Ninja Thanks!

Hello, crafters!

I have a bright, bold, cute and quick ninja thank you card for you today. I have a friend who loves all things Japanese and I needed a last minute thank you card.

I used a Lawn Fawn Stitched Rectangle die to cut out a piece of Chilli Pepper card stock and mounted this to an A2 top folding white card base. I then used a Lawn Fawn Stitched Circle die to cut a peep hole from the centre of the card. I had to use my t-ruler to make sure I lined this one up correctly!

On another piece of white cardstock, I stamped out a couple of these cute little guys (or girls!) with some shuriken from the Mama Elephant Tiny Ninjas set and cut them out with the coordinating dies. I used a couple of alcohol markers to add some colour to their faces and their sashes. I arranged them on the inside of the peep hole in the classic 'I'm running at you!' pose so popular in manga and anime so it looked as though they were ready to burst out of the card.

I stamped both the thank you sentiments from the set, black for the English on the inside of the card and white heat embossing the Japanese kanji on the front of the card.

Perfect for a friend who loves all things Japanese!

Thanks for reading, catch you next week.

Tallie

  

Ninja Stars

Hello, Gemma here and today I have a fun ninja card to share.

I started by working on the background. I die cut an MFT Stitched Mod Rectangle , then die cut three MFT stitched peekaboo star windows from the rectangle. This die leaves a nice stitched outline on the negative space. There are also MFT Mod Rectangles available without stitched lines.

I blended colour on to each star with distress oxide inks (cracked pistachio, peacock feathers, and twisted citron), then adhered the panel onto a card base and inlaid the stars back in the spaces.

Next, I stamped three of the Mama Elephant Tiny Ninjas and coloured them with alcohol markers. I love the sketchy style of these stamps and they don’t take long to colour. I die cut them with the coordinating dies, then added them to the card with foam tape.

Finally, I die cut a sentiment for the top of the card, and added some matching enamel dots.

Thanks for joining me today,

Gemma

Ninja Off the Edge Die Cutting

I was inspired by a recent video that I saw by Jennifer McGuire, where she used selective die cutting to create a fun top edge to a card.

I love to find additional ways to use coordinating dies, so I thought I'd try making my own version with the tiny ninjas.

My usual card base size is A6 so I began by cutting a piece of white card at A5 size (148 x 210 mm). Along the shortest edge, I drew a faint pencil line down the card at the mid point (105 mm) I positioned four dies so that the bottom edge of the dies were below the pencil line.

When running it through my die cutting machine, I placed the top cutting plate so it lined up with the pencil line. It then cuts only the portion of the dies above the pencil line.

Using a craft knife, I cut away the rest of the card above the line. I then erased the pencil marks.

I stamped the ninja images on the die cut shapes, then coloured them with alcohol markers. I masked the images, then blended on some distress oxide inks and flicked it with water droplets.

I cut down a landscape top folding A6 card base, so that once the die cut piece was added to the top, it still fits into a C6 envelope.

Before adding the top panel, I trimmed the panel down a little more so that I could add some black and white patterned paper to the bottom edge. Once I'd adhered the die cut piece to the card base, I added a birthday sentiment to finish the card. 

I recommend watching the video by Jennifer McGuire to see this technique in action. It's easy to do and is a great effect on a card. It’ll work with any stamps and coordinating dies too. I made a similar card with the MFT Monster Sized stamps and dies, and I'll definitely be making more cards like this as I love the technique.

Thanks for joining me today,

Gemma

Mama Elephant Tiny Ninjas Stamps

Mama Elephant Tiny Ninja Creative Cuts

Ninjas in the City

Hello, Gemma here and I thought it would be fun to make a card featuring ninjas sneaking around a city at night.

I started with the background, blending ink on white card to make a sunset sky.

From black card, I cut the MFT Skyline, adding it over the top of the background. I cut a frame using MFT Blueprints 27 from dark blue card, then added them to an A2 white notecard. The Blueprints 27 die set is out of stock currently but I've found some great alternatives, which I've linked below.

I stamped two of the Mama Elephant Tiny Ninjas, adding colour with alcohol markers and wink of Stella glitter.

I cut a MFT Stitched Sentiment strip from the same dark blue cardstock, and white heat embossed a greeting from the ninja stamp set. I added the sentiment tag onto the card, then the ninjas with some foam adhesive.

I really enjoyed putting this card together and creating a scene for these Tiny Ninjas. Hope you like it.

Have a lovely day,
Gemma

ME Tiny Ninjas

MFT Blueprints 27

MFT Skyline

MFT Stitched Sentiment Strips

Alternative

Alternative

Spinning Ninja

I was so excited to finally get the Mama Elephant Tiny Ninjas stamp set and the matching dies, which I've had my eye on since it was announced in September. I think it's such a fun and unique set, and great for lots of occasions.

There are two stamps in the set that mirror each other, perfect for a spinner card. I stamped both of these ninjas, coloured them with copic markers, then die cut them with the matching dies. I don't always get the matching dies for stamp sets but I think they are worth having with this set, especially when creating a spinner card as they cut the mirror images to line up perfectly.

I die cut a rectangle frame, attaching it to an A2 card base. I placed the inner rectangle piece in place on the card (but not stuck down) and ran them through my die cutting machine together with a circle die. This will cut the circle in both the card base and the rectangle so they match up exactly when you put the card together.  I'll link to the circle dies I used, but really any circle dies will work for this.

I blended distress inks on to the rectangle to create a night sky, then flicked it with a perfect pearls mix to create some starry patterns.  

To create the spinner element, I used a strand of metallic gold thread stuck between the two ninjas. I added lots of strong adhesive to the card base, before placing the ninjas on the card. I made sure to pull the thread taut and press it down into the adhesive so it stuck really well. I added more adhesive to the distress inked rectangle, then stuck this down over the top. 

Next, I die cut a larger circle than the aperture. I wanted it to be larger so there would be less white showing when viewing the card at different angles. I blended on some yellow distress ink to create a glowing moon, then stuck this onto the inside of the card to show through behind the ninja.

I chose a sentiment from the same set, and white heat embossed it onto black card. I cut it into a banner and attached to the card.

Finally, I added some ninja stars coloured with the Wink of Stella gold glitter pen, and a couple of glitter hearts.

I think this is one of my favourite cards I've made recently. I love the ninja and I'm so pleased with how he spins!

If you haven't tried making a spinner card before, I'd really recommend having a go. 

They are great fun and sure to be well received.

Have a lovely day,

Gemma

Mama Elephant Tiny Ninjas

MFT Single Stitched Rectangle Frames

Lawn Fawn Circle Frames

Yes Please Enamel Shapes

Lawn Fawn Everyday Sentiment Banners

Wink of Stella Gold Glitter Pen