Ramen Birthday Card

I made this card for my son who loves ramen and could eat it everyday.  He is also a very talented origami crafter. He can make turtles and butterflies smaller than a thumbnail!  The background for this card was inspired by a craft magazine article that explained how to use Distress Archival Ink and alcohol on Yupo paper.  ( These supplies are available at HM Ben Franklin Crafts.)  It was simple to apply ink onto an acrylic block, spray it with alcohol, and then apply it to the Yupo paper. I also sprayed Distressed Mica ink over the inked paper but it wouldn't dry (Yupo paper is not very porous.) so I blotted off the Mica ink.  This left a milky inky color which I thought was quite nice.  Next I stamped the Hero Arts ramen image in blue permanent ink on white marker paper.  I used the Hero Arts matching die to cut out the bowl of ramen noodles and colored in the image with colored pencils. The ramen image was attached to the card with foam dot adhesives.

The words were also were stamped with blue permanent ink and hand cut out to be a word bubble for the origami crane.  (The two squiggly lines above the words were wiped away before stamping the words.)  I folded the crane (the only thing I can fold without instructions) out of a small piece of patterned washi paper and glued it onto the chopsticks.  Since I had a rubber stamp with Japanese characters expressing 'happy birthday', I stamped it in the lower right hand corner of the card. The ink wasn't dry when I smudged it so I decided to wipe it off and cover it up with a stamped paper seal, but I liked the faded look so I just left it. Inside the card I stamped, 'have a souper day' by curving the words on the acrylic block before stamping.  As a final touch, I added a little kamaboko image from the Hero Arts stamp set. I think (I hope) that my son will like this card designed just for him.  It's a special card for a special person!

 

Graduation Shaker Card With Star Confetti

I only had the need for one graduation card this year.  As you can guess it is for a Punahou buff and blue senior.  This card was made easier by the use of Echo Park products purchased at HM Ben Franklin Crafts.  I started by stenciling the graduation caps in brown ink on white card stock that was sized to fit a standard card blank.  Next, I fussy cut the 'Congrats' from a sheet taken out of the 6x6 Echo Park pad. This piece was then glued onto the stenciled card front.  All of this was then enclosed in a Heiko cello self-sealing bag (available at HM BFC in packs of 50).  Before taping the top shut, I added the gold and silver star glitter.  This whole packet was then adhered to the blue card blank.

To the front of the card I glued down a hand cut graduation cap.  A yellow tassel made from embroidery floss was glued onto the cap as well as a yellow enamel dot sticker.  Finally, a piece of Heiko ribbon was glued to the card so that a rolled check could be tied onto the card as a gift to the graduate.  On the inside of the card I added a piece of card stock from the Echo Park pad that said Reach for the Stars.  Alternately, I could have used the Echo Park stamp that had the same sentiment and could have been heat embossed in gold.  I am pleased with the way this card turned out as it has movement, is in the graduate's colors, is not too girlie, and has a unique way to hold the monetary gift. Hopefully, the male graduate will be pleased, too!

 

Dragon Ice Cream Birthday Card

Like me, many of  friends were born in the Year of the Dragon. I decided to make two friends birthday cards using the cute dragon ice cream stamp I've had for awhile.  I started the cards by stamping the dragon ice cream in green permanent ink.  Next I colored in the image with Copic and ClickArt pens and then added heart and star confetti using Stickles Star Dust as the glue. I fussy cut the dragon ice cream image and adhered it to the Paper Accents Mini Dot card blank with foam dot adhesives.

After attaching curling ribbon to the Happy Birthday tag, I glued the tag down onto the card next to the dragon  ice cream.  Next I used pastel sealing wax to make the 'ice cream blob' by pressing the dragon seal into the melted wax. Finally, I added the little acrylic heart stickers to add a bit of sparkle. 

I always think that a little attention to details help to add class to handmade cards.  For a touch of classy sparkle I attached a Happy Birthday seal onto the envelope flap and heat embossed a dragon character stamp to the back of the cards.  I hope my friends enjoy these Dragon ice cream birthday cards and will know that I was thinking of them during their special birthdays. 

