Category: Crystal Komara

String Art Sunflowers | by Crystal Komara

Hello and happy September, friends! This is Crystal here with you today. I can’t believe the summer is over and fall is upon us. Though, between you and me, fall is MY favorite season! The change of season even impacts my crafting as I find myself reaching for rich, earth tone colors, patterns and textures, as you’ll see I’ve used on today’s sunflower card made using the new String Art Circle die by Birch Press Design.

Usually, I’m not one of those people who can take a shape and make it into something else. For instance, when I initially saw this String Art Circle, all I could see was an abstract design. But, then it came to me, I can see slightly abstract flowers!

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White Smooth 80 lb. cardstock. Using this same white cardstock, I also ran a sheet through my Big Shot using a Scallop Rectangle die and a polka dot embossing folder for the base frame.

I ran the String Art Circle die through my Big Shot, once in a mustard yellow cardstock and once in a cajun rust cardstock. Then I placed a piece of gold glitter behind the String Art Circle die and fussy cut the glitter paper into the same shape, so that you could see the gold glitter paper through the String Art Circle. I then punched a 1 1/2″ circle from espresso cardstock and ran it through a polka dot embossing folder before adhering it to the center of the “sunflower.” I used an off-brand leaf die to cut out two green leaves to put behind the sunflowers to ground them on the card. I adhered the sunflowers on top of the leaves using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension.

Using the Honey Scrips Thanks die, I die cut the thick shadow layer from gold foil cardstock and the thinner top “thanks” sentiment layer from white cardstock. I adhered both layers together using a fine-tip glue before adhering the entire sentiment to the card using 3M foam adhesive.

I hope you have enjoyed seeing a unique way to use the String Art Circle die. Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

September 7, 2020
Slimline Pumpkin Lacework | by Crystal Komara

Hello readers! This is Crystal here with you today sharing another design using the beautiful new Pumpkin Lacework stamp set and coordinating dies. If you missed my first post featuring this same stamp set, please click here. I just loooooove this new stamp set so much that I keep finding more ways to use it!

This slimline card measures 8 1/2″ x 3 1/2″. Slimline cards are designed to fit inside a regular #10 business sized envelope and require no additional postage. The slimline trend is becoming increasingly popular and many companies are now making envelopes specifically for these cards, so we have more colors to choose from other than just plain ol’ boring business white!

The base of my slimline card is made from 80 lb. kraft cardstock. I like a nice thick cardstock for the base of all my cards. Using a slimline scallop frame die, I cut the frame out of 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth Crest cardstock. This is the ONLY white cardstock I use and I buy it in bulk.

I stamped each pumpkin in Versamark ink and heat embossed it with white embossing powder. I stamped one pumpkin on a rich eggplant cardstock, one on pumpkin orange cardstock and one on a cabana blue cardstock. I die cut the pumpkins using the coordinating Pumpkin Lacework die. I adhered the three pumpkins directly to the card base using 3M foam adhesive. I stamped three pumpkin stems in Versamark ink on espresso cardstock and heat embossed them with white embossing powder.

I stamped multiple leaves in Versamark ink on eggplant, orange and cabana cardstock and heat embossed those too white embossing powder. Yes, everything on this card was embossed with white powder! I used the coordinating Pumpkin Lacework dies to die cut the leaves and stems and I adhered these to the large pumpkins in an array that was pleasing to the eye.

For the sentiment, I used the Blessed Honey Script die. I cut the larger shadow portion from gold glitter cardstock and the thinner script portion from white cardstock. I adhered both layers together using a fine tip glue and then adhered the entire sentiment to the center of the card using 3M foam adhesive.

I hope you have enjoyed this slimline card using the beautiful new Pumpkin Lacework stamp set combined with some rich and modern fall colors. Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

Supplies

57309 Blessed Honey Script

8153 Pumpkin Lacework clear stamp and die set

August 30, 2020
Pumpkin Lacework | by Crystal Komara

Hello readers! This is Crystal Komara here with you today sharing two cards using the beautiful new “Autumn Breeze” layering plates and “Pumpkin Lacework” stamp set and coordinating dies. Fall is my absolute favorite time of the year and I couldn’t be more excited about these new products!

I stuck with a traditional fall color palette of white, orange, olive green and gold for these A2 sized cards.

Just look at that beautiful stitching from the Autumn Breeze Layer Plate A!

