Mr Cardmaker is a Love Kind of Guy

For my DP Charlie--My Valentine.

I made this thing--

This was done with My Mind's Eye papers on GinaK Designs Kraft card stock.  The brown is SU, and that is attached to the striped band.

I then adhered the  pink strip with the Martha Stewart punched leaves (from PTI)to the underside of the green piece.  The green piece is popped up from the brown with foam tape.  To do the glitter hearts, I punched the hearts in the green paper, and then took a scrap of whatever else, ran my adhesive runner across it, and sprinkled some pink Martha Stewart glitter on it. I think they would NEVER look this crisp done on top of the paper. Oh yeah, that's a SU scallop punch used on the top of the green piece.

The frame for the sentiment is GKD, and the sentiment itself is SU.  I stamped it in Memento Rich Cocoa to go with the background.
The background script stamp is from Joanne's, I believe, and the heart punch is from AC Moore's dollar bins.  I STILL love poking around in those dollar bins! The pink pearls are also from AC Moore.

The tiny pink heart stamp in the sentiment is also from GKD, the same All Occasions Greetings set as the frame. That's a Spellbinders grommet tags die that cut it out.  Tiny piece of SU white satin ribbon through the tag holes.

That's my Valentine's valentine.  Hope you like!

Thanks for stopping by!
All Best-
Richard

Mr Cardmaker may have a Couple of Misses...

THIS IS MY SECOND POST TODAY!!!

Please scroll down and check out my earlier post.  You'll enjoy it!

...............................................................

Hoo Boy.  You know how you get this idea, rush to pump it out, and in the end, you stare at the thing and wonder how it went wrong? 

Yeah.

I made these things-

 OK, to be honest, I don't hate this first one so much.  I think the colors are just a bit weird.
I used GinaK Designs All Occasions Tags set to make this, with PTI paper, SU Cherry Cobbler ink and Memento Tuxedo Black.  The tag is cut out with a Spellbinders Grommet Tag die, and popped up with some foam tape.

This one.....Yeahhhhhhh.
Mmmmmmmm.
Hmmmmmmm.     A love muffin.  And the streamers.   A red stardust pen.   Yeah, I think I gotta toss this one.  Too much of a whole lotta nuttin' going on here.

What do YOU think?

Give me a shout and let me know what you think.  The envelope, or the trash bin?

Thanks for stopping by!!!

Mr Cardmaker has a Lonely....

In my Pinterest travels, which now probably suck up no less than two hours each day, I came upon a card that had lots of birdcages, all filled with different birds.  It was really cute.  I did not bother to repin it, apparently, so I can't link to it.  However, it obviously left its impression on me.

I am thinking of my far away Mama this week, and I used the cage idea to make her a card.

I made this--

This is made on a GinaK Designs Kraft base, and I used My Mind's Eye  Quite Contrary paper to stamp my cages.  The cages are stamps from A*muse Studio, the Life is a Song set.  The fly away birds are from GKD, my friend Melanie Muenchinger's Gifts from the Sea set.  Oh yes, my panel backing piece is a random scrap, but the backing for my letters (which are Studio G) is done with SU Daffodil Delight.   The Button is from Basic Grey.

I popped the letters in the word "miss" up with foam tape, and used foam tape as well on some of the cages. 

Simple card.  I was hoping the yellow would keep it on the cheery side, since it's not the most "up" of cards... 

Thanks for stopping by!
Richard

Mr Cardmaker is LATE for a Date! 365 of them, to be Precise...

Well, I really got a LATE start on anything to do with a calendar, but I did one anyway. 
Now, a calendar is a WONDERFUL way to get really creative, with twelve creative opportunities for each one!  Sounds fun, right?

LATE is not the way to begin this project.  Nor is the idea to "just make one."  This "just one" thing takes FOREVER to produce, and you (you=ME) will haul out every stamp you ever owned to figure the thing out.

However, I made this--

Ohhhh, this is not a great picture.  So much for the collage function on my Picasa program. Let me add some single shots.....

