Collection of Rainbow Birthday Cards

  
Hello! Rainbows just make everyone happy, so what better theme for a Happy Birthday card? I've gone a little overboard on the rainbows for an entire set of cards, all using the CAS-ual Fridays Shenanigans birthday sentiment.

    

 

   

I lined up the rainbow of Catherine Pooler Inks, put the birthday stamp on my MISTI, and started stamping down the card. Based on how high the sentiment is, I moved the card down 9/16" before stamping the next color. When I got to the green "birthday" for this card, I left more of a space and indented so I would have room to stamp "happy." It was important for me to line up "happy" with the left edge of "birthday" so the left margin was consistent. 

It took me awhile to get the spacing right. The first cards I stamped on the left will most likely go to some of my sons' friends, who probably don't pay attention to the cards anyway (unless there's a gift card inside!)

   
I happen to like this card with the yellow birthday highlighted, maybe because it separates the warm colors on top from the cool colors on the bottom. 

I was having so much fun with the rainbow look, I buckled up for a few more ...

 

For these cards, instead of moving the card down 9/16" every time I switched colors, I moved the card down a smaller 5/16". 

The overlapping effect made more of a focus on the sentiment that was all by itself, with the "happy" stamped on the side. I started the rainbow in the middle, with yellow, for this card.

    

 

   

This one is full-force rainbow, to the 100th power. The blurring effect runs completely down the card to the last purple color. Kinda like an exclamation mark with a long line and a point at the bottom.

       

  

I think this card could be used for anyone ... child, teen, male, female, they would all work.

  

I just really enjoy looking at this card : ) 

   

   

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

Calling All Sistahs Blog Hop

Hi Folks! Here's your friendly reminder on the 17th of the month to check yourself, and/or schedule a mamogram if it applies to you! And to have fun hopping on the CAS-ual Fridays Calling All Sistahs blog hop : ) 

I stamped several images of the Heart Ribbon and a few die cut Ruffled Ribbons to give the feel of a tribe of women standing behind the recipient and rooting her on. The sentiment is from Be and gives a rather loud cheer all on its own.

You may have come from the clever Jeanne Jachna's blog. If you'd like to start at the beginning of the hop, head on over to the CAS-ual Fridays blog.

Should you be interested in purchasing anything from the Calling All Sistahs line, 50% of the profits  are donated to National Breast Cancer Foundation. You are also invited to participate in next month's blog hop. Check out all the details at CAS-ual Fridays, along with information on prizes.

Don't forget the discount code KELLY2017 to save 15% off your purchases! 

   

 
I will now send you on your merry way to visit Sue and see what she has to share!

   

Thanks for stopping by!

-Kelly

Concord & 9th Guest Design

 Hi Folks! I couldn't be more excited to be guest designing with the wonderfully fabulous Concord & 9th this month! I had the good fortune of meeting Greg and Angie at Creativation (CHA) this year, and theirs was one of my favorite booths in the whole show. Towards the end of the show when you'd run into people you know, they typically would ask what the highlights of the show had been. Concord & 9th always came up, either by me or someone else. Their products are so fresh and current, their booth looked amazing with patio lights and a ton of wood they assembled into a wall, and they are the nicest people ever. I really felt a strong connection to Angie and Greg, so was naturally thrilled when they asked me to be a guest for their new release!

I'll share 5 posts over this next month, using all the goodies from their most recent release last week. Let's get started!

The Lucky stamp set and coordinating dies have many different combinations. Using both dies and the stamp, you can have FOUR different layers/colors for the word "lucky," making it easy to be the focus of the card. Here I've only used two pieces from the die, the charcoal background and the gold sparkle script. The mix 'n match options really saved me on this card. I originally just used the gold sparkle script, but with all the busy-ness of the stars below, and all the other words, it just didn't have enough weight to it. Adding the charcoal outline really helped make it stand on its own, and since I used a color that was similar to the background, it wasn't standing out too much. Just right.
 

I also wanted the word "stars" to stand out a little more since they are a feature of the card, so instead of using the stamp, I die cut the letters and made my own version of the word. Just wait until you see these alpha die cuts ... like the lucky dies, they each have their own outline!! Ack! I love that. The possibilities! You can see the die to the left of the card. This card couldn't handle any more busy-ness so I just used the inside of the letters. But, the double cut alpha dies are perfect for when you want to feature a word ... the equivalent of bolding a word.

