Hey y'all! I hope you're having a great day! Thursday's here and you know what that means, right? Yep, one more day till the weekend. It also means it's time for my weekly feature, End of the Week Technique.
But today is a Very Special Thursday. It's my best friend (guy) Jason's birthday!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAS!!!!!!!
Now due to a little mix up with our mail carriers at work (AUGH!!!!!) and the fact that my bestie's going home for the holiday's he's not going to get his birthday card (or his Christmas card for that matter) (Again, I say AUGH!!!!!) in his hands today. So, he's going to get to preview it here along with you guys. Now, being the great and supportive friend he is, he sees my cards online and has even commented on them. What A Great Guy! I just never thought he'd have to preview his card here with you guys.
When I decided to make Jason's card I knew I wanted to do something a little different than just a regular card, (Not that he wouldn't have appreciated that too) so I channeled my inner Pooh-Bear. You know how that goes....Think, Think, Think, Think...Oh Bother...Think, Think, Think, Think. (You know you're saying it with me in your best Pooh-Bear voice) What to do? Masculine cards are a little harder to do to start with. Just not a lot of practice with them and let's face it, my guy's a gun-toting-kind-of-guy so I couldn't very well send him something covered in glitter. (Sorry, Tink you had to sit this one out) You know my OCD was kicking in on this card, the need to be perfect was definitely there, but for Jas I just went with it. I'm so excited about how this card turned out! It's actually one of my All-Time Favorites (even without glitz and glimmer!) and I really hope Jas likes it too!
Here's the first look-
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| Hey Jas, can you see the surprise yet? |
I started with Well Worn DSP because it's one of our more masculine papers and drew my color palate from there. The card base is Night of Navy and I decided to go with a Gatefold Design (which is our EWT) for a little something special. As I was trying to decide which section of the
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| Bet you see it now, don'tcha? |
It's a Fluer-de-Lis! And it fit perfectly right there on the front of my card. Now Jas and I both love New Orleans, in fact he's from just outside of there, and the Fleur-de-Lis is a symbol that is widely associated with Nola. See, I told you, it was meant to be his card! (More in a minute)
Now for our EWT #13 I chose Gate Fold Cards. When you want to switch up your cards a little this is a great way to do it. I Googled Gate-Fold Cards and came up with this site that shows all sorts of Gate-Fold Designs. (Make sure you go there and look at all the beautiful designs. What a lot of inspiration!) For this card I used an 8 x 5 1/2 piece of cardstock scored at 2 and 6. This made it easiest for calculations. You can make yours whatever size you choose, that's what's so neat about this design. This gave me a 4" center panel and 2- 2" panels on the front. You can decorate the panels any way you choose. I chose to just go very simple and let the design element stand on it's own, so there is no additional matting on the front. I used Tombow adhesive because I wanted to make sure everything was secure.
Here's a picture of the inside-
I used more Well Worn for the side panels and to mat the center panel of Very Vanilla which I lightly edged in Night of Navy. Isn't this paper just gorgeous? I used our stamp set Engraved Greetings for the sentiment. I'm so sad they retired this set! It was perfect for masculine cards. I inked it in Night of Navy and then stamped off before stamping on my Very Vanilla piece. Would you believe I actually stamped off 4 times? Yep! I won't tell you how many pieces of Very Vanilla I went through to get that just right! Let's just say I have some scraps to use now. :-)
I decided the card needed just a little something extra, so I decided on a belly band. This was actually the first time I had made one believe it or not. Not all Gate-Fold's require belly bands or ribbons it's really more of a personal preference and a design element.
*Tip #1* When you score your belly band don't score on the same lines as your card or it won't fit around. I know it sounds basic, but you know it's the simple things that trip us up. Ask me how I know. I ended up scoring so that I had a middle section that was 1/8" bigger than my card. Our Simply Scored Tool made it so easy since it's the only one on the market with 1/8" score marks.
*Tip #2* If you're not goig to be there when your card recipient opens the envelope, tell them about the belly band and to slide it off so they don't just rip it or mess up the card trying to get it off. I'm telling you...the simple things!
Now, you know I couldn't just leave the belly band plain - just because I wasn't letting Tink loose on Jas' card didn't mean it couldn't have a little glitz, I mean it is one of my cards after all! So, I inked up my stamp again, but this time I used my Stampin Write Marker and just colored in the letters. I then used my Versa-Mark Marker to color in the scroll design. I thought it might be nice embossed in Gold to accent the Gold in the DSP. Have you purchased a Versa-Marker yet? They are AMAZING!!!! Really, one of the best purchases I've made. So I inked everything up, Huffed and Puffed and Stamped my image, (Ok, so that made me giggle and smile. How about you? So, I'm silly! This is nothing new to anyone here right?) walked over to my embossing area, added my powder which stuck to my Versa-Marked areas so nicely and then heated it up. It always makes me smile when I heat emboss. I love watching the magic as my image changes before my eyes, don't you? This time though I got an unexpected surprise, a little Happy Accident, a little added Serendipity for my special birthday card. Some of the powder had hidden in the Night of Navy ink on my letters and this is what I saw-
I couldn't have planned this if I had tried. In fact, I went back and tried to replicate it and couldn't get the same look. In person you can see the Blue through the Gold even on the "B". It's just a sheer marbling effect. So Pretty and so perfect for this card! This effect will come out different every time based on your ink pad and the length of time you wait. If you don't want this effect I would suggest using your Stamp-A-Ma-Jig and stamping the letters first, letting them dry and then going back over the scroll area with your Versa-Marker. I then punched this out using my Decorative Label Punch and sponged the edges lightly with Night of Navy. I adhered this with dimensionals for a little pop, used Tombow to secure the edges of the band in the back and I was done.
Then I did another Happy Dance! The perfect card, for not just an Amazing Friend but a just Downright Good Guy!
Jas, I'm sorry you're having to see it first on here, but I hope you love it as much as I love you! You're the Best and I really wish I was down in Nola with you tonight celebrating! I wish you the Best Birthday ever and a year that's as Amazing as you are! Have a safe flight home and hope to see you soon! MWAH!
Well, that's all for this week's EWT. I hope if you haven't tried this style of card you give it a try or pull it out of your toolbox and give it some use if it's been a while. I know you'll be glad you did.
If you liked today's card, I would love it if you left me a comment. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)
Thanks for sharing today's post with me and my bestie. I hope you'll come back tomorrow for a little last minute Christmas/Secret Santa gift. If you need supplies to make a card for your best fella or even just someone else who deserves a handmade card, and let's be honest doesn't just about everyone deserve at least one, you can SHOP HERE.
Today's Card Recipe-
Cardstock-Night of Navy, Very Vanilla, Well Worn DSP
Ink- Night of Navy Classic Ink Pad & Stampin Write Marker, Versa-Mark Marker
Punch- Decorative Label
Accessories- Gold Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Powder Trays, Simply Scored Scoring Tool, Tombow Adhesive
Thanks again for stopping by,
Till next time-
Be Safe,
Shan Pin It
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Thanks so much for taking the time to share a little love with me. I hope you find this blog to be as much of a blessing to you as you are to me. :) Be Safe- Shan