"Congratulations" Mixed Media Card for Little Birdie Crafts

Welcome to my creative space!

My niece graduated from high school this month and I created this delightful card to celebrate her special achievement. It features the gorgeous Little Birdie Crafts Fairy Sparkle paper and flower collections along with their fabulous mixed media products. I just adore mixing elegant flowers with a grungy background. To see how I put this card together, please hop on over to the Little Birdie Crafts blog HERE where I have a full photo tutorial. I hope you'll leave some love while you're there.

Here's a supply list for all the products used on this lovely card:

Little Birdie Crafts Supplies

Card Stock 12x12 inch - Fleece White

Fairy Sparkle ~ 12x12" Paper Collection

Fairy Sparkle ~ 6x6" Paper Collection

Fairy Sparkle Flowers ~ Arcadia

Fairy Sparkle Flowers ~ Sparkle Florettes

Fairy Sparkle Flowers ~ Calypso

Fairy Sparkle Flowers ~ Elina

Primed Chipboard ~ Congratulations

Stencil ~ Blotchy 10x18cm

Clear Stamps ~ Script Heart

Clear Stamps ~ Melody

Metal Microbeads ~ Mystique Rose

Metal Microbeads ~ Mute Orchid

Soft Gel Medium ~ Matte

Grainy Texture Paste

Gesso ~ White

Tinted Metallic Paint ~ Glazed Berries

Silicon Glue

Other Products 

Tuskineko ~ Versafine - Imperial Purple

Craft Bug ~ Craft Essentials - Adhesive Foam Squares

Wonder Tape ~ Double Sided Tape 1/4"

Stamen ~ Pink and White From my stash

Liquitex ~ Gesso - Clear

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~

"Dream of Being More" Mixed Media Graduation Card/Home Decor for Scrap & Craft

Welcome to my creative space!

Today I'm sharing a two in one shabby mixed media piece. It's an oversized mixed media graduation card, reinforced with an extra layer of 110lb cardstock so it can be placed on an easel to brighten up a mantel or desk. Rather than using a congratulations or graduation sentiment on the front, I stamped this inspirational sentiment that is perfect for a home decor piece as well as an encouragement to the graduate.

Tips and Techniques

The sweet floral cluster includes Magnolia Flowers, and Pale Pink Mulberry Roses from the Scrap & Craft Store. The gorgeous background paper is from the Craft O'Clock ~ Morning Dreams II Paper Collection. I also fussy cut flower images from the collection to layer under the cluster. The background and borders are stamped with Grille and Grille 3 Stamps from the store. I added a touch of teal color with PanPastels around the edges as well.

Bambino Glue dries clear and is just perfect for adhering texture with Prills and microbeads along with sequins, half pearls, and flakes of teal mica scattered onto the background.

From this angle you can see Pearl Stamens from the store that I tucked in under the rosebuds. I just adore the chipboard from Scrapiniec's Doily Lace Corner Set that I heat embossed in teal, then topped with another layer of blue glittered embossing powder. 

I collect odds and ends to use in my paper crafting from a variety of different sources. The decorative crystal and pearl stick pin is for wedding decor. I also tucked in a couple seashells I found at the shore on one of our vacations as well as a few flowers from my stash. A while back I crocheted some sweet little flowers and came across them recently. I couldn't resist adding one at the edge of the paper flowers.

The sentiment is stamped with Versafine black ink onto watercolor paper. Once dry, I spritzed with water and brushed with M. Graham watercolors, then tore around the words to expose the creamy white paper edges. Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L Foam Squares are used to raise up the sentiment so it sits nicely over the twine wrapped around the card.

I used Finnabair's Light Molding Paste with the Studio75 Small Brick Stencil to add texture and when dry spritzed with Lindy's Gang Starburst Mist, then spattered with white ink.

I got artsy with these sweet summery dragonflies. They're stamped the dragonfly image from Prima's Stamp-N-Add Butterfly Wings Stamps onto watercolor paper, then colored with blue and teal watercolors. It was a bit of extra work to fussy cut them, but well worth the effort! I wanted something shimmery, so added teal seed beads to the long slender bodies with Bambino Glue.

Scrap & Craft Products
Craft O'Clock ~ Morning Dreams II 12x12 Paper Set
Studio75 ~ Pearl Stamens - Pearl White
Studio75 ~ Stencil - Brick, Small
Mulberry Paper Magnolia Flowers x 5 ~ White
Mulberry Roses ~ Pale Pink - 15 mm
Agateria ~ Unmounted Clear Stamp - Grille
Agateria ~ Unmounted Clear Stamp - Grille 3
Scrapiniec ~ Doily Lace Corners Set
Bambino Glue ~ 45 Gram Tube

Other Products
Royal & Langnickel ~ Watercolor Artist Pad - 9x12"
Darice ~ Cardstock - 120 lb, White
Prima ~ Finnabair - Art Ingredients - Melange Art Pebbles
Prima ~ Memory Hardware - Frank Garcia
Wild Orchid Crafts ~ Hip Rosebuds - Mixed Pink Tone
Wild Orchid Crafts ~ English Roses - Mixed Pink
Wild Orchid Crafts ~ Heather Flowers - Pink
Wild Orchid Crafts ~ Gypsophila Flowers - White
Wild Orchid Crafts ~ Beaded Stamen - White
Wild Orchid Crafts ~ 30mm Leaves - White
US Artquest ~ Mini Prills - Silver Lining; Sage Advice
Hemptique ~ Bamboo Cord - 20lb
Sisal ~ Natural
Seashells ~ Found at the Beach
Hand Crocheted Flower ~ by me
Darice ~ TOHO Beads - Round: Silver Lined, Teal
Stampendous ~ Fran-tage - Mica Flakes - Teal
David Tutera ~ Crown Stick Pin - Pearl and Rhinestone
Martha Stewart ~ Microbeads - Apatite; Lapis Lazuli
Martha Stewart ~ Sequins and Half Pearls
Prima ~ Finnabair - Art Basics: Gesso, Clear
Prima ~ Finnabair - Art Basics: Light Paste
Lindy’s Gang ~ Starburst - Bayou Boogie Gold; Golden Sleigh Bells
Ranger ~ Archival Ink - Watering Can
Ranger ~ Embossing Dabber
Blue Fern Studios ~ Imagine Ink - Embossing Powder, Summer Breeze
Tsukineko ~ Versafine Ink ~ Onyx Black
M. Graham & Co. ~ Artists’ Watercolor - Phthalocyanine Green; Prussian Blue
Colorfin ~ PanPastel Artist Pastels - Turquoise 580.5; Phthalo Green 620.5
Sparkle N Sprinkle ~ Embossing Powder - Seafoam Opaque
Higgins ~ Drawing Ink - White
TSUKNEKO ~ Fabrico - Dual Marker, Black
Prima ~ Stamp-N-Add - Butterfly Wings
Tim Holtz with Stampers Anonymous ~ Clear Stamp - Life’s Possibilities
Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L ~ 3D Foam Squares - Regular, White
Helmar ~ 450 Quick Dry Adhesive
Imagine Crafts ~ Tear It!
Wagner ~ HT 400 Heat Gun

Thanks for stopping by! I adore your comments.
~ Blessings ~

"Life Is Art" Graduation Card for RRR

It's official, we're empty nesters!! Maria found a job and has moved in with her sister to be close to work. While aspects of this are just a little crazy for me, I've been preparing and must say that we have been so blessed with our children making wise decisions for their futures. 

Maria graduated just over a week ago, and I'd like to share the card I created for her featuring Really Reasonable Ribbon. 

"Life Is Art"

Graduation Card

Maria is an artist. She has played piano for 10 years and started taking art lessons about 5 years ago. She is quite accomplished. I've been known to say, if I had her talent I wouldn't scrap; I'd draw and paint. She's won several art contests this year and really has the heart of an artist. This may not be a typical sentiment for a graduate, but it just fit Maria perfectly. I hope she embraces the life ahead of her and enjoys the journey. 

