Stamp of the Month - Candlelight Garden

WOW! - can you believe it?... today is the 1st December and the last month of 2015!! I know that means many of you are crafting away getting the last of your Christmas cards and gifts made, but I thought today we might change the pace a bit and celebrate  friendships.

As I reflect on 2015 I know Close To My Heart and the friendships it brings has played a huge part in my year and for that, I am very grateful -  these "friendships mean everything"... and this leads into the card I want to share with you using the December Stamp of the Month - Candlelight Garden.

This stamp set includes a fabulous Mason Jar image. Mason Jars are so on trend at the moment and offer so many creative options. I stamped the image in black
Memento Ink onto some Watercolour Paper, then using Close To My Heart's Watercolour Paints  painted a translucent wash of blue paint to represent water in the bottom of the jar.

I then used a portion of the stems from the floral image found in the stamp set to attach some 3D flowers. These flower were made from a variety of different sizes of floral shapes, found in the Cricut® Artistry Collection. These were also coloured with a wash of pink Watercolour Paints. I love the texture and depth this created and how different it made the shapes look...if you click here your will see a card I previously created with these same shapes using a totally different technique. The lovely sparkly centres of the flowers are from the Bling Gems Gold Assortment . The leaves were cut from the Cricut® Art Philosophy Collection in Sweet Leaf Cardstock.

I used Black and Pixie cardstock as the base for the card design and complimented it with black & white patterns from the La Vie En Rose Paper Pack. The sentiment can also be found in the Candlelight Garden Stamp Set and the splattered areas were created with the Ink Blot Stamp Set. The gold foil heart is a sticker from the Fundamental Stickers Basics Pack and the card was embellished with white gems from the Grey Enamel Gems pack.

I've also made a blue version of this card design using Lagoon Cardstock and
Glacier Extra Thick Twine. The heart sticker can also be found in the Fundamental Stickers Basics Pack and the Thank You sentiment is from the Stamp of the Month stamp set.

When you spend $75 you can purchase this Stamp of the Month set for just $7.50 - that is a saving of over 70%...  when ordering from my Online Shop  you will be prompted to add this set before you finalise your order and check out - and don't forget to browse our CyberWeek Sale... for five days only, a selection of 39 items from Close To My Heart’s current product inventory can be yours for 25% off retail price! Get supplies you’ll need to make handcrafted gifts and cards for the holidays, including our
Cricut^® Artfully Sent Collection, at an amazing discount!

If you pop over to my Facebook Page - you will see the complete list of items available and some other Super Savings in my personal Daily Deals!! - how awesome is that...lots of great crafting specials for you to cash in on this holiday season!?

Happy Shopping!
Chris xx


 

Convention 2015 - Make It From Your Heart

I am currently in the lovely city of Brisbane saying goodbye to the 2015 Close To My Heart Convention we had a great time, learning, crafting and generally having a whole lot of fun!

One of the things I love most about convention is catching up with my interstate consultant friends we have had such a fab time socialising but we also got to share creative and business ideas too. Friday evening we had our team meeting... it was awesome!  - my head is spinning with ideas and my heart is full of gratitude for the consultant sisterhood and all that was shared.

Prior to the event I had prepared 180 scrapbook page kits for a "make & take" segment I was presenting about using page sketches as the foundation for your own unique decorative designs.

This is the sketch we used:

We then worked with the delightful cards from the  Picture My Life™ Beautiful You Scrapbooking Program and the La Vie En Rose Paper Pack to create a layout. Everyone was asked to put there own creative spin on it - selecting a combination of decorative elements from the following packs, Gold & Black Fundamental Assortment, Whimsy Fundamental Stickers, Gold Sequins and Bling Gems along with
Pixie Extra Thick Twine and Gold Foil Trim.

These are two of my pages... I love the colour combination of Black, Pink and Gold. These pages were also auctioned off during the Awards Dinner on Saturday for Operation Smile. I am so proud to say that they raised enough $$ to grant almost 2 smiles and you couldn't ask for more than that....very very special!!

