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Friday, March 25, 2011

PapertreyInk March Blog Hop


Today is the March Bloghop for Papertreyink.  Our challenge this month is to use embroidery floss.  This was a tough one for me, rarely use floss for anything.  I much prefer bakers twine or rustic jute twine, but after thinking about it a bit, I decided to learn to tie french knots.  Not very original, I know, but new to me. 

I based my card on CPS Sketch #107:                 
 For more details on CPS #107, here is a link:

Here is my card:                                                      

I remembered that the Asian Fusian stamp set had a cute little flower image that would be perfect for french knot centers.  To make that vase and flowers fit inside a square nestability, I had to use a very large square.  It forced me to make a card that was 5 x 7.  After making A2 cards for so long, this card looks HUGE.  I can not believe how much bigger it is.  I used one of the plastic fondant impression plates I bought at Michaels in the cake decorating aisle for the white layer.  It makes a great impression.  I mean, really crisp.  Not bad for around $4 for two plates.  The patterned papers are by Martha Stewart and the scallop is EK Success.  I stamped one of the long background images from Asian Fusian and added some zig zag stitching on both sides.  To make the french knots, I admit I had to watch a YouTube video to learn how and poked the holes with a paper piercer first so the cardstock would not bend.  Here is a close-up of those knots:
                                                                           

 A little bakers twine is wrapped around the vase that is popped up with dimensional foam.  There wasn't much room for my sentiment despite the large size of the card, so I stamped Mom on it and plan to use it for a Mother's Day card.  My mom will love the big size.  Thanks for stopping by and taking a look at my gigantic card.

47 comments:

Rhonda said...

Love the embossed white panels and french knots are perfect.

Kelly S. said...

YES! Great minds think alike, Cathy! I, too, have been obsessed with knots! Can't wait to try it with Asian Fusion...I love your card with it's quaint little flower vase and awesome background stamping :)! LOVE the white and blue!!

Kay D said...

I love these colors, and your French knots are BEAUTIFUL!

Audrey said...

I need to learn how to do those knots! I love your color combo here - so bright and clean!

Anonymous said...

Very beautiful card! Love the colors!! The embossing is a perfect touch!!

Jessica

Jill said...

Very, very pretty, Cathy! Asian Fusion is a great set for this technique, and everything is lovely! Gorgeous blue!

Marge said...

GORGEOUS and love all your texture!

Erin (Homemade Cards by Erin) said...

Love all the texture.

Lindsay said...

Love this Cathy! Asian fusion is such a great set and then to do the french knots adds so much! So glad you played along with us at Card Patterns too!

Teresa said...

Love the fresh, clean feel to this card.Those french knots are just perfect to use with Asian Fusion!Beautiful!

Mary Duffek said...

Love all the texture...the little french knots...perfect touch.

Diane Jaquay said...

Cathy, this is fabulous! Love the French knots, great take on the challenge!

Renee said...

Love it!
It looks fantastic...
the french knots are perfect.
I may have to learn.
And I think your idea with the impression plates is amazing...
going to Michael's tomorrow!

Nadine said...

Cathy this is simply GORGEOUS! The color combo is eye-catching and the paper piecing too clever. Also liked how you used your cake decorating tool for your cardmaking, lol!!

Michelle (abzzymom) said...

Very pretty, Cathy! You did a great job with the french knots. You're so smart to use a cake impression plate! Thinking like a true crafter!

Jen Carter said...

Fabulous job!! Love your knots and the impression you got (need to check out that aisle now!!). I also love you how paper pieced the vase too!

Wendy ten Hove said...

So pretty! Love the way you made those accents! Very original!

Amy Kolling said...

Love your french knots! They are so much fun to do! Love the larger size of card and the one word card.....it's perfect for "mom"! Yes, and thanks for the tip on the impression plates at Michael's! :)

LittleSurferGirl said...

SO pretty, Cathy! I absolutely LOVE it! Gonna have to start looking at that cake decorating aisle! The French knots fit perfectly with that image.

Joyce said...

This card is absolutely gorgeous and unique. I love the colors you chose. I would not have thought to use those colors with this set, but they look great.

Monica K. said...

Cathy, this is stunning! I love the colors you chose and the french knots look great. I've never tried that before and it looks really cool! Love the paper piecing of the vase too. Lovely card!

Linda said...

Nice addition to Asian Fusion. The french knots just make the stems pop.

DF said...

Great knots! I know what you mean about full sized cards - so much space.

Karen C. said...

French knots are perfect as flowers and accents on this set. The turquoise and white combo is so crisp and clean.

beckynoelle said...

so pretty - i never thought about using the cake decorating plates with paper :)

Ally said...

So clever on the French knots! Your card is beautiful, and so well done. ;-) And reminds me that I'd better get going on my Mother's and Father's Day cards!

Terri said...

Very nice. Your french knots look great. Love the embossing too. I bet your mom will love it!

Unknown said...

Love all the white with the blue, so soothing and pretty! Great job!

Suzanne said...

Wow, Cathy! Do you know what I love about this? How you used two colors and came up with such a fab design...the whole thing is amazing. I wish I could do just 2 colors, but I don't know how. Beautiful card!

Allison Rankin said...

What a fun take on the challenge!

Carol's Ink Spot said...

Love your card! Great paper piecing and use of adding the little touches of embroidery.

Unknown said...

Cathy this is beautiful. I love the french knot details. I've been meaning to try them, but just have't gotten around to it yet. Maybe this will be the push I need.

Susan said...

Cathy the french knots are very original!! What a great idea to use them with that image. And so gorgeous!! It's a wonderful Mother's day card. I've always wondered if the fondant plates would work on cardstock. So glad you tried it. It looks great!!

Anonymous said...

Lovely! The colors and stamps, not to mention the french knots are fabulous on the gigantic ;) card. Really beautiful. Oh! and great tip on the impression plates.

Lori said...

So pretty! The french knots look great with this image.

Jessy said...

such a pretty card, great color choice, it just POPS. love the knots and love the paper piecing on the vase too. super job. :-)

Kristii said...

Absolutely beautiful!! I love the knots and the colors are beautiful!!

Sarah Souza said...

This is gorgeous! I'm going to have to pull out my Asian Fusion set again!

Helen F. said...

Cathy this is so beautiful! Love your French Knots and the impression plate from Michael's idea! I'm headed there tomorrow and will take a look---thanks for enabling ;o!

nancy said...

These colors are so fresh and work great with your card. Thanks for the tip on the fondant impression plates. I've often wondered how they would work. Enjoy your weekend.

~amy~ said...

Your card is wonderful! Thanks for joining us at Card Patterns!

Babies-Beth said...

Large or not, it's beautiful! Really graphic!

C said...

Beautiful!! Great idea to use the fondant plates..thud! Who'da thunk it? Your knots are great...looks like you used all 6 strands on yours...I only used three but I love the fuller look.

Laura Isham said...

Really beautiful card, Cathy. I love how graphic it is. I really need to learn how to do a French knot. There has been so many great projects using the technique!

Huguenot Girl said...

Love how you have used the French Knots on the Asian Fusion flowers! A gorgeous card!

Unknown said...

Great card.. THANK YOU for sharing.. Please come and visit my blog too!!

Jessica Lynn
http://jessicalynnoriginal.blogspot.com/

Jen Adcock said...

How wonderfully crafty are you? This card is nothing short of amazing! I mean really, the fondant impression plate and the spiffy French knots? You are the mega talented, queen of innovation, Cathy. Wowowowow! I am so impressed!