Atlantic Hearts Sketch 131

This week's sketch at Atlantic Hearts calls for layers - can be a few or several, depending how you interpret the sketch. I chose to add several. I pulled out one of my favourite stamp sets - Wavy Blooms, but decided to use a colour that is not a favourite for me, but I thought I should give it a fair chance. That colour is Saffron. I tend to like the bolder, brighter colours. When I paired Saffron with Thistle, I rather liked the combination and adding Cocoa as a neutral made a big difference as well. 

Rather than trying to work in a paper pack, I decided to use the new Paper Fundamental cardstock for the patterned paper elements. The only Cricut cut was to weld together a square and a border for the Saffron piece. 

Come and join us at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge and show us your interpretation of this week's sketch. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Saffron Cardstock, Thistle Cardstock, Basic Fundamental Cardstock Pack (Cocoa), Whimsy Fundamental Cardstock Pack (Thistle)
Stamps: Wavy Blooms, Banner Wishes
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black, Cocoa
Accessories: Art Philosophy Cartridge, Artbooking Cartridge, Bronze Shimmer Trim, Thistle Thick Twine, Diamond Embossing Folder, Bling Gems Gold Assortment, Grey Enamel Gems, ShinHan Markers, Foam Tape, Thin Foam Tape 

Enjoy,
Alyson

Heart 2 Heart - Cricut Capers!

The challenge at Heart 2 Heart this week is to use your Cricut (or use some sort of die cut if you don't own a Cricut machine). Close To My Heart has the five BEST Cricut cartridges available anywhere! In the last 5 years, since the introduction of Art Philosophy, I think I have purchased two files for my Cricut machine in that entire time - otherwise, everything I have needed is on our cartridges! 

The card I chose to create is from an idea I found on Pinterest. 

I loved the idea that only part of the front was embossed so I searched how to create my own embossing diffuser (and promptly cracked my Cuttlebug machine while embossing... not a good thing!) I did manage, however, to emboss only the section of the card that I wanted to emboss :) 

The spray pen was another adventure - I don't have the Eggplant reinker yet so I had to mix THREE reinkers to get a close shade of purple (using Gypsy, Thistle and Pacifica). It took many tries to get a shade that was relatively close and you should have seen my white porcelain sink by the time I was finished... 

The Cricut cuts were the EASY part! A butterfly, two different vines and a banner and that's it - our Cricut cartridges make it SO easy! Add to that a few clear sparkles coloured with a ShinHan marker and that's it! 

Join us at Heart 2 Heart and show us your creation using the Cricut (or other die cuts). You have until the end of October to submit your entries. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Sangria Paper Pack, Eggplant Cardstock, Champagne Cardstock, Fern Cardstock
Stamps: Say it All
Inks: Eggplant, Reinkers: Gypsy, Thistle, Pacifica
Accessories: Artistry Cartridge, Art Philosophy Cartridge, Chevron Embossing Folder, Spray Pen, Clear Sparkles, Bitty Sparkles, ShinHan Marker - Sap Green

Enjoy, 
Alyson 

Thinking of You Cards...

These 4 cards were created in an afternoon -  my friend at my church who provides cards for individuals who are ill or who have lost someone close to them is in desperate need of cards at the moment and I told her I would create some for her. I found some fairly easy ones on Pinterest that I could create and just used the same style with stamps and supplies that I had on hand. I saw her this afternoon and she was thrilled with them and they will last for at least a couple of weeks until I have a chance to create some more for her. 

For this last card, I painted the flowers using a mixture of Pearl Paint and Lagoon Reinker. 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: Jackson Paper Pack (ret.), Seaside Paper Pack (ret.), Skylark Paper Pack (ret.), White Daisy Cardstock, Colonial White Cardstock, Lagoon Cardstock, Cocoa Cardstock, Thistle Cardstock, Gypsy Cardstock
Stamps: Flirty Scrapbooking Workshop (ret.), Card Chatter - Sympathy (ret.), Say it All, Thoughts and Prayers (not CTMH)
Inks: Lagoon, Glacier, Cocoa, Desert Sand, Juniper, Gypsy
Accessories: Art Philosophy Cartridge, Artiste Cartridge, Bitty Sparkles, Bronze Shimmer Trim, Foam Tape, Antiqued Gold Ribbon Hangers and Brads (ret.), Juniper Ribbon (ret.), Lagoon Reinker, Pearl Paint (ret.), White Material Flowers (not CTMH), Cocoa Dotted Ribbon (not CTMH), Flourish Embossing Folder (not CTMH), Lagoon Ribbon (not CTMH)

Enjoy, 
Alyson

You're Awesome Card and a new method of photography...

