More Exciting News!!

I have another exciting guest designing gig this month!! I will be designing each week with gorgeous products from CropStop.com online store. You can see my introduction post here. They have an amazing selection of products, including the gorgeous Couture Creations dies and embossing folders I am partial to!  I hope you will come and visit and see what I have made each week!!

Very Exciting News!!

I am very excited to announce today that I will be designing for Scraps of Elegance in September!! I have been a member of this kit club since May of last year and love the kits that Mel puts together, always a great mix of papers, embellishments and more!

Trust me you are going to LOVE the September kit!!

Back to School - New Challenge Reveal over at Sugar Creek Hollow!!

This weeks challenge theme over at Sugar Creek Hollow is Back to School! I found this fun image and just now looking at it, the little boy looks like he is drawing Squidward from Spongebob!! Oh my goodness!!

I had fun with this, using more Donna Salazar Natural Beauty papers, layering some punched pieces under the image adding some lace, a fun ruler and some buttons and twine.

This challenge we have a guest designer joining us, please go say hello to Mynette Kitchen and have a look at her gorgeous project.

Hope you find time to come join us this week at Sugar Creek Hollow!!

Vintage Cards for Paper Wings Productions

Today I have a set of vintage cards made with this month's August Nesting Components kit!! I found Paper Wings Productions because of their mixed media kits, and now that I am on their DT, I still can't help myself, and continue to purchase the mixed media kits!!! They are a great combination of stamp set, vintage image sheet, medium and embellishments and Carrie never disappoints!

These cards are made completely from kit contents with the sole exception of the card stock I used to make the card bases!! I used the decorative envelopes in the kit as my backdrop to assemble my cards. I used several images from the Vintage Image Sheet as the main focus of my cards. I also went to town adding the pearls, Tim Holtz rub ons, crochet pieces, seam binding and lace included in the kit!!

I added the Circle Background Cling Stamp included in the kit as a gorgeous subtle texture behind the images for both card. I inked over the stamped pattern with Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink.

The kits are really great value, and make for some gorgeous projects.

Thanks so much for visiting!!

Summertime Fun

Hi, Cathi here with another project using my Couture Creations embossing folders and dies. I know it is wintertime in Australia, but up here in Ireland we have had a warmer summer than usual and have been enjoying it!! Aside from my alphas and the paper here, all of these are Couture Creations products!!

My layout design was inspired by a really fun layout, of a scrapping friend of mine, Maja Stokk. She used circles and carried her design across the paper and I loved the movement it created, so I asked her if I could do a layout based on her design and she agreed. You can see her great layout here!

I started by cutting out lots of ovals using my Scallop Oval and Oval Nesting Dies. I inked the edges of the oval papers with Vintage Photo Distress Ink using my Couture Creation Sponge Dauber.

For added texture I used my Core'dinations Whitewash Cardstock to cut out and emboss two of the oval with my Large Hepburn Embossing Folder.

 

I used my Couture Creations Sanding Block to bring out the design on my Core'dinations paper.

I also wanted to try cutting some felt with my Daisy Nesting Dies. I added some extra paper as a shim when I ran it through my Big Shot, and it cut just fine! I then cut a spiral into the flower die cut to make some rolled flowers, using my Couture Creations Pointy Tool to roll the flower around.

I then made some larger paper flowers with my Daisy Nesting Dies.

I used the smallest daisy die again and layered three of them together, using my Pointy Tool again to punch through the layers. To shape the flower I used a brad to hold them together, then wet the paper and scrunched the layers up to make a pretty flower. I used stamens from my stash to make the flower centers.

For my final touch I added the gorgeous Summer Dragonfly die cut. I just love dragonflies!!

I blinged mine up with Couture Creations Blue Iceberg Adhesive Gemstones.

To add a bit of dimension I used 12mm Foam Mounting Tape to attach my oval photos to their scallop oval mats. I attached all the ovals on the layout with my 18mm Double Sided Tape.

I hope you like my summery layout this month, and hope to see you sharing your work on the Couture Creations Facebook page!!!

  

Couture Creations products used

CO723217 - Daisy Nesting Dies

CO723044 - Oval Nesting Dies

CO723045 - Scallop Oval Nesting Dies

CO723420 - Endless Dreams: Summer Dragonfly Die

CO723448 - Elegance Collection: Large Hepburn Embossing Folder

CO721992 -Self Adhesive Gemstones - Blue Iceberg

CO721986 - Handheld Essentials

CO723060 - Sanding Block

CO723061 - Sponge Daubers

CO721961 - 12mm Foam Mounting Tape

CO721965 - 18mm Double Sided Tape

Joining Together in Lifes Journey - Frosted Designs Chipboard Challenge

This weeks challenge over on Frosted Designs is to use chipboard. I have used plenty lol in this layout!! I count 6 pieces: 3 churches, 2 doves and a title!! I had a lot of fun making this and I do hope you will join along with us and use chipboard on your layout, card or any project, and enter it over at Frosted Designs!!

Our prize this week is sponsored by:

Moments of Tranquility

Moments of Tranquility online store grew from the requests of the followers of Natasha Naranjo-Aquirre's Blog. Natasha shows such passion and love for her favorite products in her work that her blog followers often asked if she sold it, or could sell it... and so the online shop was born. Natasha stocks all of her very favorite items, specializing in Donna Salazar's Mix'd Media Inx and papers, Dusty Attic Chipboard & Blooms and beautiful papers by Pion Design and 7 Dots Studio. By specializing in a few select items, she can always offer the best service to her customers.

