End of Month Announcement

Today marks the end of the first half of 2012.  Time flies!
Today also marks the end of some of the Close to My Heart promotions.

First, Stampaganza is coming to an end.  If you have not ordered your stamps on your wish list, order them now!  You'll get a free stamp set for every two stamp sets that you buy.  This incredible deal does not come by often, so seize the opportunity!

Second, Life is Tweet, June's Stamp of the Month will no longer be available starting tomorrow.  If you buy $50 worth of products, you can redeem it with $5 that has a retail value of $17.95. 

So what are you waiting for?  Start shopping here!

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - Wedding Challenge

Heart 2 Heart Challenge asks that we make something wedding-related this week.

I naturally want to make a wedding card as I'll need one later this summer.  Their wedding color is purple, so I naturally made my card with the Sonoma paper.  Then my cricut was asking me to use it, so I naturally cut a doily with it.  You got it right, I have a packet of sparkles sitting on my desk (while other embellishments usually stay in the shelves, sparkles have its spot on my desk), so I naturally dressed up the doily with some sparkles.  The card just came together naturally like this:

Alright.  I admit that it was not so natural when it came to the ribbon and the label for Congrats.  I used the retired CTMH Satin ribbon and when the label at 1 1/4" was too big, I trimmed off its top and bottom so it flushed with the belly band, but left the "semi-bracket" on the sides.  It turned out quite natural.  Don't you think?

Materials used:
1.  Sonoma paper packet
2.  Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge
3.  Sparkles - Clear
4.  4 My Friends stamp set
5.  Smokey Plum Exclusive Inks Pad
6.  Colonial White Satin Ribbon (retired)

Congratulations!

I was attracted by the beautiful card showcased on the Makeover Monday Challenge and thought I should give it a try.

It is a "work from your stash" challenge and we want to use the inspiration piece as out guideline to create something on our own. 

I was drawn by the strips of paper and so I've made my card like this:

The stamped image is embossed with clear embossing powder, but it looks like the raised surface is in black.  To achieve this effect, I've stamped the image in black, then clean the stamp and stamp it with Versamark ink on top of the image.  Before the Versamark ink is dry, apply clear embossing powder generously and heat set it.

I wasn't confident that I could do it, because this stamp involves quite a lot of details and a tiny bit of deviation would mess it up.  But thanks to Close to My Heart's clear stamps, it is not difficult to overlap the images!

Plant Smiles, Grow Laughs, Harvest Love

Since I took out my Sonoma paper packet a couple of days ago, my love with it has been rekindled.  I must say I am always excited when I see release of new products and tend to abandon what I already had.  I liked the Sonoma paper a lot when it was launched in the Autumn/Winter 2011 Idea Book and I was glad that it is carried over during the life of the Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book.  However, I got carried away by all the new products in the current idea book and just forget my love with the Sonoma paper.

Good that I bought the stamp set Treasure Life then I found that this paper packet matches perfect with it, and continue to play with this combination.

I used a sketch from Clean & Simple Stamp blog:

After stamping the flowers, I disliked it.  There were too much empty space.

Good that I had yet cleaned my stamps, so I stamped the second generation image of the big stamp, and the second and third generation images of the small "singleton" flower.  The second and third generation images were much lighter but nevertheless serve their purpose to fill in the space.  Further, they added depth to the entire picture.  Don't you think?

Materials used:
1.  Sonoma paper packet
2.  Treasure Life stamp set
3.  Smokey Plum Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Olive Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Waxy Flax - Colonial White
6.  Designer Buttons - Wooden

Just Horsin' around

As promised, I am sharing with you another card made with the Footloose paper.  The inspiration came from the sketch presented by Card Positioning Systems:

Using similar materials (apparently someone has not cleaned up her desk.........Shhhhh........) as yesterday, this card came together quickly again:

I just can't tell you how much I love Workshop on the Go.  A little package has papers, stamps and even embellishments that are all coordinating with each other.  That makes cardmaking and scrapbooking a lot more convenient, faster and easier!

Materials used:
1.  Footloose Workshop on the Go
2.  White Daisy Ricrac ribbon (retired)

Enjoy Life

When I saw the sketch from Card Positioning Systems this morning I knew I was going to use the Footloose paper.  I could feel the breeze and the sand when I saw this sketch:

So I used the Footloose workshop on the go to complete my card:

It took me a little practice to "color" the turtoise on his body.  I first stamped it with Creme Brulee, a light color, then used a sponge dauber to absorb ink from Olive stamp pad and New England Ivy stamp pad and dab on his shell and limbs.  The gradation of colors makes him look like he has a shining shell!

Apart from the turtoise, this card came together quickly and easily.  Exactly what I need on a Monday!  Then I scrolled down to see other sketches on Card Positioning System's blog and I found another sketch that is perfect for Footloose paper.  Stay tuned for my post tomorrow!

Materials used:
1.  Footloose Workshop on the Go
2.  Kick Back stamp set
3.  Creme Brulee Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Olive Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  New England Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  White Ricrac ribbon (retired)

Grateful

Because of the Buy-2-Get-1-Free promotion this month, I've bought a lot of stamp sets! 

One of the stamp sets that I bought was "Treasure Life", I really like the natural looking flowers and the quotes that come with it.  Check it out here.

Browsing the internet to look for a sketch that I could make use of it, I found the sketch from Freshly Made Sketches:

And this is my interpretation of the sketch:

Materials used:
1.  Sonoma paper packet
2.  Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge
3.  Treasure Life stamp set
4.  Sparkles - clear
5.  Colonia White grosgrain ribbon (retired)

Mojo Monday Challenge 246

Just in time to participate in Mojo Monday Challenge.  This week's sketch looks like this:

This sketch gives me a lot of ideas.  I have settled on a birthday card:

Materials used:
1.  Sonoma Workshop on the Go
2.  Say it in Style stamp set
3.  Hemp - natural
4.  Smokey Purple Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Olive Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

Preparing for July 4 celebration

It is time to prepare for July 4 celebration.  That's what we do after Father's Day, right?

I found this sketch on Walzingmouse Sketch Challenge blog:

The sentiment is calling for the word "celebrate" so I used the American Celebration stamp set to finish this card:

This card came together quickly and easily, exactly what I am looking for.  July 4 is just 12 short days away........

Materials used:
1.  Superhero paper packet
2.  America Celebration stamp set
3.  Cranberry Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Moonstruck Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - Ribbon Challenge

This week, Heart 2 Heart Challenge asks that we use ribbon in our project.  Ribbon is probably the my favorite embellishment.  One of the reasons is, many of my hand-made cards are mailed out rather than handed out.  I have had so many unfortunate instances where the recipient sadly told me that she did not receive an intact card because part of it was ripped off.  :(  Ribbon, however, is flat and is mail friendly, so it always remains my go-to embellishment.

I have always wanted to explore all the shapes available in the Cricut Art Philosophy Cartridge.  It offers 700 but I think so far I have only tried 10 to 15% of it.  I have yet tried all the 3-D projects so I tried the pillow box today and put some ribbon around it.  Voila!  A nice gift box:

You know, you just get addicted to making more.  So I've made a version 2 of the pillow box:

A close-up of the flower:

It turns out that making ribbon flowers is even more addictive than making the pillow box.  I'll stop blogging and make more ribbon flowers!

Materials used:

1.  Lucy paper packet

2.  Bulk ribbon - sweet leaf

3. Life is Tweet stamp set (Stamp of the Month)

4.  Buttons - Green Assortment

5.  Bohemian Assortment

6.  Creme Brulee Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

7.  Glitz Glitter Gel - Stardust





Celebrate Today

It is time for another challenge presented by Clean and Simple Stamping Blog!  I really love their sketches and can't help participating in their challenges!

Last week it shared this sketch with us:

This sketch, even though looks simple, creates endless possibilities.  For some reason I really wanted to make a rather neutral card (After all, I have a lot more cards for girls than for guys) so I've substituted the heart with a star.  Using the Typeset paper, my clean and simple card looks like this:

Materials used:
1.  Typeset paper packet
2.  Milepost shapes
3.  Bamboo cardstock
4.  Paper Lantern stamp set
5.  Cocoa Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Create-a-Shade Pearl Paint

A little birdie told me....

Just can't resist to try a technique with the little birdie.  I've used a sketch from ISpy Sketches to finish the card:

The card I made looks like this:

What did I do with the birdie?

I stamped the birdie in black archival ink, then picked a couple of colors (Creme Brulee, Honey, Sorbet, Chocolate here), squeezed the stamp pad tightly so that the ink from the pad would be transferred to the lid.  Now the lid becomes my palette where I used the waterbrush to dip to the ink on the lid and colored the birdie. 

I did the same with the little flowers on the branch using Tulip.

Materials used:
1.  Stella paper packet
2.  Life is Tweet stamp set (SOTM)
3.  Archival Black Exclusive Inks
4.  Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge
5.  Chocolate Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Honey Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
7.  Creme Brulee Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
8.  Sorbet Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
9.  Olive Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
10.  Color-ready Seam binding ribbon
11.  Cremem Brulee reinker
12.  Waxy Flax - Colonial White
13.  Buttons - Red Assortment

Celebrate

One of the perks of organizing your craft supplies is that you get to see the products from a different perspective. 

While I was putting away my stuff in the new storage unit , I saw the "You Rock" paper with the stamp set that came with Workshop on the Go.  Boy, the stamp set has been sitting there crying "use me!" without any response for two years.  So I've determined to use it in a project before putting it away (Note: this is one reason that my craft area can never be truly organized, I got distracted too often.  Just want to play with them rather than putting them away. :p)

I've chosen the sketch from CardPatterns to use the stamp set:

And my card using the You Rock paper looks like this:

Alright.  Back to organizing my stash.

Delight

I got some new storage for my craft supplies and that made me go through my stamp sets and paper. Then I came across two stamp sets that I really wanted to use.  They are very cute and more importantly, they always remind me of my very first demo to my customers. 

I've decided to use them to participate in this week's Freshly Made Sketches.  The sketch looks like this:

I've chosen a rectangle to replace the cicrle as my focal point:

The little birdie has three colors on his body - Blush, Creme Brulee and Cocoa.  I first stamped it in Blush, the lightest color, then use a sponge dauber to transfer Creme Brulee and Cocoa ink to his belly, head and beak.  Well, my first try didn't look that good as the colors did not turn out solid.  So I cheated.  Oops, I meant, so I tried a trick to make it work better. 

For my second try, I stamped the birdie in Bamboo, then tried the three colors again.  It worked much better.  See the two tries here:

So glad that it is a clear stamp, it is just so easy to stamp the birdie perfectly on top of the first image stamped in bamboo.

Thanksgiving in June??

What I meant was, I just made a Thanksgiving card in June, where the temperature is 99F today!

It feels funny because of the high temperature, yet it also feels good because I'm ahead of the game! :)

I have adopted the sketch in the inspiring card and the makeover card of this week's Makeover Monday Challenge.  Using the Olivia Workshop on the Go, this card came together fairly quickly:

Color Ready Seam Binding Ribbon

Close to My Heart has presented a video to show you the great ways to use the Color Ready Seam Binding Ribbon.  The demo on how to ink it up is awesome! Check this out:

Today is a present

I came across this sketch from Retro Skethces and I just can't stop thinking about creating a card using the Florentine paper packet.

This is the sketch that Retro Sketches presents:

My card looks like this:

The stamps come from the set called "The Present" and I really like what it says.  So encouraging! 

Materials used:
1.  Florentine paper packet
2.  The Present stamp set
3.  Color-Ready seam binding ribbon
4.  Bohemian assortment
5.  Barn Red Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Olive Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
7.  Creme Brulee reinker

It's Almost Father's Day!

Can you believe how fast 2012 is flying by?  It is almost Father's Day and that means we are approaching the half year mark of 2012! 

Heart 2 Heart Challenge asks us to make something for Dad.  To tell you the truth, while I made about 20 Mother's Day cards for my relatives and friends, I did not make as many for Father's Day.  Yet I managed to make a couple for the special ones.

Many of them have already been received.  This one will be handed to the recipient directly:

All the products used have been retired.  Yet they are classic.  Before the Lucky paper retired, I had bought quite a bit to stock up.  It has always been my choice for musculine cards!

Flowers in 3 sizes

When I saw this sketch from Clean and Simple Stamping blog, I know I am going to use Cricut for help.  The sketch looks like this:

The flowers just reminds me of the flower that Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge offers.  So I've made this card:

The stamp set from Lucy Workshop on the Go has a stamp that coordinates with the flower.  I didn't opt to use it.  Instead, using the layer function of the Cricut, I've cut the outline of the flowers to give it some contrast.  It turns out pretty nice!

Materials used:
1.  Lucy paper packet
2.  Pear cardstock
3.  Cricut Art Philosophy Cartridge
4.  4 my friends stamp set
5.  Blush Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

Dog sitting

This past weekend, I had the joy of dog sitting.  (Yes, dog-sitting, not crafting).  The doggies are very good and they were fun to walk and play with.  It just takes me more time than how much it takes their owner because I can only deal with one dog at a time, versus their owner can juggle between them.

It was funny that wherever I went, the dogs followed.  Oh boy, they must miss their owner badly. So to tell my friend my how much his doggies missed him, I've made the following card for him:

I wrote: "Daddy, we miss you!" in the interior and "forged" the doggies' signature by drawing two different pawprints. 

Materials used:
1.  Crusin' paper packet
2.  A Bowwow stamp set
3.  Black Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Watercolor pencils
5. Waterbrush
6.  Bohemian Assortment
7.  Black grosgrain ribbon (retired)

Makeover Monday Challenge

Have you been to the blog of Paper Crafter's Library?  Almost every Monday it presents a challenge for us to create an artwork using our stash.  This week it presents a Thank You card.

I've adopted the concept of using squares as building blocks to create this card:

Good way to use the scraps.  I just can't wait to clean up my stash! 

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - Black, White and Red?

This is a big challenge!  Black and White and one other color?  Which color should I pick?
Then I remember something I have always wanted to try - combining the A Melody stamp set and Just for You stamp set.  The music notes and the sentiment "A note for you" are just a perfect match, don't you think?

So I've created the following card:

Just a simple card.  Cardstocks and two stamp sets.  Yet a great card for my darling friend, who is a music lover.

Materials used:
1. White Daisy cardstock
2.  Black cardstock
3.  A Melody stamp set
4.  Just for You stamp set
5.  Black Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Tulip Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

Where is Pemberley?

Oops.........I have just noticed that I have never posted anything made with Pemberley, one of the paper packets featured in the Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book.  I remember that when I first received a copy of the idea book, I stared at the page that shows the Pemberley packet and was not ready to turn to the next page.  I love the blues!  Then why have I not shown anything made with it?  Perhaps I am worried that my creation was not up to standard to match the elegance of the paper packet?

I saw a sketch on Freshly Made Sketches that I instantly associated it with Pemberley :

This is what I've made:

Does the flower look dimensional to you?  If not, how about this:

The flower was stamped five times and the layers were put together with foam tape.  In person it looks quite dimensional even from a distance.  I hope the picture captures the depth.

Did the see the white sentiment?  I've tried one thing new - instead of using white embossing powder I've used pigment ink and then put on clear embossing powder.  Not bad, right?  I think if I use white embossing powder the sentiment will pop even more.  Let me try it next time and share the results with you.  Before then, happy crafting!

