Saturday, March 31, 2012

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - Embossing

When I first saw this technique challenge, I thought I was going to make a card with both heat embossing and dry embossing.

You probably agree that our minds change a lot during the creation process. I eventually made this card with dry embossing only. With a scoring stylus and a paper trimmer, the frames were easily made.


Materials used:
1.  Stella Paper Packet
2.  Creme Brulee cardstock
3.  Sparkles - Clear
4.  A Garden stamp set
5.  Colonial White Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Cricut Art Philosophy Collection

Friday, March 30, 2012

My Originals® Sweet Surprises Card Kit

Looking for little cups to hold your treats when you hand out your Easter cards?  I have a great idea for you.  Watch the video and learn about My Originals® Sweet Surprises Card Kit!

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Sending you Birthday Wishes

Makeover Monday Challenge features a card with three guitars this week.  The inspiration piece is a card that showcases three black butterflies.  I really like the butterflies floating on a subtle patterned paper and so I prepared my card with three flowers.  The flowers were cut by the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge.  The green ones are 1/4" larger than the yellow ones and I've used the "layer" function to cut the yellow ones so it has a star center.  I've popped the middle one and slightly changed its orientation to give it some interest:



Materials used (All Close to My Heart products):
1.  Colonial White cardstock
2.  Cocoa cardstock
3.  Olive cardstock
4.  Creme Brulee cardstock
5.  Florentine paper packet
6.  Sparkles - clear
7.  Card chatter - birthday stamp set
8.  Cocoa Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Base and Shade Stamping with Lucy WOTG

Have you tried Base and Shade stamping before?  It is one of my favorite things to do for stamping!  Basically we have two stamps, one has a solid image and the other has the outline of the solid image, then we could stamp these two images to combine into one.  The outline defines the image much better than without it, and the color combo gives the image a lot of interest.  Take a look at the card below and you'll see what I mean:


I stamped the flowers in Creme Brulee then the outlines in Grey Wool.  Don't you think that the outline gives a lot of interest and depth to the flowers? 

Thanks to the sketch I found on Clean and Simple stamping this card comes together beautifully.  The sketch looks like this:


Materials used:
1.  White Daisy cardstock
2.  Lucy Workshops on the Go
3.  Creme Brulee Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Grey Wool Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5. Card Chatter - Birthday stamp set
6. Mini-Medley Accents Collections - Pewter
7.  Bulk Ribbon - Color-REady Seam Binding Ribbon

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Enjoy Life

I wanted to create a card with the sentiment "Enjoy Life."  The new footloose paper features different shades of green and the theme of beach, I think it would match "Enjoy Life" very well. I drew the curve by hand to mimic the waves.  Then I looked at the other part of of the cuve and thought it could also be used so it became a simple "Enjoy Life" card:


Materials used:
1.  Footlose paper packet
2.  Kick Back stamp set
3.  New England Ivy Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

Monday, March 26, 2012

Together, Anything is Possible

There are only a few days left to buy Potential, the Stamp of the Month of March.  When I was preparing for a card using this stamp set I came across this sketch:


I like the circles that match with the stamp so I've decided to use the sketch:


Isn't it amazingly simple? First, it is a one-layer card, then it only involves two stamps, third, only one shape, circle, and finally light colors. 

This stamp set is amazingly versatile.  Get yours today before it is gone!

Materials used:
1.  White Daisy cardstock
2.  Potential (Stamp of the Month)
3.  Heavenly Blue Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.   Buttercup Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Baby Pink Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Grey Wool Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
7.  Sweet Leaf Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
8.  Black Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Fall in March?

