Cupcakes are for Birthdays

I've noticed over the years that if you have a party with a whole cake, people are afraid to cut into it. But if you have cupcakes, they are easy to grab and put on a plate or devour into thin air, and going back for seconds doesn't look so bad! At least that is my take on it! Here is my entry into the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Happy Birthday for this week. 

For this card I cut and scored a side-fold cream colored card base and cut random strips of patterned paper to adhere to it, leaving a little of the card base showing. Then I used my new My Favorite Things Frosted Cupcake dies to cut out the frosting and cupcake liner. I added some chunky glitter on the frosting to look like real sprinkles. I used my Simon Says Stamp Happy Birthday die for the sentiment and added it atop a strip of vellum to make it show up better on the busy background. It put teeny tiny drops of Tacky Glue behind the sentiment and a lot behind the cupcake to hold the vellum piece down on the card. That's it!

I have another entry into this challenge in my head and need to get it started!

-Carol

Birthday Confetti

Even though confetti is a pain to clean up, you have to admit that it does add a festive touch to decorations for a birthday! I am entering my card in the My Favorite Things Wednesday Sketch Challenge #535. I really like this sketch!

I just received my latest MFT order and this Frosted Cupcake die has been on my wish list for a while. The frosting is so realistic and "swooshy" looking that I want to make some cupcakes every time I see it! The candle paper behind the cupcake, as well as the confetti paper on the card front are Stampin' Up! The Happy Birthday die is from Simon Says Stamp. The frosting is white glitter paper and it has such pretty iridescent sparkle! I wanted the cupcake to be real the focal point, and use the candles paper too, so I placed a vellum rectangle between the two to soften the look of the candles.

Be sure to check out the MFT Wednesday Challenge with the link above. Cute cards being posted!!!

-Carol

Sweet Fabulous You

I made another card, this time for a birthday, using the same technique as my last post: KarrenJ-Stamping Stuff's Block Work that I am having fun with these days. I am entering my card in the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Anything Goes as well as the Seize the Birthday #211 Squares Challenge.

My card is a 5 X 7 size for a change and I used a white panel for my design and attached it to a white cardstock card base. I grabbed some square punches and dies to make my own stencil for this technique. I used Ranger Distress Oxide inks and an Archival Brilliance ink pad in Moonlight White with blender brushes to make the front panel. I used two My Favorite Things die sets: Sweet as Pie for the "Sweet" die cut (the die says "Sweetie" and I cut off the ie), as well as the vellum martini die cut from MFT's "Let's Toast" die set. The "Fabulous" die is from WPlus9 and "You" is from Stampin' Up! I used washi tape to mask off the martini glass so I could blend a little ink to look like a Cosmopolitan. I added various sequins and rhinestones to bling up the card a little for the recipient. (I haven't given it to her yet) On the inside is yet another die cut that I think was a freebie with an order once, but I don't remember the company!

Check out Karren's tutorial and give this technique a try. It is really bokeh technique but with squares! 

See you soon,

-Carol

Happy Easter!

I found inspiration recently in KarrenJ's Block Work post and have finally made a couple of cards using her technique. Here is my Spring/Easter version:

I am entering it in three challenges: Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Spring/Easter Mood Board, Happy Little Stampers March Stencil Challenge, Happy Little Stampers Challenge Anything With Dies.

I followed Karren's tutorial for the distress ink background and I find it really fun to make. Like Karren, I had to use square punches/dies to make my own stencil for the blocks step and then used my Spellbinders March Large Die of the month set for the bunny, flowers and word dies. This background is addicting. I made the card in a mini slimline size (6 1/4 x 3 1/4) so I had to make an envelope for it. Luckily my Envelope Punch Board had a really close size to this card!!

Happy Spring to you!

-Carol

Birthday Star

Patterned paper seems to be popular in the challenges this week/month. I am linking up with the AAA Birthday Challenge #23 and the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge. I have hoarded this cute fish paper long enough!

I've had this cool cover plate die for a long time and love it when I do use it! These My Favorite Things Wild Greenery dies are fun as well. The Copic-colored starfish is from a Simon Says Stamp set called Under the Sear Animals as is the You're a Star sentiment. Happy Birthday is from a Honey Bee set called Swimming By. I love these sequins with shells and striped blue rounds in addition to little yellow stars from Lilac Lane called Seaside Holiday. Making the shaker was a little difficult as the border is really thin, but I love an interactive card! 

Off to make something else swimming around in my head! (pun intended, sorry)

-Carol

Happy ROL

 The Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge this week is to use 2 or more patterned papers to create something. I decided to enter a second card, this time a fun fold called the Double Gate Fold. Here is a link to Dawn Olchefske's video tutorial. I made the sentiment on my computer for this "divorce" card for a friend who just got out of a bad situation and is so happy to move on with her life. You never know what occasion you might need a card for, and this is a first for me! ROL=rest of lifetime.

I used some older Stampin' Up! double sided patterned paper for the card and a little piece of another patterned paper for the heart on the slider mug. I stamped the mug from Catherine Pooler's Mug Shot stamp set and used blender brushes and distress oxide ink to color the mug. (I stamped the mug again on a post it note and cut out the heart, the coffee and the part inside the handle to mask off before I ink blended.) I added a slider mechanism which you can see here and attached it to the back of the mug and the card is done! (The video is in Spanish but the subtitles and visuals are enough to teach you how to make the slider piece.)

I hope this card gives you ideas for other life occasions we need a card for sometimes! 

-Carol

Patterned paper weaving

While I don't love weaving strips of paper because they fight me the whole time, the end result is kinda cool. This spring time card, I hope, gives the Easter basket feel with its woven papers and little critters. I used several different patterns for the background and solid color cardstock for this card. 

After cutting strips of patterned paper and weaving them together I used my Spellbinders Large Dies of the month for March to cut and assemble the chick, bunny and lamb. It is fun, like playing with paper dolls! The sentiment dies come in the same set as the critters. I cut out the title twice, once in black and again in green, and glued them together a little offset to give a shadow effect. To give the title of the card a less busy background I cut a strip of vellum and glued the words to it, then attached the strip to the card front with Tacky Glue only under the words so it wouldn't show through the vellum. Looking at the Spellbinders website, I saw little white accents drawn on the critters and I tried to mimick those lines with a gel pen. I cut grass from green cardstock with the grass die in the set and matted the front panel with cardstock in colors like the patterned papers. Last, I used some foam tape behind the bunny ears and egg shells for depth. I LOVE the egg shells the most of all the details!

I am entering this card in the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge which this week asks participants to use 2 or more patterned papers. There are some really cool cards from the design team you should check out! 

Happy Spring!

-Carol