Mail It Monday #3
hey friends! welcome back to another edition of make it monday - the posts where i share the cards i’ve made + mailed the previous week.
last week i had plans + goals for several cards but only ended up sending one, which is still better than none! one of my friends from work was celebrating their 30th birthday and so I wanted a card that was big + bold for the occasion.
my inspiration came from this card that the amazingly talented laura bassen made - [side note - if you love all the colors and appreciate handmade cards, go follow her right now. go ahead, i’ll wait. her use of color + simplicity is absolutely stunning. i’m not exaggerating when i say my jaw hits the floor at least once a week because of her talent.] so i remembered seeing this card and loved the way she used this stencil. i used that as my starting point.
starting with some plain, heavyweight white cardstock, i taped my stencil in place and liberally applied some decofoil transfer gel. i discovered this product a few months ago and have loved using it. there are so many colorful options for foil, but on this card i decided to use their super shiny, metallic gold. the most difficult part for me is waiting for it to dry. it’s usually dry to the touch in about an hour, but to be safe i usually wait about 4-5. as it dries, it transitions from a super wet shine to a smooth glossy clear. i used a palette knife to spread it across the cardstock and in some of the open areas it wasn’t completely smooth. i was okay with this effect because i liked the texture it provided.
not pictured - the before photo of the wet and/or dry gel.
while i was waiting for it to dry, i worked on some other elements of the card. i cut down some purple papertrey ink cardstock and used one of my favorite stamp sets to stamp the sentiment. this is going to be an amazing year for this friend, i’m confident in it! i stamped the sentiment crisp black ink and then cut the side of the sentiment strip on an angle, to mimic the angles in the stencil.
then it was time for the magic - and it truly is magic. i heated up my heidi swapp minc machine - another tool that i have come to love - and cut some gold deco foil to slightly larger than my cardstock panel. tucked inside an insert created from a folded piece of typing paper, i layered the foil on top of the shiny dried transfer gel. i ran everthing through the minc using the included plastic sleeve and when it had cooled down, i pulled back the foil to reveal the final piece. everywhere the gel was applied, the foil was now stuck.
it is amazing. and magic. i trimmed the piece down and layered it on some solid black cardstock. i didn’t want to take away from the bold gold design, so i kept the rest of the card pretty simple. i added the sentiment strip from the right side near the bottom and added a smattering of purple + clear iridescent sequins. i added foam tape to the back of the black panel and layered it on top of a white card base. a coordinating purple envelope was the final touch before making it into the mail.
the photographs don’t really do the card justice, but i love the way it turned out! it was slightly difficult to get a good photo because of the reflectiveness of the foil - so i tried from several angles. i hope my friend enjoys this card and knows how much she means to me. she is an amazing human who always puts a smile on the face of everyone she comes into contact with - love her!
looking forward to the week ahead, i’ve already got a few card ideas on my to-make list. i am so inspired by feeling of bringing happiness to someone’s day - just because - instead of a designated, sometimes expected reason!
but just in case you need a reason - here are a few for the upcoming days:
november 7 is national nachos day - maybe invite a friend for mexican food?
november 8 is national cappuccino day - this card would be great for sharing with a friend!
november 10 is national vanilla cupcake day - what a great day to celebrate!
i hope your monday is off to a great start! as always, don’t forget to contact me if you’re interested in being on the receiving end of some handmade happiness.