CTMH: March Stamp-of-the-Month Blog Hop

We have arrived at another month and another blog hop.  If you are new to this, welcome!  It's great to have you join us.  It's quite simple to follow the hop.  At the end of each post you'll see a link to the next.  Just click it and away you go.  You'll see some fabulous artwork made with Sensational Season, March's Stamp-of-the-Month, and when you get back here, you've seen it all.
If you arrived here from Traci's blog, then you already know what you're doing and you're on the right track.

Here is what this stamp set looks like:

Isn't it cute?  I love the "Peter Rabbit" look of these stamps.  So, that's the look I went for when I created this card.

 (I have to give credit for some serious help and suggestions to a couple of my team members, Lynn and Heather.  I made this during one of our meetings.  Thanks, ladies!)



There is nothing but ink on this card.  I stamped the bunnies with Desert Sand ink.  I used Black to stamp the sentiment and added the quotation marks from the small Chocolate alphabet to give it a "book" look.  To put some colour on the bunnies I used our watercolour pencils and blending pen.  Then using a couple sponges I added some blue and green around the images.  I made this a while ago and I'm not sure which inks I used.  I also sponged some more Desert Sand around the whole card.  I can not get the colours to look right for some reason, so I apologize for that.  That's it.  Cute card done.  ;)

And now you get to check out Georgia's blog and see the beautiful artwork she's created.  Have fun! 

CTMH: Acrylic Album Finally Finished!

I have had this album since it first came out, 2 1/2  years ago!  It's not that it's so difficult to do, I just kept putting it on the back burner.  To be honest, I'm sort of glad that I did wait to finish it.  I have better photos and better embellishments now!  So, good things do come to those who wait.  Hee, hee.

Here is the front cover:

I had so much fun making this.  I used Magic Moments Level 2, My Stickese from Level 1, Level 2 and a scrapbooking kit we sold a while ago.  I used all sorts of rub-ons in black from CTMH, irresistible letter stickers, ribbon, sparkles, etc, etc.  There's so much and I love it so much!  Here are the rest of the pages:

  

If you want to get a closer look at all the different things I did, just click on the photo to see it larger.  If you were fortunate enough to snatch up one of these albums while they were on the "While Supplies Last" page on my website, I hope this gives you some ideas.  A lot of the rub-ons I used are currently on that sale page and they're only $2.25!  An amazing deal.  Click here to go directly to the sales.

Happy Shopping and Creating!

A Final Studio J Layout

I know it's been a while since I posted and I blame it on my desire to get published.  You see, my friend, Sarah, got published in Paper Crafts' Stamp It issue (Check out her stunning card on page 61!) and she's inspired me to submit some work as well.  They have a call out for their next Sketches issue so I've been creating some cards to submit.  It's really challenging me to see how I can make my work better and different so it stands out.  So, that's been keeping me from my dear blog friends.

On to my last Studio J layout, at least for now.

I love how easy it is to add embellishments to these layouts.  Here is what it looked like before I added anything to it:

I used the Splash Zone paper kit, but changed the colours to suit my photos a bit better.  Here is what it looks like now:

I know it doesn't look like much has changed, but look closer:

I had lots of fun adding Liquid Glass and Glitz Glitter Gel on the title and patterns.  It adds such a fun look! 

Still haven't tried Studio J?  You have until the end of the month to get a free layout if you purchase 9.  This offer is only available for members, so if you're wondering what that's about give me a call or send an email quickly.  Time is running out!

Happy Creating! And keep your fingers crossed for me!  The deadline is Feb. 28.

CTMH: February Stamp-of-the-Month Blog Hop

It's time for another blog hop with our fabulous February Stamp-of-the-Month, Friendship.  This month we have such a classy stamp set, full of damask images to create beautiful, classic, sophisticated artwork.  If this is your first time experiencing the blog hop, just grab a cup of your favourite beverage and a snack and settle in for some stunning inspiration with this stamp set.  Just click the link at the end of each post to take you all around this circular hop.  When you end up here, you've hit them all.  If you've come here from Debra's blog, you're on the right path.

Here is my card:

Did you know that Grey is the new Black?  I love how it looks with a pop of Cotton Candy pink on this card.  I'm going to have to use it more often.  I was tempted to make another one with Blue or Green sparkles, but I ran out of time.  The grey is looking a little black in this image, and the sparkles are a little washed out.  I apologize.  We're painting my workshop space and I couldn't find what I usually use for backdrops, forcing me to resort to other methods.  You'll have to imagine things are brighter.

I used my favourite image from this set and stamped it numerous times right on the card base, using Grey Flannel. Then, using the same colour, I stamped the sentiment and matted it with the back of one of the papers from the new Sweetheart Level 2 paper pack.  I went all out with the pick sparkles.  I love those coloured sparkles!

Here is the inside:

The damask image is stamped in second generation, with a couple more sparkles on it.  What a lovely sentiment that is!

Here is a card one of my team members created using the Wings paper pack:

So pretty and elegant, and I love how the big image stamped on the envelope just has that "old-world" feel to it.  Great job, Tonya!

Now, it's time to hop on over to Georgia's blog and check out the gorgeous artwork she's created with this set.  Thanks for stopping by.  And please, leave Tonya a little love and tell me what colour you would pair with Grey.

Happy Creating!

CTMH: Oh, Our Ink!

Today is going to be a short one, my last post in this fun "Freebie Week", as I have dubbed it.  Still not sure what that means?  You've got until midnight tonight to ask and find out.

I love our stamp pad design.  Did you know that in order to keep your stamp pad surface juicy, you should store the ink pad upside down?  Well, CTMH has solved that by putting the ink pad in the lid!  Fabulous and innovative.

I love that the stamp pad opens up and flips inside itself.  I know some people have a tough time opening and closing the stamp pad.  I discovered a neat little trick that another consultant shared with me.  Slide your thumb nail in the little opening as you open the stamp pad to help it pop open.

Would you like to hear what else I love about CTMH's stamp pad?  I love that it's raised higher than the base it sits in.  It makes it easy to stamp with big stamps (no lines), edge distress, and even do this neat criss-cross technique that I wish I had time to show you.

What about the actual ink, you ask?  Well, except for a few, they are all water-based, dry super quick, and match all the rest of our products in the 60-colour palette.  It's pure perfection.

But, of course, you already love the Close To My Heart stamp pad, so that means you're going to love emailing me to tell me that stamp pad is the key word for today.  You might just benefit from that...

Thanks for joining me on this fun week.  I hope you've learned something and gotten something you can take away with you.

I'll be back with more artwork next time.  Happy Creating!

CTMH: Re-Inker Isn't Just For Re-Inking

Oh, what fun I'm having posting every day this week.  Have you taken advantage of my special week, yet?  Email or call me to find out what's so special about these posts.  But don't wait because it's over tomorrow!

Today, I'm going to give you a bit of a sneak peek at some brand new paper that you will be able to purchase beginning February 1st.  I've also had lots of fun with re-inker.  What is this stuff?  Well, it's a little bottle used to add ink to your ink pads once that nice juicy feel goes away and your images aren't inking up nicely anymore. Instead of buying a whole new ink pad (What do you do with the old one, anyway?), just purchase a bottle of re-inker.  It will last for a LOOONG time if that's all you use it for.  But did you know that re-inker can be used for lots of other things, too?

I made up a little tutorial (my first one!) to show you how to use your re-inker to made your own little ink pad, called a puddle pad.  First, choose two or three different colours of re-inker that matches your paper.  I've only got two because I'm only just starting to learn about all the neat things you can do with re-inker so I don't have too many colours yet.  I'm using Smoothie and Cocoa.  You'll also need a few baby wipes, folded and placed in a tray.

Start with the darkest colour and just put drops onto the baby wipe, making sure you're covering an area large enough for your stamp plus a bit.

Then add your other colours, darkest to lightest.  Don't worry if there's some empty spaces between the drops because they'll all blend together.

Then stamp away.  Move your stamp around a tiny bit to get some more blending of colours.  Here you can see my three different tries.  Neat isn't it?

Now, you're ready to add it to your project.  And you're also ready to see the next thing you can do with re-inker!

We have a fabulous new product called the spray pen.  It's such a neat little tool.  You can mix water, re-inker, and Create-a-Shade Pearl Paint to spray a wonderful shimmering mist on your project.  In the following photo, you can see that I've already added water and re-inker to my spray pen.

When you add the paint, your mixture will look lighter.  How much of each you add is up to you.  Use the lines on the side to help you.  One suggestion is to add water until the 7th line, re-inker until it reaches the 9th and 3 drops of paint.  That creates quite a bit of mixture so if you're just using it for a small project, just use less.

Then spray your project.  Make sure you protect your work area and even practice a bit on a scrap piece of paper so you know how hard to press for the effect you want.  I covered the back of my card as well.

And here is my assembled card.  I love the finished product!

The re-inker just added such a nice polished look to my card.  I used paper from the new Mayberry Level 2 kit.  It might be my favourite from the 8 new paper packs in the new Idea Book!  I used the January Stamp-of-the-Month, which you can still order.  I  used my craft knife to cut around the top wing and pop it out a bit.  You can see that in the next photo.  I added some Mocha Opaques and my card was finished.  See that wonderful shimmer?

 

So, use your re-inker for something special and tell me what you did.  I'd love to learn some more neat techniques.

Still don't know why I keep bolding some words?  Ask and you shall know...

Happy Creating!

CTMH: Chipboard Should be Called Fun-Board!

Okay, I know that title is a little silly, but I love chipboard, and I especially love CTMH's Dimensional Elements Hearts.  My problem is I forget to use all the fun chipboard shapes I own.  It's silly, really.  I was going back through the photos of all my artwork I have taken and only a few actually have chipboard on them!  What's wrong with me?!  Maybe this post will help me use up my stash.
Close To My Heart has created white chipboard which means you can leave it as is, or do just about anything else to it.  This layout, which I posted about a half year ago, has lots of ideas for how to use Dimensional Elements Hearts, or any shape.

I've covered a circle with paper and then added dots of Liquid Glass, inked up two flowers with a brayer and then removed some layers so they're not too thick and then stamped and added a rub-on, inked up an embossed bracket so a pattern shows through, added 4 different colours to a letter and blended them together a bit, scored and inked up a heart to turn it into a journaling space, and inked and distressed a book plate.  Wow, that's a lot of different things you can do with your Dimensional Elements Hearts.  And since we're focusing on hearts, here's a card I where I used another one.

Perfect for Valentine's Day, which is fast approaching!  Maybe I should use up my  Dimensional Elements Hearts for cards this year.  What will you use your's for?

Curious about all the bolded words?  There's a reason.  But you'll have to call or email me to find out...

Happy Creating!