ETA--Thanks to Virginia, I know who inspired this card: Cristina Kowalczyk. You can see a pic of her card and my first CASE of it on this post.
I'm borrowing it again because it's both fun and brilliant.
And now for the question, which was posed by curious reader Diana in yesterday's comments. She asked,
"Besides the cards you post, are all of your cards CAS?"
The short answer is yes. All the cards I make are CAS, at least for the past five or six years. If you go wayyyyy back on my SCS gallery, you might find some layered/embellished cards and even cards with *gasp* designer paper. Shocking, I know.
But I do make the occasional less-CAS cards that don't get posted here for several reasons. Either I'm just not happy with them (generally the case), or I've deliberately made them in another style to please a particular recipient.
The cards that make me happiest--and that I want to share here--are the ones that answer the following question with a yes: Do you, my dear, handmade card, contain just the minimum needed to convey your message interestingly?
Minimalism is my bag, baby.
Having said that, however, I want to make absolutely clear that my minimalist fanaticism is not--and should not be--for everyone. I am passionate about making minimalist cards, but it should be obvious by now I get inspiration from all sorts of styles. My purpose in celebrating my style is to inspire others to find their own style and wallow joyfully in it...whatever it might be. There's also nothing at all wrong with having no style whatsoever. Some people don't want to limit themselves to one sort of look and play around with all kinds of styles. I think this is wonderful!
Whatever makes you happy in this hobby, do it. That's what I do.
And if you'd like to read something else about stamping that I agree with completely, click over to Joan B's blog I Make I Talk and read what she has to say about competition in stamping. Dang, I love that woman.
Your card is SO lovely, Susan. If I recall correctly, I believe that you were inspired by Cristina from an earlier publication. You've got a CAS style all of your own and it's FABULOUS, if I dare say so :)
ReplyDeleteYep to Joan's post ... perfectly put. Coming to see your fabulous CAS cards and reading your wise and entertaining words, Susan ... just a couple of the things I'm happy about doing in this hobby ... thank you. Super card ... the coloured in spaces and bling a-plenty give it a playful feel! Anita :)
ReplyDeleteSuper pretty card. You can pull of CAS like nobody's business. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link to I Make I Talk - great posts on competition and getting rid of stuff - which I've been doing recently.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link to Joan B's blog.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing Joan's post. I know many people who should read it and take it to heart but won't. Love your CAS blingy birthday card. That's an extra fun one. One of these days I'll make a Susan-inspired CAS card and send it to my friends to see which one asks me if I'm alright first.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Susan. I really appreciate that you take the time to respond to our questions. Just one more reason that your blog is one of my top ten to read, enjoy and learn more about cardmaking. ;-)
ReplyDeleteAnd thank you for the link to Joan's blog post with a great message.
DeleteThat is such a happy "happy birthday" card - I love the joy it exudes!
ReplyDeleteAnd I love what you said about our card-making styles. I really tried hard to make my cards extremely CAS and worked on one layer cards for awhile but realized they were not me. Now I do cards with a layer or two, and sometimes even experiment with messy stuff like Distress inks and stains - and I'm much happier and enjoying the craft much more. And slowly realizing that I don't have just one style and it's okay to play with different ones! But I still get great inspiration from you!
WHAT?! I did not know Joan was back! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for sharing your "you-ness" with the world. Your style is not exactly "me", but still oh-so inspiring!