Scrapbook Boutique ~ September 2015 Challenge

Thinking of You

Finally, I get a chance to play along again with my favourite ladies at Scrapbook Boutique!  The September Challenge at SBB is very delicate and feminine, which can be a bit of a stretch for me!!

There's a lot of gorgeous lacy detail, along with the subtle pink through to deep musky colours.  I'll be honest ~ it took me a while to think of how I wanted to tackle this one, but I'm pretty happy with how my card turned out!

I used the "Lovely Lace" Embossing Folder from Stampin' Up!, but not for a dry embossing technique.  Instead, I used White Craft Ink from SU! to ink up the raised side of the embossing folder and I stamped that onto my white cardstock.  I then heat embossed with vanilla embossing powder.  I love using my tools in a way different to their original intention!!

Next, I used my Prismacolour pencils to colour in the embossed images (I did this whilst watching the Brownlow Medal Count on TV on Monday night!)  Some of the colouring has been blended out with Zest-it, whilst other areas I have left the wax-bloom in place for a different texture and look.

My final part was to mat the card on a darker colour paper onto my cardbase and to create a sentiment piece to pop up on the front.  Overall, I'm very happy with this card!  I hope you like it!

Thanks for visiting!
Deb.xx

A few more cards...

I've had lots of cards on the go recently:

• making 26 cards for two swaps (a 20-card swap and a 6-card swap; not related to each other at all, so may as well use a design I'm happy with!);
• finishing off some Butterfly Cards for DEBRA; and
• another special birthday card for a special boy.

Christmas Card for swap(s)

First off, I'd like to give credit for the overall design of this card:  Therese Calvird has a beautiful wedding card featuring a bow on the cover of this month's Cardmaking, Stamping & Papercraft.  Where her design uses a bride and a panel of embossing, mine has a tree and patterned paper.  Thanks as always for your inspiration Therese!

There's quite a bit of work in this one as each of the trees has been paper-pieced.  So each one has been (partially) stamped out three times and fussy cut out.  The entire image was also stamped on the card base as a reference point for the paper-piecing, and then a piece of patterned paper added to the right hand side to give the card some interest.  Stamp a sentiment, add some sequins, and there you have it!!  Pretty easy card x26 to cover two swaps.

(However, as I was stamping and cutting that many, I decided to 'fill up' my green cardstock with as many trees as I could fit - that turned out to be 40!  So, I'm going to have 14 additional cards in this design to put towards other community endeavours...  More to come on this one... ;) )

More Butterfly Cards for DEBRA

I have come across a wonderful artist on Facebook, Toni Arthurs, and she has some amazing digital stamps.  As a 'thank you' for joining the group on Facebook, she has released a free digital stamp, and these cards are the result of this:

Given that the central theme of the digi is a beautiful butterfly, I knew I'd make these into cards for DEBRA.  The colouring has been done with Copics, with highlights in Prismacolour pencils.  I have also used Crystal Effects on the little 'frost dots' to give some texture and dimension.  The script die 'thanks' is by Clearly Besotted.

And now, another special card for a special boy

I have totally CASE'd this little robot dude from another card on Pinterest.  I've used an assortment of Stampin' Up! punches to make him, and used a score board and stylus to create the backing to make it look 'robotic'.  I've rubbed some metallic rub over the embossed scoring so it stands out a bit better.

This card is for a young man who is turning 9 on Monday.  Wishing Joshua a very happy day!

I've had to clear through this large assortment of cards on-the-go so that I can get into some challenges for the end of the month ~ watch out!  My blog is going to go 'post~al'!! :D

Thanks for visiting!

Deb.xx

Special Cards for Special People

18 Birthday Wishes and a Tardis...

I have two special cards to share today...  The first is for a young man who is turning 18.  Without knowing much about him, I decided to play it safe and make a timeless sort of card.  This has totally been "CASE'd" from Pinterest here:

My second card (which I started first...) is for a young man who is turning 9.  He loves Dr Who and so I wanted to be able to make him a special card.  My problem though, is I know absolutely nothing about Dr Who!!  I didn't even know what a 'Tardis' was/is...  So I needed help with this and once again, I have "CASE'd" this design from an image posted on DeviantArt:

Very special birthday wishes to both of these wonderful young men!
Cheers!
Deb.xx

A 'special order' card

Lego Card for Connor

Several months ago, I was asked by one of our lovely office ladies at school if I would make a 6th Birthday Card for her son Connor.  She had seen one of my earlier samples of a Lego card and wanted the same for her son.

Well, as happy as I was with my first attempt at a Lego Card, I knew I could make something even better...

