A blog devoted to the cards I make in my tiny upstairs space. When my sister stays there, she calls it an "artist's garret". I'm not an artist, but am an enthusiastic cardmaker - hence the title "Cardmaker's Garret".
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Sunday, 30 April 2023

Grey Day Cards

We just had two glorious days of sunshine and warm weather and now it's gone back to chilly and grey.  Not at all appealing for gardening so here are two Christmas cards instead!

Jingle Belles want to see us use our holiday leftovers and Cardz 4 Guyz wants to see embossing (wet or dry).  In this card, I used a wet embossed background and a bunch of leftover bits of die cut greenery and a couple of leftover die cut snowflakes on a scrap of corrugated cardboard.

I roughly painted some gesso over the cardboard. I stencilled tiny snowflakes on the cardbase with embossing paste.

The leftover bits of greenery were die cut from a piece of cs smooshed with green inks.  I embellished them with tiny red pearls. I added a couple of leftover die cut snowflakes and a small sentiment.

The next card could also go to Cardz 4 Guyz as it has a dry embossed background.

I created a dry embossed background panel.  Then I die cut the snowflakes, coated them with glue, then dabbed on bits of the Blue Ice gilding flakes, tamped them down, and brushed on a blue metallic pigment powder in the empty spaces. I burnished them and then added them to a snowflake embossed background. For the sentiment die, I added glue and the same pigment powder to a piece of scrap cs and when dry, die cut it.

 Cardz 4 Guyz

jingle belles








Supplies for card 1:
Ink - various green Distress inks
Paper - white cs, corrugated cardboard
Size - 6x3.25" slimline
Accessories - gesso, Tattered Lace Noel die, TH greenery dies, Cheery Lynn snowflake dies, Memory Box tiny snowflakes stencil, Dreamweaver embossing paste, tiny red stick-on pearls

Supplies for card 2:
Paper - white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - Sizzix snowflake dies, Cosmic Shimmer Blue Ice gilding flakes, Dreamweaver Metallic FX Navajo Sky pigment powder, Nuvo Glue Pen, Tim Holtz sentiment die

Friday, 28 April 2023

Alcohol Inks on a Gelli Plate

Our Group of Seven Cardmakers' technique for this month is Alcohol Inks on a Gelli Plate.  See the Group of Seven post for full instructions.

 
I used a small round gelli plate and various blue and green alcohol inks.  I squirted them on the gelli plate, added blending solution to dilute them, and moved them around with my Tim Holtz air puffer.  I pressed regular white cardstock on top and pulled the print.

I stamped and heat embossed the wildflowers and sentiment on top, trimmed the panel, and popped it up on fun foam on a dry embossed background.

Using the same colours and more blending solution, I did a second print for this card:

I used different stamps but also heat embossed them.  Die cut it into a circle and popped it up on fun foam on the card base.

Head on over to Group of Seven to see more examples from the rest of the group and feel free to try it and link up your card.  It's not a challenge so we won't be moderating the entries.  But we'd love to see more examples using this technique.








Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - Magenta Lunaria Foliage, SSS sentiment
Ink - Versafine Clair Nocturne
Paper - white cs
Size - 5.5" square
Accessories - blue and green alcohol inks, blending solution, Spellbinders square dies, Nellie's Choice Writing embossing folder, clear embossing powder

Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - Magenta Thistle, PTI sentiment
Ink - Versafine Clair Nocturne
Paper - white cs
Size - 5" square
Accessories - blue and green alcohol inks, blending solution, clear embossing powder, Spellbinders circle die, fun foam


Wednesday, 26 April 2023

Christmas Presents and Four Birds

Two Christmas cards today.  First up for Sparkles Christmas Challenge "Presents / Parcels":


The image is coloured with coloured pencils and then fussy cut and added to the background (gold spray on black cs), and bordered with gold shimmer cs. I stamped the sentiment directly on the card base but it was crooked so restamped it and punched it out and layered it over the crooked one.

Today's second card is for Christmas Cards All Year Round "Four Calling Birds - Four of Something or a Bird".  I have four little cardinals.


I sponged the tiny snowflakes with blue ink through a stencil, and used the same ink to stamp a bit of random text.  Then inked up the stamp with brown and red Tombow markers and stamped over the background.  Finished off with the sentiment stamped in red and a bit of blue sponging around the edge of the panel.  It's popped up on fun foam on a red card base.


