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!