Crazy For Circles!

How many different ways have you used your circle punches? Have you used them at all?! Well, you just might find a reason or two to pick them up after reading through this post. I came across a page in the July/August 2012 issue of "Paper Crafts" magazine entitled "Getting Creative with Circle Punches". On this page, Jennifer McGuire illustrates nine different ways to use your circle punches with cute, little 3" x 3" cards...so I decided I would do a few of my own to show you. They were a lot of fun, and I learned a few new ways to use my punches, too! Here are six of the ways that Jennifer suggests using your circle punches in creative ways:

1. "Create a faux scallop border". You can tuck full circles behind the edge of your cardstock, or cut your circles in half, as I did, and line them up along the edge.

2. "Highlight part of a stamped image". Here, I stamped the image in orange on my main piece, then stamped it in yellow on another piece. I used my circle punch to punch out the center of the yellow image, then mounted that on another punched circle to further separate the yellow center from the orange image. This technique is especially striking when you have an outline image stamped in black, then color the highlighted part with markers or colored pencils. Here's a really old example that I have of that:

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3. "Create a wave border by repeatedly punching half circles." Fun!

 4. "Stamp letters on circles for a unique title." (Lovin' that chevron background - sneak peek!!)

5. "Create rings by punching a circle within a circle." For this technique, be sure to punch the smaller, inner circle first - then you can position your larger punch around that circle to punch out your ring (I loved this technique!).

6. "Create a raised window by punching a circle and framing an embellishment." Be sure to mark the center of your cardstock on the back before punching for easier centering of your circle.


I hope you'll be looking at your circle punches in a whole new way - I know I will! Happy punching!

Valentine Flair

As promised, here is a look at the fun & elegant valentines we created at my last card-making workshop!

We began with this card which uses January's Stamp of the Month, suitably named "Happy Valentine's". This card was fun for two reasons: we used the large roses stamp to create a tone-on-tone background for the top section of the card and we used CTMH's new alcohol-based markers to color and shade the stamped roses that we used for the focal point. Very cool. This stamp set is so gorgeous - I had to resist using it for every card we did that day! The patterned paper, for those of you who are dying to know, is from the "Clementine" paper pack.

This next card is kind of fun & whimsical. My favorite part of this card is the flower. It was created using the "Just For You" stamp set. You start by stamping the stitched outline (here in gray) onto your precut flower piece from the Cricut "Art Philosophy" cartridge. On a separate piece of Blush cardstock, stamp six of the "petals" in Hollyhock ink and cut out. Adhere them into the spaces on the stitched flower cutout. Add a punched circle of Silver Glitter Paper (sneak peek!) and a button, and you've got yourself one gorgeous flower! The wood-grain patterned paper is from the "Dakota" paper pack, and the strips of glitter in the background are the self-adhesive Silver Shimmer Trim. The sentiment on this card could be anything!

This is a very pretty card which uses several of my favorite products. The first of which is the Cricut "Artiste" cartridge which was used to cut the heart-shaped card and the heart for the sentiment. My second favorite product is the gorgeous Colonial White Rosette Ribbon - what a quick and simple way to add texture, dimension and elegance to your projects! My third favorite product is the Spray Pen. It was used with brown reinker and water to tone down the bright white of the sentiment heart, as well as add that "aged" look - love it. The sentiment is the "Love" stamp, and the patterned paper is from the "Pear & Partridge" paper pack - yes, you can use "Christmas" paper for other things!

Lastly, we put together and embellished one of the treat tubes from the National Papercrafting Month's special, "Whoo's Your Valentine?" Kit. The cute little boxes come pre-cut & scored - all you have to do is stamp it (if you choose), fold it up, and glue it together. Then you can embellish any way you'd like! The kit comes with it's own D-sized stamp set with plenty of options for spicing up your treats! We had a lot of fun - then we filled them with Valentine candy corn and/or Cherry M 'n M's...yum.

I hope this inspires you to create a special valentine for your special someone! Come back next Wednesday when I'll be sharing...well, I don't know yet, so it'll be a surprise! I LOVE surprises! :-)

Holiday Card Workshop - Plus a Makeover!

Well, the holidays are behind us for another year. Last November, the attendees of my Holiday Card Workshop and I had a lot of fun creating some cool cards - which you have yet to see! So, I will show you the cards we made, but then give the last one a simple makeover so that we can use it for a completely different occasion. Yea! Here they are:

This is a very simple, yet striking card which uses the "Pear & Partridge" paper pack, along with a gorgeous Designer Rhinestone Brad. Interestingly enough, we used this same patterned paper on a card we did this week at my workshop for Valentine's Day. The sentiment is from the "Merry & Bright" stamp set. An incredibly versatile design - adaptable to any occasion!

