Workshop Cards!!!

I finally sat down and got them all done. As per feedback from the last workshop, I opted to stay a bit more simpler this time without a ton of techniques, since I've already taught you most of the more standard ones.

These cards can all be used as birthday or whatever other occasion you wish to make them for. The paper packs featured this time is Seaside (female) and Wanderful (male). They cost $3.00 each and include an envelope to take home with you.

Workshops will be hosted for August 9th and August 31st at a different location to be provided when you sign up for the workshop. It will run the usual hours from 1:00 - 5:00PM. Thank you to both hosts that graciously offered up their home to host this.

Girl 1:

Girl #2:

Girl #3:

Boy #1:

Boy #2:

Boy #3:

If you have any questions, let me know! Otherwise, I look forward to seeing you there. If you can't make it, I can also make and ship pre-cut kits. 

Enjoy summer!

A Wedding Card and back from Portugal

I finally have a card to post - and I am in the middle of working on workshop cards. Lisbon and Albuferia was gorgeous, hot, and I had a great time with family. Below is an image from Lisbon; there are plenty of little shops and cafes along all the walking streets to stop for a cold glass of sangria or beer. 

Little cafe in Lisbon, Portugal

I am also changing up my method of posting to try and keep up with posting even with my busy lifestyle. I will be of course sharing the photos but I will only list the stamp sets that I have used unless if I cannot recall the name. If you would like more information I can always answer that in the comments below. 

Without further ado, the pictures of the card for my friend's wedding back in April. 

I always enjoy using retired paper packs when applicable. I love using the clean colors of red and white with some accents of grey. 

This is to showcase the layers on the card; I don't know what I'd do without foam tape. I'm addicted to it but I always like to have something pop up on a card. One day I will have to try a CAS format and see how well I stick to the guidelines. 

I brought the birds of the set inside the card. The reason why I chose this sentiment is because the bride has always danced to the beat of her own drum, and have had many wonderful experiences since of which some I have been a part of. That is from a different set - "Your Own Kind of Wonderful" which is available in Annual Inspirations until August 31st. 

The set with the birds was part of Seasonal Expressions 1 and has since been retired. But, there are more awesome sets in Seasonal Expressions 2, available until August 31. 

Happy Stampeding from Cowtown!

Sometimes you just see a card...

... and you just gotta make it. This one from ScrappieToo that I found on CaseStudyChallenge was so adorable I couldn't pass it up, and it was perfect for a new baby card.

Today's inspiration: http://scrappietoo.blogspot.ca/2014/09/create-smile-september-bloghop.html : Angie Curvers, the very first image in the post.

The littlest critters from Cuddly Salutations was just perfect to be playing in the windows I had cut on the top. However, it wasn't easy to cut them and I wound up having to do it 3 times before I thought it was done right. My trick? Cut out three squares, place them and use a pencil to draw guiding lines on the cardstock. Then use an X-acto knife to cut into the middle, then use your scissors and cut along the lines. The critters themselves and accompanying bubbles were colored with Copic markers.

I decided to bring the pattern papers to the inside of the card as they feature in the background of each window, and used a black gel ink pen (fine Sharpie works too!) to draw the lines.

Other:
* White cardstock
* Black gel ink pen
* Copic markers

CTMH:
* Love Life Set
* Little Reminder Set (retired)
* Cuddly Salutations - Hostess Rewards set
* Barn Red Ink
* Outdoor Denim Ink
* Twilight Ink

As it's the new year and I have some exciting news for you... that's coming in the next post!

Playing with Greens

The fun part about commissioned cards is that I can use whatever I want. In this case, I found a few sparkles, embellishments, and I just had to break out my Cricut machine once again.

The inspiration for this card is here: http://nikkispencer-mysandbox.blogspot.com.au/2014/08/just-add-ink-227chipboard.html.

I used Liquid Glass to make the red Baker's Twine behave on the front of the card but it wasn't easy as Liquid Glass takes some time to dry. Then, I cut up a few snowflakes with the Cricut and I used a few snowflakes.

I brought the eyes of the owl and the patterned cardstock inside the card.

