Glittery Skull Birthday -- Sparkle at International Art & Soul

Our theme this fortnight at the International Art & Soul Challenge is Add Some Sparkle. A good friend of mine enjoys Day of the Dead-inspired art, so I made this birthday card for her with skulls & glitter!

The digi stamp is "338-Day of the Dead Frida" by Dilly Beans, and the Dia de Muertos patterned paper is from Reminisce. I colored the image with Copics & different glitter embossing powders.

I created the sentiment inside myself in SCAL3 & cut it from gold glittered vinyl on my Silhouette Cameo.

Thank you for visiting! Hope you'll join us at International Art & Soul,

Fiesta Skeletons notch-swing card

What is it about Halloween cards that make them so much darn fun‽ I've been cranking them out all week...maybe this is my way of keeping warm with this cooler weather! Much cheaper than turning on the heat. Mom sent me this adorable Halloween/Day of Dead paper from BoBunny's Fright Delight Collection, so I just had to make her something with it!

I designed this notch swing card in SCAL and cut it with my Silhouette electronic die-cutting machine, which made it easier to cut the frames as well. I'm working on a really good template that I can share with ya'll. All of my Notch Swing Cards are archived here.

Here's the other side of the swing part:

And the inside:

Card Recipe:

Stamps:
• Dancing Skeletons clear stamp from Studio G
• Corner spider web rubber stamp from All Night Media 

Embellishments:
• Cuttlebug spider web embossing folder
• Stampendous detail black embossing powder & Versamark Ink
• Sakura & Elmer's gel pens
• Black Copic marker & black PITT artist pens
• I designed the "Fiesta" banner myself in SCAL

Papers:
• BoBunny's Fright Delight Collection
• Recollections black cardstock
• Neenah white cardstock 
• Vellum from my stash

Tools:
• BigShot die cutting machine (for embossing)
• Silhouette electronic die cutting machine 
• Sure Cuts A Lot design software (SCAL)
• Fiskars papercutter & deckle scissors
• Tim Holtz & Martha Stewart scissors
• Zip-Dry glue & ZIG glue stick 
• Marvy heat tool & corner notch punch

Challenges/Inspiration:
Cards und More #92: Halloween
Crafty Creations #245: Halloween Characters
Cut it Up #30: Halloween or Day of the Dead + Die Cuts
Make My Monday: Halloween

Thank you for visiting,

Naturally Spooky

This week at Pile It On! we're celebrating Halloween & Day of the Dead & all things Cute & Creepy. Our sponsor is Dilly Beans, and she has some of the best digis out there for this theme. I used Witch Hat Skulls Stack (Dilly Beans digi #465):

I printed the skull image on shiny white paper (Recollections) and heat-embossed it with black power. (There's a simple tutorial on how I heat-emboss digi stamps on the bottom of this post.) The corner spider webs were heat-embossed as well, using a rubber stamp from All Night Media. I fussy-cut the skulls and hats separately, and ran the pieces face-down through my sticker machine. I covered the skulls with different glitters from a sample pack in my stash (I wish I had super ultra-fine glitter!). The hats were colored with Copics before adding the adhesive, and then covered with glow-in-the-dark glitter for a late-night surprise!

The little skullie guy is from a pre-colored Dilly Beans set that I've had for a few years. I colored his outfit with Copics.

Card Recipe:

Stamps:
• Dilly Beans digi #465, Witch Hat Skulls Stack
• Dilly Beans digital collage sheet #C02, Girlie Skellies
• Corner spider web rubber stamp from All Night Media
• Sentiment rubber stamp from stash

Embellishments:
• Adhesive Pearl Swirl & tiny pearl, colored black with Copics
• Brads from Recollections
• Prima flowers
• Fine glitter from my stash
• Cuttlebug spider web embossing folder
• Stampendous detail black & white embossing powders
• Clear Shapes adhesive corners from Making Memories 
• Doodlebug Designs button
• Baker's twine by the Twinery
• Copic markers

Papers:
• Shiny black & white papers from Recollections' Metallics collection
• Recollections vellum
• Graphic 45 spider web-patterned DP
• Spider strip from a DP I bought at Michael's (sorry, cut the info strip off!)