You wouldn't know it from the outside, but this festive card is actually a gift card holder. Here's the inside:

This card was cut using the Cricut "Artiste" cartridge - it creates the pocket for you and everything! The front is decked out with a wreath from the "Merry & Bright" stamp set, a couple of patterns from the "Pear & Partridge" paper pack, and a flower from the "Just Blooms Floret Paper Flowers" pack. I also accented with a red brad, red Sparkle, and metallic silver pen.

This is a card you've seen before (if you follow my blog!) - it's from the "Pear & Partridge Workshop on the Go Card-Making Kit". The paper, stamps, ribbon & Sparkles are all included in the kit. This is a very easy card to recreate, which is why I've done it so many times!

This was the last card we created - very wintery, don't you think?! It's very appropriate for today, as I sit looking out my window at the wet, snowy mess outside. This card uses a Provo Craft Cuttlebug embossing folder (Snowflakes) for the background, CTMH's "Perfect Fit - Holidays" stamp set, and "Slate Satin Polka-Dot Ribbon" across the middle. Again, a very simple design to duplicate...so let's do that right now and use this design for a different card:

Oh how fun! This time I used "Perfect Fit - Birthday" (sneak peek!), the "Designer Ribbon - Red Collection", and the Cuttlebug Dots embossing folder. Instead of a cool blue & gray, I warmed it up with Cranberry & Honey. Fast & easy!

Next time, tune in to see the incredible Valentine cards we made this past week. We even made a treat tube from the "Whoo's Your Valentine?" Kit - it was a lot of fun. Until next week - stay warm!

Just For Fun - Last But Not Least!

Well, I am getting better! I almost made this blog post within a week of the last one - sooo close! But I'm working on it! Ok, let's get straight to the artwork, shall we? This is the last installment of artwork from my Open House...just five items left:

This "party popper", as well as its "rosette" and label, were cut from the Cricut "Artiste" cartridge. I cut it pretty large, though, so the running joke is that it looks more like a barbell than anything else (which is definitely true)! The stamped frame & sentiment came from one of the three stamp sets that you receive with the Cricut "Artiste" Collection. And the flashy silver "ribbon" is actually "Silver Shimmer Trim" - which is self-adhesive...nice. I love how making the base a neutral color - the gray - really makes the blue rosette "pop"!

Need a small gift box in a hurry? Make your own with the Artiste cartridge! I used the "Clementine" paper pack to create the "sleeve" of my box (the interior of the box slides into it). I wrapped it up with Dark Chocolate Striped Grosgrain ribbon, and finished it off with a pennant shape from "Noted Canvas Shapes", which I inked the edges of and stamped with a sentiment. Cute & easy - what more could you want?!

Unfortunately, I can't remember where I saw the card that I "card-lifted" this design from (most likely an issue of Paper Crafts Magazine), but as soon as I saw it, I knew I had to do it as a "boxed set"! For my version, I used shapes cut from - where else - the Cricut Artiste cartridge. The sentiments are from one of the stamp sets that comes with the cartridge, the bright "burst" is from another stamp set included with the cartridge, the library card stamped multiple times in the background is from the "Approved" stamp set, and the bird is from the "Merry & Bright" stamp set. Then each is finished off with a baker's twine bow. I love the monochromatic look of each card, and I especially love how bright, bold, and cheery they are as a group.

Oh, this was a cute and surprisingly easy project to put together. This is a mini-album that I did while at CTMH's Convention last summer. Here's why it was so easy - when you purchase the Cricut Artiste Collection, you not only get the cartridge and 3 stamp sets, you also get 3 sets of Dimensional Elements (chipboard shapes). One of these sets is the pages of this album. Amazingly enough, the cuts for each & every page in this album are also on the Artiste cartridge....Which means that in order to cover the pages with cardstock or patterned paper, you don't have to trace the chipboard pieces onto your paper and then cut them out - all you need to do is cut the shapes on the Cricut and BAM - perfectly shaped and sized pieces. I was so excited that I didn't have to trace & cut! So impressive! The patterned paper used in this project is from the "Avonlea" paper pack, and the stamp set is "Approved". What a great project to do in an afternoon!

As you must know by now, I like to save the best for last, and that is certainly, in my opinion, the case here! This is my favorite card ever (so far). A fellow consultant showed us this design at Convention, and I knew I was going to have to recreate it. I bought the Colonial White Rosette Ribbon for the sole purpose of making this card. The Rosette Ribbon is what makes up the "frosting" on this cupcake, while the paper "liner" uses a pattern from the "Clementine" paper pack (I also dry-embossed the vertical lines into the paper, then sanded them, to add more dimension and realism to the piece). This card, of course, as well as the banner and cherry, can be found on the Cricut Artiste cartridge (let me count the ways in which I LOVE that cartridge!). Top it all off with some Tan Sparkles, Dark Chocolate (or black) Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, and a Rhinestone Designer Brad, and you've got yourself a cupcake too sweet to eat (and too nice to give away)! Mmmm...now I'm hungry for cupcakes....

