Happy Halloween!

Today I am going to share three different cards with you. The first one was sent to me by my friend, Peggy. Halloween is her favorite holiday, which is evident from the card she sent - it's a masterpiece!

Here is what I saw when I opened the envelope:

As if the rhinestone eyepatch and the printed ribbon weren't enough, I opened the card to find this!

I know! I couldn't breathe for about three seconds after I opened it! A POP UP CARD WITH A HAUNTED HOUSE? Is she kidding me? And the DOOR OPENS! This is truly magical to me. Not to mention the details - the ghosts coming out of the roof, the leaves around the house, the shutters on the windows...Here is a side view:

Window boxes? A door knob? A bat in the attic? Here is an aerial view of the "property":

Notice the cute little witch feet sticking out from under the house? Just like the Wizard of Oz!!

{sigh!}

She told me that she made this with the Sizzix Big House die in case you are interested. ;)

Naturally, after receiving this it took me a long while to get through my own Halloween cards. I was feeling pretty inadequate. I totally lost my mojo but with the help of a button explosion, I think I ended up doing okay for myself with a CAS card for the holiday:

This image is by Karen Stolper at American Arts Stamps. This was my first attempt trying to color an image with glitter--I have seen samples in local stores and I have always admired how pretty they are. It was fairly easy, but I think next time a more precise glue pen might be in order. I used a Martha Stewart pen and it was kinda hard to get glue out of the pen at times. All the paper here is by SU! and the buttons are just clear buttons that I purchased in bulk. The white is actually the confetti white card stock. I love that paper! Here is a close up of the glitter action:

Lastly, here is a sample of a more traditional Halloween card that I made with stamps from SU! This one has more embossing all over with Versa Mark and black inks:

That's all for today! Have a great Halloween weekend, everybody!

Cheerful Snowman

Here's another holiday card made with the Holiday Button Bits set from PTI. You may also notice the Giga Guide lines in the background, stamped in Versa Mark on the red paper--this is a takeoff of a card I saw on Nichole Heady's blog.  The paper is all from SU! --the red here is real red. The button is from Jo-Ann fabrics, and the ribbon is readily available at most craft stores, finished off with a black brad. The hardest part of this card is cutting out the snowman face. The white card is attached with some foam tape to give it a raised look. The next time I make one of these I think I should try some glitter. ;)

Cupcakes are yummy

Here's a birthday card whose template can be used over and over again for other themes. I used the set called Sign Language from Papertrey Ink, as well and their Polka Dot Basics II. The colors are all by SU!: old olive, and red, orange and yellow from the bold brights collection. The string is from my collection of thread for cross stitching. Each square was punched out with a 3/4" paper punch and stuck to the card with double-sided tape. Very easy! Sorry for the photo quality on this one, I guess I am still learning how to use my camera. Have a great day!

Boo!

This is my Teddy! And he is ready for Halloween! If this isn't inspiration to get cracka-lackin' on my Halloween cards, then what is? 

Let it snow

So it snowed here today in the Boston area. I can't say I am happy about it, but this card goes with the theme. For now I will pretend it's December or January.

This is a card style that I remember from a blog last year. Isn't it funny how some things just stay stuck in your brain like that? It's a slider card and it is fairly simple to make. The stamp set is Snowfall Additions from Papertrey Ink and the paper is all from Stampin Up. I used Color Box white and chalky brown inks on this project. The snowflake in the center blue square is the only one that was embossed, finished off with a rhinestone. And with the way the ribbon tie is designed, the inner card cannot be detached from the envelope. If you'd like more detail on how to cut the paper, etc. please send me an email anytime.

Oh Christmas Tree

Here's a closeup of the detail on a lovely Christmas card. I made some of these the other night after my mom recalled this same card I made for her last year.

Given the size of the tree, it might be more ideal to make this on a notecard sized card; I was out of the smaller envelopes so this is 4.25" x 5.5".

This is another example of how to use punches creatively. All it takes is a scallop punch and some glue. I added the red rhinestones and the tiny satin bow and the card was pretty much done. The white carstock has dots embossed in it--I bought the paper this way. The tree trunk is made of paper with the consistency of cork. I received it from a friend and I am not sure where to buy more, so if anyone has any ideas I would love to know.

