Two Gingerbread Girl Spinner Christmas Cards

A friend at work, Shirley, asked me to make three personalised Christmas cards for her,  Two cards were for five year old twins Daisy and Danielle and I decided a gingerbread girl spinner card would be ideal!  Shirley also wanted a card for baby Archie who will be celebrating his first Christmas - I'll share Archie's card next time.

Here are the two cards together.

Here's just one card.  I used Real Red, Crumb Cake and Whisper White CS and added in some Red and Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper for a bit of seasonal sparkle.  The patterned papers I used are from the SU! 'Candy Cane Lane' DSP pack.  I lightly edged each gingerbread shape with Soft Suede ink using a sponge dauber to add a touch of definition.

Here's a photo showing how I decorated the insides of the cards and the envelopes.

Supplies:
Stamps: Clearly Besotted 'Eat, Drink & Be Merry' set
CS: SU! Real Red, Crumb Cake & Whisper White, SU Red & Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper
Patterned paper: SU! 'Candy Cane Lane' DSP
Ink: SU! Crumb Cake & Soft Suede
Tools: XCut 'Gingerbread Family' die set, SU! 'Sliding Star' Framelits die set, MFT 'Photo Corners' die set, Spellbinders 'Labels Trio' die, Memory Box 'Cross Stitched Frame' rectangle die set, heart punches, sponge dauber
Embellishments & accessories: 3mm foam tape 

Gingerbread Spinner Card & Gingerbread Bag & Tag

Last Thursday my friend Wendy came over for a crafty play.  At our last card group meeting we decorated a gift tag and made a gingerbread man tag and Wendy said she wanted to make another bag and tag - but with a gingerbread girl this time.  Wendy also wanted to make a gingerbread spinner card in traditional Christmas colours.

Here's the bag and tag.

Here's a closer look at the tag.  I dressed the gingerbread girl in a red dress, added a bow and some red gems to the flowers on the dress.  Very sweet!

For the spinner card I made a 5 5/8" square Cherry Cobbler card and I cut mat layers in Garden Green and Cherry Cobbler.  I die cut the circle spinner channel from the Cherry Cobbler mat layer using a die from the MFT Die-namics 'Circle Spinner Channels' die set.  I embossed the layer with the Leane Creatief 'Snowflakes Background' embossing folder.  I glued the green mat in place and popped up the Cherry Cobbler mat layer using 3mm thick 3D foam tape.  For the spinner element I sandwiched a small round 3D foam pad between two pennies and I placed the element into the track.  I die cut one gingerbread man from Crumb Cake CS, cut another from white CS and inlaid the white pieces into the Crumb Cake shape.  I added a bow tie and buttons and inked the edges of the gingerbread man using Crumb Cake ink and a sponge dauber.  I adhered the gingerbread man to the spinner element with strong double sided tape.  I stamped and die cut the sentiment label and added sparkly gold photo corners.  To complete the card front I added a sparkly gold punched snowflake to the sentiment label.  The jolly gingerbread man was spun quite a few times around the track during the day! 😊

Here's the inside of the card and the envelope with stamped snowflake borders and a "'tis the season to be jolly" sentiment.  A very happy and fun card to make!

Supplies for gift bag and tag:
Stamps: Personal Impressions 'Christmas Messages' set
CS: SU! Real Red, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake & Whisper White
Patterned paper: SU! 'Candy Cane Lane' DSP
Ink: SU! Crumb Cake & Real Red
Tools: Creative Expressions Sue Wilson 'Pierced Tags' die set, XCut 'Gingerbread Family' die set, QuicKutz 'Scallop' border die, SU! 'Word Window' punch, sponge dauber
Embellishments & accessories: SU! Real Red satin ribbon, SU! Kraft Rope Trim, small red adhesive gems, SU! Dimensionals 

