Polished Moxie Concepts and Designs

Elegant Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card - Happy Anniversary - Royalty in the House

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 00:34:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

One type of card I have not created in the past is a handmade card specific for a wedding anniversary. I've made cards about love and romance like my tattoo art card, my various teddy bear cards, my Moxie cards, and my valentine cards. However, I've never made cards specifically for anniversaries and I thought it was about time I gave it a whirl. With that said, I decided to use the same design that I developed for my pink poodle fabulous card. Change the image and the color scheme and I have a handmade anniversary card.

Now, I wanted my wedding anniversary card to be suitable for any wedding anniversary, but I also wanted it to have a silver anniversary flavor to it. That's where my handmade card's color scheme came into play. I used pastels, cream and a silvery grey that reflected a silver anniversary flair to me. I added a little lace and glitz to my card to give it panache.

The World Around Me

Anniversaries are a time to spoil that special someone and to celebrate the wonder of love. Here is how my two mousers celebrate.

My Two Spoiled Cats - Bingo and Gracie

Bingo and Gracie are such spoiled cats and spend a lot of time here on their "throne." It's not uncommon for me to be working on the computer and hear soft snoring behind me.

As you can tell, Gracie is the queen and often times tries to convince Bingo that he should find another place to perch. On this particular day she stretched out and left Bingo just enough room to look out the window without touching her. Gracie seems to think that just sharing space with him demonstrates her love.

My Cat Bingo on the Edge of His Seat

You can't get much closer to the edge than Bingo is without falling off!

Queen of the House - My Cat Gracie

I guess Bingo is lucky that Gracie's foot is sticking off the file cabinet so that there was enough room left for him.

Life is Good for My Cat Gracie

This is what I call spoiled contentment!

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade wedding anniversary card reflects the following challenges.

Cupcake Craft Challenge: Sparkle - I have sparkle on my flowers.
A Muse Studio Challenge: Use a technique that you find grungy or messy - I used blending for the edge of my image and sentiment panels (always get ink all over my fingers and my craft mat).
A and T Emerald Faeries Challenge: Bling - I have sparkle on my flowers and pearls.
Craft Your Passion Challenge: Add an odd number of embellishments - I have 11 embellishments (8 mini flowers, 2 pearls, and a piece of lace).
Papertake Weekly Challenge: Anything goes.
Through the Craftroom Door Challenge: Anything goes.
Party Time Tuesdays Challenge: Die cuts - All the circles of my card are die cut.
Loves Rubberstamps Challenge: Anything goes.
Stampin' For the Weekend Challenge: Use lace.
Paper Playtime Challenge: Anything goes.
Challenges 4 Everybody: Anything goes.
Corrosive Challenge: Use sparkle or glitter - I have sparkle on my flowers.
The Crafty Bloggers Network Challenge: Spring or pastel - I used pastel colors.
4 Crafty Chicks Challenge: Die for dies - All the circles of my card are die cut.
Delightful Challenge: Buttons, bling and embellishment things - I used bling embellished flowers, pearls, and lace.
Totally Papercrafts Challenge: Use dies and/or punches - I used circle dies and an edge punch.

Handcrafting My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: circle dies, scallop edge punch, mini flower punch, cake stamp, scoring board, blender tool, blending stumps, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, computer, Cuttlebug machine, non stick craft mat, tape runner
Materials: cardstocks, designer paper, cover stock, adhesives, silicon adhesive, gamsol, colored pencils, inks, stickles, lace, pearls
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

Front Panel of My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

Angle Right - My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

To create my wedding anniversary card I started by constructing my card base from silver grey cardstock (11" x 4.25"). I scored the cardstock at 5.5" so that my handmade card opens vertically from the bottom to form a tent card.

Next I built my topper panel. I used peach cardstock for the base of the panel (5.25" x 4"). For the top portion of the panel I affixed a piece of peach pastel tie dyed designer paper (3.75" x 3"). On the lower portion of the card panel I affixed a piece of silver grey cardstock that I border punched the lower edge with scallops (3.75" x 2.5" prior to edge punching).

At the interface of the designer paper and grey cardstock I attached a piece of cream lace (5"). I wrapped the ends of the lace around the edges of the panel and secured them on the back. I attached this portion of my topper to my card base using my tape runner.

For the focal point of the card I stamped my cake image on cream cardstock and colored it using gamsol and colored pencils. I colored it in such a way to give it a velvety textured look. After I colored my cake I die cut it out (2.5" circle) and used my blending tool to apply peach ink around the edges. I matted my image with peach cardstock (2.75" circle) that I die cut. To add a little pizzazz to my cake I decorated it with several miniature flowers that I punched from silvery grey cardstock and added a drop of stickles to each of their centers.

Once my cake image was completed I constructed my front sentiment. I printed "Happy Anniversary" on cream cardstock in silvery grey ink using my computer. I die cut my sentiment (1.25" circle) and applied peach ink around the edges. I matted my sentiment with peach cardstock (1.5" circle) that I die cut. I positioned my image panel and sentiment panel on my card front and attached them using silicon adhesive so that both panels are popped from the surface of the card.

Image Panel - My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

I like the velvety texture I achieved for my cake using the colored pencils.

To finish off the front of my wedding anniversary card I affixed two ivory pearls at its lower scalloped edge.

Angle Left - My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

You can see all of the dimension my wedding anniversary card has from the different elements on it. The one thing that is difficult to see is the sparkle on the centers of the flowers. You can see the sparkle better on the close up picture of my cake image, but they really shimmer in the light as you move the card.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

Inside Panel - My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

I kept the inside of my anniversary card very simple. I constructed a panel from cream cardstock (5" x 3.75") and matted it with peach cardstock (5.25" x 4"). For a little decoration I affixed a strip of the peach designer paper (3.75" x 0.5"). I attached my completed inside panel to my silvery grey card base using my tape runner.

I used heavy cover stock (8.5" x 8.5") to construct my handmade envelope and decorated it with a strip of the peach designer paper down its left edge.

Final Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card and Envelope Set

So this is the same design as my pink poodle card, but has a very different feel to it because of the different image and color scheme.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for My Handmade Wedding Anniversary Card

Cardstock: Hammermill, Wausau
Designer Paper: Unknown
Cover Stock: Staples
Cake Stamp: Studio 12
Lace: Weintraubs
Pearls: Studio 112
Stickles: Diamond
Dies: Spellbinders Nestabilities standard circles large and small
Punches: Martha Stewart double scallop edger, Dollar Store mini flower
Inks: Stazon jet black, Versamagic pink grapefruit
Prismacolor Pencils: putty beige, peach, goldenrod
Tools: blending stumps, computer, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, Cuttlebug machine, non stick craft mat, blender tool, tape runner
Misc Materials: adhesives, gamsol
Techniques Used: gamsol, die cutting and punches, blending

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade wedding anniversary card. A unique card for that wonderful couple celebrating a very special day. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

Handmade Whimsical Owl Card - Hoo Loves Ya Baby - Backyard Bird of Prey

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 14:14:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Owl Card

Today I heard an owl in the early morning hours so I thought I would share a handmade owl card with you. Although I truly love these little creatures, this is the first owl card I have made. My handmade owl card is very whimsical in colors of pink, kraft and blue. I adorned it with ribbon and a pink heart button to add that touch of panache. I decided to use the sentiment "Hoo loves ya baby?" because it makes me smile and is such a wonderful play on words. The owl image I selected for my card fits my sentiment since the little owl has out-stretched wings as if to ask the question "Hoo loves ya baby?"

Inspiration for My Handmade Owl Card

Like many people I have a fascination with owls. They are so cute and appear to have a lot of personality with their big expressive eyes. Growing up I spent a lot of time on my Grandparent's farm and there was a little barn owl that lived in a tree near the house for many years. My Grandmother called him "Rusty" and you could hear him calling during the night and early morning hours. Little Rusty was the inspiration for my owl card and my Grandmother absolutely loved him (I often heard her talking about him with great affection).

These days I have my own owl. Although I have not seen him "in person", I have seen him at night on my night vision video camera when he swoops down near our bird feeders during his hunting expeditions. Sometimes I see him landing on the ground or in our gardens. We also have heard him in the early morning hours just before dawn. I have the feeling that my handmade love you owl card is just the first of many.

Now this is the first owl card I have made, but it is not my first "Love" card. A few other posts of my cards for romance include: Tattoo Art Love You card, I Love You Teddy Bear Card, You Float My Boat card, Perfect for Me card, Robots in Love cards, and I Love You Always card.

Skip nature photography and challenge list and go directly to the detailed handmade card information.

Skip nature photography and go directly to the challenge list.

The World Around Me

As I mentioned, I haven't seen my owl, but I have seen many other birds of prey during the day in my backyard. They seem to think that I put bird food out just to attract their lunch for them. Here is one of my sneaky hawks sitting on my garden fence. He's behind the butterfly bush.

Hawk Perched on Garden Fence Looking for Lunch

Here's a closer look at him via my zoom.

Hawk Perched on Garden Fence

Hawk on Perched on Garden Fence in Profile

Hawk Wiping Beak on Garden Fence

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade owl card reflects the following challenges:

Stamping with the Dragon Challenge: Anything goes.
Sweet Pea Stampers Challenge: Use a digital stamp. My sentiment is a digital stamp.
A Gem of a Challenge: Button it.
Catch the Bug Challenge: Anything goes.
Make it Monday (MIM): Anything goes. I saw this cute little piggy get well card in the MIM gallery that I thought I would share. It has a nice use of distressing on it.
Mygrafico Challenge: Anything goes.
Love to Create Challenge: Pick 2 of the following die cuts, ribbon/twine, pearls, distressing, sentiment. I used a die cut and ribbon on my owl card.
Crafty Sentiments Challenge: Pretty in pink.
My Heart Pieces Digital Stamp Challenge: Use your 3 favorite things. I used die cuts, ribbon, and buttons.
The ABC Challenge: I is for in love.
Creative Card Crew Challenge: Use ribbon.
Divas by Design Challenge: Buttons and bows.

Handcrafting My Handmade Owl Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: scalloped heart die, owl stamp, computer, blending stumps, scoring board, paper cutter, Cuttlebug machine, bow easy, non stick craft mat, tape runner, ruler, scissors, detail scissors, sponge pieces
Materials: cardstock, designer paper, cover stock, ribbon, silicon adhesive, tape adhesive, gel adhesive, colored pencils, ink, spray sealer, button, jute, gamsol
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Love You Owl Card

Front Panel of My Handmade Owl Card

Angle Right - My Handmade Owl Card

I used kraft cardstock (4.25" x 11") for the base of my handmade owl card. I scored the cardstock at 5.5" so that my card opens vertically from the bottom to form a tent card.

For my front card panel I started with a piece of pastel pink cardstock (4" x 5.25"). The first thing I did was determine the placement of my sentiment and then printed "Hoo Loves Ya Baby?" in brown ink on it using my computer. Once my sentiment was in place, I affixed a piece of striped designer paper (4" x 2") on the lower portion of the pink cardstock panel.

To add a little panache to my owl card I attached a ribbon across the interface of the striped paper and cardstock (5"). I wrapped the ends of the ribbon around the edges of my panel and secured them on the back. Once the ribbon was in place I affixed the panel to my card base using my tape runner.

For the focal point of my card I stamped my owl on kraft cardstock and colored him using gamsol and colored pencils. When I finished coloring him I fussy cut him out (he's about 1" tall x 1.25" wide). Next I die cut a scalloped heart (1.75" wide x 1.5" tall) from kraft cardstock. Leaving the die in place on the heart, I sponged pink ink on the heart. When I removed the die, it left a nice kraft border around my heart.

After completing my owl and heart, I positioned them on my card front and affixed them with silicon adhesive so that they are popped up from the surface. I like the added dimension they give my card.

Close up View of the Image on My Handmade Owl Card

To finish off my card front I added a bow and heart button. I used a piece of jute on the button and attached it to the center of my bow. Using gel adhesive, I attached the bow to the card front on the ribbon.

Angle Left - My Handmade Owl Card

You can see the nice dimension that the bow and popped elements add to my owl card. I find it simple, but also interesting.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Owl Card

Inside Panel - My Handmade Owl Card

I kept the inside panel of my owl card very clean and simple. I cut a piece of white cardstock (3.75" x 5") and matted it with pastel pink cardstock (4" x 5.25"). For a little decoration I affixed a strip of the striped designer paper. I attached my completed inside panel to my kraft card base using my tape runner.

I also constructed an envelope from heavy cover stock (8.5" x 8.5"). As decoration on my envelope I stamped an owl in the lower left corner and colored him to match the owl on my card. I sprayed my colored image with sealer to protect it in the mail.

Final Handmade Owl Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Owl Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My finished project is a whimsical owl card with a smile maker of a sentiment. I really like this card.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Love You Owl Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for My Handmade Owl Card

Cardstock: The Paper Company, Wausau
Designer Paper: Paper Essentials
Cover Stock: Staples
Ribbon: Michaels
Owl Stamp: Hampton Art
Die: Spellbinders Nestabilities classic scalloped heart
Ink: Stazon jet black, Colorbox pigment pink
Prismacolor Pencils: sunburst yellow, dark umber, pink, peach beige, blush pink, powder blue, blue slate
Tools: tape runner, Cuttlebug machine, scoring board, paper cutter, ruler, blending stumps, scissors, sponge pieces, detail scissors, computer, bow easy, non stick craft mat
Misc. Materials: gel adhesive, silicon adhesive, tape adhesive, gamsol, jute, heart button
Techniques Used: gamsol, die cutting, fussy cutting, stamping, digital stamping, stenciling, sponging

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade owl card. A unique hooter card perfect for a lighthearted "I Love You.". Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

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Feminine Handmade Pink Poodle Card - Monochromatic - Spoiled Cats

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 00:17:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Pink Poodle Card

I finished listening to the sound track for "Pretty in Pink" and the music keeps running through my head and scenes from the movie flash before my eyes. Why on earth was my next thought of a pink poodle wearing shimmering jewels? Funny how the creative mind works sometimes. Well, I went with it creating a very feminine handmade pink poodle card. Now my poodle is no ordinary poodle. She's a diva dressed to the nines in her shimmering gold accessories and pink curly coiffure. She looks fabulous and knows it. With her attitude she is not afraid to be the focal point of a very pink, very girlie handmade monochromatic card.

The wonderful thing about my poodle card (besides the fact that it is pink, pink, pink) is that it is versatile. I think it can be used to wish a special lady happy birthday, say hi to a fabulous friend, extend a thank you for a fantastic deed, or just send a playful note. How great is that!

Skip pet photography and challenge list and go directly to the detailed handmade card information.

Skip pet photography and go directly to the challenge list.

The World Around Me

Oh my gosh! Talking about a diva and pink...my cat Gracie.

My Cat Gracie Napping on My Pink Snuggie

Pink Snuggie Hijacked by My Cat Gracie

Gracie decided to hijack my clean snuggie and take a nap on it. I didn't have the heart to dislodge her, so I'll be washing my pink snuggie again. Poor Bingo had to settle for a not so cushy cat blanket that needs to have its turn in the washing machine.

My Cat Bingo Napping on His Blanket with Catnip Toy Close at Hand

Bingo Keeping an Eye on the Camera Activity

Both my babies are worn out from all the card making activities!

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade pink poodle card reflects the following challenges:

Scrappy Frogs Challenge: Use red or pink.
Creative Inspirations Paint Challenge: Anything goes.
Make It Monday (MIM): Anything goes. I also saw this cute running baseball card in the MIM gallery.
Whoopsi Daisy Challenge: Add a sentiment.
CASology: Circle.
LEJ Designs Challenge: For a lovely lady.
Ooh La La Creations Challenge (OLLCB): Sparkle and shine. I have sparkle on my poodle's necklace and bow along with the pink pearls on my card.
Kaboodle Doodles Challenge: Use any bling. I used bling on my poodle's necklace and bow along with the pink pearls on my card.
The Shabby Tea Room Challenge: Pink party.
Celebrate the Occasion Challenge: Girl's birthday and must use pink.
Through the Craftroom Door Challenge: Anything goes.
Bearly Mine Challenge: Anything goes.
Party Time Tuesday Challenge: Anything goes.
Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge: All that glitters. I used stickles on my poodle's necklace and bow.
Crafting for all Seasons Challenge: Dies and punches. I used circle dies and a scallop border punch.
Paper Crafting Journey Challenge: Bingo. I used the row of lace, gems, and sentiment.
Simon Says Challenge: Anything goes.
Divas by Design Challenge: Anything goes.
Crafts and Me Challenge: Dies or punches. I used circle dies and a scallop border punch.
Cute Card Thursday Challenge: Something old. The lace on my card has been in my stash for several years.
Moving Along with the Times Challenge: Lovely ladies. Made for a female.
Totally Gorjuss Challenge: Anything goes with pink.
Allsorts Challenge: For a lady.

Handcrafting My Handmade Pink Poodle Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: circle dies, scallop edge punch, poodle stamp, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, computer, Cuttlebug machine, non stick craft mat, tape runner
Materials: cardstock, designer paper, cover stock, adhesive, silicon adhesive, gamsol, colored pencils, ink, lace, stickles, pearls
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Pink Poodle Card

Front Panel of My Handmade Pink Poodle Card

Angle Right - My Handmade Pink Poodle Card

To create my pink poodle card I started by constructing my card base from pink cardstock (11" x 4.25"). I scored the cardstock at 5.5" so that my handmade card opens vertically from the bottom to form a tent card.

