Bouquet Greetings

These cards use the beautiful "A Bunch of Love" Stamps (C1647) and corresponding Thin Cuts metal dies (Z3251) from Close to My Heart.

 Shin Han markers in R11 Carmine (Z2448), R140 Lt Orange (Z2455), YR24 Marigold (Z2457), GY234 Leaf Green (Z2454), G46 Vivid Green (Z2466) and BG61 Peacock Green (Z2461) colored the flowers and leaves.

The May Stamp of the Month "Celebrate With Cake" (retired) provided the sentiment and flowers for the inside of the anniversary card.  Shin Han marker colors used for the flower colors are listed above.

 

Other CTMH supplies:

White cards and envelopes 5 1/2"x 4 1/4" (X254)

Florentine Paper (retired)

Rose Gold Foil Tape (Z3218)

Watercolor Paints (Z3132) and brushes (Z3188)

Medium Round Waterbrush (Z3225)

Black (Z2105), Ruby (Z2170), Peacock (Z2649) and Ponderosa Pine (retired)

Bitty Sparkles (Z1263) 

Sparkle Asst, Brown and Tan (retired)

3D foam dots or squares are used to lift the stamps up from the card front for added interest.

As the card says, thanks a bunch for following along on these projects.  They demonstrate how some little changes can make very similar cards useful for a variety of occasions.  I love the look of these cards because they're so bright - just right for spring and summer, as well as cheerful for autumn and winter - any season.

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know - I love to hear from you!

Blessings,

 

Romans 8:38,39

Happy Anniversary!

This little card just came together from some odds and ends I had lying around after finishing other projects.  Sometimes my penchant for hanging on to things comes in handy.

The fan and card were made with the Cricut Pagoda cartridge.  The flowers were made with the Art Philosophy (Z1686) cartridge.

Additional CTMH supplies:

Inks - Sweet Leaf (Z2153), Lagoon (Z2195)
Bitty Sparkles - (Z1263)
"The Happy Couple" Stamp (D1539)
The other 2 little flowers are retired. 

Sentiment

Now my only other challenge is making a gift box to put this fabulous little card into for the lucky couple!  There's always another project!

Blessings,

1 John 1:5 - 2:2

Remains of the Day, Part 2

Father's Day 2014

Last week I showed you a birthday card and two inspirational cards made with remains of an Ivy Lane project I did for Mother's Day.  Now Father's Day is upon us and here are some more examples of how to use leftover papers and embellishments for great looking cards.

Supplies needed:

Ivy Lane Papers (X7178B)
Colonial White Cards (X1410)
Ink - Chocolate (Z2111)
"Perfect Fit Dad Holiday" Stamp (C1542)
"You've Got A Friend" May 2014 SOTM (retired)
Copic markers Y19 (Napoli Yellow) and B18 (Lapis Lazuli)
3D Foam
Cricut Artiste Cartridge (Z1790) for moustache outline (optional, p. 67; I just cut them freehand)

Hm-m-m-m, how to arrange the papers?

Here are four cards of the same general design (finally, after some lip chewing and arranging papers) with a couple of different sentiments inside for the "fathers" in our family.

Final Look

Perfect Sentiments for Father's Day!

These cards showcase the masculine prints in "Ivy Lane" papers.  Please use these ideas to generate your creativity and imagination.  Blessings, Adrienne  Romans 8: 38-39

Remains of the Day

A few posts back I showed you a great card box with five inspirational cards.  Well, like most projects, after making 4 of those, I ended up with a lot of leftover paper odds and ends.  I don't know about you, but I just go nuts trying to figure out what to do with all that paper!!  The Ivy Lane papers are so beautiful, it was easy to come up with some more cards.

