Card Set - Life is a Celebration

One of the blogs I follow regularly is that of Narelle Farrugia. She is a SU rep and I just love her style. These cards are CASEd from a set that she created not long ago. I used a different stamp for the flowers and a different embossing folder but the design is the same. 

The link to Narelle's cards is here if you want to check it out. 

I love the colour scheme of black, white and turquoise so I decided to go wth that. Lagoon is the CTMH colour that worked the best. 

The flowers and leaves were stamped and then coloured using watercolour pencils and a blending pen. This is not my preferred colouring method and I don't profess to be good at it either! However, I didn't want the bold colours that markers would have created so for the softer look, I used the pencils. 

The sentiments are all from the same stamps set - just varied the sayings a bit. Foam tape was used under the card fronts and on one embossed panel to add interest. 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: La Vie en Rose Paper Pack, White Daisy Cardstock, Black Cardstock, Lagoon Cardstock, Neenah Solar White Cardstock

Stamps: Floral Delivery, Ink Blot, Sentiment Collection (Penny Black)

Inks: Black, Lagoon, Intense Black

Accessories: Floral Delivery Thin Cuts, Nestabilities Circles, Nestabilities Labels, Diamond Embossing Folder, Watercolour Pencils (Derwent), Blending Pen, Foam Tape

Enjoy,

Alyson

Interactive Mini Album

Hello weekend! Do you even realize that it's the weekend with the days all getting lumped together with being at home? I know it has been a struggle for me at times, but as difficult as it is, I know of others who I know are having a much harder time with this... please know that my thoughts and prayers are with all in these unusual times. 

I spent a significant amount of time creating a mini album for a friend's upcoming birthday. This is a purchased file (see this website) and a very time intensive project.

The Chelsea Gardens paper pack was perfect for this - the recipient loves to garden and I know she likes these colours as well. The outer album holds 4 mini albums inside. Everything is created from scratch, including the binding. 

There are lots of photos - I have photographed the outer album plus all the mini albums. The mini albums open in two different ways (pages and waterfalls) so there are a few photos of each of those. 

The Outer Album

The Mini Albums 

Mini Album 1

Mini Album 2

Mini Album 3

Mini Album 4

Whew! I am so glad this project is finished! Can’t wait to present it to my friend! 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: Chelsea Gardens Paper Pack, Charcoal Cardstock, Glacier Cardstock, Juniper Cardstock, Fern Cardstock, Sweet Leaf Cardstock, Chipboard (not CTMH)

Stamps: none

Inks: Charcoal

Accessories: Chelsea Gardens Complements, Corner Rounder

Enjoy,

Alyson

CD 389 - My Sunshine

Welcome to Colour Dare Challenge #389! 

It's another tic-tac-toe board this week - my favourite type of challenge with this design team! 

Please note that you must make a line or column using three colours although you may also add additional colours FROM THE GRID. Black and white are fine but no other neutrals are permitted.

I chose to use the left column of Candy Apple, Sage and Sapphire. 

I created a background using alcohol inks - red and blue. I used that for the main background after mounting it on all three colours. A Sage design paper was selected and I mounted all pieces on either one or two additional pieces of cardstock. The flowers and leaves were stamped, coloured and die cut to add above the banner. I brushed the definition lines on the flowers with the Clear Shimmer Brush. I honestly wasn't sure about this colour combination but I really like the end product!

Come and join us at Colour Dare and show us how you use the grid shown above. 

You have two weeks to link up your project. 

We can’t wait see what you create! 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: True Love Paper Pack, White Daisy Cardstock, Sage Cardstock, Candy Apple Cardstock, Sapphire Cardstock, Yupo Paper (not CTMH), Neenah Solar White Cardstock

Stamps: Floral Delivery, Greetings Mix 1 (SSS)

Inks: Candy Apple, Alcohol Inks (Ranger)

Accessories: Stitched Rectangle Dies (SSS), Floral Delivery Thin Cuts, Trim-Blend Markers, Clear Shimmer Brush

Enjoy,

Alyson

Cover Fold Card - You're Pretty Amazing

My continuing search for fun fold cards led me to this one - from a fellow CTMH Consultant, Jennifer Greeley. Unfortunately she does have a blog, so there isn't a direct link to her design. 