Sparkles Christmas Challenge "Presents / Parcels"

Please take a copy of our badge 

Christmas Cards All Year Round "Four of Something or a Bird"










Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - PaperArtsy image, A Muse sentiment
Ink - Versafine Clair Nocturne
Paper - gold shimmer, white, and black cs
Size - A2
Accessories - coloured pencils, gold spray, SU tag punch, fun foam

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - SU Serene Silhouettes, Stampendous Joy, unknown text stamp
Ink - Distress Oxide Speckled Egg, SU Real Red
Paper - white and dark red cs
Size - A2
Accessories - red and brown Tombow markers, Memory Box Tiny Snowflakes stencil, fun foam


Saturday, 22 April 2023

Colours with Dragonflies / Cardinals with Cups

For the Color Throwdown of green, yellow, and aqua:


I made a smooshed background with Distress Oxide inks on mixed media cs and added a bit of text stencilling for more interest.  I die cut the dragonflies corner twice and glued them together, then glued them on the corner. I bordered with a grey cs and popped the panel up on fun foam.

And, because I really need to get going on Christmas cards for my sale, I did a Christmas card for Stamping Sensations "Anything Stamped with a CAS Option".  Also for We Love Stamping "Birds or Animals", Double D "Things that Fly", and Country View Crafts Challenge "Things with Wings".


It's a stamp I've had for a while but never inked up - don't know why as I really like it!  So it's going to NBUS as well.  It's watercoloured, trimmed with  a pierced rectangle die, border with green, and popped up on a red shimmer card base.

Challenges:

Color Throwdown

 

Stamping Sensations

Please grab our logo 

We Love Stamping "Birds or Animals" 

Please share our challenge logo 

Double D "Things That Fly" 

The Double D's 

Country View Crafts Challenge "Things with Wings"

Help yourself to our buddy button

NBUS

Grab our badge to display on your blog.









Supplies for card 1:
Ink - Distress Oxide blues, yellow, and grey
Paper - white, grey, and mixed media cs
Size - A2
Accessories - Memory Box dragonfly corner die, TCW text stencil, fun foam

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - Power Poppy
Ink - Versafine Clair Nocturne
Paper - watercolour paper, green cs, red shimmer cs
Size - A2
Accessories - watercolour paints, Spellbinders pierced rectangle die, fun foam

Thursday, 20 April 2023

A Rainy Day Threefer

Vancouver is having such a cold wet spring.  I'm yearning to work in my garden!  But no such luck today.  So I've got cards for some challenges instead.

First up for The Paper Players.  They want to see a craft image on the card.  And for Colorful Options.  They have a beautiful mood board in pastels (see at end of post) that I tried to depict on this card.


A simple stamped and watercoloured card using one of the wonderful Anita Jeram images from Colorado Craft Co.   I love these cute mice painting the flowers!

Next for the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown "Santa" and for My Time to Craft Christmas "Christmas Quote".

I made a circle mask out of masking paper to create the moon. Then I brayered on coated cs using two shades of blue and two of yellow, letting the lighter blue and the lighter yellow meet in the middle.

I stamped the sentiment with StazOn ink as I'd used coated cs. I die cut the Santa and sleigh with black cs, then bordered the panel with black.

And last but not least, for Inkspirational "Clean and Simple" and ABC Christmas Challenge "H is for Houses".

I had a scrap of dp that looks like a chilly winter night sky. I die cut the village out of white so that it looks like it's all covered in snow, making it look even chillier. Layered it on another piece of white cs and then on a white mini slimline card base.

Challenges:

The Paper Players

 

Colorful Options

 

52 Christmas Card Throwdown

My Time to Craft Christmas "Christmas Quote"

My Time To Craft Christmas!

Inkspirational

ABC Christmas Challenge "H is for Houses"








Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - Colorado Craft Co. "Love Art", unknown sentiment stamps
Ink - Versafine Onyx Black
Paper - watercolour paper, black and cream cs
Size - A2
Accessories - watercolour paints

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - Colorado Craft Co. sentiment
Ink - ArchiStazOn Black; Distress Wild Honey, Scattered Straw, Faded Jeans, Stormy Sky
Paper - coated cs, black and white cs
Size - 5" square
Accessories - Frantic Stamper Santa die, circle die to make moon mask, masking paper

Supplies for card 3:
Stamps - SSS sentiment
Ink - Memento Nautical Blue
Paper - white cs, scrap of dp
Size - 6x3.25"
Accessories - Gina Marie winter village

Monday, 17 April 2023

Two Holiday Cards - One Christmas, One Easter

Can You Handle the Pressure is an "anything goes as long as you use an embossing folder" challenge so I did a Christmas card as I'm behind on my quota I try to get made each month ready for my sale in November.

I love text in the background of a card.  Usually I stamp the text but the challenge inspired me to use a text embossing folder instead.  The image is stamped and watercoloured, trimmed with an oval die, and bordered with red cut with the next larger oval die.

And for Easter, I made this card for My Time to Craft Challenge "Easter Flowers".

I put the wildflower stamp in my MISTI and inked it up with various Tombow markers, one colour at a time and spritzing each time. I pulled a bit of the colour out to fill in the flowers that just had outlines.

I stamped and fussy cut the nest and eggs, glued the eggs in the nest and set the nest in front of the wild flowers.

Can You Handle the Pressure?

Please Grab Our Badge

My Time to Craft "Easter Flowers"

My Time To Craft!








Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - SU Beautiful Season, Impression Obsession sentimen
Ink - Versafine Clair Nocturne
Paper - cream cs, red shimmer and cream shimmer cs
Size - A2
Accessories - Twinkling H2Os, script embossing folder, Spellbinders oval die cut

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - Indigo Blu wildflowers, SU sentiment, SU Nature Walk eggs, Rubber Monger nest
Ink - Indigo Blu wildflowers, SU sentiment, SU Nature Walk eggs, Rubber Monger nest
Paper - mixed media and off-white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - Tombow markers

Saturday, 15 April 2023

A Cute Dog Instead of a Cute Gnome

The new Peace on Earth challenge has an inspiration board full of cute Christmas gnomes.  I don't have a single gnome stamp so I went with a cute dog stamp.  Peace on Earth is an "anything Christmas goes" challenge (I usually find inspiration in the board - I kept the overall colours I saw in the board, even though I have no gnomes!).

It's a very CAS card (my preferred style) - stamped and watercoloured image, trimmed with a stitched rectangle die cut, bordered in green, and popped up on fun foam on a red card base.

Please come and join us at Peace On Earth.  There's lots more inspiration from the rest of the Design Team.  And should you like Christmas gnomes, here's our inspiration board:











Supplies:
Stamps - Penny Black dog, Colorado Craft Co. sentiment
Ink - Versafine Clair Nocturne
Paper - watercolour paper, red and green cs
Size - A2
Accessories - watercolour paints, Lil Inker stitched rectangle die, fun foam

Wednesday, 12 April 2023

Red and Green for One, Recycled for the Other

52 Christmas Card Throwdown wants Green and Red this time.  Here's my card:

Stamped and watercoloured, and then die cut it with a hemstitch rectangle die and layered over a red card base. I find that the hemstitch die adds a great deal of interest to a simple image while still keeping it CAS.

I've also got a card for Jingle Belles annual Earth Day challenge to include at least one recycled, reused, or upcycled item.  I have two on my card - a piece of a Christmas coffee cup sleeve and a glittery reindeer that I removed from a commercial card I received.

 
I trimmed the coffee cup sleeve but kept its curved edges.  Added it to the card base.  Then added the reindeer by gluing its legs right to the card and popping its body and head up with foam tape.  Finished off by stamping the sentiment.
 
 
 
 
 

 
 







Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - SU Christmas Cardinal
Ink - Versafine Clair Nocturne
Paper - watercolour paper, red cs
Size - A2
Accessories - watercolour paints, Spellbinders hemstitch rectangle die

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - SU sentiment
Ink - Memento Rhubarb Stalk
Paper - cream cs
Size - A2
Accessories - coffee cup sleeve, glitter reindeer off a commercial card, foam tape

Sunday, 9 April 2023

Pet Sympathy and Poinsettias

A close friend just had to put her 10 year old dog to sleep so I made this card for her:


Festive Friday Challenge is celebrating National Pet Day.  They require three elements from their list.  I chose dog, paw prints, and embossing folder.

I stamped the dog in solid black first, then second generation inking, then third generation inking to depict the dog's departure from life.

I have a second card and it's for My Time to Craft Christmas challenge "poinsettias".

The poinsettias are coloured with Twinkling H2Os so have a lovely sparkle in real life.  They are die cut with an oval die and popped up on a gold panel cut with a stitched rectangle die.

Festive Friday Challenge "National Pet Day"

My Time to Craft Christmas "Poinsettias"

My Time To Craft Christmas!









Supplies for Card 1:
Stamps - SU D is for Dog
Ink - Versafine Onyx Black
Paper - white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - unknown embossing folder

Supplies for Card 2:
Stamps - SU Bells & Boughs; SSS sentiment
Ink - Versafine Onyx Black
Paper - white and gold cs
Size - A2
Accessories - Twinkling H2Os, Spellbinders oval die, fun foam, Lil Inker stitched rectangle die