Supplies for gingerbread man spinner card:
Stamps: SU! 'Flurry of Wishes' set, My Cute Stamps 'Let It Snow' set, Hero Arts 'Miracle of the Holidays' set
CS: SU! Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green, Crumb Cake & Whisper White, SU! Gold Glimmer Paper
Ink: SU! Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green & Crumb Cake
Tools: Leane Creatief 'Snowflakes Background' embossing folder, MFT Die-namics 'Circle Spinner Channels' & 'Photo Corners' die sets, XCut 'Gingerbread Family' die set, Spellbinders 'Labels Trio' die
Embellishments & accessories: Woodware 3mm thick 3D foam tape

November 2016 Card Group Projects

This afternoon we got together for our card group meeting.  I really cannot believe we only have one more meeting in 2016 - this year seems to have flown by!  Three Christmas projects for the ladies to make today, two cards and a gift bag with tag.  Everyone loves the spinner cards so I made sure to include another one of those this month!

I decorated the front of a plain white gift bag using some patterned paper and a scalloped border strip.  Then I made a tag to attach to one of the handles.  I just adore the sweet gingerbread man!  The XCut 'Gingerbread Family' die set was a total impulse buy, I saw it in a local shop, fell in love with it and bought it immediately!  In the die set there are gingerbread shapes in two sizes and then clothing and accessories dies to dress up the gingerbread people.  I kept things simple for this tag though.  I die cut the larger gingerbread shape from Crumb Cake and Whisper White CS and I inset the white pieces into the Crumb Cake shape.  I applied Crumb Cake ink to the shape using a sponge dauber and added the buttons and bow tie.  I popped up the gingerbread man onto the red tag and added the sentiment label.  I used red satin ribbon and Kraft Rope Trim to tie the tag to the bag handle.

Here's a closer look at the tag.  The cheery gingerbread man is guaranteed to raise a smile I think!

This time I used the circle spinner track die from the SU! 'Sliding Star Framelits' die set to create a spinner card.  I cut the track from a square of Rich Razzleberry CS, popped that square up onto a Sweet Sugarplum mat layer and glued that to the front of a 5 5/8" square white card base.  I stamped small poinsettias onto white CS using stamped off once Sweet Sugarplum ink and stamped the sentiment in Rich Razzleberry ink.  I cut it out with a 2" circle punch, glued it to the larger Razzleberry circle which I then popped up in the centre.  To make the spinner element I used two pennies sandwiched together with a round 3D foam pad.   I stamped two poinsettias onto a piece of vellum with VersaMark ink and heat embossed using Vintage Plum embossing tinsel - very pretty and sparkly!  I placed the vellum piece on top of a piece of Sweet Sugarplum CS and die cut the poinsettias.  I attached the layers together with a rhinestone brad, adhered the flower to the penny spinner element and inserted it into the track.  To complete the card front I added four Sweet Sugarplum scalloped decorative corners.

Here's a closer look at the sentiment circle and poinsettia spinner.

Here's the inside and the envelope.

Last month at card group Val asked for a reminder about the triple time stamping technique.  A great opportunity for the group to revisit the technique then!  I used the SU! 'Flurry of Wishes' snowflake stamp set to create an A6 landscape oriented card.  I trimmed the Night of Navy card base to 5 3/4" wide to better accommodate the mat layer sizes.  

WHITE STAMPING PANELS WERE CUT TO:

5 1/2" x 3 7/8"

4 1/2" x 2 7/8" and 

3 1/2" x 1 7/8"

NAVY MAT LAYERS WERE CUT TO:

4 3/4" x 3 1/8" and

3 3/4" x 2 1/8"

I stacked the three white panels together and used removable adhesive tape to keep the panels in place.  I stamped the sentiment in Night of Navy ink first, then stamped the larger snowflakes in Marina Mist ink, the medium ones in Pool Party ink and the small ones in Night of Navy ink.  I separated the layers, glued the largest one to the front of the card base, glued the two remaining stamped panels to the Navy mat layer pieces and glued them to the card.  I stamped a large snowflake onto Marina Mist CS and a small snowflake onto Pool Party CS and punched the shapes out.  I punched out a Night of Navy snowflake, glued the three snowflake layers together and popped up the snowflake element.  To finish I added a rhinestone to the snowflake centre.   