The sentiments embossed in white are also included in the Lucky set. The sentiment in gold is from a fun set I'll feature later this month called You are Here. It's got a giant heart made from two roses, so clever. In the bottom corners of the card a few clusters of tiny stars are stamped with Galaxy Gold.

This star is included with the Lucky dies. It has an outline as well (are you seeing a theme in this release?!) so you really get three different looks ... inside, outside or both. Here I've just used the outside portion of the stars so I can tie gold thread around them and dangle them across the card. Love having movement on cards. 

I'll share a tip: when you are too lazy busy to pick out all the colors of cardstock that go together for a set of small dies, just cut them all out from white paper and use your markers to color the paper. So much easier!

To finish off the card I added some patterned paper to the inside. Like I always say, the inside is half the real estate of the card, so it might as well be pretty too! When it's time to send the card, I'll write the sentiment on pre-cut scrap pieces of paper I keep in a drawer for that purpose.

 

One more card. This is super simple, and thanks to some double-sided patterned paper is quite colorful. My goal with this card was to have a general curved shape on the bottom, having the sentiment also part of that curve. I die cut "lucky" once from black, and then ...

 

... once from the green as well. I didn't use the green word at all, just stuck that in my album of extra word dies, and only used the bottom, negative portion of the die to fill in the space below "lucky."

The green section also made a nice spot to stamp the rest of the sentiment on. This card would be a good candidate for mass-producing since there is not much time invested in it.

Finally, here are some pictures from the crazy-busy Concord & 9th booth at Creativation:

Love this picture! It has all my favorite companies ... Michele from CAS-ual Friday Stamps, Suzi and Catherine from Catherine Pooler Designs / Stamp Nation, Shay from Winnie & Walter, Greg and Angie from Concord & 9th, and then me. Fun, fun!!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I've got so many more projects to share this month!

-Kelly

The products featured in this post can be found through the following links. These are affiliate links, which simply means if you decide to make a purchase I will receive a small commission, at no additional cost to you, which helps me justify spending so much time and money on this wonderful hobby of ours to my hubby : )

 

 

One of my Favorite 90's Movie Lines

When I saw the Sentimental: Love stamp set from Winnie and Walter, I actually squealed.

It has one of my favorite movie quotes ever.

I still remember my heart melting the first time I watched Jerry Maguire and heard Jerry (Tom Cruise) tell Dorothy, "You complete me," right before Dorothy tells him, "Shut up. You had me at hello." That, and the scene from Say Anything with John Cusack holding up the boom box playing Peter Gabriel's In Your Eyes, are the two sweetest 90's movie moments, in my opinion. Sigh. 

Aaaanyway, I've got a card!

And it has a lovely picture of a doggy and a kitty hanging up on a family room wall, complete with wallpaper, baseboards, and some pretty darn trendy gray wood flooring.

And it's on the Winnie & Walter blog today if you want to go check it out!


 

Thanks for looking!
-Kelly

Adult Coloring Book Birthday Cards

Hello! Today's set of cards were inspired by rainbows and adult coloring books. They feature the CAS-ual Fridays Shenanigans birthday sentiment, and the detailed Pretty Posies floral stamps.
 


I was trying to develop some energy from contrasts in this card. The first contrast is between the intense, warm colors of the repeated sentiment, and the starkness of the black and white flowers. Also, the thinly drawn details in the flowers contrast with the boldness of the text.




Although it took me awhile to come up with the design, once I did it was easy to replicate. I took an extra 15 minutes to make a few more cards.


 
 
I like the boldness of the top vs. the femininity of the bottom. Just perfect for my girlfriends!

    

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

February 2017 Essentials by Ellen Release Hop

Welcome to the February 2017 Essentials by Ellen Release Hop! I’ll be showcasing several of the new products on my post today! It’s a good thing you are here because I’m giving away an Essentials by Ellen stamp set!  The winner may chose any in stock Essentials by Ellen brand stamp set  (Maximum value $25 USD) at Ellen Hutson.com  To enter, please leave a comment on today’s post by Tuesday, February 28. There is also an AMAZING Grand Giveaway on the CLASSroom!  To enter, be sure to leave a comment there, too, by Tuesday, February 28.

