Magnifique Birthdays!

Just a couple of quick birthday cards using some of the fabulous patterned papers from the Magnifique kit.   These papers are so great to work with - the colors are awesome, and the patterns are so versatile.

One of my favorite stamp sets, Treetops is used along with a sentiment from the Happy Birthday stamp set.

A simple card using a birthday sentiment from the lovely Gracious Greetings stamp set.  This stamp set is an 'oldie,' but definitely a 'goodie.'   The font is so elegant, and adds such a nice touch to a card.  The small flower is from the new Unity set. 

A Trio of Cards with Cuttlebug Embossing

Yesterday, I had a full 13-hour day of stamping with a friend and created a total of 15 cards!  It was a fun day to just play with my stamps as I did not have anything specific that I needed to create.  Since some of the cards included embossing with Cuttlebug folders, they qualify for the Heart 2 Heart Challenge this week.  Embossing with Cuttlebug folders is a great way to add some detail.     

This card is very simple using the Stylized Flowers Cuttlebug folder along with Gracious Greetings and The Present stamp sets.  The pink is the newly-introduced Cotton Candy from CTMH.

My birthday was last week, and Michelle brought me a gift to our stamping day yesterday which included some beautiful colored, extra fine glitter from A La Mode. It was a lot of fun playing with the glitter, and this is just one of the cards that I made using it.  This green glitter goes great with the new Pear color.  Unfortunately, the scanned image looks a bit messy because it shows little stray specks of glitter that are not really visible 'in real life.'  The D'vine Swirl Cuttlebug embossing folder was used along with the Tannenbaum stamp set, and cardstock in Pear, Gray Wool, and Gray Flannel.

A simple card which really highlights the Houndstooth Cuttlebug embossing folder.  After embossing the White Daisy cardstock, the raised portion was brayered with Black ink so that the pattern is clearly visible.  Some strips of cardstock and ribbon were added with a simple birthday greeting from the Happy Birthday stamp set.

All stamps and papers used are from Close To My Heart (CTMH).    

A New 'Spin' on the Pinwheel Technique

My mother created a birthday card for me using the Pinwheel Technique that I taught recently for Creative University-Online on the Fabulously Artsy UStream channel.  For her version, she used a decorative corner punch on the 'spokes' of the pinwheel.  It is such a great variation of the technique and I really like how the additional detail resembles a flower.  A birthday sentiment from the Gracious Greetings stamp set is used along with papers from the retired Simple Pleasures kit.

"Christmas in July" card workshop

Join us for a Christmas in July card making workshop,and get a head-start on this year's Holiday cards.   Classes will be offered on Friday evening, July 23 at 7:00 and also Saturday afternoon, July 24 at 1:00. Each workshop should take two to three hours to complete. 

Traditional holiday card using the Holiday Trinkets stamp set along with Cherry-O papers introduced in the Close To My Heart Summer Idea Book. Some Bitty Sparkles are used to add some 'bling' to the sentiment and to the ornament.   

Using the same Holiday Trinkets stamp set again along with the Gracious Greetings sentiment stamp creates an elegant card in traditional Christmas colors. The stars on the tops of the trees and the detail on one of threes has been enhanced using the new Glitz Stardust Glitter Glue.  It is very easy to apply, and adds a nice shimmer to a project.

Use the All Decked Out stamp set to create a cute little snowman.  The 'flurries' are added using Snow Flurries stamp set.  The background is Taffy cardstock, which is a color that I do not use very often.  It is a nice non-traditional Christmas color scheme. 

 

The "Christmas in July" workshop will be offered on Friday evening, July 23 (starting at 7 pm), and also on  Saturday (July 24) at 1:00 pm.  You will create 4 cards each of 3 different designs - a total of 12 cards and matching envelopes for a reduced price of $10.  All supplies are included and pre-cut for you. You just need to bring your own favorite adhesive, stamp your images, and assemble your cards.

As an added bonus, place a $50+ order from the Close To My Heart  Spring or Summer Idea Book - and your workshop fee is waived.  Depending on total orders received, there will be a drawing for Hostess Rewards - so you could earn $25 or more in FREE product from CTMH.

Please let me know if you would like to attend one of the "Christmas in July" card workshops.  Feel free to leave me a comment on this blog, send an email to sheilabennett@comcast.net, or call 913-485-4355.

Congratulations - in Purple!

Actually, the purple is Hydrangea cardstock and ink from Close To My Heart. Per special request, the card was designed for an event with Kansas State University. And K-State is just crazy about their purple! So, the 'purple' idea was the start of the card - added a decorate corner image from the Legendary Moments stamp set, and an elegant script from the Gracious Greetings stamp set. For multilinguals, CTMH also offers this set in both French and Spanish.

The card needed to be professional and I was concerned about making it too feminine, but am really pleased with the final result.

Gracious Greetings card

Haven't shared anything for a few days, so thought I'd dig something out that I created last year. This is a really simple card to create.

Black ink was sponged around the edges of the card, then a piece of designer background & texture paper from the Silhouette paper packet was used along with a piece of cardstock embossed using the Cuttlebug D'Vine Swirls embossing folder. The sentiment was stamped using the Gracious Greetings stamp set from Close To My Heart (CTMH). Actually, this stamp set is now also available in French and Spanish versions.

Just love the elegant look of this card. :)