Here's the inside and the envelope.

We'll exchange Secret Santa gifts at our December meeting and I made a set of gift tags for all of us.   I'll share the gift tags in a day or so.

Supplies for gift bag and tag:
Stamps: Personal Impressions 'Christmas Messages' set
CS: SU! Real Red, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso & Whisper White
Patterned paper: SU! 'Candy Cane Lane' DSP
Ink: SU! Crumb Cake & Early Espresso
Tools: Creative Expressions Sue Wilson ''Pierced Tags' die set, XCut 'Gingerbread Family' die set, QuicKutz 'Scallop' border die, SU! 'Word Window' punch, sponge dauber
Embellishments & accessories: SU! Real Red satin ribbon, SU! Kraft Rope Trim, Dimensionals

Supplies for poinsettia spinner card:
Stamps: Creative Expressions Sue Wilson 'Shaded Poinsettia' & 'Shaded Poinsettia Additions' sets, SU! 'Best Yet' set, Woodware 'Happiest of Christmases' set
CS: SU! Sweet Sugarplum, Rich Razzleberry & Whisper White (thick & regular), vellum
Ink: SU! Sweet Sugarplum & Rich Razzleberry, VersaMark
Tools: Creative Expressions Sue Wilson 'Classic Poinsettia' die set, SU! 'Sliding Star' Framelits die set, MFT Die-namics 'Photo Corners' die set, heat tool
Embellishments & accessories: Stampendous Vintage Plum embossing tinsel, rhinestone brad, 3mm dimensional foam tape

Supplies for snowflakes triple time stamped card:
Stamps: SU! 'Flurry of Wishes' set,  Hero Arts 'Very Merry Christmas' set
CS: SU! Night of Navy, Marina Mist & Whisper White
Ink: SU! Night of Navy, Marina Mist & Pool Party
Tools: SU! 'Flower Medallion' & 'Snow Flurry' punches
Embellishments & accessories: rhinestone jewel, Dimensionals

October 2016 Card Group Projects

Yesterday afternoon we got together for our October card group meeting and a very enjoyable afternoon it was too. Val and Margaret celebrate their birthdays this month and both ladies treated us to home baked goodies - Chocolate Brownies and Lemon and Blueberry Traybake - both delicious! Crafting and cake - a perfect combination!

The first project I designed for the ladies to make was a tealight gift box made using Pool Party CS and mistletoe patterned paper from last year's SU! 'Season of Cheer' DSP pack. I bought Passionfruit and Blueberry tealights to fill all the boxes.  I thought the 'Making spirits bright' sentiment was ideal to use for a gift of tealights so I stamped that onto a tag made from a die cut Pool Party ornament.  I cut an ornament topper from platinum CS and tied the ornament tag to the ribbon bow with white baker's twine.

Here's another view of the gift box.  

Making a card to match the tealights gift box seemed a good idea so that's the second project I created.  Here's the card and tealights gift box together.

Everyone loved the spinner card we made last month so I designed an ornament spinner card for this time.  I used the same patterned paper as I'd used on the box and the colour combo is Pool Party and Always Artichoke.  The Pool Party fancy die cut ornament was glued over the top of an  Always Artichoke plain punched circle.  I added a platinum topper, a die cut bow and some rhinestone jewels.  The sentiment label is glued flat to the card so it doesn't interfere with the spinner.  The spinner element is made using a round 3D foam pad sandwiched between two pennies.  The Always Artichoke panel with the spinner channel cut from it is popped up with 3mm thick 3D foam tape.  

Here's the inside of the card and the envelope.  I stamped the mistletoe sprig inside with stamped off once Pear Pizzazz ink and stamped the sentiment over the top in Always Artichoke ink.  The two mistletoe sprigs on the front of the envelope were stamped in Always Artichoke ink.

The third project was a snowman card made with my MFT Blueprints 14 die set and using the layout shown at the bottom right.

