Stars!

My June Hero Arts kit arrived and I promised myself an entire week of 'playing' without a specific project in mind.  Inky, messy, escapist fun!
 
 So, yesterday, I was playing catch-up with my subscribed videos and became intrigued with Jennifer McGuire's Frame Die cutting technique.  Naturally, I do not have a one single set of dies that nests together so snugly amongst all the sets I have collected over the years. : (   However, I DO have a Cricut and a star challenge over at BBTB2 and maybe, a head start on next week's encouragement cards.

Stars - Rock Princess
Telescope - Outer Space Wall Decals
Cuttlebug Stars embossing folder

Inside: -

Banner - CTMH  Artist
Sentiment stamp - Simon Says Stamp

Yes!  A simple card that doesn't say "Hello" or "I Miss You" or "Stay Safe."  Win, win, win!

Here's what I was playing with all week:-

Distress inks, Oxides, alcohol markers, water based markers, pencils...  and this is my favorite -

Take a look at the Stars challenge here and be prepared for some inspiration!   Stay healthy.  : ) Christine

Just another Fourth of July!

 I found myself needing two different styles of card for this week's Fourth of July cards.    Firstly, I wanted to make a card in my "Yappy" series. Believe me, it turned out soooooo cute!  Then DH said, "Isn't that a chihuahua?"  and we were off on a search for a truly representative dog.  Poodle?  German Shepherd?  Lab?  Scottie?  Finally, with time running out, I settled on this simple, but cute terrier.   (DH - intelligent, scrappy and very independent!) 

Dog - Create a Critter

Hat - Photo booth props.  Use contour to get rid of inner brim cut out.
Ribbon Banner - Stars and Stripes    Save the stars!


Inside -

Yappy - Paper Pups  (Yappy Easter)
4th of July   All American  (My First Fourth of July)
Ribbon  - Stars and Stripes   (Considerably messed about with!)


My second card is more traditional and fully of glitter and punched silver mirror board stars.

Fireworks - Independence Day (plus one extra blue burst)
Phrase - Sesame Street Elmo and Friends Holiday


Inside -

Hat - Photo Booth Props
Fireworks Burst - Independence Day

Our little town is full to the brim today with families and friends out for the holiday.  Last year we trekked down to the beach and enjoyed the crowds and the sky show with J and his Mom, Dad, and 'other' Grandpa.  J was captivated to be on the beach AT NIGHT and could not have cared less about the fireworks!   This year we are still hunkering down but will get to see the sky show from the deck.   Hopefully, there will be more to celebrate next year.   Stay safe!  : )   Christine

Here comes Summer or not!

We know it's summer because the calendar says so, and because my DH in spite of his goosebumps, has decided that it is time to wear shorts on the golf course.  But actually it is still winter jamies and hot soup kind of weather until the 5th of July here in the PNW.   Last weeks card for the Church folks was a little optimistic: -

I love this sun overlay cut from CTMH Artbooking and have seen it cut from double sided paper (twice, once mirrored - making 2 cards)  with the ray cut outs reversed and pieced back in for a really cool look.
Crab - Create a critter with a white shadow layer
Font - DJ Inkers


Inside

kinda beachy in-joke since we complain about sand in the car, in the rugs, in the washing machine, in our hair...

Sand castle - Create a Critter
Phrase  Warm Christmas Wishes  Note to self - remember the 'pencil in' through the negative space trick for perfect spacing.


Since it is technically summer, we trundled out the RV and took it out to visit with Master J to celebrate his 8th birthday.  It was a lovely visit but we cut it short and came home where we felt safer.  : (  

And whatdayaknow?  The week I make an all Cricut card, BBTB hosts a "Show me the sun" challenge!   I cannot believe how many 'sun' cuts there are.   Pop over and take a look.    : )  Christine

Snarky Cats!

Well, I did it again!  I bought a Tim Holtz stamp set despite telling myself I already had cat stamps, the sentiments were just tooooo snarky, and who among my sweet, lovely friends would appreciate a card featuring a snarky cat?   At the same time, I also bought the new Distress Oxide ink color - Speckled Egg - which is the exact color I need for sunny day backgrounds. Right?