If you follow me on Instagram (chrissyml) or Facebook (Close To My Heart Crafting with Chris Lothian) I have posted some close up photo of these layouts.

 

This is one of my single page interpretations of the foundation sketch - and I already have the perfect photo waiting on my camera to finish it off!

 

 

I hope you have enjoyed this little peek and some of what has been happening here in Brisbane. I am hoping to post some more from Convention in the next few days so don't forget to pop back!



 

Hello Darlings

....have you missed me??? I know I have missed you and my craft room! Sadly, I have spent the past few weeks laid up with a nasty flu and sinus infection - not much fun at all!! However, I am happy to report I am on the mend and the lovely spring weather, along with my blossoming garden, has put a smile back on my face.

This is a pic of a dwarf cherry tree blossoming in my front garden - it is very pretty... so you can see why I am smiling!

I have managed some "playtime" in my craft room this week too... and I hope this card I created for a sassy girlfriend brings a smile, if not a giggle, to her day.

I combined a few of my favourite new "pink" products from the current Annual Inspirations Catalogue to make this card and I love how well they all worked together.

The glossy accented black background is from the new Paper Fundamentals Basics. The pink striped paper can be found in the Kaleidoscope Paper Pack, the black striped paper with the Hello Darling sentiment is actually a Picture My Life™ card...  from the gorgeous new Beautiful You collection. It was embellished with some Pink Enamel Gems then I added a further sentiment - "Shine On You Crazy Diamond"  - that can be found in the Diamonds Are Forever stamp set . The little pink diamond in the centre of the sentiment is one of the stickers found in the Kaleidoscope Complements pack. You really need to check out all the new revamped Complements packs - they are amazing value for only $9.00  this pack contains the following: 2 – 6" x 6" Coordinating Sticker Sheets, 1 – 6" x 6" Thin Plastic Sticker Sheet (looks like vellum on your pages) and assorted Chipboard Die-Cuts. Each of the My Reflections™  range of products has a co-ordinating Complement pack and they are jammed packed with a variety of embellishments, vellum, kraft, chipboard and plastic die-cuts along with sheets of cute stickers - click here to browse through the collection.

Close To My Heart have had some great stamp sets available only during September for National Stamping Month and as there are only 5 days left for this promotion don't forget to place your orders - you can order by following this link to my Online Store - also head on over to my Facebook page and scroll through the posts featuring some of the beautiful art work created with these sets. They simply are a "must have" and as an added bonus... anyone who places an order over the weekend  (26th-27th September) will go in the draw to receive an additional stamp set - a gift from Me to You!!

These are the 3 sets available:

 I hope you have had a great week too and your weekend is even better!

Happy Crafting!

Chris x

Treats for Everyone!

Thank you for your patience over the last couple of weeks while I have been making changes to my blog... I think we are almost there and back on track. I've still been crafting behind the scenes and will try and update you on my creations over the next few days. You will notice that I now have a page listing some of my kits that are available to purchase. It will make it easier for those of you unable to attend my workshops.

June as also brought with it a new Stamp of the Month called Ice-cream Dream which is such a treat!

This is the ideal stamp set for those of who love to the colour and our Shin-Han Markers are just perfect for this. I used a combination of my favourite colours to create this card.

ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ Cherry Pink Marker
ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ Tender Pink Marker
ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ Pastel Peach Marker
ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ Barely Beige Marker
ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ Clay Marker

Along with my favourite marker colours, I combined the Stamp of the Month with what has fast become my most used stamp set - a D size set with 37 images and a sentiment for every occasion. This month's Stamp of the Month can also be paired up with the Treats of Friendship to create really "yummy" art work. I used the same colour combination of Shin-Han Markers for colouring the images as the previous card. However, I added some depth to the donut image with a touch of the ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ Light Orange Marker and the Colourless Blender Marker to soften the colours.

