A Gift Box For Mom

With Mother's Day just around the corner, here's a cute, little gift box that can be made using Close To My Heart's Cricut cartridges, stamp sets, and ink. I've included the entire list of instructions below! You, of course, can use any colors and stamps that you'd like - be creative! You may want to customize it for your special Mom, or make it larger in order to accommodate a larger gift or sweets. It's up to you - have fun with it!

INSTRUCTIONS:

Step 1) Cut box from Whisper cardstock (CS) using the CTMH Cricut “Artiste” cartridge - 3” 3D Object (pg. 45) (NOTE: Make sure “Real Dial Size” is NOT selected).

Step 2) Cut flower bow and topper from Honey CS and Hollyhock CS, respectively, from the Cricut “Artiste” cartridge – 5” Accent 1 and 5” Shift-Accent 1 (pg. 55) (NOTE: Make sure “Real Dial Size” is NOT selected).

Step 3) Cut a circle from White CS using the Cricut “Artiste” cartridge – 1¼” Card (pg. 48) or a 1 ¼” circle punch. Stamp the “MOM” circle image from the “Perfect Fit – Mom” stamp set onto the circle using Whisper ink.

Step 4) Cut scalloped circle from White CS using the CTMH Cricut “Art Philosophy” cartridge – 2 ¼” (pg. 31). Stamp the scallop circle frame from the “Perfect Fit – Frames” stamp set in Hollyhock ink onto the cut piece.

Step 5) Stamp Heart image from the “Perfect Fit – Mom” stamp set onto a scrap piece of White CS using Lagoon ink and cut out.

Step 6) Cut a 1” x 12” strip of Honey CS and random-stamp it with the flower image from the “Perfect Fit – Mom” stamp set using Honey ink.

Step 7) Trim four ¾” pieces of Silver Shimmer Trim and adhere to the Hollyhock scallop circle frame in an overlapping fan pattern as shown. Using 3-D Foam Tape, adhere the “MOM” circle to the center of the Hollyhock frame. Embellish “MOM” image with two Bitty Sparkles as shown.

Step 8) Assemble box (pg. 16 of the Artiste Assembly Instructions booklet). Assemble flower bow (pg. 30 of the Artiste Assembly Instructions booklet). Attach a silver Bigger Brad through the center of the flower bow. Attach entire bow assembly to the top cover of the box.

Step 9) Apply glue to the back of the Honey CS strip and wrap it around the center of the box horizontally, starting in the middle of the back of the box (pinch the CS around the corners as you go).

Step 10) Using 3-D Foam Tape, adhere the Hollyhock frame to the center of the front of the box. Using 3-D Foam Tape, adhere the Lagoon heart to the lower-left corner of the Hollyhock frame.

Creatively Cricut®

I've been working hard on the 3-D projects for my next Workshop - they're looking great! I only have one left to do. I will post them all next time - I promise! In the meantime, I just viewed this great video from Close To My Heart that I'd love to share with you. It's called "Creatively Cricut®". In it, Kristine Widtfeldt shares some very helpful tips and tricks on using the Cricut with our "Artiste" and "Art Philosophy" cartridges. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Create Custom Home Decor!

OK, my bad! I was sick yesterday (and today), so I never got around to posting my Wednesday post! And I was on a roll! So today, I am posting a video from Close To My Heart on adding a photo to our "My Creations 6" x 6" Canvas Display". It's really cool, and a great way to create your own personalized home decor!  I promise to be back next Wednesday! Be sure to stop by my new Close To My Heart Facebook page as well (I'll be working more on that tomorrow!) - find it HERE. Thanks so much!

Glitter Glam!

Adding glitter to your projects is a fun way to add sparkle and shine, but did you realize just how many different ways there were to add it? I may have missed a few, but today I'll show you several different ways that you can use glitter to make your projects shimmer.

First and foremost, there's your glue pen or glue stick. Use the glue to outline, draw, or write, then sprinkle on the glitter, or rub the glitter onto the glue with your finger. Easy enough, but can get a little messy.

Besides your glue pen, you can experiment with other adhesives you might have in your stash. I tried 2 sizes of Glue Dots, my Tombow adhesive, and my Herma removable adhesive (the dots). This is a fun & easy way to add small circles or strips of glitter to your projects. I rubbed the glitter into the adhesive with my finger to insure a strong hold. This can also get a bit messy!

Hmmm...I feel like there's an adhesive I'm forgetting...Oh, yes - the Xyron! Here's yet another way to glitter-up your die-cuts. Send your cut shapes through the Xyron. I used the Sticker Maker, because I had a very small zig-zag border I wanted to try:

After peeling the shape off the backing, place it adhesive-side down into your glitter:

Press the shape into the glitter and voila! Instant bling!

Another way you can spice up your stamp images with glitter is to use a glue pad. I used Tsukineko's "The Essential Glue Pad" (which I've had forever, so I'm not sure if they still sell it!). You use it as you would an ink pad, only you're stamping glue instead of ink. After stamping, sprinkle the glitter onto the glue, then tap off the excess. Use a soft brush to brush off the remaining excess after the glue dries.

