Share a Smile Blog Hop

Welcome to the Share a Smile Blog Hop! The Share a Smile campaign is so awesome - not only does it benefit Operation Smile, which is an amazing charity in itself, but the products that are available are just so adorable that I don't know how anyone could possibly NOT want them! The Punny Pals stamp set has the sweetest animals and sentiments to go with them and the fact that you can get thin cuts for each of the animals now so you don't have to fussy cut them... well, it just doesn't get any better than that! 

You should have arrived here from Haley Dyer's blog. 

If you get lost, there is a list of all participants on Melinda Everitt's blog.

I couldn't decide which of the Punny Pals I liked the best - the koala with KOALA-ty issues was right up there, along with the toad and his TOAD-ally awesomeness. However, the pig finally won out for me this time. I wanted a female pig for a friend, so I chose a pink and grey colour scheme for my card with lots of layers. 

I hope you enjoyed my project. I wish I had time to create more... there is still more time in October, though! 

The next stop on this blog hop is Michele Rowley's blog.

I'm sure she has something wonderful to share with you. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Basic Fundamentals, White Daisy Cardstock, Heather Cardstock, Bashful Cardstock, Raspberry Cardstock, Bashful Glitter Paper

Stamps: Punny Pals

Inks: Tuxedo Black Memento Ink

Accessories: Art Philosophy Cartridge (ret.), Punny Pals Thin Cuts, Scallop Borders Thin Cuts, Rose Embossing Folder, ShinHan Markers, Bashful Pearls, Thin Foam Tape

Enjoy,

Alyson

AH 234 - Doggie Christmas Greetings

With the Punny Pals campaign happening in the month of October, it is the perfect time to use one of those images on this week's Atlantic Hearts card! I chose to use the doggie and to pair him with a holiday greeting. 

I love non-traditional colours for Christmas so I chose to use purples for my card this week. I also have no problem cutting my stamps... I have done it for many years and never had a problem. I had already cut my Season's Greeting stamp into 3 pieces and I also cut my paws stamp for this card - I just cut one paw off the group of them. That way, I was able to insert the paws inside the sentiment. 

I stayed very true to the sketch this time around - it worked for me so why change it? 

Join us at Atlantic Hearts and show us how you interpret the sketch shown above. You have until Sunday evening to link up your project. 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Thistle Cardstock, Pansy Cardstock, Eggplant Cardstock
Stamps: Punny Pals, Season's Greetings, Paws
Inks: Tuxedo Black Memento Ink, Pansy
Accessories: ShinHan Markers, Silver Gems (from previous paper pack collection but unsure which one...), Silver Ribbon (not CTMH), Silver Doily (not CTMH), Embossing Folder (not CTMH)

Enjoy, 
Alyson

CD 265 - Sending Hugs card

Love the colours this week at Colour Dare... standard neutrals, Bashful, Pomegranate and the option of Silver. Perfect mix for a card to send to a friend who really needs a pick-me-up. 

I chose to use two retired stamp sets because I love the flowers and the sentiment from each of them. The flowers were embossed with black pigment ink and heat set so I could add a bit of shading and the colour wouldn't run. They were fussy cut leaving no border. The pomegranate background is from the old fundamental cardstock that is embossed on one side. The White Daisy cardstock was embossed using the rose embossing folder and then I faux stitched around the edge of the card. I added a few old black flourish embellishments (I miss those so much!) and placed the sentiment on top of the flowers over a strip of shimmer trim. 

Come and join us at Colour Dare and show us how you use the colour combination shown above. You now have TWO WEEKS to link up your project. The due date for this challenge is Thursday, October 26 at 10pm EST. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Black Cardstock, Enchantment Fundamentals (old stock - ret.)

Stamps: A Budding Friendship (ret.), Sending Love (ret.)

Inks: Black Pigment Ink, Black

Accessories: Cricut Basic Shapes, Black Sparkle Flourishes (ret.), ShinHan Markers, Clear Detail Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Silver Shimmer Trim, Clear Sparkles, Thin Foam Tape, Piercing Tool and Mat, Rose Embossing Folder

Enjoy, 
Alyson

H2H - BeYOUtiful

The theme this week at Heart 2 Heart is BeYOUtiful. This topic led me to create a very special layout. 

Denise and I have been friends for a while and although we are separated by a couple of driving hours, we communicate daily via Facebook and text message. She keeps me on the the straight and narrow and makes sure I am doing what I am supposed to be doing... She is an incredibly giving woman - of her time and talents. I just love her to pieces and the title of this theme fits her perfectly. She truly is beautiful - inside and out - and I am so blessed to be able to call her my friend. 