Other
* Cream cardstock
* Copics B24, B21, Y11, Y13, Y21, R24, R20
* White cardstock

CTMH:
* Bundled Buddies - retired
* Shinhan Touch Markers R11 and C46
* Art Philosophy Cricut Cartridge
* Pear Ink
* Ponderosa Pine Ink
* Blue and Green Adhesive Rhinestones - retired

The little Christmas Village is lit and the Christmas lights are on!

Sneaky sneaky...

... I didn't realize one of my team members had gotten married until I realized her last name on the door tag had changed! I was hesitant to ask, but nope, it was happy news - she got married! So I decided it was card time. I didn't have to, but I felt like it.

As well, Lest We Forget... I am forever grateful to those who have served, and those who are serving to keep our beautiful country safe and welcoming to live in.

Today's inspiration: http://scrappietoo.blogspot.ca/2014/09/case-study-challenge.html, from Case Study #207. I might have to dig around a bit more in her site - really liking her card style.

I embossed the flowers from an old SOTM onto the vellum, then used the "frosted glass" technique so the colors weren't too crazy. To do this, you stamp the one side of the vellum and emboss, then you color on the back side of it. The little flower I just bunched up a couple of squares of tissue paper from something I had before and attached all the layers together with Liquid Glass.

I used a totally different color technique with the inside - same flower, but this time I watercolored with pigment inks. I didn't want a strong color but I wanted to carry the image inside.

Other:
* Vellum adhesive
* Vellum
* Cream cardstock
* Blue cardstock
* Copic markers

CTMH:
* Jardin (retired)
* Big Hug
* It's The Little Things SOTM ** upcoming!!
* Happy Valentine's SOTM (retired)
* Brown Opaque Pearls (retired)
* White embossing powder
*  Liquid Glass
* Embossing Ink
* Twilight Ink
* Smokey Plum Ink
* Desert Sand Ink
* Cranberry Pigment Ink -- from pigment ink set Adventure
* New England Ivy Ink -- from pigment ink set Enchantment

Hope you are staying warm on this chilly day!

It's always nice to say "thank you..."

Customers make us who we are! With that said, I always include a thank you card with each customer's first order. The recipient of this was no exception and on top of it all she's a lovely, creative lady who I enjoy crafting with! 

Again with the fiddling - I knew that I wanted to use a SOTM (sneak peek) and that I also wanted to use one of the sets I bought because I wanted it, but that I hadn't used. This set takes me back to my very first days with CTMH. What can I say, we met and fell in love.

They compliment each other so well when I use the flourishes as a flower backing the typewriter. If you look really closely, the flourish on the bottom left and the top right are rock n rolled with Twilight and Gypsy ink. Always ink light first, dark second.

For the front of this card I went to town with foam adhesive. To achieve more than one layer, I simply double-stacked the foam adhesive. I couldn't live without this stuff.

I also brought the patterned cardstock inside the card and used a masking technique for the peek-a-boo flourishes. 

Other:
* Solid color cardstock
* Fiskar Edging Scissors

CTMH
* Stamp set from Wishes Workshop To Go - retired
* April 2015 SOTM - Typed Note : to come!
* La Belle Vie Level 2 Paper Pack
* Red and Pink Adhesive Rhinestones - retired
* Twilight Ink
* Barn Red Ink
* Gypsy Ink
* Whisper Ink

Don't go away yet a few exciting things to talk about! This month, with a minimum order of $55 CAD, you can get one of two chevron ribbon rolls for free! Ribbon gives such beautiful dimension to any card or layout and you can use it so many ways.

Secondly if you qualify for this it means that you've hit a minimum of $50 to qualify for this month's SOTM - Home for the Holidays. Most of the images are paired up with CTMH's Art Philosophy Cartridge so you don't have to fussy cut the shapes yourself.

The nights have been nippy but the frost hasn't stayed - here's hoping for at least a few more warm days!

Simple, elegant...

... and did I mention I just cannot get enough of the embossing folders from CTMH? They got debuted in the catalog before Annual Inspirations. I bought a Cuttlebug as I knew my Cricut wouldn't emboss, but little did I know you can do all sorts of things with a Cuttlebug too!

This one was meant to be simple yet still make a statement, and boy did it ever do that. I'm just loving how well the ivory shows off the true colors of the stamped images. And that Baker's Twine - I have so much fun buying random embellishments, and having even more fun using them when occasion calls for it.

