Happy Halloween!

Sharing a card from Jeanette Lynton's blog.  Have a wonderful Halloween!

A Very Merry Christmas- October Stamp of the Month

This great stamp set is available only for 2 more days. Make sure you place your order by October 31. This is a fun set. The Cricut Artiste coordinates with it and is perfect for your holiday cards. 

 

 

Supplies:

 

A Very Merry Christmas Stamp Set (S1210)

Pear and Partridge Paper Pack (X7162B)

Cranberry Bakers Twine (Z1751)

Cranberry or Olive Ink

Bitty Sparkles (Z1263)

 

 

The ornament was cut using the Cricut Artiste.

 

Order your stamp set today before it is too late. Click here to place your online order.

Ink It Up- More About Alcohol Markers

I posted a video about Close To My Heart's new alcohol markers earlier this month. Here is more information about them:

A lot of good info. Time to get ink all over my fingers as I play with my paper!

Pumpkins!

I love pumpkins! I love fall colors! So I was very excited to be in charge of the Thanksgiving projects for last weekend's Holiday Extravaganza.

The So Grateful stamp set is perfect for Thanksgiving. I used it in two projects. The first one, I did a similar card as Close To My Heart put on the website shown above.



The pumpkin is stamped twice. I stamped the solid pumpkin in autumn terracotta on the 3x3 piece of bamboo paper. Then without re-inking. I stamped it again on another piece of bamboo. I then stamped the pumpkin with words in the same ink. The pumpkin (with words) is cut out and placed on top of the solid, darker pumpkin with 3-D foam tape to give it a raised look. The leaf and swirls were stamped in New England Ivy on the solid pumpkin piece.

Supplies:
So Grateful stamp set (B1395)
Papers: Flirty, New England Ivy, and Bamboo
Natural Hemp (Z280)
Antique Copper Designer Brads (Z1410)

 My second project using the So Grateful stamp set was a box. I cut out the pieces of the box using the Cricut Artiste Cartridge. The 1 inch size makes a very nice size box. The box is found on the Mother's Day button on the Artiste Cartridge. It is very simple to cut out and put together. When making these 3-D objects, I always fold on the scored edges first. Then I ink up the edges. I usually like to decorate it before I glue the sides together. But with the box, I needed to put the box together to see which side is the top before adding the decoration.

The top is decorated using a piece of Flirty paper cut to match the top of the box. This was cut at 2 1/4 inch with the real size button pushed. If the real size is not on, the piece will be huge.

The pumpkin is stamped in the same manner as the card above. Stamp the solid pumpkin on a piece of scratch paper first. Then, without re-inking, stamp the pumpkin on a piece of Colonial White paper. Next stamp on the words. The stem and leaf are stamped with Olive ink. I kept the stem attached to the pumpkin but the leaf was cut out separately.

Supplies:
Papers: Flirty, Saddle, Olive, Colonial White
So Grateful Stamp Set (B1395)
Burlap Ribbon (Z1760)
Chocolate Waxy Flax (Z1088)

It is amazing how easy boxes like these can be to make. If you have the Cricut Artiste, you can use any supplies on hand to quickly make a small gift box or bag and not go out to the store and spend $10 on one. Give it a try. Make a box or two and see how you like it.  You will be amazed with the results.

Halloween Fun

This past Saturday, I was one of five Close To My Heart Independent Consultants hosting a Holiday Extravaganza. We offered 15 crafts for our guests to create. It was a lot of fun. What I really liked about it is each of us had a different style of crafting so we all learned something different.

 

I just love  this bat card designed by Shawn. The card base is cut from the the Cricut Artiste Cartridge (see page 76 of the Artiste booklet). With a couple cuts from the Cricut and a few stamps, you have a quick and very cute card.

 

Supplies:

Moonlight Paper Pack (X7161B)

Creepy Creatures Stamp Set (C1522)

Sparkles - Red, Pink, and Purple Assortment (Z1326)

Cricut Artiste Collection (Z1790)

 

Shawn also designed a wine bottle label.

 

 

The label is 10 inches by 4 3/4 inches. How  perfect is this for your Halloween party!

 

Supplies:

Moonlight Paper Pack (X7161B)

Magic Potions Stamp Set (C1509)

Glitz Glitter Gel- Green (Z1771)

 

Later this week, I will post the Thanksgiving crafts from the Holiday Extravaganza.

 

Have fun with paper today!

 

 

 

Clearly The Best: Alcohol Marker Madness

Add a little something to your art with the alcohol-based marker sets.

Christmas Card Workshop Coming Soon

Ready to start making your Christmas cards? If you do a lot, like me, it's best to make them in November. Early December, you then are able to write your notes and mail them out, having more time for holiday fun.

