Hello, Winter Friends!

The wind is blowing really hard this morning, and my husband just informed me that SNOW is expected for tonight! I guess that means it is indeed time for winter and the perfect time to continue playing with these adorable Winter Friends from Close To My Heart. 

I started working on my Christmas cards the other week, and I was pleasantly surprised with how quickly these shaker cards came together.  I used Close To My Heart products from the new November & December catalog.  The patterned paper is from the Jingle Joy collection, and the ink colors are Clover and Raspberry.  Here are the dimensions for the card pieces:

• Black cardstock base 4" x 5.25"
  
• Tree patterned paper 3.5" x 4.25"
• Striped patterned paper 1" x 4"
• Black and white patterned paper 1.5" x 4"
• Green (zip strip) 0.5" x 4"
• White cardstock 3" x 3.25"
• Black frame 3" x 3.25" 
• Clear acetate 3" x 3.25"

I made my own shaker window by cutting the black frame piece with a 0.25" frame.  To do this, I placed the cardstock on my paper cutter and lined it up at the quarter inch mark.  Then I carefully ran the cutting blade along the inside, stopping at each end when I approached the quarter inch mark.  I turned the paper and repeated this process until I had cut a rectangle out of the center of the paper. If this doesn't make sense, be sure to check out my YouTube video where I show the creation of the polar bear card!

I really love these adorable little Winter Friends! They are all waving hello and just look so sweet in their scarves.  The stamp set with Thin Cuts is wonderful because it cuts out the critters and the scarf, which can be stamped in three different patterns.  

If you've made something with these cute little critters, drop a comment or picture below! Happy crafting! If you like what you see, please consider shopping with me at jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com. 

CTMH October 2020 Stamp of the Month: With All My Love

 

These cards are so pretty! As soon as I saw them in the September & October Close To My Heart catalog, I knew that I'd have to try my hand at recreating them.  If you are feeling inspired, too, then let me share what I did to recreate both of these cards.  

First of all, if you don't have all of the same supplies, that's okay! I had most of them or at least enough that were similar, so I made them work for me.  However, you will definitely need the October 2020 Stamp of the Month, which has so many versatile sentiments!

Additionally, the pink and white polka dot paper and the yellow gingham paper come from the Lovely paper pack.  The yellow and white strip on the left card is actually a zip strip (a half-inch bonus strip at the top of every paper) from a paper in the Bloom with Grace paper pack.  Finally, the cardstock that I used was Canary, Flamingo, and French Vanilla.  

Here are the dimensions that I used for each card:

Left card:

• Pink patterned paper 2.25" x 5.5"
• Flamingo cardstock (light side) 1.5" x 5.5"
• Yellow zip strip 0.5" x 5.5"
• Flamingo cardstock (dark side) 0.25" x 5.5"

Right card:

• Canary cardstock (light side) 5.5" x 4.25"
• Yellow patterned paper 2" x 4.25"
• Flamingo cardstock (light side) 0.25" x 4.25"
• Ballerina cardstock 0.25" x 4.25" (I actually just used another cut from the pink patterned paper, which is also in Ballerina. Just cut carefully so that you can't see the white polka dots!)

A few tips that I learned along the way: when you're ready to cut the Canary cardstock for the right card, use some washi tape to hold the Fancy Borders Thin Cut in place; you don't want your cut to be crooked.  I measured the halfway point to center my cut as well as 0.75 inches up on each side to mark where the Thin Cut should go across the paper.  

Also, I used my ink pads with my water brush to color the stamped images.  You can see how I did it here in my video.

In the end, I was excited with the way my cards turned out; they were nearly the same as those shown in the catalog with only a few minor changes.  If you are inspired to create with this month's Stamp of the Month, share your project below!

Thanks for creating with me!

Make Your Own Clear-Embossed Background: Idea Book Inspiration

Do you ever find yourself with the creative version of writer's block?  Personally, I like to look at Pinterest or how-to books for ideas to get my creative juices flowing, but another thing I like to do is use the Close To My Heart catalog for inspiration.  The catalogs used to be called Idea Books, and even though the name is gone, the purpose is not!

As soon as I saw page eight of the September & October seasonal catalog, I knew that I wanted to recreate that card!  The catalog occasionally offers an Artwork Tip, and this card featured a tip of using clear embossing powder to create a unique background.  Here's the original idea from the catalog:

This card was created using Bloom with Grace products from Close To My Heart: patterned paper, coordinating cardstock, and cardmaking stamp set.  While I don't have that particular stamp set, I do have the paper and a stamp set that includes a pumpkin.  I decided to {mostly} recreate the CTMH card but put my own spin on it as well!  I played around with the sizes of all of the pieces, and I came up with the following measurements:

Following the Artwork Tip, I randomly stamped some pumpkins in Versa Mark ink and then sprinkled clear embossing powder over them.  I heat embossed the pumpkins to create my own background.

After adding all the other pieces to the card, I took it in a different direction.  Since I don't have the Bloom with Grace Cardmaking stamp set, I used Gobble Till You Wobble instead (it's a retired stamp set).  I finished the card with some adorable Wood Hearts and Gold Embellishing Thread. 

While my version isn't exactly the same as the card featured on page eight of the September & October Close To My Heart catalog, it is inspired by the ideas presented in the book.  If you've found yourself inspired by something in one of the catalogs, drop a comment or a picture below; I'm always looking for new ideas!  If you like the products that you see, please consider shopping with me at jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com. 

You can watch me create this card in my YouTube video, linked below.  Happy creating!

Using Die Cuts Creatively

 

One night I was scrolling through Pinterest, and I saw a card that had a die cut strategically placed on the card front in order to create an opening.  The light bulb went off! I knew immediately that I wanted to try using this technique, and since I needed to make some thank-you cards (we recently moved and had some amazing friends and family help us), I decided to give it a try.

The concept is actually very simple and incredibly easy to do! I cut my card front out of some patterned cardstock and then took a circle die and placed it over the bottom corner.  I used some washi tape to keep the circle where I wanted it to cut, and then I ran it through my Cuttlebug machine.

You may have noticed that my card fronts have a stitching detail around the edges, and I made that by cutting them with the Stitched Rectangle Frames Thin Cut from Close To My Heart (click the link to check them out!).  After cutting the circle out of the bottom, my card front looked like this.

The next step was to adhere a different patterned cardstock to the card front, place some foam tape behind the cut piece, and wrap some brown and white string around the top of the cut piece.  Put the cut piece on the card front so that there is a small reveal with the other patterned paper underneath.

At this point, the possibilities are endless!  This card could be embellished in so many ways.  I used some wood buttons from Close To My Heart (click the link to check them out!), a half-inch strip of paper cut with a dovetail, and a sweet little house from the Every Little Thing stamp set (also from Close To My Heart).  

This project was a great way to use up some scraps of patterned paper, too.  I was able to make about fifteen cards very quickly, and they all were slightly different.  I loved this idea so much that I used the same pattern to make another card with the Winged Wishes stamp set (look at that sweet, adorable bird!) and the Baby Animal Doodles stamp set.

If you like any of the products that you see, please consider shopping with me at jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com.  If you make anything with this technique, drop a comment or a picture below; I'd love to see it! Happy creating!

Mixing It Up with Gnomes!

We are in the process of packing up our house to move and there are tons of things to do, but it's Gnome Matter!  I really wanted to play with my new Gnome Matter stamp set from Close To My Heart today, so those pesky to-do items can just wait.  Instead of packing, I created this one-page scrapbook layout for a picture of my husband and son, which was taken at my daughter's birthday party a few years ago.

Since I didn't have any other pictures of my son from that day, I didn't really want to make the layout have a birthday theme; however, the picture of the two of them was too sweet to not scrapbook.  I decided to use my new stamp set with the gnomes.  There are so many adorable ideas out there for using these gnomes on cards, but I haven't seen anyone use them for a scrapbook page yet.  Why not use them for this layout of my two guys? 

The paper for this layout comes entirely from the July-August mix-in paper packet.  Now, if you're not familiar with the mix-in papers, then you might be excited to know that they are designed to coordinate with both of the other paper packets in the July- August catalog (Summer Vibes and Timber).  It's quite a smart idea because it can really stretch your use of the themed paper packets.  However, if you're like me, then you'll love the mix-in papers all on their own, too!  I always love the mix-in papers the best out of each catalog!

In addition to the Gnome Matter stamp set + Thin Cuts (currently--July 12--out of stock but coming back soon, though the stamp without Thin Cuts is available) and mix-in papers, I used an older stamp set (Watercolor Impressions) for the splotches in the background.  I stamped them around the page in Lagoon ink and then added some Lagoon Shimmer Brush splatters, too.  The banners are also stamped in Lagoon ink and cut from the Beautiful Day stamp set.  

