Thinking Inking

Random CHA sights

Hello! It's been pretty busy at the Copic booth; we've been coloring away. This morning I took a few pictures while I was walking the show with my friend Amy. This one was at KaiserCraft's booth. I really like Kaiser's alterables, especially the wood and mdf ones. Isn't this family tree cute? It's larger than the one I took a picture of last year.

 

How about those Melissa Frances 6 x 6 pads? There is also a Christmas line being released in this size.  I love it that so many patterned paper companies are giving us card makers smaller paper patterns! 

 

Maya Road's samples always wow me. They must have one incredibly talented group of designers. This was just one example of their mini albums.

 

Check out Julie's new brace-less smile! She's lovely either way, but those pearlies are fabulous!

I thought that these Cosmo Cricket Togetherness cards were darling; they were about ATC-sized.

 

Basic Grey's Jovial (Christmas line) had a great vintage feel to it.

What's cuter--this October Afternoon paper line or this layout? Hmmmm. . . Tough call!

Tomorrow is the last day of CHA, but the Supershow (consumer show) starts on Friday. I think my guys are about ready for me to come home.

Thanks for stopping by!

Sneak Peek: Wanted!

My Cosmo Cricket CHA sample preview is almost over; this is it--the last new Mini Deck, Wanted. The Wanted line is one of the older Cosmo Cricket lines, a classic. Now it's in a 6" x 6" pad for card makers, along with a coordinating 6" Ready Set Chipboard pack. Do you have any buckaroos or cowgirls in your life? This line is perfect for them, as well as for masculine cards! I used a Spellbinders Labels Fourteen die (one that's coming out at CHA) for my dust-cloud behind the cowboy, and I printed a sentiment out on my computer and hand-cut it into a banner shape (Rosewood font). Believe it or not, I don't have a stamp set with western sentiments. . . I added a little rustic twine rope to the saddle, attaching it with Ranger's Matte Accents.

 

I love the "I'm the sheriff--that's why!"  sentiment! It make me think of my dad--yours too? "I'm the Dad. That's why. Who ever told you that this was a democracy anyway?" It just so happened that the star shape was a perfect fit to nest into the Spellbinders Nested Stars set--happy accidents! I used a Labels Eight die to cut the bracket bottom of the card, as shown below. Those tips on the stars are some Brass It Up Hot Fix Embellishments. I edged the large star mat in gold paint pen.

 

Click on any picture to enlarge it--hope this helps with the shaped card bottoms!
        

 

Joy

Today I have the last of my Zva Creative CHA cards to share. This purple rhinestone swash was a longer shape, cut in two places to make it fit on my card.

The lilac image is a Crafty Secrets Cotton Scraps piece that I've had in my stash for a while. (I got it here (scroll down toward the bottom of the page), but I don't see it in stock now. There are some other lovely ones though.)

The sentiment is from JustRite Stampers Joyful Hearts Borders and Centers set; I've gotten a lot of mileage out of this set! I used a Spellbinders Labels Ten die to frame the sentiment as well as a Flourish Impressability to texturize the background.

 

Ribbon is some off-white seam binding, and buttons are Papertrey Ink white/Cream Vintage buttons. I also used some PTI Chamomile Distress ink to age the paper edges a bit. Cardstock is some of my old Prism stash (now sold by Bazzill), Intense Amethyst. 

I'm traveling today--Chicago-bound!  I'll try to post pictures from CHA when I get a chance. Thanks for visiting!
 
 

Sneak Peek: Mitten Weather

I have to confess that with Cosmo Cricket's Mitten Weather Mini Deck, I've just scratched the surface here! There are some fabulous pale aqua patterns that I will be using when I'm not on such a tight time-line for getting projects ready.

 

First up is a 5-1/4" square card. Besides the Mitten Weather Mini Deck, I also used the Mitten Weather Ready Set Chipboard. I added a few self-adhesive pearls and a length of seam binding, as well as a tag using Papertrey Inks' Daily Designs Sentiments set, cut with a Spellbinders Labels Four die template. 

 

Next is a sweet Santa card--I love that plaid pattern! The Santa and sleigh are from Mitten Weather Ready, Set Chipboard. I cut the red background with a Spellbinders Labels Fourteen die template (available some time after CHA). The little "Believe" banner is hand cut, stamped with Papertrey's Tree Trimming Trio set. The pearl swatch is a Zva Creative Taupe Double Pearl Flourishes, PE-03CA-112.

