Christmas Cards 2010

Now that my cards have been sent out awhile ago, I can finally post what I did for this year's design, hopefully without ruining the surprise for the recipients.

First, I knew I wanted to use my own drawing of CranBeary bear (one of my digistamps over at my DigiDrawn site) as the focal image. Next I found my Sizzix Round Tag die and ran it through my Cuttlebug. When I looked at it closer, I realized it bore a good resemblance to a Christmas ornament, so I coloured it in that way, attached a real ornament hanger and hooked it over CranBeary's candy cane.

The paper used for the snowflake background is "Christmas Magic - Silver Snow" by Fancy Pants Design. A Martha Stewart snowflake punch was run along the bottom of the cardfront, and another Sizzix Scribbles Swirls die was used to punch out the green swirls, matching the cardstock for the background mat.

The longest part of the process was colouring in over 30 CranBearys in Copic markers and cutting them all out!

At least this year, I smartly chose an image that is mostly white!

Happy Holidays!

Yikes!

Oh my! I have been negligent around here, haven't I? It's not that I haven't been busy; between travelling to Dallas and then Minneapolis, creating images for my DigiDrawn stamps site and getting ready for Christmas (I am so NOT prepared!) I haven't posted any of my creations since October!

So, be warned; there are quite a few here to make up for my oversight:

1) Here is a simple card I made for a woman at work who lost her husband. I tried a new technique with this one; placing an oval wooden picture frame inside my Cuttlebug to get the embossing only around the outside of the oval:

2) Another co-worker asked me for a favour - she wanted to give her physician and his wife a gift for their new baby daughter, and wanted one of my cards to accompany it! So I made this for her, using my Fuzzy Bunny digistamp:

3) This weekend I SHOULD have been finishing my Christmas cards. Instead, I had to do five cards for all the December birthdays at the office! Whew! Here they are...

Now I really MUST finish my Christmas cards!!! Yikes indeed!

Anniversary Card

 

My parents will be celebrating their 62nd! Anniversary this weekend. Here's a card I made and have already given them, using another sweet Maggie!

I inked up Tilda with Vintage Roses for the very first time, since my Mom really loves Magnolias too and I used my Dad's favorite colour, teal to colour her in. I LOVE this TPC Studio Ancestral Teal Brocade paper and used matching Bazzil cardstock for three mats which were layered and popped up on foam dimensionals. I used Chalk Ink to finish off the edges of the papers, including the scallop-cut and embossed image using my Spellbinders die.

Wild Orchid Crafts roses were left neutral, and so I matched Tilda's roses to those too. I only had a silver heart charm, so I spray painted it gold and tied it to some sheer ribbon.

Copic colours used:

Tilda's skin: E0000, E000, E00
Tilda's hair: Y11, Y28
Ribbon: Y28
Dress, socks and headband: BG000, BG45, BG49
Roses: W1, W3, G24, G28

I really love the simple yet elegant way this turned out. They did too!

Happy Halloween

I wanted to draw a Halloween image that wasn't scary or too cutsie... so I came up with this litte bat to celebrate my favorite season of the year.  (Click to biggify)

I coloured my new digistamp with Copics: N3, N4, N5, N6 and N9. The neutral greys give a greater ability to shade than simply colouring this bat in with flat black. The other colours used on it were R30, R32, R35, Y32, Y35 and Y38.

The paper and ribbon is from my stash. I thought the card needed some bling, so I looked and looked and to my disappointment, I couldn't find any Halloween charms around. So I had two choices: either hop in the car and head out to Michael's to see what they had, or to make my own.

When I found an old collection of silver studs, I knew I could make my own little spider charm! I simply added three staples for legs, bent them, added some silvery thread, glue and bent the back claws over it all to hold it in place. Viola! A spider to complete the card:

If you'd like this image for your own spooky cards, you can find him over at my DigiDrawn stamp site!

Pumpkin Patch Tilda

I've been longing for the cooler days and nights of autumn... my favorite time of the year can't come soon enough!

"Patch Tilda" is now "Pumpkin Patch Tilda"! I drew the six pumpkins, coloured them with Copics and popped them up on foam dimensionals, adding Tilda with ScorTape so she is safely resting on one of the large gourds.

I used Bazzil cardstock for the base and on top of that layered some Fancy Pants "My Family - Aunt" paper, inked with Stampin' Up's Mellow Moss and distressed with my Making Memories distress tool.

Before I distressed the patterned paper, I ran it through my printer to add the sentiment. A simple addition of green wired sheer ribbon, with a double bow to finish it off.