Next I built my topper panel. I used pale pink cardstock for the base of the panel (5.25" x 4"). For the top portion of the panel I affixed a piece of tie dyed designer paper (3.75" x 3"). On the lower portion of the panel I affixed a piece of pink cardstock that I border punched the lower edge with scallops (3.75" x 2.5" prior to edge punching).

At the interface of the designer paper and pink cardstock I attached a piece of pink lace (5") that I have had in my stash for many years. I wrapped the ends of the lace around the edges of the panel and secured them on the back. I attached this portion of my topper to my card base using my tape runner.

For the focal point of the card I stamped my poodle image on cream cardstock (2.5" circle) and colored her using gamsol and colored pencils. After I colored her I die cut her out and matted her with pale pink cardstock (2.75" circle) that I die cut. To add a little glitz to my pink poodle, I applied stickles to her necklace and hair bow.

Once my poodle image was completed I constructed my front sentiment. I printed "You Are Fabulous" on cream cardstock in pink ink using my computer. I die cut my sentiment (1.25" circle) and matted it on pale pink cardstock (1.5" circle) that I die cut. I positioned my image panel and sentiment panel on my card front and attached them using silicon adhesive so that both panels are popped from the surface of the card.

Closer Look at the Image on My Handmade Pink Poodle Card

To finish off the front of my pink poodle card I affixed two pink pearls at its lower scalloped edge.

Angle Left - My Handmade Pink Poodle Card

You can see all of the dimension my pink poodle card has from the different elements on it. The one thing that is difficult to see is the sparkle of my poodle's necklace and hair bow. They really shimmer in the light as you move the card.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Pink Poodle Card

Inside Panel - My Handmade Pink Poodle Card

I kept the inside of my poodle card very simple. I constructed a panel from cream cardstock (5" x 3.75") and matted it with pale pink cardstock (5.25" x 4"). For a little decoration I affixed a strip of the pink tie dyed designer paper (3.75" x 0.5"). I attached my completed inside panel to my pink card base using my tape runner.

I used heavy cover stock (8.5" x 8.5") to construct my handmade envelope and decorated it with a strip of the pink tie dyed designer paper down its left edge.

Final Handmade Pink Poodle Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Pink Poodle Card and Handmade Envelope Set

From the movie "Pretty in Pink" to a very feminine handmade monochromatic pink poodle card. Strange how a creative mind sometimes works!

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Pink Poodle Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for My Handmade Pink Poodle Card

Cardstock: Hammermill, The Paper Company, Wausau
Designer Paper: Paper Adventures
Cover Stock: Staples
Poodle Stamp: Snag 'em Stamps
Dies: Nestabilities standard circles large and small
Punch: Martha Stewart double scallop edger
Ink: Stazon jet black
Prismacolor Pencils: crimson lake, spanish orange, warm grey 50%, white, pink, blush pink, hot pink, metallic gold
Lace: Weintraubs
Stickles: Diamond
Pearls: Michaels
Tools: blending stumps, computer, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, Cuttlebug machine, non stick craft mat, tape runner
Misc Materials: adhesives, gamsol
Techniques Used: gamsol, die cutting and punches

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade monochromatic pink poodle card. A uniquely feminine card fit for any diva. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

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Whimsical Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card - Thankful Birds

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 12:35:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

Today I'm sharing a whimsical handmade polar bear birthday card with you. I have to admit that when I look through birthday cards, the colorful and whimsical ones call out to me. If they're amusing, that's even better. My polar bear birthday card falls into that category...whimsical and a smile maker. It features a comical polar bear sitting in the grass holding a red balloon. I selected the bright color scheme for my handmade card based upon a curl cascade ribbon I have. My card design is clean and simple on the outside and inside.

The nice thing about the image and design of my polar bear card is that it doesn't have to be used as a birthday card. It can be used for any happy occasion or just to say "hi."

Inspiration for My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

Ribbon Inspiration for My Handmade Birthday Card

I like the bright colors of this ribbon and the quirky nature of the bouncy spring curls. Such a simple ribbon design with a light-hearted, cheerful feel about it.

I decided to give my handmade birthday card a similar vibe as that of the ribbon. The image of the polar bear holding a balloon and the colorful polka dot paper fit the bill.

If you have visited my blog before, you know that I have used bears on a variety of cards. These cards include: a bear dancing in the spotlight card, a sleeping teddy bear baby card, a lace embellished teddy bear card, a teddy bear and roses birthday card, and I love you teddy bear cards in burgundy, teal and yellow. I guess I got my love of bears from my Mom who had quite a collection on them.

Skip nature photography and challenge list and go directly to the detailed handmade card information.

Skip nature photography and go directly to the challenge list.

The World Around Me

The nice thing about working on a bright, colorful and happy card is that it takes your mind off of the terrible weather outside. We just survived the blizzard of 2013 with about 28 inches of snow in 24 hours. It took us 2 days to clear the snow and we have had a couple of snowstorms (including a nor'easter) since the blizzard. The snow keeps piling up, but I'm doing a happy dance now because we can finally relax a few days.

The birds are celebrating the fact that we cleared the bird feeding area and they have plenty of food to eat.

Cardinals and Finch in the Snow

Cardinal on My Rose of Sharon

Cardinal and Sparrow Peeking Out from the Snowy Butterfly Bush

Variety of Birds Getting Food During the Snowstorm

Trio of Birds Waiting for Space on the Hanging Feeders

Variety of Birds Grabbing Food from the Ground

Several Birds Trying Out the Different Menu Items

Cardinal and Finch Having a Snack

Two Cardinals Sharing a Meal

Cardinal and Woodpecker Dinner Companions

Sunflower Seeds are Popular with the Birds

Diversity at the Bird Feeders

Dove Stretching Her Wings After Sitting Awhile

The last picture of the dove stretching her wings is how I feel after a long snowy day that I spent sitting in front of my computer or curled up in a chair reading. Doesn't she look like an angel?

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade Polar Bear Birthday card reflects the following challenges:

Frosted Designs Challenge: Be Bold...use bold colors and bold patterns.
Raise the Bar Challenge: Anything goes.
Crafts 4 Eternity Challenge: Feature a bear.
QKR Stampede Challenge: Anything goes.
Whimsical Designs Challenge: Include the color green.
Make It Monday (MIM): Anything goes. I also saw this cute card in the MIM gallery for this week.
Gingerloft Challenge: The color red.
Little Red Wagon Challenge: Feature a teddy bear. I decided to make my bear white instead of brown.
Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge: Use red.
MilkCoffee Challenge: Make it cute. My polar bear is soooooo cute.
ABC Challenge: H is for Happy Birthday.
Card Makin' Mamas Challenge: Card for a birthday.
Here Come the Boys Challenge: Lots of layers. My card has 6 layers.
Creative Card Crew Challenge: Birthday.
Oldie But a Goodie Challenge: Bright Colors and use something at least 6 months old. The ribbon on my polar bear card has been in my stash for way over 6 months.
Digistamps4Joy Challenge: Birthdays are fun.

Handcrafting My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: polar bear stamp, rectangle dies, scallop die, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, computer, Cuttlebug machine, non stick craft mat, tape runner, Photoshop Elements
Materials: cardstock, designer paper, cover stock, tape adhesive, silicon adhesive, pva adhesive, gamsol, colored pencils, inks, artists tape, ribbon, spray sealer
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

Front Panel of My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

Angle Right - My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

To create my polar bear birthday card I started by constructing my base card from red cardstock (11" x 4.25"). I scored the cardstock at 5.5" so that my handmade card opens vertically from the bottom to form a tent card.

Next I built the topper panel. I used yellow cardstock for the base of the panel (5.25" x 4") and layered it with polka dot designer paper (5" x 3.75"). I like the fun big polka dots because they give off the same vibe as the springy ribbon I was inspired by.

I punched a strip of apple green cardstock (4" x 1.5") to resemble eyelet lace and affixed it to my panel base. Over the top of the green "eyelet" I attached a thin textured red and yellow ribbon (5"). I wrapped the ends of the ribbon around the edges of the panel and secured them on the back.

For the focal point of the card I stamped my polar bear image on white cardstock and colored him using gamsol and colored pencils. I used neutral colors to shade the edges of his fur to add depth to him and bring him out from the white background. When my image was complete, I die cut it out (3 3/8" x 2 5/8") and matted it with red cardstock (3 5/8" x 2 7/8").

Image Panel - My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

See how my shading gives dimension to my bear and separates him from his background, but still says he's a polar bear.

To complete my topper panel I affixed the image panel with silicon adhesive to pop it from the surface and add dimension to my card. I then attached the topper panel to my red card base using my tape runner.

Angle Left - My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

In the picture above you can see the dimension added to my card by the popped image panel and the coloration of my polar bear. The thin striped ribbon adds just a touch of panache.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

Inside Panel - My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

I kept the inside of my birthday card very simple. I constructed a panel from cream cardstock (5" x 3.75") and matted it with yellow cardstock (5.25" x 4"). For a little decoration I affixed a strip of the polka dot designer paper (3.75" x 6/8") matted on red cardstock (3.75" x 1"). I attached my completed inside card panel to my red card base using my tape runner.

For my handmade envelope I tried something new. I cut my heavy cover stock (8.5" x 8.5") and scored it, but left it flat for the time being. Lots of times I will cut a strip of the designer paper to embellish my envelope. This time I scanned a piece of the paper into my computer and printed it on my envelope.

I used Photoshop Elements to position the polka dot strip where I wanted it along the left hand edge of the face of the envelope. Before printing it on my envelope paper, I affixed some artist's tape along the outer edge of the upper and lower score lines. This way when the decorative strip was printed on my envelope paper, clean lines were left when I removed the tape. This also gave me some wiggle room on the placement of my decorative strip in my Photoshop program.

Once I had printed the decorative strip on my envelope I finished constructing it and gluing it together. I like the cleaner look of my envelope with the printed embellishment. I did spray it with sealer to protect the image should it be mailed.

Final Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card and Handmade Envelope Set

I think my polar bear birthday card set achieved my goal to reflect the vibe of the ribbon cascade. With its amusing bear, fun polka dot paper and bright color combination it speaks happy to me.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Polar Bear Birthday Card

Cardstock: Hammermill, Wausau
Designer Paper: Recollections
Cover Stock: Staples
Polar Bear Stamp: Cowtown stamps
Dies: Spellbinders Nestabilities classic rectangles large and small, MFT Die-namics scallops
Ink: Stazon jet black
Prismacolor Pencils: cool grey 10%, blush pink, pink rose, peach beige, cream, apple green, crimson lake, scarlet lake.
Ribbon: Michael's Textured
Tools: scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, computer, Photoshop Elements, Cuttlebug machine, non stick craft mat, tape runner.
Misc Material: artist's tape, silicon adhesive, tape adhesive, pva adhesive, spray sealer.
Techniques Used: gamsol, stamping, digital stamping, die cutting

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade polar bear birthday card. A unique card inspired by a colorful, fun ribbon and great for sending a celebratory note to a friend. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

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Handmade Floral Thank You Card - Clean and Simple Design

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Sat, 16 Feb 2013 21:03:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Floral Thank You Card

I'm finally back to sharing my handmade cards with you. Today I am revealing a very clean and simple handcrafted thank you card. The focal point of the card is a floral silhouette beneath a thank you banner. I selected colors for my handmade card based upon a beautiful sunrise my husband captured with the camera. Although my homemade thank you card appears very simplistic, I used many techniques to create it. These techniques include sponging, brayering, stamping, die cutting, dry embossing, decoupage and chalking. I also incorporated a little digital technique. As you can see, I love incorporating all sorts of things in the design of my handmade cards. The inside of my thank you card is as clean and simple as the outside...I left it blank.

Inspiration for My Handmade Floral Thank You Card

When I see a beautifully colored sky at sunrise or sunset, I think about my Mom. She loved the beauty of nature and working in her garden. I wanted to create a handmade thank you card that captured these two aspects of Mama, yet was simple in design. As it happens, my husband captured this beautiful sunrise and I used it as inspiration for my thank you card.

Brilliant Red-Orange Sunrise

Beautiful Deep Orange Sunrise

As I looked at these sunrise pictures the black silhouettes of the flag and trees against the deeply colored sky really stood out to me. I used this concept for my thank you card. I created a background reflecting the sunrise and selected a silhouetted flower as the main image. Both remind me of Mom.

I have shared other handmade cards that I've used a sunset or sunrise background for the main image. They have a variety of color schemes and I used different techniques to create them. Details on those cards can be found on my posts Silhouettes on Watercolor Sunsets, Silhouettes in the Sunset and Desert Sunset.

Skip nature photography and challenge list and go directly to the detailed handmade card information.

Skip nature photography and go directly to the challenge list.

The World Around Me

This is the first handcrafted thank you card that I have shared with you. As I designed this card, I thought about some of the little things that brighten my day when I am blue and I am thankful for. One thing that always makes me smile is taking a drive along the river and looking at the wildlife. I am particularly thankful for the bald eagles that we often see, especially during the winter months. They are such gorgeous birds that I really enjoy watching, so I thought I would share several pictures of these magnificent creatures. We captured these photos on some of our drives along the river.

Adult Bald Eagle High in a Tree

Close Up of Adult Bald Eagle High in a Tree

Immature Bald Eagle High in a Tree

Immature Bald Eagle Overlooking a River

Immature Bald Eagle Looking Across a River

Adult and Immature Bald Eagles Perched in Trees with Seagull Flying Past

Adult Bald Eagle Perched Among Branches in a Tree

Immature Bald Eagle Perched Among Branches in a Tree

Adult Bald Eagle in the Snow

Adult Bald Eagle Perched in a Snowy Tree

Immature Bald Eagle Flying Above River

Adult Bald Eagle Fishing in a River

Aren't these majestic birds just the best eye candy!

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade Floral Thank You card reflects the following challenges:

The Sisterhood of Crafters challenge is to create a thank you card.
Make it Monday is a link party and I have linked my floral thank you card to it. I also checked out several of the cards linked to MIM and found this cute and funny chicken card on the Love to Make Cards blog that I thought you might enjoy viewing.
The Shabby Tea Room challenge is to use a silhouette as the focal point of your project. I used a lily of the valley flower silhouette on my handmade thank you card.
Through the Craftroom Door challenge is anything goes and I submitted my floral thank you card to it.
Tuesday Throwdown is anything goes this week so I submitted my silhouette thank you card to it.

Handcrafting My Handmade Floral Thank You Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: flower silhouette stamp, shaped dies, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, sponge pieces, Cuttlebug machine, non stick craft mat, computer, brayer, adhesive tape runner
Materials: cardstock, glossy, cardstock, photo paper, cover stock, tape adhesive, silicon adhesive, pva adhesive, inks, spray sealer, chalk
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Floral Silhouette Thank You Card

Front Panel of My Handmade Floral Thank You Card

Front Angled Right - My Handmade Floral Thank You Card

To create my floral thank you card I started by creating the brayered panel for my silhouette flower stamp. Using a rainbow ink pad in colors similar to that of the sunrise on my inspirational photo, I brayered the ink onto a piece of glossy cardstock. When the ink was dry, I scanned the inked cardstock into my computer and printed it out on photo paper. I did this so that I can use the brayered background in other projects.

Next I constructed the image panel for my thank you card. Using black ink I stamped the flower on it. After the ink dried I die cut my image panel into a shape I found pleasing for the flower silhouette. I next created a separate sponged panel background for my image panel.

Taking a piece of peach cardstock I sponged on the various colors from the rainbow ink pad using small pieces of sponge. When the ink was dry I cut it to size and affixed my image panel to it using silicon adhesive so that the image panel was popped from the surface.

For the thank you sentiment of my handmade card I printed "Thank You" on cream cardstock with my computer. I used a die cut to create the banner for my sentiment and dry emboss it. To finish off the sentiment I chalked around its edges with a peach pearlescent chalk to give it depth. I like the dimensional aspect of the dry embossing and chalking. Once I completed my thank you sentiment banner, I affixed it to my image with silicon glue to pop it from the surface.

With the completion of the front topper panel of my thank you card, I created the base card using a rust-orange cardstock. I scored the cardstock so that my handmade card opens vertically from the bottom to form a tent card. I affixed the topper panel to my card base using my tape runner.

Here's another picture of my floral silhouette thank you card from a different angle.

Front Angled Left - My Handmade Floral Thank You Card

In the above photo you can see the dimension added by the popped elements and the chalking. It's a very clean and simple design. The variegation in color of the image panel is difficult to see. Here's a closer look at it which shows the gradual change in color down the panel a little better.

Image Panel - My Handmade Floral Thank You Card

Inside Panel of My Handmade Floral Thank You Card

Inside Panel - My Handmade Floral Thank You Card

I kept the inside of my thank you card very simple. I constructed a panel from cream cardstock and decorated it with a strip of the sponged peach cardstock. With the card panel completed, I affixed it to the inside of my card base.

I also constructed a handmade envelope from heavy cover stock. I stamped the flower silhouette in orange on the lower left hand corner of the envelope. To protect the envelope image I sprayed it with sealer.

