Sage and Celery...

TGIF! Friday seems to be just about everyone's favorite day of the week around here. We might have a bit of rain around these parts this weekend...the temps have cooled off to the mid-80's, the barometer is headed downward, and it's a bit muggy today...so maybe they'll be right this time...it's a welcome change.

Recently a friend asked why I haven't made any more mini twin sets...and my answer was, "I don't know...it wasn't intentional!" LOL  So I decided to give my triceps a little exercise by making a pair of die-cut mini note cards....there's a bit of machine cranking involved when making sets like this. One die is used to make the shaped card, one for the raised panel, and a couple more for the frame for the rose image at the center of each.  It's fun mixing and matching different die sets, but I'll admit, the fun of die cut cards can also be time-consuming. (But I always like the end results!)

So today's share is a pair of die cut monochromatic mini note cards in sage and celery green...

I used the same rose image for each card, but changed the background for one and flipped it 180 degrees, and desaturated the other a bit more. After die cutting the celery green cardstock pieces behind the rose images, I ran them through an embossing folder for a little bit of texture...

Adding more flowers to the center of the satin bows seemed a bit overdone, but a tiny pearl cluster fit perfectly, and added a bit more brightness...

The frame around the rose image was die cut from a very pale celery color, but it looked a bit "flat" for my taste, so I coated it with fine clear German glass glitter for texture and subtle sparkle. That's one of the main reasons I like using glass glitter...the sparkle isn't overwhelming...

Supplies:

Dies:   Spellbinders Resplendent Rectangles,  Opulent Ovals;   Sizzix Flowers Branches & Leaves

Embossing folder:   Cuttlebug Geometric Rings

Rose digital image:   The-Feathered-Nest.blogspot.com

Ribbon:   Offray          Pearls:   Reflections          Lace:   local craft store

Miscellaneous:   Clear German glass glitter

Thanks for visiting today...I hope you have a fun weekend!

Two By Two...

Happy Monday!  I hope I didn't mislead you with that title and put visions of Noah's ark in your head. :)  Today I'm showing cards that were made in pairs....not something I do a lot, but it was fun to do things differently this past weekend. I had been playing with some blank tags, stamping and "shabby-ing" them up around the edges...and when I was finished, I wanted to find a way to incorporate them onto cards instead of just setting them aside in the "extras" bag until later.

Then I found some fun heart doilies in my stash, and decided to make up a Valentine card.  I couldn't decide if I wanted to make it up with the pink heart doily, or the red...so I made up both, and used my newly-shabbied tags, too. I like them both, each in their own way.

The pink version...soft and shabby...

Instead of putting a layer of lace just under the floral cluster, I scrunched up a piece about 4" long (after spritizing and inking it), and hot-glued it to the front across the tag, putting the floral cluster to one side, and the pearl cluster to the other...

I cut apart one of the longer phrases of my sentiment stamps to make the shorter sentiment, inked and distressed the edges, and set it to the side of the tag, over a small piece of cheesecloth...

The red version came out bright and cheery and shabby...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:  Prima Almanac collection      Sentiment stamps:  Hero Arts; Papertrey Ink

Pearls:  Recollections      Mini Roses:  Wild Orchid Crafts      Tags:  American Tag Company

Text Stamp:  Prima      Flower Stamp:  Dawn Houser/Uptown Rubber Stamps-Floral Tapestry

Miscellaneous:  heart doilies, crocheted lace

Next up is another set of the mini cards  (3-1/2"w x 5"h)  that I love to make in pairs. Die cut frames and sentiment labels form the focal point on the fronts, and the floral clusters and bows add a definite feminine flair. 

I diecut frames and labels once from cardstock, and once from lightweight chipboard, and glue the two together with liquid glue when I'm using them on cards where the edges extend over the background a bit, or when I'm popping them up with foam tape for dimension.  It doesn't add that much more weight to the card, and helps keep the edges stable.  You can see what I mean in the pic below...

This time, the bases for the rose clusters are each formed by a single fabric flower.  These were part of a "stem" of flowers purchased at a local big-box craft store.  I took the flowers off the stems, spritzed them with Tea Dye Distressed Ink and distilled water, and put the floral clusters in the centers after gluing them down on the frames...

Supplies:

Patterned papers:  Echo Park Victoria Gardens collection      Edge Punch:  Martha Stewart Cherish PATP

Dies:  Spellbinders Floral Ovals, Classic Ovals Large, Fancy Framed Tags Two

Sentiment Stamps:  Papertrey Ink      Paper Roses:  Wild Orchid Crafts      Mini Pearls:  Recollections

Hug Snug seam binding      Miscellaneous:  cheesecloth, craft store fabric flowers

Thanks so much for visiting today.  I hope your week is starting with a smile!

A Picture Heavy Pink Tuesday...

Yesterday was "blue Monday," so today I'm sharing some pink cards....yep, it was a pretty productive weekend. :)

This first card uses a few papers from Pink Paislee's Butterfly Garden collection...muted pink and cream stripes and dots, and a piece of another with text from a "journal des roses," or book of roses...I don't think I'll ever tire of this paper line.

I went "back in the archives" at Card Positioning Systems, and used sketch #193 as the basis for the design of this card.  I've left it sentiment-free for now...it will be easy to add a sentiment tag later...

A gathered piece of crocheted lace serves as the base for the taupe rose and pink rosebuds...

Each of the card layers was attached with 1/16" foam tape, so even though there are a lot of square and rectangular shapes, there's still dimension without a lot of height...

Supplies:

Patterned paper: Pink Paislee Butterfly Garden collection 

Dies: Spellbinders Romantic Rectangles; My Favorite Things Royal Leaves

Paper roses and pearl/crystal flourish: Prima      Rosebuds: ViolaMahr on Etsy     Mini pearls: Recollections

Scalloped lace: The Funkie Junkie on Zibbet      Hug Snug seam binding     Miscellaneous: Wilton doily, crocheted lace

Card two is actually a matching pair of mini note cards...3-1/2" x 5".  I used a piece of Melissa Frances paper that has beautifully soft and muted designs...simply cut out the two I liked the best for the front of the note cards.

The fun discovery was that the border punch scallops and the scalloped lace all matched the spacing of the scallops on the edge punch...love it when things come together so well!

Supplies:

Patterned papers: Melissa Frances 5th Avenue "Antonia" & "Jewell"     Edge punch: Martha Stewart Flower Bed

Dies: My Favorite Things Dizzy Border, Decorative Doily Duo, Royal Leaves

Scalloped lace: The Funkie Junkie on Zibbet      Pearls: Recollections      Rosebuds: ViolaMahr on Etsy

Hug Snug seam binding

Thanks for visiting today...I 'm headed back to work in the Korner, and hope to be back in a few days with more to share with you...