Digi-papers for April

I realized I hadn't created any cards using digi papers yet this month, so chose a couple and printed them up.  Then I needed to find a way to use them up (would hate to have all my work of clearing my desk disappear so quickly)!  For sentiments, I used some of Sassy's greetings.

Card #1 (above):

I started with this beautiful teal print and went looking for a focal I could use with it.  Fortunately, I found one I had made several years ago that I thought would go well.  It was stamped with two different stamps (JustRite's With Sympathy set, and a small stamp set from Inkadinkadoo called You're a Perfect Cat).  The background color was created with alcohol inks, and the stamping itself was embossed with gold embossing powder.  I then die cut it with a JustRite die called Nested Ovals. I matted this focal on white before adding it to the card front.  Then I created a border with white card stock, gold ribbon from my stash, and a Sassy's greeting.

Card #2:

I didn't like the pink by itself, so decided to find a sketch that would bring the two together.  I chose one of Kendra's Card Challenge#10 - sketch 8 (except adapted for a 5x7 size).  I used this cute kitten (Stampendous Pop-Up Kitties stamps/dies).  After coloring the eyes, nose, and ears with markers, I added a bit of shading with gray chalk.  I added Shimmery Crystal Effects (Stamp'in Up) to the eyes.  I glued the body directly to the card front, then added the glittery fun foam bow before adding the head with foam tape.  The sentiment is another Sassy's - double matted with a scalloped punched pink glitter and a die cut white (Spellbinders Picot Edged Circles).

 

I still had quite a bit of paper leftover.  I decided to chop it in pieces and then figure out what to do with them - something like a two-sheet wonder except that I had more left over from the one than the other.  Anyway, these remaining four cards are what I created - matting most of the elements with black:

Card 3:

 

Here I double matted the sentiment in aqua and then in black.

 

Card 4:

 

This is similar to the last one, but the background is a bit larger, the cross piece narrower - and of course reverse colors were used and the "sketch" rotated 90 degrees.  I used a Spellbinder's Picot Circles die as the 2nd mat for the sentiment to back the pink vellum scalloped punched circle that is the first mat for the sentiment.  I really wanted to center the sentiment top to bottom, but it got stuck in the position you see and I couldn't move it without tearing the paper.  SO, I added 3 double-layered Jewel Dazzles in the bottom right corner to help balance it out - I used the large black ones as a mat for the medium sized pink ones.

Card 5:

I had fun playing with these squares turned on point as I tried to decide what to do with them.  I took my last long scrap of the pink pattern with a narrow strip of black to form a lower border, then placed the matted squares as you see here.  Both sentiments are Sassy's.

 

Card 6:

This time I created a vertical card and embossed the card front before adding the 3 squares/diamonds layered one on top of each other (after matting of course).  The final one became a great mat for my sentiment.  I had intended to leave it at that, but had used some washi tape I didn't like to help me center the pieces - and one tore a bit of the card front as I removed it!  So, I found some tape I DID like and added borders - I quite like them!