Final Handmade Floral Thank You Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Floral Thank You Card and Handmade Envelope Set

I used many techniques to create this card set and enjoyed every minute of it.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Floral Silhouette Thank You Card

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Floral Thank You Card

Cardstock: Wausau, Hammermill, Recollections
Cover Stock: Staples
Photo Paper: Ocean State
Stamp: Flourishes summer botanicals
Dies: Spellbinders Nestabilities labels 8, Spellbinders Shapeabilities ribbon banners
Inks: Stazon jet black, Kaleidacolor desert heat, Colorbox orange
Chalk: Pebbles Inc pearlescents
Tools: tape runner, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, sponge pieces, computer, Cuttlebug machine, non stick craft mat, brayer
Misc Material: silicon adhesive, tape adhesive, pva adhesive, spray sealer.
Techniques Used: die cutting, stamping, dry embossing, digital stamping, brayering, chalking, decoupage

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade floral thank you card. A unique card based upon a deep red-orange sunrise and fit for any occasion requiring a note of gratitude. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade thank you card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

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Sandy Hook CT One Month After Tragedy Through My Eyes & Camera

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 21:42:00 +0000

For the past three weeks I have been down for the count with the flu that has been making the rounds. Nasty little virus that zaps all of your energy and just makes you plain miserable. Needless to say, I have not been able to post on my blog because I have spent the majority of my time napping and fighting this bug. But now, I'm feeling much better and am ready to get back into the swing of things.

It has been a month since the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School. In my previous post Sandy Hook CT Through My Eyes and My Camera, I shared many pictures of Sandy Hook and my observations following the events of December 14, 2012. Although one month has past, there are still numerous demonstrations of support from neighboring towns for the Sandy Hook community. You won't travel very far in our region without seeing signs of encouragement and prayer for our neighbors like the one at this gas station. (Caught this picture from a moving car...somewhat blurry, but you get the point).

Sign of Support for Newtown, CT in a Neighboring Town

This past week we were back at the Sandy Hook diner and walked through the center of town after breakfast. Much has changed since our previous visit, but you just know in your heart that things will never be what they were prior to that horrible Friday morning.

The large spontaneous memorials that sprung up in the center of town have been dismantled and placed in safe keeping for a future project of remembrance. The thousands of flowers are being composted into sacred soil and the masses of people have returned to their homes across the United States and the world. What remains is a small town supported by its local neighbors coming together to cope with its loss and moving forward to make a difference.

If you take a quick look down the main street toward the stop light, your first impression is of a town as it was before the tragedy. Quiet and friendly surrounded with that small town vibe. But, if you take a closer look, you see a small town coping with tremendous loss and embracing one another as a community.

The roadblocks and traffic cones that lined the streets are gone, along with the traffic congestion. However, many of the police and first responders here are still from neighboring towns. They continue to take on the duties for those from Sandy Hook that responded to the nightmarish school scene and require additional time to heal emotionally.

Sidewalk alcoves and street corners that once held the memorials are now empty of keepsakes, but you can see small remnants left behind from the clean up.


Street Corner in Sandy Hook, CT After the Memorials Have Been Dismantled

Sidewalk Alcove in Sandy Hook, CT After Memorials Have Been Dismantled

Another Sidewalk Alcove in Sandy Hook, CT After the Memorials Have Been Dismantled

Benches and shop entries that were previously covered with flowers, stuffed animals, flags, and all sorts of mementos now sit vacant.

Benches and Store Front That Were Once Overflowing with Mementos in Sandy Hook, CT

As you glance toward the bridge crossing the river that was once the backdrop for 26 wreaths, stockings of toys, signs and balloons, it now appears to be just an ordinary street bridge. However, if you step a little closer and really look at it, you see a bridge of commemoration. Fragments of knotted ropes left behind from the removal of the signs. Green and white ribbons tied to its lamps and small green ribbons at the base of poles nearby.

Bridge in Sandy Hook, CT After Removal of the Memorials

Sandy Hook, CT Bridge Lamps Wearing Their Ribbons of Green and White

Green and White Newtown, CT Ribbons Placed Throughout Sandy Hook, CT

As we walked in front of the diner we noticed a green and white sign hanging in the window: "We Are Sandy Hook - We Choose Love."

Sandy Hook Diner Proudly Displaying Its "We Choose Love" Sign

Closer Inspection of the "We Choose Love" Sign in the Window of the Sandy Hook Diner

Continuing our stroll through the center of Sandy Hook we observed that many of the businesses had that same green and white sign prominently displayed in their windows.

"We Choose Love" Sign in a Sandy Hook, CT Store Window

"We Choose Love" Sign and Hug Banner in Window of a Sandy Hook, CT Deli

"We Choose Love" Sign in the Window of a Sandy Hook, CT Dress Shop

"We Choose Love" Sign in the Window of a Sandy Hook, CT Toy Shop

Along side the "We Choose Love" signage, many businesses had other symbols of tribute. One shop in particular caught my eye. It is a formal dress shop that exhibits several dresses in its windows. Presently all of the dresses are green or white which are the school colors of Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Sandy Hook, CT Dress Shop Displaying Dresses in Green and White - Colors of Sandy Hook Elementary School

Sandy Hook, CT Dress Shop Displaying Dresses in Colors of the Sandy Hook Elementary School - Green and White

While we were walking through town, one of the center businesses was setting up for a fundraising event to take place that day. Stylists from around the area were joining up for 12 hours to raise money for the Sandy Hook Memorial Fund. According to our local news it was quite successful.

Sandy Hook, CT Hair Salon Preparing for a Fundraising Event

Window of a Sandy Hook, CT Hair Salon with Hand Prints of Love

Signage at a Sandy Hook, CT Hair Salon for the Fundraising Event

Green Ribbon With the Names of Those Lost at Sandy Hook Elementary School

The most poignant thing we saw on our walk was a small display memorializing the 20 children and 6 educators lost at the Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012. At the end of the bridge a bouquet of 26 silk roses had been secured to a pole. Each rose portrayed the face of one of those lost in the tragedy. Below the roses was a thought provoking letter that hits you emotionally as you read it. This tribute captures the essence of this horrible event and was absolutely beautiful on its commonplace backdrop.

Bouquet of Silk Roses in Memory of Those Lost at Sandy Hook Elementary School

Portraits of Those Lost at Sandy Hook Elementary School on the Roses

Letter Attached Beneath the Bouquet of Remembrance Roses

Thank you for visiting my blog today and allowing me to share my Sandy Hook, CT experience and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon! In my next post I will be sharing a handmade thank you card including information on how I made it.

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

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Sandy Hook CT Through My Eyes & My Camera

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 20:47:00 +0000

As I mentioned in my Good Riddance 2012 post, I live very close to where the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy occurred. We often go to the little Sandy Hook Diner for an early Saturday morning breakfast and walk along the river that passes through the center of town. The Sandy Hook portion of Newtown is a quiet little place with friendly people and a small business district along its main street controlled by one traffic light at its center.

Usually when we sit at a table in the diner enjoying our early morning breakfast we watch a sleepy little town gradually come awake. People are grabbing a bite to eat while reading the paper or walking their pets along the sidewalks. We see an occasional car travel up the street and the traffic picks up as the morning progresses. The conversation in the diner is friendly with occasional bursts of laughter. We can absorb the small town atmosphere so much like our town as we relax over breakfast and numerous coffee refills. This all changed at 9:30 a.m. on December 14, 2012.

When I happened to turn on the television for a quick break that Friday, I was stunned at what I saw and what I heard. For the next 48 hours all of our local TV stations were solid wall to wall coverage of the tragedy at the Sandy Hook Elementary School. We like many others were glued to the television and listening to the fire radio of our town which had gone to assist Sandy Hook.

It was surreal seeing all of the places we were familiar with and frequently patronized on the national news coverage. Just watching the coverage we wondered how on earth all of those media trucks were fitting into such a small space. Our hearts were breaking for the families and it was hard to grasp that something so terrible could happen so close to home and to such innocent victims.

After the tragedy at the elementary school, we avoided going into Sandy Hook because of the massive media presence and the congestion of people. We finally went back to the diner for an early morning breakfast after the majority of the media had gone home and only a few of our local media stations remained. What we saw and experienced brought us to tears and pictures cannot truly capture the atmosphere and the change in this small little part of the world.

Prior to the diner opening for breakfast, we walked down the street to the foot of the hill from the Sandy Hook Elementary School and spent quite a bit of time wandering through the memorials. The scope and size of these memorials was mind-boggling and emotionally overwhelming. Everywhere you looked there were signs of grief and an overpowering sense of unity and support. Photos just do not capture the enormity of the sight or the gut-wrenching feelings evoked.

The sun had not started to rise yet and the darkness illuminated by floodlights watching over the memorials provided a very peaceful atmosphere. We spoke softly to the police guarding the memorials and securing the road up to the school. They were from various towns around the area outside of Sandy Hook and we let them know we appreciated their presence.

After visiting the memorials we sat in the diner over breakfast looking out of the windows toward the street and watching the sun rise. As it became lighter outside the full impact of what we were observing hit us hard.

Signs of all kinds, wreaths, green ribbons, balloons and red Christmas stockings filled with toys covering the bridge over the river.

Large spontaneous memorials filled with flowers, balloons, candles, wreaths, signs, flags, ribbons and every kind of stuffed animal and angel you can imagine.

There were street corners, sidewalks, doorways and grassy embankments covered with symbols of sorrow, love and support.

White tents erected over the memorials to protect the out-pouring of love and support from the rain and wind.

Police officers from surrounding towns standing guard over the memorials and blocking the hill up to the school.

Orange cones along the edge of the street preventing cars from parking and blocking access to the memorials.

Cars with license plates from all over America moving slowly up the street, pulling along the sidewalk and stopping.

People in all manner of dress and of all ages getting out of cars and walking toward the memorials carrying flowers, balloons and stuffed toys...many of them crying as they walked.

Solitary individuals, families and groups of people wearing ribbons and splashes of green in honor of Sandy Hook. Green and white are the school colors of the Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Signs of unity, memory and prayer hanging in business windows and from the roofs of buildings up and down the streets.

Police officers and police cars from all over Connecticut on the streets to take on all sorts of duties for Newtown.

A grieving family in black limos being escorted by two State police cars and 5 motorcycle police to the church up the street for the funeral of their little lost angel.

Here we were sitting in our familiar diner, but the atmosphere and sights were so different from the usual comfortable experience. The mood was quietly somber, although people were trying to carry on as normal. We could tell that the staff at the diner and the locals with us had been shell shocked just like us by all the things that had happened and were ongoing.

As we drove back home through town in the morning light we were in awe of all the visible symbols of a caring nation for this small town and the families of those lost in the tragedy.

Green and white ribbons strung on mailboxes, trees, poles and anything that they could be wrapped around.

Large green and white ribbons displayed on the buildings of large regional and national businesses in the area.

Signs and angels in the windows and on the buildings of businesses and private homes.

Spontaneous memorials started in a yard or on an embankment near the road that had grown over time from people stopping and adding their mementos to the collection.

Signs, ribbons, balloons and flags hanging from overpasses for those on the roads and highways below to see.

Memorials at the high school, churches and town hall that have grown overtime.

Collections of 26 flags, candles or angels populating yards and roadside areas representing the people lost.

Garlands of all kinds strung between trees in yards. One of the most poignant to me was a garland of 6 large white angels interspersed among 20 smaller white doves.

We saw traffic building to the extent that people were parking their cars along roads quite a distance from the center of Sandy Hook and walking with their keepsakes to the large memorial. There were spontaneous memorials at the freeway exit and entrance ramps where people had placed items because they were unable to make it into Sandy Hook due to the congestion.

Everywhere we looked we saw people remembering those lost and showing their support for those suffering. The surrounding towns have similar symbols of support along streets, at churches, in businesses and on the town greens. I have not seen anything like this since the national tragedy of 9/11.

From this out-pouring of love I see great hope for the future, but also wonder how this tragedy will change our area and our nation in the days, weeks, months and years to come. May we never forget...

Here are some of our pictures from Sandy Hook. Although they cannot begin to show the true scope of what we saw, they may give you a flavor of the aura surrounding the town. The memorials continued to grow after our visit until they were dismantled this week and preserved.

Flag in the center of Newtown, CT

Diner in Sandy Hook, CT with the elementary school memorials in the distance

Center of Sandy Hook, CT with elementary school memorials. This was after sunrise.

Memorials surrounding bridge in center of Sandy Hook, CT

Memorial at edge of bridge in Sandy Hook, CT

Different view of the memorial at the bridge edge in Sandy Hook, CT

Mementos left at the bridge in Sandy Hook, CT

More keepsakes left at the bridge in Sandy Hook, CT

Sign and Christmas Stockings filled with toys hanging from the bridge in Sandy Hook, CT

Memorials at the foot of the elementary school road in the center of Sandy Hook, CT looking up toward diner

Road closed to elementary school and memorials at center of Sandy Hook, CT

Sandy Hook Elementary School Memorials

Sandy Hook Elementary School Memorials at center of Sandy Hook, CT

26 wreaths for the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy

Police presence securing road to elementary school and watching over the memorials

Smaller memorial on the corner leading up to the Sandy Hook Elementary School

Memorial mementos spreading down the street in front of shops in Sandy Hook, CT

Bench in front of shop near the memorials in Sandy Hook, CT

One of the large memorials in the center of Sandy Hook, CT

Looking inside one of the memorials for Sandy Hook Elementary School Victims

Another peek into a memorial in the center of Sandy Hook, CT

Angels along the roadside in Sandy Hook, CT collecting keepsakes

Neighboring town green of Southbury, CT with 26 trees dressed in green ribbons

1 of 26 trees along the Southbury, CT town green decorated with a green ribbon and a victim's name

Southbury, CT town green pavilion decorated for the holidays and support of Sandy Hook, CT

Wreath of angels on Southbury, CT town green.

Ribbon of Honor for Sandy Hook, CT hanging on the Southbury, CT town green pavilion

Thank you for visiting my blog today and allowing me to share my Sandy Hook, CT experience and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon! Tomorrow I will be sharing my first handmade card for 2013 and information on how I made it.

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

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Good Riddance 2012 - Hello 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Tue, 01 Jan 2013 21:14:00 +0000

I for one am glad to see the backside of the year 2012 and ready for a fresh look at life. The year 2012 was a very difficult year for me. It seems that I spent more time crying than anything else due to events beyond my control. As a result, I lacked the motivation to accomplish many of the things I set out to do and let my blog fall to the wayside in order to focus on emotional healing.

As I look back on 2012 I not only see the heartache, but I also see how lucky I am to have such a wonderful family that I love and loves me back. We've been each others rock through the tough times and I know that things will get better as the healing continues.

Over the past year four key events in my life have given me a new perspective of life and living.

I lost my Mom suddenly and unexpectantly to pancreatic cancer. The angels came within a month of her diagnosis. I am so glad that I flew back home to spend time with her and then spent an additional 3 months with Daddy and my sister. The tears are gradually turning to smiles of wonderful memories, but there are still moments of horrific sorrow. My Mom loved life and I know she wants us to pick up our boot straps and live life to the fullest. I plan on doing just that in 2013 by becoming involved in several activities to celebrate my Mom's life and fight the demon that took her from our lives so quickly.

I lost one of my beloved pets...Coco, my bunny. He was a domestic bunny I discovered eating my plants on my deck one spring shortly after Easter. We had him for almost 12 years after trying to locate his original owners. He thought he was a cat (since we have 2 cats that were his constant companions) and brought lots of love and smiles into our lives. I know he was just a bunny but my heart was broken for such a long time after losing him because he had been a part of our family for so many years. It took what seemed like an eternity for me to be able to prep carrots for dinner without crying. His presence in our home reminds me that love can come in unexpected packages and at unforeseen times.

Hurricane Sandy created horrendous devastation to our state of CT. The winds were absolutely frightening and the scenes afterwards were heart-wrenching. We made out pretty good in our area compared to the shoreline just to our south. Our little town was well prepared with comfort stations and very organized for the clean-up and restoration. It has been heart-warming to see people and communities pull together and come to the aid of those with a greater need than their own. This disaster has shown me the value of community and that real kindness still exists.

The Sandy Hook Elementary School Tragedy occurred within a couple miles of my house. We are still overwhelmed with the aftermath of the incident and its impact on our area, not to mention our nation. You cannot travel anywhere without seeing signs of grief and support. Thousands of people have come to the area and it is surreal to see businesses that you routinely patronize on the national news. The out-pouring of love and support from all over America and the world gives me hope for the future.

So here's a welcome goodbye to 2012 and a determined hello to 2013. I'm resolute to getting back on track and making a difference.

Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my 2012 heartbreaks with you. I hope you will come back soon and join me often in 2013. I will be creating numerous handmade cards, experimenting with new techniques, providing tips I discover and sharing some animal love!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

Humorous Handmade Dog Frankenstein Halloween Card - Witty Halloween Hello

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 16:27:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Dog Frankenstein Halloween Card

I'm more into the whimsical or humorous Halloween cards. When I browse the cards in a store I always seem to reach for the cute or funny Halloween cards as opposed to the scary and gory ones. So it makes sense that my handmade Halloween cards would lean toward the whimsical and humorous side. The homemade Halloween card I am going to share today falls into that category. I also enjoy spoof movies like "Young Frankenstein" and crazy old music like "Monster Mash". I've also incorporated these two interests into my funny Halloween card. It features a cute little dog dressed up like Frankenstein patiently waiting to accompany his master on their trek for Halloween candy and a dance party afterwards. Behind him is a full moon with a trio of bats profiled in its light. The bats are as scary as this Halloween card gets. The inside message "Got Candy?" in its eerie script is a smile maker.