With that in mind, I am starting Christmas card workshops just next week. I have one on October 28 and one on November 9. I'll be happy to bring the workshop to you if you would like to host a day for you and your friends. During the workshop, we will be making 15 cards- 3 each of 5 designs.

I have had a lot of fun playing with my paper, trying to decide which designs to use in the workshop. Close To My Heart offers so many holiday stamp sets and I love the Pear and Partridge paper pack. Plus using the Cricut allows for even more options. Time to get my fingers inky and figure out what I want to do.

Here is a card that I made as part of the Heart 2 Heart Challenge:

The base is a 6x6 kraft die cut card which gives you a different look to the card. When the card is opened, there is a large area for my family picture and Christmas letter. It was a quick card to make, thanks to the Artiste Cricut cartridge. The only disadvantage of sending this card out is that I will need extra postage since it is a square card. It is 65 cents to mail a square envelope. But since that is the only disadvantage, I have decided that this card is a yes for the workshop and probably a yes for my family cards.

Supplies:
Kraft Die Cut Cards (Z1474)
Pear and Partridge Paper Pack- using green print, cashmere, and cranberry (X7162B)
Merry and Bright Stamp Set (C1510)
Cranberry Ink (Z2116)
Red Sparkles (Z1326)
Cricut Artiste Collection (Z1790)

Have fun playing with paper today!

Halloween Treat Boxes

Ready for your Halloween party? Or maybe you need to bring a treat for your kid's class? Here is a fun craft to hold those treats.

Yes, they are paper coffins!

Using the Cricut Artiste, these boxes are quick and easy. You will find the coffin on the first Halloween page of the booklet (page 76). Just select your size, press 3-D Object and the Eek button for the bottom. Press 3-D object, shift and the Eek button for the top. Make all the folds (use a bone folder to make a crisp edge) then decorate the paper. You do need to decorate before glueing the edges. But I like to make the creases first so I know where the sides are. After it is decorated, glue the tabs. The Cricut cuts makes it easy to put together.

This one is really big. It is 7.5 inches on the Cricut dial. This takes a lot of paper and will take a lot of candy to fill. If you need to make a lot of treat boxes, don't use this one.

This coffin is I think the perfect size. I used 5 inches on the Cricut dial. The skeleton is also from the Artiste. The size is 4.5. Press accent 2 and Eek. Then press accent 2, shift and Eek for the head. Don't change the size for the head. The Cricut is set to coordinate the skeleton body and the skeleton head. If you want just the skeleton head and 4.5 inches, then you need to click the real size dial. When cutting out the skeleton, turn your speed dial to the slowest setting and make sure your paper is down. Because of the detail of these cuts, the paper might tear if it going too fast.

Here is the littlest coffin. The Cricut was set at 4 inches for this one.

Decorating the coffin, I sponged the paper lightly with slate and black inks which gave it a bit of texture. I also made sure the decoration went over the edge of the coffin.

Supplies:
Slate paper (X5930)
Slate Ink (Z2173)
Black Ink (Z2105)
All Hallows Eve Stamp Set (C1462)
Grey Wool Bakers Twine (Z1701)
Black sparkles (Z1754)
Red Sparkles (Z1326)
Cricut Artiste Collection (Z1790)

Using the Cricut Craft Room

 

If you love your Cricut^® machine, then you are going to adore all of the fabulous things you can do with Close To My Heart Cricut^® cartridges in the Cricut^® Craft Room. Create layers, cut negative space in the shape of your choice, make borders, and link elements together for a connected look. It’s easy! We’ll show you how.
Here is how to get started with Cricut^® Craft Room:

1. Create a FREE account in a few easy steps.
2. Download and run the application for PC or MAC, depending on the type of computer you use.
3. Connect your Cricut^® machine to your computer using a Type B USB cable. (Note: For more info on this type of cable, see your Cricut^® user’s guide or your local electronics store.) Once you have connected your computer to your Cricut^® machine, the “Load Mat” button is the only button you will ever need to push on your machine in the entire process. Cricut^® Craft Room will do everything else for you.
4. Once inside the application, choose the type of Cricut^® machine you own.
5. Insert your Close To My Heart Art Philosophy or Artiste cartridge into your Cricut^® machine.
6. In the lower left portion of the application there is a tab that is labeled “Images/Cartridges.” Select “All Cartridges” from the dropdown menu. (Note: You must choose a cartridge that you own. You can also purchase individual images from the Cricut^® store.)
7. Scroll to find the Close To My Heart Art Philosophy or Close To My Heart Artiste cartridges you own.
8. The virtual mat in Cricut^® Craft Room is just like the mat you’ll load into your machine. And, it is oriented the same way that you will load your mat into the machine, with the arrow at the top.
9. To drag an image to the mat, simply click on the image in the image selection tool box and move it to the mat.
10. Once the image is on the virtual mat, you can adjust the placement by clicking on the image and moving it to any location on the mat.
11. Now that you know the basics, you can start creating and exploring the possibilities!

