Chibitronics and Lawn Fawn Collaboration

 Hi Folks! I'm excited to share another card featuring the magic of Chibitronics, only this time it's combined with the super-popular Lawn Fawn stamps and dies. This is the first day of a three day collaboration between the Chibitronics and Lawn Fawn teams. This adorable hamster from Wheelie Like You is working as hard as he can to generate enough power to turn on the strands of lights above. The question is, can he do it?



Well of course he can!

Let's take a closer look ...


 The hamster and his wheel are popped up, and underneath them all is the battery that will operate the light bulbs when pressed. The "you turn me on" sentiment is actually meant to go with the light bulbs from the Turn Me On set, but instead I was excited by how perfectly it fits with the hamster wheel turning, and of course the light bulbs turning on. He is truly "turning" the lights on!
 

The light bulbs from Turn Me On are stamped and embossed on vellum. I've cut a circle from the panel underneath the bulbs so the lights can really shine through. Initially the circuitry and lights were showing through the holes, so I went back and put another layer of vellum across the hole to hide all the mechanics. I left the bulbs hanging forward to give them dimension without adding any more bulk. They are strung from the special Lawn Fawn baker's twine that nicely comes with your orders. I was happy to be able to make use of that right away and not hoard it for the next several years!

The baker's twine is also tied to the hamster wheel, to carry all the generated power up to the lights.

Here's a quick video showing the lights going on and off. So fun!

Please make sure to visit Jessica Frost-Ballas, Lesley Oman and several Lawn Fawn team members featured on the Chibitronics and  Lawn Fawn Blog today with additional collaboration projects. There will you will find inspiration, and give-aways! One $30 Lawn Fawn gift card and one Chibitronics starter kit (valued at $30) will be given away randomly to two winners drawn from comments across all three days and all blogs. The more you visit and comment, the better your chances to win!

Don't forget to stop by the Chibitronics blog the next two days for even more inspiration!
- Kelly

Affiliate links below:

Chibitronics White LED Circuit Stickers, 30 pk (675346)

Chibitronics Copper Tape, 16 ft (675353)

Lawn Fawn Clear Stamps, Wheelie Like You

Lawn Cuts Dies, Wheelie Like You

Lawn Fawn Clear Stamps, Turn Me On

Lawn Cuts Dies, Turn Me On

It's a Green Day Kind Of Birthday

Hi folks! Today's card is a very specific card, meant for someone who moved into the house behind me about 13 years ago and ended up being the best crafting and concert-going friend you could ever ask for. I'm so blessed.



It was her birthday yesterday, so Michele at CAS-ual Fridays was nice enough to let me postpone my post until after she had received the card. This photo was take at the most recent Green Day concert we saw together in Champaign, IL. Waiting in line several hours got us only a few rows behind center stage, right off the cat walk. It was unbelievably amazing!!!

Here are a few photos ...

 

 I still can't believe we were that close! Total fan girls.

Annnyway, to embellish the photo I stamped "rock" from  Flower Power and then borrowed an "o" and a "n" to make "on."


Here's a peek of the letters getting watercolored. The nice thing about cutting your letters out is that there is no need at all to be neat with your coloring!



To give this concert scene a little more life, I popped up "on" with black foam tape.

Here's the inside, with an appropriate sentiment from Frankly'isms and then a boarder stamped from Full on Floral.

I know this card doesn't have a ton going on stamping-wise, but I think my friend loved all the memories it brought back, and how personal it is. I know we are stampers, but it's good to remember that not every card has to be a stamping masterpiece to be appreciated!

   

This card is over at the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps blog if you'd like additional information. Feel free to use my code "KELLY2017" which will save you 15% off any purchases at CAS-ual Fridays Stamps.

Thanks for looking!
-Kelly

A Toppling Tower of Critters Sends Birthday Wishes

Hi Folks! I'm excited to share this cute little birthday card for a 3 year old boy or girl on the Winnie & Walter blog today!

 

Thanks for looking!
-Kelly

Exciting News!!

Hello! I've got exciting news that I've been dying to share with you all ... I'm on the Chibitronics Design Team! When I think of the most innovative products that set your cards apart, Chibitronics lights are at the very top of that list. I mean c'mon, how amazing is giving someone a card that LIGHTS UP?!?

I guess the only downside to tricking your cards out with real lights is perhaps the recipients won't realize you made their card : )

  

I've got two cards to share with you today...

The first is one I made for my son's 13th birthday this weekend. [side note: any advice on parenting teens is greatly appreciated!] He loves playing baseball so I made a card that replicates the back of his baseball jersey. I've had these Letterman Stitched Number Dies and Mats from Papertrey Ink for years and never used them because stitching seemed like a large time investment. But now, all the wonderful holes seemed a perfect way to let a lot of light shine through.

