Artsy Birthday Wrap

My nephew turned 4 recently. Knowing he would be more interested in what was IN the Box than ON it, I re-used some plain brown packaging paper to wrap his gift. Thinking I would write a little something cute on it with some Sharpies, I grabbed the pens and sat down.

Some time later....

Take What You Need

Inspired by this photo, posted on the Momastery Facebook Page:

Take What You Need

(Click on the image below for a larger size that can be printed 8 1/2 x 11.)

What a Difference a Day Makes | Pinterest Inspired

It's probably no secret that I am a fan of fonts, so naturally, when I saw this loveliness on Pinterest, I saved it away for future reference - uh, future craftiness!

Source: etsy.com via Rebecca on Pinterest

I love  making things as gifts, and so I got to work adapting this idea for a friend of mine who had a birthday yesterday. Here's how hers turned out (with details on how I put this together below!):

The frame you are seeing in the image above is a digitally-added frame. I picked up a super-cute frame in this red color, because it would match her decor. 

On to fonts (of COURSE!) I used three fonts in this project, all of which are available as free downloads. The large numbers are JF Ringmaster, the script font for the names is Pacifico (a recent addition to my collection!) and the line "what a difference..." is Santa's Sleigh.

At first, I was going to simply copy the black-and-white look from the original Pin, adding red as the accent color to match the frame. But then I had a better idea: using more colors to add interest. So I turned to one of my favorite online tools - kuler from adobe. I searched for color palettes including red and when I found Japanese Garden, I knew it was perfect for this project. With kuler, you can search for, create, alter and download color swatches for Photoshop/Photoshop Elements. I use it all the time when creating projects like this. If you create a free account, you can save swatches as well. (The link to Japanese Garden goes to my copy of the swatch, not the original, which, sadly, I can no longer find to give credit.)

In kuler, you can view the color makeup of any swatch, so if you don't have Photoshop, you can still use these swatches in other programs. In this view, you can see my original swatch and all the colors. Here is also where you can play with the various colors and adjust them if you want to make changes to the swatch. 

To put together the finished look you see here, I altered the tan/yellowish color in the middle of the swatch, mostly by lightening it a bit. I wanted my background to be fairly light, but still have contrast to the white letters.

In the large letters, this font is normally not filled, so your background color will show through. I filled in the main part of each letter with the white from the swatch, and then the small swirls and dots with the aqua color. I LOVED the end result, and my friend loved it, too, and that's the best part! Success!

Fruits of the Spirit

I made this a couple years ago as a gift for someone. I designed it as a 5x7, then printed it out and framed it. She LOVES it and it is still on display at her home. Yay! I love making goodies like this to give away!

Here's my design:

Here is the finished framed project:

Fonts:

Love - itsadzoke

Joy - Pharmacy MMX

Peace - Telegrafico

Patience - Cursive Standard

Kindness - Pupcat

Goodness - Rockwell

Faithfulness - MTF Skinny Jones

Gentleness - Lobster 1.4

Self-Control - Champagne & Limousines

Birthday Card | Quick Print Hybrid

This is another card I made to be easily printed at home. This one is a birthday card for someone I work with who does the IT work. (You know this guy, he's the one you call with the words "Help me, please!")

This card is one of the reasons I try to add interesting things to my scrap stash. This computer doodle is from a kit called "Techno Girl" by Pixel Gypsy (kit now retired). Originally it had a heart in the middle of the screen, but I photoshopped a swatch of grey paper from the kit on to the screen and added the words to make a simple custom birthday card.

CREDITS: Techno Girl by Pixel Gypsy (retired)
FONT: Miserably Lose from Kevin and Amanda

Thank You Card | Quick Print Hybrid

Sometimes I just need a card QUICK, so I design something that can be easily printed at home and comes out of the printer ready to send. Many hybrid cards I design with the intention of embellishing them by cutting extra pieces, adding buttons or ribbon, etc. But I don't always have time for that. The best part about these cards is that I can save the design and use it again and again.

I've made a couple of these recently, and will share them this week. This one is a simple Thank You note. To make this design, I used the font Pass the Chex from Kevin and Amanda, and also a free arrow shape built into Photoshop. Add some color, print, and it's done. Easy!

(Card finished size is 5.5" x 4.25".)

Altered Composition Book | Hybrid

I recently created a Library Lending Journal by altering a Composition book. I created a new custom cover and presented the finished project as a birthday gift.

Here's a small picture of the finished project, but you can see all the supplies and pictures of the process to create the book over on The Hybrid Chick blog!