And now for this very lovely prize they have donated 

 

What an amazing prize, wish I could win that myself, lol!

I have used lots of gorgeous products for my layout here today.  For the base of my layout I used papers from Paper Temptress, the gorgeous Laser 12x12 Silver Lustre and Silver Ore Glimmer Cardstock. You can also see many Molossi chipboards being used here: Joining Together, Doves, and Churches.

I used a gorgeous floral White Venice Lace (LA-078) from Tresors de Luxe, you can see it tucked behind my photos running along the left side of the layout. You can also see one of the gorgeous Hambly Overlays I used from the Hambly 6x6 Overlays #1 packet, Grandpa's Golden Wallpaper, lol, I LOVE that name!!

I love these unique Pearl Centered Ivory Lace Flowers (FL-069) from Tresors de Luxe. Perfect for a wedding layout!!

Here I've used some gorgeous carnations that I have inked with distress inks. 

Finally in this last flower cluster I used more of the carnation flowers, and another of the gorgeous White Velvet and Rhinestone Flowers (FL-005).

Shabby Tea Room Challenge and Fun News!

I got a phone call yesterday from the cafe where I sell my cards. Someone went in yesterday and bought my entire stock of cards!! 15 cards gone in one go! How exciting!! But now I had an empty rack...so last night I decided to do a few cards to add to the small stash I had ready for restocking.

I had this gorgeous French fruit ad image printed out and waiting in a stack of vintage images I have for card making. Shabby Tea Room's theme this week is Vegetable Garden. Hmmm, but mine has fruit on it...well I read the details on the challenge and saw the card must INCLUDE VEGETABLES (OR FRUIT) AND TEXT! There is plenty of text on my vintage image and background paper and fruit, so I decided to enter this card!

This is the inspiration image:

My image is also an ad, but selling sugared fruits but I thought it fit the theme well!

Thanks so much for looking!  We are packing up tonight getting ready for our trip tomorrow, a week in Tuscany, can't wait!!!

C'est Magnfique Guest Designer - Final Layout

I saved my favorite for my last layout to share on the blog. I just loved the blue and green color palette on this one. I love using banners and layered several under my photo, then piled on the flowers!!

I just love the flower add-ons that Leslie puts together for each kit, such an amazing variety to use for your layouts in addition to ones included in the main kit. This month's sold out quickly!

I used the Shimmerz olive branch spray from the Embellishment add on for the background of my layout over my masked chicken wire template, I love the subtle color it gave it!

I hope you go over to C'est Magnifique and check out this months kits, there are only a few left!! Better yet, subscribe so you will be sure to get all the kits!

You Melt My Heart

I had a lot of fun with this one, adding a tea bag stained background, some molding paste, some Shimmerz Bed of Roses and gesso!! I used the non-themed side of the Authentique Sweetness papers, no ice cream cones for this one...though I used a lot of the die cuts including the Melt My Heart one that sneaks in a bit of an ice cream look, subtle one though :) I took a bunch of the frames from the die cut sheet and layered them under the photo and one over the photo too :) Everything including the very white tags got a tea dye staining!
The flowers and vine are all prima and just used some household string to accent my layout. Final touch is a bit of bling confetti sprinkled around the layout.

I'd love to enter this in the Scrap Africa sketch challenge (I started with this sketch but it took on a life of its own...I used the photo placement from the sketch, my vine is the fence, and my background is the circles instead of the chicken wire!!) and the Scrap for Help tea bag challenge!!!

You're My Sweet Treat!!

Sometimes papers call for a different style than my usual... I went very clean with this layout and I like it!

I am entering this into the Sketchabilities 96 challenge for this week, I just fell in love with the sketch and had to use it!!

These photos I took just today sporting my girls brand new grown up hair cuts. Sigh. Time goes by too fast!

Toujours Paris!! Scrapbook Saturday at Paper Wings Productions

I just love the vintage image sheets they carry at Paper Wings Productions. I decided to do a vintage Parisian themed layout using the gorgeous April in Paris Clip Art Sheet. I had a lot of fun arranging the gorgeous Parisian images into a collage. I love that my paper has a hot air balloon on it tying in with the vintage image!!

I added the title "Toujours Paris" using the Perfect Alphabet Clear Stamp Set  For the background of the layout I used the Royal Melange Cling Stamp Set repeating the fleur de lys and script stamps throughout the background using Walnut Stain Distress Ink. I used the dots mask from the April Nesting Components Kit as well as the gorgeous velvet ribbon and some die cuts from Pink Paislee Cottage Farms from the May Nesting Components Kit.

These kits come in very limited supply, there is only one left of each of them and after that they are gone, so grab them while you can! I love the fact that there is always a stamp set, and image sheet, some sort of art medium or tool and great embellishments, you shouldn't miss them, I always make a point to buy mine early before they run out!!!!

I got out the sewing machine and did a black stitched frame around the central collage to add some texture and interest.To finish off the layout, from my own stash I added the flowers and the chipboard Eiffel Tower and the tags.