Sparkles, sparkles, sparkles... I love sparkles!

An easy card for Mother's Day or a Birthday.  Who wouldn't love a pretty card chalk full of itty bitty sparkles?  I know I would.

Here is the second card we made in my April "Brushed" card workshop. 

This is a pretty simple card packed with a lot of feminine charm.  I originally designed this card to be for Mother's Day, but for those in my class that do not have a need for that sentiment, I made it easy to switch out the sentiment to "Happy Birthday".  Both cards are identical with the exception of the sentiment...

So simple, yet so pretty.  I just chose a fun pink paper from the "Brushed" paper pack and a strip of paper from the "Paper Fundamentals Whimsy Assortment".  I just love that houndstooth pattern.  I did the stamping on a circular piece, layered a scalloped circle for a boarder and popped it up with some foam adhesive.

The stamp set we used is not in the Annual Inspirations catalog, it was in the Seasonal Expressions supplement which expired at the end of March.  HOWEVER, the stamp set IS STILL AVAILABLE!!  The stamp set is called "Happy to Be Friends".  I just love it.  It has so many sentiment variations and those cute little flowers which can be done in colors to match any paper pack.

Here's what you get in this stamp set...

Here is a close up of the stamping on one of the cards...

I ended up with a total of 16 "Bitty Sparkles" on my stamped images.  So pretty!  In case you're wondering, the CTMH Exclusive Ink colors I used were: Cranberry, Pixie, Juniper and Canary.  

I've tried to link to most of the items used on my cards to my Close to My Heart website.  If you have any questions, please let me know.

Thank you for visiting and come again.

Have a Lovely Day!

Wow, I can't even believe I can still remember my blogger password.  Oops.

Anyway... I haven't perused blogs for quite some time and the last few days I've had this yearning to get back to it.  Facebook is still my main source of keeping up with people, but it's just not quite the same as a blog.

I've been continuing to do my monthly card classes and doing the random swap or two, but I've been neglecting to share my work.  I keep blaming the fact that I can't find my camera cord (which is true - missing for over a year), but I do have a camera on my phone.  While it's not as nice as my "real" camera, it's not so bad.  So no more excuses.  I'll be posting some recent cards I've done over the next couple of weeks and then I'll be going back in time and pull out some past cards, because hey, I still need inspiration for all kinds of cards and I bet others do too.  :)

My latest card class, about a week ago, was created using the "Brushed" paper pack from Close to My Heart.  I think this is my favorite paper pack in the Annual Inspirations Catalog.  It's so Springy (is that a word?).  I'm usually partial to these kinds of colors and I'm sure a lot of it has to do with me having boys and not getting to do a lot of the "girly" things.  That's alright, I'll take it.

This is a great card to give to anyone.  "Have a Lovely Day!"  Who doesn't want to hear that?

Isn't that paper fun?  And I just love all of the added sparkles.  

As I said, this card was made using the "Brushed" paper pack from Close to My Heart.  I originally designed this card for a Card Swap I participated in to showcase the new CTMH products.  In fact all of the products are exclusively CTMH.  I used a combination of two different stamp sets on this card.  The butterfly and the leaves come from the "Brushed Workshop on the Go Scrapbooking Kit" and the sentiment is from the "Lovely Birthday" set.  I just love the font on that one.  That fun pink metal flower is from the "Brushed Assortment".  I used more of those flowers on another card and a layout that I will share in the near future.  And don't forget the bling.  I used both the "Sparkles Assortment" and the "Sparkles Small Flourishes".  I've tried to link most of the products used on my card to my CTMH website in case you would like more info.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

I hope you like my card.  Have a lovely day!

"It's Your Day" and it's a Blog Hop too!

Well... hello there.  It's been a long time.  I'm just going to jump right back in and post my first post in over a year (yes, you read that correctly).  Yikes!

I'm very excited to be a part of the CTMH Blog Boosters Annual Inspirations Blog Hop.  I've recently participated in a card swap using one of the new papers in the new Annual Inspirations Idea Book and I thought this would be the perfect place to showcase it.

My assigned paper pack was one of the new Winter papers called "Snowhaven".  It has a wonderful variety of papers which can look very "Winter-like" or they're also versatile enough to be used in a beautiful non-seasonal project.

This is my card:

To go with this fun Snowhaven paper pack I chose to use the super cute scooter stamp found in the "Make it Merry" stamp set.  I love me some paper piecing so that's what I did for the body of the scooter and the two gifts on the back.  I also used the fun new mini-stapler to add some cute Slate colored diagonal striped ribbon for some interest.

I didn't want my card to necessarily be for Christmas so I used a sentiment from a different stamp set called "You Mean the World to Me".  I figured this card could then easily be turned into a birthday card.  I hope you agree.  :)

For the swap, we had to make 26 identical cards.  I always feel a sense of satisfaction when I'm done and like to take a photo of my work.  Here they all are.

I hope you'll check out the other links at the bottom of this post to see many more wonderful examples of artwork from my fellow consultants using new products from the Annual Inspirations Idea Book.

Thank you for stopping by!

Guess what day it is??

Be Mine, ya big Flirt

Hey there~  Just finished up one of the cards for this weekend's card workshop, so I thought I'd take a couple minutes and post it.  We all know how I work, if I don't do it now it just may be a while.  ;)

For this weekend's card workshop I'm using some of the papers I haven't had a chance to use previously.  Once the new Idea Book goes live on February 1st, there will be 7 new paper packs to play with.

I've used a couple of the papers in this "Flirty" paper pack previously, but I haven't had a chance to use this great, graphic floral paper until now.  There is no stamping involved on this card, so it's quick and easy peasy.  Got to love the CTMH Cricut cartridges.

A little closer view of the Cricut "Artiste" Be Mine image.

Aren't those colors fun?  Well, I'd better get off of here.  My goal is to design one more card tonight before I got to bed.  Wish me luck!

Creative University 2013 - it's going to be fabulous!

Okay, it's pretty sad that I have neglected this blog since September 10th.  What??  That's crazy!  I said it before, facebook is leading to my blog's demise and hopefully I can prevent that from happening.  I'm not one to publish New Year's Resolutions, but I do think about them each year.  I will say that one of mine this year is to do much better at updating my blog, starting now...

Some of you know that for the last 2 years I've attended something called "Creative University" for a weekend in February. It's a fantastic getaway on Lake Coeur d'Alene in Northern Idaho. You can choose either a 3 or 4 day stay (Thurs/Fri - Sun).  This year it's February 14th - 17th. 

The "University" consists of several crafty classes designed by a fellow CTMH consultant, Tresa Black. Tresa's a fantastic artist and makes this getaway so much fun. Even though she's a Close to My Heart consultant, this is not a CTMH sponsored event. There are many different crafts and products represented. There is also a lot of time to work on your own projects too.

I'm telling you all about this because there are still some spots available and I thought some of you might like to attend or know someone who would.  Tresa has set up a website with all the details.  

http://creativeuniversity.webs.com/

I'll be attending again this year and I'd love to have you join me.  And a little secret that I can now let out of the bag, I get to be one of the instructors this year - yipee!  I'm not sure what I'll be instructing yet, but I know whatever Tresa comes up with will be FABULOUS!

Here's a quick video to give you a visual of this wonderful event.  (If you look closely you'll even see me a couple of times.)



Now, if this sounds like something you'd like to be a part of, please register before it fills up.  If any of you are interested and have any other questions that aren't addressed on Tresa's website, please feel free to ask me. I'd love to have some more friendly faces joining me this year. Did I mention that you get 3 wonderful meals a day - woo hoo, no cooking!!  (Now that's my kind of weekend.)

I hope some of you can take advantage of this. I've really enjoyed my past experiences there and have even learned new skills that I've passed along to some of my friends. Be sure to pass this info along to anyone that you think might be interested. And if anyone is nervous about the classes, not to worry, they're all doable by beginners. There are so many fabulous ladies there willing to help. :)

Until next time...

Pear & Partridge Swap Card

Hi there.  I'm finally getting around to taking some photos of some of my swap cards I made last month.  For this particular card I was assigned the CTMH stamp set called "Merry & Bright".

I'm a sucker for Christmas stamp sets, so this was a great addition to my collection.  I love all of the images and they match perfectly with our new paper pack called "Pear & Partridge".  It seems like Close To My Heart alternates between traditional and more modern Christmas paper packs each Winter and this year is back to a more traditional look with Cranberry Red and a darker New England Ivy Green.  I tend to lean towards the more modern colors and designs myself, but I do like a little bit of traditional as well.

Here is the card I created using "Merry & Bright":

Isn't that new Burlap Ribbon great?  I love it and I've used it with several of the new paper packs, it looks great with all of them so far.

For this swap we're supposed to use at least one technique as well.  I used a couple different techniques.  I did one called "rock n' roll" on the partridge.  First I stamped the bird in Cashmere ink, then I rolled just the top edge in Cranberry ink (while the Cashmere ink was still on there) and then stamped on the paper to get that color fade.

I also did some paper piecing on my card.  I'm a bit addicted to "fussy cutting", so I stamped my bird both on the card itself and on a separate piece of cardstock and then cut that one out by hand and adhered it over the image I stamped on the card already.  I also did the same thing with the Cranberry Red bow on the top of the wreath.

The last technique I did was just coloring with our new alcohol based markers.  I colored in those five little flowers on the wreath before I added a cute little sparkle to the center.  And if you haven't used an alcohol based marker before, you're gonna love it, the color goes down like butter and leaves no streaks - yay!

