Combined Challenges at Joan's Gardens

 Tomorrow (Thursday) is the day for a new challenge at Joan's Gardens.  Joan announced last week that this will be the last week for both the card and tag challenges until next Fall.  For this week, both the Tag and Card Challenges will be combined. For this challenge, we are asking you to create both a Tag and a Card which will be posted separately; one in the card challenge and one in the tag challenge. There are no specific challenge rules - only that you make a matching tag and card. For each set you enter, you will be eligible to win one of the beautiful new Marianne Embossing Folders (retail value $30.00). The winner will be chosen by a random drawing, held on Thursday May 26.

For my matching tag and card, I used stamps from the new Heartfelt Creations "Bella Rose Collection".  For the card I used both stamps from the "Bella Rose Vase PreCut Set".  The baby's breath was stamped with VersaMark Ink and white embossed on a piece of purple card stock.  The vase of roses was stamped on white card stock, colored with Copic markers and cut out.  Two additional roses and one set of leaves were cut from a second stamped image and attached with dimensional tape.  Two Spellbinders "Parisian Accents" corners were added.  A Martha Stewart double punched border was added with a piece of ribbon attached across the middle with ScorTape.  The design paper has squares on it and large rhinestones were added to each square down the sides. 

The tag was created with the Heartfelt Creations "Tea with Bella PreCut Set".  This is the set with the tea cup with a rose at the base of the cup.  I used this rose for my tag.  The same design paper was used for the tag.  Two of the small Spellbinders "Parisian Accents"  were added to the top corners.  The "Accent" for the sentiment is also from this Spellbinders die set.  The sentiment is from Heartfelt Creations "Springtime Cardinal Collection".  It was cut out with a circle Nestability, sponged and attached with dimensional tape to the Parisian Accent.  Matching rhinestones were added to the bottom.  Purple ribbon was added to the top of the tag.

I'm sure all of you would love to have one of the beautiful new Marianne Embossing Folders ($30 value) so I hope you will enter both a card and a tag for a chance to win.  I will be looking forward to seeing your beautiful entries.  Please go over to Joan's Gardens blog for all the details and links for this week's challenges.

Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge

Time to create a new tag for Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge.   Today I used the new Spellbinders Rose Creations dies to create my flowers using pink vellum.   The leaves under the roses are die cut from the new Spellbinders "Foliage" dies. 

The tag was created using white card stock.  The top corners were punched with the Martha Stewart "String Lace" corner punch.  The border along the bottom is one of the borders I punched using the one inch strips of scrap paper that I showed on my blog yesterday. This one was created with the "Beaded Arcs" punch.

The sentiment and frame are from two new JustRite sets "Signs of Life" and "Just Because".   You will love these sets - there are seven frames in the Signs of Life set with sentiments and pretty corners included.  The Just Because set has a frame and 18 small sentiments that you will use over and over when you need a small greeting. 

The small white flowers were created using the Super Giant Lilacs/Daphne punch.  There are three sizes of this small flower plus other flower/leaf items on this punch.  Small yellow beads were added to the center of each small white flower then Martha Stewart branches tucked in to complete the tag.

All products used to create this tag can be purchased from Joan's Gardens.  Hope you will join us in this tag challenge.  Next month each person who has received the most votes in the weekly tag challenges will be entered into a prize from Joan's Gardens. Hope your name will be in that drawing.

Joan's Tag Challenge

It is Tuesday so it is time for a new Tag Challenge at Joan's Gardens.  I want to congratulate Angelica Turner for winning the last challenge.  Her tag was gorgeous.

This week I decided to used the small Tim Holtz Movers and Shapers "Mini Bird & Cage Set" repositionable Magnetic Dies for this card.  I love this small bird cage because it will fit both cards and tags really well.  The design paper used is from the "Moulin Rouge" paper pack.  It was embossed with the Cuttlebug "Textile Texture" folder.  The sentiment and frame are from a new JustRite set called "Sending You Sunshine".  The frame was stamped then cut out with the Spellbinders "Lacy Circles" die.  The center was stamped on another piece of card stock, colored with Copic markers and cut out so it could be attached with dimensional dots.  Kaiser Craft pearls were added to the center of each flower.  Sizzix leaves were added over the top of the bird cage.  The pretty "Prima Flowers" were added to match the flowers in the flower pot.  (The peach color in the stamped image is not showing up well in the photo but the flowers do match the Prima Flowers perfectly.)   The top corners and the bottom of the tag were created using the Martha Stewart "String Lace" border/corner punches.  Blue ribbon was added to the top of the tag.

