Subway art style cards...

Hi! Here are couple of best of luck cards that I made for my niece and a friend's daughter. Both appeared for their CA exams this year. And I wanted to make something with words of encouragement.

I found this cool download at Luckeyfrog's Lilypad. I just resized it and printed it out on my laser printer. The gold edge is made with Gold EP & heat embossing.

I was very happy with the card and decided to make a similar one, in a different colour scheme.

I thought the red was looking a bit too bright. So I used the Tim Holtz Wood Grain stencil and a dark red ink to tone it down a bit.

Would love to know what you think of these cards!

Love, 
Nan

Card swap...

Hi! I made a bunch of cards for Swap Central India last month. I was really thrilled when Swap Central restarted, after a break, as I have enjoyed each and every swap I have participated in!

I had to wait till the cards were officially 'revealed' on their blog. So here I am, finally, with my set of cards.

The first card is a square 'Thank You' card.

The base is pink handmade paper. The DP is actually a tissue paper that is attached to some thick card stock using cling film. I had seen the tutorial for this a long time ago. Unfortunately I don't remember where. I tried it and it works beautifully! The sentiment is computer generated and printed. Some green twine and pearls finished the card.

For the second card, I went with a CAS but layered look.

The base is gold handmade paper. The DP is created by gluing diagonal strips of assorted papers onto a piece of scrap paper. I love this technique as it gives a lovely, rich look and also uses up all the scraps of paper that I hate to throw away. This particular strip is left over from two previous cards. You can check them out here and here. 

I used gold embossing powder for the sentiment. The floral gems are from my stash.

The third card uses a new technique that I tried for the first time. The original tutorial is by the amazingly talented Jennifer Mcguire. You can check it out here.

Supplies used are green and pink hand made paper. The embossing folder is from Itsy Bitsy. I used green and pink pigment inks for the embossed panel. I did struggle a lot to finish this card as nothing seemed to work after I had assembled the layers. Finally I decided to keep things simple and heat embossed the sentiment in white.

I used some tiny pearls to add a little bit of glamour to the card.

The final two are my favourites.

The card base is water colour paper. The panel is coloured using acrylic paints in blue and red. The butterflies are punched and then covered with glitter. I also covered the flourish die cut with glitter to make it pop.

I stamped the sentiment using my favourite Micia stamp set and dark blue sketch pen.

The fifth card turned out so much better than I imagined that I almost didn't send it!

The background is handmade paper, coloured using acrylic colours in pink, orange and yellow. I used my favourite Chloe Stem die by Memory Box. 

The sentiment is computer generated and printed on translucent paper. I added some pearls to finish the card.

Here is a consolidated image of all the 5 cards.

I really enjoyed this swap and am looking forward to the next. You can check it out here.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Love,
Nan

Second card of the day...

Hi! Yesterday was one of the really rare days when I actually managed to make 2 cards. Of course I am very sleepy now! But it was fun.

My starting point was the current challenge at The Card Concept: Challenge #4 - Use a Floral theme

I used the sketch from CAS - Colours and Sketches Challenge #63.

I went for a Clean and Simple (CAS) look, which is my favourite style. I love the neon bright flower and the bold sentiment.

The sentiment was created digitally and printed out.

The flower is done using tea bag folding technique and finished with a wood button.



Also entering this card in the following challenges:

Addicted to Stamps and More: ATSM Challenge #84 - Clean and Simple

The Friday Mashup! FM149 - Spring Flowers

I hope you liked this card. I certainly did!

Love,

Nan

Best of luck...

Hi! Three of my friends have daughters who will be appearing for the 12th exams this month. So I have been busy making cards to wish them luck.

The first card is based on the Seize the Sketch #14.

My take is this

I used the colour palette from the ColorQ Challenge #230

I have been quite obsessed with subway art of late. I found a very nice word art freebie at Luckeyfrogs Lilypad which I processed and printed out. I decided to combine the word art with chalkboard style card, which is first for me. So I am also entering it into the Lulupu Challenge #26 - try something new.



I also added a small four leaf clover charm. Since I did not have a thick foil, I simply folded the regular thin foil few times and then punched out the shape.



I am also entering this card in the Less is More Week 160 - Metal.

That's all from for now. Will be back soon with the second card.

Love,
Nan

A birthday card...

Hi! I am back with a card which I made for a very dear friend. After a very long time, I actually made a card at one go. Normally my projects take couple of days, since I have to craft around a very active toddler.

I used the sketch from Retro Sketches #100.

The theme and colour palette is from Beyond Grey Challenges' BGC #45 - Colour Palette + Sweet tooth.