 

Since purples are popping out everywhere these days, I wanted to use some of the purple patterns in the Mitten Weather Mini Deck. The angel and snowflake are from the Mitten Weather collection, and the sentiment is from PTI's Silent Night stamp set, cut with a Spellbinders Long Oval Nestability. Bottom border is cut with a Big Scalloped Border Petites die.

I have one more Mitten Weather card made, but it may have to wait until I get back from CHA. I have a few more things to put up in the next day or so before I go.

Thanks for stopping by!

Togetherness Bird Mobile

The little bird paper in my Cosmo Cricket Togetherness Mini Deck made me want to create a little 3D project. . . though I just realized that the I didn't even show the bird paper in the picture! 

Here I used the large and the medium bird dies from the Spellbinders Nested Birds die to cut several thin layers of chipboard and the Togetherness Mini Deck papers. I glued two or three layers of thin chipboard together and a patterned layer on top. To get the back side of the bird, you simply cut three of the birds out of the back side of the paper and flip it over to use it. (By the way, I found out that the Nested Birds die set was a limited edition die and is no longer manufactured. Several store still have them in stock, however.)

I used a Crop-O-Dile to punch holes through the birds and wings (which are made from smaller birds), along with Togetherness Ready, Set, Chipboard pieces on the wings, and toed them together. I ran a thick string down between the two halves of each bird and stuck the halves together with thick foam tape. 

 Tomorrow I'll have some Mitten Weather cards for you. Thanks for visiting!

Sneak Peek: Togetherness

Welcome! Today I'm happy to share my CHA cards for a Cosmo Cricket line that's competing with Early Bird in my paper affections: Togetherness.

 

Banners are making me happy lately--isn't this one sweet? It's from the 12" x 12" Togetherness Ready Set Chipboard sheet, and I cut three of them off to make it work on a card. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's Everyday Button Bits set, heat embossed in Filigree detail white embossing powder.

Kites--you are seeing them everywhere in the papercrafting world these days! Togetherness is perfect for summertime. The tag is from PTI's Just the Ticket set, cut with a Spellbinders Tags Trio die. Ribbon is some Hug Snug Seam Binding.

Finally, I have a simple quilted card which I thought would be perfect for a baby card. Again I used the Just the Ticket set for the sentiment. (That set has a permanent place on my desk.) I think the bird pattern is probably my favorite of all of the Togetherness Mini Deck papers. 

That's it for tonight. I have one more Togetherness project that I'm working on, as well as two more lines coming up in the next few days. If you're coming to CHA, I'll be working at the Copic booth for the Trade Show and the Papertrey Ink booth for the Supershow. Hope to see you there!

July Zva Blog Hop Winners Announced

Welcome! I am tickled pink to announce that one of the Zva Creative package winners came from the commenters on this blog! So without further ado, Random.org picked number 27 Karen Walker; congrats, Karen! I'm e-mailing you right now. Now, be sure to check these blogs for the other four winners of a $30 Zva prize package:

Veronica Goh

Julia Stainton

Kim Moreno

Jillian Deiling Cassity

So, how about another CHA card today? When I received these little Zva pearl-outline trees, I stared at them, and they just stared back. . . I wasn't quite sure what to do with them!  I was accustomed to making pearl and rhinestone projects formal and dressy, but these trees struck me as a little more casual. 

Then I had this little idea that maybe I could paper-piece behind them. What do you think?

I used some Cosmo Cricket Earth Love and Nutmeg Mini Deck papers to create the tree leaves, trunks, grass, and dark sky behind them. I chose a JustRite Stampers sentiment to go with my little tree trio, from the Joyful Heart Centers and Borders set and cut it with a Classic Oval Spellbinders die.  I used a Papertrey Ink Woodgrain Impression Plate on Kraft cardstock for the card base.

That's it--a pearly guy-card. Who knew? I think I like those little trees! Thanks for visiting.

Pixie-liscious Sneak Peek!

Are you getting tired of seeing the words "sneak peek?" It happens twice a year--so much fun new stuff, all in the course of a couple of weeks. . . Today I have a few Cosmo Cricket Pixie-liscious cards to share with you. (The entire line can be seen on this post.)

The girl pixie from the Pixie-liscious Ready Set Chipboard is one of my favorite pieces. Here I used it on a square card base (5-1/4").  I cut a round mat with a Spellbinders Plain Circle Nestability and left the die in place while I airbrushed some Copic BG13 marker for sky. The stem, leaf, and grass are all hand-cut from Papertrey Ink's Chartreuse wool felt. Buttons and grosgrain ribbon are PTI Plum Pudding. Sentiment is from PTI's Everyday Button Bits stamp set. The bottom scalloped layers are die cut with a Spellbinders Big Scalloped Borderabilities Petite die.

