My First Card with Copic Markers!

Copics are definitely addictive!

I starting coloring with my Copic Markers and I just can't put them down! I have so many images ready for cards I don't know where to start!
Well, at first I didnt' know where to start!
So...Here is my first Copic colored image! I am in love with my markers.  The ease of applications is amazing and the blending is such fun! I have found out that I need to round out my colors a bit more, mainly to add some brown or earth tones.  I knew the minute I touched the tip to the paper that they were worth the money.  the colors are uniformed and vibrant.  They blend well and the colorless blender is just a miracle worker! Great when I color outside the lines...which of course I never do!
The stamp is from High Hopes which I bought at Scrappin' Great Deals.
The layout I used was last weeks CPS challenge.  The first one I have ever done and must say I am very happy that I did!  
As usual the Paper is from the Paper Company all but the card stock that the image is on, that is white Bazzill card stock which was recommended to me by Meghan at The Paperie as the best paper to use for Copic markers.  Thanks Meghan! Once again you were so right!
The sun and the lower butterfly were stamped separately and added to the card with pop dots. I was very tempted to add a bow but didn't want to take away from the main image.

So, how do you think I did with my first attempt at coloring with Copic Markers?

I Have to Bragg!!!

I Finally Have Some Copic Markers!!!

Ok, I have wanted these ever since they first appeared on cards at SplitCoast Stampers!

I always had problems budgeting such an indulgance in our household budget. So last year when I started writing for Current Magazine I had the thought of my Copics in the back of my mind. The payments I make with Current goes to me. . . and I must admit...mostly to stamping supplies with the occasional dinner out thrown in for good measure.

Yesterday I finally did it! I went and got my Copic Sketch Markers. I am so happy that The Paperie is carrying them now!

The funny thing is, I figured that I would come right home and start coloring! But I am hesitant...I think I wanted them for so long that now I am half afraid that I won't be able to do them justice! Silly hay?!?

Most of last night was spent on You Tube watching every Copic tutorial I could find! So now I will give it a go! Hopefully you will see my first Copic Marker creation here tomorrow!

Wedding Congratulations

RSVP Addition

My son Josh is standing at one of his best friends weddings in July. He had to send back the RSVP and wanted to include a card of congratulations for it. He brought me the card and the envelope so I could make one to fit the card. I also went a step further and matched the card to the RSVP card. I didn't include a picture of the RSVP card though as it has her name and info on it and I didn't think that would be quite right!

I used the Sketch Challenge from Splitcoast Stampers for the layout, and stuck with black and white as those were the colors of the RSVP card. The main panel is a cuttlebug embossing folder; textile. It is mounted on a black photo mat that I took from a random wedding mat pad. I like the texture of it and thought it would go well with the embossing. The cross piece is made of the same paper. The salutation comes from my Best Wishes and Blooms set by Unity Stamp Company.
As finishing touches. I added rows of pearls to the top, centre and bottom and then to the flowers on the cuttlebug panel. The ribbon and bow are the final touch to the outside.
The inside liner is embossed with the same design and a ribbon added to unify the card. The pearls and stamps were both bought at The Paperie.

Always Good To Be The Baby Of the Family!

Happy 61st Donna!

My oldest sister, Donna turned 61 on May 29th! Now when one of my siblings has a birthday, it's a happy day for me, because I am the baby of the family and will always be the youngest!
I look at it as redemption for all the younger years when I was "too young to come too" or "too young to understand" or heard the all to common "Do we have to take her, Mom?!?"

Here is the card that I made for Donna. I actually got to participate in Splitcoast Stampers Monday Technique Challenge for last week with this card. Their challenge was to create a card using the black magic technique. You can find a tutorial for the technique here. In the Video you will notice that she uses water colour pencils.
I actually used my Stampin' Up's Water Color Wonder Crayons - Bold Brights. First I stamped and heat embossed the images using white embossing powder. Then I applied several coats of white paint to the design and let that dry over night, once that was dry I applied the colored layers. The layers are punched with an ek success slim boarder punch. The stamps are the Best Wishes and Blooms set from the Unity Stamp Company . Both of these items were purchased at The Paperie. To finish off the card I embossed the sentiment and added some ribbon as well as another flower that I cut out after I painted it and popped it up with dimensionals.
The inside is done with an insert I cut with my Cricut and added a matching ribbon to tie the whole design together.
Donna was thrilled with the card and actually is planning to bring it home and frame it! Now is that a compliment or what

Add a Personal Touch to Your Wedding

Handmade Invitations and Accessories

By Debby Winters

Spring and summer are the seasons of white taffeta dresses, wedding veils, bouquets and fruitcake covered in fondant!

