It's beginning to look a lot like...

Hello crafty peeps!
It's been a long while since I shared anything, although I have done some scrap-booking, card-making and sewing in the past few months, along with a lot of browsing of internet crafting blogs... Just no time to photograph and write about my own creations.
But all that is about to change, because the advent of fall means that a cause near and dear to my heart is about to begin again.

The Caring Hearts Card Drive is about to start its seventh year :) 

This "sharing of kindness" was begun by Vera Wirianta Yates in Texas. She began sending hand-made Christmas cards to nursing home residents, to brighten their holiday season. Many cards (22,000 in 2015), volunteers and years later, the movement has spread from the US to Canada, Australia, and now through the UK, to Europe.
The drive begins officially October 1st (also World Card-Making Day!) and runs through November 25th.  I will be sharing sneak peeks of cards I've been working on leading up to the launch next weekend. I will also share the complete list of details on how to participate. You are welcome to make cards, as well as to help in their distribution.

I like to start the Christmas card-making season by clearing up my desk and using up supplies (yup, not allowed to buy anything new until I've made a couple dozen cards with the goodies on hand).
This year I began with a partly-used kit from 2010 by Paper Wishes.  One of their specialty items is a line of stickers called Dazzles. You might think, they don't look like TOO much on the sticker sheet, but once you begin backing them with patterned paper, colouring them in with Copics or Distress inks, altering them with embossing powder or alcohol inks, they look AWESOME! I feel every holiday card needs a little sparkle, and the foiling on Dazzles does just that.
Here's a couple of examples from that kit:

See what I mean by creating a scene, colouring in the Dazzles, and adding some extra glitz with sequins, Liquid Pearls and Stickles?

 The snowflake holographic paper from Paper Wishes sets off those snow-peeps perfectly. And check out the (craft-foam) "snow," for some tactile fun.

Off to do some Sunday stuff; stayed tuned for more on the Caring Hearts Card Drive.

Caroline

Caring Hearts (and Pineapples) Post #4

G'day crafty friends, and Happy November!

It's a new month and a new challenge on the Paper Smooches blog.

The requirement for this challenge is to use gold. This weekend I was working on more card-kit preparation, for the Caring Hearts Card Drive. 

 My work-shoppers will be making this lovely card:

How delicious is that red poinsettia? It is a Paper Smooches die, cut from red suede paper, from Paper Wishes. The Christmas words embossing folder is another Paper Wishes product. I used pearlescent vellum for the embossed layer, and set it over gold-coloured card stock. The centre of the poinsettia is embellished with gold Liquid Pearls, which were also scattered over the card-front. Lastly, I added a loose bow of gold embroidery thread.

I hope you are making cards for the Drive, too! Check out all the details, using the link above, or look through my earlier Caring Hearts posts.

Have a creative week,

Caroline

And so the Magic Begins.... Caring Hearts Post #2

 

Hello my crafty friends!

Well, the postal delivery person (aka the mailman!) dropped off the first batch of cards for the Caring Hearts Card Drive today. Sooo exciting to see the beautiful handiwork of kind and talented people! I love that the cards come from as far away as Quebec and Alberta.

 Receiving them has given me the impetus to get my own card-making underway. I spent last night drafting and cutting to get some samples and kits ready to go. I hope to host a few workshop sessions in my home over the next few weeks, inviting friends to join in the fun.

Here's the first card.

I'm trying to use up existing supplies and tools as much as possible, and I'm starting with my stamps and dies from Lil' Inker Designs.  This is a pretty direct CASE from one of the samples on their website. But with the addition of a strip of black suede paper from Paper Wishes (wonderful rich texture) and a line of silver using...a Sharpie! Who knew something so ordinary could add such a nice accent? The diagonal lines were made using a REALLY OLD Texturz Plate from Sizzix. Remember those? You had to layer the black plates, rubber mat, etc, etc... So glad the world now includes embossing folders, right?

Just in case you'd like to support the Caring Hearts, here are the details on participating.

