Holiday Cards Blog Hop

Welcome to the Holiday Cards Blog Hop. You should have come from Haley Dryer's The Inky Scrapper blog. If you started here, don't worry. The hop is a circle so you can keep hopping until you get back to where you started. Melinda's blog has a compete list of participants in case you get lost along the way.

I decided to feature the new "Joy" thin cut with some clean and simple cards. Here's the first one:

I used the new Candid Moments paper and made it more Christmassy by adding small snowflakes from the Elegant Snowflakes stamp set. It was released last year but is still available, though there are only a few left. The new Floral Snowflakes stamp set would work just as well. The Joy was cut with Sapphire paper, the snowflakes are in Sundance ink, and I splattered Ballerina Shimmer Brush over the top. Here's a close up of that because it's hard to see in the picture, but it's really beautiful in real life.

The trick to this is to make sure the Joy thin cut just barely goes over the edge of the paper. I used a lot of Washi tape to hold the thin cut in place so it didn't slip.

My second card is a repeat of this one using different colors.

This card features Black Glitter paper and the now sold out Sept-October Mix-In paper. But I decided to show it anyway because you don't have to use this EXACT paper. You can use whatever Christmassy paper you have, including the new Wonderland paper. Just use a coordinating color for your Joy thin cut. 

Now, I'm going to be honest with you...I buy cardstock in bulk and make my own cards with it. I buy super thick cardstock for a couple reasons: 1) because I like how sturdy thick cards are, and 2) because I can layer dark papers behind it and there's no bleed through. If you decide to recreate this card but don't use thick cardstock, some of that red pattern will show through on the front of your card.

For this last one, I went white on white.

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I started by cutting the border from last year's release called Yuletide Borders. I added it on top of a plain white panel which I then ran through the largest Stitched Rectangle thin cut. Finally, I took the leftover Joy pieces from the first two cards, created one more Joy, and glued all three together. 

Next up is Danielle's Scrappy Chicks blog. I can't wait to see what she and the other amazing Makers have for us.

Until next time,

Becca

November SOTM: Created to Shine Blog Hop

Welcome to the November Stamp of the Month Blog Hop featuring a really fun stamp set called Created to Shine. I grew up going to Sunday School, and as soon as I saw this set, I was immediately transported to the basement of First Baptist Church in Tacoma, WA singing, "This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine."

Before I get too carried away, a little blog hop business. You should have come from Michelle's Show and Tell with Michelle blog, but don't worry if you started here. The hop is a circle, so just keep going until you get back to where you started. If you get lost along the way, head to Melinda's blog for a complete list of all the participants.

I've been on a tags kick for the past few hops, and this one is no different, although I used the Buildable Tags Thin Cuts in a slightly different way this time.

To create my window, I centered the window panel from Buildable Tags with the largest of the Stitched Rectangle Thin Cuts. I then attached the medium size coordinating rectangular shaker foam and acetate to it. Next, I stamped my image on the card base, stamped the centers in Papaya, Peach, and Shortbread, then added both Gold Loose Sequins and Gold Star Sequins to my shaker. I finished off by stamping the sentiment and hand cutting it out to layer over the top.

This could easily convert to a Christmas card by using red and green inks for the light centers and adding a Christmas sentiment, like one from the For All Occasions stamp set. Or you could stamp the lights in something neutral like Shortbread and fill your shaker with the Red and Green Loose Sequins.

Now you're off to Maureen's blog. I'm right behind you because I can't wait to see what all of our talented Makers have created with this awesome set.

Until next time,

Becca

Thin Cuts Blog Hop

Welcome to the Thin Cuts Blog Hop. We're focusing on the plethora of Thin Cuts (aka Metal Die Cuts) just released in September. 

A little blog hop business before we get to my cards. You should have come from Darlys's blog, but don't worry if you started here. The hop is a circle, so just keep going until you get back to where you started. If you get lost along the way, head over to Melinda's blog for a full list of participants. 

I love tags on cards, so I'm choosing to feature the Buildable Tags Thin Cuts along with a few others for good measure, like this one...

Here and in the next card, I added half of the Love You Thin Cut. I used the Pumpkin Spice Paper Collection, Harbour and White Daisy cardstock, and a little embossing. I selectively stamped just "fall" from one of the sentiments in the We Love Fall set. 

This next card is almost identical, I just switched around the papers and dressed it up a bit.

The background uses another Thin Cut that, although not featured in any catalogs now, is still available: Stitched Lattice Background. The die is just shy of the full 5.5inches high, so I trimmed my card base by 1/8 inch in height and to only 3 inches wide. I also added the Pumpkin Spice Wood Stickers as an embellishment. 

True confession time. My first attempt at this idea turned out like this----> 

I contacted my dear friend, Katy Taylor, and said, "Why don't I like this?" She suggested what turned into the first card.

To create the second card, I cut away the entire background of this card and kept just the tag.

Sometimes your best option is junking what isn't working. It's just paper, people. I repeat that as often as I need. And it's always good to have crafty friends who will tell you exactly what's wrong with your work.

