Five-layer Fly Away

I can't believe this is my last post as the October guest designer over at Heart2Heart.  I've had a wonderful time and appreciate the H2H ladies allowing me to crash their party.  This week's challenge is Lots of Layers--at least five. 

I wanted to see if I could stick to what has started to emerge as "my style" and keep the card feeling clean and simple.  I also wanted to highlight a trend I've noticed over the past few months to use off-centered panels.  Using the last card shown on this post as my inspiration, I combined two stamp sets from the new "Holiday From the Heart Gift Guide" to bring you this:

All supplies in italics are CTMH:

• Paper: Sarita (diamond pattern) and Laughing Lola
• Stamps: Lifting Spirits and Lots of Love
• Ink: Slate and Momento Tuxedo Black
• Copic Markers: RV69, V15, V12, RV93, V0000 (airplane); R05, R20, R22 (hearts); BG72, BG10, BG0000 (sky + star and wheel of airplane); W00, W3 (clouds); and 0-Colorless
• Accessories: Studio G Glitter Gel and Liquid Glass

I needed to use Copic markers on the airplane because the purple in Laughing Lola is not in the regular CTMH line...and because I needed to use Copic markers, I needed to use Momento Tuxedo Black ink for the plane so the image didn't blur while coloring.  If you look closely, you will see where the lines of the clouds began to blur when I got too close to them with the Colorless Copic.  I'm not sure why the colored Copic markers didn't bleed the Slate ink but the Colorless one did.  Whatever.  The Momento ink pads have something in them that makes the Copics not bleed them out when coloring (even with the Colorless Copic).  Plus, the black outline of the plane helps it to stand out.

The plane, small cloud,  and one of the larger hearts are all mounted on foam tape, thus creating my fifth layer.  The last three hearts in the trail behind the plane were also stamped a second time, cut out, and glued down.  I painted a little glitter gel over all the hearts, waited for them to dry, then topped them off with a little Liquid Glass to give them more shine an dimension.

What a fun month this has been.  Thanks again, H2H, for this wonderful opportunity. 

Until next time,
Becca

Thanks a Latte

Friends are wonderful things to have!  Since hubby and I started moving all across the country with this Army adventure of ours, we have said goodbye to more than just friends.  We said goodbye to hubby's white coffee supplier.  (No, it's not coffee with lots of cream, it's flash roasted coffee beans the color of sand.)  He loves the stuff.  Has one every morning.  Sometimes has one at night, too. Can't live without it.

And we're almost out.

Enter wonderful friend.  She went to the store (which is forty miles away) to pick up two more 4lb. bags and is mailing them to us.  I promised her a reimbursement check in a cute card.

I used two challenges for this card:

1. Mojo Monday Sketch 316
2. Less is More: String or Twine.

Please notice that knot.  I followed the tutorial on the Less is More blog and managed to make it work.  Quite proud of myself. 

Quite proud of taking a Mojo Monday sketch and giving it a CAS feel so I could submit to Less is More.

Here's the supply list:

• Stamps: Verve Better with You, CTMH Circle Around
• Ink: Momento Tuxedo Black, CTMH Cashmere and Twilight
• Copics: E55, E53, E50, C00, B0000, and 0 (Colorless)
• Pearls: CTMH Mocha
• Paper: CTMH Wonderland

Quite proud of having a friend who loves me enough to send coffee so I don't have to put up with pouting from a caffeine deprived spouse!

Until next time,
Becca

Lace for Christmas

One of the "hot" trends for 2014 is lace, so it's great that Heart2Heart is inspiring us to use it on our projects this week.  Most of the time I glean inspiration and put my own twist on it.  Other times--like this card--are straight copies because the original is positively brilliant.  Here's the card that inspired mine, and here's my card:

All supplies (except as noted) are CTMH.  The word banners were made by stamping Poster Tidings (9/2013 Stamp of the Month) over a page from a book.  (One of the great/not-so-great things about being a writer is getting books to review.  I've received a few I wouldn't even donate to the Goodwill; however, I feel fine about tearing out pages and stamping on them!!)  The ink and paper colors are Hollyhock and New England Ivy.  I wanted it to look Christmassy, but I needed to use Hollyhock to coordinate with the Zipper Lace.  The tone-on-tone stamping was done using All the Details...my new favorite stamp set.