I 'll keep them small, so your wrist doesn't get tired scrolling down forever. 
The supply list is pretty extensive-
Jan-SU and Studio G stamps, Distress ink, Colorbox ink
Feb-TPC Studio stamps, Distress ink, Delicata gold ink
March- Fiskars stamps, Studio G inks
April- SU and Studio G stamps, Studio G inks
May- SU and GinaK Designs stamps, Studio G inks
June- no stamps, Distress inks, Studio G inks, white gel pen
July- GinaK Designs and SU  stamps, Distress ink, SU ink, Delicata ink
Aug- SU stamp and Ink
Sept- Fiskars stamps, Memento ink, copic markers
Oct- Studio G stamp, Memento ink, copic marker
Nov- SU stamp, Studio G inks
Dec- SU stamp and ink, sakura stardust pen

So, some months are more exciting than others, and there could be so much more done to the edges, AND there could be some dp used as backing or something, but I think I got really overwhelmed after March started.   I do think that's where I got my stride.  By August, I was getting panicky, because the mess was ENORMOUS, and dinner should've been started about 20 minutes before....I decided to do takeout after I did September.  That one was fun.  The Sakura stardust pen did a lot for December; I wish you could see it in this pic.

ANYWAY!  I learned.  I had some creative FUN.  And it doesn't suck or anything, really, so......

I will go at this idea again IN TIME to make some gifts for 2013.  I have a feeling some themes will be revisited! 

Thanks for stopping by!
Hope your 2012 is off to a great start!
All Best-
Richard

Mr Cardmaker's Ski-Crazed Nephew has a Birthday

Nephew Elliot is a ski-all-the-time kinda guy.  The winter he learned to ski, he cried when the family came home from a Florida vacation to find all the snow had melted.  He pretty much hates Florida now.  No snow.

Anyway, he turns 18 this year.  He is co-captain of his soccer team, and a mean dude with a la crosse stick, let me tell you.  He is a great artist (like, OMG) and a really NICE kid.  Wicked smaht, too. That's a New England thing....not a typo.

So, I made him this--

This makes you happy about snow and skiing, right?  That's gotta be some black diamond stuff there....just sayin'. 

This image is from GinaK Designs, the Happy Camper set by Theresa Momber.  All except for the birds.  Those are also GKD, but from the Gifts from the Sea set, by my friend Melanie Meunchinger.  The sky was in need of something....Negative space is my nemesis sometimes, let me tell you...

So, to do this, I stamped the image onto the white card stock I was using, and again onto a scrap of card stock, which I cut out to use as a mask.  I like to use a good, heavy cardstock when I make a mask, so it doesn't get all mashed up when I do my stuff on top of it. I used repositionable tape runner to hold the mask in place.

I then used a foam applicator and applied some Iced Spruce Distress Ink all over the card stock, leaving it somewhat uneven, so I could make a subtle cloud look.  Then I used some Evergreen Bough Distress ink on the lower portion, and around the edges of my shape. 

The shape is a Labels Four die from Spellbinders, btw.  The white piece behind it is also a Spellbinders die, also edged with the evergreen bough.  Each piece is mounted on foam tape to pop it up a bit.

After I was happy with my ink, I removed my mask, and colored my image with copics.  I am NOT a copics expert by ANY means, but I do love the colors and I have a small collection.  I am LEARNING how to use them.  I did not pay much attention to the colors I used, so I can't list them here.  Oh well.  I did concentrate on making the mountain in the back a bit darker, to help it look further away.  I then added some Glossy Accents to almost everything to give it an icy feeling. 

The striped paper is My Mind's Eye, Lost and Found pad, and I punched some snowflakes with a Martha punch.  The base is DCWV, edged with more Rich Cocoa ink.  I did some faux stitching, added some of my dollar bin ribbons, mounted the whole thing on some white PTI card stock and viola!  Card.

I hope that Elliot likes it, and that it makes him want to go skiing.  Like he needs any encouragement from me.....

Thanks for stooping by!  I hope I inspired you, if not to go skiing, then perhaps to make a card!!
All Best-
Richard

Mr Cardmaker is a Cagey Fellow....

