Freshly Made Sketches & National Tartan Day...

Good morning, crafty friends.

This post is a little late for the celebration, but last Thursday, April 6th, was National Tartan Day in Canada. It's not an official holiday, just an observance, and has been in effect since 2010. It commemorates the signing of a document of independence in Scotland in 1320. People of Scottish descent can celebrate and wear their family tartan!

I've been playing around with plaid lately, with water colour paint and with alcohol markers. This is a paper version of the clan Macdonald tartan. It's much more beautiful in real life!

 The inspiration this week over at Freshly Made Sketches was all about squares.

Plaids and tartans are definitely all about right angles!  I decided to feature a piece of water-coloured plaid, with some of the stripes done with  opalescent gold paint.

 All squares were cut with Lil'Inker Designs' Stitched Mats square dies, then attached to a 5" square card-base. Along with the water-colour panel, I cut squares from Close to My Hearts' fundamentals collection. These papers have white designs on one side, with embossing on the other. The sentiment is from Catherine Pooler Designs' "Hello World" stamp set. Pretty easy card to put together!

Make sure to check out the amazing submissions over at Freshly Made Sketches.

Fare ye weel!

Caroline

You're GRATE!

Isn't this GRATE?!

I'm a little late in posting this to Newton's Nook Designs' latest Inky Paws challenge:

Jennifer posted a "grate" tutorial this week on how to emboss metal.  I thought I'd give it a try using just aluminum foil.

I adhered some tin-foil to a piece of card-stock and de-bossed that with a large-circle pattern (so that the circles are recessed).  

 Then I coloured the cute little grater from the "Just Say Cheese" stamp set, mounted it on a pinked circle and added it all to a top-fold card. Which I figured also looked a bit like a grater...

Enjoy your weekend, cheesy or otherwise!

Caroline

Supplies:

Newton's Nook Designs "Just Say Cheese" stamp set

Sizzix pinked circles dies

Spellbinder's nested circle dies

Provocraft embossing folder

Copic Markers

Card-stock in Crême Brulé, Hollyhock and White Daisy (CTMH) 

Memento ink in Tuxedo Black

Love you always...

We celebrated our wedding anniversary yesterday.  Quite a few years since the big day!

We enjoyed a nice dinner out, and I made DH a cute card.

 

I had purchased Lil' Inker's It's Today, Right? stamp set awhile ago. I'd used some of the sentiments for wedding cards, but hadn't used the cute lil' stick figures yet. This week's Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge is to use Lil' Inker products, so I paired the stamp set with some goodies from Simon Says Stamp's June 2014 monthly card kit.

Papers are from My Mind's Eye "Mildred" 6x6 pad; enamel dots also MME. I used some thin strips cut from the edge of a Paper Wishes Dazzles gold glitter sticker sheet to define the strips of patterned paper.

The love word is from Close to My Heart's April stamp-of-the-month.

The hearts & arrows washi tape is Lawn Fawn, also from the kit, as are the Kelly Purkey letter stickers.

I coloured the people with Copic markers. Plus a little Stickles for the gem on the ring!  

View showing the circular window.

Make sure to check out the Wednesday challenge at Simon Says Stamp!

Happy crafting, and happy weekend!

Caroline

 

One of a Kind...Dynamic Duos #100

Grab your paint-brushes, crafty friends! And your tissues.

It's Triple-Threat week at the Dynamic Duos--THREE colours to play with.

BUT

You may also have noticed the auspicious number of this challenge: #100.

Lesley Croghan and Anne-Marie Hile have decided to close the challenge blog, and this will be our last post :(

Anticipating that sad event may be why I had a little trouble getting geared up for my project this week... I didn't have any cardstock or paper close to Pool Party/aqua in my stash, so I had to improvise. I've signed up for the next Online Card Class: Watercolour for Card Makers. The pre-class homework includes getting in some practice dabbling with different media. So I tried some watered-down dye-ink, colouring in a stamped and heat-embossed image.

 and came up with this card.

Wasn't totally satisfied, so I tried again, this time CASEing a design by Laurie Schmidlin.

 I stamped the dress-form three times, in Archival ink, then swabbed some diluted dye ink over top, in the three challenge colours.

Laurie had given each of her dresses a cute accessory. I decided to go all out with just one of them, adding a gathered tulle skirt, resin flower and of course, PEARLS. That led naturally to the sentiment...

