3 Cards

I'm a scrapbooker, but I really love making cards.  For me they are super quick and easy - and a great way to use up scraps.  So I took a few minutes to make some mother's day cards - for my mother-in-law, for a special aunt, and of course for my mom. 

The first one uses some paper from the Studio Calico Lisse Street 4x6 pad, a scrap from my scrap basket, a piece of doily, a sticker, and a dear lizzy thicker word.  I used pop dots to add different pieces so the card has a lot of dimension.  That meant stacking popdots in some cases so that pieces were supported as I overlapped layers. And that glittery tag - it's from Ashley Calder's etsy shop.

The next one was even easier.  I used no tools - not even scissors.  I just dug for scraps that worked together and were the right size.  The flower was from an old Studio Calico cut file and was just hanging out on my desk.  I think the pink ink inkspatters pull this all together - especially the way that some landed on top of the flower.

The third card was super easy too. The three patterned papers came  right from my scraps and needed just a little bit of trimming.  That big gold rose was on a Crate Paper sticker sheet that is almost used up.  And the rosette was left over from another project.  And that label - it is from Studio Calico and was perfect for this card!

So dig into your scraps and put together some quick cards.  And link me up so I can see.  I always like some new inspiration.

Thanks for stopping by.

No April Fool's Trick - The Blog Is Back

So I've been away - for months - after planning and being sure that I could maintain my blog.  But this winter did me in (not quite literally).  We had the Christmas chaos and then just before the holiday I started getting sick.  And I stayed that way til early March.  I fell on the ice and snow walking the dog (more than once).  And through it all I wasn't feeling very creative or productive.  So I didn't really have much to blog about.  But in the last couple of weeks my scrappy mojo seems to be back.  So I am ready to get back to my blog. 

First thing's first - I have an open giveaway from way back in November/early December and I need to pick a winner.  (I know its Christmas supplies, but if you are like me, Christmas themed pages and projects cross your desk throughout the year.)

On November 17, penny said:

Wow! Great giveaway. I can't wait to see how your album progresses. I have never done a holiday book. 

Penny, email me at juliee181 at gmail dot com to claim your prize.  And guys, I really apologize for the time it took me to name a winner.  I promise to do better.

Now - what have I been working on?  Lots of good stuff. Last week I was playing in the Paper Issues crop.  My projects included three quick cards I though I would share.

The first challenge I am sharing required the color orange and stamping.  Here's what I came up with.

 

The design is super simple - the patterned base paper does most of the work.  I just added a label, a frame, and a tag.  Epoxy stickers from the new Amy Tangerine collection were the perfect finishing touch.

The second was for an alphabet challenge.  I used the awesome ampersand vellum from Webster's Pages and the bold tile thicker for my basic design.  The fun part was punching stars from tile style mini alphas to finish it off.

The third card was to make something connected to music.  I had a bag printed with the music for happy birthday that had been hanging out in my stash for a really long time.  So I cut it apart to serve as the base of my card.  Then it was all about the layers.  I love that I used lots of bits from my stash for this card and ended up with something fresh and pretty.

 Thanks for visiting.  I'll talk to you soon.

A Quick and Easy Christmas Card

This time of year is super crazy at my house.  No matter how often I say that we are going to have a relaxed and enjoyable holiday, it seems like everything goes nuts starting the day after Thanksgiving.  And this year is no exception.  So last week passed in a blur of holiday craziness with work and school squeezed in. 

But over the last couple years, I've learned that a few quiet minutes in my scrap room each day go a long way to maintaining my sanity.  So this weekend I was determined to get back on track.  My craft room is a disaster right now which makes me crazy, but I squeezed in some crafty time - the organizing is going to have to wait.

I woke up Sunday with an idea for a card inspired by paper from Studio Calico's card kit last month.  I knew it would come together quickly, so it was perfect project for this time of year. 

I started with a plain white card base - I know they are easy to make, but I buy them just because it makes things so quick and easy.  I trimmed the great tree paper from the Walden card kit so that it was slightly smaller than the card.  Then I added a piece of vellum over the patterned paper. 

I knew I wanted to create a simple cluster in the bottom corner of the card.  I pulled out the stamp from this month's embellishment kit - Waldorf.  It had a small pine branch that was just what I had in mind.  I stamped the image a couple of times with Studio Calico Color Theory Yes Peas Ink and made sure the images overlapped slightly.

For the sentiment I used the stamp from the Garland Road project life add-on (November 2014) from Studio Calico and Gold Galax Brilliance Ink.  I placed the image just to the side and below the branches.  I pulled out one of those "vintage" wood veneer "tweets" from Studio Calico to link my sentiment and pine branches.  I colored it a soft red with a pale tomato Hero Arts ink dauber.    It just took a few tiny gold star sequins to finish it off.

I love when a project is inspired by a paper or embellishment.  They always seem to come together so quickly.  Link me up with your last project inspired by a supply in the comments.  I will pick one link at random for a $5 Studio Calico gift card.  I will choose a winner on December 21 - that way you will have the gift card in plenty of time for the January kit reveal.

I still have to pick the winner of my holiday giveaway - hopefully in the next few days. It totally got away from me last week.

Thanks for stopping by!

Five Easy Cards

For Studio Calico stamp sale list go here.

More often than not, making cards just frustrates me.  I struggle with the scale and am rarely happy with my end results.  So no one was more surprised than me when I took on the five World Card Making challenges at Studio Calico.  And I had a good time with the challenges - they really helped me focus on specific elements and put together some quick and easy cards. Here's what I came up with.

The first challenge was to use this mood board.

Here's what I came up with.

The second challenge was to incorporate an ombre element.  I used some awesome pink and green ombre washi from Pinkfresh Studio and Amy Tangerine chipboard for this simple card.

The third challenge was to use your scraps.  I used a couple paper scraps, the end of a piece of trim, some Freckled Fawn leaves and a few sequins for this quick thank you card.

The next challenge was to use five of something.  I added five pieces of wood veneer from the Licorice add-on for this fun Halloween card.  I loved adding aqua, a non-traditional color to the mix.

The last challenge was a sketch challenge.  There were several choices, but I chose this one

for this quick card using a Glitz 6x6 card, a strip of washi from the Container Store, some wood veneer and a Fancy Pants tag.

These were so fun and easy I might just be inspired to make some more cards some day soon.  Thanks for looking.  I hope you have a marvelous Monday!