Magical Season

I am trying to clean/organize my craft room.  It means getting rid of lots of wonderful, hoarded items!
So, I am using a few before they go away...This card was made with retired CTMH Aspen papers and stickers.  I have used the sketch from Sweet Sketch Wednesday #237, which I rotated.

Warm Wishes - Tag!! You're It

A few more of last Saturday's cards.  All Close To My Heart product except for the Baker's twine and Liquid Pearls.  It's a shame the color is not right on the bottom card. The banners are actually lovely silvery blue papers from the Frosted pack. 
The top card I have posted on the Cards In Envy blog for their "Tag! You're It" challenge - card with a tag on it.  Lots of inspiration on their blog this week.

Christmas Cards!

Yesterday there were 100 cards made. The ladies were busy and we had a lot of fun - salad, Panini, cookies, sparkling cider, and lots of ink and bling!
These are the cards made from CTMH Sparkle and Shine papers.  I used Pam Wallace's fabulous cutting guide to create 24 cards from three double sided 12X12" sheets.  No scraps left behind - it's amazing.  Ever since I cased her "Chocolate Affair" set, I have used this great cutting guide. 
The top card was inspired by Vicki W. and is my favorite of the bunch.  There are a few others we made that I still need to photograph.
 

Tags

Working on a list of things for our scholarship silent auction this week. These Christmas tags will accompany a collection of baking items. Having fun using up some stash chip board and paper.

Thanksgiving Banner

This was easy and fun to make...a bit tricky to hang because it was long and heavy.  It looks marvelous though hanging from the plate rail.  It will be such a fun day tomorrow with my family!

Wishing my blog friends a day of blessings.

Christmas Bells

CAS-ology theme this week is bells.  I finally did find a bell stamp and a few moments to make a card. 
Shimmer gold and white card stock, gold jewelry twine, Liquid Pearls, and several sets of Close To My Heart stamps for wreath, bells, and sentiment.  I embossed the bell image in gold, and then punched it out with a 3/4" circle punch.

Welcome Baby!

This card uses a Make It From Your Heart, vol. 1 #22 sketch, and the new Close To My Heart Babycakes papers along with an embellishment in my stash for a few years, Papertrey sentiment, and Fiskars cloud punches.    Welcome to a new sweet little cousin for my grandsons!  He was born last weekend.   

 

Sympathy

Inspiration: Retrosketches #89

There has been unprecedented need for sympathy cards lately.  This is for the wife of my boy's grandfather.  Grandpa Don was 93. He will be missed by friends, family and community.  He had stayed very active until last year.
I used CTMH Pemberley papers, pearl opaque swirl, and inks along with a favorite Verve stamp. The circles and butterfly were cut with the Artiste Cricut cartridge.

Warm Wishes

Dynamic Duos #78

Love the season when I can use this Martha Stewart punch!  My favorite thing about Christmas is  to have branches and trees inside and candles that smell like pine.  The colors are as close to the Duo as I had: Cashmere and Olive.  It's a very soft, warm combination.

Autumn

Heart 2 Heart Challenge 'Gratitude'

This card was inspired by the Cardabilities #86 sketch. Stamps and sentiment are from  Close To My Heart's set, Fall Harvest, and their Huntington papers. 

LIM One Layer Thank You

For:  Less Is More challenge
This one layer card used a digital image printed on Colonial White card stock.  The digital is from Free Vintage Digital Stamps, and I colored it with pencils.  The sentiment stamp is from Close To My Heart's Always Grateful set, using Autumn Terracotta ink.  I rounded the edges with my corner rounder.
 

Sympathy

I really like how this came out.  Huntington papers were on the work table, and I used sketch #29 from Make It From You Heart, vol.1. The frame was cut from the Art Philosophy cartridge and the strip across is actually the edge of the paper. The card base, frame and sentiment circle are Champagne card stock. The mat circle and ink are Slate. I love the fine, soft twill which was part of the embellishments in a workshop kit last year. The frame and circle edges were brushed with Champagne ink, and finished with some opaque pearls. Sentiment is from a retired CTMH set, 4 My Friend.

FM134 Chevrons

The Friday Mash Up was the perfect opportunity to use my new stamp sets Charming Chevrons and One Way Borders from Close To My Heart.  I love the bling for the chevrons!  They are available only through December 31st in the special Holiday catalog. The birthday sentiment is from another new set called Banner Wishes.
The base panel is paper from a retired collection, Dream Pop, and has glossy chevrons.  I inked some White Daisy card stock with Juniper and Cotton Candy, and backed the White Daisy panel with Cotton Candy card stock.
I love this sketch! CAS and fun.

