More Thank You Cards

Today I've got more quick Thank You Cards - all made with Hunkydory toppers.  This first one was this shaker card.  The background was created using a Spellbinder's embossing folder (3D 5 x 7 European Tapestry) - inked with two colors of distress ink (Seedless Preserves, Dusty Concord) to coordinate with the focal.  The greeting was cut from silver poster board, purple card stock, and white card stock.  These were layered with a slight offset to help them stand out.  The Hunkydory focal & frame were used with acetate & diamond painting drills to make the shaker part.

For the background of this card, I used an old HOTP paper that pulled out the greens in the focal.  The purple checked pattern (also from HOTP) was die cut with a Spellbinder's die set (A2 Tileworks).  You can't tell from the picture, but the border at the bottom is silver metallic poster board.  The 3 dots in the upper right corner are purple discs (gifts from a paper crafting friend).

For this card I cut a frame from the silver poster board (also using a die from Spellbinder's Tile Works).  The green background print is from a DCWV mat stack (not sure the specific one).  The focal is matted using a die cut piece (Spellbinder's Tear Drop Circles).  In addition to embossing that mat, I also highlighted the embossed dots using a silver Sharpie pen - then added a ribbon bow.  I added a ribbon strip for a border that the Hunkydory sentiment sits on.

Next up is an interlocking gate-fold card, made using a Hunkydory topper & frame.  The background paper & border strip are both old HOTP papers.  A gold metallic poster board strip finishes off the border.  Its finished off with 3 pink paper dots at the top left corner & a sentiment in the opposite corner of the focal.

Once again, I've used HOTP papers for the background - the dark purple is suede paper.  This is a cut-away easel card - with the easel part embossed with a Damask folder (Darice 5x7).

This is what it looks like when standing up as an easel card.

Thank You Card Extravaganza

Today I've got a bunch of Thank You cards that I've been working on.  Because I need several cards quickly, I've decided to go through my Hunkydory stash for focals & sentiments.  For several of them, I'm not certain what specific Hunkydory product they came from, but where I'm sure, I'll mention it.  This first card is one I'm not sure about, but they are very cute.  The patterned paper used in the background is an old pattern from HOTP, with edges inked.  A purple card stock & gold metallic poster board finish it.

The large frame is made from  gold poster board - die cut with a Spellbinder's die (Radiant Rectangles). The background card stock is also from Hunkydory.  The focal is a shaker card made with a Hunkydory multi-framed image with added acetate.  The inside is more of the same materials.

Next up are several cards from the same set.  For this first one I used a greeting from a Hunkydory Essential Little Book of Greetings.

This next one is a shaker card:

And this is a two-piece stepper card:

Then there's a concept card from "Flight of the Butterflies Jeweled Editions":

This next card is from the "Paws for Thought" set (one of my very favorites!)

This one is also from "Paws for Thought" - put together with paper & poster board cut with various dies (Marianne Cut & Emboss, Paper Artist "8 Squares & Scallops").  The card is finished with some self adhesive jewels.

Another Christmas Wonder

Somehow, this Christmas Wonder card didn't get posted with the other two.  This one is a two-piece center step card and very pretty in real life.  The color of the ribbon in the photo isn't true - probably because it's a glitter velvet ribbon & the shine of it messes with the camera settings.  These types of cards are so quick and easy when made in two pieces.  No pulling out the ruler and craft knife!

The inside is really simple - the corner treatment of the paper is perfect.  It's so pretty, but still leaves room for a message.

Christmas Wonder

Today I needed a couple more quick Christmas cards, so used some materials from HOTP "Christmas Wonder" set - papers from their paper set, and Papier Tole that goes with it.  Other materials used: gold poster board, black ribbon from my stash, gold braid, and stamps & ink.

The stamp used here is from JustRite - "Christmas Gifts Vintage Labels Two".  

Here's the second card made from the same supplies:

And the inside:

The stamps used here are from the set "Mix and Match Christmas Blesings" (JustRite).

Using Up the Bits

Lately I've been trying to learn, after I'm finished making cards, to use up all the little leftover bits and pieces by turning them into tags.  I can't bear to through pretty stuff away, yet my "scraps" bins are getting WAY too full. I find I haven't been using them very much, so as I make more cards, they just get heaped higher and higher!

