My "Coffee" Cup Runneth Over For You!

Today I have another Coffee Cup Gift Card holder for you. I'm loving this quick to make die and stamp set from Art Impression! I thought I could create a super cute version using brads and washi tape from Eyelet Outlet. They have lots of great coffee related products that made this card lots of fun to put together. I even used a speech bubble brad as the sentiment.

After making the coffee cup gift card holder, I decorated it with Swirl Bling and made a collage with Coffee, Hearts and Saying Speech Bubble brads from Eyelet Outlet. I love how the swirl bling looks like steam. 

For the background, I cut a 4" x 5 1/4" panel in white and covered it with rows of Coffee Cup Washi Tape. This is a cups of many colors washi tape and I just love it! I glued the finished panel on top of a red A2 sized card base. I love how it turned out.

Happy Creating Everyone!

 Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest

A Latte To Love In These Gift Card Holders!

 

Hello and happy Saturday everyone! If you want to make something special to hold your gift cards but don't have the time or energy to put a lot into it, I have a great solution! I bring you the Coffee Gift Card Holder, #5222 by Art Impressions. First your recipient will be touched by the adorable coffee cup but when they realize there's a gift inside, they will FLIP their LID!

This is a stamp and die set that includes all the dies to make the coffee cup shape and decorate it. Stamps are also included that allow you to personalize your message. One offers check the box choices like: Congrats, You're the Best, Thanks, You're Spectacular, Just Because and You Deserve it. There are also two sentiments in a pretty script that say, Thanks a Latte! and I Love You a Latte! 

The photo above shows two options. On the right, I've made the cup by itself. This could be tucked into a gift basket, slipped into an A2 envelope or added to a package by securing a loop to the back. On the left, I mounted the gift card holder on an A2 sized card. Any way you present it will be a winner. Just don't forget to tell your recipient to pull up the cup lid or they might not know there's an insert with a gift card inside! It hides the surprise really well. 

Below I attached the coffee cup to another A2 card base. And speaking of card bases, I made a coffee inspired watercolor background with two Karin markers, a bit of saran wrap and some water. This is a super technique to create organic watercolor patterns. If time is a big factor, you can simply pick your favorite cardstock for the background.

I have a video tutorial demonstrating how I made these gift card holders and the watercolor, spattered backgrounds. I think you'll enjoy learning how to create a grand effect in record time.

Thanks for Stopping by. I hope you have a great weekend!

Happy Creating!

Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest 

Camping Beach Bums Using Karin Brush Markers

  

My family enjoys camping and we get out pretty regularly with our travel trailer. We live within a few hours of the beach and beach camping is something worth doing! When I saw the Happy Trails Set, I knew I had to have it because it mimics our own camping life so much.

For this card, I stamped most of the images in the set. There is a cute balloon and light string that I didn't use. There are six sentiments such as Home is Where You Park It, Happy Trails, Happy Retirement, Happy Camper and more. I thought the sentiment I chose was perfect for this very relaxed and happy couple. This would be great for his birthday, Valentine's Day or Father's Day.

I colored the images with Karen brush markers. For most of the images, I chose one color and used water to blend and create shading. You can get similar results from a water brush or the Karin Blender Marker. I prefer the control I get with a small round brush. After coloring them, I cut them out with the Brother Scan N Cut.

The sand is a piece of torn gold metallic cardstock. An aqua metallic cardstock was used for the sky. Bordering the main panel are bright blue and hot pink mats. The 8 1/2 x 3 1/2 slimline card base is made of lime green. All my cardstock came from CutCardStock.

I used many neon colors on this card. Have you noticed that neon is making a comeback? It's a lot of fun for summer cards. What cards are you making with a summer theme? There's plenty of great summer themed sets to be found at the Ai Store.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you have a great weekend!

Happy Creating!

Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest 

Shop at Art Impressions

Shop at CutCardStock

Swimsuit Summer Shadow Box Card

My name is Janet and I am a card maker! I don't know why but I felt a need to confess that to you. Ha ha! Anyway, one of the things I appreciate most about card making is that there are so many styles and designs of cards to choose from when making cards. There's never a dull moment!

Today I've made a shadow box card from an electronic cutting pattern offered by Lori Whitlock called Shadow Box Card - Swimsuits. I purchased the .svg file and cut this out using my Cricut Explore 2 machine. It's also offered as a Silhouette file if needed.

I've been eyeing this fun file for a while now. It's colorful and reminds me so much of growing up when a trip to the community pool was nearly a daily occurrence for my sister and I. Our suits were always left on the line overnight to dry and be pulled on again the next day. This pattern is really well suited for Pop Tone cardstock offered at CutCardStock and I am glad to finally be giving this one a try.

