Wednesday, September 24, 2014

More beautiful and simple cards from Artfully Sent

I am having so much fun playing with the new Close to my Heart Cricut cartridge Artfully Sent.

The cards are beautiful and so simple and quick to make.



I used the Free to Be promotional package of paper to create this card (along with White Daisy cardstock.) 

This card is made in four simple steps:
1 & 2. Cut out the cage (outer card) and the cage lining (inner cage)
3.  Cut a square of white cardstock and adhere behind the bird shaped opening.
4.  Adhere the cage lining to the cage card.  

You are done.  It's that simple!





I used the retired Jubilee B&T Duo paper for this card (along with White Daisy cardstock).  The great thing about this style of card is that it really shows off the two sides of a B&T Duo sheet of paper.  Also, the contrast is already built in to the card.  Just cut the main card and the white lining.  Glue them together and it is finished!




This card used the Free to Be Me promotional paper.  Again only two cuts on the Cricut machine.  Glue together.  Bend/fold.  You are done!

For more information on Artfully Sent or other CTMH products, please contact me at closetomyheartkw@gmail.com or check out my website at kwregion.ctmh.com.

Monday, September 22, 2014

Complement your Picture My Life with Artfully Sent accents

Pocket scrapbooking is super fast and easy with the new Close to my Heart Cricut cartridge Artfully Sent.  There are lots of great 4x6" and 3x4" options.

Here are a few I've made so far:





In the project below, I've used the pocket card as decorative elements in a card:



So many possibilities in no time at all!

For more information, contact me at closetomyheartkw@gmail.com or check out my website at kwregion.ctmh.com.

Sunday, September 21, 2014

Purses or butterflies - sleeve style Artfully Sent cards

The purses are made from B&T Duo papers or inked White Daisy cardstock. For those using patterned papers, I cut small squares or rectangles of paper large enough to fill in the purse shape and adhered that piece to the back of the card front.

For the pieces that used ink, I alternated between sponge dauber inking and masking tape inking to create different patterns and textures with the ink.


Materials used:
Card is made from Smokey Plum cardstock.
Purses from left to right: Thistle ink, Brushed paper, Blush cardstock,
2nd row (L to R): Free to Be Me special paper pack,Twilight ink, Thistle cardstock
3rd row (L to R): Sweet Leaf ink, Confetti Wishes paper, Smoothie ink
4th row (L to R): Seaside paper, Blush cardstock and Blush cardstock with Sparkle & Shine Washi



Butterfly card
For the butterfly card, I used sponge daubers to ink the White Daisy butterfly cutouts.  After applying the ink, I then pasted the shapes back into their original spots.


Materials used:
Card is made from White Daisy cardstock
Top row (L to R): Crystal Blue and Gypsy inks
2nd row: Smoothie and Pixie inks
3rd row: Canary and Thistle inks (2 new colours)
4th row: Cotton Candy and Sweet Leaf inks

      For more information, contact me at closetomyheartkw@gmail.com or check out my website kwregion.ctmh.com.


Love notes from the Artfully Sent cartridge

I had fun playing with the sleeve and the pocket cards of the new CTMH Cricut cartridge Artfully Sent.
 
The card base is created using Lagoon and Cotton Candy cardstocks.



Two pocket style cards were used to decorate the card front and inside front.

The “Hello I love you” card (page 1) was cut from Hollyhock cardstock and accented with Crystal Blue, Outdoor Denim and Blush cardstocks.

I used the Lagoon hearts that were cut from the sleeve card (page 35) to decorate the front  (and another to add the smaller heart shape inside the larger heart die cut on the pocket style card.)



The inside pocket card (page 36) was made from Hollyhock cardstock and accented with Crystal Blue and Lagoon and cardstocks.  I also added  some washi tape as an additional accent (from last year’s Christmas Sparkle & Shine Washi set).

MATERIALS USED:
Artfully Sent cartridge (Z3017)
Lagoon cardstock (X5762)
White Daisy cardstock (1385)
Hollyhock cardstock (1246)
Cotton Candy cardstock (X5760)
Outdoor Denim cardstock (1275)
Crystal Blue cardstock (1292)

Adventure cardstock combo pack  which contains the Cotton Candy, Hollyhock and Lagoon cardstocks (X5935)

For more information, contact me at closetomyheartkw@gmail.com or check out my website at kwregion.ctmh.com.


Halloween Cards using the new Artfully Sent Cricut Cartridge

The Artfully Sent cartridge provides many options to make cards for holidays or just for the every day.  To celebrate Halloween, I made two quick cards. 

This card was super fast and simple.  Just cut the two Scene options to create this haunted house card (page 44).






This pop up card is equally simple and nearly as quick:




The inside design comes from the Artfully Sent cartridge pop-up and icon options (page 43).

The spider webs and cover base are made using the Artfully Sent cartridge.   The “BOO” is cut using the Artbooking cartridge.  The ghost and mummy images were stamped on White Daisy cardstock, then fussy cut and attached to the card front with dimensional foam adhesive.  The stamps are from the Frightfully Fun (B1453) stamp set.

For more information, contact me at closetomyheartkw@gmail.com or check out my website at kwregion.ctmh.com.

Artfully Sent cartridge - Z3017
Frightfully Fun stamp set - B1453


Tuesday, September 16, 2014

New Cricut cartridge Artfully Sent is finally here!!!!!!

I have been so excited since it was announced that Close to my Heart would be releasing a new Cricut cartridge.  (After all, their Cricut connection was the whole reason I became a consultant in the first place!)

Artfully Sent is finally available to order.

 


Check out the huge variety of images and card making options.  From 3D cards to pockets cards, this cartridge provides so many paper crafting opportunities.  I can't wait to start creating with mine.

http://www.closetomyheart.com/ctmh/products/cricut-collections.aspx



To order yours, visit my website kwregion.ctmh.com

Friday, September 12, 2014

Brae-er Team Blog Hop: Back to 'school' we go!

Time for another Brae-er Team Blog Hop: Back to 'school' we go!

This hop will have a bit of a different twist on it- consultants have created artwork, card, scrapbook pages using current product with a tutorial aspect. It might be done in a video, by picture tutorial or in another format. So let's go back to school...

If you have come from Carol-Anne Greiner's blog then you are on the right track.



******

Welcome to my first blog hop entry!  I have thoroughly loved looking at other Close to my Heart blog hops and thought I'd give it a try.

Recently I made a graduation memory book for my niece Kira.  I had a blast creating it and she thoroughly enjoyed the stroll down memory lane.  (You can use these tips for a Hip Pic Album on any theme!)

Book theme - Graduation from high school
Colours scheme - Kraft, White Daisy, Crystal Blue, Outdoor Denim, Honey and Smoothie (the light green is non CTMH paper)
Key materials - Hip Pics Album, inks and cardstock in the colours listed above; Cricut Artbooking, Artiste and Art Philosophy cartridges; Cricut machine; sponge daubers; adhesive; various CTMH stamps




The cover circle/star masking is made from the Artbooking cartridge.  The letters are Art Philosophy.  (The small graduate image is from a non CTMH cartridge.)


Inside Cover - Cut borders from Outdoor Denim cardstock at 1".  (All borders used in this book are cut at that size. You will need to trim the ends of most of them as they are longer than the book is wide; however, the height of the border is ideal for the Hip Pics Album size.)

Create a frame with the borders. Trim as needed.  Cover with a 4x6 photo of your choice.

Page 1 - Play around with the size of items on scraps of paper before using your "precious stash' of CTMH papers.

For this page, the flower is cut at 1 3/4" Real Dial Size from page 78 of the Artbooking cartridge. The "Sweet" Flag is cut at 3/4" Real Dial Size from page 49 (also the Artbooking cartridge.)

The border is cut at 1" from the Cricut Artiste cartridge.



Page 2 - The butterfly was cut at three different sizes from the Artiste cartridge.  The largest butterfly was cut from White Daisy cardstock, but I used the sponge dauber and the Honey ink to turn it yellow.

Insert 2a - Cut at 6" from the Artbooking cartridge.  To make the page more durable, I cut two layers: one from craft cardstock and one from White Daisy.  I glued them together to create a thicker, more durable page. The honey (yellow) pocket was also cut from the Artbooking cartridge.

The pocket provides a space to slide in some journaling or a place for the gift recipient to record memories.

Attach the page to the rings of the Hip Pics Album with ribbon or baker's twine.  I used the Outdoor Denim baker's twine (which is not longer available.)

TIP: You can use the inserts to add more photos (as I did on the rear of this one), to add journaling spots or to create dividers.

Other:
The swirly button die cut in Outdoor Denim was cut from the Artiste cartridge. The Outdoor Denim numbers at the bottom of the pocket are a 1" border from Artiste that has been trimmed to fit.

Stamp sets:  The lined page is from the Workshop on the Go Wanderful kit (G1088). 
(Retired hostess stamps: The washi strips are from a hostess stamp from the Fall/Winter 2013 Idea Book and "This makes me smile" is from Enjoy the Little Things a hostess stamp from the Spring/Summer 2014 Idea Book.)



Page 4 & 5- To create a more weather or aged look, use a distressing tool.  I used the Sanding Kit (Z1294) to make the ruler border look well used.  I over sanded the border on the page below, it removed the divider between the two ones in the number eleven, but I decided to leave it.  It went along with the well used look.

Stamps sets: The apple is from Teacher Appreciation (D1612) 

(The "grade" letters are from a  retired alpha stamp and the lantern and "Let your light...." are from Illuminate November 2013 Stamp of the Month.) 

Note: The ruler border, bookmark insert and star were all created using CTMH Cricut cartridges.
  


Page 6 - Also used stamp for the pencil.  Cover the eraser part of the pencil with masking tape when inking the stamp.  Remove the masking tape and stamp the yellow part of the pencil on White Daisy cardstock.  Clean the stamp.  Then reverse the process.  Cover the pencil part with tape and ink the eraser image.  Remove the tape. Carefully line up the stamp and press.  Voila!  A Honey coloured pencil with a Smoothie eraser.

Stamp sets: The pencil is from Teacher Appreciation (D1612)

Insert 6a - This page is cut at 6" Real Dial Size from the Artbooking cartridge. The frame and phrase are both also cut from Artbooking. 

To give the arrow a colour other than the background Kraft paper colour, I glued a small scrap of Honey paper behind it. 

TIP: Be careful when inking items that you don't press clean paper into something ink stained.  This is what happened to my insert page.  There was a smudge of Outdoor Denim ink on the page.  So, instead of allowing this to ruin the whole page or make me start over from scratch, I went with it and added more daubs of ink to the page. 


 Page 8 & 9 - The Crystal Blue frame is cut from Artbooking. The centers of the flowers are made from Black and Grey Epoxy Bubbles.

Stamp Sets: The "love this" is from #30yearsofhappy, "Sweet moments" is from the current/September 2014 Stamp of the Month Family is Forever (S1409).

(The flowers are from a retired Hostess stamp.)



Page 10 & 11 - The Kraft frame is cut from the Artbooking cartridge.  I reused the White Daisy arrow by daubing Smoothie ink on it and using it below the frame. 

Stamp Sets: The "Like" and camera are from #30yearsofhappy


Page 12 - The banner shape, circle mask, "10 THINGS" and "I like" are cut from the Artbooking cartridge. 

Stamp Sets: "Oh so happy" from Happy Hexagons (C1596) - this is a hostess exclusive stamp from the current Annual Idea Book.  The 1-10 journaling item is from Hello Summer (C1595).
  
Insert 12 a - The insert is cut at 6" Real Dial Size from the Artbooking cartridge.  The small White Daisy folder is also cut from Artbooking at 3". 

Tip:  The mini folder is a great place for the gift recipient to do some secret/hidden journaling.



Page 14 & 15 - The colouring behind the border is created using the masking tape technique. The flowers are cut from White Daisy cardstock and inked using the Daubers.

Stamp Sets: "Remember This Moment" from This Moment (S1501) January 2015 Stamp of the Month, "Hello" from Happy Hexagons (C1596) - this is a hostess exclusive stamp from the current Annual Idea Book. 





Page 16 & Inside Rear Cover -  The blue and yellow coloured lines below the number border are created using the masking tape technique.

Stamp Sets:  "Be Amazing" from This Moment (S1501) January 2015 Stamp of the Month



CTMH Materials Used:
- Hip Pics Album (Z1956)
- Sanding Kit (Z1294)
- Cricut Artbooking cartridge (Z1906)
- Cricut Artiste (Z1790)
- Cricut Art Philosophy (Z1686)
- Ink: Smoothie (Z2196), Honey (Z2162), Outdoor Denim (Z2140) and Crystal Blue (Z2117)
- Cardstock: Kraft (Z1375), White Daisy (1385), Honey (X5668), Outdoor Denim (1275) and Crystal Blue(1292).  (The cardstock can also be bough in the combination packages.)
- Sponge Daubers (Z726)
- Black and Grey Epoxy Bubbles (Z1935)
- Stamp sets:
#30yearsofhappy (Free this month with $30 worth of CTMH stamps purchase)
September 2014 Stamp of the Month Family is Forever (S1409) (Only $5 with a $50 purchase this month!)
Happy Hexagons (C1596)
Hello Summer (C1595)
Teacher Appreciation (D1612) 
This Moment (S1501) January 2015 Stamp of the Month
Workshop on the Go Wanderful kit (G1088). 


Other Supplies:
- Cricut machine
- adhesive (flat and raised)
- masking tape
- Baker's Twine
- photos of your choice

Thanks for visiting my blog!    
Darcel

For more information: contact me at closetomyheartkw@gmail.com
or check out my website at kwregion.ctmh.com.


* * * * * *
I hope you have enjoyed your stop here. Be sure to visit your consultant's website for more information about the fantastic September promotions. 

Now on to Heather Dawson's blog to see her tips on random stamping. 

For a complete list of blogs on this hop, see Brae's Blog.

Enjoy the tour!

Thursday, September 11, 2014

#30daysofhappy - Christmas ornament or tag

Another quick and simple project using the #30yearsofhappy free stamp, Close to my Heart cardstock and inks and the Cricut Artiste cartridge.



Supplies required:
- Cricut Artiste cartridge (Z1790)
- Cricut machine
- CTMH cardstock in White Daisy (1385), Cranberry (1272) and Topiary (X5635)
- CTMH ink in Topiary (Z2155)
- adhesive

The #30yearsofhappy stamp is free with a purchase of $30 of CTMH stamps this month only!

For more information, contact me at closetomyheartkw@gmail.com or check out my website at kwregion.ctmh.com.



#30daysofhappy - Die cut card and stamping

For this quick and easy card, I used the Cricut Artiste cartridge (Z1790) to create the card base (from Cotton Candy cardstock). (X5760 or combo pack X5935)

The heart stamp with the word love and the butterflies come from the #30yearsofhappy stamp set which is free during the month of September (with a $30 purchase of Close to my Heart stamps).

I used the heart shape that was cut out in the middle of the card and inked it with Thistle ink and a sponge dauber.

The stamped heart image was stamped in Cotton Candy ink (Z2193) and then fussy cut.  It is attached with dimensional adhesive to give it height.

The butterflies are stamped in Canary (Z2643) and Thistle (Z2640) ink.

The card is embellished with Silver Shimmer Trim. (Z1799)


For more information, or to order any of these products, check out: kwregion.ctmh.com or contact me at closetomyhearkw@gmail.com



#30daysofhappy - Mustache card and envelope

On the weekend I made 10 projects, trying my best to make 30 projects for 30 days of happy.  I don't think I'm going to manage it; however, it's been fun all the same.

This time I experimented with the Cricut Artiste cartridge and the #30yearsofhappy stamp. The stamp is free this month with a purchase of $30 of Close to my Heart stamps.


I used the “Whoa” mini stamp for the background.  The mustache shape was cut from the Artiste cartridge.  The stamp on the large mustache is from a previous promotion and is no longer available.




To find out more about #30yearsofhappy, check out my online site at: kwregion.ctmh.com





Friday, September 5, 2014

#30yearsofhappy - 30 Days of projects - Days 1-4

September is National Stamping Month and to celebrate Close to my Heart has the great stamp set #30yearsofhappy free with any qualifiying purchase.

These adorable mini stamps are great for any project.  In these first five examples, I have used the stamps to accent pages in a Hip Pics Album that I made for my niece's graduation.

This cute camera image can be used for so many projects from scrapbooking to cards.

In keeping with the social network phase, this Like stamp is reminiscent of the like function on Facebook.

Love this - what a great stamp to help capture many memorable moments.

Stay tuned for more projects using this great stamp set!


For more information, or to order the stamp, check out my website:  http://kwregion.ctmh.com.