So there you have it! Next week I'll be able to show you the fantastic cards that we'll be creating this weekend at my Card-Making Workshop! Tune in on Wednesday (fingers crossed!) for those! Enjoy the weekend!

Just For Fun - Part 4

Happy New Year! I have made but one new-year's resolution this year - to try and be better at updating my blog! Time always seems to have a way of getting away from me, but I am going to do my best to make the time to update my blog once a week. There is a new Spring-Summer 2013 Idea book from Close To My Heart on the horizon, so there will be lots of new products, artwork and techniques to show you! I can't wait! So be sure to check back every week for new artwork & inspiration (I will be trying for the same day each week - when I know what day that will be, I will let you know!)

For now, let's check out some more artwork using CTMH products from the current Autumn-Winter 2012 Idea Book! First up - a terrific way to use up those scraps:

The patterned paper used on this card is from the "Clementine" Paper Pack. The paper was cut into leaf shapes using the Cricut "Art Philosophy" cartridge. The butterflies were also cut from the "Art Philosophy" cartridge. The sentiment is from the "Casual Expressions" stamp set. I love this stamp set because seven of the eleven sentiments have coordinating cuts on the Cricut "Artiste" cartridge - I just love not having to use my scissors!

This beautiful card was created with the Cricut "Artiste" cartridge - it's what's referred to as a "swing card". The Cricut cuts the card itself, with the "swinging" heart - all I did was stamp the "Love" stamp onto two cardstock hearts (also cut from the "Artiste" cartridge), and attach them to either side of the swinging heart. I then embellished the card with cardstock strips & pennants, a paper flower, and a button. So simple and so pretty!

In keeping with the love theme, let's move on to this adorable gift bag - also created with (you guessed it!) the Cricut "Artiste" cartridge. The scalloped borders were created using paper from the "Dakota" paper pack. The stamped images, from the "Cup of Cheer" stamp set, were stamped, colored, cut out, and adhered to the inside and outside of the bag's window. It's so cute!

The "Dakota" paper pack is a lot of fun to work with. I used it again on this gift box (cut from the Cricut "Artiste"), along with Blue Designer Ribbon, an Antiqued Gold button, and Square Durables Studs. The box has a window cut into the front which can be covered from the back with a clear or colored plastic, or you could place the contents of the box in a clear bag or tissue paper. But wait...there's more!

It's the "Dakota" paper pack again, only this time used to cover the "My Creations Memory Game". This item is a chipboard box, with a magnetic-closure top, which contains 24 3" x 3" chipboard squares. After covering the box with patterned paper and Durables Studs, I covered each of the interior squares (front & back) with 3" x 3" versions of my Studio J layouts! Can this get any cuter?! What a fantastic gift idea for grandparents! I got this idea from Convention last year - as soon as I saw it, I knew I had to do my own. It's easy since Studio J provides you with JPEG files of your layouts for you to print at any size you'd like! Love it!   OK, just one more little one....

I call this "tiny purse", mainly because that's exactly what it is. I didn't even bother to stamp or embellish these beyond the "pearl button" because I thought they were adorable just the way they were. I made these with the "Artiste" cartridge (surprise!) and used them as little incentives for booking a party with me. If you booked a party, you got to choose a "purse" which contains a slip of paper with a free gift written on it. The "latch" of the purse closes with Mini Hook & Loop Dots. I made larger versions of this purse for my daughter's book club members - they were pink or purple with black scissors on the front (cut from "Artiste") and contained barrettes, hair elastics, and a travel brush (the book was hair-salon themed). It's such a great idea for party goodie bags or gift bags to your best girlfriends (these mini-versions are perfect for those with American Girl dolls, too!)

So many fun ideas to try! If you have any questions about how to make any of these projects, don't hesitate to call or email me! Better yet, come to my next Card-Making Workshop on Sunday, January 13th from 1-4pm. The class fee of $7.50 is due by January 5th in order to reserve your spot! As an added incentive, attendees of this workshop will be the first to receive copies of the NEW CTMH Spring-Summer 2013 Idea Book, as well as creating on of the adorable treat tubes from this month's "Whoo's Your Valentine" National Papercrafting Month special kit! Call or email me ASAP to reserve your spot!

Happy New Year Everyone!