It's time for Stampaganza!

From July 1 - July 31, 2017 when you buy 2 stamp sets, you can get a third set of equal or lesser value FREE!  You can choose from any stamp set in the current idea book plus from a collection of popular sets that we have brought back for this month only. 

You may remember the popular monthly word puzzle sets.  If you do calendars or do scrapbooking for "year" times or just like to make cards and pages with themes, make sure you take a look at this.  Individually they are D size $17.95 but if you buy all 12 they will be $143.60 where the full retail price would be $215.40. 

there are also some of my favorites: Washi Wonder, Happy Hexagons, Say It All and the Exotic Flower.  I love the last one as you can stamp it in different colors and cut layers to make an easy beautiful card. 

Check out my website on July 1 to see all these stamps.

Making it your own

In the Seasonal Expressions, there are cardmaking Workshop Your Way.  The one using the No Worries paper is called Workshop Your Way Anniversary Cardmaking Kit.  It has a "thanks" as well as anniversary stamp so I make them all for my Thank You cards I am working on.  I love these kits at they give you the sizes of paper to cut and you can use your scraps or other papers to make these cards over and over.  Changing the paper really changes how they look.

July Challenge "Thin Cuts"

I usually love to stamp on cards.  I use the thin cuts on scrapbook pages.  I have some examples of thin cuts on pages so I tried to make a sampling of cards.  I only used thin cuts.  I used Close To My Heart Glitter paper and the Shimmer Trim with plain cardstock.  During this month I will keep posting Thin Cuts - also using words.  I might do these cards again and stamp same color on same color or use our embossing folders.  See what you can come up with. 

If you need ideas on cards or pages, remember that there are some great books and 2 smaller ones that give you the cutting sizes and examples for cards and scrapbook pages.  You will find them on page 110 of the Annual Catalog.  Remember: the 2 present catalogs end as of July 31, 2017.  Look over things and make sure you have everything you need before it might be gone.  

Challenges for the months to come.

Challenges.  I was thinking that the more options people had, people would find something they would like to try.  It seems that it was overwhelming.  I am going to start with Challenge 7 in July.  It will be a challenge for the month.  I will post samples of cards and pages.  You can post samples of cards and pages.   I may change the order or even add techniques in based on the new Annual Catalog coming out August 1^st and the Holiday Expressions coming out September 1^st.  For now this will be the order: (challenges 1-6 are already posted)

1.  Stamp same color on cardstock

2. Use Shimmer Trim

3. Use Watercolor

4. Use Alphabet stamps

5. Use angles and triangles

6. Use banners, pennants, and flags

7. Use words – thin cuts

8. Use words from Cricut

9. Use Cricut creatively

10. Use wet embossing (heat gun and powder)

11. Use embossing folders

12 Use stitching

13. Use markers

14. Use water color pencils

15. Use creative journaling with marker

Rather than go back and post the older challenges, you can go back and see what was done and then incorporate it in the challenge for the month we are in– that is to say July will be Thin cut words.  You can use water color with those words.  You can say what things you were trying to do when you post your challenges on either the blog (createclosetomyheartmemories.blogpost.com) or Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/ctmhscrapingfun). 

Challenges 7-13 postponed

I am having trouble with my right arm.  I will be doing therapy.  I will start up again on the last challenged July 5th if my arm is healed.  Thanks for your patience.

Card Challenge 6: Flags, banners, pennants and more.

Card Challenge 6:  Flags, banners, pennants and more.

The end of the flags that goes up and down like an upside down V is called a “dovetail”.  You can cut at an angle up to the middle and fold it over and cut from the other side and it comes out more even.  I used shimmer trim for the “flags”.  I did some angle cuts and some dovetails.  You can have them hang down from the top, have them point up or go sideways.  They can be layered with paper and shimmer trim.  I used a banner “thank you” from the Flower Market Cricut Cartridge.  I actually didn’t use any inks on the cards.  Remember: when you use Shimmer trim, put about ½ “ adhesive on scrap paper and put the shimmer trim down on it and it will pull up easier than fighting with using your finger nails to get the backing off.  

Challenge 6: Flags, banners, pennants and more. Scrapbook challenge 6: There are so many pennants, banners and flags in the Close To My Heart Stamps and Cricut cartridges. The larger sizes work better on the scrapbook pages but the smaller ones look good if you need more in your words for the title. Use your scraps to create an edge or design. You can use the flags as a title. You can punch a small hole in your banners and hang them with twine or floss like a clothesline or bowtie together. I used the “surprise” from the Flower Market Cricut Cartridge CTMH. You can make triangles into banners and stamp your title for your page or do words on the cards. Be creative and have fun. Sometimes when I am creating a page, I get this neat idea in my head but it doesn’t come out that way on the page. That is what happened for this scrapbook page. If just needs something else but I just can’t figure out what I want to add. My sister suggested edging the 12x12 paper and it helped a little. Here it is as it stands today. If I get inspired I will repost what I do.

