Handmade Thank You Cards

My newly wedded brother and his wife have requested at least 30 thank you cards from me.  But they want a few different designs. 

My first one is a pink thank you. It is a dark pink rose patterned cardstock underneath a metallic pink. The metallic pink cardstock is embossed with Lifestyle Crafts polka dots pattern with a flower cut into it. The flower is accented with a gem brad.  I applied "thank you" rub ons to a textured white paper. I glued foam on the back of the nameplate to raise it out a little and then attached it to the card. 

Second design. I wish I would have used silver ribbon, but, its too late now! I made it with letterpressing extras I had. 

I made two of these for them. This design features a black metallic cardstock sheet  embossed with Quickutz's Diamonds embossing folder, off white metallic 'thank you' done with Quickutz's Basic Phrases cookie cutter die, and a pearlescent off white ribbon through a heart shaped rhinestone ribbon slider. 

I made this thank you card with Lifestyle Crafts' Damask plates (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/letterpress/printing-plates/damask-printing-plates.html). I ran the plate without any ink for a real subtle deboss. I topped it off with a pearlescent rainbow ribbon and a silver inked Thank You from Lifestyle Crafts' Flourish plates (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/letterpress/printing-plates/flourish-printing-plates.html).

This one was made using the Wintertide letterpress plates and the same silver thank you from their Wedding set. I added a flourish die cut as an accent. 

I made this card using the Lifestyle Crafts Petals (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/letterpress/printing-plates/petals-printing-plate-set.html) printing plate in teal blue ink with the Thank You in yellow. I really like the color combo!

I kept seeing really pretty Japanese origami paper, so I decided to play around with some. I made a pretty easy cherry blossom and decided to turn it into a red, white, and black thank you card.

I really like this one! For some reason, the yellow ink has been appealing to me lately. It was made using Lifestyle craft's Ruffles plate (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/letterpress/printing-plates/ruffles-printing-plate-set.html) with their yellow ink. I added a stamped thank you with their nesting doily die cut (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/dies/nesting/nesting-lace-doilies.html). 

Continuing with the yellow, I created this one using Lifestyle Craft's Bubbly printing plates (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/letterpress/printing-plates/bubbly-printing-plates.html) for the background. Then I inked the thank you in teal using their Blossoms printing plate (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/letterpress/printing-plates/blossoms-printing-plates.html). I cut the thank you out using their nesting lace ovals die (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/dies/nesting/nesting-lace-ovals.html), added a yellow background to that, and attached it over a ribbon. 

This thank you card was created using Lifestyle Craft's Ruffles printing plate (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/letterpress/printing-plates/ruffles-printing-plate-set.html) and light blue ink. The thank you was inked in silver and cut out using the nesting eyelet rectangles die (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/dies/nesting/nesting-eyelet-rectangles.html) with a complementary silver background attached over a silver ribbon.

This thank you card was created close to Christmas, so I used red and green ink. The background and flower accent for this thank you card were created using Lifestyle Craft's Blossoms printing plate (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/letterpress/printing-plates/blossoms-printing-plates.html). The flower is accented with a green circle die cut and the thank you with a red ribbon.

Another design using the Lifestyle Craft's Ruffles plate (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/letterpress/printing-plates/ruffles-printing-plate-set.html) and light blue ink. I made the thank you pink and added a pink ribbon. 

Most of my handmade thank you cards are available in my store:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/bmc2?section_id=11978954

Handmade Get Well Soon Card

I have this paper doll die set from Lifestyle crafts. It's apparently an older die but I found it on ebay. I used it to make this almost sexy nurse outfit and used it for a card layout for someone not feeling so well.

I made it a #10 card so that it grabs more attention. Nothing is ever a #10!!

Handmade Birthday Card for Guys

I found these thin sheets of real wood at Michaels- on clearance of course! So I picked a few up. I love using different textures! 

One of the ideas I had was to make a card with them for a guy.  I also found a Lifestyle Crafts die cut for a toolbox.  I thought, wow, most of the men I know are total tools! Perfect idea for a card! 

In my store: https://www.etsy.com/listing/112706587/birthday-card-for-men-tool

Rainbow Wedding Invitation

So, I was asked about making a wedding invitation using black, white, and rainbow. I used the template of my Gold Filigree Wedding Invitation, available to view in my Wedding Invitation blog post (http://bmc2bmc2.blogspot.com/2012/09/hand-made-wedding-cards.html). 

I made the gatefold card black instead of gold. The gold inking pictured here will be black- as soon as I get my tool back! I could only find a thicker ribbon for a rainbow pattern. I prefer to use a 3/8'' ribbon but this one is 7/8''. We'll see how it works out. 

