Dancing Through Life Birthday Card

 

Hi everyone,

This was my Splitcoaststampers Fan Club Design Team Card for the March theme of Dancing Through Life.  I used the suggested inspiration of the song from Wicked - Dancing Through Life - by using pink and green on my card.  I also chose the main image because it reminds me of my niece who was a ballet dancer for over 15 years.  My niece has such grace and elegance about her and this image was just so perfect to make a card for her birthday.  She truly does dance through life.

Now that it is 6+ months since the challenge went live, I can share it online.

This particular type of card is called a Split Front Card which I saw alot online last year.   I thought it was really fun and something different to the norm.  It is actually really easy and I encourage you to give it a whirl.  You divide your card front into 3 even pieces.  My card is 6 inches long so the top and bottom panels are 2 inches and the centre image connects those panels.  Normally my cards are not 6 inches long but for ease of dividing my card front into 3, it was easier for me to do it that way.

I stamped the image using Versafine Onyx Black Ink onto Ranger Watercolour Cardstock, then re-stamped the dress and hat onto Kaisercraft High Tea Designer Paper and fussy-cut them out using my awesome Uniquely Creative Fussy Cutting Scissors.  I went around the edges of them using an Anko Pigment Black Brush Pen to hide any imperfections in my cutting then glued them down using Tombow Mono Multi Glue.  I used a Lyra Sky Blue Watercolour Pencil to add some blue sky around the image and a Zig Clean Color Real Brush Marker No. 421 Light Moss Green on the ground.  I used Albrecht-Dürer Watercolour Pencils - Light Flesh and Medium Flesh for the arms and legs.  I used a Zig No. 905 Cool Gray 3 to add a bit of shadow on the dress and on the LHS of the image.

I diecut the image using a Lifestyle Nesting Circle Die and my Big Shot, then layered that onto Kaisercraft High Tea - Cuppa - Designer Paper which is a lovely soft powder blue colour.  The Burgundy Scalloped Circle was diecut using a Lifestyle Nesting Scalloped Circles Die.

The rose designer paper on the top and bottom panels are from the Kaisercraft High Tea 6-1/2" x 6-1/2" Pad.  Isn't it pretty?!  The ribbon was attached in two separate elements and I glued the bow down using Helmar's Fabric Glue.  The sentiment is also from that same paper pad and was popped up on 1mm Dimensionals.  I punched some tiny pink hearts from a sheet of the Pink Designer Paper using my EK Success Arrows Border Punch - they are the leftover punchies that look like tiny hearts.  I glued them on using Art Glitter Glue fitted with a fine nozzle.  I love this glue for adding just a tiny dot of glue.

Lastly, I added 3 x Kaisercraft Antique Rose Rhinestones around the sentiment then added Uniquely Creative Clear Sparkle Brush to the tiny hearts and the dress.  The dress looks so pretty and shimmery in real life.

Finished size is 4-1/8" x 6" or 105mm x 153mm.

Thanks for visiting my blog today.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Dancing Lady

Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black

Designer Paper:  Kaisercraft High Tea 6-1/2" x 6-1/2" Pad + Kaisercraft High Tea - Cuppa 12" x 12" Sheet (from 2017 - retired)

Accessories:  Kaisercraft Trimmer, Uniquely Creative Fussy Cutting Scissors, Stamping Platform, Kaisercraft Antique Rose Rhinestones SB403, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Art Glitter Glue, Helmar's Fabric Glue, 1mm Dimensionals, Zig Clean Clean Color Real Brush Markers #905 Cool Gray 3 + #421 Light Moss, Lyra Sky Blue Watercolour Pencil, Albrecht-Dürer Light Flesh + Medium Flesh Watercolour Pencils, #2 + #4 Round Paintbrushes, Anko Black Brush Pigment Pen, Pink Ribbon, Uniquely Creative Clear Sparkle Brush, Cardstock - White + Burgundy (from stash) + Ranger Watercolor

Punches:  EK Success Arrows Border (retired)

Dies:  Lifestyle Nesting Circles + Nesting Scalloped Circles (retired)

Stamp-It Australia Windward Nautical Masculine Card

 

Hi everyone,

I am still making my Nautical Cards in-between other projects that I am working on.  I just love making nautical themed cards for men and really enjoy the process so much - and here is what I made:

Challenges

This is also my card for the following challenges - click on the underlined link to take you to the challenge:

• Splitcoaststampers - USEIT2026 - Use something old or neglected from your stash

• Crafty Catz - #719 - Anything Goes

• A Perfect Time to Craft - #9 September - Anything Goes

• Little Red Wagon - #875 - Use a Stamp

The main image is a very old Stamp-It Australia stamp called Windward which dates back to 1998.  I really miss Stamp-It Australia as they had such a large and diverse range of stamps.  They are still in business but no longer make stamps for cardmaking.

