Emporer's New Clothes

 

OLW asks that we add scoring to our project.  I did make some score lines.  Can you see them?

 

I'm not going to lie to you, I can't.  The score lines are invisible in the picture so I tried to capture them through another angle:

I used the negative cut of the tree from Art Philosophy cartridge as a template to outline the tree.  The outline is totally invisible in the first picture, but can be barely recognized in the second one.  Worried that the outline is too vague, I've added a score line next to the sentiment. 

In person the card looks much nicer, the tree has a subtle raised surface.  Cute. 

Getting Back to School

This week, Heart 2 Heart challenges ask that we make something with the theme of "back to school."  What came to my mind was of course the Scholastic paper packet and one of the shapes available in the Close to My Heart Artiste cartridge.  The shape looks exactly like a page from a notebook.  How neat!

My inspiration came from one of the sketches from "Make it from your Heart - Volume I."  You see how I followed the pattern strictly in my post yesterday, and today's card is a variation of it: I stuck down the right panel at an angle to mimic a loose page detached from a notebook and my focal point has moved upwards so the star could sit comfortably on the page.

Make it from you Heart is really a must-have for scrapbookers and cardmakers.  It will never fail you when you need inspiration.  Best of all, it is very affordable.

This card is also entering the following challenges:
1.  Bitten by the Bug 2 - back to school
2.  Exploring Cricut - back to school
3.  Crazy Amigo Challenge - back to school
4.  Makeover Monday - back to school

Purple and purple

Dynamic Duos challenge asks that we create something monochromatic with Wisteria Wonder and Concord Crush - two shades of purple. 

I don't have these colors but I've chosen Smokey Plum and the retired Amethyst from the Close to My Heart Palette.  Using one of the patterns from the "Make it from Your Heart" publication, this card came together quickly:

I'm sorry that my camera is not doing a good job.  After many attempts I've tried to take a picture of the card laying flat on my desk to capture the two hues of purple:

The pattern paper came from the retired Sonoma Workshop on the Go, so did the stamps.  How many times have I mentioned that Workshop on the Go makes crafting faster, simpler, easier?

Multiple Choice Questions

Remember you were told that when you are down to two answers to a multiple choice question, pick one and don't second guess yourself?

This probably applies to crafting too!

I wanted to create a card using La Belle Vie with the sketch provided by Retro Sketches:

I knew which shape I wanted to cut using the Close to My Heart Art Philosophy cartridge, but could not decide the size, nor could I decide which stamp to use.  I have come up with at least four versions.  Eventually, after looking at the first one that I made, I thought that was the best one.  How funny is that?  So here's my first and last version of the card:

La Belle Vie paper packet is the one that I "love at first sight."  It is elegant and romantic.  Have you heard about the advantages of the Close to My Heart Burlap ribbon?  I thought others were exaggerating but it is definitely amazing - no smell, no weird touching, easy to cut and no trimmings, etc.  You see the plain use of it here, but in my other abandoned verions, I've done different things and it is so easy to work with.  No mess!  I highly recommend it!

Materials used:
1.  La Belle Vie Workshop on the Go
2.  Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge
3.  Bonjour stamp set
4.  Bard Red cardstock
5.  Hemp (natural)
6.  Bulk Ribbon (burlap ribbon)
7.  Sparkles - clear assortment
8.  Black grosgrain ribbon (retired)

Trick or Treat

A quick post on a busy Monday.  I saw this challenge on CAS-ual Friday that asks us to use banners and flags.  The Spellbound Workshop on the Go came to my mind immediately:

Pretty clean and simple, and easy to make!  Pretty good for party invitation cards, right?

Happy Day........Enjoy the Ride

I have seen a lot of amazing artwork submitted to Pal Paper Arts but never got a chance to participate its challenge.  It has a sketch challenge for us:

I thought it will be a perfect opportunity to try the color challenge by Color My Heart : Sorbet, Creme Brulee and Twilight, so I've made this card using the It's Your Day double stamp set:

The card was made with cardstocks only, no patterned paper.  Yet I created the polka dots pattern with the stamp in the It's Your Day stamp set.  I like the clean lines of the sketch and the color combo.  I have used these colors separately and have been loving them, but it is my first time using this combo and I love it!

Click on the links above and see what other bloggers have come up with and be inspired.  Happy crafting!

For a Happy Kid

Thought I would have some quality crafting time this weekend.  Argh....

Just enough time to make a quick card.

