Christmas Cards...check!

I finally started (and finished) our Christmas cards for this year!  I have been putting it off for several weeks just because.  I had a three day weekend this past weekend so I decided to get them done so I don't have it hanging over my head the next few weeks.  I have done the ever-popular photo card before, but the past couple of years I have created them with my crafting supplies, and put a photo inside the card.  The last 2 years have been easy, last year was a wedding picture, the year before was the 1st picture of us taken right after we got engaged.  This year I am hoping that I can convince Eric we need to do a family photo shoot over Thanksgiving so I have a picture to include in our cards!

Thanks to Pinterest....AKA my favorite web site in the whole entire world, I have had more than enough ideas to pick from.  I finally settled on 2 different designs for this years cards which I will post AFTER I send them out in a few weeks.

Here are the cards I did last year:

New Baby Card Designs

In addition to all of the weddings we have gone to lately, I have been to several baby showers in the past few months.  Baby cards are always fun to make, plus the color schemes are pretty cut and dry which makes the picking out the card color scheme pretty easy.  

A few months ago, Mom gave me a Sizzix folder to use with my Cuttlebug that gives paper a quilted look.  She also taught me a technique to use with the quilted folder that involves punching out small squares or circles and placing them in patterns to enhance the quilted look. I have also really been into the technique of "flecking."  It's where you brush the sides of the paper with a sponge that has been dabbed on a stamp pad.  I like the antique look that it gives cards; I also like that it adds dimension to the cards so they do not look like pieces of paper cut out and stuck together.

Baby boy card

Inside reads:

A baby boy's a promise

Of happy things to come-

Building blocks, a rocking horse 

A baseball glove, a drum.

There'll be lots of notice and action

You'll be brim-full of pride

A busy, loving, fun-filled home

With lots of joy inside.

Baby Girl card

Inside reads:

Little girls are precious gifts, 

Wrapped in love serene.

Their dresses tied with sashes

And futures tied with dreams

New Card Design

This is a new card design I came up with recently.  It has proved to be quite versitile as I have used it for both a birthday card and a card for a wedding shower we went to recently.

Here is the birthday card one.  I wanted to use the pearl brads that I used on the other one on this one, too but I figured it would be a little difficult to mail since they stuck out quite a bit.

This is the wedding shower card. I used the same template, just different colored paper and different brads.

The inside of the card.

Mother's Day Cards

I had to wait a couple of weeks before posting these because we were a little late getting our mother's day cards in the mail....sorry Mom!  Better late than never I guess.

I had fun making all of these and actually used the same Stampin' Up stamp set--Sweet Summer--for all 3 of these cards.  I got some inspiration from the Splitcoast Stampers Gallery, and used what I had for the paper and other details.  It amazes me how many different cards can be created by one 7-stamp set.

So here is #1:

#2:

and #3:

Paper Flowers

A co-worker showed me a new card-marking idea at work this week (one one of the few days I was actually in the office and not off doing site visits this week).  I think it is really cute and I can't wait to use it on a card.  I put a couple together today just to see exactly how to make them and it was fairly simple.  I did have to make a trip to Michael's when I was in Montgomery this morning to get some large brads (all I had were small ones), but I already had everything else in my crafting arsenal.  So here is the finished product:

Cute right?

What you need to make one:

double sided scrapbook paper (one sheet is more than enough)

scrap card stock (enough to punch one circle with your hole punch)

large circle hole punch (I used a 1.75" diameter punch and ended up with a 3.5" flower)

double sided tape

large colorful brad (big enough to cover where the points of the circles meet)

How to assemble:

1. Punch a 6 circles in your double sided scrapbook paper and 1 circle in your scrap card stock.

2. Fold one edge of one of the double sided scrapbook paper between .25" and .5"

3. Fold adjacent edge the same distance making a point with the other edge.

          *You will end up with a triangle that has one curved edge.

4. Mark the center of the scrap stock circle and place double sided tape around outer edge of circle.

5. Assemble folded circles on tape around center of scrap stock, with points toward the center.

          *You may need to adjust the folds to make all 6 circles fit without extra space or overlap when you to them together.

6. Stick brad in the center of the flower.

Cardmaking

One of my hobbies that my mother got me started on is cardmaking. I cannot draw or play music to save my life, so I was so grateful when I was introduced to this art form. I realize there is a certain level of artistic ability that one must possess in order to create a card, but the cards I make rarely involve me drawing anything (thank goodness!). I use mostly rubber stamps, ribbons, card stock, scrapbook paper (I went through a scrapbooking phase a few years ago and have a TON of paper leftover), my CuttleBug, a few markers, and maybe some stencils to draw basic shapes. Thanks to my mother and the clearance rack at some of my favorite stores (Michael's, Jo-Ann's & Hobby Lobby), I have amassed a nice little collection of supplies and rarely need to purchase supplies when I make a card. My favorite time to check the bargain bins is at the end of the season when they are switching out their stock. Another thing to keep in mind is that Michael's and Jo-Ann will accept competitor coupons.

If there is something I absolutely need I can usually find a 40% off coupon for Michael's in my Sunday newspaper or in the weekly email I get from Michael's.

When I sit down to make a card, I usually have some idea in my head of what I want to do. If not, I will pull out some paper or some of my stamps and see what starts to take shape. I take photos of all of my cards so that I have something to go back to if I get stumped. This is one of my most recent creations: