A Custom Creation: Fresh Baked Birthday

Available at Arts Plus Gallery (because I made two of these!)

Hi there!  A colleague of mine requested a custom birthday creation recently.  The birthday girl, I was told, is really into baking her own bread, and she is fun and a bit eccentric.

Believe it or not, I have a bread stamp in my stash!  Yessss!  It's from an old Close To My Heart set called Tasty Treats. I thought a loaf of bread would go good with some cherries (patterned paper from Stampin' Up!); after all, they both come from the kitchen. :-)

First, I die-cut a doily (My Favorite Things Decorative Doily Duo) and stamped the bread on it, then colored with Copic markers. I used craft foam behind it, then layered this onto a die-cut Mini Scallop Circle (also MFT).  The tiny cherries were trimmed from a piece of patterned paper that coordinates with the black-background pattern featured on this card.

I added a thin red strip of cardstock where the cherries pattern meets the kraft cardstock base, and added two red rhinestones...reminiscent of freshly-washed cherries!

Thanks so much for joining me here today!  May God bless you!

A Custom Creation: Virginia Tech Congrats

Get your sunglasses out, this card is bright!

My co-worker's daughter enters Virginia Tech this fall.  He asked me to make a card for the party that his family hosted not too long ago.  The party celebrated her high school graduation and the new chapter that lies ahead.

I looked up Virginia Tech on the Internet and found the school's colors....then set about finding cardstock in my stash that would be a close match.  I used Rich Razzleberry (Stampin' Up!) and an orange from DCWV.

The congrats die is from Papertrey Ink, and I used PTI's Luxe Gold cardstock to die cut the word.  Used the same die with a piece of craft foam, so the word has some dimension.

I die-cut, then embossed the smallest Razzleberry panel, and added the sentiment and a sprinkle of bright gold sequins.

Cheers to this young lady, and her hopes of becoming an architect.  I hope all her dreams come true!

A Custom Creation: a baby girl is born

Hi there!  A sweet friend of mine asked for a custom card for folks she knows, who had a baby girl. Whenever I receive a custom request, I always ask about the recipients:  what are their favorite colors?  Are they formal, casual, modern, or prefer vintage things?  Do they like flowers?  If so, which ones are faves? These answers help me determine the look of the card.

For the new parents, my friend suggested to go "girly," use purple (my fave color, besides taupe), and personalize it with the baby's birth info.  Here is the result:

First off, isn't the baby's name gorgeous?  I love it!  In order to personalize, I needed to rely upon Microsoft Word.  I chose a neat font called Poison Apple, found at www.dafont.com.  I printed the info on printer paper that is heavier than the norm, but not too heavy because my printer is fussy.  (grrr....) Then, using a stamp from Verve called Vintage Oval Frame, I went right over top of the printed words.  I used Memento Tuxedo Black ink because I knew I'd want to distress the edges with Frayed Burlap ink by Ranger, which I did after hand-trimming the image.

On a scrap of cardstock, I stamped the vintage carriage from Unity's Delight In The Little Things. It also got distress ink along the edges after trimming first.  

I love how it turned out, and I hope it is something the baby's family will treasure for a lifetime.

Stamps: carriage - Delight In The Little Things - Unity; Vintage Oval Frame - Verve Paper: Chateau Lavender, Once Upon A Time, Luxury stacks- DCWV; River Rock, Whisper White - SU Fibers: crochet lace - Inspired By Stamping Accessories & Tools: White Opal Liquid Pearls - Ranger; Elegant Scrollwork die - Memory Box; pink paper rose - www.iamroses.com, Poison Apple font - www.dafont.com

A Custom Creation: roses for a friend's mom

Hello everyone!  Happy Monday.  :-)  A friend of mine requested a custom card for her mother, who was finishing up chemo treatments.  This card celebrates a major milestone for that family, and I was beyond thrilled to create something so very special:

My friend's mom loves:

• the color purple
• roses
• sparkly things :-) 

I had an image from Close To My Heart's Topiaries that fit the scheme perfectly, and made sure to add glittery spots, along with pearly ones, in the leaves.

I am beyond thrilled for my friend's mom, and for all those who love her.  Wishing her God's blessings in abundance.  :-)

Stamps: Topiaries - Close to my Heart Paper: Orchid Opulence, Always Artichoke, Whisper White - SU Fibers: white seam binding - Hug Snug - The Zipper Stop Accessories & Tools: iridescent gem - Recollections; Copic markers; iridescent stickles, White Opal Liquid Pearls - Ranger; Victoria embossing folder - Cuttlebug

A Custom Creation: Skateboard Girl Turns 16

Hello there!  I've had the pleasure of doing a handful of custom creations over the last couple of months, and this is one of them.  You can see another here, and it happens to use the same cute kitty from Papertrey Ink.

The background story for this card:

• birthday girl
• sweet sixteen
• loves cats
• loves black, loves blue
• loves to skateboard

I thoroughly enjoy the challenge of creating a very personal, unique card.  Here's the end result:

I created the skateboard by using a Word Window punch (Stampin' Up!).  I punched out three shapes using blue cardstock, stacked 'em up to give it height, and used a blue marker to add a shadow to the bottom edge.  The wheels were created with Pretty Pink Posh Onyx sequins, topped with silver half-pearls.

