ATCs - Flying

 I haven't posted many ATCs (Artist Trading Cards) lately.  The groups that I was in with a regular monthly commitment ended, however, I still participate in a group where the members sign up on a month to month basis depending on the theme and their schedules.   The theme for June was "Flying" and all sorts of ideas popped into my head when I first heard the theme.

The idea that wouldn't go away was based on the song "Let's Go Fly a Kite" from the movie version of Mary Poppins.  When I was in grade school, I got a "record player" for my birthday (long before mp3s were ever heard of!).  The record album that came with it was the soundtrack from Mary Poppins and I played it over and over again.    I remembered the kite on the "Imagine More" cartridge that came with the Imagine machine and decided that it would be perfect for my cards.

I took this photo of the sky one day when it was particularly beautiful and I have used it as my desktop image on my computer for quite a while now.  So I had the perfect background ready for my kite to fly.

I brought the photo into my Creative Memories StoryBook Creator Plus 3.0 software and dropped it into a photo frame set up at 3 1/4 x 2 1/4 inches.  ATCs are 3 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches and I wanted to layer my image on a background of cardstock.  Then I added the text, using the "Freestyle Script" font.  I put the "Let's Go" at the top and placed the words "fly a kite" on a text path that I drew, repeating the phrase twice.  The words are white to fit in with the clouds in the sky.

I grouped the text and photo and copied and pasted to create a full 8 1/2 x 11 page with nine copies of the top layer for my ATCs.  I printed this on my home printer on matte photo paper and cut up the layers.

Next I printed and cut some kites with the Imagine on textured American Crafts white cardstock (this cardstock works very well in the Imagine).  There is still some "creep" when I print and cut with my Imagine.  Items that are at the top left of the mat print and cut almost perfectly aligned but as you get further to the right and lower on the page the alignment is off.  I think I have to do some more work on the advanced calibration.  In this case, the kites were small enough that they did not print too far down the page so the difference in alignment, while noticeable, was not bad enough to cause a problem for my little cards.

I used the custom setting to eliminate the extra border around the image and here you can see the detailed cut around the kite's tail.  I used my bone folder to help lift it from the mat without tearing.

I used a light green cardstock that coordinated with the color in the kite as the card base (cut at 3 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches).  It looked a bit too plain so I added an additional layer in bright yellow/gold cardstock cut at 3 3/8 x 2 3/8 inches to add a fine line of color and create a frame for the sky.

A couple of foam dots allow the kites to "fly" in the sky.

I let the thin tail just drift over the words.  A little orange gem sticker adds a bit of sparkle in the center of the kite.

The group was small this month so I only needed to make seven cards.  I always print a few extra images to allow for errors in cutting or assembling and I may use the extra pieces on other projects.

ATCs are supposed to be limited editions and are signed and numbered on the back - since the group was small this month I simply hand wrote all of the information (sometimes I create the backs digitally as well - particularly for a larger group).

I hope you have a wonderful weekend - maybe you'll have a chance to fly a kite!

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