Linda’s DIY by Design: Shabby Chic Cards-DT project for The PiecebyPiece

So for this particular project, I needed to create a couple of cards...one for a super awesome friend of mine...we'll call it the "friendship" card and one for another super awesome friend of mine who needed a card for a wedding that she had just done photography for....we'll call that the "thank you" card. Since The Piece by Piece has a most exquisite and beautiful line of product, I knew that I had just the right materials to make these shabby chic cards wonderful masterpieces!! I don't often like to just make regular open and close 5x5 cards, so I try to create a unique, one of a kind project that could almost pass for a home decor piece! LOL! For these cards, I used some chipboard mini album pieces that I had bought from Micheals Craft Stores. These chipboard pieces are the base to my cards. All the papers are sewed around the edges, distressed with the Prima distress tool and inked with Tim Holtz distress ink. The paper lines I used on the first card was the Carta Bella-So Noted collection, The Theresa Collins-Vintage Finds collection and the Authentique-Loyal collection. The papers lines used on the second card was Pink Paislee-London Market collection, and once again, the Authentique-Loyal collection and the Carta Bella-So Noted collection. I knew that I wanted both cards to be a pocket type card. and so the creative process begins! On the "thank you" I had to create in colors of orange and teal, as this was the wedding colors of the couple. I also wanted to turn this card into an actual home decor item, so that once the "thank you" portion of the card was removed, the rest of the card could stand alone as a wall hanging amidst wedding pictures of the couple in their home. I created the base with a folded back section to appear as if curtains were opening to reveal a love scene. I wanted this scene to represent a sort of "on-the-wings-of-love" motif. I was able to do this with beautiful applique wings and laces, as well as resin and wheat spray embellishments from The Piece by Piece. I was also able to add some Prima and Tim Holtz product. The chipboard heart takes its curtain call with a "thank you" note that can be placed into the couples wedding album for future memories along with their photos! I used acrylic paint mixed with sand to achieve the texture all over the card and embellishments to give it that final shabby chic look. Here's the pics of this card:

For the "friendship" card, I still wanted a pocket card, but I wanted to combine two pieces of chipboard together to make the pocket. I used a crochet lace (from The PiecebyPiece) weaved at the left edge to close that side of the card and used Beacons 3-n-1 glue to close the bottom and right side of the card, leaving the center open, thus, forming the pocket! Because of the thickness of the lace, it kept the pocket slightly more open than normal to allow a chipboard piece (in this case, another heart) to slide in and out (this is where I write my personal note). I went with colors of teals and creams, added a wooden fence that I crackled with Tim Holtz white picket fence crackle paint (I know....a picket fence and white picket fence crackle paint...no joke! LOL) a Prima resin angel, some Recollections products (butterfly, lamppost, resin corner piece) and lots of texture with stenciling/modeling paste, some cheesecloth to add a shabby chic softness and again the acrylic paint mixed with sand. The flowers are all from Wild Orchid Crafts. I love the cool color palate of this card! But most of all, I love the acrylic candy gems, the resin bird in its nest and the beautiful trims from The PiecebyPiece Etsy store! These products make this card shine! Oh! and how could I forget my signature decor item...the 'x' and 'o' wooden letters...they are included to complete the project! (You will probably note that I did not include the 'x' and 'o' on the "thank you" card...I hadn't forgotten...I chose not to include it on this particular card since it was made for a client of a friend that I have never met). Anyhoo....all the direct links to the products I used from The PiecebyPiece will be below the pictures and the link to the store home page is at the right on my sidebar, just click on the picture! Here's the pics of the "friendship" card: