One Simple Rule

I have one simple rule when it comes to purchasing a Workshop on the Go from CTMH:  I'd better have lots of ideas of what to do with it once the paper and embellishments are gone.  The Blossom WOTG is that kind of set.  Here's a picture of what comes in the kit.

I can see using those stamps over and over and over again...like this!

Below are supply lists broken down by cards (with links for your shopping convenience) as well as instructions that might not be self-explanatory.  The things you will need for all cards are Blossom WOTG, Foam Tape, and White Daisy Cardstock.

 

1)  Make a Wish

• Ink: Canary, Honey, Topiary, Black
• Accessories: Honey Triangle Washi tape, Topiary Washi tape, Black Mini Medley Accents

I stamped the line flower/circle twice in Canary, rotating a bit between stamping to give the frayed edge look.  I used the larger of the two dot clusters to fill in the centers with Canary, and then I stamped in Honey with the smaller dot cluster to add depth.  The stem was stamped in Topiary, stamped off on scratch paper, then rolled in Topiary around the edges. 

 

2)  You are worth celebrating

• Ink: Smoothie, Sunset, Canary, Pear, Crystal Blue, Thistle, Pixie, Black
• Accessories: White Shimmer Trim, Coral Reef Sequins

Sorry about the photography.  I don't understand why it turned out so grainy.  This one was pretty easy except for the sentiment.  I started by cutting the top panel at 5.5"x4.25".  I drew a straight line with a ruler and pencil about 1" from the bottom, stamped the candle in a gazillion colors, cut at the pencil line, and trimmed off about a 1/4" from the bottom piece.  I carefully inked just the "YOU" and stamped it on the top panel.  Then I carefully inked everything but the "YOU" and stamped it underneath...and then I stamped it again on the shimmer trim to cover up the mess I made.  It would have made things easier to cut the stamp in two, but I just now thought of that!

 

3)  Happy Birthday

• Ink: Canary, Thistle, Champagne, Cashmere
• Accessories: Thistle Diagonal Striped Ribbon, Coral Reef Sequins
• Tools: Sanding kit, Micro-tip Scissors

Ever since I saw the popsicle stick, I've wanted to create a woodgrain on it using the stamp from the Pathfiding WOTG.  If you don't have that set, though, you can still create a bit of texture by using the stamps that come in the Blossom WOTG.  On this card, I inked the candle in Cashmere, inked the popsicle stick in Champagne, pressed the popsicle stick onto the inked candle, then stamped. It was a little fussy because both images are so small.   The "4 you" tab was stamped on a scratch piece of White Daisy paper.  I stamped it leaving about 1/4" of blank space above the straight edge of the image so, when I cut it out, I had space to glue.  I used the Sanding kit to smooth down the edges after I cut it out because I can never cut a smooth circle.

 

If you have questions about anything, please leave a comment and then come back for the answer.

 

It has been such a pleasure to guest design for Amie Kiger, and I can't believe I've come to the end of my time.  I'll be taking a break from all design team duties until I get my next novella written (half done and my characters have simply stopped talking to me!! Eeeek!), and I get moved to hubby's next duty station in Alaska.  I'll still be making cards and other projects, so I hope you'll come visit me at my blog.  Since I'm really hoping you'll do that, I'll sign off with my customary...

 

Until next time,

Becca

Scrap Happy Hexagons

Hello, my name is Becca Whitham and I'm a paper addict.  I save itsy, bitsy, teensy, weensy pieces because I think I'll use them all--someday!  Well, with an "overseas" move looming in my future, it's time to start purging scraps.

For design team duties over at Amie Kiger's blog, I decided to cut hexagons using the Artbooking cartridge until I had used up several scraps.  But then I went and trimmed out even more pieces with scissors using the Cricut cut hexagons as guides.  Here's what I had when I was done:

Then I pieced them together to make this scrapbook page:

Here's the supply list (with links for your shopping convenience):

• Paper: Seaside, Snowhaven, Wanderful, Chalk It Up, Brushed
• Accessories: Thick Twine in Pixie, Flaxen, and Glacier
• Tools: Artbooking Cricut Cartridge

Don't be intimidated by the number of paper packs used on this example.  One of the great things about CTMH patterned paper is that they are printed on both sides.  You can cut your hexagons, flip some of them over, and you'd achieve the same effect.

