Birthday Card For My Friend

Good day blog friends!

I have a friend who recently turned 50,

her family threw a surprise party for her,

so I needed a card and gift for her.

She is an avid reader and book lover,

and I had bought this stamp specifically

to make a card for her.

For the back ground I used a napkin.
Here is a link if you are interested in the  

process.  I layered the background onto 

a white card stock base.

When I made the background, the second layer

of the napkin had a light image on it,

I used that also and then stamped onto

it with VersaMark ink, then embossed with

gold embossing powder.
In the picture, the image behind the stamped image

doesn't show very well, but it's very subtle and pretty

in person.

On the inside of this card I wrote a personal message

and included a gift certificate for Barnes and Noble.
I thought that was appropriate, especially with this card.

I'm glad you have come to spend some time here today.
I hope you have enjoyed your visit and have

been inspired in some way.

Come again soon.

Until then,

read a good book!

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.

 

Swap Tag and Card

Hello and welcome!

I'm in a small online group of friends who

are doing swaps.
For the month of August, the theme was

"All that glitters"
I could make whatever I wanted to make.

Usually they are ATCs, tags or cards.

This month I chose to make a tag for my friend

Becky.

I cut a mask and stencil from 

adhesive stencil material using my Silhouette Cameo.

I first put down the mask of the lady and

ink blended around her.
Then I removed the mask and put the stencil

down, so only the lady was showing.
I used a VersaMark pen to "color" in the

hair and dress areas and applied 

embossing powder and glitter embossing powder

to those areas.
For the face and arms I used colored pencils 

to get a skin tone.

"Just be fabulous"

 was printed with my 

label maker on clear label tape.

I wish the glitter of it showed up better in the picture.

I really enjoyed making this tag.

I always like to send a hand made card along with my 

swap, so I made this card.

I wanted it to go along with the theme of the swap, so I used

silver reactive foil. When some of the alcohol ink was 

still a bit damp I laid down the foil, gave it a good

rub and then pulled it up, leaving random areas

of silver foil behind.

The alcohol ink and foil were done on vellum,

then it was layered onto a shimmery silver card stock

and finally onto pink and a white card base.

I was very happy with the card and tag alike

and Becky said it made her day 

when she received them.

I'm so glad you have stopped in today to see what

I've been creating.
I hope you have been inspired in some way and

will come again soon.

Until then,

glitter something up.

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.

 

Embossing Powder Background Technique

Hello Everyone!

I'm glad you have decided to spend a little time with me

today.  I have a technique to show you today and I 

hope what I tell you will make sense and you'll be able

to give it a try.

This is the card I made for my son for his

30th birthday this month.  I used this technique

to make it.  For lack of a better name I call it

embossing powder background technique.

The pieces I'm showing you when I explain the technique 

are not pictures of the background I used for the card, but

just the technique.

I started with some plain white card stock.

I put glue onto the card and spread it around with 

my finger.  Then added embossing powder and

heat set it.

On some pieces I use the glue in smaller spaces.

Unfortunately, I didn't remember to take pictures as I 

went.  I was so engrossed in experimenting, that it totally

slipped my mind.
I just kept adding glue in different areas and adding colors.

I tried different ways of applying the glue also,

I brushed it on with a brush, with a q-tip and right from the

bottle and just let it go where it wanted to go.
Just don't get it too thick.
Each layer of embossing powder changes the look,

and I found that the more layers there were, the more texture

I got.  It also depends on the brand and type of powder you have.

Some are chunky and some are fine, or anywhere in between.

I'm sorry I don't have more pictures to show you, but here is a

video from  Marion Emberson showing the basic idea of how to

do this technique.  I don't have the same products as she does,

I used what I have and experimented a bit with it.

I also gave some VersaMark Ink a go and swiped it on with

a make up sponge.  The glue and the VersaMark both worked great.

These are the pieces I created.

Here they are a little closer.

Click on the pictures and you can see them larger.

This one I used a silver sparkle embossing powder,

you can see that the results are different than the other

powders.  Not only the sparkle, but the texture also.

This is the one I used for Jaryd's card,

It was my favorite of the bunch.  
I thought the colors blended beautifully.

I hope you have been inspired in some way today,

and maybe will give this technique a try.

Be sure to watch the video linked above to 

maybe understand the technique a little better.

I hope you'll come again soon.

Until then,

emboss away!

Embossing Powder Technique

Hello!  I'm glad you are here for a visit.

Today I have a few cards to show you.
I saw this video where embossing powder was used on

parchment paper and she was able to peel it up to use

as an embellishment.

I didn't have any parchment when I wanted to give it a go,

so I tried a couple other kinds of paper.
Nothing worked the way it did in the video, but I still

got some interesting backgrounds to use.

This one was done on gold vellum.

I heat embossed the sentiment to add to the card front.

This one, I used the backing from some labels

thinking that since it was a type of release paper,

the embossing may peel off.  It didn't, but 
I used the background anyway.

This is another one done with the 

label release paper.

Here is another one from the vellum.

This one I did on a shiny silver metallic card stock

and I think it may be my favorite.