I made a 5 1/4" white square card base, added a Bermuda Bay die cut stitched square, a white rounded corner square embossed with the SU! 'Northern Flurry' embossing folder and a black die cut scalloped border.  I stamped the snowman onto Whisper White thick CS, coloured him using ProMarkers, fussy cut him and popped him up onto a Soft Sky die cut rounded corners rectangle.  I placed a Bermuda Bay punched snowflake onto a Soft Sky punched circle and added a pearl to the centre.  I fixed the sentiment label in place and added the snowflake circle element over the top.

Here's the inside and the envelope.  I stamped the snowflake cluster in stamped off once Bermuda Bay ink and stamped the sentiment over the top in black ink.  I used full strength Bermuda Bay ink for the snowflake cluster on the envelope flap.

Val mentioned yesterday that she couldn't fully remember the triple time stamping technique.  A perfect opportunity for me to include a triple time stamped Christmas card as one of next month's projects then!  

Supplies for tealights gift box:
Stamps: SU! 'Tin of Tags' set
CS: SU! Pool Party, Crafter's Companion Centura Pearl Platinum
Patterned paper: SU! 'Season of Cheer' DSP
Ink: SU! Mossy Meadow
Tools: SU! 'Delicate Ornament' Thinlits die set, SU! 'Decorative Label' punch, SU! Simply Scored
Embellishments & accessories: SU! white organza ribbon, SU! white baker's twine 

Supplies for ornament spinner card:
Stamps: SU! ''Sweet Essentials' & 'Peaceful Wishes' sets, Hero Arts 'Miracle of the Holidays' set
CS: SU! Pool Party, Always Artichoke & Whisper White, Crafter's Companion Centura Pearl Platinum
Patterned paper: SU! 'Season of Cheer' DSP
Ink: SU! Always Artichoke & Pear Pizzazz
Tools: SU! 'Sliding Star' Framelits & 'Delicate  Ornament' & 'Pretty Pines' Thinlits die sets, Spellbinders 'Labels Trio' die set, Memory Box 'Grosgrain Ribbons' die set
Embellishments & accessories: SU! rhinestone jewels, round 3D foam pads, 3mm thick 3D foam tape

Supplies for snowman card:
Stamps: Hero Arts 'Wonderful Christmas' set, Inkylicious 'Santa's Sleigh' set, PSX 'Snowflake Medley'
CS: SU! Bermuda Bay,Soft Sky, Basic Black & Whisper White (regular & thick)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, SU! Bermuda Bay, various ProMarkers
Tools: MFT Die-namics 'Blueprints 14' die set, SU! 'Northern Flurry' embossing folder, SU! 'Modern Label' punch & plain circle punch, X Cut snowflake punch
Embellishments & accessories: SU! pearl jewel, Dimensionals

Seasonal Bells Spinner Card

Today my friend Jan is coming over to make a couple of cards.  When I invited her and asked her what she'd like to make she didn't have anything specific in mind.  Me, being the very cheeky sort, then took the opportunity to ask if she'd like to make something using some of her new SU! goodies that I don't have!  So I get to play with new goodies and Jan gets inspiration for using her new goodies - a win/win!

Jan bought both the Seasonal Bells bundle and the Star of Light bundle.  I thought the bells would be great for a spinner card and that's what I made first.  I cut the spinner channel from a panel of Emerald Envy CS, glued the patterned paper at the bottom and added Cherry Cobbler taffeta ribbon.  I stamped one bell onto So Saffron CS using Delightful Dijon ink and I stamped another bell onto Mint Macaron CS using Emerald Envy ink.  I punched out the two bells, glued them together and added a Cherry Cobbler die cut bow and a rhinestone jewel.  I made the spinner element with washers and CS circles sandwiched together with a round 3D foam dot.  I placed the spinner in the channel and popped up the panel onto the front of a Cherry Cobbler 5 3/4" square card base.  I stamped and fussy cut the sentiment banner and popped that up.  I added a Mint Macaron die cut decorative corner which I embellished with a 1/4" Cherry Cobbler circle topped with a rhinestone jewel.  I also added a rhinestone jewel to the centre of the ribbon knot.

