My Founder’s Circle Swap

I’m at my first Founder’s Circle this week.  Last night, I attended the much-talked-about Pajama Party, filled with business chat and a Holiday Catalog card swap.  I don’t always participate in swaps, but I would not bypass this one.  So exciting!

Today, I’m excited to share with you my swap – I made 113 of this card to share with the others who attended (and some who couldn’t come but still wanted to be a part of the swap).  Here’s my card:

Making Spirits Bright, Stampin' Up!, Founder's Circle Swap, Brian King

Tips, Tricks and Reminders

  • Just a Little Askew.  All the action in this card takes place in the right half of the card front – the oval is askew, and the stamped image is in the right side of the oval.  Still, I think, everything is balanced.  Why?  I think it’s because the drink is centered (or almost centered – I made 113 of these) inside the oval.  I really like that everything’s not perfectly centered – the sentiment and drink and color combination all seem to work together with the oval shape to give a retro-modern vibe.
  • Color Combination.  I just love the stark contrast of deep red with pale, aqua blue.  When layers of white are introduced, they work very harmoniously with one another.  The only additional colors are the berries (with a Blendabilities shade of Cherry Cobbler and the holly leaves (Old Olive).  The green stands out without taking away from the feel of the rest of the card.  I certainly couldn’t color the leaves Pool Party.  🙂  If you like this color combination as much as I do, feel free to save this:Color Inspiration, Stampin' Up!, Brian King
  • Blendabilities.  I used my Blendabilities to color in all of the images.  The lightest shade of Coastal Cabana is close (but no cigar).  To create a hue of this aqua blue that closely matches, I colored the liquid in the glass with the lightest shad of Coastal Cabana and then swiped over it with my Color Lifter pen.  It lightly bleached the Coastal Cabana, adding texture and leaving the right color I wanted.  Yippee!Making Spirits Bright, Stampin' Up!, Founder's Circle Swap, Brian King
  • Note to Self (this one’s for me, not you).  If you are planning to make 113 cards ever again, don’t design one with so many layers and so much intricate coloring.  Looks simple, but it’s very time-consuming.  🙂

Stamp Sets:  Making Spirits Bright  Papers:  Cherry Cobbler, Pool Party, Whisper White  Inks:  Tuxedo Black Memento Pad, Blendabilities (Coastal Cabana, Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Color Lifter)  Accessories:  Ovals Collection Framelits, Cherry Cobbler Baker’s Twine, Stampin’ Dimensionals

This picture was meant to show how many cards I made, but this is only a small fraction of the total – still, I love it:

Making Spirits Bright, Stampin' Up!, Founder's Circle Swap, Brian KingThanks for stopping by today!

Brian

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31 Comments

  1. WOW! Brian, that is a lot of cards. It is a beautiful, intricate design to make 113!! That is incredible. I love this color combination and the off-set of the oval. It definitely passes the “squint” test. I hope we get pictures of the Pajama Party. Have a great time!

  2. Wow, congratulations ! I admire your stickability and dedication.
    You have produced a beautiful card.
    Everyday I wake up, I can’t wait to read your next blog.
    You are an inspiration to a very new Stampin up demonstrator.
    Cheers,
    Robin Anne
    Down Under

  3. You are the king of stamping! Best card ever!!

  4. Wow! You have patience of a Saint! The card is wonderful.

  5. Note to Brian: I was thinking the same thing! “He made 113 cards with 7 layers and an image that required coloring?!” LOL. it’s beautiful and I am sure very much appreciated by all attendees.

  6. But of course he made all those layers ,Kelly …. that`s his claim to fame ! Great card and I think that candy cane in that drink is the cutest !
    The first time I got involved with card swapping I made 100 Christmas cards to mail out that were so detailed with so much that it almost ruined my Christmas spirit !
    Can`t wait to see the cards you received in the swap …. BTW …did your jammies match your card in colors ?

  7. Oh my, the picture with all the cards took my breath away!

  8. Oh Brian, what an amazing bunch of beautiful cards. You are right, this must have been a HUGE project but you accomplished it, you finished and I’m sure every one at the convention will love receiving one. Your card design is beautiful, thank you for sharing.

  9. You are NUTS!! Great card!! I’m sure it will be a hit!!

  10. We make what we love, not what’s easy! Great job Brian.

  11. Very cute! I will be casing!! Thanks for the inspiration!

  12. Oh, my! 113? Whew…that’s lots of cards! But, it is an amazing card with a great image and wonderful design! And, love those colors, too!

  13. Great card Brian, everything about it just works so perfectly together. I can tell you’ve fallen in love with the Blendabilities. I love the picture of your swaps it give the impression of even more than 113 cards. Side note, no wonder you ran out of Whisper White.

  14. OMG, where do you find the time!!! What a great inspiration. I will definately be casing this card. Thanks Brian

  15. Love this one, Brian. Making spirits bright is what it’s all about.

  16. Great card and . . . my thought exactly, why so intricate when you have to make so many. That was one of my thoughts in making ONLY 27 for the Unite & Excite! Your card is beautiful, including all the details, and I KNOW everyone will love it too. Kudos to you!
    🙂

  17. I love the card Brian! My first thought was I cannot believe he colored all those with so much detail. I really like the centered off-centeredness.

  18. Nice swap, B! And the “wallpaper” picture is very effective in the “I can’t believe he made that many” department, LOL!
    Congrats again on achieving Founders Circle!

  19. O.K. Brian – I have made a few groups of 20 of the same card when I’m making gifts for my friends. Instead of buying gifts to exchange about 8 years ago I made a box of 12 cards for each of them. I put the cards in a box I made with a package of postal stamps. Since then all I hear is “you are going to make the cards again aren’t you?”! I know how much time it takes to make 20 of the same card so I can’t even imagine how long it took to make 113! When did you ever find the time while keeping up this blog and a Facebook page (almost makes me want to join Facebook) and a full time job? Do you ever sleep?

    The cards are fabulous and they sure as heck didn’t look so “simple” to me. How much twine did you use? You did an amazing job and I’m sure every one of the recipients will appreciate how much work must have been involved. I think everything you go you put 150% of yourself into. I hope you are having a seriously fabulous time.

  20. Hi Brian,
    I made 900 card fronts for convention one year. You can go to kinkos -a copy store and they will cut through 100 sheets of card stock for $1.00. Each linear cut is $1.00 . So for $6-8 you can have all your bases cut and then you can just focus on the ovals,etc. They can even cut 1/4 inch strips. Well worth the money if mass producing . Might also help with prepping for your workshops. Also…I do love this card!

  21. I LOVE this card! I just used this set for my classes last week using the birthday glass – they loved it! I will definitely be case(ing) this card!!!

  22. Oooo, wow , Brian u been bust , love them !!!

  23. That’s a lot of coloring Brian! Hope you are having a great time at Founders Circle.

  24. I can’t believe you made 113 of these!! Must take at least 20 minutes a card….hmm that makes 2260 minutes. Or 38 hours!! Tell me it took you less than 20 minutes? Either way, you’d b a king!

  25. Ok, Brian…you had to have drank many energy drinks to get through all these cards!!! My, but they are gorgeous! Yep…I think I would make mine one-layer for this many! LOL…I don’t have the stamina you do, but you are the KING!
    Hugs!

  26. Great job with this stamp set Brian. You really showcased the festive drink glass in those layered ovals. Brought back memories of the 2012 convention when I made 80 multi layered and fussy cut cards using my favourite stamp set of the time Tea Shoppe. Afterwards I asked myself “what was I thinking!”

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  28. love your card Brian and yes I learned the same lesson when I made swaps for the convention in Utah and GV last year … although I did enlist the help of my two daughters .. one on Big Shot and the other on stamping 😀

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