I stamped the ship using Versafine Vintage Sepia Ink onto Ranger Watercolour Cardstock.  The ship was coloured using a variety of mediums - Derwent Inktense Pencils, Lyra Watercolour Pencils and Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers.  

I extended the sea further down because it looked weird when I diecut it to have a blank area.  I added whitecaps to the ocean using a White Gel Pen and smeared it a little with my finger to help it blend in.

I went over some of the brown lines using a Brown Copic Multiliner - mostly on the body of the ship and the mast to darken up the wood and give it a little more definition.

I layered the main image onto American Crafts Kraft Cardstock then Kaisercraft Shadow Cardstock, then ink blended around the panel using Hero Arts Soft Sand Shadow Ink - as are all the layers on my card.

The designer papers are by Kaisercraft Sandy Toes which was first released in 2014 so are old.

The Navy Blue Grosgrain Ribbon I saved from an old gift bag that was being thrown out.  It was added in 2 separate elements because it is easier for me that way so that it sits nicely on the card.  I added some Fray Stop to the cut ends to stop them from fraying.

The sentiment is from the back of the Sandy Toes Paper Pad and was popped up on scraps of white cardstock.

The red hearts were diecut from Red Cardstock using an Impression Obsession Heart of Hearts Die which I've had for many years.  I love it because it diecuts lots of different hearts:

I added some Uniquely Creative Clear Sparkle Brush to the hearts plus the red flags on the ship as well as the whitecaps on the ocean.

Once I had finished my card front, I glued it to a Kaisercraft White Card Base using Tombow Mono Multi Glue.

Finished size is 5-1/2" x 5-1/2" or 140mm x 140mm.

I think you could use this card for a Birthday or a Wedding Anniversary or Father's Day.

Thanks for visiting my blog today.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Stamp-It Australia Windward 1073G Self-Cling Rubber Stamp (1998 & retired)

Ink:  Versafine Vintage Sepia, Hero Arts Soft Sand Shadow

Designer Paper:  Kaisercraft Sandy Toes PP957 6-1/2" x 6-1/2" Pad (2014)

Accessories:  Big Shot, Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers, Derwent Inktense + Lyra Watercolour Pencils, #2 & #4 Round Paintbrushes, Copic Brown .005 Multiliner, Uniquely Creative Clear Sparkle Brush, White Gel Pen, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Navy Blue Grosgrain Ribbon, Fray Stop, Ink Blending Tool with Domed Pad, Cardstock - Kaisercraft Shadow + American Crafts Kraft + Scraps of White & Red, Ranger Watercolour Cardstock, Kaisercraft White Card Base

Dies:  Impression Obsession Heart of Hearts DIE052-I (retired), Lifestyle Nesting Circles (retired)

Olive Green Masculine Thank You Card

Hi everyone,

Today I am sharing another Masculine Thank You Card.  This was my Splitcoaststampers Fan Club Design Team card for the February theme of Good People - and one of the suggestions was to make a Thank You Card for people who help.

Now that it is 6+ months since the challenge went live, I can share my card online.

I stamped the leaf image & sentiment with Olive Green Ink onto white cardstock.  I used my Stamping Platform for perfect placement.

The strip of designer paper along the bottom of the main panel is 3/4" x 3-1/2" and both that dp and the dp on the card base are scraps from my stash. The Olive Green Cardstock and was trimmed to 1/16".

I added some Grey Twine in two separate elements as I couldn't seem to tie a neat bow and have it sit at the right angle.  I glued the bow on using Helmar's 450 Quick Dry Adhesive.

The main panel has been popped up a little on scraps of white cardstock.

Lastly, I added an Echo Park Green Enamel Dot but added a dot of Art Glitter Glue underneath as I tend to find glue dots slip over time.  This enamel dot is from The Magic of Christmas Collection from 2022.

Finished size is 4-1/8" x 4-1/8" or 104mm x 104mm.

Thanks for stopping by!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Leaf and Thank You Sentiment

Ink:  Olive Green

Designer Paper:  Scraps of Olive Green

Accessories:  Grey Twine , Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Helmar's 450 Quick Dry Adhesive, Art Glitter Glue, Echo Park Enamel Dot - The Magic of Christmas (2022), Stamping Platform, Cardstock - White + Olive Green

Kaisercraft Dandelions Thankful Card

 

Hi friends,

Today I am sharing my Splitcoaststampers Fan Club Design Team Card for the February theme of Good People - and one of the suggested interpretations was cards inspired by someone you admire.  I am inspired by my sister-in-law who is the kindest person I know.  She is very humble and caring and I am so thankful for her in my life.  

Now that it is 6+ months since the challenge went live, I can share my card online.

