8 Days of Holiday Cards! Day 8: Wedding Snowglobes!!!

Oh my goodness, friends! Today's card is quite possibly my favorite for this season, and is a very special card for my friends who just got hitched!!

I knew I would be making this awesome couple a card, and decided to head straight to Paper Source to buy a stamp I'd been eyeing for quite some time! This fantastic scripted Mr & Mr stamp is one of my favorites from Paper Source both because it is beautiful, and because it speaks to their support of the LGBTQ community. I've appreciated this so much about the company, and love that their support feels genuine and authentic, and not just another marketing ploy to get more money from another niche audience.

I wanted to make these fantastic gentlemen a somewhat rustic card, and opted for a buffalo check background, made with the Lawn Fawn Gingham Backdrops stamp set using Memento Tuxedo Black Ink over a Paper Source Red piece of cardstock cut to 3.75x5.5 inches. I mounted the background to my Paper Source A2 Paperbag folded card base, leaving the 1/4 inch strips on the left and right of the panel.

Once I'd decided on the use of the Mr & Mr stamp and the buffalo check, I wanted to find something Christmasy to class up the card so it was appropriate for both a congrats wedding card and a Christmas card - which brought me to the BEAUTIFUL snowglobe from Stampin' Up's Sparkly Seasons!

I stamped the base of the snowglobe with Memento Tuxedo Black Ink on a scrap of Paper Source Superfine White paper, and fussy-cut it out. I used Moonlight Gel Pens for the holly and berries, a white ball-point pen for the year, and a gold pen for the branches, which helped soften the base of the snowglobe, and make it look less blocky.

For the globe itself, I diecut a circle from vellum, and positioned it where I wanted it on my card, to determine placement of the snow stamp from the Sparkly Seasons set with my MISTI tool. Once I'd positioned the stamp, I stamped it directly over the buffalo check panel where the globe would sit, using Frost White Pigment Ink. I then moved the panel off the MISTI and stamped the snow again directly on the vellum circle. This way, when I mounted the globe over the buffalo check, it adds two layers of snow that are facing each other, which gives more snow and more dimension to the finished image. Because the frost white was a very wet pigment ink, I ran the heat tool over the vellum carefully to help it dry without warping the vellum, and over the buffalo check background.

Once the snow was dry enough on my vellum circle, I flipped it upside-down and stamped the Mr & Mr stamp with a clear VersaMark ink pad, and then added copper embossing powder and heat-embossed the sentiment. I then mounted all of the pieces to my card using my tape runner delicately around the outside edge of the snowglobe vellum piece.

On the inside of the card, I stamped this beautiful scripted Merry Christmas sentiment from Paper Source's 2016 Christmas line. I'm still SOOOO happy with this card, and can't wait to hear their reaction!!

We also went to a wedding of another couple this past weekend, and I wanted to use the snowglobe again since it's a December wedding! I don't own the Mr & Mrs stamp from Paper Source with the same scripted font, so I couldn't stamp a sentiment that would make sense for this couple directly on the vellum, so I had to change it up a bit. I followed a similar process for preparing the snow globe base and the snow on the inside of the vellum and the outside of the card base, once again creating two layers of snow here - but the snow this time was with silver pigment ink. I also stamped some tiny hearts from the Lawn Fawn Party Animal set with a bright pink pigment ink. I initially finished this card with a scripty Congratulations sentiment from Paper Source, heat embossed with copper powder, but then wasn't completely satisfied. Because there wasn't a sentiment on this snow globe, it felt like it was missing something inside. I carefully peeled up the globe and added in five die cut hearts that I'd previously die cut with coordinating Lawn Cuts dies from You're Stinkin' Cute and Stuck On You. I added some pink watercolor to it via watercolor pencils, and then carefully adhered the snowglobe again. This helped finish off the card.

I'm still not sure if I like the card better with or without the larger hearts inside, but I'm definitely happy I could use Christmas-y themed fun with these wedding cards!

Well, friends, that wraps up my 8 Days of Holiday Cards for 2016! I hope this gave you some fun inspiration for your holiday season!

Happy Holidays!
-JBJ

8 Days of Holiday Cards! Day 5: Oh Joy Ornament cut-out & tags!

Welcome back! We're five days into my 8 Days of Holiday Cards series, and I'm feeling overwhelmed with how much I have left to do in preparation for Christmas! I just purchased Christmas-themed stamps for our holiday cards, and my husband printed our photo inserts with the 2016 overview (our first year of marriage!), and have a LOT of envelope addressing to do tonight!

For today's card, I used the GORGEOUS Mama Elephant Twinkle Towns set, and was SO excited to get both holiday cards AND gift tags out of this one project! I'm providing more photos of the process since it's a bit more complicated and I found a way to create that card that works well, so I wanted to share my process in hopes of helping others! :)

I wanted to have a window in this card that would peek through to the ornament and sentiment on the inside of the card, AND would fit in seamlessly for the front of the card. I figured out how to do this in a way that made it easiest to mass produce, and I made ten total! I used Paper Source A2 Superfine White folded cards for this project.

