And Now for Something Completely Different

Last week, I actually made some cards.  I know, it's been forever! But, as usual, having a little push makes me get off my duff, and my friend Janet invited us all for a swap.  I've mentioned these before - everyone designs a card, brings all the materials, and we spend the evening making each others cards to take home.  It's fun, it's creative, and it's a great chance to catch up with friends.

Here are the cards, in no particular order.

Janet, our host. You can't tell but the centerpiece is embossed in gold, giving it nice dimension.

Cathie's card. It looks a little fuzzy because the button stands out enough that the scanner can't focus.  The dress form is covered in a pearlized paint that gives it a lovely shimmer.

Ruth got my award for elegance and simplicity. The flowers are stamped on watercolor paper and then painted, giving it a lovely delicate feel.

I did not do Grace's card justice.  I was rather cautious and sparse on coloring in the wreath - her sample looked beautiful and autumnal and was really lovely.

It's completely lost in the scan, but the lighter paper on Jamie's card actually is a pale green with a little shimmer to it.  Somebody else stamped their turtles marching all the way from the back to the front, which was brilliant. And what a great card for a masculine birthday - those are always the hardest. Maybe not as elegant as Ruth's, but simple and fabulous.

This was my card (it's actually on a white background). I was inspired by a makeup bag fabric I had just picked up at TJMaxx, so I used a rainbow ink pad in Autumnal colors for the leaves and did a simple collage.

Shona's card.  The ghostly leaf images are done by sponging ink directly onto glossy paper, and then using water as "ink" on your stamp to lift off some of the color. (Use a dampened paper towel as your ink pad). Then we ran it through an embossing folder and lightly sanded to make the tree stand out.

There were only 7 of us, and although I missed getting to catch up with everyone who couldn't come, it was nice to be able to get through all of the cards and not go late into the evening. And now I'm feeling a little inspiration to get working on the cards I need to get in the mail!