Yet another challenge at AAA Cards this week! The theme this time is a moodboard (shown below) with the optional twist of it being a get well card. For those unfamiliar with making a clean and simple card from a moodboard, you can choose any element to base your design on, e.g. colours. I’ve taken inspiration from the bottle in the bottom middle image and found a never been used stamp in my stash to match:
I have taken a couple of hours this morning to tackle this month’s Pick A Stick Challenge: ten journal techniques are pulled at random and have to be completed in order of the draw. This layout wasn’t planned at the outset, and developed a theme as I went, featuring my Old Apothecary assemblage. I’ve crammed in several different techniques, including stamps I’ve carved based on my own tangle patterns. I also remembered to film a time lapse video of the process.
As well as the extraordinarily large layout I did earlier in the month, I’ve used the Graphic45 Raining Cats & Dogs Collection to make four cards from what was left over from my kit sent by Jones Crafts. As you might expect, all the papers complement one another and are ideal for matting up. Embellishments are a cinch with the die cut chipboard tags and there’s also a couple of sheets of die cut card stock with folders/envelopes with matching inserts. Quick edging with Walnut Stain Distress Ink hides those annoying white edges and I’ve added faux brads using Onyx Liquid Pearls. Hey presto, four cards for the pet lovers amongst your friends and family. The Cat’s Meow card is 8×8″, the other three are 6×6″.
This month, for Jones Crafts, I have been sent the new Graphic45 Raining Cats & Dogs Collection of papers. At the risk of alienating half my loyal readership, I don’t really do cats… so it’s just raining dogs in this massive layout! I’ve used an Ikea Ribba 50x50cm frame to hold the layout, placing the main sheet behind the mount which is conveniently sized at 11½” square aperture. The pictures of Esther and her pups are mounted on the various complimentary papers, embellished with various of the die cut chipboard tags, cut out stamps from the Mr Whiskers page (omitting the cat ones, obviously) and layered paper ribbon from the Playful Pals page. A few paper flowers decorated up to more or less match brings the centre to the mount and breaks up the border.
I’ve edged everything with Walnut Stain Distress Ink, and that includes ageing the gingham ribbon bows as well so they didn’t stand out quite as much. Oh, and a top tip – if you’re keeping the deep frame, remember the insert takes up quarter of an inch round the outer edge of the mount if you’re laying out away from the frame… And if I’d had a couple more of the centre sheets, I would have decoupaged several of the elements, such as the flowers and the stamps, and the lovely lady with the umbrella.
Hope this inspires you to work with the Collection – and work big!
I must apologise for the lull in creating with the Graphic 45 Good Ol’ Sport papers for Jones Crafts. As you might be able to fathom from the images above, I had a bit of design hiccup – it’s all very well coming up with ideas, but then working out how to make them work can take a little longer!
I started by covering the Graphic 45 ATC Book with the papers, before making the fold out grandstand, edging with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. Next came the bunting, die cut pieces glued to some butcher’s twine and glued in at the edges so that it can swing backwards into the box when the drop down section is closed up. I then created the grandstand, using kraft card to which I affixed the front paper ribbon and more of the chipboard die cuts on the front tier. The rest of the cut outs are tabbed at the back with hinges allowing the items to fold forward as the whole section folds back up. A few pieces of cotton thread acts as the support and pulls everything into place as the grandstand is lowered.
Finally I used an Idea-ology fastener with grungepaper strip to make the closure, sewing it onto the back cover by drilling holes through the strap and the back cover. And just to prove it all works:
I’ve just received my DT goodies from Jones Crafts, and this time, I have the Graphic 45 Good Ol’ Sport Collection of papers to play with. Just as well it’s vintage and paper, as those that know me well know that I don’t do sport!
In what is fast becoming a trademark makeover, I’ve taken the sheet of 4×6″ prints, cut them up, added some more pages using the other papers and wire bound them using my Zutter Bind-it-All. The front and back covers have faux rusted enamel finish using clear embossing powder and Vintage Photo Distress Ink and Distress Powder. Everything else is aged with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I created the photo corners by making a cut file and cutting them out on the Silhouette Cameo, before colouring with Tarnished Brass Distress Stain, sticking them together and then inserting the collector’s cards from two other sheets from the collection. Add in some of the chipboard tags and die cuts for tags, and paper ribbons and it’s done. Here’s a clickable gallery for close ups:
