Week 29 Linky - Sea World Layout

I learned so many cool thing at CTMH Convention, but one disappointing thing to me as a scrapper was to learn that CTMH will no longer be carrying all the colors of cardstock in bulk packs. At first, I was really upset since I use a lot of cardstock, but then I decided to see this as a challenge instead of a roadblock. This layout is a result of some creative thinking plus a technique I've used many times before: brayering. I created the background paper using White Daisy cardstock with Grey Flannel ink and touches of Lagoon ink brayered over it. The photo mat, paper strip, and all the bubbles were created using three layers of ink: Crystal Blue, then Lagoon, then touches of Pacifica. Don't you love how the brayering allows different layers of ink to show through, reflecting the shades of blue in the water? This is one layout that you will want to click on the image to enlarge so you can see the detail of the brayering!



Recipe:
Down By the Sea & Field Trip Alphabet stamp set
White Daisy cardstock
Crystal Blue, Lagoon, Pacifica, Greg Flannel, Black & Versamark ink
Clear embossing powder
Craft Color-Ready Borders
Blue Sparkles
3-D foam tape

***If you are participating in the 52 Layouts Challenge, please use the link below to link your layout to this post. You have until Friday at 11:59PM PST to post your week 29 layout. The link will allow you to post a title and thumbnail that link to your site, where we can see the layout in all its glory! Note: please do not post from a password protected site that will require us to input a password before viewing.

Autumn/Winter 2011 Idea Book

I'm back home from the annual Close to my Heart Convention for consultants in Anaheim, and I have brand new Autumn/Winter Idea Books to share! They feature larger print so it's easier to read, larger photos of the artwork so you can see more of the details, and - you guessed it - larger images of the stamp sets. The stamps will be shown at their actual size, so no more guessing on what size your stamps will be.



Some of our exciting new products:
* The NEW "Art Philosophy" Cricut cartridge that boasts 700 shapes, including stars, hearts, tags, banners, flowers, boxes, card bases, 3-D items, and much, much more! For just $99, this CTMH-exclusive collection also includes 3 D-size stamp sets as well as 3 sheets of dimensional elements that work with it (a total retail value of $124.69 for just $99!) Plus many of the other new stamp set images in our Idea Book coordinate and can also be used with it.
* NEW lower stamp set pricing (D sets went from $22.95 to $17.95, C sets from $18.65 to $13.95, B sets from $13.95 to $9.95, and A sets from $7.95 to $6.95)!
* 8 NEW re-configured paper packs include 2 sheets each of 3 B&T duos designs, with each side featuring a unique design, and 6 sheets of cardstock for $9.95.
* A large variety of NEW embellishments in felt, metal, corrugated chipboard, and more.
* 6 NEW Stamps of the Month that you can now purchase for just $5 with a $50 purchase or purchase alone at their new retail price of just $17.95.

All products from the NEW Idea Book will be available for you to start ordering from me on August 1st, 2011!!

Heart 2 Heart Sketch Challenge #6 - Car Wash

I've had this layout done for a while, but I had to wait until today to post it because it's for the Heart 2 Heart blog sketch challenge for this month. Mary very kindly invited me to join the design team as the sketch challenge gal, so here's my first sketch! Featuring four uncropped 4" X 6" photos and three 3" x 4" photos, this sketch is great for photos that you already have printed or for times when you can't print out odd size photos. You can also add a Flip-Flap to one or both of the bottom photos on the right hand page if you need to include more photos. I cut my wavy border using the curvy cutter from CM, but you could combine several Color Ready Borders for a similar look. Hope you get a chance to try out the sketch. Remember, it's a starting place, so feel free to play with it until it fits your needs.

The sketch:


My Layout:


Recipe:
A Tulip & Notice the Details stamp sets
Fanfare Level 2 papers
Sky & Sunny Yellow cardstock
Pacifica, Cranberry & Black ink
Pacifica marker
DE Monograms "C", "A", "R", "W", "S" & "H"
Blue & Red sparkles
Cranberry ribbon
Liquid Glass

Close to My Heart Convention

Tomorrow morning I am heading down to Anaheim for the Close to My Heart Convention. The convention will be held at the Disneyland Hotel, so my hubby and kids get to go play at Disneyland while I learn about all the exciting new products that CTMH has in store for us! I don't know if I will be able to post anything until I arrive home on Sunday, so have a great weekend. I know I will!

Thinking of You Card

I needed to make a card that would hold 4" x 6" pictures, so I decided to use the "Ribbon Closure" pattern from Originals. The pattern actually shows the ribbon being tied above the top flap, but I realized the recipient would have to unthread the ribbon from the flap before opening the card. Therefore, I put my ribbon tie on the lower portion of the card. I'm still trying to use up the rest of my Perfect Day Level 2 paper pack, so I chose that plus a couple of older stamp sets.



Recipe:
Comforting Thoughts & Treasures stamp sets
Perfect Day Level 2 papers
Sorbet & Colonial White cardstock
Cocoa ink
Cocoa grosgrain ribbon
Spring Blossom Just Blooms
Tulip craft buttons
Colonial White embroidery floss

Week 28 Layout Linky - Play Time

Patti over at Split Coast Stampers posted this Thursday challenge, and I thought it would be fun to incorporate it into my layout:

"I love the summer time! I have a mile long list of what I enjoy about summer but for this challenge we will go with 3 of my favorites. I would like you to design your page around the following list.
• Lemonade....I love lemonade so lets make YELLOW the main color used in the page.
• Splashing in the pool what fun that is....so lets add some BLUE somewhere on the page too.
• and my favorite outfit for summer....a bathing suit, flip flops and sunglasses!
• If your bathing suit is one piece use one decorative edge, if your suit is a two piece use two decorative edges.
• Flip flops...use at least two pictures
• Sunglasses.. use ribbon someplace on the page.
Not too hard of a challenge but sounds like fun! Your page DOES NOT have to be a summer page just follow the recipe and make any type of page!"

I also used Got Sketch 118 for the design. If you are interested in doing Patti's challenge, just follow the Split Coast Stampers link and post your layout in the gallery.



Recipe:
Zippidee Level 2 papers & My Stickease
Black, Honey, Indian Corn Blue & Bamboo cardstock
Cranberry, Indian Corn Blue & Honey ink
Indian Corn Blue marker
Kraft Color Ready Borders
Cranberry grosgrain ribbon
Staple
Stickles (Ranger)

***If you are participating in the 52 Layouts Challenge, please use the link below to link your layout to this post. You have until Friday at 11:59PM PST to post your week 28 layout. The link will allow you to post a title and thumbnail that link to your site, where we can see the layout in all its glory! Note: please do not post from a password protected site that will require us to input a password before viewing.

Let's Get Peachy Challenge - Carnival Layout

The gals over at Let's Get Peachy issued a recipe challenge this month. We were supposed to pick at least four ingredients from a list and incorporate them into our layout. I chose 1. use a punch, 2. use bling, 3. do some tearing, and 4. use paint or mist. I kept going back and forth between bling and buttons, but the bling won! I almost always stamp on my layouts, but I decided to paint my title instead this time. I also painted the edges of the two large photos. The layout design is based on a sketch from the Nuts About Sketches blog.



Recipe:
DCWV Summer Stack
Sky, Honey & White Daisy cardstock
Blue Sparkles
Ocean Reef Blue paint (Delta Ceramcoat)
Star punch (unknown source)

Heart 2 Heart Color Challenge - Dino Days

Heart 2 Heart blog is having a color challenge this week, and the required colors seemed to go pretty well with these photos. Love it when that happens! For my blue, I chose Outdoor Denim. The layout design is based on two different patterns from Imagine: the left hand pages from Understudy and Rhapsody. Since CTMH doesn't have any dinosaur stamps right now, I found some dinosaur images on the internet and traced and cut them out using my Wishblade. I saved the file for future use, but hopefully CTMH will come out with a dinosaur stamp set soon - pretty please!!!



Recipe:
Lucky stamp set
Lucky Level 2 papers
Bamboo, Barn Red & Colonial White cardstock
Barn Red, Outdoor Denim & Desert Sand ink
Outdoor Denim marker
Tan hemp
Outdoor Denim Bigger Brads

Week 27 Layout Linky - Discovery Science Center

Wow, two posts in one day! That may be a first for me. I finished up two layouts today, so I want to share at least one. This layout uses the Small Packages pattern from Imagine. I cut out the "Discovery" part of my title using my Wishblade - love that machine!



Recipe:
Atomic Caps Alphabet & Gear Up stamp sets
Tinkerin' Level 2 papers
Sunny Yellow, Sunflower & Colonial White cardstock
Clover Meadow, Holiday Red, Sunflower, Twilight & Grey Wool ink
Sunflower Bigger Brads
3-D foam tape

***If you are participating in the 52 Layouts Challenge, please use the link below to link your layout to this post. You have until Friday at 11:59PM PST to post your week 27 layout. The link will allow you to post a title and thumbnail that link to your site, where we can see the layout in all its glory! Note: please do not post from a password protected site that will require us to input a password before viewing.

Mayberry Card Workshop

I don't have my layout ready, so I thought I'd share the Mayberry card workshop that I did in June. Using five different card patterns from Jeanette Lynton's books, I created ten cards. Hope you like!



Down the Middle and Winning Combination:


Sweet & Simple and Top Band (revised):


Medallion (revised):