MIA

Yep, still here! I went through a stage where I totally lacked creativity and was just casing other people's cards but I've found my mojo and I'm back to making up my own designs.

I probably won't post the cards in as much detail as before but these cards are not difficult to work out. Let's start with these two:

Same card, different colours.

Materials:
Cardstock: Not Quite Navy, Basic Grey, Brushed Silver, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Cajun Craze
Ink: Basic Grey, Not Quite Navy marker, Cajun Craze marker.
Stamps: Teeny Tiny Sentiments, Tool kit both from Stampin' Up, Chevron background by Hero Arts.
Accessories: Grey baker's twine from The Twinery, silver washi tape.
Tools: Big shot machine, top note die, dimensionals, Sakura clear glitter pen, Modern Label punch, Diamond plate embossing folder.

Long weekend = chance for card making

It's a long weekend here in Western Australia (Labour Day) so I have some time to catch up on my card making and even try to get ahead a little bit. I have three cards to make for March birthdays so I did them today. Here's the first, I made two of these:

I was inspired to make this based on this card by Mary Fish from Stampin' Pretty.

Materials:
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Not Quite Navy, Cajun Craze, Sixth Avenue - Broadway (American Crafts DSP).
Ink: Bashful Blue, So Saffron, Cajun Craze, Pear Pizzazz, Not Quite Navy.
Stamps: Best Dad Ever.
Tools:  Dimensionals, Eyelet border punch (Fiskars), Scoring board (Martha Stewart).

Tips and Tricks:
1. The ties were fussy cut and put up on dimensionals.
2. I did score the top third of the card like Mary's but the camera didn't pick it up.

Stuff Ups:
1. I kept messing up the score lines when trying to score the top third of the card. It took me 4 attempts to get it right - I kept slipping.
2. My cutting with the paper trimmer needed work today - it just doesn't seem to cut straight, always off on a slight angle. Maybe it's time for an upgrade.

Pleasant Surprises:
1. The colours in the paper and ties almost match perfectly.

Motorcycle

I was checking out The Daily Marker today and Kathy recommended visiting Lily Pad Cards. I hopped across and loved it so I decided to enter their colour challenge. This is the first challenge I've entered so I'm excited! Here's the challenge link: Lily Pad Cards - Color Palette Challenge.

I made this card today and will be mailing it tomorrow to my brother-in-law for his birthday. Happy birthday Bob!

It's probably the first time I haven't included a sentiment on the front of a card. I just couldn't see where it would fit. This card is a Kate original, I haven't cased anything.
I also learnt (from Lily Pad Cards) the value of photographing my cards against a light, plain background rather than my dark, wooden hutch.

Materials:
Cardstock: Night of Navy, Cajun Craze, So Saffron.
Ink: Night of Navy, Cajun Craze, So Saffron, Versamark.
Stamps: Motorcycle, 'To a Classic'.
Other: striped grosgrain ribbon in Night of Navy, dimensionals, clear embossing powder, embossing buddy, heat tool, sponge, sticky strip.
Non Stampin' Up: corner rounder punch by Fiskars.

Tips and Tricks:
1. I used the emboss resist technique for the motorbike layer. I sponged over the clear embossed image with Cajun Craze and Night of Navy ink.
2. I used a sponge to ink around the cardstock layers with Night of Navy ink.
3. I used the speedometer stamp from 'To a Classic' as the background stamp on both the base card and So Saffron ribbon layer. The speedometer images on the So Saffron cardstock are clear embossed.
4. I pulled some threads from the ribbon to make it bunch up and stuck the bunched ribbon down on a piece of sticky strip. I secured the ends underneath the cardstock.

Stuff Ups:
1. It took me ages to get the ribbon layer the way I wanted it. I tried folding the ribbon in half lengthways and gluing it flat. I didn't like it. I tried bunching up the folded ribbon and gluing it down. I didn't like that either. Finally I tried the pulled thread method with a new piece of ribbon and was happy with that.
2. I had to fight the urge to bling up this card with brads and rhinestones. I thought it would be too much and didn't want it to look over the top. I hope I made the right decision there.

Our Anniversary

This is hot off the press! It's the anniversary card I have made for my husband. Tomorrow is our second anniversary! Yay us! I'm super proud of this card. No casing, an all Kate design! I used a lot of different stamp sets too.

As usual, the photo doesn't do justice to the card. I used the Colour Coach to get my colour selection - Pear Pizazz, Cajun Craze and More Mustard. I added Very Vanilla because it needed something else.

My gorgeous husband loved the card. The first thing he said was, "Ooh, I like the colours!" Well done Colour Coach! Jason gave me a stunning jewellery box for our anniversary! I have been wanting one for so long, it's just perfect!

Materials:
Cardstock: Pear Pizazz (in colour), Cajun Craze, More Mustard, Very Vanilla.
Inks: Pear Pizazz, Cajun Craze, More Mustard, Versamark.
Stamps: Itty Bitty Bits (hearts on the tags), So Happy For You (background heart on pear pizazz), Teeny Tiny Sentiments, A Happy Heart (retired - big hearts).
Other: Big shot machine, Top Note die, Lattice embossing folder, Hemp twine, Itty Bitty buttons, mini glue dots, stick on pearls, modern label punch, dimensionals, paper piercing tool and mat pack, sponge.
Non Stampin Up!: Fiskars tag punch.

Tips and Tricks:
1. As in my last card post, I ran the Cajun Craze and More Mustard cardstock through the big shot machine together with the top note die. I trimmed the more mustard along the perforation to get that nice border of Cajun Craze. Next I used snail adhesive to stick them together before putting it through the big shot again in the lattice embossing folder.
2. You can't really tell but I put a round Itty Bitty button on each Cajun Craze heart on the tags and a tiny pearl in the centre of each More Mustard heart on the tags to tie in with the pearls on the sentiment. I want to buy the tiny tag punch from Stampin Up! because I find this Fiskars tag punch to be too big. Also the tiny tag punch punches a hole in the top of the tag and the Fiskars doesn't. I had to use my paper piercer which looked messy. I should have used my eyelet tools but forgot I had them till after I finished.
3. The 'Happy Anniversary' sentiment is stamped in Pear Pizazz ink but you can't tell in the photo. I also sponged around the label in Pear Pizazz ink.
4. The Top note die cut is popped up on dimensionals to compensate for the bulkiness of the twine. The sentiment is also on dimensionals.

Stuff Ups:
1. I pulled the twine too tightly when tying it and it cut into the cardstock a little.
2. On the insert that I wrote on inside the card, I accidentally wrote on it portrait-ways (standing vertically) when the card is made in landscape (stands horizontally). I hope I explained that correctly! I didn't want to rewrite it because it came from the heart and I didn't think hubby would care much less notice!
3. Overall the tags are very clumsy. I also forgot to sponge around them with pear Pizazz ink. I would have liked the tags smaller and more precise in their creation but you gotta work with what you've got.