You'll notice that I wasn't trying to be fussy about lining up the hexagons symmetrically.  The scraps which were only small bits required me to use a random approach. 

Using multiple colors in little bits like this is great for two types of scrapbook pages: 1) where the photo itself doesn't have many colors (like this one), and 2) when there are lots of different colors in your pictures (like maybe a birthday party where your' guests weren't kind enough to wear color coordinated outfits).

I actually used up six scraps to the point of having to throw out what was left over.  I'm so proud of myself!

Until next time,
Becca

Vintage Typewriter

Some things are worth the wait...like the April Stamp of the Month from CTMH.  Every since I got my catalog in August, I've been drooling over this stamp set.  Love, LoVe, LOVE it!!

I went really basic with my card.  The image has so much interest in it that it doesn't require much help.  I don't normally do much with the inside of my cards, but I had a little bit of fun with this one.

Here's the supply list (with links for you shopping convenience):

Stamps: Typed Note (no link available)
Ink: Black (dye), White Daisy (pigment)
Paper: Seaside, Black cardstock, White Daisy cardstock
Accessories: Gold Sequins, Black Arrow Washi tape, Liquid Glass, Chalk Marker, Journaling Pen
ShinHan Markers: Colorless Blender, WG4 Warm Grey
Tools: Micro-tip Scissors
Non-CTMH: X-acto knife

For the paper coming out of the typewriter, I did a few things to add interest.  One of the great things about clear stamps is you aren't always stuck with the image as shown.  CTMH very kindly left a hole in the stamp where the paper is.  This allowed me to bend it into a more interesting shape.  It doesn't hurt the stamp; the image will correct back to it's normal shape as soon as you take it off the acrylic block.  Here's a close up so you can see it a little better.


One of the things you have to watch out for when you bend a stamp is that parts of it can come off the acrylic block and get ink on it.  My original intent wasn't to do two sheets of paper, but I ended up with a blob of black ink on the right-hand side of my bottom paper sheet.  Working on the premise that almost all mistakes are fixable, I stamped the second piece of paper on a scratch piece of white cardstock, cut it out, used and X-acto knife to cut a slit, and shoved the second piece of paper through. It was a tight fit which caused the top sheet to warp.  I put a dot of Liquid Glass over my mess, pressed the corner of the top sheet into it until it held, and Voila!  I really, really like how it ended up adding interest and dimension.

If you look carefully, you can see where I shaded around the typewriter and paper with the ShinHan marker.  I forget where I learned this trick, but adding that "halo" of shading around an image gives it great "pop".  The warm grey marker is too intense on it's own, so I scribbled it onto an acrylic block and then picked it up with the colorless blender for that nice, soft shade.

One word of caution...  Since I used pigment ink on the hand image, I cleaned it by scrubbing it against a pad with little bristles.  It's not the CTMH one, but it is made specifically for stamping.  The tip of the finger broke off.  **Sad Face**  Thank goodness CTMH has such a great return policy!

I can't wait to scrapbook with this set.  I've been holding off doing the pages for signing my book deal waiting to get this set in my inky fingers. Yay!!

Until next time,
Becca

You're Own Kind of Awesome

My favorite thing about stamping is how it has no creative limits.  The same stamp set can be used thousands of different ways.  Designer paper can be altered to fit your needs.  And, when you start combining a little from here and a little from there, the sky's the limit.

For design team duties over at Mimi, Myself, and I, I combined two stamp sets, a few papers, and several oldie-but-goodie stamping techniques to create a unique card by adapting a pattern from the Originals Card Confidence Program.

