Red, White, and Blue Stars with Yellow

Lots of patterns for this starry card.  I like the tiny "thank you" themed print behind the diecut patterned stars.

Card details:

• Card stock is Paper Source lake (medium blue) and Papertrey Ink (PTI) pure poppy (red) and stamper's select white. 
• Patterned papers are a polka dot print from PTI harvest gold (medium yellow) pattern pack (tone-on-tone prints - retired) and my own thank-you themed design, computer-printed on Neenah 65 lb bright white with medium blue ink, using Savoye LET 11 point font.
• Dies are from PTI seeing stars (retired) and Elizabeth Craft thanks.
• The star patterns are from PTI military stars (retired), stamped with PTI enchanted evening (dark blue), pure poppy, and bright buttercup (deep yellow) inks.

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

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Red, White, and Blue with Pen

A few simple elements make a bold red, white, and blue card.  I like the diagonal sentiment strip with the diagonal pen. 

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink (PTI) pure poppy (red), enchanted evening (dark blue), weathervane (gray), and stamper's select white. 
• Patterned paper is my homemade script background (see this card), printed on Neenah solar white with blue ink. 
• I edged the top and bottom of the sentiment strip with a Copic B45 marker.
  
• The sentiment "just a note" is from PTI keep it simple: just a note, stamped with PTI pure poppy ink.
• Dies are from PTI ink it in.  To make the pen's tip red, I touched it to my ink pad.

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

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Red, White, and Blue Star Circle

Lots of red, white, and blue for a patriotic theme.  The star circle's "thank you" is layered on my homemade thank-you themed patterned paper.  The medium blue strip grounds the circle and sets off the sentiment on its busy background. 

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink (PTI) pure poppy (red), enchanted evening (dark blue), blueberry sky (medium blue), and rustic white. 
• Patterned paper is computer-printed on Neenah 65 lb bright white with red and blue inks, using American Typewriter 8 point font.
• Dies are from PTI limitless layers: 1-3/4" circles (white circle - retired) and Spellbinders standard circles small (dark blue circle - die # 4 of 7).
• The inner "thank you" star and the outer star circle are from PTI military stars (retiring), stamped with PTI enchanted evening and pure poppy inks.

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

(1243)

Red, White, and Blue Stripe - Thanks

Today's card features the same borrowed "thanks" die as this card from last week.  A diagonal placement adds some movement to the design.  

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

Card details:

• Card stock is Neenah solar white, My Favorite Things red hot, and Papertrey Ink (PTI) enchanted evening (dark blue). 
• I made the red-and-blue striped paper in PowerPoint and computer-printed it on Neenah solar white.
• I don't know the name of the die.
  

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

(1239)

Green Vine on Green Script Print

A simple green and off-white card with my homemade green script print background.  I like the wide dark stripe with the curves and angles of the die cuts and script font. 

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

Card details:

• Card stock is Neenah 65 lb bright white (a softer white than my usual Neenah solar white) and Papertrey Ink (PTI) simply chartreuse (medium green), ripe avocado (dark green), and rustic white.
• My patterned paper design is computer-printed with green ink, using Savoye LET 11 point font.  The words are: "Thank you - With gratitude - Sincere thanks - So thankful - You are appreciated - Many thanks - Grateful for all you do - Thank you very much - Sending my thanks - So much thanks"
  
• Dies are Birch Press sugar script thanks and PTI garden garland.

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

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Red, White, and Blue with "Thanks" Text Print

I've been wishing for a text print paper with a "thanks" theme, so I created it in a Word document.  It will be easy to print in different colors as needed, and I also did a version with a script font.  The words are: "Thank you - With gratitude - Sincere thanks - So thankful - You are appreciated - Many thanks - Grateful for all you do - Thank you very much - Sending my thanks - So much thanks"  Perfect for today's simple red, white, and blue design. 

Note: in my image, the patterned paper looks a bit pink, but in real life, it's red on white.

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink (PTI) enchanted evening (dark blue) and pure poppy (red).
• Patterned paper is computer-printed on Neenah 65 lb bright white with red ink, using American Typewriter 8 point font.
• Dies are Elizabeth Craft thanks and My Favorite Things jumbo squiggle (retired).