Below are the colors I used. I warn you that you are going to be wanting something sweet after reading these names. They really embody the Pop Tone colors of the cardstock in a yummy way:

• Box Panels: Pop Tone Sweet Tooth
• Frame and 2-Piece Suit: Pop Tone Wild Cherry
• Swimsuit and Sun: Pop Tone Banana Split
• Men's Trunks: Pop Tone Grape Jelly
• 1-Piece Suit: Pop Tone Blue Raspberry
• Clothes Line: Pop Tone Black Licorice
• Grass Hill: Astrobright Gamma Green
• Sky Background: Stardream Metallic Aquamarine

The first step after downloading the file was to import it into Cricut Design Space and cut all the pieces. There are many individual cuts for pieces and parts of the bathing suits and scene. I've learned to pull out a platter and put all my cut pieces on it as I go. That way I avoid misplacing even the smallest pieces. There's nothing more disruptive to your mojo than cutting all your pieces and then misplacing one or two!

It was pretty easy to determine where the colored pieces went. The white panels had the shapes cut out so I matched the shapes and glued them on. Here's what the three interior panels looked like after gluing.

I did the same on the front and back panels. These attach together to form the box that holds all the other inserts. Here are those pieces with 1/4" tear tape added to the glue tabs. I scored and burnished the score lines also.

I first put the box together by matching the sides of the front and back together. Check to make sure the box folds flat before going further.

The three interior panels go in next. You can tell what goes first because each panel's scene window is slightly smaller than the one before. It's easiest to fold the box nearly flat, insert the panel inside and work both side notches into the slits. These are not glued. They simply rest in the notches.

Here's what a tab looks like from the side when inserted correctly. After all are in place, check to make sure the box still folds flat.

To finish the card off, I decided to doodle on the swimsuits with white and black gelly roll glaze pens. I also added white Nuvo Drops to one of the swimsuits. Finally, I added a black heat embossed sentiment.

This card was really fun to put together. I think just about any age could make these with a little adult supervision. The end result is a unique shadow box. If you're interested in trying Pop Tone cardstock, it's on sale for the month of June.

Happy Creating Everyone!

 Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest

Shake Your Tail Feathers - Retro Neon Flamingo

It's HOT out there right? For my neck of the woods, the humidity has been worse than the heat but it all gets me to dreaming about bright colors. In this case, neon colors. I've noticed that neons are making a comeback this summer. Lots of manufacturers are putting out neon inks, papers and embellishments. Welcome back to the 80's ladies and gentlemen! 

Today I have made a slimline card with a flamingo theme. Lucky for me, Eyelet Outlet has many products featuring flamingos! In this project, I cut flamingos out of neon cardstock using my Cricut and created three shakers. I filled them with three different colors of flamingo sequins. If you don't know it already, Eyelet Outlet has greatly expanded their sequin line to include many different fun shapes and colors. The flamingo sequins are just one of many new shapes added this spring and you get all three colors when you order them. I also used two flamingo brads and black matte enamel dots on this card. If you're really into flamingos, you'll find several flamingo washi tape designs in the store too. 

Shopping List:

Flamingo Brads

Flamingo Sequins (3 colors included)

Black Matte Enamel Dots

Flamingo Washi Tapes

Happy Creating Everyone!

 Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest

2 Ways to Color a Cat with Copic Markers & Tips for Shaker Card Elements

 

In today's project, I've combined two of my favorite things - shaker windows and a loveable kitty. This little cutie is one of four animals in the Loveable Animals set. It comes with accessories for the animals to hold and several sentiments. Each animal die cuts open the arms so that the characters can hold a package, a piece of paper, a cupcake and more. 

This kitty was Copic colored. The colors can be found at the end of this post. In the video for this card, I show you how to make a simple cat with some basic shading as well as how to take it up a notch and add his stripes. I'll also give you a few tips on how to make the window frame for a shaker and on placing a shaker element on a card base. The full tutorial is below:

Copic Colors Used:

Cat: CO, C1, C3, C5, R20, Colorless Blender

Flower: Y13, Y17, YG03, G24, BV04, BV00

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you have a great weekend!

Happy Creating!

Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest 

A Baby Is Brewing!

 

The good news of a baby on the way is always welcome and today I'm celebrating the joy of my friend and her daughter's pregnancy. Of course I had to use awesome baby themed brads from Eyelet Outlet for a fun and special card!

The coffee cup and steam images were no line water colored with Zig Clean Color markers. The words were drawn on the striped cardstock with a fine tipped pen on the Cricut Explore 2. I used the Cricut to create the blue, pink and white banner too. 

The Pregnant Lady and Pacifier brads are used on this card. A cute daisy between the two cups is from the Colored Daisy Brad Set. I think it's just perfect!

Shopping List:

Pregnant Lady Brads

Pacifier Brads

Colored Daisy Brad Set  

Happy Creating Everyone!

 Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest

Beach Chickens Rule! Beachy Card Tutorial Using Zig Clean Brush Markers

  

It's summer and it's time to hit the beach! The new Gull Friends Set is so perfect for a fun beach theme.  First up is an A2 card featuring a group of Gull Friends showing off their attitude on the beach. The second card is a bright slimline card made into a fun birthday card.

I colored all the characters from the set using Zig Clean Color pens before cutting them out with the included dies. These characters are easy to color since the majority of the coloring is just applying gray to create shadows and dimension. 

I've got a video for you showing the coloring and construction of both cards. Check it out!

 To make the first card, I started by masking off the lower part of the card panel before stamping and white heat embossing a wave background. I blended three tones of blue Distress Oxide inks over the top of this. The sand was created using two Distress Oxide inks and then I coated it with sand embossing powder. I stamped the sentiment flag in black and coated the edges with sand embossing powder before applying it to the card. The result is a super textured card in pretty beachy colors.

The slimline card was very easy to create. I started by blending "spotlights" of Distress Oxide ink across the front. I splattered it with Dylusions Shimmper Spray and arranged the birthday gulls and accessories across the front. I stamped the sentiment and the anchor at the bottom and flying gulls in the background. 

Zig Clean Color Marker Colors Used:

Lt. Gray, Bright Yellow, Orange, Yellow, Oatmeal, Cobalt Blue, Persian Blue, Blue, Carmine Red, Lt. Violet, May Green, Pink

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you have a great weekend!

Happy Creating!

Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest 

Paper Piecing Tips for Intricate Cards

  

Today I have a pair of cards that were made with paper piecing dies using several colorful Pop Tone cardstocks. Paper piecing popularity is a trend that has come and go over time and it's making a strong comeback again this year. It results in beautiful textured and layered pieces.

Success with paper piecing comes with a little patience and good cardstock. Pop Tone cardstock carried by CutCardStock is a perfect paper piecing cardstock because it comes in many beautiful colors and is the perfect weight for this technique. It accepts markers, light water coloring and inks without deteriorating. Its solid core color and smooth surface makes it a pleasure to cut and shade. These are all necessary cardstock characteristics for successful paper piecing.

I chose two dies and 7 colors of Pop Tone cardstock for my card images: Sweet Tooth, Limeade, Wild Cherry, Tangy Orange, Banana Split, Pink Lemonade, Grape Jelly. Are you hungry yet? The line has such yummy sounding names! As great as that is, there's so much more to choose from with 24 different color options.

I prefer to cut a paper piecing die out of each color of cardstock so that I have a full pallet of color choices available. Tip: I will color white pieces with a marker if I don't have quite the shade I want available or if there are only a few small pieces needed in a color. I always keep extra pieces not used in the die packaging for the future. This comes in handy the next time the die is used.

Good organization is key to paper piecing because the number of pieces can become overwhelming to manage if you allow them to be mixed together. Tip: Once cut, I like to store them by color in a small spice bowl. This makes it easy to keep the colors separate and pull colors I need as I'm piecing. A tweezers can really come in handy when piecing because some of the shapes can be too tiny to handle with your fingers.

I enjoy adding shading and other details to the pieces. I used Tombow Dual brush markers and a blending marker to do this on my cuts today. Once finished, I arrange the die cut following the illustrations on the die packaging. I also use foam tape to create layering and dimension. Usually there's enough pieces left over to create another image which is what I did here. I'll use this bird and flowers on another card soon.

Once the images were pieced, I placed them on a fancy shape cut from Classic Linen White Pearl cardstock in white. The word Hello was cut 6 times and each have 3 layers to form a thick word. I ran two pieces of Rinea paper through a Sizzix Texture Fades embossing folder and placed them on card bases made from additional Pop Tones cardstock before arranging the finished pieced images on the card front. I added a narrow flag sentiment cut from additional PopTone Sweet Tooth cardstock to each card. These were heat embossed with black fine detail embossing powder.

If you are interested in trying paper piecing or bringing out some older dies you have in your stash for this technique, make sure you start with quality cardstock so that you have a great experience putting them together. You cannot go wrong by checking out the CutCardStock line of Pop Tone. It's reasonably priced and great quality. Best of all, it's on sale this month!

Happy Creating Everyone!

 Janet - YouTube - Blog - Facebook - Instagram - Pinterest