The background paper is flocked, which adds to the coolness factor.  :-D

I hear the birthday girl liked her card.  That makes me happy.  :-)

Hope you have a wonderful day!

Stamps: Cat's Meow - Papertrey Ink; Fancy Alphabet - Inspired By Stamping Paper: white - PTI; Basic Gray, Brilliant Blue, black flocked - SU Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black - Tsukineko; Basic Gray - SU Fibers: black seam binding - Hug Snug - The Zipper Stop Accessories & Tools: circle, Labels 15 dies - Spellbinders; corner punch - Fiskars; Copic markers; Word Window punch - SU; Onyx sequins - Pretty Pink Posh; silver half pearls - Recollections; blue gems - Michaels; Cat's Meow dies - Papertrey Ink

A Custom Creation: Have a purrfect day

Hi there!  Back in the summer, my 12 YO daughter was invited to her best friend's birthday party. My girl asked me to make a special card.

I LOVE custom challenges like this!  You can see some of my other custom creations here and here.

The birthday girl adores cats.  This fact gave me the purrfect (ha) chance to use my new Cat's Meow stamps and dies from Papertrey Ink.

I'm kind of new to the "coordinating dies" thing that everyone's doing these days.  Have to say I really appreciate having these dies.  Hand-trimming these stamped objects would not have been fun.

The sentiment comes with the Cat's Meow set, but I wanted my scene to have a picture hung on the wall above the cat.  Enter this pretty frame from Vintage Frames / Inspired By Stamping.  It was just the right size for the words.  I stamped it in chocolate ink, then drew on a nail and picture wire with a fine-tipped Copic marker.

I love cats, too, by the way.  Here is Cristabel, our sweetie:

She's pretty tough to photograph with all that dark fur.  I keep trying!

Stamps: Vintage Frames - Inspired By Stamping; Cat's Meow - Papertrey Ink Paper: white - PTI; hardwood strip - gift Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black - Tsukineko; Chocolate Chip, Ballet Blue, Going Gray - SU Accessories & Tools: Cat's Meow dies - PTI; Copic markers

A Custom Creation: Bluesy Love Cards

I've doubled up love cards for this post, both in shades of blue.

The first is an icy, wintry, elegant wedding card that went over to Arts Plus Gallery a little while back.

It's really a pretty simple card.  I stamped Hero Arts Large Fabric Design background in blue on a white base.  Added a sheer blue bow, topped with a silver tassel (from an old bookmark-making kit I received) and a glorious bejeweled button.



...and then, some chipboard letters in silver.  Done!



In November 2013, I posted THIS custom engagement card.  And even though I am not one to duplicate cards, I did love it so much that I created a similar one for the shop.

I changed the color of the cardstock to a soft blue instead of purple, and added a sentiment this time.  For some reason, this card was easier to photograph and photo-edit than the previous, purple version.  My camera has a hard time with reds and purples.

Thanks so much for joining me today!

Card #1:

Stamps:   Large Fabric Design - Hero Arts Paper:  white - PTI Ink:  Bordering Blue - SU Accessories & Tools:  tassel; button; silver chipboard letters - American Crafts

Card #2:

Stamps:  Love Story - Verve Paper: Bordering Blue, Whisper White - SU; Once Upon A Time patterned paper - DCWV Ink: white opaque, Walnut Stain - Ranger Accessories & Tools: Oval die - Spellbinders; butterflies - removed from store-bought card; Floral Frame embossing folder - Sizzix; Elegant Scrollwork die - Memory Box; Modern Label Punch - SU; pearls - Queen & Co.

A Custom Creation: Inspired by an Anthropologie Mug

My friend Linda asked me to make a card to go with some mugs she's giving to a friend.  The mugs are from Anthropologie and look like this:

I am so happy she gave me my first commissioned job!
During the one free day I had this past week, I came up with this:

I used two Stampin' Up! sets:  Vintage Vogue and Charming. 

Each of the flowers was stamped and cut out, then attached to the white layer, which had already been stamped with a flower/vine from Charming. 

The inside of the card.

The envelope reminds me of pottery my husband
and I bought in Spain in 2002.

The Pals Paper Arts inspiration photo...

also helped inspire the design of my card.  Their challenge is to use flowers.
And at Etsy Inspired, I chose this trim

from the shop, Creating Is Fun.  The navy color and shape of the trim remind me of the border I created at the top and bottom of the card.

It felt WONDERFUL to create a card and get paid for it!  Thank you, Linda!

Colleen

Stamps:  Vintage Vogue, Charming by Stampin' Up!
Paper:  white by PTI, Pumpkin Pie, Tempting Turquoise
Ink:  Wild Wasabi, Not Quite Navy, Pumpkin Pie, Summer Sun, Basic Black, Tempting Turquoise
Other:  bling, dimensionals, Stampamajig