I named this a Cover Fold card as that seemed to be the best way to describe it. The inside back of the card lines up with the front so the area in the back is hidden until the card is opened. 

I used some Thistle patterned paper from the current Mix-In paper pack and based my colour choices around that. Saffron was a good complimentary colour. I used a black base and added the layers using cardstock. The sentiments on each part were stamped in black along with a few little flowers which were coloured. The two flowers on the front were stamped, coloured and fussy cut. A small gem was added in the centre of each flower and the flowers were brushed with the Clear Shimmer Brush.

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Mix-In Paper Pack, French Vanilla Cardstock, Saffron Cardstock, Thistle Cardstock, Black Cardstock

Stamps: Love These People, Sentiments and Stitches, Strokes of an Artist 

Inks: Intense Black, Black, Thistle

Accessories: Clear Shimmer Brush, Little Dreamer Glitter Gems, Tri-Blend Markers, Thin Foam Tape

Enjoy,

Alyson

Double Trouble #54 - Hip to be a Square

Welcome to Double Trouble Challenge #54 - Hip to be a Square! 

Every Double Trouble challenge has three components - Things 1, 2 and 3. Each has a specific requirement. Read below for more.

THING 1: Trouble Maker 

says, "Click It's Hip to Be a Square to sing and play along with Grover and Friends from Sesame Street. To show us how many squares are out there, make a square card, scrapbook page, gift box or other square creation... or use design papers, stencils or embossing folders which have squares. The more squares... the more hip you are. You can use other shapes but we must be able to see at least one square on your project."

THING 3: Twisted Sister

says, "I'm Hip but not necessarily Square. Since many of us, like me, have organized craft rooms (haha), select one of your older stamp sets (no digis) that you have not used in a year or more for your project. Please don't make us guess... add the approximate year to your blog post with the link to our challenge. 

THING 2: Double Dare says, "Sometimes stuff just happens and things get crazy. Our challenge partner has notified us that their team is unavailable to participate as planned. But we are remaining "hip" and upbeat! So we'll stand up, "square" our shoulders and ask you to link your project to one of our previous partners for another chance at the Random Prize. For your convenience, a list is provided on the Double Trouble challenge blog.

I originally intended to use the card shown further down... and then I was playing around and decided I liked this one better! 
I used an alcohol ink piece for the square outline. That drove my marker colours for inside the squares. I stamped a repeating image and altered the direction each time. The lines were coloured using three shades of markers - pink, purple and turquoise - and three shades within those colours. I turned the squares into shakers by adding foam tape and a piece of acetate to the card. The sentiment was stamped in the same three colours and that was mounted on Lagoon cardstock. The shaker component was mounted on Silver Foil paper and the Lagoon cardstock. The sentiment stamp is over a year old but still one that I love!

I am entering my card in the Crafter's Cafe Challenge - Anything Goes.
-----------------------------------
This is the original card I was going to use and the description... 

I went to my trusty Cricut for a lot of squares... and I found them.  The yellow multi-square background was a perfect cut to add a lot of squares - and I mean a LOT of squares (so I must be EXTRA-square :)) I started with a double matted square background. I used a piece of yupo paper and created an alcohol ink background - the Cricut cut was placed on top of that. It was lined with Lilac cardstock and raised using foam tape. The sentiment is one from a campaign at least two years ago... and hasn't been used since that time. It was coloured - and I did the letters in a darker shade at the bottom to create an ombre look - and adhered to the centre of the card. Some gold shimmer was brushed on the flower. 

Come and join us at Double Trouble and show us how you apply the challenges listed above. 

You have two weeks to enter your project.

