Hello everyone and welcome back!

So, here is a little update on my Altenew Educator Certification Program, or commonly known as AECP; I have successfully completed all the classes in Level 2 and in order to move to the final Level 3, I need to complete a final challenge.

This final challenge is truly fun, but I do have to brain storm a bit… The final challenge has two parts. First part requiters four masculine cards, and the second part requires me to take something old and turn it to something new, to give it a new purpose, a new life. The latter I find truly creative and inspiring and a big challenge. I have about a month to prepare, but the time is ticking, so I have to get cracking pretty soon!

All ideas are truly welcome! Please HELP! :)

Aside for brainstorming, I have a request for two, completely different graduation cards. Both of these cards have some cool techniques that I have done, or learned in the Altenew Educator Program.

Card #1

For this design I deiced to use gilding flakes by Nuvo, white acrylic paint, distress oxide inks and Fine Alphabet Dies by Altenew. I first started by creating my pattern paper for my letters. For this I used Kitsch Flamingo Distress Oxide ink and just simply applied it on the paper. I then applied white acrylic paint and added gold gilding flakes before the paint dried. I then did some die cutting. I also die cut letters 3x using plain white card stock. This is a great way to use up your scraps and give more dimension to your cuts. I then glued everything together and painted the sides of the letters with gold metallic watercolors from Altenew. Then it was time to create a background. This you will probably recognize. My inspiration was one of Altenew classes, as a matter of fact it was my favorite class called With a Twist, and this pink and orange color combinations have become one of my absolute favorites! I just love the vibrancy and liveliness of this color combo! To create this I used Distress Oxide inks. These inks are great for blending and create seamless blending. Then, it was time to glue the letters to the panel. To ensure that my letters are all straight and evenly spaced, I used a laser board by We R Memory Keepers. I then attached the panel to the card base and applied Glossy Accents to the letters for more interest and extra shine. I then let everything dry for 24 hrs and embellished the card with gold half domes.

Next card might come to you as too complicated, but, trust me, it was a very quick and easy to complete. This idea also came from one of the Altenew classes I took and it’s called All About Layering 5 with Lydia Evans.

For this card I used a Lavender Build a Flower Stamp Set by Altenew and I chose a different color scheme. I wanted for this card to be more subtle in colors, since the card itself is a show stopper. I first started with cutting two panels at an angle, I used a paper trimmer to determine the size and angle and then scored it at 5″ and 10″ mark on a scoring board. I want to mention that the size of this card is 5×7 and that is the reason why I scored at 5″ and 10″ mark. I then made a “Z” fold and attached both panels together. I then trim off the access and my card base was done. I then used scrap paper and made a bunch of die cuts. When it comes to this particular stamp set, since the top and the bottom of the flower are separate, it is much better to do the cutting first and then align the stamp that way. I also cut a template that I like to keep with my stamp set and use in the future. You simply put a template in you stamping tool, pop in your die cut in the template and stamp. Super easy technique that insures that all the die cuts will have a properly aligned image. After I was done with my stamping, I attached the cuts to the card base, added a sentiment and embellished the front with small gold jewels. I then cut off all the excess with scissors and the card was done!

I am so happy with both of these designs, and I hope that these cards match the personalities of the recipients.

What do you think?

Please leave a comment below and if you have any ideas for my challenge, please let me know… I do need ideas and fast!