As we are expecting spring, I feel like making a card with a theme of fall.  After going through my stash, I found the retired Olivia paper packet and I made this card:

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Embrace the Philosophy of Fun


A lot of people signed up to become a Close to My Heart consultant this month to embrace the philosophy of fun.  What is the philosophy of fun?
If you sign up to become a consultant this month, you will receive the Cricut Art Philosophy collection for FREE.  Cricut Art Philosophy collection is fun because the cartridge has 700 images, including cards and envelopes, boxes, and 3-D flowers and more!  The collection also includes 3 stamp sets and coordinating Dimensional Elements shapes.
If you already have the collection, you could choose to receive $100 in select product credit.
For $99, you will receive the new consultant kit, whose retail value is over $288,
plus the Cricut Art Philosophy collection that includes products of value of $124:


How can you resist such a good deal?
Question?  Ask away.
Ready to sign up?  You are just a click away.


Friday, March 23, 2012

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - Fly with Me

This Week Heart 2 Heart Challenge gives us a photo challenge.  We are presented with a picture where the setting looks like a stage with curtains above, then balloons over a table full of cupcakes, sweets and treats.  Next to the picture are some picnic baskets and a globe.  A banner is hanging on the table saying "Fly Away with Me."  How cute!

My mind was captured by the balloons but I do not have any balloon stamps.  I just have to make do.  After going through all my stamps I found this past Stamp of the Month with a cute little hedgehog flying a kite.  So here comes my card:


The little hedgehog wants you to fly a kite with him.  Will you?  Don't you love the clouds with the hearts?  They come from an exclusive paper packet that is not available yet.  Want to know more about this paper packet?  Stay tuned!

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Crusin' - Have a nice trip!

Makeover Monday Challenge this week presents a vintage card that features paper with a map and a stamped bicycle.  I naturally thought of the Enjoy Life stamp set, which I often use.  However, I want to step it up and use something else.  Thus I used the Crusin' paper packet and the stamp that comes with its Workshop on the Go.  My card looks substantially similar to the one featured on the challenge:


I was thinking about what sentiment to put in, but I eventually wrote "Have a nice" by hand and used masking technique to stamp "TRIP."  This card will be perfect for my friend who will go on a road trip.

Materials used:
1.  Crusin' Workshop on the Go
2.  Black Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
3.  Brad Assortment - Metal Assortment

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Mojo Monday 233

I like Mojo Monday's sketch for this week - big building blocks, clean lines with embellishments.  The big space in the middle provides space for a lot of stamping!

When I first saw this sketch I wanted to create a vertical card, but eventually I kept it in the landscape manner:
Because the word "Thanks" is a rather big stamp, I had to create it in the size of 5" x 7" and scale up everything.  At first I was worried that there will be too  much empty space, but it turned out pretty cool!

Materials used (All Close to My Heart products):
1.  Stella paper packet
2.  Color-Ready Seam Binding Ribbon
3.  Sparkles - Clear
4.  A Little Thanks stamp set
5.  Lagoon Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Olive Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
7.  Sunset Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
8.  Tulip Re-inker

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

One more card from the crop

I didn't finish it at the crop, but I got it substantially done when I was there.  I just felt it had too much empty space so I added the flower after I had gone home:



See?  Workshops on the Go really have all you need - papers, stamp set and embellishments.  It also has the instruction guide to inspire you for projects.  With a couple of stamp pads, we are ready for a crop!

What do you usually bring to a crop?  Leave me a comment and share your tips with us!

Monday, March 19, 2012

What to bring to a crop

Last week I went to a crop night at a local craft store and had so much fun.  Before I went there, I was worried because I did not know what to bring with me.  As we all understand that we really want to bring all the materials with us but the reality does not allow us to do that.  I always thought that the more I bring, the more ideas I will have and more possibilities I can explore.

What I believed could be true.  However, I only had limited time to pack and I didn't have any project idea in my head before I went.  So what should go to my crop bag?

The clock is ticking.  Eventually I decided to bring two Workshops on the Go with me, stamp pads of coordinating colors of the Workshops, two spools of used ribbon from my stash.  Let's embark on the journey.

At the crop we basically worked on our own projects.  At about 9:30 pm our energy level dropped.  I heard someone say she had been ruining everything she was working on that night, and another person say her progress was incredibly slow.  For me, not too bad.  I got a couple of cards done:




Basically I looked at the Instruction Guides when I was designing my cards because I needed inspirations.  I wanted to make 5" x 7" cards rather than 4.25" x 5.5", then I checked how much leftover I had in my bag and modified the designs from the Instruction Guides a little bit.  If I figured that there was enough to make two, I would cut the paper to prepare for two cards without hesitation, then I could still keep one for myself after giving the other one away (I am sure this idea will change one day, we will see how many more my box can hold).

If you plan on going to a crop, don't be intimiated by the packing process.  A workshop on the go and a few stamp pads are all you need.  The workshop comes with coordinating paper, stamp set and embellishments.  If you put it in your bag, you are ready to go!

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Mojo Monday 232


It appears that I am always doing things last minute - just in time to participate in Mojo Monday's challenge.  I like this simple sketch a lot and had a blast enjoying the other participant's awesome artwork.

I am quite addicted to create masculine cards and so I used my leftover Lucky papers to create one:

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Heart to Heart Challenge - It's Lucky to Have You in My Life

Just in time to create this card for St. Patrick's Day and for this challenge.  Heart to Heart Challenge asks that we create something for someone special to show how lucky I am to have him/her in my life.  To step up the game, we need to use the color green.


Using Originals' pattern to start with, I've created the layout.  Then I used the cricut to cut four hearts at 1" and cut a branch as a stem.  After assembling the shamrock, I just stamped some shamrock on the colonial white cardstock, added some blings and a sentiment.  I have never made a card with so much "Green", it is fun!  Go check out Heart 2 Heart Challenge to see what other participants have come up with!

Friday, March 16, 2012

Happiness

The cards shown on Clean and Simple Stamping blog totally reminds me that I can make another one-layered card.  Even though this one looks like my post two weeks ago, this card actually has a larger size and the lanterns are more more "organized".


Materials used:
1.  White Daisy cardstock
2.  Paper Lantern stamp set
3.  Black Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Smoothie Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Sunny Yellow Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Pear Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
7.  Gypsy Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
8.  Pacifica Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
9.  Sunset Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
10. Clear Sparkles

Thursday, March 15, 2012

You are so Wonderful

This week Makeover Monday Challenge presents a cute card featuring colorful balloons.  I like the sketch of the card and made this one:


I like the little birdie that says "You are so Wonderful," which gives a variation for a Thank You card.  On the other hand, it could be used for general appreciation or love.  How nice!

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

How-to Books



Even though the How-to Books are featured in our current Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book, Close to My Heart has announced that they will all be retiring.  In fact, Close to My Heart has reminded us that some of them are already running low and anticipate that they will be sold out this month.

These friendly helpers have always been my all-time favorite.  I browse through the pages when I need a sketch, ideas or inspirations.  They have been assisting me along my creative journey and I'm sure they will do the same to you, regardless of your level of skills and creativity.

If you have been waiting to buy them, act fast!  Once the existing inventory is sold out, Close to My Heart will not replenish it and they will be gone forever!  If you'd like to know more about the books or start shopping, click here.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Potential

Here comes another post using Potential, March's Stamp of the Month.  I must confess that at the beginning I did not like it so much but the more I use it the more I like it!


Materials used:
1.  Cocoa cardstock
2.  Colonial White cardstock
3.  Florentine paper
4.  Potential stamp set
5.  Love Life stamp set
6.  Twilight Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
7.  Cocoa Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
8.  Opaques Adhesive Gems - Mocha

Monday, March 12, 2012

Cards for Dad

Even though I am excited to play with the new items featured in the Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book, I do like to find creative ways to use up my stash.  I came to realize that I have quite a lot of leftover from the Passpage paper packet but my photos do not match with that theme.  Thus I tried to make two masculine cards with the paper:


The card above took me about three minutes to finish, thanks to the magic done by the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge and the pattern provided by Wishes.  This pattern is called All Stacked Up.