When colouring with alcohol markers it is important you make "friends" with your ink and Colourless Blender ... you will notice that I didn't wait long enough for the Archival Black Ink to dry and this caused some slight smudging of the outline when I started to colour with the markers. The name Colourless Blender is a little misleading as it isn't the "magic marker" that will blend two or more colours together it actually re-wets the maker ink ( that as already been applied to the paper ) meaning you can manipulate and push ink/colour around and erase away portions of marker ink already laid down. I always suggest treading carefully with its use, so you don't end up wetting your paper too much and pushing colour outside the outline of the image... it does take practise!

 

I hope you are enjoying your long weekend and have time to enjoy some colouring fun of you own.

 

Friday Friend Feature #19

Today I want to share with you some pretty pink cards made by my team member Alicia...  that I know any Mum would love to receive for Mother's Day... they are simply gorgeous!

 

Each of the cards has been pieced together using the 4" x 6" cards from the  Picture My Life™ Chantilly Scrapbooking Program - they are the perfect base from which to build any card design. The sentiment has been stamped in Cotton Candy  ink using the Happy to be Friends stamp set. The finsihed cards have been embellished with ribbon, Pixie Extra Thick Twine and Flamingo Dots.

If you are wanting to make your Mum a treasured card for Mother's Day you still have time!! -  and I am sure these lovely cards will inspire you... we also have this sketch which will help the process a little too.

Enjoy your weekend and the special time you share with your Mum on Sunday.

Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #105

It is time for another sketch over at the Atlantic Hearts Challenge Blog...



.. and today I can give testimony to how quick a card can come together when you use a sketch design. As I was "cleaning" my craft room  (getting a little distracted in the process) and organising & filing away paper scraps, pre-coloured images and die-cut shapes I came across a little collection of pieces that co-ordinated beautifully and I knew would be perfect for this sketch... amazing what you can do with scraps!!

I reversed the basic sketch design layering some small pieces of cardstock, some pink & purple paper (from a yet to be released paper pack!! - so stay tuned!) then cut a strip from a card found in the For Always - Picture My Life Program to form a border. I then added some faux stitching lines with a black Marvy® Uchida® LePen™ Journaling Pen.

The cluster of flowers was created with some small flower images from the Wavy Blooms Stamp Set - they were coloured using ShinHan Touch Twin Markers and a layering technique in colours of Cherry Pink, Tender Pink, Peony Purple and Lavender. The centres were embellished with Black Epoxy Bubbles. The flowers were then layered over a flourish and leaf shape left over from a previous project cut from the Cricut® Art Philosophy Collection.


Don't forget to pop on over to the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge and take a peek at all the inspiring ideas - play along with us and post your creations based on this sketch too... it is a lot of fun!



 

Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #101

It is time for another sketch over at the Atlantic Hearts Challenge Blog and I love the corner cluster and classic simplicity of this one.

...and being such a "pink flower addict" I knew instantly the colours and stamp sets I would choose for this card design.

The flowers were stamped in a combination of Pixie, Cotton Candy and Canary inks, they were all fussy cut and layered into the corner of the card design. To add a little more visual interest to the card I used some 3D Foam Tape to "pop-up" the Pixie coloured flower. The flower and leaf stamps are both featured in the newly released Shower Flower stamp set. It has an array of  lovely floral designs. The sentiment is from one of my favourite Hostess Rewards Stamp Sets - Better with a Friend - the best reason I know to host a Close To My Heart gathering with your crafty friends! I also love how you get multiple designs of cards in the  Picture My Life programs and I use these often as an extra paper source for my cards - the yellow printed paper I have mounted my sentiment onto is actually a re-sized card from the Hopscotch Picture My Life Scrapbooking Program. It complimented the colour palette of this card perfectly.

Don't forget to pop on over to the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge and take a peek at all the inspiring ideas the Design Team as for you - play along with us and post your creations based on this sketch too... it is a lot of fun!
 

Friday Friend Feature #18

I have recently spent a weekend with my Close To My Heart consultant colleagues and the camaraderie it is one of the things I most love about my job - the sharing, the friendship, admiration and not to forget " the crafty fun"!

