Gretchen Barron

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Hello everyone! I told you the other day I would have one more very special Pansy project for you today, on Mother's Day! This is the card I made for my mom this year! My mother loves to display her cards. She leaves them sitting out for weeks and then once she puts them away, she brings them back out the next year on that holiday. If I were to go home right now, she would have favorite mother's day cards displayed on every flat surface in the house, some dating back to when we were kids.

So, this year, I thought I would give her one that was easy to display. I created this large (it measures 5.5 x 7" when closed) easel card which stands on it's own. It's loaded down with the butterfly punch pansies (ok, I know, I really piled them on). I was going for the look of one of those antique victorian cards.

I used sentiments from Well Scripted and All Holidays. The ribbon is 5/8" Pretty in Pink Satin. I used the Scallop Trim Corner and Border Punches along with the Big Shot and the Scallop Oval Die and Tiny Leaves Sizzlet. Cardstock colors are Old Olive, Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plumb Whisper White and Pink Pirouette. I even created a Scallop Trim Border around the oval, using the Crimper Tool. The pansies are attached with Stampin' Dimensionals. What fun! I wish I could have been there to see my mom's face when she opened her special card! But one thing is for sure. When I go to visit my folks in a few weeks, I know this card will still be on display!

Thanks for stopping by today everyone and wishing a Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there!

A Card for My Mom!

As promised, everyone, here is the Mother's Day card that I sent to my mother earlier this week. I can't say enough great things about my mother -- she has always been there for me and would do anything she could to help me. Sometimes more than she should! This has been an incredibly difficult year for her and I wanted to send her something extra special for Mother's Day this year. This card is a whopping 8 1/2 x 5 1/2" -- it barely fit inside the envelope! The flowers are are all done with the Floating Re-Inker Watercolor Technique (there, you see ... this new technique does have a name). All were stamped on Shimmery White cardstock with Versamark and embossed with Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder. The roses were colored with Apricot Appeal and Regal Rose, the Lilies with So Saffron and Real Red and the other flowers with either Kiwi Kiss or Lovely Lilac and Elegant Eggplant. Click on the smaller photos to see the shimmer and shine -- it's just beautiful! The leaves are die cut from Kiwi Kiss cardstock with the Flower Layers Die. The pot is Riding Hood Red and Cameo Coral with an Eyelet Lace Border of Whisper White. The ribbon is 5/8" Satin from the Occasions Mini Catalog. The butterfly, from God's Beauty, is stamped on Whisper White with Black Stazon Ink and then Brilliant Blue and Summer Sun ink sponged on. It is attached to the Pot with Stampin' Dimensionals. The sentiment is from All Holidays.

This is a flower pot card, which means you can pull the flowers out of the pot to reveal a space for you to write your message or note. For lack of a better way to put this all together, I just started building it like I would a real flower arrangement and attached each flower and leaf with either SNAIL adhesive or Stampin' Dimensionals. To give it more stability, when I was all done, I attached a Scallop Circle Die Cut to the back.

Well, there you go. Happy Mother's Day, mom! I love you!

And Happy Mother's day everyone! I hope your day is great!

A few reminders -- I'm currently taking orders for my most recent Class-on-the-Go Kit, these darling Faux Alligator-Skin Wristlets in Jewel Tone Colors. Click HERE for more information!

Don't forget, my most popular Tutorials are on sale for a limited time for just $5 each -- the So Tweet Birdhouse and Cards set, the Humor in High Heels Purse and Cards Set, and the Faux Alligator-Skin Wristlets!  Click HERE for more information and to order via PayPal!

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Blessings, Gretchen