Papertrey Ink release party tonight

Here is a card that I made with one of PTI's releases from last month--it's similar to one of the examples on the PTI website. The stamp set is called Peaceful Poinsettia. I ran the spring moss cardstock through the Cuttlebug to make the embossed dots, and the image is stamped in white and spring moss inks. The ribbon is ripe avocado satin dot ribbon. To finish it all off, I put three rhinestones in the center of each poinsettia. I have previewed some of this month's new stuff on Nichole Heady's blog and it all goes on sale tonight at midnight. I hope that I can stay up or at least get up early enough to order a couple things before they sell out! I just love all their stuff so much.

Season of Joy

Here is my Christmas card from last year. I have been making tons for this year already, but the weather hasn't been ideal for photographing cards. If this card looks familiar to you, it's because I kinda/sorta cased it from the back of last year's winter SU catalog.

The SU stamp set is called Season of Joy. I ran the chocolate chip cardstock through the Cuttlebug to emboss the snowflakes in the background, and then I used all of last year's In Colors to color the image. I used the blender pens to mark the rubber with ink and then stamped onto white cardstock, and then I marked the surface up with Versamark and embossing glitter--this created the shimmery glaze over the image. I finished it all off with the green matt and pink scalloped edge. Lastly, the clip with the twine bow was the finishing piece!

Those clips were not exactly the most economical choice since I make about 100 cards each year. I didn't realize that they'd also cost me extra postage as well. So...I have thought more carefully about my cards this year and have realized that I can make something I am just as happy with for a lot less money...and who doesn't want that!

Another time saver is running things through the printer. I finally broke down last year and bought a printer so I could print all my envelopes/addresses. I also printed my greeting on white cardstock and mounted those inside the brown card. Much easier after embossing all those cards!

By the way, if you are ever tired of the fonts on your computer, you can download really awesome FREE fonts at dafont.com....they even have a font that stripes each letter like a candy cane if you are interested! It's one of my favorite websites.

Believe in a cure

Since I actually got some hits on this blog (thanks to the wonderful people at Splitcoast), I thought I might take a moment to share something a little more personal. I work in cancer research on the math-y side of things, so I won't bore you with those details now, but I work on lung cancer and leukemia. I made this card for a friend I met through my lung cancer advocacy work. I chose white flowers (from SU!) for this card because the "color" for lung cancer is white/clear. You might not know this, but 20% of newly diagnosed lung cancer is in people who have never smoked. I have met several young women in their 20s who are lung cancer survivors. And more people die from lung cancer than from breast, colon, and prostate cancer combined. Really, anyone is at risk for this disease. Sorry for the PSA, but if it helps just one person become aware of this reality and get screened early, then this was worth it. You can get more information about lung cancer and the work I do from the National Lung Cancer Partnership (http://www.nationallungcancerpartnership.org/), or you can send me an email!

I love the patterned paper on this card, but I have to be honest and tell you that I have no idea where I got it. I have a tendency to pick paper up randomly at shops all over the place. The green paper looks like it might be from SU!. The wire wording was on clearance at Michael's one day, and I trimmed the back out with navy/dark blue cardstock.

Pirate this!

Here is another card I made with very few stamps; it's a birthday card for my cousin's son. Mostly, I used paper punches and scissors, the only think that required an ink pad was the "Ahoy" at the top of the page! I chalked the little guy's face to give him some pep in his step and we were good to go. The brown thing in the background is supposed to be a ship; perhaps I could have done a better job since my husband asked if it was a bidet.

It's a girl!

My friend had her baby girl this week, so I thought it would be fun to share a photo of a card I made for her.

This card was made using the stamp set called Bundled in Love from Stampin' Up. I stamped the hippo image in rich razzleberry on plaid paper and cut her out. Then I added the bow made with thin satin ribbon. The pink note card is from A Muse, and I used my corner-rounder to round the corners of it and the lilac paper, which was embossed using my Cuttlebug. I finished it off with some more white ribbon and the pink button from SU!. My friend has a whole set of these to announce her baby girl's arrival.

Under construction

Hi! I'm Suzanne and I have been paper-crafting for about four years. I mostly make cards, and the goal of this blog is for me to share my work with you!