The main image was trimmed from one of the 12" x 12" papers.  I layered the image onto a dark blue sheet of designer paper and added a 1/16" border using my WRMK Perfect Layers Guides.  I added some Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush to the fluffy parts of the dandelions - technically called pappus - which looks so pretty in real life.  All the designer papers, other than the main image, are from the smaller paper pad.

I added Silver Brads to the layers underneath the main image, then popped up those layers using scraps of white cardstock.

I kept the card unfussy otherwise just to let the main image take centre stage.

Finished size is:  5-5/8" x 4-1/8" or 143mm x 105mm.

Thanks for visiting my blog today.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps and Ink:  None

Designer Papers:  Kaisercraft Dandelions 12" x 12" + 6-1/2" x 6-1/2" Paper Pad

Accessories:  Tombow Mono Multi, Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush, Silver Brads, We R Memory Keepers Perfect Layers Guides, Scraps of White Cardstock, Uniquely Creative White Card Base

A Gender-Neutral Thank You Card

 

Hi everyone,

Today I am sharing another Thank You Card.  This was my Splitcoaststampers Fan Club Design Team card for the February Theme of Good People .  One of the suggested interpretations for the theme was to make a Thank You Card for people who help.  I made this card to be more gender-neutral:

Now that it has been more than 6 months since the challenge went live, I can share it online.    

I stamped the leaf image in Versamagic Tea Leaves Chalk Ink onto white cardstock.   I used my Stamping Platform for perfect placement for the leaf and the sentiment because my ink pad was a little dry so I needed to repeat stamp until I was happy with how it looked.

The scrap strip of designer paper along the bottom of the main panel is 3/4" x 3-1/2". The designer paper on the card base is by Kaisercraft - Open Road.  The cardstock is from my stash and is a Bamboo colour and was trimmed to 1/16" on the main panel as well as the card base.

The twine is by May Arts - Parrot Green and was added in two separate elements as I couldn't seem to tie a neat bow and have it sit at the right angle.  I glued the bow on using Helmar's 450 Quick Dry Adhesive.

The main panel has been popped up a little on scraps of white cardstock.

Lastly, I added a Kaisercraft Green Rhinestone to the RHS of the sentiment but added a dot of Art Glitter Glue underneath as I tend to find glue dots slip over time.  

Finished size is 4-1/8" x 4-1/8" or 104mm x 104mm.

Thanks for stopping by!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Leaf + Thank You Sentiment

Ink:  Versamagic Tea Leaves Chalk

Designer Paper:  Scrap of Green (stash), Kaisercraft Open Road 6-1/2" x 6-1/2" pad PP1034 

Accessories:  May Arts Parrot Green Twine SM-66, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Helmar's 450 Quick Dry Adhesive, Art Glitter Glue, Kaisercraft Green Rhinestone, Stamping Platform, Cardstock - White + Bamboo

Kaisercraft Tranquil Lane Thank You Card

Hi everyone,

Today I am sharing another Thank You Card.  This was my Splitcoaststampers Fan Club Design Team Card for the February theme of Good People and one of the interpretations was to make a Thank You Card for people who help.  Now that it is over 6 months since the challenge went live, I can share my card anywhere online.

The leaf image is by Kaisercraft - Tranquil Lane from their Collectables and was glued on using Tombow Mono Multi Glue.  The sentiment was stamped using Navy Blue Ink.  I used my Stamping Platform for perfect placement.

The strip of designer paper along the bottom of the main panel is 3/4" x 3-1/2" and is also from the Tranquil Lane Designer Papers, as is the paper on the card base.  I fussy-cut the butterfly from one of the papers using my Uniquely Creative Fussy-Cutting Scissors and glued down just the centre so I could pop the wings up a little.  The cardstock is by Kaisercraft - Navy - and was trimmed to 1/16" on the main panel as well as the card base.

The white twine is from my stash and was added in two separate elements as I couldn't seem to tie a neat bow and have it sit at the right angle.  I glued the bow on using Helmar's 450 Quick Dry Adhesive.

The main panel has been popped up a little on scraps of white cardstock.

Lastly, I popped on a Uniquely Creative Navy Rhinestone but added a dot of Art Glitter Glue underneath as I tend to find glue dots slip over time.  

Finished size is 4-1/8"" x 4-1/8" or 104mm x 104mm.

