Is It Really Emily's 2nd Birthday?

Hello, goodness how time flies. By the time you see this my grandaughter will just have had her 2nd birthday. Talk about getting organised! I made this card way back in June during a heatwave and have been waiting to be able to post it.

Where does the time go? Seems like only yesterday her mum and dad came to stay when she was a few weeks old so that Huntingdon based friends and family could meet this little bundle. And what lungs she had, plus an innate sense of mixing day and night! I'm sure she thought she was Antipodean. I'd love to be able to post a picture of her but her mum doesn't believe in putting Ems pictures online.

For her 1st birthday I used the stamp set From the Herd. This time as the family have 4 cats (and a dog and 2 tortoises) I decided Pretty Kitty would be suitable. I'd seen Peekaboo cards and thought this would be a fun fold  for a toddler. A quick search online and I found a great tutorial by Jan B on You Tube. Please click here to view it if you'd like to try this type of card. It is a little on the long side but the instructions are very clear.

Melon Mambo

Whisper White

I love Melon Mambo so this was my starting point. Luckily I had some Sinshine and Sprinkles DSP to hand; such a shame this is discontinued, I love the colours used in this paper. The 2 stamps I chose to use were the kitten in the plant pot and the kitten sitting in the garden with a butterfly on its tail and I took the colours from the DSP to colour the images.


I chose to make an oval aperture rather than round which I think works well with the images used

I also added a die cut "2" from the Large Numbers Framelit dies and put it on a slightly smaller oval so it stood out. That was then backed with Melon Mambo to give a cohesive look.

As this card is for a toddler I havent added much in the way of embellishments due to safety.

I had been lucky enough to receive an assorted pack of spare diecuts from my friend, Susan, aka Craftyduckydoodah. Amongst the stash were some great flowers made with the Petite Petals stamp set and punch. As luck would have it they were just the right yellow so tied in beautifully. I used one of the small stamps from Papillon Potpourri and punched it out with the Bitty Butterfly punch. Such a shame that these 4 products were discontinued at the end of May to make way for the new products in the Annual catalogue release on 1st June.

Summer by the Sea at High Tide

Sometimes you just HAVE to have a stamp set you see, regardless of whether it's current or not. For me it has been Summer by the Sea, which was released oh so long ago in 2004! I first saw it on The Joy of Sets Facebook Page and was so lucky when someone offered to sell me it when I added my request to an ISO page.

 I love the delicate drawings, they almost sweep me up in a hug. I look at them and feel that no matter what, everything will work out right in the end.

I wanted to use High Tide with my chosen image as I felt they would combine well. First of all I roughly sketched my idea in my notebook. Then, to check it would fit, I plotted my card size on the squared paper and roughly stamped the design in basic black ink. It meant I could see where adjustments, if any, needed making prior to committing on good card.

Once ready I stamped the girl onto Shimmer card. Then using my precision press, I placed the first of the lighthouse stamps; this is a 2 stage stamp set. I used Dapper Denim and stamped off on scrap paper first to get a lighter version. I then used the second lighthouse stamp, using the ink at full strength, I found it easier to do this and then add the outcrop the lighthouse stands on.

I stamped my image onto a post it note, incorporating the adhesive, and cut it out to create a mask. When stamping scenes where you layer stamps, always start with the image in the foreground. If you've never attempted this all will become apparent soon.

I also created a light wash in So Saffron for the sand to help tie in the lighthouse.

Place the mask over the corresponding image. For this dexign I didn't need to cut it all out.

I then placed the dry stamp where it needed to be to check my mask would work. Once happy with the placement it was time to ink up and go for broke. I also stamped over my colourwash very lightly to continue the sandy look.

Still using the mask and also using one for the lighthouse, I stamped the water. A quick colour wash for the sky finished the background. So far, so good.

Masks were removed so that I could colour the girl. Did you know that a mix of Blushing Bride and Crumb Cake make a great Caucasian skin tone? I stamped a few tufts of grass too. Finally before mounting onto my base card, I let my image dry and then weighted it under a box of dies to flatten out.

I hope you like the finished card,

A Little Wild Afternoon

Hello, if you have read my blog before you'll know that I often go to a Coffee and Card session one afternoon a week that's run by Susan, aka Craftyduckydoodah. We used the new A Little Wild bundle; it's so cute. You get the front and back of the animals and the dies keep them joined so you can make up tags. Have a look to see what I mean. Of course if you want to separate them as we did a quick snip with the scissors soon sorts that.

As always, we were given a choice of colours to use for the first card which featured an elephant. This card tends to be the simpler of the two, designed to ease any newcomers or non crafters in; it is very often slightly smaller, being a handy notecard size.

Powder Pink

Whisper White

I chose to be different to the rest of the group and used the new DSP in Powder Pink as I thought it would make a great baby card for a girl. Isn't it sweet?

I stuck the DSP onto the card and then used one of the circle Stitched Shapes Framelits to create the aperture. With the card closed I then stuck the patterned circle that was cut out onto the inside of the card. It helps to have the card closed so you can line up the pattern and place  it in exactly the right position.

The elephant was coloured, die cut and snipped apart.  I carefully stuck the back of the body down first to make sure he was at least straight and stamped some grass underneath for grounding. The head was attached to the front If I made this type of card again in landscape style, I would have the fold at the side. There is a reason for this, as the back of the elephant looks upside down when you open the card. I like to think he was so excited that he was caught mid cartwheel!

When I got home I had an idea of how to step up the card just a little bit. It's pretty as it is but I just wanted to add a little more to it. So, I decided that maybe the elephant could hold a couple of balloons on a string. I also added a generic sentiment so this could be for a little girl's birthday or a new baby card. Which do you prefer?

I added clear Wink of Stella to the raised balloon for added sparkle after the photo had been taken.

I did make a second project, using the lion which will be featured in another blog post at a later date.

Joy of Sets Design Challenge 3 (Letter C) - Sweet Cupcake

Hello again, if you've been following the JoS Blog Challenge have you noticed that so far the initial letters used are being taken from the designers first names? A little hint for you what to expect will be coming up in the not too distant future.

So this time, it's the letter C and luckily I'd just received the Sweet Cupcake stamp set and coordinating dies. I'd also been asked if I would make a couple of cards by a very god friend, one for her daughter's 14th birthday and the other for her mum; I didn't ask her mum's age!

I've known Chris for around 30 years, when she came to work as a fitter for the weaving company I was at. She was warned at the time that I was a tricky sort of person and she'd be best ignoring me! Well, red rag to a bull, if Chris is told not to do something, you know she will and we instantly became firm friends. Marriage, children. divorce, new relationships and moves have not diminished our friendship. We can go for weeks, sometimes months without contact but we have the knack of picking up where we left off and have this innate ability to send a message when the other needs a friendly word or two.

Anyway, today I'll show you the card I made for Tiegan's 14th birthday. Once again I followed Jan B's You Tube video tutorial for a Peekaboo style card. I stamped a couple of cupcakes onto thick Whisper White and die cut to add to the front and inside left of the card. Because this stamp set is a 3 stage set to get the detail, I've used alot of colours! You could use a little less by stamping off for one layer and then using full strength for the next.

Pink Pirouette

Blushing Bride

Flirty Flamingo

Mint Macaron

Sahara Sand

Crumb Cake

Soft Suede

Whisper White

I found a fabulous DSP called Birthday Bouquet, which is sadly now retired but worked perfectly and tied in the colours well as I wanted to create a girly card. I used a Wink Of Stella in clear to add a touch of sparkle to the cupcake adhered to the front of the card.

I hope Tiegan likes this as much as I enjoyed making it.