The inside of the card was the same patterned paper, just the second side... the sentiment was cut with my Martha Stewart lace border punch and edged with the same Mellow Moss ink.

If you'd like a pumpkin patch of your very own, check out my DigiDrawn site for the stamp! Or, if six pumpkins are too much for your needs, choose from two other versions: I've also drawn a set of three pumpkins, and an image of a single pumpkin with leaf!

Copics used:

Tilda:
Skin: E0000, E000, E00
Hair: E30, E33, E35, E37
Overalls: B91, B93, B95, B97, RV32, RV000, BV01, RV91, RV93, C0, C1, C2, C3
Shirt and Socks: Y11, Y15, Y17

Pumpkins:
Y000, Y32, Y35, Y38, YR21, YR23, YR24, G20, G21, G24, G29, W3, W5

Three New Cards

Whew! I took advantage of this long weekend to catch up on my cardmaking... since I have been busy drawing digital images, I haven't had time (until now) to actually MAKE some cards with some of my new stamps!

The first one combines both Magnolia's "Tilda is Baking" with my own Cookies stamp for a Just For You card that would compliment a home-baked gift:

Using some Karen Foster patterned paper, I simply sewed a zig-zag stitch in black thread around the edge, mounted it on black cardstock and added two pieces of brown ribbon from my stash. Tilda is also popped up on foam dimensionals for added interest.

Copics used:

Tilda's hair: E21, E25, E29
Tilda's skin: E000, E000, E00, E01
Tilda's clothes: G000, G00, G02, G05
Rolling pin: E11, E13, E15
Dough: E30, E31, E33
Cookies: E30, E31, E33, E34, E35, E37, E49, E57, E59


The second card is another Tilda; this time I placed "Lazy Summer Day Tilda" atop my new Cupcake stamp. The background is simply layered cardstock, edged with Memento Tuxedo Black ink to match the stamps. I used Cuttlebug's Happy Birthday embossing folder for the blue layer. Ribbon from my stash and three rosebuds from Wild Orchid Crafts were tucked behind a bow made with my Bow Easy tool.

Copics used:

Tilda's hair: Y11, E30, E39, E97, E99
Tilda's skin: E0000, E000, E00
Tilda's clothes: RV000, RV00, RV02
Cupcake: C0, C1, C2, C3, C5, E34, E35, E37 RV000, RV00, RV02, YR21


Lastly, here is a card I made using the Yo-Yos stamp I drew for a special request:

Again, I used Karen Foster paper, ribbon from my stash, and the sentiment was computer generated. The image was cut out using the Out of Bounds technique with an oval Spellbinders die.

Copics used:

C2, C3, C5, C6, C10, B21, B24, B29, R21, R24, R29

If you would like to use any of my original hand drawn images for your own cards, you can purchase them over at my DigiDrawn site HERE!

Apple Blossom Card

Here is a card I made with a new image I drew this weekend. It's from a photo of the apple-crab tree in our backyard.

I haven't done many flowers yet; but this was fun to create!

The card is made with textured cardstock, patterned paper from my stash (sorry, the name of the paper wasn't on the piece I had left!) and a ribbon that I coloured with my Copic # YR21 marker. A dragonfly charm was hung from thread also coloured with the Copic. The double bow was made using my Bow Easy tool.

The image was cut and embossed using my Cuttlebug and Spellbinder's die, the edges inked with my Stampin' Up "Barely Banana" ink and then added to the card using foam dimensionals to pop it up.

I left the sentiment off this one; I'll add whatever is appropriate once I decide to use it for a Thank You or maybe even a Condolences card.

Copics used:

Y000, YR21, YR23, G20, G21, G24, C0, C1, C2

Do you want to use this image for your own cards? Then please visit my DigiDrawn site to purchase it for only $3!

Wedding Card

The neighbor's daughter was married last weekend; so of course I had to make her a special card. It was one of the main reasons I wanted to get my Wild Orchid Crafts roses!

This criss-cross card was inspired by the vellum one done by Mina for the Just Magnolia Criss Cross card challenge. Since I only wanted the front to have the vellum (I found some perfect vellum with confetti in it!), I cut out a long 12" high by 6" wide sheet of patterned paper from my DCW pad. I scored it in the middle and folded it so the fold was at the top. Then I cut out a vellum square slightly larger, cut it on the diagonal, scored the two straight edges and folded them back to wrap around the front half of the backing paper with my ScorTape. Before I added the second triangle, I decorated each side with my Martha Stewart double loop edge punch and another thin strip of metallic paper... good thing I have ScorTape in 1/8" width! It was perfect to use for this! After attaching both sides, I sealed the back flap to cover all the edges.