I felt like I was really lucky to get my cards done and out this year.  GIFTS?!  You want me to make GIFTS!???   Ok, so I made those pad thingies, seen HERE, but those were meant to be PRE-Holiday gifts, because they were for Christmas lists.  Get it? 

Anyway, my sister always sends me a lovely gift, even though we were supposed to be done with that years ago....I HAD to make her something, right?

SO I made these things--

This card collection was made with A*Muse Studio stamps, the Life is a Song set.  I liked all the different sentiments, and the cages are pretty, too.  I really wish I had taken a better close up of some of the cards, but I made and sent these babies out in one day, and I barely managed to get the pics I did get. 

The card base is GinaK Designs Pure Luxury Ivory, in the heavy base weight.  I ran it through my Cuttlebug with a Sizzix hounds tooth folder.  The heavy weight paper really makes the embossing pop. 

I then layered on pieces of DP from DCWV.  This paper was amazing for this project.  It was random words with definitions, and I managed to make some of the words work really well with the corresponding sentiments.  I even found the word "reminiscence" for my sympathy card.  I was so happy and amazed at how well it worked.

The image is on more Ivory, done with Memento Tuxedo Black ink, and the birds are Distress Ink, Broken China.  I added detail with a gray copic, and a black pen.

I tore the card stock, and edged it with SU More Mustard ink, and backed it with a torn piece of More Mustard paper, which I also edged in the ink.

Because I wanted these cards to be sent with no issue of extra postage, I didn't add any bling.  The only ornamentation is the little bit of paper piercing I did at the top right part of the image, and under some of the sentiments.  Simple. 

I have to admit, I sense a slight balance problem with some of these cards.  Too much on the right side of the image, I think.....but, maybe I am just overly critical.  I tend to do that.

I then grabbed some envelopes and popped the whole shebang into a clear box, also from GinaK Designs.  The medium box easily (but snugly) held all six cards and envelopes.  The box is causing the glare in the pic above.   Sorry about that.

So, that's my ONE Christmas gift.  I have a calendar template on my computer, maybe I can get somethings together to be New Year's gifts.  Wait, those will need cards, too, right?  And then there's that thank you cards I have to make....Hoo BOY!!  I better get to work!!

Thanks for stopping by!  Your continued support is my best Christmas gift!!!
All Best-
Richard

Mr. Cardmaker has been a Working Guy

Clearly, I have been conspicuously absent from the blog arena.  I have been a BUSY card maker!

I got some new, fun supplies from Stampin'Up!, and have been trying to put them to work.

I made these--

I ran this one thru the cuttlebug with a SU! Sizzix folder, and I tried to mask off the doily/snowflake.  Big fail!  I almost broke my Cuttlebug.  There is LESS embossing on the doily, but it definitely did NOT do what I wanted....

Let me say how happy I am that I do NOT have to send one person a thousand different cards, because it would surely kill me.  I am very happy to lots of variations on a theme!

These are all made with the Hello Doily stamp from SU!, and some white embossing powder.  I LOVE this stamp, and how much it fills up my card!  I cut around portions of the doily to give some emphasis in areas, but I rough cut them (as usual) because I think the doily would get lost without a tiny bit of framing.

I also did a touch of copic coloring in some of the letters. 

The sentiment is from Studio G in the cards above.  Below is from Stampendous, the Holiday Home set.

Here is where I switched from stamping on Melon Mambo, and instead moved to patterned paper.  I love the combinations!!  These papers are American Crafts, Dear Lizzie set.  The shimmer paper is all DCWV.  The little snowflake punch is Martha Stewart, and the big one is SU!

The Merry Christmas above is punched out with the words window punch from SU.  I use this a LOT this season.  That, and the modern labels punch.  I'll show you those cards soon!

The sentiment above is A*muse Studio.

The tags here are done with GinaK Designs All Occassions Tags set, and Spellbinders grommet tags dies.  The sentiment is SU! Teeny Tiny Wishes.  The tag and the sentiment are both wet embossed to punch them up.  That frame above is one of those happy accident moments, where I used a leftover scrap to make a rectangle and got a fun little frame.  These things make me grateful for my two-way glue pen.

As you can see, my sentiments DO get to floating around just a bit.  Oh well....

I have plenty more cards to go, and more to show you.  Stay tuned. 

Sorry for the brief amount of explanation here, gang, but I gotta get back to work!!! 

More later, as soon as I can get them photographed!!!

I hope your cards are going REALLY well, and that PANIC MODE hasn't settled in at your house.  (I am not QUITE there yet, but I hafta get OFF this computer!)

Thanks for stopping by! 

All Best-

Richard

Mr. Cardmaker had BEST get busy...

So, my DP's sibs had their birthdays.  We met up with SIL Jan and her guy Ronny for Chinese and presents, and the morning before we went, I frantically made this--

(OK, I don't know what I did, but I can't seem to put my pics where I want them.  Please bear with me.)

This is a pocket tissue holder.  I used a template given to me by my friend Amy Corr, and went to town.  The base is some Mostly Mustard cs by SU!, and the dp is from M&MBI.  I used a scalloped square punch and a small circle punch to make the clasp-y thing, and I had some ancient chipboard cut outs that I inked up with some StudioG chalk inks.  The brads are from Michael's.  I love how it perfectly fit the center of the flower.







Here is a view of the inside.  I used the same inks as the ones I used on the flower, and I used some GinaK Designs stamps to make the design on the cs.  This is a cute and easy project.  Jan loved this.  I am making one for niece Jessica, who is coming to spend Thanksgiving with us.  I think I am about 90% done with it, but I need to get on it, since my list of stuff-to-do is about a million miles long.

Then, because the morning wasn't frantic enough, I made this, too--

Inside this puppy is a 2 1/2" by 8" notepad from PTI.  I used a piece of GinaK Designs onxy cs cut at 5 1/4" by 8 1/2", scored in the middle to allow for a depth of 1/8".  I attached the pad with some scor-tape to the inside, and used some snowflake stamps from ScrappyCat (from my Goodwill store, no less) and some K&Co stickers to doll it up a bit.  The whole thing is tied together with some white ribbon.  A red button on top of a white one, tied with some red and white twine finishes it all off. 

The inside---This could CLEARLY get really all jazzed up with some rhinestones and other colors, but I was really pressed for time.  Oh yeah, I also stamped a snowflake in pale blue on each of the pages of the pad.  'Cause I'm decorative that way.  Yes, I am.  I have a pack of ten (I think) of these pads.  I will do more!!!

Then, I have still been struggling to come up with a Christmas card style that I love.  I made a bunch, and I have some ideas, but there's SOOOO much work to do between now and when I have to trot these babies to the post office.  Oh yeah, the cards...

I made these--

Ok, so the skinny on these bad boys---sorry I didn't do individual pics.  I just haven't got the strength...If you click on the pic, you will be able to see it a bit larger.

The base is PTI cs.  I like the weight (110#, I think), and the awesome price!!  $6.00 for 40 sheets.  Anyway, I am using American Crafts dp, shimmer paper from PTI and DCWV, and glitter paper from DCWV.  The sentiments are from A*muse Studio and SU!, with some StudioG thrown in.   The snowflake punch is Martha Stewart, and the label design is from GinaK Designs, cut out with Spellbinders dies.I also did some dry embossing with Sizzix and Cuttlebug folders, and the ribbon and bling are from various dollar bins. 

Notice how there are only nine, count them, NINE cards so far??  I gotta get off this computer and go make some more RIGHT NOW!!!!  

Thanks for stopping by, and have a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving!!  I am very thankful for YOU and your support!!!

All Best--

Richard

Mr Cardmaker is a Thankful Guy...

My time for blogging sure gets awfully short when I have to MAKE things instead of blog!!! 
I have been up to my armpits in Christmas cards, so it has taken me a while to get to these Thanksgiving cards that I want to share with you.