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

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Red, White, and Blue with Kraft - Thank You

When I made this earlier card, I saved my cutout letters and a template (the negative cut "thank you" word) to use as shown above.  The template made it quick and easy to place my letters.  I like the contrast of kraft with dark blue for my sentiment panel, and the embossed stars add a nice texture to the background.

 Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink (PTI) enchanted evening (dark blue), pure poppy (red), and classic kraft.
• I made the red-and-blue striped paper in PowerPoint and computer-printed it on Neenah solar white.
• Embossing folder is The Paper Studio tiny stars.
• Dies are from PTI headline alphabet.

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

(1144)

Sunburst Stencil with Teal Dots

A bright and sunny card with some deep teal for contrast.  I like the curving script of the sentiment across the angled sun rays.

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink (PTI) tropical teal.
• Patterned paper is the polka dot print from PTI tropical teal pattern pack (tone-on-tone prints - retired) and my homemade patterned grid paper, as described here.  In real life, though the aqua grid is pale, it's much more visible than in the picture.
• The wide and narrow ray stencils are PTI sunburst, sponged with PTI harvest gold (medium yellow) and summer sunrise (deep yellow-orange) ink cubes, using the round Ranger ink blending tool to apply the ink.  
• For the center circle, sponged with PTI summer sunrise ink, I made a stencil with PTI clear cardstock and an EK Success 1" circle punch.  I'll keep it with my two sunburst stencils to use again. 
• I edged the sunburst panel with Copic marker Y19.
• Die is PTI big basics: sunshine.

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

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Orange and Yellow Stripes with Circles

Happy and bright, with summery prints and a layered sun circle.

Card details:

• Card stock is Neenah solar white, Papertrey Ink (PTI) orange zest, harvest gold (yellow),  the leaf print from PTI harvest gold pattern pack (retired), and a striped paper that I created using PowerPoint. 
• Dies are PTI sketched shapes (white banner), PTI hello sunshine (orange 1-1/4" circle), WeRMemoryKeepers nesting circles (yellow 1" circle), and Avery Elle icon fill in the blank (asterisk).  
• I used an old 1/4" hole punch for the yellow center dot.  
• The orange banner is notched with scissors, and then I slightly rounded the banner tips with scalloped scissors.
• The sentiment "sending you sunshine" is from PTI hello sunshine, stamped with PTI orange zest ink cube. 
• Technique: For this card, the sentiment needed a bolder font, so I stamped it using the MISTI, then shifted my banner just a tiny bit to the right, and stamped again.  

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

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Bamboo with Green, Teal, and Aqua

A green, teal, and aqua card in two variations.  See below for the second one.  I'm making 36 for the use of our community senior center, so I needed an easy layout to cut, stamp, and assemble.

The bamboo is stamped on a pale aqua grid that I created and printed with my computer.  The grid adds a lovely subtle texture and a suggestion of sky.  I like both cards very much! 

Card details:

• Card stock is Neenah solar white, Papertrey Ink (PTI) tropical teal, spring moss (light green - above), aqua mist (below), and bitty dot prints from PTI aqua mist (above) and spring moss (below) pattern packs (retired).  
• My homemade patterned paper is a Word table, with rows and columns set to approx. 3/16" and an uneven dashed aqua line for the grid lines.  It's a bit darker in real life, but not much.
• The sentiment "just because" is from PTI keep it simple: just because, stamped with PTI tropical teal ink cube.  
• The bamboo is from PTI peaceful garden (retired), stamped with PTI spring moss and tropical teal ink cubes.  After stamping the bamboo in green, I added some teal ink to my stamp with a sponge dauber and restamped it, using the MISTI. 