Here's the inside and the envelope.   I added a strip of Emerald Envy taffeta ribbon above the patterned paper.  I really wanted to use the fancy scroll image from the 'Seasonal Bells' set somewhere and I stamped it underneath the sentiment.  It looked a bit like a Christmas tree so I stamped and punched a star to go on the top to complete that look!  I adhered two bells and a bow to the envelope flap to finish off.

I then made an easel card using the Star of Light bundle.  I'll share that card tomorrow.

Supplies:
Stamps: SU! 'Seasonal Bells' & 'Merry Minis' sets, Hero Arts 'Holiday Cheer' set
CS: SU! Cherry Cobbler, Emerald Envy, So Saffron & Whisper White
Patterned paper: SU! 'Presents & Pinecones' DSP
Ink: SU! Cherry Cobbler, Emerald Envy & Delightful Dijon
Tools: SU! 'Bell' punch, SU! 'Pretty Pines' Thinlits die set, SU! 'Merry Minis' punch pack, MFT Die-namics 'Photo Corners' die set, 1/4" circle punch 
Embellishments & accessories: SU! Cherry Cobbler & Emerald Envy taffeta ribbon, rhinestone jewels, Dimensionals, 3mm 3D foam tape, round 3D foam dot, washers

September 2016 Card Group Projects

On Thursday we got together for our September card group meeting.  From now until November all the card group projects will be Christmas related.  Due to lack of time owing to a busy work schedule and with Owen's illness last year I didn't make many Christmas cards and I didn't buy a lot of new Christmas stuff.  I've made up for that this year - a lot of new SU! Christmas goodies have been added to my stash!  I used some of my new goodies to make three Christmas cards for the ladies to make.

First up is this simple but stylish stocking card which I CASEd from a card shown on page 15 of the SU! Autumn-Winter catalogue.  I used Mint Macaron, Cherry Cobbler and Emerald Envy for my colour combo and the patterned paper is from the 'Presents & Pinecones' DSP pack.  I popped up the sentiment banner and the stocking.

Here's the inside and the envelope.  I thought it would be cute to hang the small stocking from the 'J'!

For the second card I used the gorgeous 'Pretty Pines' Thinlits die set plus the 'Merriest Wishes' stamp set and 'Merry Tags' Framelits die set.  The card base measures 5 1/4" square and I added an Old Olive mat layer.  I glued a strip of patterned paper plus a die cut grosgrain ribbon strip to a square white panel, glued the die cut pine boughs and greenery sprigs in place and adhered the white panel to the card.  I absolutely love the tag die with the deer and tree scene and I thought it would make a lovely ornament to hang from a pine bough.    I stamped the sentiment in Early Espresso ink and then die cut the tag.  I punched a 2" white circle to go behind the tag and coloured it pale blue with a ProMarker.  I used the same pale blue marker to add some colour below the snow line and then used brown and green markers to colour the deer and trees.  I glued the tag and 2" circle together to make the ornament, added a Cherry Cobbler die cut bow with a rhinestone in the centre and I popped up the ornament.  To complete the card front I added some deep red pearls to the dark green sprigs.     

Here's the inside and the envelope which I decorated with stamps from the 'Merriest Wishes' set.  I stamped the snowy background in Soft Sky ink and stamped the 'Be Joyful' over the top in Early Espresso ink.  

The third card is a fun snowflake spinner card using the 'Flurry of Wishes' stamp set.  I borrowed the 'Sliding Star' Framelits die set from my good friend Lesley a few weeks ago and I loved how easy the dies make it to create a spinner or slider card so I had to get the set for myself!  I used Pool Party and Night of Navy along with Whisper White as my colour combo.  

