Wonderful Heart Gift Box

I made this gift box for a special, wonderful woman with a very kind heart.
I think the design says it all.
I gave her this box with a tag and with a turquoise beads bracelet, hand made by me, as a gift to her.

Supplies used for the box:

Cream leather textured CS for the Box

Red leather textured CS

Basic Grey patterned paper - boxer
Ranger's Distress ink - Fired Brick
Wonderful stamp -DoCrafts
VersaFine ink - Onyx Black
Michael Strong's Cloisonné Heart Stamp (large)

Embossing ink

Gold EP

Clear blings

Scor-Pal

1" circle punch

Double sided foam tape

First I created the box out of cream CS, following Michael Strong's tutorial

My addition is a tip for an easy opening of the box.

After scoring and folding the CS, but before cutting and adhering its corners, I used a 1" circle punch to cut a HALF CIRCLE opening at the front side, where the box opens up (I simply inserted the circle punch half way and punched).

It creates a perfect notch to slide your finger in to open the box without wrinkling it.

I distressed the patterned paper using Ranger's Distress ink - fired brick.

I stamped Michael Strong's Cloisonné Heart using Embossing ink.

I heat embossed it using gold EP, and cut it with scissors.

Then I stamped the Wonderful stamp using VersaFine ink - Onyx Black.
I adhered both stamped images using double sided foam tape for extra dimension.
I added clear blings for a glamorous look.

(You can enlarge each photo by clicking on it)

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

Beach Party Card

I made this card for the Michael Strong Yahoo group July Challenge.
It's a pocket card with a tag. I left some space on the tag to write a greeting.
The fish look like they're actually swimming in the water!
It's a fun card and if you're inspired to make one yourself, here's the tutorial


Supplies used:
Turquoise canvas textured CS
Cream canvas textured CS
Michael Strong Mini Cloisonné Creatures - Fish, Seastar, Shell
VersaFine ink pad - Onyx Black
Ziplock bag
Hair gel
Orange organza ribbon
Scor-Pal
EK Success Corner Adorner
EK Success 1.75 inch Circle punch

You can see how it looks like when the tag is out.
The Seastar and the Shell were glued 3D for extra dimension.

(You can enlarge each photo by clicking on it)
Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

The Secret Of Life Gothic Arch

As this is the 4th day this week as Card Captain of the enjoyMichaelStrongstamps Yahoo Group and it's Technique Thursday, I decided not to show you a card but something rather different.
I hope you'll find it inspiring.
I made this Gothic Arch using quite a few techniques and incorporating several products, including recycled items.
It's a multi-stage project, so there are many details and photos.

Ingredients:
Cardboard
Patterned paper - Far East by DCWV
Original Chinese newspaper (recycled)
Mod Podge
Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist - turquoise
Blue pigment ink
Plain turquoise paper
Black marker
Michael Strong's Cloisonné Butterfly stamp (large)
StazOn ink - Black Jet
Transparency sheet
Canvas textured black CS
Embossing ink
Mixed colors EP
Tim Holtz clear stamps: Flights of Fancy (bird, butterflies), Urban Grunge (crown), Life's Possibilities (word stamp)
Double sided tape
Crop-A-Dile
Satin ribbons – turquoise and black

The outer side
First, I cut the Gothic Arch out of cardboard. You can find the template here.
I cut 2 Gothic Arches, one was left as it is (that's unit 1) and the other one was cut vertically into 2 wins (that's unit 2).
I adhered the DCWV Far East CS on the front side of unit 2 and on the back side of unit 1, and cut off the CS so it was exactly the cardboard's size.
I used Mod Podge for adhering it.
I distressed all the edges of these parts with blue pigment ink.

The inner side
For the inside's background I used a recycled original Chinese newspaper to create a collage of pieces, words and photos all mixed together.
After I covered all the inner parts with the newspaper, using Mod Podge underneath and also on top of the paper pieces, I sprayed it randomly with turquoise Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist and let it drip a bit for a messy look.
I wrote the text The Secret of Life Is… Trying to Find Inner Peace on plain turquoise paper, cut it with scissors into pieces and glued each word separately, inside and outside.

