Martha on Monday - a bordered card with some "Imagine-ation"

It's Monday morning and time for another installment of "Martha on Monday" over on the Scrappy-Go-Lucky blog.  This week I posted a quick tutorial showing how you can use the many borders on the Martha Stewart Cake Art cartridges to create perfect borders for your cards. 

I love the Martha Stewart punches (and I have even more than I realized once I started the grand reorganizing of the craftroom!) but it is frustrating sometimes to realize that they don't always come out even on your card edge.  With Design Studio or the Gypsy (and soon the Cricut CraftRoom!) you can get perfectly sized fancy edges on your cards quite easily.

If you pop over to THIS POST on the Scrappy-Go-Lucky blog you can see how easy it is to do this.  In honor of the fantastic Imagine Giveaway that Mandy is hosting this month I made my sample card using some Imagine components.  Be sure to check out the details of the giveaway  HERE, make a flower and send it to Mandy and you could possibly win an Imagine!

For the card front, I chose these roses from the Imagine More Cards cartridge.  I selected the layers option and eliminated all of the design except for the two rose cluster and the red rose layer.

I cut the card base with the open scallop border from a sheet of cardstock I printed with the second full sheet of paper in the handbook.  The details about designing the card base are on the Scrappy-Go-Lucky blog.

 I set the imagine to cut with no borders (changed the default from 4 to 0).  It cut nearly perfectly but I decided to use some brown ink to cover any misses and to add depth to the roses.  Here you can see the difference side by side.

 After the pieces were inked, I added Stickles glitter glue to the flowers and the leaves.

I used Fruit Punch, Yellow and Star Dust on the roses and Lime Green on the leaves.

When I scored and folded the card base the edge was a little rough so I decided to add a ribbon to help finish off the top of the card.

I figured out the position for the roses and left them sitting on the card while I add the peel-off "Happy Birthday" sentiment.  

Then I adhered the pair of roses directly to the card front.  The red rose is not "Stickled" since it will have another layer on top.

For the top red rose layer I added some foam dots for dimension.

The slightly raised image adds a lot to the card.

This card looks more complicated than it is - but you do have to allow time for the Stickles to dry.  I found that the flowers were curved after the Stickles dried so I put them under a heavy stack of books overnight to get a nice flat image.

I haven't used my Stickles much lately - I think they were perfect to give a finishing touch to the flowers which are the focal point of the card.

This was my first test cut of the bordered card.  I usually use cardstock in the same weight that I am planning to use for my project but in designs that are not my favorites for my test cuts.  I may find a way to make this into a card that I will post - the colors are a bit unusual but that is a challenge!  I did not post a file for this card since I explained exactly how to create the file in the tutorial.  If you are having trouble and need a link for the file I made, please leave a comment to let me know.

You can make the files for bordered cards and cut a small supply to have on hand when you need to make  a quick card.  If you have an Imagine, you can cut and print the images for the card front very quickly so be sure to get your entry in to the Scrappy-Go-Lucky contest.  

Don't forget that there is something special happening on my blog this week - be sure to check in tomorrow to get all of the details

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Time for Tea - Imagine that!

There as been a lot of activity in the craftroom but right now it looks even worse than it did before I started.  Sometimes you need to make a big mess to get everything sorted out!  I have moved some things around to make room for the IKEA items - it's going to be awesome!

I moved the Imagine table and couldn't resist taking a few minutes to try out the cartridge I just bought - Imagine More Cards.  I also found this American Crafts White textured cardstock at Marshall's (good finds there lately!).

There are 60 sheets in a package and the best part was the price...

...which meant is was less than 12 cents a sheet.

I printed out the first four papers in the handbook at full 12 x 12 size.  It is fun to be able to do this - and as long as you have a supply of white paper and your ink cartridges are full, you can produce the exact shade of paper that you need or choose from all of the patterns on the cartridges that you own.

The patterns look great on the textured paper.  I also found some kraft cardstock that I've been wanting to use so I decided to make a quick card.  It is so easy to get sidetracked when you are supposed to be doing a bigger project!

I chose this image on the Imagine More cards cartridge and selected the layers option.  Then I deleted everything but the cup and saucer image and printed and cut just that image.

I had already printed this piece of paper and I trimmed the bottom to have just the red check and yellow dots stripes showing.

I cut a section to 5 1/2 inches and layered it on the front of my card.  One thing that I don't always like is the "distressing" on most of the papers for the Imagine.  I made sure to trim my stripes from the center to avoid the dark distressed area at the edge.

The "Time for Tea" stamp is from Taylored Expressions, part of the CreativiTEA set (you can see it HERE).  I stamped it twice in two shades of blue offset a bit for a shadow effect.

I used some foam squares to lift up the cup and saucer.  I can't remember which brand these are but they are not easy to work with.  I should just toss them but I don't like to waste things so, on days when I feel a bit patient, I try them.  Soon they will be gone!

I wanted a simple card but this just looked too plain.  Fortunately, it just needed a quick and inexpensive addition to finish it off.

I pulled out my white pen and added some stitching.  First I did the sides, thinking that I might add a bow on the top but I decided that it would be better to just finish the stitching all the way around the top.

The stitching along the top frames the image nicely.  I use a Uni-ball Signo UM-153 white pen and it is the best I have found.  You can get them from JetPens for $2.25 each or $21.50 for a box of 10 and if you add one or two other items so your total is $25 or more, the shipping is free.  You'll probably want to get the box so you won't run out and the pens also make great little gifts for your crafting friends.  Here is a LINK (I am not affiliated with this company - I just love these pens and this is the best place I have found to buy them!).

It is amazing what a few little lines can do.  In this close view you can also see how closely the Imagine cut around the cup and saucer.  This was just a smaller part of a composite image but when you separate it and enlarge it I think it is a great focal point for a card.

 Kraft cardstock is by nature uneven and tough but I did not like this dark area on the inside of my card (I should have looked inside first before completing the front!).  I borrowed a trick from my friend Joy (Obsessed with Scrapbooking)...

...and added a thin strip (the edge I cut from the paper on the front) to the inside of the card - problem solved!


Now it's back to work in the craft room while I keep an eye out for the predicted snow - an April Fools Day storm could be coming our way.

If you are a Facebook user, you might want to go "like" the Creative Memories Home Office page.  They say that there will be an awesome surprise for US and Canadian customers and consultants to be revealed on Friday - April 1st.  It is supposed to be something that will make everyone HAPPY!   I have no idea what it is but it sounds like it could be really good!

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