Card Chain Challenge - May 2024 Reveal

 Today's the day all the cards exchanged in May over at the Card Chain Challenge are being revealed.  This month I sent a card to Mia in Greece and I received a lovely card from Jeanne in Minnesota!

This month I used the option of two of the themes: Men in Hats and Friendship and the sketch (sort of!)

Theme Options: Men in Hats / Cake / Friendship

Here's my card:

I purchased the elf/gnome die on Amazon, the sentiment is from Graduation Gnome from Unity, the DP is Forest by Stamperia.  I added black pearls for eyes and tuxedo hearts.

We hope you will join us for June - sign up to send and receive a card from someone anywhere in the world!   You'll find all the details on how to join in over at The Card Chain Challenge as well as seeing all the cards exchanged!   

You just sign up for one month at a time. You can join in whenever you like.  

You sign up on the Link - and you send to the person before you and the person signed up after you sends to you!

You have until June 6th to sign up for the June card exchange!

Linking my card to:

Krafty Chicks

ends 6/5

NBUS

First time using the gnome die and sentiment

Cut it Up

anything goes using dies  ends June 12

Stamps: sentiment from Graduation Gnome - Unity.

Ink:  Nocturne - Versafine Clair

Paper:  Cocoa Bean, True Black, Pine Feather, Soft Stone - Papertrey Ink, Hammered white - Amazon, Place Rose - Bazzill, DO Forest - Stamperia.

Accessories:  Elf/gnome die - Amazon, black pearls, Tuxedo Hearts - Honey Bee,  Copic W2.

Eileen Hull Sizzix Chapter 3 Dies Blog Hop - 3D Ornament Die

 Today I'm joining in a Blog Hop with Eileen Hull's other Inspiration and Educator Team members showing off her new Chapter 3 dies.  The 3 dies are:  Truck Box Bigz Die (that goes perfectly with her recently released camper trailer!),  Wreath and Snowflake Thinlits dies and Box Ornament.

I used her 3D Box Ornament Bigz Die to create a Graduation Gift Box that I slipped a gift card into. 

A non-seasonal use for a seasonal die!  

I also used the star die from her new Wreath and Snowflake Thinlits die set on this project.

This gift box went together very quickly!

I die cut the ornament pieces out of Kraft Stock Metallic 3 paper from Tim Holtz.  It's about the weight of card stock - not as heavy as matboard.  

You may have to use a double layer of the paper when cutting the box sides piece, as the score line may cut through the first piece as the paper is thinner than matboard would be.  

You can, of course, use matboard and cover it with DP.

I silver embossed a beautiful Stars Texture Stamp from Motive Stamps on the front and back panels and silver embossed the sentiment (retired PTI) on a strip of white card layering it over the front panel.  I also adhered the crescent shape from the die along the top and bottom of the front as well as the stars.

The sentiment says:  Reach for the Stars and Achieve Your Dreams

Here's a view of the back.

I put a gift card in the box but you could put in a small gift, money (!) or candies as well.

One quick and easy photo of putting this lovely ornament box together.   Simply fold the middle piece along the score lines, put ScorTape along the tabs and press it onto the front and back panels!  

I did cut a tiny bit straight across the bottom of the ornament to prevent it from rolling.

There is a GIVEAWAY too! Leave a comment on each of the designers' blog posts and you will be entered to win one of the new dies! 

  Here's the list of the Team members participating:

Eileen Hull Designs

Julia Aston  You are here!

Madeline Arendt

Jennie Atkinson

Sue Eldred

Maggi Harding

Lisa Hoel

Elizabeth Robinson

Tonya Trantham

Pam Bray

Sarah Lizzie

Jenny Marples

Eileen is also hosting a FB live at 12 noon ET July 1st on FB Eileen Hull Designs to reveal her new dies and sample projects.  An additional die will be given to someone who attends and comments at the Release Party Facebook Live.

A busy day!   You can also view the video on her FB later if you miss it.

Graduation Gift Box
Stamps: Stars Texture Stamp - Motive Stamps Nellies Choice, Star Gazer Additions - PTI (retired)
Ink: Versamark.
Paper: Kraft Stock Metallic 3 Gold - Tim Holtz/Idea-ology, white - PTI.
Accessories: 3D Box Ornament Bigz Die, Wreath and Snow Flake Thinlits dies - Eileen Hull/Sizzix, Silver embossing powder, heat tool, ScorTape, white basket shred.

Butterflies for the Graduate

A friend of mine asked if I could make a Graduation card for her 11 year old granddaughter, Lila, who is graduating from 5th grade -  I guess 6th grade must be Middle School, hence the graduation out of Elementary School!   