I stamped Michael Strong's Cloisonné Butterfly stamp on black textured CS (for contrast), then heat embossed it with mixed EP.
I stamped Michael Strong's Cloisonné Butterfly stamp again, this time with black StazOn ink on a transparency sheet.
I cut both butterflies carefully using TH scissors (yes, the antennas too).
I glued the embossed butterfly on the back side.
I glued the transparent butterfly inside, using double sided tape to adhere only the butterfly's body. You can see me holding its wings, as they aren't attached to anything.

I stamped TH stamps with black StazOn ink wherever they seemed to fit, trying not to overload my project with images.

I punched holes on both sides using the Crop-A-Dile.
I tied turquoise and black satin ribbons to attach all the units together.

You can see the Gothic Arch vertically, too, back and front.
You can (and I think you should) enlarge each photo by clicking on it.

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

Oriental Fan Card

I'm Card Captain of the enjoyMichaelStrongstamps Yahoo Group for this week, so for 5 days I'll be showing you several works using Michael Strong's stamps.
I hope you'll find them inspiring.
Today's card #2 is an Oriental Fan card, made for overseas friends.
Trying to be efficient, I made 2 similar cards with the same composition but in different colors.

Ingredients:
Black canvas textured CS for the card's basis
Pink and turquoise CS, in 2 color shades
Dovercraft Eastern Promise patterned paper
Michael Strong's Cloisonné Fan Stamp
Hematite EP
ProMarkers
Brown pen
Chocolate Brown ink
Martha Stewart Large Punch around the Page - Double Arches set (I used only the border punch here)
White and light blue half pearls

The Fan
I stamped Michael Strong's Cloisonné Fan twice on white CS, heat embossed it with hematite EP and cut it out using TH scissors.
Then I colored each fan with ProMarkers. I used Coral and Cocoa for one fan, and Pastel Blue and Pastel Green for the other one.
The fans were glued on dark pink and dark turquoise pieces of CS, which were cut a bit larger than the fans.

I punched both pink and turquoise CS using Martha Stewart Large Punch around the Page - Double Arches set (I used only the border punch here).
I layered one punched border under the patterned paper (at its upper side) and one punched border on top of the patterned paper (at its lower side).
I used Chocolate Brown ink to distress all possible edges, and the punched borders, too.
I added the fans and a few half pearls.
the sentiment Happy Birthday was written with a brown pen in a special font called Dorly's hand writing :-)

(You can enlarge each photo by clicking on it)
Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

Christmas Card #12 - Turquoise Tree And Reindeer

This card has a cream CS as its basis
Ingredients:
Heavy dark turquoise bubbles textured CS
Shiny gold paper, punched using EK Success Fleur De Lis edger punch
Light blue CS
Basic Grey patterned paper - Jovial
Michael Strong's Cloisonné Christmas Tree stamp (large), stamped on turquoise CS and heat embossed with black EP, cut with nail scissors and glued 3D for extra dimension
White and red half pearls, to add some Christmas glam
I hope you had a Merry Christmas. Happy New Year!

(You can enlarge each photo by clicking on it)

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

Card of the day #2 - Flying Cranes And White Ribbon

I'm Card Captain at Michael Strong's Yahoo group this week.
I'll upload a new card every day, and my second card for this week is an optimistic card for the new year.

This card is suitable for a woman or for a man, because of its elegant and calm color combo.
It can be used for many occasions: for a new baby, for leaving the nest or for a fresh start in life.
The flying cranes are heading to the future. They are a symbol of an ambition to fly high.

Ingredients:
White CS for the card's basis

Dark aqua leather textured CS
Shiny silver paper
Basic Grey patterned paper - Boxer, its edges slightly distressed with Ranger's distress ink (Broken China)
White CS and shiny silver paper, cuttlebugged with SN, the white CS was also distressed with Ranger's distress ink (Broken China)
Michael Strong's Cloisonné Cranes Stamp Set (small and large) - both cranes were stamped, heat embossed with Zing's teal EP and glued 3D for extra dimension
Turquoise blings in various sizes

Narrow white satin ribbon.

For the interlacing ribbon piece I used a dark aqua leather textured CS, same as the background CS.
Both its edges were punched with EK Success Binding Edge Edger Punch.

Then I used a narrow white satin ribbon, interlacing it from one side to the other all the way down, and simply tying it at the lower end.