ALL winners will be announced at the CLASSroom on Friday, March 3! Please check there on that date to see if you are a winner and for further details on claiming your prize. Happy hoppin’!

You may have come from my dear blogging friend, Michele Ferguson, but if not feel free to start at the beginning in the CLASSroom.

I was so excited to be assigned the Otterly Awesome stamp and die set, especially since it's very similar to the All Inside Bear stamp and die set that I went nuts over in the Winter 2016 blog hop. My initial plan was to show 5 ways to use this adorable otter, but I got so intrigued by the Hinged Thanks Die that instead I decided to do ...

 FIVE different ways to use the Hinged Thanks Die

  1. Add colors underneath each letter.
  This method works with any card design! Just pull a few colors from the rest of your card, and add them underneath each letter. You can do this by cutting out small blocks of colored paper to put underneath, or simply color the spaces underneath with a marker. Such an easy way to tie in your sentiment to the rest of the design of your card.

  2. Die cut on different colored strips of paper.
 This can quickly be adapted to your recipient. The colors used on this card result in a masculine card, but you can just as easily pick pinks and oranges for a feminine card. 

The fun part is picking which color to go underneath the die! I opted for a bright orange to really contrast with the blue (they're opposites on the color wheel). Love how this die lets you easily add a "hidden" surprise element to your design.
 

3. Die cut right in the middle of your design

 So fun making a pattern with the nail polish bottle from Make it Beautiful! After coloring all the nail polishes, and then coloring in the negative spaces with dark gray, I held my breath and sent it through the die cutting machine. You really only get one chance with this! But it sure does look great once it works out. Not sure if you noticed, but all the nail polish bottles are spaced so that each letter would be a different color.

 
 Here's the view from the side. Love how this die automatically gives your card dimension, without any additional bulk whatsoever. It's the best of both worlds!

 

4. Mix up the letters

  Just because it's a "thanks" die doesn't mean you have to use it to say "thanks." There's nothing stopping you from cutting up the letters and making your own sentiment, like Santa! I'm sure you've all seen the simple Santa cards that just use red, white and black cardstock to make Santa's suit, but putting a sentiment on those cards without ruining the simple design is quite challenging. Problem solved! Cutting the hinged thanks in black doesn't interfere with it being Santa's belt, yet it still gets the message across in a subtle way.

5. Use it on a Bendi card.

 Before getting into this method in regards to the Hinged Thanks die, let's pause for a moment to soak in all the adorable otters from  Otterly Awesome and Otterly Awesome Dies and their accessories from Otter Ware and Otter Ware Dies! Awww! I admit there's a lot more going on than I usually have on a card, but I really wanted to include it all! I mean c'mon, otters holding sea shells and sea urchins?! Cuteness overload. The wonky circles and scallops in this ocean are from another new set in this release, Wonky Backdrops.

 Back to the Hinged Thanks die, this method really highlights the unique feature of the hinged letters. Putting the sentiment on the curve makes the letters stand out even more! Another difference on this card is that the actual letters are colored in a different color to help them stand out from the background. I just put a piece of paper underneath the letters when coloring the letters to make sure I didn't get stray marks on the background. 


 Well there you have it, folks, five different ways to use this unique Hinged Thanks Die! I'm so glad you stopped by! I hope you've been collecting ideas as you hop along, and are narrowing down your wishlist from this latest release. There are so many goodies to choose from!

Your next stop on this inspiring blog hop is the delightful Sharon Harnist!

*note: affiliate links are provided below, which simply means if you make a purchase I receive a small financial incentive, at no additional cost to you.

Essentials By Ellen Clear Stamps, Otterly Awesome By Julie Ebersole

Essentials By Ellen Designer Dies, Otterly Awesome By Julie Ebersole

Essentials By Ellen Clear Stamps, Otter Ware By Julie Ebersole

Essentials By Ellen Designer Dies, Otter Ware By Julie Ebersole

Essentials By Ellen Designer Dies, Hinged Thanks By Julie Ebersole

Essentials By Ellen Clear Stamps, Wonky Backdrops By Julie Ebersole

Essentials By Ellen Clear Stamps, Make It Beautiful By Brandi Kincaid

Essentials By Ellen Winter 2017 Complete Release