My friend is giving Lila a butterfly bracelet as a graduation gift so she asked if I could put butterflies on the card.

So I searched on Pinterest for a butterfly card to get ideas for a creative design and I found this wonderful Double Diamond Fold card. 

It looks pretty impressive sitting here like an award or something doesn't it?! It was really easy to fold - the hardest part was figuring out what papers and butterflies to use!

Here is the tutorial on flutterbyheidi's blog which includes a YouTube video

I used Vintage Cream cardstock for the base, Royal Velvet for the frames and white card stock covered with Painted Fantasy wide Washi Tape from Altenew on the smallest panels. 

I used Tim Holtz/Sizzix Detailed Butterflies/Mini die for the big butterfly, cutting it out of vellum, a light purple DP and Metallic Gold - adhering the 3 layers just at the center body piece using Tombow Glue.

The butterfly and tiny butterflies on the sides are two separate Martha Stewart punches.

View from the back -  there's plenty of space to write a message on the two back panels and that middle area.

The whole thing flattens down easily for mailing - limited only by how high your butterfly at the top is.

Mine will actually fit (snugly) into an regular A2 envelope as shown below, but the top wing might get a little bent so I gave my friend a A7 (5 1/4" x 7 1/4") invitation size envelope to use if she is mailing it.

I just love how this card stands up and can be proudly displayed by the graduate!  

It would be lovely for any special occasion when you want a little more than just a flat card!

I'm entering my graduation card into the following challenges:

TIME Out Challenges

Path of Positivity

Optional Twist - Success (graduation!)

Arty Divas

Anything Goes

Stamps:  Keep It Simple: Graduation - PTI, You Did it!  from A Year of Sweet Sentiments - Taylored Expressions (retired), Karen Foster mini letter and number snap stamps (retired).
Paper:  Vintage Cream, White, Royal Velvet, Vellum - PTI, Metallic Gold Kraft Stock - Tim Holtz/Idea-ology.
Accessories:  Dienamic Sentiment Strips - MFT, Detailed Butterflies Mini dies - Tim Holtz/Sizzix, Painted Fantasy Washi Tape - Altenew, butterfly detailed punch,  3 butterflies punch - Martha Stewart, Tombow Glue

Well Done, Graduate!

I needed a card for a friend's son who is graduating from High School next week.  I only have a few graduation stamps and was trying to think of a good design when I  remembered a free digital graduation cap pattern I found from The Toymaker and I made this!
You can print it in black like below - or in white and add your own school colors.

I printed the digital cap on white cardstock, cut it out and quickly assembled it. The top measures 3 3/4" x 3 3/4".  The bottom of the box is 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" graduating in a bit to the top.

 The cap opens so you can put a gift inside.  I rolled up some cash and tied it with a piece of wrinkled seam tape.

All the stamps I used are from two retired Waltzingmouse sets, Free Spirit Boy and Free Spirit Sentiments.

I added the tassel using a large brad through the top of the cap.  There is a paper tassel with the digi image pattern.

I'm linking my graduation card to:

Always Fun Challenges

Graduation

Words 2 Craft By

The Influence of a Good Teacher can never be erased. 

(a student can't graduate without having had good teachers!)

Stamps:  Free Spirit Boy, Free Spirit Sentiments - Waltzingmouse (retired)
Paper:  White, Summer Sunrise - PTI
Ink:  True Black - PTI
Accessories:  Free digital pattern images -  The Toymaker, tassel, large brad, oval punch, 1 3/4" circle punch, Word Window Punch - SU, Tombow Glue

Steam Punk Nipper Winston

I've got a cool metal foil card to share with you today!

For this fun steam punk background I embossed a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2"  piece of foil sheet tape with the Riveted Metal Embossing folder by Tim Holtz.  I then hand embossed some more lines with an embossing tool and  pressed some circles inside the squares using the tip of a click-open pen (without the ink clicked on).  Next I painted over the whole sheet with black acrylic paint - rubbing most of it off after I applied it.  I also rubbed some Rub N Buff Autumn Gold Wax metallic cream over some of it and buffed it with a paper towel.

 

 My cute little aviator is a digital image from Octopode Factory named Steam Punk Nipper Winston. I colored him with Copics. The sentiment is from Waltzingmouse and I die cut it with a Wonky Rectangle Nestability. Both are layered onto the foil with foam dots.

I made this card for the Technique challenge over on Split Coast.  I feel like I cheated a little using an embossing folder to create my foil background instead of hand tooling the whole thing  (!)   There's a great video on You Tube showing how to make your own metallic foil background here:

I actually learned this technique last May at a class with Tim Holtz - You can see the heart I made at that class on my blog post here.