 

I decided to make a Center Step Card, the tutorial is available at Splitcoaststampers.



Supplies used are white handmade paper, yellow card stock and various scraps of pattern papers from my stash.

The cake is a digital stamp from Paperprintables and the sentiment is from Create with TLC. Both are free downloads.



I coloured the image using Faber Castell sketch pens. The stars were done with a gold glitter pen. I also used glitter pens in pink, gold, blue and orange to accentuate the sentiment.



The sentiment inside is again a freebie from Create with TLC and I continued with the banner theme inside.

I also decorated the envelope quickly, with some left over triangles.

Entering this card in the following challenges:

Retro Sketches - #100
I used their lovely sketch

Beyond Grey Challenges - BGC #45 - Colour Palette + Sweet Tooth
I used the image of a cake and the all the colours in the palette.

Paper Players - PP#181 - Anne Marie's Theme Challenge
I used the image of a cake.

Love,
Nan

A digital layout...

Hi! A quick post today.

I made a digital scrapbook layout for the Indian Scrappers 2013 Scrapbook Challenge #5, hosted by the talented Banu Honnavara.

This time it was a sketch, which I love making.

I used the colours from Dynamic Duos Challenge blog - DD#65, warm pink and soft green.

And my take on these two challenges is this

The kit I used is Tourbillons de Calins, a freebie I downloaded ages ago from Digital Crea.

Love,
Nan

My entry for Indian Scrapper's Challenge #3

Hi! I am here with a digital layout this time. This is my entry for the Indian Scrappers Challenge #3.

The Indian Craft Room hosts a challenge every month for Indian scrappers. There is a different theme every month and the goal is to complete 12 layouts by the end of 2013. This is also the only Indian site that I know of which accepts digital layouts.

Unfortunately I missed the deadline last month. But I decided to make it this month.

This month's theme is a fantastic sketch with multiple photos.

I love working with sketches, since they give a clear direction to take. Multiple photo layouts are even more fun because its almost like telling a story! When I saw this sketch, I immediately knew which pics I wanted to use. The layout came together very quickly and I am very, very pleased with it.

I used the kit Tyke by Rachel Dickson which I had downloaded as a freebie from the site {computer}scrapbook. I have also used assorted brushes, fonts and embellishments to make the layout.



I deliberately kept the journaling simple because, honestly, the pics say it all. 



The title probably took up the maximum time as I ended up using a mix of fonts and styles.




It was great making this layout as I got back to digital after a long time. Looking forward to making more in the near future. And still trying to gather my courage to attempt a physical layout soon!

Love,
Nan

A digital layout...

Hi! Back again with a digital scrapbook layout. This is my entry for the Indian Scrappers 2013 Scrapbook Challenge #1 by the Indian Craft Room. Here is the challenge pad:

There are going to be 12 challenges thru' the year and I have a strong resolve to complete all. It will be a good way to try my hand at scrapbooking. As digital layouts are welcome, I decided to make one first. Hopefully, I will be able to make a physical one too.

For the first challenge, Banu of ICR has given a fab sketch.

I really liked the possibilities of this sketch. So my take on this is:

The tough part was selecting the images to use.

I used the Sit Back and Relax kit that I had downloaded as a freebie from the site Digital Crea a long time back. The layout is 12 x 12 inches. 

I converted the photos to grayscale as I wanted a softer feel. The doily is a Photoshop brush downloaded from the Brush Directory.

I had a lot of fun making this layout as it gave me chance to brush up my Photoshop skills. Also, I learnt a lot about changing the colors of digital elements.

I am also entering this in Beyond Grey's BGC #28 - All boy/ Masculine Challenge. I hope digital layouts are acceptable.

Love,
Nan

Digital layouts...

I was doing a bit of spring cleaning in my PC and came across some digital scrap book layouts that I had done last year. I was almost due then and did not want to take up anything new. So I decided to use up the time to teach myself scrapbooking. Some of the layouts I ended up posting on my FB page. I thought I will also post them on my blog now.

All the papers and elements I have used are freebies that have been downloaded from the internet. 

This was the first layout I ever did. And had so much fun doing it that I had to make more!

This layout was for a sketch challenge, I don't remember which.

The day we brought our Nano home...

A memorable trip to Cape Town and probably the most memorable day of the trip!

First time I specifically took pics to make a layout...

I must make a special mention of Kristina Werner of kwernerdesign. She has been a huge inspiration. I am a total fan of her technique videos (and so is my daughter!). Most of what I have learnt has been through her videos on the Basic Grey website. So thanx a ton Kristina and Basic Grey!

Thats all for tonight. I will post more layouts soon. Hope you guys enjoyed them.

Love,
Nan