I pumped most of these out in one looooooooooong day.  I really have to train myself to craft while sitting, or at least, perching on a stool at my counter. 
Anyhoo--

I made this--

This was mostly about the DP, as you can see. 
I went a little coocoo with the brads, but it worked out just fine.  The zigzag was done with an ek success punch.  The sentiment is from Inkadinkadoo, the Harvest Expressions set.
The card stock is from SU, DCWV, and the DP is Me & My Big Ideas. Brads and ribbon are AC Moore. 
This card is actually much nicer than the photo, now that I'm looking at both....oh well. 

Kinda simple.  

Then I made this--
This was made on SU River Rock CS, and I stamped it with River Rock ink to make the background with Inkadinadoo's Autumn Foliage set.  Then I used the same image on a piece of white CS (GinaK Designs Pure Luxury 120#) inked with the same River Rock on the greens, but with an orange Tombo pen on the pumpkins.  Then I overstamped that with the sentiment, which was also inked with River Rock, but then I used a crayola green marker over it to get the sentiment to stand out.  die cut the whole thing out with a Spellbinders die and my Cuttlebug, and I inked the edges with some inkbox brown while it was still in the die.  I also edged the cardbase, while I was at it.I added a loop of orange ribbon (AC Moore) and the rhinestones (AC Moore again), and that was that.

This is the same idea with different stamps from the sets.  This background was done with versamark ink on GinaK Designs CS, and the pumpkin was stamped onto some soft yellow scrap and decorated with some orange Stickles.  I just used a corner punch here, instead of dies.

This is another quick one. This is an image from Inkadinkadoo, again....from the dollar bin, this time. The sentiment, I believe, is StudioG, but I may be wrong. (I can't find it to check at the moment. You should see my mess....)

The card stock is SU!, and the DP is M&MBI. Ribbon and bling form AC Moore.

This card also has a homemade background paper, using some StudioG stamps with SU River Rock ink on River Rock CS.  I really like how subtle this effect is.  I added a strip of M&MBI dp to the lower portion, and then added a ribbon (AC Moore dollar bin.  What else?).  The image is GinaK Designs, from the Enjoy the Sunshine set.  I colored this with copics, then cut it out with a labels four die from spellbinders, and used the same river rock ink to edge this while still in the die.  This makes a really pretty frame around the image.  I used brown on the outside edge to further punch it up.  This was mounted with foam tape.  I then stamped the sentiment first in orange, then in brown.  This gives it a shadowed effect.  I kind of like the sentiment put in on the vertical.  Change it up!  The buttons were a gift from my pal Michelle, and I used little strips of paper to make the stitching instead of twine or floss or something.  This seems easier for me for some reason.

Now, this one you may remember from when it was just a pumpkin--I layered up some of the papers I used previously, and added some buttons, and some Jolies leaves.  (Uh, I DID try to hide the "I" again, but things didn't quite work out....sorry about that!!)  This is a HUMOROUS card, not a "poison pen" thing by any means.  Oh PUH-LEASE--Like I would put THIS much work into someone I didn't like.  Riiiiiiiight....... 

SO!

Those are most of my Thanksgiving cards.  The others you've already seen, or they didn't photograph so well.  I liked them, and I think the people who will get them will like them too!

Hope you got some inspiration.

Thanks for stopping by!

All Best--

Richard

Mr. Cardmaker is a Birthday Card Making Guy

My sister, Lisa, has a birthday coming up on the 29th of this month.  Because I value my life, I won't tell you "how many" she's going to be, but she is just 14 months younger than myself, so you can figure it out, pretty much. 

She is a very outgoing, fun girl, with friends and neighbors in and out of her house all the time.  This girl knows how to entertain.  With my reclusive self, it's hard to believe she's my sister.

Anyway, I made her this--

Cute and fun, right?  I think it suits her personality.  I made this card on SU Mostly Mustard card stock, stamped with images from A*muse Studio's "Tini Time" set.  I used Studio G inkpads. 