A similar technique for applying glitter is to use glitter rub-ons. I happen to have some that Close To My Heart produced a while back. All you do is cut out the image you'd like to use and rub it onto your paper - just like a regular rub-on.

After peeling up the plastic backing, you will have a sticky image on your paper. Simply lay the included glitter sheet down on top of your image (glitter side down), and rub with the stylus. Presto! Still easy, and a little less messy than the aforementioned methods.

Want even less mess? You can also use a glitter glue or gel to apply your sparkle. This is an adhesive or gel with the glitter mixed right in. With a ton of different brands (like CTMH's "Glitz" and Ranger's "Stickles") and colors to choose from, it's an easy, no-mess way to glam up your projects - and have the glitter stay put!

Lastly, you can now buy glitter in a roll! Oh, yes - it's glitter tape, and it comes in MANY different colors!

This stuff is great because it's self-adhesive! You can use it to border your photos, decorate frames, make tiny pennants or flags - the list goes on & on. I used the tape to create this fun card:

How fun is that?! And it took me no time to do - with no mess!

I hope I have inspired you to break out your glitter and experiment. Comment on this post with your creative ways of using glitter - I'd love to hear them! Have a sparkling day!

Passion For Patterns!

Even though I have more patterned paper than I could ever use in a dozen lifetimes, I continue to buy more. Why? I have a passion for patterns...and colors...and the unique and wonderful combination of the two. The newest Idea Book from Close To My Heart introduces seven brand-new collections, which include patterned paper packs. I can honestly say that this is the first time in my 11 years as a consultant that I have purchased every single paper pack in the Idea Book. These collections are, by far, the best yet - I just had to have them all! If you haven't seen them yet, be sure to head over to my website to take a look!

In the meantime, I have created a card that uses each paper collection, so you can get a peek at some of the patterns included. Each paper packet comes with 6 double-sided cardstock-weight sheets of patterned paper - there are 6 different patterns, so you get one sheet each of every pattern, or two sheets each of the three patterns you like best! Here are the cards I created:

Chantilly:

The Chantilly paper pack is easily my favorite. The colors are so vibrant and "Springy", and most of the patterns are small, which is great for a cardmaker like me. This card uses one of the 6 patterns. The design of this card was given to me by my good friend Judi D. - isn't it adorable?!

Buzz and Bumble:

I love the neutral palette of this paper. It's all browns, with a shot of Sunset & Creme Brulee - talk about versatility! This card shows just one of the six patterns in the set.

For Always:

You can't get more neutral than this paper pack - it's all black & white. I love its sophistication - and you can pair it with any color and have it look fantastic. Two of the patterns are shown here.

Claire:

"Claire" is pinks and oranges paired with Outdoor Denim blue for a fun, down-to-earth-girly set of patterns. You can see two of the six Claire patterns used in this card.

Later Sk8r:

Oh yes - let's get down & dirty with a paper pack that's all boy! These masculine papers are perfect for the men/boys in your life. Lagoon, Pear, Outdoor Denim and Slate all make for a very bright, bold, boyish look. I have used three of the Later Sk8r patterns in this card.

Surf's Up:

This is a fun, bright, retro summery paper pack - three patterns of which you can see between the above two cards. The second card has an interactive element that you pull open to reveal a surprise message.

Tommy:

Ok, you wouldn't know it by looking at this card, which is a testament to its versatility, but the Tommy paper pack is nautical-themed. Bright, bold Cranberry, Honey & Outdoor Denim also make this a perfect paper pack for the summer.

And that's all seven collections in the Spring-Summer 2013 Idea Book! To get a closer look at ALL of the patterns available in these spectacular paper packs, go to my website and browse the Idea Book! You can get there from HERE! Enjoy!

Best...Day...Ever!

I am so excited to share with you the following post from Jeanette Lynton's blog (Jeanette is the founder and CEO of Close To My Heart). My artwork was chosen to be featured today, which is such an honor! Check it out at: http://www.jeanettelynton.com/2013/03/my-favorite-stamp-set-country-born.html

Thanks!

Creative Chalk Techniques - Part 3

Hello, and welcome to the third and last installment of Creative Chalk Techniques! I had so much fun trying these cool methods - I hope you have, too! The last technique is almost identical to last weeks - just without the dry embossing. You will need cardstock, VersaMark ink (or equivalent clear embossing ink), multiple colors of chalk, and a means to apply the chalk (cotton ball, cotton swab, sponge, etc.) - and a stamp, of course. Start by stamping your image onto the cardstock with the VersaMark ink:

Then, using a sponge applicator (or whatever means you choose), apply different colors of chalk to the stamped image:

This is such a cool & soft effect - perfect for Easter & Mother's Day coming up! Here's the card I created with this technique:

Isn't it gorgeous?! I just love how this came out - and so much easier than trying to ink your stamp up with all of those colors of ink!

I hope you will give these techniques a try. Be sure to send me a picture of what you come up with!