Papertrey October Blog Hop

Hi everyone!  I really wanted to participate in Papertrey's Blog Hop this month, and I nearly ran out of time!  I was the very last entry and got it in right at 11:30pm!  

 I just love the picture Nichole and the team used as inspiration this month:

How could you not be inspired by this photo?

At first, I thought that I would make a card, but then I was surfing the net the other day and I came across this post by Jamie Lee at Bits of Paper.  Her simple tutorial on how to make paper pumpkins gave me a great idea.  Instead of using preprinted patterned paper for this project, I made my own using my limited stash of Papertrey stamps and papers.  From the pictures below you will see that I used PTI Vintage Cream, Kraft, Mellon Berry, Spring Moss, New Leaf, and Orange Zest cardstock cut into 5.5" circles. 

I used the following stamp sets to create the different papers:  Iconic Images, Holiday Photo Finishers, Beatiful Blooms II, Background Basics: Retro, Signature Greetings, Mehndi Medallion, and Big & Bold Wishes.  Most were stamped with some old SU inks, but a couple were stamped with VersaMark and then heat embossed with white embossing powder. 

The stem on top is just a piece of Chocolate cardstock rolled up and tied with a few ribbons from my stash. 

I threw this project together in about an hour and a half, which was pretty quick considering I had not designed even one paper before starting.  If I had had more time, I would have added a few leaves to the top and done some better photography, but what you see is what you get!  Hope you like it!

As always, thanks for visiting!

Kate

Masculine Card

Hi again everyone!!  Can you believe it?  Two posts in one day!  This next card is one that I put together last night because I was itching to use some of my treasured PTI products!  I have been so inspired by their release projects this week, that I just had to put something together myself! 

The base cardstock is PTI's Dark Chocolate, the card front is PTI's Ripe Avocado.  The two marquees are cut using the Papertrey Mat Stack 2 dies and were cut out of PTI's Vintage Cream cardstock. 

I used PTI's Mehndi Medallion to stamp the designs on the larger marquee and then used PTI's Signature Greetings for the sentiment.  I did some sewing on the sewing machine, and added a couple of buttons and a ribbon. 

The inside of the card has Vintage Cream cardstock stamped with a few of the smaller Mehndi Medallion stamps.

This is by far one of my favorite cards I have made in quite a while.  I haven't yet decided who the recipient will be, but I'm thinking it might be my dad because he would appreciate the work I put into it and I have some things that I have felt I have needed to say to him recently (especially how much I love him). 

So there you go!  I'm sort of on a creative streak so hopefully there will be more posts soon!

As always, thanks for visiting!

Kate

Beautiful Baby Girl

Hey everyone!  Sorry I've been absent for a few days...life, 'ya know??  Anyway, here's another card in my baby boutique series.  This one is obviously for a little girl.  For the sentiment background I used some "nesti" files I ran accross on the SCAL website.  I created the sentiment on my computer. 

The background paper is a pattern I created using a stamp from PTI's Half and Half set.  I orignially designed this pattern for one of their Make it Monday challenges (create a background using a non-background stamp), but I never got around to posting it on their website. 

The felt flower was used by cutting some cardstock flowers using the Cricut (April Showers cart) and then adhering the flowers to the felt and hand cutting them out.  I have not figured out the trick to cutting felt with the Cricut.  If you have any tips I'd love to hear them!!

Well, that's it for my baby boutique series!  The sixth card I made was a copy of one I made in the past which you can see here.  I stopped by the boutique today and found out that about 9 of the 30 cards have sold.  I'm pretty pleased, but I hope that the volume picks up.  

You're in for a real treat today (ha, ha), because I am going to actually do a second post!!  Can you believe it?  Stay tuned...

Thanks for visiting!

Kate

Precious Boy

Hi everyone!  Today's card is the next in my series of baby cards I made for a local boutique.  This one is for a baby boy. 

The card base is spring rain cardstock from PTI and the card front is PTI's white cardstock that was embellished with the star Cuttlebug folder. 

The boat cut is from Gypsy Wanderings.  Once it was cut on the cricut, I cut it apart in order to apply the glitter to the base and the flag. 