So here is the card I sent last week to a few, specially selected, members of my church congregation.  Waiting for feedback...

 Oxide inked background - Speckled egg
                                            Faded jeans
                                            Gina K  black spatters and scratches

Zig markers - Orange
                       Bright yellow
                       Oatmeal

Cats are very easy to mask using sticky notes.

Cat is grounded using a stencil cut with Sunny Studio Frilly Frames Lattice.

Sentiment - Cricut / font is Cake Basics.

Love, love, love Speckled Egg.   Love, love, love Snarky Cats - not so much some of the sentiments!   : )  Christine

Fold and Tuck Cards

I was super excited to find that Lori Whitlock had developed a collection of incire cards for the Cricut Joy.  I have been intrigued by this technique for years but had very little success either using a craft knife or the Martha Stewart punch.  Now, thanks to Lori, I can master incire cards!   

Double sided designer paper - pattern should not detract from folds and second side must be a bold contrast with premium side.  

Insert - American Craft foil - not flimsy, needs to be sturdy enough to stay in place through insert slits.

 I like the simplicity of this design - could be a sympathy card made in dark blue or purple.

 See the hearts?  However, the raised center cuts make it unsuitable for mailing but they could be removed in DS using the Hide Contour button. 

Boldly patterned paper detracts from the fold pattern.

Just for fun!  

A double fold adds dimension.   Lori's samples are white with a contrasting foil insert.

I hid the outside contour and then attached the fold cut lines to a circle.  The cross comes from the Inspired Heart cart and is backed with blue glitter paper.

AC foil, punched butterfly.

I had to glue the tips of these little folds.   Note to self - try this with a green backing plus red 'berries' for a wreath on a Christmas door?

You can tell that I had fun with these svgs!   Stay safe!   : )  Christine

Hang in There!

I hope this card will encourage its recipients to continue on with our state's directive to "Stay Home, Stay Healthy!"  It seems forever since we were out and about but, since I have vivid memories of the miseries I caused by passing measles on to my siblings,  I have NO desire to pass CV on to anyone at all.  So, I'll stay calm and stay in.  (and craft!)

Here's the front of the card:-

Foliage border die  and flower - Sunny Studio
Monkey - Create a Critter


Inside:-

Vine - Tropical Scenes from Sunny Studio
Monkey - Create a Critter 2
Sentiment Wild Card  cut twice with red and once with pink

Notes to self - Cricut cut monkeys with WHITE shadow layer to make them look like die cuts.

I unfortunately stretched the vine stamp as I put it in the Misti, didn't notice and then got annoyed that the stamped and colored image would not die cut properly.  I tried to cut out six vine images before I realized what I had done.   Next time remember to fit the stamp inside the die cut BEFORE closing the Misti cover.

Always learning!   Hang in there!   Christine  : )

Sea you soon!

I am a huge fan of the Sunny Studio stamp company because their releases feature whimsical and cutesy clear stamps, the most wonderful layering stamps that even I can do nicely,  versatile sentiments stamps and clear alphabets.   There are stamps that feature THE 'thing' that is just starting to pop up all over the internet, and classical stuff like mason jars and gingerbread men.  And no, I didn't get paid for that endorsement!    Anyway, it's always exciting when an order comes from Sunny Studio and DH knows not to talk to me for a week until I've tried everything out.  : )

Last week's card was created from my latest SS stamps and dies.  I love the sentiment! 

I had inky fun creating the background with Distress Oxides and die cut masks.   Oh yes, very inky fun! 

I used Glossy Accents on the little fish to add dimension but still keep the card relatively flat for mailing.

The crab and the lobster represent DH and I 'waving' at our friends. Teehee!   : )    Lots of coloring, but really, a simple, easy card to put together.

Sunny Studio  "Sea You Soon" stamps and die set
Sunny Studio  "Best Fishes" stamps and die set
Sunny Studio Stitched Half Circle die set

So tired of "Hello" cards!   Something different next week!   Sea you soon!   Christine  : )