Valentine’s Day Cards

A few of the simple cards I made for Valentine’s Day. The stamps I ordered were back ordered, so I decided to primarily use print outs. Makes for very fast and simple cards.

Valentine's Cards ~ from Me & My House

Most of the cards have an embossed layer with the word love repeated all over the layer. 3rd from the left in the top row has argyle embossing. The larger hearts were cut out on my Cricut, smaller ones (or better IMO) and minis were punched. The card with the birds is a swing fold made with the shim I designed last week and Spellbinders Labels 4 die. Scallop edge is EK Success (my favorite punches.) [affiliate links] The print outs are from:  (sorry I don’t have a link for the first 2), 3rd top Ephemeras Vintage Garden, I think the rest are all from Happy & Blessed Home. (Upper right and middle bottom have no printables.)

Many more Valentine’s printables linked on my Pinterest page, if you still need to make some quick Val’s Day cards.

 

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Flash Cards

I’ve been having fun making flash cards this week – and I don’t mean the kind you drill children in educational facts with. I’ve been making greeting cards with the Flash Card and Flash Card 2.0 templates by Connie Stewart. Flash Cards are rectangles of card stock that you pre-cut and have on hand to create cards in a flash. You’re able to create 8 cards from 1 sheet of colored card stock and 1 sheet of neutral card stock (plus card bases).

I’ve created a few of each – modifying Connie’s designs to fit my supplies and likes. Take a peek at some of them.

Flash Cards

"Flash Cards" made with Connie Stewart's template ~ from Me & My House

Connie’s videos that provided inspiration for these: left to right –  (gatefold)  Tri-Fun Fold, (shadowbox) Stand-Up.

Flash Cards 2.0

"Flash Cards 2.0" made with Connie Stewart's template ~ from Me & My House

Top row, my own design. Links to Connie’s videos that provided inspiration for cards on the bottom row, left to right: Amazing FriendSoft n SweetHappy Valentines.

Where do you get inspiration, when making cards? Have you ever used Connie’s Flash Card templates. If so, post below.

 

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Children’s Birthday Cards

Following the 2 cards already this month, for adults, we had 2 children’s birthdays so far this year. More card making!

The first was for a boy, but could be for either. Very colorful and fun! I also cut his name out on my die cut machine with a ballon font and put it inside with our greeting. So fun.

Colorful Kid's Birthday Card - from Me & My House

Card two was for a little girl. It was used more as a package tag. I wanted to add a fun element for her, and pink of course, yet keep it clean and simple. The polka dot lady bug was perfect.

Little Girl's Polka Dot Lady Bug Card ~ from Me & My House

Supplies used for boy’s card: Card base white card stock (GP/ Walmart), Eat Cake design paper stack (Paper Studio/ Hobby Lobby), red baker’s twine (Celebrate It/ Michael’s), Deckled Rectangle die (Spellbinders Nestabilities),  “Happy Birthday” rubber/wood stamp (Stampabilities/ Hobby Lobby), Barn Door Distress Ink (Ranger/Tim Holtz). Xacto corner rounder.

Supplies used for girl’s card: Card base white card stock (GP/Walmart), pink card stock layer Pink Buttons (Recollections/Michael’s), polka dot prints The Basics (Paper Studio/Hobby Lobby), black card stock (Paper Studio), lady bug die Doodlecharms (Cricut cartridge). EK Success mini scalloped edge.

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Men’s Cards – Birthday & Sympathy

The beginning of the new year brought a birthday and a death that we wanted to send our thoughts and prayers for, both for men. I designed the cards in a similar way, and with some of the same supplies, but appropriate for each. Both were simple, classic, “manly” designs.

Simple, classic, Man's Birthday Card ~ from Me & My House

Sympathy card - masculine, simple, classic - from Me & My House

I really like the deckled rectangle dies (Spellbinders Nestabilities) for using on men’s cards in particular. The classic vertical and horizontal lines work well for men’s cards also. Embellishments are kept very non-intrusive, leaving the sentiment to take the focal point.

Products used for these cards are:

Top card: Cream card stock (Recollections) base and rectangle, green plaid layer and woodgrain vertical strip from Christmas & Winter Stack DCWV. Memento Rich Cocoa ink. Inakadinkado stamps: “Crosses Inchies”, and “Birthday Wishes” sentiment.

Bottom card: Pure Chocolate Card base, Cream layer and rectangle, Old World Card Stock Stack layer (DCWV), Heirloom Stack (DCWV) vertical strip. Rich Cocoa ink. Stampabilities “Card Phrases” sentiment. Brown satin 3/8″ ribbon.

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27 Unique Christmas Cards

Perhaps normal people, that don’t have a lot of “spare” time, would opt for making a simple, easy to assembly-line card – making them all the same. (Or buying cards.) But I guess I don’t fit the categories.

When I sit down to create, I like seeing what I can do with what I have. When I sit down to create, I usually also think, “I don’t have any ideas. What am I going to do?” A couple days of “free time” work later, this is what I have. 27 different, unique! Christmas cards. Many of the same elements used here and there, but no card just like another. And just when I think I’m done with a card (or other project), I think of a way I can enhance it, make it better. I also wonder, “What if I tried this?” Sometimes I do. Sometimes I don’t.

Handmade Christmas Cards ~ from Me & My House

 

Creativity is something that grows. You have to use it to gain it. It isn’t always brilliant, or jaw-dropping wonderful. I doesn’t have to be. It just has to be a growing expression of your ideas. Sometimes you’ll love it, sometimes not. I found, in doing this many cards at once, that even if I loved a design, I still didn’t make another card exactly like it. I continued to think of ways I could improve it. There were no designs I hated or scrapped. (And I hope that everyone that received these cards enjoyed them and the creativity that went into them.)

More Christmas Cards 2013 ~ from Me & My House

I encourage you to make 2014 a year of creativity. Take time to let ideas flow, to produce whatever you enjoy making. It may be in making up new recipes. It may be in re-decorating your home. It may be in making handmade cards.

Let me know where your creative juices are flowing.

 

If you’d like to know what the cards are made with:

Card bases are Recollections Cape Cod Collection (blues), Shades of Red (red), Cream, and plain ol’ Georgia Pacific white from Walmart.

Patterned papers are from DCWV Christmas & Winter Stack, (and maybe some from Winter Solstice.)

Embossing folders: Paper Studio Holly, Snowflakes, and Sizzix Textured Poinsettia.

Dies: Sizzex Scallop Squares, and Spellbinders Classic Ovals.

Punches: EK Success circles, scallop circle, journal label, flourish square and scalloped scallop border; Paper Studio star, Martha Stewart Arctic snowflake. We R Memory Keepers Corner Chompers (plain and decorative), and Xacto corner rounder.

Inks: Ranger’s Tim Holtz Distress Inks (various colors). Versa Mark – and “Glitz”, “Snow”, and “Silver” embossing powders from Michael’s, and Zap! heat tool.

Stamps: (clear) Inakinkado “O Holy Night” set, (cling rubber) Stampendous “Nativity Carol” set, Magenta holly and poinsettia, (wood/rubber stamps) Stampendous “Glory to God”, Inkadinkado “O Come Let Us Adore Him”, Stampabilities “Holly Berry Border”, “Glory to God”, “Intricate Snowflake”, “Itty Bitty Blake”, Hand Drawn Holly”, “O Holy Night”.

Darice hemp twine, Celebrate It baker’s twine, and various holiday ribbons from Hobby Lobby and Walmart. Wood stars from Recollections (Michael’s).

 

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