AAA Cards DT: Sketch and cold

The last theme of the year has been set out over at AAA Cards’ clean and simple card challenge blog. It has a wintery feel with ‘sketch and cold’ being the design features to include. If you need a reminder, the sketch is there as inspiration and doesn’t need to be literally followed (though a couple of the DT cards have done so). The colour palette does need to be from the cold side though.

Sadly, this card will also be my last design team card for AAA Cards. I’ve made a card every fortnight for them over the last two years and it’s time to move on to do something new/different. There are plans to take the challenges into next year, so do keep joining in the fun 🙂

Here’s my take on the challenge:

sketch and cold themed Christmas card

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Background Check: Day 6

BC_participant

It’s the final day over at the Background Check class, aside from the wrap up day. It’s another design break to allow us to make cards using the background techniques we’ve learnt over the previous two days. I’ve snuck into the studio and made my Day 5 backgrounds into cards:

For these cards, they’ve only needed the addition of a little sparkle to accentuate elements on the background, with the sentiments done on my trusty Dymo machine. Again, that’s not been out for a while, and it was the letter press (get it?) technique that prompted its use. It’s been a great course, well worth the sign up fee – if only to have had the impetus to use some loved, but forgotten, techniques and refill my card drawer!

 

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Background Check: Day 5

BC_participantI’m a bit behind on my classwork as I’ve been meeting other deadlines, looking after my nephews (one of whom has been helping me make paper beads), but here’s my highlights for day five of my Background Check samples – which are all about texture.

Loving the faux letterpress technique, and going to have to experiment more with it. It’s great not having all the confetti after using the die! Again, nothing new here, but great exercise of techniques and reminders of what can make a clean and simple card really quite special.

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Creative Expressions August 2014 Blog Hop

Welcome to the Creative Expressions August 2014 Blog Hop! Hopefully you got here from Donna’s blog but, if you didn’t, here’s the start at the Creative Expressions News Blog!

These new Christmas designs from the Singles Range at Creative Expressions, include seven different stamps. As you will see from the samples made for the Blog Hop, they do not just have to be used as they are but can be altered and interchanged to give lots of different options.

One randomly selected person commenting on this blog post before the closing date will win the following fabulous prize, which includes some of the new stamp designs:

Prize

Here are four card ideas for three of the new stamp designs:

Joy to the World

IMG_5055_w Stamp Joy to the World in Perfect Medium on Coconut White card. Heat emboss with Lapis Black Aurora. Cut to size. Emboss 4½” square piece of Brunswick Green card with Couture Creations New Year Dove folder.  Wrap a length of Green/Ivory Grosgrain ribbon round the embossed card and secure. Mount on 4⅝” square piece of Coconut White card, then a 5″ square of Brunswick Green, using Cosmic Shimmer Specialist Acrylic Glue. Stick down to your card blank and then outline the white card border in Cosmic Shimmer Aurora Twinkle.


Believe

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Print Believe stamp onto Milk card with Perfect Medium ink and heat emboss with Bright Gold Metallic embossing powder. Cut to size and mount on Brunswick Green card. Emboss a strip of Brunswick Green card, 5″ x 1¾”, using the New Year Dove folder. Mount on your card blank and overlay the heat embossed image using foam pads. Add the pearl swirls and edge with Comic Shimmer Golden Sparkle PVA.


Joy to the World #2

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Stamp Joy to the World with Perfect Medium ink and mask the bottom image before printing onto a piece of Cobalt card stock. Heat emboss with True Detail White embossing powder. Cut out leaving a ¼” border. Edge with 5mm double sided tape. Reveal top layer of tape and cover with Cosmic Shimmer Diamond Sprinkes, pressing the glitter into the tape before brushing off the excess and returning to the pot. Cut a piece of Cobalt card 2½” high to fit your card blank and edge with Diamond Sprinkles as before. Using a piece of wide low tack masking tape, press down over the self adhesive Star Swirl and carefully peel off from the backing sheet – the masking tape keeps the shape as you transfer it to the cardstock. Press down firmly on the pearls taking care not to press the masking tape too hard onto the card – peel off the masking tape. Mount on your card blank with Cosmic Shimmer Glue and then adhere two small Fancy Pearl Embellishments using the same glue. Allow to dry completely.


Happy New Year

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Ink up Happy New Year stamp with Perfect Medium and mask off side and top section, print onto Cobalt card. Heat emboss with Silver Shine Metallic embossing powder. Mount on Milk card using Cosmic Shimmer Specialist Acrylic Glue. Emboss a 5″ x 3½” piece of Cobalt card with the Couture Creations Happy New Year folder and gild with Pewter Gilding Wax. Mount on Milk card with Cosmic Shimmer Glue. Stamp, emboss and mount the sentiment from All Occasions set as before. Assemble on a C6 card and embellish with drops of Silver Lustre pearlescent PVA.

Thank you for visiting my blog, please leave a comment below in order to be in with a chance of winning a prize!

Once you have done that, you will need to click here to visit Tracy’s blog.

To help you along the way, here is a list for the Blog Hop:-

1. Sue Wilson
2. Julia Watts
3. Tracey Laughton
4. Kim Bacon
5. Donna Ratcliff
6. Neil Burley [you are here] 7. Tracy Heaton
8. Kerry Hickton
9. Pam Smith
10. Creative Expressions

Start page, prize details and how to take part: Creative Expressions News Blog. The blog hop started on Friday 15th August at 6am and ends Tuesday 19th August at 5pm.

Thank you for taking part in our Blog Hop – good luck!

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Mother’s Day Garden Card (for Creative Expressions)

Mother's Day Garden Card

While I’m working on next week’s 3D piece, I thought I’d just do a quick Mother’s Day card using the Floral Background stamp from Creative Expressions again. I sort of hoped it would remind the viewer of a woodland walk, so used their fabulous Bark embossing folder as well. Bit of grungy rust-effect as well and the look was complete 🙂

You can download a worksheet here, or read on for making instructions…

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