Really Reasonable Ribbon Products:

Hand-dyed Silk ~ 1 inch

Iridescent White String

Kaisercraft Pearls

Scor-Tape 6" x 6" Sheet

Tips and Techniques:

Double Loop Bow ~ Bonnie carries the most gorgeous and luxurious hand-died silk ribbon in her store. You really should try some of this fabulous ribbon. This particular color is not currently in stock, but she has some amazing color combinations that are sure to fit your needs. The tutorial by our RRR DT, Ginny, for these sweet bows can be found here. She shows how to tie them right on your fingers. So easy!! 

Mixed Media Background ~ I started by stamping my sentiment with Donna Salazar's Jasmine Mix'd Media Inx, then sprinkled with opaline embossing powder and heat set. 

Then I laid punchinella next to the sentiment and "inked" through the holes with Perfect Medium. Any kind of clear embossing pad should work. I sprinkled with Fran-Tage Shabby White Embossing powder and shaved ice mica then heat set. 

I've had Faber-Castell Gelatos in my stash for some time, but just never have gotten around to trying them out. Let's just say, I'll be using them a lot more now that I've broken the ice. What gorgeous colors and so easy to work with. I scribbled the colors across my nonstick craft mat using similar colors to the ribbon, spritzed with water, then laid my paper into the liquified color. Just like the ribbon colors blend, gradating into each other, the Gelato colors did the same. I just love the effect!!  I colored two pieces - the white cardstock background and then the stamped and heat embossed sentiment on water color paper. 

Once the water color paper was dry, I hand sketched the heart shape around the sentiment, cut it out and hand distressed. The background paper was distressed with my Donna Salazar Distrezz-It-All. 

On the background I took some bubble wrap and painted it with gesso and used as a stamp in places. This is very subtle, but adds great visual texture. I also "stamped" some circles of gesso using a small bottle cap. 

Oh, and wouldn't you know, the sentiment got a little muddied by the mixed media, so I took a white Glaze pen and carefully went over the letters to make them pop again. 

What I love about this technique is that you can really create a custom background to go with any of the hand-dyed silks. 

Pearl Accents ~ I added Kaisercraft pearls from the RRR Store. There are a wide variety of colors to choose from. 

Ribbon ~ I adhered a strip of the hand-dyed silk ribbon across the card using Scor-Tape. I wrapped the Iridescent White String around the ribbon three times, crossing in the center. This string is one of my favorite items in the RRR Store. I already had to order more!! LOL It shimmers so beautifully in the light. Finally, I attached the bow to overlap the heart. 

Other products:

White Cardstock 

Strathmore 140lb Mixed Media Vellum Surface

Bienfang PH Neutral 140lb Watercolor Paper

Faber-Castell Gelatos ~ Metalllic Melon, Metallic Blueberry, Butter Cream, Lemon, Boysenberry, Tangerine

Donna Salazar Mix'd Media Inx ~ Jasmine

Ranger Perfect Medium

Punchinella

Sparkle N Sprinkle Embossing Powder ~ Opaline

Stampendous Fran-Tage Embossing Powder ~ Shabby White

Stampendous Fran-Tage Shaved Ice Mica

Sakura Glaze Pen ~ White

Liquitex Gesso

Bubble Wrap

Bottle Cap

Stampendous Cling ~ Life Is Art Stamp

Beacon 3-in-1 Adhesive

Donna Salazar Distrezz-It-All

Tim Holtz Distress Tool

Tim Holtz Grid Blocks

Ranger Mini Mister

Ranger Craft Mat

EK Cutter Bee Scissors

Martha Stewart Mini Score Board

I've entered this at:

Word Art Wednesday ~ Challenge #82 anything goes or Proverbs 14:26 Word Art

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~