Saturday, March 31, 2012

PTI's Make It Monday #59

The Make It Monday Challenge at Papertrey this week is to make computer generated sentiments on die cuts.  I love fonts and have a hoard of them on my computer, so it was nice to actually put them to good use.  I had a bunch of ideas for this, but alas it is already Friday, and although I have a bunch of sentiments printed out and several die cut, I don't think I'll be able to complete many projects before the week is over.  So you may be wondering why I used such a basic sentiment as "heartfelt thanks".  Well, I was in charge of a huge activity for the 12-year-old girls and their mothers at our church this week and at about midnight the night before I got extremely sick.  A few sweet friends basically took over the whole activity for me.  I wanted to send them a thank you, and all I kept thinking of is that I was truly grateful from the bottom of my heart.  That's when "heartfelt thanks" popped into my head.  I don't think that I have this sentiment in any size and certainly not the large size I wanted, so that's why I chose it.
Oh, and here's a tip.  I wanted to make sure the size of the sentiment would fit perfectly on the die, so I first die cut PTI's Fillable Frames #4 out of leftover clear packaging.  Then, when I typed out the sentiment, I made sure the screen view was at 100% and I just held the clear die up to the screen and fiddled with the size until it fit perfectly within the frame before I printed it.  Worked like a charm! 

Supplies (All PTI unless otherwise noted)
Stamps: Tremendous Treats: Valentine
Ink: Buckaroo Blue (SU), Chamomile Tea Dye
Paper: Lemon Tart, Melon Berry, Rustic White, Chloe's Closet DP (MM)
Other: Doily Details Die Collection, Fillable Frames #4 Die, Texture Tools Foam Brush (CTMH)

Sunday, March 25, 2012

March Papertrey Blog Hop - Take 2

I decided that since I'm giving the hair accessories I made with my PTI supplies (see this post to see the details on the hair accessories) to my nieces for Easter, they really needed to be in an Easter basket.  The basket was especially useful for this headband because it didn't fit on the little cards that I made to hold the other hair accessories.
See how perfectly each little hair accessory fits in the little basket?
To make the basket, I cut PTI's Favor It 2 Die out of aqua mist cardstock, then stamped it with a pattern from PTI's Background Basics: Retro. The bunny is from PTI's Tremendous Treats: Valentine set. I think he's even cuter when he has a tiny little pom-pom tail.
Oh, and in case you didn't see my first post with PTI's inspiration photo for this challenge, here it is.
Supplies (all PTI unless otherwise note)
Stamps: Background Basics: Retro, Polka Dot Basics 2, Tremendous Treats: Valentine
Ink: Spring Moss, Soft Sky (SU)
Paper: Aqua Mist, Lemon Tart, Stamper's Select White
Other: Limitless Layers: 1 3/4" Circle Die Collection, pom pom (from my stash)

March Papertrey Bog Hop

I was so excited to play along with Papertrey's March Blog Hop.  When I saw the challenge photo below, so many things stood out - one of them being the aqua bows tied around a few of the packages.
PTI's Challenge Photo
I have a bunch of nieces.  Two of them that live close have beautiful long hair and they love headbands and hair clips.  Since Easter is just around the corner, I decided to use my PTI supplies to make some hair accessories for them.  I decided that I wouldn't use any flower dies, and after looking at the dies I have, I chose PTI's Large Scallop Border Die, Simple Circles Border Die, and Limitless Layers 1 3/4" Circle Die Collection.
For the first pony holder I used PTI's Limitless Layers 1 3/4" Circle Die Collection.  I cut two circles of blue and white felt and three circles of yellow flannel fabric.
For the rolled roses (top pictures in the collage), I essentially used the same technique Dawn McVey used in these rolled flowers that she made with PTI's Spiral Popper Die.  However, I used PTI's Simple Circle Border Die instead. 
PTI's Simple Circle Border Die
 To make the roses I folded the circle strip in half (so it looked like a strip of half circles) and rolled them up, adding a little glue with the glue gun at the end.  For a little extra stability, I glued each flower on white circles of felt.  (You can kind of see that in the above picture that shows the back of the pony holder.)
To make the large yellow flower I used PTI's Large Scallop Border Die.  I just added a drop of glue at the bottom center of each scallop and scrunched each scallop into a petal. As I scrunched each petal, I twisted the scallop strip into a spiral (again, sort of like Dawn did in these flowers).  I know these are really poor directions, but it is really hard to describe.
I also made a head band.  I did the same technique for these rolled roses as the little ones above, except I die cut two pieces of each color of felt with PTI's Simple Circles Border Die instead of just one.  I rolled the first piece up, glued it, and then glued the next piece to the outside of the rolled flower and kept rolling.  I attached all 3 roses to a piece of felt, then glued that onto the ribbon.
Here's a comparison of the sizes of two strips vs. one strip rolled up.
The hair accessories took a bit to make, so I wanted to make the packaging simple.  I used PTI's Mat Stack 3 stamps and coordinating die.  In order to make them a little more sturdy, I die cut 2 layers, one on PTI's Stamper's Select White Cardstock and one on PTI's Coasters.  The coaster board worked perfect to give it the added sturdiness I was going for.   In order to attach the clips and pony holders, I punched 2 holes and then used my x-acto knife to cut a line between them. (Update: I changed my mind and decided that the packaging needed to be a little more exciting since these are going to be for Easter and all.  Go here to see the basket I made for them.)
And here's one last shot of them all together.

