My Pink Stamper Challenge #3

Hi Everyone,

Here is the final challenge from over at My Pink Stamper. Robyn asked everyone to make a tag. Well I have to admit, I haven't made very many of these so it definitely was a challenge for me.

This weekend I have been focusing on using up my scraps of paper, so the tag along with the two cards I have made used Melon Mambo Cardstock for the base. Hopefully you don't get too sick of this colour before the weekend is through.

I made the tag by cutting a rectangular piece of cardstock out with my trimmer and then used the tag corner punch from stampin up on the two top corners. I added a grommet to the top as well for the hole for the ribbon.

I used my cupcake stamp set from inkadinkado. This is such a cute set and I don't pull it out nearly as often as I would like to. I stamped my cupcake twice. Once on white cardstock and the other on a piece of fancy pants patterned paper. Then I cut out the patterned paper and attached it to the white cardstock so I could have a colourful cupcake wrapper. To finish off the cupcake I put white liquid applique on the top for the frosting as well as some pink glitter (hard to see in the picture). Then I used my heat embossing gun to make the liquid applique all puffy so it looked like frosting.

I added a few pieces of scraps paper to the bottom and popped up my cupcake with dimensionals to finish off the tag.

Recipe:
Paper- SU melon mambo cardstock, white cardstock, fancy pants patterned paper scraps
Ink- Black archival ink, jumbo java chalk ink
Stamps- Inkadinkado cupcake set (sorry I can't remember the name)
Accessories- Melon Mambo Polka dot ribbon, SU jumbo eyelets, liquid applique, heat embossing gun, SU dimensionals, SU tag corner punch


I hope you have had fun participating in the MPS challenges as much as I have,
Cat

My Pink Stamper Challenge #2

Hi Everyone,

Over at My Pink Stamper Robyn has given everyone another challenge. She has asked everyone to try and create something "warm and springy" to help warm everyone up and beat the winter blahs. She suggested pulling out your Life's a Beach cartridge or something with flowers on it. Well I have to admit I purchased the Life's a Beach cricut cartridge a while ago and I have never used it. It was one of those cartridges I just had to have and I hadn't done anything with it yet.

Well, tonight I actually used it and am quite pleased with the results. I tried out the square card feature and it worked pretty well. I did have a few issues with it. Not sure if it is a glitch in the cartridge or something I am doing wrong (Probably the glitch is in the person working the machine! LOL!).

I cut my square card at 5 1/4" using the mermaid cut. Then I measured the mermaid (she was 3.5") and cut out a base and her layers at 3.5". I had to cut her layers 3 times, in yellow, green, and pink to get all the pieces I wanted in the correct colours. I put my mermaid together then went to put her on the card base and she didn't want to fit quite right. The size seemed to be the same but her arms seemed to be slightly off compared to the square card base (you will be able to see pink outlines where she didn't line up if you look closely). I fiddled with the cut and card base for a few minutes and then decided it didn't really matter in the end.

To jazz up the outside of the card I cut out some seaweed in a variety of sizes and colours to put on the card. I also stamped my sentiment, and added some polka dot ribbon from my stash.

Then I decided I wanted to make this card a shaker card. To do this I attached transparency on the inside of the card (3.5" square). I placed foam tape around the entire opening and added glitter and micro beads (make sure you don't leave any holes or your beads and glitter will fall out). Then I place a 4" piece of water patterned paper over the foam tape. The final step was to add stickles to make it sparkle that much more.

I am really pleased with how well it turned out. I love the shaker cards and the square card feature on this cartridge is perfect for this technique.

Here is the Recipe:
Paper- SU Melon Mambo Cardstock, Water patterned paper (retired) from Creative Memories, Creative Memories cardstock scraps for layers, transparency from Staples
Ink- Archival Black Ink
Stamp- Studio G dollar stamp from Micheal's
Accessories- SU Crushed Curry Polka Dot ribbon, Close To My Heart Foam Tape, silver microbeads, pink and blue fine glitter, Stickles in crystal, green, and yellow

Have fun and stay warm this weekend,
Cat

Digital Layout Ettes Dude Collection

Hi Everyone,

Here is another layout featuring a kit from The Ettes and Company. This collection is called Dude and it is super cute. Perfect for little boy, kid, and outdoor layouts. I really liked the shades of blue in this collection and the monsters are adorable!

The first page of this double page spread is scraplifted from The Ettes and Company design team. I fell in love with the layout and had to recreate it myself. The second page is a live template that I used in my CM Storybook software. I apologize I can't remember where I got the live template from so if anyone recognizes it then please let me know so I can give credit where credit is due.

The only other special technique I used for this double page spread is adding "glitter" to a few of my embellishments (bracket, flowers, and hearts). This is a very simple trick but adds some really nice texture to your page.

To add "glitter" to an element you need to select the element then go to your format ribbon, select "surfaces", choose the first surface (block), and move the amplification bar all the way to the right (10). This should give you a "glitterized" effect. If it doesn't show enough then you can always repeat the steps to get a more grainy texture. Thanks goes out to Macey Goode for sharing this neat trick with the CM Digi scrapping community.

I apologize for the blurred photos but I thought since there were other children in the photo other than my own, and I didn't ask permission to post their pictures I would blur them out.

Have a great weekend,
Cat

Pink Stamper Challenge #1

Hi Everyone,

Robyn aka My Pink Stamper is having a number of challenges throughout the day today as well as tomorrow. The first challenge she has given everyone is to use your favourite colour and black to create something.

I chose to do a card using Stampin Up's Melon Mambo with Black. I love this hot pink colour with black. The black really makes everything pop.

For this card I used my SU medallion stamp and inked it up with Pink Pirouette, then I used my SU markers to colour around the outside with Rose Red Ink (very close to Melon Mambo ink and works as a good substitute). Once that was done then I took a makeup sponge and dabbed all over the stamp to soften the lines.

To finish everything off I added some Cotton Candy Stickles, ribbon, and a rhinestone brad for a little extra bling.

If you want to get your creative juices flowing then head on over to My Pink Stamper and try out one of her challenges.

Recipe:
Paper- SU Melon Mambo, Black, and Whisper White Cardstock
Ink- SU Pink Pirouette, Rose Red, and Archival Black Ink
Stamps- SU Medallion, Heidi Grace Stamp (sorry can't remember the name)
Accessories- Pop Dots, SU rhinestone brad, paper piercer, mat pack, Cotton Candy Stickles, Melon Mambo Polka Dot ribbon.

Happy Crafting everyone,
Cat

My first Ettes and Company Layout.

Hi Everyone,

I shared my first digital card with you yesterday. Well I thought I would show you a layout I just completed with some more Ettes and Company digital collections. This Collection is called "Wonderful World" and is another fantastic collection filled with so many elements and papers that you won't believe the price. I couldn't get over how big it is.

Anyway, I purchased this kit because I love the little characters that are included with them. I think they are so cute and are perfect for cards and scrapbook pages involving kids.

Everything on this page was created from the same kit. The page layout is a "Decorative Click and Fill" page from Creative Memories. I rearranged the layout a bit for the second page of the double page spread so it is similar enough for everything to flow but altered enough to create interest. At least, I hope that is how it turned out since that is what I was going for.

Recipe:
Papers- All papers are from the Wonderful World Collection by Ettes and Company
Accessories- All Elements are from the Wonderful World Collection by Ettes and Company, Decorative Click and Fill page from Creative Memories from the Simple Start CD

My first Digital Card!

Hi Everyone,

I decided to try out some of my new digital kits I recently purchased and try my hand at a digital card. I have never done a digital card before but thought it might be fun. I am planning on printing the card front and insert out on my printer at home and attaching them to a card base.

I created the digital card so the finished size will be A2 with a .25" border around when I attach it to the card base.

I fell in love with this kit when my friend Lori Bickford shared a digital page on Facebook. The little monsters/aliens are so cute and the colours are perfect for kids layouts.

To purchase this amazing kit and many others at fantastic prices I encourage all of you to head on over to Ettes and Company. These ladies have amazing kits and their prices are super reasonable.

Recipe:
Paper- All digital paper from Ettes and Company Dude Collection
Accessories- All accessories with the exception of the white stitching is from the Dude Collection, White stitching is a freebie from CM
Font- SBC Karen Bear Ultra

Practical Scrappers Challenge - Patterned Paper

Hi Everyone,

I'm sure we are all guilty of hoarding lots of beautiful patterned papers in our scrapbooking stash. I know there have been times when I purchase paper just because I love it, then I don't end up using it because I don't want to waste it. Well over at Practical Scrappers this week they are encouraging you to use up some of your patterned paper stash. The challenge for the designers was to use at least two different pieces of patterned paper on your project. Everyone has done a fantastic job. You should really go and check out their work.

This week I used some valentines themed paper I purchased last year and never used. All the patterned paper for my project this week comes from the same collection by My Mind's Eye. I loved the colours and I really love pink and brown together.