Then I have a few options for the paper to make the belly band out of. The only way to decide which looks best is to try them all. 

It may not look like much now, but, I think it'll turn out to be a pretty fun invitation!

I have spent the last few days ribbon hunting! I wasn't sure how I felt about the thick rainbow ribbon. I'm glad I looked around, because I found opalescent rainbow ribbon! I LOVE the idea of this and I can't wait to put it all together!! The effect is sort of hard to capture in a picture, but here goes:

So, the person who originally asked for the rainbow color scheme liked the polka dots. Here is what I came up with using that

And then, I really liked the opalescent ribbon, but it didn't really match the polka dots, so I just used metallic black for the belly band. The trade off for this design is that the color is more subtle. 

The latest variation features a vellum belly band!

Handmade Damask Wedding Invitation

I'm SUPER stoked because I just found Lifestyle craft's Damask printing plates on Ebay for under $10 shipped! So, I had to buy them!

http://lifestylecrafts.com/damask-printing-plates.html

Ideas are already popping into my head! I can't wait for them to arrive! 

So, I did my inking and printing! I ended up with these two square Damask pattern sheets. I also have two different types of pochette invitations. Black on red and red on black. I picked out black and red velvet ribbon to match.

I have my designs done. I just need to find something to keep the petal folds closed. . .

I found some iridescent damask print ribbon to hold the petals shut. Invitation done!

If interested, here's a link to purchase

http://www.etsy.com/listing/116349878/damask-wedding-invitation?ref=sr_gallery_42&ga_search_query=damask+wedding+invitation&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_page=2&ga_search_type=all

Scrapbooking My Wedding

Well, I went into Michaels for an album this morning in preparation of scrapbooking my wedding. 

It got a little out of hand. But! On the plus side, the only item purchased NOT on sale or clearance was the Mambi Chips. Puts me a little more at ease.  

And, meanwhile, I organized all my photos into clusters. Getting our hair done, getting ready at the hotel, wedding layout photos, pre ceremony, ceremony, family pics, before dinner procession, speeches, dinner, cake cutting and smashing!, father daughter dance, bride groom dance, everyone dancing, and then the last photos of the night of me and my new hubby.


I finally had some time to work on this. I might make a title page, I'm not sure yet. But, as I am undecided, I will skip it for now. So, we started with getting our hair done and getting ready at the hotel.  This album will be fall themed, a needed break from the last two wedding books I did which were both white on white. Color is fun!
I trimmed the photos down to different sized squares and glued them onto Bazzill Basics Tangelo card stock. I cut a strip of the card stock with an edging scissors.

Moving onto pages 4 and 5, we have wedding layout photos and then the girls waiting in the hall for the ceremony. I trimmed these photos down and glued them onto Bazzill Basics Yukon Gold paper.  The brown backgrounds are all Bazzill colors, I am alternating a sequence of four shades darkest to light: Bitter Chocolate, Mud Pie, Mocha Divine, and Truffle. There was one photo, the only black and white, which I gave a larger color border and punched out the corners with a Fiskars lace punch. 

Now we're into the ceremony and then pictures afterwards of the bridal party. I trimmed the photos (I always do, I HATE unnecessary background plus then you can fit more photos!) and attached them to The Paper Studio's Natural Botanical paper pad (http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/12-x-12-natural-botanical-premium-cardstock-pack-546846/). I chose a leafy brown pattern from the book.  I attached these photos kind of off center. I like the look.

I skipped pages 8 and 9 because I'm waiting in a reprint. But, for 10 and 11, I just used a cute brown specialty paper with a gold damask pattern- clearance! 

Pages 8 and 9 are basically family photos. I have us with his side for a page and then us with mine for a page. I just took an inch off each side of the Bazzill Basics Mango paper and attached it to the brown papers. I punched half the corners with the Fiskars lace punch, using a different pattern than before. I arranged the photos and just glued them on!

Pages 12 and 13 are dinner and cake photos. It was hard to narrow down the dinner photos, but I used the one I found with the most people looking at the camera and a picture of a cheers. We also smashed cake in each others' faces after the cake cutting. It was totally fun! So, I had to commemorate that as well. I did a double mat design, with the first being the Bazzill Basics Navel orange and mounted them again on a leaf design from the previously mentioned Natural Botanical paper pack (http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/12-x-12-natural-botanical-premium-cardstock-pack-546846/). I used a paper punch and added leaf punches randomly on the Navel cardstock. 