Stamps: Digi Image - Steam Punk Nipper Winston - The Octopode Factory Etsy Shop, sentiment from Free Spirit Sentiments - Waltzingmouse
Paper: white - PTI
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black
Accessories: Foil Tape Sticky Back sheets 6"x12" - Ranger, black acrylic paint, brush, Riveted Metal Embossing Folder - Sizzix Tim Holtz Alterations, Copics: BG32, BG10, E00, E31, E37, N6, N12, R20, Wonky Rectangle Nestabilities, Rub n Buff Autumn Gold Wax Metallic Cream

WMS May Release DT Blog Waltz

Welcome to the May Waltzingmouse Release Design Team Blog Waltz! Today both new sets, Country Labels 4 and USA 1776 are available to purchase at the WMS shop!

Since we have such a large Design Team now - I was one of the DT chosen to sit out during the sneak peeks this month -    I will be posting 'after the fact' retro-peeks (!) on June 6th and June 27th along with other DT members who were sitting out this month so I hope you are able to check back then for more inspiration using these two new sets!

You should start today's waltz at Claire's blog.  If you are coming here from Belinda's blog  you are in the right place!

I used the USA 1776 set for my first two samples today.  On this card -  I used the cut files Claire sells in the store, stamping in colored ink and clear embossing on the flag, candle and lantern.   I gold embossed the eagle.

 I placed the candle (fire cracker!)  inside the lantern from a previous release - Bright Season. I used the free cut file of the lantern to stamp on, again embossing it in clear EP.

This might have been the kind of lantern hung in the tower of the Old North Church ( Paul Revere's Ride - (one if by land, two if by sea)  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow reports in his poem the British were coming by sea so there should be 2 lanterns on my card!)

I embossed the background with the Americana Background and Borders embossing folder.  I looped red, white and blue wrinkled seam tape through the loop on the lantern.  Pretty much everything is up on foam tape.  My card is 4 1/4" x 4 1/4".

 I used one of the fire works stamps on my next card - and made it a celebration card - think Birthday or Graduation!   I made a glitter panel - layering a double sided sticky paper over a white card stock panel of the same size and pressing Dazzling Diamonds over the sticky top - then I stamped the images right over the glitter using red and orange Versafine pigment Ink - I found a tutorial for this here.

I added some little flower sequins to the center of each 'explosion' adhering them with Glossy Accents, and framed the panel with a Spellbinders Fleur de Lis Square.  It really is quite sparkly IRL!  Again the size is 4 1/4" x 4 1/4".

I stamped one firework on the inside using sentiments from a previous WMS release, Free Spirit Sentiments

 For my next two creations I used the set Country Labels 4.  For project #1,  I up-cycled a gift bag I received from my son on Mother's Day -   the name of the shop he purchased the gift from was embossed in the center of the front and the back of the bag so I embossed one of the labels in this set in silver and die cut it with Spellbinders Labels 4 to cover that up!

 I made a second label for the back using the same label stamp.  The For: and From: are from the set previously released - Big Day Additions.

 Here's a close up of the label so you can hopefully see the lovely silvery shine!  I die cut the Thank You sentiment with a Mega Deckled Rectangle from Spellbinders and layered it with foam tape.

And for my final project (sorry I'm taking so much of your time!)  I made a sweet little tag using the cherry, leaf and another one of the sentiments from this set.

Look how nicely this cherry stamps - I inked it with the little dew drop shaped Memento inks so it was really easy to get the cherry red and the stem brown - the leaf is a separate stamp.  Claire has such a great mix of fonts on the sentiments in this set.

As always - there will be a prize of a stamp set of choice from a random drawing from comments left on all the DT's blogs. You have until June 1st at  6:59 am EST to leave comments.  The winner will be posted on Claire’s WMS blog on June 3rd.

Remember to hop over to the WMS shop and get yourself some of these new stamps!

Next on the dance card is Laurie!  Remember to leave comments as you waltz along to increase your chances of winning a WMS stamp set!

God Bless America Lantern Card:
Stamps:  Waltzingmouse - USA 1776, Bright Season
Paper: white, Pure Poppy, Enchanted Evening - PTI
Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black, Memento Nautical Blue and Lady Bug, Versamark
Accessories:  embossing folder - Americana Background & Borders Set - Tim Holtz Texture fades, clear and gold embossing powders, foam tape, WMS Bright Season cut file, WMS USA 1776 cut files, wrinkled seam tape - Prairie Bird Boutique Etsy Shop, Silhouette Cameo.

Fireworks card:
Stamps:  Waltzingmouse - USA 1776, inside sentiments/Free Spirit Sentiments
Paper:  white, true black - PTI
Ink:  Versafine - Crimson Red and Habarero, Versafine Onyx Black
Accessories:  Peel N Stick Double Sided Adhesive sheets - ThermOWeb, foam tape, Dazzling Diamonds - SU, flower sequins - Cartwiright, Glossy Accents, Fleur de lis Squares - Spellbinders.

Thank You bag:
Stamps:  label from Country Labels 4, For: From - from Big Day Additions set- Waltzingmouse
Paper: white - PTI
Ink:  versamark, Memento Nautical Blue
Accessories:  silver embossing powder, hot gun, Labels 4 and Deckled Edge Mega Rectangles -  Spellbinders Nestabilities, recycled gift bag, ScorTape.

Happiness Is Home Made Tag:
Stamps:  Country Labels 4 - Waltzingmouse
Paper:  white, pure poppy - PTI,  red gingham - Amuse
Ink:  Versafine onyx black, Memento Espresso truffle, Lady Bug, Bamboo Leaves.
Accessories:  foam tape, twine - WMS, New Leaf Twill - PTI, circle Nestabilities, tag sale #3 die - PTI.

A Pharm Grad

A friend at work has a nephew who is graduating with a Doctorate in Pharmacy and she asked if I could make a personalized card for her to give him.  "Sure" I said and off I went to the Silhouette shop hoping they would have a mortar and pestle - a traditional pharmacy image -  and luckily they did!  So I cut the pieces with my Silhouette Cameo and sponged the edges with Ranger Distress Old Paper ink to give it some depth.  I adhered the pieces to the card with foam tape which added more dimension.

 The Congratulations is from Fancy Phrases by Waltzingmouse and the PAUL was stamped with the Snap Stamp Alphabet by Karen Foster (no longer available)

Here's what I put on the inside -  the graduate is from the Silhouette Store, ' you did it' is from Enjoy the Ride set by PTI and I stamped the 'PHARM.D' with the Fresh Alphabet set by PTI.

Leslie was thrilled with this card and thought her nephew would love it! 

Stamps:  Waltzingmouse - Fancy Phrases, Papertrey Ink - Enjoy the Ride - Fresh Alphabet, Snap Stamps Alphabet - Karen Foster
Paper:  Rustic White, true black - PTI, Teal - Coordinations Ranger Distress
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Ranger Distress Old Paper
Accessories:  mortar & pestle cut file from Silhouette Store, corner rounder - Zutter, foam tape.

Dressing up the Jute Bags!

Hi friends!   It's the start of the weekend - Yippee!!  and double Yippee for me because I'm on vacation for a week!  I'm just going to be at home as DH doesn't have the week off -  but the weather is supposed to be perfect summer weather - so I'll be in the yard gardening, sunning a little (with the sunscreen on, of course!), going to a small circus with my sister, my niece and grand nephew and there will be some stampin' goin' on I'm sure!

Today I have a fun project to share with you that is posted over on the Pouch Mart Blog.  I'd SO appreciate it if you'd check it out and maybe leave a comment?!  (the comment button is at the TOP of the post)

So here they are -  my dressed up Jute Bags!   How'd I dress them up???  by spray painting them with Silver Spray Paint!  I got the idea from good ole' Martha Stewart.

 I made a pom pom flower out of pink raffia and pinned it to the bag with the sentiment tag.

All my stamps are from Waltzingmouse.  All supplies are listed below.

You'll find all the details and more pics on how I made these over at the Pouch Mart Blog.

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Get Well Gift Bag:  Stamps – Waltzingmouse – Fancy Phrases, Paper – Hibiscus Burst – Papertrey Ink,  Ink – Versafine Onyx Black, Accessories – Pink Raffia & 5″ x 7″ natural jute bag – PouchMart, keytag punch – Stampin’Up, safety pin – JoAnn’s fabric, silver spray paint – Rust-Oleum Metallic/Loews, Eclipse tape.

Bravo Gift Bag: Stamps – Waltzingmouse – Fancy Phrases, Paper – White- Papertrey Ink, Ink – Versafine Onyx Black, Accessories – 5″ x7″ natural jute bag – PouchMart, small oval punch – Stampin’Up, ScorTape, silver sticky beads – Michaels, Eclipse tape, ScorTape.

Bride and Groom Gift Bag: 5″ x 7″ natural jute bag – PouchMart, Stamps – Waltzingmouse - Big Day Additions, Paper – white – Papertrey Ink, gold – Michaels, Ink – Versafine Onyx Black, Accessories – Fancy Tags 2/Spellbinders, fringe border die – Memory Box, silver spray paint – Rust-Oleum Metallic/Loews, Eclipse Tape, ScorTape, Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive, silver sticky pearl – Michaels.