Two cards for Kids

 I've been on a bit of a roll with the 'numbered' birthday cards. Threw this card together thinking I was making it for a young friend of mine. 

Do you think it says, 50?  Let me know if the comments! The family asked me why I made a "50" card for a 5 year old! It's clearly not a zero- spoken as a true Maths teacher. 

Anyway, I'm then talking to my young friend's mother and I realise that this girl is already 5!  I was supposed to make her a "6" year old card!!! Can you believe it? So, I got texting to try and find a family member who might be turning 5.  I'm not good at keeping track of ages.  My Aunty told me her granddaughter is turning 5 in November... so I'm really ahead of the game.  She then tells me, a different granddaughter is turning 6 in a few weeks, she would love card for her.  I cam up with this... 

It was so much fun making this card!  I love the pastel type colours from Catherine Pooler's Spring Fling collection of ink.  The cake stands out so beautifully.  I know this little one likes chocolate, so I'm sure she would love this cake!  I sent it off in the mail the very next day.  Hopefully it gets there in time! #tickticktick

2 Bonus Cards

Talking about last minute 'birthday' realisations. We received a phone call the other day from a dear old friend of the family, known as Aunty Jo.  She's not really our Aunty, but she was Nanny's best friend since childhood.  She's family.  She was calling to check in, but also to get my Uncle's postal address because she wanted to send him a 60th birthday card!!! What, he's 60?!  OOPS! I had already made a card for him - it did not have a 60 on it.  My mother insists on sending numbered cards for people who are having a '0' (zero) birthday.  Then Mum says, "oh wait, his wife is turning 60 in a few weeks too!" 

So, I'm about to start back at the busy-ness of school and I have to make two (that's right, two) 60th birthday cards.  I usually put a lot of pressure on myself with 'big' birthday cards (#a0makesitbig). First thing to do, considering the time crunch, take the pressure OFF.  I planned out and made these two cards in a few hours.  First one has been sent... it was late, but that's because my mother didn't post it on the day I gave it to her!  She had one job! 

Take a look. 

My uncle loves music- he played in a Beatle's cover band!  
I asked him what his favourite colour was and he said, "Purple".
I was like, "you mean like Purple rain or Deep Purple.  
He said, 'Deep Purple." Cue: Smoke on the Water riff. 

 

According to my Uncle, my Aunty likes "Pink". 
I really hope he meant the colour and not the singer! 

At least I'm getting A LOT of use out of my Altenew bold numbers dies.  They were quite the investment.  #totallyworthit #priceless #pink

Happy February! 

See you next time. 

Special Birthday Cards- Building the Birthday Stash

 Several of the teenagers in my family are turning 16 or 18 this year!  It's nuts.  They all need to stop growing.  It makes me feel very old. One of my nieces is turning 10!  

Last week, I pulled out my number dies and got cutting, because I needed lots of 10's, 16's and 18's to stick on my cards. I also got out the list of 'favourite colours' and got cracking.  Here are the cards that I've made so far. 

A simple card- I made this by 'free range' stamping the Happy Birthday sentiment
repeatedly down the cardstock on a diagonal. I staggered it to add interest. 
Glitter card stock for the hexagon die cut helps the silver glitter 18 stand out from the background. 
Sentiment is from Lawn Fawn (year 2?). Number dies from Altenew. 
Ink colours from CPD: It's a Boy, Fiesta Blue, Something Borrowed and Suede Shoes.

This card was soooo easy. A simple "Happy Birthday" sentiment, 
white heat embossed on black card stock. 
Red cardstock for the background and gold glitter cardstock for the number. 
My nephew loves "The Flash" and last year I made a card with the Flash logo.  
This card is a twist on the card I made last year- using an 18 instead of a lightning bolt. 

The recipient of this card loves purple and is a cat lover (like me). 
I used a paper tearing technique to mask off a section at a time to ink blend on the card. 
I started at the bottom with the darkest purple ink and worked my way up the card. 
I used a lighter shade of purple in each section. I love the cute little paw prints across the bottom of the card to add a more personal touch to this design.  More glitter card stock was used for the 18. 

I started by making the 16 and adding a leaf stamp for the flames. 
It looks like those number candles that you buy in the shops, right?
I stamped the 'sweet' in an ink from CPD called "Sweet Sixteen".  
Maybe I'm the only one who thinks that really cool! lol. 
After die cutting it with a stitched rectangle die and adding a gold mat, it still didn't look right. 
The doodle garden background stamp (also stamped in the Sweet Sixteen ink colour)
was the perfect addition to finish off this card. 

The final card took me the longest and includes a bunch of techniques.  For some strange reason (perhaps I'm crazy), I decided to make a gatefold card for my nieces 10th birthday card.  I hope she likes it.  She also loves cats and all things art and craft.  I often feel we are kindred spirits in that regard.  The front was created with ink smooshing and more glitter cardstock for the '10'.  I used ink blending for the inside of the card and stuck on a cat image that I coloured some time last year.  I told you, it took ages. I also found some pre-stamped punny sentiments that I thought would work "puurrfectly" inside the card.  I had the balloons already die cut as well.  Check it out. 

I hope you have a great week! 

Happy Crafting! 

2022- Building the Birthday Stash

Now is the time to get set up for a good year. 