Tools:
• BigShot die cutting machine
• Provocraft zig-zag scissors 
• Fiskars papercutter
• Tim Holtz & Martha Stewart scissors
• Zip-Dry glue & Glossy Accents
• 3M foam tape

Inspiration/Challenges:

1. 2 Creative Chicks Challenge #7: Halloween
2. A & T Emerald Faeries: Sparkle
3. Country View Crafts' Challenge: Something Spooky
4. Crafty Creations #244: Sparkle and shine
5. Crafty Sentiments: Halloween
6. Dream Valley Challenge: Halloween
7. Everybody Art Challenge: Ribbon (behind the spiders)
8. Oldie But A Goodie Challenge: Spooky + Stash (I've had the spider web stamp is almost 2 years, and this is my first time inking it up!)
9. Paper Pretties Wednesday Challenge #280: Lots of embellishment
10. Ribbon Carousel Challenge: Halloween (ribbon & baker's twine)
11. Sketch N Stash: Sketch + Pearls & Swirls + Stash (the embossing folder and spider web stamp are new-to-me; the glitter & spider-web paper have been untouched for almost a year!)
12. Sparkle N Sprinkle: Anything Goes with Glitter, Embossing Powder and/or Flocking
13. Stamp and Create: Halloween

Thank you for visiting,

Más vale tarde que nunca

I had so much fun making my framed Sugar Skull and Halloween/Birthday Card that I just had to make some cards using the same mix of paper-piecing and glow-in-the-dark glitter.  
I used orange and yellow flocking for the flowers, and colored the pieces with my Copics, using a lot of shading. 

I used the lovely Framed Sugar Skull & Flowers by Dilly Beans, and made the backing by printing it on shiny blue Recollections cardstock and then heat-embossing it in Glitter (Stampendous Kaleidoscope powder). The eye socket, nose hole, and teeth are actually a shiny white paper.

click to enlarge

As I'm sending this to my husband's Aunt in Mexico, whose birthday was earlier this month(!), I used the "Más vale tarde que nunca" ("Better late than never") & one of the birthday sentiments from the Queremos Pastel set by Dilo en Español Stamps. I think she'll appreciate the humor!

I used Spellbinders dies and another sentiment from the Dilo en Español set for the inside:

Here it is, glowing in the dark:

Our aunt owns & runs Arcos Del Atascadero Bed & Breakfast in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico, and she taught me a lot about Día de Muertos traditions, as she's an expert in Mexican history and I like to ask a lot of questions! I'm really hoping that we can visit them during the All Saints holidays one of these years. Actually, the glowing skull sorta reminds my of this photo I snapped during our last visit to San Miguel de Allende, of the light show on la Parroquia in their main square:

Inspiration/Challenges:
Alota Rubber Stamps: Birthday celebrations
Cupcake Craft: Paper Piecing
MarkerPop Coloring Challenge #9: Paper Piecing + Shading
Natalie and Amy's Challenge: Birthday bling
Poisoned Peas Please Challenge #8: Sugar Skulls and Day of the Dead (This is my 2nd entry; my 1st is here)


You can see all of my Día de Muertos projects here in my archives.

Thank you for visiting,

Birthday Sugar Skull

I had so much fun making my framed Sugar Skull that I just had to make some cards using the same mix of paper-piecing and glow-in-the-dark glitter.

My dear friend form college has a birthday coming up, on Halloween. It's always a fun challenge for me to incorporate that two events into one card, and since he moved to L.A. recently (and loves Mexican culture), I used the  Framed Sugar Skull digi stamp by Dilly Beans to make this acetate-flap card:

For the presents in the eyes, I grabbed a clip art image off the web. The flower & leaves are colored with Copics, but the flower on the skull is covered with yellow flocking & the leaves are covered with green.

The nose & skull are covered in blue glitter. I adhered the glitters & flocking my running the cut pieces through my sticker machine. So easy, and it really sticks!

I used a Spellbinders die to cut the banner from copper foil, and heat-embossed the Dilo en Español sentiment stamp in white.

I couldn't get a good photo of the skull glowing, so please see my other glow-in-the dark card.

There are three layers of paper on the inside on the card, and although I glue the acetate to the paper (with a flap), I machine-sewed it all together with glittery thread.

Inspiration/Challenges:
Celebrate the Occasion Challenge #84: Male Birthday (must be a tall card)
Dilly Beans: Cute & Creepy
One Crazy Stamper: Clear or acetate

Update: This card was chosen as one of the winners for Celebrate the Occasion Challenge #84. Thank you!

Update: I won a free stamp from One Crazy Stamper. Thank you!

Thank you for visiting,

Framed Sugar Skull

I'm not the sort to dress up for Halloween, but I do like the decorations. I especially enjoy the similar tradition of Dia de los Muertos/Day of the Dead, and find myself making something special for it every year (see all of my Dia de los Muertos-themed projects here).

The paper-pieced skull is a freebie from KitKat79-Scraps (I used this image last year for my Lantern / Exploding Box / Day of the Dead Play Set). The frame is a spare I had laying around, and I used double-sided tape to add the black lace from my stash.

