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Hello…Goodbye

Happy Friday Unies!!

And so we come to my final blog post…for now. Julissa will be taking over the Friday blog next week and trust me when I say that you are in for a treat! She is a fabulous artist from Jersey!

Thank you for reading my posts and trying out the various techniques over the past six months! I really appreciate it!

Well, let’s get on with today’s easy card.
I am using the “Say it with Love” January 2020 Sentiment kit created by Lisa Arana. The other day I made a bunch of gel press backgrounds/monoprints and was wondering how I could use them or incorporate them with my cards.

They are pretty bold in color and pattern so I decided to make these into envelopes instead. All I need now is a toned-down card with a sweet message.

This an A2 card in landscape orientation with the words stamped with a Misti for good allover coverage. Next, I used a black Micron pen and connected the words with squiggly lines. I used black, gold, and silver pens for a different look. Add the panel to a card stock color that matches the envelope for cohesiveness.

Add some visual interest with “Dots only” dies from Gina Marie Designs. These dies don’t cut the paper but deboss them instead. She has a whole series of these “dots only” dies in all shapes.

These are very simple cards that you can mass-produce and keep handy. Keep the stamp in the Misti and make multiple panels at a time without moving the stamp each time.

Until next time then!
You can still find all my cards on Facebook or Instagram.

Much Love,
Charmaine

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Small Details, Exponential Possibilities

Happy Friday!

Unity has a brand new release today and I am showcasing this gorgeous, large and wordy, Small Details stamp today! I am absolutely in love with this full A2 sized stamp and it can be used in so many ways. Here are just a few… 6 to be exact!

I paired this gorgeous new stamp with the Gracielle Design Unusual day Poppy stamp and colored with Altenew watercolor brushes on watercolor paper.

Here is what I did:
Stamp the Small Details stamp with water-resistant black ink, like VersaFine or Altenew Obsidian  Pigment ink. Don’t worry if you don’t get a clear impression all over, this adds to the “grungy” look. Next, stamp the large poppy in the corner with the same ink.

I am not a watercolor expert, but I love how this came out. Wet certain areas with water using a clean brush or watercolor pen. Try to imagine what you want your flower to look like. I knew I wanted the majority of this flower to be pink so I added pink to the shadowy/ deeper parts of the flower. Dab off the excess paint and water; this will prevent the colors from turning into brown mud!

Repeat the process in the leftover spaces with orange watercolor. Dab off excess color and blend the two colors with a clean water brush. Lightly dab the paper with a clean towel in the areas where colors are too concentrated. Add white gel pen highlights and some shimmer with a Wink of Stella pen. I added blue to the center of the flower…because I could! 🙂

Two ink-blot looking stamps are included in the floral stamp set and are perfect for this messy card! I added this card to a kraft colored card stock top-folding base because the watercolor paper looked “dirty” next to white cardstock. Add your sentiment made with a Dymo label maker and you are done!

Father’s Day is this weekend and this card is very easy to make for your dad. I used one of my gel plate prints but you can easily make a background using Distress Oxide or Inks, even sprays! Any printed paper would work as well. I know you hoard pretty paper somewhere! 😉

Die cut three sets of letters with these dies (I believe they are MFT Alpha dies) out of heavy cardstock with the Small Details die cut on top. Stack and use liquid glue to move the letters into position.

My last card is the traditional stamp-and- mask techniques.

Stamp the background in a different color, this time to add softness to the card. This girl is from the June Kit of the Month 2020 and colored with Copics. Add dimension with an “emboss only” double-stitched die frame from MFT.

Here are the other three cards. Let me know if you need a tutorial on these!!

Hope and Strength stamped on acetate, on Distress Oxide Background

Background on Kraft with Tim Holtz Thinlits Alphas

Something Wonderful Butterfly masked, Gina Marie Design Die.

I hope you have an amazing weekend and make sure to check out the
new releases and fabulous Sale going on!

Charmaine 
Follow me on Facebook here

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Matching card and envelope set with distress oxides

Happy Friday!

We made it! Now let’s play!

I recently found a new ink, Stazon pigment ink, and was so impressed with its performance that it needed to be told to the world with a video! Here you go! All the supplies are listed on the bottom.

I want to send this card to one of you! Leave me a comment on the Youtube channel and I will choose a winner on Monday (6/15/2020).

 

Thanks for watching and I hope you have a great weekend!

Charmaine
CharCards

 

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Make “Uniquely” You cards!

Hey! Hey! It’s Friday!

How are you doing today?

Every day seems to bring mixed emotions and harder challenges, I feel. Sometimes you just don’t how you feel, right? That’s when you wish that you have the right sentiment to fit on that card that was made out of pure frustration or elation brought on by that particular day.

Here I come to save the day 🙂 (Tra-la-la!)

Now, don’t get me wrong. Unity has some fabulous sentiment kits and amazing wordy stamps for all occasions. But let me show how you to make them more personalized with a Dymo embossing label maker.

I am using the amazing Uniquely Unity Kit (June 2020)  for all my cards today. These kits are only $14.99 a month and so much love goes into these kits! You will not be disappointed!
I love making use of stark contrasts in my cards. For example, I have a whole bunch of monoprints (made with my gel press) where I used neon acrylic paints. Add a black and white element and you achieved a WOW effect with very minimal effort.

This print reminded me of the beautiful sunsets we see here in South Carolina and I needed a sentiment to fit its vibrancy. I perused Pinterest and found this one (Also, would you like to see this in red rubber?? 😉 ) The Unity stamp was inked with Altenew’s Obsydian blank ink that delivers that crisp look and then I used my Scan N Cut to cut it out for me. I cut the inside of the print twice with two different sized rectangles dies. Glue the flower to the inside of the outer layer and then pop it up with foam tape. Glue the most inside colored print in the center of the card base. This label maker’s tape has adhesive to the back, so just space it out and adhere to the card.

I made extra stamp cutouts and positioned them overlapping each other to form a square. This is a 5×7 card paired with another monoprint. Since orange is the color of Faith, I thought that this sentiment would fit perfectly.

My last card comes from inspiration from my son. This is his favorite song from the Trolls movie and he always dances like a mad man when it comes on. The clever design of the stamp with the line underneath made for a perfect anchor to place “in a pocket”

I paired this monoprint with a Darice striped embossing folder and it actually started coming apart by itself. Well, use what you have, right? I glued all the pieces onto the A2 card and tucked that stamp right into that gap. I wanted to use some foam tape to pop it up, but the paper was too fragile. But it worked out great! You can also add names or type sentiments in a different language to these cards to personalize them even more. Another tool in your arsenal! And what about all that patterned paper you have been hoarding???? These would work perfectly together!

I hope this will spark some creativity for you this weekend when life gets you down! Chin up, girls!

Charmaine
Follow me for more ideas over at CharCards

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Wedding Peonies

Happy Friday Unies! 

I love making cards, no, I am obsessed with making cards. But when I HAVE to make a card, I struggle BIG TIME.  I had to make a card for a friend whose daughter is getting married this weekend and I put it off until yesterday! Nothing like procrastination, huh??

The bride will have light pink peonies in her bouquet, so I decided on using the Peony Hugs stamp set. And I knew it had to be bigger than an A2 card, so I chose an A7 ( 5×7) card. (Just make sure you have that size envelope in your house!!) I cut and folded a piece of Neenah Solar White 110lbs card stock as the base and placed a piece of acetate with silver foil dots (from A.C Moore) over it. Use double-sided tape in the middle of the card because this will be covered up.

Next, I stamped and silver heat embossed (Hero Arts Silver EP) two peonies on white vellum. Heat the vellum at an angle to prevent warping. Carefully cut these out on the outside of the embossed line. I tried to color the peonies with a Copic marker but stamped and cut this same stamp in pink card stock instead. This way both peonies are identical in color.

For the center, I used Heffy Doodles Skinny rectangles and cut a frame out of white card stock. Don’t stack the frames because you will need the flowers to be flat on the card. Next, cut a matching rectangle out of Neenah Desert Storm card stock (or Kraft) and glue these together.

Adhere the peonies to the corners of the white frame and let the vellum leaves fill the brown space in the center. You can use double-sided tape for these as well. The letters are three stacks deep adhered with liquid glue. This glue will give you a little longer time to reposition if need be. The top letter layer is out of silver card stock. I used Tim Holtz Sizzix Classic Upper and Classic Lower Thinlits for the names.

