Autumn Shaker Card

It's October and at Die Cut Diva's the challenge this month is Halloween or Autumn; and to top it off, the lovely Dies R Us is sponsoring us and giving away a $10 voucher!

I've made quite a few shakers cards and I have to admit, this is one of my very favorites.  The entire card was easy, there were no mistakes or mess ups, and I am so happy with how the front of the card looks.  To me, this card has all the elements of a fabulous card; it's a long tutorial, so you may want to go to the bathroom and grab a drink, maybe even a snack. :)  Without further ado, here is my card and how I made it:

What I Used to Make my Card
White Card Base
Handmade Alcohol Ink Paper
Tutti Designs Maple Vine Frame, #TUTTI-139
Light Gold Paper
Craft Foam Board {Dollar Tree or local dollar store} Called Readi-Board
Tutti Designs Stitched Nested Rectangles, #TUTTI-217
Embossing Powder - Not So Rusted Penny by the Powder Keg (bought by PK                                    Glitz, then purchased by Stamp On It!)
Hero Arts My Monthly Hero Kit, September, 2018, sentiment
Simon Says Stamp Embossing/Watermark Pad
Sequins
Acetate {you can use packaging, projector sheets, or the stuff they sell especially for shaker cards}
Red Double Stick Tape

I began this card by making the alcohol ink paper first.  I used glossy paper and various alcohol inks, some from Ranger, some from Jacquard  {specifically the Piñata Colors} and some very old Pantone inks, which are the refills for the Letraset Tria markers {which are now known as ProMarker, and has been

purchased by Winsor & Newton.}  I did not keep track of the colors I used; I just chose the ones that looked the most like fall and autumn colors to me.  I did, however, make the marks I made with the inks purposely small.  I didn't want the die to cut out a hunk of one color and none of the other.  Another item I used was the Gold Mixative by Tim Holtz and Ranger.  A little dab of that goes a long way and it gave the paper a golden sheen, if the light catches it correctly.  I made a bunch of backgrounds while playing with my inks, as I typically do, and I'm going to be trying the Alcohol Lift Ink soon to see if it works with glossy paper as well as it does when it's used with YUPO paper.  I do have a small bit of YUPO but I always forget about it when I'm playing with my alcohol inks.  OK, enough about the inks, let's carry on! 

Once the paper I'd made was fully dry, I used the Maple Vine Frame to cut out some of the paper.  I was SO tickled that it came out as beautifully as it did and I really feel the key was using small dabs of the ink.  Once I had the frame cut, I put it aside.  I adhered the light gold paper to my craft foam board, figured out which rectangle die fit it the best and, once the glue was dry, proceeded to cut a gold frame.  I had tried to make the frame by cutting the craft foam, then cutting the paper, and then tried to match it up.  Even though I taped my dies together, I could NOT get the two pieces to play nicely.  That's why I glued the paper onto the craft foam board.  The Maple Vine cut out is attached to this frame so I have the walls for the shaker.  I glued the acetate to the top of the gold frame and attached the Maple Vine to that.  I set that aside, under the tile on my desk, for overnight to ensure there was a good solid connection - I know acetate can be stubborn when you use a wet adhesive.

The Readi Board Label

The next day I took a white card base and added the sentiment, which I embossed with a fabulous powder called Not So Rusted Penny.  It's a perfect fall color; bits of brown, rust, and flecks of gold; the pictures do not do it justice!  Once the sentiment was done and cooled, I got the bright idea to use double stick red tape to put the frame onto the card.  I pinched a bunch of sequins and piled them on top of the sentiment; attached the red tape to my frame, managed to get it as straight as I could, and attached it.  It was all fine and dandy, but I had forgotten that some of the tape would be sticking out, where it didn't quite have the frame cover it all.  So, with my first shake a billion sequins got stuck on the tape.  Fortunately, there were {and are} still some loose sequins so the card can be shaken, but I can tell you I won't be making THAT mistake again.

All in all, I am very proud of the card.  When I look at the alcohol ink paper I

Here is a sparkly pictuer

made, and then at the frame, it's hard to believe that the paper made that frame!  This is one of the first times I've been happy with an alcohol ink background the first try.  I usually mess up the colors and they don't cut as nicely as I see it in my head, but this was successful!  Of course, having all the sequins bobbing about in the card would have been nice, but that's the charm of handmade, right?!?  Yes, I say that a lot.  It makes me feel better.  Well, I hope you enjoyed my tutorial.  You can see more examples of my shaker cards here and here.  I've used both craft foam and craft board and I can't see a difference in the final outcome of the card; the foam board is much cheaper, so I'll be sticking with that for a while.  I'd love to see your Halloween or Autumn makes in the challenge; just link up here at Die Cut Diva's! And don't forget, our sponsor, Dies R Us carries SO much more than just dies! Take good care and thank you for stopping by! Fondly, Christi

I am entering my card in the following challenges:
Die Cuttin' Divas - #390, 3D projects
Papercraft Challenges - M, #22, Dies and/or Punches
{PIN}spirational - #226, Photo Inspiration (see below)

Unicorn Challenge - M, #37, Autumn or Halloween
Addicted to Stamps - M, #167, Autumnal Colors
Creative Friday - #215, Shaker Card
Simply Create Too - M, #143, Make a Shaker Card
Moving Along with the Times - M, #81, Autumn/Fall
DL Art - Thankful Thursday - #236, Fall Colors

{PIN}spirational