Here is the second card I created using the “Pumpkin Lacework” stamp set and coordinating dies:

I have created a step-by-step YouTube video tutorial showing how both of today’s cards were made. I hope you will enjoy it!

I still look forward to creating even more cards using these beautiful new fall products! Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

Supplies

8153 Pumpkin Lacework clear stamp and die set

56130 Autumn Breeze Plate Layer Set

GP1003 Twinkling Jewel Glitter Pad

August 19, 2020
Easel Card w/ Viola Layering Plates | by Crystal Komara

Hello and happy Thursday readers! This is Crystal Komara here with you today. I hope you have been enjoying some of the beautiful new release products that the Design Team has been sharing. I am always amazed by what each artist brings to the team and how we all create such unique and diverse cards using the same products. In full disclosure, I also look at something another team member has created and I say, “Well, duh, why didn’t I think of that!?” : )

Today I will be sharing this A2 sized easel card made using all three layers of the Viola Layering Plates and lots of purple jewel toned glitter cardstock. All supplies for today’s card will be listed at the end of this post.

The card base is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. It is the only white cardstock I use and I love it’s quality both for card bases and for coloring with my Copic markers.

Here is a close-up of the card to show you the beautiful intricate layering dimensions and the various shades of glitter cardstock.

I always find things easier to understand when I can see the step-by-step creative process, so I have created this video for you showing how this card was made:

I hope you have enjoyed my card. Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

Supplies

56128 Viola Plate Layer Set

GP1003 Twinkling Jewel Glitter Pad

57354 Jumbo Lingo Thanks

July 23, 2020
Frilly Triangles | by Crystal Komara

Hello friends! This is Crystal here with you today and I have made a few cards to share using the Frilly Triangle Layering dies. I love to make my cards in multiple colors, because every card truly does look different, yet perhaps one color is more appealing to your eye than another.

The first A2 sized card was made using a rich blueberry blue and a light baby blue cardstock. To keep things simple, I stayed with a monochromatic color palette for each of these cards. And, surprisingly for me, I did not use any glitter cardstock when creating any of these cards. That’s a first for me. I’m a glitter girl!

The second card uses an earthy moss green cardstock paired with a lime green cardstock. I’ll be the first to admit, I don’t love this color combo, but I bet someone else will!

For the last card today, my color palette is a rich raspberry cardstock and a sweet sugarplum (pinkish) cardstock. This one is my favorite!

I hope you have enjoyed seeing a variety of ways to use the Layering Triangle dies. Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

July 7, 2020
Inspired by Pinterest | by Crystal Komara

Hello readers! This is Crystal here with you today and before we get to today’s cards, I’m going to share with you the Pinterest photo I found that became my source of inspiration! Never in a million years would I have paired these colors together, yet when I saw this image, I was captivated by how stunning these colors were. Now, granted, I would not choose these colors for any room in my house, but I was determined to bring these colors to life on paper, and I couldn’t be more in love with the results!

I have created a step-by-step YouTube video tutorial showing how both of these cards were made. I hope you will find this helpful!

We can find inspiration in so many places. Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

Supplies

56097 Lumina Layer Set

GP1003 Twinkling Jewel Glitter Pad

57201 Big Hello Sugar Script

Thanks Sugar Script

June 25, 2020
Red, White & Blue | by Crystal Komara

Hello readers! This is Crystal here with you today sharing a patriotic inspired card. I don’t know if anyone actually sends 4th of July cards or not, but this idea would also work well for members of the military or law enforcement. The first time I saw the Mini Dazzle Bevel Layering Plates, I knew immediately that I wanted to create a flag in strips of red, white and blue.

In order to fit all three strips of the Mini Dazzle Bevel Layering Plates on this card, I had to size the card’s dimensions to 5 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ square.

Here is a step-by-step YouTube video tutorial showing how I created this card:

I hope you have enjoyed seeing a patriotic spin on this card! Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day.

Supplies

56105 Mini Dazzle Bevel Plate Layer Set

GP1003 Twinkling Jewel Glitter Pad

June 19, 2020
You Mean The World To Me | by Crystal Komara

Hello readers! Who else struggles with making masculine cards? I know that I sure do! Cutesy pink dancing pigs and glittery pop-up mermaids just aren’t going to cut it for my dad! With Father’s Day soon approaching I know that we are all looking for some inspiration to create cards for the special men in our lives. I have found that simply by using certain colors, it is easier to achieve a more masculine look. For today’s two cards, I used the Lumina Layering Plates (A, B & C) and a darker color palette of black, gold and green. I think this same card in navy blues and golds would also be an excellent masculine inspired combination.

