Summer Mice Dreams

Way back in July 2007 we began our very first House Mouse ATC swap on SplitcoastStampers. Through the next 1 1/2 years we built a core group of talented (and fun!) swappers with new faces joining each round. Our current round, Round 8, is set to swap out on February 9th and consists of over 37 swappers!

Here is my ATC I finally decided on for this round. Good thing I was hosting because inspiration waited until the very last week to strike!

Can you tell I'm suffering a severe case of wintertime blues and am dreaming of warmer days?? Here's a closer view of Mudpie enjoying his summer lemonade:

Stamps: Stampabilities 'Splish, Splash ... a Citrus Bath', Papertrey 'Mailbox Greetings' sentiment. Cardstock: Baja Breeze, GP110 white, Creative Memories pink, K & Co. 'Sweet Berry Kiss' DP, vellum. Ink: Versafine Onyx Black. Accessories: Prismacolor pencils, turpenoid, Crystal Effects, scallop border punch, dotted satin ribbon.

Since the talent level is so high with these House Mouse swaps, I always try to do something beyond the average ATC. In this case, inspiration struck when I was admiring a 3-D drink glass card created by a friend (see this SCS tutorial). I couldn't quite translate it to ATC format, much less figure out how to mail it, so I decided to go with a vellum overlay to simulate a frosty glass. Vellum adhesive has always been a challenge for me because it seems like even the ones advertised specifically for vellum leave tell-tale marks. Crystal Effects is my version of crafting super glue and I thought it would adhere the vellum well; even if it did leave visible adhesion marks they would be just resemble condensation drip trails down the glass. To my surprise, the adhesive points were almost invisible! And the drips came out as real as you can get without actually soaking the card:

Looks like the definition of bliss, doesn't it??

Next week I'll be sure to post the winners of Round 8 House Mouse ATC swap so be sure to stay tuned. And if you'd like to join this fun group of extraordinary swappers, Round 9 hosted by Joanna (Queenbee Jo) is up and running. Not only are there spots for ATCs, but we're also trying out nickelbacks (5 cm x 5 cm) and inchies!