Non-CTMH supplies are as follows: white lace (Hobby Lobby); star punches (Marvy), pearl accents (Hobby Lobby).  The original card uses silver gems.  If I'd had enough on hand, I would have used them, but I think the pearls are a good substitute.  And, if you plan to copy my copy, I highly recommend the two different sizes of gems/pearls.  One size was just okay, the two sizes takes it over the top!

One caution about the sewing, if you use the zipper lace you need to be very, very careful that you don't let your needle hit the zipper teeth.  Three guesses as to why I'm giving you this tidbit of wisdom.  Do you need three?

I can't wait to see your lace creations this week!

Until next time,
Becca

Color My Snowflakes

This week at Color My Heart we are using a monochromatic color scheme with Crystal Blue and Twilight.  My card was inspired by fellow DT member, Marie, who posted this card a few challenges ago.  Here's my version:

I'm not sure you can see the two-tone stamping in the background, so here's a close up.  Using the stamp set Universal Background, I stamped the music in Crystal Blue and the words in Twilight over Crystal Blue cardstock.  I used a paper towel to lift some of the ink color before stamping so the edges blurred and it looked more distressed.

The textured panel was cut using an Artbooking overlay (p. 76 sized to 5").  It made some of the inner cuts of the snowflakes tiny, but it worked.  I've noticed a trend to use off-set panels rather than straight ones.  Since the overlay leaned to the left, I decided to follow that lean with angled paper.

The sentiment is from a retired stamp set called December Word Puzzle with the "merry" in Crystal Blue and the "Christmas" in Twilight.

I finished off the card with a triangle of leftover snowflakes and pearl accents.

One more card for my Christmas stash.  It's building, but I'm pretty sure I'll be in panic mode come November.

Until next time,
Becca

Warm Woolen Mittens

This week, the challenge over at Heart2Heart is to make a shaped card.  I'm not sure when I learned this trick, but did you know you can make a card out of almost any shape if you cut two shapes, score the top of one, and glue the scored end to the second shape?  It works!



Here's a side view so you can see what I'm talking about.

All shapes were cut using Artiste, p. 79 at 5 3/8".  To make sure the card would stand straight, I laid the bottom mitten shape on my score board with the mitten edge lined up against the board's ridge.  My score line was at the one inch line or so.  Easy-peasy!

This side view also gives you a pretty good shot of the bow I created with black shimmer tape.  Even though the tape is fairly thin, it was going to be too thick for this card.  I cut it in half lengthwise, put one half on the card front and made the bow with the other half.  Now you have to be a little finicky with this.  Because the shimmer trim has adhesive backing on it, only peel back and trim off a 1/4-1/8" piece to make a circle that overlaps at one, small point.  You will not use the full length of the leftover piece.  Peel off all the backing of what's left and wrap a band around the midpoint of your circle.  You will need to use Liquid Glass to keep the middle band from unsticking, and use it to adhere the whole bow to the top strip.

I decided to add stitching to make the mitten look like one of those felt ornaments.  I think the stitch is called a blanket stitch, but it's a pretty easy one to do.  Come up from the bottom, keep your thread in front, and pull through.  Here's a photo to help you visualize.  Yes...the stitching shows through on the bottom side of the card, but if anyone dares to complain, I have two words for them.

STORE
BOUGHT

'Cause that's what they are getting next Christmas!!