Here is the first card I created using the “leftover” cutout circle pieces from the Lumina Layering Plate. I could have added this cut-out back in to the original card design, but I like the idea of creating two cards from one die!

Here is the second card I created using the Lumina Layering Plates:

I have created a step-by-step YouTube video tutorial sharing how I made both of these cards. I like to keep my videos short and sweet, so it under 7 minutes long!

Thank you for visiting and I hope you have a wonderfully creative day!

Supplies

56097 Lumina Layer Set

GP1003 Twinkling Jewel Glitter Pad

CL8143 Lingo Thanks

58143 Lingo Thanks die set

June 10, 2020
A Rainbow of Mandalas | by Crystal Komara

Hello crafty readers! This is Crystal here with you and today’s post is all about coloring the beautiful Thankful Mandala stamp set. If you love to color, then these cards will be perfect for you to try. And, well, if you don’t love to color so much then you can simply admire the beauty of someone else’s coloring!

I will be the first to admit that I have a love/hate relationship with coloring. There are times when I find it peaceful and soothing, yet there are also days when I find it can be simply dreadful! So, listen to how YOU feel. If you feel like coloring today, then go for it! If you’d rather sit back and eat a hot fudge sundae, you certainly won’t find me judging you! : )

For this yellow mandala I used Copic marker numbers V17, R27, Y02 and YR68.

For the green mandala I used Copic markers numbers YG06, G21, G05 and BG13.

For the purple mandala I used Copic markers number RV19, RV55, RV66, V9 and BV02.

Each of these cards begins the same way. I stamped the large Thankful Mandala on a 5 1/2″ x 3 1/4″ piece of Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock in Memento Tuxedo black ink. Then I selected 3-4 colors of Copic markers in complimentary hues and color away. There is no rhyme or reason to my madness! In all honesty, each mandala took me about half an hour to color and then I adhered various colored rhinestones for added sparkle.

I found a complimentary colored cardstock base for each color and added two strips of die cut glitter paper down each side of the mandala.

For the blue mandala I used Copic marker numbers B02, B24, B52 and B12.

I hope you have enjoyed these cards and will maybe try coloring some too! Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day.

Supplies

CL8142 Thankful Mandala

May 27, 2020
Lovely (Vellum) Butterflies | by Crystal Komara

Hello readers! This is Crystal here with you today sharing some rainbow cards featuring the Lovely Butterflies stamp set. I’ve been creating a lot of rainbow themed cards lately, because I find them very cheerful and uplifting and I think we could all use more sunshine (and rainbows) in our lives right now!

The base of this first card was made using 80 lb. Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock. Using the Delfina Layering Plate A, I die cut the lattice background from white cardstock. I adhered a piece of rainbow paper behind the lattice using a Tombow dot runner before adhering both layers to the card base. I stamped the sentiment “Make a wish” in Memento Tuxedo black ink on a piece of scrap paper and notched the bottom end. I adhered thin pieces of orange, red and blue ribbon behind the sentiment and stapled it together. Yes, stapled! Why not?! It’s art!

I stamped a variety of butterflies from the Lovely Butterflies stamp set on vellum cardstock in Versamark ink and heat embossed them with white embossing powder. I die cut the butterflies using the coordinating Lovely Butterflies dies and adhered them to the card small pieces of 3M foam adhesive for added dimension.

To create the second card, I die cut the Butterfly Garden Layer Plate C from white cardstock. I adhered this over a piece of rainbow patterned paper. I stamped one butterfly on each of five different colored cardstocks (red, orange, yellow, green and blue) and heat embossed the butterflies with white embossing powder. I used the coordinating Lovely Butterflies dies to die cut the butterflies out.

I die cut a circle of vellum cardstock and stamped the sentiment in the middle of the circle in Versamark ink. I heat embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder and adhered it to the center of the card. I adhered the die cut butterflies down the left side of the card in a rainbow pattern. I adhered the butterflies to the card using small pieces of 3M foam adhesive.

I have created a YouTube video tutorial for you to watch and learn how both cards were created!

Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

Supplies

57019 Delfina A

Butterfly Garden Plate Layer C

8150 Lovely Butterflies clear stamp and die set

CL8152 Blooming Spring clear stamp set

May 19, 2020