It's a Date! - November Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Hello and welcome to the November Stamp of the Month blog hop! If you have arrived here from the Inky Georgia blog, or if you are just starting out, you are in the right place.  This month's stamp set is Capture the Date, a set of 72 stamps with limitless possibilities.  With 4 different sets of numbers, month names & abbreviations, and more, there are all kinds of things to do with these stamps.  Of course the obvious is probably dating your scrapbook layouts or adding birthday years to cards, but my project today will have you thinking INSIDE the box in no time!

I made this bowl full of Halloween treats for the moms I saw out in my neighborhood for trick-or-treat, but the possibilities are really endless.  Top a recycled chip canister with December 25 for Christmas cookies, or create sweet little favor boxes for weddings, showers, and more with the date (or due date, lol) in place of this one.  My boxes are perfect little favors, as each one holds a single Ghiradelli chocolate square:

Cut at 4.5", this is the box from page 21 of the Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge handbook, using the ""Font Layer feature key.

It folds closed simply, as shown above.  After closing, I added the round medallion on top using 3-D Foam Tape.  I added the Perfect Fit - Frames stamp set, and cut the scalloped circle as indicated on the carrier sheet for the stamps, also from the Art Philosophy cartridge.  After stamping the coordinating image in Olive ink, I added the largest "3" and "1" in Goldrush and "october" in Smokey Plum.

If you don't have the Perfect Fit - Frames stamp set, you could stamp the date on any Cricut-cut shape you desire that will fit your box.  This is a simple project that takes just minutes and is great for assembly-line work.  I'd love to hear your comments, then be sure to hop along to Roxybonds Scrappin' - I'm sure she has a fabulous project for us!

I Think I'll Go For a Walk Outside Now...

"... the summer sun's callin' my name..."  The cold nasty weather today has me wishing for warmer times, so I thought I would share this warm-weather layout with you.

These pictures are from a LONG time ago, so it was high time they got on a cute layout.  I used a discontinued paper pack from Close To My Heart on this layout.  Even though it was a patriotic theme, the colors fit perfectly, so I worked with it.  I used a sketch from Scrapbook Generation for this layout, and it showed a large circle shape on the background.  To work the circle into my theme more, I opted to use my Cricut to cut out this flower cluster doily shape for my version.

A lot of the sketches from SG show clusters of embellishment groups - this is a great way to carry your theme through your layout when you're using only smaller bits of pattern paper.  To play up the girly factor, I went with flowers - in these bright primary colors, they just shout "Summer!" to me.  I pulled out the main colors from my photos & papers and pulled out flowers and brads & snaps in different materials.  The mix of materials adds even more interest to the layout, so the flowers are a mix of paper, felt, and crochet thread.  And the centers are a mix of basic metal, glitter, and sparkle.

I hope you like today's project!  I'd love to hear your comments.  I have two more coming up quickly, so be sure to stop back and check them out.  As a reminder, today is the last day to enter my giveaway on Facebook - be sure to hop over and enter! Thanks for stopping by.  See you next time!

Cutters Creek Holiday Blog Hop

Welcome to the Cutters Creek Design Team Holiday Blog Hop! We want you to hop along with us and play for some awesome Blog Candy. The objective for our Blog Hop this weekend is to provide some inspiration to help you get your holiday crafting underway! Our Design Team has come up with some fabulous projects and we have a little bit of everything, from cards to gift ideas, and home décor items. So we invite you to hop along with us and get your creative juices flowing!

I made two similar projects using some great papers from last year, and Kim has VERY limited stock left of both, so if you like one you'll want to grab it right away!  One uses the Season's Greetings collection from Echo Park Paper and the other uses the Christmas Emporium 12x12 paper pad from Graphic 45.  If you saw my Halloween ornament on the Cutters Creek blog the other day, these are similar items.  They would look great on a large tree, hanging in the center of a wreath, or as a bow on a special large gift.

First up is the rosette ornament made using Season's Greetings:

 

For this one, I used a Scor-Pal to make simple rosettes in two sizes from two different papers.  I stacked them together using some Cosmo Cricket Glubers, sandwiching a hanging ribbon and some mesh-like gold fabric from my stash in between the layers.  I then used one of the large stickers from the collection, stuck it to some chipboard, and cut it out by hand.  I used some Glossy Accents to attach it to the top layer, then I used some Christmas Red Stickles on all of the little circles around the edge of the sticker.

