Card Parade

Here are some more cards that I've made recently...
This one was for my best friend's daughter, who turned 10! in April. 10! Yikes! The images are from The Greeting Farm. I love their cute, contemporary look with the wide open spaces for coloring and paper piecing. Great designs for kids, tweens, and those who just adore cuteness. I colored the images with Copic markers, popped the chick up on a foam dot for dimension, and added Stickles glitter glue to the dp from Chatterbox.

Compare the coloring of this image to the two below, and you will get a very visual picture of the difference between watercolor crayons and Copic markers.


I made this card for my dear mum for Mother's Day. The image is from Crafty Secrets' Fairyland set. I used Stampin' Up Watercolor Wonder Crayons to color the image. The dp is from K&Company.

I had asked my dad, who is an antique dealer, to be on the look out for vintage buttons for me, and he came through in spectacular fashion, as usual. I now have a large collection of fantastic buttons, like the one I used in the center of this flower.

Here's a neat trick for altering metal embellishments: I only had a silver buckle left in my stash but wanted it to match the button. So to change the color and age it, I painted it with a gold leafing pen and swiped it with Timber Brown Stazon, and voila! an aged brass buckle was the result.
Finally, this week is Teacher Appreciation Week at my daughter's school. This is the card I sent in for Card Shower Day for her kindergarten teacher. I had this in my small stash of "extra" cards. I really need to work harder at making cards ahead of time, so I have them on hand. I typically make cards with a specific person in mind. While I'm creating, I like to think about the person receiving the card and pray for them. Besides being a creative outlet, this pouring of love into my projects is the main reason I love making cards and scrapbooks so much.

Wishing you all a lovely day!

Supply Saturday

I love having a stash as much as the next crafter, but with a limited budget, I try to be discriminating about what kind of supplies I buy. When I'm considering new supplies, I look for things that are going to last, that are versatile, and that are compatible with my crafting style.

Almost every time I make a card, I reach for my watercolor crayons. I've had them for about two years, and I haven't even made a dent in them yet. They can be used with a number of techniques, and they provide soft, natural colors that complement the kind of images I like to use.

I use both Stampin' Up! Watercolor Wonder Crayons and Derwent Watercolor Crayons. Derwent's colors tend to be darker and more vibrant, and SU! are lighter and more muted.

Here's an image I painted tonight using watercolor crayons. I use a small-tipped watercolor brush and pick up the color directly from the crayon with the brush slightly damp. This bird and nest are from Crafty Secrets' Fairyland set. I stamped it with Palette Hybrid Burnt Umber ink on Neenah Paper cardstock.