A Naval 100th Birthday Card

Welcome Back!

First let me say, thank you so much for the comments on last weeks post.  They mean the world to me and also my daughters.

Recently I have started taking custom orders for my cards.  I'm not going to get rich doing this.  I love to make cards that are very special for someone and that is my reward (besides I could never charge what my cards are really worth).  So here are the lyrics for this weeks card.

~Dress Whites Navy Guy
   Scrap Factory Doll Builder Program
      -body no open toes
      -Hair Edwin
      -Outfit Winter Suit #5 (top and sleeves)
      -Sailor Boy Outfit for pants and hat
~Navy Fatigues Guy
   Military Uniforms
      -Military Uniform #3
      -Navy Fatigue patterned paper
~Battleship Trace in SCAL4
~Anchor
  Pirate Palz in the ScrappyDew Vault
~I used Recollections scraps for the piecings
~Background papers are from Paper wishes and ColorBok
~Sure Cuts A Lot 4 software SCAL4
~My 24" Silver Bullet Pro Cutter

Whew, that's a long list...I'm just glad I didn't list every tool I used.  So here is what I finally came up with.

Front

This is the insignia for radio operator

Having so much fun with foiling

Even lined the envelope

I certainly hope my customer likes the card.  Now she can come and get it before the due date (always nice to get a project done early).

Coming up I have a set of birthday note cards and a happy summer vacation card to get started on.  

Please keep all the people effected by the crazy weather in your thoughts and prayers!

Bright Blessings, Jana

The good, bad and maybe some ugly!

THE GOOD

Hello everyone!  Are you ready for some outstanding news?  Here is my big news I have been so excited to share with you.

I AM NOW CUTTING AND CREATING WITH THE

SILVER BULLET PRO 

AND SURE CUTS A LOT 4 SOFTWARE!

 Sherri Jensen, the owner of That'sScrap, Inc. and the creator of the Silver Bullet Pro series of cutters is absolutely fantastic to work with!!!  Along with a team of dedicated associates and a forum that has a A+ in customer service, I just couldn't pass up this opportunity.  Michelle my design team leader for ScrappyDew,  is also cutting with a Silver Bullet Pro and was the one to introduce me to this new adventure!  I am still creating for ScrappyDew ( i wouldn't want to ever leave) and will also be promoting the Silver Bullet cutters.  Using the Sure Cuts A Lot 4 program will give me the opportunity to expand my creativity.  So watch out crafty world, Jana is on the loose with a very powerful machine!

THE BAD (and soooo sad)

 Monday afternoon I received a call from my daughter.  Their fur baby Sappho (a great dane mastiff) had been extremely ill.  My DIL (being a vet) took Sappho and my daughter to her clinic.  They ran a blood test and Sappho's liver was failing.  They made the decision together and put Sappho down.  It was another of life's decisions that you never want to have to make.

Everyone grieves differently.  For me, Sappho was grammies baby.  Don't get me wrong, I love all their animals but Saffy Taffy was a gentle giant and a huge cuddle bug.  She will be greatly missed.  So I decided to make a memorial that will be with the beautiful wooden box with Sappho's remains.

(I have to let you know that there are a lot of pics coming up.  Some are just plain ugly.  But the end result is even more beautiful that I would have imagined I could create)

THE UGLY START TO BEAUTIFUL ENDING

I wanted to make a window card that I could have floating butterflies.  I created 3 frames in SCAL4 using a shape out of the library.  I have used a St. Vinnies thrift store find, a box of Transparency Film ($1.99) to make the butterflies and the clear window.  The cardboard is from my kitties Fancy Feast box.

Such a find!

7" x 5" card board (see i am eco friendly)

My frames

 Next came cutting out the butterflies from the transparency film.  My Silver bullet is set to velocity=400
and force=90.

All set up and ready to go!

THIS IS WHERE IT GETS UGLY... The Silver Bullet Pro did a fabulous job.  Clean cuts and a breeze to remove from the mat.  Now to put foil on.  I couldn't figure out a way to do it.  Finally I used my spray adhesive and a brayer.  Let's just say it did not look pretty.  It was really blotchy.

Not using these!

OK round two.  Thanks to Kelli over on the Rhapsody on Paper Facebook page, she told me I could emboss acetate.  Just to be careful of the heat.  So that is what I tried after cutting more butterflies.

I used the Butterflies file from of course ScrappyDew!

Here goes, each picture is a step to embossing the back and front wings.

Cut another entire set of butterflies

I used my embossing buddy for the static

I have a large embossing pad and rolled on embossing liquid

smothered the wings in embossing powder 

Heat embossed on my glass board

Yes, I used multiple colors

Some beautiful butterfly wings

Next up was to put the butterflies together.  More pics of each step used.

Got my big box of brads out and selected the right size

Used the making memories tool kit to punch wholes

Hubby made me an anvil from 6" round bar stock steel,
smoothed out on the fly wheel grinder.  It weighs
20 punds.

Punched wholes smooth as silk

I have spools of colored wired.  Made antenna from this

All my Butterflies are complete

Now lets put the card together....

I cut Duck Tape for the hinges and Washi tape
for the edges that I inked.

After taping

I hope you can see it, there is clear beading thread stretched
across diagonally on each frame

See the duck tape used as hinges, I also put a sheet
of acetate in the middle panel to make a floating window

I had some beautiful dog paw print paper to make frames
to cover the taped edges

Butterflies attached now on to the middle

Finally putting the finishing touches on the memorial...

I wanted to use foil on a picture of the rainbow bridge.  So I had some birthday money from the hubby and went to Staples.  I found a Samsung Laser printer for $59.99.  Brought it home and it works like a charm.  A few years back I had bought a Purple Cows laminator.  When foiling with this make sure you let it heat up for at least 20 minutes.  But it worked beautifully.

My new laser printer.

Here are the pics of the final touches.

The rainbow bridge pic and then laser printed

Using the gold foil from Minc

Wow!  That worked wonderful.  My new addiction.

THE FINAL MEMORIAL FOR SAPPHO COMPLETED

This is what i consider the back of the card

Here is the baby girl, my saffy taffy!

I just want to thank you for reading and looking at all the pictures.  I hope that this inspires you in just some little way.

Next week I have a Naval themed card for a gentleman who is turning 100 years young!

Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend.  Bright Blessings, Jana

An oldie but a goodie!!!

Hello and welcome!  A great big welcome to any new visitors!  So happy you could visit.

So for this week, I have made a retro birthday card.  I saw this phrase many years ago and wouldn't ya know it, it's stuck with me.  First let me list the lyrics...

~ScrappyDew Vault file Farm Palz
~ScrappyDew Safari Palz
~ScrappyDew Spring Has Sprung
~Graphic 45 Steampunk Spells Frightful Folly (background front)
~Echo Park Birthday Boy Banner (envelope)
~Recollections scraps
~Make The Cut software
~KNK Zing (who is retiring)

First I cut out all the animals and inked the edges.  I tried to use the DewDrops Facial Expressions set 1 for the animals faces but being as these files are in the vault it just did not fit.  I believe that the stamps will work on any file older than 2012 and of course all the creations you can make in Scrap Factory!  So here is what I came up with...

Front

The paper for the inside is embossed linen

I even decorated the back

My Auntie Kathy said it took her a few minutes to get the card.  But when she did, she laughed and laughed.  So happy she liked it.  It's always a great feeling when someone really appreciates that you took the time and made the effort to make their day just a little bit brighter!

Now for next week, if everything goes according to my plan, I can announce my big announcement.  So fingers crossed!  

Wishing you very bright blessings for the coming week and see you next Saturday!

Bright blessings, Jana

My friend the world traveler

My dearest friend Carolyn has been doing a bit of world traveling the past few years.  Last September, Carolyn and her sisters went to Italy.  They had a fabulous time.  So I thought that a world traveler birthday card would be perfect.  (btw, Carolyn loved the card)  So here is what I used to make it...Lyrics please.....

~The fabulous program called Scrap Factory
~Expansion pack called Costume Parade
     ~no open toes
     ~Girl Costume #5
     ~Hair Paige
~Dew Drops Facial Expression Set 1
~ScrappyDew file Vacation Plane 2013
     ~View #7 passport & Luggage
~DCWV Glitter Stack
~Recollections card stock
~Deja Views Pack your bags series of card stock
~Make the Cut software
~KNK Zing cutter

Whew, that's a long list.  I cut all the pieces with my Zing.  Then started to embellish them.  I used my Spectrum Noir markers to detail the glitter skirt.  Inked some edges and here is the final card.  It's a very easy easel card.

The facial expression set 1 worked perfect 

The easel card

Isn't this paper just adorable?

So that makes 2 ScrappyDew cards and 1 birthday card that was totally me.  I made a card for my dear friend Elaine.  I have had this design planned out since January during Post Holiday Howdies.  I actually made my own Action Wobble.  Super simple!  Here is the link with instructions from the great designer Becki!

Barley the Hop is the mascot for the Hillsboro Hops baseball team

The inside of the card

So that is it for this week.  Still have more birthday cards to share and then the big announcement.  Too all the mothers out there in blog land, a very happy mothers day weekend to all.

Bright blessings, Jana

Who likes peanuts?

Gosh where has the time gone...Welcome back to another Saturday with Rhapsody on Papers weekly post.  This week I am starting to show off the marathon of birthday card making that has kept me occupied.  Each of these are made personal for the person I am celebrating.  (i try to do this with all my cards, except for Christmas)   Let's start with the lyrics on this one...

~ScrappyDew Elephants 2015

~ScrappyDew Elephant Ride 2013

~Dew Drops Facial Expressions Stamps set 1

~Recollections paper scraps

~Paper Pizazz Confetti paper

~Studio Calico Darling Dear 'Garbo' paper

~EK Stickers

~Clear plastic pop bottle strips

~Make the Cut 

~KNK Zing

On this card, I wanted something kinda cute.  I took the peanut border from Elephant Ride 2013 and reduced the size and cut it out.  The elephants are 4.75 inches tall. Next I used the fantastic Dew Drop Facial Expression set 1.  I inked up the stamp with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  I didn't want the mouth or nose.  I got a q-tip and stamp cleaner solution and wiped the ink off of those areas and stamped the eyes.  Unfortunately, textured card stock doesn't stamp very nicely.  So I got out my Sakura Micron pens and colored the black areas and then with a white gel pen highlighted the eyes to make them pop!  The clear plastic strips hold the balloons and a margarita on the inside.  Here is the finished card...

The front

The inside

See the margarita???

I sure hope she likes it.  Have 3 more birthday cards to share and that will take us to the end of May.  Starting in June I have some big news to share so make sure to stay tuned!

Bright blessings, Jana