Next, the one using Christmas Emporium:

 

For this one, I cut the pieces using my Cricut*.  I used the Center Point feature to cut the center image where I wanted it.  I used an elongated ornament shape to make petals and leaves so it would look a bit like a poinsettia.  I cut 12 petals, 6 each from two different red patterns, and 12 leaves from a green pattern.  I also cut a medallion shaped mat from the same green for my center image.  I distressed all of my pieces, using Tea Dye for the center image, Fired Brick for the petals, and Peeled Paint for the leaves.  I also assembled this one using Glubers, which made it easy to attach the petals and leaves one at a time.  After assembly, I used Gold and Crystal Stickles to make designs on my petals and leaves.

*I used the Artiste cartridge for all of my cuts, but there are several cartridges that have ornament shapes that will work for this effect. You can use mycutsearch.com to search for them.

 

Here is the complete blog hop line up in case you get lost along the way:

Cutters Creek Blog (Chris) - http://www.cutterscreekdesignteam.blogspot.com/
Kim - http://kreativekim.blogspot.com/
Pebbles - http://sheissocrafty.blogspot.com/

Tee - http://tee-myspot.blogspot.com/

Mindy - http://www.scrappyandpiggy.blogspot.com/

Melissa - http://www.ourmadhouseof4.blogspot.com/
Lori - http://savingmine.blogspot.com/  <<<<<<<<<<< YOU ARE HERE

Laura - http://www.scrapaddict4life.blogspot.com/

Fran - http://scallopsandswirls.blogspot.com/
Deanna - http://deannaspapercrafts.blogspot.com/

Don’t forget to leave a comment before hopping along to Laura's blog. I have her blog opening in a new window, so feel free to come back later and have a look around! Thanks for hopping by and we hope you enjoy the hop and get many wonderful ideas!

It's Beginning To Feel a Lot Like Christmas!

Since our weather here has once again turned cold, I thought today would be a good day to share my secret weapon for getting my Christmas cards done on time this year.  I already have the first set of 15 all ready to go!  Here are the three styles:

I love how elegant the dark Cocoa color makes them feel!  And the best part is that I got 15 cards made in less than 3 hours! (That's some kind of record for me.)  So, what was the secret?  A super easy Workshop On The Go card kit from Close To My Heart - it comes with cutting diagrams and instructions, to make things fast and also make it easy to make the same cards over & over again.

So, here's the scoop on all of this: the initial kit comes with the card bases, stamp set, exclusive kit embellishments, and all the papers you need for 15 cards.  (If you don't already own them, you also need the acrylic stamp blocks, adhesive (regular, Glue Dots,  and foam tape), a sponge or dauber, and stamping ink in Cocoa, Cranberry, and Olive.  Add a few more items in the add-on kit I created, and make 15 more cards with the leftovers in the kit!  If you need to make more than 30 cards (I know I do!), I can help create a custom add-on for you for the number of cards you need.  And, LOCAL BONUS: if you live near me, I have a workshop scheduled for 11/10 (or we can schedule something convenient for you) - and if you aren't interested in keeping the stamp set that comes in the kit, we can create a custom kit for you to make your cards using my stamp set and stamp pads (you still get the cutting guides & instructions, but we will need to substitute embellishments).

Now I know like me, what you really want to know is how much is this going to cost me??  I am a budget girl, so I try to keep costs as low as possible.  Here's the scoop (listed prices do not include tax and shipping):

• The Workshop On The Go kit costs $29.95 and makes 15 cards
• The add-on kit costs $10.40 and makes 15 additional cards when added to the leftover products in your kit
• Stamp pads cost $5.25 each
• A sponge is $1.25 (and can be cut up), or daubers are $3.95 for a set of 3
• 3-D Foam Tape is $5.95 for two 75" rolls in two widths
• acrylic blocks vary in price based on size - contact me for more info

Note: If you are wanting an add-on kit, that has to be shipped separately from me, as I am breaking up packs of items to give you just what you need and keep costs low.