This one was done on a piece of deli paper.

Although none of them worked out the way they

did on the video, I'm happy with how they turned out and

the cards I made with them.

I've re-watched the video and plan to give it a try

with the parchment paper that she suggests using.

I'll surly post what I get when I try it the way she 

shows in the video.

Never hurts to give new techniques a try, even when they

don't turn out how you hoped.  I love how these cards turned out and

I've already used a few of them.

Thanks for stopping by today,

I hope you have been inspired in some way and will 

come again soon.
Until then,

watch a video and learn a new technique.

Wedding Card

Hello!  I hope you are all well.

Today I have a wedding card to show you.

A family friend got married the other day,

unfortunately, due to COVID they had to change their 

wedding plans and have a much smaller wedding than

originally planned and could only have immediate family

with them.  They will have a "reception" for their 1st anniversary

next year.  I thought this was a great compromise.  In these times

we all have to do what we need to do to stay safe and healthy.

I wanted to send a card to Michelle and Tony so I made this one.

I found this lovely hand made paper in my stash, just waiting for something

special. I tore it to the size I needed and adhered it to 

the card stock panel with Fabric-Tac glue.

I adhered the panel to a white card base and

heat embossed the sentiment with 

white embossing powder.

On the inside I used the same color panel,

printed a sentiment onto white card stock and adhered

them to the card base.

I love how this card turned out and I think

the happy couple will too.

Thanks for stopping by to see what I've been up to.

I hope you'll come again soon.

Until then:

Make something special.

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.

 

Post Cards for El Paso Kids

A while ago, after the El Paso shooting, a couple teachers

asked for cards of encouragement to be sent to their

classes.  The children were afraid to come to school

and they thought cards from around the country 

with encouraging words would help them.

These are the post cards that I made and sent.

I wrote an encouraging message on the other side

and I hope they helped the children in their classes

For this card, I stamped the "grid" with VersaMark Ink

and embossed it with silver embossing powder.

I then used water colors to paint it.

The sentiment was stamped with 

VersaFine Onyx Black Ink.

I used Distress Inks with water to make this background,

then stamped the unicorn with 

VersaFine Onyx Black ink.

I added a bit of clear Wink of Stella to the horn, mane and tail.

Both were done on water color postcards.

Thanks for stopping by today,

have a wonderful day and 

Be Kind To Others!

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.

Ink Lift Card

Welcome to Kristie Kreates!

Have you tried the Alcohol Lift Ink yet?

If you haven't you should give it a try.

Well, that is if you use alcohol inks.

I love my alcohol inks, especially for making backgrounds.

When the Alcohol Lift Ink came out

I knew I needed to give it at try.

This is a card I made for my Aunt Marilyn.

Her 95th birthday was the same day my 

son got married.  Unfortunately, she lives in

 North Carolina and we are in Western New York,

so she wasn't able to attend.

I thought a fall themed card would be perfect for her.

There are a lot of video's out there showing how to use the

alcohol lift ink, so I won't go into detail about it.

I will say I used a glossy silver card stock,

made a background with a few different colors of

alcohol ink and stamped with several leaf stamps from

my stash of stamps.

I heat embossed the Happy Birthday with silver embossing powder,

mounted it onto silver card stock and layered them all

onto a matching card base.

If you haven't tried this cool ink, you should.

It's so much fun to work with and gives a very impressive

look to any card or project you make with it.

Here's a link to some videos on YouTube

showing techniques with this amazing product.

Thanks for stopping by today, 

come again soon.

Until then,

watch some videos and give 

something new a try.

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.

Cards for Card Drive 5

Hi!

Here are a few more Christmas cards that I made for the

Caring Hearts Card Drive.

These 2 were both stamped with VersaMark ink

and embossed with silver embossing powder.

The card on the right was done on black card stock,

the one on the left was done on white card stock that

I used Distress Inks to color.

I like the one with the Distress Inks better,

I think it's a little more natural looking with the

different shades and colors I used, rather than 

a totally black sky. I also liked that the bottom of the

scene looks like snow.

For this card, I has some scraps of paper

that had the trees on it, I fussy cut them and 

adhered them in different layers to give dimensions

to the card.

Thanks for coming to check in and see what I've been up to.

Come again soon, you never know what you'll find on 

Kristie Kreates.

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.

Halloween Cards

Hello crafters!

It's October, so time to get those Halloween cards ready.

I usually don't send Halloween cards, but

as I've said before, this year I'm trying to send more

cards.  So I decided to make and send some Halloween cards.

Not only to a couple kids, but to adults too.

Here is what I made.

I heat embossed this Sm. Witch 

by Eureka Stamps, sold through 

Stamp On It

For the moons, I punched a circle out of card stock

laid it over the black card stock,

smushed the VersaMark Ink pad over the circle hole,

then added gold embossing glitter and heat set it.

On some of the cards I stamped and heat embossed

"Flying by" on the outside,

inside I stamped "to say" with the same silver 

embossing powder and
"Happy Halloween"

in Onyx Black VersaFine Ink

For this card I added some 

Ghosts also from Eureka sold through 

Stamp On It.

