New Heights Abound

By the way the adorable little girl in this cute project is the daughter of one of my amazing upline, Mandy Leahy! I love this cute layout! I especially love the balloons with the Sparkle Gems! This is so cute and not as hard as it might seem to do. Don't let these fancier projects make you nervous! Give it a try, you might find that they are far simpler to do then they would seem! Head to my Shop and pick up all your sparkly gems for your project today!

Get Crafty!

Polar Bear Plunge

  

 I received a rather unusual request from a customer for a wedding card. The couple participates in a Polar Bear Plunge event every year and so this card needed to have a polar bear with a trademark yellow cape. I honestly stressed about this card, I wanted it to look nice but have exactly what the customer wanted. So I used CTMH's White Daisy Cardstock to create a standard A2 cardbase, then I sketched some rounded shoulders at the top of card. Then I sketched the head and ears from the same cardstock, followed by cutting out an oval from Slate Cardstock for this cute little guy's nose. I distressed all the edges with Black ink and a sponge, trying to give him a realistic look. I inked two round circles with black ink and topped it off with some Liquid Glass to give realistic eyes. I gave his nose some 3-D elements with 3-D Tape.

I used some cute paper from Walmart, as well as some of the Ivy Lane paper pack to make some cute presents to stack in front of the bear. I stamped 'Congratulations' on the front and a sweet message inside from The Happy Couple stamp set, to tie this unusual wedding card together. To finish the card, I found some strips of yellow terry cloth and made a super cute cape that I attached to the back of the card with some Liquid Glass (remember to allow ample time for it to dry, otherwise it makes things more difficult).

I was pleasantly surprised by how great the card looked and was satisfied how it turned out. It took some thinking and planning, but was really simple to create. So, NEVER allow yourself to get discouraged with a nontraditional idea and if it doesn't turn out the first time, try again. I hope you are inspired to work on something unusual. And as always Get Crafty!

Head over to my Shop and pick up your supplies today!

A 'Wicked' Halloween

I had so much fun making this 12x12 2-page layout, but I can't take all the credit for the idea. I actually was flipping through my Reflections book (contains layout set ups for when you have run out of ideas!), trying to find a layout for my September Scrapbook Workshop. I found a layout that actually used the Wicked with the broom for the 'i' on it, while looking and I thought this is perfect. I then set to work locating a layout to compliment the first page.

I used cardstock in Autumn Terracotta, Olive, Black and Cashmere, as well as a sheet of B&T Duos from Babycakes! (Which just goes to show that just because B&Ts are grouped in themed sets, doesn't mean you can't use them in different themes!) I used Black, Autumn Terracotta, Olive, Gyspy, and Chocolate inks. I used Dimensional Elements Monograms made out of chipboard for 'Wicked' and tried different ideas with the ink to give them each a different look. I sponged the edges or the tops, on the 'W' I inked just like I would a stamp. I had fun trying different things. You could even color them with our markers and then sand down different spots on the letters to give it a different look. The possibilities are endless! I love having the options and seeing how the look changes by changing one thing.

I made the broomstick from a bundle of twigs I bought at Hobby Lobby and some raffia. I'll post up instructions later, so you can make your own broomstick! I also used stamps from Creepy Creatures and I used the pumpkin from Count Your Blessings. I also used Liquid Glass to enhance some of the dots on the B&T Duos page,  I think it added just the right amount of 'Bling!' Don't forget to add your journaling, you want to be able to tell the story of the photos, because you won't be around forever and your loved ones will want to know!

Lace-Work Birthday Card

Today I have another super cute card that can be used for all sorts of occasions, but today I picked to make it into a Birthday card for my Sister-in-law. What actually got the idea going was the butterfly. I had this random Butterfly cut-out from when I'd been playing around with my Art Philosophy cartridge. I really wanted to use it in something cute, so I flipped through the booklet for the cartridge when I saw this lace-work piece and it clicked. The idea for this card was born! Lol, OK a little dramatic, but I really did get excited about putting these two objects together to create a card.

So I fitted the lace-work image to fit a 6"x6" card and cut it from the Olive cardstock, which I think gives it an ivy look. I then sponged the butterfly with Gypsy ink to give it this beautiful coloring and placed some fun clear sparkles on its wings. I use a small amount of liquid glass to help secure the sparkles since I've found that sometimes they don't like to stay stuck where you've placed them. Then I decided to use the same cartridge to cut out an oval shape in Autumn Terracotta, wanting to tie these beautiful outdoor colors together and add the pop of Fall. I used the Art Philosophy Celebration stamps to stamp the 'Happy Birthday', as well as the Swirls Around stamps and the You Are My Happy stamps.



I used Olive, Gypsy & Crystal Blue ink. I also decided to test an image to say 'Hey, this is made by me!' I think it has potential. It was stamped in Gypsy, then I wrote my initials and the year around it. Followed by placing small dots of liquid glass on each point. What do you think?


Want to be able to may your own fun and super cute cards or scrapbook pages? Go HERE and check out Close To My Heart products, where you can buy what I used today, as well as so much more!