Fall Birthday Card

Although I don’t like to say “fall” in the same breath as “my mom” because she might, it’s time to celebrate another fall birthday as she, Sam’s grandma, cruises on into her 90th decade! This card may not seem very feminine, but I wanted to make something seasonal and cheery since she sets her cards on display for a while. Besides, truthfully? My mom’s not all pink and swirls most of the time anyway!

Simple card, lots of decisions. Choosing paper, structure, embellishments (consider style, size, color), finding a stamp — or in this case a vellum piece — for the sentiment, finding a balanced placement.

Finding papers with an autumn-like color scheme without being all pumpkins and leaves was a challenge. I didn’t want too many dark tones, either. I was happy to find a set of border strips I’d forgotten I had that helped pull things together.

I added some bling — she likes a bit of bling. The vellum happy birthday is on the same cardstock the card is made from, and is inked along the edges, as is everything else, in my favorite: Tsukineko chalk ink in Jumbo Java.

I added the separate rhinestones in the left corner for balance; they’re gold and the leaf is orange but it all comes together with that colorful striped paper. When I finally adhered the sentiment, I used foam squares to lift it off the surface.

I was hoping for that elusive zing that some projects end up thrilling you with, but not this time. I’ll just keep practicing since you can’t turn out expert results without going through all the non-expert stages first… such a hardship to have to keep on playing with paper ;)

Gail