Please go leave some love for each of my fellow DT team-mates. They'll need the virtual hugs...

Anne Marie Hile

Annette Elliott

Angel Johns

Caroline Bredeson

Cindy Brumbaugh

Holly Endress

JoAnn Burnham

Julie Gearinger

Michelle Bala

Sarah Fleming 

Tenia Nelson

 AND we really hope all our Dynamic Duos fans will join us for our final challenge! I double-dog-dare you to link up your project!

Finally, a HUGE thank-you to Anne-Marie and Lesley for believing in me and my teamies. We've had an inspiring six months!  

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Supplies:

Tim Holtz water-colour paper

Cardstock in Black, Juniper, Slate, and White Daisy

Ink: Juniper, Honey, Slate, Archival Black (all CTMH); Versamark; silver embossing powder

Ribbon and bling from the stash (all items CTMH) 

Stamp sets: Taylor-made, Home (retired CTMH); sentiment set, The Stamps of Life

Dies: Lil'Inker stitched rectangles die; Spellbinders Labels #2.

Paint-brush and water

 

Colour My Heart Red and GOLD

Hello crafty friends!

The challenge this week at Color My Heart is to use

CRANBERRY

and 

??ONE OTHER COLOR??

of your choice.

Here's the result of my first thought:

PINK

It is Canadian Thanksgiving here this weekend, and I'll be making a couple of pies. 

This card features an older Sizzix pie die--I spritzed, inked and crinkled a piece of Kraft paper for the crust, before die-cutting it. I couldn't find any PP with apples or pumpkins on it, so I used this cheery dotted paper from CTMH's (retired) Cherry-O. 

Then I received a parcel in the mail from Paper Wishes, which contained some metallic gold paper and new gold embossing powder and saw this red-and-gold beauty by Brenda H. Inspiration!

I've been seeing many lovely cards using CTMH's Stamp-of-the-Month, Scandinavian Wishes. 

It looks beautiful in simple red-and-white, like traditional Redwork embroidery. See HERE and HERE for some examples.

Adding GOLD gave it a big WOW-factor.

I heat embossed the image in gold on white, with matting in red & gold. A few red Jewel Dazzle stickers added a little more shine.

Inside:  the beautiful border stamp!

Then I rotated the sketch and changed the order of the matted layers:

Inside of this one needed just a strip of that gold paper:

So, which version do you prefer?

I'm wishing I'd ordered more than one sheet of gold paper...

☹☹☹☹☹

Head on over to the Color My Heart blog to see the winner's from last week's Dare, and the DT projects with CRANBERRY + ?

Then put on your Emerald City glasses, pick a colour and show us your stuff! We love to see what you create.

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Supplies:

CTMH cardstock: White Daisy and Cranberry (and Cocoa & Kraft for the pie card)

Cricut: Art Philosophy cartridge for the ornament 

Inks: VersaMark and Cranberry (and Cocoa and Cashmere)

Embossing powders: White detail and Gold

Embossing folders: Provocraft/Cuttlebug

Fibres: White collection (CTMH-retired) and Cranberry baker's twine

Doily: Paper Wishes

Doubly Irresistible how-to...

I'm back from the awesome World Card-Making Day OWH blog hop with a quick lesson on how I created the focal image for my card, posted HERE.

All credit goes to the ever-inventive Jennifer McGuire. See her post, with video tutorial, HERE.

Briefly, you want to use a stamped image with an outline, such as the True ThankYou stamp I used:

• Start with a piece of white card-stock, and using VersaMark ink, heat-emboss the message with white, fine-detail powder. 
• Colour the letters or image as desired (I used alcohol markers), filling in the outline. 
• Apply more VersaMark over your colouring, this time heat-embossing with CLEAR powder.
• Your image is now sealed & secure and you can begin sponging colour over the whole thing, to make the white really stand out. I used the Tim Holtz ink-blending tool, and my dye-based ink pad, starting in the middle of the image and working my way out.

Jennifer McGuire used a "Wink of Stella" pen to wet her image before adding the final layer of clear embossing powder. Not having that nice little item, I just used a Versamark pen.

I did add clear embossing to my little hearts, though, for some extra shine.

Have fun experimenting with this technique!

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Celebrating...

First up, the first birthday of Fresh Squeezed Stamps!

Ryann and Shannon are challenging their fans to create a NEW birthday card, and link it to their blog, for the chance to win a Sa-weet new stamp set.

As October 4th is my sister's birthday, and as my life has been pretty chaotic lately (moving kids, moving house, packing then unpacking my crafting supplies...) I haven't had the chance to make a card yet, let alone send it to the Netherlands. So, here ya go, Morag, Happy Birthday! You'll see it here, first!

I used the fabulous "On Trend 2013" stamp set, which I was lucky enough to win earlier this year.

I masked off a heart/harvest moon with Eclipse paper, and sponged on a sunset. The sequins in the set made some dandy stars. The water lines were done with Versamark pen. I LOVE that skyline with the subtle little heart...

Not to waste all that ink, I used the mask for the greeting on the inside of the card:

Off to link up to Fresh Squeezed Stamps!

If you'd like to join the Birthday Bash, you have until 6:00 pm Friday to create a birthday card to share.

*****

Come back tomorrow, October 5th for another milestone:

I'm celebrating the second anniversary of my blog by participating in Operation Write Home's World Card Making Blog Hop. It's going to be STUPENDOUS! And you just might win a little something-something if you leave a nice comment...

Happy Crafting,

Caroline

Supplies Used:

CTMH inks in Sorbet, Pear, Twilight, Outdoor Denim and Black

Versamark Inkpad and pen

Clear embossing powder

Tim Holtz sponging tool

Eclipse printable sheets

Sizzix heart die

Fresh Squeezed Stamps' "On Trend 2013" stamp set

Atlantic Hearts warms things up...Sketch #23

Good Morning--it's October!

We are enjoying a couple of beautiful weeks of Indian summer, here in the Nation's capital.

However, this week's sketch at Atlantic Hearts Sketch challenge, made me think of bundling up!

Maybe it was the poinsettia in the middle...

Anyway, I went with the wintry theme, creating a snowy background with the Swiss dots embossing folder, sanding the raised dots, then painting the bottom of the panel with white pigment ink, for a snow-drift effect.

I chose to interpret the fish-tail banner as a scarf, using the new Ruby Chevron ribbon from CTMH.

 The sentiment comes from Very Merry Christmas, a retired CTMH set. I stamped it on patterned paper, matted with Ruby, then tucked it into a Lacy Rectangle Frame from Paper Wishes.

The wonderful grey felt rose comes from the Frosted Assortment-CTMH. It is mounted on a die-cut snow-flake from My Favorite Things.

*****

Off you go to the Atlantic Hearts blog, where you can see more inspiration using this super sketch, from the design team. You have until Sunday night to create something of your own to share with us. 

Hope you play along!

Happy crafting,

Caroline

CTMH Supplies Used:

White Daisy, Slate, Ruby and Desert Sand card stock

Frosted patterned paper

Ruby Chevron ribbon

Very Merry Christmas stamp set: S1210

Desert Sand dye ink; White Daisy pigment ink

Frosted Assortment (rolled felt flower)

Other Supplies:

Cuttlebug embossing folder

Paper Wishes Lacy Rectangle Frames dies

My Favorite Things snowflake Die-namic

Color My Heart 50 Shades of....Green!

Hello Crafty Friends!

Gotcha with that catchy title, eh?

Truly, it is a reference to this week's color dare at Color My Heart:

Sweet Leaf and Olive

are two shades of yellow-green.

We just moved house and I have been without crafting supplies and internet (at home, anyway) for nine days now (worse than solitary confinement!). Spent the last two days unpacking my many boxes of crafty stuff. And where do you think the stamps were? In the LAST box, of course.

So, a brief little card, to make the posting deadline, using a punny stamp set, some alcohol markers and an embossing folder:

Also not sure where my light-box ended up, but I'm sure it will turn up in time for the next post. Sorry for the odd color & lighting.

*******

I know the other gals over at the Color My Heart blog have some very pretty cards to share. So pop on over, get a little lesson on monochromatic color schemes, then get inky and share your creation with us. We love to see what you come up with!

Remember, your project can be anything (card, scrapbook layout, home decor, etc) as long as it features the specified colors (plus neutrals); Close to My Heart colors are not necessary, but you should try to match the challenge colors. Link closes next Thursday at noon.

