CAS 50 Challenge: Using Teal

I made this card for the Clean and Simple (CAS) Challenge #50 at Splitcoaststampers. The challenge consists of using teal, white and an additional color in a card. While at the mall yesterday, I saw some teal, white and black dresses. I immediately knew that I wanted to use that color combo in my card. I stamped the butterfly (CTMH Butterfly Kisses) with Versamark and embossed it with black embossing powder. I colored it with a SU! Bermuda Bay marker. Then I added some details with an Uniball Signo white pen. The butterfly is placed on a PTI white cardstock square stamped with the Hero Arts Woodgrain Background stamp. I matted it with SU! Bermuda Bay and black cardstock. The patterned paper is from PTI Polkadot Basics pad (I love it!). The decorative strip was punched using the new SU! scallop punch. I wrapped PTI satin ribbon around the strip. The sentiment (CTMH) was stamped in CTMH Ocean. It means "Thinking of you" in spanish.

When I fall in love with a SU! In-Color, I try to find a similar color in another company. I found that SU! Bermuda Bay is very similar to CTMH Ocean. The good thing is that I am not left with "orphan" products (eg. ribbon, cardstock, etc) when the color is discontinued at the end of the SU! year at the end of June. Other similar colors are PTI Blush and SU! Pink Piroutte. I still have not found an adequate substitution  for SU! Baja Breeze, which is sad since I loved that color.

Baby Scrapbook Kit

It has been raining nonstop for three days. We have been inside since Wednesday. I have taken advantage of the weather, and dedicated myself to my crafty endeavors. Today I made a baby scrapbook kit for my baby niece. My sister has mentioned a couple of times that she would like to place the all the baby photos in a scrapbook, but she feels intimidated by the whole idea of scrapbooking. So I made her journaling cards and number embellishments (for the months) so she could slip the photos in a photo album and record her memories without the pressure of actually making a scrapbook from scratch. After all, the important thing is to preserve the histories behind the photos.

I used the Basic Grey Sugared Collection. The rest of the materials were taken from my stash. I used CTMH stamps with CTMH Creme Brulee, CTMH Mellow Moss and SU! Pretty in Pink inks. The edges were inked with Creme Brulee ink. All the journaling cards measure 4x6 inches, so they can be slipped easily in a photo album sleeve.

I packaged all the journaling cards in a box made using the template of the memory keeper featured this week on Gina K's Stamp TV. I used PTI Sweet Blush CS, SU! So Saffron CS and Basic Grey Sugared DP. "My Baby" was spelled with CTMH alphabet stamps.

Here is a closer look of some of the mats I made. They could be used to mat the journaling cards, titles, photo mats or as journaling cards. I added glitter using the Nicole Heady's technique of placing a sticky strip and then adding glitter.

I packaged the number embellisments in a bag made with the Big Shot and the SU! Fancy Favor die. I think the kit turned out pretty cute. I hope my sister likes it.

Cutting Out Squares

I had this card in mind when I saw this card on the Simplicity by Lateblossom blog. I read her blog daily because her cards are simply awesome. I used this card for the Splitcoaststampers CAS 49 challenge. The challenge consists in cutting out an element and attach it on the card. So, I cut out the three square images and attached them to the card front. Is that cheating? I wanted to do something more elaborate but with two little preschool kids demanding my attention, it had to be a fast card.

I used SU! kraft CS as the base. The images are from the SU! Of the Earth stamp set. They are stamped with CTMH goldrush, CTMH olive and SU! baja breeze inks. The sentiments is from CTMH With Love stamp set. I wrapped SU! twine around the card front and threaded it through a PTI summer sun button. I put a mini glue dot behind the button to keep it in place.

Color Inspiration #57

I made this card for the color inspiration challenge at kwernerdesign.com. I plan to give it to my husband on Valentine's Day. I used PTI white CS as the base. The patterned paper is from the My Mind's Eye line Love Me Do. The birds (SU! Love you much set) were stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored with Copics. The image is matted in PTI Lemon Tart and Pure Poppy CS. I added a little PTI Pure Poppy ribbon for interest, although I was hesitant at first because I read somewhere that cards for men should not have ribbon. Oh well, I think I broke a couple of rules, since it was also recommended to avoid anything with bright colors and/or scallops. :) I hope he likes it.

Raspberry Suite Color Challenge #21

This is almost the same card as the one I showed in the previous post with only one difference: I used Very Vanilla SU! cardstock, instead of PTI white. I made this one for the Raspberry Suite Color Challenge #21, which requires a card using chocolate, soft yellow, light aqua and cream. I enjoyed making these cards because these are non-traditional colors for St. Valentine's Day.

Clean and Simple Cards: Three is the perfect number

Today cards make me really happy. They follow a clean and simple (CAS) style and the main image is repeated in a trio. Odd numbers of elements are usually more pleasing to the eye. I did the first one for Splitcoaststampers CAS challenge.

I intended to use it for the Raspberry Suite challenge too, but forgot to use vintage cream as a base (as opposed to my usual white base). So now it lacks one of the challenge colors. I may do another similar card for that challenge. I used CM heart punches, PTI white, chocolate and lemon tart CS, PTI polka dot basics DP, SU! border punch, Sissix polka dot embossing folder and PTI aqua mist ribbon.

The next one is a birthday card using the SU! Circle Circus stamp set. It is one of my favorite stamp sets.

I used CTMH ink in Ocean, Bubblegum and Hydrangea, PTI white CS, SU! Bermuda Bay CS and SU! scallop punch. The sentiment is CTMH Happy Birthday Set. I added pearls to the center to add a little bling.

Back in 2010

It is funny how life can get crazy pretty fast. Before you know it, the months have flown by, the year has ended and you are left wondering what happened. Since the beginning of a new year is a great moment to rethink life and start anew, I am making a few basic resolutions:

• No more procrastination
• I will be more organized
• Craft-related: I will use the stuff I have before buying more

The last one is particularly hard since gorgeous products are being released from every imaginable company. But I have simply no more space. So, it is use it up or give it to the kids.

Now for some projects I did last year. The next two are sort of experimental artist journal-type scrapbook pages.

I was thinking about planting hope. The text in the signs is a poem from Christina Rosetti, Hope:
Hope is like a harebell trembling from its birth,
Love is like a rose the joy of all the earth;
Faith is like a lily lifted high and white,
Love is like a lovely rose the world's delight;
Harebells and sweet lilies show a thornless growth,
But the rose with all its thorns excels them both.
To make the page, I used assorted CTMH patterned papers, CTMH stamps, SU! cardstock, SU! craft inks and SU! white embossing powder. The tree is a Hero Arts background stamp.The above page is done with the same materials, but using SU! and CTMH stamps.

The following card was exactly CASEd from the Basic Grey site. I needed a baby card and saw this card in the promotional photo of the Sugared card kit. I fell in love with it. It was easy to make since I had the entire Sugared collection pack untouched. (I find it hard to cut beautiful papers, but I am working on it.) The flower was punched with the SU! flower punch.

The last card uses the Crazy for Cupcakes SU! stamp set and wheel. The decorative edge strip was punched with a Martha Stewart edge punch. The polka dot paper is Papertrey Ink. I colored the image with Copics and added SU! dazzling diamonds glitter. And now to make some projects in the New Year! :)