Twisted Easel Mother’s Day Card

Posted in Cards, Creative Folds, Holiday Cards, Mother's Day, Tutorials by lisababitz

Twisted Easel Mother’s Day Card

(inside: To an amazing Mom)

Easel cards look like you fussed a little more than a traditional, folded card, but they are actually SUPER easy to make! Simply create a folded card base as usual and then fold the front in half. Basic easel cards are folded in half parallel to the fold. For a twisted easel, fold the front in half on a diagonal instead of parallel to the fold. Then, add a focal panel to your decorated base. (More detailed instructions are included below.)

You can see the two (diagonal) halves of the card front in this photo:

The base is also the “inside” of the card.

And this is what it looks like when it comes out of the envelope (folded flat):

Here’s how I created my twisted easel card:

Create the base. (Decorate as desired.)

Cut and decorate your focal panel and adhere to card base as shown. (DO NOT put adhesive on the entire back of the focal panel. While the panel will ultimately be centered on the card front, the adhesive should not cross the fold.)

Use the diagonal score line to help you line up your focal image.

With the closed card flat on the table, open the card and fold the front down (mountain fold). The attached focal panel stands up creating the easel effect.

Here are my panel measurements:

For the front:

For the inside:

I used a square for my focal panel, but other shapes could also be used.

Originally, I had a square panel on the inside, and then I struggled with what to add as a “stopper” so the easel stayed up when opened. In the past, I’ve popped up a sentiment or die cut to sit in front of the opened easel. I had already made my sentiment panel and everything else I tried to add to the patterned paper interfered with the soft print. I ended up splitting the inside panel into triangles, and now the easel can sit in the center channel.

The paper I used is from the “Our Family Tree” 12 x 12 paper pad from The Paper Studio. I wanted to use silver card stock for the mats to add some elegance, but the paper is kind of vintage looking, so I made my borders super thin for just a touch of silver. My focal panel is pretty big to accommodate the large greeting die cut. Measurements can be adjusted if you want larger borders or a smaller focal panel.

The greeting was cut with the “Happy Mother’s Day Phrase” die by Cottage Cutz. The circles were made with my “Bubbles Border Punch” by Fiskars (no longer available?). The inside sentiment is from the “Fabulous Holiday Fillers” stamp set by Gina K Designs (no longer available).

I made a square envelope for this card using my We R Memory Keepers 1-2-3 (envelope) Punch Board and will need to mail at the Post Office.

Thanks for checking out my card project!

24Mar2023

W-V Fold Birthday Card

Posted in Birthday Cards, Cards, Creative Folds by lisababitz

W-V Fold Birdthday Card

I came across this video showing how to make a W-V fold card and thought it was another great way to use up some of my patterned paper. I think it’s a pretty cool fun fold as well!

If you look at the overhead view, you can see where the fold got its name.

I’ve had this beautiful fruit themed paper for years and have no idea where I bought it. Unfortuate since there is not a single bit of info (name, company, etc.) on it. Hmmm…

As many of you know, I love earthtones so my first thought was to pair this paper with Recollections Kraft and Bazzill Butter Mints.

I also tried one with the beautiful Bazzill Velvet (plum) card stock.

In the video, Janie made her card 5 1/4 inches tall (and her panel measurements reflect that). I made mine 5 1/2 inches tall so I adjusted my measurements accordingly:

You could decorate all four of the tall skinny panels, or you could just decorate the first and third to make it less bulky. (You don’t really see the second and fourth panels when looking at the card head-on.)

I wasn’t sure how I was going to decorate the front when I made the measurement sheet above so the smaller two squares (with my greeting) aren’t on there. (My embossed panel with greeting is 2 1/4 x 2 1/4, and the mat is 2 3/8 x 2 3/8.) I used the Subtle embossing folder from Stampin’ Up (retired) or the Tapestry embossing folder from Gina K Designs for texture and the “Mini Expressions – Happy Birthday” die from Creative Expressions or the “Doodle Happy Birthday” die from Poppy Stamps for the greetings. There’s a panel on the “inside” to write or stamp a sentiment.

And I used just one sheet of patterned paper, but you could use several different prints (or solids) on the same card. So many possibilities to make use of your patterned paper with this card design…

This card folds flat to 5 1/2 x 4 inches so it fits in a regular A2 size envelope. However, it could be a bit heavy or bulky depending on the papers and card stock you use and may require extra postage (if it weighs more than an ounce) and/or a trip to the post office to mail (if it is more than 1/4 inch thick).

Thanks for checking out my card project!

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14Apr2021

Camera Note Card

Posted in Cards, Creative Folds, Other, Thank You Cards by lisababitz

Camera Note Card

I needed a thank you note for a photographer friend who sent me some photos he had taken, and this is the card I made.

I used the “Vintage Photo” cut file I purchased from the Silhouette store. It came with the two panels to create the (silver and black textured) panels on the front, and I used those to create the shaped card base, an additional (black) panel so I could leave some areas untextured, and a plain white panel for a handwritten note on the inside.

Besides the black card base, there are 3 black layers to add depth to the center behind the acetate lens. I used the “Subtle” embossing folder from Stampin” Up for the texture. The Metallic Silver card stock is from Gina K Designs. I used curling ribbon for the strap.

Thanks for checking out my card project!

This content uses referral links as described in the disclosure policy on my sidebar.

3Feb2021

Fish Tank – Birthday Challenge #4

Posted in Birthday Cards, Cards, Creative Folds by lisababitz

Fish Tank – Birthday Challenge #4

(back: Birthdays are for celebrating! Have a great day!)

It has been a while since making/sharing the “birthday challenge” cards from my children. Since my triplets’ birthday is coming up, I thought I’d use their challenge ideas to create their cards.

Keith came up with challenge #4. When asked what his challenge idea was, he had just two words – “fish tank.” When I asked if there was anything else I needed to incorporate into the design, he responded with, “fish tank.” How about… “Fish tank.” But do you want… “Fish tank.” So I made a fish tank card – lol! Happy Birthday, Keith!

The basic card design is a box card with several acetate panels inside which allows my fish to “swim” at various levels in the tank. I used a die from the “Infinity Rectangle Dies” set by Hero Arts to create the opening on the front.

The stamps were from the “Best Fishes” and “Tropical Scenes” sets by Sunny Studio and from the “Critters in the Sea” set by Lawn Fawn. (There are coordinating dies available for each of these stamp sets.) All of the images were stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored with Copic Markers.

The greeting is from the “Label Me Bold” set by Stampin’ up (retired?), and the sentiment on the back is from the “Ombre Sentiments:Birthday Stamp Set” from Papertrey Ink.

The background panel was smooshed with Color Burst (violet and ultramarine) and water.

I used Recollections “Vintage Blue” glass glitter for the gravel. (Not sure if blue is available anymore.) To make it stick, I applied wide, two sided tape to strips of card stock that were cut to shape. Then, I poured the gravel onto the sticky area, covered the pile with a scrap of card stock (it’s a bit pointy if not lying flat), pressed down, and poured off the excess. These strips were then adhered along the bottoms of the acetate panels and the back. I added a bit of the glitter (with liquid glue) to the stamped strip as well.

This box card folds flat for mailing. When opened, the card is 4 1/4 x 5 1/2, but when folded, it measures 4 1/4 x 6 3/4 so I created a custom envelope with my We R Memory Keepers Envelope Punch Board. (Start with a 9 inch square and punch/score at 3 5/8 inches.)

Thanks for checking out my card project!

This content uses referral links as described in the disclosure policy on my sidebar.

19Sep2020

A Kokopelli Birthday Wish

Posted in Birthday Cards, Cards, Creative Folds by lisababitz

A Kokopelli Birthday Wish

My husband and I saw artwork, trinkets, and images of the Kokopelli quite a bit on our trip to Sedona, Arizona back in March. According to ancient South-West Native American legends, the Kokopelli was a symbol of fertility, joy, feast, and long life. It was believed that he possessed the wisdom of age, and he brought good fortune and prosperity to anyone who would listen to his songs. I just think he’s cute – lol! !

The Kokopelli was cut with a die from the “Kokopeli and Zia” die set and the cactus was cut with the “Cactus Edgers” die, both by Frantic Stampers.

I created the easel card base and decorative panels with dies from the “Circle Flip Die” set from Creek Bank Creations (#708).

The “Happy Birthday Chunky Sentiment Die” set is also from CBC. The embossing folder used for the inside panel is called “Southwest” by Darice.

The metallic bronze card stock is Recollections from Michaels. I also used several sheets from a Momenta 6×6 pad (lot 0005593) and some ivory and white card stock.

This A2 card folds flat for mailing.