Inspiration
I am headed to a house-warming party for a coworker this evening, and had this card in my head all week. I’ve had the birdhouse image for years, and always seem to pull it out when I need a house- or home-themed card.
I used the house-warming theme to let me play with some new toys – the Spellbinders Kaleidoscope Pendant and Classic Frame dies, and the brand new iTop Brad Maker tool from Imaginisce. (Now, all the blogs say the iTop won’t be available until September 1, but I found it at Michael’s just this week!) I’ve put a list of links at the bottom of the post so you can find more info on all of items used in the card.
This is a card that has quite a few steps and techniques all combined into a single card, but so much fun to create and share – I can’t wait to deliver it in person!
Ingredients
CARDSTOCK: Stampin’ Up!: Bashful Blue, Gable Green, Barely Banana (textured), Bashful Blue Designer Series Paper. Papertrey Ink: Stamper’s Select White
STAMPS: Stamps Happen, Inc.: English Cottage Birdhouse
INK: Stampin’ Up!: Bashful Blue, Gable Green, Barely Banana
ACCESSORIES: Spellbinders dies: Classic Frames, Labels 4, Kaleidoscope Pendant; Provo Craft: Cuttlebug; Imaginisce: iTop Brad Maker, 16mm Brad Daddies, Small Topper Punch; Other items: Corner punch (SU!); COPIC markers; Yellow Souffle pen (Sakura); Barely Banana ribbon (SU!); Bow-Easy; Sponges; Scor-Pal; Foam tape; Glue dots; Xyron 5” sticker maker; Adhesive Transfer Gun 714 (Scotch); Rotary trimmer with straight blade (Fiskars), Scissors
Instructions
This card is easier if you get all the cutting done first, then build the layered image, create your bow, then assemble of the card.
CUT THESE ITEMS:
- Blue card stock, 9 1/2” x 6 1/4”, score in the middle at 4 3/4”.
- Green card stock using the Classic Frame die - cut and emboss. Before removing the paper from the die, sponge green ink over the stencil to highlight embossed areas.
- Run a small piece of green card stock through the sticker maker, then cut and emboss the paper with the small corner die from Kaleidoscope Pendant set - cut and emboss. Before removing the paper from the die, sponge green ink over the stencil to highlight the embossed areas. You’ll need to do this 4 times – one for each corner.
- Designer paper using the Classic Frame die - cut and emboss. Save the frame for another card sometime – this card uses the inside rectangle.
- Yellow card stock using the largest Label 4 die - cut and emboss. Sponge yellow ink around the outside of the label.
- Stamp the birdhouse on white paper, then use the second-largest Label 4 die to cut and emboss. Some of the image will be cut off the sides – that’s ok! We’re doing layers – you’ll never miss it. Sponge blue ink around the outside of the label.
BUILDING THE IMAGE:
The image is made of 3 layers: the first is the embossed label, the second is the birdhouse without the post, and the final layer is in 3 pieces: the roof, the bird, and the fence. Get ready with your best scissors for detailed cutting!
- Color the image on the embossed label. Since we will be building layers, you don’t have to color everything – color what will show (the post), and about a 1/2” around the edge of the rest of the image.
- Stamp the birdhouse two more times on white paper.
- Color one image completely, except for the bottom post, using COPICs. Trim it closely.
- Color the additional layer pieces (roof, bird, fence). Hint: use the Souffle pen for the flower centers – just another way to create dimension. Trim each one individually (it’s pretty tedious, but just keep remembering you end up with a really nice card).
- Mount the layers exactly on top of each other using the foam tape.
CREATE THE BOW:
- Tie a bow in yellow ribbon, using the Bow-Easy tool.
- Use the Small Topper Punch to punch a blue designer paper topper for the brad, then make a 16mm brad using the iTop tool.
- Use a paper piercer tool to punch a hole through the center of the bow, and put your new matching brad through the center of the bow.
ASSEMBLE THE CARD:
- Use the corner punch to trim the corners of the blue base card.
- Peel the backs off the green corner die cuts, and mount one in each corner.
- Mount the designer blue paper in the center of the card using adhesive.
- Using foam tape, mount the green frame over the designer blue paper.
- Using foam tape, mount the layered image label on the yellow label, then mount the whole set on the right side of the green frame.
- Mount the bow in the upper left corner – I used foam tape in the center, and a glue dot on each ribbon loop.
Thanks for stopping by!