We can’t wait to see what you create! 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: Lagoon Cardstock, Black Cardstock, Canary Cardstock, Paprika Cardstock, Lilac Cardstock, Silver Foil Paper, Yupo Paper (Ranger), Neenah Solar White Cardstock

Stamps: Card Captions, Birthday Joy, Celebrate Kindness - Hello

Inks: Intense Black, Lagoon, Raspberry, Pansy, Alcohol Inks (Ranger)

Accessories: Paper Lace 2 Cricut Cartridge, Multi-Square Thin Cut, Silver Confetti, Tri-Blend Markers, Gold Shimmer Brush, Gold Gems, Foam Tape, Gold Shimmer Brush

Enjoy,

Alyson

H2H - 10th Anniversary Challenge (Be You!)

Welcome to this week's Heart 2 Heart challenge!

Heart 2 Heart is celebrating 10 years this week... that's a long time for a challenge blog to be up and running. 

This type of challenge is open to much interpretation and I'm sure if you visit the design team members' blogs, you will see a lot of variety and various interpretations of this theme. 

Since 2020 is a new decade, many people have made resolutions and decisions about changing something in their lives. It's a hard time now as it is just past the 3 month mark and often, people struggle from the 6-15 week point. My card is designed as a positive reminder that you CAN do it - you really can! Sometimes a little encouragement is all it takes. 

I used Close To My Heart's Complete Creativity Cricut cartridge to create my card. The layout was already done for me - it is designed as an 8.5x11 page but I simply resized it to fit on a standard card. I changed the colour scheme to something brighter and bolder to match the sentiment, which was stamped with pigment ink (2 colours) and embossed. I brushed the flower and butterfly with shimmer brushes and added a paper clip at the top. So easy! 

Come and join us at Heart 2 Heart and show us how you interpret our 10th Anniversary! 

You have until the end of April to link up your project.

We can’t wait to see what you create! 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated:

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Mint Cardstock, Lagoon Cardstock, Pebble Cardstock, Raspberry Cardstock, Clover Cardstock, Peacock Cardstock, Neenah Solar White Cardstock

Stamps: Be You

Inks: Raspberry Pigment Ink, Peacock Pigment Ink

Accessories: Complete Creativity Cricut collection, Clear Detail Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Coloured Paper Clip (not CTMH), Raspberry Shimmer Brush, Clear Shimmer Brush

Enjoy,

Alyson

Floral Planter Box Card

I recently found this tutorial on Bronwyn Eastley's blog - it is a paid file but so very worth it! 

This planter box was not difficult to create but the details in creating to it to be able to fold it down is something I wouldn't have been able to figure out on my own without a lot of trial and error. 

I chose to use Pewter cardstock for the box - that was embossed in a way that the lines from the pattern would line up when the box was assembled. Once the box was assembled, I stamped and coloured the flowers and greenery. That was all die cut and the insides of the box were added. I also stamped a sentiment and die cut that along with a scalloped border to go around it. 

The greenery had to be attached to the flowers before adding them to the box. I made a few errors and had to remove the centre pieces and start again - more stamping, colouring and die cutting... I will know better where to place items if I do this type of card again! 

The centres of the flowers were brushed with the clear shimmer brush. This box folds down flat for mailing purposes - it is slightly larger than 5x7 so a custom envelope is necessary. I placed a white stitched rectangle on the back for a small place to write a message. 

A link to the tutorial is here in case you missed it at the top.

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated:

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Black Cardstock, Pewter Cardstock

Stamps: Floral Delivery, Abstract Impressions (SU)

Inks: Black, Intense Black

Accessories: Floral Delivery Thin Cuts, Stitched Rectangle Thin Cuts, Oval Dies (Nestabilities), Scalloped Oval Dies (Nestabilities), Hardwood Embossing Folder (SU), Sharpie Marker, Tri-Blend Markers, Clear Shimmer Brush, New England Ivy Twine, Pink Gems (unknown)

Enjoy,

Alyson

Floral Card Set

I create a lot of card sets for friends and also for charities. 

I saw this beautiful card a while ago on Andrea Sherman's website and have always wanted to make my own set... finally got around to doing that with so much time at home.