 

Here again papers are from the Pixie-liscious Mini Deck and chipboard from its coordinating Ready Set Chipboard. I used a couple of sizes of the Spellbinders Labels Eight dies, along with a Tags Trio die for the sentiment. Sentiment is from Papertrey's Mega Mixed Messages set. Ribbon is some white Hug Snug Seam binding that I dyed with Copic V06 and 09Various Ink (refill). Tag is stamped in Versamagic Tea Leaves and Purple Hydrangea ink.

Finally, I used the huge butterfly from the 12" x 12" Ready Set Chipboard, along with a smaller frame from the 6" Ready Set Chipboard. I used a string of rhinestones  up the center of the butterfly and some Lavender Moon Satin for the ribbon. Sentiment is from Papertrey's Vintage Picnic Sentiments set.  I cut the bracket border with one side of a Labels Eight die.

That's it--isn't Pixie-liscious a sweet line? I am working on the Togetherness line now and headed for Mitten Weather after that. ;-}

Thanks for stopping by!

________

P.S. If you are looking for the Spellbinders Big Event blogs for today, here are the links:

July 20

·    Kerilee Sereika

·    Kazan Clark 

Zva Creative July DT Blog Hop

The Zva Blog Hop has now ended; winners will be posted Wednesday. :-) Thanks!

________________

Welcome to a stop on the July Zva Creative Blog Hop!

The Zva Designers are joining together today to share a project that we have created using some of our favorite Zva Creative products. I am hoping that you will take some time to join us for a little bit of fun again this month! 

 The Blog Hop begins at Kim Hughes' blog. She will have the complete list of all blogs that are participating in case there is a glitch along the way. If you would like to play along, I am linking to one of the Zva designers and that designer is linking to the next and so on. There are nineteen design team members, so be prepared to be inspired along the way. Hidden on five of the blogs is a Zva Creative prize package --YAY! Those blogs will be randomly chosen after the hop is over, so it's important to leave a comment on as many blogs as you can along the way. 

This Blog Hop runs through midnight U.S. Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, July 20. The five winners will be announced on Wednesday, July 21, on each of the winning blogs; the full list will be found on Kim Hughes' blog . We will do our best to notify each winner, but it's best if you can pop in to all of the blogs once again on Wednesday, plus, you never know what kind of inspirational creation that you may find there. All you need to do is leave a comment on this Zva Blog Hop post. You do not need to leave a comment on each and every designer's blog post to qualify. The more times you leave a comment along the blog hop path , however, the more chances you will have to be one of the lucky winners. 

I chose a new Zva Creative rhinestone and pearl leaf element to show you today--one of my CHA  pieces. I really wanted the leaves to stand out, so I chose a clear card base, adding some K&Company paper for the inside layer of the card, attaching it with a single strip of Scor-Tape.

I chose a sentiment and frame from the 2" Hope Borders and Centers set by JustRite Stampers, cutting the sentiment with a Spellbinders Plain Circle Nestability and the frame with a Labels One die. I loved the sentiment and thought that its leafy frame complemented the Zva flourish. Ribbon is some Rayon seam binding, and flower is a Zva accent.

Please hop on over to see Lynn Mercurio. Thank you SO MUCH for joining us!

P.S. Since you've waded through a LONG post today, I thought I would share one more of my Zva Creative CHA pieces below--another new leaf rhinestone pattern, nested with some K&Company paper, layered to create the raised flowers.

 

Happy, Happy Birthday

Hello! Today I have a simple birthday card using Alli Miles' Birthday Bash Sentiments set from the Papertrey Ink July Release. I used colors together that would never have occurred to me--Melon Berry and Plum Pudding. Why? Because it's close to what's in some new Cosmo Cricket Pixie-liscious paper--that's why! (I have more Pixie-lisciousness to share on Tuesday--these were some scraps from my CHA cards.)

For ink I used some PTI Melon Berry ink and Versamagic Purple Hydrangea. Cardstock is Stamper's Select White and Lavender Moon. I used two Spellbinders dies, a Long Oval Nestability and a new Labels Fourteen die that will be available some time after CHA. Satin ribbon is Melon Berry, and Vintage Buttons are Plum Pudding. I used Scor Tape to scrunch the ribbon a bit. (Yes, I'm trying to get over my big bow addiction still. . .) That's it--a clean and simple sentiment card.

Don't forget to check out the Spellbinders Big Event blogs for Sunday and Monday as well:

Sunday, July 18 

·    Gina Hanson

·    Ashley Cannon Newell

Monday, July 19 

·    Mona Pendleton

·    Heidi Blankenship

Thanks for stopping by!