ATC Folders

Good evening.  I hope you have had a good week.  It's been hot, as usual, but uneventful. That may be about to change.  We are keeping an eye on 3 systems in the tropics.  Danielle will miss us, and hopefully Earl will, too, but we will be tracking the one after, which will be Fiona when she's named.  But that's at least a week out, so we're good.

I make a lot of ATC's (artist trading cards, 3-1/2" x 2-1/2"), They get lost in card envelopes, so I have made a little folder to put into an envelope to mail them.  So the recipient gets an ATC and the decorated folder.  To mail them I use the 6-1/2" x 3-5/8" envelopes.

Here is a sample:

To start, I use a half sheet of 8-1/2 x 11 cardstock for the base.  I cut it so I have 2 pieces of 5-1/2" x 8-1/2" cardstock.  On the long side, I made 2 scores, one at 3-1/4" and one at 6-1/2". When you fold on the scores, you turn the 2" piece up and put a little glue on the side edges only, so it makes a little pocket across the bottom of thee cardstock.  When you turn the top scored piece down, you now have a nice little folder with a pocket.  You can embellish them in any way you choose, but I like to keep it kind of flat so I don't have a lumpy envelope or embellishments that get smashed or broken.  The pocket and flap will also help protect your ATC embellishments.  On the above folder I used decorative paper, then stamped the flourishes. I heat embossed the shell, then used distress inks to make it look like a real shell. I just attached it to the folder with adhesive.

Here are some more samples:

This one had flowers and leaves stamped, colored and cut out, then adhered to the folder. Some of the flowers have pop dots behind them. I used a scallop punch on the bottom so some of the pocket layer shows.

This one has a sand dollars stamped, heat embossed, cut out and adhered to the front.

I stamped this fellow, colored and cut him out, and adhered him to background paper that matches the background of the folder.  I cut out the 2 layers with a nestability die.

I stamped the dragonfly and cut it out. Then I stamped it again and just used the wings. I adhered the wing section over the bottom dragonfly so that the wings are dimensional.

I cut out the pink circle, stamped the dragonfly, then put stitches around the edge and used a white gel pen to put white dots in the circle.  I used glitter glue on the dragonfly.

I used the Cricut to cut out the medallion and the white background behind it. Then I stamped the image and heat embossed it with gold embossing powder.

I stamped the flower, colored it and cut it out and adhered it to the background paper. Very simple. And last, but by no means least,

I stamped this guy on the background, then stamped him again and cut out the bottom part, which I adhered to the stamped image.   I colored the flowers with markers, which didn't show the background behind them.

So, as you can see, you can do a lot of different things to jazz up your folder.  And it will still protect your ATC and keep it from getting lost in the envelope. You can make your own background papers instead of using patterned papers, and you can add more stamping.  I just used what I already had at hand.

I hope you give this a try. If you do, please share your creations with us, via a link in the comment section.

Have a great weekend!

Dragonfly Days

Good morning!  I hope you are doing well today.  It's almost time for the kids to head back to school here, but in some parts of the state (and country) school has already started.  My granddaughters can't wait for school to start so they can re-connect with their friends who they haven't seen during the summer.

I've been playing with the whimsical dragonfly stamp from the Stampsations line by My Paper Moon.  This is the first card:

The card looks gray in the scan, but it's really a navy blue.  The dragonfly was stamped with Staz-On, then without reinking I stamped it on the white cardstock several more times, giving it a shadowy appearance.  I wanted the main dragonfly to really pop, so I used crystal lacquer on the wings and body, then lightly sprinkled a light blue glitter over it while it was still wet. I used the nestability dies to cut out the main image and 2 mats. The card background is from some background papers I had, but really looks like a handmade background made using saran wrap crinkled up with ink. 

I stamped Psalm 118 on the bottom of the card.  I left the inside of the card blank, but I can use it for a birthday card, anniversary card, thinking of you card, or just leave it blank and use it as a notecard to write to my sister. 

I love the whimsy of this dragonfly stamp.  By using different colors and background papers, it totally changes the tone of the card. 

Here are a couple more cards I made using the whimsical dragonfly stamp:

On the bottom 2 cards I used glitter glue on the wings before I added the crystal lacquer.

I hope you have gotten a little inspiration today. Stay cool and I'll see you next time...

Thinking of You Card and Blog Award

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Hello and happy Friday.  I hope you are beating the heat.  Can fall and cooler weather get here soon enough?  I swear it gets hotter every year!

I dug out a stamp that I don't often use, the Lotus Blossom stamp from My Paper Moon.  I was in the mood to make a Thinking of You Card, and this is what I came up with.

It's a very simple card, with a pink cardstock base and a dotted swiss embossed layer.  I stamped the lotus stamp 3 times on glossy cardstock and used alcohol inks to color the images.  I cut them out and layered them, pop dotting the one in the middle.  Very easy to do.

My friend, Shelly, has given me a new blog award. Thank you, Shelly!

There really isn't anything stylish about me, I'm all about comfort, but I will accept it in the spirit in which it was given.  I am supposed to list 5 things about me that are stylish, and I am supposed to give the award to 5 other bloggers. So, without further ado, here are my 5 stylish things:

1. I love shoes.  I wear shoes that are comfortable, but I have a closet full of shoes that I love to look at.
2. I love purses.  Same as with the shoes. I probably have 100 purses.  I can say that I use them all, though.
3. I love bright colored clothing. Blues and reds and yellows.  Lime green.  I got that from my mother.
4. I am trying to let my hair grow long enough to donate to Locks of Love. It's very hard during the summer, because I have thick hair, so it's very hot. I don't know how you ladies do it. You have my complete awe.
5. I love jewelry, although I don't wear it as often as I should.

Now I have to think about the 5 bloggers I am going to give this award to, so I'll have that in a future post.

I hope you have a great weekend. Hubby is entering a barbeque cookoff on Labor Day weekend, and he's going to practice with his teammate tomorrow, so I'll be eating barbeque. I hope you can stay cool.

And I hope you get to do something crafty!

Bargain Betty

Hey, there.  Hope you had a great weekend.  They are always too short (and too hot this time of year), but I enjoyed mine anyway. Hubby and I went to a nautical flea market, where he bought a tackle box.  I was surprised he didn't spend more money, but then, he has a lot of fishing stuff already.

I got to play with one of the Moe Wubba stamps that I usually don't reach for.  I made a couple of tags with Bargain Betty.

I  stamped Betty on white cardstock, and colored her in with Copic Markers.  I cut her out with a Nestability die.  I used part of another stamp (Stamp Out Empty Mailboxes) to get the rubber stamp image.  I made small slits in the sides of the shopping cart and inserted the stamps so it looks like she's shopping for rubber stamps (and getting a good deal - she must be shopping at My Paper Moon).

I took a manilla tag and smooshed green staz-on ink on the top part of it.  I took some complementary patterned paper and layered on the bottom part of the tag.  Then I put the Bargain Betty layer on top and stamped a small "Thanks" (Hero Arts).

I used a Mrs. Grossman lace sticker on the top part of the patterned paper.

This is the other tag I made.  I did it basically the same way. Only the patterned paper and colors changed.  And I used more of the lace sticker.

Hope you have enjoyed these tags as much as I enjoyed making them.

I hope you get to do something crafty this week (and keep out of the heat).

Zentangles

You may have wondered what happened to this week's Over The Moon Monday post.  Well, I had a long weekend, and with Monday being a day off from work, I spent it with hubby.  And I decided that during the summer, I will post at will and not on a schedule, so I will get back to the Over the Moon Monday posts in the fall.  For now I will just post when I have something to share.

Oh, my gosh, I have fallen in love.  I need to make an ATC using Zentangles.  And since I didn't really know what a Zentangle was, I had to do a little research.  And now I'm hooked. These are so much fun to make. I was never a doodler (except in high school), so doodling doesn't really come easy to me.  But I was able to make my first Zentangle, nevertheless.  Here are the ones I have made so far (since yesterday afternoon):

The one on the top left was my first Zentangle.  If you do an internet search, there are lots of sites and galleries for you to get ideas, along with some videos.  I plan on spending some time this weekend browsing and getting some inspiration. 

I fixed up a little baggy with some blank white ATC sized cards, along with some Sakura Micron pens with various sized nibs. This will be the perfect thing to keep me occupied while waiting in doctor's offices and other places where you have to wait.

