Thanks Card - pattern mixing

Happy Saturday!  With the Fourth of July falling in the middle of the week next Wednesday, a lot of people are taking the entire week for vacation.  If you have travel plans, I hope you have a great time.

This is another quick and simple card I made using one of the My Mind's Eye card bases that I found at Marshall's.  I decided to get a bit adventurous and use only patterned papers and ribbon to make the card. 

 

I started with the plaid card that you can see in the center of this photo.  The cards were from the Lost and Found collection.

I didn't have any papers from the Lost and Found collection but I did have this pad of 6 x 6 paper - Jack and Jill from the Quite Contrary collection.  Some of the papers in this pad are similar to the colors of some of the card bases.

I selected several papers from the pad that had a similar color palette.  I cut the mat layer at 5 1/4 x 4 inches from the busiest patterned paper.  I created the "Thanks" sentiment in the Silhouette Studio software by combining two fonts, welding the word and making a shadow mat so it would stand out against the busy background.  I chose the bold red stripe for the mat to provide a high contrast with the background and used a tone on tone pattern for the word "Thanks."

I inked the edges of the mat layer with Vintage Photo Distress Ink and added this piece of yellow chevron rbbon, taping it to the back of the layer before I adhered it to the base.  The stripes in the ribbon just happened to be about the same width as the stripes in the red paper.

 I also inked the edges of the sentiment shadow and added lots of foam dots to raise it on the card front.

With so many patterns on the card, I decided not to add any additional embellishments.  What do you think?  Is it too busy?  t was fun to try something a bit different for me and it was very hard not to add some solid colors!

It is very easy to use any font on your computer to create welded words in the Silhouette software.  I'll show you the fonts and how I combined them and shadowed the sentiment in another post.

Have a wonderful weekend!

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Fabulous Friend Card

The shine of the cardstock, the metallic printed sentiment and the addition of a bit of bling make this a pretty card to send to a friend - a fabulous friend!

 I used a simple leaf design from the basic shapes included in the Silhouette Studio software to make the medallion of the front of the card.  The shapes are listed in alphabetical order, so you'll need to scroll down a bit to find it in your library.  If you can't find it, try going into Preferences under the File menu and choose "advanced" from the list on the left.  Then click on the bar that says "Restore the initial 51 designs" and click OK.  You may need to restart to have all of the shapes show up in the library.

After I added the shape to my mat, I used the "mirror right" command under the replicate menu to create a mirror image and then moved the second image over a bit to overlap the lowest leaf and wleded the two shapes together.  Then I selected the new shape and chose "mirror below" from the replicate menu, moved the image up to overlap the leaves and welded the two sets of leaves to create the shape on the right.  I released the compound path and eliminated the central opening - then grouped all of the pieces and made a compound path.

The Offset command in the software makes it very quick and easy to create a shadow or mat for the new shape.  You can set the width of the offset, making it narrower or wider to suit your project.

Next I used the dimension boxes to set the height and width in the scale menu.  I sized the grouped shapes and then ungrouped them for cutting.  To get a good visual idea of the way the card will look, I added two rectangles to the mat - one sized at 5 1/2 x 4 1/4 inches to represent and A2 card and one sized at 5 1/4 x 4 inches to represent a mat layer on the card.  (I didn't end up using a mat for this card).  I moved these shapes off the virtual mat before cutting the two medallion pieces.

I used one of the My Mind's Eye card bases with a very subtle yellow stripe.  The shadow of the leaf medallion is cut from blue Core'dinations cardstock and the branches are cut from Core'dinations Gemstone cardstock.  The sentiment oval is from Craftwork Cards and the gems are from Creative Charms.

The mat layer is actually a medium dark blue - not as dark as it looks in the photos.  The texture and the sheen of the Core'dinations Gemstone cardstock always make a card look special. 

You can see the subtle yellow stripe in the card base a bit better in this photo. 

 I could have cut a small sentiment (I originally was going to make this a "thanks" card), but I realized the the oval shape in the center was a near perfect match for these oval card sentiments from Craftwork Cards so I added the sentiment, raised with foam dots.

Once again, if you can't find these sentiment cuts, you could make an assortment with stamps and embossing to have ready for cards.  The metallic gold printing adds another level of sparkle to the card.

For the finishing touch, I added some light blue gem stickers in three graduated sizes to accent the leaf design.  The end result is a fast but elegant card.

If you have any questions about making the design, please leave a comment and I'll try to explain more clearly.  The same principles can be used with a Cricut design - I have made many new shapes over the years by welding Cricut images together.  The "mirror" function is not included in the Cricut software so you will need to flip and rotate the design to create a similar shape.  

If you want your image to have a shadow layer, you will have to choose a shape on a Cricut cartridge that has a shadow function.  From the very first version of Design Studio and through the updates, the Gypsy and the Craftroom, crafters have been asking for a variable width one click shadow option but it has not been added to any of the programs.

We are expected to start a new heat wave this weekend -but it isn't as hot here as it is in some parts of the country.  I hope that none of you have been affected by the terrible fires in Colorado.  We have family in the area and so far they are fine but the conditions are so dry that things can change very quickly.


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Card Bargain (another shopping find)

I was in the shopping plaza with a Marshall's store not long ago and, of course, I had to pop in to check and see if there were any crafting bargains.  Over the years I have found many unexpected surprises in the stationery section.  They often have Martha Stewart items and several brands of paper stacks.

I spotted this box of cards and envelopes from My Mind's Eye.  There are fifty cards, five each of ten designs, in the box.

The price was an extremely affordable $5.99 - regular Marshall's price and not marked down yet.

At $5.99 for 50 cards and envelopes, the cost per card and envelope set is 12 cents.  The envelopes I usually buy at Staples are $11.49 for 100 - so this seems like getting the cards for free!

The cards are printed on both sides - I considered these the front sides.  The cardstock is a nice weight and the inside of the card is a coordinating color.

The backs of the cards are mostly more subdued solids with a few exceptions.

I've been making some cards using these handy bases.  It's pretty simple to add a few cuts, some bling and a sentiment.  I'll share the details on this design tomorrow.

If you are on the email feed, there are probably two posts on this email.  I am on "summer hours" and have been busy sorting out a lot of things that I need to do before I go to see my Dad again.

Thanks for all of the interesting feedback about the Cricut vs. Cameo (or other machines) decision.  I am holding on to most of my Cricut items for now and do continue to use them - but not as frequently as in the past.  I have some cartridges that I have never opened that I might sell (of course as soon as I would sell one, I would find a use for it!).

If you missed the discussion - you can see lots of comments on THIS POST.

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Simple Birthday Card

I never seem to have enough birthday cards, so I decided to make up some simple cards to have on hand.  I see many beautiful cards with multiple layers, stitching, lots of flowers and bling but they look like they take hours to make.  Sometimes you just need to choose a few shapes and get the card made quickly!

Here are the pieces of the card.  The yellow card base is textured Bazzill cardstock, The plaid layer is from Martha Stewart, and the green sparkly strip is from the DCWV Cotton Bloom stack.  The scalloped circle was made with the Creative Memories scallop circle maker from DCWV Shimmer cardstock and the light green circle is from Martha Stewart.  The Happy Birthday sentiment circle is from Craftwork Cards.  The sheer yellow dotted ribbon is from May Arts.

The card is an A2 card (8 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches folded to 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 inches) and the plaid layer is cut at 5 1/4 x 4 inches.  The green sparkly strip is 1 1/4 x 5 1/4 inches.  It is handy to have a mat with a grid to help center pieces that you are layering.  I put the four inch side along the grid lines and then used the bolder center line at 2 inches to align the green strip.

I assembled the scalloped circle, plain circle and sentiment circle and added a piece of sheer yellow dotted ribbon, taping it on the back of the card layer.

Then I adhered the layer to the card base and tied a bow around the ribbon strip (it is much easier to get a straight bow when you add it on top of the longer ribbon like this).

I added some foam dots on the scalloped circle, leaving the center blank so it would fit neatly over the ribbon.

Then I nestled the lowest scallop into the area where the bow was tied.  When I put the sentiment on the scalloped circle, I aligned it so there was a scallop "bump" at each of the four compass points and the words would follow a straight line.

This card is quick and easy to make and the sparkly and shiny elements in the center make it feel special.  The sentiment circle from Craftwork cards is printed on shimmer cardstock with metallic gold.  If you can't find these (mine were a gift from my friend Enfys) you could make a batch of sentiments to have on hand using stamps and gold embossing powder.

I think this card looks a little like a flower with a ribbon stem and I particularly like the fresh look of the plaid paper!

The Creative Memories "Just Can't Wait" sale on albums and hardcover Storybooks has been extended to June 30th.  To go directly to the sale page click HERE.  You can see all of the details in my first post about the sale HERE.  I have already ordered a couple more custom album credits so I could get the 25% off price and make the albums any time in the next six months.

The Creative Memories Birthday Bash sale will start July 1st and run for 25 days.  The 25 top picks will be 25% off as Creative Memories celebrates their 25th year.  I'll post all of the details and a list of the products - there are lots of great items, including a sale on both software programs (Memory Manager 3.0 and StoryBook Creator 4.0) and 30% off on digital artwork, downloads and CDs.

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A Little Design Doodling and a question...

Monday was rainy and I didn't need to go anywhere so I had a chance to make some new designs.  I haven't cut any of them yet - I hope to do that today.  I really like to make intricate, multi-layered geometric designs.  I thought I'd share a few screen shots of what I have been up to...

The image at the top of this post has four layers (plus the center circle).  This version has five...

...and this one has six layers, plus the center circle.

The design reminds me of a peacock's tail.  I may try doing my test cuts in peacock colors - they are some of my favorite colors so I am sure to have paper on hand!

I designed this image with the Silhouette Studio software.  I am curious to see if I can cut it at a size that works for a standard card.  Check back tomorrow to see what happens!

I have been hearing from more and more of my readers that they are purchasing Cameo machines to use in addition to their Cricuts.  In some cases, they have decided to sell their Cricut machines and cartridges after trying the Cameo.  I am curious to know if you have seen this trend and what your plans are - stay with Cricut only, add a Cameo but keep your Cricut (best of both worlds) or total conversion to the Cameo or another machine that allows you to create your own designs.