Take a closer look at the side view of the card, to see how attaching these 2 motifs - the cranes and the interlacing ribbon piece - with 3D foam tape creates nice shadows on the card's background.
Take a closer look at the cranes - can you imagine them flying?
(You can enlarge each photo by clicking on it)

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

christmas Card #5 - Christmas Flowers

This card has a cream CS as its basis
Ingredients:
Heavy dark turquoise bubbles textured CS
Shiny gold paper, which was punched using Martha Stewart's Garden Trellis deep edger punch
Basic Grey patterned paper - Jovial
3 Velvet Poinsettia flowers (light red, white and true red), attached with a turquoise crystal brass brad and glued 3D for extra dimension
Turquoise blings in various sizes, to add some Christmas glam
I hope you'll find it inspiring. Merry Christmas!

Challenges
F for Foliage for Alphabet Challenge Blog (10.12.10) .

DDCC #92-Dec 2-Christmas Card/Tag or Ornament for Dutch Dare Card Challenges (8.12.10) .

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

Thank You Card

I made this card for the Michael Strong's Yahoo group November challenge - a Thank You card.

This card is suitable for a woman or for a man, because of its elegant and calm color combo.
Ingredients:
Turquoise leather textured CS, its edges distressed for a Shabby Chic look
Shiny gold paper
Dark turquoise bubbles textured CS, cut into 2 separate pieces
Basic Grey patterned paper, Pyrus line, its edges distressed for a Shabby Chic look
Michael Strong's Cloisonné Cranes Stamp Set (small and large) - both cranes were stamped, heat embossed with turquoise EP and glued 3D for extra dimension
Turquoise blings in various sizes
Inside the card there's a turquoise CS, punched with Martha Stewart's Layered Arches edger punch, and the sentiment Thank You was written with a white gel pen in a special font called Dorly's hand writing :-)

Challenges

Turquoise is December's Birthstone for Daring Cardmakers (10.12.10) .

and there's a fabulous prize at Daring Cardmakers sponsored by Flourish with a Bling! - who wouldn't love to win it?

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

Oriental Butterfly Card

Ingredients:
canvas textured black CS
original Japanese newspaper
turquoise CS
Michael Strong's Cloisonné butterfly stamp
mixed EP, heat embossed
clear blings
Martha Stewart's border punch
Congratulations stamp by Hero Arts
white CS
silver EP
Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

She Sells Sea Shells By The Sea Shore

I made this card for the Michael Strong's Yahoo group September challenge - Traditional Cloisonné Card.
I used gold canvas textured CS for the background, distressed all around its edges.
On top of it there's a cream CS, embossed with tiny bubbles through the Cuttlebug and colored with Ranger's distress ink (Broken China).
The turquoise CS was punched with Martha Stewart's border punch.
The main motif is Michael Strong's Cloisonné Shell, stamped and heat embossed with gold EP.
I colored the shell with Ranger's distress inks (Broken China, Vintage Photo and Scattered Straw), using ear cleaning sticks for coloring.
The shell was glued 3D for extra dimension.
I added a few turquoise blings in varios sizes, all reminding me of the sea.
Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

My Turquoise Octopus Earrings

These are handmade earrings, designed for a very special lady.
There are about 300 Swarovski beads in it, and more other beads. I think you simply can't ignore them - they make your look.

I named them Octopus because they remind me of the ocean, with their color and movement.
These earrings are not for pierced ears (they have clips). They are hanging and moving with every movement of your head, so they sparkle all the time.
I can't take my eyes off them. How about you?

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

Feng Shui Fountains & Bowls

These are hand-made bowls, used for Feng Shui fountains or as water containers for the birds visiting the garden.
Each one of them was created separately, without a pattern, just using my hands (with gloves!) and by forming a new shape in a stone-like mixture.
They are decorated with natural seashells (look at the closeup photo), glass nuggets and natural stones in various sizes.
You can put them indoors or outdoors. The rain won't harm them, and not even one drop of water would spill out of them.
The stone mushroom was also made from the same materials. It's been in my garden for years.

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly

Dragonfly Card In Turquoise And Gold

I made this card for a very special lady who likes turquoise and gold. The card will be sent with a gift for her.
Ingredients:
Turquoise CS, graphic turquoise and gold CS (cut from an invitation), mat gold paper.
The Dragonfly is a Sugarloaf stamp, heat embossed with gold EP.
The Flower is Michael's Strong's small Cloisonné Flower stamp, heat embossed with gold EP and glued 3D.
And blings, of course.

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed. Have a creative day! Dorly