A "GQ" Father's Day

Between an overnight field trip with my 5th Grade GT Students and an overnight trip to help my daughter pack-up her college dorm room, I was on the road for 4 days.  It was exhausting!  However, I was able to visit a couple of my favorite art stores during the weekend.  We don't have any art stores in Del Rio, so it was a real treat.  Since the stores were in a college town, I was able to get some great end of the school year deals.  It was so much fun!  Sadly, I was not able to use any of my finds in the card I made today.

The Play Date Cafe's Challenge PDCC130 features a soft color blend by Donna Bowman, which includes a grey, a pink, and a blue-grey shade.  The first thing I thought of was Christian Dior, because he loved pink and grey.  Then, when I was watching the news, I noticed a newscaster wearing an interesting patterned necktie.  That was it!  Since Stampendous Impressions' May Challenge is to make a gift type project, I decided to make a card with an inner-pocket for my Father-in-law using the PDCC color blend.

I began by making an origami tie from a sheet of paper with a gray print.  It's basically a kite base with a few extra folds to form the upper knot and side folds to narrow it down.  There are various patterns and videos on-line.  For the shirt, I used a white note card base.  I measured an inch down from the top and lightly drew a line with a pencil.  Then, I made about an inch cut on each side on the pencil line.  I cut the inch spine and trimmed the rest of the inch strip off the top of the back panel.  I folded the tabs that were formed down to simulate a shirt collar.  Using a grey Prismacolor pencil and a quilters ruler, I drew the pinstripe pattern on my shirt front and collar.  I added some stitching lines to the collar for added interest and some blue shading in the inner section.  I glued down my tie and collar.  Next, I made a tie-tack with a pink button and a half pearl.  I also made a miniature gift tag with a piece of kraft card stock and a scrap of thread.   I wrote the word "Dad" using a blue-grey calligraphy pen.  I outlined and dotted the tag with a pink line marker.

My next step was to work on the inside of the card.  I used the left over paper from the tie to make a pocket using a Paper Pizazz Susan's Office Envelopes template.  I attached it to the left panel.  Next, I folded a 5"x7" piece of kraft paper into 3 panels and cut the upper corners to simulate the miniature tag in the front.  I glued a piece of twine to it and outlined it in pink.  (I'll have my two daughters and wife use a panel each to write their own personal greetings.  I'll also use the pocket to include a gift card.)  On the right panel, I wrote "Happy Father's Day" using the same blue-grey calligraphy pen and dotted the letters with the pink.  I also drew lines and dots around the perimeter of the back panel.

Hopefully my father-in-law will enjoy this card as much as I did making it.  Art is so relaxing to me!  I love to read your comments, so please let me know what you think.  I'd also love to increase my number of followers, so don't be shy.  Blessings!