A crop party is a modern quilting bee. A group of friends gather to have girl friend time, sharing joys and sorrows while preserving memories and creating a special keepsake.

Monday, February 24, 2014

A Freshly Made Blue Lotus



I am so in need of spring, so y'all may be seeing more flowers from me until the real ones finally come up.  This one adorns a card inspired by this Freshly Made Sketch:

 
I will be back later to tell y'all all about it.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi



Friday, February 21, 2014

Color My Heart in Goldrush and Topiary


It is time for a new Color Dare!  This week the colors are Topiary and Goldrush.  When I saw this week's Atlantic Hearts Sketch I thought about this butterfly from the retired "Find Your Style" set (which as you may have figured out by now is my all time favorite Close to My Heart stamp) and this flourish from the Swirls Around set which is currently my second favorite Close to My Heart set.



Then I checked out this week's  Heart 2 Heart challenge and would you believe it?  This week's challenge is flourishes!  I love it when three challenges work together so easily.  Before I could make the card I got word that my cousin has a rare and particularly aggressive form of breast cancer.  I knew that this card would be for her and, as she is a woman of strong faith, this sentiment from the "Look to the Light" set was the one to use.

To make the butterfly I inked the stamp with sponge daubers which made the colors softer, cut it out and sponged around the edges to intensify the colors and finally sponged the tips with Cocoa.  I used liquid glass to attach just the body so that the wings would stand up.  After all the stamping was done, I used my ruler with the guide holes to make sure my piercing was straight and evenly spaced.  |Lastly, I used a Goldrush alcohol marker to color some bitty sparkles and applyied them to the flourish.  This is just a heads up:  Close to My Heart will be retiring all of the Exclusive Inks markers sets, so they are now available only while supplies last.

Now I have to tell you a secret.  I do not have any Topiary ink or paper, so I used New England Ivy.   If you want to play the Color My Heart Color Dare and don't have the exact color you can still play using the closest thing you have.  Now please go check out all the creative projects at Color My Heart,  Heart 2 Heart Challenges, and Atlantic Hearts Sketches.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:
Paper:  Goldrush and Colonial White cardstock
Ink:  Goldrush, New England Ivy, and Cocoa plus a Goldrush alcohol marker
Stamps:  Find Your Style (retired), Swirls Around,  Look to the Light
Embellishments:  Bitty Sparkles, Brown Opaques (retired)


Sunday, February 16, 2014

Atlantic Hearts Sketch 42



I have been needing way to many of these kind of cards lately.  For this one I used this Atlantic Hearts Sketch and a new Close to My Heart Paper, Ariana.



Ariana is one of those papers that uses colors unique to the pack, so I layered Blush, Sorbet and Ruby to resist emboss the lily.  I love the Ariana Gray cardstock that I used for the mats and wish was a permanent color.

Thank you for stopping by!  Now please go over to Atlantic Hearts to see how others have interpreted this sketch.  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:
Paper:  Ariana with Champagne, Ariana Grey and White Daisy cardstock
Ink:  Sorbet, Blush, Ruby, Outdoor Denim
Stamps:  Sincere Expressioins, Lovely Lily (retired)
Embellishments:  Filigree Charms (retired), ribbon by Craft Essentials, Clear Detail embossing powder

Happy Valentine's Day!



Continuing my theme of using nontraditional colors for valentines, I made this one for my husband with a new Close to My Heart paper pack, Ivy Lane.  Of course the love of my life deserves something special, so I used this tutorial from Splitcoast Stampers to make a three dimensional card.



I used the Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge to cut the flower ((page 69) and hearts (page 26) and the Artiste cartridge to cut the leaves (page 54).  I sponged all the edges except those of the flower and card base with Smokey Plum.  I love the small sparkle flourish and am so happy to see that they are now available in black (even if I didn't use them here).  Just to make sure there was enough sparkle, because you can't have too much, I put one in the middle of the flower and some bitty sparkles down the side panels.  The inside was as much fun to do as the outside.




