Two of my closest friends were each celebrating their own special occasions…a 6-month anniversary and a birthday! So that meant it was card-making time!
I came across this adorable cut file by Lori Whitlock (Silhouette Design ID#62270) and this fun design by Megan Hardy Designs (Silhouette Design ID#195787) and knew I wanted to use them both for my friend’s anniversary card. Earlier this year, I purchased the map patterned paper with no immediate plans for it. I just knew I had to have it. #craftersproblems but don’t you agree that the print is so dang adorable?! My friend and her hubby love to camp, explore, and ride bikes so it was a perfect background paper for their card. Even though the grey and olive green angled cardstock pieces were simple additions, not only did they pull in colors from the map print thus creating a cohesive look but they provided a framework for the remaining pieces. The “Love the Adventure” piece popped nicely against the grey and the bicycle was placed at an angle as if it was riding up an olive green hill. The heart balloons provided some counterbalance as well as color to the card.
Since I just adored the bicycle with heart balloons, I cut out those pieces again with my Silhouette CAMEO to see if I could create a different card…this time for my other friend’s birthday. This time I changed up the orientation and created the card to be upright. This allowed for space above (so I added more balloons) and below the bicycle (I added the sentiment ribbon) . The mint-colored scalloped circle plus two linear strips of pink washi tape reinforced the bicycle as the card’s focal point. Since there was a variety of color in this card already, I opted to embellish the card with a sparkly touch (gold sequin plus two tiny rhinestones on the “Happy Birthday” sentiment).
This was a fun card-making challenge! I learned that subtle differences in layout, layering, or embellishments can really create a different look in the cards even with the same statement piece (in this case, the bicycle with heart balloons). Although I did not intend to make two cards with the same statement piece, I’m so glad I did! Such a good exercise to expand one’s creativity. I wonder how many different cards I could have made with a bicycle and heart balloons?!