I brought the same lady which was stamped in Twilight to the inside of the card.

Other:
* Cream Cardstock

CTMH:
* Fashionista Stamp Set - retired
* Perfect Fit - Mom - retired
* Mother's Day
* Twilight Ink
* Smoothie Ink
* Floral embossing folder
* Baker's Twine

The leaves are changing color and fall is just around the corner - happy Fall!

You know you're a bit too OCD when...

... you wind up redoing the front of the card not once, twice, but three times! I was trying to do a pretty hexagonal pattern and failed badly on the first try as my hexagons were too big; the second try I wanted to add outlines but my ruler skills were not up to par. But, third time was the charm!

Inspiration : https://www.flickr.com/photos/tulip1312/9315856351/lightbox/ by Joy Taylor @ SimpleByDesign

Instead of following a mostly white on white tone, I opted to pick three flirty fun colors to stamp the different hexagons in. I also utilized a swipe technique - first you ink the stamp, and then you swipe to get a pattern, which you can see on all the hexagons stamped in Gypsy.

And then, I got inspired by a link that teaches you how to make your own epoxy embellishments - and covered the butterfly cutout all over with Liquid Glass. I fiddled with the front of the card for so long that my Liquid Glass dried by the time I was done.

I brought the hexagons back inside the card and picked a cute little sentiment for it. I'm sure Mom's going to love this - and for the second time this year, the card is *actually* on time.

Other:
* Cream cardstock

CTMH:
* Honeycomb Stamp Set
* Joyful Birthday Stamp Set
* You Are My Happy Sentiment - retired CC
* Cocoa Ink
* Twilight Ink
* Ruby Ink
* Gypsy Ink
* Liquid Glass
* Opaque Pearl Adhesives - retired
* Red / Pink Adhesive Sparkles - retired
* Artiste Cricut Cartridge

Looks like the snow has retreated this week but the damage that it has caused is unreal!

Sometimes it's just plain fun to fiddle.

It's time consuming, don't get me wrong, but I really loved the end result. This year is my MIL's big 60th birthday, but alas I had to go back to Calgary for work and so could not join her. Hubby, however is able to make a tiny detour so I'm glad for that, and I'm sending some cards with him.

It was a big set of cards to do in four days but I did it! There was no particular inspiration for this one but three hours of fiddling later...

I really love the silver frame on the black. It's downright gorgeous - and just that little extra sparkle here and there plus some foam tape and fussy cuts makes it really pretty. And ok, kudos to you if you can spot the distressing of three colors on the front!

The inside was the same butterfly - because you know, I absolutely adore this set which pairs perfectly with La Belle Vie Level 2 Paper Pack. I cried the day they retired it...

Other:
* Cream Cardstock
* Butterfly punch
* Lace edge punch

CTMH:
* La Belle Vie Level 2 Paper Pack
* Jardin Stamp Set - retired
* You Are My Happy Sentiments - retired
* Smokey Plum Ink
* Gypsy Ink
* Cotton Candy Ink
* Silver embossing powder - retired
* Detail embossing powder - retired

In the last three days, Old Man Winter decided to visit with a vengance and we had broken trees, power outs, dicey roads... I hope that it hasn't affected you too much and that you are warm, safe, and dry!

Only half a year later...

But I finally got my other Father's Day card done!! Hubby had a chance to stop by Denmark to visit with the in-laws last month and so I'm scrambling to get all my ducks in a row for cards to give to the family. And now, of course, I'm playing post-catch-up.

Additionally some exciting news - it's National Stamping Month! Which means it's time to celebrate with another stamp set. With a minimum order of $30.00. you can get the below set free:

This exclusive C-Sized stamp is only available during the month of September (value of $15.25) ! Congratulations to Jeanette Lynton for bringing us 30 Years of CTMH!

And of course the stamp of the month is Family is Forever

 This beautiful set is yours for only $5.00 more with a qualifying purchase of $50.00. So if you happen to have $50.00 worth of an order, not only do you get this cute stamp set for $5.00 more but you also qualify for the free stamp set above!

This one I'm not sure where the inspiration came from. I might have started with this: Case Study Challenge 202 : Shari Carroll but then veered well away from it.