Did I mention that the theme of this week's Heart 2 Heart Challenge is "Hearts Galore?"  You know that I will be entering this card in it!  Thank you for stopping by.  Now please head on over to see more hearts.  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:
Paper:  Ivy Lane with Hollyhock, Sweet Leaf, White Daisy and Bamboo cardstock
Ink:  Smokey Plum
Stamps:  Scandinavian Wishes (retired), Happy Valentine's (retired)
Embellishments:  Small Sparkle Flourishes, Bitty Sparkles, Clear Sparkle
Other:  Art Philosophy and Artiste Cricut cartridge




Sunday, February 9, 2014

Going Out of My Comfort Zone With Washi Tape Part 2



As I have mentioned before, I am done with this cold weather and am in serious need of spring, so I made a couple of flowers and continued to play with washi tape and this Atlantic Hearts Sketch:


First I combined the black lacy tapes I couldn't resist from Micheal's with Close to My Heart's Silver Geometric tape and some strips of Black Glitter paper and added a pink flower to make a romantic card for my husband:


Next I used CTMH's Silver Geometric, Smoothie Striped, and Juniper tape from the Christmas catalogue to make a birthday card with a tropical feel:



To make the flowers I started by using the Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge to cut flower 7 (page 39, 2.5, 2.25, 2.0, 1.75 inches for pink flower, 2.5, 2.25, 2.25 for white) out of Colonial White cardstock.  Next I used an embossing stylus to score lines from the center outward on each flower.  For the pink flower I sponged the whole flower with Blush working lighter in the center and heavier at the edges.  For the white flower I sponged the very edges with Smoothie.  Then I shaped the petals with my fingers.  The centers are Colonial White Paper Flowers (sponged with Juniper for the white flower) that were retired years ago and Pewter Designer Brads.  I used foam tape to attach the completed flowers to the cards.  Here is a detail view of the pink flower. 



I have to thank the ladies at Atlantic Hearts for giving me the inspiration to try washi tape.  I am a convert.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:
Paper:  Smoothie, Colonial White, and Black cardstock, Black Glitter paper
Ink:  Smoothie, Blush, Slate
Stamp:  Holiday Tags
Embellishments:  Geometric Silver, Juniper (retired), and Smoothie Striped Washi Tape with Black washi tapes from Michael's, Colonial White Paper Flowers (retired), Pewter Designer Brads, Gray Sparkles
Other:  Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge




Going ouside of My Comfort Zone With Washi Tape



When I saw this Atlantic Hearts Sketch I thought about washi tape:


Washi tape is the big thing now... and I have most of the Close to My Heart versions... and I bought a pack with three rolls that screamed my name at Michael's... yet it makes me nervous.  With paper, I move pieces around and maybe try more than one color before I glue it down.  Although you can, if you are very slow and careful, remove washi tape, it just doesn't have the same flexibility if you want to play with your design.  You might say it requires some commitment.  Well it was time for me to get out of my comfort zone and play.  I had several ideas which was okay because I have to send Valentine's Day care packages to the college students in my life which means that I need four valentines.

First I combined Close to My Heart's Silver Geometric tape with the black lace, black geometric and musical notes tapes that I bought at Michael's and, to add to the shine, some narrow strips of Black Glitter paper.  Amie Kiger  would be so proud of me!   Rather than try to trim the washi tape, I just folded it around to the back.  I had to do a little trimming in the corners.  The sentiment is a combination of "A Little Everything" and "Say It in Style" (both retired). 



That pretty, bright red is Tulip which is, unfortunately, retired, so for my next card I switched to Ruby.  I Used CTMH's Ruby Chevron and Slate Polka-Dot with the two black tapes from Michael's and, of course, the black glitter paper.  Usually I sponge on the corresponding ink to hide the white core that shows though after embossing, but this time I left it visible to complement the distressed feel of torn washi tape. 



For my last card in this series I used the black tapes from Michael's, Ruby Chevron tape and the Silver Geometric along with the Black Glitter paper.  After I applied the tape I used a Nestabilities die cut from Spellbinders to punch out the heart.  I was afraid that the Cricut would pull up some of the tape as it sliced along the paper.  (Have any of y'all tried using a Cricut to cut paper that has been covered with washi tape?)  I then repeated the die cut on some black cardstock, placed the washi covered paper on top of the black cardstock, lined up the heart shaped holes and attached them, and then trimmed the black cardstock to form a narrow border.  The plan was to use half a roll of foam tape to attach it to a Ruby card, but after laying the panel on a the Ruby card base, I thought the Ruby border made the card too dark, so I put a square of Ruby cardstock on a Colonial White card base positioned so that the heart would be red but the border would be white.  Then I used half a roll of foam tape...




 Here is a close up so you can how the washi taped panel is popped up with the Floral Accent nestled in the well, so to speak.




Now what about that washi taped heart that I punched out?  I used it to make another card with this week's Freshly Made Sketch:







After having so much fun with washi tape and valentines I continued the fun with a couple non valentines which will be in my next post.  In the meantime, I have to pack some boxes and get them to the Post Office in the morning.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:
Paper:  Ruby, Tulip (retired), Black and Colonial White cardstock, Black Glitter paper
Ink:  Ruby, Tulip (retired), Black
Stamps:  Holiday Tags, A Little Everything (retired), Say It in Style (retired)
Embellishments:  Ruby Chevron, Slate Polka-Dot, and Silver Geometric Wasi Tape, black lace, geometric and musical note washi tape from Michael's, Black sparkles, Base and Bling Floral Accents (retired)
Other:  Nestabilities heart die cut, Paper Lace II embossing folder by Cuddlebug

Friday, February 7, 2014

Color My Heart With Ruby, Sunset, and Cotton Candy



I have some exciting news!  I was invited to be on the design team for the Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge! My first card as a designer is for the Ruby, Sunset and Cotton Candy challenge.  It also features one of the new Hostess Rewards stamps, Unicorn Dreams.  I stamped the unicorn with Versamark, embossed it with Clear Detail powder and then sponged the challenge colors over to make the unicorn appear.  Next I used Post-It notes to mask part of the "Don't quit your day dream" sentiment before inking the stamp with Versamark so that only the word "dream" would be stamped on the card and embossed it with White and Pearl embossing powders mixed together.  To provide the sparkle that all unicorns should have, I used Bitty Sparkles from Close to My Heart and some star shaped rhinestones that I found at Michael's.

Thank you for stopping by!  Now please go over to the Color My Heart Color Dare page to check out some other beautiful creations using Ruby, Sunset, and Cotton Candy.  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all from Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:
Paper:  Ruby and White Daisy cardstock
Ink:  Ruby, Sunset, and Cotton Candy dye ink, Versamark
Stamp:  Unicorn Dreams
Embellishments:  Bitty Sparkles, Star rhinestones (Recollections), Clear Detail embossing powder (retired), White and Pearl embossing powders (Recollections)



Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Something Old, Something New



Marie Flayer AKA the NJ Stamping Queen posted this card on her blog for the Try Stampin' on Tuesday Challenge, a new challenge for me, and I not only loved the card, I was intrigued by the sketch and decided to play along.




This was my first chance to play with Close to My Heart's new paperpack, Skylark.  I decided the left hand long panel needed a bit of brown, so I used this season's petite perk stamp set to add the dragonfly.  While I was at it, I stamped him in second generation ink in the lower left corner.  The panels are all sponged in Chocolate ink which is not one of the colors in the pack, but I prefer it to Desert Sand when it comes to sponging.  A bird from the Skylark Assortment and a few Aqua Dots provided the finishing touches. 

With that card finished, I decided to try a vertical variation using a very old pack, Bliss:



Everything about this card is old and retired.  I cut the butterfly out of the B&T sheet and attached only the body so his wings could pop up.  The other embellishment is a piece of ribbon from the Crème Brulee Ribbon Assortment held in place with a Colonial White Brad which was colored with a Sorbet Alcohol marker (the only non retired item I used) and a Filigree Charm.  The panels were sponged with Grey Flannel.

So there you have it:  Two cards, one made with virtually all new products and one made with retired items.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Materials used, all Close to My Heart unless otherwise noted:

First card:
Paper:  Skylark, Colonial White, Juniper and Kraft cardstock
Ink:  Chocolate
Stamps:  Sincere Expressions, Petite Perks
Embellishments:  Skylark Assortment, Aqua Dots

Second card:
Paper:  Bliss (retired), Colonial White and Grey Flannel (retired) cardstock
Ink:  Grey Flannel ink (retired), Sorbet alcohol marker
Embellishments:  Filigree Charm (retired), Colonial White Brad (retired), Crème Brulee Ribbon Assortment (retired), Brown Opaques (retired)