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!

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!

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.  

Rock N' Roll Stamping Technique with the CTMH June Stamp of the Month

Hi, everyone!  Wow, is it really June already?  It has been a very busy spring, but here we are already in June!  Every month Close To My Heart offers a full-size stamp set as a Stamp of the Month, and the June stamp is Garden Tags.  It is gorgeous!  In these cards I played around with the rock n' roll stamping technique, stitching, and embossing.  The Heart 2 Heart blog just posted a new challenge for using stitching, so check out their blog for some additional ideas.  Follow along to see how I put these cards together! (All products are linked for easy shopping!)

I made a video that walks through how I stamped and assembled these cards, which you can watch on my YouTube channel (see the link below).  However, I'll also give you the written version!

First, I cut my cardstock, papers from the May-June mix-in paper packet, to the following dimensions: top piece (2" x 4.25"), bottom piece (3.5" x 4.25"), vellum (3" x 3"), and top strip for the vellum (0.5" x 3").  This card pattern is from page 26 of the old Close To My Heart card pattern book called Originals.  

Next, I stamped the tag using the rock n' roll stamping technique.  It gives the stamped image a really fun ombre sort of look but is very easy to do!  

First, choose several ink colors that you'd like to use for your image.  My colors were Sweet Leaf, Juniper, Twilight, and Sapphire.  Arrange them in order from lightest to darkest.  My lightest color was Sweet Leaf, so I stamped the entire image in that color.

The second step is to move on to the next lightest color and gently roll parts of your stamp over the ink pad.  Don't press the entire stamp onto the ink pad or you'll lose that first color!  I like to roll the edges of my stamp over the edges of the ink pad just so that I can control the color coverage.  Continue doing this for your other colors, but remember--move from lighter to darker colors!  Otherwise, you'll ruin your lighter ink pads.  Now STAMP!  If you took a long time getting all of the colors onto your stamp, just huff onto it before stamping; the moisture in your breath will help.  (That sounds so weird, but I promise it's a good tip!)

For this particular card I also added some clear embossing powder, a brad, and a ribbon bow.  I used some DMC embroidery thread to stitch a little vellum pocket to the front of the card, stamped a "thanks" sentiment and popped it up with foam tape, and then edge distressed the entire card with the Sweet Leaf color.  You can see that I used the same rock n' roll stamping technique to put a little something extra on the front of my envelopes, too!  

I had a lot of fun playing with the Garden Tags stamp set, which is available ONLY IN THE MONTH OF JUNE!  There are so many ways that you could create some beautiful tags, cards, and scrapbook page embellishments with this stamp set.  So beautiful!

Here's another tag that I made for a card; this one is stamped entirely in the Sapphire ink, embossed with clear powder, and then sponged with the Sweet Leaf ink.  

I hope you enjoyed this post, and perhaps you even learned something new!  If you try out the rock n' roll technique or use the June Stamp of the Month, please share pictures of your creations in the comments below!  

Blue Skies Cardmaking Kit: Tips and Tricks

May is National Scrapbooking Month, and Close To My Heart created this Blue Skies product line as a special for the month.  I have had a lot of fun playing with the paper, stamp sets, and die cuts, but just the other day I received the BLUE SKIES CARDMAKING KIT in the mail.  Ahh, it's so cute!  It made eighteen (18!) unique cards, and they are gorgeous! 

Here you can see sixteen of them; I saved the last two to assemble in a video, which is posted on my YouTube channel.  

The cards themselves were VERY EASY to make; however, I did find the process of creating eighteen individual, unique cards simultaneously a bit overwhelming at first.  I quickly figured out a way to make the process go smoothly, so I thought I'd share my tips and tricks with you!

The first thing you'll need to do is to cut the paper according to the instruction guide.  Now, the guide does not come with the kit, but you can find it on the website where you purchased the kit. (I'll link it here for you: https://jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com/retail/product.aspx?sku=CC5209)  HINT #1:  Create piles that are numbered #1-18.  As you cut each paper, put the pieces in the pile for the number card that it will create.  

Next, I started assembling the cards...sort of, which will make sense in a second.  I still needed to die cut the shapes from the Beautiful Day stamp set and stamp the images onto those cuts, but I didn't want to accidentally mix up my card piles while doing that.  I have three young children, and my three year old son likes to "help" me.  Can you relate? Ha, ha! I wanted everything adhered together that could be without those die cut shapes, so I started at card #1 and simply moved down the line for all of the cards.  If there were any pieces (for example, White Daisy pieces for stamping sentiments) that I wasn't ready to use yet, I just kept them with that card, but at least everything else was glued down!

At this point, I had a pile of cards that were mostly assembled (minus the die cut embellishments and stamped sentiments).  I set the pile to the side and turned to the pinwheels and other die cuts.

I needed to make three pinwheels for this card kit.  The Pinwheel Thin Cut is so fun and so easy to use! Run the Thin Cut and paper through your die cutting machine, grab a brad, push the brad through each of the holes, and finish by putting the brad through the center hole.  To make the pinwheel spin, you'll need to attach it to a circle at the back.  

I punched out a one-inch circle and used my Piercing Tool to poke a hole in the center.  Then I put my pinwheel's brad through that hole, making a circle backing to my pinwheel.  Place some foam tape around the back of the circle (make sure there's room for your brad's prongs to spin around without snagging on any foam tape).

Your pinwheel is ready to go!  After making my three pinwheels, I turned my attention to the rest of the die cut shapes.  HINT #2: Use my "cheat sheet" to see how many of each shape to cut and what colors to stamp them.  I am a very organized person by nature, and I wanted a methodical way to efficiently cut all of these shapes.  Check out this Google Doc that tells you how many of each shape to die cut and what colors to stamp them, too!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vQ7IzJacLE1JdMpdMiqgwnIVVNSOJxYhHVTWUc25j65rqLtumE14NmRUuEQAzFlA4e9b2i3i5SjVO1g/pub

At this point, I had all the pieces I needed, so I went through my pile of cards and attached the embellishments for each.  Since I didn't have the Say It in Style stamp set, I searched through my stamp sets to find sentiments that worked for each card.  Everything came together very quickly at this point!  

The kit itself is only $16.95, and while you do need a few other items (I highly recommend the Beautiful Day stamp set and Pinwheel Thin Cut), it is a great value for eighteen unique cards!  You couldn't buy that many beautiful cards at Hallmark for this price.  There was a lot of paper left in my kit, too, so I know that I will continue to use it for other cards or scrapbook layouts.  Look at how much was leftover!

The Blue Skies Cardmaking Kit was tons of fun to create, but organization was key!  I hope that my tips and tricks help and inspire you to create your cards.  If you'd like to purchase any of these items, they are individually linked throughout this blog post, but you can also visit my website at jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com.  Thank you for creating with me!

Queen Bee

One of my favorite new stamps is the Queen Bee set from Close To My Heart.  I just love the little bee, and the sentiments work for so many occasions!  The best part is that I got the Thin Cuts to match the stamped images, so I don't have to do any fussy cutting (who has time for that?).  You can see here that any image outlined in blue comes with a matching Thin Cut.

We've been lucky to have some sunny, warm days recently, so when I finally had a chance to sit down to play with my new stamp set, I decided to use it for a card. I used the black and white patterned paper from the current mix-in packet, but it needed a pop of color.  Sweet Leaf is my favorite green from the Close To My Heart palette, and I liked the softness of the color paired with the bold pattern of the background paper.  The card design that I was using (from Originals, a retired card pattern book) had three two-inch squares in the middle of the card.  I stamped the bottom two squares and was happy with the look, but then I got stuck.  I wasn't sure what to put in the top square, but ultimately I decided that the little bee was so cute that I needed to use it twice!

The bee in the middle square is popped up with some foam tape to give it some extra dimension.  I also used my clear Shimmer Brush to fill in the Sweet Leaf hearts, which gives this card a little bit of sparkle.  To color the bees, I used my Blending Pen to pick up a little bit of ink from my Lemonade Exclusive Inks cover.  To do this, simply squeeze the ink pad before opening it, and you'll see some of the ink on the inside cover.  Swipe the Blending Pen over the ink, color your image until you need more color, get some more ink from the cover, and continue until your image is done.  When I'm finished, I grab a piece of scrap paper to clean my Blending Pen; simply color on the scrap paper until all of the color is gone from your Blending Pen.  This is a great way to color your stamped images with any of the ink pads you have in your stash!  (The Blending Pen is retired, but you could use this same technique with a Water Brush.)  The final touch was using the Blending Pen with Sea Foam ink to make the wings stand out a little bit.  

I hope that you liked this card and that these cute bees made you smile!  If you're interested in any of the products used to create this card (I've highlighted them in purple), please follow the links below to my website.  Thank you and happy creating! 

Queen Bee stamp set:  https://jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com/Retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=13749&ci=17743

Mix-in paper:  https://jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com/Retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=13749&ci=17743

Sweet Leaf cardstock:  https://jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com/Retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=13750&ci=17745

Clear Shimmer Brush:  https://jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com/retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=9403

Sweet Leaf ink:  https://jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com/retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=9327&ci=6675

Lemonade ink:  https://jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com/retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=11654&ci=15085

Waterbrush: https://jessicadipzinski.closetomyheart.com/retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=9205&ci=6385