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Supplies Used:

Olive and White Daisy card stock (CTMH)

Alcohol markers in Sweet Leaf and Olive (CTMH)

Under the Sea stamp set:  C1500 (CTMH)

Copic Markers BG10, B00

Memento Tuxedo Black inkpad

Sizzix embossing folder (swirls)

Lil'Inker Designs stitched rectangles cutting die

The Twinery's Honeydew twine

3M foam tape

Atlantic Hearts Sketch #21--Watercolor Ombre

 Goodbye... summer!
The weather has definitely changed up here in Canada, and Day-light Savings Time takes effect this coming weekend! Yikes!
*RELAX* My hubby checked on the DST thing and he got it wrong! not until November...
Time to hunker down in the scrap-room...

Michelle and Darla at Atlantic Hearts have another great sketch challenge for us:

Love that ombre panel and the skeleton-butterfly.

I chose to interpret the ombre-look with water-color pencils, rendering a little scene of  summer colors at the cottage/PEI coast. The sand/soil really is that colour...such a contrast with the blue sky and vivid green foliage.

I used a panel of water-color paper, spritzing it first, to allow greater absorption and spreading of the colors. I overlapped my pencil scribbles for more color-blending, then smoothed it some more with a damp paint brush.

Kind of a nostalgic greeting. I personally hate saying goodbye to summer, but this would make a nice "farewell" card. 

The skeleton leaf is a new die from Paper Wishes. I cut it out twice in two shades of brown (Cocoa and Saddle) and overlapped them slightly for a shadowed look.

Here's the inside:

completing the farewell message. The big ampersand is a Paper Smooches stamp. A retired CTMH sentiment stamp set provided the Goodbye and Good Luck.

How will you interpret this pretty sketch?

Head on over to the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge blog. A new sketch is posted every Monday; Design Team creations are shared on Wednesday, and you have until Sunday night to link up your work. Join us for some creative and challenging fun!

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Supplies:

Water color pencils by Derwent

Card stock in Colonial White, Cocoa and Saddle (CTMH)

Dye ink in Saddle and Sky (CTMH)

Water-color paper from Simon Says Stamp

Corner-rounder (CTMH)

The Color Dare turns...#60!!!

It's not as bad as it sounds...I just like nice, round numbers!

Here's the color palate for this week's dare at Color My Heart:

GOLDRUSH

OUTDOOR DENIM

GYPSY

LAGOON

and optional 

COTTON CANDY 

These colours are featured in one of the new paper packs from Close to My Heart, Sarita. The patterns are rich in texture, based on beautiful Ikat fabrics. I chose to cut them into chevrons using a die from The Stamps of Life.

Next, I die-cut a label shape using Outdoor Denim cardstock. The sentiment, embossed with white powder, is from the December Stamp-of-the-Month set, Handle with Care.  It looked a little plain, so I rubbed on some color using Close To My Heart's pigment ink pads:

Neat effect, eh?

 Sarita is also has coordinating actual fabric, so I cut a strip of that for the top of the tag.
A final look at this card:

So! Off you go to the Color My Heart blog, to see some pretty creations by the other Design Team members. Then break out your inks, pens and papers and make something (card, lay-out or 3-D object d'art) in the challenge colours. Upload your creation to the Color My Heart site to share with us. We promise to comment, and you might just be chosen as one of the Color Dare Jewels!

Happy crafting,

Caroline

Atlantic Hearts Sketch #19

Happy Labour Day, folks!

The Atlantic Hearts Sketch challenge has a new design for you to try. This one was created by Carrie Wright, one of our DT members.

Those cascading elements down the left side reminded me of the falling leaves I've been seeing the past few days...autumn already! I am NOT quite ready for the change of season, so I searched the web for some summery colour challenge combinations.

Here's a version using colours from the Color Throwdown, interpreted with Close to My Heart colours:

Hollyhock, Sunset, Blush, Sweet Leaf and Buttercup

I made a second version using inspiration from the Colour Q challenge #204:

Similar Color My Heart shades are:

Gypsy, Lagoon, Sorbet and Pear

The stamp set is a retired one from Close to My Heart, with corresponding leaf shapes cut using the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge. The sentiment stamp comes from Paper Wishes. The embossing folder is by Cuttlebug. Here's the inside of the second card:

So, which version do you prefer?

More inspiration for this sketch will be found on the Atlantic Hearts blog on Wednesday of this week. Then you have until Sunday night to show us your interpretation. Lots of scope with this design! Hope you play along!

I'm entering this these cards in the following challenges: 

• Colour Q #204;
• The Color Throwdown #257

Happy crafting,

Caroline