I’ll be honest, I really thought the novelty of being Stamping Royalty would wear off faster than the ink on the stamp sets in our prize packages, but it hasn’t let up yet. I’ve found a new group of stampers to follow and cheer on, have a bunch of new stamps to play with, and our group has come together for the Stamp It! Cards meets Stamping Royalty Blog Hop.
To celebrate the release of Stamp It! Cards, Vol. 8 and the Fourth of July, we’re sharing cards made in a patriotic color scheme for Operation Write Home using one of the stamp sets in our Stamping Royalty prize package. All of the cards we make will be sent to Operation Write Home, an organization the sends blank handmade cards to deployed heros to write home with. OWH has a lot of information on their site, including guidelines for card makers and the kinds of cards they need. Lately they’ve been looking for masculine and gender neutral cards for general occasions, so my mind went right to the fun sentiments Lawn Fawn’s Hello Friend set.
This is one of my favorite sentiment stamps of all time, partly for the whimsical fonts and partly for that tiny airplane. I tried all kinds of masking and selective inking techniques before deciding that simple paper piecing had more impact. The patriotic color scheme wasn’t difficult, but finding a whimsical paper to coordiate with the Lawn Fawn stamps made it easier. It’s from October Afternoon’s Rocket Age collection and I’ll admit that I wasted more than a little crafting time reading the vintage science kit ads on the flip side.
I couldn’t stop with just one card though, not when they were so fun to make and being sent to an amazing cause. I even brought an old friend out of retirement for this one. The announcer reminded me a lot of Uncle Sam. He just needs a little beard. (Author’s note: As a kid, I confused discussions of the figural Uncle Sam with my actual Uncle Sam. And with ATMs because the local credit union called them SAMMs. For years I thought my parents were getting all of their cash from either my uncle or the government.)
And one last card with a smiley star to coordinate with the sentiment. I rarely allow things to hang off the edges of my card, but this star will be fine because OWH packs most of it’s cards in standard A2 envelopes. The backs were finished with a free OWH stamp the organizers have made available to card-makers. Early next week I’ll be sending a big envelope of cards to Operation Write Home, including the cards I shared here today. Now that I’m familiar with their guidelines, I’ll be creating with them in mind all the time.
If you’re looking for a place to channel some of your creative energy, I challenge you to give back through Operation Write Home. You don’t have to be a card-maker to help, either. They’re always looking for letters of encouragement to add to the packages and donations to cover shipping charges.
Want more inspiration? Visit the rest of the royal court for dozens of fun card ideas:
- Amber Daigre
- Lynn Darda
- Angela Fehr
- Mariana Grigsby
- Shelly Kurth
- Sarah Jay <– You Are Here
- Cristina Kowalczyk
- Karolyn Loncon
- Stephanie Nagel
- Laura Pryor
- Mary Dawn Quirindongo
- Kelly Silva
- Julia Stainton
- Laurie Willison
But the inspiration doesn’t stop there! Head back to Paper Crafts Connection for even more card ideas. You can also link up a card you’ve created for Operation Write Home. And the best part, leave a comment on the Paper Crafts Connection blog post for a chance to win one of two generous prize packages full of stamps and supplies.
Now it’s my chance to give back to you. Paper Crafts has donated a copy of Stamp It! Cards, Vol. 8 to give away to one lucky commenter. And because I have an extra copy of the Hello Friend stamp set I used to make the cards I shared today, I’d like to give it away to another reader. Just leave a comment here by midnight (MDT), Sunday July 3rd, sharing your favorite occasion to send or receive cards and you’ll be entered to win.
Supplies for Across the Miles card set
Stamps: sentiments from Hello Friend by Lawn Fawn, smiley face from Partly Cloudy by Lawn Fawn, announcer (retired) from A Muse; Ink: Night Sky VersaMagic, Warm Red Colorbox Fluid Chalk, Vintage Linen Distress; Paper: vanilla and cherry from A Muse Studio, soft sky (retired) from Stampin’ Up!, Black Hole from Rocket Age by October Afternoon; Other: stars die from Sizzix, blue Spica pen.
I’m Sarah Jay.
Very patriotic indeed! Way to go!
Such a cute card…the receipient will be very delighted indeed !
Cute cards! I love making and sending birthday cards!
Love your cards! I really love that paper too!
How adorable!
What a fun set of cards!
What a great set of cards. I love the coordination.
Love the papers you chose for your cards. The colours are amazing.
Your Uncle Sam(m) must have been quite the man! Great cards. My favorite has got to be the large star one. Congrats again on your Royalty win, I was so happy to see your name.
I couldn’t pick one if I had to as to which one I like best. Awesome!
Love all the 3 cards. The last one gave me a smile. TFS
a fabulous trio of cards! That announcer put a big smile on my face.
I like the muted patriotic colors. That is definitely unique.
Adorable cards!
oh this is way too cute such a nice sentiment too.
These are AMAZING!!!! Love the color tones and t he sentiments!
Love the vintage americana feel to these cards! Great job!
love that patterned paper. These are great cards
These cards are so so cute!!!! Thanks for sharing!!!
Love how your cards kind of have a vintage look to them because of the settle and little faded colors. Thanks for adding the link for operation write home. I have wanted to get involved in somtething like that but didn’t understand how it worked, lots of good information by following the link thanks!
Awesome cards…great creativity
Thanks for sharing
Such a SWEET trio of cards!
Love all the cards!
Love the sentiment with that cute airplane. Great card.
super cards….just filled with fun…
My favorite reason for sending a card is “no reason”. Those kind of cards are the most special in my opinion.
I love sending and receiving Christmas cards!
Your airplane card is awesome.
love all of your cards, enjoying the hop!
I love Lawn Fawn stamps, so the first card is my favorite. But all the cards cute. I’m sure they will be greatly appreciated by the soldier(s) who receive them.
Wonderful cards! I love the light-hearted nature of all of them- perfect for where they’re going!
Very Cute!
The airplane card is fun, but I love your “Uncle Sam” story and card. It made me giggle!
WOW 3 Cute cards. Great colors!
You make me smile too! So much inspiration! Thanks so much!
I love the light-hearted feel of your cards!
Beautiful cards.I especially like the colours
Great cards. My daughter and I have sent a few cards to Operation Write Home. Our plan is to make more while she is on summer vacation, she is 14.
Wow. All thress of these are so much fun. Great work!
Great cards for a great cause. This is my first visit to your blog and your blog heading just made me smile–love that title!
Very cute patriotic cards! Great work!
Wow, what great cards!! So, so cute! Thanks for sharing!
Wonderful cards!
WOW!! What a FABULOUS batch of cards!! I LOVE them all!! The colors and the designs are so cute!! THANKS for sharing and have a FABULOUS 4th of JULY WEEKEND!! =)
Cute cards! I love how the little airplane winds around the greeting.
These are all so cute!! Thanks for sharing!
I love your cards! Your “announcer” is soooo cute! I think the star with the smiley face adds just the perfect touch of whimsy.
What a great card–LOVE LOVE LOVE your style! I’m glad I found your blog–I’m RSS feeding now! LOVE it:) Congrats on the win!
These cards are great!
Your cards are charming!
O.k., now I’m going to have to look for the paper with the science kit ads—my dh has some great stories about his “experiments” conducted in the basement with the chemistry set…think stink-bomb & be grateful for tantrums—the effects last for a much shorter time. ;^)
How appropriate the “across the miles” card it. Like them all.