I added a sheer ribbon and sealed it at the center. Then using my Bow Easy, I made a bow and adhered it on top. Then the Wild Orchid Crafts roses and a spray of pearls and gems for some more bling were attached on top. Finally, silver Stickles were added to the roses.

Next came the work for the inside card. I started out with some heavy metallic cardstock that I scored, folded and punched with my Martha Stewart double loop corner punch. I added a magnetic clasp, topped off with a silver faux brad on front. Using my Crop-A-Dile, I punched a silver eyelet at the top and ran some more ribbon through it for the pull. I decorated the card with more layers of silvery papers, and a charm that says "Love". On top of the fold I added a vellum sentiment, and inside used more ScorTape to attach a clear pouch to hold our monetary gift. A white card bordered with silver Stickles was finally added for our signatures.

Whew! I am glad this turned out... other than the initial inspiration photo, I really was just making it up as I went! ;)

Birthday Muffin!

 

Today I received four more Magnolia stamps, so I just had to ink up Tilda with Tulle Skirt right away! I drew the muffin for her to sit atop; popped up on foam dimensionals as you can see by the side shot below:

The background paper is Basic Grey June Bug Crazy Quilt. The edges of all the papers are inked with Stampin' Up's Perfect Plum. Three Wild Orchid Crafts cherry blossoms and a  Martha Stewart Oak Leaf punch were added next to the Scrappy Cat Birthday Wishes sentiment, also popped up on foam. I used a Spellbinders die to cut out the sentiment and another Martha Stewart punch (Double Loops) for the bottom of the card. The ribbon wrapped around that is Michael's Celebrations brand.

Here are the Copics used on this card:

Muffin: E30, E33, E35, E37, Y15, Y17, Y21
Tilda's skin: E0000, E000, E00
Hair: Y11, E33, E35, E37
Clothes and boots: C0, C2, C3, B91, B93, B95, B97

If you'd like to use this yummy muffin stamp for your own projects, you can purchase it over at my DigiDrawn site!

Love Birds

I noticed over at the Copic Creations Challenge blog that the current challenge is for a card with a bird theme. Since I hadn't made a card yet for my Lovebirds digistamp, I decided to create one and enter it into the challenge.

This easel card was made from numerous layers of green and yellow cardstock and Basic Grey's Origins Aromatherapy paper. I used my sewing machine to sew the patterned paper to a cardstock mat on both the front and inside of the card.

Here is a side view to see how the layers are raised on foam dimensionals for even more depth:

The image and it's mats were cut out using Spellbinders dies and my Cuttlebug. The background cardstock was punched with a Martha Stewart punch and decorated with Recollections brown pearls.

The ribbon is by Celebrations from Michaels and the daisies were purchased loose from my LSS. Another Martha Stewart punch was used for the leaves.

Copic colours for the Lovebirds are as follows:

Birds: Y11, Y15, Y17, YR04, YR07, YR09,

YG11, YG13, YG17,

W3, W7, E44, E47 and E49

Branch: E70, E71, E74, E79

If you want this digistamp, head over to my DigiDrawn site to purchase it HERE!

Hey Foxy!

While doodling the other day, I ended up drawing this little guy. At first I thought I would make him small with stitching lines so he could be a stuffed toy for a Tilda stamp. But I ended up creating the digistamp of him without the lines, about 4 inches square. This way, if I want to make him into a stuffie, all I need to do is add some lines and print him smaller, which is one of the benefits of digital stamps; you can change the size and orientation of the image!

The card I made for Baby Fox (I have yet to name him -- any suggestions???) has five layers (including the card base), popped up on foam dimensionals.

I started with Bazzil cardstock punched with Martha Stewart's Deco Fan set. The next layer is patterned paper (I am sorry, I no longer have the name of it!) matted on more Bazzil. Both are edged with ink; Memento Tuxedo Black and Versa Magic Cloud White. The next layer set are two ovals cut out and embossed with my Spellbinders dies using my Cuttlebug. Again, they were inked in black and white. The top layer is the Baby Fox and sentiment both popped up on foam too.

Flowers are from Michael's Bridal Department (loose), and the leaves were made with Martha Stewart's leaf punch. The leaves were inked with Stampin' Up's Mellow Moss ink and the veins were drawn with Copic G85.

The fox was printed on my Epson inkjet -- no problem at all with bleeding when I coloured with my Copics! His eyes and nose were topped off with All Night Media's Clear Gloss.