And to finish, I added the beautiful sentiment from the May Kit of the Month to the inside of a folded Desert storm card stock that is cut slightly smaller than the A7 size. I used Altenew’s Obsidian Pigment ink for a crisp impression.

I hope you like the post and card just like my friend does. And I have to give a huge shoutout to the design team for helping me put this card together! I was struggling, BIG TIME! Thanks, girls!

Have a great weekend!

Charmaine
CharCards

Love this look? Browse all of Unity’s wedding rubber stamps for more inspiration.

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I miss seeing you in the garden

Happy Friday Unies!

I hope you had a great week and have plans for relaxation this weekend.

Maybe some crafting as well? And have you seen the new red rubber releases???

What do you think of those pretty dragonflies??

I am going back to work at the hospital on Monday and I wanted to make a card for my coworker who is near and dear to my heart. I want her to know that I missed seeing her and that I am in serious need of adult conversation!

Here is what I did:

This is still a traditional top folding card with a place for a stamped sentiment inside, but with the vellum, it creates an illusion of just having two layers.

 

The three stamps I am using today are:

Stamping supplies

  • Misti
  • Versamark Watermark stamp pad
  • WOW Metallic Gold Rich Super Fine embossing powder
  • Distress Oxides Shabby Shutters and Mowed Lawn
  • Smooth Bristol A2 sized card stock
  • Top folding A2 landscape orientation card
  • Vellum (5 1/2″ x 5″)

Directions

  1. Stamp and cut out two dragonflies, I used my Scan ‘N Cut to save time.
  2. Color these ( I used Copics) and set aside.
  3. Next, cover the Bristol Smooth paper (or any paper that will blend well with distress oxides) with variations of Shabby Shutters and Mowed Lawn- This will give the page some depth/light interest.
  4. Place your colored paper in the Misti and use your antistatic tool all over the paper.
  5. Stamp the Botanical Background with Versamark and apply the Gold Embossing powder all over.
  6. Heat set this and adhere to the front of the top folding landscape card.

  • Measure your vellum over the embossed area/card so that you have a “lip” on the back of the card of about 3/4″.
  • Position the dragonflies in such a way that there is a spot for a sentiment on the left side of the vellum.
  • Place the sentiment in the Misti over the vellum, use antistatic powder, and stamp with Versamark.
  • Heat emboss with the same gold embossing powder. I used double-sided tape to secure the vellum to the back of the card.

Finish the card with applying dimensional foam squares to the back of the “front” dragonfly and regular double-sided tape for the inside dragonfly.

Now you have two dragonflies looking for one another in a garden!

At least that’s what happened in my mind! Please let me know if you have any questions!!!

Have a great weekend!

Charmaine
CharCards

 

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Gel printing with a bit of sass!

 

Happy Friday Unies!

I hope you all had a great week and are ready for a quick and fun video on how to make backgrounds using a gel plate. I just discovered this gem of a technique so I am not even going to pretend I know what I am doing! But, sit back and relax. Enjoy this 5-minute video and watch how I use this Unity Stamp three times and get three different looks. I have helpful tips at the end of the post.

Here are my supplies used:

(Disclaimer: I bought these off the shelf without doing any research on brands/products/performance, but they all worked great!)

  1. Gel plate
  2. Brayer
  3. Acrylic paints (regular and metallic)  (the $1 kind!)
  4. Stencils
  5. You will stamp set
  6. Ann Butler Background Builder Strips Stamps
  7. Heavy cardstock (A2)
  8. Bubblewrap
  9. Altenew Obsidian Pigment Ink
  10. Clear Embossing powder
  11. Random things to make impressions.
  12. Tim Holtz Clipping Stickers

Things I learned:

  1. There is no wrong way, just have fun.
  2. You don’t need a lot of paint on your plate. Brayer it off on a piece of paper.
  3. Do clear heat emboss the stamped images, this will prevent smudging and image deterioration. The pigment ink will just sit on top of the acrylic paint and won’t absorb.
  4. You don’t have to clean your plate in between prints. This will build interest on each layer.
  5. Remember the color you apply last, goes on first.
  6. If you use word or number stencils, remember to flip the stencil so it appears backward on the plate. Think mirrored image.

I hope you enjoyed the video. Shoot me a message if you have questions!

Charmaine
CharCards