The projects I want to share with you today were both shared and inspired by two of my very special consultant friends - Maddy and Diane.

During some creative playtime Maddy taught us how to make a pinterest inspired cascading card with a 3D floral twist. I have such a flower fetish that it didn't take me long to fall in love with this idea and find a new addiction! I also loved Maddy's inspiring use of the little frames found in the March Stamp of the Month. A perfect way to add a sentiment to this card - don't forget there are only a few more days to left  to add this stamp set to your collection too!

The flowers and leaves are all shapes found in the  Cricut® Art Philosophy Collection and were created in much the same way as the floral idea I shared back in February... you will find that post here. The puffy glitter stickers really make these cards sparkle and I am going to be sad to see them discontinued at the end of the month - if you are a fan of these puffy embellishments too?... don't forget to place your order by the 31st March to avoid disappointment.

 

The second project I want to share with you was inspired by a notebook given to my friend Diane as a gift when she attended the Close To My Heart incentive trip in Hawaii - yes! as consultants we can earn all expenses paid overseas holidays - how fantastic is that??? and who doesn't like a pretty little notebook to record their dreams, aspirations and special memories??

 

The notebook I created was made by covering a journal/exercise book with some of the gorgeous new papers and embellishments due to be released on the 1st April - I know I am a tease but how pretty are they?? and how lucky am I to have these lovelies to play with already?? Another benefit of being a consultant is the opportunity to craft with new goodies before they are released!

 

If you are looking for a chance to shine in business, creativity and be paid for doing what you love? -  then becoming a Close To My Heart Consultant  may be just what you are looking for. March is the perfect time to join us and I would love to help you with this journey.

 

 

 - click here to find out more or email me at lotfam@iinet.net.au and what ever you have planned for this weekend... I hope it is full of fun, friendship and crafty pleasures!

March Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

 

 

Welcome to our Stamp of the Month Blog Hop!

We are featuring the March Stamp of the Month - called Choose Happy...it is jammed packed with 14 individual stamp images.  If you have come here from Tracey Pierce's blog, you are on the right path! The blog hop is a great big circle, so you can start here with me and work your way all around.  If you get lost along the way, you’ll find the complete list of participating consultants on Melinda’s Blog - simply click here.

This month we have 70  Close To My Heart Consultants sharing their creations featuring the Stamp of the Month combined with lots of other wonderful Close To My Heart products. Be sure to check out all the fabulous art work everyone has to share - just click on the link at the end of this post to begin the journey!

Each month I sing the praises of the Stamp of the Month concept and the stamp sets Close To My Heart have on offer...  not only can you purchase them at a discount price but they are some of the most versatile stamp sets you will find. The images in this set contain lots of whimsical curly cues and scallops that can be both funky and fun or sweet and classical... as you will see from the cards I am sharing today.

Both these cards are based on Sketch Pattern 25 in the Make It from Your Heart - Volume 2 - "how to" book - a fabulous resource for inspiration at your fingertips!!

This card combines a number of different paper packs - Heartstrings, Hopscotch and the Fundamentals Whimsy Assortment . I have also teamed 2 of my favourite Hostess Rewards Stamp Sets  - "A Thing Well Done" (Butterfly) &  "Variety of Thanks" ... these sets are featured in the current Seasonal Expressions Idea Book/Catalogue which will retire at the end of March... with the sentiments and frame from the Choose Happy set - they all worked so well together.

My 2nd card although based on the same card pattern is much more bold and contemporary in design. All the stamped images were stamped in Archival Black Ink and coloured with ShinHan Touch Twin Markers - colours used: Peony Purple, Leaf Green,Tender Pink and Cherry Pink. The flower embellishments are images from the Lovely Birthday with Clear Sparkles in the centres. The dotted paper used can be found in the Brushed Paper Pack and the striped paper in the Scaredy Cat Paper Pack the colours co-ordinated beautifully with the colours of the markers.

