A 50th Birthday Card for a Doctor

I often have requests to make customized greeting cards. This time I was asked to make a 50th birthday card for Kevin's aunt. I was given the following specifics to incorporate into the card:

- something medical (as she is a doctor)
- her favourite flower - hydrangeas
- her favourite colour - purple

I always love being presented with challenges - it gets my creative juices flowing!

How am I going to incorporate all 3 items into one card? Well, the first thing I usually do is grab my sketchbook and start brainstorming by sketching some design ideas. As I'm doing this, I google medical related clipart for inspiration.

Here's the sketch of my final design:

A little bit of everything in one card :)

And here's how it came together:

The stethoscope, syringe and doctor bag were all made from scratch using pieces of cardstock. The medical symbol on the doctor bag is a punched out symbol from the Stampin Up Itty Bitty Punch Pack. The same punch was used to create the hydrangea flower. I used the stamp set "Memorable Moments" for the sentiment, popping up the "50th" to give the card some dimension. For some added elegance, I embossed the white background with the "Elegant Lines" embossing folder. 

Father's Day Weekend Recap

Last weekend was a busy one! Saturday I spent the day with two of my nieces. We had a great time together! I know these two girls (ages 3 and 7) love to craft. Each time they come over, they head straight to my craft room wanting to draw, write messages to friends, stamp, and glue paper cut-outs to create their own piece of art. So, since I had them for the day, I wanted to organize a crafting 'workshop' for them. Father's Day was the next day, so I thought it would be perfect for them to make their own cards for their Dad. I created a couple samples for them to follow:

Simple with lots of white space for them to add to it. They loved it! It was so fun to watch them think of how they wanted to decorate their cards, making it their own. I find crafting brings out creativity in most people, especially kids.

I also gave them a couple more blank cards for them to decorate for any occasion. Here they are showing off their completed cards:

Father's Day was a special day this year, as we celebrated my husband's first year being a father! Kevin is a wonderful father to our little girl. He loves her so much! I had Raya make him her first card...

It was quite the challenge to try and get her hand prints... as you can see on the card front, I was unsuccessful, but it still looks like a piece of art, right? :)
Tracing her hand and foot was a little easier.
My hubby loved this card!

I decided to make a card with a gardening theme. Kevin has been working on our gardens quite a bit over the past couple months and is doing such a great job! Not only did he plant trees, bushes and flowers, he also made a vegetable garden with its own irrigation system - very impressive!

In fact, we harvested our first vegetable - radishes - a couple weeks ago. So fun to watch everything grow from seeds!

Having said that, here's the card I made for Kevin:

I was inspired by this card and decided to CASE it, however making it somewhat my own by adding woodchips in the wheelbarrow and a spade shovel on the side. Both the wheelbarrow and shovel were made from scratch using pieces of cardstock.

And finally, I made a Father's Day card for my dad and father-in-law, using the "Building Blocks" card fold.

For this card I used the tie stamp from the "Something for Baby" Stampin Up stamp set. I thought it was perfect for my Dad as he loves to wear a shirt and tie every now and again.

We refer to my father-in-law as "Pop". He celebrated a birthday also this past week so I added a 2nd sentiment on this card :)

Building Blocks Card Fold Instructions:

To make this card fold, simply start with a piece of cardstock measuring 5.5" x 10.5". Score on the long side at 3.5" and 7". Fold to create one mountain fold and one valley fold.
To create the blocks, cut 1.5" in from the valley fold at the following measurements:
3/8", 1-5/8", 2-1/8", 3-3/8", 3-7/8" and 5-1/8".
Decorate each panel as you like!

A Mid-Summer Update and a Dinosaur Card-in-a-Box

Another month and a half has flown by! Summer is a busy time and seems to leave less time for crafting and more time for traveling and spending time outdoors. It's been a great summer so far. Just last month my parents came for a visit and we all went camping on beautiful Vancouver Island, touring around parts of Victoria - what an awesome trip! We've had some hot days here in Prince George, which I am not complaining about. I love the summer heat! However, along with the dry heat we've had some serious forest fires throughout B.C., which are still raging in some parts of B.C. One morning, not too long ago, there was a fire fairly close to Prince George, covering the city with thick smoke and a red haze, making it seem like night time until 10AM! 