With this card, I am trying a new method of photographing my artwork. I am having a hard time getting photos straight on to start with and shadows are always a problem for me as well as true colours at times. After exploring a lot of different blogs and looking at a number of Pinterest posts, I notice several cards are photographed from an angled view and that is what I am going to try to do for a while to see if I get some better results. 

This card is for a friend of mine who is having some personal struggles at the present time. She loves roses so I really wanted to include roses on her card. I also wanted to use the Ink Blot stamp as I love the fact that I can add that element without having to go through all the work to get that effect! I really wanted to use the Peacock Fundamental adhesive glitter elements but they didn't match very well - they were a brighter shade than the paper - maybe on a future project. I ended up going with the Aqua Dots instead. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Kraft Cardstock, Peacock Cardstock, Eggplant Cardstock, Purple Glitter Paper
Stamps: Ink Blot, Just to Say Cricut Collection
Inks: Peacock
Accessories: Artbooking Cartridge, Art Philosophy Cartridge, Peacock Fundamental Assortment, Dot Embossing Folder, Aqua Dots

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Atlantic Hearts Sketch 129

It's an interesting sketch this week at Atlantic Hearts. I actually spent an enormous amount of time on this one because I didn't like any of my creations and even this one doesn't thrill me. However, I had to move on with other deadlines, so this is the one that made the final cut. I am also going to show you the first card that I made but the other 6 between these two made it to the recycling bin... It was a long process and I haven't struggled with a sketch so much for a very long time! 

I played a lot with the new Artistry cartridge before finally deciding what to do. I rotated the sketch and I really wanted to use the Sangria paper pack. I took some liberties with the size of and placements of embellishments.  

The card below was my first attempt but I did want to leave it here, just to show you what I was thinking... 

Join us at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge and show us your interpretation of this week's challenge. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart (both cards)

Paper: Sangria Paper Pack, Colonial White Cardstock, Champagne Cardstock, Fern Cardstock, Sweet Leaf Cardstock, Pomegranate Cardstock, Eggplant Cardstock, Poppy Cardstock, Purple Glitter Paper
Stamps: Just to Say,,,, Cricut Collection
Inks: Eggplant
Accessories: Artistry Cartridge, Art Philosophy Cartridge, Green Shimmer Trim, Foam Tape, ShinHan Markers, Clear Sparkles, Green Triangles Enamel and Glitter Duos

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Imitation Washi Tape Card

I saw this card on Pinterest and fell in love (insert heart here...) I have some cards to create for a woman at my church who provides cards for those in our congregation who are ill or have experienced the loss of someone and I knew I could make this design work for that purpose. I totally CASEd this from Wendy Weixler because I just loved what she did with it. 

I chose to use patterned papers from the Sangria paper pack and rather than tearing the paper, I used a rough scissor cut at the end of each piece. The Shower Flowers stamp set was perfect for this card.

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Sangria Paper Pack, Colonial White Cardstock
Stamps: Shower Flowers, Say it All
Inks: Eggplant, Pomegranate, Fern
Accessories: Corner Rounder, Foam Tape, Thin Foam Tape

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Christmas Ornament Card and some REALLY Green Leaves!

I decided to play late last night and I found some inspiring cards on Pinterest that peaked my interest that I wanted to try. 

The first is a Christmas card that is so clean and simple. I loved the idea and the fact that there are so many possibilities that can be implemented with this type of card - the Christmas ball could be created as a shaker card, it could be backed with the Fundamental Papers for a very interesting look but I chose to use Glitter Paper. I wanted the background paper to match the Glitter paper so I used Thistle cardstock and Purple Glitter Paper. I simply wanted the sentiment of Merry Christmas - that is HARD to find on stamps these days. There are all sorts of other sayings but I had to go back to a retired set called Holiday Wishes to find a reasonably sized "Merry Christmas" to add to this card. 

The original designer is Loll Thompson and you can click on her name to go to her website. 