For this next card, I added  a couple of small stamp sets, North Pole Post and Santa's Airmail. 

I also used the Sept-Oct Mix In paper, Candy Apple cardstock, and the Stitched Rectangle and Tags and Tabs Thin Cuts.

All of the above tags had Mink Twine threaded through them. It's also not featured in any catalogs, but it's still available for purchase.

And for my final card, I added the Layered Flowers Thin Cuts and used the As You Grow paper.

This card also includes Gold Loose Sequins, Gold Embroidery Thread, and cardstock colors in Harbour, Shortbread, Rosemary, and White Daisy.

If you want to see another card with a tag on it, click here to see the card I made for the October Stamp of the Month Blog Hop. 

Now you're off to Danielle's Scrappy Chicks blog. I can't wait to see what she and everyone else made.

Until next time,

Becca

October Stamp of the Month Blog Hop: Wildflower Friendship

Welcome to the October Stamp of the Month Blog Hop featuring the adorably on-trend set called Wildflower Friendship. If you've been out shopping for home decor at all, you've seen similar items everywhere.

A little blog hop business before we get to my card. You should have come from Darlys's blog, but don't worry if you started here. The hop is a circle, so just keep going until you get back to where you started. If you get lost along the way, head over to Melinda's blog for a full list of participants.

Now if you've been around my blog at all, you know how much I love using tags on cards. The new Buildable Tags Thin Cuts came to my new house, and I just had to use it with that cute fox.

I started by stamping the library card image from the "Date Stamp" stamp set in Mink ink, but instead of using the thin cut that's part of that set, I used one from the Buildable Tags to cut it out. I then added some splatters using my Black Shimmer Brush and set it aside to dry. 

I also a couple other thin cuts. The background is As You Grow paper with the Stitched Rectangles thin cuts and the sentiment is Ballerina paper through one of the banners that's part of the Waterfall thin cut. I also made the tag hole from Ballerina and looped Gold Embroidery Thread through the hole.

The fox was actually really easy to color. I just picked a handful of colors that matched the background paper and started coloring. There's no shading because the images are too small. I only did a little shading on the fox. Once I had her colored, I built my card up in layers, adding foam tape behind the fox to give her a little more dimension. Gold Loose Sequins were added with Liquid Glass to tie in the gold from the tag top.

Honestly, I wasn't completely sold on this stamp set when I first saw it, but it's really growing on me. I can't wait to hop over to Wendy's blog to see what she and everyone else has created to inspire us.

Until next time,
Becca

September/October New Products Blog Hop

 

Welcome to the Sept/Oct 2021 Seasonal Catalog Blog Hop. This catalog is full of Fall and Christmas goodness. This is my favorite time of year, so I'm to see all the wonderful projects by these talented CTMH Makers. You should have come from Krista's Crafty blog. The hop is a circle; you can keep clicking on links until you get back to where you started. If you get lost along the way, head over to Melinda's blog for a full list of participants. 

I'm using the Pumpkin Spice-Scrapbooking set for the most part, but I've stretched them from Fall into other seasons. Here's my first card:

I added a sentiment from the Pumpkin Spice-Cardmaking stamp set as well as some background texturing from the Perfectly Imperfect stamp set with Shortbread and Black inks. Someone recently asked me what the difference was between a "scrapbooking" and "cardmaking" stamp set, and really, the only distinction is the sentiments. But the images--and often times the sentiments--are interchangeable.

If you look closely, you'll see that the coffee cup is checked like the scarf. That's because I cut the scarf so it fit behind the sweater and, as I looked at my leftover piece, I saw that I could get the coffee cup out of it. I love how it looks! I also added polka dots with White Gel Pens, a new product in the Core Catalog that went live on September 1.

This next card is almost identical to the first one but takes us into Winter and Christmas with the addition of an M-sized stamp (only $3.95 US) called North Pole Post.

I sponged a background lightly with Distress Oxide ink then splattered Harbor ink by squeezing the lid of my ink pad together to pick up ink in the lid. I then wet a paint brush and swirled it around in the lid before flicking the brush over my paper. Once it was dry, I stamped the postage images in Candy Apple and Harbor, making use of first and second generation stamping. The sweater and cup were colored using the same watercolor method of a wet paint brush and ink squeezed into the lid. I used Candy Apple, Harbor, Mink, and Toffee inks. The background patterned paper is from the new Mix-In paper, which is my FAVORITE thing about this catalog. Love, love, LOVE that paper!!

And this next one takes us into Spring with other patterns from the Mix-In paper. Told you I love it!

On this card, I used paper piecing for the boot bottoms and lid ink water coloring for the tops. The sentiment was stamped in Clover ink then rolled in Harbor ink. I didn't have and Clover paper, so I swiped the ink pad on plain white cardstock until it was solid, before cutting out the banner. I used one of the dies in the Waterfall Thin Cut set for both banners. The flowers coming out of the boots are stamps from the Pumpkin Spice-Scrapbooking set in Clover and Harbor inks (first, second, and third generation stamping--which basically means you ink up and stamp for first generation, don't reink and stamp again for second generation, and don't ink up again and stamp a third time for third generation). I accented with White Liquid Pearls for my flowers.