Washi CASE

I have not used washi tape very much, but have a small collection.  Sometimes, when trying something new it helps to just copy something that you see that is really nice.  That's what I did with Gina Brandsetter's lovely card here.  It was easy, and looks great!  I have more confidence, and will experiment on my own now.  Gina's blog is full of fabulous inspiration. 

Tri-fold Card

This tri-fold has a pretty cut out along the stamped image.  The paper is from CTMH Huntington papers, the flower from CTMH Happy Autumn set (D1550).  I used Honey, Goldrush, Autumn Terracotta, and Olive inks.  Rounding the corners and adding a bit of Liquid Pearls finished this simple card. 
Directions:
The Colonial White card stock was cut 12" X 5 1/2";  scored at 4" and 8"
Image is stamped in the third panel and then cut out around the outside edge.
After folding, I glued in a 4" X 51/2 panel of patterned paper. The card opens then to large space for a handwritten or stamped note.

Sarita Birthday

Another card using CTMH Sarita collection papers.  Love the blues and purples.

Fun Birthday

 

Bright and sassy.  This is from CTMH's new Sarita paper collection, and some Cotton Candy card stock for the card. That sweet little sentiment stamp is only $2.95. Love the new Base & Bling metal flowers.  Cut the flower shapes on my Cricut from the Artiste cartridge.  The sketch is from the Make It From Your Heart, vol. 2. 

Fall's Blessings

 

A card using the September Stamp of the Month, leaf from another set, Baker's Twine, Huntington collection papers, Colonial White, Cashmere, and Barn Red card stock, from a pattern in Make It From You Heart, volume 2.  Inks used were Cashmere, Sunset, Goldrush, and Olive....100% Close To My Heart products. This was one of my workshop cards today. The first time we have crafted in the new house.  It was fun, and it feels good to be back getting inky with my friends. 

One Layer Week 141 Witches & Wizards

For the Less is More challenge I used a favorite stamp from a Close To My Heart set called Captured Moments.  I sponged inside a die frame with Goldrush and Buttercup inks, and colored the pumpkin with a Sunset marker.  Scene stamps make such marvelous one layer cards!  Quick, easy, and ready to mail.  Puts you in a happy place.

In Stitches CFC117

This paper pieced pumpkin is a digital from Delightful Inspiration (now From the Heart).  It has been waiting in my digi files for a while, and I thought of it right away when I saw the Cas-ual Fridays post. It was printed on CTMH papers (Felicity, retired). The sketch is #28 in Make It From Your Heart, volume 2.

Scary!

Had fun using the Friday Mashup 131 Sketch.  The 'monster' and web are from a retired Close To My Heart set, the spider was cut using the CTMH Artiste Cricut cartridge.  Colored with Sunset + Pear markers. Washi tape from local craft store.

Also linked to Cards In Envy "Now That's Scary!" challenge.

Let Fall Fun Begin

The grandsons and I had some fun this weekend.  We finished a project begun last year...little stacked blocks for Halloween.  Someone had posted the idea of stacking the 2" blocks and adding little wood beads for 'feet'.  The boys painted them black, glued and began the decoration...but we never had the chance to finish in time for the holiday.  We completed that with squares of paper and some sets of stickers.
A wonderful local art supply store here, Artco, is celebrating its 21st Anniversary. A friend and I visited Friday - had cake and made the darling bat candy packages as a make n' take.  We bought paper and used their die cut at the store to cut the candy wrapper form.  The boys enjoyed gluing on the ears and eyes and filling them up with candy corn. 
The youngest loves punching paper - and counting. So he punched out sixteen  3" circles, glued them back to back, sponged the edges, folded in half, and glued again.  "Like a little book," he said.  I wrapped the pipe cleaner around his finger for the stem.  He said pumpkins did most certainly not have leaves, so we didn't put one on. 

View of the other sides.

Feeling the cozy tonight as the wind blows and rain pelts the windows.

 

Make It From Your Heart #23

 

One last sympathy card using some retired CTMH favorites.  As you can see, I'm lovin' this new pattern book!! 

 

Students at school have been demanding a paper craft club - so all my retired papers are going there this week along with many retired stamp sets.  They are going to make cards for Operation Write Home and some gift sets to sell at the Scholarship silent auction.   It will lift the guilt of paper hoarding AND allow me to buy more. LOL   Should also be great fun.  I enjoy teaching history and government, but how cool to teach some stamping techniques ♥

Make It From Your Heart #24 and 25

 

This card was made using the #25 pattern with a retired Close To My Heart paper collection called Grace.