A lot of changes will be coming up for my hubby and I. Not only are we expecting our first child in January, but we are also moving back to our home province of Ontario!! It's going to be a bitter-sweet move, as we have grown to love the beautiful scenery of BC, but we are stoked to be moving closer to family and friends, especially with a little one on the way! 

I have been crafting on occasion this summer, making birthday cards for family members, but also completing orders for friends and Etsy customers. Just recently, a friend asked me to make a pop-up baby shower card for her nephew's baby shower. She makes adorable baby items and needed a card to go along with her gift. I may have mentioned TC Creations before... Here's the picture of a blanket she made to use as inspiration:

I had to put my thinking cap on for this one! Since I have no dinosaur stamps, I thought it would be fun to make punch art characters. I did some Pinterest searching and found some great ideas. I created the characters using papercrafting blogs as inspiration and adding my own personal touch. Here's the finished product:

Adorable, right!? I just love how it turned out! The green dinosaur was inspired by Song of My Heart Stampers, the adorable baby dino was inspired by KB Papercraft, and the stegosaurus was inspired by Stamps 'n Jewels. I had to play with the sizing of each dinosaur by using smaller punched out shapes so that it would fit in the card-in-a-box. It was challenging, but so worth it! Each panel was layered with Early Espresso cardstock and Tempting Turquoise DSP. 

Thanks for stopping by! I hope to blog more often as time permits. I really miss it and can't wait to spend more time participating in card challenges and sharing my creations with you! 

Card-in-a-Box for a Baby Shower

I'm lovin' these card-in-a-box requests! I was asked to make one for a baby shower - a baby girl. I started with a brown card base and added a bunch of baby elements - any that I could think of - in the colour pink! 

Using punch art, I created a little onesie, a small bib and little baby shoes. A rattle was stamped and cut out, and a banner was created, hanging from the back panel. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Card Ingredients:

Stamps: To the Moon (Verve), Little Additions (ret.), Rain or Shine (ret), Button Buddies (ret)

Paper: Early Espresso, Strawberry Slush, Pink Pirouette, Whisper White, Subtles DSP, Love Impressions DSP (ret)

Ink: Strawberry Slush

Tools: Petite Banner punch, 1/2" Circle punch, 1-1/4" Circle punch, 1" Circle punch, Word Window punch, Small Oval punch, Scallop Oval punch, Scallop Trim Border punch (ret), Owl Builder punch (for the hearts)

Accessories: Strawberry Slush Ruffle Stretch Trim, Early Espresso bakers twine, Rhinestones (Michael's)

Punch Art Owl Doctor

I had a request to make a graduation card for someone whose family member just graduated and is now a doctor. I knew I wanted to incorporate punch art in this card (one of my favourite 'techniques') and came across an adorable doctor/nurse get well card using the Owl Builder punch. I loved the clever stethoscope on the doctor owl and thought I would use this idea for the graduation card. Playing along with Mojo Monday's latest sketch, everything came together so nicely:

I used the Arrows embossing folder to add some texture to the card front. A strip of chevron designer paper in Midnight Muse is embellished with pleated ribbon in Baja Breeze (one of my favourite retired Stampin Up colours). I created the stethoscope using the Small Oval punch and the circles from the Owl Builder punch. The graduation cap was created using the Curly Label punch (to create the peak at the bottom of the cap) and the top of the cap was cut free hand. 

I finished it off with a matching envelope, which was so easy to make using the Envelope Punch Board! 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Card Ingredients: 

Stamps: Family Reunion (ret.)

Paper: Midnight Muse, Baja Breeze (ret.), Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, Basic Black, Comfort Cafe DSP (ret.)

Ink: Midnight Muse

Tools: Owl Builder punch, Curly Label punch (ret.), Small Oval punch, Arrows Embossing Folder

Accessories: Baja Breeze pleated ribbon (ret.)

Happy Bear-Day to a Brother-in-Law!

A couple weeks ago, my brother-in-law and two nephews came to PG for a visit to go bear hunting with my hubby. They had a great time! A week later, Julian celebrated a birthday. I decided to continue with the bear theme and create a card with black bear punch art. I found a great punch art image on Pinterest and decided to CASE it, making some slight changes. 

I love this bear! It's perfect. And so easy to make! 

Inside I wrote a pretty funny bear-day message, using bear puns. He should get a kick out of that! 

Card Ingredients:

Stamps: Loved Ones

Paper: Always Artichoke, Basic Black, Baked Brown Sugar, Whisper White

Ink: Black Staz-On

Tools: Ovals Nestabiltiies, 1-3/8" Circle punch, 1" Circle punch, 3/4" Circle punch, Small Oval punch, Owl Builder punch (for the eyes)

Horse Punch Art

One of my many nieces, Leah, celebrated her 10th birthday last week. Leah is a beautiful girl, inside and out. She has a big heart and a love for her family and for animals. One animal she absolutely adores right now is her horse. So I knew I had to incorporate this in her birthday card this year! I found this adorable horse punch art card on Pinterest and decided to CASE it, changing the colours a bit to resemble her horse.

I used Stampin Up's core'dinations cardstock in Early Espresso and the woodgrain embossing folder to create the background. Using an xacto knife, I cut out a square piece from the center. To create the horse, I used the Owl Builder punch for the head and eyes, the wings from the Bird Builder punch for the ears, the Boho Blossoms punch for the tuft of hair on the head, and the Small Oval punch for the hooves. I love how cute this character is! 

Here's wishing Leah a very Happy (belated) Birthday!

Card Ingredients:

Stamps: Fabulous Phrases

Paper: Pink Pirouette, Early Espresso Core'dinations Cardstock, Sahara Sand, Baked Brown Sugar, Whisper White, Very Vanilla, Certainly Celery

Ink: Rose Red

Tools: Owl Builder punch, Bird Builder punch, Boho Blossoms punch, Small Oval punch, Itty Bitty punch, Woodgrain embossing folder

Accessories: Rhinestones (Michael's)

An Aviator Baby Boy Card-in-a-Box

I had a request from a friend to make her a second baby boy card-in-a-box. You can see the first one I made  for her by clicking here. I was excited to make another one! The last one matched so perfectly with the fabric she used to make her gift, and this time was no different! She had aviator-themed fabric that looked like this: 

I used the colours and theme in this photo as inspiration for my card. Using punch art, I created a couple different style planes and used part of the Cupcake Builder punch for clouds. Here's how it turned out:

Cute, right? I just love this fold! My next project is a baby girl card-in-a-box. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Card Ingredients:

Stamps: Zoo Babies, To the Moon (Verve Stamps)

Paper: Basic Gray, Whisper White, Pool Party, Smokey Slate, Basic Black, 2012-2013 In-Colour DSP

Ink: Island Indigo

Tools: 1-1/4" Circle punch, Modern Label punch, Word Window punch, Owl Builder punch, Cupcake Builder punch, 1/2" Circle punch, 3/4" Circle punch, 1" Circle punch, Large Oval punch

Accessories: Rhinestones (Michael's), Letter "C" foam sticker (Michael's)

Happy Mother's Day

Here's wishing my Mom and Mother-in-law a very Happy Mother's Day! 

It's holidays like these that I wish I could be closer to home. To show each of them that I am thinking of them, I sent a unique pop-up greeting card. Using the card-in-a-box fold, I filled it with tulips and butterflies. Love how it turned out! 

I am entering this card in the theme challenge over at The Pink Elephant. 

"Mother's Day" 

To all the mothers and mothers-to-be, have a Happy Mother's Day! 

Card Ingredients:
Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Rich Razzleberry, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Tangerine Tango, Whisper White, Summer Smooches DSP (ret.), Retro Fresh DSP
Ink: Rich Razzleberry
Tools: Bird Builder punch, Beautiful Wings embosslit die, Scallop Border punch, Word Window punch, Modern Label punch, 1-1/4" Circle punch
Accessories: Rhinestones (Michael's)

Judo Punch Art!

I have a friend who loves to give me the most fun challenges when it comes to making greeting cards! This time she asked me to make two thank you cards for her kids' judo instructors. I wasn't quite sure where to start, but I knew punch art was going to be involved! Often I find inspiration on Pinterest. I found a recipe for karate kid punch art and decided to CASE it, but make it somewhat my own. I made one a boy character, and the other a girl. For the card layout, I used the latest sketch from Freshly Made Sketches:

How cute are these characters?! 

I had a lot of fun making these! 

Card Ingredients:

Stamps: Made for You (ret.)

Paper: Basic Black, Always Artichoke, Pistachio Pudding, Calypso Coral, Crisp Cantaloupe, Whisper White, Blush Blossom, Blushing Bride, Chocolate Chip. 