 

• The card drive will continue until November 28, 2014. We need to receive your cards by November 28, 2014.
•  Please make cards for Christmas or Holiday Wishes. Anyone can send a card, your children, church group, scout troops, etc.
• All cards need to have a seasonal message inside. This can be stamped or hand written.  
• All cards must also be signed by the maker, including your name and  and where you are from. 
• Please include an envelope for each card and please don't seal the envelope.
• Please stick to standard-sized cards:  A2 or 4-1/4" x 5-1/2"
• And please don't use any pins (for safety reasona). Glitter and bling are most welcome!
• This is totally optional, but, if you'd like to include $1 or $2 to help with shipping, it'll be much appreciated. We cover the shipping costs ourselves, with no sponsorship, so any donation toward shipping would help tremendously.
• You can mail the cards to:

          Vera Yates, 109 N. Post Oak Lane Ste. 430, Houston, TX 77024                              
          Card Drive, c/o Tina Schrof , P.O. Box 75,  Springboro, Ohio 45066 
             Linda Langes, c/o Gilston State School, 588 Worongary Road, GILSTON QLD 4211
             Piney-fine, Attn: Anita, P.O. Box 30,  Piney, MBR0A 1 K0, Canada

          Caroline Bredeson, 7 Brown Street, Ottawa, ON K1S 1L9, Canada 

So, get crafting, my friends!
Caroline

We go together like...

Good morning, crafty friends!

Bit of a hiatus in creating there for a while... I had a busy time at work: running a stuttering intensive clinic (rewarding but exhausting) and coordinating a fund-raising team for the Ottawa Race Weekend, plus training and running a 10km...not a lot of energy left-over.

However, I did carve out some time to play with Create A Smile's first paper-crafting kit, "Sending Sunshine."  I had my heart set on it, as soon as I saw the sneak peek of the stamp set: lobsters and starfish and jellies, oh my!  The perfect accents for any scrap-booking related to our time in our cottage on Canada's east coast paradise, Prince Edward Island. I set my alarm for 2:00 a.m. on the day of the release, to make sure I got a copy...

So this card was made to celebrate my wedding anniversary. 28 years to the same great guy!

I used the bubble stencil included in the stamp set to create a gradient of ocean colour with Distress Inks. Then splotched some water drops over that. Once it dried, I used another Create A Smile stencil, Waves, to apply a layer of translucent embossing paste, to give it a more watery look along with great touchable texture. You can see the effect better in the first photo.

The sentiment comes from a Lil'Inker Designs set, Perfect Pairs. The original images are of peanut butter and jellly, but I added the words "Jelly & Jelly" on the inside, "sticking together for 28 years and counting..."  It was a big hit with the DH.

The jelly fish (which are actually kind of purplish on PEI) were coloured with Copics then coated with Liquid Glass to give them a glossy finish. The coloured enamel drops from the Sending Sunshine kit were the perfect accent.

I am linking this card up with Pretty Pink Posh's Watercolor Blog Hop:

And Kathy Racoosin's 30-Day Coloring Challenge:

I seriously DOUBT I'll be able to keep up with Kathy, but even a little colouring is therapeutic.

Speaking of which, my father-in-law, who has dementia, is colouring up a storm with my Inktense watercolor pencils. I ordered some adult colouring books from www.DoverPublications.com. He particularly loved the Frank Lloyd Wright book, full of architectural masterpieces.
I ordered one for myself from Paper Wishes: Steampunk for Colorists. The perfect little project to take on holiday...


Happy Sunday!
Caroline

Seize the Birthday {and make a wish!}

Hey crafty peeps. Long time, no blog!

Still adjusting to the empty nest, learning to love my DH all over again, and CLEARING OUT THE MESS left behind by those fledglings...

But! September is a birthday heavy-month for our family, so here's the first of several BD cards.

I'm sending this one in to:

Seize the Birthday's "anything goes" . The actual challenge this week is to use black & white--may try one of those later.

Anyway, today's card uses the awesome technique of water-coloring with embossing folders.

Ink up the embossing folder, spritz with pearlized water, then place your watercolor paper or card-stock inside the folder, and press.  I used Distress ink minis for this one, and Paper Wishes' wonderful dandelion embossing folder.

Inked up the edges with some sponged Tumbled Glass and Crushed Olive ink.

The sentiment is a new die set from the Stamps of Life.  The set includes the words as well as a shadow die.  I used vellum for the shadow, to make the sentiment distinct from the background, but without hiding all that watercolor goodness.

Here's a close-up:

I created perfectly matching letters by inking white card-stock with the Crushed Olive ink.

Final look:

Inside of the card says "make a wish."

Happy weekend!

Caroline

Supplies:

Watercolor paper & vellum--Michael's

Card-stock in Twilight and White Daisy, CTMH

Distress inks in Spiced Marmalade, Wild Honey, Crushed Olive, Forest Moss and Tumbled Glass.