All products used on this tag can be purchased from Joan's Gardens.

Hope you will join us for the challenge this week.  You can read all the details at Joan's Gardens and see the beautiful tag Joan created this week -- she also used this cute little bird cage and bird.    Next month everyone who has won the tag challenge will be entered into a drawing for a nice prize from Joan's Gardens.  Remember to vote for your favorite each Monday. 

Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge

Same tag -- two looks

It's time for another Tag Challenge.  How many tags do you have ready to give when it is time to give a gift?   I love doing these challenges so I have a great collection of tags ready when I need one.  I hope you will join us in the Tag Challenge at Joan's Gardens.

Today I wanted to show you how different the same tag can look with just one change.  The first tag above I used the Martha Stewart "Double Loop" punches to create a border.  It sure gives the tag a dresser look doesn't it. 

This tag was created with two JustRite stamp sets:  "Backyard Birds" and "Just a Note".  The bird was stamped and cut out with a circle Nestie.  The border, from the same set, was stamped, colored with Copic markers, then cut out with scissors around the design.  These pieces were then layered over an aqua Spellbinders "Lacy Circles" die. 

The border was punched and a piece of white card stock that was embossed placed in the center.  The sentiment from the JustRite "Just a Note" set was stamped and die cut with the new Spellbinders "Parisian Accents" tag.  It was sponged prior to taking it out of the die.  A piece of trim was attached to the bottom of the card with ScorTape and a bow added at the top to complete the card.

 

Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge

Time for another tag challenge at Joan's Gardens.  This week I have used a new Sizzix embossing folder "Birds & Wreath" set to create my tag.  There are two embossing plates in this package.  A brayer was used to add blue ink to the inside of the embossing folder so the background would be colored and let the embossing stand out.  Oh no -- just remembered I forgot to clean the ink off the embossing folder with a baby wipe.  Will go do that as soon as I get this posted.

The lace along the bottom of the tag was die cut with the Spellbinders "Parisian Accents" die.  The top flourish, and the frame for the sentiment were die cut with the new Spellbinders "Floral Doily Motifs" dies.  The sentiment is from the JustRite "Elegant Frames" stamp set and the little flourish above and under it are from the JustRite "You Inspire Me" set.  The sentiment was attached with a dimensional.  Three small flowers were punched with the small "blossom" flower punch and shaped with the tools from the Flower Tool Kit.  The stamens were punched with the small sun punch.  A small yellow pearl was added to the center of each stamen.  A Martha Stewart Butterfly was added, and a bow at the top, to complete the tag. 

A new Tag Challenge begins every Tuesday.  Hope you will join us this week.  There are no special requirements - create any style tag and enter it at Joan's Gardens.

Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge

It's tag time!  Tomorrow the new tag challenge begins at Joan's Gardens.  Today you can go over and vote for your favorite tag from last week.  Today I have done something completely different from my other tags.  I used white card stock for my tag base.  It is the same size as the manila shipping tags I have been using in the past.  It is covered with design paper from a KaiserCraft design paper I have had for a while called "Lilac Avenue Collection". The corners were rounded using a corner rounder punch.

Don't you love this Iris from Heartfelt Creations Collection!  It is one of my favorite flower stamp sets and Joan has lots of them in stock right now.  I used two sets:  HCPC 3371 Dutch Iris Oval PreCut Set and HCPC 3373 Dutch Iris Medley PreCut Set.  The Iris in the oval was stamped and colored with colored pencils and OMS.  I cut it out with scissors to make it very dimensional.  In order to create layers, I stamped the single Iris, colored it,  and cut it out with the matching Iris die. I then cut out the bottom section and  part of the top portion to create a dimensional look.  These pieces were shaped using the Flower Tool Kit and attached with large dimensional glue dots.  I also shaped the green leaves to help them look dimensional.  It is so easy with the large white flower tool from the kit.