I am always happy to help you create something unique as well -

• Do you prefer a different stamp set?
• Do you need cards for Hannukah, Kwanzaa, or New Years instead?
• Do you need simpler embellishments so your kids can help?

I can help you with these & many other issues - just let me know your needs and
I can give you suggestions! Contact me any time for these or any other questions.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you again soon!

Clear Embellishment Tips

I was working on a layout last week with some clear embellishments, and I suddenly realized that I never shared that earlier layout I promised!  So since I now have two layouts where I used the embellishments differently, I thought I would share them both today.

First, the original layout, where I cut my own shapes from a sheet of Clear Scraps acrylic.

For this layout, I cut the same shapes out of both the clear acrylic and some pattern paper.  

I backed the clear shapes with the pattern paper, then added designs with Stickles to the front.  You could also offset the paper from the clear shapes for a slightly different look.  I paired mine up with another snowflake shape I cut from some Magic Mesh I found in my stash (who remembers Magic Mesh?! Do they still make that stuff?!). The papers are from the discontinued Wonderland collection from CTMH.

The layout I just finished uses some clear shapes I had in a set from Fancy Pants.  I chose to use them "naked", although since they had a hole in them I did tie some twine through them.

You can see the clear stars better in the closeups:

 

It's easier to see the "naked" shapes when they are clustered in a group of similar shapes and/or layered with similar shapes.  You can see I layered a small clear shape on top of the larger yellow star.  Then the large clear star has a smaller felt star layered on it.  I even was able to pop it up using a Clear Foam Adhesive from ASI Kool Tak - it's like foam squares, but they're clear.  Pattern papers and letter stickers are from the A Boy's Life collection from Echo Park Paper. Cardstock, felt, and chipboard are from my stash.

I hope I've given you a couple of ideas for using your clear embellishments. I'd love to see what YOU make with clear embellishments!

Giveaway - Win It Before You Can Buy It!!

Capture the Date is November's stamp of the month but I have an extra set that you can win now!  Enter my giveaway and you can be one of the first to have it in your hands.  I love this kind of stamp set because there is so much that can be done with it!  I haven't made anything with mine yet, but here are some ideas from the CTMH Art Department:

 

I especially like using the different styles of numbers for a background design - all kinds of uses for that around here!

Be sure to enter using all three contest options for multiple entries!  You can use one of the options to let me know what YOU would like to make with this stamp set.  Good luck to all! Contest ends at 12:01am on October 31.

 Rafflecopter giveaway

Halloween Decor with Graphic 45

Today I have a fun project for you - and while mine is for Halloween, Graphic 45's papers are all well-suited to a project like this.  One of my favorite things about their papers are all the fun images that are perfect for fussy cutting.  And since you get two sheets of each design, you can cut the entire image from one sheet, and just portions from the other sheet for some awesome layering!

I started with another fabulous find from a local Goodwill, some Happy Haunting papers from Graphic 45, a Scor-pal and some Stickles.

First, I cut a base image in a circle to fit the center of my Goodwill tray (I used the Center Point feature on my Cricut to get the portion of the image that I wanted), then I cut portions of a second image which I could pop up on some 3-D foam adhesive.  I cut 2 strips of the fence paper, being sure to have the "Halloween" sentiment at the upper edge.  I used the Scor-pal to score both strips every 1/2", adhered them together and created a rosette.  I mounted my circle image in the center and adhered the whole thing to the center of the tray.  I added my "pop-up" portions of my image using foam tape, and I glittered it all up using Stickles.  Lastly, I used some ribbon from my stash to make a bow and a hanger.

You can see in this view where the "pop-up" pieces are, and where I added the Stickles on the hat, broom, coat, and cat's bow.

Items available at Cutters Creek:

• Graphic 45 papers and chipboard tag
• Scor-pal
• Foam adhesive squares
• Stickles

I hope you enjoyed today's project!  I'd love to hear your comments!

