Using Up My Stash #8

Here's another card in my "using up stash" sequence.  This one I'm showing the inside first because I like it better. :)  I think I'll look for some flowers or something to add to the card front, so it looks better.  Anyway, this card is made with elements from a HOTP Card Maker's Personal Shopper collection.  I didn't add much to it.  The white in the center was die cut from white card stock using a Spellbinder's die from the Romantic Rectangles Two set.  The "You're the Best" was a Divinity Designs stamp (formerly Our Daily Bread Designs).  The A #1 was hand printed on the tag.  

Here's the front as it is now (like I said, I may find something to add to it later):

The card is a gate-fold card.  The tag was from the collection, but I stamped it with the word "Thanks" (from HOTP Flower Frenzy - it actually said "Thanks a bunch", but I masked off the last 2 words).  When I was done, there was so little left over that I decided to make a couple of tags to finish things off.  I'm not that great at making tags, but here's want I made:

Using Up My Stash #7

This quick card was made using a whopper topper (Hunkydory's Cute & Cuddly). and coordinating sentiment & borders.  I had one border - which I cut in pieces to work for all borders on the card front.  I found another border which was similar & used that on the inside of the card, along with a coordinating sentiment.  The green tag was from the Essential book of sentiments - 2016 (Hunkydory).  The rest - the yellow & blue - were card stock scraps from my stash.  It feels so good to get some of those scraps used up!

Use Up Printed Cards #6

I'm once again working to use up my pre-printed cards.  I seem to have SOOO many of them that it hardly seems like I'm making a dent (I bought several packs of 10 because they were 10/$1 and I thought they were pretty - not realizing how challenging they could be to actually use!).   This card started from the printed card you see below (opened up so you see the whole outside in the picture).

I decided to use this one in pieces to form the "patterned paper" for another card.

Background: I first cut the back off & then cut off the manufacturer's info.  This is what I used on the front of the card.   Looking back at that picture, you can see that I matted it with some plain purple paper that I had in my stash. 

Focal: This started as white card stock - stamped with a "Janie's Girls" stamp (HOTP).  I colored the image using watercolor pencils, blending with a water brush.  I die cut around the image using a Spellbinder's "Tile Works" die.  I also used the die to emboss it, then used it as a stencil to add color to the frame - once again with watercolor pencils - blending out a bit very lightly.

Sentiment & Embellishments: I finished the card with an embossed message (also from the Janie's Girls set).  I matted the strip on black before adding to the card.  I chose a couple of small flowers from my stash & held them together with a brad before gluing to either side of the sentiment.

For the inside background, I reversed the process I had done on the card front - using the larger card front as the mat with a smaller purple piece for the inside, for an easy place to write my message.  As you can see, I added another flower set to the lower left corner.

This second card was made using scraps from a HOTP PaperFlair booklet (Clearly Collage), and some die cuts made with coordinating card stock scraps from my stash.  Dies used were: "thank" actually originally said "thanks" - HOTP - Paper Artist "Script Greetings", "YOU" - HOTP - Paper Artist "YOU", Heart - Sizzix - "Bonjour Paris"

The card originally looked like this:

For the inside, I cut a strip from another card to form a border - then added the cut out hearts (also from Clearly Collage).

 So there are two more cards made from those pre-printed cards.

Newsies

Today I have another scrapbook page!  I had these programs sitting out and needed to put them away.  I knew I wanted to make a scrapbook page, but wasn't sure what to do with them in the meantime.  As I was thinking about that, I suddenly thought "Do It Now".  So I did!

Background: old HOTP patterned paper

Focal & Text at Bottom of the Page: These are cut directly from the original programs we were given at the door.  Since we did not know anyone in the cast, I saw no reason to keep more than these parts of it.

Title: The title was cut from red card stock using dies I got from Alli Express.

Journaling: This was first printed on white printer paper and cut with a Spellbinders die from the set called "Romantic Rectangles Two". Then I traced around the die on red paper and fussy cut that to form a mat.

Embellishing: Embellishments are simply music note stickers I had in my stash - no idea where they came from.

Fruit in Old Age

Today's Bible Journaling page looks a lot better in real life than it does in the picture!  Because of the camera angle, it's a bit hard to read.  The gold words say "a promise" (for info on what this page means to me, check my other blog here).  Here's how I created this page:

Background: After protecting the page with clear gesso, as usual, I sprayed it with a green Glimmer Mist (called "lime light"). 

Illustration: After the background was thoroughly dry, I hand drew my illustration lightly with a pencil.  Then I drew over the lines with Inktense pencils.  Finally I used a water brush to spread the color.  

Lettering: The golden words are stamped ("Bible Promises" by Stampendous - Copper StazOn ink - then colored in with a gold acrylic paint I have on hand).  I drew the rest of the words with a pencil, then traced them with pens/markers.  The black was a Pitt pen.  The purple and green were from my Scroll & Brush markers set.