Overall, this page came together very quickly, and you can watch me create it here on my YouTube channel:

If you like what you see, I would love for you to shop with me at jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com!  I've linked all of the items that I used for this page.  Have a wonderful day and happy creating!

Summer Vibes from Close To My Heart

The weather has been beautiful, swimming in the pool has been glorious, and the break from schoolwork has been welcome.  I have definitely been feeling the Summer Vibes!  Close To My Heart just released their July and August catalog, and the Summer Vibes collection truly captures those summertime feelings.

I've had a chance to play with the paper collection and make a few scrapbook pages and cards.  The timing of this new collection was perfect for me as I was just about to scrapbook some beach days from a camping trip.  

Not only are the papers and sticker sheet perfect for any sort of beach, pool, or summer day, but the acrylic shapes are AH-MAZING!  They come in an assortment of pink and yellow.  There are fun shapes like a sun, a flamingo, leaves, hearts, flip flops, and so much more!  

The stickers have both shiny and matte elements to them, making them beautiful and eye-catching!

The other thing that I love about the Summer Vibes collection is that it is neither masculine nor feminine; it's just summertime!  I have two daughters and one son, so sometimes I struggle getting paper to work for either the girls' scrapbooks or my son's.  Here you can see how the papers worked perfectly in my daughter's scrapbook for the same beach day.

 

If you've been feeling the Summer Vibes, too, please consider shopping with me at jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com!  There are so many ways to play with this paper collection: paper, stickers, acrylic shapes, SVG files, stamps, coordinating cardstock, and workshops for both cards and scrapbooks.  

Challenge: What's Old Is New

The other day I posed a challenge to myself, and I have to give credit to my children for inspiring it.  They were complaining that they were bored and there was nothing to do.  My typical response to these sorts of complaints is to tell them to go "shopping" in their own closets for toys and crafting items that they haven't used in a long time.  Hey, pot, it's me, kettle!  How many times do I overlook stamps, embellishments, Cricut images, and everything else in my own crafting stash?  Therefore, I decided to create a scrapbooking layout using something I had never used before.

Using my Artistry Cricut cartridge from Close To My Heart, I cut the floral wreath from the Background option (page 21). I have an old school Cricut with physical cartridges, so I don't know the name of this particular image for those of you with digital Cricut machines.  

I cut the wreath out of Green Apple cardstock at 10.75", and then I hoped that the little flower image on that same page would match the flowers in the wreath.  Alas, it did not, so I had to cut the wreath a second time in Peach cardstock and fussy cut them out.  

To add some dimension to the page, I cut more flowers (from the Icon-1 option) in both white cardstock and Peach cardstock.  Close To My Heart's cardstock is two-toned, so one side is a lighter shade than the other side.  My wreath flowers were cut using the lighter shade of Peach, so I made the extra flowers the darker shade.  I popped up several of the flowers with foam tape, added a bunch of sparkle with my Clear Shimmer Brush, and sewed on three heart-shaped wooden buttons.  

I am currently obsessed with the wooden buttons from Close To My Heart!  The package comes with several sizes of both circles and hearts; some of the buttons even have a stitched pattern around the perimeter.  They're amazing!

The "friend" sentiment is from an old Close To My Heart stamp set called Friendship Word Puzzle, and there is a little flower stamp on that set.  Originally I stamped three yellow flowers around the sentiment, but I didn't like them.  To cover them up, I used the little butterfly stamp from the Details I Love stamp set, which is currently available; I also used the three lines from that set to put a spot for journaling at the bottom of my page.  The butterflies are stamped using the rock n' roll technique, and I just love how they are both yellow and pink!  The final touch was splattering some sparkle from my pink Shimmer Brush.  

This challenge really made me think outside of my usual box of tricks, and I am pleased with the final result!  I've had this cartridge for many years and I've used it many times, but I've just never cut out this image (or really any of the fun background cuts) before.  Just like my children, I am delighted to find that something "old" is now new and exciting again!  

If you'd like to see this page come together, please check out my YouTube process video (linked below).  I've linked all available supplies for this project to my Close To My Heart website (hover over the names of the items to find the hyperlink).  If you decide to take on this challenge for yourself, I'd love to see it; please leave a comment or picture below!