 

  
Like this!
  

  

Here's a tip: Use two layers of paper to avoid seeing the card's mechanics when lit. This is what it looked like before I tore the top layer off to remake it with a less see-through property. No one wants to see your underwear foam tape!

You can see it in action here

This card I made several years ago. The original intent was to hold it in front of a window to reveal a hidden message. But who wants to do that, when you could just have it light up when you press on "birthday"?! So I remade this card with the new Chibitronics technology.

Now there is no hiding from the real purpose of this card ... to wish a happy 40th birthday!

I've got detailed instructions coming in a later post on how to work with the Chibitronics, but for now here's a quick peek at what it looks like inside:

In general, you create a circuit out of copper tape that runs from the battery and back. When you press on the battery housing (the folded piece of paper here) the circuit is complete, and then the lights go on. When there is not pressure, and the copper tape is not touching the battery, the circuit is not complete and the lights do no go on (like in this photo).

Press the flap down to close the circuit and ta-da!!! There is light!

Then you use a generous amount of foam tape to lift the card base so the flap doesn't touch the copper tape, which would complete the circuit and turn the lights on.

I am so in love with this product, and all the possibilities it gives us cardmakers, and couldn't be more thrilled to be on the design team. Playing around with this technology makes me feel like an engineer (which amuses my husband to no end since he really is an engineer!) We have a ton of exciting things coming up this year that I can't wait to show you all. Stay tuned for one coming up in the next couple weeks!!

Thanks for stopping by and sharing in my excitement!
-Kelly

Winnie & Walter Rerun: Parentville Extras for Mother's Day

Hi Folks! Each month Winnie & Walter digs through the archives and selects an older stamp set to feature in this "Rerun" series. With Mother's Day right around the corner, and Father's Day coming shortly on her heels, the Parentville set is this month's featured set. I, of course, instead of reaching for the Parentville set, grab the Parentville Extras set and start stamping with it. Shay is so nice and does not at all make me feel like an idiot.  

For this card I used the Flawless Heart Cutaway to make a stencil. Then I stamped the modern woodgrain heart thought the stencil and filled it with several shades of yellow and orange from Catherine Pooler's new inks.

I then used the copy paper heart to cover the stamped hearts (like a mask) and sponged ink around the edges to make the larger heart stand out more. The "I love you Mother" is from Parentville Extras and "you mean the world to me" is from Sentimental: Love. Just love how these sentiments from different stamp sets go together so well.

Speaking of sentiments, I've been trying to pay attention to where I stamp them on the card in relation to other elements. The curl of the "M" cradles the tip of the heard, "I love you" is in between the heart and the "h" from "Mother," and the few tall scripted letters in "world" are stamped after the word "Mother."

I'm really liking one-layer cards recently (which this one is) and the challenge of making them.

While everything was out I pushed myself to make a second card. This one uses the same elements from the first card (yellow and orange woodgrain hearts, similar sentiment, and accents of green/blue. The hearts are stamped in a somewhat random pattern, with more of the intense colors in the bottom middle.

And lots of sequins always makes things better : ) For the heart that's tying in with the sentiment I cut an additional piece of foam tape to pop it up underneath. 

The panel is cut from Essentials: Noel Cutaways.

  
And there you have it! Two Mother's Day cards using essentially the same products.

 

Head on over to the Winnie & Walter blog to find out details on how to participate in the rerun challenge, which is open throughout the month.

Thanks for looking!
-Kelly

More Teen Boy Birthday Cards

Hi Folks! Teen boy birthday cards continue to be in high demand at our house, so I've been trying to focus on making more of those. This time, since I had a design that I was happy with, I left the stamps on the misti and just kept on making these one layer cards. Let's take a look!

As sad as I was when Michele retired my favorite Rad set, you can imagine how thrilled I was when she announced she was bringing it back, only better than ever! Rad 2 is full of great words that you can mix and match like I've done here to get the exact message you want. 

I die cut a large star from Stars Fri-Dies and used that as a template to blend the vibrant Catherine Pooler Inks onto the card.

 I tried some warm, pretty colors, and voila, a teen girl card!

Sometimes I'd make a mistake and sponge ink outside of my stencil (see the large pink strip under "totally") but instead of tossing it like I would have done years ago, I've learned to embrace these telltale signs that it's a handmade card. Especially on a grungy, laid back card like this.

It was fun trying different color combinations.

And I love that they are all one layer. Couldn't be easier!

It was also exciting to see what different shades of color would appear where the stars overlap. I think those overlapped areas make the cards more interesting.

   

These cards are over at the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps blog today if you'd like additional information. Feel free to use my code "KELLY2017" which will save you 15% off any purchases at CAS-ual Fridays Stamps.

Thanks for looking!
-Kelly