Diagonal Stripes - Aqua and Brown

This diagonal layout, #209 from Clean and Simple Stamping, features a simple sentiment above some patterned stripes.  It was not an easy one for me to try, but I'm glad I did.  Thank you, Natasha, for the inspiration! 

Card details:

•  Card stock is Paper Source peacock (dark turquoise) and Papertrey Ink aqua mist (light aqua), dark chocolate (brown), rustic white, gingham print from the dark chocolate pattern pack, and bitty dots print from the aqua mist pattern pack.
• The stars die is from the Papertrey Ink super star border die collection. 
• The sentiment, "Thinking of you across the miles..." is computer-printed in turquoise ink with Hobo Std font.

Created for Operation Write Home, "supporting our nation's armed forces by sending blank handmade greeting cards to write home on, as well as cards of gratitude to encourage them." (202)

Purple Flowers with White - Three Squares

Three squares with flowers.  I like the contrast, balance, and flow with the patterned paper, the flowers at different angles, the shimmer of the little pearls, the mix of squares and curves, and the off-center layout.   My card was inspired by this (very different) card on Susan Raihala's Simplicity blog. 

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink royal velvet and stamper's select white, and the leaves print from royal velvet pattern pack.  Note: the gray is background, not part of the card. 
• The die for the sentiment is Papertrey Ink double-ended banner (small).  
• The flowers are punched with an EK Success retro flower punch.  I punched a 1/8" hole in the flower centers, then added a bit of Ranger liquid pearls.

Created for Operation Write Home, "supporting our nation's armed forces by sending blank handmade greeting cards to write home on, as well as cards of gratitude to encourage them." (177)

Red, White, and Blue with Yellow

My last few cards were monochromatic - not this one!  Red, white, and blue with some bright yellow-orange.  A nice mix of textures and patterns.

When I bought the "seed packet" die,  I thought it was an interesting shape, but wasn't sure if I would like using it.  Love it! especially with a curved sentiment like this one. 

Card details:

•  Card stock is Neenah solar white and Papertrey Ink enchanted evening (dark blue), summer sunrise (yellow), pure poppy (red), bitty dot basics 2009 (enchanted evening), and stripes from the summer sunrise pattern pack.  
• Dies are Papertrey Ink seed packet frame 2 and flower fusion #9.  The yellow dot is a 5/16" circle punch.
• Embossing folders are Stampin Up square lattice (red) and Cuttlebug candy cane stripes.  
• The sentiment "Thank you" is computer-printed in blue and red ink using "Stencil Std" font.  The dots above and below the words are periods.  I used the Word Art feature in PowerPoint to curve the sentiment.  

Created for Operation Write Home, "supporting our nation's armed forces by sending blank handmade greeting cards to write home on, as well as cards of gratitude to encourage them." (201)

Purples with Lace Panel

A sweet, lacy love card, with nice textures and colors. 

Card details:

•  Card stock is Papertrey Ink plum pudding (left side), lavender moon (right side), and rustic white (lace panel).
• The lace is cut with the Memory Box charlotte border die.
• The ribbon is 3/8" satin.  The embroidery floss is DMC 3041. 
  Edited May 5, 2013 to add:  DMC 3041 has a slight brownish tinge and looks very brown in some lights (bright sunlight, for example).  I found Anchor brand #872 is a better color - almost the same as DMC 3041, but without the brown.
• The sentiment "Love you, miss you" is computer-printed in purple ink with Edwardian script ITC font, expanded character spacing. 

Created for Operation Write Home, "supporting our nation's armed forces by sending blank handmade greeting cards to write home on, as well as cards of gratitude to encourage them." (200)

Three Greens with Dots

This card has three green colors - light, medium, and dark - and also three different types of dots - patterned paper, embossing, and glued-on quarter-inch punched dots.   I like the variety of shapes and textures on a very simple "medallion band" layout. 

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink spring moss (light green), simply chartreuse (medium green), ripe avocado (dark green), vintage cream, and the bitty dot pattern from simply chartreuse pattern pack.  
• Dies are My Favorite Things layered label die set (3 die shapes).   
• The two green dots to right and left of sentiment are punched with an old 1/4" hole punch. 
• Embossing folder is Darice dot point, from my local craft store.
• Sentiment "Thinking of you today" is computer-printed in green ink using Wide Latin font. 

Created for Operation Write Home, "supporting our nation's armed forces by sending blank handmade greeting cards to write home on, as well as cards of gratitude to encourage them." (199)

Pink Hearts and Lines

 

A nice balance of shapes and lines, lots of white space, some pattern and some solid color.  

Note: the gray is background, not part of the card. 

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink raspberry fizz, stamper's select white, and leaves pattern from the raspberry fizz pattern pack. 
• Dies are Papertrey Ink heart prints (medium and large) and My Favorite Things jumbo squiggle.
• Corners are rounded with Corner Chomper 1/4". 
• The lines were drawn by tracing around the dies with a pink Copic 0.3 multiliner.  On another card with the same design, I tried using dashed lines for faux stitching, but it somehow was too cluttered and "busy."  The solid lines, as shown here, look better. 

Created for Operation Write Home, "supporting our nation's armed forces by sending blank handmade greeting cards to write home on, as well as cards of gratitude to encourage them." (198)

Tan with Brown - Psalm 23 - Before and After

Two versions: "Before" (left) and "After" (right)

Today I have a "before and after" card, for the September challenge sponsored by Our Daily Bread Designs (thank you, ODBD!) to benefit Operation Write Home.  This month's challenge theme is to make a card which includes either a Scripture verse, or an uplifting quote or sentiment.  I chose the 23rd Psalm. 

On my "before" card (left),  the text (though legible) didn't stand out very well on the striped paper, and the layer looked bumpy going over the twine strands.  On my "after" card (right),  I used my striped paper for the background, not for the sentiment, and I popped up the Psalm panel on some foam tape. A big improvement!  You can click on either card for a better view. 

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink fine linen (tan), dark chocolate (brown), and stripes from the fine linen pattern pack.  
• Twine is rustic jute button twine from Papertrey Ink.
• The embossing folders are Stampin Up square lattice on the "before" card base, and Craft Concept solid stars on the brown layer for both cards.
• The little brown stars are punched with a Fiskars hand punch.  
• The 23rd Psalm is computer-printed with brown ink using "Handwriting Dakota" font (bold, expanded spacing.)  The double-line border around the Psalm is also computer-printed. 

Created for Operation Write Home, "supporting our nation's armed forces by sending blank handmade greeting cards to write home on, as well as cards of gratitude to encourage them." (197)