This layout was created using primarily the Basic Fundamental papers and Bashful - ink, glitter paper and cardstock. The Bashful paper matched Denise's scarf perfectly. The background piece is actually Linen, not White Daisy. I stamped a background of stars very lightly using Bashful ink and a template cut from the Artistry Cricut cartridge. The flowers are from the Beautiful You stamp set and the hearts are from a retired thin cut set from last year. 

The next two photos show a couple of the flowers brushed with the shimmer brush. 

Join us at Heart 2 Heart and show us how you interpret the theme of BeYOUtiful. You have until the end of October to link up with this or any of the October challenges. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Linen Cardstock, Black Cardstock, Charcoal Cardstock, Bashful Cardstock, White Daisy Cardstock, Bashful Glitter Paper, Basic Fundamentals

Stamps: Beautiful You, Falling for You, Journaling Prompts (ret.)

Inks: Charcoal, Bashful, Pixie, Raspberry, Sweet Leaf, Juniper

Accessories: Artistry Cartridge, Beautiful You Thin Cuts, Heart Thin Cuts (ret.), Basic Ribbon Collection, Clear Shimmer Brush, Black Journaling Pen, Thin Foam Tape

Enjoy, 

Alyson

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An Elegant Wedding Card

I am honoured to be a guest at a wonderful wedding coming up, which calls for an elegant card. 

It is always a challenge to create a card using only two colours and this one was to be done with just Sapphire and Gold. I had to dig back in my stash for some special Sapphire paper from the old fundamental papers - the one that had the embossed image on one side and the same pattern in white and sapphire on the reverse. I also had to find old gold glitter paper that matched the same shade as our current gold foil paper. It was time as well to break out the All About the Gold Fundamentals from last year. An old stamp simply called "Love", embossed in gold, made the perfect center for this card. 

All of these products, along with a Cricut border, led to this finished product - the front and then the inside... 

I trust the happy couple will enjoy their new life together. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Sapphire Cardstock, Gold Foil Paper, Gold Glitter Paper, old Enchantment Fundamentals (ret.) All About the Gold Fundamentals (ret.)

Stamps: Love (ret.)

Inks: Versamark

Accessories: Artistry Cartridge, Artiste Cartridge (ret.), Gold Foil Tape (ret.) Gold Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Foam Tape, Thin Foam Tape

Enjoy, 

Alyson

A Trick on Your Eyes...

My baby brother is turning 50 next week... so hard to believe! 

This card may make you think you are having difficulty focusing correctly but it isn't you - it really is the card itself. I cut two layers of vellum and intentionally placed them just slightly misaligned from each other. I didn't realize until after the card was finished how hard it is on the eyes but it sure is unique! And it might make you think a visit to the optometrist is necessary as well :) 

The background was sponged and blended in three shades of green.

This is a close up of a section of the vellum so you see better what the layers look like. 

I hope my brother has a fabulous 50th birthday :) 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Vellum

Stamps: Happy Birthday (ret.)

Inks: Sweet Leaf, Fern, New England Ivy

Accessories: Hello Lovely - Cardmaking Thin Cuts, Greenery Die (Memory Box), Stitched Dies (Gina Marie Designs)

Enjoy, 

Alyson

Atlantic Hearts 232 - Hope and Peace Flower

Christmas is on its way and will be here before we know it. I have barely started creating my Christmas cards and figured this was as good a time as any to use one of my all time favourite flowers as the focal point for this sketch. 

The border was cut using my Cricut, as was the sentiment piece. I stamped two words using Versamark ink and embossed them in white. The biggest challenge with a card like this is photography - the gold foil paper doesn't look nearly as beautiful in the photo as it does in real life. 

This close up shows the flower and the berries brushed with the gold shimmer brush. It adds such a gorgeous touch to the card. 

Join us at Atlantic Hearts and show us how you interpret the sketch shown above. You have until Sunday evening to link up your project. 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, New England Ivy Cardstock, Cranberry Cardstock, Fern Cardstock, Gold Foil Paper, White Doily (not CTMH)
Stamps: Blended Bloom (SU), Scandinavian Wishes (ret.)
Inks: Versamark
Accessories: Artistry Cartridge, Artbooking Cartridge, Holly Embossing Folder (not CTMH), Gold Embossing Powder, White Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, ShinHan Markers, Gold Shimmer Brush

Enjoy, 
Alyson

October Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to October's Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! This month, we are featuring the stamp set 

"Christmas Tunes" - a set of 7 stamps. This stamp set is a great stamp set to celebrate the holiday season with a wreath, tree, ornament and snow globe. The bloggers along this blog hop will certainly show you many ways to use this stamp set, so sit back and enjoy the tour. 

You should have arrived here from Sheila Bennett's blog.

If you get lost, a list of all blogs can be found on Melinda Everitt's blog. 

The stamp set looks like this.

I have two cards created for this blog hop. 

The first is one of 5 cards that is part of my Christmas Card Workshop. It is pretty simple but I love the final effect with the wreath as the focal point. The background was embossed with the Buffalo Plaid embossing folder and two rectangular pieces of paper from the Silver and Gold paper pack were placed on top. A few small details were added and the card came together very quickly. 

The second card was even easier....It is a simple gate fold card with the tree holding it together (adhered on the left side and secured with a hook and loop dot on the right). The inside has a large place to write in the centre. I used a fine tip Sharpie marker to colour in the stars on the tree as I needed a very fine marker for that purpose. 

 I cut out the little trees from one of the PML cards, just to add something to the inside. 

The next blog on the hop is Brandi Robinson's blog.

I'm sure she has something wonderful to share with you. 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated:

Paper: Silver and Gold Paper Pack, Beary Christmas Paper Pack, White Daisy Cardstock, New England Ivy Cardstock, Cranberry Cardstock

Stamps: Christmas Tunes, Short and Sweet

Inks: New England Ivy, Ruby

Accessories: Circuit Basic Shapes, Gold Glitter Gems, Hook and Loop Dots, Sharpie Markers (not CTMH), ShinHan Markers, White and Gold Twine, Buffalo Plaid Embossing Folder, Foam Tape

Enjoy, 

Alyson

Colour Dare 263 - Vellum with Falling for You

Welcome to Colour Dare Challenge 263... one involving some of the new neutrals along with Pomegranate, Saffron and Fern. 

I chose to use some of the Falling For You papers and vellum for my card this time - and did a lot of embossing in stages. The Fern embossing and colouring look lighter than I expected but is definitely is Fern. The Saffron pigment ink also embossed very lightly in colour on the vellum. 

Once the flowers were completed, the rest of this card came together very quickly. 

Join us at Colour Dare and show us how you interpret the colour palette shown above. If you don't have the Close To My Heart colours, use the closest that you have.

You must use ALL and ONLY the colours specified for the challenge. 

This challenge will remain open until Thursday, October 12 at 10pm EST. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Falling For You Paper Pack, White Daisy Cardstock, Fern Cardstock, Vellum

Stamps: Falling for You - Scrapbooking

Inks: Pomegranate Pigment Ink, Saffron Pigment Ink, Fern Pigment Ink

Accessories: Clear Detail Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, White and Gold Ribbon, ShinHan Markers, Clear Shimmer Brush, Falling For You Scrapbooking Thin Cuts

Enjoy,

Alyson

Heart 2 Heart - Hello Sunshine

The challenge this week at Heart 2 Heart is Marker Madness. Pull out your markers and show us the magic that you can create with them! 

I am not a whiz with markers but I do my best... Shading has always been difficult from as I just don't see where it should happen. Some people have a natural ability to visualize things like that and that is most certainly a gift that I do not have. I simply follow the lines in a flower like the one I stamped below. I used 3 shades of pink - primarily the Bashful colour and 2 darker pinks to highlight the lined areas. I also went over the flower with the Clear Shimmer Brush in sections but that can only be seen in person (as usual). 

The ribbon on the card took me forever to do... adhering it down since it didn't have any wire in it was quite a task, especially since it was sheer. I liked the pattern on it and really wanted to use it for this card; same as the twine that I have had forever. 

This is the last challenge for September. You have until the end of the month to link up with this or any other Heart 2 Heart challenges - and you must use at least some Close To My Heart products in your creations. 

Be sure to enter the other challenges this month if you want to be a Heart 2 Heart Sweetheart ❤️

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Bashful Cardstock, Raspberry Cardstock, Emerald Cardstock

Stamps: Kind Thoughts, Falling for You - Scrapbooking

Inks: Tuxedo Black Memento Ink, Raspberry, Emerald

Accessories: Bashful Pearls, ShinHan Markers, Clear Shimmer Brush, Corner Rounder, Rose Embossing Folder, Foam Tape, Organdy Ribbon (not CTMH), Pink Twine (not CTMH), Clear Shimmer Brush

Enjoy, 

Alyson

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