The sentiment is a Verve stamp, the flower ...well, from a long-retired CTMH set that I can not bear to part with. I used the rock n' roll technique to get the shaded colors. Some Coco grosgrain ribbon and a few golden bling for embellishment. 
Unfortunately, the social committee at school needed several sympathy cards this week.  So using the patterns was wonderful!  I rarely get to craft on a school night, but in two hours I had a whole set of cards - plenty of time left for grading papers :-(

Pattern #24

 

I'll post one more tomorrow and then there should be some Halloween and Autumn fun to share.

My grandsons come for an overnight tomorrow and I have a few little projects planned for them. It is the 21st Anniversary of Artco, a marvelous craft store here. They had make n' takes and darling displays when I stopped by this afternoon after school. 

 

The weather is decidedly NW autumn with wind and rain.  Inside is the cozy place to be. It amazes me at how rapid the season change-over can be!

 

Hope you are having a very happy weekend.

 

Make It From Your Heart #28

This card uses pattern #28.  The paper is from a long-ago Close To My Heart collection called Felicity. Why have I hoarded such lovely paper??  The horizontal strip and scallop circle were cut from the middle designed paper- using the reverse side.  The sentiment is from "A Blossom" set.  Colonial White and Barn Red card stock.  I love how easy it is to add 'pearls' with Liquid Pearls! 

 

Make It From Your Heart

 

Nothing like this fabulous pattern book! (Make It From Your Heart, volume 2. $7.95 from Close To My Heart)  Thirty sketches - with measurements! for layouts and cards, and this card is inspired by #23.  Over the next few days, I'll post cards made with the others.  The CTMH colors are Crystal Blue, Buttercup and Outdoor Denim; sentiment from A Bloom set, flowers from Word Puzzle.  I water brushed the flowers, and added a little Honey ink to one.  Such a quick and easy card.

Back Again

It has been a busy, roller-coaster summer- full of life changes, and moving to a house on my own. I also got to take a fabulous class in Washington, D.C. and spend a week with my brother and his wife on Cape Cod. Now most of the boxes are unpacked, school is up and running, and I feel ready to get back to crafting. 

My first post is a card made with a marvelous Wax Fruit digital.  I used water brush to color, Close To My Heart card stock, and a little bling. 

Celebration

A friend asked me to do some invitations for her husband's retirement gathering later this summer.  He worked for 30 years for Coca Cola, so this is what I came up with.  They have the party information on the inside.  Hope she likes them!

Sweet Music

School is out. 2012-2013 finished. Grades in, desk cleaned, cupboards packed, seniors celebrated and graduated, staff BBQ and good-byes accomplished.  One of the sad good-byes for the school was that of our fabulously talented young instrumental music teacher who is going to another district.  He was a marvelous inspiration for our school. The program was tiny and not very skilled when he arrived. Now it  has jazz, percussion, and concert ensembles that have great sound.  They are competition level, and the concerts this year have been marvelous.

This card was made for staff to send best wishes along with him to his next school.  He will be missed, but has left a legacy of students determined to continue to grow as he encouraged them.

It made use of a Close To My Heart set from our 2012 fall catalog called Sweet Music.

Sympathy ~ SSS212

Yesterday I made two background pieces by using a doily as a mask, then using my spray pen to create the design on the card stock.  One was made into a card and the other was sitting on my table this afternoon next to a piece of Sweet Leaf paper that had been used to cut a circle.  I'm a scrap piece saver...and suddenly I saw that the green could be cut into a frame for the remaining doily design.  Then it began to look like a sketch I'd seen this morning.  Sometimes my creative mess and hording scraps helps me out.
I didn't want to cover up the dainty design, so instead I chose a panel of vellum.  The sentiment tag did not look right on top though, and so I did that in vellum as well.  The butterfly is a retired Close To My Heart stamp that I stamped in Versamark and embossed with Stampalicious  transparent Crystal.  The black butterfly beneath it is a Martha Stewart punch. For balance, I added the CTMH black pearl embellishments.

This card is for the Sweet Stop Sketch #212.

Humour + DS #102

Stella and Gus are two of my favorite Bugaboo characters.  This week's theme at Less Is More is 'Humour' and Stella and Gus are a perfect fit.  I colored with Close to My Heart inks and used Black, Sky and Ruby card stock on a White Daisy base. I used a white pen to draw a border of dots around the mat to tie in the polka dots. A little dab of Liquid Glass to eyeglasses...aren't they a sweet couple?!

I also used the Deconstructed #102 sketch for my design, and will post my card on both blogs.