Hello everyone! Nina here again with another post in our on-going series: The Missing Manual for Card Making. I am one of those people who reads every word in a user manual and hopes there is one for everything, haha! While I am still learning new things everyday, I want to go ahead and document what I’ve learned. I'm sharing simple bite-size tips in the hope that they will be useful to you too. Today, I'm sharing some simple ways to go beyond on your normal clean and simple cards! CAS (clean & simple) cards usually utilize a strong focal and a lot of white space. It does not mean that the card should be plain & dull!

1. Go Beyond Paper

The reason I love card making is that it gives me the chance to incorporate many different materials into a project. The most commonly used for CAS cards are sewing notions (thread, ribbon, button...). Instead of using the cloud stamps from our Rain Check Stamp Set for the focal, I die cut some felt using our Partly Cloudy Die to add texture and dimension to my card. I also used a piece of ribbon for a pop of color.

2. Go Beyond a Glue Stick

Another great way to add texture and visual interest to a card is to use a different way to attach your elements. Instead of your plain old glue sticks (or tape runners), try using foam dots, your sewing machine or even a stapler! The contrast between the felt and the staple also makes the clouds looking extra soft and fluffy.

3. Go Beyond a Stamp

There is no limit to how you can use your stamps. Use stamps in unexpected ways will always help making your cards shine. For me, it usually happens when I made a mistake. On this card for example, I stamped the raindrops too close to the left edge and needed something on the left. I thought about a piece of washi tape but I wanted a more clean look. And then I saw the outlined clouds from our Rain Check Stamp Set. Isn't it a great way to add a scalloped border to a card? (Wink, Wink!) Together with the sentiment stamped in black, we've created a visual "frame" to draw the recipient's eyes to the focal. I wish I had stamped the sentiment a little bit lower on this card though... Hmmm...

4. Go Beyond a Square Corner

There was a time when I couldn't make a card without rounding the corners. LOL Remember that you don't have to round all of the four corners? Rounding 1, 2, or 3 corners according to what's already on your card is a great way to fix any small positioning errors. Rounding the two corners on the right on a side-folding card is one of my favorite finishes. The rounded corners (as shown above) also help bringing your recipient's eyes back to the focal!

5. Go Beyond Cardmaking

This photo for our current Photo Inspiration Challenge is a fun and creative DIY project. It inspired me to use clouds and raindrops on a baby shower card. I used felt because the clouds in the photo were made from felt. The metallic shine on those stars led me to use my stapler. My card is a straight forward interpretation of this Home Decor project, isn't it? :) I hope that you can start looking for details on many other creative works to incorporate them into your cards. The possibility is endless. Do you have a favorite trick to spice up a CAS card? Share with us in the comment! We will pick a random winner to receive this Rain Check Stamp Set on Friday, April 3! Most importantly, find time to create and make something today!

Hello everyone! Happy November! Are your schedules getting busier and busier for the upcoming holidays? We here at Waffle Flower Crafts like to work a little ahead and be prepared :) We are kicking off a Twelve Days of Gift Giving event on the WF Blog today!   Our design team will be using scoring boards throughout the days so we would like to cover some basics first.

Basic Scoring Boards

If you are new to paper crafting, here are the three most commonly used products that can do the scoring for us. All of them have a smaller/mini version but the 12"x12" versions are recommended for general paper crafting purposes.

Martha Stewart Crafts Scoring Board and Envelope Tool

Belonging to a well-known brand, the MS Board is widely available all over the world. In the US, they can easily be found at Michael's, Jo-Ann and Hobby Lobby. We also found that they are sold at Amazon for $14.99. (Link below) The MS Board has the measurements for both Imperial (Inches) and Metric (Centimeters) in one package. It also includes a triangle tool to help us score those diagonal lines. The scoring guides (grooves) on the Martha Stewart board are in increments of 1/8". Some people don't like the bone-folder (scoring tool) that comes with the board and they will usually purchase a separate scoring tool of their liking to use with this board.

Scor-pal Measuring & Scoring Board

The thing we like about Scor-pal is that it is a family owned business dedicated to scoring boards. The owners have spent a lot of effort in providing inspiration and craft tutorials. Try their project list here. You can find them now on Amazon for $20.52. (Link below). Scor-pal has two separate products for Imperial (Inches) and Metric (Centimeters) so please pay a little attention when ordering. There is a triangle tool (Scor-ENVI Template) available as an add-on for scoring diagonally. The older version of a Scor-pal (the one linked below) has an increment of 1/4" with a few exceptions to make certain projects easier. The new Scor-pal (available this November) will have the 1/8 inch grooves right across the board. For $29.99, you can pre-order their new and improved version with a free Scor-Envi on their website here. We didn't know about this until we visited their website for this post. We're excited!

Fiskars 12 Inch SureCut Paper Trimmer + Score Blade

Like the MS Board, the good thing about Fiskars is that it is widely available. Many of you probably already have it in your stash. If you don't have a lot of room for storage or don't need a lot of scoring in your crafts, the Fiskars Trimmer + Score Blade would be a great choice. For our project tomorrow, we do not need a paper trimmer but a paper trimmer is a must-have for all paper crafters. If you are just getting started, we recommend getting a paper trimmer before a scoring board. If you can, get both!

Advanced Scoring Boards (Punch Boards)

We think We R Memory Keepers revolutionized the paper crafting industry with their Envelope Punch Board. As of today, there is a family of 6 punch boards in the market with more coming. They can be easily found at Michael's, Jo-Ann and Hobby Lobby as well as online. The special projects can be done on a basic scoring board with some work, but the punch boards make the tasks easier. - Envelope Punch Board - Gift Box Punch Board - Gift Bag Punch Board - Candy Box Punch Board - Pillow Box Punch Board - Flower Punch Board If you are getting just one board, we recommend the Envelope Punch Board. Here are some projects Nina has shared on the blog using the Envelope Punch Board.

A Holiday Cookie Wrap?

Nina made this for Paper Crafts Holiday Cards & More Vol.8 Blog Hop. May we say that it was a hit? Fun and easy to make! There is something about punching paper that grants us satisfaction!

A Mini Envelope for A Card?

One thing that we like the most about the Envelope Punch Board is that we can make many different sizes of envelopes! The one shows on the card is a custom size Nina came up with - check out all the measurement details here!

Even Making a Box from it?

We also love the Gift Box and Gift Bag punch boards. You can see them in action in Nina's previous posts:

Playing with Gift Box Punch Board (with Video)

Hello everyone! We've had some questions about the basics of stamping from our planner users so we put together a short video to show you how to use them.   We used a personal size Filofax page in the video but the stamps can be used on any planner. We used Fresh Ink but all pigment inks that dry on top of paper should work. Feel free to leave a comment if you have more questions!

Video: Stamping Basics for Planner Users

Watch below or in HD on YouTube here! http://youtu.be/UMIHH2vDpTg

Supplies

Hello everyone! Today I'm sharing a post for a series of postings I've wanted to do for a while. I am one of those people who reads every word in a user manual and hopes there is one for everything, haha! While I am still learning new things everyday, I think I should go ahead and document what I've learned. I will share simple bite-size tips in the hope that they will be helpful to someone else too. When I first stumbled across card sketches, I felt like that I found a piece of that missing manual for card making. A sketch takes out the majority of the "guess work". I believe limitation is what stimulates creativity! The example I'm using today is the sketch for our current Waffle Flower Challenge. It was based on the card on the right. We can follow a sketch closely or give it a little twist to make our card standout. Stretch a sketch is as easy as 1, 2, 3!

1. Rotate the sketch

This should be the first thing we try whenever we get a new sketch. Rotate the sketch, see the options and discover the possibilities. In my case today, I rotated the sketch 90 degrees clockwise.

2. Give it Meaning

I've found the most effective way to make a card standout in a sketch challenge is to give it meaning. Remember all the elements in a sketch can be replaced with other shapes, images or embellishments? When I saw these circles, I wanted to make them into balloons! So I pulled out my Flower Circles Stamp Set and picked a couple of circles to stamp on a scrap piece of white cardstock. I used both sides of the circle stamps. I then used a pencil to draw a little triangle tail for each balloon. Cut them out as shown and I had my "meaningful" elements for the card.

3. Add a Special Touch

As I was playing with the layout elements, I decided to create a birthday scene for my card. At this point, we were getting close to make a card that makes people wow. But it still needed something special. For example, the white piece of cardstock looked plain. So I replaced it with a cloud patterned paper (I think we need cloud stamps, anyone?). Balloons don't just float in the air, right? No brainer, let's add the strings! The sentiment form our Surface – Tag Stamp Set is just perfect for this card! I popped the pieces on with some foam adhesive to add dimension. I stopped here for a clean look but you can continue to add special touches here and there to make your card you!

• Add glitter to the balloons?
• Use a white pen to add highlights?
• Stamp some cloud with Versamark ink on the card base to create a subtle background?
• Add Enamel dots? Sequins? Buttons?
• Ink the edges? Round the corners?

The possibilities are endless, right? :) Thank you for stopping by! I hope that you are inspired to create something with a sketch! Happy Crafting!