 

Happy Father's Day!

My husband, FATHER of my children, is a simple man.  He doesn't like overly fussy or bright things so I decided to keep this card low-key and ...um, ...well...bland.  Actually, this design worked well with the fact that I thought Father's Day was on the 23rd not this coming Sunday!  I started by using the Park Lane clear stamps and arranging them on a clear acrylic block. (I chose a stamp set with travel icons because my husband rarely has a week that he doesn't fly somewhere and he's not even a pilot!) After stamping them on a white card stock in dark brown ink, I stamped two more times in lighter brown ink to fill out the card.  I sized this stamped sheet to fit a Neutral Card blank (Paper Accents).and adhered it with double stick tape.  For the words, I used the Lawn Fawn die to cut a piece of DCWV glitter paper.  I attached the die cut words to the card with Beacon Fabri-Tac glue. That was it...all done! If your DAD has some interest such as golf, food, cars, etc. you can make a card using those images. I'm sure he'll love whatever car YOU make. Happy Dad's Day!

 

Shaker Children's Birthday Cards

 All the traveling I've been doing recently caused me to forget about creating two birthday cards for two sweet boys.  I decided I needed to keep the cards simple since time was short before the boys' birthdays.  I opted to make full front confetti shaker cards because they would amuse the children but be super easy to complete.

I started by choosing two birthday background printed card stock and cutting them to be slightly smaller than a blank card.  Next, I fit the cut card stock into a Heiko clear resealable bag (available at HM Ben Franklin Crafts) and added some balloon and star confetti before taping up the bag tightly around the printed card stock and confetti.

This whole sealed bag was adhered to the card blank with double stick tape.

I had to think overnight to come up with an idea for a way to indicate the age of the birthday boy.  I finally looked through my stash of thick cardboard number and letter stickers. Happily, I found just what I needed.  I think the final outcome was just right. Sometimes, it helps to sleep overnight on a problem.  I am super pleased that I was able to easily and quickly create two birthday cards for boys who are different but undeniably special!

Shaker Confetti Jars Thank You Card

I was inspired to make this shaker card by the Lawn Fawn mason jar die set.  I thought that the jars looked like a large version of the confetti jars I have in my craft room.  It was easy to cut out three openings in a Whimsy slimline cardstock (Taffy), using the LF die. Then I die cut the jar shapes and lids from metallic silver paper.  These die cut pieces were glued to the Whimsy card stock with the jar shaped openings.

Next I filled three small resealable bags (just slightly bigger than the jar openings)with assorted confetti to match the Taffy card stock.  I taped the filled bags behind the openings being careful not to let the tape show.  In hindsight, I suppose that it would have been easier and neater to use Fabri-Tac glue.  The whole piece with the confetti jars was then adhered with double stick tape to a blank card.  The possibilities are endless with this card format.  Imagine different things in the jars...messages, money, etc.  Also the jars could be lined up in different ways. I really think this card turned out well...exactly like I saw it in my mind's eye.  Don't you love it when that happens?        

Puzzle Birthday Card

I love interactive cards and this one is definitely interactive.  I used the Whimsy puzzle die to die cut out puzzle pieces from a sheet of Whimsy Slimline Designer Paper  (Rainbow Magic) after I stamped it with a Hero Arts birthday message.

These puzzle pieces were then placed in a small re-closeable plastic bag.  A hole was punched on the top of the bag and curling ribbon was tied and curled on the top.  Happy Birthday washi tape was used to secure the bag containing the puzzle pieces and to decorate the inside of the card. An additional message was stamped inside the card using a Whimsy clear stamp.

I'm planning to tell the recipient of this card to open the bag and put the puzzle together to read the second birthday message.  This card format has many possibilities and is a good interactive gift for the receiver. Sometimes the best gift is taking the time to make something personal for a loved one.