Tone on Tone Background Card

Hi friends. I am sharing a card that I made as a Guest designer for Mudra Craft Stamps in September this year. This card has been made using the Gerbera Blooms stamp set.

Here's a detailed step-by-step process of how I made this card:

1. For this card, I took a 4 by 6 inches top folding white textured card stock.

2. Took a sea green card stock piece and stamped 'Love You' repeatedly from Brushed Alphas Stamp set. I used Ranger Archival Viridian ink to create this tone on tone background. 

3. Then I took a plain white CS, slightly smaller than the sea green piece, and stamped the Gerbera flower, leaf and stem using only one layer of the stamps.

4. On a strip of vellum, I heat embossed the 'Love You' sentiment with Ranger Liquid Platinum embossing powder. 

5. Glued the white stamped piece on the sea green one, and wound the vellum sentiment strip around it.

6. Lastly, I attached this piece onto the white card base and glued few sequins for an added interest.

Tiled Flowers Card

Hi friends. I am sharing a card that I made as a Guest designer for Mudra Craft Stamps in September this year. This card has been made using the Gerbera Blooms stamp set.

Here's a detailed step-by-step process of how I made this card:

1. I started by cutting four 2 by 2 inch tiles with white card stock.

2. Stamped the flowers randomly on the tiles to have a different placement on each of them.

3. I used Memento Tuxedo black ink to stamp the outline and Ranger Archival Plum ink for the inner layer. 

4. I wanted a matting for the tiles that matched the color of the flowers, so I smooshed the same Plum ink on white CS.

5. I glued the tiles on this matting and then adhered that on another black piece of card stock.

6. Then I took a golden 5 by 5 inches top folding card base and added the stamped piece on it.

7. Finished off by adding a gold embossed sentiment from Linen Blooms Stamp set and cut it out in the shape of a tag.

8. Added the same golden CS at the back of the sentiment to match the card base.

Tri-Fold Birthday Card

Hi friends. I am sharing a card that I made as a Guest designer for Mudra Craft Stamps in December this year. This special fold card has been made using the Linen Blooms stamp set.

Here's a detailed step-by-step process of how I made this card:

This is a tri fold card with each panel measuring around 2.5 inches wide. 

1. I stamped loads of flowers and leaves from the Linen Blooms stamp set to create two big floral bunches for this card.

2. Fussy cut all of the flowers and leaves.

3. Stamped the Birthday sentiments on a die cut piece and also on the middle panel of the tri fold card.

4. I glued the stamped die cut piece, offsetting it on the first and second panels of the tri fold.

5. Thereafter, I started arranging the flowers and leaves to form a bouquet around the die cut. Some elements were stuck using glue and some were popped up with foam dots.

6. Once I was happy with the look of the bouquet, I cut off the excess top part of the first panel of the tri fold.

7. Then I made the second floral bunch on the third panel of the tri fold.

8. I cut off the excess card stock from the middle and third panels too, outlining the bouquet. 

Sending you some sunshine Card no. 2

Hi friends. I am sharing a card that I made as a Guest designer for Mudra Craft Stamps in December this year. This card has been made using the Gerbera Blooms stamp set.

Here's a detailed step-by-step process of how I made this card:

1. I started off by cutting a semi circle from white CS and then stamping and heat embossing the sentiment on it.

2. After that I took a watercolor CS and placed the semi circle on it to get the placement for stamping the flowers.

3. Before stamping the flowers, I smooshed various shades of yellow distress inks to get a watercolored background. 

4. Then I stamped the flowers with Memento Black ink and allowed it to dry a bit.

5. Splattered a few drops of black and gold water droplets here and there for added effect.

6. Matted the colored front on two black triangle pieces of CS and adhered the entire piece on a white card base.

7. I finished off the card with black and gold sequins.

I am glad this card came up as I had envisioned..... a rising sun with a backdrop of flowers.

Peacock Stamp set elements Card

Hi friends. I am sharing a card that I made as a Guest designer for Mudra Craft Stamps in December this year. This card has been made using various elements of the Peacock stamp set.