In order to keep the two mitten pieces together, I needed to stitch the top together while only stitching the top piece along the sides.  I began by poking my holes in the top piece using my paper piercing tool.  I then glued the two pieces together, re-poked holes just where the two came together, then stitched.

With all this stitching, I am linking up to CAS-ual Fridays for their challenge this week which is...wait for it..."In Stitches"!

All supplies (except the white lace) are CTMH.  The paper is from an older, retired pack called Florentine, but the current Pro Player pack has something very similar.  The sentiment is from Perfect Fit Frames-Holiday.  The white lace is from Hobby Lobby and I need to go get  more.  At least two rolls!

If you have any questions, please leave a comment.  Otherwise, I'm anxious to see what shaped cards you link up at Heart2Heart this week.

Until next time,
Becca

Fall Birthday Wishes

It's been forever since I played along with Mojo Monday, but I'm a sucker for sketches (especially ones with banners) and I needed to make a birthday card for my sister-in-law.

This uses a hodgepodge of supplies:

• CTMH: Pumpkin cut with Artbooking cartridge: cardstock-Vineyard Berry, New England Ivy, Autumn Terracotta, and Goldrush; metal accessories (all retired); stamp-Unscripted (frame only); ink-Garden Green, Autumn Terracotta, New England Ivy, Chocolate and Sunset; other-sanding kit, Liquid Glass, sponge daubers and edge distressor
• Stampin' Up: Birthday Wishes sentiment
• Copics: Y23, YR12, YR15, YR 18, E57
• Tim Holtz: Wild Honey Distress Ink, Post Card embossing folder
• Cuttlebug: Swiss Dot embossing folder
• Paper Studio: thick twine (dabbed with Wild Honey Distress ink to tone down the white)

Gotta say I'm pretty happy with how this turned out.  Now if I can get it in the mail today, it might just get to my sister-in-law on by her birthday.  Wouldn't that be a surprise!

Until next time,
Becca

Little Black Dress

Well, I think I might have a new "all-time favorite" card.  The challenge this week over at Heart2Heart is "Little Black Dress" and I had more ideas than I could execute.  Here's the one I settled on (which I LOVE!):

Everything is current CTMH and comes from the For Always paper pack coordinating products.  The sentiment is actually a sticker mounted on foam tape.  I sewed the ruffles onto the cardstock to keep them secure.  There is a black grosgrain ribbon across the top of the fabric and a bow behind the sentiment which isn't showing up well in the picture.  A couple of corsage pins, and it's done. 

One of the hot trends for 2014 is "Conflicting Statements."  I love the classic black and white, the clean square along the top, and then the frilly ruffles along the bottom.

Yep...my new favorite.

Until next time,
Becca

Christmas Wreath Color Dare

I am trying to make up for a year's worth of procrastination and get Christmas cards done.  If I can possibly swing it, every challenge card from now until December 15th will be Christmas.  But with a Color Dare challenge of Outdoor Denim, Pacifica, and Ruby, I had to stretch to stop thinking July 4th and get to December 25th. 

The background involved several steps.  First, I dotted Outdoor Denim and Pacifica reinker onto a 3x3 square acrylic block.  I dipped my fingers in some water and dribbled it over the block to start the ink bleeding out.  I laid white, glossy cardstock over the top of the block, peeled it off, and poured kosher salt over the top.  I let it dry for a bit then used my embossing heat gun to finish the drying process.  After flicking off the remaining salt, I ran an embossing buddy over the surface and embossed Remarkable Wreath in white over the top.  The bow is stamped in Ruby pigment ink and embossed with clear powder.

Because the edges of my glossy cardstock were a mess, I cut the square out and mounted it on matte cardstock.  The blue outline is Pacifica cardstock.

The sentiment comes from A Holiday.  Although it's not in the current catalogue, it still shows as available to purchase.  Yes, ladies and gentlemen, that means everything on this card is current.  I may be running behind on my Christmas card stock, but I'm "current" here.  Works for me!

Until next time,
Becca