I always have a difficult time combining different patterned papers. I am afraid of things looking too busy or patterns/colours clashing. One way to avoid this is to pick all your patterned papers from the same collection. That way you know all the colours work together as well as the patterns.

I started out with a piece of SU Chocolate Chip cardstock and stamped the "En Francais" background stamp in versamark then heat embossed it.

I added a vellum scalloped circle that was cut with my cricut. On top of that I added a butterfly I created with my SU butterfly bigz die. I inked the edges of both of the cuts to help define them and tie the two pieces of patterned paper together. To finish off the butterfly I added three plastic beads (skittles) from my stash. The bottom is another piece of patterend paper from the same MME collection and a small scalloped border made from a piece of scrap paper. The sentiment is stamped in Chocolate Chip ink and is from a Heidi Grace clear stamp set.


Recipe:
Paper- SU chocolate chip cardstock, rust cardstock scrap (probably CM), white vellum, MME Irresistible collection; Sweethearts, Candy Stripe, and Sweet Blossoms
Ink- SU chocolate chip, jumbo java chalk ink, Versamark
Stamps- SU En Francais, Heidi Grace Wild Daisy Road
Accessories- Clear plastic beads, Paper piercer, Clear Embossing powder, SU scalloped border punch, SU Beautiful Butterflies die

Another Reason I Love Working with CM Live Templates.

Hi Everyone,

I apologize for not posting here more often. I have been crazy busy lately trying to put together a storybook in honour of my Grandmother's 80th birthday. I love how it is coming together and everything has been so much easier thanks to CM's live templates.

I wanted this storybook to have a more heritage type feel so I purchased a few kits as well as some predesigned pages through CM. Some of the pages I could use as is and make a beautiful page in a matter of minutes. Other pages just needed a little tweeking and some were a perfect springboard for getting my creative juices flowing.

Today I wanted to show you one of the predesigned pages that came in the "Beautifully Blended" Predesigned page kit before I changed it, and I also wanted to show you my finished project so you could see how versatile these pages can be.

For this particular layout I wanted to feature a number of pictures of my Grandmother with her sister. I really liked the tree embellishment that was on the predesigned page but nothing else really fit with my overall storybook theme.


This is what the page looked like before I did anything to alter it.

To remedy this situation I changed the papers and embellishments to match the other side of my double page layout while leaving the tree alone. Then all I had to do was change the positioning of the tree embellishment and fill the circles around the tree with paper that would match my layout. Now I have a whole new layout that meets my needs but saved me lots of time because I didn't have to start from scratch! If I had had to create this tree embellishment from scratch it wouldn't have turned out nearly as nice. There are so many tiny pieces. I'm glad I can count on the CM designers to come up with amazing embellishments that I can personalize in just a few clicks.




Here is the completed double page layout.

Practical Scrappers Challenge- EMBOSSING!

Hi Everyone,

The challenge over at Practical Scrappers this week is embossing. Any kind of embossing will do. You can use heat embossing, dry embossing, cuttlebug, or even pre-embossed paper. It is totally up to you.

The card I created for this challenge featured heat embossing. I decided to try out my new Close To My Heart Stamp set. It was perfect for this technique. I started out with a piece of white glossy cardstock (I tried to cheap out by using photo paper to start with and it didn't work very well.), I stamped my image with versmark ink then covered it with clear embossing powder. When that was done I used my brayer to cover the cardstock with Bashful Blue SU ink. Then I took a makeup sponge and added Brocade Blue ink (SU). Finally I added Close To My Heart Denim ink around the edges. After all my ink was layered on I took a paper towel and "polished" the glossy cardstock. This really made my image pop because the ink sticks to the cardstock but not the embossing powder.

To finish off my card front I stamped the stem using classic dye based ink in Stampin Up Old Olive and stamped my sentiment with CTMH Denim classic ink. At this point I set my card front aside to dry. It does take awhile (around 10 or 15 minutes) for the ink to dry and there is a little bit of bleeding but I really liked the soft look of the finished product. I also added a bit of Crystal stickles for some sparkle.

Finally I mounted the card to a white piece of cardstock and that to a SU Night of Navy cardbase. On the inside I put a white insert and stamped a smaller dandelion image in the bottom right corner to decorate the inside. Very simple, elegant, and fast.

Recipe:
Paper- White cardstock, Night of Navy cardstock (SU), Glossy cardstock by ranger.
Ink- SU Bashful Blue, Brocade Blue, and Old Olive, CTMH Denim, Versamark
Stamps- CTMH Treasures (September 2009 stamp of the month)
Accessories- Clear Detail embossing powder, brayer, heat tool, Crystal Stickles, makeup sponge


Enjoy and have fun crafting!
Cat

Hybrid layouts

Hi Everyone,


I wanted to share with you one of my first hybrid layouts I recently completed. As you know, I have just started to get into digital scrapbooking. Up until recently I have been doing either completely digital layouts or completely traditional layouts. I have started adding the occasional cricut title, brad, eyelet, or sticker to my digital layouts in an effort to move toward hybrid scrapbooking. I found that I love the added dimension.

The layout I am going to share with you today is even more of a hybrid layout. I started with a digital template that I created in Storybook Creator Plus 3.0. All I did was drag my photos into the template. I didn't add any digital papers or embellishments. In fact I wanted to add some pieces of paper to my finished layout so I left some of my photo spaces blank.


When I had my photos where I wanted them I sent them to the photo printer and had two 8x10 layouts printed. This is what it looked like when I got it back from the printer.


Now I took my patterned paper and used that as the base for my 12x12 layout. All I did was trim my digital layout slightly and add it to my patterned paper. When that was done I chose some coordinating paper to fill in my blank spaces on my template along with some stickers and buttons.




One of the things I love about digital scrapbooking is having the freedom to change my photos to any size I want. The thing I love about traditional scrapbooking is playing with paper, scissors, and glue. Now I can have the best of both worlds by creating hybrid layouts.

Recipe:
Paper- CTMH Back Country level two paper pack
Accessories- Clear craft buttons from CTMH, glossy accents, sandpaper, Opposites attract Cricut Cartridge, CTMH waxy flax in colonial white, epoxy stickers from Walmart (sorry can't remember name), CM Storybook Creator Plus 3.0

I encourage all of you to step out of your comfort zone and try a hybrid layout or two. Good luck and happy scrapping!

Cat

It's all about glitter and bling at Practical Scrappers

Hi Everyone,

This week at Practical scrappers the challenge was to use glitter/bling. Really anything with sparkle and shine or something that reminded you of jewellery. I tried something new on my card this week and I love the way it turned out. I will definitely be using this technique in the future. The acutal techinque is very simple. Just leave lots of time for everything to dry.

I didn't have a lot of embellishments that reminded me of jewelery but I did have quite a few stickles in my stash so that is what I used on my card to give it sparkle.

I started with a piece of glitter cardstock from DCWV for the base. Then I stamped my flower on a piece of transperancy using black staz on ink. When that was dry I "painted" my image using stickles glitter glue. I set the transperancy aside to dry (it took a number of hours). Once my stickles had dried I cut out my image and glued it to a piece of white cardstock (stickle side down) using glossy accents. To finish off my card I added some ribbon and a few skittles (plastic beads) and I was done! All in all this card took me about 10 minutes to create not including drying time.

Recipe
Paper- glitter cardstock from DCWV, CM white cardstock, Stampin Up black cardstock, transperancy paper from Staples
Ink- black stazon
Stamps- Sunny Flowers by Stampendous
Accessories- Melon Mambo polka dot ribbon by stampin up, Stickles in green, orange peel, and yellow, glossy accents by ranger, pink skittles from Micheal's

Enjoy,
Cat

Happy New Year Everyone!

Hi Everyone!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and their New Year is off to a good start. Things are starting to get back to normal in our house, although we haven't tackled taking down the decorations yet.

Practical Scrappers has started the New Year with a bang. This week their challenge it working with buttons. I love buttons but often forget to use them on my projects so this was a challenge I was looking forward to.

This week I created a card using my new favourite stamp set from Close To My Heart. This stamp set is called Grown with Love and is perfect for scrappers and card makers alike.

I liked the stamp set and coordinating paper so much that I purchased some chipboard buttons to match. To help stretch my button stash I used some clear buttons and created my own patterned buttons using patterned paper, glossy accents, and stamped images.

I used glossy accents to adhere my clear buttons to patterned paper. Once the glossy accents dried I cut around my button and sanded the edges to finish them off. In less than 5 minutes I had a handful of coordinating buttons to add to my project.



Recipe:
Paper- brown bazzill cardstock from my stash, cream card base from my stash, Twitterpated patterned paper from Close To My Heart
Ink- Close To My Heart Chocolate ink, gingerbread versamagic chalk ink
Stamps- Grown with Love from Close To My Heart
Accessories- Creative Memories Circle Cutter, Creative Memories Blue Blade, Close To My Heart Dimensional Elements in Organic, Close To My Heart Clear Acrylic buttons, Glossy Accents, Close To My Heart Waxy Flax in Colonial White