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Birthday Cupcakes

June 21, 2014

We invited our friend and frequent guest designer Judi Kauffman to create today’s project. As always, her card is colorful, fun, and easy. And as always, she sent detailed instructions so you can make the project your own!

I’m glad to be back, Joset. I love cupcakes – the real ones with icing as well as Elizabeth Craft Designs’ Peel-offs. They’re almost as much fun and zero calories! I can never decide between chocolate and vanilla so I included three of each on this 11” wide Birthday Cupcakes card.

Instructions:

1. Place peel-offs onto white cardstock. Color with your favorite markers (flat color, no blending needed).

2. Using black and white pens, doodle dots and short lines to add extra details and contrast.

3. Cut out the cupcakes, staying close to the outlines.

4. Cut red cardstock to 6” x 11”. Score lengthwise, fold in half to make a 3” x 11” top-fold card base.

5. Arrange the cupcakes so they “dance” across the card. Four of the cupcakes extend above the fold. Adhere so that the cupcakes vary between chocolate and vanilla, using foam dots for added dimension. Tip: Instead of alternating, start with two chocolate and one vanilla, and end with one chocolate and two vanilla cupcakes.

6. Add Happy Birthday Peel-offs in the order shown on the card. “Happy Birthday” is beneath the two cupcakes at the center of the card. Place the word “Birthday” at the far left, the word “Happy” at the far right. *Design Strategy/Tip: There is a strong visual pull toward the center of the card because the two cupcakes at the center are side by side and positioned high within the space while two others are lower and to the left and right of the words. This means that your eye will naturally gravitate toward the spot where “Happy Birthday” is positioned. The four cupcakes surrounding the words form a frame.

Options:

*I used all six cupcakes on the sheet of Peel-offs, but shorter cards (4” wide) with only one or two cupcakes would work well, too. One sheet of 12” x 12” cardstock will yield six 4” wide cards. Cut into six 4” x 6” pieces. Score each one lengthwise and fold for six 3” high x 4” wide top-fold cards.

*I chose a mix of bright colors, no two cupcakes are alike, but they are unified by the dusky pink, chocolate brown, red and yellow that repeat on several of them. Stick to a pastel palette, use school colors, or whatever you want!

*There are extras on the Peel-offs sheet (a cherry, butterfly, candles, bow, hearts and flowers) that were not used on the card front. Save them for another project or use them for the inside of the card or the envelope.

SUPPLIES:

Elizabeth Craft Designs –

0379 Cupcakes Peel-offs in Black

390 Happy Birthday Peel-offs in Black

Letraset – ProMarkers

Sakura of America –

Pigma Micron 05 in Black

Gelly Roll Medium in White

Other – Foam dots, red cardstock, fine point scissors, paper trimmer, scoring board

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  • Bibi Lindahl June 23, 2014 at 11:30 pm

    What a sweet card! Interesting with the positioning of the center cupcakes – my eyes were indeed gravitating to that spot!

  • Mary Prasad June 22, 2014 at 5:37 pm

    Such a fun and colorful card! Nice!

  • dyeandpigment55 June 22, 2014 at 3:17 pm

    Great card and very creative use of the peel offs.

  • Frances June 21, 2014 at 5:22 pm

    love how the cupcakes are above the fold line on this card

    • Judi Kauffman June 21, 2014 at 8:23 pm

      Thank you! I had considered cutting a side view plate where they’d be lined up, but I liked them dancing around…seemed happier and more like a party.

  • Raquel Mason June 21, 2014 at 4:59 pm

    Love the coloring, especially how you shaded the frosting on the cupcakes and then accented with the doodling. I really have GOT to try doodling with the Peel-Off Stickers. Let’s not forget how clever it was to have a portion of the cupcakes above the card for added interest!

    • Judi Kauffman June 21, 2014 at 8:21 pm

      That kind of doodling is an easy thing for evenings, after all of the rest of the coloring is done. Just black and white pens and a lap desk to work on, and a good light for these old eyes!

  • Denise June 21, 2014 at 4:07 pm

    Judi, your card is bright, colorful and oh so sweet!!! I’ll eat the chocolate ones LOL! The do look good enough to eat! Thanks for sharing.

    • Judi Kauffman June 21, 2014 at 8:19 pm

      I had fun testing different shades of brown for the “cake” – The vanilla ones are colored with a Letraset ProMarker called Vanilla (a nice coincidence), the chocolate ones are Burnt Umber. I did get carried away with the icing and cupcake paper colors, but that’s what made it so much fun.

  • aking42 June 21, 2014 at 3:47 pm

    Pretty, pretty, pretty! As usual, you always provide so much inspiration in addition to the design lessons/techniques! I’m going to try this and send to my grand daughter who loves cupcakes!

    • Judi Kauffman June 21, 2014 at 8:13 pm

      Thank you. I’m glad that the how-to is useful. I hope your granddaughter likes her card. I haven’t heard from our goddaughter yet (the card went out in yesterday’s mail).

  • Karen Aicken June 21, 2014 at 12:27 pm

    I am enjoying your flat colouring and the extra doodles you add. Such a different look for the Peel-Offs.
    Cheers
    Karen

    • Judi Kauffman June 21, 2014 at 2:05 pm

      Thanks, Karen. I sent the card to our goddaughter (also a fan of the cupcakes with icing…).

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