Challenge 6:  Flags, banners, pennants and more. 

Scrapbook challenge 6: There are so many pennants, banners and flags in the Close To My Heart Stamps and Cricut cartridges.  The larger sizes work better on the scrapbook pages but the smaller ones look good if you need more in your words for the title.  Use your scraps to create an edge or design.  You can use the flags as a title.  You can punch a small hole in your banners and hang them with twine or floss like a clothesline or bowtie together.   I used the “surprise” from the Flower Market Cricut Cartridge CTMH.  You can make triangles into banners and stamp your title for your page or do words on the cards.  Be creative and have fun.

Sometimes when I am creating a page, I get this neat idea in my head but it doesn’t come out that way on the page.  That is what happened for this scrapbook page.  If just needs something else but I just can’t figure out what I want to add.  My sister suggested edging the 12x12 paper and it helped a little.   Here it is as it stands today.  If I get inspired I will repost what I do.

Card Challenge 5 : Use angles and triangles.

Card Challenge 5 : Use angles and triangles.

Most of the time we use squares, circles and ovals.  You can have angles in a number of ways and triangles for your cards.  The card I made today can be turned around with the points down and you can add something in the bottom corner  I used it up for my cards with the flowers and it almost acts like a vase to hold the flowers.  I used B1536 All the Thanks and D1713 Hello Lovely – scrapbooking.  You can also use triangle in the corners and the center be your saying on circle, oval or square or diamond/triangle. 

Scrapbook Challenge 5: Use angles and triangles.

Scrapbook Challenge 5: Use angles and triangles. 

Most of the time we use square, rectangle, circle and ovals.  Challenge 4 page had triangles on it if you noticed.  You can layer triangles. You can make 1” paper at an angle.  You can overlap them.  Think about what photos and what size you want to use as you are creating your pages.  Sometimes I have created great pages but don’t want to cover the page up with any photos!  Keep the size of photos you usually use on cut out paper and lay them out onto the page before you adhere the pieces.  You can make triangles of plain paper and then stamp on them as well as use any of the challenges so far.  

Remember: don’t forget to embellish!  This is where your page or card will shine.

I used Thin Cut words today as embellishment and will focus on the words in the Cricut programs later in Challenge 7.   I used our CTMH Glitter paper which comes out great with the Thin Cuts.  It also matches the Shimmer trim.  I used: Z3257 Love, Z3259 Hello & thanks, Z3317 Basic hearts, adnZ3256 Celebrate.  I used the Jack paper but it really looks different in this layout.  Do you remember using photo corners to keep the photos in the albums?   You can use triangles to mimic using photo corners.  

Challenge 4 - Alphabet Stamps

Challenge 4: Alphabet stamps.  I think these are the most underused items in both making cards and scrapbook pages.  Check on later challenges for using words from Thin Cuts and Cricut cartridges.  This challenge is just alphabet stamps.  How can you use them you ask?

Use Alphabets as Titles on a page.  It is easy to take stickers and make titles.  When you start from scratch it just takes a moment to think.  The May Stamp of the Month had “Live Love Laugh”.  You can use words as they are horizontally.  You can cut the letters apart and use them vertically.  You can cut them apart and use them diagonally.  These particular words can use markers or watercolors or even just be wet embossed. You can make a special banner to put them on.  You can use different size alphabets all on the same title – mini-journaling. 

Use Alphabets as decoration.  You can use the letters on a kids page just “abc” on the borders. 

Use solid alphabet stamps in different colors.  Use open alphabets and stamp on different paper both patterned or cardstock.  The Framework Alphabet can be stamped on cardstock or patterned paper and cut for a wonderful effect. The Stamp of the Month for July is S1707 Storybook Alphabet and has examples on page 58 Seasonal Expressions. You can buy the Stamp Of The Month outright or with $50 purchase you can get it for $5 (add shipping and tax at full price). 

Use as words on cards and pages.  The Alphabet stamps start in the catalog on page 71. There is a wonderful card sample right there saying “Hello, hello Hello Friend Hello”.  Take a look at the current catalogs and see what you can get inspired to do.  I keep older catalogs for examples as well.  

Look for ways to use alphabet stamps as borders, as words or as the beginning letter for journaling. Stamp a large 1^st letter on the journaling piece and then use a marker to write the rest of the journaling.   

Open alphabets are also great for use with watercolor or markers.  You can just watercolor with one color or multiple colors on the watercolor paper.  Stamp the letters on the water colored paper and use it as a title as is or cut them out.  You can stamp the letters on water color paper and then use multiple water colors on each letter.  I love that the E stamps come with capitals as well as lower case.  Alphabets are so easy to use once you begin looking for ways to use them.

Card challenge: Use Alphabet stamps on a card.  I used the Storybook Alphabet to spell out THANKS.  I actually put all the stamps on 1 block and kept checking their position to see where they would fit.  I marked the paper with pencil to know where I had to stamp.  I used markers to color it in.  (b262, r140, g46, br99, wg4) You can stamp on the card.  You can stamp on cardstock, or color or even stamp on “light” patterned paper.  You could use a Large 1^st letter and smaller other letters if the word was too large for the card in all capitals.  Stamp your letters on scrap paper and turn your card either portrait or landscape to see how they fit. 

Page Challenge: Use Alphabet stamps on a page.  There is something called “scrap lift”.  That is taking an idea you see and making it your own.  Many of you are doing that with these pages and cards.  It is hard to get an idea from “scratch” but looking at something and saying “What can I do with that?” can be really fun. By changing and adding to it, you are making the project yours.

I used the E1027 Framework Alphabet on page 71 of the Annual book.  It has the capitals and the small letters.  E size is a double set of stamps.  I work on the Close To My Heart Versamat Z1279 on page 107.  The surface is wonderful to work on.  There are numbers all around which adhering the pieces to your 12x12 page easy.  No more marking with a ruler at 3 points – and making mistakes.  One side is a self-healing mat which for cutting out alphabet letters means that I can use a utility knife and cut out the pieces that the scissors can’t get.  The other side of the mat is cushioned to stamp on.  

I used some older cardstock that had embossing on it.  I found that the Archival Black went over better rather than the regular water based black.  For the other letters I used the regular black ink.  Again if you don’t want to make more pages, remember the Flip Flaps that can add photos to every page in many different sizes.  You will find them under barabarapagekell.ctmh.com, Shop and then Pocket Scrapbooking. 

Hint: On small things like letters, I love the Glue Pen Z553.  It is Dual Action Glue Pen – Dry it is temporary so you can check where things might look good.  Wet it is permanent.  (page 108 Annual)

One of my “go to” tools is the Rub and Remove Eraser (Z1207 on page 106 Annual) is really great as it erases misplace adhesive and lasts a long time.  I have used mine a lot  since 2006 and you can hardly tell it has been used. When you are doing small things with either adhesive tape or wet adhesive, there is usually some “sticking” showing through and the eraser takes care of it.  It also works on erasing pencil marks. 

I talked about Workshop Your Way in Challenge 3.  You can buy just the paper packet and coordinating cardstock and all the little things: complements, bling etc.  It is cheaper to buy the Workshop Your Way if you want it all.  You can see me or you can go to my website: barbarapagekell.ctmh.com (https://barbarapagekell.closetomyheart.com/Retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=9935&ci=8460) and go to Shop, Kits and Jack and you can download the guide that will give you the Workshop Your Way project.  This paper is called “Jack”.  I do have the Workshop Your Way but I also bought just the paper packet for to have fun with.  For this page, I liked the look of the background on page 37 with the Jack Paper and I sketched out on graph paper what an extended second page might look like with the continuing pattern.  I also used the D1719 Camping life stamp set. 

Challenge 3 - CTMH watercolors ROCK!

Challenge 3: Close To My Heart Watercolors rock! (Annual catalog page 104) 

The watercolor pigments are super.  Message me and I can send you a chart that will help you get your water colors to match any of the Close To My Heart paper.)  The lid has “dips” in it so that you can mix colors in them.  They dry but because they are water colors you can reconstitute them and keep using them.  Also you can start at the upper left and go across and number the lid with marker so that you can leave notes as to what colors you used.  I love the water brushes as well!  They are easy to use and you can keep going without ever dipping your brush in water.  There are 3 sizes of brushes for your project: small, medium round and medium flat.  The Close To My Heart regular paint brushes are good quality as well.  The Watercolor paints, regular brushes and waterbrushes are all on page 104.  There are also Watercolor pencils with a Blending Pen which can look great.  Using watercolor pencils can be forgiving.  You don't need to be exact as the blending pen or waterbrush will cover the lines and blend them to a beautiful hue. 

With just the “left overs”from the Little Dreamer Workshop Your way,  I made this 2 page layout.  I needed a little bit of 1x12 pieces.  I enjoy trying to use up what is left over rather than keeping the drips and drabs until you can’t remember what paper packets they went with.  I used both sets of stamps with their thin cuts Z3335 Little Dreamer Cardmaking Stamp + thin cut and Z3334 little Dreamer Scrapbooking stamp + Thin cut.  I used Lagoon, Thistle, Tangerine, and Whisper inks.  Look at the bottom of the post for the Workshop Your Way Little Dreamer. 

The Watercolor paper on page 101 is 10 sheets for $6.95(add tax and shipping).  This paper is heavier and won’t warp with the water use.  If you are doing either a large piece or concentrated coloring, I recommend doing it on this paper.  Even for the smaller stamps you may want too watercolor, this is the paper to use.  If you do use regular paper, you can iron it carefully between 2 pieces of copy paper on high for a short time to get it to lay flat.  

Rainbow:  If you use Whisper ink, you can do a second generation stamp. (That means you ink it and stamp on a piece of scratch paper and without reinking, stamp it on your project.  Using this as a guide, you can use the water colors over the light Whisper ink.  If you use a lighter color first and before it dries a darker color, it will blend together.  (Thanks to Wendy Coffman a Close To My Heart person for that tip).

FLIP FLAPS: One of the greatest things are the different sizes of Flip Flaps.  They are on page 12 in the Annual Catalog.  On this page where I have only 2 3x3 photo spaces, I will use the 3x3 flip flaps.  Each Flip Flap allows 2 more photos.  You can use 1 and have journaling on the underside.  Here on this page where I do have journaling space, I might even use 2 – 3 or 4 Flip Flaps in cascading presence or on top of each other.  The Flip Flaps are put on the page protector so one doesn’t put them on until you know the order your page protectors are going to be in. You will find them under barabarapagekell.ctmh.com, Shop and then Pocket Scrapbooking.  

 This is the Little Dreamer Workshop your way  and cards - see page 9 in the Seasonal Expressions or barbarapagekell.ctmh.com under Shop, Kits, and Little Dreamer.

For this challenge I didn't do separate cards but just shared the cards from the Little Dreamer Workshop your way.  You cut for 3 - 2 page layouts and this time for 9 cards.  

 

In each of the Seasonal Expressions catalogs, you will find 4 different Workshop Your Way.  This catalog has Little Dreamer.  Each of the smaller catalogs are only available for a 4 month period.  If you like the paper, you need to get it before it is gone for good.  With each Workshop Your Way, you get 3 – 2 page layouts and 6 - 12 cards.  In the Seasonal Expressions May – August 2017 You will find the Little Dreamer paper on page 5 and the Workshop Your Way on page 9.  The 9 cards are optional.   On page 10 you will see the Little Dreamer – Cardmaking and on page 11 Little Dreamer -Scrapbooking.

Challenge 2 - Shimmer Trim

Challenge 2: Use Shimmer Trim (page 103 Annual book).  Close To My Heart’s paper has “zip” strips – ½ x12 inches that can help decorate a page or card.  Shimmer trim is also ½ and can be just a little bit of “bling” that can help a page “pop”.  There are 8 colors of Shimmer Trim.  I love the use of White, Black, Silver and Gold the best as other “bling” of those colors fits into almost any paper scheme.  There is also an adhesive back to the 5 yards of color.  You can find them  on page 103 of the Annual book.  Hint: on a piece of scrap paper, put the double adhesive for about ½ inch.  Place the edge of the Shimmer trim on it and take the Shimmer trim off the adhesive.  It is the easiest way of getting the backing off.  

Card and Page:  You can use it from edge to edge of the page or paper.  You can cut it at an angle or dovetail it or make “flags” of different length and color with it (either hanging down or going up). 

For the Card: I used CC1157 and A1193 Wreath with the Thin cut.  I cut flowers from the Close to My Heart Flower Market Cricut cartridge.  The inks were Flaxen, Lagoon and Smoothie. 

For the pages: I used D 1720 Keep Dreaming, D1713 Hello Lovely – Scrapbooking.  I used the Archival Black ink so that I could use water colors and the water brush.  If you use the regular water based inks and then try and use the water colors, you will get a runny mess.  You could also use the regular water based inks and stamp on patterned paper or cardstock and cut them out.  I used the Gold Shimmer brush over the lettering and the flowers.  Remember: if you use the water colors, the fluid in the shimmer brush will take up a bit of the water color pigment. Just be careful and clean your brush in between colors. 

Have fun with the Shimmer Trim.  It is easy to use and makes cards and page really POP.