Anything but a card...

"Anything but a card" is the theme for my class tonight (although we will be making one or two cards too!) and I wanted to post the last two projects we will be making. I made my own checkbook cover several years back and it was starting to look pretty grubby, so I figured this was a great time to make a new one and show everyone else how easy this is!

I have been playing around a bit with the My Digital Studio from Stampin' Up, which allows you to make digital cards and scrapbook pages, but it also allows you to do "hybrid" scrapping and stamping. "Hybrid" is when you make some elements using digital paper, stamps, etc, print those out and make the rest with real ribbon, accessories and so forth.

I really wanted to use the paper from the Summer Home Set for my checkbook cover, but didn't have any on hand for my class- solution: digital hybrid! I use Photoshop a fair amount at work, so I tend to use all the SU digital elements with that software, but if you are a digital novice, My Digital Studio is definitely for you! I opened the digital paper, sized it for 8-1/2x 11 paper and printed onto Whisper White card stock- instant patterned paper! The great part of this is that you can have a wide variety of paper "on hand" and just print the number of sheets you need when you want it.

I ordered vinyl checkbook covers online and cut the patterned paper for the insert- 6-1/8 x 6-5/8. I added a simple strip of Chocolate Chip and some Baja Breeze ribbon, with a simple button tied bow to dress it up a bit. I stamped a few blossoms from the retired "Bodacious Blooms" set on Riding Hood Red and Kiwi Kiss as accents, but a monogram with a pretty frame is also really nice. The hard part about checkbook covers is keeping them relatively flat so they fit in the cover- the button makes this a bit bulky, but worth it for the look!

The other project we are doing is a bookmark that I lifted right out of the "Occasions Mini" catalog. I made it a bit wider and jazzed it up a bit more, but the basic idea is the same. I adhered some patterned paper from the Sweet Pea Designer Series pack on the bottom of a 2-1/2 x 8-1/2" Whisper White rectangle and rounded all the corners. I stamped the leaf border from the Vintage Vogue set just above the patterned paper and ran the top through the Sizzix machine using the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder. Once the flower was stamped in Chocolate Chip, I used my Crop-a-dile to punch a hole through the flower, Chocolate Chip grosgrain ribbon and bookmark and put it all together with a pink corduroy button. I added a greeting and a little flower at the bottom to finish it off. Because it has to lay flat inside a book, no rhinestones or buttons- so sad! I'm going to give this to a friend whose child is sick in the hospital-she needs a little pick me up!

If you're coming to class tonight, get prepared to have some fun- if you're out of the Houston area, hope these inspire you to try "anything but a card"!