I wanted to do some more embossing with my Cuttlebug and the awesome CTMH folders that came out not too long ago. I thought the Quatrefoil Embossing folder was pretty masculine. As well I'm just starting to sink my teeth into distressing. I'm still balling up little things of paper towel to use as embossing tool (take note, anything is possible to transfer inks with) but hope to move to daubers later on. Distressing with various colors will have to make an appearance at the Christmas workshop!

I brought the pattern behind the tools on the front to the inside of the card and distressed around the card with Barn Red. What can I say, this card made itself - I just simply fiddled with things.

Other:
* Cream cardstock
* Brads
* Black Sharpie Pen

CTMH:
* You're The Best Set - retired
* Timberline Level 2 paper pack - retired
* Barn Red Ink
* Blue / Green Epoxy Adhesive Bubbles
* Quatrefoil Embossing Folder
* Ponderosa Pine Ink

It's a lot chillier these mornings!

Foxes and a little girl's birthday...

I admit it. I'm guilty of buying stamp sets that I fall in love with. Which means occasionally I have all these sets that I've never used just floating around somewhere. The Feburary 2014 SOTM was no exception. But, I finally found a use!

Inspiration: Case Study 157 : Jean Martin

On the front of the card is a scrap from La Belle Vie, a retired paper pack that I was sad to see go. It's French inspired and thought it would be super elegant for the little birthday girl. I just had to use the foxes - she's intelligent and very sassy :) when she's not scared of the people around her. I also popped up the flower on the bottom fox with puff tape and used a bit of bling to make it stand out.

On the inside is a quote from You Are My Happy, an older constant campaign (another set I didn't know what to do with until now!). I brought the fox inside along with a strip of the same paper from the front. I love being able to do that.

Other:
* Pink adhesive flower sparkle

CTMH:
* La Belle Vie Level 2 Paper Pack - retired
* You are My Happy Sentiments - retired
* Wild About Love - Feb 2014 CC - retired
* Card Chatter - Birthday - retired
* Bronze Shimmer Trim
* Gypsy Ink
* Smoothie Ink
* Twilight Ink
* Foam Adhesive

Hope you are enjoying the respite from the heat!

More wedding cards!!

What can I say, sometimes there's a lotta weddings and sometimes there is none. This time it was my little brother's wedding. He first got married in May in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and then to honor my mother's wishes, a second 10 course Chinese banquet in Calgary.

Lake Tahoe was gorgeous and pictures just don't do it justice. The below image is of a "cheap" homemade centerpiece made by my brothers' friends, taken by JT Images. To be honest, I've seen a lot more expensive ones that were purchased, and weren't half as elegant or pretty.

Congratulations to my brother and my sister in law on their marriage, and I wish them many happy days to follow. Of course, you know this merited not one but two cards, as my in-laws wished to also send a gift. I couldn't ask for better inlaws. I can't remember the inspiration for either one, unfortunately, but if you recognize the layout - let me know!

Card #1: (from my in-laws, made by me)

I still had some Bliss Level 2 kicking around which I had used back in the day for my wedding scrapbook album (which is still in progress after 6 years of marriage!!) and thought it would be appropriate. I paired that with one of the Quick Card stamp sets - Japanese Blossom.

I had explicitly bought The Happy Couple set for my brother's wedding cards. Isn't the script gorgeous on the sentiment?

Card #2: (from hubby and I)

This time I wanted to play a bit with Love Doily, another set I had bought on a whim. I used red and silver embossing powder backed into white, black and red papers. The script background is another
retired Level 2 paper set that I couldn't remember what it was for. The orchid peeking out in the middle is from Quick Cards - Island Greetings.

And of course, like always I brought both the image and the color I used inside the card. The Congratulations sentiment is from Now and Forever.

Other:
* Solid colored cardstock

CTMH:
* Bliss Level 2 Paper Pack
* Now and Forever Set - retired
* The Happy Couple Set
* Love Doily
* Quick Cards - Island Greetings
* Barn Red Ink
* Outdoor Denim Ink
* Red Rhinestone Adhesive Sparkles
* Opaque Adhesive Pearls
* Red embossing powder - retired
* Silver embossing powder - retired

Congratulations again to my brother and his new wife!