This card involved just a little stamping, but with the cutting instructions from Wishes, it came together very quickly.

I did not put any sentiment in the interior of the card.  Which one should go for Father's Day and which one should go for his birthday?

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Life is Like a Bowl of Cherries

Makeover Monday Challenge posted two cards this past Monday: one shows a basket of Easter eggs and the other shows a bowl of noodles.  I then kept thinking if I have anything food-related and found the stamp set from Cherry-O Workshop on the Go:


The sketch of the card is All Squared Up, one of the patterns from Wishes, our Card Confidence Program.

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - color challenge

Heart 2 Heart Challenge is challenging us with a color challenge this week.  The color combo is Sunkiss Yellow, Sky and Sweet Leaf.

Sunkiss Yellow?  Have I ever used it before?  No.  In fact, I bought the Sunkiss Yellow stamp pad by mistake.  However, I guess I should have used the Sunkiss Yellow in the Watercolor Pencils pack.  Nevertheless, this is a real challenge for me as I have never chosen to use this color before.

I used Simply Said pattern from Wishes, the card confidence program and made this card:

I was hoping to give it a really clean, fresh feeling so I used a lot of white in this card.  The scalloped border was actually inked with Sweet Leaf but the camera may not have picked up good enough:


Thanks to this challenge I have finally used my Sunkiss Yellow stamp pad!

Materials used:
1.  White Daisy cardstock
2. Sky cardstock
3.  Sweet Leaf bulk ribbon
4.  Chocolate Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Sunkiss Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Chocolate button
7.  Colonial White Waxy Flax
8. A Blossom stamp set

Friday, March 9, 2012

One layer card with Potential

Last week I made a busy, colorful one layer card and I am still happy about how it turned out.  This time I want to challenge myself to make a plain one layer card.  Sometimes a plain card makes the message stand out even more powerfully because our eyes are drawn towards the message.  Thus, I chose the powerful message from our March Stamp of the Month Potential and made a very simple card:


This card is simply plain and our eyes natrually focus on the message in the middle of the card.  Because the flourishes and the card base are both in neutral color, the white message becomes even more outstanding. 

Materials used:
1.  Kraft cardstock
2.  Desert Sand Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
3.  Colonial White Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Potential stamp set

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Crusin' Birthday Card

I need to make a musculine birthday card and was out of ideas.  I wanted to use the Crusin' paper packet but was not sure how to make it work.  Worried, I turned to my friendly helper Wishes, our card confidence program and found a sketch called Right Design.  Then I stared at the Crusin' paper packet for a while and realized that I could cut the alphabet out to create a sentiment!  Woohoo!  A Crusin' birthday card was born.


Materials used:
1.  Crusin' Paper Packet
2.  Durable studs - square

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Multi-purpose card with Florentine

Out of the eight new paper packets in the Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book, I think the Florentine paper packet coordinates with March's Stamp of the Month Potential the best.  I have yet used the medallion stamp and was looking for inspirations.  Then I came across this sketch provided by Card Patterns:


The big circle is exactly what I need to create a card with the medallion stamp so I used the Florentine paper packet and made this card:


I have yet decided what I will use this card for.  As of now, it will go to my multi-purpose card category.

Materials used:
1.  Colonial White cardstock
2. Florentine paper packet
3. Buttons - Natural Assortment
4.  Waxy Flax - Colonial White
5.  Potential stamp set
6.  Olive Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Become a Close to My Heart consultant in March!

So you have been thinking about becoming a Close to My Heart consultant.  You'd like to meet more people who are into paper crafts.  You'd like to be inspired by craft ideas.  You'd like to make extra money to support your hobby.