The sentiment banner was hand cut, and the sentiment was created on my computer.  The little silver brads were added to help reinforce the nautical feel.

As always, thanks for visiting!  Stop by again soon!

Kate

Welcome Sweetpea!

Hi everyone!  I'm back with another baby card I made for the boutique where I am starting to sell my "goods".   This one is another gender neutral card...and it's also probably my favorite one from the whole set! 

The base is kraft cardstock from PTI and the face is white cardstock from PTI embossed with the swiss dots Cuttlebug folder.  I actually broke out my sewing machine for the first time for card making!  It was way easier than I expected!  If you have never sewn on paper, I highly recommend you try it!  I'm thinking about making a video tutorial on this...what do you think?

The peapod cut began as an svg file I found on the SCAL message boards.  I then added a few flourishes I found in the SCAL program.  I used a white gel pen on the little peas and then covered them in Glossy Accents. 

The marquis with the sentiment was another svg cut file I found on the SCAL message boards.  I used my computer and printer to create and print the sentiment.  I love mixing fonts like this! 

I added a couple of gems and...wahlah!!

Hope you like it!  I'll be back soon with another baby card creation!  Thanks for visiting!

Kate

Sweet Baby Onesie

Hi everyone!  I'm back with another one of my creations for the baby boutique.  This one is a gender neutral baby card.  I knew that I wanted to make a onesie card from the start, so I got to work on this little cutie! 

The onesie is cut from Wall Decor and More and the "rickrack" is from Plantin Schoolbook.  I used my Gypsy to weld a bunch of the rickrack together to make some long strips.  Once they were cut out on the cricut,  I cut them down to fit the different parts of the onesie.  It was easier to "mold" them to the shape of the onesie that way. 

The little duck is from Wild Card.  I cut him out on yellow cardstock, ran the cutout through my Xyron sticker maker, and applied some yellow flocking.  I love the dimension and softness this brought to the design.

The sweet baby sentiment is cut from Gypsy Wanderings.  I have to say, this was a little tricky because at first, I used some cardstock that was just too thick which made the cut sort of "messy".  It was much better once I switched to some "lighter" cardstock. 

I added a few crystals and some white faux stitching with a gel pen and the masterpiece was complete!  As always, I appreciate you visiting and I will be back (hopefully) tomorrow with another creation!  Stay tuned!

Kate

My latest adventure!

Hi everyone!  While I haven't been posting for a while, I can promise you I have been a busy little crafter!  I am embarking on a new adventure...I've started selling my work!  I've wanted to do this for some time, but I hadn't yet found the right outlet...that was until my friend Laura introduced me to the sweetest gal (Shannon) who owns a little baby boutique in town (Mama's Hip).  Shannon was looking for someone to supply her store with some handmade cards, and Laura suggested we meet.  Well long story short...Shannon agreed to give me a little space in her store to start selling!  I have made up some business cards and I'm hoping that someone may even be interested in having me make some custom projects for them.  I'm so excited!

I am actually selling my cards to Shannon at wholesale prices, so this is not really the way to turn a big profit, but it's definitely a start.  Shannon asked me to make 30 cards to start with, so I decided to make 6 designs and make 5 of each design.  So, I plan to share one card a day with you for the next week or so.  Keep in mind that this is a baby boutique so all of these cards are baby themed. 

The first card I have to share is a shower card that would be appropriate for a mom expecting a boy, girl or a ??? baby.  The background is white cardstock layered with kraft.  I used the April Showers cart for the umbrella and cut it in white cardstock. 

The strip across the front is cut from PTI's Hawaiian Shores cardstock in the shape of PTI's Half & Half pattern.  I have the Half & Half stamp set, but I have not yet purchased the die set, so I just stamped one of the shapes onto some cardstock and cut around with scissors.  I then used this as a pattern to make the ones that went on the cards.  I used my computer to print the "May you be...with love" sentiment, and I used my gypsy and created the Shower cut using Gypsy Wanderings (Shower), Lyrical Letters (e) and Jasmine (d).  This was cut on white cardstock and stretegically applied to the Hawaiian Shores layer.  I love the way that this card turned out and I sure hope the store patrons like it too!

As always, thanks for visiting!  Your comments are always welcome!

Kate