Builder Wheel Birthday

Sometimes the best cards have the least number of elements. Such is the case with this masculine or appropriate for a child birthday card. It's created using the Builder Wheel system, Designer Series Paper, and a card stock base. A card like this can be modified in some easy ways, which I'll detail later in this post, resulting in several different looking cards using the same layout and supplies. Because May is a HUGE birthday month in my family--my sister, my sister-in-law, my brother-in-law, my nephew, and my other brother-in-law--I need to be able to crank out LOTS of birthday cards.

The color palette for this card was determined by the Designer Series Paper, Celebrations. It combines Pacific Point, Bashful Blue, Real Red, and Old Olive. So, let's see, which colors should I choose? I like simple, don't you?

After cutting the Bashful Blue card stock and panels of the DSP to the size I wanted, I inked the wheel with Real Red and rolled it on Whisper White card stock. Mine was loaded with two wheels of Candle Crazy and Birthday in the middle. I pulled out the Pacific Point, Old Olive, and Bashful Blue markers and colored the candles and mounted it on a Bashful Blue mat.

Now, let's talk about some simple modifications that can be made to make this card appear different without creating a new layout.

1) Change the card base color. This automatically makes the card appear different, and you've hardly done anything!

2) Change the mat color. By using one of the other colors in the DSP as a matting for the main image, you alter the card without creating a lot of work for yourself.

3) Change the ink color for the wheel. You could go with one of the other colors in the DSP or use Basic Black.

4) Change the colors you color the candles. I could've chosen to color all the candles Pacific Point, and made the matting Old Olive.

5) Choose a different DSP! This keeps the layout exactly the same, but changes the feel, especially if you choose a DSP that has feminine colors.

6) Eliminate the DSP and roll directly on the card base. Paper, ink, and stamps is really all you need to make a great card!

I hope these tips will help you make efficient use of your crafting time, and let you focus more on being creative.

Please Excuse my Cold-Fogged Brain

I made this card on Wednesday, and I meant to create a post about it so that you could read it yesterday. But I've been taken hostage by my body because I have a cold, so my brain is preoccupied with silly stuff like making me cough and requesting that I blow my nose. Ugh. That's probably TMI for a crafting blog, but it's a legitimate excuse, I tell ya!

Okay, here's the deal with this card. I wanted to make a card that didn't use the A2 format (4.25" x 5.5"), and I'd tagged a simple one online for such a time as this. (See, even cold brain can't subvert my creativity.) It measures 3.25" x 6.25".

I have a lifelong friend--I've known her since fourth grade--whose birthday is in about a month, but since she lives on the other side of the world (a 12 hour time difference), I have to get her card in the mail EARLY.

So I pulled out some retired DSP, the name of which escapes me because of my cold brain, but which is just plain fun and very much in the spirit of birthdays. I also had some retired rub-ons (that sounds weird) that coordinate with this DSP, so I used them too. I avoided this sentiment for a long time because I wasn't sure what it meant, but I've decided that it's an updated version of "hi sweetie!", so I'm cool with using it.

I transferred the rub-on to a piece of Certainly Celery and created a little fun mat with scraps of Whisper White, Riding Hood Red (yes, those are teeny tiny strips, not 1 piece) and Bashful Blue card stock, and some 1/8" Whisper White ribbon. It wasn't until I was finished with the card that it occurred to me that the blue used in this color scheme is actually Baja Breeze. Oh well, not going back and redoing it all now!

The button is from the Designer Button Regals Collection in Riding Hood Red. Instead of trying to thread the 1/8" Whisper White ribbon through the actual buttonholes, I just covered the holes up with the bow!

To create some visual interest inside, I used my Candle Crazy Builder Wheels and rolled them along the seam of the card. I colored the candles with CC and BB SU! Markers and this is when I discovered my aforementioned color faux pas (even with cold brain, I can still spell in French!).

Well, this makes two things I've accomplished since getting out of bed this morning: working seven hours and writing this post. I think I need to nap now. If my cold brain releases me from captivity over the weekend, I'll post some more creations. Hope you're NOT sick so you can enjoy the weekend!

Emily, our Sweet 16 Girl

I am so excited!! Michael's best friend Emily and her mom are on their way here for the weekend! Emily and Michael were born six hours apart on Aug. 27, 1994, and she's like a sibling to Michael and an adopted daughter to me and Bob. The bond we all share is very special.

Since Emily was about 10, Bob has been telling her, "When you turn 16, you'll have to go on a date with Michael to celebrate your birthdays." Well, this year is THAT year, and that sweet girl remembered and is coming here to make that memory with my sweet boy.

We're doing some other things too, like going to the "Bodies" exhibit downtown, and eating southern style BBQ. Of course there will be singing and blowing out of candles during our time together. To commemorate this milestone birthday, I made Emily a card using her favorite colors, hot pink (Melon Mambo) and orange (Tangerine Tango).

I'd been wanting to play with the Hostess set Birthday Bakery for quite some time, but hadn't had the time. These cakes were just begging to be colored, so I stamped them in MM and used my TT, MM, Regal Rose, and Pumpkin Pie Stampin' Write Markers to bring them to life.

Then I decided to add a little shimmer, since we girls like bling! The combination of a Versamarker, Heat and Stick Powder, and Dazzling Diamonds made those little cakes all that much more enticing.

After completing the coloring and adding glitter, I had the idea to add the new pearls. It required a tweezers, but the little sweeties really finished the look I was going for.

