Blogger Challenge: Week 60

This week's challenge was to create a birthday card. I decided to use one of the sets I received at the SU! convention that hasn't seen any ink since I got it home. Flight of the Butterfly is a great 2-step stamping set with lots of possibilities. I thought that the "hope your day is as happy as happy gets" would make a nice birthday sentiment.

The color combination I used was inspired by a feature in domino magazine. I'm not a domino subscriber, but for some reason, the magazine shows up in my mailbox every month. It features lots of home decor ideas, including a section that highlights some trendy color palettes for painting. The combo I was looking at was an almost identical match to SU!'s Riding Hood Red, Pink Pirouette, and Very Vanilla.

I stamped the butterfly image on Very Vanilla cardstock using a combination of Riding Hood Red and Pink Pirouette inks. I stamped the butterfly image again on a piece of vellum. I cut the vellum butterfly out and attached it over the butterfly on the vanilla panel, only placing adhesive at the butterfly's center. This let me fold the wings back for a 3-d effect. I added the sentiment and a pair of smaller butterflies to the panel, then layered it on coordinating cardstock mats. I found a scrap of Bella Rose designer paper to use on the cardfront.

As I was assembling the card, I got the idea to use the set to make a "joy fold" card. Since the way I had arranged the butterfly image and sentiment on the panel didn't work for the layout I had in mind, I finished the first card and started all over again (after I had cleaned the stamps, of course!).

I stamped the butterfly image again, this time leaving out the vellum layer since the card has a lot of layers and movement without it. I varied this version a little bit from the first by using an additional color. I layered the stamped panel on a Chocolate Chip mat and added a photo corner with brads as an accent.

I created the cardfront from a piece of Pink Pirouette cardstock. I decided to leave the back panel "plain" so that it kept the focus on the butterfly image. For the left panel of the card, I used a scrap of checked Bella Rose designer paper, wrapped with a piece of Chocolate Chip grosgrain ribbon.

For more great birthday card ideas, check out the rest of the blogger challenge participants. You can find links to their blogs in the sidebar on the right.

Materials Used (all from Stampin' Up!):

Flight of the Butterfly stamp set, Pink Pirouette and Riding Hood Red Classic ink, Pink Pirouette, Riding Hood Red, Very Vanilla, and Chocolate Chip cardstock, vellum, Bella Rose designer paper, Pretty in Pink taffeta ribbon, Chocolate Chip wide grosgrain ribbon, photo corner punch, mat pack and paper piercing tool, silver brads