Everyday Expressions

Hi Everyone! Today is my sister’s birthday, and I’ve been waiting to share her card with you. I created it with the new Love Clippings release from Frank Garcia and Prima Marketing. (This is what I mentioned in this post that I was ordering a couple of weeks ago from Blue Moon Scrapbooking.)

Now, I have to let you in on a little secret my husband shared the other day: He said he doesn’t care for this type of card (“…too much stuff and kind of old-fashioned looking.”), and he prefers the basic die cut and stamped cards I make. (Insert face screaming in fear emoji!) Did I get angry or hurt by this? No. Did I smile kindly and pat his hand gently because he just doesn’t understand? Yes, because it’s art, and it’s ours, and we love it all. Don’t we? I think I just really, truly, madly, deeply love Prima paper and flowers. Simple as that. What do you think? Do you have this kind of love affair with paper too? It’s kind of an obsession right now.

I admit that sometimes I sit with lovely new paper, flowers, chipboard, and ephemera…And I don’t know where to begin. Anyone else do that? So here’s how I began this card. I picked the two background papers I wanted on the base and then I started smaller by creating a tag. It’s not as overwhelming as a whole card. I blended soft rose colors and vintage photo Distress Inks around the tag and added some tattered rose Distress Paint. Next I added a paper panel, distressed both, and added two journaling cards. (Why didn’t I ink these?) Finally, I hot glued the flowers, ephemera, leaves, and chipboard.

With the tag finished, the card then came together easily. I inked the card base, added the  distressed papers, and stitched them with the sewing machine. Next I added craft foam behind the tag for dimension and glued it onto the card. Then the tag and shimmery floss were added from my stash, and the tiny flowers from the Wild and Free Collection provided little touches of color here and there. Finally, the Say It In Crystals added a beautiful golden, pink bling.

This shows the inside of the card. I don’t often add papers to the inside, but these were too pretty to resist. The sentiments are Penny Black Sprinkles and Smiles stamps.

What do you think? What’s your favorite kind of card? Layers and layers of paper and flowers? Or a cleaner, simpler look?

Thank you so much for celebrating my sister’s birthday today! Love and artsy hugs!

Erin

*Please note that I am not compensated nor do I receive free product from any company. I just like to share my favorite supplies in case you are interested in checking them out.