Follow these steps to create the negative space on a card base, like you see on this Cheer Up card, featuring images from the Art Philosophy cartridge:

1. Select the “Card” tab in the Art Philosophy images. Find the card base you prefer and drag it onto the mat. (We used Square 1 for the Cheer Up card.) The image will be cut in the exact direction and location that you place it on the virtual mat. At the top of the screen, or at the left under the “Shape Properties” tab, you’ll see size boxes. Enter the width and height for your shape. This is the size it will be cut on the machine, regardless of what size your machine indicates on the flip screen.

2. Choose an image to cut out of your card front. We have chosen a butterfly by going to the Basics tab, clicking the “Show Shift/Lock Images” at the bottom, and then selecting the butterfly. Drag the image to the right side of the card base, position it, and alter the size, as desired. Once the image is in place, you will see a cut-out image in its place. This Weld feature is automatically on unless you disable it, and allows you to see how the card base will look with your images cut out.

3. Select another image, drag it to the card base, and position it how you’d like it. Continue adding images to the card base, if desired.

4. To cut your finished artwork, load the mat into your Cricut^® machine and insert the corresponding cartridge. Next, press the green Cut button at the top of the computer screen and follow the prompts. The machine will cut the shapes as you have prepared them in Craft Room. If more than one cartridge shape has been added to the project, the machine and screen will prompt you with instructions.

Here are so more artwork examples that have been made using Cricut^® Craft Room software. Follow the instructions below to learn some more fun tricks we used in creating this artwork.

Birthday Greetings card

Here’s how to create the bracket frame as shown in this Birthday Greetings card:

1. Drag a card base from Art Philosophy cartridge and size it to be 9" wide and 4½" high.
2. Add a 1½" bracket frame (from the Basic tab) to the center of the right side of the card. So far, all of the shapes have been placed in Layer 1. You can add additional layers using the Layer feature located toward the top of the screen, directly above the mat. Each Layer will be cut from a separate sheet of paper and is indicated by a different color on the screen. Using the Layer feature allows you to fully design your Cricut^® shapes before cutting any pieces.
3. Add a second Layer by clicking the plus sign. Click and hold the Layer 2 tab and drag the tab to the left so it is first in the row. This allows you to see the second Layer on top of the first so you can visualize your finished project. Drag a 3" bracket frame to the card base and position it over the 1½" frame. Then, still using Layer 2, add a 1½" bracket frame in the center of the 3" frame.
4. Maneuver the Layer 2 frames so that they perfectly line up with the Layer 1 frame. Use your keyboard arrows for exactness.
5. Cut the pieces following the prompts on the computer screen and Cricut^® machine. Layer 2 will be cut first, so be sure to load that paper first. Then load a new sheet of paper for the Layer 1 pieces.
6. Embellish the card as desired.

All Boy page

Want to create a border that spans the entire length of your 12" page? It’s easy!

1. In Craft Room, change the mat size to 12" x 24" under Machine & Mat tab on the left of the screen.
2. Drag your selected border to the mat and rotate it so it is vertical.
3. Change the height of the border to 12". It will automatically change the width proportionally unless you click the aspect ratio button between the width and height measurements.
4. Whether you have a 12" × 24" mat or a 12" × 12" mat, you can use this function with a 12" × 12" piece of paper. Simply place the border as close to the top of the Craft Room mat as possible, but not exactly flush with the top.

5. Cut the piece following the prompts on the computer screen and Cricut^® machine.

To create the title with the letters joined together to form one piece instead of individually cut letters…

1. Drag your letters to the mat
2. Overlap portions of each letter to connect them
3. Use the Weld feature to join the letters together seamlessly.
4. Cut the piece following the prompts on the computer screen and Cricut^® machine.

There are so many possibilities to explore in the Cricut^® Craft Room using the versatile Art Philosophy and Artiste cartridges from Close To My Heart! If you have any questions about using Cricut^® Craft Room, visit www.cricut.com where a Cricut^® employee will be glad to help you. Be sure to get your Art Philosophy and Artiste Cricut^® cartridges today in order to create with them in this new and exciting environment

Thanksgiving Cards

It may be still October but I am getting ready for next month.  I made a few Thanksgiving cards for my Fall Card Workshop that turned out very nice.

I just love leaves. I used the Art Philosophy Cricut Cartridge to cut these leaves (page 34 of the AP booklet).  Since I need a lot of leaves for another project too, I used the auto fill key on the Cricut. I pushed a few buttons and walked away, letting the Cricut do its work. I came back to a whole sheet of 1 1/2 inch leaves cut. What a time saver!

I have said it before-- if you don't have a Cricut, get one. Learn how to use it. It will take your paper crafting to a new level and make things easier on you. And then of course, you need the Art Philosophy and Artiste cartridges. Just click on my shop with me button for that.

