More Poly-Glaze Cards, A Great Cause and a Giveaway!

I needed some quick cards to add to a box I am donating to Brave Cards, a new cause I found here that touched my heart. The donated cards go with Brave Gowns which are special bright hospital gowns designed to suit each patient's personality at any age. No more dingy lifeless gowns. Children have minimal control especially when going through treatment for an illness. Becoming a superhero or rock star will allow them to access some sense of power during this scary time. 

The touch of foiled glimmer on the Poly-glaze sheet from Gina K Designs with the Heart Hug stencil from A Colorful Life Designs is perfect for this cause! Here are a couple more fun fold cards I share in the new video both made with Gina K's Spring Butterfly Poly-Glaze sheets:

As I show in the video, the white Poly-Glaze sheets are great for techniques such as 2nd generation foiling, distressed foiling and inking. I loved the delicate Radiant Roses Words set so much I bought it twice and YOU COULD WIN ONE BY WATCHING THE VIDEO AND COMMENTING ACCORDING TO INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE 2/15/24! 

I am entering the first card in the Anything Goes challenge at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday. 

Playing With Gina K. Design's Poly-Glaze Video and Giveaway!

Do you like just a little foil sparkle or prefer bright foiled beauty on your cards?  After watching a recent Live by Gina K and Jennifer McGuire I was enabled to buy a bunch of Gina K Designs Poly-Glaze sheets and her new White Poly-Glaze sheets and have a play. I share a bunch of cards I made and several techniques in my new video here. Here is the fun fold card I made step by step in the video:

The Botanical Duo dies are also from Gina K Designs. Do you like the delicate foiled sentiment on the front of this card? 

It was created with Gina K's Radiant Roses Poly-Glaze sheets shown here which I loved so much I bought it twice. Lucky for you because you could win the whole package and one of the cards I share in the new video by watching the video and commenting according to instructions in the video. (Comments on this blog post although appreciated do not qualify for the prize drawing. Also you need a USA mailing address to qualify.) 

I love to use positives and negatives on my cards and I ran Gina K's "Catch A Wave" Poly-Glaze sheet through my MINC machine and then ran the left over foil through again with a Gina's White Poly-Glaze sheet. With a square punch I created the pattern shown.

I foiled the Diamonds Poly-glaze sheet with a rainbow foil and then distressed the left over foil before running again through the MINC with a white poly-glaze sheet. I show that technique in the new video along with many more cards. Watch it here and remember to comment per instructions before 2/15/24 for a chance to win a whole package of the Poly-Glaze sentiments.

January Class Cards With Layered Stencils

The theme of my January classes at Harts n Scraps (a local paper crafting store located in Cedar Creek in Rothschild WI) was Layered Stencils, and the students loved the cards they created. The first two here were my favorites using a gorgeous layered stencil set from Hero Arts in two very different ways. 

And here are the other two cards I taught with layered stencils. I teach every month at Harts n Scraps so if you are local, stop in to check out what is coming up!

I am entering the first card in the Add Some Texture challenge at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday. 

Double Pop Out Cards with New Simon Hurley Stamps and Dies from Spellbinders

Isn't that fun?! I found this new fun fold here on Sonia Benedetti's blog and when I received the new Easter Bunny dies and stamp set from Simon Hurley and Spellbinders, I made a couple of these cards to share with you. The set is perfect for Easter, spring or any time you want a cute card. 

(IF YOU ARE GETTING THIS BLOG POST IN YOUR EMAIL AS A SUBSCRIBER, YOU PROBABLY CAN'T SEE THE TWO MINI VIDEOS HERE. CLICK ON THE TITLE AND GO TO THE ACTUAL BLOG POST TO SEE THEM.) 

The first card I made with the set was for a birthday, and here is a look when the card is opened:

Aren't those stamped and die cut bunnies cute? I am not a great colorist and prefer to paper piece with patterned paper as you can see in all these cards. 

I decided to make a short or reel showing how easy this double pop out card is to make with Simon's bunnies because still pictures are nice, but don't show the fun interactive motion as the tag is pulled. Here are a couple pictures of the Easter card I made while filming and a picture of the template I shared:

Here is the very short video showing step by step how to make this fun double pop out card:

I am entering the first card in the Let's Have Some Fun challenge at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday.

Layers of Love Cards With New Crealies Dies

One reason I love Crealies dies so much is that we can find so many ways to use each one which stretches our crafty budget. In my new video here I share many cards made with dies from the newest release at Crealies. The card above was created with the new Gatefold Arch die set as well as the new matching Yvon Frame and Inlay die set so the result is an arched gatefold love card full of all sorts of layers. 