I attached the witch with an Action Wobble

For this card I used the same Ghost stamp

and Halloween Border Stamp

I used Black Soot Distress Ink

for the night sky and added some water droplets

to give it a little texture.

I cut the curve on the bottom of the front of the card

with a Curved Edge Die

For this card I used

Autumn Friends Stamp

from QKR Stampede

sold through 

Stamp On It.

All coloring was done with my 

Fantasia Colored Pencils

I'm pretty happy with how these cards all 

turned out and I hope the recipients like them too.

Thanks for stopping by today

I hope you'll come again soon.

My next post, I'll show you the envelopes
I made for these cards to be sent in.

Until then,

Have fun crafting!

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.

Kitty card

hello!

This card I'm showing you today is one I made for 

my Aunt Marilyn.  Aunt Marilyn is my Mom's best friend.

They have been friends for well over 80 yrs.

Aunt Marilyn just turned 94 and I wanted to make a card for her.

She loves cats and this is perfect for her.

If you don't know Jennifer McGuire, you need to go to her

blog and check out her videos.  She is amazing and knows more

techniques than anyone I've ever seen.

I learned this technique from her blog.

I believe she calls it "double embossing"

I used a piece of black card stock, covered it with 

VersaMark Ink then embossed it with clear embossing 

powder.  Next I stamped the cat 

(sm, crazy kitty from Stamp On It)

 in VersaMark and embossed it

with silver embossing powder, the same with the hello.

When the second embossing is done over that clear embossing,

the silver kind of sinks into the clear and creates a very cool look.

It doesn't look or feel like 2 layers.

For the inside of the card, I used a set of individual 

tiny letter stamps to stamp 

"peeking in to say' 

and "Happy Birthday"

from Stamp On It

in VersaFine Onyx Black Ink

I wanted the sentiment to pop so I matted it onto

black card stock.

I know my Aunt will love this card that was

made especially for her.

I'm glad you stopped by today.

If you don't already visit

Jennifer McGuire Ink

pop over and watch her videos, 

she's really quite amazing.

Come again soon,

Until then I hope you'll 

try something new!

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.

Gift for Lennon

Hi!  Hope you're having a great day.

Today I'm showing you a gift I made for a little guy.

He turned 5 and absolutely loves dinosaurs.

This wasn't an easy and smooth process and I'll try to tell 

about my mistakes, so you don't also make them.

I started with a blank canvas, acrylic paints and Chap Stick.

Yes, I know that sounds strange, but I couldn't find my Microglaze and

thought I'd give the Chap Stick a try.

And I have to say it did work to a degree, but not as easily as

the Microglaze would have.

Here is a link to what I wanted to do with it.

I ended up not using it for the gift piece, but 

not because it wasn't working at all, I just didn't

have the time to play with it.

And of course guess what I found a couple days later?!?!

I know this might be hard to see, but it sure is hard to

photograph something that is clear.

I cut out a dinosaur design with Lennon's name on it

using my Silhouette Cameo and The Dinosaur Border Set

from the Silhouette Design Store.

I used a piece of acetate to make the stencil and mask.

I ran the stencil and mask through my large Xyron machine

and stuck the mask down onto the canvas.

I started painting with the lightest color that I had, which

was a pink.  I was going for a sunset/universe look.

I continued to add colors, one by one, lightest to darkest.

I also added the red to his name.

Then came the darker colors, blues and purples.

And BOOM that's when things went awry. 

It all looked fine, until I took the mask off and the paint

had bled under the mask and made a total mess.

So I began again.

I used a little different strategy for the second attempt.

I used a bit less paint, less water on my brush when cleaning

it between colors and was more careful about how I applied the 

paint, trying to brush out from the mask at all times.

This time the dinosaurs came out much better, but there was

still some bleeding, but no where near as bad this time

Then I laid the stencil part of the acetate over the painted

canvas to see exactly where the dinosaurs were and painted his name in

more carefully.

Once that was done, I took the stencil off and began 

painting all the white parts with black paint.

After a couple coats of black and some more red....

it was almost finished.

For a finishing touch, I used some white paint,

added a little water and used my paint brush to flick

spatters onto the sky.  

I did lay the mask over the dinosaurs before

flicking the white paint.

I also gave the dinosaurs red eyes and I was done.

Then I was on to the card.

I decided to make a card to match the gift.

I cut the dinosaurs and the 

Happy Birthday! 

from black card stock.

I used a star stamp and stamped the card with 

VersaMark Ink and heat embossed them with silver

embossing powder.

Here is a picture of the gift and card together.

The day of his party, I think Lennon was so overwhelmed

that he didn't really know all the gifts he got,

but his parents did and they both loved this gift.

I think it turned out pretty cool too.

Thanks for popping in to see what I've been creating.

Glad to have you here, come again soon.

Until next time,

have fun crafting!

Note the links are only to give a reference so you can

see what the products are.
I didn't necessarily purchase from these sites,

except where specified,

and you may find better prices elsewhere,

I am in no way promoting any particular site.