Mixed Media Birthday Card

My dear friend Mary will be celebrating a birthday in October.  It will be a surprise to her to actually get a card for her birthday before her birthday.  The shock of that and the mixed media madness in the card may be too much for her to take.

The monthly challenge at Mixed Media Card challenge is Friend with the optional element of ribbon.

The card is just a little under a 6 inch square.  The first layer is brown card stock.  On top of that is a layer of fabric.  The fabric is leftovers from drapes from my Aunt's house.  It has the little flowers on it as you can see in the picture below.  I colored the fabric with a green gelato and wet the color (it was cream originally).  Stamped some brown leaves on it and then added some embossing paste/paint mixture randomly across the fabric.  It was then sewed to the brown card stock.

The focal point on the card is a piece of fabric.  I adhered the fabric to card stock with a lite wonder under product.  A layer of blue and brown card stock are the mats.  I stitched the fabric to the mats.  The bow (ribbon) is fabric.  Different elements were added to the fabric base of the card:  paper doily, couple pieces of brown lace, recycled brown paper bag piece (Panera if you need some) and the green threads in the corner are from tearing the fabric strip for the bow.  The focal point was pop dotted at an angle on the front of the card.  The happy birthday and friend are stickers from SRM Stickers.  They were adhered to a piece of patterned paper.  I added a strip of the paper to the fabric strip at the top.

Thanks so much for stopping by.  Everyone have a wonderful Friday and week end.

More Mixed Media Fun

Retirement is grand.  You actually get to create when you are not tired.  It makes the process so much more fun.  I also get to play along with challenges so I am a happy retired person.

Today's share is a picture of two cards (same design) but it shows how things can turn out a little bit different on each one when you are working with inks.  I actually kinda CASEd this design from my friend Peggy Biggs - a wonderful card maker.  As always, my cards always go down a different road.

I am entering the card in the monthly challenge - Mixed Media Card Challenge where the challenge is Butterfly and the option is Gold.

I am also entering it in the weekly challenge on the Wednesday Simon Says Stamp challenge where the challenge is to tie it up.  I tied a bow on each card with twine.

I am still making thank you cards for my retirement gifts.

I first started out spraying ink on a piece of acetate and adding water and then squelching it onto my watercolor paper.  I did this a couple times.  You can see how differently that always happens when making a background.  I then added the two pieces of tape on the card front.  I did have a plan in my head for what to do, steps and colors.  I stamped the little flowers randomly on the card front and then colored when with the ink.  I did paint splatters in pink ink and black chalkboard paint.  As you can see on the card on the right, I got some big splats.  Oh well, I was not going to scrap the card front.  Some additional texture was added with embossing paste.  I wish now I had done a different shape rather than dots to mix it up a little.

The butterfly is a Martha Stewart punch.  I punched it out of white card stock and covered it with VersaMark and gold embossing powder.  The sentiment was also gold embossed on more squelched colored watercolor paper.  (I use the smoother side when I plan to stamp on the paper)  I matted the front on black.  The butterfly and sentiment are pop dotted.

Thanks for stopping by today.  My neighbor girls is coming to spend the day with me, I wonder what kind of trouble we can get into.  She likes to play in my paper.

Mixed Media Thank You Card

Finally got a chance to get a better picture of this card.  Some fellow cardmakers were sent fabric Yo Yo's to create with.  It will be fun to see what everyone comes up with.

Of course, I am boring.  I made a card with a flower with a yo yo center.

I had the blue background already made.  I believe I just dipped the watercolor paper in distress inks.  I don't know which blue I used.  I used some green paint and stencil to add the dots to the background.  I added more texture with embossing paste through a stencil.  The black flower was cut with the Silhouette.  I cut 3 layers and glued them together to add a little dimension to the flower base.  Since I had fabric on the card, I wanted to make a fabric bow also.  This fabric is flannel.  After I laid the card out, I decided I needed to add some black into the background so used a new Prima Stamp.  A sticker sentiment from SRM Stickers finishes off the card.

I am going to enter this card in the currently monthly challenge at Mixed Media Card Challenge.   The challenge is blue.  I think there is enough blue in the background and the bow and flower have a shade of blue in it.

Today at 4:30 I started a new chapter in my life.  I retired.  I am excited that I will have some more time to create and explore some new areas of interest.

What Makes You Smile

Being creative has not been happening lately.  Work has overwhelmed me but the middle of July I retire and then hopefully I will be able to create at will.

I am combining two challenge for this card.  When I saw this quote on the paper from 7 Gypsies.  When I read the quote I instantly started to smile and had a flashback to a trip in the spring with a friend to the Florida Keys.  We had the conversation on the plane but how you sometimes laugh at the most inappropriate things or times.  Well, of course, at the airport, I had a battle with the escalator and yes when I finally made it to the top, we had to laugh.  So inappropriate but that flashback made me smile and laugh.  Guess what the challenge is on Our Creative Challenge - is What Makes You Smile.