Ranger Perfect Pearls powder; mister
foam tape 
Corner-rounder

Liquid Glass

Wink of Stella glitter pen

TIME...to celebrate Fathers

This is the Father's Day card I made for my kids to give their dad. (Boys, you know they need a little nudge...).

It is a total CASE from one designed by Ann Barba, from the Paper Wishes website. I just changed up the sentiment, to fit the occasion, for the "Best Dad of all Time."

 It was lots of fun to colour in the clocks and gears with copper and gold Smooch inks. The black embossed design actually resists colour, so it was easy to stay within  the lines.  The beautiful silver linen paper just makes the card. Some copper jewel Dazzles also fit the theme.

Here's the inside:

 I used a stamp from Verve, inking the big "DAD" in gold Delicata and stamping the definition over top. The greeting and gears are more pieces from the "Color Me" pack.

Hope your weekend includes some grilling and stamping!

Happy Crafting, 

Caroline

Missing you... for Newton's Nook Inky Paws Challenge #10

Playing along with Newton's Nook Inky Paws challenge!

This cute little guy is Winston (which happens to be one of my son's nick-name--its a long story!). He is drawn to be able to hold several little stamps that come in this set:

I made a "missing you" card and used the "grin and BEAR it" sentiment for the inside.

Using DIstress inks, I stamped some leaf images using onto a large wood veneer leaf shape to make it look like a tree. Then I layered the corresponding vein on top, having coloured that, too, to create a tree trunk.

Winston is stamped onto brown suede paper, and shaded with Copic markers. He's really soft to the touch!

He's holding onto an S-O-S/I-love-you balloon, floating above the forest. With a craft knife, I cut slits around his paw, and used the baker's twine that Jennifer Jackson sent with the stamp set, to anchor the balloon.

This challenge runs for another week--break out your Newton's Nook stamps and give it a try!

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Supplies:

Winston's birthday stamp set (Newton's Nook)

Memento Rich Cocoa Ink

Copic Markers

Distress Markers

Paper SMooches Border Dies 1 (contour)

My Favorite Things grass die

Avery Elle's Alpha Dies

Paper Wishes: balloon die & suede paper

My Mind's Eye 6x6 paper pack

Card-stock (CTMH)

Wood veneer shapes (Close to My Heart-retired)

Missing--sentiment stamp (CTMH-retired)

Signo-Uniball white pen

Shake your...Steam Punk!

 

Ready for a fabulous blog-hop?

There's a whole lot of shakin' going on...

Paulina is hosting a shaker-card link-up event over on Pretty Pink Posh.

There's a video tutorial, lots of inspiration and prizes!

The guidelines are listed on the Pretty Pink Posh site. You have until midnight, Monday April 28th, to create your shaker and link it up.

My youngest son's birthday is coming up and he is studying mechanical engineering with the Royal Military College (Canada's version of West-Point). 

I combined sequins and steam-punk for his card. An obvious combination!???

First the card design, from Freshly Made Sketches:

Then paper and stickers from Paper Wishes:

 Along with assorted sequins, brads, copper ink and a silver pen.

Here's the inside:

 I'll add the birthday greeting, too. He turns 19 this year, which is a big deal in Ontario.

Go check out the sequin shaker blog hop! There are some amazing cards over there already.

Happy crafting (and shaking!),

Caroline

Supplies:

Steam Punk paper pack and beaten silver paper (Paper Wishes); black card-stock (Wausau paper); acetate sheets (Archivers).

Steam-punk Dazzles stickers and Papier Tole (Paper Wishes) .

Ink: Archival black (CTMH); copper Pearlescent ink (Tsuneiko); silver gel pen, Signo-Uniball.

Dies: Paper Smooches border die (curve); Lil'Inker stitched squares dies.

Embossing folder: cogs and gears (Provocraft).

Sequins: CTMH, Verve Stamps, Neat & Tangled Stamps, Studio Calico. Copper brads: CTMH.

Lecker! Something delicious for KIS! #36

It's been a while since I played with Keep It Simple!

The current challenge is "Lecker!" which translates to "delicious."

My sister, who lives in Amsterdam, uses that word, too, and it DOES sound delicious when spoken. There are already cards submitted with fruit, cake, coffee and so on, so I thought I'd go the CHOCOLATE route.

This card features a Stamp of the Month from Close to my Heart. I heat-embossed the brownie with Cocoa powder (yum!), and traced the frosting with a white gel pen.  The lacy border is a Paper Wishes die and the ribbon was a Verve purchase. Everything is mounted on a Chocolate card base with some pink enamel dots thrown in for good measure.

