Card Concept #7: Butterfly Theme

Have you started seeing butterflies around your home yet?  If not, be prepared to see a lot of them in the next two weeks here on the Card Concept Challenge...our theme for Challenge #7 is to use a Butterfly somewhere on your card!   

I hope you have been playing along with our fun, new challenge...for Challenge #6, we had 116 cards submitted...seriously, 116!  Want to see who were the winners?  Here's a link to to see the favorites.

I am one of the designers who represents the Classy and Elegant style.  

Definition:

Polished

Shiny Finish

Sparkling Embellishments

Rich Color Scheme

Sophisticated Sentiments

Regal

Sweeping

Dramatic

Monochromatic

Layered Textures

Awe

Impress

I never really thought my style of card making was Classy and Elegant, but I  have found that you only have to use one or two of the descriptions for your card to be considered in that category.  You can have a CAS or Clean and Layered card and still have it be Classy and Elegant!  Here's my take on the Butterfly theme:

It always makes me happy when I see a butterfly...so I used some a cheerful, happy new die from Memory Box with cute musical notes as my background.  I also used a very elegant 6 x 6 embossing folder from Embossalicious to add that swirly background in the corners of my base.  The butterfly is a die from Serendipity Stamps...probably the most elegant die I have.  I cut it once in glittery paper and once in a teal colored vellum.  I wish you could see how pretty it is in person!  I added some really shiny stick pins and a few more little butterflies to tie in the teal color.  I am saving this card for my son and daughter-in-law who have their first anniversary in April.  

Are you ready to see some more butterfly inspiration?  Make sure you check out all the cards made by the Card Concept Design Team...there are 6 different styles, something for everyone!

Clean & Simple

Tracey McNeely 

Deanna Dean

Clean & Graphic

Ardyth Percy-Robb

Geri Greening

Clean & Layering

Kay Miller

Kerin Sylvester

Shabby Chic

Narelle Farrugia 

Debbie Marcinkiewicz

Freestyle Collage

Karen Davis 

Cindy Lovell 

Classy & Elegant

Lee Ann Barrett

*PREORDER S4-383 Spellbinders MARVELOUS SQUARES Nestabilities Dies NEW 2012	*MD1-008 Media Mixage Spellbinders SQUARES TWO Die	*s4-322 Spellbinders GROMMET TAGS Dies Shapeabilities	*Crafter's Companion Embossalicious REGAL FRAME 6 x 6 Embossing Folder 755444	*Memory Box MUSICALITY COLLAGE Craft DIE 98749
Serendipity Stamp & Die	Damask Designs

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Card Concept #6: Make a Birthday Card

Time for another Card Concept challenge...and this one is going to be something everyone will want to play along with...make a birthday card.  We all could use a few birthday cards to add to our stash...and we have a very pretty inspiration picture to give you a little head start on your birthday cards.

Isn't that a gorgeous cake?  It looks so pretty with the beautiful flowers as decorations and also is displayed on a beautiful white cake stand.  That cake and cake stand was my inspiration...and I created a fun little birthday card as seen through an open window.

Have you ever seen the cute cards made by Kitty Carracciolo of KittieKraft?  I am sure you have...I'm a big fan.  She must spend hours and hours creating realistic card scenes.  I remembered a card made by Kitty where she used strips of card stock to mimic siding on the outside of a house.  You can see Kitty's card here.   First I made my cake and then built my scene around it.  I even added a cute gray cat just like one of mine staring out the window.  All of the card ingredients are listed below...but I especially love that cake and cake stand from Memory Box.  

I'm sure that you will be needing a birthday card one day soon, here's a little more inspiration from the Design Team at Card Concept Challenge:
All you have to do is make a card using one of the six card styles listed above and link it to the Card Concept Challenge blog by Monday, March 31st.  I hope to see your card in our gallery very soon!

Clean & Simple

Tracey McNeely 

Deanna Dean

Clean & Graphic

Ardyth Percy-Robb

Geri Greening

Clean & Layering

Kay Miller

Kerin Sylvester

Shabby Chic

Narelle Farrugia 

Debbie Marcinkiewicz

Freestyle Collage

Karen Davis 

Cindy Lovell 

Classy & Elegant

Lee Ann Barrett
Lesley Croghan, Guest Designer

I am also entering this card into the Anything Goes category over at the Seize the Birthday Challenge.  There's always a ton of birthday inspiration there...check it out here!

*Memory Box GRAND MADISON WINDOW POPPY STAMPS Craft DIE 815	*Memory Box GRAND MADISON WINDOW SHUTTER POPPY STAMPS Craft DIE 832	*Memory Box GRAND FLOWER BOX POPPY STAMPS Craft DIE 821	*Memory Box SCALLOPED CAKE STAND Craft DIE 98541	*Memory Box PETITE CAKE Craft DIE 98547
*Memory Box BIRTHDAY CANDLES POPPY STAMPS Craft DIE 909	*Memory Box WILDFLOWER PATCH POPPY STAMPS Craft DIE 820	*My Favorite Things FRESH CUT GRASS Die-Namics MFT	*Memory Box LARGE SITTING CAT POPPY STAMPS Craft DIE 871	Heart 2 Heart #2
Heart 2 Heart #2 Die

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If the broom fits...

Is that not the funniest sentiment?  My kids are all grown now and I am still waiting for some grandchildren so I can make lots of cute or scary Halloween cards.  The only Halloween cards I send now are to my adult friends where Boo or Trick or Treat don't really fit, so I was very excited when Lil' Inker came out with Bats and Broomsticks.  This set is cute enough for young ones, but has some really great adult sentiments as well.  Here is the card I made for one of my co-workers.

Isn't this witch scaled perfectly for the Poppy Stamps Grand Madison Window die? I think I have made a card using this window die for just about every holiday there is.  There is not much that doesn't look good outside that detailed window.   I used Authentique patterned papers (Thrilling Collection)...thanks Jeanne for sending it to me along with some black and orange ribbon, and that cat?   It's from Poppy Stamps (Sitting Cat).  Nothing like a black cat sitting in the window sill on Halloween watching the witches flying by.  The friend I am giving this card to has a black cat just like it, so I'm pretty sure she will enjoy this card.

Boo!

Today I have a Halloween card that was so easy to make, 10 minutes tops!  I got some new Halloween dies in the mail and decided to make a Halloween graveyard scene.

I added Serendipity Stamps (Bare Tree) embossed in black to the new dies.  Those trees look so good embossed, so shiny and a perfect addition to the graveyard scene.  You can't have a graveyard without some spooky looking trees, right?  The dies are from Memory Box (Graveyard landscape) and Impression Obsession ( Halloween Hill).   The sentiment is from Serendipity Stamps (Boo, small)  stamped onto a Spellbinder label.  The clouds are die cuts from PTI).

Serendipity Stamps is having a sale now too, so you can pick up the tree stamp for a great price. The sale lasts until September 12th and if you buy three items, the 4th one is FREE! Here's a link to the Serendipity Store.