Supplies needed for  "Light" Cards:

Ivy Lane Papers (X7178B)
Ivy Lane Complements (X7178C)
Colonial White Cards (X1410)
"Illuminate" November 2013 SOTM (retired)
Ink - Pansy Purple (retired - may use Smokey Plum Z2147 instead)
Bohemian Assortment (lace and brass button - collection retired, other embellishment will work)
Bitty Sparkles (Z1263)
Copic markers Y38 (Honey) and Y21 (Buttercup)
3D Foam

All of the cuts are made by hand or using a simple paper cutter.

Two finished cards

Inside sentiment

 Additional or Alternate Supplies needed for Birthday Card:

Art Philosophy "Happy Birthday" Stamp (Z1686) included in collection
"You've Got A Friend" May 2014 SOTM (retired)
Ink - Sweet Leaf (Z2153)
Bohemian Assortment (green button - collection retired, other embellishment will work)
Copic marker Y06 (Yellow)
CM Corner Rounder (OK, it didn't come out exactly right)

Finished Birthday Card

Inside sentiment for my husband!

This card  demonstrates the use of more masculine-looking papers in the Ivy Lane collection.

Most of you have "stashes" (do we use this term in papercrafting like we do in knitting for squirreling away yarn?) of papers and accessories you can use to create equally nice projects from "leftovers".  "Use it up, wear it out, make it do" is a phrase I was raised on and now live by.  Please use these ideas to generate your creativity and imagination.  Blessings, Adrienne  Matthew 7:7 

Easter Fun

While this is a bit late for THIS year's Easter celebration, these ideas will still work in years to come.

Supplies used:

Lollydoodle Cardmaking Workshop On The Go (G1080)
"Be Still" Stamp (A1141)
"Faith, Hope, Love, Peace, Joy" Stamps (retired)
White Daisy (1385) and Colonial White (1388) Cardstock
K&H Embellishments
Sure Cuts A-Lot (SCAL) Computer program

The Lollydoodle cardmaking kit comes with a nice set of stamps.  By using some of them, combined with more "Easter-oriented" theme stamps, I was able to use some of the Lollydoodle cards for Easter.

Cardmaking kit in progress

Finished card with Easter sentiment

Finished card using Lollydoodle kit stamps

Inside of card for Easter

For the grandchildren, I used the  SCAL program to create bunnies and words for the bunny cards.

Screen View

Computer connects to Cricut machine, just like Cricut programs

The SCAL program only works with older Cricut machines.  This is the first time I've used it and I was very pleased with the results.  The program is intuitive, very similar to using a Gypsy or one of the other Cricut proprietary software programs.

Bunny before "bling"

Dressed up in style for my grandloves!

Finished Bunny cards used K&H embellishments and retired CTMH stamping on the inside.

The finished Lollydoodle cards have 3 variations.  They are all very bright and perfect for Spring celebrations.

The card on the right was perfect for my husband's Easter card

If you have any questions about this project, please contact me and I will do my best to answer them.  Blessings for a beautiful Spring!  "He Is Risen, Indeed!"  Adrienne

Variation on a Theme

Ivy Lane Papers

Last month I showed you the lovely box with 5 cards I made in a workshop.  This month, I made several more of those boxes and cards to give as Mother's Day gifts.  To stay in the theme, I used some of the leftover papers to create Mother's Day cards.

Supplies used:

Ivy Lane Paper Pack (X7178B)
Ivy Lane Complements (X7178C)
Look To The Light Occasions Stamp (B1428)
Perfect Fit - Mom Holiday Stamp (C1543)
Bitty Sparkles (Z1263)
Cricut Artiste Cartridge (Z1790)

The Artiste cartridge was used to cut the stamp shape and background frame.  Accent 3 Row 1 Column 3 at 1 1/2 and 1 3/4 height, using real dial size.  the inside sentiment is from the "Look to the Light" collection.

The final collection was combined with this card to send to my family "moms".

Although my own mom has left this mortal coil, I enjoy sharing these beautiful cards with loved ones still here.  May you all have a blessed Mother's Day.

I'm On Cloud Nine

January heralds the beginning of the promise of Spring.  Although there are a few more months of winter, that promise is out there, under the frost line.  Just like there are clean work surfaces under the explosion that happened in my craft room over the holidays.