Then I set to creating the base. I took a scrap of 3" x 11" Whisper White and scored it at 5.5". Then I inked my Birthday Builder Wheel combo with MM and rolled it across the base three times. I colored the candles and then added some other little elements, using my Scallop Trim Border Punch, some retired Haiku DSP, and some more pearls. Maybe I can pull off making something "girly" after all!

The inside contains the message that comes with the set: "if you are what you eat, then eat something cute!" It's perfect for her!

I'll post pictures of the two later this weekend. Have a great holiday, y'all! I intend to!

40--It's Just a Number, Right?

Former Starbucks partner and fellow displaced Chicagoan Sandy turns the BIG 4-0 on the 13th. My boss asked me to put together a card for her that we could all sign. FUN--just the kind of request I love to fulfill!

I wanted to use the new Builder Wheel system as the centerpiece for the card. In case you don't know what this is, it's a series of smaller wheels that are coupled together with a special spindle on the Jumbo Wheel Handle. They can be mixed and matched, and this set is featured in the Summer Mini Catalog, which is available through Aug. 31. The new 2010-2011 Big Idea Book & Catalog features several more, and each wheel is an inexpensive addition to your stamping toolkit at $4.50 each.

I also wanted to incorporate all the colors of one of the newly organized Color Collections into the design, so I chose the Brights Collection and got to work. I inked the wheel in Basic Black and rolled it out its full length--11 inches. This gave me the full message and some repeat in the pattern to work with. Then I pulled out all my Stampin' Write Markers and colored the candles. The colors I used included: Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Tempting Turquoise, Pacific Point, Pretty in Pink, Melon Mambo, and Rich Razzleberry. It's a more muted version of the old Bold Brights color family, but I like it.

Once I was done with the coloring, I wanted to figure out a way to incorporate the number 40 into the design. I pulled out my retired Headline Numbers, stamped them in Basic Black, and then created a tag using my Extra Large Tag punch.

I wanted some sparkle, so I used my Versamark Marker, Heat and Stick Powder, and Dazzling Diamonds Embossing Powder to gussy it up. All you do is ink up the letters/numbers with the Versamark, sprinkle on the H&S powder, heat it with a heat tool until it begins to melt, sprinkle on the DDEP, then finish setting the H&S powder. The glitter won't go flake off because it has been "glued" in place with the melted powder!

When I put it with the other image, I realized I was going to need to add the same bling to the letters of Happy Birthday. The coordinating result looks great, dontcha think?

I mounted the HB panel on Basic Black--after all, it's #4-0--and created a 5.5" square card with Metallic Silver card stock. For the finishing touch, I added some Whisper White taffeta ribbon that I scrunched across the top. Want to know how I did it?

It's really easy! Just apply some Mono Adhesive or Sticky Strip along the back side of the ribbon, then create small loops. These will scrunch together as you press them onto the card stock, creating the look. Be sure to start off the edge and finish past the edge so that you can make a clean cut that is fully stickified to the card.

Lastly, I used my Cropadile to punch out the holes to tie the 40 tag to the image. The Silver Chord is a little temperamental, but I tamed it into the bow I wanted.

Wanna see the Builder Wheels in the new catalog? Click here! If you want to place an order, just identify me, Jenn Nahrstadt, as your demonstrator. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions!

Builder Wheel Birthday Card

Hey all! Happy Friday! SU! has a new product I want to give you the skinny on today. They're called Builder Wheels, and there are 6 styles available in the Summer Mini Catalog on pages 8 and 9. These wheels are designed to be used with the Jumbo Wheel handle. They make quick work of card making, and allowed me to create a great masculine birthday card. But first, a bit more detail on these wheels.

The wheels coordinate with each other and have two themes: friendship and birthday. The three I bought were the birthday set, which features Candle Crazy, Birthday, and So Many Stars. They do not have to be purchased as a set; they are available for mix and match. I liked the Candle Crazy so much that I bought 2 of that wheel and the Birthday wheel to create my border/main image.

The wheels must be purchased with a Builder Wheel Spindle and Spacer pack, which allows you to attach them to the handle. The spindle and spacers also allow you to use each wheel by itself (like I did for the envelope) or together as a set in the handle. You can purchase an uninked cartridge and juice it up with whatever reinker color you want, or you can roll it on an ink pad. Because of the length of the Birthday wheel's message, I would recommend the cartridge. All that said, I didn't use one for this project because I didn't remember I had any until after I was done! The cartridge insures even ink distribution without running out before you're done rolling.

Enough talk, here's the card! I used Not Quite Navy classic ink to roll the wheels. I started with a full, 8.5" width of Very Vanilla card stock because I wanted to get the entire "Happy Birthday to You" message to see how long it is. It's about 7", so I trimmed off the "to You" part and went with the rest as my main image.

Some quick coloring of the candles with Soft Suede and So Saffron, mounted it on Kraft and attached both layers to another mat of NQN that I used eyelets in the corners to allow me to thread Linen Thread through to create a frame. The Linen background stamp (retired) inked in SS helped add some texture to the VV base, and before I knew it, the card was complete.

My fellow partner at Starbucks and videographer Aldo had a birthday yesterday, so this card will circulate among us for wishes and be given to him next week. I think I'm doing pretty well with the manly birthday cards this month, but there's one more to go. Be looking for that next week--have a great weekend!