I had to duplicate this card 26 times, but it wasn't too bad.  The hand cutting of the partridge and bow were a little time consuming, but I did them while watching tv, so not a problem.  The other shapes were cut using one of our exclusive Cricut cartridges called "Art Philosophy", it does all the work for you.  :)

Here's a closer look at the paper piecing.  You can see I popped the partridge up with a little dimensional foam adhesive.

I also stamped a Christmas sentiment on the inside of the card and added another little bird down in the corner - easy peasy.

Here's a complete list of all items used to make this card.  You can click on each one to find the item on my website:

• C1510 Merry & Bright stamp set
• X7162B Pear & Partridge Paper Pack
• 1388 Colonial White cardstock
• 1282 New England Ivy cardstock
• Z2116 Cranberry stamp pad
• Z2135 New England Ivy stamp pad
• Z2175 Cashmere stamp pad
• Z2419 Cranberry marker
• Z1760 Burlap Ribbon
• Z1263 Bitty Sparkles
• Z1763 Boutique Assortment
• Z1686 Cricut Art Philosophy

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you come back soon.  :)

Humble Artist's Swap - August 2012

At the end of July, I was pleasantly surprised to be asked to join a card swap that I've been an admirer of for a long time.  It's called The Humble Artist's Swap.  It's a bi-monthly swap consisting of a group of approximately 10-12 CTMH consultants headed up by fellow consultant Nancy Ball.  (I have a list of all of the "HAS" swappers on my sidebar, so you can go check out all of their fabulous work as well.)

Nancy gives a set of guidelines each round and assigns 2 different groups of swappers (so you only have to make 5 or 6 cards total).  Now these guidelines are definitely a challenge and I was a little scared that I would miss something my first try, but I think I got all of the requirements into this card.


Here were the guidelines for August:

• Minimum 8 layers
• Use ONLY neutrals and one color
• Use one stamp set with the word “Background” in it
• Use one stamp set with the word “Borders” in it
• Have at least 2 other different stamped images
• Use at least 3 Art Philosophy shapes
• Minimum 3 embellishments
• Card must be at least 4 ¼ x 5 ½ 

Whew, crazy huh?  Here's what I came up with:

I was a little worried about all of the layers, but by my count I think I got them all in there.  I counted 9 layers on my card (not counting the card base) that all overlap at one point, right under the word "make" in my sentiment.  Here's how I counted my layers:

You must also use all Close to My Heart supplies and I managed to do that as well (although, by the time of this post one of the stamp sets has since retired.

Here's a complete list of supplies used (with links to my website where available):

• S1208 August Stamp of the Month: Baroque Borders (retired)
• D1477 Universal Backgrounds stamp set
• D1491 Hooray Bouquet stamp set
• C1510 Merry & Bright stamp set
• X7156B Clementine Paper Pack
• 1388 Colonial White cardstock
• X5643 Chocolate cardstock
• Z2111 Chocolate stamp pad
• Z2164 Sorbet stamp pad
• Z2175 Cashmere stamp pad
• Z1686 Cricut Art Philosophy
• Z1763 Boutique Assortment
• Z1263 Bitty Sparkles

This sketch I used was one I found on the mojo monday website.  It's #181 from 2011.

Thanks for stopping by and come back soon!

Hi, my name is Kandi and I'm addicted to swaps.

Ha!  Yes, I'm still here, just been busy making lots of stuff in my "free" time.  Actually, August turned out to be a pretty busy month because I got a little crazy and overextended myself by signing up for 4 different swaps, all due within a couple weeks of each other.

In my evenings after work and on weekends (minus one, when we went camping), I've made a few items:

41 Board Titles
82 Greeting Cards
8 Single Page Layouts
8 3D Cricut Items
* Not to mention, a few other items for a Craft Show my friend Linda and I did in early August.

Whew!  I'm so glad to be done, finally.  I don't know what I was thinking, but I just have a hard time saying no.  I normally do 2 or 3 swaps when a new Idea Book comes out, but 2 new opportunities presented themselves to me this time around and I just had to go for it.  :)

Unfortunately I'm on a computer that doesn't have my current photos uploaded, so I will be back with photos of the various swap items soon.  I also hope to post some photos of other goings on from this Summer, now that it's almost over.

For now, enjoy the rest of your weekend.  I'm off to eat breakfast at my Mother-in-law's house - yum!

Ciao!

The New Autumn/Winter Idea Book has arrived!

If you'd like a copy of the new Autumn/Winter Idea Book, please contact me and I'll get one to you.  In the mean time, you can browse the catalog on line, just click on the image below.  As always, it's full of lots of fun new papers, stamps and accessories.  Enjoy!

* And if you just can't wait to place a order, you can shop HERE.  :)