Heart 2 Heart Challenges ask us to make something using Sunset, Pear and Lagoon.  The first thing that came to my mind was the retired Hooligan paper packet.  Its bright colors create a Halloween theme.

The sketch is one of the patterns from Make It from Your Heart.  Using scraps from Hooligan, I've made this card:

Happy Crafting!

Mojo Monday 255

Happy Friday!

It has been a long week for me so I am really happy that it is finally FRIDAY!

I'd like to share something fun so I've used the sketch from Mojo Monday to make a Halloween card.

The sketch looks like this:

Stumbled upon the designer papers for a while, I've decided to use cardstocks only.  Why not?  Close to My Heart's clear stamps allow us to make our own patterned paper - that is unique, tailor-made , and most importantly, fun!

I've used background stamps on the cardstocks to create my pattern on my card:

The tag, the web and the spiders were all cut from the awesome Cricut Artiste cartridge.  They belong to the themed keys so I know that when I am making my halloween projects, they are my go-to keys.  As easy as that. 

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend!

A Vintage card

The color combo challenge presented by Dynamic Duos this week is Black and River Rock:

I've chosen Black and Bamboo in the Close to My Heart palette.  For some reason the idea of making a vintage card came to my mind.  Using the retired Rock the Block stamp set and the It's Your Day stamp set, Bamboo and Black cardstock, I've made this vintage card:

Even though It's Your Day set has a polka dot stamp set, I didn't use it because I thought the dots were too closely packed.  I'm glad that I still have the Rock the Block stamp set in my stash for this card.  The grosgrain is another retired Close to My Heart product, but look, Black is always the classic color and I can't complain that it is old when i am making a vintage card.

The front of this card says "life is good...." and you can tell that the interior says "Enjoy the ride."  It's Your Day stamp set is really cool!

For You

I saw this challenge called Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge which was administered by fellow Close to My Heart consultants and focusing on the Close to My Heart palette.  This week it is challenging us to use Hollyhock, Blush and Olive.

I just happened to have a scrap piece of hollyhock and thought why don't I try using the color on a sketch?

I'm using the sketch presented by Retro Sketches:

My card follows the sketch pretty strictly:

I used some scraps and the stamp set from Lucy Workshop on the Go, and finished the card with the Hollyhock ribbon that has been sitting alone sadly in my stash.  I like that Hollyhock is a shade darker than Blush so I could use it to outline the flowers that are stamped in Blush.  How nice!

Winter Wonderland

Alright.  I'll confess that I am always in a rush when it comes to my blogposts.  I had posted my card just hours before collection closed yesterday and today is a repetition of yesterday. 

I wanted to play along with OLW 101 Feeling Blue because just by reading the title I felt the challenge already.  It has to be a one layer card and this time the main color must be blue. 

Tough.

When I feel the need of inspiration I go through my stash.  Then I came up with the idea of having a blue background with some snowflakes. 

I first masked the cardstock with post-it notes to create the border, then stamped the snowflakes with Versamark ink, followed by clear powder heat set.  I don't have Sky reinker, so I've used Pacifica, a tone that is much heavier.  Trust me, I've only use drops of Pacifica reinker, but I still need to dilute it for about 10 times to get the light blue I want.  To make it shimmery I've added a scoop of  Create-A-Shade Pearl Paint in the reinker-water mixture.  Just a couple of sprays, it is done!

It is indeed fun to make this card.  I just wish I didn't need to do the masking then I would create a big piece of patterned paper with the snowflakes and cut it for use.  Oh well, that's why it is a challenge.  So glad that I've accomplished it!

Merry & Bright

Oops.  It's two weeks in a row that I am almost late for the Freshly Made Sketches challenge.  That's probably what we mean by crazy Mondays, right?

The sketch provided by Freshly Made Sketches looks like this:

I've flipped the sketch 90 degrees anti-clockwise for this Christmas card:

This card uses both new and old supplies.  The patterned paper is the new Pear and Partridge packet, and the wreath comes from the Merry & Bright stamp set.  You see the circles in the background?  I love creating my own background paper.  The stamp also comes from the Merry & Bright stamp set.  The ribbon is part of the old B&T paper.  What about the stamp Merry & Bright?  Interestingly even though the Merry & Bright stamp set has a sentiment that says "Merry and Bright" I am actually using one that comes from a retired stamp set called Christmas Melodies.  I just masked off its brackets and stars to show this partial image. The wreath was also stamped with masking.  Who doesn't like the red bow?

Makeover Monday Challenge

It has been quite a while since I last participated in Makeover Monday Challenge.  This week the challenge shows us how to transform a beautiful Thank You card to a Thinking of You card.  You can see the transformation here.

I was inspired by the big pennants, then changed it to three little ribbon pennants.  The tag was the next element.  Even though I spent much time thinking of how to create a tag, I eventually opted for a label where I can stamp and cut with the Artiste cartrige.  I stamped two other images on cardstock and finished it off with embossing:

I'm so glad that I could use the retired ribbons.  It always feels good when we could use up some of the stash!

Double Stamp set for just $5

Yes, to celebration National Stamping Month in September, Close to My Heart is offering the popular double stamp set promotion!

The exclusive D-size double stamp set is just $5 when you place a minimum order of $35.  Want to know more about this campaign?  Watch the video below!

Life is Good

Life is good.  The feeling of it is especially strong during the summer time, when our mother nature is offering so much for us to enjoy: sunshine, occasional breeze in the evening, green trees, grassland, blooming flowers, etc.

My friend has been super busy at work this summer.  He complains that he has never done even one thing that he planned for the summer, including a hike with his dogs.

Summer is almost gone, hopefully he can squeeze some time to have some fun.  This card will probably reminds him of the importance of taking time off:

This card was made based on the sketch from Mojo Monday:

  
I am also using this card to participate the challenge presented by Heart 2 Heart challenge.  It's theme is "The Dog Days of Summer."  Be sure to click the links and check what others have come up with!  Enjoy the remaining days of the summer!

Materials used:
1.  Dakota paper packet
2.  It's Your Day stamp set
3.  A Bowwow stamp set
4.  Cricut Artiste cartridge
5.  Pacifica cardstock
6.  Watercolor pencils
7.  Twill ribbon and bitty brads (retired)

A Sympathy Card

I came a challenge that really caught my eyes - A card that is white on white - presented by Crazy 4 Challenges.  Em, is it possible at all?

The Challenge allows us to use a tiny bit of color on the stamped image.  I've chosen black and I thought, what about a sympathy card?

Since color is lacking, I wanted to make sure this card is not a boring one that says "with sympathy."  I've consulted Make it from Your Heart, the how-to program, and used one of the patterns there.  In fact, even though I did not do it on purpose, for some reason my finished card has many elements similar to the sample it shows. 

My card has a lot of white indeed:

I'm also entering the following challenges:
1.  365 Cards - use at least 3 flowers
2.  Just Us Girls - Technique challenge with the use of ribbon
3.  UnstampaBelles Challenges - Paper flowers

Congratulations!

I'll be going to a baby shower soon and am in need of a card to go with my gift.  At this time I saw that Dynamic Duos has a color combo perfect for baby card:

My friend is having a baby boy so my focus is the light green rather than the pink.  I'm making a square card to participate in CAS-ual Friday's challenge that asks us to make a sqaure card:

My card uses random stamping again, but this time I've chosen to use tone-on-tone random stamping - all the images are stamped with the same color as the cardstock.  Thus, it creates a soft muted look of a one-of-a-kind patterned paper:

Now I gotta check my gift, could I get the wrapping paper in similar tones?

Gratitude

I need to make a clean and simple card for a card swap.  The theme of the swap is fall, so I've set my mind on using the Flirty paper.  However I wasn't sure how to use my products when it has two colors that are exclusive to the paper but not available in the Close to My Heart palette.

I was a little worried but after some experiments, I figured an easy way to cope with that:  second generation stamping using the back side of the stamp with Autumn Terrocota!

The sketch for my card came from Retro Sketches:

It was totally a stretch of the sketch, I am hoping the petals of the flower constitute the circles:

Something interesting about this stamp set is that the solid stamps are treated so that it does not take as much ink as other stamps.  I saw that there are tiny grooves that reduce the area that could take up ink.  Had I chosen to stamp using that face, the color is even paler than my second generation stamping.

Boo!

Just in time to put this post up for the Freshly Made Sketches challenge.  Its sketch gives me a lot of inspiration, but I chose to start it off with a Halloween card.

The sketch looks like this:

I have got my Spellbound Workshop on the Go kit.  It's not time for the Halloween party yet, but I got the kit, why not try to make a card with some scraps?  I have gone through the cutting guide and found that I'll have leftover after preparing for the party.  Then I  cut some of the paper and played with it.  Love it!

I love owls and can't have this card without the little guy.  I like that web filling up the space, too.  How can I not try the themed keys of the Close to My Heart Artiste cartridge?  BOO! was easily cut out.  The paper of the Spellbound Workshop on the Go is very cute.  The small repeating patterns are great for cards.  I'm going to see how much more scraps I can cut out to make cards.  BOO!

Happy Hauntings

Gotta start making those Halloween cards.  This is the category that I am always rushing through every year. 

I've adopted the sketh shown on the Try Stampin' on Tuesday blog to make my card.  The sketch is clean and simple, love it!

My card is, of course, clean and simple too.  I've used the new Moonlight Workshop on the Go.  The kit has everything I need, perfect for a crop!

I'll be showing another Halloween card soon.  Happy Hauntings!

Inspired by a very cute top

Inspired by a very cute top, I followed the rules of the color challenge to prepare my card.   The color combo provided by Color Throwdown is summer-y:

Don't you agree that you want to go shopping now?

I've used the sketch provided by Clean and Simple Stamping blog:

Some oldies are used, they are all goodies.  I miss this stamp set - the flowers are beautiful and I love playing rock and roll stamping with this set:

Thanks for stopping by!

Heartfelt Wishes

I was very happy when I saw this doily on the Artiste cartridge handbook.  It is the very first button!  Who doesn't like doily?  It is fabulous, elegant, versatile and so popular right now.  I just can't resist using more of it in my cards and layouts.

I saw this sketch on Mojo Monday and I immediately saw a doily in my card:

Then I saw that Heart 2 Heart challenge asks us to make a sympathy card.  The color combo came to my head almost immediately.  I then put together my sympathy card like this:

Even though I love the doily from the Artiste cartridge, I must also give credit to her big sister Art Philosophy cartridge because the Bamboo bracket square and the Twilight Rectangle were cut by it.  The stamp set used is Baroque Borders, the Stamp of the Month of this month.  I've added some Sparkles Flourishes to replace the little banner to finish the card.  I'm quite happy with this end product, hope you like it too.

Happy crafting!

Happy Halloween

I know I have been making a lot of Christmas cards to let's switch gears to Fall cards.  I've combined the sketch given to us by iSpy Sketches

with the color combo provided by Dynamic Duos

to make my card:

The cat was cut by Close to My Heart Artiste cartridge, which makes things so easy.  This card takes perhaps 5 minutes to make, and is one of those cards that you want to mass produce for kids' parties!

Materials used:
1.  Goldrush cardstock
2.  Moonlight paper packet
3.  Cricut Artiste cartridge
4.  Say it in Style stamp set
5.  Black Exclusive Ink Stamp Pad

Random stamping

It's time to show you how versatile clear stamps can be.  I've chosen the color scheme provided by CR84FN to demonstrate random stamping:

I think the closest colors in the Close to My Heart palette are Smokey Plum, Twilight and Olive. 

To make this card, I've randomly stamped the images on a Colonial White cardstock.  Personally I like to leave some empty space, but had I chosen to fill in the space, it would look more like patterned paper.

Do I have a trick to make it look natural?  Yes!

You want to choose three images of different sizes - big, medium and small, preferably of different shapes as well.  Here the Olive florish is a contrasting shape comparing to the medallions.  Then you want to pick one color for each shape.  Here, I stick to the color scheme provided by the challenge.  You want to stamp one image at a time, and that image wants to create a triangle.  If you look closely you'll see the purple medallions form a triangle while the green florishes form another.  The most important thing is, of course, CLEAR stamps!  I love how easy it is to see exactly where I stamp.  You see the little grey circle in the purple medallions?  I can't imagine using a stamp positioning tool every time I stamp it.  I really can't, I may want to give up this fun technique if I have to use the tool.

This technique is fun and easy.  You'll create your own patterned paper that is truly unique.  Try it out!

A card for a teacher

Even though summer is not over, the feeling of Back to School is already pressing - back to school sales is everywhere.

Why not make a card for a teacher?

I'm using a sketch from The Pink Elephant:

The Paper Players is also challenging us with "Back to School":

So I've come up with a card using the new Scholastic paper:

I'm also using this card for the following challenges:
Paper Pretties - Thank you cards
Crazy 4 Challenges - a card for a teacher

Thinking of You

Just want to share a quick CAS card combing the color challenge presented by The Play Date Cafe:

and the sketch challenge by Unscripted Sketches:

I have wanted to play along with The Play Date Cafe for a long time!  So glad that I get a chance to try their color combo finally!  Thanks to this challenge I've tried a combo that I would never have thought of - Cherry - Mint Julep - Jade.  But when you put them together, they do look nice! 

Happy crafting!