Happy Birthday, Hubert!

It was my oldest brother's birthday yesterday and this card is for him. There's a little extra java treat inside for him, since he enjoys his java as much as I do! :)

I'm always challenged to make masculine cards, so I needed a little inspiration for this card.  I found just that from a card by Laurie Schmidlin. I absolutely adore her work, you can see her blog here.   Thanks for the inspiration, Laurie, you rock!  :)

To make the background panels, I crumpled up a plastic bag and inked it up and the pounced it on the cardstock.   Sponged on a little extra ink by spearing it around.  Then, I randomly stamped all of the java words and cut the paper in thirds and mounted them on the chocolate cardstock to make the panels.

I don't think you can really tell in the full card pic, but the stitched medium is actually chocolate brown felt ribbon.  Very cool stuff!  I found this a while back and have waiting for the perfect project to use it with.   I think it works well with my masculine card.   I like to embellish a card, but didn't want it to seem girlie so this gave it just the right added touch.   I hope my big brother likes it!  :)

Here's a close up of the felt ribbon and Fancy Scallop Border Piercerabilities.

Thanks for stoppin' by! :)

Supplies:
Stamps: Chai Latte - Savoir Faire (Inque Boutique)
Cardstock: Ivory (Staples), Chocolate (CRS), Textured Olive Green (CRS), Olive (Creative Memories)
Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink - Tea Dye (Ranger), Memento - Rich Cocoa (Tsukineko)
Tools: 1/8" Dimensional Squares (EK Success), Cuttlebug, Fancy Scalloped Border Piercerabilities (Spellbinders), Sponge (SU), Crumpled Plastic Bag for Distressed Background
Embellishments: Chocolate with White Stitch Felt Ribbon (Michaels)

Eskimo Proverb Sympathy Card

***Edited to Add***
FroggieTalks left a comment wondering where this Eskimo Proverb stamp is from - it's from the clear stamp set, "Sympathy Sentiments (CL114)" made by Impression Obsession.   If you click on the CL114 link, it'll take you right to the Impression Obsession website where you can see the whole stamp set and order from there if you'd like, too.  Happy Shopping!  :)

This sympathy verse is one of my favourite sayings for this occasion.  This Eskimo proverb is such a lovely way to think of those who we've lost.  I tend to use it a lot for sympathy cards that I make and I like to keep a few extra cards like these on hand, just to have ready when the unfortunate time comes, that you do need one.

A close up of the bow, simple but elegant in keeping with the theme of the card.

Here's a close up to show you the flourish that I stamped using white craft ink, then over-stamped the sympathy verse in rich cocoa.

Thanks for stoppin' by! :)

Supplies:
Stamps: Sympathy Sentiments (Impression Obsession), Flourishes (Stampabilities)
Cardstock: Soft Sky (SU), Chocolate (CRS), Flat White (Staples)
Ink: Soft Sky (SU), Memento - Rich Cocoa (Tsukineko), Whisper White Pigment Ink (SU)
Tools: 1/8" Dimensional Squares (EK Success), Scissors, Cuttlebug, Fancy Scalloped Border Piercerabilities (Spellbinders)
Embellishments: Decorative Satin Ribbon (Michaels), Jumbo White Brad (Dollarama)

Princess for a Day

I totally forgot that I had this Butterfly Impressabilities and found it this morning!  So, I thought I'd play with it for a card that I needed to make for a friend of my oldest daughter for her birthday party this weekend.

I used the Butterfly Impressabilities to emboss the background.  Then, I used my new Fancy Scalloped Border Piercerabilities for the border and embossed with it first.  Then, I cut out the scallop on the top as it only embosses, it's not a diecut.  I added an extra diecut layer on the bottom and paper pierced the swirls around the butterfly.

Here's a close up to show you the embossing and the paper piercing that I did using the Border Piercerabilities.  A fun tool to use!  :)

Thanks for stoppin' by!  :)

Supplies:
Stamps: Crown - Fairest of Them All - Snag'em Stamps (Imaginisce), Just Chillin' (Making Memories), Sentiments 1 (Impression Obsession), Butterfly by Kathy Davis (Inkadinkado)
Cardstock: Light Pink (CRS), Soft Sky (SU), Flat White (Staples)
Ink: Coal Black (Ancient Page)
Tools: Fancy Scalloped Borders - Piercerabilities (Spellbinders), Butterfly Impressabilities (Spellbinders), Paper Piercing Tool, Paper Piercing Mat, Quilling Tweezers 
Embellishments: Blue, Pink and Clear Bling (Dollarama)