Tuesday, July 15, 2008

The Power Of Suggestion....

Hi all! Happy Wednesday! Do you want to know what I haven't used a lot--- but should pick up more? Clear cardstock! Sharon Johnson challenged me to use some of the new Flourishes sets with clear cardstock to come up with a card. Well, you know me. I have a bit of a competitive spirit - so, I said ,"sure!"

I thought the new Stamp Simply Thank You set would work wonderfully for a quick and easy clear cardstock card. The only tricky part of this card is first, cutting the tulip (which wasn't hard) and second, lining up your matting. So, stick with me. I'll show you how I did it all!


But first, a trick for you! If you've ever seen the ribbon that they carry in the Flourishes store, you know, you don't want to waste an inch of it! This might be an old trick, but I thought it was worth sharing - you never know who might benefit from sharing a tip or two!


First, I measured a piece of burgundy satin ribbon so that I have just enough to wrap around the piece I want to highlight with a tied knot.

After I adhere the ribbon to the back of my layer, I use the ribbon still on the roll and tie a knot on this piece.
This is the result! and you know what? I cut the ribbon off the roll and have ZERO waste! Yeah! More ribbon for me! LOL! The next trick is layering up my clear cardstock card. Well, this is fun. If you layer it up with enough pieces, you won't see an ounce of tape!

Here's a look at the card again. The front layer is actually the ivory piece matted on the red with the cut tulip on it. The inside front is the green decorative paper that I stuck to the inside by putting tape on the front of my dp.

Here's a look at the inside, so it makes more sense. On the right hand side, you are actually looking at the back of my green dp. On the inside left, is my ivory mat that I edged with a gold leaf pen and put on my "Thank You" sentiment.

And, below is the back - I layered this on the back to serve as another mat and to hide the tape on the back of the ivory piece. When you close it all up. All of the pieces are designed to layer up perfectly! Another tip? adhere your largest layer first. It is a lot easier to align this piece on your clear cardstock. Then, everything else can be matted to fit within the largest layer! Want to check out what some of the other Flourish DT was up to? Check out Leslie, Susan, Sharon, Faith, Linda, and Sharon D. for some more tips and tricks!

Thanks for all the nice comments and emails about the Paper Crafts Gallery Idol competition. The voting continues until Thursday at noon Mountain Standard Time. If you haven't voted yet - keep in mind, voting for this round changed a bit. Instead of using the "LOVE THIS" button to vote, you need to click on the card, and below the card it says - Description: Click here to vote for your favorite. Once you click that, a screen will pop up with all the contestant's names. Click the name with the little "check" and then vote! Not hard, just a few more steps! You can click HERE to vote! I'll find out Friday if I'm still standing! :-)

19 comments:

Sharon (notimetostamp) said...

Julie -- totally fabulous!!!! I LOVE what you did with this Clear Cardstock!!! And your ribbon tying tip -- wonderful -- I must admit, I waste horrendous amounts of ribbon (hanging head in shame). I thought I could always tell when a ribbon was tied this way, but I CAN'T tell on your card -- JUST FABULOUS!!!

Janine said...

Holy moly girl this is beautiful!!
Have a great day!!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful card! I recently purchased the clear cardstock from Flourishes so might have to give it a whirl! I'll have to try your ribbon tying technique!

The Rubber Maid said...

Lovely card and the ribbon is beautiful. That is the way I tie my ribbon also and love the fact there is no waste. MOM

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous and elegant, Julie! Not a bit of tape or raw edges showing--very nice! Great tip about the ribbon, too. Yours is done so beautifully.

Anonymous said...

Thanks Julie for sharing how you layered this up. I've been wanting to try a clear card and now I'm even more inspired!
smiles,Deena

wendyp said...

Wow! Love this! The stamped flower is beautiful and the bow is just perfect! cool tip!

Anonymous said...

Go sprawl in the sun and bake your brain. You are tempting me to spend money again. I am still holding back on ordering the monogram stampers and now I want this ribbon (there'd be drool on it if it wasn't at your house) and some of that clear cardstock. Why is it when I think I have everything imaginable, but can never find it, that something else comes along and gets me wanting again? Hope Ellie has no wants after her big day.

Anonymous said...

This is so elegant! Oh Julie I love this card. And that ribbon is just beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Julie..this card is so pretty. I love the clear card. It is so nice. And looks like something I could actually make! ;)

Jacki Marie said...

So... just so you know... I'm mad at you. I'm trying not to buy new stamps, but I need that tulip set. STOP using pretty stuff! and stop making it look so gorgeous! And to top it off I didn't know where to buy clear card stock so I didn't have to buy it, but them you just had to go and solve that problem for me too...

Anonymous said...

Super ribbon tip and I'd never heard of the clear cardstock before. I'm assuming Flourishes will sell it, but do you know if Michael's or Craft Warehouse do? I'm about 150-200 miles from any larger community with craft or paper stores. My town has both the above and that's it! lol It's just I would like to try just a piece or two before ordering a whole bunch.
Your cards are beautiful and I so enjoy your blog. Good luck in the contest. I voted for yours! lol
Gail

Diane said...

Absolutely beautiful Julie!!! Love the ribbon of course and thanks for showing everything you do,btw,
your nails are pretty!!!

Sewflake said...

WOW, this has been great, many new tips...and no I did not know or had forgotten about the ribbon trick, always looking for ways to not waste a pinch of ribbon.

The ribbon and red tulip gives it a totally WOW WOW WOW look. I HAVE to remember all the tips I read today.

Unknown said...

Drop dead gorgeous, Julie! I love your card - those colors are amazing together.

Barbara Jean Smith said...

Great card! Hmmm, that doesn't sound right. Fabulous, amazing, beautiful, exceptional..just getting started :)! I could go on forever. I really loved this *perfect* card and the layering is eye candy!!

Mark's Finest Papers said...

Very pretty! Great ribbon tying tip!!!!

Unknown said...

Julie! This card is just stellar! I can't wait to try it -- your directions make it sound like creating this amazing card is actually (dare I say it) easy!

You were the Runner Up for Card of the Week, over at www.Card of the Week.com. You can see the original post at http://www.cardoftheweek.com/2008/07/card-of-the-w-5.html

I included a picture of your card and links to your blog and the original posting. Please let me know if this is OK!

Keep up the AMAZING work!

SueB said...

Julie I LOVE this card and made one for Parents' Day based on it today. Mine's at
http://sueblondin.blogspot.com/2008/07/happy-parents-day.html
Thanx for being a regular source of inspiration!