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Red, White, and Blue Stripes with Ovals and Stars

Today's simple card includes embossed stars, layered ovals, and printed stripes in red, white, and blue.  Several years ago, I created the striped paper using PowerPoint.  I like the bold red and white ovals, contrasting with the finer detail of the script sentiment, narrow stripe lines, and repeating stars.  
Card details:

• Card stock is Neenah solar white, to print the striped paper, and Papertrey Ink (PTI) blueberry sky (blue), pure poppy (red), and stamper's select white.
• Embossing folder is Craft Concepts solid stars.
• Dies are PTI fillable frames #10 and Spellbinders classic ovals large (2nd largest oval).
• The sentiment "grateful for you" uses two stamps from Fiskars so much thanks, stamped with PTI enchanted evening ink cubes. 

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

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Bright Multi Stripes with Blue Label

Simple and bright!  Long ago, I created this multi-striped paper (using PowerPoint) for a summer-themed card.  Today's card started with a leftover piece.  I love the stripey colors against the bright green dotted background.

For my sentiment label, I showed a friend my ideas of color combinations, and she suggested this one instead.  I like it the best by far.  (Thanks, Sheryl!) 

Card details:

• Card stock is Neenah solar white to print the striped paper, Hero Arts punch (light red), Paper Source royal blue, and the bitty dot print from Papertrey Ink new leaf (green) pattern pack (retired).
• Dies are PTI my mother, my friend (large label) and Savvy Stamps hello.

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

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Gold and Navy Stars with Kraft

Today's muted red, white, and blue colors work well with the kraft card base and touches of gold in the stars and sentiment.  I enjoyed adding the stamped stars to dress up the basic polka dot pattern.

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink (PTI) dark indigo (dark navy), Americana (muted red), classic kraft, and the polka dot print from PTI Americana "+ white basics" patterned paper.
• The banner is notched with scissors.
• The sentiment "thank you" is from PTI keep it simple: thank you, stamped with Versamark and gold heat embossed.  The stars are from Paper Smooches seeing stars, stamped with Tsukineko Delicata golden glitz ink and PTI dark indigo ink.

Created for Operation: Quiet Comfort.

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Turquoise Swirls with Plaid

Textures and details in blue, turquoise, and purple.  I like the straight and curvy lines together. 

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink (PTI) stamper's select white, Hawaiian shores (light turquoise), tropical teal (deep turquoise), and the bitty dot print from PTI royal velvet (dark purple) pattern pack.
• I made the plaid paper with PTI plaid builder stamped in PTI Hawaiian shores, blueberry sky (medium blue), and royal velvet inks.  I edged it with Copic marker V17. 
• The sentiment "thank you" is from PTI keep it simple: thank you, stamped with PTI tropical teal, blueberry sky, and royal velvet inks. 
• Label dies are from PTI my mother, my friend.  The banner is notched with scissors.  
• Embossing is Cuttlebug d'vine swirls.

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Two Thank You Cards - Green and Blue

I made this patterned paper for a card three years ago, and since then, the leftovers have been sitting in my stash.  It was fun designing a card to use them up.  I like how the die cut edges look with the pattern dots.  Both cards are nice, but the one on the left is my favorite with its unusual color scheme.  

Card details:

• Card stock is:
  Left - Paper Source royal blue and Papertrey Ink (PTI) ripe avocado (green), ocean tides (muted teal), and stamper's select white
  Right - PTI new leaf (green), enchanted evening (dark blue), fine linen (tan), and vintage cream
• Dies are PTI sketched shapes (the long wide banner) and stitching lines. 
• Twine is from The Twinery:
  Left - Denim stripe
  Right - Seaweed stripe
• Patterned paper is computer-printed on PTI ocean tides and fine linen card stock with blue and green ink.  I used Monotype Sorts and Wingding fonts for my shapes. 
• Sentiment "thank you" is from PTI keep it simple: thank you, stamped with PTI ink cube:
  Left - Ripe avocado
  Right - Enchanted evening

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." (416)

Starry Blue Love Card

Lots of stars on this monochromatic blue card.  I used up some leftovers to make it, which seems to fit with Thanksgiving weekend. 

The "love" die cut is leftover from this card where I just needed the inner cutout shapes.  The starry printed paper is made with Copic markers and a stencil using this technique (with ink left over from airbrushing).