Here's a detailed step-by-step process of how I made this card:

1. I begun by masking the area where the sentiment would be.

2. Then I randomly stamped above and below the line to cover up the entire width of the CS.

3. After this I heat embossed the sentiment on a strip of white CS. 

4. I used two green and blue colored thin strips left over from Card no.1 and added it behind the white sentiment strip. 

5. This helped pop up the colors that were used for stamping the images.

6. I also highlighted the sentiment strip by drawing a line above and below it with a golden gel pen. 

7. For the matting, I took a self striped white CS and colored it using distress ink to tie in with the colors on the card.

8. Assembled the pieces together and finished off by adding few sequins.

The idea for this card was to stamp various smaller elements from the peacock stamp set behind the strip of sentiment. This card follows the sketch for the current Mudra challenge #4, just flipped the orientation.

Peacock Stamp Card

Hi friends. I am sharing a card that I made as a Guest designer for Mudra Craft Stamps in December this year. This card has been made using the Peacock stamp set.

Here's a detailed step-by-step process of how I made this card:

1. I took a white CS and started by stamping the peacock image with Versafine Onyx Black ink and then heat embossed it with clear embossing powder to get a raised effect.

2. I did the same for the peacock’s body and fussy cut it so that I could pop it up with foam tape later on.

3. At the same time I stamped and heat embossed the sentiment too.

4. Then I distressed the background using Distress inks.

5. Once that was done, I used Zig Clean Color Real Brush pens to highlight the peacock feathers and the body.

6. I also added dots and highlights using a golden gel pen.

7. I divided this CS piece into squares and cut it down using Xacto knife and a ruler.

8. I made sure to number the pieces at the back side so that I could line them up easily after flipping them over.

9. I took a black CS slightly bigger than the white CS in step 1, and popped up the square pieces of CS on it using foam dots.

10. The whole piece came together as a jigsaw puzzle and gave a tiled appearance to the card.

11. The last step was to adhere this piece on a green card base and glue the sentiment on top.

Double Gatefold Card

Hi friends. I am sharing a card that I made as a Guest designer for Mudra Craft Stamps in September this year. This special fold card has been made using the Gerbera Blooms stamp set.

Here's a detailed step-by-step process of how I made these cards:

1. For this card I started out with a 6 by 12 inches white card base.

2. Scored it at 2", 4", 8" and 10". 

3. Mountain fold the 2" and 10" score lines, and valley fold the 4" and 8" score lines.

4. Then I stamped the flowers and leaves from the Gerbera Blooms Stamp set on white CS.

5. I first stamped the outline pieces with VersaMark ink and heat embossed it with Ranger Gold embossing powder.

6. For the base layer of the flowers I used Rose Madder ink and for the innermost layer I used Plum ink from Ranger.

7. For the base layer of the leaves I used Leaf Green ink and for the third layer I used Fern Green ink from Ranger.

8. Next, I picked up a few pattern papers from Papermania Blueprint collection and adhered them on to the card base. 

9. I fussy cut all the stamped elements and adhered them on the front panel of the gate fold.

10. The two flowers were glued on the two panels of the gatefold in such a way that they overlapped the other panel on closing.

11. I added two metal brads on two sides of the gatefold to wind the string around it and to create a closure for the card.

12. The twine has to be unwound to open up the card.

13. I stamped the custom sentiment from Brushed Alphas Stamp set on a tag die cut and attached it to one of the brads.

14. Lastly, I added a metal embellishment on two corners of the card front, and glued a die cut in the middle part of the card to have space for the message."

Sending you some sunshine

Hi friends. I am sharing the cards that I made as a Guest designer for Mudra Craft Stamps in September this year. These two cards have been made using the Gerbera Blooms stamp set.

The cards are similar but for some change in elements and design here and there.

Here's a detailed step-by-step process of how I made these cards:

1. I took two 5.5 by 5.5 inches top folding pastel card stocks in pink and green for the card base.

2. Then I stamped the sentiment from Gerbera Blooms Stamp set on a 5 by 5 inch white card stock.

3. Thereafter, I stamped the design around the sentiment with inks matching the respective card bases. I used Ranger Archival Viridian and Rose Madder inks here.

4. For the pink card I stamped the leaf image while on the green one I stamped the outline flower image.

5. To make the 3D flowers, I stamped two sets of flowers on pink and green card stock with Rose Madder and Viridian inks respectively. I used the same ink to stamp the outline and the detailed image of the flower. 