It is a personal decision with good reasons for each choice so please don't be shy about commenting!

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Craft Wars, Blitsy and more...

Have you heard about "Craft Wars," the new show on TLC?  The first episode will air on Tuesday, June 26th at 10 pm (9 central).  Three contestants compete in two rounds and the finalist gets a prize of $10,000.  You can see lots more about it HERE on the TLC site. 

Michael's is sponsoring this show and if you go to the site you can download a coupon for 50% off any regular price item.  The coupon is good until Saturday, June 30th.

I am curious to see what sort of challenges they give to the participants.  I wonder how they chose the contestants.  Do you think you'd like to try something like this?  Crafting under pressure (and in front of a camera crew) sounds rather stressful - but you sure could buy lots of supplies with the grand prize!

Blitsy has lots of Tim Holtz Alterations Movers and Shapers Sizzix dies.  I have been wanting to try more of these and I ordered a few today.  They also have Diane Reaveley's Dylusions Spray inks but you'll need to hurry since the colors are going fast (they do sometimes restock during the week but you never know...).  I bought some colors when I took her class and I added several more with this order (lucky for me there are only twelve colors!).

If you haven't shopped at Blitsy before, please use my referral LINK to join this free membership site.  They have all sorts of interesting craft items at good prices with new sales starting every Monday, Wednesday and Friday and continuing for a week or until sold out (popular items can sell out very quickly).  Once you are a member, you can get your own referral link and earn credits for future purchases.

Hello Thursday is old news at this point, but in case you missed it, there were two new Cricut cartridges announced.  Both are full cartridges.

Dr. Checkup is all about the typical childhood illnesses.  You can find the digital handbook HERE.  I doubt that I will be purchasing this one, but it might be useful if you have small children and scrapbook everything.  I don't care for the lopsided faces on every character - I'd like the mouth to be centered as it is on real people!  There is some cute word art and lots of medical items as icons.

A Quilted Christmas is much more my style, but I do have lots of Christmas cartridges already.  You can find the digital handbook HERE.  I like the way this handbook shows completed versions of all of the cuts together in a section at the beginning of the book.  This makes it easier to browse through and find all of your options quickly.  The card feature is very nice - just two layers for quick and elegant cards.

Two more cartridges (Art Deco and Paper Doll Teen Scene) are now available as digital cartridges.  You can see all of the cartridges in the Cricut CraftRoom online design tool.  The update for Design Studio is not listed and I haven't checked on the Gypsy for updates.

There are lots of new Cuttlebug items - just scroll down on the Hello Thursday page to see them.  I like the poinsettia quilling set and several of the new embossing folders, particularly the Honeycomb, the Folk Art and the Christmas designs.  Click HERE to go to the page with the details on all of the new sets.

Monday was a rainy day - a good day to rest up after my trip.  I did do some designing - now I have to start cutting samples to see how they look in paper.

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Home Again - with a thrift shop find...

I hope you had a nice weekend.  The weather was beautiful on Saturday and Sunday after we had a severe thunderstorm on Friday evening.  Over the past five days I've driven nearly a thousand miles - mostly on major roads with heavy traffic.  I am back home and a bit worn out!

I was with my Dad for part of of the day on three days (driving back and forth to Pennsylvania from Northern New Jersey).  He is doing better but will need some more time and physical therapy to get back to his own apartment.  I am planning to go down and stay in Pennsylvania for a few days at a time as often as I can.

One day, while Dad was napping, I did some errands and had a chance to stop at the hospital thrift shop about a block away from my Dad's place.  I found this interesting old stationery box and thought it would be nice to use in my craftroom.  I'll share some more photos once I decide just how I will use the box.

Thank you for understanding that family comes first - I am trying to keep up with posting even though I am not able to stick to a schedule that is as regular as usual.  I should have a chance to do some catching up this week.  I hope you are getting lots of time to be crafty now that summer is here!

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Spellbinders Summer Spectacular

Summer has officially arrived and the Summer CHA show is not far away.  I won't be going this year since it falls right in the middle of the two weeks we will have our older son and daughter-in-law with us as they return from their year overseas. 

One of the things I look forward to before each CHA show is the unveiling of the new Spellbinders products.  They have a fabulous group of designers who make very inspiring samples to show off the new and creative items that will soon be for sale.  There is a "blog frenzy" for a week or so before each new release with great prizes and a super grand prize.   The daily prizes are the dies revealed on each blog and if you faithfully follow and enter on every blog for the entire week, you are eligible for the Grand Prize - the entire Summer 2012  die line, a raspberry plate and the Grand Caliber machine.

Each day starting at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time, three more blogs will feature new products and you need to enter for each blog within 48 hours. 

You can read all about it on the Spellbinder's blog starting with Day One HERE.

The rules for the Blog Frenzy can be found HERE.

I enter this contest every year and I haven't won yet - maybe this will be the year!  Good luck to all of you who enter.  I have already seen several things that I would love to own...

I have one more day with my Dad today and head back home tomorrow. I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

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