With help from my handy sticker machine, I covered a layer with glow-in-the dark glitter:

I pieced the leaves and flowers, after coloring them with Copics. I also used a layer of shiny white & a layer of shiney black (both are Recollections brand, as is the shiny black background, the glitter and the gemstones).

click to enlarge

Inspiration/Challenges:
Crafting for all Season Challenge #38: Spooky
Poisoned Peas Please Challenge #8: Sugar Skulls and Day of the Dead (This is my 1st entry; my 2nd is here)
Smudgy Antics Weekly Challenge: Dia De Los Muertos

And here's a sort of artsy photo of my new decoration:

Thank you for visiting,

Dia de los Muertos Lantern Box

I just had to take the Magical Box (also called an Exploding Box) challenge at City Crafter, and decided to make it extra magical by turning it into a Day of the Dead lantern. I'm also entering this into the Paperminutes Skeleton challenge, the 4 Crafty Chicks Paper Piercing challenge, and the Halloween challenge at Allsorts.

Here's the box, all closed up. It's 3.5 x 4.25 inches. I used K&Co. paper, some pretty ribbon, and orange flower tape. I found the images online: the skull on the left is by KitKat79; the one on the right is by Kate Pullen (About.com). I colored them with gel pens and then pierced them with my awl. I wanted big holes, so I used a piece of corrugated cardboard as the piercing mat.

This box has a surprise, in that it contains a battery-powered tea light:

The tea light is velcoed onto another box inside the main box:

The interior box's lid is decorated with Cockscomb flowers, which are traditional for Dia de los Muertos. I love these flowers (my husband's aunt in Mexico has some); they're wrinkly and fuzzy and bright. To mimic the fuzziness, I added flocking to each.

Then you remove the lid on the smaller box to reveal a Dia de los Muertos play set:

The items aren't glued down, so you can set it up however you like.

I put easel backs on the skeletons so that stand up:

I bought the little clay dish while visiting said aunt in Mexico this summer, and added decoration on it with gel pens. The tiny Mexican lime, cup, and vase are polymer clay. I decorated them with gel pens and Copics. The flowers are supposed to be marigolds. These type of dishes are common in Mexico, but I was also inspired by this photo of a Dia de los Muertos altar.

Inspiration:

City Crafter Challenge Blog Week #80: Magical Box

Paperminutes Challenge #189: Skeleton

Allsorts #126: Halloween

4 Crafty Chicks Challenge #61: Paper Piercing

Update: This placed in the Top 3 for 4 Crafty Chicks Challenge #61: Paper Piercing. Wow, thank you!

Shakin' it up for Dia de los Muertos

I so fun much making a shaker card with these cute stamps, that I had to try it again with this lovely sketch from Addicted to Stamps.

I'm also entering this into the Halloween challenge at Drunken Stampers.

Inspiration:
Addicted to Stamps Challenge #14: Sketch

Drunken Stampers Challenge #76: Halloween

Stamps: Studio g, Queremos Pastel set from Dilo En Español

Paper: Recollections, Core'dinations

Tools: Fiskars papercutter & deckle scissors, stamp block, MS detailing scissors, Marvy heat tool, awl, Cricut, SCAL, Sizzix Texture Boutique & embossing plate

Other: ZipDry glue, Recollections adhesive rhinestones & micro beads, Versamark inks, Copics, Sakura & Elmer's gel pens, Studio g ribbon, Shake It set from Impression Obsession, Stampendous, Recollections & Speedy the Cat (from Mark's Finest Papers) embossing powders, flowers from Sandra

A Very Wealthy Woman

Even though I have a pile of Halloween Boot pull-out cards that need to be finished up and sent out to various loved ones, I just had to take a break to try my hand at this week's Character Cafe Challenge: Orange, 3 Squares & 3 Flowers. There was just something about it that tickled my challenge bone.

I didn't feel like making another Halloween card, so I chose the Mexican version: Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Actually, for half our family that's much more appropriate anyway. Having finally found some printable transparency film, I was able to make a magic picture card pretty quickly. The image I chose is of Catrina ("wealthy" woman") by José Guadalupe Posada, because I've always enjoyed the pun (and the idea that we're all equal in death). Halloween in American culture is all about being something else, and the Dia de los Muertos tradition seems to be almost the opposite.

For the card design itself I used the Character Cafe Challenge, and I love how it informs on the marigolds that are traditional for this holiday.

The image above is the card with the pull down. I printed the back image in black on Recollections silver paper.

Here's a CU of the "magic" part. It's black on white, hand-colored with Sharpies. The quote is traditional: He who lives with hope dies happy. Hmm, makes me want to dig into a nice sugar skull...

Speaking of candy, Designs by Denise is running a blogcandy drawing through December 1. I know I'm putting my number in the feathered hat!