The circles were cut from scraps of GinaK Designs white, and DCWV green cs with my Fiskars punches, and then inked with some colorbox ink.  I am sorry to say I threw the labels away for several of my colorbox pads, so I can't share the color.  Boo.  Pearls and ribbon from AC Moore (I swear, I LIVE in that dollar bin). 

I stamped the sentiment on a scrap of SU Daffodil Delight, and popped it up with foam tape.  The 'tini image is mounted on SU Pumpkin pie. 

I cut it out with my usual technique of leaving a white border around the image.  I like how it gives it more substance, and a little pop, especially when you back it with another color card stock.  I used Colorbox and Studio G ink on the martini, and crayola markers to do the cherry.  I popped it up higher than the sentiment with foam squares.

On the inside, I stamped "Olive you!" from the same set, and under it, I used SU's Teeny Tiny Wishes "Happy Birthday" stamp.  (No photo, sorry.)

I like the cheery colors, and the bubbly feeling from all the circles.

I hope she likes it, too!!

Thanks for dropping by! 

All Best--

Richard



Mr. Cardmaker is Feeling Scrappy

Boy, fall is taking its sweet time getting to us in Boston. Ready for some color, Yo!! 
I am almost OVER making autumn cards, and am ready to get a move on with my Christmas cards.  ALMOST, I said.  I actually have some autumn stamps that have yet to be inked up.  Mr. Cardmaker would NEVER let a season go by without inking up ALL of his new stamps.

That reminds me, I need to do just a few dozen more Halloween cards to make that a true statement.  DANG YOU, AC Moore Dollar Bin!!!  Dang you, and all of your $1 too-cute-to-pass-up Halloween goodness!!!!

ANYWAY---

I had some scraps all over my floor from the rosette banner project I did (more on that later).  I decided they were just too good to throw away (like most of my scraps).
So, I made this--

This was made on a beige base, cardstock from The Paper Co. I layered some DP from Me & My Big Ideas, then some SU Mostly Mustard cs run thru my Cuttlebug with a Sizzix embossing folder.  I inked that up with some brown ink for some depth.  I popped that off the DP with some foam tape. 

I  gathered up my scrap DP (SU, M&MBI, and some Target "no name")  and arranged and adhered them just as they were; no extra cutting.  Then I cut out, edged, and stamped the sentiment (Studio g).  I stamped it twice, once in brown, and once in white to give it some pop.  I added a swirl from another Studio g set to give it some "somethin'-somethin'.
I added a little loop of ribbon to the back, and attached it with some more foam tape.
Easy-Peasy.

THEN--
StampTV did a "Red and Kraft" challenge for their "Mix-it-up Monday" challenge.  I had just won GinaK Designs' "Garden Fresh" stamp set during a blog hop, so I decided to bust it out and get inky with it. 

I made this--

This could not have been easier or more fun.  I stamped some GinaK Designs Kraft CS with the apple stamp in Versamark, and used some (really old) red embossing powder to get them nice and shiny.  (Gotta love a shiny red apple!)
I then used some crayola markers to re-ink the stamp, and I stamped it on some white CS, and cut it out.  I like to leave a little white area around most images I cut out.  I think it looks good, and it's often MUCH easier to cut.
I stamped the sentiment on another piece of white CS in Memento Tuxedo Black, and used the green marker I used on the apple leaf to hand draw the border.
I attached some Baker's twine to the back, added some foam tape to the back, and adhered it, using my two-way glue pen to attach the twine to the card base.
I added some foam tape to the apple image, and adhered it to the sentiment.
Easy as pie. 
Mmmmmmm, apple pie.   SO glad we went apple picking this weekend!!!

So, that's me for now.  I have some autumn birthday cards to share with you next time. 

Thanks so much for stopping by!
All Best-
Richard

Some Kinda Colorful

My dear friend Betty Ann Grove had a birthday, and I did a challenge at StampTV in the past month or so, so I wanted to quickly share some projects with you.