The challenge on the Mixed Media Card Challenge blog is Collage with the optional element of frame.  The focal point of the card is in a frame and there are many elements which make it collage.

I started with a piece of white chipboard and covered it with crumpled up tissue paper adhered with gel medium.  Of course you don't see too much of that layer.  I colored the tissue paper with a gelato and just blended it with my fingers.  I layered a rectangle doily on top of the colored tissue paper.  I added a strip of patterned paper which I had distressed around the edges.  I colored a strip of canvas with the same gelato and then embossed it with silver embossing paste.

I added extra color to the image with a pink and silver gelato.  I then used a glitter pen to brush some glitter in various places.  I found a silk flower in my supplies and glued that to the center of the floral image to add more dimension.  The picture was matted with grey card stock which was distressed around the edges.  I wanted  to try a product that has been hanging out in my supplies for year - silver mica flakes.  I dabbed gel medium on the edge of the image and added the flakes (it was messy).  After it had dried, I then dabbed more gel medium over the top hoping it would stop the flakes for flaking off.  UGH.  I then added a button and some twine on the the image.

I took some grey polka dot crepe paper and kinda pleated it, scrunched it and placed it on the card so it would show on two different sides of the image.  The image was pop dotted at an angle on the front.  I took some of the silver embossing paste and just rubbed it on some parts of the doily.

Here are a couple close ups of different parts of the card.

A close up of the silver embossing paste on the pink colored canvas.

Here is a close up of the upper right corner of the card.  You can see the silver flakes around the image, the crumpled tissue paper and the silver colored doily.

This card was lots of fun to make.  I actually have another card I am working on.

Mixed Media Holiday Card

The "monthly Take the Challenge with Mou" on the Faber Castell Design Memory Blog is to make a gift for someone you are thankful for.  This is a card but to many of my friends - my cards made especially for them - is a gift they cherish.  I have several friends that bring them out each year for the holiday. I am so thankful for my friends - they have gotten me through some rough times and helped celebrate the good times.

This is approximately 5.5 inches square.  The design was done on heavy watercolor paper.  The paper has a layer of Gesso on it.  I then took a Gelato and created the blue color for the sky.  I used a darker color to add some shadows in the blue.  I took a stencil and made white dots on the blue with the white Big Pen.  It adds a very subtle depth to the blue.  I stamped some snowflakes in a gray ink or was it grey ink.  The snowman and sentiment are from Cosmo Cricket.  The sentiment was colored with green acrylic paint which was watered down.  The hills of snow started as fabric.  I was lucky enough to find the Glass Bead Glitter Gel and brushed a coating of that on top of my hills.  There is also a light layer on the snowman.  It sparkles.  It is beautiful.  I added some shadows to the hill edges with a grey or gray Gelato.  I had some rub ons and added them randomly to the background and to the snowman. I also splattered some metallic silver paint on the background.

To finish the card, I pop dotted the snowman and sentiment.  I tied a red gingham bow to add balance to the card.  Three small red pearls were added to the snowflakes to add another touch of red to the card.

I am also entering the card in the Mixed Media Card Challenge.  The challenge is a Christmas card.

  Well it was fun getting messy and I have one more Christmas card made.

Thanks for stopping by.

Mixed Media Card

Every month the Faber Castell blog Design Memory Craft has a challenge.  Sometimes I am able to play along.  This challenge was an interesting one. Make something in 30 minutes - mixed media in 30 minutes - WHAT - you got to be kidding - but it kept going around and around and around in my head.  Hopefully the 30 minutes does not include my thinking - because we would already be at several hours.

I have been making  a few fall cards and really enjoying myself so wanted to make a fall card.  I keep a container with all my experiments of backgrounds, leftover pieces so I may be able to use them in the future.  I looked through the container and found this piece of watercolor paper which I had colored with gelatos and did not make anything out of it.  I looked at all my tree stamps and came up with an idea.  I have some dies that have a stitched edge on them so I cut my background.  I heat embossed the tree.  I did it on purpose so that it looks like the tree is going off the edge.  I used a piece of leftover back ground to stamp my sentiment.  My layout is very simple.  The image is pop dotted on the card front.  After I was done, I thought it needed to look like fall so I got out some bottles of acrylic paint and a toothpick and made little leaves.  The tree stamp is from Penny Black and the sentiment is from Hero Arts.

This month on the Mixed Media Card Challenge Blog it is to make an Autumn Colored card with the optional add on of metal or leaves.  Hopefully abstract dots of acrylic paint count as my leaves.  (Insert grin here).

I am also going to enter it into the monthly challenge on the Operation Write Home Card Blog where the challenge that is sponsored by Our Daily Bread Designs.  They will pay shipping costs for at least two boxes - so we need to get 50 entries into this contest.

I like how the card turned out - once I had it thought out it was a quick card to make.  I may even make some more like it.  Of course, now I will have to make backgrounds.

Enjoy your Sunday.  The cleaning bug bit me yesterday - but did I clean something that showed - no but I did get rid of bunch of stuff.  I do need to get groceries today.