Fall Card - Mojo Monday 261

Here's my second last-minute entry for Mojo Monday 261.  Reminder, here's the sketch:

And here's my Fall card, which I made for this month's Scrappy Frog's challenge:

I just love this sketch, and I had a great time making this fun Fall card.  I started with some Close To My Heart products, the Flirty paper pack and the Perfect Fit - Frames stamp set.  (The stamp set is made to fit around our plastic treat cups, or be used with other stamp sets that fit in the open center.)  I chose to use the green and orange pattern papers from the pack, and rather than use the Flirty Raspberry pink color, I stamped the frame with Gypsy (purple).  I stamped the pumpkin image, and colored it with the new CTMH alcohol markers.  I also colored the seam binding ribbon with one of the markers in Gypsy (dark).  I added burlap ribbon and a Shimmer Brad, plus a few paper leaves from my stash.  I also added little dots of Glitz glitter gel in green around the larger circle.

The pumpkin image I used is no longer available, but the Abundance stamp set has a pumpkin image the right size.

Current CTMH items used for this card:

• Flirty paper pack
• Perfect Fit - Frames stamp set
• Kraft cardstock
• Burlap ribbon
• Color-Ready Seam Binding
• Glitz glitter gel in green
• Stamp pads in Gypsy and Chocolate
• Alcohol Markers in Honey, Autumn Terracotta, and Gypsy
• Shimmer Brads

 I'd love to hear your comments on this one!  Thanks for stopping by; I'll see you next time.

Bird Song Card - Mojo Monday 261

Here's my last-minute entry for Mojo Monday 261, which I'm also sharing over at the Cutters Creek blog.  Super cute sketch this week:

I changed up the sketch a little, by making the circle into a fan shape and removing the vertical strip/ribbon.

I used the Graphic 45 Bird Song paper pad in the 8x8 size for this card.  I don't normally buy the smaller paper pads much, but I just HAD to have these pretty papers and I knew I would only use it for cards, making the smaller pattern sizes perfect.

I cut the fan shape, greenery, and all of the flowers using my Cricut and the Pagoda cartridge.  The circles are also cut using the Cricut; I used the Center Point feature to cut the circle around the portion of the geisha image I wanted.  I outlined everything using a gold leafing pen, and embellished with brads and ribbon from my stash.  Everything is adhered using ATG tape and the Kool Tak clear foam adhesive pads.  Finally, I used my Copic Spica pens to glitter up lots of stuff!  I used the red on the designs on the fan, clear to outline the flowers on the background paper, and both colors on my focal image.  It's very difficult to get the glitter to show up in photos, but this one shows it the best:

I used clear on the white portion of the kimono nearest her neck, then red along the next strip.  I even used clear on the pink flowers in the image.

I hope you enjoyed today's card!  I'd love to hear your comments on it.

It's Movie Night! (and I have a WINNER!)

So, who likes movie night?  With 3 kids, we have movie night at our house a lot, so I thought it would be fun to make something to make it feel more like an EVENT.  But before I get into that, I want to announce my winner from the Creations by AR September blog hop!  

La Miscelanea said...

So cute !!! I like the papers used for this project

September 27, 2012 5:43 PM 

Please contact Adela ASAP to collect your prize!  Be sure to let her know if you want the Party Train template or the Frame It Train Card.

Now, on with the show!

 

This cool centerpiece serves multiple purposes.  1)The movie chooser can use the chalkboard marquee to announce the movie title.  2)It dresses up the table where we can place snacks, etc. 3)Everything is attached to bamboo skewers (points removed - trust me, at my house it's safer that way!) stuck into floral foam inside the popcorn box, so stuff can be used for photo props if we decide to really get goofy.

I had a ton of fun making this little project, and it was made even easier because everything except one little piece was cut using items found on page 67 of the Cricut Artiste booklet!  (The "showing" banner is from page 35.)  So, everything was cut with the "m" button on the keyboard, just using different features.  To be honest, I didn't keep track of all the sizes I cut everything at because I was having so much fun, but the popcorn box was cut at the largest possible size to fit on a 12x12 mat.  You can play around with sizes and change things up however you like.

Here are the products I used to make this:

• Cricut & Artiste cartridge
• Moonlight paper pack (striped paper for popcorn box)
• Cardstock in Cranberry, Honey, Black, and Colonial White
• Chalkboard Sheet
• Exclusive Inks stamp pad in Black, Cranberry, and Honey
• A Typeface stamp set (for "showing")
• Liquid Glass (used to attach pieces to the skewers)
• floral foam
• bamboo skewers

Hope you enjoyed this little idea.  I'd love to hear your comments on it before you go!