12/21/2007

all-occasion cards

I am huge fan of Leslie Miller. She has an amazing blog here, and within this incredible site is an amazing tote bag, complete with tutorial...perfect for a stack of cards & envelopes for gift giving! My mission: to create 2 sets of 'generic' cards, suitable for most all occasions, in a gift tote suitable for gift giving. Leslie's tote idea came to the rescue!!! This Lockhart butterfly is ideal for all happy occasions: birthday, thank you, thinking of you, and so forth. EASY to color - that is what I love - looks hard and time consuming, but here is my shortcut trick - color in whole image with details (like the wings) with one light color, then go over the image with darker markers in the areas that need details. I used 4 colors for the butterfly, pulled from the colors used in the patterned 7gypsies paper. Quick, simple swipes of color were applied in the lower wings - fast & finished in a jiffy. BV31 - pale lavender Copic marker outlines the whole image, making it pop. Since I needed to include sympathy cards, I cased my sympathy design with Prima flowers and brad centers. I included five of each design for a total of ten cards, plus envelopes in each tote, so I increased Leslie's bag depth from 3/4" to 1-1/4", and used 12x12 cardstock paper. Oval punches (Nestabilities) were stamped, colored, then edges distressed with a Distress pad in Antique Linen and an ink blending tool. I punched scalloped ovals too to mat each image. White cardstock (Papertrey Ink) was stamped with a Lockhart butterfly with Palette Noir, the colored in with Copic markers. Machine stitching on the top borders adds quick & easy details! Thank you for stopping by!! Lockhart Butterfly image; 7gypsies patterned paper (Masai & Asmara), SU light blue, brown, real & ruby red cardstocks; Copic markers, Distress pads in Vintage Photo (outside edges of bag) & Antique Linen; white cardstock from Papertrey Ink, eggshell cardstock from Ellen Hutson; ribbon from Martha Stewart (Michaels) SU & May Arts; large eyelets - We R Memory Keepers; inverted corner rounder - EK Success; pinwheel eyelet collar (on red flower under brad) - Bonnie's Best.

9 comments:

Sharlene said...

Thanks for the link to the tote! It is, indeed, amazing!

Sharlene said...

Oh, I meant to say that your's are gorgeous!

Debbie Fisher (debbiedee) said...

These are beautiful! the colors are so rich!

Anonymous said...

Great bags and lovely cards for them, Wonderful gift!

rozie640 said...

Wow, these are amazing, a lovely gift for sure!

DeniseLynn said...

Wow! These are all great ... perfect eye candy for tired (been-preparing-for-christmas-all-day)eyes. Merry Christmas!

Debbie Olson said...

Cindy, this is a fabulous ensemble! I love the colors, the box, the cards, the coloring--everything about it! You GO girl!

Elizabeth *^..^* said...

Lovely idea!! Butterflies make my heart flutter.

Hamilton Ashton said...

Greatt post thanks