Author: Karen

I am a very blessed wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunt, and friend. I firmly believe in the quote by Dieter F. Uchtdorf which states "The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human heart." Every day I try to create something that lifts the heart for myself and others.

It’s Hard to Say Good-Bye

My daughter’s really good friend Kelly had to put her sweet cat Ruby down this week. I know how hard it can be to loose a beloved pet and I wanted to send her a sympathy card. I searched for coloring images of cats and finally ran across this Angle Kitty on Pinterest. Janae sent me a picture of Ruby and I tried to color this cut kitty with her coloring using Copic Markers

I printed the image onto 80# Neenah Solar White Cardstock and sized it down using a stitched rectangle die. When I printed the image I also printed the sentiment below, but when the card was done I didn’t like the spacing. So I recreated the sentiment in Microsoft Word with text boxes so that I could have the lines closer together, printed it on white and colored the edges with Copic Markers. The sentiment was cut down with a postage die and Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape was added to the back. I liked the way it look so much better.

Sticky back foam was added to the back of the focal image, which was then adhered to a top folding Ocean Mist cardbase. The final embellishment was to add some Ranger Crystal Stickles to the wings, cloud, and sentiment edges.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Pinterest Angel Kittie
  • Word Sentiment with Medici Script and Cattleshine Fonts
  • Copic Markers: E59, E57, E55, E53, E51, E50; BG0000, BG000; R01, R21
  • My Favorite Things Postage Stamp STAX
  • My Favorite Things A2 Stitched Rectangle
  • Ranger Crystal Stickles
  • Gina K. Designs Base Weight Ocean Mist Cardstock
  • Neenah Classic Crest 80# Solar White Cardstock
  • Darice Sticky Back Foam
  • Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive

Garden Treasure Hello

With social distancing I have been creating a lot of hello or thinking of you card and sending them to friends I haven’t been able to see for awhile, just to let them know I care. It was time to create a few more. I pulled out Altenew’s Garden Treasure to make a card. This is a layering stamp set, and when I am using that kind of stamp I usually stamp several. This time I created five cards with the images that I stamped. Each card uses a different die cut background, each that embossed with a Stampin’ Up embossing folder.

This first card uses a scalloped circle die. It was embossed using the Stampin’ Up Subtle Embossing Folder. It is one of my favorite. It adds such a lovely, subtle visual interest to a card. I decided to emboss the front of the cardbase as well. The sentiment was cut from silver mirror cardstock.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Altenew Garden Treasure
  • Simon Says Stamp Bold Hello
  • Altenew Inks: Baby Pink, Fuchsia, Magenta, Fresh Leaf, Lime
  • Copic Markers: V25, V22, V20; YG67, YG17, YG03
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape
  • 3M ½” Foam Tape
  • Neenah Classic Crest 80# Solar White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs Base Weight Onyx Black Cardstock
  • Paper Accents Silver Mirror Cardstock
  • Nuvo Crystal Drops Antique Rose
  • Ellen Hutson Essential Rectangle
  • My Favorite Things Stitched Mini Scalloped Circle STAX
  • Stampin’ Up Subtle Embossing Folder

This second card uses the lovely Memory Box Matinee die for the background to the flowers. The sentiment was cut from black cardstock to complement the black mat behind the rectangle.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Altenew Garden Treasure
  • My Favorite Things Happy Hellos
  • Altenew Inks: Baby Pink, Fuchsia, Magenta, Fresh Leaf, Lime, Fresh Lemon, Honey Drizzle
  • Copic Markers: Y15, Y06; YG67, YG17, YG03
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape
  • 3M ½” Foam Tape
  • Neenah Classic Crest 80# Solar White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs Base Weight Onyx Black Cardstock
  • Memory Box Matinee Rectangle
  • Nuvo Crystal Drops Antique Rose
  • Stampin’ Up Tasteful Textile Embossing Folder

This third card was made using the pretty Little B Frame die. The Simon Says Stamp Bold Hello was cut from silver mirror cardstock and the frame was adhered to the card front using Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Altenew Garden Treasure
  • Simon Says Stamp Bold Hello
  • Altenew Inks: Baby Pink, Fuchsia, Magenta, Fresh Leaf, Lime, Wisteria, Hydrangea
  • Copic Markers RV00, RV000
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape
  • 3M ½” Foam Tape
  • Neenah Classic Crest 80# Solar White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Paper Accents Silver Mirror Cardstock
  • Little B Frames
  • Nuvo Crystal Drops Antique Rose
  • Stampin’ Up Subtle Embossing Folder

This fourth card uses a stitched scalloped frame. The sentiment was cut from silver mirror cardstock and adhered above the focal image. The panel was adhered to a top folding cardbase with Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Altenew Garden Treasure
  • Simon Says Stamp Bold Hello
  • Altenew Inks: Baby Pink, Fuchsia, Magenta, Fresh Leaf, Lime, Wisteria, Hydrangea
  • Copic Markers: RV00 and RV000
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Darice Sticky Back Foam
  • Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape
  • 3M ½” Foam Tape
  • Neenah Classic Crest 80# Solar White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Paper Accents Silver Mirror Cardstock
  • Nuvo Crystal Drops Antique Rose
  • Gina Marie Designs Scalloped Rectangle
  • Stampin’ Up Subtle Embossing Folder

This fifth and last card was created using a pretty scalloped oval. I decided to mat it with black cardstock and heat emboss the sentiment below the oval. The black really make the focal image pop.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Altenew Garden Treasure
  • Hero Arts For You Flowers
  • Altenew Inks: Baby Pink, Fuchsia, Magenta, Fresh Leaf, Lime
  • Copic Markers: V25, V22, V20, YG67, YG17, YG03
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Darice Sticky Back Foam
  • Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape
  • 3M ½” Foam Tape
  • Neenah Classic Crest 80# Solar White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs Base Weight Onyx Black Cardstock
  • Stampin’ Up Tasteful Textile Embossing Folder
  • Spellbinders Fancy Edged Ovals
  • VersaMark Ink
  • Gina K. Designs Detail White Embossing Powder
  • Nuvo Crystal Drops Copper Penny

Foiled Celebrate with Cake

I had a thin strip of the pretty blue and white flowered patterned paper leftover from a previous card and decided to use it on another card instead of throwing it away. I searched through the same 6×6 paper pad to find a coordinating paper. A rectangle was cut down using a stitched rectangle die.

I decided to use my new Crafter’s Companion Distress Border die. I determined where to place it so that it would be covered up by the patterned paper strip and ran it through the Gemini FoilPress with gold foil. I love the way it turned out. The strip of patterned paper was also cut using a stitched rectangle die. Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape was added to the back and it was adhered to the left of the foiled distress border.

For the focal image I decided to use the Spellbinders Celebrate With Cake die. Each layer of the cake was cut from a scrap of navy cardstock and the background die was used to cut gold mirror cardstock and adhered it behind the navy cake layers with the patterns cut out. It was pretty, but I decided to cut the detailed layers from gold mirror cardstock that had double-sided tape added to the back and inlay the pieced into the navy layers. I liked that much better.

The cake stand, flowers, and leaves of the die set were also cut from gold mirror cardstock. Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape was added to the back of the cake stand, cake layers, and flowers and then each was adhered to the blue patterned paper.

The sentiment was cut from gold mirror cardstock and adhered below the cake with liquid glue. Copic markers were used to add a little dimension to the cake layers.

At the last minute I decided to add a thin strip of navy blue cardstock between the flower patterned paper and the foiled border.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Spellbinders Celebrate With Cake Die
  • Penny Black Doodles Thin
  • Crafter’s Companion Distress Border FoilPress Die
  • Pink Paislee Choose Happy Indigo & Ivy Cardstock
  • Navy Cardstock From Stash
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Paper Accents Gold Mirror Cardstock
  • Copic Markers: B39 and B34
  • Be Creative Double-Sided Tape
  • Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape
  • My Favorite Things A2 Rectangle Die
  • Blue Sequin from Stash
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Kokuyo Dotliner Long Adhesive

Delightful Blooms Hello

I had used a quarter sheet of mirror cardstock to cut the Party Time Text Block for a previous card and the leftover outline was sitting on my desk. I don’t like to waste mirror cardstock, so I decided to use a stitched rectangle die to create a frame from the leftover. Now I needed a focal image to pair with it.

I stamped the pretty floral arrangement from Gina K. Designs onto watercolor with VersaMark Ink and heat embossed it silver to complement the silver frame. The image was colored using Karin Brushmarker Pro markers. This time I wanted a softer hue to the watercoloring, so I only used a little of each marker at the back of the petals and leaves and used a wet brush to pull out the color.

Once the watercoloring was dry the panel was cut down to be just smaller the silver mirror frame. Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape was cut down and added to the frame and then the floral image was adhered to the back. More foam tape was added to the back of the foam image frame and it was adhered to a side folding A2 cardbase.

The sentiment was cut from a scrap of silver mirror cardstock and adhered at the bottom of the focal image. The final embellishment was to scatter some white and pink sequins around the focal image.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Gina K. Designs Delightful Blooms
  • Penny Black Doodle Thin
  • Karin Brushmarkers: 375 Cerise, 247 Pale Violet, 281 Olive Green, 357 Pale Orange, 283 Gold
  • Pretty Pink Posh Sweetheart Mix Sequins
  • My Favorite Things A2 Stitched Rectangle
  • VersaMark Ink
  • Ranger Super Fine Detail Silver Embossing Powder
  • Canson XL 140# Cold Press Watercolor Paper
  • Paper Accents Silver Mirror Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs Base Weight Ivory Cardstock
  • Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Spectrum Noir Crystal Sparkle Pen

Soft Navy Delicate Flowers Thinking of You

I ran across this beautiful patterned paper when I was trying to find a neutral paper for coloring an image with Copic Markers. This is much too busy for that technique, but it was so lovely I decided I needed to create a card using it. A panel of the patterned paper was cut down using a scalloped rectangle.