Pages 14 and 15 are of me and my dad during our dance. Page 14 is probably my most favorite photo ever. I started embellishing this photo because I knew I wanted to use the ribbon (clearance, $1!!) and the ribbon slider. Unfortunately, the slider was silver, so it looked kinda dumb with the gold accents on the ribbon. I took some paint and dabbed it into the recessed parts of the slider, and I think it matches way better now.  I mounted these photos onto a sheet of patterned paper I had in my loose paper bin.  

Page 16 and 17 are me and the hubby dancing then everyone having a good time! I used an orange paper from the Natural Botanical paper pack discussed earlier. I just cut two sheets into random squares and then glued the photos on.

Pages 18 and 19 are some photos of me and the hubby and then us with some more friends.  I did it pretty simple, trimmed the photos and mounted them on a brown berry pattern paper from the Natural Botanicals paper pad.  There's only one more page left!!!

Now that I have all my photo layouts done, I can do the embellishing! I started out with the page featuring our memorial to my husband's mother. Because she always liked sunflowers, I chose the stickers for her page.  I added circles of the clearance gold and brown paper scraps behind some photos for added dimension. 

I am completely done with pages 2 and 3. I added some headings in orange as well as some shaped name plates with all of the girls' names. I embellished these pages with paper leaves I found at Michaels. $1!

I am finally done with pages 6 and 7.  I added a few blocks of orange cardstock, one with a sticker that says, To Have and To Hold, and another with everyone's names and party positions. I added some random sized orangey brown gems to bling up the page. 

Finished page 10! It was the photos from the introductions. I used orangey-brown faux flowers and brown pearls for accents. I die cut a yellow leaf shaped and stamped a damask print on to match the damask paper used for the background of the photos.  I placed the phrase "Introducing Mr and Mrs Cassity" in the open spaces. 

And done with page 11! It features our parents' speeches and two head table shots. I titled this page "speeches and toasts." It is accented with the same damask paper as page 10 and the same flowers and pearls. This page has added epoxy frames that I found in the clearance section at Michaels. 

For pages 8 and 9, I chose the title of "family." These two pages were all the 'posey' family photos, so I thought it was fitting. I accented this page with the Mambi Chip leaves I purchased. 

Page 4 showcases our puzzle guest book as well as the tribute to my groom's mother. We had a hurricane candle made in her honor and displayed it next to her photo during our ceremony. 

The final of pages 11 and 12! These were the dinner and cake smashing page. I used Lifestyle  Craft's Parade alphabet for the wording and sunflower stickers with gems. I also found this swirly die on ebay and used that to take up some blank space. 

Pages 14 and 15 are of the Father Daughter Dance. I picked a random paper to use as the background. It doesn't really match as well as I had hoped, but, too late now! I embellished the 8x10 as described above with the painted ribbon slider. I had a Father Daughter Dance sticker which I mounted on a scrap of leftover Bazzill Basics Yukon Gold paper. I cut the paper using Lifestyle Craft's Nesting Eyelet Rectangles (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/dies/nesting/nesting-eyelet-rectangles.html) and mounted it on the next larger size of rectangle, matching the paper to what I mounted the photos on. I accented both pages with little knit flowers I found on clearance at Michaels. 

Page 16! These photos are me and my hubby doing our First Dance. Our song was I've Just Seen a Face by the Beatles. I printed the lyrics on Tangelo paper and die cut it with an eyelet rectangle die (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/dies/nesting/nesting-eyelet-rectangles.html). I also added a sticker I had that has "first dance" by placing it on the orange paper. I accented that with a square of Yukon Gold paper with two corners punched out. I finished the page off with some bronze mosaic stickers and a brown paper flower. 

Page 17 transitions from our first dance to everyone dancing. We really did dance until the venue turned out the lights!  This page was accented with a few gold and white paper flowers. 

Pages 18 and 19 are photos taken of me and my new hubby around the Domes. These pages are accented with brown and white LOVE stickers and one that says Just Married. I also added sparkly flower brads and  a ribbon with a jewel. 

The last page, page twenty, features several outside photos that we took to play with lights. One photographer worked the camera while the other ran behind us and made lights flash. I thought they turned out pretty cool. There's one of the whole party, one of the guys, and then one of me and my husband. I took this paper from the Paper Studio's Natural Botanical paper pack (http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/12-x-12-natural-botanical-premium-cardstock-pack-546846/) and then cut out some eyelet rectangles (http://lifestylecrafts.com/products/dies/nesting/nesting-eyelet-rectangles.html) and randomly placed them behind the photos. I added an 'I thee wed' sticker and some gold and silver heart stickers as embellishments.