I glued the Night of Navy mat layer to the front of the A6 sized Pool Party card base.  I stamped a white panel with snowflakes and the sentiment and then die cut the spinner channel.  I glued a piece of Whisper White CS to the Night of Navy mat layer so that would show through the channel.  I think all the ladies at card group liked the Night of Navy showing through the channel so they left that step out - it's all down to personal preference!  I stamped the two snowflakes image from the stamp set onto Pool Party CS and cut them out using the 'Snow Flurry' punch.  I made a spinner element by placing a round 3D foam pad between two pennies and I inserted that into the channel.  I adhered the larger of the two snowflakes to the penny and checked that it was able to spin freely.  Hmmm, I wasn't 100% happy with how that looked, I felt something was lacking so I took it off and tried something else!  

I still have the retired SU! 'Festive Flurry' stamp set and matching dies - they won't be leaving my craft room any time soon, if ever! - and I die cut a Night of Navy 'Festive Flurry' snowflake and glued the Pool Party stamped and punched snowflake shape over the top - I thought that looked much better!  I inserted the new snowflake spinner into the channel and popped up the white panel using 3mm thick 3D foam tape.  To complete the card front I added some die cut photo corners.  This card was such a hit that I've said I'll design another spinner card for next time!   

Here's the inside and the envelope.  I used the smaller stamped and punched snowflake to decorate the envelope flap.

Supplies for stocking card:
Stamps: SU! 'Hang Your Stocking' set, Hero Arts 'Miracle of the Holidays' set
CS: Mint Macaron, Cherry Cobbler & Whisper White 
Patterned paper: SU! 'Presents & Pinecones' DSP pack
Ink: SU! Mint Macaron, Emerald Envy, Cherry Cobbler
Tools: SU! 'Christmas Stockings' Thinlits die set, MFT 'Fishtail Flags' Stax die
Embellishments & accessories: SU! Dimensionals

Supplies for pine bough & ornament card:
Stamps: SU! 'Merriest Wishes' set
CS: SU! Old Olive, Mossy Meadow, Cherry Cobbler, Whisper White (regular & thick)
Patterned paper: SU! 'Presents & Pinecones' DSP pack
Ink: SU! Old Olive, Early Espresso & Soft Sky, ProMarkers - Pastel Blue, Pear Green, Tan, Burnt Sienna 
Tools: SU! 'Pretty Pines' Thinlits die set, SU! 'Merry Tags' Framelits die set, circle punches
Embellishments & accessories: deep red pearls, SU! rhinestone jewel, Dimensionals

Supplies for snowflake spinner card:
Stamps: SU! 'Flurry of Wishes' set
CS: SU! Pool Party, Night of Navy & Whisper White (regular & thick)
Ink: SU! Pool Party & Night of Navy
Tools: SU! 'Snow Flurry' punch, SU! 'Sliding Star' & 'Festive Flurry' Framelits die sets, MFT Die-namics 'Photo Corners' die set, Die'Sire 'Decorative Corner 1' die set, circle punches
Embellishments & accessories: iridescent blue gem, 3D foam tape, round 3D foam pad, two pennies

Hearts Wedding Anniversary Spinner Card

Blimey, it's been a while, I've been too busy for crafting and blogging - which is NOT good!  I've popped in today to quickly share the card I made to give to my hubby Owen on our wedding anniversary last week.

I made this card a few weeks ago while I still had Lesley's SU! 'Sliding Star' Framelits die set on loan.  The kraft card base measures 5 3/4" square  and I used various papers from the Studio Light 'My Botanic Garden' 6" x 6" paper pad.  For the spinner element I layered two punched heart shapes together and I cut the track using the arch shaped die from the 'Sliding Star' die set.  To complete the card front I added some metal adhesive gems.

Here's the inside and the envelope.

Supplies:
Stamps: Stampendous 'Happy Anniversary', Clearly Besotted 'Brushed Greetings II' set
CS: SU! kraft & Soft Suede
Patterned paper: Studio Light 'My Botanic Garden' 6" x 6" paper pad
Ink: SU! Soft Suede
Tools: SU! 'Sliding Star' Framelits die set, X Cut 'Hearts' Nesting Dies set, sponge dauber
Embellishments & accessories: 3D foam tape, Marianne Designs metal adhesive gems 

Sparkly Silver Star Spinner Card

Thanks to my very lovely friend Lesley I was able to play with the SU! 'Sliding Star Framelits' die set.  I watched this SU! video on YouTube before I used the dies and I'm glad I did because Holly mentions orientation of the dies - which is important if you want to make a SPINNER card rather than a SLIDER card.

