Make My Monday on Thursday

Good morning! Well, I think I have finally caught the cold that has been going around the office lately :( I suppose it was inevitable, but I was really hoping it left me alone! *lol* time to jack up my consumption of vitamin C and fluids, fluids, fluids!

Onto today's challenge! I was intrigued by Make My Monday's theme this week, which was to make your own background. And, I was posed with the challenge to make a birthday card for my Nana,who is turning 90 in May. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to make a special card for her. Here's how the final product turned out:

I really like the way it turned out! It's special, but not overkill :) The background was made by sponging baja breeze (I am sad this is retiring!!), regal rose (also retiring, but I am not too upset about this colour) and rose red. Then I sponged versamark around the edges with pewter embossing powder. I added a double baja breeze bow and a snippet of crochet trim and a couple pearls to finish off the look (convenient because my Nana's name is Pearl :) )

I wanted the sentiment to pop against the background, so I added it in white with the dark midnight muse ink (same ink as the music notes, but the notes were stamped off once). I think I achieved the desired effect :)

What do you think? Is it "special" enough for a 90th birthday? (that's a pretty huge event). Thanks for looking and I love to read your comments!

Supplies used:
Stamps: Memorable Moments, Universal Backgrounds (CTMH)
Paper: Midnight Muse, Whisper White
Ink: Baja Breeze, Rose Red, Regal Rose, Midnight Muse, Versamark
Tools: Labels Framelits
Accessories: Seam Binding Ribbon, Crochet Trim, Pearls, Pewter Embossing Powder, Dimensionals

FMS 69: Elements of Style

Hello again :)

Freshly Made Sketches comes out with a new sketch every Wednesday, this is the sketch from Wednesday January 16, 2013:

Diagonals rarely appear on my cards, so this is a nice change-up :) Here's what I came up with for this sketch:

I made a sophisticated birthday card using the stamp set Elements of Style and lots of early espresso embossing powder. The flowers, humming birds and sentiment were stamped in versamark and heat embossed with early espresso (carry-over from the holiday mini catalogue). The humming birds were snipped out and popped up on dimensionals. The flowers were sponged with blushing bride in a bit of a emboss resist technique. The antique brad is the final touch of sophistication to the card.

Thanks for visiting! :)

Supplies used:

Stamps: Elements of Style, Blooming with Kindness (sentiment)

Paper: Beau Chateau (ret), Very Vanilla, Blushing Bride (ret)

Ink: Versamark

Tools: Scallop Border Punch

Accessories: Early Espresso Embossing Power, Antique Brad, Sponge

Silver Anniversary: Faux Patina

I hope today finds you well :) I have had this idea for a 25th anniversary card in my mind for a few months now, and it feels great to finally get it out on paper. We tried the faux patina technique  in a card class with my upline, and I loved it! Since then, I have used it a few more times to make birthday and thank-you cards, but I thought it would look extra special for a beautiful 25th anniversary. Now, no one I know will be celebrating a 25th anniversary soon, but it is never a bad idea to have a variety of cards in stock because you never know when you'll get that odd request for a special card :)

The faux patina technique is a time consuming, but not a challenging, technique. There are a few steps involved:

First, ink up the embossing folder you want to use, I am using lacey brocade & midnight muse ink. To do this, rub the ink pad all over the embossing folder and run your paper through the big shot.

Next, sponge the colours you are using all over the embossed page. I am using baja breeze & basic grey (lightly applied).

Then we heat emboss! Make sure to use your embossing buddy prior to applying the versamark. I dabbed the versamark all over the page, then covered the page with silver embossing powder. If I think that there will be too much silver, or not enough of the sponged colours are showing, I wipe some of the embossing powder off with a paint brush before heating.

Viola! The background is complete :) See, not hard at all :)

In order to make a more vintage look, try other colours! I have used early espresso on the embossing folder, sponged with marina mist & wild wasabi, and used gold embossing powder.

Thanks for looking and leave me a comment if you have any questions! :)

Supplies used:
Stamps: Memorable Moments, Apothecary Art
Ink: Midnight Muse, Baja Breeze, Basic Grey, Versamark
Paper: Whisper White, Brushed Silver Cardstock, Baja Breeze
Tools: Labels Framelits
Accessories: Lacy Brocade Embossing Folder, Tim Holtz Sponges, Silver Embossing Powder, Embossing Buddy, Victoria Crochet Trim, 1/2" Seam Binding Ribbon, Hat Pin & Jewels from Pretties Kit (ret), Baja Breeze & Basic Grey Markers, Dimensionals

All You Need is LOVE

As promised, today's card :)

My dad will be the recipient of this card and he is sure to "love" it! :) He works out of town and displays all of the cards we send him in his room at camp... what a sweet guy!

I embossed the letters in LOVE and fussy-cut them (by far the only time consuming part of this card), everything else was a snap!

Seam binding ribbon is a must-keep on my shelves... it is so versatile and easy to use! Let me know what you think of this card :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies used:
Stamps: Michael's Letters
Paper: Very Vanilla, Basic Grey, Flirtatious Specialty DSP (ret)
Accessories: Melon Mambo Embossing Powder, Basic Pearls & Pink Sharpie Pen, Vintage Faceted Button, Very Vanilla Seam Binding Ribbon, Polka Dots & Elegant Lines Embossing Folders, Heart to Heart Punch (ret)