I made an interlocking arched love card like this one in the video with layered hearts from the Hearts with Small Stripes Hearts die set and sentiment all from Crealies. Here are a couple more pictures showing the interlocking feature and what pops up when the card is opened:

The Varia 3D Heart lays flat to mail and then pops up and is held in place with a couple of small magnets. I featured another new Varia 3D die on the front of this vertical easel card made with the new Cardzz Square Z-Fold/Easel Card die set:

This 3D die makes a balloon and I also added a new Balloon Charm on the right side of this vertical easel card. The Square Z-Fold/Easel die set can be used to make traditional z-fold and easel cards and many variations of those fun folds. Here is a pop up version I made by putting two of the main pieces together and adding many layers with the new Sofia Frame and Inlay Die Set:

This card lays flat to mail and then pops up to stand for display when received. I had great fun making all these cards filled with love and lots of layers. Remember you can find these and many other Crealies dies here in the USA at the Frantic Stamper Website and of course at the Crealies website here. 

Never Ending Packer and Jordan Love Card

I saw a t-shirt on Facebook in Packer colors that said: All We Need Is 10VE  (Jordan Love is our Packer's quarterback and 10 is his jersey number) and woke up last night singing the Beatle's song - da, da, da, da, da. Then the idea of a Packer colors never ending card with the song and football images came to my mind, and then I really couldn't get back to sleep:)

For you non-football readers, my Packers won a huge game last week in the play-offs, and Jordan Love played like a seasoned veteran and all-star even though he is neither. As my card points out, we do need more than just LOVE to win, but he was fantastic. This is a never ending card, and here is a mini-video showing how the card opens and opens to reveal 4 different views:

And here are some pictures and the 2nd, 3rd and 4th layers of this never ending Packers Love Card:

If you are local to Wausau, WI and want to learn an easy way to make a never ending card, watch for my upcoming fun fold class this spring at Harts n Scraps in Cedar Creek Mall.

GO PACK!! Hoping for another huge win tonight! 

Spellbinders Wax Seals Not Just for Envelopes!

I had so much fun designing with Spellbinders new Must Have Wax Bead Mixes I made 10 cards with them for my new new video! I tried to find new ways to feature them on a card like the wheel in this Country Wheelbarrow die from Spellbinders. Or how about the center of an arch that is designed for stitching?

If the sentiment in the wax stamp is not that legible, you can highlight it with a metallic pen as I did here. I used Spellbinders Essential Arches to create this shaped card and the Stitched Kaleidoscope Arch as my "planter." I did the same on this card:

The wax seal on the planter was created with the gorgeous new Pink Must Have Wax Bead Mix and I even made the "flowers" with the wax beads. The sentiments you see on many of the cards are part of Simon Hurley's Everyday Sentiments die set from Spellbinders. 

I decided that the wax seals can be used as embellishments and also added Renfio Broken Crushed Glass for some added sparkle on these two cards:

Of course all the dies, embossing folders and stencils you see on these cards are from Spellbinders. I had so much fun creating all these cards with wax seals and hope my cards encourage you to give some of the ideas and products a try!

Cardmaking With New Colors of Spellbinders Wax Beads

I received 3 bags of the new Must Have Wax Bead Mixes from Spellbinders and had so much fun playing with them, I made 10 cards for my new video here! The video shows many tips for successful wax seals and how they are not just for envelopes. This gorgeous wax seal was made with the new Purple Must Have Wax Bead Mix, the new Timeless Blooms wax stamp, and the Stitched Kaleidoscope Arch die all from Spellbinders. 

I also share several versions of the arrow fun fold and made this card which is a double arrow fun fold card. Here is a peak at the card when opened:

And here are pictures of a traditional arrow fold card and a slimline double arrow fold card all with wax seals made with the same purple wax bead mix and Spellbinders dies:

The other two Must Have Wax Bead Mixes I received were the Pink and Coral. All of these packages include 4 different shades which is perfect because the correct number of wax beads to use per seal is 4. With these mixes, we never have to worry which colors look good together. Here are two more cards with the Pink and Coral mixes:

To see all the cards I made and how to do a double arrow fold card, watch the new video here. If you are pressed for time and would like to see a short 2 minute reel with the highlights, visit my Instagram here. 

More Embossed Die-cut Cards From My Newest Video

I am very excited to share that we can double the use of our dies by embossing them in addition to die cutting with them and then mix and match those on our cards! I am now able to do that technique so much easier because I gave myself a new Spellbinders Platinum 6 die cutting machine with the Universal Plate System for Christmas. I show in my new video here how easy it is now to emboss with dies. I am also finding this machine makes it so much more easy to emboss with any 3D or regular embossing folder without any extra shims, etc. I made this mixed media look card with Picket Fence's Falling Brick Wall die both embossed and die cut and added some white and black spatters.

I have used this Taylored Expressions frame die in the traditional die cut way on many cards but for this one I embossed a light green background with it, then added die cut cream pieces in the center and sides as well as a foliage piece, gems and die cut sentiment. 

In addition to embossing with our dies, we can create stencils with them and I added color to the embossed rays created with a favorite die from Gina Marie Designs before adding the perfect sentiment. 

I had great fun embossing with my dies and hope my cards and video encourage you to try this technique and then send some handmade joy out into this world!