6. To make the 3D flower embellishment, I adhered the two stamped flowers on top of one another.

7. I cut off a few petals from the top stamped image and embossed it with an embossing tool. Then I popped it up with foam dots.

8. Finished off the cards by adding few sequins.

DIY Paper Christmas Tree

Hi everyone!! Today I have another post for the holiday season. There are innumerable ways to make your own Christmas tree. Being a paper crafter, I had to make one with just paper.

Material required:
Green card stock
Empty aluminium foil roll or any stick for the stem
Scissors
Glue
Misc chipboard and simple stickers for decorating


You can decide to have as many layers for the Xmas tree as you like. It can also depend on the length of the stem/foil roll. I have made 5 layers for the Xmas tree shown here. 


1. Cut out 5 circles from the green card stock. I used plates to cut out the circles.

2. Fold each circle into half and open it. Then fold again into half so as to get a cross in the center.

3. Continue to open and align along the earlier lines to make more folds and get a total of 8 crease lines one each circle. This will give you 16 sections on the circle.

4. Fold the circle into quarter and cut out the top portion as shown. This will give space to thread the layers onto the stem easily.

5. Starting from one end of the circle, very carefully fold along the crease lines to get one valley and one mountain fold (fan fold).

6. This will form one layer of the tree as shown in the pic above.

7.  Once all the layers are ready, arrange them onto the stem and decide the placement. 

8. Remember not to cut open the topmost layer as it will sit on top of the stem. 

9. Glue the layers from the center onto the stem.

10. The tree is ready to be decked up. I initially stuck just a few plain star stickers on it. But later on added more chipboard elements to decorate the Xmas tree. I also made a star with glitter foam sheet to stick on the top of the Xmas tree.

Hope you try out this very fun and interesting project. Also do check out my post on DIY Snowman. 

Here's a peek of how we have decorated our living room for Xmas this year!!

Wishing a very Happy Holiday season to all my friends and blog followers!!

DIY Snowman

Hi friends.... today I have a fun post to share with you all. This is an awesome holiday project that you can easily make at home with your kids. I made this for my son and he totally adores his snowman. 

So let's get started with making the Snowman!!

Materials required:
2 styrofoam/thermocol balls of different sizes
Cotton
One wooden barbecue stick
Black paper for eyes, mouth, buttons and hat
Orange paper for nose
Twigs for arms
Red cloth for muffler
Glue
Scissors

1. Take 2 styrofoam or thermocol balls, one slightly smaller than the other.

[Image source: Google]

2. Join them together using a wooden barbecue skewer. I found this the best way to stick them together. You may try using glue gun too, but this acts as a spine for the snowman and provides good support.

3. Pierce the skewer half way through one ball first and then place the second ball on top of it.

4. Apply glue all over the surface of the balls and stick cotton on it. 

5. You will need to shred the cotton apart to make it light and fluffy. You can keep the balls as is,  but gluing cotton on the balls gives a nice snowy look.

6. Next, cut out 2 circles from black paper to make the eyes of the snowman. The diameter of the circle will depend on the size of your snowman.

7. Take an orange piece of paper and make a cone out of it to form the nose of the snowman.

8. Punch out 5 tiny circles to make the snowman's mouth. You can also cut out a new moon shape from black paper to make the mouth.

9. Cut 2 more circles, to make the buttons of the snowman and stick them on the lower part of his body.

10. Take 2 twigs or any other material that you may have on hand, to make the arms of the snowman.

11. Wrap a piece of red cloth around his neck to make the muffler.

12. Place a paper hat/woollen cap on his head. And this completes our DIY snowman.

You can make a base for the snowman to sit on, so that it doesn't wobble. I used an empty tape roll to place the snowman on top of it. And then stuck that tape on top of a piece of cardboard.

To make the paper hat:
1. Cut a circle proportionate to the head of the snowman. This is the base of the hat. 
2. Then roll a rectangular piece of paper to form a cylindrical shape. The diameter of this cylinder should be an inch or half smaller than the base circle. 
3. Stick this cylindrical shape on the base. 
4. Cut out another circle to close the opening of the cylindrical shape. The hat is complete....