If you are one of the many brides to be that are planning your very own memorable walk down the aisle, then you are probably in the throes of confused organization as you pull all the integral parts together to create that magical day.

One way to give your wedding a very personal touch is to create your own wedding invitations and wedding favours. It has become a very popular pre-plannng event for the bride and her party to get together and make these all-important components.

Drawing upon books, magazines, the internet, local scrapbooking and card making stores or clubs can all work as resources and inspiration.

You can book the workshop workspace at The Paperie's for your event where you and your team will have access to their tools such as the AccuCut as well as the staff's expertise to help guide you with your creations.

Once you have an idea then you can go about gathering the necessary supplies. You will need cardstock, envelopes, adhesives and any embellishments you may wish to incorporate. You can hand stamp your invitations and accessories or you can print them from a computer. It is advised that you always start with making one invitation first. You may find that you actually make several samples before you decide on the final design that you want to go with. Another thing to keep in mind is the size of the invitation and if you can buy ready made envelopes to fit them.

Meghan from The Paperie created the beautiful invitation set shown. They are very elegant yet clean and uncomplicated to allow for ease of production.

The invitation enclosure was created with an AccuCut template in The Paperie's workshop. The invitation measures 5" x 7" and the RSVP is a 3.5" x 5" card.

The band around the invitation imprinted with the bride and grooms name and wedding date adds a beautiful and sophisticated personal touch.

Other personal touches you may wish to make would be the menus, place cards, table numbers and favour boxes. The favour box shown is also made with an AccuCut template and compliments the flower blossoms on the invitations and other materials.

For that final personal touch you can make your wedding programs and thank you cards. The church programs are made with the same print as the invitations but mounted on brown card stock with an added ribbon. All card stock used is from Bazzill and is available at The Paperie.

If making your own invitations feels like much too daunting a task, you can also have your invitations made for you by the experts at The Paperie and you will be able to maintain creative control.

For more information visit http://www.thepaperie.ca or call The Paperie at 726-5323. For additional content visit http://www.just2crafty.blogspot.com.

Writer's note: Special thanks to Meghan at The Paperie....not only did she make all these beautiful items, she also took the great pictrues!

Happy Birthday to Karen!

Owlways Nice to See You!

This is a card that I made for my lifetime long friend Karen. We began a tradition many years ago of making each others Birthday Cakes. It was actually Karen that got me into making cards! Thanks my friend!

Here she is about to blow out her candles. Look at the light from all those candles and that is just about half! There were no where near enough for all her years. I figure if I stop aging she will catch up in a few more birthdays!

The birthday card is made with Martha Stewart Card stock. the weight of this card stock makes it The great for cards. All stamps used come from The Paperie.

The background panel is stamped with Hero Arts Old Letter Writing stamp in Versamark and then embossed in gold. The owls are one of Hero Arts Sparkles sets which are small sets of clear stamps with sparkle gems included.

The owls are stamped in memento ink then colored with colored pencils that are blended with Goo Gone using a Q-Tip. As a final touch I added Martha Stewart turquoise glitter to the flowers, wings and leaves.

The images were then cut out and adhered to the card front and gem sparkles were added to the flower centers. The small the tree branch and flowers were adhered using my Xyron sticker maker and the small out is affixed with pop dots for dimension as the the larger owl. I doubled up on the pop dots for him to make him a layer above the smaller owl. As a crowning touch I added a chocolate colored ribbon and bow to tie in the main card color.

Hope you like it! and Again Happy Birthday my friend.

Quick and Easy...or should that be Quack and Easy!

Duck, Duck, Goose!

Those three words always bring a smile to my face along with memories of sitting in a circle with my friends waiting to become the all-powerful goose!!!
Here is a quick and fun card I made for my 6 year old Godson to take to a birthday party. It illustrates all the basic fundimentals of cardmaking. There is the base of the card which is from the paper company which is half a 8.5 and 11 sheet cut in half and folded. I turned the card lengthwise as it fit with the layout the best. The designer paper is "Dad's Socks" By Bella Blvd which I bought at The Paperie. Then I used a beige piece of card stock that I embossed with the argyle embossing folder from Provo craft with my Cuttlebug. For the image layer I used a Limited Edition Basic Grey set, Duck Duck Goose! that I purchased at The Paperie. It was one of those sets that you want the minute you lay eyes on it! The duck stamp was stamped twice and then the goose to make Duck Duck Goose! of course! Then each of the stamps was repeated on a separate sheet of white card stock I colored the heads cut them out and placed pop dots on the back and stuck them in the matching place to give the figures some dimension. Hope you like the card!