Materials used:
1.  Pemberley paper packet
2.  Honey cardstock
3.  Cocoa cardstock
4.  Card Word Puzzle stamp set
5.  A Garden stamp set
6.  Outdoor Denim Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

It's your Birthday!

I wanted to give the title of the post "A little birdie told me" but it already has appeared twice and this time the card front does not say that, so even though the birdie is here, I'm going to say "It's your Birthday!"

I have adopted this sketch from Mojo Monday:

The birdie is, of course, the focus of the card:

If I were to make this card again, I would probably use white embossing powder at the bottom right corner, rather than the White Daisy pigment ink.  I am afraid I am still not very comfortable with pigment ink and can't really tell when it has dried completely.  However, had I used embossing powder, not only will it give more dimension to the sentiment, it will dry off much sooner.  Let me try it out and show you how it looks later.

Materials used:
1.  Cocoa cardstock
2.  Lucy paper packet
3.  Color ready seam-binding ribbon
4.  Life is Tweet stamp set
5.  Black Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  White Daisy Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
7.  Buttons - Basic Assortment

Another Simple Card

I took the following sketch from Clean and Simple Stamping, a blog that I like a lot:

And I've used Stella paper packet and Just for You stamp set to finish this card:

To give the flower a little more attention, I've cut the same flower slightly bigger in red as a mat.  The flower pops immediately.

Materials used:
1.  Stella paper packet
2.  Tulip cardstock
3.  Just for You stamp set
4.  Tulip Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Olive Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
6.  Cocoa Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
7.  Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge

Well Done!

As the busy week continues, I continue to seek sketches for help.  Today I've adopted a sketch from Card Patterns:

I wanted to use the Crusin' paper packet but after a lot of incubation time without satisfying result, I've turned to the Super Hero Workshop on the Go and made this card:

I think it will be good for my friend's little son who just received an award from school.

Materials used:
1.  Super Hero Workshop on the Go
2.  Moonstruck Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
3.  Cranberry Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Sky Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Sparkles - Clear
6.  Twill ribbon (retired)

Simple card on a busy Monday

What is helpful when you are busy with other things but you want to have your creating fix?  A simple card.

I've adopted the sketch from Retro Sketches:

This is my first time to participate in their challenge and I've used the elegant Florentine Workshop on the Go:

Workshops on the Go are always my friendly helper.  It has everything you need to create pages or cards and everything in the packet coordinates with each other!

To make this card I simple cut out a strip from the paper, then stamp the flower three times in three different colors.  Cut them out, use 3-D foam to layer them to create more dimension.  Finally I stamped the sentiment "A note for you" from the Just for You stamp set.  As simple as that.  Love it.

Materials used:
1.  Florentine Workshop on the Go
2.  Just for You stamp set
3.  Goldrush Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Garden Green Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
5.  Twilight Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad

A Little Birdie Told Me... (Again)

Have you seen Life is Tweet, June's Stamp of the Month?

It is a cute stamp set - good for card making and scrapbooking.  I've made a card that was posted last Friday, and I can't resist the fun to make another one to participate in the challenge by Freshly Made Sketches:

Because the stamp set gives me a feel of party fun, I've made use of the bright colors from the Lucy paper packet:

Materials used:
1.  Lucy paper packet
2.  Black Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
3.  Blush Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad
4.  Life is Tweet stamp set
5.  Buttons - Pink Assortment
6.  Cricut Art Philosophy Collection

It's Stampaganza Time!

Woo hoo!  It's Stampaganza Time!
In this month, for every two Acrylic Stamp Sets that you buy at full retail price, you'll receive a free stamp set of your choice for free!  That means, it could be a savings of $29.95!

Stamp sets that count toward the qualifying purchase include full-priced A, B, C, D, and E sets only.  Similarly, the free stamp set include full-priced A, B, C, D, and E sets only. 

What's great about this campaign is that you can buy as many as you wish - there's no upper limit!
Start shopping now!