If you browse through the posts of my other handmade Halloween cards you will see that the majority of them are cute and whimsical with a touch of humor in some form.

Skip photography and challenge list and go directly to the detailed handmade card information.

The World Around Me

As I sit here typing up this post I can hear gentle snoring behind me. Since I have returned home Bingo and Gracie (my two cats) seem to follow me everywhere. It's like I have two shadows wherever I go. While I was taking pictures of some of the cards I have made, Gracie followed me down to my craft area and sat next to a chair full of stuff and began meowing. This was my cue to empty the chair and put her fleece in it so that she could keep me company while I photographed my cards. I captured a couple of pictures of her in the chair.

My Cat Gracie Keeping Me Company

Gracie Patiently Waiting for Me to Complete My Photography

Obviously her fleece is too big for that particular chair, but she stayed there for over an hour keeping me company.

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade Frankenstein Dog Halloween card reflects the following challenges:

Moving Along with the Times challenge is "in the dark". My card reflects this challenge with its black coloration and its night atmosphere.
Pixie Dust Studio challenge is "anything goes". My Frankenstein Dog Halloween card fits this challenge.
Crafty Ann's Challenge requires a project inspired by a film and my Frankenstein Dog card used the film "Young Frankenstein" for inspiration. I spoofed Frankenstein with a cute dog imitating Frankenstein.
Stamping with the Dragon challenge is "animals". My card has a cute little dog on it.
Crazy 4 Challenges is to incorporate a favorite Halloween character. One of my favorite Halloween characters is Frankenstein and the dog on my Halloween card is dressed like Frankenstein.
Totally Gorjuss challenge is "anything goes". My Dog Frankenstein Halloween card fits this challenge.
The Corrosive Challenge is to create a Halloween project featuring a villain or monster. Frankenstein fits this description and the dog on my card is dressed like Frankenstein and is the focus of my Halloween card.
Di's Digi Design Challenge is to use an animal acting like a human. The dog dressed like Frankenstein on my funny Halloween card fits this description.
Robyn's Fetish Challenge is "circles". My Frankenstein Dog Halloween card has incorporated several circles in its design.
Clear It Out challenge is an anything goes using orange, purple or black as the dominate color. Frankenstein Dog card is predominately black.
Oldie But A Goodie Challenge is to create a project inspired by a song and use something at least 6 months old. The quirky song "Monster Mash" was part of the inspiration for my Dog Frankenstein Halloween card and I used black cardstock from my stash that is more than 6 months old.
Papertake Weekly Challenge is "all creatures great and small". Frankenstein dog on my handmade Halloween card is a creature.
Crafting for all Seasons challenge is "costumes/dressing up". The dog on my Halloween card is dressed up like Frankenstein.
The Poodles Parlour theme is Halloween and my Frankenstein Dog is a Halloween card.
Just Some Lines challenge is a cute Halloween card. I think the whimsical dog dressed up like Frankenstein on my Halloween card is definitely cute.

Handcrafting My Handmade Frankenstein Dog Halloween Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: dog stamp, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, sponge pieces, computer, circle cutter, bat punch, Cuttlebug machine
Materials: cardstock, cover stock, colored pencils, gamsol, spray sealer, inks, adhesive
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Frankenstein Dog Halloween Card

Front Panel of My Handmade Frankenstein Dog Halloween Card

Front Right - My Handmade Frankenstein Dog Halloween Card

To create my Frankenstein Dog Halloween card I stamped the dog image on white cardstock and colored him using gamsol and colored pencils. Once the image was colored, I fussy cut him out and set him aside.

Next I created my card base from red cardstock and scored it at the top to form a tent card that opens vertically from the bottom. I then created my topper and inside panels to affix to my red card base.

For my topper panel I used black cardstock. As a backdrop for my dog image I matted a black cardstock circle with a red cardstock circle. To add some depth I sponged red ink on the black circle and then glued my dog image to it.

I cut a yellow cardstock circle to represent the moon and sponged it with a darker yellow to add crater like features to it. I affixed the moon to my black panel and then popped on my round dog panel so that it is slightly off the surface. As a finishing touch I popped a trio of bats onto the moon. I attached the completed topper to my red card base.

Here's another picture of my Frankenstein Dog Halloween card from a different angle.

Front Left - My Handmade Dog Frankenstein Halloween Card

In this photo you can see the dimension added by the popped elements. You can also see the sponged red around my dog. The sponging on the moon is not so clear.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Frankenstein Dog Halloween Card

Inside Panel - My Dog Frankenstein Halloween Card

For the inside panel of my Halloween card I printed "Got Candy?" on white cardstock that I decorated with a yellow cardstock moon in the lower right corner. I also popped a trio of bats on the moon. To finish the panel I matted it with black cardstock and then affixed the completed panel to my red card base.

I also constructed a handmade envelope from heavy cover stock. I stamped the dog image in the lower left corner and colored it using gamsol and colored pencils. I sponged ink around my image and then sprayed it with a matte sealer. The sealer protects the envelope image should it travel through the mail system.

Final Handmade Frankenstein Dog Halloween Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Dog Frankenstein Halloween Card and Handmade Envelope Set

I smile every time I see this costumed dog. I think he is so cute and is truly the focus for this card.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Frankenstein Dog Halloween Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Frankenstein Dog Halloween Card

Cardstock: Wausau, Embassy, Recollections, The Paper Company
Cover Stock: Staples
Stamp: Inkadinkado
Punch: Fiskars (bats)
Dies: Nestabilities standard circles large and small
Inks: Colorbox, Stazon black
Prismacolor Pencils: goldenrod, jasmine, canary yellow, apple green, olive green, crimson red, metallic silver
Tools: scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, sponge pieces, computer, Cuttlebug machine
Misc Materials: adhesive, spray sealer, gamsol
Techniques Used: gamsol, sponging, stamping, die cutting, fussy cutting

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade Frankenstein Dog Halloween card. A unique card for expressing a witty Halloween hello. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade Dog Frankenstein Halloween card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

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My Heart is Crying, However, Memories Are Gradually Turning to Smiles

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 15:48:00 +0000

It has been quite some time since I have shared any projects with you, but something much more important in my life interrupted my daily routine and resulted in my unexpected absence from here.

In early June my Mom was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and I flew home to be with her and my family to fight this dreaded disease and in hopes that treatment would stop it in its tracks. That was not to be...the angels came for Mom on July 3rd. Time was so short, but Mom had a strength and grace throughout the whole ordeal that I only hope I can emulate.

Over the past few months I made the decision to remain with Daddy, and with my sister's help, assist him with all of the things he needed to do to get back up on his feet. We also needed each other to survive my Mom's birthday and Mom and Daddy's 60th wedding anniversary which would have both taken place in August. It was the best decision and the right decision for me. My husband has been extremely supportive in my actions and for that I am very grateful.

During my time at home I was totally focused on family and let other things in my life slide, including my blog. Now I am back in CT and am still focused on family, but am at a point where I can get back into my blogging. While at home I did make many cards and will be sharing them all with you. Give me a couple of days to get back on my feet and situated.

I still cry a lot and my heart is heavy. I'll be fine and then the littlest thing will send the tears rolling down my cheeks over the loss of Mom. Memories are gradually producing smiles instead of tears, but I know it's going to be a long time (if ever) that my tears cease. I can only imagine what my Daddy is feeling since Mama is the love of his life.

Mama, I love you and I miss you so very much. You are my best friend. I know that your worries for Daddy were upmost in your thoughts. Sis and I are taking good care of Daddy so you can rest easy and not worry about him. I know you are looking down on us with your wry little smile and those twinkles in your eyes...that will give us all the strength we need to carry on until me meet again. I love you...

Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Cards and Royalty in the House

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Mon, 21 May 2012 19:23:00 +0000

Peek at One of My Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Cards

Ever have one of those occasions when someone you know has done something really special and you were dancing with joy for them, but just couldn't find the right card to express that joy. I've had a few times like that where I was ecstatic for someone and was doing a little jig of celebration in their honor. I wanted to send a special card that would let them know how happy I was and to spotlight their event, but had difficulties finding just the right card. I took that difficulty as a challenge to make a dancing with joy card fit for any happy occasion.

Looking through my stamps I found the perfect stamp for my handmade card. It was a cute teddy bear dancing to music and he looked like he was dancing for joy to me. I decided to make him the focal point of my card and have him dancing in a spotlight. In fact, he was so cute I decided to make two cards using him. Both cards are from the same sketch, just slightly different in coloration. The architecture and the imagery of the cards make them very versatile so that they are fit for boys and girls of all ages and for a variety of happy occasions.

I kept looking at my stamp and thinking to myself: "You know...you have already created several different cards using teddy bear images". I thought about my other cards featuring teddy bears. There's my Teddy Bear and Roses Birthday Card. And my three I Love You Teddy Bear Cards; one teddy bear card in teal, one teddy bear card in pink, and one teddy bear card in yellow. Oh, and then there's my Lace Embellished Teddy Bear Card. And finally, my Sleeping Teddy Bear Baby Card. That's quite a few teddy bear cards, but the little dancing teddy is so cute and just right for my card idea that I said what the heck...here comes another couple of teddy bear cards.

Skip photography and challenge list and go directly to the detailed handmade card information.

The World Around Me

Speaking of dancing with joy, both of my cats are doing that right now. They follow me everywhere including in the computer room when I work on my computer. Over the past year they have been relaxing on a bunch of file boxes covered with folded mattress pads and a small micro fleece blanket. They have been sharing this space with each other and an older spare computer.

My Cats Bingo and Gracie on Their Original Make-Shift Perch

I shared this picture on my blog when I first set up this space for them so that they could keep me company in comfort. Well, look at them now!

My Cats Bingo and Gracie Enjoying Their New Window Perch

We call this the throne and Bingo and Gracie now think they are royalty. By chance we found the industrial 2 drawer file cabinet at our local thrift shop and brought it home. We sanded it down, primed it and painted it. My husband made a wood top for it that sits down over the top of the file cabinet and has a recess in the top. We went to JoAnn's and bought a piece of one inch cushy, washable foam to make a cushion to fit in the recessed top. As luck would have it, we stumbled across a dog blanket that has a faux suede on one side and a shag type fabric on the other side and it was washable. I sewed the dog blanket into a tube and slid the foam inside leaving both ends open. Tucking the open ends underneath the entire cushion gives a little hump at each end that Bingo and Gracie use as pillows. Fits perfectly into the recessed top and when it gets dirty all I have to do is pull the foam out and wash both pieces. There is quite a bit more space for the cats than what they were previously dealing with and it's much softer (not to mention nicer looking than stacked file boxes). I'm happy, they're happy and you can't beat that with a stick!

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade dancing bear cards reflect the following challenges:

Southern Girls Challenge is about the boys. My handmade dancing teddy bear cards are definitely boy friendly.
Simon Says Stamp Challenge is for a clean and simple creation. My handmade dancing bear cards are CAS.
Truly Scrumptious is an anything goes challenge this week and I'm using my handmade dancing teddy bear cards as the anything.
Crafty Creations Challenge is for a male birthday card. I think my handmade dancing bear cards are a great birthday card because we dance with joy in celebration of someone making it through another year in their life.
Whimsy Stamps Challenge is an anything goes challenge and I've elected to use my handmade dancing teddy bear cards for this challenge.
Shelly's Images challenged "show us what you got" and I've got a dancing bear on my handmade cards.
Craft Your Days Away challenged "all creatures large and small" and my handmade dancing teddy bear cards meet this criterion.
CropStop challenged to create a masculine birthday card and my dancing bear cards are for special celebrations and a birthday is definitely a cause for celebration.
Stampin' with the Dragon challenge is "birthdays and boys". My handmade dancing teddy bear cards celebrate all manners of occasions including birthdays.

Handcrafting My Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Cards

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: bear stamp, musical notes stamp, scoring board, cutting board, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, sponge pieces, computer
Materials: cardstock, scrapbook paper, colored pencils, gamsol, spray sealer, inks, cover stock, adhesive, artists tape, painters tape, white gel pen
Cards can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Hatch Marked Dancing Bear Card and Crossed Petal Dancing Bear Card

Front View of My Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Cards

Front - My First Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Card

Front - My Second Handmade Dancing Bear Card

To start my cards I created the card based from black cardstock that I scored along the top to form a tent card that opens vertically from the bottom. I layered the top with a patterned paper matted with butterscotch cardstock.

Creating the Spotlight Background for My Card Image

For the focal point of my card I wanted my dancing bear to be in a spotlight. The first thing I did was determine what size I wanted my image panel to be and I cut a piece of white cardstock to that size. I stamped my dancing bear on it and on a piece of artists tape. I fussy cut my bear out of the artists tape and used it to mask the bear on my image panel so that I could create my background. I burnished the mask well so that I wouldn't get ink leeching underneath it when I sponged the background.

Once my bear was masked I created a spotlight stencil from another piece of white cardstock the same size as my image panel.

Pieces That Make Up My Spotlight Stencils

The image above shows the spotlight stencil. I hand drew the spotlight so that it covered my bear. You'll see in the next few pictures what I mean. I cut the stencil so that it was in two pieces: 1) the spotlight comprised of areas 1 and 2; and 2) the outer background orange area 3.

I started with the orange outer background area first and placed it on my masked image panel so that my bear showed in the spotlight opening. See the picture below.

Placement for Background Area 3 Stencil on Image Panel

With my background area 3 stencil held firmly in place I sponged in my spotlight background color. To hold the stencil in place I used painters tape.

Sponging to Create Spotlight Background

Of course the above picture is just a representation of what it's supposed to look like. I had ink on my masked bear too because I inked all around him. I took my background area 3 stencil off my image panel and allowed my spotlight ink to dry.

Once the spotlight ink was dry, I placed my spotlight stencil (areas 1 and 2) over my bear and inked spotlight. It acts as a mask for the inked spotlight area I have just created.

Placement of the Spotlight Stencil on Image Panel

I trimmed a tiny bit off the two sides and the bottom of the stencil so that there was a small amount of my inked spotlight showing. This is so that I wouldn't get a white halo around my spotlight. Holding my stencil firmly in place (I used painters tape) I inked in my background around the spotlight.

Sponging to Create Outer Background

Again, the above picture is a representation. I removed my stencil and allowed my inked background to dry. Once the background ink was completely dry, I added a few details to my spotlight. The first thing I did was to take my spotlight stencil and cut area 2 away from area 1. Next I placed the background area 3 stencil back on my image panel along with the area 2 stencil.

Placement of Stencils 2 and 3 to Add Details to Spotlight

Holding the stencils firmly in place (I used painters tape again), I sponged in a darker yellow ink along the top edge of my area 2 stencil and in a couple of other places in the spotlight area to add shadows. This darker tone added depth to my image which can be seen when the area 2 stencil is removed.

Example of Added Detail to Spotlight

When I was happy with the look of my spotlight area, I removed both stencils and allowed my inks to dry.

Completed Spotlight and Background

Coloring My Dancing Bear Image for My Card

Once all of my background inks were thoroughly dry, I removed the artists tape mask from my dancing bear image. I used gamsol and colored pencils to color him. Beginning with my lightest brown tones and working my way to my darkest brown tones I began layering color on him. I tried to layer the colors in such a way that my bear had visual depth. I used the same technique for his muzzle and ears. As finishing touches I gave him rosy cheeks and used a white gel pen for the whites of his eyes and the sparkle in his pupil.

Completed Dancing Teddy Bear Image

To complete my image panel I matted my dancing bear with butterscotch and black cardstocks. I affixed my image panel to the card front at a slight angle to give the perception of movement.

Angle Views of My Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Cards

The only dimension on my two cards is the visual depth I created through my sponged backgrounds and the coloration of my dancing teddy bears.

Angle Left - My First Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Card

Angle Right - My First Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Card

Angle Left - My Second Handmade Dancing Bear Card

Angle Right - My Second Handmade Dancing Bear Card

Inside Panels of My Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Cards

Inside Panel - My First Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Card

Inside Panel - My Second Handmade Dancing Bear Card

For the inside panels of my cards I printed "Dancing with Joy!" on white cardstock that I decorated with a strip of the patterned paper used on the front of the each card respectively.

I also constructed handmade envelopes from heavy cover stock and stamped some musical notes in the lower left corners. To protect the images on the outside of the envelopes I sprayed them with matte sealer.

Final Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Card and Handmade Envelope sets

My First Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Second Handmade Dancing Bear Card and Handmade Envelope Set

Here are my two dancing teddy bear card sets. I think the little guys are truly dancing with joy and celebrating a life.