Mixed Media Birthday Card

This month the challenge on the Mixed Media Card Challenge blog is to make a summer card and if you wish add some burlap.

I had been playing with acrylic paints in a old book and had added embossing paste through a stencil.  I was going to do a journal - well - that did not last long - but I had this great page of mixed media paper I had made and I did not want to throw it away.  Very slowly it has made it into a couple cards.  I think the colors scream "Summer" so thought I would use it for this challenge.  It also screams "Happy".  (See paper does talk to me).  If I remember correctly, it is two pages of the book glued together with gel medium.  I add a layer of gesso on each side and then go to town with whatever mediums I want to use.  This time it was bottles of acrylic paint (inexpensive so you can lots of different colors).  Are you ready - here it is.

It is a larger card but it is a birthday card for a very good friend.  She deserves a special birthday card.  I stamped the butterfly in white embossing powder on another sheet of paper I had made.  It was just teal and it stood out too much so I dabbled different colors of acrylic paint over it to bring in the hues of the background paper.  The sentiment was white embossed on vellum (I need to find some heavier clear vellum).  After the card was assembled, I thought it needed some more white to tie in the white mat and embossing.  I used my Big Pen to dab white circled diagonally across the card.  Some pearls and enamel dots were added to the card.  The sentiment and butterfly are from Hero Arts.

Since the paper was a "work of art" I decided to mat it like an art piece.  I used a small mat of a dark teal, added a larger mat of white and then another shade of teal. Birthday card done and I am so happy with it.  It is such great therapy to get messy.

I am also entering this in the current challenge on the Monday Simon Says challenge blog.  The current challenge is "Anything Goes".

Thanks for stopping by.  Now that I have had my therapy I must accomplish something.  I need to go to the post office, get some food and I was thinking of running to Janesville but I did say I was going to hibernate.

Anything Goes Paper Smooches

Today I am playing along with the Paper Smooches Spark Challenge.  This week it is Anything Goes.

This was also supposed to be for another challenge - a new Tag challenge - but when I read the rules again it said it had to be CAS.  My tags aren't CAS so I am not entering them in that challenge but the color inspiration and black accents come from that challenge.  I love the brightness of the tags.

The tags were cut out of watercolor paper with a Paper Smooches tag die.  I then colored the tags with distress paints and also some gelatos to intensify some of the colors.  I used the dies from Denim and Daisies to cut out some flowers from watercolor paper.  I also used the center of one of the flowers to stencil the white dots on my tag with gesso.  I used the negatives of some of the flowers and used them with embossing paste which I colored with the distress paints.  I love to do mixed media.  I used sentiments from three different sets for my cards.  Obviously, you can see, I made cards out of my tags.

I had my 45th class reunion this last week end.  I found out one classmate is battling cancer.  The "thinking of you card" is for her.  I think these bright colors will cheer her.  The other card is for the classmate that has been involved in the planning of every reunion our class has had.  It is a mini card.

I am also going to enter the card in the Mixed Media Card Challenge - a new challenge blog - this is my second entry.  The first theme is Nature.

Everyone have a great hump day.  Getting ready to go on vacation so need to stop making cards and pack my suitcase.  Trying to get some things together - I am visiting a card making friend so we need to have something to do.

Mixed Media Retirement Card

I found a new challenge site that does a monthly challenge and it has to do with Mixed Media.  I love to play with Mixed Media.  I have made canvases, ornaments and cards.  I make mostly cards so The Mixed Media Card Challenge blog was made for me.   The cue word for the challenge is nature.

I needed a retirement card for someone on campus who is retiring to start a new adventure with a company in Florida.  I wanted to wish her well and thank her.  I returned to school in my 40's to finish my degree. Chris was the instructor for the two main classes in my major.  She made me stretch my abilities as a student. I am sure she regretted that several times when she had to read the papers I had to write for each class. One paper was 50 pages long.

My card has a background made with distress inks on watercolor.  I swiped the inks on my craft sheet and added water to them and then dunked my paper in the ink/water mixture.  The green was a little muddy so I used my green gelato and added it to the green sections to brighten the color.  The flower stamp is from Hero Arts.  They were colored with a variety of mediums.  Watercolor pencils and distress inks.  I may still add some glitter to the flowers.  It was supposed to be a flower on a stem but I did not like that so please do not look under the flowers.  The top flower is pop dotted for dimension.  I used embossing paste and a Hero Arts stencil to add the colored dots.  I put the embossing paste on a piece of wax paper and then dabbed some distress paints next to it to color the white embossing paste.  I didn't want the dots to jump off the page; I wanted them to blend more with the background.  I think I achieved the right color.  The embossing paste dots made me like the card.  I just new stuff in the mail yesterday and this banner die and sentiment from Simon Says perfectly finished the card.  It is also pop dotted.  The pearls and enamel dots were added around the card to put something in the empty spaces.

I hope you enjoy my mixed media retirement card.  Thanks for the great challenge.