Card details:

• Card stock is Hero Arts cerulean (medium blue) and Papertrey Ink (PTI) rustic white and enchanted evening (dark blue).
• Stencil is My Favorite Things stargaze.
• Copic marker is B05.
• Dies are PTI super star border and wonderful words: love.  The little star inside the heart is a cutout from the star border. 

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." (399)

Sponged Stripes on Yellow Gingham

Something different today - sponged diagonal stripes.  I love these colors and patterns together.

Card details:

• Card stock is Neenah solar white, Papertrey Ink (PTI) new leaf (green), Hawaiian shores (deep aqua), and the gingham print from PTI lemon tart pattern pack.
• Dies are PTI wonderful words: hello and super star border.  
• Sponged inks are Ranger mustard seed (yellow), peacock feathers (turquoise), and mowed lawn (green) from the distress mini ink pad kit #1 and kit # 2.  I masked with strips of paper.  Note: the white stars are adhered on top of the sponged pattern, not masked.
• Sponged with a wedge cut from Hero Arts silky stamping sponge.   The whole sponge is about 2-1/2" diameter and 1" thick, with a very nice texture.  The distress ink rinsed out easily when I was done. 

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." (370)

Dark Gray with White Paint, Red, and Silver

Well, this is different!  Very "not me" in style, but it was fun to make, and I like the finished card.  It will be good for a teen or tween, I think.  In real life, the silver card stock (card base and die cuts) has a very nice metallic shimmer.

Created for Donna's masking tape technique challenge in the Operation Write Home Labor Day weekend virtual card making party.   I changed it up a bit using acrylic crafter's paint instead of ink.   Thank you, Donna!  I never would have tried this without your challenge. 

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink (PTI) smokey shadow (dark gray), pure poppy (red), and silver shimmer.
• Embossing folder is Sizzix chevrons. 
• Dies are PTI wonderful words: hello and get to the point.
• Paint is a white crafter's acrylic.  I spread a light coating onto my masking tape surface with a Tsukineko multi-purpose squeegee, then misted with water so it wouldn't dry too fast. 
• Technique: I added some red to my die cuts.  I used Copic marker R29 to edge them, with some intentionally messy edges.  The shimmer card stock resists the Copic marker a bit, so when I pushed the excess color back with a colorless blender ("0"), it left a sort of patina effect. 

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." (311)

Dots and Doily - Blue and White

Lots of details and a crisp blue-and-white color scheme.  I like it.  The dark blue edging on the patterned paper (Copic marker, see below for more info) is a small touch, but it makes a big difference in pulling the card together visually. 

Card details:

• Card stock is Papertrey Ink (PTI) enchanted evening (dark blue) and stamper's select white.
• I computer-printed the patterned paper, using white text (periods) on a blue background. 
• The patterned paper is edged with Copic marker B39. 
• The dies are PTI snowflake flurries (pinked circle) and Parisian lace doily.
• The dark blue circle is a 1-3/4" circle punch.  
• The heart is punched with a 1" EK Success punch.  The right side of the heart is popped up with foam tape.
• The  embroidery floss is DMC white.
• The sentiment "Love you" is computer-printed in Giddyup font, using blue ink to match the patterned paper, with a darker blue text outline. 

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." (287)

Red Birds and Tree Stump

One of my favorite cards to make is one with a little scene on it.  Here's a cheerful scene with red birds, a tree stump, grass, and a sunny sky, all on a kraft tag with a little black frame and black-and-white patterned background.  A bit of embossing adds a tree-bark texture to the stump.

Card details:

• Card stock is Neenah solar white and Papertrey Ink (PTI) pure poppy (red), new leaf (green), harvest gold (yellow), kraft, and true black.  Note: the gray border is background, not part of the card.
• My homemade patterned paper is computer-printed.  It's repeating text lines of periods and asterisks in Papyrus font. 
•  The dies are My Favorite Things fresh cut grass and PTI tag sale #7 (3-piece tag with frame), heart-2-heart #9 (birds), ad sense (sun), and party poppers (used for the tree stump).
• I used a black Copic multiliner to add dots for the birds' eyes.
• The tree stump is textured with Tim Holtz Sizzix stripes embossing folder.
• Twine is maraschino (red) by The Twinery.

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." (237)