Balloon birthday card

 

I made this card using the partial die cut technique (only running the die half way through the Big Shot), so the balloon floats off up at the top.

 

I used a MISTI stamp positioner (an amazing tool which allows precision stamping and repeat over stamping) to mask and stamp the greeting in different colours, and to overstamp the balloon in Versamark, ready for heat embossing. I also added in the "a" from a stamp in another stamp set, Pictogram Punches, so the sentiment made sense.

 

Here's what I used:

 

 

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Case-d birthday card

I was short on inspiration last night, so I decided to copy a card that I've seen all over Pinterest recently and absolutely love, by Monika Davis. You can see the original here.

 

I didn't have the products Monika used, so I raided my own stash & came up with a pretty solid recreation, I'd say.

 

The "Happy" stamp is a section from a stamp in Stampin' Up!'s Amazing Birthday set. I started off trying to mask off and repeat stamp it, but that was far too complicated & ink got everywhere. In the end I just stamped the whole stamp multiple times and cut out each "Happy" and glued it to the card. Sometimes the simple ways really are the best.

 

 

 

So have a look round Pinterest and the web in general for designs you like & think how you can adapt them using the stamps and inks you already have.

 

(Remember to give credit where it's due if you do base your design on someone else's work  :) )

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Butterfly birthday

In need of a last minute card (I know! You'd think I'd have loads knocking around, wouldn't you? As fast as I can make them, people nick them off me.  Or I'll make one I really like & then can't bring myself to part with it - anyone else do that?) I CASEd* this card from this month's Simply Cards & Papercraft magazine.

I used the basic grouping of the original card & substituted butterflies for flowers, as they were quick to stamp out & then punch with coordinating punches.

I used the 2013-15 in Colors which will retire in a couple of months - a real shame as I absolutely love this set. The Happy Birthday sentiment is from the Butterfly Basics stamp set (137154) - I forgot to add it to the links below.

Now, I best go write inside it before the temptation to squirrel it away with all my other precious makes takes hold!

* Copy And Steal/Share Everything

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golf card

Clean & simple  isn't usually my style, but you can't beat it for banging out impressive looking cards, quickly.

I CASEd this from a cute card on Pinterest & made it in minutes.  Buying card, papers & ribbons from the same Stampin' Up! collections (in this case, the 2014-16 In Colors) means you can do that without having to worry if stuff will 'go'.

 

BTW, the golf ball & hole are punched using the small circles from the Owl punch. And the flag is the tip of the Tree punch

 

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Sale-a-bration: final week to get free stuff

Sniffle. Sale-a-bration ends 31 March 2014. 

And while the adorably dinky Banner punch (133519) is set to reappear in the 2014-15 catalogue in July, there are, as yet, no plans to bring back the coordinating Banner Blast stamp set (133554), used in the card above. So this week is your last chance to get your hands on it!

Same goes for the See Ya Later stamp set (133533). I've generally used elements of those stamps rather than whole individual stamps, as you can see in the card above (I don't know ANYONE who I could say "You don't look any older than you did last year" to and keep a straight face! And if I did, people would just assume I was being sarcastic, lol). 

Basic Gray & Real Red inks make for great masculine cards. And of course, the Stamp-a-ma-jig stamp positioner (101049) means you stamp right where you want to, every time. I couldn't have lined up the individual banner stamps without it.

To get free Sale-a-bration items like the Banner punch & stamp sets spend £45 in a single transaction with me before 31 March & choose a free item from the Sale-a-bration catalogue.

Well? What are you still doing here? Chop chop!