Handmade envelope: a completed melody

I enjoy challenges, especially when they are not planned. For this envelope i needed more than one 12"x12" sheet of paper. The vintage look I wanted came through perfectly.

Handmade envelope: French inspired

This envelope was created for a friend's birthday. Her third child is 'King' and he is a French poodle. I gifted her one of my favorite cards.

Handmade envelope: Betty Jo's Giddy Up

When I created this envelope I saw it clearly in my mind's eye. I almost felt the wind brushing through my own hair....weird, but true. What I had been told about Betty Jo was that she was a very independent and active 80 years young. She runs her own errands in her trusty van she has owned since forever, loves her family, loves Texas wild flowers, and is a huge Aggies fan. I absorbed all of that information and created this envelope for her card. Enjoy!

Handmade envelope: Home away from home

 

 The stitched brad I used on this envelope was almost tailor made. I don't think any other brad could echo the look of a hibiscus flower the same way. The jewel brad was my attempt at adding a little more decadence.

 

The recipient of this envelope considers Hawaii her home away from home so I wanted to allude to that. The alphabet letter I used is actually a combination of an "L" and an "I" to represent a Tiki motif. Again I used a Prima paper leaf cut up to look like a palm frond.

 

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Handmade envelope: Mexican souvenir

This envelope is one of my favorites that I've created, not just because of who it was going to, but because it has a little bit of everything on it. Excusing the run on sentences that I am famous for. I have collected a wide variety of Tim Holtz paper that I like to use A LOT!!!

 

I brought back the love of all things MEXICO with this vivid sticker... Don't worry the stones were just props!

 

The brads reminded of things I saw in Mexico. The red is a bright color you see everywhere there. 

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Handmade envelope: Vintage blessings for Aunt Shirley

This envelope was created to celebrate our dear Aunt Shirley's birthday recently.

 

Even though we live miles apart each of these envelopes have the ability to bridge that gap and touch Aunt Shirley's heart. Each year we have known her has been celebrated in such a unique way. I can only hope the cards we send her are as valuable to her as she is to us.

 

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Handmade envelope: Auntie Marie's b-day

 Yoshi's Auntie Marie is a very special lady, so that required a very special envelope. The closure was made up of some of my favorite brads (wood flower and corduroy). The patterned paper may look like the previous ones, but I chose this one because of the doilies embellishing the edges.

 

I echoed the wildflowers from the card and added a little gingham ribbon to a Jenni Bowlin milk cap chipboard button. Heidi Swapp's mistable letter and label matched the look perfectly. Where there are flowers here in Texas you will undoubtedly find butterflies, so Martha Stewart's butterfly punch came in handy.

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Handmade envelope: Nana Kathi's birthday

When you take the separate items I use to create these handmade envelopes, it's pretty crazy how they all come out so differently. I can't say I really had a clear cut idea when I started this one. It just evolved!

 

Nana Kathi loves the weathered wood look (that you see alot of here in Texas) so that was clear cut as the background of this envelope. The rest was more based on eclectic vintage pieces, like the jean button brad ('New & Improved') and the wood flower brad. One of my recent influences is Junk Gypsy and I channeled their style in this envelope.

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Handmade envelope: Dream Big & Laugh Hard

Some cards/envelopes I try to downplay the celebration and bling, but let's just say this envelope was not one of them. The recipient is a BIG character inside and out. The idea for this envelope fit her to a "T".

 

The brads that make up the closure are super blingy and the baker's twine is a perfectly vivid color. I loved the contrast between the turquoise baker's twine against the lavender patterned paper. The circles in the paper echoed by the circular brads.

 

This envelope was just a measure of decadence I wanted to project to the birthday girl. She repeatedly thanked my sister for the beautiful card and envelope. She proudly showed it off on her desk for days.

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Handmade envelope:Freshly caught

 

The envelope for yesterday's highlighted handmade card had to be as masculine as I could make it. The above closure brad was a plain brown mega brad when I decided to add a star sticker in the middle of it. The recipient is a proud retired veteran and (current) correctional officer/mentor. He is a proud member of the unit where I work.

 

Despite not knowing him for a long time I could tell he is a PROUD American who is making the most of his beautiful life. He enjoys  every aspect of fishing, from enjoying the outdoors to bringing back that perfect catch.

Looking forward to your comments and/or suggestions... Thank you for following my blog!

Handmade envelope: Vintage homemade

 

This envelope was created for yesterday's handmade card.  Heidi Swapp's Color Magic paper is an amazing product. I love the subtleties I can achieve with inks.

 

I was looking to make it appear vintagey and dimensional. I love Amy Tangerine's thickers and the little stitch marks on them. 

 

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Handmade envelope: Gracias envelope to Kathi

 

I wanted to share this envelope which I created to accompany yesterday's Yoshi card. Heidi Swapp's Color Magic paper is so much fun to work with that I strongly recommend it. You can customize it to any project. I used chalk inks and distress inks, as I have yet to purchase any mists. 

 

It has been forever since I worked with buttons but I had a blast adding these to my envelope label. The black and white twine was tuxedo black by the Twinery (recent purchase on yardsellr), I love the richness of the color!

 

...and the final product is one I am immensely proud of to say the least. I trust Kathi will love it as much as I did creating it!

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Handmade envelope: Heaven sent

I have fun choosing the perfect stitched brad for every handmade envelope. It has to complement and enhance the overall look of the envelope.

 

The  front of the envelope was embellished with a felt flower, lace and smash tape ribbons, pinwheel button, bling and pearls. The paper is by Heidi Swapp's Color Magic line. I love working with this paper by coloring it with some Tim Holtz peacock feathers distress ink. The middle of the flower I embellished with a found object before placing the pearl into it.

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Handmade envelope: Sympathy roses

 

This is the envelope I created for yesterday's Guadalupe sympathy card. 

 

The roses are meant to echo the ones on the card, and the dimensional embellishment is meant to represent coiled rosary beads. This envelope was created with a jewel in my stash, Heidi Swapp's invisibles borders paper. I colored it with some wild honey Tim Holtz distress ink, and the end result was breathtaking.

 

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Handmade envelope: Father's Day from Yoshi

 

Here's the handmade envelope for the Father's Day card I created for Yoshi's daddy. He was particular that it had to be colorful like his Poppa's favorite shirts. The buttons were my idea and thankfully he allowed me to put them on the front of the envelope. The flower was found in one of the Michaels' clearance bin, and I was so happy that it almost matched the patterned paper perfectly.

Thank you for stopping by my blog! I welcome your comments and/or suggestions on current or future creations.

Handmade envelope: Thanx

 

This is the envelope I created for yesterday's Yoshi thank you card.  Each envelope is like another page in a page-turner. It beckons you to relax in a comfy chair and open it. The recipient will enjoy adding it to her collection.

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