I didn’t want to cover up the paper too much and so I decided to add one single flower in the bottom left corner and decided on Simon Says Stamp Delicate Flowers. One of the images has this lovely flower with leaves. I stamped it onto watercolor paper and used Karin Brushmarker Pro markers to color it.

Once the watercolor was dry it cut out the image using the coordinating die. I decided to add a spray of leaves behind the flower image and decided to use both the outline and solid Simon Says Stamp Cluster Leaves. The solid was cut from white cardstock and the outline from vellum. It added a love backdrop to the focal image.

To break up the busy patterned paper I decided to cut a thin frame from navy cardstock to added to the card front. The same navy cardstock was used to stamp the sentiment with VersaMark Ink and heat embossed it white.

The frame and leaf clusters were adhered directly to the patterned paper with liquid glue. Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape was used to adhered the flower and the sentiment.

The scalloped focal image rectangle was adhered to a top folding A2 cardbase using Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape. The final embellishment was to add a few clear droplets around the flower.

I loved the way it turned out.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Simon Says Stamp Delicate Flowers
  • Simon Says Stamp Tiny Words
  • Karin Brushmarker Pro: 169 Indigo Blue, 281 Olive Green, Black
  • Canson XL 140# Cold Press Watercolor Paper
  • Pink Paislee Choose Happy Indigo & Ivy Cardstock
  • Paper Accents Silver Mirror Cardstock
  • Bazzill 40# Vellum
  • Neenah Classic Crest 80# Solar White Cardstock
  • Navy Cardstock from Scraps
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Pink & Main Sentiment Strip
  • Gina Marie Designs Scalloped Rectangle
  • Ellen Hutson Essential Rectangle
  • Simon Says Stamp Outline Cluster Leaves and Solid Cluster Leaves
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Pretty Pink Posh Clear Droplets

Green Ombre Let’s Party

It’s funny how I tend to get into the groove of creating a lot of cards using the same medium. This card uses patterned paper with a more masculine feel.

I cut down the patterned paper with a stitched rectangle and then matted it with a dark pine green cardstock.

I pulled out Papertrey Ink’s Party Time Text Block die and cut it from silver mirror cardstock and sticky back foam to add dimension. It was adhered to the center of the patterned paper and the card was done.

Very quick and easy to create.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Papertrey Ink Party Time Text Block
  • Pink Paislee Choose Happy Indigo & Ivy
  • Paper Accents Silver Mirror Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Pine Green Cardstock from Stash
  • Darice Sticky Back Foam
  • Copic Markers G00
  • My Favorite Things A2 Stitched Rectangle
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Kokuyo Dotliner Long Adhesive

Friendship Blooms Thinking of You

This is another card I created by stamping an image onto patterned paper.

I first stamped the image with a Memento London Fog onto the pink patterned paper and then colored it with Copic Markers. Once the color was complete I stamped again with VersaMark Ink and heat embossed it silver. The focal image was then cut down using a stitched rectangle die.

I didn’t want the sentiment to overshadow the floral spray so I stamped it on a scrap of the patterned paper and used a Ellen Hutson Essential Oval die to cut it out. Using the same die the thin border was cut from silver mirror cardstock. Both were adhered to an oval of sticky back foam and adhered in the lower left of the card front.

The panel was adhered to a top folding A2 cardbase. The final embellishment was to scatter silver sequins around the floral bouquet. A quick and easy card to create.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Gina K. Designs Friendship Blooms
  • Copic Markers: RV34, RV32, RV10; YG67, YG17, YG03
  • VersaFine Ink
  • Ranger Super Fine Detail Silver Embossing Powder
  • Polkadoodles Timeless Rose Craft Papers
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Ellen Hutson Essential Ovals
  • My Favorite Things Stitched A2 Rectangle
  • Darice Sticky Back Foam
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Kokuyo Dotliner Long Adhesive
  • Pretty Pink Posh Metallic Silver Sequins

Scripty Beauty Within Hello

I wanted to do some Copic Marker coloring on patterned paper and found this lovely script paper from Authentique. I stamped the background flower and then masked it to stamp the leaves. Since I didn’t have enough of the patterned paper I stamped the large flower again on regular Neenah Classic Crest 80# Solar White Cardstock.

I love the look of the bold red flowers on the white and black script paper. I die cut the flower on white cardstock with the coordinating dies and then trimmed off the white edges with scissors.