Thanks for stopping by!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Thank You Sentiment

Ink:  Navy Blue

Designer Paper:  Kaisercraft Tranquil Lane 6-1/2" x 6-1/2" Pad + matching Collectables

Accessories:  White Twine, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Helmar's 450 Quick Dry Adhesive, Art Glitter Glue, Uniquely Creative Fussy-Cutting Scissors, Uniquely Creative Navy Rhinestone UCE1753, Stamping Platform, Cardstock - White + Kaisercraft Navy

Craft Creations Goldfinch in Cherry Diecut Decoupage Birthday Stepper Card

 

Hi everyone,

My cousin is turning 70 next month so I thought I would make her an extra-special card for her birthday:

Challenges

I am popping my card into the following challenges (click on the underlined link to take you to the challenge):

• Splitcoaststampers - Use it 2026 - Using old supplies to make a card

• The Creative Crafters - Challenge #103 - Anything Goes

• Splitcoaststampers - Free for All Friday F4A862 - Hobbies.  Mine is birds.  I have been very passionate about birds since I was a little girl & my drawing books were filled with birds.  We have many birds that visit our Australian garden and I spend alot of time with them.  Some even hop on my knee or let me sit beside them and we hang out together.  I am known as:   "The Bird Whisperer".

The main image plus the sentiment is by Craft Creations - Goldfinch in Cherry - and is diecut decoupage.  I ADORE using diecut decoupage images for my cards.  It is one of my most-favourite styles of card to make and I have made many over the years.  There is something magical about bringing a flat image to life and I just enjoy the process so much.

I popped the images out of the sheet and cleaned up the edges because you always get this white bit which really stands out if you don't trim it off.

I put the layers together using both 0.5 and 1 mm Doublesided Adhesive Foam Squares but I added a dot of Tombow Mono Multi Glue to give me a little bit of wiggle room to make sure I have the elements exactly where I want them.  This is something I learned to do a little while ago because if you just use the foam squares alone without the glue and stick it in the wrong spot, it can be problematic trying to get it up again without tearing it or leaving some of the foam square behind which can ruin the entire thing.

All the designer papers are by Graphic 45 - Botanical Tea - 8" x 8" pad which was first released in 2014.  Graphic 45 re-released a Keepsake Edition of Botanical Tea in August 2025 so if you are after these papers, you can still get them (yay!) but the Keepsake Edition has 12" x 12" papers not the 8" x 8".  I absolutely adore this collection - the colours make me very happy.  It really was just pure coincidence that they matched the main image so perfectly.

Once I had finished putting the picture together, I layered it onto pink then blue designer paper with 1/16" and 1/8" borders respectively.  These were trimmed using my We R Memory Keepers Perfect Layers Guides.

The Stepper Card was diecut from White Cardstock using my Big Shot with an Extended Platform and an old die from 2013 by Cheery Lynn Designs - Step Card #1.  I picked this die up at a Craft Show many years ago here in Australia when it was half price.  It was unique at the time but since then, a number of companies have released Stepper Card Dies - and of course, you can always just trim one out yourself without having a die.  Personally, I suck at measuring so a die just saves me the frustration and hassle of trying to do it myself.  This Cheery Lynn Die also comes with other dies to do the borders plus the card inside so it really is quick and easy to put the card together.

Here is a photo at an angle so you can see the layers on the main image:

Here is a photo of the card inside:

Sorry, it's not a great photo.  It is so hard to take a photo of white with the designer paper because if I brighten the white, the designer paper looks all washed out and nothing like what it really looks like in real life.  

The Green Cardstock was diecut using one of the dies from the Stepper Card Die Set and I just trimmed up the designer paper to fit.

The white sentiment panel was diecut using a Spellbinders Labels 1 Small Nestabilities Die.  The sentiment is from the diecut decoupage set and was popped up on 1mm Doublesided Adhesive Foam Squares.  I wrote on the inside:  "A little bird told me you were having a special birthday" which I thought was fitting given that I had a bird on the front 😊

Finished size is 5-5/16" x 5-7/8" or 119mm x 105mm.

I decided not to put 70 on the card so it didn't shout at my cousin, HEY - YOU'RE 70.  Not everyone necessarily wants a number on their card (I certainly don't!) - well, unless your a kid of course, then it is mandatory to show your age!  

This card will be winging its way over to Western Australia - so the other side of the country to where I live.  I am allowing at least two weeks for it to get there as it goes by truck - a journey of just around 3500 kilometres/2170 miles - and whilst they say 4-7 days, you never can be 100% sure - and I want to make sure my cousin definitely gets my card in time for her birthday and not a week too late!

Thanks for visiting my blog today.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps and Ink:  None

Designer Paper:  Graphic 45 Botanical Tea 8" x 8" Pad

Accessories:  Big Shot with Extended Platform, Craft Creations DCD558 Goldfinch in Cherry Diecut Decoupage, 0.5 & 1mm Doublesided Adhesive Foam Squares, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, WRMK Perfect Layers Guides, Cardstock - White & Green

Dies:  Cheery Lynn Designs Step Card #1 B348 (retired), Spellbinder Labels 1 Small Nestabilities S4-308 (retired)