Every card is the same set-up but the background papers are different. I actually made two of each card - only one of each is shown here. The flowers were coloured to either match or complement the papers. All have the same gold sequin ribbon and gold embellishments but I varied the sentiments as much as possible. 

The sentiments were stamped on a die cut stitched square and the flowers were all coloured using Tri-Blend markers. Since there is no die for this stamp, each of the flowers was fussy cut and attached with foam tape. 

I hope this set of cards is well received! 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: So Much Happy Paper Pack, True Love Paper Pack, Sweet Girl Paper Pack, Mix-In Paper Pack, White Daisy Cardstock, Black Cardstock, Black Dot Patterned Paper (unknown), White Daisy Cards and Envelopes

Stamps: Love Blossoms

Inks: Black, Intense Black

Accessories: Stitched Square Thin Cuts, Basic Circle Thin Cuts, Gold Glitter Gems, Gold Sequin Ribbon, Foam Tape, Tri-Blend Markers, Touch Markers (not CTMH)

Enjoy,

Alyson

Peek-a-Boo Tent Fold Card - You're My Cup of Tea

This card is a Peek-a-Boo Tent Fold card and it is surprisingly easy to create but the folds must be crisp or it won't stay in place. This card folds down to a long 4x8 card - even 4x4 if you fold it all together. That also depends how far out of the card the front images are when it is collapsed - mine fit within the folded card. The link for instructions can be found here. 

I used a sheet of patterned paper from the Mix-In paper pack - Canary yellow in colour. A good contrasting colour was blue. The card base was folded and then the patterned paper was adhered. The easel component of the card is created separately and then added to the front. I chose a teapot and teacup. I had to add the flower as something had to hold the easel portion in place. I stamped the patterns inside the teapot and cup and then coloured them, also adding shimmer to the centres of the small flowers and on the large flower in the front. The two sentiments were stamped and mounted on a stitched circle first and then a regular circle. Finally a small bow was added at the top of the card. 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: Mix-in Paper Pack, Bluebird Cardstock, White Daisy Cardstock, Canary Cardstock

Stamps: Beautiful Friendship Cardmaking, Tea-riffic, Love These People

Inks: Intense Black, Bluebird, Canary

Accessories: Scalloped Circle Dies (Nestabilities), Circle Dies (Nestabilities), Stitched Circle Thin Cuts, Basic Circle Thin Cuts, Beautiful Friendship Cardmaking Thin Cuts, Tri-Blend Markers, Sharpie Markers (not CTMH), Clear Shimmer Brush, Foam Tape, Blue Ribbon (Offray)

Enjoy,

Alyson

April Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to the April Stamp of the Month Blog Hop. 

This month, the featured stamp set is called "O-fish-ally Awesome". It is filled with underwater images and some great punny sentiments to match. 

You should have arrived here from Michelle Stewart's blog.

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

I chose to create a tunnel card - one where there are three layers on the inside. This type of card works best with small, related images and there were plenty available on this stamp set. 

I started by stamping several of the images and then they were coloured and fussy cut (!) The cutting took a long time as I needed a lot of images and these are pretty small. 

The card base was created and then the two inside sections were completed. I used the Seas the Day paper pack for the patterned paper. The tunnel part took a while to do as the pieces had to be placed first and then glued into their positions. I ran out of fish and seaweed and had to go back and stamp, colour and cut more of them... Some liquid glass was added to the front and the tunnel sections to simulate water. 

I hope you enjoyed my project! 

The next bog on this hop is Valerie Kapsha's blog.

I am certain she has something amazing to share with you.

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: Seas the Day Paper Pack, White Daisy Cardstock,  Mink Cardstock

Stamps: O-fish-ally Awesome

Inks: Sapphire, Sage, Mint, Canary, Smoothie, Candy Apple, Mink

Accessories: Nestabilities Circle Dies (not CTMH), Tri-Blend Markers, Liquid Glass

Enjoy,

Alyson