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

Lucky Green

A Bit 'O Green is the theme of the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge this week. I somehow have several little St. Patrick's Day stamps and love this speech bubble one by Studio G. When I think of this holiday I think plaid, so I made my grass with some patterned plaid paper. I guess I could have made it a thought bubble as we all wish for that lucky four leaf clover. The bear is by Ellen Hutson as are his accessory cloverleafs.

 

Hope your March is going well. Flying by, right?

-Carol
 

 

Hollow Chocolate

I enjoy challenges that give a photo to inspire you. The Inkspirational Challenge #234 is a photo this week and it nudged me to get out my Stampin' Up! Window Frame die and my Inkadinkado Dogs set again.

Since it is time to be starting Easter cards I thought I would make a fun(ny) card with the bunny ears prop and some eggs from the same Ellen Hutson Bear Wear set. The silly sentiment is from an older wooden stamp from Limited Edition and the chocolate mini bunnies are a Hero Arts stamp that also says Happy Easter. I used random fun sequins and confetti for inside the shaker window and colored here and there with my Wink of Stella glitter clear brush pen. I couldn't help myself and added googly eyes to my dog/bunny.

I am sure there will be more Easter cards coming to my blog because I have an adorable die set on order. Stay tuned!

-Carol

Hoppy For You

It's really spring here already in Florida, so I got out my favorite bunny stamp of all time from Co-Motion. I'm playing along with The Paper Players PP530 this week and their sketch is below. It's a pretty easy sketch to follow. You should check it out!

I used some cute cloud patterned paper, my My Favorite Things Grassy Fields dies, the fun Avery Elle Wonky Scalloped Frames dies, and a Stampin' Up! sentiment from the So Hoppy Together set. I used chalks to color the bunny and popped him up on foam squares. If it is not spring yet where you are, I hope this card makes you think about spring coming soon and daylight savings time next weekend!!!

See you soon,

-Carol

Tropical Pocket Card

About a year ago I was wandering around Pinterest (probably) and I found a pocket card similar to this one below. I decided I had to try to CASE it. I love all things tropical and I also love anything tactile with pockets, tags or little doors, etc. I do not remember exactly where I found it or who made it in order to give credit here. Mine is different in a several ways since I used my own dies and stamps to make it. I didn't measure anything when making this either. I made the outside embellishment first, then cut  pocket and then the smaller tag to fit inside. Not rocket science at all. I used My Favorite Things Wild Greenery Dies to cut the leaves and  probably my Stampin' Up! Gorgeous Grunge stamp set for the diagonal lines and a SU greeting set whose name I don't have. I believe the dies used on the card I CASEd were Stampin' Up! Tropical Chic.

I gave this card away last summer to a coworker on her last day and I need to recreate it once more. I want to make it in blues, tan and white again but also in greens with pink as well. I'll post the new creations as soon as I get them done! 

See you soon,

-Carol