Both of these card sets are available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Hatch Marked Dancing Bear Card and Crossed Petal Dancing Bear Card

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Dancing Teddy Bear Cards

Cardstock: Wausau, The Paper Company, Embassy
Cover Stock: Staples
Scrapbook Paper: hatch marked by Debbie Mumm and crossed petal by DCWV
Stamps: dancing teddy bear by Sugarloaf and musical notes by Rubber Stampede
Prismacolor Pencils: yellow ochre, jasmine, light peach, peach, sienna brown, burnt ochre, terra cotta, beige, chocolate, crimson red, goldenrod, dark umber, pink
Inks: black by Stazon, stucco and cocoa fluid chalks by Colorbox, parchment and marigold pigment inks by Colorbox
Tools: scoring board, cutting board, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, sponge pieces, computer, stencils
Misc Materials: artists tape, adhesive, spray sealer, gamsol, painters tape, white gel pen
Techniques Used: gamsol, sponging, masking, stamping, stenciling

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade dancing teddy bear cards. Unique cards designed for sharing the joy of a special moment in life. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade cards and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

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Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card and Kamikaze Crow

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Wed, 16 May 2012 21:57:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

Ever consider giving tattoo art for a wedding card? This would be a unique card and even better if it were a handmade card. After creating my handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card, I decided to create a more elegant tattoo art card that could be used as a wedding card or engagement card. I was looking for a classic tattoo design that could represent two people in love. I found a wonderful tattoo comprised of a bird carrying an arrow with two pierced hearts. What says two people in love more than an arrow through two hearts! Like my handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card, I wanted the tattoo art to be the focal point of my handmade wedding card / engagement card. I was initially going to make my card white on white, but then decided to distress it with ink and give it more of an elegant antiqued appearance. Add a little bling and wah la, I have created a wonderful tattoo art wedding card.

Skip nature photography and challenge list and go directly to the detailed handmade card information.

The World Around Me

Since my card features imagery representing love, I thought I would share a little action in my backyard that is the polar opposite...combat. While working in my gardens it became eerily quiet around me and I had that uncomfortable feeling that I was being watched. I looked up and through the trees to see if there was anything beyond the tree line, but didn't see anything. Then I looked up above me and that's when I saw him.

Red Tail Hawk High in a Tree

A large red tail hawk was eyeballing me. Then I heard a screech and I saw a kamikaze crow heading right toward him from above.

Crow Dive Bombing Hawk Sitting in a Tree

Mr. Red Tail had gotten too close to a crow's nest in the woods. After this initial attack the hawk took off across the sky and the air show began.

Hawk and Crow Flying Among the Trees

It didn't end there! The kamikaze crow continued his attack in the sky above me.

Crow Areal Dive Bombing of a Hawk

Look at that crow in the upper left of the picture! He's practically vertical and almost on his back in that dive toward the hawk below. With this final attack, I guess the crow decided he had defended his nest enough and the two circled a couple of more times and then parted company.

Crow and Hawk Circling in the Sky

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card reflects the following challenges:

Stampin' for the Weekend challenge is to use no less than 4 layers. My handmade tattoo art wedding card has 4 layers on the base card (rounded corner panel, shaped image background panel, blue image mat, and image panel).
The Stamp Man Challenge is using your favorite technique. My favorite technique is gamsol and I used it to color the image on my handmade wedding card.
Cardmadfairy's Digi Days Challenge is for a clean and simple design. I think my handmade tattoo art wedding card meets this criterion (at least it is CAS for my style of card making).
Catch the Bug challenged us to use things with wings. The bird on my handmade wedding card meets that criterion.
Totally Stampalicious challenge is for a clean and simple design. My handmade tattoo art wedding card is a CAS design for my card making style.
Make it Monday is an anything goes paper craft so I'm using my handmade wedding card.
Paper Sundaes challenged us to use things with wings on our creation. I used a bird image on my handmade tattoo art wedding card.
Bearly Mine Challenges asked us to use dies. I used 3 different dies to create my handmade wedding card.
Creative Craft Challenges this week wanted to see distressing. I used distress ink around the edges of the panels on my handmade tattoo art wedding card to give it a vintage distressed appearance.
Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge asked that you select a letter of the alphabet and then use at least 3 elements on your creation that start with that letter. I selected the letter "B" for my handmade wedding card. I used a Bird image, Blue pencils to color him, Blue cardstock to mat my image, and Bling on each of the 4 corners.

Handcrafting My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: tattoo stamp, scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, scissors, ruler, blending stumps computer, Cuttlebug machine, dies, corner rounder punch
Materials: cardstock, cover stock, adhesive, gamsol, colored pencils, inks, rhinestones
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

Front View of My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

Front - My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

For this card I used the same basic design as I used on my handmade Tattoo Art I Love You card. I created the card base from white cardstock that I scored at the top so that it opens vertically from the bottom. I cut a panel of white cardstock that I rounded the corners on and then used my blending tool to ink its edges with distress ink to give it an antiqued appearance. I set this panel aside.

As the focal point of my handmade card I used a classic tattoo digital image that I printed on white cardstock and colored using gamsol and colored pencils. I die cut my colored image out in a circle shape and used my blending tool to apply distress ink around the edges in a continuation of my vintage look. To make the image pop I matted it with a blue cardstock the same color as the dark blue in my bird. I set my image panel aside.

As a backdrop to my matted image I die cut a shaped panel from white cardstock and dry embossed its outer edge. I left my die cut in place and with my blending tool applied distress ink. Upon removing my die cut, I had a clean, crisp white edge around my background panel that would emphasize my image. I popped my matted image slightly off the surface of this background panel so that the curves on the edge of the panel hug the outer circle of my image. I affixed this panel to my rounded corner panel which completed my topper panel. This topper was affixed to my card base.

As a finishing touch to my card front I added a red rhinestone in each of the rounded corners on my panel. These rhinestones added a little dimension to the card and made the red hearts in my image pop.

Angle Views of My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

Angle Left - My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

Angle Right - My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

Note how the white edges around each panel make the panels appear to pop from the surface and add visual dimension to the face of my card. Also, the distress ink provides additional perceptive dimension. The only panel that is truly popped from the card surface is the image with its blue mat.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

Inside - My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

For the inside of my card I mimicked its front with the rounded corner panel and the die cut shaped panel. No true dimension, just the illusion of dimension through my distress ink and the crisp, white borders.

I constructed a white envelope from heavy cover stock and decided to leave it plain without any embellishment.

Final Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card and Handmade Envelope Set

I really like the way that this card came out so rich in color, yet clean and simple in architecture. The blue border around the tattoo art draws your eyes into the image and the red bling makes the hearts pop. Although I created this card as a wedding or engagement card, it could be used for an anniversary, a valentine or special romantic occasion with the one you love.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Tattoo Art Wedding Card

Cardstock: Wausau, Recollections
Cover Stock: Staples
Digital Stamp: Dover Copyright Free Classic Tattoo
Ink: Ranger Distress antique linen
Rhinestones: Studio G
Prismacolor Pencils: metallic gold, crimson red, crimson lake, pink, chocolate, powder blue, ultramarine, spanish orange
Dies: standard circles large, standard circles small, and curved rectangles all Spellbinders Nestabilities
Punch: corner rounder by EK Success
Tools: scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, computer, Cuttlebug machine
Misc: gamsol, adhesive
Techniques Used: gamsol, die cutting, embossing, stenciling, sponging, distressing

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade tattoo art wedding card. A unique wedding card that can also be used for an engagement, anniversary, valentine, or just that special romantic occasion with the one you love. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

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Mom - You're the Best

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Sun, 13 May 2012 15:25:00 +0000

A special post for all the Moms out there, but especially for my Mom .

Happy Mother's Day Mom. I Love You!

Thank you for visiting my blog. I will be back later this week to share one of my handmade cards.

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

To My Sister

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Thu, 10 May 2012 16:56:00 +0000

A special post for my wonderful sister with that great sense of humor.

Sis, I'm lifting a cup of coffee in your honor and smiling with you!

Thank you for visiting my blog I will be back later in the week to share one of my handmade cards with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card and Nuthatch Nursery

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Tue, 08 May 2012 16:46:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

Colorful and classic tattoo art fascinates me. Although I myself don't have an urge to obtain a tattoo, I do have the urge to use a classic tattoo as the focal point for a handmade card. Looking through my Dover tattoo books I came across a classic tattoo design that I thought would make a beautiful handmade card. It featured a bird and a heart wrapped in a banner with the words "I Love You" on it. I thought this tattoo would be versatile and could be used for a card fitting many different occasions from anniversaries to birthdays to love notes. I also thought that with the right coloring it could be given to a man or a woman. Since I wanted the tattoo art to be the focal point of my handmade card, I sketched a simple card design and did not use any patterned paper. I selected a color combination of red, white and blue because the tattoo reminded me of patriotic soldiers (ooh la la) and I thought the colors were versatile.

The World Around Me

Since the card I created features a lovely bird, I thought I would share a grand happening in my backyard. We have many birdhouses throughout our property, but there is one that the nuthatches come to every year. This particular birdhouse is really a woodpecker house and is attached to a tree about 20 feet off the ground. Every year since we have put this house up the nuthatches have built a nest in it and had a family. They are always the first ones of the season and this year is no different. I have spent lots of time watching them prepare the birdhouse for their family and now I hear little ones in it. These days Mom and Dad are busy all day long feeding their vocal youngsters. I have always missed the little ones leaving the nest...maybe this year will be different. Anyway, I have a few pictures of Mom and Dad bringing food for the little ones. These pictures are from a distance because Mom and Dad won't come to the birdhouse if I'm too close.

Nuthatch on Top of Birdhouse with Food to Feed Babies

Nuthatch Hanging off Top of Birdhouse with Food to Feed Babies

Nuthatch Scurrying Down Face of Birdhouse with Food to Feed Babies

Nuthatch at Birdhouse Opening with Food to Feed Babies

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card reflects the following challenges:

Cute Card Thursday theme is "one for the boys" and I think my handmade tattoo art I love you card is appropriate for giving to the man in your life.
The Poodle Parlour challenge is anything goes and my handmade tattoo art I love you card fits this criterion.
Crop Stop challenged to "emboss it". I dry embossed the outer edge of the shaped background panel on my handmade tattoo art I love you card.
Wags 'n Whiskers Stamps challenged to incorporate distressing. I used distress ink around the edges of the image panels of my handmade tattoo art I love you card to give it a more vintage appearance.
Cupcake Craft challenge theme is "Ooh La La" and I think my handmade tattoo art I love you card is befitting of this theme. It sports a beautiful classic tattoo and is red, white and blue in color.
Come and Get It Challenge theme is "let's hear it for the boys" and my handmade tattoo art I love you card is masculine enough to be given to that special man.
Digi Doodle Shop challenge is anything goes and my handmade tattoo art I love you card fits this criterion.
Crafty Cardmakers challenge theme is "for the boys" and making my handmade tattoo art I love you card appropriate for the masculine recipient was on my mind when I created it.
Ooh La La Creations challenge theme is "Make it Manly" and creating a card that could be sent to a man was one of my goals when I made my tattoo art I love you card.

Handcrafting My Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: tattoo stamp, scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, computer, Cuttlebug machine, dies
Materials: cardstock, cover stock, adhesive, gamsol, colored pencils, inks
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

Front View of My Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

My Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

I created the card base from white cardstock that I scored at the top so that it opens vertically from the bottom. I layered the top of my handmade card with a red cardstock panel.

For the focal point of my card I printed the classic tattoo art on white cardstock and colored it using gamsol and colored pencils. I die cut my colored image out in a circle shape and used my blending tool to apply distress ink to the edges to give it a vintage look. I matted my completed image with blue cardstock and set it aside.

As a backdrop to my matted image I die cut a shaped panel from white cardstock and dry embossed its outer edge. I left my die cut in place and with my blending tool applied the same distress ink used around my image. Upon removing my die cut, I had a clean white edge around my background panel to emphasize my image. I popped my matted image slightly off the surface of the background panel and affixed the completed panel to my card base. I did not add any other embellishment to my card because I thought it would distract from my colorful image.

Angle Views Of My Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

Angle Left - Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

Angle Right - Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

As you can see from the two images above, my card is a pretty clean and simple design. The only dimension on my card is the circular image panel popped from the card surface and the visual depth created from my coloring and the blended ink.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

Inside Panel - Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card

For the inside panel of my card I layered the card base with red cardstock. I die cut a shaped panel from white cardstock and dry embossed the outer edge. Leaving the die cut in place I used a blending tool and applied distress ink around the edges of the panel. Upon removal of the die cut there was a nice white border. I affixed the completed panel to the red cardstock.

I constructed a white envelope from heavy cover stock and decided not to decorate it in any manner.

Final Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card and Handmade Envelope Set

I absolutely love the way this card set came out so rich in color, yet clean and simple in architecture.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Tattoo Art I Love You Card Set

Cardstock: Hammermill, Wausau, Recollections
Cover Stock: Staples
Digital Stamp: Dover Copyright Free Classic Tattoo
Ink: Ranger Distress antique linen
Prismacolor Pencils: metallic gold, crimson red, crimson lake, pink, chocolate, powder blue, ultramarine, pink rose, kelp green, grass green, apple green, spanish orange
Dies: standard circles large, standard circles small, and curved rectangles all Spellbinders Nestabilities
Tools: scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, computer, Cuttlebug machine
Misc: gamsol, adhesive
Techniques Used: die cutting, gamsol, dry embossing, stenciling, sponging

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade tattoo art I love you card. A unique card fit for that special someone. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below :)

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Handmade Garden Desert Card and A Sneaky Supervisor

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Wed, 02 May 2012 22:18:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Garden Desert Card

Okay, I admit it. I'm on a Southwestern kick. Maybe it has something to do with the record setting lack of rain over the past 2 months. Whatever it is, I have another Southwestern themed handmade card to share. Since it's springtime and I'm antsy to start planting my garden, I thought I would add a gardening flavor to this desert card. I know that's kind of strange, but that is the nice thing about card making, you can do what you want and I wanted to garden in the desert (kind of like what I feel like I'm doing here on the home front right now). As I was envisioning my card I also thought about my Mom. Now she has what I would call a miraculous green thumb. I believe that she could even get things to grow in the desert, so this card is also a tribute to my Mom's green thumb.

I used a combination of colors for this card that remind me of the Southwest and was lucky enough to find a striped paper in my stash that fell right within my color scheme. Like my Southwestern Desert card that I shared on a previous post, I've created a desert scene for this handmade card.

The World Around Me

Before I get into the nitty-gritty of my card, I have a quick story to share. My cat Bingo is a sweet cat that is as nosy as can be. The problem though is that he is also a scaredy cat. I don't know what happened to him before we rescued him from the humane society, but the littlest thing has him running for the hills. He's been with us for several years, but he still has this little idiosyncrasy.

Anyway, his curiosity has him running to various doors and windows when he hears unusual sounds outside. Last week we had the town tree crew cutting down some trees across the street from us due to extensive storm damage. Bingo spent hours over the three days they were working going from window to window watching their every move. He spent so much of his day time supervising the crew that he would collapse at night into a deep sleep.

This morning we had a tree crew in our front yard very near the front door removing a storm damaged tree that had become a danger to our house. Here is a picture of Bingo I was able to capture while he was supervising our crew.

Supervising the Tree Cutting Crew

Unfortunately, he was off like a shot when the first large branch hit the ground. I guess the tree crew was just too close to the door for his comfort. He spent the remainder of the morning hunkered down in his blue comfort blanket.

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade Garden Desert Card reflects the following challenges:

Prairie Fairy Fridays challenge this week was for anything with flowers. I think my handmade garden desert card meets this criterion because of the lady gardener holding a flower in her hand.
Stampin' for the Weekend challenged the use of sparkle and shine. My handmade garden desert card has a trio of rhinestones that shine.
Crafty Catz Challenge was an anything goes this week and my handmade garden desert card meets that requirement.
My Time to Craft challenged us to create cards with a garden theme. My handmade garden desert card meets that challenge since my scene is a woman planting flowers around the base of a saguaro cactus.

Handcrafting My Garden Desert Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: cactus stamp, woman stamp, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, sponge pieces, computer, non stick craft mat
Materials: cardstock, scrapbook paper, inks, colored pencils, gamsol, cover stock, adhesive, artists tape, spray sealer, rhinestones, post-it notes
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Garden Desert Card.

Front View Of My Handmade Garden Desert Card

My Handmade Garden Desert Card

To start my card I created the card base from olive green cardstock that I scored at the top so that it opens vertically from the bottom. I layered the top of my handmade card with a reddish terra cotta cardstock panel. To add a little interest to the card I popped a vertical panel of my striped paper matted with butterscotch cardstock along the left hand side of the card. This panel is slightly off the face of the card to give it some dimension.

Creating My Desert Scene Background

For the focal point of my card I decided to create a unique Southwestern desert scene using a variety of techniques. The first thing I did was determine what size I wanted my image panel to be and then used Photoshop Elements to lay out and size the digital stamps I was going to use in my scene. In this case those elements included the saguaro cactus and the woman gardener. Once my layout was completed, I printed it out on my white cardstock.

Before creating my background I needed to mask my digital images on my image panel. To achieve this goal I covered my image panel with artists tape and ran it back through my printer and printed my layout on it. I pulled the artists tape off of my image panel and fussy cut out the two images (saguaro cactus and lady gardener). I placed these artists tape images back over their respective images on my image panel and burnished them in place. This created masks for each of the digitally stamped images on my panel so that they are protected when I create my background.

To start my background I placed a post-it over the top part of the image panel slightly above the half way point to mask it. I created my horizon and desert floor by first sponging tan ink on the lower portion of the panel and then adding a sprinkle of darker browns to give the desert some depth. I removed the post-it mask and allowed the ink to dry. Once the ink was dry I placed a post-it over the lower inked desert portion of my image panel with just a snippet of the tan ink showing above it. You need a little bit of the ink showing above the mask so that when you sponge above it you don't leave a white line between the two sponged areas. I didn't sponge in the sky at this point because I needed to create my desert mountains first.

To create my desert mountains I needed another two masks. I took another post-it and cut the profile of my mountains out of it. See the picture below as an example of what I'm talking about. Pretend that it is a square post-it and I cut along the red line. With this cut I create two masks: one for the profile of my desert mountains and one for the sky above the mountains.

Example of Creating Sky and Mountain Masks from a Post-It

I used the upper portion of this post-it (the sky mask) to cover the top portion of my image panel. I left a gap between it and the post-it already in place covering the previously inked lower portion of the image panel. The gap left between the two post-it note masks is the same shape as the mask for the profile of my mountains that I use later in this process. See the example below for my post-it mask placements.

Placement of desert floor and sky masks on image panel

With the horizon mask and the sky mask in place, I sponged a dark peach ink in the gap between them to create my desert mountains. I removed the two post-it masks from my image panel to allow the ink to dry.

After the ink dried I placed the post-it mask for my mountain profile (the portion below my red line in the first mask picture above) over my inked mountains. Again, I left a snippet of the mountain ink showing above the mask to prevent a white line. See my example below.

Placement of Mountain Mask on Image Panel

Now I sponged in my sky starting with my sun in the upper right corner. From there I sponged in a little lavender ink along the mountain tops and then completed the sky by sponging on several shades of blue ink. I removed the post-it from my mountains and allowed the ink to dry. This created my basic background in which I added details and shading.

Coloring my Images and Adding Detail to My Background

Once all of my background inks were dry, I removed the artists tape masks from my cactus and lady gardener images. Using gamsol and colored pencils I colored both images. I layered several shades of color on the cactus and the plants at its base. I did the same for the woman's skin tone. To complete the desert floor I drew in some green desert plants and added a path through the foreground beneath the gardener.

For the desert mountains I added depth to them with several shades of color from terra cotta to chocolate. Again, I used gamsol and colored pencils to achieve this effect. I also added some subtle shading to the sky with my colored pencils.

Once my image was completed I matted it with butterscotch cardstock and popped it slightly from the surface of the front card panel. As a finishing touch for my card I affixed three amber rhinestones in the lower right corner.

Angle Views of My Handmade Garden Desert Card

Angle Left - Handmade Garden Desert Card

Angle Right - Handmade Garden Desert Card

These angled views of my card give you an idea as to the dimension of the popped panels and the trio of rhinestones.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Garden Desert Card

Inside Panel - Handmade Garden Desert Card

For the inside panel of my card I matted cream cardstock with reddish terra cotta cardstock and decorated it with a strip of the striped paper. I decided to leave the remainder of the panel blank.

I also constructed a handmade envelope from heavy cover stock. So the envelope coordinated with my card, I printed the same saguaro cactus I used on my card along the lower left edge of my envelope. I used gamsol and colored pencils to color it. To protect the image on the envelope should it travel through the mail I sprayed it with matte sealer.

Final Handmade Garden Desert Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Garden Desert Card and Coordinating Handmade Envelope

Here's my final set. Looking at it now it almost has a Tuscan feel to it because of the colors I used.

One tip I would add is that I find it works out much better to color my images after I have created the background. That way, if there is any white halo around my images I can eliminate it when coloring the image.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Garden Desert Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Garden Desert Card

Cardstock: The Paper Company, Wausau
Cover Stock: Staples
Scrapbook Paper: K and Company
Rhinestones: Studio G
Digital Stamps: saguaro cactus from Digi Doodle Shop and lady gardener from Stitchy Bear Stamps
Inks: all inks from Colorbox
Prismacolor Pencils: yellow chartreuse, chocolate, terracotta, pale sage, limepeel, kelp green, kelly green, spanish orange, chestnut, pink rose, light peach, seashell pink, dark umber, burnt ochre, crimson lake, denim blue, blue slate, greyed lavender
Tools: scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, sponge pieces, computer, non stick craft mat
Misc Materials: artists tape, adhesives, spray sealer, gamsol, post-it notes
Techniques Used: gamsol, sponging, masking, digital stamping, making a scene

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade garden desert card. A unique card fit for any gardener with a miraculous green thumb. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Don't forget to show a little "Moxie" love and hit the Polished Moxie like button on my sidebar or to the right of the Polished Moxie logo below:)

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Handmade Desert Sunset Card & There's a Fox in Them There Woods

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 14:53:00 +0000

Peek at my Handmade Desert Sunset Card

Another handmade card with a southwestern flair using digital silhouettes. I liked the two previous southwestern silhouette cards that I shared on this blog, Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card and Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card. I thought I would use the same techniques, but simplify the design for my new card. The design is a simple panel with a desert sunset scene as its focal point. I selected richer and somewhat brighter colors for this handmade card. I wanted my desert sunset card to be eye-catching, yet portray a quiet reflection of nature's beauty. I used both digital and non-digital techniques to create the desert sunset scene.

Before getting into the details of my sunset card I want to share a quick story with you. Last weekend my husband and I were looking out over the wooded area behind our house and quietly talking when we heard a rustle to our left. Looking over in the direction of the sound we saw a large red fox shoot out from a pile of branches and run through the trees.

Red Fox Running in the Woods

Now I know this is not a great picture, but I was amazed that I even got a picture of him with my little camera and how fast he was running. He's under the red arrow. If you look closely you can see his silhouette and ears sticking up. Here's a digitally zoomed picture of him.

Closer View of Red Fox Running in the Woods

If you look past the fox, you'll see a brush pile. Once he reached that pile he stopped and looked back at us.

Red Fox Peering Out from a Brush Pile

Again, not a great picture, but he is located under the large branch below the arrow. Here's a digitally zoomed picture of him.

Closer View of Red Fox Peering Our from a Brush Pile

Look closely and you can see his face looking back at us. He stood there for several moments before turning and disappearing into the brush. Exciting things are happening in them there woods. Also, exciting card making going on in my workspace.

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade Desert Sunset Card reflects the following challenges:

Mark's Finest Papers Speedy Fox and Friends Challenge to show the rainbow. I think my handmade Desert Sunset card meets this challenge because of the rainbow of color in my sunset.
One Stitch at a Time Challenge to use brights. My handmade Desert Sunset card has a bright colorful background and I used a bright idea when combining digital silhouette stamping with my hand sponged and blended background.
Paper Sundaes Challenge of anything goes and my handmade Desert Sunset card meets this criteria.
Incy Wincy Designs Challenge to use only digi stamps. My handmade Desert Sunset card fits this challenge since all of its silhouettes are digital stamps.

Handcrafting My Desert Sunset Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" wide x 4.25" tall
Tools: cactus stamp, silhouette stamps of woman and grasses, scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, sponge pieces, computer, non-stick craft mat
Materials: cardstock, glossy cardstock, inks, spray sealer, adhesive, cover stock
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Desert Sunset Card

Front View of My Handmade Desert Sunset Card

My Handmade Desert Sunset Card

To start my card I created the card base from black cardstock and scored it horizontally so that the card is wider than it is tall. My next step was to create the sunset background for my front panel.

Creating My Desert Sunset

I sponged several inks on glossy cardstock and blended them from the bottom up using my blending tool. I made the panel about 1/2" taller than I needed for the front so that I could use a strip of the finished sunset to embellish the inside panel of my card.

You can see that I started with a bright yellow at the bottom for the setting sun and worked my way up with orange, red, a little more yellow, purple and finally blue. When all of my ink was sponged on the glossy cardstock I used my Ranger blending tool and with a light touch working from bottom to top I blended the sunset. This resulted in more of a cloudy streaked effect instead of a sponged effect. I allowed my sunset to thoroughly dry before moving on to my next step.

Adding the Silhouettes to My Desert Sunset

Once my sunset was dry, I sized it to fit the front of my card base and cut a strip from the bottom to be used on the inside of my card. I added the silhouettes (saguaro cactus, grasses, and woman digi stamps) digitally by printing them on my inked background.

To accomplish this task I used Photoshop Elements. I started with a blank file the size of my sunset panel. I added my digital images, sized them and created the layout that I wanted. Note that the saguaro cactus I made into a silhouette by coloring it in with black in Photoshop Elements. The other digital images were already silhouettes. When I was satisfied with my layout, I placed my sunset panel in my printer and printed the digital images on it. I allowed the completed panel to thoroughly dry and then sprayed it with matte sealer to protect the ink.

I matted the completed image with a butterscotch cardstock that brought out the colors of my sunset and affixed it to my card base.

Angle Views of My Handmade Desert Sunset Card

Angle Left - Handmade Desert Sunset Card

Angle Right - Handmade Desert Sunset Card

As you can see from these angle views of my card, all of the depth and dimension is created visually and through color and silhouette placements.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Desert Sunset Card

Inside Panel - Handmade Desert Sunset Card

For the inside panel I matted cream cardstock with butterscotch cardstock and embellished it with the strip of the sunset panel that I had previously cut. I left the remainder of the panel blank.

I decided to construct a plain white handmade envelope for my card. I used heavy cover stock for the envelope.

Final Handmade Desert Sunset Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Desert Sunset Card and Handmade Envelope Set

Here's my final set. A handmade card that focuses on the sunset and is simple in architecture, plus its plain white handmade envelope.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Desert Sunset Card

A tip from me: Scan your handmade sunsets and backgrounds into your computer so that you can use them for later digital projects.

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Desert Sunset Card

Cardstock: Embassy, The Paper Company, Wausau, Ocean State
Cover Stock: Staples
Digital Stamps: saguaro cactus from Digi Doodle Shop, grasses and woman silhouettes from All Silhouettes
Ink: all inks from Colorbox
Tools: scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, sponge pieces, computer, non-stick craft pad
Misc Materials: adhesive, spray sealer
Techniques Used: sponging, digital stamping, blending

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with my handmade desert sunset card. A sunset card that utilized both digital and non-digital techniques to create its southwestern silhouettes against a colorful sky. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

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Handmade Southwest Desert Card & Hawk on a Fence

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 19:07:00 +0000

Peek at my Handmade Southwest Desert Card

A handmade card with a southwestern theme is what I had in mind when I sat down to design my card. I wanted it to be quite different from my two other southwestern themed cards that I previously shared on this blog Southwestern Sunset Card and Southwestern Sunrise Card. I thought about the time I explored some of the botanical gardens in Arizona and wondered what memories I could incorporate into my card. The first thing to come to mind was the very large saguaro cacti with nesting bird holes in them. Check...I could definitely incorporate a few cacti in my southwest desert card. Then I thought about the hot sun, sandy terrain, and my ever present hat. I took these snippets from my memories and designed my handmade Southwest Desert card around them. I decided my handmade card would feature a desert scene with a woman looking up at a large saguaro cactus with a nesting bird hole in it. The colors I selected for my card (kraft and tangerine orange) were based upon a piece of scrapbook paper with a pattern resembling cracked earth. The coloration of the paper reminded me of the Southwestern deserts.

Speaking of deserts, it was like a desert here over the winter months. We got very little snow and the entire landscape has been dry, dry, dry. During this time we have observed several hawks out and about. One such hawk decided to warm himself in the late afternoon sunshine on one or our garden fences.

Hawk sunning himself on my garden fence

Can you see him on the top rail of the fence just to the right of the bird feeders that are on the left of the picture? Here are a couple of closer views of him.

Closer view of hawk sunning himself on my garden fence

Hawk looking around and enjoying the late afternoon sun

I'm not sure what kind of hawk he is, however, he has a grey back and a breast with rust barring. He could be a Cooper's Hawk or a Sharp-Shinned Hawk. Whatever he is, he sat there in the sunshine for well over an hour and was a beautiful bird of prey to watch. Oh well, back to our card crafting.

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my handmade Southwest Desert Card reflects the following challenges:

Daring Cardmakers want to see a hat. The woman in my handmade Southwest Desert Card is wearing a hat.
Prairie Fairy Fridays Challenge is an anything goes this week. My handmade Southwest Desert Card meets this challenge.
DYSU Challenge to get your bling on. My handmade Southwest Desert Card meets this challenge with its amber rhinestones.

Handcrafting My Southwest Desert Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: cactus stamps, cloud stamp, woman stamp, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, sponge pieces, computer, non stick craft mat, artists tape
Materials: cardstock, scrapbook paper, inks, colored pencils, gamsol, cover stock, adhesive, artists tape, spray sealer, rhinestones, post-it notes
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Southwest Desert Card

Front View of My Handmade Southwest Desert Card

My Handmade Southwest Desert Card

To start my card I created the card base from kraft cardstock that I scored at the top so that it opens vertically from the bottom. I layered the top of my handmade card with a piece of the patterned paper I had selected and matted this paper with a coordinating tangerine orange cardstock. Across the center of this panel I affixed a strip of the kraft cardstock.

Creating My Desert Scene Background

For the focal point of my card I decided to create a Southwest desert scene using a variety of techniques. The first thing I did was determine what size I wanted my image panel to be and then used Photoshop elements to lay out and size the digital stamps I was going to use in my scene. In this case those elements included a blooming saguaro cactus, a non-blooming saguaro cactus that I used twice (one image flipped horizontally), a cloud, and a hat wearing woman. Once my layout was completed I printed it out on my white cardstock panel.

Before I created my background I needed to make masks from artists tape for each of my digital elements. I covered my image panel with artists tape and sent it back through my printer and printed the digital elements on the artists tape. I pulled the artists tape off of my image panel and cut out each of the elements. Once my elements were cut out I placed them back on my image panel over their respective printed image. This created masks for each of my digitally stamped images on my image panel so that they would be protected while I created my background.

To start my background I placed a post-it over the top part of the image panel slightly above the half way point to mask it. I created my horizon and desert floor by first sponging tan ink on the lower portion of the image panel and then adding a sprinkle of darker browns. I removed the post-it mask and allowed the ink to dry. Once the ink was dry I placed a post-it over the lower portion of my image panel with just a snippet of the tan ink showing above it. You need a little bit of the ink showing above the mask so that you don't end up with a white line along the mask when you sponge above it. Now I needed to create my desert mountains and my sky. For this activity I needed another two masks.

I took another post-it and cut the profile of my mountains out of it. See the picture below as an example of what I'm talking about. Pretend that it is a square post-it and I cut along the red line. With this cut I create two masks: one for the profile of my desert mountains and one for the sky above the mountains.

Example of creating sky and mountain masks from a post-it

Placement of desert floor and sky masks on image panel

After the ink dried I placed the post-it mask for my mountain profile (the portion below my red line in the picture above) over my inked mountains with just a snippet of the ink showing above the mask. See my example below.

Placement of mountain mask on image panel

Now I sponged in my sky starting with my sun in the upper left corner. From there I sponged in a little lavender ink along the mountain tops and then completed the sky by sponging on several shades of blue ink. I removed the post-it from my mountains and allowed the ink to dry. This created my basic background in which I added details and shading.

Coloring My Images and Adding Detail to My Background

Once all of my background inks were dry, I removed all of the artists tape masks from my digital images. Using gamsol and colored pencils I colored the three cacti and the woman. I layered several shades of green on the cacti and finished the front cactus by adding a bird nesting hole to it. To complete the desert floor I drew in some green desert plants and added shadows with my colored pencils.

Once my image was completed I matted it with tangerine orange cardstock and popped it slightly from the surface of the front card panel. As a finishing touch for my card I affixed three amber rhinestones below the image panel.

Angle Views of My Handmade Southwest Desert Card

Angle Left - Handmade Southwest Desert Card

Angle Right - Handmade Southwest Desert Card

These angled views of my card give you an idea as to its dimensional elements.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Southwest Desert Card

Inside Panel - Handmade Southwest Desert Card

For the inside panel of my card I matted cream cardstock with tangerine orange cardstock and decorated it with a strip of the patterned paper. I decided to leave the remainder of the panel blank.

I also constructed a handmade envelope from heavy cover stock. So that the envelope coordinated with my card, I printed the same saguaro cactus I used on my card along the lower left edge. I used gamsol and colored pencils to color it and also added a bird nesting hole. To protect the image on the envelope should it travel through the mail I sprayed it with matte sealer.

Final Handmade Southwest Desert Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Southwest Desert Card and Coordinating Handmade Envelope

Here's my final set. The three rhinestones look like small gold brads in the picture, but they're really small amber rhinestones. I think my set has a Southwest feel to it and the imagery does take me back to my treks through the botanical gardens in Arizona.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Handmade Southwest Desert Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Southwest Desert Card

Cardstock: The Paper Company, Wausau
Cover Stock: Staples
Scrapbook Paper: Recollections
Rhinestones: Studio G
Digital Stamps: all cacti from Bombshell Stamps, cloud from Bombshell Stamps, woman from Phindy's Place.
Ink: all inks from Colorbox
Prismacolor Pencils: yellow chartreuse, chocolate, terracotta, pale sage, limepeel, kelp green, kelly green, spanish orange, chestnut, pink rose, light peach, seashell pink, dark umber, burnt ochre, crimson lake, true blue, non photo blue, greyed lavender
Tools: scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, sponge pieces, computer, non stick craft mat
Misc Materials: artists tape, adhesives, spray sealer, gamsol, post-it notes.
Techniques Used: gamsol, sponging, masking, digital stamping, making a scene

So ends another jaunt along my handcrafting card journey with the completion of my handmade Southwest Desert card. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

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Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card with Pearls & There's a Queen in the House

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 06:26:00 +0000

Peek at My Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card

A handmade birthday card is what I had in mind when I sat down at my work table. Not just any birthday card, but a girly birthday card. A birthday card that would be feminine from top to bottom and have diva written all over it. A handmade birthday card with pearl embellishments and a shimmering ribbon, and pink...lots of pink. A card so girly that as my Daddy would say, "you get lace appearing on your underwear by just looking at it". What I came up with is a pink birthday card embossed with swirls and embellished with pink pearls and shimmering pink organdy ribbon. As I said, very girly, very pink, and with the potential for producing lace on your undershorts with just a glance. A handmade birthday card with high diva potential fit for a queen.

Speaking of queens...there is a cat in my house that thinks she's one!

My Cat Gracie Pretending to be a Queen

Her majesty has taken up residence in a recliner and nested herself into an old fuzzy blanket to keep comfy while adorned with her green fashion statement. Gracie seems to think that her collar mimics those worn by queens centuries ago. Because I feel a bit sorry for her, I'll let her maintain her fantasy and get on with my card making.

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my Girly Pink Birthday Card reflects the following challenges:

Card Crafter's Circle Challenge tic tac toe. I selected the row containing bling, ribbon, and die cuts from the grid. On my Girly Pink Birthday Card I used pink pearls for the bling, pink organdy for the ribbon, and a fancy border for the die cuts.
Mark's Finest Papers Speedy Fox and Friends Challenge that requires several shades of pink in your project and allows the use of white. My Girly Pink Birthday Card fits the criteria with its 3 shades of pink cardstock, pink ribbon, pink sentiment, and pink pearls.
One Stop Craft Challenge wants clean and simple. I think the design of my Girly Pink Birthday Card is clean and simple (for me anyway).
Make It Monday where you can showcase one of your cards and I have selected my Girly Pink Birthday Card to showcase.
Ribbon Carousel Challenge has joined with Party Time Tuesdays this week for anything goes. Ribbon Carousel requires that you incorporate something from a spool on your project. The ribbon on my Girly Pink Birthday Card comes off a spool.

Handcrafting My Girly Pink Birthday Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: border punch, swirl embossing folder, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, cuttlebug machine, bow easy, computer
Materials: cardstock, cover stock, ribbon, adhesive, pearls
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Girly Pink Birthday Card

Front View of My Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card

My Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card

I started off by creating my card base using white cardstock (looking at it now, I think I should have used dark pink cardstock to make the card monochromatic). I scored the cardstock across the top so that my Girly Pink Birthday Card opens vertically from the bottom.

The top panel is a pale pink cardstock that I printed "Birthday Wishes" in dark pink on the lower quarter. I layered this panel with a piece of medium pink cardstock that I embossed with a swirl pattern using a Cuttlebug embossing folder and placed it over a dark pink cardstock with a punched border. Before affixing the panel to the card base I added a pink organdy ribbon and a double looped bow. To complete the top card panel I embellished the embossed swirls and bow with pink pearls of varying sizes.

Angle Views of My Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card

Angle Left - Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card

Angle Right - Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card

These views of my card give you an idea of the textures on the front panel.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card

Inside Panel - Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card

I decided to leave the inside panel blank. The panel is white cardstock matted with light pink cardstock. I decorated the panel with a strip of swirl embossed light pink cardstock.

I also constructed a handmade envelope from heavy cover stock and elected to leave it unadorned.

Final Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card and Handmade Envelope Set

My Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card and Envelope Set

I do like the way my card came out, but I think it would be even more girly if I had used the dark pink cardstock for the base card instead of the white. Monochromatic pink would have been very pretty.

Guess I'll have to give the monochromatic idea a shot in a different color.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Girly Pink Birthday Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for Handmade Girly Pink Birthday Card

Cardstock: Wausau, The Paper Company, Hammermill, Recollections
Cover Stock: Staples
Ribbon: JoAnn Fabrics organdy
Pearls: unknown
Tools: Martha Stewart layered arches edge punch, Cuttlebug d'vine swirl embossing folder, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, Cuttlebug machine, bow easy, computer
Misc: adhesive
Techniques: dry embossing, digital stamping

So ends one jaunt along my handcrafting journey with the completion of my handmade girly pink birthday card. A pink birthday card fit for any girly girl or secret diva. Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handmade card and pet photography with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

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Southwestern Sunset Card in Yellow Plus Sunset Through the Trees

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 23:20:00 +0000

Peek at Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card

I had sunrises on the brain yesterday and today it's sunsets. I enjoyed making my Southwestern Sunrise Card and decided to use the same sketch to create a Southwestern Sunset Card. I wanted this card to be darker with a more foreboding sky, yet still highlight the richness of color in my sunset. Besides the color differences, I also selected a different silhouette of a woman for this card. Again, I used a combination of digital and non-digital techniques to create my handmade Southwestern Sunset Card.

Since I have sunsets on my mind, here are a few pretty sunset pictures I captured while working in my yard. I found the colors in the sky to be gorgeous.

Sunset Through the Trees

Beautiful Sunset Through the Trees

Trees Silhouetted by a Colorful Sunset

I love the dark silhouettes of the trees against the colorful sky.

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my Southwestern Sunset Card reflects the following challenges:

Daisy Doodles Creative Challenge to incorporate a ribbon or cord and use digital stamps. My Southwestern Sunset Card has a ribbon at the papers interface and all the silhouettes are digital stamps.
Love to Create Challenge this week is anything goes so I elected to enter my Southwestern Sunset Card.
Creative Inspirations Challenge this week is anything goes so I elected to enter my Southwestern Sunset Card

Handcrafting My Southwestern Sunset Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: oval dies, inverted scalloped circle dies, cuttlebug machine, scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, sponge pieces, non-stick craft mat, computer
Digital Stamps: saguaro cactus, grasses, woman
Materials: cardstock, scrapbook paper, cover stock, adhesives, spray sealer, inks, glossy cardstock, ribbon
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Southwestern Sunset Card

Front View of My Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card

Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card

To begin my card I created my sunset on a 4" x 6" piece of glossy cardstock using a blending tool, sponge pieces, and ink. Once the ink was completely dry I added the silhouettes (saguaro cactus, grasses, and woman digi stamps) digitally by printing them on my inked background. After adding the silhouettes I used die cuts to create two separate image panels. I cut an oval around the cactus and an inverted scalloped circle around the woman. Again, I think the inverted scalloped circle resembles a sun to me and fits with my sunset theme. I sprayed the image panel with matte sealer to protect the inks.

I selected the color palette for my card based upon the colors I used in my sunset. Lucky for me I had a striped scrapbook paper that reflected the colors in my sunset. I used this paper to determine the two primary colors for my design. Those two colors were a banana yellow and light chocolate brown.

For the base of my Southwestern Sunset Card I used banana yellow cardstock and scored it across the top so that my card opens vertically from the bottom. I created the front panel from light chocolate brown cardstock and affixed a piece of the striped paper on the lower portion of the panel. Before attaching the panel to the card base I added a dark brown ribbon at the interface where the two papers overlap and wrapped the ends of the ribbon around to the back of the chocolate cardstock.

To finish off the front panel of my card I matted both of my images with banana yellow cardstock and popped them from the surface of the card to give it some dimension.

Angle Views of My Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card

Left Angle - Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card

Right Angle - Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card

These views of the front of my card give you an idea as to how the popped image panels add dimension. I used silicon adhesive to obtain the dimension.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card

Inside Panel of Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card

I elected to leave the inside of my card blank. The panel base is chocolate cardstock that I layered with white cardstock. I embellished the panel with a strip of the striped paper.

I also constructed a handmade envelope from heavy cover stock to complement my handmade Southwestern Sunset Card. I embellished my envelope down its left side with a strip of the striped paper.

Final Handmade Southwestern Sunset Card and Coordinating Handmade Envelope

Handmade Southwestern Sunset and Envelope Set

What a difference color makes. Here's a card with the same architecture as my previous card, but has a very different feel to it. I like that aspect of my card making.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Southwestern Sunset Card

Card Recipe Specifics for Southwestern Sunrise Card

Cardstock: The Paper Company, Ocean State, Wausau
Paper: DCWV
Cover Stock: Staples
Dies: Nestabilities classic ovals large and small, Nestabilities classic inverted scalloped circles large and small
Digital Stamps: saguaro cactus from Digi Doodle Shop; grasses and woman silhouettes from All Silhouettes
Inks: Colorbox pigments
Tools: cuttlebug machine, scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, sponge pieces, non-stick craft mat, computer
Misc: adhesive, silicon adhesive, ribbon, spray sealer
Techniques: sponging, die cutting, digital stamping

Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handcrafted items with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

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Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card in Peach & Colorful Jet Trails

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 03:37:00 +0000

Peek at Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card

Sunrise and silhouettes with a Southwestern flair were on my mind when I set about creating my handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card. I wanted to use rich colors like those I remember seeing in the early morning when traveling throughout the Southwest. I also wanted those colors to be the focus of my handmade card so I decided to utilize a clean and simple design (at least clean and simple for me). Since my thoughts were on Southwestern landscapes in the rising sun, I used dark silhouettes against the colored skies. I think these silhouettes enhance the richness of the color in the sunrise background. I used a combination of digital and non-digital techniques to create my handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card.

Since I have sunrises on the brain, here's a couple of interesting pictures that I captured from my window during a recent sunrise. I found the jet trails in the sky to be unique and beautiful.

Jet Trails in the Sky at Sunrise

They look like lasers slashing across the sky.

Colorful Jet Trails at Sunrise

Beautiful Trails Left from Jets in the Sky

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I follow many challenge blogs and my Southwestern Sunrise Card reflects the following challenges:

Mark's Finest Papers Speedy Fox and Friends Challenge to create a clean and simple design. My Southwestern Sunrise Card is a very clean and simple design for me.
Make it Monday where you can showcase one of your cards and I have selected my Southwestern Sunrise Card as my showcase.
The Poodles Parlour where this week's challenge is anything goes and I have elected to include my Southwestern Sunrise Card in this challenge.
Digital Tuesday Challenge has the current theme "Life is Peachy" and my Southwestern Sunrise Card has lots of peach coloration and I think watching a beautiful sunrise while drinking my morning coffee makes life quite "peachy". You also must use a digital component in your project and I used 3 different digital stamps on my card (saguaro cactus, grasses, and woman).
My Mum's Craft Shop Challenges has the current theme "Let's get digital" which requires digital images only. My Southwestern Sunrise Card meets this challenge since all three of my images (saguaro cactus, grasses, and woman) are digi stamps.

Handcrafting My Southwestern Sunrise Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: oval dies, inverted scalloped circle dies, cuttlebug machine, scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, sponge pieces, non-stick craft mat, computer
Digital Stamps: saguaro cactus, grasses, woman
Materials: cardstock, scrapbook paper, cover stock, adhesives, spray sealer, inks, glossy cardstock, ribbon
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Southwestern Sunrise Card

Front View of My Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card

Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card

To begin my card I created my sunrise on a 4" x 6" piece of glossy cardstock using a blending tool, sponge pieces, and ink. Once the ink was completely dry I added the silhouettes (saguaro cactus, grasses, and woman digi stamps) digitally by printing them on my inked background. After adding the silhouettes I used die cuts to create two separate image panels. I cut an oval around the cactus and an inverted scalloped circle around the woman. The inverted scalloped circle reminds me of the sun and I found it appropriate for the theme of my sunrise card. To complete my images I sprayed them with matte sealer to protect the inks.

I selected the color palette for my card based upon the colors used in my sunrise. The light and dark peach cardstocks highlight my sunrise and I found a piece of scrapbook paper that integrated both colors.

For the base of my Southwestern Sunrise Card I used dark peach cardstock and scored it across the top so that my card opens vertically from the bottom. I created the front panel from light peach cardstock and affixed a piece of the variegated paper on the lower portion of the panel. Before attaching the panel to the card base I added a dark peach ribbon at the interface where the two papers overlap and wrapped the ends of the ribbon around to the back of the light peach cardstock.

To finish off the front panel of my card I matted both of my images with dark peach cardstock and popped them from the surface of the card to give it some dimension.

Angle Views of My Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card

Left Angle - Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card

Right Angle - Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card

These views of the front of my card give you an idea as to how the popped image panels add dimension. I use silicon adhesive to achieve the dimension.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card

Inside Panel of Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card

I elected to leave the inside of my card blank. The panel base is light peach cardstock that I layered with cream cardstock. I embellished the panel with a strip of the variegated paper.

I also constructed a handmade envelope from heavy cover stock to complement my handmade card. I embellished my envelope down its left side with a strip of the variegated paper.

Final Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card and Coordinating Handmade Envelope

Handmade Southwestern Sunrise Card and Envelope Ensemble

I like the simplicity of this card and that the richness of the sunrise really shines against the subdued background.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Southwestern Sunrise Card

Here's a tip: I scanned the glossy cardstock with my completed inked sunrise (before adding the silhouettes) into my computer so that I can use it on other cards and digital projects.

Card Recipe Specifics for Southwestern Sunrise Card

Cardstock: Hammermill, Ocean State, Wausau
Paper: Paper Essentials
Cover Stock: Staples
Dies: Nestabilities classic ovals large and small, Nestabilities classic inverted scalloped circles large and small
Digital Stamps: saguaro cactus from Digi Doodle Shop; grasses and woman silhouettes from All Silhouettes
Inks: Colorbox pigments
Tools: cuttlebug machine, scoring board, paper cutter, blending tool, sponge pieces, non-stick craft mat, computer
Misc: adhesive, silicon adhesive, ribbon, spray sealer
Techniques: sponging, die cutting, digital stamping

Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handcrafted items with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

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Handmade Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card & One Poor Little Mouser

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 23:50:00 +0000

Portion of monochromatic blue missing you cat card

Blue without you. That's the theme of my handmade monochromatic blue Missing You Cat Card. Now I say cat, but this is a very special cat. She's my own creation and her name is Moxie the Feline. Today she has a broken heart and is very blue because she's missing someone in her life who has returned home after a brief visit with her. And because Moxie is a feline (somewhat of a diva in my opinion) and not just any ordinary cat, her handmade missing you card had to be special and have a little glitz. I've used a monochromatic blue color scheme befitting the occasion and upcycled some very sparkly wrapping paper that met with Moxie's approval. I wanted this missing you cat card to have dimension along with character so I used several layers and some interesting shapes on it. Very suitable for my feline diva digital image.

Speaking of feline divas...I have another one on my hands and she's no digital creation. Poor Gracie (my grey queen of the house) for the past 6 weeks she has had to put up with a fashion accessory that does not meet her approval, although I happen to think she looks good in green.

Cat Gracie sporting her new fashion accessory

Doesn't she look miffed?!! She scraped her right rear leg on something and her constant licking with that sandpaper tongue of hers caused it to get red and inflamed. After a trip to the vet, two shots and a daily ointment for her scrape, insult was added to injury when she was adorned with this lovely green fabric collar to prevent her from getting to her leg. When we got home I'm not sure who was more entertaining to watch...Gracie trying to maneuver in her contraption or Bingo (my other cat) trying to figure out what the heck was going on with Gracie.

Poor Bingo has followed Gracie around like a poor lost soul. He has been bringing her toys and hasn't been tormenting her like he normally does. I think they'll both be glad when the collar comes off and things can get back to normal.

Cats Bingo and Gracie with Bingo feeling sorry for Gracie

It's pretty funny how they act around one another right now. Bingo wants to comfort Gracie, but knows to give her space when she's in one of those moods.

Cats Bingo and Gracie relaxing on their perch

Notice on their make-shift window seat that Bingo wants to be up with Gracie, but has given her plenty of room to the point that he's almost off the edge of their platform. This is how it has been around my house for the last several weeks.

One thing is for certain...

Absolutely nothing prevents cat Gracie from eating

...nothing prevents Gracie from eating. I have been finding kibbles everywhere though. It seems that when she eats dry food, as she's crunching away the crumbs drop into her collar and when she moves her head she flings the collected crumbs across the floor. Thank goodness for vacuums. Oh well, we'll be able to take the collar off this soon and hopefully she'll leave her leg alone since it has healed up pretty nicely.

My Love of Papercrafting Challenges

I love looking at challenge blogs and using them to assist me in developing my cards. My monochromatic blue missing you cat card reflects the following challenges:

City Crafter Challenge to focus on things in your heart and right now my poor cat and missing my family half way across the U.S. are both in my heart at this time.
Shelly's Images to show what you've got (anything goes).
Delightful Challenges to make a project for someone special and my card fits since its for that person that you're missing like crazy.
The Squirrel and the Fox to create something inspired by love. I love my cats, my digital images, and my family that live so far away.
Chocolate Coffee and Cards feathers and fur to incorporate an animal on your creation. Well, my digital image Moxie is a cat (even if she doesn't think so).
Cardmadfairy's Digi Days to add a sentiment and my sentiment "Blue Without You" is digital and affixed below my digital Moxie the feline image.
Forever Friends with a 3D or/& decoupage. My dimensional missing you cat card features my digital cat image and has several popped layers.

Handcrafting My Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card

Card Statistics

Final Card Size: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: octagon die, tag die, heart border die, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, computer, Cuttlebug machine, piercing needle tool, exacto knife, embossing tool
Digital Stamp: Moxie has a Broken Heart can be purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop
Materials: cardstock, glitter wrapping paper, cover stock, adhesives, gamsol, colored pencils, spray sealer, brads
Card can be Purchased in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Missing You Cat Card

Front View of My Handmade Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card

Handmade Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card

The inspiration for my card was the glittery Christmas paper that I received on several of my presents and decided to save for my future crafting delight. I also wanted to use my Moxie has a broken heart digital image. Looking through my Spellbinders dies I pulled out a few and created a sketch for my handmade card. I used the octagon die as the starting point for my sketch and went from there.