I tend to have a bit of extra time on my hands in January, so it's a good time to figure out if there are any special birthdays or other events I need to make cards for.  I also like to make sure I have several cards ready to go for the birthdays that are coming.  There are times when I forget someone's birthday and I like to have extras ready for that, but really we are focusing on being ready so I am not trying to make cards at the last minute when work is busy and I'm trying to prepare for parties and buy gifts! 

I started by listing all the birthdays in the family - facebook is a helpful resource here, but I also referred to previous calendars. Using a table in Word or Excel, makes it easy to make a 'box' for each month and list the birthdays in date order. If two people share a date, just write both names. After printing this out, I cut it up and glued my 'calendar' onto a piece of cardstock with a tab - one for each month. Now I have a filing system for my birthday cards. I pulled out my birthday stash and I have enough cards for most of the year already! There are a few special birthdays that need cards- I will share them next time! 

I still have a stash of other birthday cards that I'm keeping in reserve just in case I have forgotten someone! My mum also has a tendency to walk into my craft room and request a birthday card (that she needs NOW!) so now there is a stash just for her! 

Now I'm just working my way through the list of cards that need to be made.  See those next time. 

Have a great week! :) 

How to know you need a new hairstyle and other tips for January.

 Cleaning up and clearing out always happens this time of year.  While tidying up in the craft room, I found this list scrawled in a notebook.  I'm pretty sure I wrote this while I was waiting for a train or a bus. 

You know you need a new hairstyle when...

1. Your Mum says "I like how you've done your hair today!"
2. Your Nana tells you that your hairstyle makes you look "very smart".
3. You can't see anything because your hair is in your eyes.
4. Your mates are calling you Rapunzel.
5. People compare your hair to that of any bloke famous for being in a band! 

I'm guessing if you experience 1 and 2 you probably aren't experiencing 3, but it's possible.  Meanwhile this was a good reminder to book in a hair cut before school goes back! Eek. 

What else do I want to get done this month? 

• Clean out my wardrobe, 
• Tidy up my bedroom, 
• Declutter and Donate DVD's and other items I am not using anymore. 
• Get some workouts planned out and ready to go.
• Exercise.
• Get all those medical check ups and check ins done- you know the dentist, the optometrist, the chemist and the vet. 

Wish me luck! 

2021 Cards- Part 3

 The rest of my favourite cards for 2021 are here. Let's do this. 

Unfortunately, I had cause to send a number of Sympathy cards and other encouragement cards for people who were really struggling with illness or difficult situations.  I often feel quite helpless in these situations, but I hope that my words of support written in a handmade card will be of some comfort. 

These two cards were made entirely with Catherine Pooler products. 
I invested in two sets of the Mini Inks in spa colours.  These are just the right tone for sympathy cards. 

So simple- white card stock in a floral embossing folder makes a beautiful and subtle background. 
The silver and black mats, with the white heat embossing on black, are simple additions to these simple and elegant designs. 

Earlier this year, my niece had a tonsillectomy.  I went to Rockhampton to take care of her and take the load off her mother. I made this card for her, using a packet of water-based felt markers and a red rubber leaf stamp.  The sentiment and stripe stamps are from a stamp set by Catherine Pooler.  I think it might be retired. 

I made this card using an ink smooshed background.  
The image and sentiment are from a small Gina K stamp set that I bought on sale! 
It's the cutest whale ever! 

I have coveted this painted rose stamp set (by Concord and 9th) for four years!
I finally found it for a reasonable price in Australia- best birthday present ever!
The versatility of this stamp set is great. 
I can use just the outline, or one shadow layer or all the layers.  

Such a simple card that is suitable for anyone and any occasion.

More simplicity and these cards use bird shadow images from the Birds of a Feather stamp set by Catherine Pooler (in my previous card making post).
Yet another card from this awesome stamp set. 

Patterned paper tearing surrounds this big encouragement quote.
This card was so much fun to make and the design tells a story. 
I love this card.
When I showed it to my Mum (I thought she probably wouldn't like it)
she said it was very clever and she wanted to give it to a work colleague. 
I feel like I need to make more cards just like this one. 

 2022 here we come.  

2021 Cards- Birthdays

 Okay, I know it's 2022.  Give me a break.  

Here are some birthday cards I made this year.  I'm not going to write too much about these.  Feel free to ask any questions in the comments. In September, I bought a new (to me) stamp set from MFT  and I've had so much fun colouring the images.  They are a great foundation for some really fun cards! I hope you enjoy seeing these cards as much as I enjoyed making them. 

I also dove into another stamp set that has a cat, a dog and a bird in it.  I've had this set for over a year!  I invested in the co-ordinating dies recently.  I love this card! 

The birds of a feather stamp set from Catherine Pooler can make so many different types of cards.  See these two.  

Last but not least, I had to try out the latest trend in shaker cards where the acetate is folded over the edges of the card instead of using a frame and foam tape to make the element. Take a look. 

I loved this technique so much I tried it on a few other cards.  It didn't always work out quite as well.  I think it's important not to pull the acetate too tightly around the card, so there is room for the 'bits' to move around inside the pouch. 

Next time, other assorted cards I made in 2021. Then I will be ready to move into 2022.  Maybe. 

Meanwhile, I'm going craft shopping today! :)