March is the perfect time to become a consultant.  If you sign up as a new Consultant in March 2012, you will receive a FREE Cricut® Art Philosophy collection! Yes, a FREE Cricut® Art Philosophy collection!  That means you will receive the regular new consultant kit and a FREE Cricut® Art Philosophy collection for only $99!  You must seize this great opportunity!  If you already have the Cricut® Art Philosophy collection, no worries, you could select to receive $100 in select product credit.  Become a consultant and embrace the philosophy of fun!

Monday, March 5, 2012

Flowers made of Baker's Twine

A craft magazine is showcasing various uses of Baker's Twine.  That article refreshes my fond memory of what I liked to do all the time when I was a kid.  This trick was not shown in the magazine and I'd like to share with you:

I punched out the scalloped circle using the 2" Scallop Circle Punch, then I stuck one end of the Baker's Twine to the bottom of the scalloped circle.  I started to weave between the top and bottom of the scalloped circle by jumping seven arches each time until all arches are done.  You will find it easy and fun and can't resist to make more!

Materials used:
1.  Black cardstock
2.  Kraft cardstock
3.  Creme Brulee cardstock
4.  Baker's Twine - Paradise Assortment
5.  Workshops on the Go Pemberley Kit
6.  Olive Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Mojo Monday 230 with Superhero

This week Mojo Monday Challenge provides two sketches - a round one and a square one:
I'd like to make a card that is not girly so I thought I should use the Superhero paper.  Thus I came up with a July 4 card:


Materials used:
1.  White Daisy cardstock
2.  Superhero Paper Packet
3.  Moonstruck Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Cranberry Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  American Celebration stamp set
6.  Friendship Alphabet stamp set
7.  Dimensional Elements - stars

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - Picture Perfect Challenge

This week Heart 2 Heart Challenge provides us with a picture and asks that we create our artwork based on the the inspiration from that.  The picture shows a really lovely room, in which there are many elements I love: the colors, the decorations on the wall, the framed "dwell" and many others. 

My mind has changed at least 20 times when I was preparing my card, and I finally settled with this idea:

I insist to incorporate the gray stripes which I found on the pillow on the couch and the "sunflower" on the wall.  With the Cricut Art Philosophy Collection, the card was easily made.  I then cut out two little ones to accompany the central flower, stuck the retired Kraft Color-Ready borders  on a piece of Gray Wool cardstock to cut out the zic-zac stripes, added some blings to give it some interest. 

Materials used (All Close to My Heart products):
1.  White Daisy cardstock
2.  Sky cardstock
3.  Gray Wool cardstock
4.  Bohemian Assortment
5.  Bling Assortment

Friday, March 2, 2012

Celebrate Today

Sometimes I like to make one-layer cards because, even though they look simple, they can be very challenging, meaning that they can be just as fun as mult-layered, well-embellished cards. 

Some of the challenges in making a one-layer card are: the proportion of blank space in the card; number of colors to be used and proportion of space for the sentiment, if we decide to include it on the card front.  In this card I made it rather colorful and busy:


I always find this stamp set very cute and I think the lanterns are perfect for making this one-layered card.  The bright vibrant colors give a lift to the sentiment "Celebrate Today!"

Materials used:
1.  White daisy cardstock
2.  Paper Lantern stamp set
3.  Smoothie Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Pear Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Sunset Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Lagoon Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
7.  Gypsy Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
8.  Black Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Anything is Possible

Are you ready for a new Stamp of the Month?  The Stamp of the Month of this month is called Potential.  The flourishes in the stamp set are very pretty.  I like the sentiment "Anything is possible."  In particular, two fonts are used so the word "Anything" stands out nicely. 

I then realize that even though the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge has 700 shapes, I have not even explored 1/10 of it!  So I have decided to make a card with the stamp set and the cartridge:


Don't you love the doily?  It makes the card elegant and matches with the sentiment so well!

Materials used:
1.  Sonoma paper packet
2. Chocolate cardstock
3.  Cricut Art Philosophy Collection
4.  Potential stamp set
5.  Cocoa Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad