Graduation Congratulations!

I was thrilled to make a graduation card last week for a dear friend who has been diligently working towards her Ph.D.!! Now that DR. Katie has the card in hand, I can share it here.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't struggle with this one. When I finally agreed with myself to use her school colors, though, the rest of the card fell into place. I wanted to give Dr. Katie the ultimate gold star (remember getting those stars as a little kid?), and the Medallion stamp seemed perfect. I embossed it with a very juicy Versamark pad and Gold Fire Opal embossing powder onto Elegant Eggplant cardstock. No sooner did I finish that step than I wished I had used textured cardstock -- so I added my own look of texture with a stamp from Stampin' Up!'s Extreme Elements set.

I've had my eye on the Happy Grad single stamp and Go, Graduate stamp set in the Summer Mini since I first saw them, and was sitting here kicking myself for not getting them in time to make this card -- when suddenly I remembered that Stampin' Up! offers both of them as digital downloads! I dashed to the SU! website to download them, and then spent a nice hunk of time playing with the images to get them the sizes I wanted. (This process would have been faster if I owned SU!'s My Digital Studio program... but it's still on my wishlist!) When everything was the way I wanted it, I printed it onto Shimmer White cardstock for an added touch of sophistication.

I settled on the Happy Grad sentiment for the front of the card. I didn't want to totally cover the Medallion, but I also didn't want the sentiment so small it couldn't be read. I did a happy dance when I realized that since I was sending this card inside a package, an envelope would be optional! I could let the sentiment hang off the edge of the card! I really, really like this look!


Here you can get an idea of how glitzy the embossed Medallion is:


I decided the inside of the card should be a little more whimsical to reflect Dr. Katie's personality. I had fun using the spotlight technique to highlight the grad in tennis shoes:


Stamps: Extreme Elements, Medallion
Digital stamps: Go, Graduate (includes Happy Grad)
Colors: Elegant Eggplant
Punches: Ticket Corner, circle punches
And: Shimmer White cardstock, Gold Fire Opal embossing powder, Copic markers

I've probably been driving Dr. Katie crazy with all my gushing these past few weeks, but I really am so very proud of her! (Got that, Katie? Love you!)

Smiles,
Joyce Spear a.k.a. StamperJoyce

Mission: More "Guy" Birthday Cards

I got one whopping card done today -- yeah, I'm underwhelmed. I decided to replace the Dusty Durango Medallion card from a couple posts ago, and instead add this one to the set of "man cards" I'm making.

Actually, this card was pretty easy. I just embossed the Medallion onto Night of Navy using VersaMark and silver embossing powder. As I was admiring the result, I bashed the heat gun nozzle into the edge of the medallion and smeared the silver, so that was my inspiration for cutting the Medallion panel around to a smaller size. I layered it onto Brushed Silver cardstock and a card base of Night of Navy. I tried a million different things in the center of the Medallion, but finally settled on a simple silver brad. The "Birthday Wishes" sentiment is from Garden Greetings, stamped in Night of Navy and shaped with the Modern Label punch. A bit of strategically placed paper piercing, and Voila'!

Mission: Continued

I try not to be a whiner, but today my heart is as heavy as lead -- so either indulge me as I blow off steam, or scroll down to look at the photos you came to see.

For one, I found out this week that my diabetes is to the point where I have to take insulin shots before every meal and every snack, and test my blood glucose levels at least five times a day from now on. My insulin expenses will be over $100 more than what I've been paying for my one-a-day shot, and with my fixed income I'm scared about my finances. As if all that isn't a kick in the teeth, I also got socked in the gut for trying to be helpful to someone in one of my Yahoo! groups, and for reasons unknown I'm finding it very hard to let go of the hurt. Ever have something bug you SO MUCH and you don't know why? Then you know what I mean.

Okay, enough indulgence. On with the show!

I've continued to work on the "guy" birthday cards anyway, although it seems like everything I've touched these last few days has turned to crud. I'm hoping I'm the only one who is less than impressed with these three cards, and that given how things are going perhaps I'm being too harsh on myself.

The following card looks nothing like it did in my head! The card base is Chocolate Chip, and on that is a panel of Dusty Durango on which the Medallion has been stamped in White Craft ink and embossed with Iridescent Ice embossing powder. The big polka dots were made by a pencil eraser head and embossed to match the Medallion. I sponged some more Dusty Durango on the panel, and then in the center of the Medallion placed a white Jumbo Grommet with a Chocolate Chip corduroy button brad. I layered some Corner punches... and then decided to stop playing around before I REALLY mucked things up!


The remaining two cards are made with Elegant Eggplant, More Mustard, and Autumn Traditions DSP. The Trendy Trees were stamped in Always Artichoke and Soft Suede, and the sentiment in Elegant Eggplant. This first card is super simple in layout, with a single More Mustard grosgrain ribbon bow as the sole embellishment.


The second Autumn Traditions DSP card I made has the Trendy Tree in a circle of More Mustard and Scallop Circle of Elegant Eggplant, all of which is layered with Stampin' Dimensionals on the reverse side of a bit of Soft Suede polka-dotted grosgrain ribbon. I used the Modern Label punch on the sentiment and then layered it on a scrap of Elegant Eggplant. I stuck with a super simple layout on this card, too, because I really wanted to show off the DSP.


I'm going to bed early tonight in hopes that tomorrow will give me a lighter heart and a fresh start. I think for the remaining four "guy birthday" cards, I should work with blues instead of this autumny stuff... but we'll see what tomorrow brings.

P.S. Lookie! A new blog name and header! "Stamping for Sanity" is being used by someone else, so I've renamed my blog "StamperJoyce's Creative Corner." Back in 2007 when I chose my blog name, I used several search engines to check to see if "Stamping for Sanity" was already taken, but nothing came up. Nevertheless, someone WAS using the name, so I've been wanting to rename my blog for awhile now. "StamperJoyce's Creative Corner" is also the name of my store at www.shophandmade.com, so it all works out. I'm not sure about the blue cloudy sky as the photo background for the header, so I'll be experimenting with different pictures over time. Okay, raise your hand if you're glad to see the psychedelic banner I've had since early this year go away! :)

Iridescent Medallions

The post is a continuation of the project I began on August 30th -- working with handpainted papers I made using a technique by Sherrill Graff and Shirley Munoz. The shimmer you see in the watercolored backgrounds was created using reinkers and iridescent medium, applying them with a stipple brush to saturated Whisper White cardstock.

I found myself a bit unnerved after the last card I made, so I took a few days off and did mundane things like pay bills and grocery shop. Whoopee. Oh, and I also had a birthday in there (September 1), so I was obligated to be taken to Red Lobster for lunch and forced to eat a birthday cake made especially for me. I know... rough, isn't it?

Anyway, after admiring my naked papers for a few days, I decided it was time to get back on the proverbial horse. I made four (yes, four!) cards using the Stampin' Up! Medallion stamped in black on the iridescent paper. Had I been thinking, I would have embossed them with black detail powder; but I will experiment with this at another time. By just stamping in black ink, the iridescence shines right through the medallion, which is a cool effect in itself.

The reinkers I used for this first card were Bermuda Bay with just a hint of Melon Mambo. I trimmed the paper down to A2 size and layered it on Basic Black cardstock after using the Ticket Corner punch to trim the corners. The "To My Friend" sentiment is a rub-on from SU!'s Lovely Lines (part of the Lovely Flowers Bundle being offered as a Level 3 hostess benefit), and I used the Small Oval punch to get it just the right size. The button is from Button Latte collection. That's a wee sliver of Basic Black cardstock in the center of the button.


Brilliant Blue, Tempting Turquoise, and (I think) Bermuda Bay reinkers were used on the background of this next card. In the center of the Medallion is a small flower and clear gemstone brad from the Pretties kit. The white rub-ons are from Eastern Elegance, a retired SU! package.


The background of this first Halloween card was made with Dusty Durango and Summer Sun reinkers. That's a clear gemstone brad from the Pretties kit in the center of the Medallion. "Goblin Greetings" is from the Grateful Greetings set featured in the current Holiday Mini, and I sponged some Basic Black around the edges to grunge it up a bit. I used a white gel pen to give the spider's eyes a freaky look.