Enough with my commercial. Let's get back to this card. Using chocolate ink and a sponge, I inked the edges and a little on the top of the leaves to give them some dimension. Then I used a little liquid glass on one leaf.

Supplies:
Flirty paper pack (X7160B) plus a  little bit of chocolate paper
A Friend Like You stamp set (B1410)
Liquid Glass (Z679)
Chocolate Ink (Z2111)
Art Philosophy Cricut Collection (Z1686)
Colonial White Value Pack cards and envelopes (X1410)

This stamp set is from the Workshop on the Go Flirty Scrapbooking Kit. Every paper pack also comes as a workshop on the go kit which has a stamp set that you can only get as part of the kit. I always tell people that if you are planning on buying the paper pack, look at the stamp in the workshop on the go. If you like that stamp, get the whole kit. You actually receive a little discount getting everything all together. Plus you get that stamp and an idea booklet.

I really love this stamp set. It all came together so effortlessly. The branch is stamped once with autumn terracotta then again without reinking, giving the lighter image above the darker one. This is called a second generation stamp.

To get the look of the "gratitude" image, I inked the stamp in creme brulee then using a sponge dabbed the sides of the stamp with new england ivy and autumn terracotta. To reactivate the ink that has sat on the stamp for about 30 seconds, I give the stamp a warm breath before stamping the image.

Supplies:
Workshop on the Go Flirty Scrapbooking Kit (G1050)
Colonial White Paper (1388)
Autumn Terracotta Ink (Z2101)
Creme Brulee Ink (Z2167)
New England Ivy Ink (Z2135)
Sponge (Z697)
Bakers Twine - Paradise Assortment (Z1702)
Colonial White Value Pack cards and envelopes (X1410)

A Rainbow of Color

When adding ink to your album, card, or any paper project, you don't have to stick with just one color. It is really easy to add a rainbow to your paper. Take a look at this video:

Get your fingers full of ink and have a great time playing with paper today.

Studio J- Digital Scrapbooking

I really like my paper and ink. I love the feeling of the paper and embellishments. I love ink on my fingers as a reminder of how much fun I had. I guess I am really a kindergartner at heart-- I like my arts and crafts.

But I have found recently that sometimes doing digital scrapbooking is a lot of fun too. My daughter earned her Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award a Girl Scout can earn. For her celebration, I wanted to have an album of her Girl Scout years-- all 12 of them. I started pulling out pages of Girl Scout days from my scrapbooks and realized just how many pages I have. Plus I have so many pictures that I haven't put into scrapbooks yet.  With everything I needed to do for her ceremony, there was no way to break the pages down into one album and complete more pages for the missed years. I decided to try Studio J, Close To My Heart's digital scrapbooking site. What a life saver! Within a half an hour I had four layouts completed.

I decided to do the whole album digitally. I had a two page layout for each level, plus a layout for her camp, her trip to the UK, and a couple layouts on her big awards. All in all, the book ended up 26 pages. Many of the early photos I needed to scan since they were taken while I was still working in film. I think I spent four hours total on the album, including the scanning time! It turned out beautiful! My daughter didn't see the book until the ceremony so I was so excited to see her face when she looked at it. Wow! Was she happy!

If you haven't worked with digital scrapbooking, give it a try. Click here to go to Studio J or just click on the Studio J box on the right hand side of this site. During the month of October, if you purchase nine layouts, the tenth one is free. It's a great time to try out Studio J.

I really don't think everyone should give up their paper and adhesive. There is no way I ever will. But I do think that sometimes the pages need to be done. That's when we need digital scrapbooking. We can be creative on the computer and get it done quick.
Give it a try and tell me what you think.

More Halloween Cards

I attended a Close To My Heart meeting the other day where I took part in a Moonlight Paper card swap. My card was the 3x3 ghost card I posted the other day. Here are a few that I received

This card by Sue Rodriguez. I just love it. Supplies used were the All Hallows Eve stamp set (C1362), black tulle ribbon (Z1798) and Sparkles- brown and tan assortment (Z1754).

C.C. Marsh used the Cocktail Alphabet (E1015) for this card. The cat on this card is an eraser bought at a dollar store. What a great idea!

Joyce Lau (http://createwithjoyce.blogspot.com/) always has a wonderful card to share. In this one, she used the Artiste Cricut Cartridge (Z1790). The cat can be found on page 76 of the Artiste booklet.  The sentiment is from Perfect Fit- Halloween stamp set (B1413).

This last one is by Linda Sturdivant used the Artiste Cricut Cartridge (Z1790) to cut the card base. Check out page 52 of the Artiste booklet for all the card base cutout ideas.

Want to try out a few Halloween cards? I will be holding a Fall Card Workshop on October 11 for just $10. Email me (cathryno@gmail.com) if you are interested in signing up.