Elegant Cards Made Easy with Graphic 45 & Lori

May is a busy month - on top of all the "usual" things, we Mother's Day and graduations to contend with! Which makes it even more important than usual for me to be able to get projects done quickly, and still look like I put plenty of effort into them.  At least I know cards can be a snap with Graphic 45.  My preferred card size is 5x7, and thankfully G45 has some great 4x6 images in many of their collections which are perfect for that size card.  Here's a beautiful (but quick!) card perfect for Mother's Day, a birthday, and more:

I chose an image I loved from the Secret Garden 12x12 paper pad, along with a coordinating print, and decided to use them with a kraft card base.  I cut the print to 4.75" x 6.75", and inked the edges of it and the image panel using Faded Jeans Distress Ink.  I cut a piece of cream cardstock to 4.25" x 6.25", and inked the edges of it and the card base with Antique Linen Distress Ink.

I layered the image on the cream cardstock, and the coordinating print on the card base.  I added some silver Glitter Tape to opposite corners of the matted image, then adhered it to the card front using foam adhesive. Finally, I used several colors of Copic Spicas to add more sparkly details to the image:

 

 

The closeup photos just do not do the actual image justice. I just love how a little sparkle makes these images shine! (No pun intended, lol.)

Cutters Creek supplies used:

• Graphic 45 12x12 paper pad, Secret Garden
• American Crafts Glitter Tape (join a club in the CC Yahoo Group)
• Scotch Pop Up Foam Squares
• Distress Ink in Faded Jeans and Antique Linen
• Copic Spicas
• ATG adhesive refills

Other Supplies: cardstock in kraft and cream (I used CTMH)

I hope today's post has given you some ideas - I'd love to hear what you think!

Monochromatic Card

Hi!  I have a simple project today.  I was recently challenged to create a monochromatic card.  I thought it would be easy as I love coloring in shades of browns and grey. However, the rules were to color any shade BUT greys and browns.  So, I went to my next favorite group and colored from the BG family.

This was actually much harder than I thought it would be as I wanted different shading for each area and not one gradual change from light to dark.  I started with a Kraft base and added a page from the Prima Fairy tales paper.  Next I added three strips of AC Glitter Tape in shades Aqua and Peacock for added depth.  My aqua strip was actually the half-inch size so I cut it down into two 1/4" lengths.  This isn't found in the store, but you can sign up here for the next Glitter Tape club . . . totally worth it!

After coloring my image, I trimmed and placed so that there is room for a sentiment at a later time.  Right now, this is in my Copic Portfolio which I update pretty frequently so it's always good to leave them slightly neutral so you can customize it at a later date for last minute cards.

Thanks for looking and hopefully I have inspired you to try something out of your comfort range.  Feel free to share your projects!

Image: TGF -Miss Anya Dressy

Paper: Prima
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Copics,
Embellishments: AC Glitter Tape, Peacock and Aqua
Other: ATG
Stash: Kraft Paper

Dress: BG000, BG10, BG11, BG32
Skin: BG000, BG10
Hair: BG000, BG10, BG11, BG32, BG23, BG34
Legs: BG000, BG10, BG11, BG32

Shoes: BG23, BG34, BG13

Bows: BG000, BG49