I made my star element by layering two die cut star shapes which I fixed together with a black brad.  I used two pennies sandwiched together with a round 3d foam pad as the spinner mechanism.  I tried it first using the circle track - the element spun nicely when it was at the bottom but it didn't move so smoothly when trying to manoeuvre it up and round. I tried it with the arch track, oriented as a 'smiley face' and it spun beautifully!    I love spinner cards and much prefer them to slider cards but that's just a personal preference.  I remembered making THIS CARD for Owen back in 2014 which shows that as long as you have circle dies you can easily make a circle track card.  For me the best die in this set is the arch and when used as a 'smiley face' rather than a 'rainbow' the spin is fabulous!

I made an A6 black card base, added a white mat layer and a piece of black CS to show through the arch aperture.  I popped up the black arch track panel and placed the star spinner element in the track.  I then added the sparkly silver strip, the popped up sentiment and two small stars.

The card is quite bulky because of the popped up elements so it was a tight squeeze into a normal envelope so I used a gusseted envelope.  Here's how I decorated the inside and the front of the envelope.

This card will be given to a lovely young man, Will, who is leaving Wilko soon to go to university.  I asked him what he would be studying and it's physics and astrophysics.  A no brainer to use stars on his card then!

Supplies:
Stamps: Penny Black 'Every Happiness' set
CS: SU! Basic Black & Whisper White, Silver Glimmer Paper
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Tools: SU! 'Sliding Star' Framelits die set, Sizzix 'Stars' Framelits die set, Spellbinders 'Label Trio' die set, Sizzix 'Card, Fancy Frame Flip-its #2' Framelits die set
Embellishments & accessories: black brad, 3D foam pads & SU! Dimensionals

Getting In A Spin At The Glitter Pot - Two Spinner Class Cards

What a grey and rainy day today was - perfect crafting weather!  This morning I ran a class at the Glitter Pot - the lovely ladies who came along got in a spin with me as I ran a Spinner Cards class.  I love how fun these cards are and it's great fun sharing them with other card makers!  To make a spinner card you sandwich thin thread between two back to back shapes and suspend the element within an aperture.  Before placing the card in an envelope you twist the thread a few times and then when the recipient opens the card the element spins round. These are perfect cards for youngsters - and for those adults who are still very much young at heart!

This square card features a hot air balloon spinner element.  I applied Stormy Sky and Tumbled Glass Distress Inks to a die cut rectangle and glued that on the inside of the card.  I die cut some clouds, edged each cloud with Stormy Sky ink and glued those to the rectangle panel - I love how they look behind the suspended balloon!

Before the class started I bought some new ink blending sponges (Smoothies made by Creative Expressions) so we could try them out on the class.  The packaging said "perfect ink blending every time" and I wanted to know if they'd live up to that claim!  The Smoothies are egg shaped, latex sponges, very comfortable to hold - and they are brilliant, we were very impressed!  I tried a Smoothie with a stencil, just dabbing ink with the sponge through the stencil and the results were impressive there too!

For the other spinner card I chose a very springlike colour combo and suspended a butterfly as a spinner element.  I inked the edges of the yellow paper and the the sentiment panel with Dusty Concord Distress Ink. I added a cluster of punched flowers and finished off the card with some yellow pearls.  

A yellow and purple combo always make me think of Spring - must be those lovely pansy colours!  I'm particularly fond of these tiny violas in yellow and purple with the adorable name of "Johnny Jump Up"!

In the afternoon I ran a Triple Time Stamping class - stay tuned, I'll share those cards very soon!

