Friend

Wow, sketch # 94. It seems like a lifetime ago since I participated in the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge . I have been away from my crafting  since the end of Sept . It has taken me a great deal of effort to get back at it . My heart is not in it since the loss of my husband of 42 years. I hope that I have done this challenge justice . Maybe I need to shake things up a little and try changing my style. I will try that next time around. For now , here is my card for this week. I made it for a very good friend who is having a birthday in March.
Here is this weeks sketch:

Here is my take on it:

The paper pack I used is Heartstrings . A gorgeous paper from the mini cattie from Close To My Heart . This mini cattie runs out the end of March 2015, so  make sure you check it out and get your order placed soon. The rose,leaves, and swirls are  cut from Art Philosophy Cartridge also from CTMH . The greeting is from the stamp set Find Your Style.  Hope you like and, and I sure hope my friend like it. Have a wonderful week and don't forget to make good use of all your little bits and pieces.

Celebrate Sister

Sketch # 73 this week at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge, was a pretty simple one.

Lots of ideas went though my head. I usually think about who I need a card for  in the next few weeks, and I have two sisters and a grand daughter who fit the bill. My oldest sister's was first, so I set out to find paper suitable for her. When perusing through my paper packs, my eyes hit on "Confetti Wishes' from Close To My Heart. Now, I do have to admit, when I  first  got this paper pack, I was not all the carzy about it, but I always order one pack of every new paper , so my customers can see first hand what it looks like. 
This paper pack, though not for me, is perfect for my sister, who loves yellow, and purples, and bright colors. 
It really came togther nicely, and I have a new fondness for it !! What a great combo of prints and plains, not only for making cards with, but it would make an awesome page, when scrapbooking a special birthdday party.

I love the new canary yellow and thistle card stocks, both included in this paper pack. I used the damask embossing folder from CTMH to emboss the background. I used the Cricut to cut out everything except the card itself !! The nice thing about the Cricut Explore, is, you can set you card up right on the virtual mat, and make sure everything is going to fit where you want it !! How awesome is that. Once you have it all organized, just hit the go button and you are off. 
I really love the way this card turned out,even though it is not my usual style. I hope you will find the time to join us at Atlantic Heart Sketch Challenge (just click on the link) and that you make sure to use up all your little bits and pieces !!

Our Deepest Sympathy

Sketch # 71 over at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge was a fairly easy design and should not have given anyone a problem to do, but my brian is just not working well these days.I needed a card for a neighbour who recently lost her wonderful husband, and although this sketch does not appear to be one you could turn into a sympathy card, anything is possible when you  need a card in a hurry.

I wanted to keep the colors and the design very neutral given the type of card it is.Other than the base card( 5 x 7), everything came out of my scrap paper bin. The background color is Arianna Green, the dark is Chocolate, and the print is also from the Ariana paper pack(retired) from   Close to My Heart   . The Colonial White cardstock was run through the  Big Kick with a soft design that I always feel looks serene and suitable for this kind of card. I inked everything with Chocolate. The sentiment was computer generated, and I finshed it off with three antique gold Durables, also left overs.

Even though this type of card is difficult to do, especially for a freind or neighbour, when you have a great sketch to inspire you, you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. 

I do hope you come join us sometime for our challenges at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge, and that you make sure you use all your bits and pieces !!

Seahorse and Kelp

This weeks sketch over at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge , almost did not happen for me. It has been a very trying and hectic two weeks, and I was not sure I was going to find any time to do this. There are two big reasons I finally managed to "git'er done". First, I am not the kind of person who would not try her best to make sure she honors her commitments , and second , no matter how stressful life is, we all need a little me time. My "me" time is in my craft room , working. That is what makes me happy and relaxes me. I really needed that today.
Time constraints are going to make this little blog much shorter than normal. Most of you who follow me, know that I use 90% CTMH products, and this new Seaside PaperPack that I used, is going to be one of my faves this year. Though flowers, per the sketch, are usually by far my favorite thing to do, I am I little beach crazy lately. Hope you like my take on this weeks sketch . I promise to give you more next time. Till then, don't forget to make good use of all your little bits and pieces.

Christmas Gift Box

 

This little box is super easy to make. I used the new paper pack Yueltide Carol from Close To My Heart.You could use whatever paper stirkes you fancy , of course. 