I started by laying out my scene with the clear stamps on the card front, to determine where I would want my ornament window. I wanted to ensure that the branch extended off the page, and that the ornament would be close enough to the branch that when I added the 'string' it wouldn't hang down too low. Once I determined the appropriate placement for the ornament, I setup the cling stamp on my MISTI tool and stamped the image of the ornament on the card front for all ten cards, using Memento Tuxedo Black Ink. I left the ornament outline stamp in place on the MISTI during the next step, so I could use it again and ensure identical placement of the ornament on the inside of my card after the next step of die-cutting.

My next step was to use the coordinating die to cut out the ornament from the card front to create my window. The image on the left shows the way I ran the card through my evolution die cut tool - it's very important to do this with the card completely open, otherwise you'll end up with a window that goes through the WHOLE card! :) These die-cut ornaments will be used later as gift tags, so I set them aside for now!

Once I'd cut out my windows, I brought the cards back to my MISTI tool, and with them folded shut, I stamped the ornament again. The magnets on the MISTI held the card shut, which ensured that my ornament was stamped through the window perfectly. Once all ten cards were stamped with the ornament on the inside of the card following this process, I left the 10th card in place. I used the window of this card to position and stamp the back side of my gift tags with the ornament outline stamp, which allowed me to have a double-sided gift tag. SO EASY!! You can see the placement of my ornament gift tag in the window in the image on the right. Because the center of the ornament outline stamp is empty, I was able to use the MISTI magnet to hold the ornament in place.

Next, I finished the scene on the front of the card using the MISTI tool once again for perfect placement. With the card still shut on the MISTI tool, I stamped the green needles stamp first and heat-embossed them with clear embossing powder to give them dimension. After completing all ten, I moved on to the brown branch, which I didn't want to heat emboss since I wanted the needles to stand out more. Again, I repeated this process with all ten cards before moving on to my next step.

With the card still shut, I stamped the oh joy sentiment through the window onto the ornament, using the Hero Arts neon ombre ink pad. I decided to go with the vibrant pink-to-purple ombre, as it really popped with the rest of the card!

My last step for the card was to stamp on the string that hangs the ornament from the tree. The Mama Elephant set comes with a solid line string, but I wanted something slightly longer and with a bit more whimsy, so I used the dotted line stamp from Lawn Fawn's Deck the Halls set. Because this dotted line was longer than the length I needed, I opened up the card on my MISTI tool once again for this final step, so that the extra length of the string would stamp on the paper in the MISTI tool and not on the ornament inside my card. You can see the setup for this on the left.

Now that my cards were complete, I decided to add some of the other Twinkle Town elements to one side of each of my gift tags. Keeping one card in the MISTI tool, I was able to do the same window placement trick for this stamping to ensure proper placement. I used the ombre ink pad again for the oh joy sentiment on some of the tags, and used another Hero Arts ombre pad in blue for the NYC scene inside a few of the other tags, and plan to use these tags together for some gifts for my husband and our two close friends who LOVE NYC and travel there often. :) On the remaining tags, I stamped the little town from the set with the same green from the pine needles, and will use these on another set of gifts for my family.



Below, you can see the finished card in both a propped open fashion and completely shut, to illustrate the window effect.




I know this was a long post, but the process for making this card took less time than it seems! I loved that it ended with me having some ready-made gift tags, too, with just a few simple extra steps! The MISTI is my absolute FAVORITE tool right now, and I'm so happy with the perfect placement help, and with it's uses for windows and layered stamps like Mama Elephant's Twinkle Towns!

8 Days of Holiday Cards! - Day 3: Ombre Lights!

Welcome back! For day 3 of my 8 Days of Holiday Cards series, I'm sharing two different techniques for stamping ombre images.

I learned the first technique from the incomparable Jennifer McGuire. I find that I learn so much from her video tutorials, and am always impressed with her super crisp, clean, and professional finished products!

For both cards, I used the Reverse Confetti Merry & Bright stamp set. For the first card, I cut a 3.75x5.5 inch panel from Paper Source Superfine White coverweight paper for the main image, and cut and scored a piece of Paper Source Black Coverweight paper. I love Paper Source's papers, but sometimes want to have a vertical fold card, so I make my own by cutting an 8.5x11 inch sheet in half lengthwise, making a 4.25x11 inch sheet, and then scoring at the 5.5 inch halfway point for the fold. I then got to stamping with my MISTI tool - seriously, the BEST crafting purchase I've ever made!

For this first card, I found three die inks that coordinate well together (My red die ink came in a set with stamp carving tools from Yellow Owl Workshop, the blue die ink is the Lawn Fawn Fish Tank ink pad, and the green is the Hero Arts Neon Green ink pad)., and found my ColorBox Frost White Pigment Ink as well. I positioned my clear stamps on the MISTI tool lid, and positioned the paper where I wanted it, securing it with the MISTI magnets, and then started my stamping!