Thanks for visiting my blog and taking a "peek" at my card projects..... and if you haven't already been there?? -  now is the time to "Hop" on over to Judy Faye Garners's  blog and see the art work she has created for you... don't forget to visit all the other Consultants at their blogs to view some great crafting inspiration and fun ideas! Remember, the Stamp of the Month is only available until the end of February!  Contact your Close To My Heart Consultant (or click here) to see how you can purchase this stamp set and receive a discount!....order now and create your own "Happy" masterpieces!

 

November Stamp of the Month - It's the Little Things

It's the first day of a new month and with it comes a brand new Stamp of the Month to showcase. While today's project maybe all pink & pretty it still follows on from the Christmas themed posts of the past few weeks...how? you ask?...well, this time around I'm not creating Christmas cards or decorations but making personalised gifts for the special people in my life....and what could be better than unique "one of a kind" Mini Albums. Close To My Heart's Hip Pic Albums are raw kraft chipboard style albums with 16 blank pocket pages... perfect for customising to suit the personality of the recipient....and this month's Stamp of the Month has an array of floral images, ideal for decorating these type of projects.

This was such a fun stamp set to "play" with...I simply chose my favourite Ink Colours and randomly stamped the floral images over sheets of White Daisy Cardstock Then one at a time I cut out each image. I did this while sitting back watching a movie with my husband...love my telly time but I can't sit idle. Although some of the images are quite small, my Micro-Tip Scissors make the job so easy and allow me to cut in and around all those intricate little areas. Next I added embellishments to the centre of each flower...choosing a mixture of Flamingo Dots, Black Epoxy Bubbles and Bitty Sparkles and then layered some of the smaller images onto the larger ones. The leaf images were also hand cut and then layered onto some other leaves cut from the Art Philosophy Cricut Collection. I cut these leaves from Sweet Leaf Cardstock and then randomly stamped Pear Ink all over the top using the rose image from the Pick a Posey stamp...this added some depth & texture. This rose image is a fantastic way to add background texture to small areas. After everything was cut and layered it was just a matter of arranging the stamped images onto the cover of my album. I thought this album would be a great little book to place those one-off candid snap shots that don't have a home in larger album projects.

Here is a little peek at some of the pages...I have decided to follow the same pink & black colour scheme throughout the whole album... and embellish each page with more floral images found in November's Stamp of the Month...I'm a fan of consistency LOL! I have also added some of the metal charms from the Wanderful Assortment - these charms have great captions such as "snap-shots", "laugh" and "explore"...and sort of became the "icing on my cake"!

When you place an order of $75 or more in Close To My Heart products here in my Online Shop you can purchase this D-size stamp It's the Little Things set valued at $27 for just $5 — that’s over 70% off retail! ( available for one month only ) and with 15 images that is amazing value for money!

If you have stopped by blog today to follow my art work or simply stumbled here by accident I would so "love" you to leave a comment...it would really make my day!

Artfully Sent - Thank You Card

This weekend we have experienced the most beautiful Spring weather and it made me think of this "Pop-Up" card I created last week using the Artfully Sent Cricut Collection - this little pot of flowers simply oozes Springtime.

 

 

I combined my favourite colours of Hollyhock and Pixie along with the pink patterned B&T Duos™ Paper from the Brushed Collection to form the basis of the card. I then used some Olive and Chocolate cardstock to add some contrast and to bring my pot of flowers to life. The additional leaves were cut from the Art Philosophy Cricut Collection and embellished with a single Silver Sequin - I love using the sequin assortments to add finishing touches. The "You're Awesome" sentiment comes from the "Just to Say" stamp set that is included as part of the Artfully Sent Cricut Collection and stamped in Chocolate Ink.

 

My eldest daughter was fascinated with the "Pop-Up" feature of the card - she even called me a creative genius - ha ha! - and I decided to go with that illusion....she doesn't need to know that the cartridge is really the creative genius behind this clever card does she?? - LOL!! Truly the Artfully Sent Cricut Collection can make anyone look like a creative genius - the designs and ideas are brilliant!

 

The card base for this "Pop-Up" design has a blank front and back which is a great feature of the Artfully Sent Cricut Collection. It allows you to personalise the cards you create. I decided to cut additional flower icons and carry the potted flower theme to the front of my card. The flower pot I used is actually the "relief" (left over / cut-out piece) from one of the "Pocket-Card" designs. Again, it was embellished with leaves cut from the Art Philosophy Cricut Collection. Then I added some extra flowers -  a metal shape from the Brushed Assortment and some stamped images from the Lovely Birthday stamp set. The white scallop mat was also cut from the Art Philosophy Cricut Collection...I added some faux stitching to it with a chocolate coloured pen...that I turned my craft room upside down looking for!! - don't you hate it when you know you have something but can't remember where you might have put it last!?!!

 

 

 

After I pieced the front panel of the card together I decided to round the corners of the card, both on the inside and outside - not just to soften the look but to also have it complement the rounded corners of the scallop mat. I think it finished it off perfectly!

 

The Artfully Sent Cricut Collection is a "must-have" for any card maker...and during the month of October I will be giving away this complete Collection - valued at $130 to one lucky reader of my blog...

 

..for your chance to win** simply:-

 

1). Place an order of any value in my Online Shop between now & the 30th October

and

2). Leave a comment here or on my Facebook Page

 

Click here to see what is included in the collection.

 

** This offer is valid only for residents of Australia and made available through Chris Lothian - Close To My Heart Independent Consultant. It will not be honoured by the Company or any other Consultant. The winner will be drawn at random and announced on the 1st Nov.

 

Good Luck!

Pretty Petals

I've just spent the most wonderful 3 day weekend playing and sharing all things crafty with my Close To My Heart community of friends - we inked and embossed up a storm....and as quoted by one friend - had the "most funest time ever"!

This is one of my cards from the weekend combining both wet and dry embossing techniques, some ink play and a lovely floral stamp set called Pretty Petals - which is also one of our Cricut compatible stamp sets.

 The glossy black flower was created with Black Pigment ink and Clear Embossing Powder. The flower image had been stamped onto some white cardstock I had customised earlier with Pixie and Canary ink. To create this unique patterned paper I smeared the 2 colours of ink onto my All Purpose Mat then spritzed with water and salt, which in turned created a nice spotty effect.... it is also the salt that gives the embossed flower it's glittery appearance. I LOVE playing with my inks to produce these special effects and I'd love to show you how too! - simply contact me at lotfam@iinet.net.au to book your own creative playtime session.

 

I used the Score Board to create the dry-embossed waffle pattern on the Canary and Hollyhock  - the ¹/₈" score increments on the board can be used in various combinations simply by using the Scoring Tool (included with the board) to make linear patterns.

 

 

The card design was finished off with a thin sliver of Black Shimmer Trim on top of a border created with the Scallop Border Punch and some faux stitching using the Black Journalling Pen.

 

Thanks for stopping by my blog today - I hope you have had a wonderful Monday and I'll be back during the week with some more Close To My Heart goodness to share with you.



Creating Backgrounds

Today, I wanted to share a card using another fun & easy background technique using Close To My Heart ReInkers. This month my creative classes and workshop events have included all sorts of different ways to add a touch of uniqueness to your projects... and this theme will be carried through to the workshops I am tutoring at this weekend in Melbourne - if you would like to attend these events? - check my Facebook Page for more information.

The background was dry brushed with Thistle, Canary and Pixie reinkers - since their release last month, these colours have become a firm favourite of mine. The metal flowers in the Brushed Assortment are very much a favourite too and have been my September Feature Product. The flowers are self adhesive and embellished with some silver bling gems in the centre. However, I removed the bling gems and replaced them with Black Epoxy Bubbles... just so they co-ordinated with the other black elements featured on the card.

...and to let you in on a little secret... the 2 pieces of patterned cardstock (from the Paper Fundamentals Whimsy Assortment) that the sentiment was mounted onto, are actually  scraps! I was cutting photo frames from the Cricut Artbooking Collection and these little pieces were the centre cut outs...I thought they were perfect to save and use for card embellishments and they already had rounded corners - pretty cool!!

 

I can't wait to experiment with the negatives and cut-outs from the new Artfully Sent Cricut Collection - with so many interactive card components such as pop-ups, scenes,  sleeves, and pockets...it lends itself to so many innovative possibilities.

 

We are only halfway through September and it has shaped up to being a very exciting month in the Close To My Heart world...firstly celebrating our founder and CEO Jeanette Lynton’s 30-year anniversary in the scrapbooking and stamping industry...with a FREE stamp set included in every order of $30 of more in current retail-priced stamps, the release of an exclusive new Cricut Collection and a gorgeous Stamp of the Month showcasing family love - be sure to visit my Online Shop and click on the Promotions tab so you don't miss a thing!

 

 

....and be sure to check back here on Friday when I bring you my 3rd instalment in the Friday Friend Feature series and some delightful little cards.

Capture The Day

Today was one of those strange spring days where you get 4 seasons all at once. I woke to strong winds and dreary skies, by lunchtime the sky was blue and the sun was shining....then late in the afternoon we had thunder, lightning and lots of heavy rain...and through it all, I played happily in my "happy room"!!

It was so much fun getting inky, cutting, pasting and stamping...it has been a long time since I have had an uninterrupted day at home just playing with my crafting goodies... and I loved every minute of it! I also now, have a lovely collection of projects to share with you over the coming weeks - be sure to stay tuned!

In the meantime, I thought I would share a pretty little card that I hope brings some sunshine to your day.

The Butterfly image comes in the Capture the Day Stamp Set  and was stamped in Black Ink onto some background paper I created using a combination of 3 of Close To My Heart's new ink colours - Thistle, Pixie and Canary, some rock salt (yes, crafting goodies can be found in your pantry!) and a little water in my Spray Pen...it is such a cool effect. I will be teaching this technique along with a few other tips and tricks for creating background papers at my upcoming workshop events, locally and in Melbourne - contact me at lotfam@iinet.net.au for more information.

The sentiment was stamped onto some paper taken from the My Crush In the Pink Book as was the distressed pink piece of paper it was mounted onto. I know, I mention it time and time again, but the papers in the Close To My Heart product collection co-ordinate so well with one another...it truly is what endears me most to this paper craft range.

The Gold Shimmer Trim and Bling Gems added a little "sparkle & shine" to the card while the Scallop Border Punch and faux stitching with the Marvy Journalling Pen completed the overall design.

If you belong to my Card Kit Club this is the card that is making it's way to your letterbox this week - Enjoy!

Simple Colour Creation

Pink Butterflies are not a natural wonder but there are no rules to break in the world of Creative Adventure and I couldn't resist adding a touch of my favourite colour to the sweet butterfly from the Capture The Day Stamp Set. The addition of the ShinHan Touch Twin Markers to the Close To My Heart range makes it so easy to add rich vibrant colour to your projects. I used the  Cherry Pink, Tender Pink and Marigold markers to colour my butterfly using a simple outline and fill technique. I love how this range of marker colours co-ordinated with the Brushed Paper Pack and the Hollyhock Cardstock... making my butterfly embellishment "pop"!!

I added a little extra detail to my butterfly with the black Marvy Journalling Pen and then Sponged the papers with Hollyhock Ink to add some depth. The sentiment on this card is from the Your Own Kind of Wonderful stamp set -  a beautiful collection of 6 more butterflies with sentiments that touch our spirit and soul and are ideal for  uplifting your family and friends....click here to add this set to your shopping cart.

I hope this card has lifted your spirits...and with "Spring and Sunshine" just around the corner the days are certainly getting much brighter -  be sure to check out the full Brushed My Reflections Collection, they are the perfect products to highlight your Springtime photos and gift giving projects.