Supplies for balloon card:
Stamps: Woodware 'Double Birthdays'
CS: Glitter Pot Thick White Card, Glitter Pot black card
Patterned paper: Pebbles Special Delivery Boy 'Little Star'
Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black, Stormy Sky & Tumbled Glass Distress Inks
Tools: Memory Box 'Beautiful Balloon' & 'Puffy Clouds' dies, rectangle Nestabilities dies, Woodware regular star punch, Creative Expressions Smoothies ink blending sponges
Embellishments & accessories: thin beading thread

Supplies for butterfly card:
Stamps: Woodware 'Double Birthdays'
CS: Glitter Pot Thick White Card, 'Wisteria' & 'Purple Majesty' Core'dinations
Patterned paper: Doodlebug Springtime 'Spring Things'
Ink: Dusty Concord Distress Ink
Tools: Memory Box 'Isabella Butterfly' & 'Pippi Butterfly' dies, circle Nestabilities dies, Woodware regular flower punch, sponge dauber
Embellishments & accessories: thin beading thread, yellow pearls

Suspended Snowflake Spinner Card - 52 CCT Sept Stash Challenge

The lovely Asha, our September challenge hostess, has a fabulous stash challenge for us this week at 52 {C}CT - Diamonds & Pearls.  Well, I had a blast making my card for this challenge!  My 'diamonds' are SU! Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper and rhinestone jewels and for the pearls I used pearl jewels plus white with a hint of silver pearl CS. 

 

First off I made a 5 3/4" square Night of Navy card base and  I die cut the circle burst from a square of gorgeous Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper.  The Memory Box 'Large Circle Burst' die has been on my want list for a long while and I gave into the temptation very recently!  I was delighted to find that one of my favourite SU! 'Festive Flurry' snowflake stamps was the perfect size for the circle aperture and I stamped the snowflake onto the pearl CS in Night of Navy ink.  I knew the ink wouldn't dry on the coated pearl CS so I heat embossed the image with clear powder.  Then I had a light bulb moment - it occurred to me I could use the holes of the die to suspend the snowflake within the aperture.  I cut the circle burst from the front of the navy card base and glued the Dazzling Diamonds panel over the top.  I stamped and heat embossed another snowflake, die cut the two shapes, threaded silver thread through two holes, tied a knot and glued the two snowflakes back to back on either side of the thread.  Not only is the snowflake suspended within the aperture but if you twist the thread a few times before placing the card in an envelope the snowflake will spin when the recipient opens the card!  I haven't made a spinner card in a while so it was fun playing with that for a few moments - I really should get out more LOL!

Here's the card when it's closed ready to slip inside the envelope.  I added pearl and rhinestone jewels on the outer circle of holes, placed Night of Navy die cut corners and added punched pearly snowflakes.  One thing about this circle burst die is you get lots of dots left over from die cutting so I placed a larger sparkly dot on each snowflake centre followed by a teeny tiny rhinestone.  

Here's the card open showing the suspended snowflake.

 

Here's the card fully open.  Talk about precision placement - I had to get the Night of Navy and white circles in exactly the right position because I wanted the white circle to show behind the snowflake - but with the sentiment hidden - and the navy showing behind the two rows of dots.  Easily done thanks to Collall photo glue (AKA snotty glue!) which gives you time to wiggle your pieces into place before the glue dries! 

Stamped snowflakes and a die cut name label on the front of the envelope completed the card.

Do please join us this week, have fun making a card and link it up at our 52 {C}CT Diamonds & Pearls stash challenge - it will be great to add another Christmas card to your stash!

Supplies:
Stamps: SU! 'Festive Flurry' set, Stampendous 'Small Merry Christmas', PSX 'Snowflake Medley', IndigoBlu 'Snowflake Lace'
CS: SU! Night of Navy & Whisper White, Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper, white with a hint of silver Centura Pearl CS
Ink: SU! Night of Navy
Tools: Memory Box 'Large Circle Burst' die, SU! 'Festive Flurry' Framelits die set, MFT 'Photo Corners' Die-Namics die set,  X Cut snowflake punch, circle Nestabilities dies, label dies from Sizzix 'Card, Fancy Frame Flip-Its #2' Framelits die set, heat tool
Embellishments & accessories: clear embossing powder, SU! rhinestone & pearl jewels, PaperMania teeny tiny gems