Here's the supply list with links for your shopping convenience:

• Stamps: You're Own Kind of Wonderful, You're the Bomb
• Ink: Glacier, Cocoa, and Slate
• Paper: Seaside, Cocoa cardstock, White Daisy cardstock
• Accessories: Slate Striped Ribbon, Liquid Glass, Sparkles Clear Assortment, Bronze ShinHan Marker
• Tools: Bonding Glue, Paper Trimmer, Micro-Tip Scissors, Foam Tape, Score Board, Sanding Kit, Sponge Daubers, Originals Card Confidence Program (p. 13, "Center Accent")

The first technique I used was to score my Cocoa cardstock every 1/4 inch then sand it to expose the white core.  I sanded both horizontally and vertically to get it nice and distressed.  I also distressed the edges on the Seaside paper and did a bit of sanding over the top of it as well.  Using a sponge dauber, I added Slate ink to the distressed parts.  I love how distressing plain cardstock and then sponging gives it the same shabby-chic feel of the cracked paint designer Seaside paper.

The second technique doesn't show up well.  I masked off the word "Wonderful" from the original sentiment (see below) and substituted "awesome" in Cocoa ink from You're the Bomb.

Liquid Glass is my "go to" accessory.  As you see in this close-up, I used it to give the butterfly bodies some shine and dimension.  It's also great to adhere a tiny, butterfly body because it's strong enough you can fold up the wings knowing it will stay put. I also used it to affix the tails of the ribbon where I wanted them.  I rarely get the tails of either knots or bows to naturally fall the way I like, and it used to bug me.  Then I saw someone dot tiny bits of Liquid Glass under the tails and cement them in place.  Genius!

There are a couple other things I want you to see about these butterflies.  The first is how I got that very cool swirly pattern on them.  I started by inking the largest solid butterfly from You're Own Kind of Wonderful (bottom, left) in Glacier ink and rolling the edges in Slate ink.  Then I inked the largest, swirly butterfly (top, left) in Cocoa ink.  I "kissed" the solid butterfly to the swirly one, twisted without taking the two images apart, then pulled them apart.


I did the "kiss and twist" technique a couple times to cover the entire surface of the solid butterfly.  I stamped it on a separate piece of white card stock, trimmed it out (cutting off the antennae), and colored the body with the Bronze marker.  I did the same "kiss and twist" technique using the same colors with the medium, solid butterfly (middle, right) and stamped it under my sentiment.  I had stamped my sentiment onto a rectangle of white cardstock that was extra long.  I then used my Paper Trimmer to slice up to the edge of the small butterfly and used scissors to trim out the bottom of the butterfly.  After I adhered the larger butterfly over top of the smaller one, I used a marker to re-draw the antennae.

Because I'd distressed my background paper, I had to touch up the butterflies with the sponge dauber to tone down the colors.

The last technique used on this card was adapting the card pattern from Originals.  As shown, it's a 4.75 x 3" card, but I wanted a standard 4.25 x 5.5" card.  Basically, I looked at the picture and created my own measurements. After creating my card base, I cut another piece of White Daisy cardstock at 4 x 5.25" and adhered the Seaside paper (4 x 3.75") and Cocoa cardstock (4 x 1.5"). Having a card panel that goes over the top of card base allows me to tape the edges of ribbon (or staple, or poke holes, or...) without the card recipient ever seeing my mess.

I want to re-create this card and substitute "Beautiful" for "Wonderful" then send it to my daughter. But that only uses one stamp set, and it's my job to make you want more than one. (**Big, cheezy grin**)

Until next time,
Becca

Oh, Snap

I'm excited to be starting some design team duties with my friend, Amie Kiger, over on her blog at Mimi, Myself, and I.  We "met" when we were both on the design team over at Color My Heart.  For my first card, I wanted to put a different spin on both a stamp set and paper pack.

Here's the supply list (with links for your shopping convenience):

• Stamps: World Traveler
• Ink: Black, Smoothie
• Paper: Seaside
• Accessories: Puffy Stickers, Smoothie Striped Washi Tape
• Tools: Foam Tape, Micro-tip Scissors, Stitch Guide, Piercing Tool

I wanted to show you a picture of the stamp set so you could see how I created the "Oh, snap."

I stamped "snap" in Smoothie then very carefully inked just the "Oh," from the sentiment in Black and stamped it on top of the "snap."  I used the micro-tip scissors to cut out the "snap" leaving a border.

When you combine the custom sentiment with the weave paper from Seaside, and add the Smoothie color, the entire card has a completely different feel than what either the stamp set or paper indicates.  But that's my point.  Versatility is only a "hey...what would happen if" away!

Until next time,
Becca