For the Graduating Girls

My daughter has some of the sweetest friends!  I chose a color that reminded me of each of them, and then put the combo together to create this graduation card.  I used some diecuts for the vines behind the flowers.  They were painted with pigment/Kraft ink, and then embossed.  It was really fun!  I had some flowers laying around that I've been wanting to use up and these were perfect.  I could have also colored flowers from an SU! Pretties Kit and accomplished the same thing.  The organza ribbon and pretties kit products can be dyed with ink or markers to match ANY project.  Awesome!  

Colors used:  Bashful Blue, Old Olive, Barely Banana and Cameo Coral.  Stamps:  Happy Grad

I made the inside of the card into a money or gift card holder.
I cut the 'pocket' 1 inch wider than the card, and a 1/2 an inch taller than I wanted.  I used a score-pal to create fold lines on the sides and bottom 1/2 an inch from the three edges.  I cut the small squares off of the two corners, and then cute the flaps diagonally so when folded against the pocket they would lay flat.  I adhered the background paper first, and the pocket on top after applying the flower with a centered brad.  The leaves are from the new bird punch by Stampin' Up!.  I punched two from the design paper, and then cut off about an inch of the stem before adhering them behind the flower.  The sentiment above is an old irish blessing, fitting for a graduate just starting out in the world!

I hope you can use some of these tips in your own creations.  Feel free to contact me with any questions and make it a great day!

The front of this card was inspired by Kimberley Eklund here:

Happy Stamping Everyone!  I'll have a card using Stamping Pastels tomorrow!

Hello, Stampers and Crafters!

I just got back from teaching a spin class and want to get today's card posted before I volunteer at Utah's Bikes for Kids cycling event.  We give away 1,000 bikes to 1,000 underpriviliged children.  It always proves to be a rewarding day!

I cased this (yet another) graduation card from Michele Reynold's site here:

http://inspirationink.typepad.com/inspiration-ink/2010/05/more-one-layout-and-color-scheme-ideas.html

I needed something quick and masculine and her idea was awesome.  That's the Tip of the Day:  Don't be afraid to case, just give credit where credit is due!  You don't have to re-invent the wheel, or 'card' as it were.  It's an honor to have someone think enough of your ideas to want to share them with their friends and loved ones.  So Michele, thanks for the card idea and on a side note (thanks for the stamps - they came in the mail yesterday!) 

I'm using these cards as money-holders, so here's what I did for the inside: 

Did you know that money/bills are 6 1/8 inches long and 2 5/8" wide?  Well, they are!  For this 5 x 7 card, I used a pencil to  mark 1/4" in from the top and bottom, and 1 1/2" from the left.  That's where I punched each hole using a standard hole punch.  Then I used my x-acto craft knife and cut a slit from hole to hole.  I moved my metal rule over just a smidge (I know, so technical) and cut again, creating a thin 'slot.'  I then used SU's snail adhesive for a full inch wide on the long edges and 1 adhesive length on the short edges.  This creates a strong bond and a 6 1/2 " by  3" pocket for cash!  Perfect!  Other products used are:  Baroque DP available at the Clearance Rack (see the banner above), Chocolate Chip card stock, Happy Grad stamp, Chocolate Chip 5/8" ribbon and classic ink, and misc. brads and edge punch.  Any of SU's edge punches will work beautifully here!  Thanks for checking out today's card!  Tomorrow I'll post my masculine card from my upcoming card swap.  Hope you've liked this week's Masculine Cards!

More from the Summer Mini

Here we go with more graduation cards for my daughter and her friends.  This one, Go Graduate, from the summer mini catalog had everything I needed:  An image, another image to create my background paper, and a sentiment.  Perfect! This set can be purchased by clicking the image of the Summer Mini Catalog at the right.  I used very basic suppies here.... just paper and stamping, plus a little embossing powder and versamark to make the main image and sentiment pop.  Whisper White, Black and Glorious Green are the main colors, with Blush Blossom for skin coloration.  Blender pens were used on the gowns.  Colors from the Brights family were used for clothing colors.  Best of luck to YOUR graduates, and happy creating!

Happy Graduation from the Summer Mini!

My daughter and several of her friends are graduating from high school this June, so it's a perfect opportunity to use the new Graduation stamps, Go Graduate and Happy Graduation from the new summer mini catalog.
I had a great time masking, embossing, spraying and coloring this card for my sweet girl!

You can make this card too!  Any questions about these techniques, please let me know and I'll blog about them!  Happy Stamping!