For Miss Grove, a wonderful 80+ gal with a TON of get-up-and-go, I made this--

I do love a circle.  Clearly.  This was made on a base cardstock from A*muse Studio, with CS and DP from SU.  The image is GinaK Designs, and I colored it with colored pencils, and used glossy accents on the flowers.  The pearls and ribbons are from AC Moore, the dollar bins, and I used an ek success punch and a Sizzix embossing folder on the orange cardstock.   Bright and fresh, just like Miss Grove!

Then, for a rainbow challenge at StampTV, I made this--

I like this one.  I used an image from Ditto, and colored on the stamp with crayola markers.  Who knew they would work on stamps?  The image is from SU, the Perfect Words set, and the DP that I used to make the bargello look at the bottom is all from SU, too.  The base is GinaK Designs Kraft CS, and I used a white gel pen to make the stitching lines.  I used SU Ballet Blue on the edges of my white CS and on my label (spellbinders Label Four), and used some baker's twine from The Paper Source to tie it all down.  I found my rhinestones in several different places, mostly from the box of HUNDREDS I bought at a yard sale for a dollar!

The bargello technique looks hard, but you merely adhere strips of DP to a piece of CS, cut it into strips going the other way (so you have all of your colors in one strip) and then arrange them in a pattern and trim to fit.  Looks like a quilt or something, right?

Thanks for checking out my projects!
Come back and see me, and feel free to leave me some feedback!  I am still learning here, y'all!
Take good care.
All Best-
Richard

The Halloween Card That Wasn't...

I was able to play with some "new to me" stamps that one of my generous benefactors gave me, the GinaK Designs set called "Nesting."  (Thanks Michelle!)  I really liked the owl image, and since I was doing Halloween cards this past week, I decided to go all fancy with it. 

I made this--

I stamped the owl with Memento Tuxedo Black on some light gray paper, and colored it with copic markers.  I used E25, E29, E53, for the feathers, and YR12 on the feet and beak and eyes.  I also used my glitter pen on the eyes, but it doesn't show in this picture.

Then for the background, I grabbed my extra large circle punch from Fiskars, and made a mask.  I placed the circle I punched where I wanted it, and used my repositionable Tombo tape to secure it.  Then, I pulled out some of my $1.00 stamp pads from Studio G and some Stampin' Up Perfect Plum, as well as some Broken China Distress Ink, and more Tuxedo Black.  I used sponge daubers and went from lightest to darkest to create my night sky.  I did LOTS of coats of ink, because things dry very differently, as I'm sure you have found for yourself. 

When I was happy with the sky, I took off the circle and masked off the sky.  I used a very soft yellow chalk ink and did a pouncing technique direct to paper with the ink pad to get as much ink as possible on my paper.  Then I went back with some white ink, and then went back in with the same yellow just right around the edges. 

After I was happy with the moon itself, I took the mask off and used the yellow on a dauber in order to infuse the sky with a bit of moon glow.  I also did the edges of the owl, to make it look like it was being backlit a bit.  I added some trees from two other GinaK sets, "Follow You Dreams" and "Happy Camper".  I really need to get myself a dedicated set of trees.  Anyone have a set of trees they ADORE?

I used GinaK Designs Pure Luxury Kraft cardstock for the base, and used Versamark ink and a verbiage background stamp on the top.  I layered some Fiskars DP with some purple cs, in order to relate to the focal image, and upholstered the bottom of the card with it.  I really like the sort of glowing leaves in this DP, so I made sure they were visible below the focal image.  I tore some value pack black cs to give it a rough edge, and backed my image with it, but this time I attached the black to the base first, and popped the image by itself over the black with some mounting tape.  Then I added the owl, the rhinestones, and that was it.

The interesting thing on this project for me, was how hard it was to make this a Halloween card.  The owl is really stately, so pairing it with kitchy, silly stuff was not going to work.  So, I went really dark and mysterious with it instead.  I could make it a Halloween card, I suppose, but instead I am using it as a birthday card for one of my best male friends who has a Fall birthday.  I think this is a nice, masculine card.

