3 butterflies from different coloured cardstock using the punch and lined them up on the desk. I  stamped the flowers once onto my card blank, then 2nd generation stamped onto the butterflies. I then used foam pads to stick the butterflies down the centre of the card. I added twine through holes in the top of the card and tied it in a bow following the sketch.

 

freshly made sketch #175

Mx

floral wreath...

 

• wild rose studio stamp 'everyday greetings'
• cardio stamps (floral from various sets)
• SU! 'potpourri' stamp with matching punch
• stickles 'frosted lace'
• memento ink pads

I started with a circle drawn lightly in pencil. I then added floral and foliage stamps to cover the outline using various coloured inks, inspired by the colour Q challenge. I then inked some cardstock, cut it into a banner shape and stamped it with my sentiment. Next was the butterfly, which I coloured, stamped and punched out. I glued the pieces onto my card blank following the paper players sketch and finished with glittered accents around the edge of the matt and the centres of the flowers.

 



colour Q #281



the paper players sketch #233

Mx

two by two...

• 6 x 4 kraft card blank craftwork cards digi cardstock and yellow pearl linen cardstock
• SU! 'two by two' stamp
• memento ink and promarkers
• a brown button and twine

 

I decided to create a vibrant, gender neutral baby card and thought this Noah's ark stamp would work well with the kraft and yellow colour scheme. Following the sketch, I cut my cardstock on an angle to create my mat and layers. I stamped the image (not inking the sentiment attached) and coloured this with promarkers. I then cleaned the stamp and inked only the sentiment this time. this was cut into a banner shape and layered onto more yellow. I curled the edge for a bit of dimension before gluing down all of my layers onto the card blank. the finishing touch of a button tied with twine was added to complete the sketch.

 

Sketch # 349

Mx