Hello There. . .Seems I Missed Your Birthday!

I must say this traveling does not help me keep up on getting my cards finished and mailed in a timely manner.  Come to think of it, this seems to happen to me now and then, even when I'm not traveling. . .so, guess that excuse doesn't really work too well! 

The card I am in need of is for the principal of the school where I worked before I retired, and my former boss, who has a late May birthday.  I really like to make him a card and get it to him on time to show him that I'm not a total reprobate now that I'm retired.  But, ho-hum, that's not the case this year.  

With the attitude "better late than never, I dove into my "To Do stash" that I brought along with me on my travels to try to get some work done in my spare time.  Surely, there would be the perfect "need to finish" masculine card for me to work on hidden away in the stash.  I found this wonderful Open Seas ship card that was partially made with pieces of paper in its envelope for completion.  The ship and its port hole where already finished, as well as the self-stamped patterned paper made with The Open Seas stamps.  

To finish the card, I, of course, could not seem to follow directions exactly, a problem that seems to plague me frequently.  So, my card is just a bit different than the original by Liz Thayer in that I changed the card base color to a darker gray and made it a belated birthday card rather than just a "hello" card, and I added copper porthole brads all around.  Liz's original card was featured in one of her card classes I took over two years ago!  I am super pleased to say that I have another card finished and out of my "To Do Stash," and I think it is perfect for Scott.

Next up, was finishing my nautical masculine card with an appropriate interior design to compliment the card front.  I wanted my "Hello There" greeting on the front to be the intro into missing Scott's birthday by a few days and sending him belated birthday wishes to exonerate my seemingly reprobate behavior. . .LOL.  

Recipe:  Stampin' Up products:  Cardstocks--Basic Gray (cardbase), Bermuda Bay, Very Vanilla, Smokey Slate (porthole).  Pattern paper--self-stamped using The Open Seas stamps w/Crumb Cake).  SU stamps:  The Open Sea (all things nautical-retired 2016); Happy Days (sentiment-retired 2014).   Ink--Crumb Cake.  Die--Deco Label Framelit.  Punch:  2-1/2" Circle.  Essentials Paper Piercing Pack (porthole circle).  Acrylic Clear Sheet.  Staz-on Black Ink (ship).  Memento Tuxedo black (sentiment).  Other:  EK Punch:  Victorian Corners.  Recollections mini copper brads.  Computer verse.  Size:  4-1/2" x 5-3/4".