CIRCLE SPINNER BIRTHDAY CARD

My great-nephew had a birthday last month, and I used Stampin' Up!'s retired Shining Star dies and Seaside Shore stamp set to create a fun and fishy spinner card for him.  

Obviously, the dies made the making of this card so easy.  And then I stamped a coordinating envelope.

"WE RISE BY LIFTING OTHERS"

That's one of my most favorite quotes and, when I saw this new Chalk Couture transfer, I knew that I had to have it.

I thought it would be the perfect decoration (on the small Chalk Couture Pennant Banner) for my cubicle at work.  Unfortunately, I didn't get a good adhesion of the transfer on the banner, and some of the ink seeped where I didn't want it.  That meant I would have to go to plan B.  I didn't exactly have a plan B, but I managed to whip up a new banner with a scrap of fabric.  I'm actually quite proud of my homemade banner, considering that I've only been sewing for a month.  

The second time around, I decided to use Chalk Paste instead of ink.  My colors were Tide and Sage, and don't they look great swirled and mixed?  To accomplish the mix, I spread Tide on the bottom half of the transfer, Sage was spread at the top, and then I used my finger to blend where the colors met and moved the paste around.

I know that my sewing is FAR from perfect (hence the green glitter strip across the top), but this turned out to be a great decoration!

Want to see another "We Rise" project?  The one below is on a Board & Pillar Stand:

The nice thing about the Board & Pillar Stand is that the framed chalkboard can be oriented in a vertical or horizontal position, AND the chalkboard itself can be washed and re-used.

PRESSED PETALS CONCERTINA POP-UP CARD

Aunt Betty has a birthday next week, and it's only natural that I wanted a special card to send to her.  While this concertina pop-up design packs a definite wow--and I'm pretty sure she'll like it, I felt just a smidge blase about the finished design.  For one thing, I was running out of time to come up with a plan for the birthday card because it needed to get in the mail, and that kind of pressure really squashes a creative muse.  But . . . it's a really fun card, right?  

Stampin' Up!'s Pressed Petals designer paper is simply gorgeous, and it works really hard to make a pretty card.  I mean . . . just look at it . . . the front of this card really didn't need very much because that paper deserves center stage.

The card folds flat, which is perfect for mailing (with extra postage if thick with embellishments and layers), and the inside is where the pop-up and WOW take place!  While there is a LOT of space for creativity with this type of card, I felt that I didn't utilize it to the best of my ability.  But then again . . . how could I possibly compete with that gorgeous paper?  I kept things simple by stamping images from the retired (and lovely) Pocket Silhouettes stamp set, and I pulled birthday sentiments from Perennial Birthday and that oh so FANTASTIC Beautiful Friendship set.  

I hope you get some inspiration from this card!  Have a stampin' good day!

ANOTHER POP-UP FRONT STEP PANEL CARD

This was the first horizontal version of the Pop-Up Front Step Panel card that I made, and I had no idea where to begin.  As with the cards that I shared in my previous post, I opted to keep stamping to a minimum since I couldn't envision (during the design trial process) where the stamping needed to be or where it would be covered.  Using designer paper to cover the panels/layers was a wonderful idea!  This Mosaic Mood Specialty paper has such pretty colors and also adds texture with its shiny transparent accents that feel embossed.

I've had some requests for instructions and, after cleaning off my desk, I uncovered several notes--some of which had been altered, most likely as mistakes were discovered.  I haven't made more of these cards, so I'm not 100% sure what the dimensions are for the smaller pop-up layer.  I found an unused card base, though, and it is 5-1/2" x 8", scored at 1/2", 1-3/4", 3", and 4-1/4".

Something that I really like to add to a card with a simple design is torn vellum.  I just love that look, don't you?  It's also a great way to use vellum scraps because you can cut the cardstock layer to fit the size of the vellum scrap--it just needs to be wide enough to wrap around the cardstock and, of course, you must have just enough on top and bottom to allow for tearing.  Embossing on the vellum?  Well . . . that's just the perfect touch!