Dad's Birthday

September is always a busy month for me... I've got my oldest son's birthay, my brother's birthday, my dad's birthday, and my own anniversary. I guess with all these masculine birthdays, I ought to make Michael a really frilly anniversary card, huh? Yeah, he'd really appreciate that. Not. :) In any case, here is what I made for my dad:

I must begin by telling you that my dad's favorite color is... well, ORANGE! So I made him a very orange card! Pumpkin, actually, but orange none-the-less. I love to send cards that are completely OBVIOUS that they were handmade with that particular person's tastes in mind. I know that when my dad opens this envelope, there will be no doubt in his mind that I made this card specifically for him!

This is a new stamp set called Inspired by Nature, and it's one of the free sets we received at Convention. All of these new silhouette stamps are so neat - and they make for some really simple cards! There is only one color of ink used on this card. Chocolate Chip. Yup, that's it! There's stamping, sponging, and even some smearing on the faux leather strip... all done in Chocolate Chip. Faux leather is one of my favorite masculine looks, and it's super easy to do. Take some Chocolate Chip cardstock and wad it up like you were going to throw it away. Really work it in... the more you "weather" it, the better it looks. Then open it back up and do some direct-to-paper on it to accentuate the creases. This is where you hold the ink pad and rub it over the edges and some of the creases. You'll want to secure it to your card front with Glue Dots instead of Snail since the creases will have an extra "pull" on it. Easy-peasey!

You can also see a smidgen of the inside where I adhered a panel of Confetti Cream so I could write Dad a note. I typically do this when the base color I've chosen is too dark to see any writing... especially for an old guy like my Dad! :)

Happy Birthday, Dad! I love you! -Miki

Card Recipe:
Stamp Sets: Inspired by Nature, A Little Birthday Cheer
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Confetti Cream, Pumpkin Pie
Accessories: Linen Thread
Tools: Designer Label punch, Stamping Sponge