You will need: 1- 12 x 12 sheet of plain cardstock 

                      1-print paper cut to 8 1/8 inches  x 8 1/8 inches

                      1- coordinating print paper cut at 5 7/8 inches x 5 7/8 inches

                          to line the bottom of the box, and give it a little more stability

The poinsettia is cut with Ruby red cardstock. This was made using a Spellbinder diecut. If you do not have this, there are lots of them on many of the Cricut Cartridges . The leaves are cut from New England Ivy. The box bottom is champagne, as is the tag. The tag is mounted on New England Ivy.The stamp is from the Yueltide Carol Scrapbooking Workshop, and is stamped using Ruby. The bling is also from the same WOTG, from Close To MY Heart.

The daisy like flower is white, and the edges were inked with Pear. The middle is Creme Brulee.

I made these darling little flowers from a tutorial by Cathy Derouche.  Click on her name to view tutorial.She does such a good job, there is no need for me to do it again.

So, all that is left, is constructing the box. Score the box bottom on all four sides at 3 inches. Using siccors, cut top and bottom lines to make tabs,  into where the fold lines meet.DO NOT cut side fold lines . I then cut small wedges from the inside of each corner tab. Fold in, and glue.(see diagrams)

Score the box top on all four sides at 1 inch. Follow the same procedure as above.

Decorate as desired

1. Score lines ( I went over 

mine with pen to show.

 2. cut to fold line, then cut out wedge in each tab

 3. Fold along all fold lines

 4. fold tabs in and glue

 5. Glue coordinating carstock
in bottom on box.

  If you have any problems with following my directions  , please do not hesitate to let me know. thank you for your interest, and for checking out my blog.             

                      

Seashells

When I saw this weeks sketch at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge, I knew exactly what I wanted to do.So I set forth to accomplish it. Well, I want you to know that I learned this week, that there are some things better left to others with more computer expertise then me. I will share the sketch and my take on this design, and explain what went into making this card !

 

I saw this sketch and knew I wanted to use the new stamp set Treasured Memories and paper pack Seaside just released in the brand new Close To My Heart annual idea book. Easy right??  Not !  I got it in my head that I was going to learn how to take my stamps and turn them into an SVG file to cut with my Explore, then I would not have to fussy cut around each stamped image to get the look that I wanted. Ha! That was easier said then done. After spending an entire afternoon following a couple of tutorials, and trying to follow the instructions of a colleague, I came to the conculsion that the old adage "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" was indeed correct. Having endured several unsuccessful attemps, I relied on said friend to help me out, and make the files for me. I will forever be in her debt. If I ever have the good fortune to visit her, she will be teaching me how to do this !! In any case she quickly did I what I had tried so hard to do, sent me the files, and I was able to muddle my way through from there.

 I cut these beautiful shapes to match one of the shells from this new stamp set. I stamped directly on the shape with memento black ink(would have preferred brown, but had none). I then colored the image with ShinHan Touch Twin Markers , new in the CTMH idea book this year. They are fabulous!  I am not a lover of colouring with makers, however these markers are truly wonderful. They colour with such smoothness and little effort. 

Each shell was first coloured with Clay(BR116). then again , just in spots to give an uneven look, using the blending marker to soften it out. I used Mahogany(BR96) to color the inner part of the shell, and then darkened the  shadows with Bronze(BR99). This was my first  time, and they came out not so bad, I think. 

I really like the way this card came together, even though I had to call on my friend to get me where I wanted to go. 

I hope you get a chance to step outside your comfort zone and try something new(with more luck then I ), and that you remember to use up all your little bits and pieces !!

Masculine Nautical Card

Well, sketch # 65 over at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge did not give me any problems at the time, but my own carelessness did. I had this post all done and linked. I was working on a different project, was not happy with what I had written, so I deleted it..................well, I thought I did. Turns out I deleted the post for sketch #65 !! Some days are trying, that is all I am going to say about that!! So here we go again, but I am sorry to say that because of time restraints this week, this will be a short blog.
Here is the sketch :

This is my take on this sketch:

I love nautical cards, and since I needed a masculine card this month, I went with it. The stamp is one I have had for a very long time, and have no idea from whence it came. LOL ( not unusal for me) The cardstock is Outdoor denim from Close To My Heart, as well as the chevron ribbon. I love the blue and white together. The sentiment was computer generated, then I just cut the cardtock with my oval cutter with a background to mount it on. Layered them and cut about 2/3 of the oval away and tucked it under the ribbon. 
I hope you get a chance to pop over to AHSC and join us for our weekly challenge, and don't forget to make good use of all you little bits and pieces !1