Wednesday 18 April 2012

Birdcage book card

Finally I can reveal my secret today. Those lovely people at Penny Black and More have chosen me to be one of their two featured artists this month!! This post is to say thank you so much to the design team for choosing me - it's been a real boost. Another piece of good news this week was that I found out I won the Sarah Hurley Challenge as well, so more thank yous are in order to you too!
So, on to today's card. I've been trying to get a bit ahead on my birthday cards and this one is for my mil. She's promised not to peep beyond the first picture :-).

"Birdcage book card"

The background panels for this card are all made using distress inks and a wonderful birdy stamp set from Crafty Individuals.

"Front panel"

A second Crafty Individuals stamp set with lots of trees was used to provide a backing with lots of Perfect Pearls in gold, and this was overstamped in Crimson Archival Ink using the bird stamps. A diecut birdcage and bird add some dimension, but I love the way the stamped birdcage bars show through the gaps in the birdcage die, like an old-fashioned double-layer cage.

"Front panel - non shiny photo!"

This second photograph shows the stamping without the glimmer. You can see how I've stamped the tree panels in three rows, varying the order in each row to give some extra interest. The foreground stamping uses parts of the bird & branch stamps in different directions to give the effect of looking through all the layers of a woodland.

"Inside with tags"

Moving on to the inside of the card, the same C I birdy stamps were used on the background panels, this time with lots of gold Perfect Pearls for plenty of glamour. Various free Graphics Fairy images were used for the birds on the right and the birdcage on the left (just printed, cut out, shaped with fingers and stuck with Pinflair for some dimension).

"Right-hand side faux book panel"

Yay, I finally got hold of a Tim Holtz birdcage die! It was used here to diecut some gold, hammered card. Some lace was wound up the bars of the cage (the ends of the lace are secured out of sight with glossy accents). Jump rings are added to the top of the cage and glued into the folds of the book with glossy accents to allow the birdcage to hang freely in the book aperture. Lace is secured around the edge to make a decorative frame.

"Beads"

Small beads were attached to the bottom of the birdcage with pins and jump rings.

"Left hand panel"

The left hand panel features one of my favourite Graphics Fairy images - this old Victorian birdcage. Extra lace is added to the bottom of this panel to make a pocket for the tags (well, you need somewhere to write your message!).

"Tags"

The backgrounds are inked and stamped with C I stamps before dusting with Perfect Pearls and overstamping with a couple of Kaisercraft sentiments in archival. Matching lace is threaded through the tag holes.

"Back and sides"

Just to finish off the back and sides of the card, here's a good use for those peel-offs lying around forgotten in your stash.

Ingredients:
cardstock: white 300gsm, white 160gsm, hammered gold 200gsm
lace & bakers twine
Crafty Individuals stamp sets: CI-234, CI-287
Sizzix & Hero Arts stamp & die-cut set 657774
Kaisercraft stamp set: Life Sentiments
Sizzix Bigz dies: Tiny Tabs & Tags, Caged Bird
Spellbinders dies: Birdcage
Distress Inks
Archival Ink: Crimson
Perfect Pearls: gold heirloom
adhesives: Glossy Accents, Pinflair, PVA
peel-offs in geometric patterns for book cover
printoffs from the Graphics Fairy
beads, pins, jump-rings

Entered for the following challenges:
Crafty Individuals - Time for Summer
Craft Room Challenge - Ink It
Die-Cutting Divas - In The Garden
Bunny Zoe's Crafts - Ribbon or Twine
Craft Your Passion - Die Cuts and Punches
Simon Says Stamp and Show - Anything Goes

23 comments:

  1. This is stunning, love all the birdcages....

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  2. A beautifully made card - love the layering on the front, and the addition of the tags inside. Thanks for joining us in the CI Challenge. Jean

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  3. Congratulations on all your achievements, seeing this amazing card it is easy to why. Thank you for sharing this with us at Craft-Room Challenge XOXO Zoe

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  4. gorgeous work!!!all those birds are so lovely

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  5. what a great birthday card, lots of stunning pretty details :-) thanks for joining us at craft room challenge, debi x

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  6. Such a stunning piece of ar work with beautiful stamping! Thank you for joining us for our 'ink it' challenge at Craft-room this fortnight. Good luck. Hugs
    NIKKI DT

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  7. A fabulous book card, great details, love it.

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  8. Wow this is just gorgeous. One of my favourite book cards i have seen. You put so much work and detail into your creations. I adore it. Karen xx

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  9. Your book card is beautiful! What a great concept! Thanks for sharing it with us at Simon Says Stamp and Show! Ellen :)

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  10. Wow, what a great project, I love it.
    Thanks for joining us at DCD this week.
    Gerda
    http://cardscreations.blogspot.com

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  11. Very beautiful.Thanks for joining us at DCD.

    Hugs,
    Patty
    creativediva98.blogspot.com

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  12. Wow, this is a stunning creation! Your MIL is going to love this! Thanks for joining in with our "Ink It" challenge over at the Craft-Room, and good luck in the draw.

    Maria x

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  13. What an expert piece of stamping ! Lovely project.

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  14. A beautiful creation with so much thought put into its creation. I love the addition of the lace.
    Thank you for sharing with us at the CI Challenge.
    Wishes
    Lynne

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  15. A stunning piece of work Maddy.

    I must offer huge apologies about the spotlight post over at PB & M, I've been away a couple of days and came back to discover Mr Blogger decided not to publish my scheduled post on the right day, so it was late.

    B x

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  16. Maddy this is a beautiful project. The details are amazing and I love all the bird cages and the wee tags. I love the peel offs on the cover too. Beautiful project and congratulations on being one of the Guest Designers this month too. Lee x

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  17. Wow! What a beautiful book card!
    Thanks for playing along with the Die Cuttin' Divas this week!
    Candy
    http://candyscraftcorner.blogspot.com

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  18. congratulations on being a featured artist at penny black and more and on your challenge win! your card is very pretty and this is gorgeous! wow, what a lovely gift for your mother-in-law. i love the colour of the lace and the tags as well.
    linda

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  19. Beautiful card book! Thank you so much for entering our challenge at Bunny Zoe crafts ♥

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  20. Congrats on your good news. Your creation is stunning ..lovely inkey details too! Thank you for entering the Craft Room challenge. Suzanne:)

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  21. Maddy congratulations on your great news. What can I say about this project that has not already been said. It is soooooooooooo gorgeous and a beautiful gift for your mother in law. Love Kathy xxx

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Thanks for leaving a comment, it's nice to know I'm not just talking to myself :)