This last card for today is similar to the previous one, except the spooky background was made with Lavendar Lace and, hmmmm, is that Bermuda Bay? reinkers. The sentiment is from the Holiday Best Level 1 Hostess set.


I have lots more of this paper, and I want to work with it while it's out on my desk and in my face. It would be a shame to tuck the rest of this stuff away and have it get lost in my stash, so I'm eager to see what else I can come up with!

Monochromatic Medallion

I made this 5-1/2" square card for the Late Night Stampers monochromatic challenge this week. Really, it's not as easy as it sounds!






Here's from a different angle so you can see the clear embossing better:






It came together kinda like this:



1. Stared at my packs of paper, piles of inkpads, boxes and boxes of stamp sets, and wondered for a good half hour what the heck I had gotten myself into.



2. Narrowed it down to something with the Medallion stamp and Rich Razzleberry.



3. Picked out four prints from the Rich Razzleberry Patterns Pack that don't have white in them. (I'm a purist when it comes to monochromaticity.) Had a brilliant idea of using a square of each print to create a larger background to stamp the Medallion on.



4. Changed my mind and picked out one print to stamp the Medallion on.



5. Cut a Rich Razzleberry card base just slightly smaller than 5-1/2" squared (so it would slide into the envelope easier).



6. Used the Eyelet Border punch along the open end of the card.



7. Using the hit-or-miss technique, trimmed a piece of patterned paper to fit in the allotted space on the cardfront.



8. Brayered the Medallion stamp with white craft ink, then sponged Rich Razzleberry onto the stamp. Stamped onto the patterned paper and embossed with clear detail EP.



9. Admired my work, then realized I didn't have a clue what I would do next. (...which is pretty much how all my cards start out, so it doesn't panic me).



10. Sponged some Rich Razzleberry polka-dotted ribbon so that the dots would no longer be glaring white. Added to the left side of the Medallion panel and fiddled with the tie for 10 minutes before throwing a hissy fit and deciding to lay the ribbon flat and just attach a separate bow with a glue dot.



11. Debated if I could pull off using an Ice Circle brad in the center of the Medallion. Decided to go for it. If I had to make the card over, I would opt for a small dyed "Pretties" flower instead. Hindsight is 20/20.



12. Decided I wanted the Medallion panel to not blend into the card base so much, and sponged the base with more Razzleberry to make it darker.



13. Decided I wanted even more contrast, so sponged the edges of the panel with Craft White and Razzleberry ink, then clear embossed it.



14. Finally attached the panel to the card base with some sticky strip. "Ain't no way that panel's going anywhere!"



15. Wished the eyelet border showed better, so put a strip of patterned paper on the inside to back it, then sponged a bit of Craft White and Razzleberry ink for more contrast.



16. Wondered what to do about a sentiment, and finally decided on "Just For You" from Teeny Tiny Wishes stamped onto a bit of Whisper White cardstock sponged lightly with Rich Razzleberry ink. Punched it with a 1-1/4" circle punch, layered it on a 1-3/8" circle of patterned paper, then layered on a Rich Razzleberry Scalloped Circle with pierced scallops. Added a smidge more paper piercing and attached the whole thing to the cardfront with a few Stampin' Dimensionals.



17. Wondered if I was done, but decided the upper right corner needed some paper piercing, too.



18. Took pictures for my blog and the contest entry, then realized I hadn't done anything with the inside. I decided to sponge a bit of Whisper White the size of the front panel and second-generation stamp just a portion of the Medallion on the left.



19. Decided to do the something similar with the envelope, only this time stamping the Medallion on the lower left corner.



20. Figured that life's too short to pull out the camera a second time, especially when it's bedtime, so reminded myself that my readers are intelligent and able to envision what I did with the inside and envelope if I wrote a description.



21. Wondered if anyone actually read every word of this description, lol.



I'm open to feedback on this one. I'll be honest, it's not one of my favorite cards, but I think it's passable. Your thoughts?