GD for The 12 Kits of Occasions

So around the time my full-time job was cancelled, I got an email from my loyal blogging friend, Kim Heggins, asking me if I'd like to join The 12 Kits of Occasions team as one of their guest-designers for November.  Before the change in job status, I would have regretfully declined, as crafting has had to slip in the list of priorities in the past year. However, with only part-time work starting this month, the idea of creating with a kit of delivered goodies sounded delightful! 

In case you don't know about this fun blog, it has 12 permanent members, who take turns being hostess. Each month, the Hostess picks a theme and makes up identical kits of supplies to send to her team-mates, who, in turn, create 4-5 cards to post at the end of the month. It is amazing to see the variety and creativity the arises from the same materials.

Kim's kit arrived in early November and I had such fun with the supplies! Lots of polka-dot paper, Thanksgiving and Christmas themed sentiments and adorable critter images to colour.
I made five cards, and just kept going.
Here's a pic of all that was left of the original kit!

First, fun with Copics:

 

Inside the Beary Happy card...

Then a stab at watercolouring:

 Inside the ice floe card... (see the cool shades?)

Then, simple graphic paper-piecing (a favorite pattern from my quilting days).

 Then some Christmas cards with those big bold polka dots and shimmery washi tape:

And my favorite, a gate-fold card with those scampering mice:

Many thanks to Kim and the 12 Kits of Occasions team for including me this month. I had a blast playing along!

Check out the rest of the team's creations HERE:

Hugs,

Caroline

Feeling Thankful...

Hello crafty friends :)

Thanksgiving weekend is coming up, here in Canada, and I was able to celebrate the joy of creating with the Recreation Therapy department again, at the rehabilitation centre where I work.

We held a "thankful" card workshop on Tuesday evening.

I usually work up three demo cards, and pre-cut all the materials, so the participants can stamp, ink and glue to their hearts' content. I love it when they take my ideas and run, making a creation all their own. 

So here are the samples, which will be sent out to my family tomorrow! Hopefully Canada Post cooperates...

One great big Hero Arts maple leaf stamp, inked with Distress inks and spritzed, then stamped onto small white card-stock squares. No two alike!

Started with a piece of white watercolor paper, smooshed on distress inks in three colours, then stamped the leaf images in black. The leaves are from Newton's Nook Designs. The sentiment stamp is Close to My Heart.

 

Falling leaves punched from one more distress inked panel. The sentiment is the same Newton's Nook Design. The side-stitched rectangles are from Lil Inker Designs.

To all my Canadian pals, enjoy the long weekend. To my American friends, see you in November!

Make some cards for the Caring Hearts Card Drive!

Happy crafting,       

Caroline

P.S. A few more examples, but BAD photos...

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

Hello crafty friends!

Here are a couple of cards, in celebration of Canadian Thanksgiving, which occurs this weekend.

Hubby and I are enjoyed four precious days in Prince Edward Island, closing up the cottage. We had hoped to get here earlier but life this fall has been BUSY. So we haven’t walked on the beach yet, but we both got sunburned faces, sitting on the deck today, bundled in blankets, reading and listening to the wind and waves. Tomorrow I’ll be cooking a gigantic ham, which we’ll enjoy with a big group of McDougall cousins on Sunday (25 people, so we’re having turkey AND ham).

As to the cards, one is a design I CASEd from A Freshly Made Sketches entry by Karen. I loved the little water-coloured panel. 

 I wet my piece of watercolour paper by spritzing it with water, then passed a Mini Distress inkpad over top (Tumbled Glass). The wet paper helped spread the colour, so no lines/edges. I waited for that to dry, then stamped some small leaf images, applying more than one colour of Distress Ink to the stamp. The “thanks” sentiment is a newer die from Lil’ Inker. I cut it three times from coloured card stock, layered and glued, and mounted the reinforced dies above the watercolour panel.

The second card was made with left-overs from a card workshop LAST Thanksgiving. I looked through my digital files, trying to find who inspired this one, to no avail. So sorry, designer! I would give credit if I could remember who you are…

Anyway, I had the card bases and Kraft squares already cut. I stamped the leaves (one of the colours is a new CTMH hue called “Thistle”) curled them a bit with my fingers, then mounted them “falling” across the card. I flicked some Perfect Pearls pigment (gold and copper, mixed with water) across the card in the opposite direction to the falling leaves, for some gentle distressing. Sequins, simple sentiment and voilà!

So, Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian friends and family! Enjoy your long weekend with those you love. Hope you fit a little crafty time in there, too!

Blessings,

Caroline

Little Red Wagon full of Thanksgiving Greetings

Good Morning, crafty friends.

In honour of the upcoming Thanksgiving celebration, this next weekend, in Canada, the Little Red Wagon challenge is to create a Thanksgiving card.

This is one I designed for a Thanksgiving card workshop I run at the Rehabilitation Centre.

It features the fun poster-style stamp which was the stamp-of-the-month for CTMH in September. I was inspired by a couple of different versions by blogging friends of mine: Tracey, who used the blackboard technique, and Shirley, who used multiple colours on the same image.

There were a few left over from the workshop, which went into the mail yesterday to family and friends. Here's a closer look :

I heat-embossed the image with white, then rubbed pigment ink over selected words. The two die cut leaves are courtesy of Paper Smooches and Paper Wishes. The dyed button (in "Pumpkin!")is from The Stamps of Life. 

A further die cut adorns the inside:

How will you spend your weekend? Still lots of time for a walk in the woods, a visit to the Farmer's market or pumpkin patch... oh, and a turkey dinner, if you're in Canada.

Off to link up to Little Red Wagon #206.

You have until next Monday to play along!

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Supplies:

CTMH cardstock in Goldrush, Autumn Terracotta, Buttercup, Olive and Black

Pigment inks in Goldrush, Autumn Terracotta and Topiary

VersaMark ink and white detail embossing powder

Other: twine from Michael's; parchment from Michael's