To create the ombre effect, start by stamping the entire image with your one color. Then, ink up just a portion of the stamp with that same color (in this case, I inked up a little more than the tip at a diagonal of each light bulbs). Before stamping it again, I took a paper towel and lightly tapped/rubbed it along the diagonal line made from the ink on the stamp, in order to make less of a harsh line when it is stamped again. Once you have the ink where you want it, you then stamp again in exactly the same spot. This is where the MISTI is a life safer! By keeping the stamps and paper in position, you get a perfect image each time! :) You can repeat this process multiple times to get the desired look you're wanting to achieve. Essentially, every time you add more ink to the stamp, it darkens that part of your final product, creating that ombre effect.

Set these panels aside to dry (in my case, I sped up that process using my heat tool to help the ink dry faster). Once dry, reposition the panel on the MISTI again. This time, ink up the opposite side of your stamp (in this case, the larger part of the lightbulbs) with the white pigment ink, and use the paper towel to soften the edge again. Then, stamp it on top of your original image, and repeat if necessary. This helps lighten the area opposite your darkened area from the previous stamping, finishing the ombre effect.

After the lightbulbs had dried, I used VersaMark Ink to stamp the lightbulb base, and embossed them with silver embossing powder. I finished the card off by adhering the panel to the card base with my tape runner (and now that I'm looking at them again, am debating adding in strings to the top of the bulbs to make them look like they're hanging down, and not floating...).

For my second card, I used three ombre ink pads from Hero Arts, which made the process go much more quickly. :) These were stamped directly onto the A2 Paper Source Superfine White folded card, which also reduced the additional steps of making my own folded card and panel. I also drew in a string to connect the three bulbs so they look like a string of lights. Both processes ended up making fun results, and I appreciate that I've learned how to make an ombre effect without using ombre ink pads.

I'll be back again tomorrow with another holiday card. :)

Fall Leaves Pop-Up Thank You Cards

So at my side hustle at Paper Source Austin, I have the fantastic opportunity to teach crafting workshops, thus learning fun crafting techniques in the process. This pairs my passion of art and creativity with my passion for teaching and learning - thus, the perfect side gig for me! :)

At our recent Fall Cards Workshop, we created some beautiful and fun pop-up cards using the our pre-cut Small Paper Leaves packs. One card featured a pennant-style banner that read "FALL" with some leaves hanging from either end. The other had three of the maple leaves attached together and popping up when the card is opened.  I loved both so much, and wanted to use the maple leaf idea in some 4-bar Wedding Shower thank you cards.

A video posted by Paper Source Austin (@papersourceaustin) on Sep 10, 2015 at 4:21pm PDT

I started by masking a border on the front of the cards with masking tape, then using distress inks with water to create my 'watercolor' effect, simply painting them on with a wide brush. I did all three cards simultaneously and had them side-by-side, which made it easy to drag the ink across the cards and masking tape between them, which allowed me to have very similar finishes. The brush I was using had firm bristles, which created a fun bit of splattering on the cards as the bristles brushed over the masking tape, so that added more fun dimension. I heat set these briefly, then let them completely air drive overnight before embossing the beautiful scripted Thank You Handwritten rubber stamp with versamark ink and Gold Superfine Detail Embossing Powder.

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While the ink was drying, I cut leaves using my Silhouette Cameo from Persimmon, Curry, and Papaya coverstock papers (although I'd recommend using text-weight papers instead - I just didn't have any handy!). You don't have to have a Cameo for this project, since Paper Source sells the pre-cut leaf packs in-store (which are text weight! Yay!)! I took one of each color, and determined the order in which I wanted the leaves on the inside of the card (in this case, I alternated the order so that each card had a different order). Then, I took the middle leaf and used a ruler and bone folder to create a score line down the middle of the leaf. I then took the leaf that would show on the left side of the card, and made one score line that extended diagonally on the RIGHT side of the leaf from one ridge of the leaf to the stem of the leaf, and another parallel to this one about a quarter inch beside it. I repeated this with the right leaf and mirrored the score lines so they'd be on the LEFT side of the leaf.

Once you crease these score lines, you end up with a leaf that kind of curls up over onto itself. I adhered the smaller portion of this leaf curling up over onto itself to the back of the middle leaf (they should match up perfectly), and did the same with the other side, so that all three were attached together. The end result is a grouping of three leaves glued together. I took this grouping and placed six foam squares (three on each of the outer leaves), as shown in the picture, without removing the covers so the adhesive wasn't yet exposed. To install, I opened the card and lined up the score line on the middle leaf with the card's fold, then removed the three foam square covers for the leaf that would be on the RIGHT side of the card, and adhered it to the inside panel. To adhere the other side, I removed the covers to expose the adhesive on the LEFT side leaf, and then I CLOSED THE CARD on top of the leaves instead of simply sticking the leaf to the left side of the card. This insures that the leaves and card will open simultaneously when you open the card.

See? SO SIMPLE! (Okay, maybe not so simple - but it's honestly not hard to learn once you've completed one card) While my simple write-up is possibly confusing and missing some potentially helpful pictures, I hope it was helpful! I'd much rather teach it to you in person - so come check out a workshop sometime! :)