Be Mine♥

I am a fairly experienced card maker and I must confess that a creative fold or unique opening will always catch my attention.  This card by PWA designer, Julie Imsland certainly did! 

The front of her “Be Mine” card has several paper layers as well as a clear micro bead background over pink cardstock.  The opening?  It’s the black stripe with the couple adhered to it!  Isn’t Julie clever?

Here’s a complete tutorial on how Julie made this card:

Supplies:

Cardstock: black, dark pink

Glitz Patterned Paper: Audrey Scallops #A2404

Pennywise Arts: O’So Sticky tape sheet, ½” O’So Sticky tape, Ultra fine Micro beads Swing Shift Designs Collage Sheet: Be Mine

Stampabilities: Filigree Alphabet #A-04-81002

Tsukineko: VersaMark Watermark Ink

A Muse: ¼” sheer dotted ribbon, white

Foam tape

Black embossing powder

Directions:

Side fold a 4.25” x 11” piece of black cardstock for card base.

Trim top 3” from entire top front of black card.

Adhere a 1.875 strip of patterned paper behind remaining bottom of card front.

Cut a piece of pink cardstock 4.25” x 5.375”. Adhere one side of a piece of O’So Sticky tape 3” x 5.375” to top of pink piece. Leave redline in place for now.

Stamp BE MINE with VersaMark on a scrap strip of pink cardstock. Trim closely around each word. Mount each word on a slightly larger strip of black cardstock.

Peel red liner down part way from top of pink cardstock. Mount “BE MINE” with foam tape onto the O’So Sticky Tape.

Remove the remainder of the red liner, and cover O’So Sticky Tape with clear Ultra fine Micro beads. Press beads firmly into tape.

Select desired photo image and trim the top part of the image closely around the couple.

Adhere a strip of ½” O’So Sticky Tape across the center of the black strip on the bottom front of card. Remove the red liner.

Apply a glue stick across the back of the photo image at the shoulders and at the base.

Adhere the photo image to card front over the O’So Sticky Tape strip.

Place a ¼” piece across the front of the card centering onto the tape strip.

Cover the exposed remainder of the tape strip with Ultrafine Micro beads.

Layer onto another piece of pink cardstock to complete.

 

 Now it’s YOUR turn!  Do you have a creative card opening?  I’d sure love for you to share it with me!  Email your photo to: suzanne@pennywisearts.com and I’ll even add it to this post!  Don’t be shy, you know you have something clever too!!  Ü

Here’s More About Julie Imsland:

 
Stamping was introduced to me in 1991, shortly after my youngest son was born, and both have been part of my life since! I enjoy learning new techniques, and have been fortunate to share them through teaching and demonstrating in the Seattle area. This is my second year on the PWA design team. I have also designed cards for Petite Motifs Paper Company.

Inspiration often comes to me when I look at my materials and think about the different ways I can use them. I especially enjoy unique folds and interactive cards and booklets.

Check out my Beaded Cuttlebug technique:
http://www.pennywisearts.com/beadedcuttlebug.html

Check out my Beaded Birthday Greetings Card:
http://www.pennywisearts.com/beadedbirthdaygreetings.html

To win this card in a random drawing, please leave a comment below!

Love Is In The Air ♥

♥ There is definitely something about this time of year that I really love!  Maybe it’s all the bright pink and red hearts in the stores or maybe it’s the fun new valentine papers and products in the window of my favorite stamp store.  ♥

♥ Maybe it’s the yummy rainbow colored candies that I like (only the Necco brand will do!)  ♥♥ Maybe it’s just that I am really relieved to have the crazy holiday season behind me.  And maybe, just maybe…. it’s just ALL of those things all at the same time? ♥

♥ Because I love, love, love this holiday time you can expect to see lots of LOVE in the air here for awhile!  I promise to keep it light and fun, no sappy poetry or heavy breathing.  Just light and fun, yummy and inspirational valentine art! ♥

♥ This gorgeous treat box was made by my sister-in-law Mindy several years ago.  I’ve kept it on display in my art room because it inspires me. ♥

♥ I am pretty sure it’s a die cut box from Stampin’ Up and that all the stamps are also from SU.  I just know Mindy that way.  Ü  She did get clever with her computer too though, to add the verse in vellum over the heart balloon images as well as for the name personalization. Not really showing up well in the photo is the heart and swirl background stamp (SU!) that she used in Versamark over the entire red box. ♥

♥ Julie Imsland made this playful Valentine ATC from an image that she discovered on one of our new collage sheets!  You can spot the glittery shine of the light blue micro bead border sandwiched into one of the many layers of this elegant ATC.  It’s actually an illusion – the beads are clear over light blue paper!  O’So Sticky Tape holds them perfectly in place.  ♥

 

 

♥ Jean Sunderman designed this fun and interactive shaker heart card.  The acetate is preprinted with “love” words and the heart shape is hand cut from blue polka-dot paper.  The two are layered onto a tight frame of foam tape which is what keeps the red opaque micro beads and tiny red punched hearts floating freely inside the window. ♥

♥ So how many hearts do you actually see in this one post?  If you guess the same number that I counted you will be entered in a drawing to win Julie’s ATC from this post!   Put your guesses in the comments – I won’t say what the right number is until it’s time to draw a winner.  Important note: I did not include the candy picture from the top of this post!  Ü ♥

New Valentine Collage Sheets At Pennywise!!

Michele Aiello-Zendejas has been busy, busy, busy!  She has designed 15 more NEW collage sheets  to inspire your Valentine’s Day creations!  Below are some fun samples of projects she made using some of the new images.  If you just want to get right to the goods you can click here to see the NEW Collage Sheets on the Pennywise website!

Three gorgeous tags:

A treat pouch with micro bead trim!

Two Valentine Cards with micro beaded hearts….

Two Gift Tags:

  

And two gorgeous pins to wear!  Michele made these stunning pieces of jeweled art using the heart collage sheets.  She cut around the heart inside and out to create the frame to which she then applied gems, Diamond Glaze and Clear Micro Beads.

Get your creative juices going??  Click HERE to see the NEW Collage Sheets on the Pennywise website!  All of our collage sheets are available in printed or digital format so be sure to look closely at your cart prior to check out to ensure you get exactly what you were expecting!

Snow Much Fun

Despite my best attempts to deny it, to will it over and done, winter is still here.

 

The wind is still blowing through the Snoqualmie Valley and the temperature is still hovering around 40 degrees. Brrrrrr.  Since we’re going to be cold anyway, we may as well talk about snow.  We don’t have any here, which I am glad for but I sure do have a lot of fun winter cards to share!

Jean Sunderman sent this card awhile back.  (Okay a long while back.  Maybe a year or two….)  The sledding snowmen are popped up on foam dots for a great three dimensional effect.  It looks like they might just sled off the card and into my lap!  I love how the pink background paper gives the illusion of a snow storm.  This card is definitely “Snow Much Fun!”

It’s A Magical New Year!

While I was sorting through all the cards and projects that I want to share here I rediscovered this totally fun New Year’s card made by PWA designer Jean Sunderman.

Something about the  composition of this card just tickles me.  It’s gotta be the hats.  Jean layered the hats in different colors and trimmed the bottom edges of them with colored micro beads.  She also added coordinating micro beads to embellish the fluffs on the top of the hats.  It’s a new year alright, and I’m starting mine with a smile thanks to this fun card!

If you like this card too, please let Jean know by posting a comment below! 

To see more of Jean’s designs, please visit her design team page on our website:  http://www.pennywisearts.com/designteam.html