Ink: Staz-On Black

Tools: Circles Nestabilities, Diagonal Strips embossing folder, Small Oval punch, Word Window punch, Small Tag punch, 1" Circle punch, Owl Builder punch (for the eyes), 1/2" Circle punch (for mouth & ears)

Accessories: Pistachio Pudding ruffled stretch trim, Crisp Cantaloupe ruffled stretch trim

A Super Mario Birthday Card

Just this past week, my brother-in-law, Victor, celebrated a birthday. From what I hear, one of his favourite past times was to play video games, in particular Super Mario. So I thought, wouldn't it be fun to create a punch art card with this video game character on it :)
I was inspired by a card I found on Pinterest (unfortunately the website link no longer exists) and made one of my own using punches and pieces of cardstock. 

I think it quite closely resembles Super Mario! It was a challenge trying to figure out which size punches / nestabilities would work for each part of the face, but I love how it turned out! I kept the remainder of the card super simple and just embossed the card front with an argyle design. 

 

Thanks for stopping by! Tomorrow I will share a second birthday card made for another brother's birthday this past week. 

Card Ingredients:

Paper: Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Real Red, Blush Blossom, Basic Black, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White

Ink: Pink Pirouette, Real Red (for sponging), Real Red marker

Tools: Circles nestabilities, Ovals nestabilities, 1-1/4" Circle punch, Scallop Circle punch, Small Oval punch, Argyle embossing folder

A Birthday Wish for an Artiste!

Dropping in for a quick post to share a special card made for a special person!
My older sister has a birthday today! I don't get to celebrate with her unfortunately, as she lives all the way in Scotland, but I'm thinking of her today and sending my best wishes overseas!

 

She is a beautiful person inside and out, has a thoughtful and caring heart, and is a creative and talented artist. I wanted to create a card that would best suit her and I thought an artist easel card would be perfect. Here's how it turned out:

 

This card is a little larger than a regular A2 size card. Unfortunately, I can't remember the exact measurements, but it's roughly 4.75" x 6". I used a woodgrain stamp on Crumb Cake cardstock to create a wooden look. To make the artist palette, I simply used the large oval punch and the word window punch. The paint drops on the palette were created using one of the itty bitty punches. For the paint brush, I used one of the leaves from the Little Leaves sizzlit for the brush part and used part of the word window punch to create the handle (altering it with scissors). The Gorgeous Grunge stamp set was perfect the paint splatters! 

 

 

 

I completed the card with a handmade envelope using the new Watercolour Wonder DSP.





 

Here's wishing Monique a Happy 40th and a great year ahead!

 

Card Ingredients:

Stamps: Gorgeous Grunge, Memorable Moments, Pennant Parade, Woodgrain

Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Elegant Eggplant, Pacific Point, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango, Basic Black, Basic Gray, Smokey Slate, Brights DSP

Ink: Early Espresso, Midnight Muse, Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango

Tools: Large Oval punch, Word Window punch, Petite Curly Label punch, Itty Bitty punch, 1/2" Circle punch

Accessories: Early Espresso bakers twine

Inspired By... the Olympic Rings!

While I haven't been following the Olympics too closely this time around, I've been keeping up with the medal counts and cheering Canada on! (and having a Dutch heritage, the Netherlands too!) Just recently we celebrated two gold - one for women's curling and the other for women's hockey against USA!! And now we are 2nd in medal standing overall! So proud to be Canadian! 

For our inspirational challenge, Karly chose the perfect photo for this week! 

IB #36

I was inspired to use the colours in this photo to make a kid's birthday card. I am playing along with the latest sketch from Freshly Made Sketches and an "Anything Goes" challenge with Seize the Birthday:

'

Here's how it turned out:

Lego pieces! I sponged the edges of each cardstock piece as well as the circles. The circles are popped up to give the card some dimension. While this was quite simple to figure out, it was time consuming to put it all together! I simply added the birthday sentiment "wish big" to complete the card.

This card was CASE'd from Ladybug Designs. 

Thanks again for stopping by! 

Card Ingredients:

Stamps: Short & Sweet

Ink: Basic Black

Paper: Basic Black, Real Red, Whisper White, Daffodil Delight, Pacific Point, Gumball Green

Tools: 1/2" Circle punch