Did you hear about how belated birthday wishes are all the rage now? Apparently wishing someone Happy Birthday with a handmade card on their actual birthday is soooo 2012.
For example, it is my mother's birthday today, but did she receive a birthday card in the mail from me? Of course not! I love her too much for that! (heh)
Once a birthday is well past, THAT'S when it's time to celebrate! So today we're celebrating the March 15th birthday of my friend Shelly Hickox. Shelly is such an amazing designer and is especially fond of steampunk, so I decided to dig out all manner of paints and stains and metals and such and do my best to make her proud with a Steampunk Door Birthday Card.
Do you see any patterned paper on this card? No? That's because there isn't any! I made all the patterns and textures myself using a method that went something like this:
1. Paint the item a base color.
2. Use Distress Black Paint over the top.
3. Freak out because it's way too dark.
4. Spritz with water and blot with a rag.
5. Use Distress White Paint over the top.
6. Decide it's too light.
7. Spritz with water and blot with a rag.
8. Dry it with a heat gun.
9. What would happen if I sand this?
10. Don't I have some Vintage Photo Distress Stain somewhere?
11. Did I try spritzing/blotting/sanding/blasting with a heat gun? How about another round of that?
12. Lather, rinse, repeat.
But experimentation can yield some cool results, so there's that.
The fleur-de-lis is a piece of confetti. For reals, yo. I just glued it on there with some Glossy Accents, then put Glossy Accents on top to make it shiny. I shouldn't use Glossy Accents because I am (a) impatient and (b) a messy crafter. It doesn't matter how far away I put the item to dry, I will inevitably put my hand or a tool or something else down on top of it while it's still wet, thus wrecking the gloss. After wrecking the gloss I did some combination of Steps 1-12 above and suddenly it looked kind of old and weathered and non-confetti-ish. Bonus!
Speaking of Bonuses, how perfectly does the new Tim Holtz Pediments die work over the top of my Bigz Door Die? Perfection!!!!
I mixed old metals from my stash (hinges, arrow, 1/16" eyelets) with Tim Holtz metals (gears, knob) to create the Steampunk look on the door. For the doorknob plate I stamped a Lost Coast Designs stamp onto shrink plastic and shrunk it.
I've found that if you're using actual metal hinges on the door (not decorative, but functional) then it's best to just cut the door at the fold so that only the hinges are used for opening and closing. Otherwise it can be tricky to get the hinges in exactly the right spot to work in conjunction with the crease.
If you were at all worried that there was nothing popping up on this card I say pshaw! Do you even know me? I made a very simple box pop-up from a strip of transparency and added the 3D Balloon from the Celebrate Sizzlits Set. I also used the label from that set for the greeting, which is a Stampin' Up! stamp.
The pictures don't really do justice to the metallic rusty texture of the balloon. An embossed piece of silver cardstock with any number of Steps #1-#12 created this:
A couple of final notes - I found a pre-made clock post in a bag of Farmhouse embellishments so it saved me making my own. I also decided the upper left corner of the card was in need of something so I stenciled Shelly's name. It's meant to look somewhat graffiti-esque.
The brick is a Tim Holtz Texture Fade, heavier on Vintage Photo and Sanding in the 12-step process. I stamped the rulers to fill the rest of the space.
Because I am a giver (I give!) I plan to actually mail this card to Shelly, after using it here on my blog and posting it over on the Inspiration Emporium "Add a Little P.O.P." challenge. Now THAT'S friendship! Ha ha.
Happy Birthday, Shelly!
This looks really neat! It was worth going thru steps 1-12!
Posted by: Doris | March 21, 2013 at 03:50 PM
Oh, how wonderful! Shelly certainly deserves this fabulous Steampunk creation!
Posted by: Evelyn in Oregon | March 21, 2013 at 04:01 PM
I love the way your mind works!
I Love my DIL so much, her card was late by 2 weeeks. :)
Shelly's card is beyond cool! Your 12 step program is magical....
Posted by: Marlene | March 21, 2013 at 04:45 PM
Shelly will love this, it's fantastic . Love the grunged door, Tim"s die above the door and the hinges . Fabulous piece. Tracy x
Posted by: Tracy Evans | March 21, 2013 at 04:45 PM
Genius I tell ya, Genius! I was cutting a pediment myself tonight,too. What a great combination. Shelly will love it.
~Linda
Posted by: Linda Cain | March 21, 2013 at 10:27 PM
Really love your dies. Will you have any class soon? I will be in Katy TX for the next month and would like to participate.
Posted by: Marvely | March 21, 2013 at 11:57 PM
Oh my word, girl, you are hilarious! And this card, OMG gorgeous! What a treat you and your blog are, beautiful cards and creations and humor! Thank you for all you share!
Posted by: Laura | March 22, 2013 at 04:50 AM
OMG, you're hysterical! LOL...for reals, yo. LOL...This is SO awesome! I was wavering on getting the pediments die, but now that I know that it works with your door die...it's a done deal man.
Posted by: Lori | March 22, 2013 at 08:27 AM
Great card, I always love your posts. They are full of good information and humor. Always a great combination.
Posted by: Sandy Diller | March 22, 2013 at 09:45 AM
Great card and post! I love the pediment over your BIGZ door die! Thanks...now I need that die too!!! Enabler.
Posted by: Donna Gibson | March 22, 2013 at 12:13 PM
This is AMAZING Karen...I bet Shelly is just Thrilled....LOVE LOVE when you get your Grunge on!! I'm still struggling with my brothers card! Ha....I guess I'm going with your trend!!
Posted by: kelly Booth | March 23, 2013 at 07:22 AM
This card is so cool Karen!! And just perfect for Shelly! Love the balloon and all the fabulous grungy textures. The pediment is perfect on top of the door.
Posted by: Anna-Karin | March 25, 2013 at 05:28 AM
All I can say is that the pictures don't do it justice, even though they are great. It is the most AMAZING card of all time. Truly. You are a great friend, KB! BTW, the whole steps thing...totally describes my usual method! :) Thank you!!
Posted by: Shelly H | March 27, 2013 at 08:29 AM
This is a fabulous card, Karen! Shelly is like you, very creative and inventive. Total geniuses, you two are....I'm sure she'll treasure it for years to come. Know I would!
Posted by: DebbieK | March 27, 2013 at 08:36 AM
Karen, I don't know which I like the best--the totally awesome card you made for Shelly, or the hilarious description of the steps of the process. I'm still laughing...
Thanks!
Posted by: Connie L. Riley | May 16, 2013 at 02:21 AM