Autism Awareness Day

Happy Saturday Everyone,
Well, it is an absolutely gorgeous day here in Northglenn, Colorado and perfect baseball weather. Which is just as well because baseball season has just started and this year they opened at home. I'm not much of a baseball fan but I do enjoy all the excitement involved with Opening Day at Coors Field and with Colorado's fickle weather, it is nice when it chooses to cooperate and provide wonderful weather to enjoy it.
As I was checking my email this morning, I noticed an email from a fellow demonstrator by the name of Wendy Hawkinson. She was getting the word out that today is Autism Awareness Day and April is Autism Awareness Month. The theme is "Lighting it up Blue for Autism Awareness' and she asked us all if we could add a little blue to our cards today to show support for the many families who are effected by Autism.
So, when I chose today's card share, I picked a card that not only displays the color blue proudly, but it also is a perfect card for a child.
This cute punchy cupcake card is so bright and cheerful, just perfect for a child's birthday card. The colors I chose for this card are Tempting Turquoise, Pacific Point, Night of Navy, Pumpkin Pie and Whisper White cardstock and the cherr was created from the wonderful Red Glimmer Paper in the Occasions Mini Catalog.

I used one of my favorite punches, the Build a Cupcake punch, and I added the sprinkles to the frosting using the Create a Cupcake stamp set that coordinates perfectly with this punch. I used Sahara Sand Classic ink to stamp the sprinkles.

The cupcake has been layered onto circles punched using the 1 1/4" Circle punch from Tempting Turquoise, Pacific Point and Night of Navy cardstock. I used Stampin' Dimensionals to raise the cupcake up for a bit of extra dimension.

The card base is created from Tempting Turquoise cardstock and the Whisper White layer has been embossed using the Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder with my Big Shot. The "ribbon" has been created using the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punch with Pacific Point cardstock.

The sentiment is also from the Create a Cupcake stamp set and I stamped it with Pacific Point Classic ink onto Whisper White cardstock and punched it out using the Word Window punch. I then layered this onto Pumpkin Pie cardstock punched using the Modern Label Extra Large punch. To finish it off I punched an oval from Pacific Point cardstock using the 1 3/4" x 7/8" Oval Large punch to help the sentiment stand out better.

This is a very versatile card design and just by changing the colors used you can create a card that is unique as the person who receives it.

Now April is the final month for the Occasions Mini catalog, so now is the perfect time to place your order before they disappear.

I hope today's card share inspires you to create a special project for a special person in your life and to say a prayer for the families who face the challenges of Autism in their lives. Hug your loved ones a little tighter and a little longer as they are truly life's most precious gifts.

Until Next Time.

Happy Stampin',

Tricia Butts

http://www.triciabutts.stampinup.net/

Supplies Used (Stampin' Up unless otherwise noted):

Stamp Set: Create a Cupcake

Cardstock: Tempting Turquoise, Pacific Point, Night of Navy, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White

Paper: Red Glimmer Paper

Ink: Pacific Point, Sahara Sand Classic Inks

Accessories: Big Shot, Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Build a Cupcake Punch, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, Word Window Punch, Modern Label Extra Large Punch, 1 3/4" x 7/8" Oval Large punch, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals, Snail Adhesive

A Butterfly Easter Card

Hi Everyone,
I'm back with today's card share that will hopefully help inspire you to get started on your cards in time for Easter. Can you believe that April is almost here? It seems like the year has gone into fast forward with the changing of the seasons.
Today's card features one of my favorite items from the Occasions Mini catalog, the Beautiful Wings Embosslit, that works with my favorite tool, the Big Shot. This card was actually a Make n Take for a Stampin' Up party I had for a friend recently, and everyone loved using the Big Shot and fell in love with all the cute little butterflies created by the Beautiful Wings Embosslit. They just couldn't believe that so many butterflies could be embossed and cut from one small square of cardstock with just a quick turn of the handle on the Big Shot.

The base of the Easter card was created from Orchid Opulence cardstock (from the Bold Brights family), cut at 11" x 4 1/4" and scored at 5 1/2".  I used a piece of Whisper White card stock for the first layer and embossed it with the Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions folder with my Big Shot.  I adhered the embossed Whisper White cardstock to the Orchid Opulence card base with Snail adhesive.

Next, I used the Big Shot to cut and emboss my butterflies with the Beautiful Wings Embosslit (p24 Occasions Mini Catalog) using a scrap of Orchid Opulence cardstock.

Note: Make sure that your piece of cardstock is larger than the area of the embosslit so that the butterflies will release from the die easily. If the cardstock is too small, the butterflies may get stuck in the die. If this happens, gently remove them using the tip of the Paper Piercing Tool or another pointed instrument that can be used to carefully lever them from the die without damage.

Using the Paper Piercing Tool, I made a hole in the center of the largest butterfly. I then took my Two Way Glue Pen and carefully applied glue to the embossed areas of the butterfly. To add a little sparkle to my butterfly, I sprinkled Dazzling Diamonds onto the butterfly's wings and then gently tapped it to remove any loose glitter. Set it aside to allow the glue to dry.

I then took another smaller piece of Whisper White cardstock and carefully stamped Happy Easter, from the Well Scripted stamp set (p19 Occasions Mini catalog), in the lower right corner using Orchid Opulence Classic ink. Taking a piece of Barely Banana cardstock, I adhered the Whisper White cardstock stamped piece to it.

I used my Paper Piercing Tool to create a whole in the upper left corner of the Whisper White cardstock, making sure that it goes through the Barely Banana Cardstock.

Taking a clear rhinestone brad, I threaded it through the hole in the center of the butterfly and then through the hole in the Whisper White/Barely Banana cardstock and bent the legs back to anchor it.

Time to assemble the card by first attaching a piece of Shades of Spring Designer Series Paper (p25 Occasions Mini Catalog) to the right side of the card. I chose the pretty Orchid Opulence with polka dots because I loved the way it looked coordinated with the embossed polka dots on the Whisper White cardstock. I then applied Snail adhesive to the back of the Barely Banana cardstock and layered it on top of the Whisper White cardstock and the Orchid Opulence DSP.

This card could just as easily be used as a birthday, Mother's Day, thinking of you or get well card, just by changing the sentiment on the card. I like to create cards that can be used for a variety of occasions and I think this is one of those card designs.

I cased this card from another demonstrator, Dawn Griffith, who creates the most amazing cards and she is one of my greatest sources of inspiration. I hope that you will be inspired by this card and create your own cards soon.

Until Next Time.

Stampin' Hugs,

Tricia Butts

P.S. I would love to see your cards, so please leave a link to your card photo in the comments section so that I can visit and enjoy your creativity.

Products Used (All Stampin' Up):

Stamp Set:

Well Scripted Wood Mount 117072   Price   $19.95

                         Clear Mount  118601  Price   $14.95  Set of 6

Paper: Shades of Spring DSP, Orchid Opulence cardstock, Barely Banana Cardstock, Whisper White Cardstock

Ink: Orchid Opulence Classic Ink

Accessories: Big Shot, Beautiful Wings Embosslit, Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Folder, Dazzling Diamonds, Clear Rhinestone Brad, Two Way Glue Pen, Snail Adhesive, Paper Piercing Tool.