The sentiment is computer generated, and the inside of the card is stamped "It's Your Birthday!"

Here are the Copics used on the Fox:

N0, N1, N3, N6, N9
E30
Y32, Y35, Y38
RV11

Do you want this little guy for your very own? Then check out my DigiDrawn site to purchase this digistamp for only $ 3 CDN!

Do you want this little guy for FREE?? Then add your suggested name for him in the Comments. If I choose yours, I will send you this digistamp absolutely free!

Fairy Tilda

I don't think I've used this "Lazy Summer Days Tilda" stamp yet.... with those pretty wings, she reminded me of a fairy so I thought I'd draw a nice mushroom for her to ponder upon.

The patterned paper used is TPC Studio Ancestral Teal Brocade. I inked the edges of all the papers with Tim Holtz's Walnut Stain Distress ink and used my Making Memories distress tool to rough up the edges before sewing the patterned paper to the cardstock layer. A Dollarama Crafts cotton lace ribbon was coloured with Copic # E50 and topped with a Dollarama Crafts flower and leaves.

The mini butterflies were punched with a dollar bin Michael's punch and topped with Diamond stickles to match Tilda's wings.

The sentiment is from Stampendous' "Friendly Messages" set. Here is a side view to show the dimension; I used Scor Tape to adhere all the layers and popped Tilda and the mushroom up on Recollections foam squares.

Oh, and if you'd like this mushroom to complement your Tilda, fairy or even froggy stamp, you can!

Just click HERE to purchase my digistamp for your very own cards.

Copics list for this project:

Tilda's skin: E0000, E000, E00
Tilda's hair: Y28, Y32, E27
Dress: BG10, BG72, C0, C3
Wings: Diamond Stickles over BG10 and BG72
Mushroom: E50, E51, E53, E55, E57

You're The Best!

Another card for a coworker who helped me out recently. I love this paper and have used it before, unfortunately it no longer had the make on the piece I had leftover! To coordinate with the paper, I used yellows, browns and purply-blues. Tilda is dressed in the purply-blue, even though this photo shows it as more blue toned.

First I sewed the background patterned paper onto Bazzil cardstock.Then I added some cotton lace ribbon I found at Dollarama and a paper doily and inked them both with new Stampin' Dots Barely Banana colour. Yellow roses and cala lilies are from the Bridal section at Michael's. A final touch of brown was added in the form of punched out oak leaves from Martha Stewart.

Tilda and the sentiment are both raised on foam dimensionals for some added interest.

Copics used:

Skin: E00, E01
Hair: Y11, E97, E99
Clothes: B60, B63, B66, W2

I hope she likes it!

Oh Canada!

With Canada Day coming up on July 1st I was feeling particularly patriotic... I had a card in my mind that I wanted to create so I spent today immersed in red and white!

"Happy Tilda" was coloured using Copics and raised on foam dimensionals over "grass" made with Ultrafine Sage Flowersoft. One tradition on Canada Day is for kids to paint red Maple Leafs on their faces; so I gave Tilda one too. Her Canada Day shirt is decorated with a Maple Leaf sticker. She is holding a flag I removed from a little Canada Day doll we've had forever but never really displayed.

The background is a Government of Canada postcard I picked up at a Canada Day celebration a few years back. Yep, I raided my Canada Day decor stash for this card!

Over the background I wanted to portray fireworks.

But how to do that?

Well, I got out my vintage Spirograph!

What fun it was to use my Zig Millennium pens to create a few colourful bursts. (And yes, it DID take me a few tries to get the hang of it again; I haven't used it in a few years). The center burst is also popped up on foam dimensionals.

The fireworks trails are made with Westrim Crafts Rhinestone Accent Flourishes. The centers of the bursts were filled in with silver Stickles for more sparkle.

Inside the easel card I added a red rose from Dollarama Crafts, and two white roses from Modern Romance at Michael's, all three given a dose of sparkle with silver Stickles too.

(I can hardly wait for my first order from Wild Orchid Crafts to arrive!)

The sparkly red paper is something my daughter picked up from Michael's years ago, so unfortunately the piece that was left didn't have the make on it.

A simple white satin ribbon from Offray finished it off.


Copics used:

Skin: E0000, E00, E01
Hair: Y11, E34, E35, E37
Clothes: R000, R00, R01, R01, R05, R08, W1, W5

Happy Canada Day to all my Canuck friends!

Don't forget to check out my DigiDrawn digital stamp site. I am pleased to announce I have sold a few stamps already! If there is anything you would like to see made into a digistamp, please let me know!