If you have some Zentangles you'd like to share, please post a link to them in the comment section.  I'd like to see what you've done.  I'm always up for getting inspiration.  :-)

Also, during the month of July, all Christmas and winter stamps are 20% off at My Paper Moon. No coupon code to remember, the sale prices are already on the site and will post to your cart.  So why don't you get started on your Christmas cards while it's so hot outside? 

See you again soon....

Over The Moon Monday - Side Step Card

Good morning! I hope you had a great week.  I belong to Midwest Stampers Yahoo Group, and I joined a calendar swap, so I kept busy with that. My month is April, so I'm thinking April Showers and Easter.  I stamped a lot, colored a lot, and cut out a lot.  But it's coming along nicely. And it kept me in the air conditioned house.  It's brutally hot across much of the nation, and I hope you are keeping cool and drinking plenty of fluids to keep hydrated.

I was browsing some blogs, and found a card that I absolutely love, and I had to make one. It's called a Side Step Card, and I found it at Julie's Stamping Spot.  You have to be really careful to use the exact measurements she shows to make this card. Can I tell you how many I messed up and had to throw away?  Anyway, here is my card:

My camera is messed up, so I had to scan this with the scanner, and you can't really get the 3-D feel for the card. There are 3 "steps" on the right side of the card.  I used stamps from The Angel Company.  The little sentiment on the middle step says "flowers are the stars of the earth."

Also, I modified mine a little by putting the yellow cardstock on the 3rd step to make it a full sized card for my tulips to stand up on.

Anyway, I hope you find time to try this card. It's a lot of fun, and I can think of a lot of stamps that would go well with the 3-D-ness (is that a word?) of this card.  In Julie's samples, she used butterflies and flowers on one, and Christmas ornaments on another.  If you make this card, please share a link in the comment section.

Until next time, do something crafty!

Over The Moon Monday - Quilting

Good morning!  I hope you have had a good week.  I had a busy week and weekend.  First off, I have had severe pain in my right ankle for quite a while. So long, in fact, that I can't even remember when or how it started.  I finally broke down this week and went to a doctor, simply because I am tired of the pain, and it got to the point that I didn't even want to get out of bed.  I had to have some lab tests done, and the results weren't what I had hoped for.  I have to go have more labs today and then will see the doctor.

Then to start off my weekend, I awoke Saturday morning with a migraine.  Hubby said he tried to call me from the grocery store, and so I started looking for my cell phone.  It was in my jean pocket, the same one that he had just run through a complete laundry cycle. Needless to say, it didn't work. I had to go get a new cell phone. I have the old one in a bag of rice, and if I can get it dried out, at least I will have a spare. In case that happens again.

My granddaughters came over on Saturday afternoon to make their dad a Father's Day card, and the little one stayed the night. We went out to breakfast on Sunday morning, which is a treat for all of us, and then she spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon in the hot tub.  We don't have it heated right now, so it's like being in a swimming pool. Then we had a late lunch and she went home. She's one of those children that demand a lot of attention, but I really don't mind.

So, it's been a pretty full week, but I did manage to make a card. And here it is.

I really like this technique, since it lets me use up bits and pieces of cardstock or patterned paper.  

To make this card, I used plastic wrap tapped against a coordinating colored inkpad, then tapped on the paper to give it a watercolored look.  You could also achieve the same look using watercolored paper.  Or you could just use coordinating pieces of patterned paper.  Any of these options would be fine.  Just make sure you have at least 3 different kinds/colors of paper.

I stamped my main image (Miss Kitty) onto white cardstock and colored her. I also stamped it on a piece of the faux watercolored cardstock and cut out the dress so it would coordinate. You can't see from the scan, but I adhered little colored gemstones to her shoes that match the dress.

TIP:  You can use the little gems you find in the cosmetic section that you glue on your fingernails to use on your cards. They are usually less expensive than the jewels you buy for stamping/scrapping.

I cut these pieces of faux watercolored paper into odd sizes and adhered them to the bottom card layer.  I used a zigzag sewing stamp (unknown) to tie the seams together.  You could also just use a coordinating colored pen or a black pen to make these zigzag stitches.

I used nestability dies to cut out the main image, the layer mat, and the scalloped layer. I adhered them all together and adhered them to the front of the card. 

This is a great way to use up scraps.  I hope you give this technique a try. 

Have a great week!