I cut down the patterned paper using a stitched rectangle and then adhered the die cut flower using Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape.

I decided to keep the sentiment a simple hello, cut from gold mirror and black cardstock. The two were adhered together with liquid glue with the gold offset slightly on the back so that there was just a hint of a shadow. It was adhered in the lower right of the card.

I decided to scatter some red sequins around the focal image.

I didn’t like how the flower stamped on white cardstock looked so I used My Favorite Things Romantic Script background to add some words to the flower. It is larger than the background paper, but I liked it better anyway. You can see the original without the script background stamp below. Let me know what you think.

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PRODUCTS USED:

  • Altenew Beauty Within
  • Simon Says Stamp Bold Hello Die
  • My Favorite Things Romantic Script Background
  • Copic Markers: R29, R27, R24, R14; YR 27, YR23; YG99, YG97, YG95
  • Authentique 6×6 Paper Bundle Classique: Pretty
  • Paper Accents Gold Mirror Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs Base Weight Onyx Black Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • My Favorite Things A2 Stitched Rectangle
  • Simon Says Stamps Big Mama Foam Tape
  • Spectrum Noir Clear Sparkle Pen
  • Neat & Tangled Raspberry Mix
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Kokuyo Dotliner Long Adhesive

Peaceful Florals Thinking of You

I incorrectly ordered Neenah Classic Crest 110# Solar White. I almost always used 80# Neenah, so I decided to give it a try. This cardstock isn’t as smooth as the 80#, but Copic Markers still blend well.

I have been doing a lot of cards lately with hot foiling and I wanted to do a standard card with only black ink lines. I had seen a card on Pinterest that took a smaller image and cut it down to a smaller rectangle and matted it with white and then adhered it to a cardbase that had been dry embossing. I decided to give it a try.

The card I saw on Pinterest had smaller focal image, but I love this pretty flower stamp from Gina K. Designs. I stamped it onto a quarter sheet of 110# Neenah cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black Ink and then colored it with Copic Markers (colored listed below). I then stamped the sentiment in a an open spot to the right of the image with Gina K. Designs Amalgam Ink.

When the coloring was complete I die cut it down with a stitched A2 rectangle die and then took a slightly larger A2 rectangle die with a smooth edge and matted the two together with dotliner adhesive. I added sticky back foam to the back of the card for dimension.

I took the A2 top folding cardbase and ran it through the Big Shot with a floral embossing folder from WeR Memory Keepers. The focal image was then adhered using liquid glue.

As a final embellishments gold confetti was scattered around the image.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Gina K. Designs Peaceful Florals
  • WeR Memory Keepers Floral Embossing Folder
  • Darice Sticky Back Foam
  • Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
  • Gina K. Designs Amalgam Ink
  • Copic Markers: R89, R85, R83, R81; G46, G85, G21
  • Neenah Classic Crest 110# Solar White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Spectrum Noir Clear Sparkle Pen
  • Kokuyo Dotliner Long Adhesive
  • Nuvo Deluxe Adhesive
  • Studio Katia Gold Foil Confetti

Peony Wishes Especially For You

This is another card using Neenah Classic Crest 110# Solar White. I stamped the image onto the cardstock using Memento Tuxedo Black Ink, which is Copic Marker friendly. I also used Copic Markers to color the background a light blue.

This image has a blunt top and bottom design and so I thought it would look well in a frame. I pulled out the largest My Favorite Things Pierced Rectangle Frame die and cut it from some 110# cardstock and then ran it through the Big Shot with the Sizzix 3-D Texture Lumber Embossing Folder. Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape was added to the back of the frame and then it was adhered over the focal image.

The frame was just a little too large for the image. You could see the abrupt edge of the bottom of the image so I decided to add a banner sentiment to cover it up. It was heat embossed white on black cardstock and foam tape was added to the back so it was the same dimension as the frame.

Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape was added to the back of the focal rectangle and then adhered to a top folding cardbase. The final embellishment was to add Clear Spectrum Noir Sparkle Pen to the flowers.

PRODUCTS USED:

  • Gina K. Designs Peony Wishes
  • Gina K. Designs Especially For You
  • My Favorite Things Pierced Rectangle Frames
  • Sizzix 3-D Texture Lumber
  • Simon Says Stamp Big Mama Foam Tape
  • Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
  • VersaMark Ink
  • Gina K. Designs Detail White Embossing Powder
  • Copic Markers: R27, YR07, YR04, YR02; Y38, Y08, Y04 Y02; YG67, YG97, YG95; BG0000
  • Neenah Classic Crest 110# Solar White Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs Base Weight Onyx Black Cardstock
  • Gina K. Designs 120# White Cardstock
  • Spectrum Noir Clear Sparkle Pen
  • Kokuyo Dotliner Long Adhesive