You Make My Heart Sing

This is my February atc card for the Pennywise Arts Yahoo Group 1-4-1 swap.  Though we aren’t required to send them to the whole list, I made one for each person (17 I think) because they were just so much fun to do.The base cardstock and the music sheets were distressed with Antique Linen Distress Ink from Ranger.  I deckle cut the music paper and layered it onto red cardstock.

The heart cut out was done using my Cricut die cutter and my Sure Cuts A Lot software.  It was easy to lay a heart inside a heart to get this shape within the program and now I have a bunch of the inside hearts left over to use on something else.

I coated each heart with red Stickles glitter glue and then sprinkled Red Opaque Micro Beads over the top and allowed it to dry completely.  The words were printed on vellum paper with my laser printer.

All of this was inspired by a card I got in the mail several years ago.  Unfortunately I don’t remember who made/sent it so I can’t give credit, so very sorry.

Whoever it was, thank you for the inspiration!  And let me know if you know who made it!  Maybe it was you??

Hugs, Suzanne

A New Take On An Old Favorite

I really love it when new people get hooked on micro beads!   Yes, I admit that it’s good for sales but the best part of all is that they bring new eyes to the table and inspire me with different ways to do the things I’ve been doing the same way for years.  This shaker card by Laura Davis is one of those things.

Look closely at the hearts and instead of acetate you will see  ribbon mesh holding the beads inside.  Brilliant!

For this atc card, Laura cut a piece of patterned paper slightly smaller than a piece of lavender cardstock.  Holding the two together securely (without adhesive) she then used a handheld punch to punch hearts through both layers of cardstock. 

 

 

This picture shows the ribbon that Laura found at a dollar store.  She is trimming off the gold binding edges to use for other projects and adhering  a piece of the mesh between the two pieces of punched cardstock.

 

Next, Laura makes a foam tape box around the edges of the back of the card taking care to make sure the corners meet tightly so the beads won’t escape.

Some of our small beads wouldn’t stay behind the mesh, so Laura chose to use our Golden Opaque “Bigger” micro beads.  They work quite nicely! 

Before putting the beads inside the box, it’s important to take the liner off of the tape.  That way all of the jiggling won’t cause the beads to spill out.

Be sure to put in enough beads to make it shake nicely.

Place a piece of coordinating cardstock over the opening to seal the beads inside.

 

So very clever!

Hugs, Suzanne

Sweet Valentine Card

Michele Aiello-Zendejas’s art has a very unique style.  She uses lots of layered die cuts and embellishments to create cards that look complex and elegant. 

For this card Michele used the following items:

Swing Shift Designs To My Valentine 1 Collage Sheet, Pennywise Arts Clear Ultra Fine Micro Beads, Pennywise Arts Mega Roll O'So Sticky Tape, Spellbinders Dies, Quickutz Dies, K & Co Paper, Card Stock, Vintage Buttons, Double Stick Tape, Tacky Glue, Martha Stewart Paper Punch.

May your Valentine’s Day be filled with thoughts of those you love and a few unexpected surprises too!

Hugs, Suzanne

Victorian Valentine Gift Bag

PWA designer Michele Aiello-Zendejas has been super inspired and getting her craft on!  Here is a Victorian themed Valentine gift bag she created.

 

The products Michele used to create this gift bag are:

Swing Shift Designs To My Valentine 1 Collage Sheet, Pennywise Arts Clear Ultra Fine Micro Beads, Pennywise Arts Mega Roll O'So Sticky Tape, Spellbinders Dies, Quickutz Dies, K & Co Paper, Card Stock, Vintage Buttons, Flat Back Rhinestones, Paper Bag, Double Stick Tape, Tacky Glue, and a Martha Stewart Paper Punch.

It all adds up to a very lovely gift before you even put a gift inside!

Here is a slightly different view that shows the dry embossing on the top edge of the bag.

Have a “love”ly day!

Hugs, Suzanne

A Lovely Valentine Tag

This tag by Michele Aiello-Zendejas is loaded with layers, details and bling! 

The collage sheets that Michele creates for Pennywise Arts are top notch high resolution downloads and sharp color quality for the printed sheets.

It’s not too late to get Valentine downloads to make last minute cards from the heart!  And, be sure to scroll to our St. Patrick’s Day collection as well as our numerous Easter selections!  The collage sheet page of the website is not as organized as I would like it to be but we are working on it!  For now, consider it a treasure hunt! ;0)

Hugs, Suzanne