Helping Me Grow

Good Morning Friends

I had a chance to play with the Helping Me Grow stamp set and I don't know why I didn't get around to using it earlier.   It's gorgeous .... so what was I waiting for?!?!?


A bit of black heat embossing and watercolouring with an Aquapainter and the card sort of just made itself.

I used a Thank You sentiment from the Tin of Cards stamp set (another set I need to pay more attention to!).  And of course I had to bathe the flowers in my Wink of Stella glitter pen.  I can't quite get enough of my Wink of Stella!  (And I even used a bit of the gold Wink of Stella in the flower centres!)


But I have to tell you - I think my favourite part of this card is the element I discovered when I needed to break up the "white space" at the bottom of the card.

The Tin of Cards stamp set has a few cute motifs that can be added to cards to add visual interest.  

Check out the curlicues at the bottom of this card!  Isn't that linear swooshy-flourish great?!?

Hope you like this card as much as I do.  Tomorrow I will post my club cards for March and trust me, you *really* want to join me for club classes this month!

Until then, have a wonderful weekend and God Bless,    ~Cynthia   <><  




Product List

Helping Me Grow Photopolymer Stamp Set [140764]	Tin Of Cards Photopolymer Stamp Set [138946]	Aqua Painters [103954]	Versamark Pad [102283]
Black Stampin' Emboss Powder [109133]	Watermelon Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad [138323]	Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad [126983]	Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad [126953]
Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush [141897]	Gold Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush [141898]	Very Vanilla 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [101650]	Basic Black 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [121045]

Make the Most of Your Designer Paper!!

Hello My Friends

And a big hello and Good Morning to Kathy.  Thanks for inspiring me to "get back on the horse" my friend.  The blog-horse that is.    :)

At any rate, do you folks remember back in the Fall when I encouraged you to make the most of your Santa Designer Series Paper (DSP) by cutting the edge pieces and using them?  (You can see that post by clicking HERE)

Well, I took my own advice.  The Birthday Bouquet DSP is too gorgeous to waste any bit of it.  So I fussy cut some fragments and put together this little card.  Let me tell you, I wouldn't dream of trying to fussy cut without my trusty Stampin' Up! Paper Snips.  The perfect tool for getting into all the corners easily and cutting detailed pieces in the blink of an eye!

Some pearls to break up the white space.  And just a touch of clear Wink-of-Stella in the centres of the flowers to add a hint of sparkle.

So?  Tell me, what do you think? Are you loving it as much as I am??

And if you think this card is nice, well then, you ain't seen nothin' yet!!  I can't wait to show you the club projects that we'll be doing at next week's club nights.  And I have a SUPER COOL class coming up that uses the Botanical Blooms bundle.  Stay tuned my friends!

In the meantime....Hope everyone is looking forward to a fantastic weekend!   
God Bless,    ~Cynthia    <><  

Product List

Birthday Bouquet Designer Series Paper [140557]	Grateful Bunch Photopolymer Bundle [140801]	Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush [141897]	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708]
Watermelon Wonder 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [138334]	Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730]	Pearl Basic Jewels Embellishments [119247]	Paper Snips Scissors [103579]

A Quick Hello With Birthday Blooms

Hello My Friends 

This post is for Kathy R.

A dear friend who faithfully and optimistically visits my blog every morning. And who, I fear, I have let down for quite some time now. 

My apologies Kathy. I fear I have been inconsistent with my blogging.   I neglect my blog whenever I feel that I do not have enough time to write substantial descriptions.  Or at least something "worthwhile".   

"Time to write something...?"    Golly, under those conditions, I might never blog again!! 

So here you have a quick blog.  Gorgeous cards - with minimal description, but heartfelt intent and apologies!

I used the beautiful Birthday Blooms stamp set - embossed with black powder then quickly watercoloured using an aquapainter (with Watermelon Wonder, Calypso Coral and Daffodil Delight ink for the booms, and Old Olive for the leaves).  Nothing fancy.  But gorgeous nonetheless!

Hope you all have a fantastic day.  God Bless,    ~Cynthia   <><  

Product List

Birthday Blooms Clear-Mount Stamp Set [140658]	Aqua Painters [103954]	Versamark Pad [102283]	Black Stampin' Emboss Powder [109133]
Watermelon Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad [138323]	Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad [126983]	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad [126944]	Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad [126953]
Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730]	Watermelon Wonder 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [138334]

One For the Guys - Mediterranean Achiever's Blog Hop

Hello My Friends

I'm glad you've decided to join me and some of my very talented friends as we all pitch in to give you One For the Guys.  Many of us struggle a bit more when it's time to create a masculine card.  Not everyone has this hang-up, but it certainly is one of the most common hang-ups I hear my friends say they encounter. So hop along with us and get some ideas to get your masculine mojo going!

You may just be starting the blog hop here (I'm Cynthia Millan) - or may have come from the person previous to me in the list. If you get off track at any time, the full lineup is listed at the bottom.

Now onto my card!


I tried to observe my personal man-rules:
 
No butterflies
No blossoms
No bling
No bows
And no glitter.  

In general, I try to observe these little guidelines and today I definitely did, because this card is all about the designer paper.

The Going Places DSP is PERFECT for masculine cards.  The colours and implied textures are divine!  And the font in the Party With Cake stamp set is just perfect for a guy.  Not fussy.  Not frou frou.  I'd say it works!

The Tiny Triangles embossing folder breaks up the 'white space' on the card and some visual interest is added by raising the vertical banners on dimensionals, but adhering both horizontal banners directly to the layer beneath.   

Tip:  Don't forget, when you are hand-cutting banner pieces that will be layered on top of one another, lay the pieces on top of each other and cut them at the same time so that the angles of the edges match up when you lay them out.  (sounds obvious, I know, but you'd be amazed how often I forget to do this then have to fuss to make my banners match afterwards....)

And did you know what I did - *intentionally* - for the very first time?  I did NOT obsess about using an embossing buddy or clearing all stray bits of embossing powder from the stamped sentiments.  


To be honest, at first I added sentiments onto these cards that were cleaner.  But when I went back and looked at my fuzzier, first attempt, I liked the effect better.  I mean, this card has its own level of pseudo-grunge happening.  So the stray flecks of black embossing powder, along with the vintage font, really works.

I hope you've enjoyed my card.  And don't forget to visit everyone else on the list below.  Hopping is fun and I guarantee you will be inspired by these projects!  And feel free to leave comments whenever and wherever you want.  I can tell you this - bloggers *LIKE* comments!     :)

Have a wonderful, afternoon, evening, morning or whatever!
God Bless,     ~Cynthia     <><

A *Very* Special Birthday Card!!

Hello My Friends

Friday morning my boss sent me a text and told me it was the Archbishop's birthday and said "Might you have a card you could bring for the staff to sign that we could give to him?"   And I very blithely answered....Sure.  Then raced downstairs to my Craft Cave to make a card for him.

I mean, I have birthday cards in my stash....but for the Archbishop????

I needed something not too frou frou.  No butterflies or flowers or ribbons or bows.  No glitter no nonsense.  Our Archbishop is a wonderful man.  Very solid.  Very learned.  And a fantastic shepherd to his people.  But it was still intimidating to think of making a card for him.

So I borrowed an idea from a Pin I have and altered it a bit and this is what I came up with.  Awesomely Artistic and Gorgeous Grunge to the rescue.  Along with the You've Got This background splotch.  Wink of Stella on the dragonfly wings to give a hint of translucence.   A retired sentiment that is exactly what I need in these sorts of situations!! And voila!

Hope he was blessed by it!  Although I signed the card I didn't get to say it in person so a much belated.....Happy Birthday your Grace.

Hope everyone's weekend has been wonderful. God Bless,   ~Cynthia    <><  


Product List

Awesomely Artistic Clear-Mount Stamp Set [139950]	Gorgeous Grunge Clear Stamp Set [130517]	You've Got This Clear-Mount Stamp Set [139575]	Every Blessing Clear-Mount Stamp Set [139919]
Rose Wonder Photopolymer Stamp Set [140697]	Island Indigo Classic Stampin' Pad [126986]	Soft Sky Classic Stampin' Pad [131181]	Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad [126975]
Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush [141897]	Crumb Cake 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [120953]	Soft Sky 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [131203]

All You Need Is Love - Mediterranean Achiever's Blog Hop

Howdy Friends!  I hope you are all ready to hop-along with the rest of us!  We've got lots of super projects for you this month, with our "All You Need Is Love" theme.  

You may just be starting the blog hop here (I'm Cynthia Millan) - or may have come from the person previous to me in the list. If you get off track at any time, the full lineup is listed at the bottom.

But while you are here, let me show you my simple but super project.

I love the new Balloon Celebrations bundle and thought that a bevy of beautiful hearts might be just the thing.  But honestly, I needed to spice it up a little for a Love theme, don't you think?  

So I promptly punched large hearts using my Sweetheart Punch or  small hearts using the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack.  I needed a medium sized heart and lo and behold, the Circle Card Thinlit has a perfect-sized heart to use.  But even using hearts as my balloons didn't quite have the oomphf and impact that I wanted.  So I used one of my favourite embellishments....Iridescent Ice embossing powder.  

Honestly, coat Pink Pirouette or Blushing Bride hearts with versamark then Iridescent Ice, and you end up with a totally cute and super sparkly heart that has a lot of Wow-factor.

I also wanted to break up the white space around my balloons, without detracting from them as my focal point.  Enter the  great flourishing vine image from the First Sight stamp set.  Stamped in versamark ink then embossed with iridescent ice embossing powder, once again gives a fantastic but subtle sparkle to the card.

And my sentiment?  Well that is from the Sale-A-Bration set, What I Love.  And it is just perfect, don't you think?

Of course, all these beautiful balloons would be flat and uninteresting without that perfect little tool that Stampin' Up! sells......the dimensional. 

Have I told you before that the SU! dimensionals rock!!  They are waaaaay better than any other knock-off on the market and are worth their weight in gold.  And doesn't a little 3-D effect totally make or break a bevy-of-balloons card, anyway?

You'd almost think these were ready to float right up off the card, wouldn't you?

I am planning on sending this card to my eldest daughter, believe it or not.  She is in Australia for a YEAR(!!!) - doing missionary work with kids in high school.  She's only been gone 3 weeks but her absence is being felt in our home.  She left behind 2 other sisters and a brother who all miss her.  A lot.  Not to mention her Dad and Mom.  But we *ARE* proud of her, I can tell you that!  So a cute card to tell her "What I Love" is pretty perfect!  For the record...the inside of the card answers the question.  The answer, of course, is "You".

At any rate, this month's theme suited me just fine.  All you need *IS* love, right??

Hope you enjoy this project.  Have a great time hopping through all the other blogs.  And have a super rest-of-the-week.   God Bless,   ~Cynthia   <><
 

Floating Re-Inker - the Video

I posted some VERY popular cards yesterday HERE and was asked to post a video so here it is.  

And UPDATE - adding Wink of Stella at the end really kicks it up a notch.  See the glitz and glitter on these roses?
 

Close up - see the sparkle?

Wink of Stella on the Completed Rose

Watch and see how easy it is to re-create this fantastic effect!

Have a wonderful day, have fun stamping, and God Bless,   ~Cynthia    <><