I am in the market for a great stamp for the BACK of my cards.  I think I would like to have my name and blog site listed, and I think a bit of a crazy font would make it just about perfect for my style.  Any ideas?  Hey, and what about watermarks?  What do YOU use on your pics?

Thanks for stopping by! 
For those of you on the East coast, I hope you made it through Irene unscathed!
All Best--
Richard

My Take On Halloween Colors, Cards, and My Bizarre Humor

Ok, so there's a big difference between Autumn colors and Halloween colors.  Think about it.  Halloween: Black and Orange (real Cadmium Orange).  Throw in some acid green, moonlight yellow, and purple. Oh, and a nice bloody red, if you want!
However!  Unless you're doing a really vintage looking Halloween project, BROWN just doesn't cut it, just like rusty orange, dusty blue and maroon really don't make it either.   I love autumnal colors. Save those for all the beautiful Autumn and Thanksgiving cards.

One man's opinion.  I'd love to see some projects where you prove me wrong, btw!!

How do I come to this conclusion, you ask?  Well, I pulled out my paper collection, which includes a beautiful pad of autumn papers from Me and My Big Ideas that my DSIL Jan gave me for my birthday.  LOVE these papers, but...yeah, not for Halloween.  Had to go to this cute collection of papers I picked up at Target's dollar bins.  This thing has no label.  Seriously.  Love to give credit where it's due, but...anyway.  Great papers.

I used them to make this--

This on GinaK Designs Ivory card stock.  The b&w swiss dot and striped paper is also GinaK Designs.  The stamps are from Studio G, and I have 4 little Halloween sets from them.  One dollar at AC Moore, these things.  Can't go wrong, and the all go together really well!    The moon was punched and detailed with copics, and white gel pen, and just about everything was sponged with Memento tuxedo black ink to age it all; Stamped everything with the same ink.  Ribbon is from AC Moore, as is the brad.  I used mounting tape to pop up the orage framed image, and a foam adhesive square to pop up the moon.  The label die is Sizzix for SU, the lots of labels set.  I did the swirls by hand with gel pen, and I really went for a non specific, hand-done look there. 
The inside and envelope look like this-

I really LOVE how creepy all these spiders are!  The label here is done with Spellbinders Nestabilities grommet tag dies, and again the stamps are Studio G.  I have just begun to decorate my envelopes!  Missed a lot of great  creative opportunities there in the past!  I like giving the recipient a hint of what's to come!

I decided to enter this into The Rubber Cafe's  Spellbinders challenge.  Check it out!!

Since I was in the swing of things, I made this too--

With this inside--

I had such a hoot making this one.  I giggled like an idiot at some moments here.  Don't you love the spiders on the ribbon? 

I started by making the pumpkins with my cuttlebug and Nestabilities small ovals dies.  I used scraps from the Target paper, some SU designer paper, and just orange cs from The paper company (my value pack).  I cut the stems by hand and I have a tiny oak leaf punch from somewhere and used scraps to make the green part.  I popped it off the base with mounting tape.

The letters are done from scraps with Sizzix wallflower letter dies and the cuttlebug.  These are so pretty, but some of them are rather persnickety, and take several passes and various pieces of cardstock in the machine.  I think they are worth the effort, though. 

The card base is GinaK Designs Kraft.  I used Versamark and more Studio G stamps to make the webs on the base, did the spiders in Memento Tuxedo Black and I used white gel pen to decorate and highlight things, including the spider eyes, the letters, and the faux stitching.  I also used glitter pen to highlight just about everything.  Hello, my name is Richard and I am a glitter pen junky.....

Since I made a ton of letters, and lots of ovals, not to mention a weird sense of humor, I also made this....Parents, avert your child's eyes--

I find this incredibly funny.  I am weird that way.  I did try to visually "bleep" some of the letters, but you get the idea. 

This isn't even a card yet.  Just the pumpkin.  This is a sort of family joke, so I apologize if it offends anyone.  It makes me giggle, though...

I have one more, but I'll save it for next time.  Leave 'em wanting more, they say...

And I hope you do.

Thanks for stopping by. 

All Best!

Richard