The background is one of those new die Cheery Lynn cut doilies you can now purchase from Joan's Gardens.  Don't you love all these new doily dies!  I used the Cheery Lynn "Canadian Kaleidoscope" doily.  It was a little to wide for my tag so I cut out one of the points to make it slightly smaller.  I pulled it together at the cut seams and pushed it down in the center.  It is attached with a foam dot to the tag.   The cut out area doesn't show because I layered the Iris over the cut portion.  The sentiment and frame are from the JustRite "You Inspire Me" stamp set.  I know - I use this set so much but it is so pretty I can't resist.  I used the new Spellbinder "Parisian Accents" under the JustRite sentiment and another piece from that set up at the top of the tag.  These pieces helped to give a dainty look to the tag.  A pretty lavender silk bow was added at the top.  The butterfly is from a sheet of Martha Stewart butterflies.  Yellow Stickles was added to the stamen of the flower and lavender rhinestones added to the sentiment and at the top. 

I want to encourage you to create a tag for this week's challenge.  Tags are so fun to make and can make any gift very special.   Joan is going to have a great surprise for one person who enters the challenge this week.  Please go over to Joan's Gardens to see Joan's beautiful tag and to get all the details about the challenge.

All products used on this tag can be purchased from Joan's Gardens.  

Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge #11

Tag created for Joan's Garden's Tag Challenge

Box with matching tag

It is time for another Tag Challenge and I want to Congratulate Glenda Brooks who is the winner for last week's challenge. Your tag is gorgeous Glenda. When Joan first started the Joan's Gardens Tag Challenges, I thought I would have a hard time creating one every week.  Boy was I wrong.  Now I look forward to creating tags and love looking at all of them in a box ready to use when birthday times come.  Almost all my family has a birthday in the summer so I will be ready with tags.

This week I decided to create a tag to match the box I posted yesterday.  This tag was created on a large manila shipping tag.  You can purchase a whole package of these from Joan.  They are always so easy to use for the base of your tag and are a great size to add plenty of embellishments.    A piece of the Graphic 45 design paper was added to the body of the tag with a small piece of striped paper at the top.  I did use a Martha Stewart punch to create a border along this piece.  It doesn't really match the lace on the box but does have points like it.  The same flowers were created and layered up the tag.  The sentiment is from JustRite Stamps "Birthday Sentiments" and the frame from "Just A Note".  These sets are 1 5/8" in diameter and I find I use them constantly.  They are just the perfect size to tuck in a little sentiment on either a card or tag.  Coral sheer ribbon was added for the hanger. 

Hope you will join in on the fun at Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge this week.  Anything goes so you can create a tag with supplies you have, for any occasion. Joan created a gorgeous tag today using one of the new Doily Dies she now carries.  You won't want to miss going over to see it here.  I want to thank all of you who join us in this challenge and also thank everyone for voting on your favorite tag.  Will you be the next person to win the tag challenge.  Hope so!

Joan's Tag Challenge #9

It's time for another tag challenge at Joan's Gardens.  I'm posting my tag early but want to remind you to go to Joan's Gardens and vote for your favorite tag in last week's challenge.  You have until 9 pm tonight to vote.

EDIT: I want to congratulate PATTI PAINTER who is the winner of last week's Tag Challenge.  You can see her beautiful tag here.

I have never really made many tags, except for Christmas, and I am having so much fun participating in the tag challenge Joan has every week.  This week I decided to use one of the flowers from the JustRite Mother Nature's Gifts Set.  I stamped the flower with Versamark Ink on white vellum four times.  I cut it out with scissors, making each layer smaller so it would have lots of layers like a real flower.  The vellum was colored on the back with  yellow and orange markers.  I forgot I wanted to spritz it with water and layered it using small pop dots before spraying it.  I wasn't sure how it would work, but spritzed it after it was layered.  It did help to curl the petals, but think it might have looked better if I would have spritzed each layer prior to assembly.  I used the heat gun to dry it before placing in on the tag.

I used a manila shipping tag and cut a piece of design paper from a "My Mind's Eye" paper pad.  The colors were a perfect match for my flower.  The bottom edge of the design paper was punched with the Martha Stewart "Daisy Dot" border punch.  I saved the little flowers that were punched out and added them to the top of the tag.  Several Sizzix branch leaves were die cut and tucked in under the flower. 

The sentiment is from the JustRite "You're So Sweet Set".  It was stamped using Black VersaFine ink and clear embossed it.  Using scissors, I cut around the frame then sponged it with Tim Holtz Tea Dye Ink.  A Cuttlebug border, that I have had for a very long time, was embossed on a narrow piece of vanilla card stock.  I pierced holes under each point of the zig zag design.  This border and the edges of the tag were sponged with Tim Holtz Tea Dye Ink.

I hope you will join us this week in the challenge and start your collection of tags.  I have placed all my tags in a box and now I'm thinking they might make a great gift for someone.
 

Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge

This is the LeBlanche Stamp Set used for this tag:

Tulips On Script

LB1168

It is time for another tag challenge at Joan's Gardens.  I have something very different from my normal style but it was a lot of fun.  I receive this pretty LaBlanche stamp from Joan's Gardens called "Tulips on Script" and decided to try my hand at a vintage style tag.  I used a manila shipping tag and used Tim  Holtz Green, Orange and Yellow Distress Inks to press directly onto the tag to give it a multi colored background.  The LaBlance Tulip was stamped with Memento black ink  then colored with Copic Markers.  Just the head of the largest tulip was stamped again and part of it cut out to apply over the one on the tag, to give it some dimension.  A few pieces of black pearl swirls were added.  A piece of green and orange trim was wound around the bottom of the tag then copper cording wound on top of it.  Joan sent me a package of the Tim Holtz Idea-ology "Philosophy" tags so I tied one around the trim on the bottom.  Three rows of the copper cording were added around the top of the tag and a few K&Company puffy embellishments were added.  Some "frilly" green and orange trim was added through the hole in the tag.

Joan has posted some more new LaBlanche stamps on her blog.  You can see them here.

I hope you will join us in this fun tag challenge.

 I want to remind you that you only have one more day to enter a card in Joan's Gardens Weekly Challenge for a chance to win that grand prize donated by JustRite stamps worth $192.  Have you entered your card?

Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge #8

It is time for another tag challenge over at Joan's Gardens.  I have been wanting to try making a rose with "pear" punches and that is what I did for this tag.  I used three different size pear punches and I love how it turned out.  I believe it is the most realistic rose I have made so far.  These punches can be purchased from Joan's Gardens.  Joan created a beautiful tag using punches to create violets.  Using punches to create flowers is so much fun.

As before, I used a manila shipping tag to work with.  A piece of design paper from my "scrap" bin was used for the background.  Making tags is a great way to use these smaller pieces of design paper up.  The edges were distressed with the Zutter Distrezzer.    A piercing tool was used to punch holes all the way around it then a black maker used to draw "faux" stitching.   The very top of the tag was embossed with the Cuttlebug dotted Swiss embossing folder to give it some texture.  A small piece of white lace was sprayed with Walnut Ink to give it an antique look.  Two Cuttlebug leaves were die cut, colored and shaped, then placed under the rose.  A couple of K&Company embellishments and a silk bow were added to complete the tag.

I hope you will go over to Joan's Blog and enter the challenge.  You may use anything you want for making your tag and you have a chance to win a prize from Joan's Gardens.  . 

Do you like how my rose turned out? 

Bachelor Button Tutorial and Tag Challenge

Yesterday I had an over whelming response to my bachelor button card and received many emails asking me to do a tutorial.  Joan has not had time to create a tag this week because of having to spend a lot of time with her mother, so I have incorporated the tutorial with my tag.  I am not very experienced at doing tutorials,  but hope I am giving you all the information so you can create your own pretty flowers.

This picture shows the tools to get you started.  You will need dark blue vellum paper, a cornflower punch, a medium and small sun punch, shaping tools, and a thick mat for shaping.  All these products can be purchased from Joan's Gardens.

For each flower you will need 4 punched cornflowers.  For the top layer, it is best to cut small slits toward the center as shown above.  The reason for doing this is that the center will curl up tighter to give you a very dimensional flower.

This picture shows two flowers - one before shaping and one getting shaped.  I don't know why one looks white - it isn't.

You need to use the stylus with the largest ball.  You go around in circles to weaken the center then push it down into the thick black mat to shape it.

Here you can see the difference in all the flowers compared to the one towards the top that has not been shaped.

You will need one small, and one medium, punched sun.  You need to use scissors and cut down each "ray" of the sun to create very small stamens. You do this on both sizes of suns.

You will need to use one of the smaller balls on your stylus and go around in circles in the middle of each sun then push it way down in the thick black mat to shape it.

When you put your flowers together, add just a small drop of liquid glue to the bottom of the flower.  You will press it into another shaped flower and press it down in the thick black mat.  You will be doing this with each layer.

I used four shaped flowers to create my bachelor button.  When you layer them, try to alternate the petals, on each layer, like you would find on a real flower.  I find if I push the glued flower down and hold it for a count of 10, that it holds the glue long enough to let it dry.  If they should pop apart, just had a tiny bit of glue and press it back down in the black mat.  You always need to press each layer into the black mat in order to be sure you keep it shaped.

I have had a lot of questions about this tool kit so thought I would show you why this tool kit from Joan's Gardens is so valuable to me.  You can use it for SO many things.   It includes everything you need for shaping the flowers and more.  This kit includes 5 interchangeable stylus balls, 3 different sizes of piercing points and a bottle of knife blades that also fit in the handle.  It also includes the large white flower shaping tool, and self-closing tweezers.  Everying in one little kit.

After you get all your blue flowers glued together, you glue in both sizes of the black "stamens".  Now your flower is complete.

 Here is a close up of the flowers on my tag shown above.

I hope this tutorial is helpful to you.  If you have any questions, just let me know.  I have tried to cover every step to make it easy for you.  Let me know what you think.  I always love to read your comments. 

Don't forget to go over and vote for your favorite tag in the current tag challenge at Joan's Gardens.  The new challenge starts tomorrow morning.

Joan's Tag Challenge #5

It's tag time again at Joan's Gardens.  I want to congratulate Lana for winning last week's tag challenge.  She received the most votes from all of you.  Have you been over to see Joan's beautiful tag this week?  She made a gorgeous vellum flower using colored vellum. 

For my tag this week I cut my own tag out of vanilla card stock and used a corner punch to create the top corners.  Two pieces of design paper from my favorite Graphic 45 paper pad " Once Upon a Springtime" were used to cover the front.  Two small Martha Stewart punched borders were added. 

I used the same flower punch as used yesterday in my tutorial to create this flower.  I used a light tan card stock and sponged it with ColorBox "rose coral" chalk ink. Two new JustRite stamp sets were used for the verse:  "Kindness" and "You Inspire Me". The card stock and ink used are the same as I used for the flower. 

The pretty laser cut heart is one I have had for years and never wanted to use because it is so pretty.  I have no idea where I got it.  The ribbon at the top and the bow were both heated with the heat gun to give them the crinkled look. 

I am having so much fun with Joan's weekly Tag Challenge.  There are no rules -- just create a tag and link it to Joan's blog.  Please go to Joan's Gardens to see Joan's tag and to read about the challenge.  Next Monday I hope you will go over and vote for your favorite tag.

I am posting my card in the challenge but Joan will be pulling it off before voting begins.

Joan's Tag Challenge #4

It is time for another Tag Challenge at Joan's Gardens.  It is such a fun challenge because you can make any type of tag you may need now or in the future.  I'm sure my family and friends are going to love the pretty tags I have created for these challenges.  I usually don't create tags with so many details but I am having so much fun doing them.

The tag created for this week's challenge is created on a tan shipping tag.  The edges were sponged with Tim Holtz Tea Dye ink.  A piece of design paper from the Graphic 45 "Once Upon a Springtime" pad was added. I embossed this piece with the Tim Holtz "Bricked" embossing folder then forgot to sponge it to bring out the embossing, but I think you can see it.   A narrow brown strip of card stock was added at the top and the bottom. 

To create the bird and branch, I used the Sizzix "Birds & Branches" die. This die has both branches with leaves and two different birds.   I cut out one of the branches five times, using different colors of card stock.  The leaves were cut off the piece cut in green, and were attached to the branch.  They were lightly sponged with green ink.  The beak for the bird was cut off the bird cut out on tan card stock and attached to the blue bird.  The bird was cut out in dark blue and light blue.  The wing was cut off the light blue bird and attached to the dark blue bird.  I used a white pen to kind of draw feathers on the wing and tail then sponged the bird with blue ink.  The eye of the bird was colored with a marker.  A pink vellum flower was made and attached on the branch.  Yellow stamens were glued to the center of the flower then light green Flower Soft was added in the very center.  

The pretty flowers are from a package of K&Company die cut pieces.  Using a rectangle Nestability, I cut a rectangle just slightly larger than the image to frame it.  A piece of vintage lace was added to the bottom of the card and blue pearls added to each scallop.  I was trying to balance out the blue on the tag.  

I have had a drawer of "fibers" that I have almost gotten rid of so many times, but find they work great to insert in the hole in the top of tags.  To complete the tag, I stamped the "To" and From" at the top.  

Did you remember to vote for your favorite tag from the last challenge?  Remember, every Monday the voting is open.  The person receiving the most votes will receive a "winners" badge from Joan to place on their blog.  In June one of these winners will be selected for a prize package from Joan's Gardens. 

All products in bold print can be ordered from Joan's Gardens.

Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge #3

I am having so much fun creating a tag each week for Joan's Garden's Tag Challenge.  I created my tag this afternoon and since I know tomorrow starts a new tag challenge, I am posting it tonight.    I started a manila shipping tag and covered it with designer paper from the new Graphic 45 "Once Upon a Springtime" paper pad.  What beautiful papers!   I first decided which piece of paper I wanted to use, then created my tag around the design in it.  This pretty piece has some little flowers in it that I love so decided that should become my focal point.  I used some of the flower punches from Joan's Gardens.  The flowers are created with petals from the "Super Giant Begonia Petals" punch.  I punched them out using ivory card stock.  Using a sponge dauber, I first sponged on ColorBox "Peach Pastel" chalk ink on the lower portion of each petal, then sponged on ColorBox "Rose Coral" chalk ink around the outside of each petal.  The flowers were assembled using the instructions in the "Paper Bouquet"  instruction book, also available from Joan.  I was very pleased with how close they look to the flowers in the design paper.   All three flowers are a little different in size.  Using punches, leaves and branches were added behind the flowers.  Each time I create my own flowers, it makes me feel happy.  I always think they are much prettier than the ones I used to purchase,  and they are so easy to make.  When you make your own flowers, you can make them exactly the size and color you want.  I posted a close up and wonder if you think my flowers match pretty closely to the ones in the design paper.

The greeting is from the JustRite "Just A Note" stamp set.  It was black embossed and cut out with a Nestabilities Labels Six die.  It was sponged with the two inks used on the flowers prior to taking it out of the die and was attached with dimensionals.  To complete my tag I added two different sizes peach and rose ribbons.  

All products used to create this tag can be purchased from Joan's Gardens.

Did you see the gorgeous tags in last weeks Joan's Gardens Tag Challenge?  I really had a hard time deciding which one to vote for.  I hope you will join us in this fun challenge and start building your own collection of tags you will need for this year.  The challenge is so easy, because you can make a tag for any occasion and use any thing you want on it.  The requirement is just to create a tag and link it to Joan's blog.  Your vote helps determine the winner.  The voting is open for one day only (Monday) and the winner will receive a badge showing they won and will then be eligible for a drawing for a prize later in the year.  How easy is that!  Won't you join in on the fun!