For the base of my card I used navy blue cardstock and scored it across the top so that my missing you cat card opens vertically from the bottom. Since I had decided to make the card monochromatic based upon my sparkly paper, I used a light blue cardstock for the base of my front panel. I layered it with an octagonal piece of the upcycled glittery paper to resemble the die cuts to be used in my image panel.

I created my image panel by starting with light blue cardstock die cut into an octagon and layering it with an octagon of the glittery paper. Based upon this panel I sized my Moxie digital stamp and printed it out on white cardstock. I colored Moxie using gamsol and colored pencils. You'll notice that Moxie has a blue tint befitting the mood of my card and its sentiment. After coloring Moxie I fussy cut her out and used a ball stylus to give her a more dimensional and rounded look. I used silicon adhesive to pop her off the surface of the octagon panel.

With my image panel completed I popped a couple of die cut scrolled hearts on to the front panel and then popped my image panel on top of them so that they peek out from beneath it. This added a lot of depth to my card. I printed my sentiment "Blue Without You" on light blue cardstock in blue ink and die cut it out. To finish off my front card panel I attached the sentiment tag with silver brads over the image panel by piercing two holes through all the layers with a piercing tool. I affixed the completed front panel to my card base.

Angle Views of My Handmade Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card

Left Angle View of Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card

Right Angle View of Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card

These views of the front of my card give you an idea of the dimensional elements. You can also see the added dimension I obtained on Moxie by using the ball stylus.

Inside Panel of My Handmade Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card

Inside Panel of Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card

I elected to leave the inside of my card blank. The panel base is light blue cardstock that I layered with white cardstock and embellished with die cut scrolled hearts. A very clean and simple design that is in direct contrast to the sparkly diva type front.

As is my practice, I also constructed a handmade envelope to complement my handmade missing you cat card. I printed Moxie with a broken heart in the lower left corner and colored her using gamsol and colored pencils. I sprayed the completed image with sealer to protect it should it travel through the mail.

Final Handmade Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card with Coordinating Handmade Envelope

Handmade Monochromatic Blue Missing You Cat Card & Coordinating Envelope

So there you have it...my monochromatic blue missing you cat card and its coordinating envelope. Inspired by some recycled Christmas paper and a feline diva.

This card set is available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Missing You Cat Card in Blue.

Card Recipe Specifics for Blue Missing You Cat Card

Cardstock: The Paper Company, Hammermill, Wausau
Cover Stock: Staples
Paper: Recycled Christmas paper
Dies: Nestabilities large octagons, Shapeabilities fancy tags, Borderabilities renaissance hearts border
Digital Stamp: "Moxie" Cat with a broken heart from Polished Moxie Concepts & Designs
Prismacolor Pencils: crimson red, crimson lake, metallic gold, mediterranean blue, blue slate, cloud blue, pink
Tools: scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, blending stumps, computer, cuttlebug machine, piercing needle tool, exacto knife, embossing ball stylus
Misc: adhesive, silicon adhesive, gamsol, spray sealer, brads
Techniques: gamsol, die cutting, fussy cutting, paper tole

Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handcrafted items with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

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Merry Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 18:30:00 +0000

Evergreen Trees Christmas Cards and Falling Oak Tree

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 03:10:00 +0000

Portion of Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

Today is the post for trees. I'm going to share two of my handmade Christmas cards and a short video. My cards are similar, but different in subtle ways. They feature a forest of evergreen trees during a gentle, shimmering snowfall. I call them my evergreen trees Christmas cards (boy, I really need to work on more imaginative names). Each Christmas card has a Christmas star tag embossed with a sentiment and is adorned with organdy ribbon and a little bling. I used stamping and sponging techniques on the image panel of both cards.

Besides my two Christmas cards, I also have a short video that I put together. This is the video my critter cam captured of the big oak tree branch falling during our October surprise snowstorm. In the beginning you can see debris falling around my bird feeders (I increased the speed on this part so that we don't sit through 2 minutes of falling bark and leaves). Next you'll see a whoosh of snow and then the branch (half of our oak tree) comes down hitting my bird feeders and knocking half of them off. If you watch closely, to the right of the screen as the tree falls you will see a little bird fly out of the falling tree and then go back into the branches after the tree settles. The video was captured after dark via infrared and there is no audio.

Handcrafting My Evergreen Trees Christmas Cards

Card Statistics

Final Card Sizes: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: tree stamps, star stamp, tag die, deckled rectangle die, die for image shape, scoring board, paper cutter, heat tool, sponge pieces, cuttlebug machine, computer, scissors, anti-static bag, blending tool, ruler
Materials: ink, embossing powder, stickles, embossing ink pen, adhesive, ribbon, white acrylic paint, rhinestones, spray sealer
Both Cards are Available in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Joy Evergreen Trees Christmas Card and Noel Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

Front Views of Handmade Evergreen Trees Christmas Cards

Joy Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

I created my evergreen trees Christmas card by first cutting and scoring my card base. I selected a pale blue cardstock and scored it so that the card opens vertically from the bottom. Next I created a panel by cutting a piece of pale mint green cardstock and layering the top of it with a pretty pale blue printer paper with Christmas stars on it. I affixed a piece of cream organdy ribbon (without a bow) over the paper and cardstock interface by wrapping the ribbon ends around to the back of the cardstock panel and securing them. I did not attach the ribbon along the interface on the front of the card because I wanted to be able to tie a bow around it to hang my tag. Once the ribbon was secured I glued the panel to my card base.

For my card image I sponged and blended a background on a piece of white cardstock that was slightly larger than my final image so that I could die cut it to shape. On this card I used several blue and pale green inks to create the majority of the background and then added a little brown for the forest ground. After the background dried I inked up my tree stamp with green ink and stamped it several times on the background without re-inking it. When I stamped I overlapped several of the trees. This is how I achieved a look of distant trees. I die cut my image into the shape shown.

To add more interest to my image I lightly sponged on white acrylic paint to represent falling snow. I wanted the snow to glisten like it does in nature so I sponged on some stickles over the image. The combination of the acrylic paint and the stickles results in an interesting texture and a glistening snow when moving the image. To complete my image panel I matted it with pale blue cardstock die cut with a decked edge. I affixed the completed image panel to my card with silicone adhesive so that it was popped from the surface of the card.

For adornment I die cut a Christmas star tag from pale blue cardstock. Using an embossing ink pen I printed "Joy" on the tag and heat embossed it with white embossing powder. To prevent stray embossing powder flakes I wiped the tag with my anti-static bag before using my embossing pen. I attached my tag to the ribbon with a bow made from the same organdy ribbon. I also added a small dab of gel glue under the bow to secure everything in place and prevent the tag from dragging. As a finishing touch I added a little bling by adhering three diamond-like rhinestones.

My second evergreen trees Christmas card is made identically to the first with just a couple of subtle differences. For the image I did not sponge any brown ink on the background and I used a slightly different mix of colors including yellow. Also, I printed "NOEL" on the Christmas star tag.

Noel Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

Angle Views of Handmade Evergreen Trees Christmas Cards

There are several elements on my cards that give them dimension: the raised image panel, hanging Christmas star tag, bow and rhinestones. Here are pictures of both cards so that you can check out their dimensional elements.

Right Angle View of Joy Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

Left Angle View of Joy Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

Right Angle View of Noel Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

Left Angle View of Noel Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

The sparkle on the images was difficult to capture in a picture, but it is very evident when you move the cards in the light.

Inside Panels of Handmade Evergreen Trees Christmas Cards

Inside of Joy Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

I wanted the inside panel of my Christmas cards to be simple in construction and contain a greeting reflective of the feelings I hoped the front of my cards would evoke. For my first Christmas card I printed "May the quiet beauty of the holiday season bring you joy" in pale blue ink on white cardstock. I embellished the card panel with layered strips of the pale blue cardstock and printed paper. To complete the panel I matted it with pale mint green cardstock.

The internal design for my second Christmas card is identical to the first. My greeting for this card is "Wishing you all the wonder and beauty of the holiday season" and it too is printed in pale blue ink.

Inside of Noel Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

I constructed handmade envelopes to compliment each of my Christmas cards. I decorated each by stamping a pair of evergreen trees in the lower left corner. Above the trees I stamped a Christmas star. To protect the image through the mail system I sprayed it with sealer.

Final Handmade Evergreen Trees Christmas Card and Envelope Ensembles

Joy Evergreen Trees Christmas Card Set

Noel Evergreen Trees Christmas Card Set

Two card sets the same yet different.

Both of these Christmas card sets are available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Joy Evergreen Trees Christmas Card and Noel Evergreen Trees Christmas Card

Card Recipe Specifics

Cardstock: Wausau, Hammermill
Scrapbook Paper: Dena Colorbok
Cover Stock: Staples
Dies: Shapeabilities holiday tags, Nestabilities labels 11 and deckled rectangles large
Stamps: trees on card and envelope from Inkadinkado, Christmas star on envelope from Fiskars
Ribbon: Joann Stores
Inks: yellows, blues, and pale green are Colorbox pigments; brown and blues are Colorbox fluid chalks, greens for trees are Tim Holtz distress inks; Zig embossing ink pen
Embossing Powder: Stamp 'n Stuff opaque detail white
Stickles: frosty lace
Acrylic Paint: Adirondack snow cap dabber
Rhinestones: Studio G
Tools: Martha Stewart scoring board, Making Memories paper cutter, Darice heat tool, Ranger blending tool, anti-static bag, cuttlebug machine, sponge pieces, scissors, ruler
Misc: adhesives (YES, silicone, gel), spray sealer
Techniques: stamping, die cutting, heat embossing, sponging

Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handcrafted items with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

Back to front of card

Back to inside panel of card

Snowy Trees Christmas Cards and an Afternoon Visitor

noreply@blogger.com (Polished Moxie) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 00:01:00 +0000

Portion of image on my Red Snowy Trees Christmas Card

Today I want to share two of my homemade Christmas cards with you. Both cards are very similar and in my opinion quite elegant. These handmade cards feature snow covered evergreen trees and embossed ornament tags. I call them my snowy tree Christmas cards (not very imaginative on my part). I used an acrylic paint resist technique that I have never used before and it resulted in an interesting texture to the cards. One of my tree Christmas cards is in a red and pink color scheme and the other is in a green and cream color scheme. The color differences give the cards each a different persona, but are reflective of the holiday season.

I also want to share a few pictures of a visitor that I had a few days after our October surprise snowstorm. I looked out my window while working on my computer and saw him land on the branch and begin surveying my garden.

Hawk sitting on tree branch

Do you see him sitting on that little branch near the center of the picture?

Hawk perched on tree branch over garden

Here's a closer picture of him. He's a new hawk for me. I've not seen one like him before in our backyard.

Hawk sitting on tree branch surveying his surroundings

As you can see he is really looking around our garden. His head was turning back and forth taking everything in. He's sitting on a branch not too far away from my bird feeders.

Close up of Hawk

Beautiful guy isn't he!

Handcrafting My Snowy Trees Christmas Cards

Card Statistics

Final Card Sizes: 5.5" tall x 4.25" wide
Tools: tree stamps, tag die, scoring board, paper cutter, scissors, ruler, ink blending tool, heat gun, cuttlebug machine, anti-static bag, computer.
Materials: embossing powder, embossing ink pen, ink, gel pen, cardstock, cover stock, ribbon, adhesive, acrylic paint, spray sealer
Both Cards are Available in My Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Red Snowy Trees Christmas Card and Green Snowy Trees Christmas Card

Front Views of Handmade Snowy Trees Christmas Cards

Handmade Red Snowy Trees Christmas Card

To begin my handmade red snowy trees Christmas card I cut and scored cranberry red cardstock for my base card so that my card opens vertically from the bottom.

For my card image I used an Adirondack acrylic paint dabber to ink up my tree stamp with white acrylic paint. I stamped one tree on white cardstock, then primed the stamp again with acrylic paint and stamped the other tree slightly offset from the first tree. When the paint was completely dry I used a blending tool to rub first light pink and then cranberry ink all over the image panel. The trees turned a pale pink color against a cranberry red background. They also have a texture to them that has an interesting embossed feel and look to it. This is an acrylic paint resist technique.

I matted the image panel with a pale pink cardstock that matched the trees and added a pale pink piece of organdy ribbon (without the bow) down the left side before affixing the panel to my card base.

For adornment I die cut two ornament tags (one from cranberry cardstock and one from pale pink cardstock). Using an embossing ink pen I printed "JOY" and "NOEL" on the tags and heat embossed them with gold embossing powder. To prevent stray embossing powder flakes I wiped the ornament tags with my anti-static bag before using my embossing pen. I attached the two ornaments to the ribbon with a bow made from the same organdy ribbon. I also added a small dab of gel glue under the bow to secure everything in place and prevent the ornament tags from sliding down the ribbon. This completed the front of my red snowy trees Christmas card.

My green snowy trees Christmas card has a cream card base and evergreen cardstock image mat. It was constructed in the same manner as my red snowy trees Christmas card except that I used white glossy cardstock for the image panel and both a dye and distress ink on my blending tool. I also only used one ornament tag.

Handmade Green Snowy Trees Christmas Card

Angle Views of Handmade Snowy Trees Christmas Cards

The only dimension on my snowy trees Christmas cards is the slight texture of the trees and the hanging ornament tags. Here are pictures of them so that you can check out their dimensional elements.

Right Angle View of Handmade Red Snowy Trees Christmas Card

Left Angle View of Handmade Red Snowy Trees Christmas Card

Right Angle View of Handmade Green Snowy Trees Christmas Card

Left Angle View of Handmade Green Snowy Trees Christmas Card

The slight texture of the trees was difficult to capture in a picture, but it's very evident when you run your fingers over the image.

Inside panels of Handmade Snowy Trees Christmas Cards

Inside Handmade Red Snowy Trees Christmas Card

I elected to keep the greetings on the inside of my two Christmas cards simple. For my red snowy trees Christmas card I printed "Happy Holidays" in cranberry ink on white cardstock. To embellish the card panel I layered strips of the pale pink and cranberry red cardstocks, and then positioned them near the bottom of the panel. I matted the completed panel on pale pink cardstock.

Here's a tip for how I get the color of my printed greeting to match my card base. I scan a piece of the cranberry red cardstock into my computer and select it as the color for my text in Photoshop Elements.

The internal design for my green snowy trees Christmas card is very similar to my red card although I used a different greeting. I printed "Wishing you joy during the holiday season" in evergreen ink on cream cardstock to reflect the "JOY" on the front ornament tag. You'll also note that the top layer of my embellishment strip is patterned. I actually used a strip of my front card panel that I had cut when sizing the panel for my card. It contains part of the acrylic paint stamp and gives a little more character to the embellishment. I thought this was a good use for my scrap as opposed to the trash can (well actually the recycle bin in my house).

Inside Handmade Green Snowy Trees Christmas Card

As is my practice, I also constructed handmade envelopes to compliment each of my Christmas cards. I decorated each by stamping a pair of evergreen trees in their respective colors in the lower left corner. Below the evergreens I printed the word "JOY" using a yellow gold gel pen. To protect the images during mailing I sprayed them with sealer.

Final Handmade Snowy Trees Christmas Card and Envelope Ensembles

Handmade Red Snowy Trees Christmas Card Set

Handmade Green Snowy Trees Christmas Card Set

So there you have it...my two handmade snowy trees Christmas cards and coordinating envelopes...each with its own persona.

Both of these Christmas card sets are available in my Polished Moxie Etsy Shop: Red Snowy Trees Christmas Card and Green Snowy Trees Christmas Card.

Card Recipe Specifics for Red Snowy Trees Christmas Card

Cardstock: The Paper Company, Wausau
Cover Stock: Staples
Die: Shapeabilities holiday tags
Stamps: Both from Inkadinkado
Inks: Adirondack earthtones cranberry and lights shell pink, Zig embossing ink pen, Gelly Roll yellow gold gel pen
Embossing Powder: Stamp 'n Stuff opaque detail gold
Acrylic Paint: Adirondack snow cap dabber
Ribbon: JoAnn Stores organdy
Tools: Martha Stewart scoring board, Making Memories paper cutter, Ranger blending tool, anti-static bag, Darice heat tool, Cuttlebug machine, scissors, ruler, computer
Misc: YES adhesive, gel adhesive, spray sealer
Techniques: acrylic paint resist, stamping, die cutting, heat embossing

Card Recipe Specifics for Green Snowy Trees Christmas Card

Cardstock: The Paper Company, Wausau, Ocean State (glossy)
Cover Stock: Staples
Die: Shapeabilities holiday tags
Stamps: Both from Inkadinkado
Inks: Adirondack lights juniper, Tim Holtz Distress forest moss, Zig embossing ink pen, Gelly Roll yellow gold gel pen
Embossing Powder: Stamp 'n Stuff opaque detail gold
Acrylic Paint: Adirondack snow cap dabber
Ribbon: Wrights Prestige organdy
Tools: Martha Stewart scoring board, Making Memories paper cutter, Ranger blending tool, anti-static bag, Darice heat tool, Cuttlebug machine, scissors, ruler, computer
Misc: YES adhesive, gel adhesive, spray sealer
Techniques: acrylic paint resist, stamping, die cutting, heat embossing

Thank you for visiting my blog and allowing me to share my handcrafted items with you. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon!

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