I am rapt with how this turned out, and Kerry loves it too.  Happy 6th Birthday to Connor for tomorrow!!!

Deb.xx

Butterfly Cards for DEBRA

It feels very strange for me to put "DEBRA" in my title, or in fact in any written form anywhere ~ you see, that is my name on my birth certificate, driver's licence, medical records etc.  However, I'm only ever known as "Deb", and whenever someone (usually my mother) cracks out a "Debra!", I'm usually in trouble!!!

Having said that, I'm sure I can overcome a bit of discomfort for the cause behind the acronym DEBRA, being the Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa Research Association.  Epidermolysis Bullosa is a rare disease whereby the skin blisters and peels at the slightest touch. Living with EB has been likened to living with third degree burns. It is very painful, and sufferers must be bandaged every day with dressings to protect and medicate their wounds. Children who have this disease are often called 'butterfly children' because their skin is as fragile as a butterfly's wings.

I have recently begun making cards to send to DEBRA Australia. This is a not-for-profit, volunteer-based organisation that does not receive any direct Government funding. They use butterfly cards to thank sponsors and to send to the families of children affected by (EB).

Here are my first contributions

Butterfly Die is from Stampin' Up! ~ Butterflies Thinlits

Butterfly die is from Nini's Things ~ Butterfly Collection

Using one sheet each of two separate designs from the Stampin' Up! "Irresistibly Yours Specialty DSP", I sponged Distress Ink over the paper, cut the butterfly dies out of black cardstock, and also put Lutradur Medium (that had been tinted with Dylusions Spray Ink) behind the wings to show through the negative space and to capture the delicacy of the wings.  I was able to get six card-bases out of each sheet of DSP.  So that's 12 generic cards that are ready to be sent off.  I may very well do this again over the next couple of days so I can send a bigger batch of cards...

Deb.xx

Pixels and Paper Challenge Blog - Well Hello September!

Boone Hall Butterfly Enclosure

It is with much excitement and pride that I put this post together today!  Whilst my blog has been quiet of late, I certainly haven't been - I've been making many cards for charities for the past couple of months (as well as doing some part time volunteer work) which has taken me away from the blogisphere.  However, when I saw the wonderful inspiration photo over at the Pixels and Paper Challenge Blog, I felt that I simply had to join in!

Aren't those colours glorious?!!  I had the seed of an idea forming as soon as I saw this photo, and I knew my layout page was going to be more about the creative side of making my background, rather than the photos (not normally how I create a page, but hopefully for this one you will understand why when you see the background...)

I have replicated the field of tulips on my background using the faux silk technique.  I used my 'Lotus Blossom' stamp set from Stampin' Up! which is a layered stamp.  I also used a combination of ink colours from Stampin' Up and Hero Arts Shadow Inks.  Starting with a plain white 12x12 sheet of cardstock, I put a piece of white tissue paper over it and taped it into place.  I then set about randomly stamping the lotus blossom image with the different colours to show variegation of the flowers.  I stamped onto the dull side of the tissue paper, allowing the ink to bleed through to the white base.  I then used two different green inks to stamp the two layered stem images from the stamp set randomly to fill in the blank areas.

I then removed the tissue paper and set it aside to dry out.  I sponged some the green ink into the blank areas around the flowers on the white cardstock that had bled through the tissue paper in the stamping process.  This was to add some depth to the green behind the tissue paper.

Once the tissue paper had dried out, I gently scrunched it into a ball, rolling it around to create creases.  I then carefully opened up the sheet again, being careful not to smooth out the creases I'd just created!  I used a gluestick on the cardstock across the entire area of the tulip field, and then carefully aligned the scrunched tissue paper over the glue and patted it into place, making sure I still had plenty of creases for the faux silk texture.

Then there's more sponging of green ink around the flower images and across the top of the page.  I randomly stamped images from the 'Lovely as a Tree' stamp set by Stampin' Up! across the top, beyond my flower field.  I then sealed the entire page with Crystal Effects.  As my Crystal Effects were drying, I had accidentally left a wet wipe near the top of my page.  Well, actually more likely it was on the page (d'oh!)  Anyway, the resultant "water effect" was not what I had in mind (!) and so I tore away that part of the page and used one of my butterfly photos to fill the gap - clever, huh?!!

 

Then I just really set about creating the title, matting and placing the photos on the page and tried to make them stand out from the background a bit (with white doodling and the use of string and white-embossed chipboard butterflies (from Dusty Attic)).  Truthfully though, I'm really just into the background of this layout!  I know that the photos are more than a bit lost on the page, but I'm okay with that!!!


I hope you like my page - I had a blast making it!!!




Deb.xx