However, when I went to start making tags with the leftovers from my Meowy Christmas card, I realized that though I didn't have very much of the patterned papers left over, it would STILL take me forever to use it up on little tags.  SO, I decided I needed to make a couple more cards first.  It was a bit of a challenge to figure out how to do that with the little bits I had left.  I added some other cut elements from the Pepple's paper pack and some coordinating scraps in plain & glittered card stock and glimmer paper.  I also used a Hunkydory Tag (2016 Essential Little Book of Christmas Greetings), and some of the twine I had out for use on the tags.  I embossed the red glimmer paper using Cuttlebug's Holly Ribbon 5X7 embossing folder, and "addressed" the post card.  When I determine who this card goes to, I'll put their name on the "naughty/nice" list & fill out the information there. :)

For the inside, I had to get creative again to figure out how to make something interesting with the little bit of remaining scrap I had.  Here's what I ended up with:

That took care of most of the turquoise paper, but I still had more of the mini Christmas elements paper.  Going through my brown scraps, I found the die cut (Spellbinders' Resplendent Rectangles) I hadn't used and decided to use the same die set to cut the patterned paper to fit the center.  I "attached" it with twine to a strip of brown card stock, hoping to make it look like a hanging sign.  I stamped a greeting on a strip of white card stock & created the greeting tag - which I added with foam tape.  A fussy cut stocking from scraps of the patterned paper completed the outside:

For the inside, I used another cut out element from the paper pad - with brown card stock scraps.  I wrote the message with a fine point brown marker, trying to make it look like a child's writing.  Then I added a few "candies" which I cut from scraps of the patterned paper.

Now the scraps were more manageable, but I DID still have enough to make 5 tags:

The center back row is one that has fluffy stuff snow on it, but you can't see that in the picture.  The greetings on the tags in the back row & the larger snow flakes on the one on the right (back row) are all chipboard elements that came in a card making magazine - couldn't tell you which one.  I added some mini-punched snowflakes to the one on the front left.  Stamped sentiments on both of the front tags were from a HOTP bulk set.

Quadruple Easel with a Couple Twists

This card really made me think as I tried to figure out how to make it!  It didn't turn out quite the way I envisioned it, but I rather like it anyway.  It was inspired by a couple of challenges - one to make an easel card, and one to make a twisted easel card.  It was also inspired by the lovely freebie tags I got from The Navage Patch.  There is one large easel piece which covers the card until it is opened.  This folds back behind and out of the way.  Then there are three smaller easels - twisted easels on each side, and a standard one in the center.  I'll describe it sort of the way it came together.

Card Base: I started with a base from white card stock cut 9" by 3 3/4" so it would fit in a standard business sized envelope.   After cutting to size, I embossed the base with my European A4 sized embossing folder called Linked Circles (Teresa Collins).  

Twisted Easel Bases: The two side easels were cut from the same white card stock to 3 3/4" x 4 1/4" each.  They were scored at 1/2" (measured along the 4 1/4" side with score line perpendicular to it) to form a 3 3/4" square.  They were then scored corner to corner of the square - making sure to create the correct diagonal for each side (going from the lower outside corner, to the upper inside corner with the 1/2" flap to the side where it can wrap around the card base).  Crease all score lines as mountain folds.

Center Easel Base: This one was cut 3 1/2" x 4 1/4" - scored at 1/2" from one narrow edge and 1 7/8" from the other.  Once again, crease all score lines as mountain folds.

Easel Focals: For each small easel, I cut a piece of red card stock (from my stash) just a bit smaller than the easel when closed so there would be a bit of a white border all around.  I then trimmed the tags & attached them to these squares.  To attach the focal squares to the easel base, I need to add adhesive to only part of the focal.  For the two twisted easels, I drew a pencil line on the back from corner to corner to match the diagonal fold on the twisted easel bases.  Then I added glue ONLY to the lower inside triangle & attached to the card base.  The remaining one I just put glue on the bottom half & added it to the center easel base.  THEN, I added my easel bases to the card base by attaching the flaps to the back of the card base (twisted easels attach to the sides, center attaches to the center back of the card.  I added Jewel Dazzles as fake "brads" in the holes of the tags.

Easel Stops: For each of the three smaller easels, I stamped leftover bits of cards with one of the three words in "Deck the Halls!" (stamp from a bulk HOTP set).  I did this by carefully inking so only one word was stamped at a time (wiping off excess ink before stamping).  After heat embossing with white powder, I attached these to the card base with foam tape so they would hold the easels in place.  NOTE: Placement of these is important!  Do the twisted ones first, making sure they are held far enough back that the center one is free to move!  Unfortunately, my card base had gotten a little messed up because I hadn't realized the importance of placement of the easel stops in time.  To cover/hide this, I used Crystal Stickles scribbles under each stop to give the illusion of a bit of glistening snow.

At this point, I had my easels more or less the way I had envisioned them, but they looked rather strange when closed for mailing.  After much contemplation, I decided to make a large easel to cover them that would fold all the way back behind when opened.

 
Large Easel Base: The large easel base was cut from white card stock to 9" x 4 1/4" and then scored 1 7/8" from the front edge (fold line for "easel" part) and 3/8" from the back edge (flap - allows for bulk of the card).  It was covered with a piece of patterned paper (old HOTP) cut in half so the edges meet at the score line.  I attached the flap to the back underside of the card base, so the large easel covered all the others.

Belly Band:  Now I needed a belly band to keep the card in place.  I used another tag to decorate it.  I simply took a piece of card stock, scored it to fit the card, embossed it, wrapped it loosely around my card (so it would be able to slide off), and added my belly band focal.  The focal was made by trimming another of the tags down a bit & adding scraps of red top & bottom.

 

Finishing: Even with the belly band in place, the card front looked pretty plain.  I needed to add some decorations that would not be visible & draw attention when the large easel was standing in place behind the others - in other words - just across the top!  SO I added a white strip across the top decorated with a die cut greeting.

Meowy Christmas

Today I've got a quick card inspired by freebie tags from The Navage Patch.  I thought this little cat & sentiment were so cute!  Together they made up a tag, but I cut them apart to make the card.

In addition to the tag, I used:

• Papers from "Home for Christmas" Paper pad (Pebbles)
• Border & Jewel Dazzles (HOTP)
• Red and white card stock from my stash

I made the card for a "make an inverted center step card" challenge.  I decided to make my center step card as a two . . . or rather three-piece card, rather than messing with cutting slits in my card base.   I cut two pieces that were 10 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide - scored them both at 5".  The third piece was cut at 6 1/2" x 10" and scored at 1 1/2", 3", and 6 1/2".  For more details on making step cards this way, see my earlier post - here.

Here's the way I decorated the inside of this card:

Tri-fold Challenge

Today's card is in response to a challenge on the Paper Wishers Message Board.  The challenge was to make a tri-fold with each section being the same size.  This is my result.  Unfortunately, the type of card I need right now is a sympathy card, so that's what this is.

Materials used:

• Card Base: Two printed cards from HOTP - glued together so UPC is hidden on the back
• Papers: cream colored glimmer paper, pink marbled paper
  
• Stamps: Sentiments from JustRite's With Sympathy stamp set, roses, leaves, stem & vase from Stampendous Rose Bouquet set. 
• Dies: Coordinating dies for Rose Bouquet (Stampendous), Resplendent Rectangles, Classic Brackets Edgeabilities and Decorative Inserts Two Edgeabilities (all from Spellbinders).
• Distress Oxide Inks: Fired Brick & Pickled Rasperry
• Ribbon & clear embossing powder from my stash.

 Method:

• Cut and emboss mat (glimmer paper); with die in place, add color at bottom to form "table".
• Stamp & die cut vase & leaves - then color them with the distress inks. Cut stem from bud & add to other roses.
• Stamp sentiment & emboss with clear powder on glimmer paper, cut as shown.

 First inside panel:

Method:

• Cut border from glimmer paper.  with dies in place, add color as shown - then thread ribbon through.
• Stamp, die cut, & color rose as before.
• Stamp sentiment with distress inks & finish with clear embossing powder.

Inside with both panels open:

Method:

• Die cut mat from marbled paper & ink the edges with the distress inks.  
• Stamp sentiment with the inks & emboss with clear powder.

Another 3D Tag

Today I wanted to finish up the little wooden pieces that I had been given.  I decided to make this tag with them.  In addition to the wooden pieces (which I colored by adding ink from ink pads), I stamped the deer (Stampscapes stamps) and the sentiment (HOTP Small Stamps - Cardinal).  Inks used were blue, brown, and green dye ink - and Faded Blue Jeans Distress ink for the sky/snow.

3D Tags

Now that Christmas cards are in the mail, I can get back to fun on the message board.  One of the challenges on the Paper Wishers Message board right now is to make a dimensional multi-media tag.  I don't have a lot of dimensional materials because so much of my card making has to go through the mail, but I remembered these materials I got in a swap - which included some wooden cut outs - and decided to use them for this.  All the elements on this tag are from the swap EXCEPT for the white card stock (tag base & "lace") and the bow - some sort of wired paper stuff from my stash (it's too thick to use on anything going through the mail).

I started by cutting a tag from white card stock using a Paper Artist die from the Tags & Trims set (HOTP).  I didn't have the kind of lace I wanted, so I faked it with die cuts (Spellbinder's Ironworks Accents).  

You can't really tell it very well in the picture, but there are a several dimensional elements on this card:

1. First, the word "joy" is a wooden element - and I added to the dimension by adding Cosmic Shimmer's "Fluffy Stuff" to the top of them.  It was kind of fun to see how they bubbled & expanded when heat was applied!
2. Then, the presents (fussy cut from the back side of one of the patterned papers) are flush to the card at the bottom - single layer of fairly thick foam tape in the center - and double layer of the foam tape at the top (so in real life they seem to be coming off the page. 
3. Finally, as mentioned earlier, the bow is fairly dimensional.

Making that one was so much fun I made a couple more, using up must of the rest of the scraps from the materials swap:

In addition to materials from the swap and white card stock for the base, the tag on the left used a couple Spellbinders Edgeability dies (Classic Bracket & Classic Decorative Inserts Two), some red ribbon from my stash, and Cosmic Shimmer's Fluffy Stuff on the wooden word.  For the other tag I added Baker's Twine and used a Heartfelt Creations die (Delicate Border Basics) for the bottom of the tag.

HD Christmas Past - Winter Robin

Here are a couple of cards made from this Winter Robin set (Hunkydory Christmas Past).  Someone (probably my Mom) had used some of it, so this is what was left.  The first one uses a strip of coordinating card stock at the bottom - along with a narrow strip of gold poster board to form a background/border near the bottom.  Then, another piece of the gold was die cut (Decorative Labels Eight - Spellbinders) to form a mat for the focal & sentiment (both die cuts from the set).

The next one uses some of the coordinating adorable scoreable to form the background for this next card:

I've added several elements from gold poster board - mat for the background, flying reindeer (HOTP cutting die from set 9 Tiny Christmas Things & Shadows), and border strip near the top.  A sentiment from the 2016 Little Book of Essential Christmas Greetings (Hunkydory) finishes it off.

HD Christmas Past - He's Checking His List

Today I've got 5 cards made from a Hunkydory set - Christmas Past "He's Checking His List".  It's so quick and easy to make cards when you have Hunkydory to start with, and I was running out of time to get my Christmas cards made & in the mail!  This first one was made with only a couple of additions to the set - a white ribbon (for the border) and a die cut piece of gold metallic poster board that was cut using a Spellbinder's die (Decorative Labels Eight).  The focal, sentiment & border were all die cuts from the set - and the background was from the coordinating adorable scoreable. 

Here we have background & focal all in one from the coordinating adorable scoreable.   The sentiment was a die cut from the set.  The border was a red strip from the adorable scoreable and a gold strip of the same poster board used to mat the whole.

Here again we have adorable scoreable matted with the gold poster board.  We also have a die cut piece of poster board (Decorative Labels Eight - Spellbinders) as mat for the focal/sentiment combo (both die cuts from the set).

Next is a gate fold card - with a piece of red card stock from my stash for the background (embossed with Darice 5 X 7 Damask folder).  The focal and sentiment (both die cuts from the set) are matted on a piece of gold poster board which was die cut with a die from the Renaissance Jubilee Ravena Cardmaker's die set (Spellbinders).

And last but not least we have this reindeer focal matted on a gold poster board mat that was die cut with another Spellbinder's die (Captivating Squares).  Background is adoreable scoreable from the set - matted with gold poster board.  The sentiment is from the 2016 Little Book of Essential Christmas Greetings (also by Hunkydory).

HD Christmas Past - Winter Village

Here I show 5 cards made from the HD Christmas Past - Winter Village set.  This first also uses a sheet of patterned paper that came in the 2016 Hunkydory Christmas idea book.  I used the frame & picture to create an interlocking gatefold card.  The greeting was cut down from one that came in the kit.  I used the middle frame that came with the focal on the inside of the card:

This set had 2 major toppers & then a bunch of smaller tags & such.  I used some of these smaller pieces with some of the coordinating adorable scoreable to create another card. The background was matted on a piece of gold poster board.

To finish it, I added some gold Jewel Dazzles.  Inside I added another matted piece of adorable scoreable & another greeting from the set.

Next I made a couple of cards from the 2nd coordinating piece of adorable scorable.  Once again I used gold poster board.  I also used greetings from the Hunkydory 2016 Essential Little Book of Christmas Greetings.

The final card is another one made with the framed focals provided.  Once again I made an interlocking gate fold card.  The background is from the coordinating adorable scoreable.

Here's the inside - once again I used the middle frame.