Are you thinking of your favorite treat?

Why not head over to the Keep It Simple blog and link up your creation. The challenge runs through Wednesday, April 3rd.

Happy crafting,

(AND cooking and munching!)

Caroline

Supplies:

Cardstock in Chocolate, Cocoa and White Daisy

Ink: Versamark + Cocoa embossing powder and White Detail embossing powder

Stamp sets: both retired Close to My Heart; A Chocolate Affair & Mad About You

Distress Markers and Copics; Wink of Stella

Ribbon: Verve Stamps

Dies: Paper Wishes "2 Lacy Borders;"Spellbinders' circles and scalloped circles

Enamel dots: Flamingo, CTMH

Seize the Birthday Card

 "Anything goes" this week at Seize the Birthday.

I just received this big beautiful die from the monthly die-club at Paper Wishes.

Isn't it awesome?  I cut it out using white card stock, and backed the open areas with dotted paper. 

The candles are dies included with the set. The vellum banner is a Simon Says Stamp item, heat-embossed with a Stamps of life sentiment stamp. Love to mix the ingredients!

Then I cut out just the base from silver paper, and layered it on top. Adding a bow reminded me of my mother-in-law's cake stand, where you could lace a coordinating coloured ribbon to match the cake. She was a classy lady.

Feels good to build up the stash of birthday cards. Although this one will be sent off this week.
There's still another week to play with the Seize the Birthday challenge. I dare you!
 

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Just B-coz...

Hello, is it spring yet?

I felt like hibernating this morning when I awoke to a fresh coat of the white stuff. Enough already!

You might think thoughts of spring were the inspiration for this card, but it was actually a couple of challenges:

The Friday Mashup, which was to use triangles and/or hexagons  (I missed the deadline, BTW, so I'll have to try harder next week),  and

I don't have any hexagon stencils or embossing folders, so I created some using my scoring board:

flipped it over when finished and sanded to reveal the pattern.

The honeycomb hexies were made using a punch, some patterned paper and the CTMH stamp set Doodle Signs,  pictured above. Some were popped up for added dimension.

The sweet little bumble bee is from Paper Smooches' Green Thumb. I thought he looked good in orange! Keyboard alpha stamps also from CTMH.
Turns out its NOT too late for the Happy for Hexagons challenge over at Moxie Fab World. 
It runs through March 7th, so get cracking!

 Thanks for the head's up, Lyndal!

That's all for today,

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Supplies:

Cardstock: Sunset, Sky, Sweet Leaf, White Daisy, CTMH; DP Rosemary & Thyme, Paper Wishes

Inks: Sunset, Sweet leaf , CTMH; Memento Tuxedo Black

Stamps: Doodle Signs, Keyboard alphabet, CTMH; Green Thumb, Paper Smooches

Scoring Board: Martha Stewart

Hexagon punch: Creative Memories

Copic Markers

Wink of Stella glitter pen

Ribbon: Verve Stamps

Thinking of you...in several different ways

More fun doing my "homework" for Kim Kesti's Create & Share Card-making class, over at Big Picture Classes. The lesson this week featured "thinking of you" cards and some ways to use that ever-growing washi tape collection.

Using up the stash of retired Close to My Heart papers and a Paper Smooches butterfly die. If I did this one over, I'd make sure to center the dots and daisies on the DP panels.

Warm washi! 

Die-cutting shapes from washi-covered card stock works so well!

This card features the stitched rectangle mat from Lil'Inker Designs (extended with some careful manipulation of the Big Shot) and a sentiment from Paper Smooches' First Aid Kit stamp set. Heart dies are from Lawn Fawn. Embossing folder from Sizzix. Tilted banner die from Simon Says Stamp.

 BTW, the colours in this one are perfect for this week's Color Throwdown challenge!
 

Warm hugs.

Just-for-fun pick-me-up card using another Paper Smooches stamp set, Think Fast. This time, I covered the edge of my focal panel with washi tape for an easy border.

Last (and least in appeal for me!), my attempt at an artful, collage-y card. I just don't have a feel for this style. The trendy feather stickers and sentiment are Paper Wishes Dazzles, as is the paper doily. Sequins are from Neat and Tangled. Ribbon from the stash.

Happy weekend, everyone! Hope you get outside to enjoy some winter activities (skating for me).

Caroline