And then, just because I love all things fall and pumpkin, I also made this one.

This card uses the Pumpkin Spice paper in addition to the Pumpkin Spice - Cardmaking stamp set. If you visited the Core Catalog Blog Hop that went live last week, you saw that my first purchase was the new Embroidered Borders and Embroidered Circles stamp sets. They add so much to everything they touch! I stamped them in Harbor ink, but my main images are gold embossed. To round out the gold, I added a couple Gold Loose Sequins beneath the sentiment. The circles were cut with the Circle Thin Cuts which "just happen" to be perfectly sized to fit around the Embroidered Circles images. It's almost like they planned it! LOL!! I actually cut the circle with Papaya paper and hand cut the white circle close to the scallops to created a double mat.

I'm still working out of an emergency crafting suitcase that I carry with me every time the army moves us. My household goods don't arrive for another two weeks. Yeah... Soooo glad I have at least a few things to keep my fingers inky. I created this last card using one of the patterns from Make It From Your Heart-Volume 5, but I can't remember which one and can't look it up. I made it in New York at my DIL's house and--as it's HER book--I thought I should leave it there when we headed down to Kentucky. 

Now you're off to ScrappinKaty's blog. Again, be sure to hop all the way through to be completely inspired!

Until next time,

Becca

New Core Catalog Blog Hop

Welcome to the New Core Catalog Blog Hop. This is always a fun hop because there is SO MUCH to play with. The Core Catalog products stick around all year long, so I tend to go a little crazy when the new one releases. This year was no different. But before I get carried away, let's take care of some blog hop business. The stop before me is Michelle's Show and Tell with Michelle blog. I'll give you the link to the next one at the end of the post, but if you ever get lost, you can always head over to Melinda's blog for a complete list of participants.

If you follow my blog, you'll notice that the upcoming pictures are a little different. I'm crafting on the road. I packed--and I do mean PACKED--an emergency crafting suitcase because, once your household goods are picked up by military movers, sometimes you don't get them back for a good long while. 

Which is the case here.

I said goodbye to my crafty goodies on August 9 and won't see them again until September 29 if we remain on schedule. So...all of that to say, my pictures look a little different because I don't have my pretty light box to stage things in.

Now I want you to notice something about these two cards. Aside from the cute images, note the small stitch lines. Yes...the girl and the library images from "In a Book" and "Date Stamp" are fabulous, but even as an author--so books are an automatic purchase--these weren't the first items in my cart. That honor goes to the "Embroidered Borders" and "Embroidered Circles" sets because they enhance everything they touch. So does the "Imperfectly Perfect." which looks like spills, splotches, and splatters. (See what I did there? Had to show off the author in me by using alliteration!)

Anyway...

When I open a new Core Catalog, I look for the things that I'll use over and over and over again to enhance the gazillions of cute images that CTMH releases in the course of a year, be it bibliophiles or babies.

Now you're off to Katy's Scrappin' Katy blog. I'm right behind you because--let's face it--these ladies come up with incredible ideas that I can't wait to try.

Until next time (which is hopefully after I get my craft room set up again),
Becca

September Stamp of the Month Blog Hop: Grateful for this Life

Welcome to the September Stamp of the Month Blog Hop featuring Grateful for this Life. You should have come from Show and Tell with Michelle's blog, but don't worry if you started here. The hop is a circle, so just keep going until you get back to where you started. If you get lost along the way, head over to Melinda's blog for a complete list of participants. 

As this post goes live, I'm in New York after traveling from Washington State. We're visiting our son, daughter-in-law, and grandson for a week before heading to Kentucky. Yes, it's a circuitous route, but my husband has been tied up with a class and has yet to meet the grandson named after him. So...we go the circuitous route!!

My craft room was packed up about a month ago. I had to work way ahead in order to participate in this month's hop. I decided to go very clean, simple, and straightforward to make sure that my supplies were all current. Here's what I came up with...

I used Ballerina and Flamingo cardstock colors to go with my black stamping. The focal point sentiment was stamped in black, cut out with an xacto knife (centers) and scissors. I added Black Shimmer Brush to it to jazz it up a bit. "for YOU" was stamped in Flamingo after I had the circle and sentiment attached with foam tape. My scissors got a real work out between cutting around the sentiment and creating itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny pieces of foam tape to pop it up, but I think it was worth it!

I had SOOO many ideas for this, but alas, the craft room boxing put a kabosh on my ability to execute them. However, now that the new September/October catalog is live with its plethora of Fall and Thanksgiving themed stamp sets, I have a whole new set of ideas. Hopefully the craft room gets set up soon so I can get this gorgeous set inky again. Like you, I'll be hoping over to Scrappin' Katy's blog and then on to the rest to glean even more ideas from these talented Makers.

Until next time,
Becca