The second card that I really loved was one with some leaves and just a simple sentiment. The original designer, Bev, did hers in a bluish-grey colour. I loved the shimmer on the leaves and I chose some leaves from the Artistry Cricut cartridge and embossed them. A simple sentiment paired with two Artesian Studs and this card came together really quickly. I rounded two corners and mounted the front on foam tape to set it off a bit from the base. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Thistle Cardstock, Pear Cardstock, Purple Glitter Paper
Stamps: Say it All, Holiday Wishes (ret.), Adornable (ret.)
Inks: Black, Versamark
Accessories: Artistry Cartridge, Art Philosophy Cartridge, Corner Rounder, Clear Detail Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Artesian Studs, Foam Tape

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Artfully Sent PML Greeting Cards

I decided to check out some card options on the Artfully Sent Cricut Cartridge. I was looking specifically for ones where I could use the Sangria Paper Pack to back images that were cut out. I found two that I really liked and they are below. 

Just because something appears "summery"in nature doesn't mean that it can't be made to look more like an autumn-based card if the colour scheme is changed. And these are the Picture My Life cards - designed to be put inside the PML pages. I just cut them slightly smaller than a card front and used them as cards instead. I didn't want the restriction of using only the cards that were provided on the cartridge so I decided to make my own instead. Both cards open from the side - I find that cards with a top crease often tend to slide open and don't hold their shape very well so I prefer this kind of opening instead. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Sangria Paper Pack, Colonial White Cardstock, Pomegranate Cardstock, Fern Cardstock, Eggplant Cardstock, Fern Fundamental Cardstock, Purple Glitter Paper
Stamps: Say It All
Inks: Versamark
Accessories: Artfully Sent Cartridge, Gold Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Gold Adhesive Gems, Gold Shimmer Trim, Chevron Border Punch, Corner Rounder, Gold Foil Tape

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Heart 2 Heart - Sketch Challenge

Heart 2 Heart's challenge this week is a sketch - my favourite kind of challenge! Almost everything I create is based from a sketch of some sort - cards, layouts, anything. I am so non-creative when left to fend for myself... I find I need something to get myself started and a sketch is the perfect way! 

Sketches are NOT designed to be followed exactly, either. You certainly can do that if you wish, but they can be manipulated in many, many ways, Card sketches can be used for layouts and vice versa. Rotate them, add or delete items (unless you are entering a challenge and it clearly indicates what has to be present...), but make it your own! 

I chose to follow this sketch pretty closely, just because I really liked it and it worked for what I had in mind. The sketch can be seen below the card. 

Join us at Heart 2 Heart and show us your interpretation of this gorgeous sketch! You have the entire month of October to enter this and any challenges this month.

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Sangria Paper Pack, Colonial White Cardstock, Fern Cardstock, Pomegranate Cardstock, Poppy Cardstock
Stamps: Just To Say,,, Cricut Collection
Inks: Eggplant
Accessories: Artistry Cricut Cartridge, Artiste Cricut Cartridge, Art Philosophy Cricut Cartridge, Bronze Shimmer Trim, Gold Foil Tape, Bling Gems Gold Assortment, Foam Tape, Thin Foam Tape

Enjoy, 
Alyson

October Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - Twinkle

Welcome to October's Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! This month, we are featuring the stamp set "Twinkle" - a set of 15 stamps. This is a terrific set of Christmas stamps with awesome potential for so many uses. The bloggers along this blog hop will show you several ideas, so sit back and enjoy the tour. You should have arrived here from Gina Brandstetter's blog
If you get lost, a list of all blogs can be found here 

The stamp set looks like this.

I chose to create a non-traditional colour Christmas card using blue and silver tones. I wanted to use several of the sentiments in the stamp set and I also wanted to incorporate some stitching on my card so I was able to do both of those with this design. 

Rather than using a paper pack, I opted to use the Paper Fundamentals Cardstock in Sapphire and use heat embossing to add interest to the card. I actually prefer anything other than red and green for Christmas - just a personal choice. 

I hope you enjoyed my project. 

The next blog on the hop is Dana Kessler's blog 

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

You can get this stamp set for just $6 this month with a $50 purchase.

(Please note that the price is shown incorrectly on the image where the stamps are shown 

- the price there is shown in US dollars) 

Visit my shopping site here. 

Remember this stamp set is only available until October 31st! 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Crystal Blue Cardstock, Sapphire Cardstock, Sapphire Paper Fundamentals Cardstock

Stamps: Twinkle

Inks: Versamark, Sapphire Pigment Ink, Crystal Blue Pigment Ink

Accessories: Artiste Cartridge, Artbooking Cartridge, Clear Detail Embossing Powder, Silver Detail Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Silver Shimmer Trim, Bitty Sparkles, Foam Tape, Sewing Machine and White Thread

Enjoy, 

Alyson