Verse: I highlighted the verse by coloring it with a darker shade of green using Scroll & Brush markers.  Then I added a thin Dazzles sticker border around it.

Use It Up Printed Cards #5

Today's card is another for the "use up those printed card blanks" challenge on the paper wishers message board.  It's one where I like the idea of what I did, but frankly, it's execution could use more work.  Oh well. . . . 

It started out like this:

I decided to cut the front off and glue it directly to the card back with the edge of an acetate sheet sandwiched between.  I folded over the acetate to the front of the card to serve as the card front.  I had this ice cream cone focal I wanted to use (from a HOTP Paper Flair Shaped Cards booklet) - and it would have been great except . . . when I cut out the focal and put it on the background I realized the pinks were not the same color!😞

I knew that would bother me, so I proceeded to try to color the focal to match, using distress & distress oxide inks.  That turned out too bright, so I decided to color in the pink parts of the background with the same inks.  All was well until this point.

HOWEVER, the card has a bit of a glossy surface & I wasn't sure how well the ink would dry on it, so I decided to heat emboss it with clear powder (something I regularly do to when I have such concerns.  I didn't take into account that my acetate sheet might not like the heat!  So, it got a bit misshapen in the process. 😥 Oh well, I guess this counts as a "learning process"!  Note to self - next time, color the background & heat emboss it BEFORE assembling with acetate sheet!

Here is what it looks like when opened: 

Use Up Printed Cards #4

Here's the 4th in my "Use Up Printed Cards" series.  The focal was made using a doily from my stash, coloring it with Spun Sugar Distress Ink & then spraying it with Sheer Shimmer Sparkle.  This gives a nice shimmer that is visible in real life, though not so well in the picture.  The heart-shaped rhinestones are from my stash.  The borders were made with an EK punch called Medallion Chain.  To that I added a strip of paper for each.  The paper & the "thank you" were from a HOTP card maker's personal shopper.  The card started out looking like this:

I created the same kind of borders on the inside by cutting up part of a second card.  I used part of that also to cover the back as I thought the UPC code rather ugly.

Do It Now!

Today I have a scrapbook page.  Usually when I create a scrapbook page, I want it to be part of a whole - so feel I have to plan all the pages in the book - and have all the resulting mess - in order to scrap well.  Today I decided to "scrap" that idea! :)  Last night was the girl's dance recital, and while that was fresh in my mind & I knew where the photos & program were, I should just go ahead & scrap it as a standalone page.  This was the result.

Here it is from another angle:

The full-page transparency (from Creative Imaginations) is covered with sayings about dance that just fit the theme.  I used red glittered adhesive-backed ribbon from my stash & red foiled poster board to mat the photo (used one of Paper Shapers "Corner Adorner" punches).  Since the program would have filled the entire page, I scanned in the front of it & printed that in a reduced size - which I glued to a pocket which holds the original.  The title is cut using dies I got from Ali Express.  I tried to arrange them following a line of transparency text so one would naturally start reading the sayings.

Using Up My Stash #6

Today's cards are based in an old HOTP card making set called Paper Flair Shaped Cards.  As I was looking through my kit binder for things that might go with my patterned cards, I saw this that I've thought was soooo cute - so decided to make him.  I actually got two cards from this set.  This first was made very similarly to what they suggested - at least on the outside.  The inside was actually quite different since I wanted a different sentiment & wanted to save the patterned paper and border for the next card.  The sentiment was hand-lettered on a framed piece from the set.

Here's the 2nd card I made from this set.  As mentioned, the patterned paper & border were from the set.  The bug itself was fussy cut from the instructions:

The sentiment I used for the inside of the card was also from the set:

Use Up Printed Cards #3

Today's card is REALLY a "use it up" card.  It uses a pre-printed card AND focal, etc from my stash.

It also meets 4 challenges on the Paper Wishers Message Board.  It started from this (an old printed card base from HOTP):

I cut the card into small pieces & then matted them to black glitter card stock.  I attached the ribbon so it would run from behind the glitter card stock to hide behind the focal. Then I glued my card stock to the card base.  I added a focal & greeting from a HOTP Card Maker's Personal Shopper.  For the finishing touches, I printed shamrock images found on the internet & fussy cut them. 

Using Up My Stash #5

Today's card uses up some bits & pieces I've had in my stash for awhile.  First is a card that had been embossed along the front edge (I think it used one of my Mom's embossing folders, but not sure).  Then there were two dancer couples in different colors, and a coordinating layered sentiment.   Both the dancers & the sentiment were cut with my Silhouette.

Inside was simple but coordinated well & expressed what I wanted to say: