Bunch of Birthday Cards

I'm sure that you've been in suspense, wondering what has been going on, but I have been pretty busy making cards and just haven't taken the time to post these. I've been working on a bunch of Mother's Day cards as well and I'll post them later.

I used 3 papers for this one and then a bit of pink organdy ribbon and a chipboard letter a. I hand-wrote happy birthday to you! along the edge of the brown triangle. This card is for my co-worker who's name starts with an a! :)

This card only uses 2 papers, a piece of blue ribbon and some white alphabet stickers. Inside I said something like, All these words and more describe a special sister like you. Hope you have a happy birthday! I think the colors are funky and bright and didn't require much additional embellishments to look nice.

This card used 3 different papers, black ribbon, 3 pink sparklies, and a M sticker. You'll see the paper again with another birthday card and I like how the colors pop. This card is for my sister.

I used 5 different papers for this card, some pink organdy ribbon, and some purple alphabet stickers. I smeared the edges of the cream paper in a purple ink pad. It worked okay here, but I've had better success in other instances doing that. My friend Abby showed me that technique! This card was for another co-worker.

This card was a bit more complex. I decided to follow the template found at CPS. I used 6 different papers with this one! The background paper was also decorated on the reverse side (the cream with brown polka dots) and then I used a chipboard flower which I covered with some other paper. I simply wrote Happy Birthday! I wanted to put a couple sparklies on it, but since it was going through the mail, I was a little skeptical about it. This one is for my aunt.

All in all, I think these turned out pretty decently. I continue to use Mono Multi glue which is just about the handies stuff. The only problem that I've had is that when it gets on my workspace, I end up finding little balls of it stuck on things (namely the back of cards!). It sticks so well that I wash my hands often while working so that I'm not sticking to other things. I need to find a no-stick mat -- if they have such a thing!

Rainy afternoon projects

I've been needing to get some cards done, but haven't had the motivation. I knew they were calling for a big storm on Saturday so I hoped that I could get some things done. Here are the 5 cards that I got done for various people & circumstances:

Sympathy card for a family at church
Birthday card for a friend at church
Birthday card for a friend at church

Birthday card for my aunt

Congratulations card for my mom

I had picked up some clearanced paper at a scrapbooking store when I was looking for chipboard for the previous project. Most of the cards I made today were with these new papers. I also had picked up some pink sequins that I added to a couple of these. Although I had a tough time getting these done, I think they turned out okay.

A Birthday Invitation Project

A co-worker asked me to do a special project for a birthday party she was hosting. Since I had quite a bit of time to look for supplies, I found a good deal on the paper. I was bummed that I couldn't find black chipboard, but here's what I had to do:

First, I had to trace and cut out all the swirlies. I went back with an exacto knife to get the inside portion cut out.

2nd, I painted each of the swirlies (20). It was very time consuming as I had to go back and get the edges too.
Then I had cut the ribbon and string the ribbon through. I glued down the swirly on the page.

Then, I taped down the sides of the ribbon. Here they all are -- all 20 of them! She still has to print out the back portion and then I'll glue it on to make the invitation complete! She purchased black envelopes and is writing with white gel pen on it.

New Design Template

I decided to make up a few cards on Sunday and followed the template at CPS. I really liked the simplicity of it, and the flexibility with the design. The top card is for the family we had visit us over Easter weekend (I'm including the picture from a previous post) and then the two thank yous are for two ladies at church. I hope to get them written up and mailed out in the next couple days.

Basically, I just used 4 complementary colors for the design and then added the embellisments. For the orange card I added little tags that spelled out family and for the pink ones I added white organdy ribbon and a white piece of cardstock with thank you/thanks written on it.

Spring is Here!

We have definitely noticed that spring has sprung! I've mowed the grass 2x already and need to get it done again this week. The flowers are blooming, trees are budding, and pollen is everywhere. I've struggled with itchy eyes and Barry's had this weird fever thing going on. Hopefully, we'll get past all this and just be able to enjoy the nice temperatures.

Family Visiting

We had an awesome time this weekend with Barry's brother's family! The kids are growing up and we had a great time with them. We went for a picnic at the local walking park and had to get a fun picture of them all together. It was unbelievable weather and we had a great time. It was too short of a visit.

Easter Mini-Cards

I wanted to make a little something for my nephew and nieces that will be with us for Easter and just went ahead and made up a few more for co-workers. I stuck with the fairly same template: 3-4 different papers, a starburst die cut, and the phrase "He is risen!" I made all 6 of these in about an hour. They are 2"x3" and the back is blank for a note.

Hope that you have an awesome Easter! May you spend time rejoicing in the marvelous gift that God gave us. We are excited to go to our church's Good Friday service & Easter Sunday service. Plus, we will have family with us!