"The Miami Sound Machine exploded all over here"

Once I got the tissue paper and greeting cards put away, I was ready to get down to work.  January is ALSO National Papercrafting Month and Close To My Heart is celebrating with a special Cloud Nine cardmaking kit (CC1026).  The exclusive Cloud Nine cardmaking kit is $15 (retail value $46) with a qualifying purchase of $35 or more (excluding tax and shipping) during January in celebration of National Papercrafting Month.

Cloud Nine Cardmaking Kit

 The kit makes 10 adorable cards (2 each of 5 designs).  It includes everything needed except Exclusive stamping inks - Sunset (Z2191) and Lagoon (Z2195). 

As with all CTMH kits, instructions are provided for cutting paper, stamping and placing embellishments.

Cutting and assembly instructions

The base shapes (die cuts) used under the stamps are provided on a pre-cut page, which is nice.  These die cut shapes may also be found on the Cricut Artiste cartridge (Z1790) for future projects.

Cricut Artiste shape information

The sizes and page notes are provided on the stamp sheet, although I have found in the past it is a good idea to double check sizes for accurate fit.

Putting it all together

 Once all the pieces are cut and stamped, it's time for assembly using your adhesive of choice.  Most of the time, I really like my ATG "gun".  For this card, I also used some little 3D squares to raise the stamped sentiment and make it "pop".

Finished Card

There are four more cards in this collection - come back to visit, they may show up in another post.  Thanks for joining me on this project.  If you have any questions or comments, please share them with me.  Adrienne

Laughing Lola Cards

This Close To My Heart Workshops On The Go (WOTG) is the "Laughing Lola" design (G1064).  The colors are vibrant, the kit comes complete with all the cards, papers, stamps and embellishments needed to make 15 beautiful cards.

Additional supplies needed are listed in the cardmaking guide included with the kit.  Mainly, you will need inks, acrylic blocks, CTMH Cricut Artiste cartridge (Z1790), sanding (distressing) supplies and adhesive, including 3-D dots or tape.  If you don't have the Artiste cartridge, there are other cartridges that have hearts, emblems and banners that may approximate the shapes needed for these cards.  As you can see from the cards above, though, the stamps fit perfectly on the Artiste cuts.

The cardmaking guide is very detailed, so there are only a few notes to add to what is included.  I found the instructions for the Cricut cuts to be somewhat vague. 

Accent 1 is on Accent 3, R1, C3 (on the keypad) - cut at 1.75" (H)
Accent 2 is on Accent 4 <s>, R5, C6 - cut at 1.5" (H)
Accent 3 is on Accent 2, R1, C5 - cut at .75" (H)

Additionally, the measurement provided for the heart cut is incorrect.  It is given as 1.5" (H) cut (that is also what is noted on the sheet of stamps).  That cut is too small.  In order to be big enough for the heart stamp ("Thinking of You"), the cut must be made at 2.24" (H) x 1.9" (W), using the heart on p. 66 of the Artiste guide book (Accent 1 <s>, R4, C6).

Once all the pieces and shapes are cut out, the smaller detail pieces are to be sanded on all edges:

My assistant Smokey was very helpful during this portion of the project.  I think she was just hungry and wanted supper, HAH!

Stamping the sentiments and shapes was next.  Since I didn't have Pear ink (recommended in the materials list), I used Sweet Leaf instead and it looks great!

Here is one of each of the final cards.  They turned out so well, I gave the "You Can Never Have Too Much Happy" one to my girlfriend today for her birthday.  "OOOH - PURPLE!" she exclaimed when she opened it.  Now who could ask for anything more?

Here is an example of varying the "look" of the cards by taking advantage of the double sided paper and turning it over:

Thanks for joining me for this project.  If you have any questions, do send me a note.  Here's sending everyone blessings for a bountiful Thanksgiving.  Adrienne