Hope you like this post and enjoy making this with your kids. Also do check out my post on DIY Christmas Tree. 

Guest Post at Mudra Craft Stamps

Hi friends.... I am delighted to be guesting again at Mudra Craft Stamps blog today!! Here's a sneak peek of the 4 cards that I created.... Do hop on and leave some love...

Thinking of You Critters Card

Hi friends, today I am sharing a card after a short break. First the festive season kept me busy and then me and my son fell ill for some time. I am trying to slowly get back to crafting. So the cards may not be perfect, but they sure lift my mood up by keeping me happy and busy.

I started out with the scrap piece of red paper that was left over after punching out few scalloped circles from a punch. The whole idea of the card is based on that only.

Then I stamped and colored few critter from a TPC stamp set and stuck them behind the red piece so that it looks like they are peeking out of a window.

For creating an illusion of a forest, I stamped out a bunch of leaves from Itsy Bitsy stamp set and colored them using Zig Clean Color Real Brush pens. It was quite a task to fussy cut these tiny and intricate leaves. I just kept on layering them around the red window to cover up the whole space. 

Lastly, I stamped and added a sentiment from another stamp set and also glued in a few sequins.

That's all for today! Have a great day!

Guest Designing at Mudra Stamps

Hi everyone! I am Guest Designing at Mudra stamps blog today. Hop on here to see the 5 cards I made with the Gerbera Blooms stamp set....

Heartfelt Thanks - Waffle Flower Lotus Stamp Set

Hi all... here's a card made using Waffle Flower Lotus Stamp Set. I did a lot of masking and stamping on this card. 

Masking is so much fun and it's a joy to see the final image underneath. I used my stamping tool Stampoholic to do all the stamping and masking. I started by stamping on white card stock but I wanted to color the background black. 

In all the excitement I forgot to use watercolor card stock, so the blending is not great because I used Zig Clean Color Real Brush Pens. 

Nevertheless, I went ahead with the card. I outlined the entire image with yellow Zig pen and then colored the full background with black Zig pen.  I did not cover it completely in black so that it gives a chalkboard like look. Note how the image pops up with yellow outline.

The sentiment is also from the same stamp set. I stamped it with VersaFine Onyx Black ink and adhered it onto the card with foam tape.

This card was quite an experiment for me... hope you like it! Thanks for dropping by...

Handmade Teacher's Day Cards and Gifts

Hi All..... Today I am sharing the cards that I made for my son's preschool teachers... I kept them simple so that I could replicate them quickly. And the Stampoholic tool made it even more easier.... 

I used a mix of stamps for the card....TPC - Travel World, Winnie & Walter - Big Bold You, Just Rite - All Boy, Avery Elle - Christmas Florals and Mini Alphabet Stamp sets. 

Firstly, I heat embossed the globe and the stars with Ranger Liquid Platinum embossing powder. Then I stamped 'Thank you teacher' below the embossed image. Added a strip of washi tape below, to complete the cards.

These are the set of cards that I made for the teachers. I also made two more cards in a different design for the helpers who help with changing, cleaning, etc. for the kids at pre- school. Here in Manila (Philippines) they address them as 'Ate' - meaning sister. 

For the second set of cards I replaced the globe image with florals.  I stamped one card in black and heat embossed the other two. Rest of the design is same as the card above. 

If you visited my blog earlier, you would have seen the bookmarks that I had made for Teacher's Day. In addition to that I also decided to make these super cute floral magnets. (More pics on that post page) 

Now on to the packaging part.... I wanted to do something different than the regular envelopes. Also since I had a couple of more things to add, they wouldn't fit inside the envelope, so I decided to wrap them in a piece of wrapping paper (dunno what exactly this type of paper is called). It comes wrapped with a flower bouquet. 

I popped in a chocolate in each of the packets and folded them neatly. Tied them with raffia and added little name tags on top so that the cards don't get mixed up.

I really hope my son's teachers love all the handmade stuff.. I dedicate this post to Jennifer McGuire who I consider as my virtual teacher. I have learnt all my stamping watching her videos. She is really a fabulous person and a great teacher too!

Challenges entered

Paru's Card Making September Challenge - Focus on Words