the paper players

Sparkle & Glitter!! Napkin Cards

/ Jodi / 30 Comments

napkin glitter card ho ho ho

I went a little nuts last night with glitter and napkins!

napkin glitter card gold and blue dove and ornaments

When I first started seeing these glitter napkin cards, I poo-poo’d them thinking cards made of napkins take no talent, no effort, no creativity……

Then I went to a class where we made one recently.  I almost didn’t go, because I didn’t want to make cards from napkins – being a bit of a snob about it I must admit…..

napkin glitter card snowman and snowflakeWell – now I am eating my words, because I had so much fun making these cards!  It’s okay if something is a little easier, a little less creative sometimes….

napkin glitter card merry christmas wreathas long as you enjoy it… and I’m actually kind of excited with how these turned out!  All made from paper napkins!

napkin glitter card joyI am excited to share this simple, but beautiful technique, because I think many of you might enjoy trying this method to making homemade cards that doesn’t require a lot of equipment and materials.  And if you like do a “production-line” style of getting a bunch of the same thing done at once, one pack a napkins can make a ton of beautiful cards.  In fact, each individual napkin makes four cards!

napkin glitter card suppliesBesides some card stock and some pretty napkins you can get at the dollar store or craft store or wherever you might find paper products, the only other things you need are a VersaMark stamp pad, some type of adhesive tape, Heat & Stick Powder, and glitter (I used Stampin Up’s “Dazzling Diamonds” Dahling) :).

There is a great video tutorial on Youtube done by a Stampin’ Up Demonstrator from Canada, Tina Weller that you may want to watch if you are interested in learning how to do this:

Tina talks about using a specific type of Stampin’ Up adhesive sheets, but I just used double faced tape and/or the glue tape runner you can find at any craft or drug or variety stores and completely covered  some white card stock with it to adhere the napkin.

napkin glitter card santa and sleigh

I made all of these cards last night, and I pretty much love all of them!  🙂

If you haven’t bought, made, sent your holiday greeting cards, you may just want to try this fun and easy technique.

And if you are interested in purchasing any Stampin’Up products, just let me know, and I can hook you up. 🙂 

And I think I am going to enter the snowman/snowflake card as another entry into  The Paper Players PP224 Tic Tac Toe Challenge for White, Snowflake, & Glitter.

napkin glitter card snowman and snowflake

Have a sparkly, glitterly, dazzling day!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

Green Acres & Christmas Cards

/ Jodi / 21 Comments

So it’s getting down to crunch time on Christmas cards, and one or two cards a week is probably not going to cut it at this point…  (… but if that’s all I get to – that’s okay too!  Too much pressure takes the fun out of it – right?!)

I did get around to making two last night.  They are two completely different cards – which is the joy of hand creating cards to me.  I rarely (if ever) make the same card twice.  The fun is in the creating for me.  And even more fun is individualizing them for the recipient.

The first one is a more elegant card with white glittery, silver, sparkly, shiny snowflakes in clean and simple simplicity.

festive flurry silver elegant christmas 2014

I made it to enter into two challenges.  It meets the requirements for 3 in a row down at The Paper Players PP224 Tic-Tac-Toe Challenge this week for white, snowflake, and glitter.  It also meets the Friday Mashup FM187 It’s All About Weather criteria for using a metal embellishment (SU Frosted Finishes embellisment) and having a weather inspiration (snowflakes from SU Festive Flurry).

festive flurry silver elegant christmas 2014 inside

I just love this “Mingle all the Way” stamp sentiment and was dying to use it, so I came up with this simple, rustic, country design in brown craft and red with a big red bow.  I distressed and sponged all the edges and added just a few tiny pearls for a little pop.

mingle all the way christmas card 2014

I used the SU Holiday Home stamp for the inside to continue the rustic classic theme on the inside.

holiday home inside card

So welcome into my mind….

this is the wacky way it works sometimes…

As I looked at these two completely different cards, all I could think about was the old classic television show from the late sixties when I was a wee-one, called “Green Acres.”

Anybody remember?  (Take a moment to listen and travel down memory lane...)

So the first card is for Eva and the second is for Eddy.

Which is more your style?  Are you an Eva or an Eddy?

Though I am FAR from a farm girl, country life is more to my liking – with visits to the city.

Green Acres is the place to be…

I dare you to try and get this song out of your head now!  (No thank yous necessary)  🙂

So whether your holiday is in the “fresh air” or in “Times Square,” make it merry and bright!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

Thanks & Giving

/ Jodi / 11 Comments

Neat and Tangled Thanks and Giving

‘Nuff Said….

(This card was created for The Paper Players Clean & Simple Thank You Challenge #PP222)

Cheers & Thankful Hugs,

Jodi

Vintage Wondrous Wreath

/ Jodi / 15 Comments

I’m on a vintage kick now since The Paper Players Challenge got me wound up last week (when I made this card that Claire kindly picked as her “Cut Above” – thanks Claire! 🙂 )

It’s been a busy week, so I was excited to wake up on my own at 4:30am on Thursday to get an hour or so in for stamping and crafting before starting the day.

(I know – very strange – but it is that  [er ahem] ‘vintage’ here-she-goes-again phase of life where I am waking every night around 3 or 4am and often can’t get back to sleep…. )
You know – like everything else these days – I blame it on the meh eh eh eh eh menopause (sung to the tune of “Blame it on the Alcohol”).

Wondrous Wreath Hello Doily PP221 jlm

This week is a Color Challenge (PP221)  at The Paper Players to use Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla, and Mossy Meadow to create any type of card.  Well the colors lead perfectly into Christmas, and Christmas leads perfectly into Vintage, and Vintage leads perfect into Hello Doily (again) and Stampin Up’s Wondrous Wreath!  I also discovered that Just Add Ink has a Texture Challenge (JAI#240), so I thought I would play along with that too since my card certainly has a lot of “texture” to it with embossing, die cut, brad, bow, and layers.  🙂

pp221C

With some Pinterest inspiration I discovered from Maggie Patterson @ I Love Papercrafts, I created this version:

Wondrous Wreath Hello Doily PP221 jlm 2

For my stampin’ friends:  To make this card, I started with SU Very Vanilla for the Card Base, then added SU Typeset Specialty Designer Series Paper (DSP) framed in black and sponged on the edges to vintage up, along with curling up a bit.  The wreath and bow are stamped with Mossy Meadow and Cherry Cobbler on Very Vanilla also, then die cut out.  The doily was done by stamping SU Hello Doily with Versa Mark on vellum paper, then sprinkled with white embossing powder and heat embossed.  I fussy-cut it out – a bit tedious, but love the results.  I also sponged with brown around the edges of this faux doily to vintage it up (as well as every other piece on this card). The banner and Joy sentiment were done with the SU Under the Tree Specialty DSP.  Topped it all off with an Antique Brad and linen thread bow, and Voila – another Christmas card ready for someone special – because I kinda love this one…. especially considering it was done on one cup of coffee and even before the sun came up 🙂 .

Wondrous Wreath Hello Doily PP221 jlm

Have a wonderful Friday and weekend!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

 

Vintage

/ Jodi / 28 Comments

I couldn’t wait to make a card for The Paper Players Challenge (PP220) this week!  The theme is Vintage, and I love making vingtagy cards!

vintage

I needed a thank you note for a special someone for something special, so I couldn’t wait to start vintaging up a card.  (Do you like the vintage adjective and verb I [ahem] created?!)

And the SUOChallenge (SUO109) is to make a Thank You card, so I am submitting this card for that challenge too.  Bonus – a twofer! 🙂

vintage2

Stampin Up’s Hello Doily and Dress Up Framelits seemed the perfect start. I had seen some great inspiration on Pinterest done by Lyssa Griffin Zwolanek and Cheryl Garratt  that gave me bits and pieces to create my final Vintage Thank You Card.  I used the distressing tool to rough up the edges and sponged with crumb cake and and soft suede brown inks.   I used SU Flowering Flourishes to stamp onto the dress form.  A little lace, an antique-look button, some linen thread and lots of little pearls all added embellishment to finish up the vintageness.  Finally, the sentiment is from SU Petite Pairs.

vintage3

Whadayathink???

Girly girly – eh?

I kinda love it.  Hope my special someone does too :).

vintage4Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

Silver or Gold

/ Jodi / 17 Comments

pp218 jlm 3 vignette

This week’s Paper Player’s Challenge (PP#218) is to make a card using Silver or Gold.

pp218

I always find it challenging to make a card with Silver and/or Gold for some reason, but I love The Paper Players Design Team and strive to participate in their challenge each week.  This is my third silver/gold card I made this week, and one that I finally feel worthy of submitting for the challenge.

I was excited to try true watercoloring on this card with brushes and watercolors.  (Well – at least my first stab at using paint and brushes to create a rather obscure, abstract background – gotta start somewhere!)

jodjo

 I used my little starter watercolor set, which is Sakura’s Koi Water Colors Pocket Field Sketch Box to create my background on SU watercolor paper and then heat embossed silver snowflakes and the Merry Christmas sentiment from the SU Endless Wishes stamp set.  I added a couple silver sequins and framed it in glittery silver paper.  I then dabbed some white “snow” with SU’s Gorgeous Grunge stamp and added a piece of silver and white ribbon tied into a bow to the top.

pp218 jlm 3 inside

I continued the theme on the inside with more silver embossing from SU Endless Wishes.

PP218 jlm 3

Another Christmas card done and ready to save to send to someone special on my list.

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

Happy Boss’ Day & a Color Challenge

/ Jodi / 24 Comments

pp217 jlm

Tomorrow, October 16, 2014, is National Boss’ Day.  (For those of you that forgot, aren’t ready, didn’t know – I thought I’d post a day ahead!)  🙂

I am one of the fortunate ones that works for a great company and has a wonderful boss, so I enjoy letting him know that I appreciate his kindness, fairness, support, and leadership.  I feel privileged to work for the company I do and in the field I do.  It is an honor to wake up every day and know that what we are doing in hospice and home health is making a difference in people’s lives.  We are helping people LIVE when they are facing the last leg of their journey.  We are providing dignity and quality of life.  We are helping families cope, understand, and support their loved ones.  I am truly grateful for the opportunity to do what I do and the boss that allows me to do it every day.

My boss is a man, so no “froo-froo, fussy-fuss” card for this occasion, but I thought I could use The Paper Players Color Challenge (PP217) to make a nice Fall gratitude card to honor my boss and the day.

pp217

For my stamping friends, I heat embossed the leaves with white on SU Whisper White card stock.  I then sponged on the SU Hello Honey, Tangelo Twist, and Mossy Meadow inks (in that order) and hit the edges with some brown distress ink to create a better edge.  I glued on a white border and then Mossy Meadow card stock base, heat embossed the SU Grateful for You sentiment on Mossy Meadow, hand cut and attached with dimensionals.  I finished it off with just a couple sequins, and though you cannot really see in the photo, I hit the leaves with a coat of Wink of Stella to give it a subtle sparkle in just the right light.  On the inside, I randomly stamped the maple leaf with the same three colors.

pp217 2 jlm

So here’s to National Boss’ Day.  A great excuse for me to make a card!  🙂

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

Spooky Screamy Happy Halloweeny

/ Jodi / 14 Comments

Since I didn’t get to do any stamping and card making yesterday on #WorldCardmakingDay, I got up early this morning anxious to participate in The Paper Players Halloween Theme Challenge (PP216).  And it sure felt Halloweeny waking up to 49 degrees F outside this morning…

Halloween PP216

I’ve been looking forward to playing with the SU Holiday Home Stamp Set.  So many of the elements are perfect for a Halloween card.  I did some sponging to create the dusk sky, some masking for the moon and house, then some coloring and Wink of Stella.

pp216And this card gave me another excuse to use the Autumn-colored Flower Soft again.

Halloween 2 PP216

I’ve also been looking forward to using the SU Mingle All the Way Halloween sentiment here, so added it to the inside with a few more spooky, screamy bats.

Halloween 3 PP216

I really enjoy playing The Paper Players Challenges.  Such a talented, encouraging design team and lots of creative participants always inspire me.

With our first fire of the season crackling in the fireplace, a nice glass of wine, and rosey cheeks from a fun hiking adventure at McConnell’s Mills this afternoon with my buddy, Janet, this afternoon, I wish you a fun October and  fun Halloweeny times at…

life in between.

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

(PS  Looking forward to sharing a fun photo blog with you soon on our trip to McConnell’s Mills!)

 

Happy #WCMD !

/ Jodi / 4 Comments

jillibean youre tweet owl whoo loves youI couldn’t stay away……

I said I wasn’t going to post this weekend….

But I forgot didn’t realize just learned it’s World Card Making Day!

And seriously, with a major holiday like this, how could I not share and post and wish you a Happy #WCMD2014 ?!  🙂

So here’s a cute little fuzzy owl (made with brown flower soft glued to Mr. Owl from with Jillibean’s You’re Tweet Stamp Set.  I added some googly eyes, glossy accent hearts, and used Stampinup DSP, cardstock, ink, and ribbon in Chocolate Chip).  And since it kinda matches the sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches FMS156 (maybe a stretch – but what the heck!), I thought I’d enter it there.

Here’s a close-up of Mr Owl.

jillibean youre tweet owl whoo loves you 2

And here is the Freshly Made sketch:

FMS156

And there are contests and challenges I need to enter – like this one here for my stamping friends to try too!

And I get to celebrate being selected as a “Cut Above” at ThePaperPlayers Challenge this week!  Thanks Laurie for choosing my googly-eyed punny tomato card.

Cut Above Badge

So Happy Saturday, Happy Fall, Happy Weekend, and Happy #WCMD2014!

Whooo Loves You?  ME!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

What is Froo-Froo Fussy-Fuss Anyway?

/ Jodi / 5 Comments

Happy Friday!  What a BEAUTIFUL Fall week it has been here in Western PA!

Wetlands Zindorf

Today, I’m sharing a card I’ve made for The Paper Players Challenge (#PP214), but I can’t take credit for the design.  I copied this one from one of my Stampin’ IDOLS, Michelle Zindorf.  You can check out her blog here and her much better version of the card here.  I had fun making it nonetheless.  Thanks, Michelle, for the inspiration.  And thanks, Jaydee, for the challenge.

This week’s challenge was to make a Masculine CAS Design.  I think I got CAS (Clean and Simple) confused with CASE (Copy and Share Everything)!

pp214

Cards for men are always a bit more difficult.  They don’t usually like all the froo-froo fussy-fuss many of us girls like.   🙂   Michelle did some brayering when she made her card.  I just sponged my colors on.   It was actually quite a quick and easy card to make using the SU Wetlands stamp set.  I added the taller grass, extended the ground, made the transition into the “ocean” a bit softer, and gave it an olive green background to be a bit different.

And while I’m sharing cards, here are two I made at “card class” this week with one of my other Stamping Idols and mentor Stacey Ailes.

boot and bandana

I had so much fun making this boot and bandana card.  Especially the bandana – which was started from scratch on a red piece of card stock, randomly stamped in black, then the most fun part of doodling in white.

en francais maple glow

It was fun to make this Fall-colored card look like it is “glowing.”

Check out Stacey’s blog here.  She is one very talented, creative lady – and an even sweeter friend! Her card is even more exquisite with an embossed gold maple leaf and framed in tiny pearls.

You can find instructions for both of these cards on her site.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Hope your weekend is just as you like it – froo-froo fussy-fuss or clean and simple!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi