Thinking of You Inspired by Stretch Your Stamps 2

Since I still had the Hero Arts Antique Flower Background stamp sitting on my desk and I loved how it look embossed in the JudiKins White Diamond embossing powder, I decided to do another card to show off how pretty it is.  Kristina Werner had made a beautiful card on the Onlinecardclasses.com Stretch Your Stamps 2 class using a background stamp and a large die.  I didn't really have the right die to replicate that, but I saw the recent stamp from the Simon Says Stamp card set for July and knew that was perfect for the sentiment.  I couldn't believe how quickly this card came together and all I needed was a few Pretty Pink Post sequins to finish it off. 

A Lawn Fawn Birthday Inspired by Stretch Your Stamps 2

I signed up for the Onlinecardclasses.com Stretch Your Stamps 2 class and I love it, but it's pretty bad timing because life is just crazy busy right now so I haven't had as much time to play as I would like.  I was trying to clean my craft room when this card just sort of materialized out of things I had on my desk. I'm a crazy messy crafter so it seems like I'm always cleaning my room, but at the same time, the mix of crazy stuff all together brings up some of my best mojo.  Today's card started when I stamped the Impression Obsession Circle Fusion stamp and heat embossed it.  Then I just added some Distress Ink that were on my desk and yet seemed to go together well.  Then I decided to cut it down using the Avery Elle Dotted die.  I found this navy colored card base in my stash of pre-made card bases as I was putting it away.  I wasn't quite sure where it was going until I found the Into the Woods set from Lawn Fawn.  I just had to color and cut the cute fawn, but, for the sentiment, I needed a different set.  I picked the Chit Chat set, also from Lawn Fawn.  I looked at a few ink colors but finally settled on Audrey Blue from Simon Says Stamp.  I really love that color.  To finish it off, I added some crystal clear sequins from Pretty Pink Posh that I picked up at Impress during my trip to Seattle last week. 

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my Mom's birthday so it's only fitting that I post a birthday card.  Now this is not the card I'm giving her, but it is a birthday card.  I had this idea for the card and it didn't really turn out the way I had pictured in my head.  I loved the background technique that I saw on the Onlinecardclasses class Stretch Your Stamps 2 where Kristina Werner made the most amazing background with a heat embossed background and some watercolors.  It was so amazing and my version, well, it's not.  I used the cutest background stamp from Impression Obsession called Sketchy Flowers with some Versamark and clear embossing powder.  I then used some Distress Ink markers to watercolor in the flowers and the background.  I'm just not in love with it, but often these cards grow on me after time.  So I used my Simon Says Stamp Postage Stamp dies to cut a white background with the largest and then the next size down on my background stamp panel.  I layered them on an orange card base.  For the sentiment, I pulled out the Lawn Fawn Chit Chat stamp set and stamped the cute birds in Momento ink then colored with copics.  I stamped out the Happy Birthday set with some Orange Peel Simon Says Stamp ink and then added them all to the card with some pop dots. 

With Sympathy

I saw this clever technique in a video from Jennifer McGuire in the Onlinecardclasses.com Stretch Your Stamps 2 class using a reverse background stamp, Versamark and Perfect Pearls.  I knew I had to give it a try.  I had picked up this beautiful background stamp from Impression Obsession that I thought would be perfect for the technique.  I inked it up with Versamark, stamped my image, swirled on the Perfect Pearls in Blue Patina and Green Patina, then covered it with clear embossing powder and heat set it.  So pretty.  I cut it down just smaller than my black card base. 

I added some Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls using Versamark ink on some white card stock.  I then die cut it with the flag shape from Lawn Fawn's Large Stitched Journaling Card and cut a plain black one as well.  I then layered them with a bit of the gold peeking out.  For the sentiment, I used the tiny With Sympathy die from Simon Says Stamp.  It cuts the thinnest sentiment.  There's no way I could do something so thin anyway else.  I decided that I wanted it to be out of the Verdigris embossing powder from Ranger, so I just added some Versamark to some white card stock, covered it with the powder, heat embossed it and then cut it out.  I layered it on top of the banner to finish off the card.