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Make It Monday #57 Masculine Style

I don't make a ton of masculine cards.  They're challenging.  I'll leave it at that.  I used the color kissing technique again for this week's Make It Monday Challenge at Papertrey.  I used Background Basics: Woodgrain to kiss chocolate chip ink (SU) onto the leaves from PTI's Turning a New Leaf set.  The colors are a bit washed out in the first photo.  The detail shot turned out much better. 
 
Supplies (all PTI unless otherwise noted)
Stamps: BB: Text Style, BB: Woodgrain Signature Greetings, Turning a New Leaf
Ink: Chocolate Chip (SU), Spring Moss, Chamomile Tea Dye
Paper: Dark Chocolate, Spring Moss, Vintage Cream
Other: 2 1/2" circle punch,  Backgrounds 1 Texturz Plate (SU)

Thursday, March 15, 2012

PTI's Make It Monday #57

The challenge this Monday at PTI was colored kissing.  My challenge this week was to actually find time to finish this card - I started it Monday!  I named this blog occasional crafting for a reason.  I just pulled up the InLinkz list and apparently a ton of other people had the same idea that I had to use Iconic Images for this technique.  The part of the card that meets the challenge is the pitcher.  I first stamped the image in the lighter Soft Sky (SU).  Then, I used the darker Hawaiian Shores ink (PTI) to stamp different medallion images (also from PTI's Iconic Images) on the pitcher stamp and stamped it again.  I was using up scraps on this card (I like to do that from time to time), so it is an atypical size, but sometimes that is refreshing, too.  Oh, I almost forgot.  I also did the technique for the flowers, which I initially did on this card.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Boy Birthday

It seems time, energy, and creativity have been at a minimum the last couple weeks because of a teething baby in the house.  However, I did manage to make a card last Saturday for one of my nephews.  I already had PTI's Have a Ball set when the Simple Circles border die came out.  As soon as I saw it I wondered if the balls would fit in the different circle sizes.  I finally got around to ordering the die about a month ago and was happy to find out that yes, the balls do fit perfectly.  I'm sure I'll be using this a bunch.
Supplies
Stamps: Have a Ball, Star Prints, Think Big Favorites #12
Ink: Pumpkin Pie (SU), Real Red (SU), True Black (PTI)
Paper: Black (MM), Real Red (SU), Rustic Cream (PTI)
Other: Simple Circles Border Die (PTI),Vanilla Emboss Powder (SU), Heat Embossing Tool, Sticky Squares (MM)


Thursday, March 8, 2012

PTI Make It Monday 56 & March SFYTT


This card took FOREVER to make. I probably would have given up on the PTI's Make it Monday challenge of die cutting a partial image, but I had invested so much time that I was determined to finish it. I didn't choose the best die because I had to mask not only part of the umbrella I was using, but the entire other umbrella on the die.  And for some reason I couldn't get the sandwich quite right. (If you're having similar issues, save yourself some time and a whole lot of frustration and use this much simpler {and extremely effective} tutorial).  Thankfully the idea for the card came pretty quickly because I used Jen's March SFYTT.  Here's the sketch.  I tipped it over on it's side for my card.
This picture shows the depth of the card a bit better.  The other time consuming thing was drawing and hand cutting the clouds. I was kicking myself for not ordering a cloud die. I will be next time I make an order.  I'm glad I made them, though.  The clouds and the sun starting to peek out from behind are my favorite parts of the card.
Supplies
Stamps: Scattered Showers (PTI)
Ink: Baja Breeze (SU), Berry Sorbet (PTI), So Saffron (SU)
Paper: Berry Sorbet (PTI), Lemon Tart (PTI), Red Riding Hood (SU), Vintage Cream (PTI), Quite Contrary Jack & Jill Papers (My Mind's Eye) ( I also used cream and dark green card stock from my stash)
Other: Scattered Showers Die, 1 3/8" Circle Punch (SU), Dimensionals (SU & CTMH)

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Pages with Papertrey #7

The challenge Leigh posted was to use a PTI sentiment stamp on your layout.  I used two: "You brighten my day!" from Lighten Up Sentiments and "cutie patootie" from Baby Button Bits.  I absolutely love these pictures of my mom and our little guy.  I took a bunch more that day, some of which are going on another page that I have not finished yet.  He was just a couple weeks old, so he wasn't very good at focusing on people's faces yet, but my mom made a bunch of silly faces at him that day and actually got him to look at her.  And I had to put "cutie patootie" on there because that actually is a nickname my mom uses for our little one.
 
Oh how I wish you could see how sparkly these glittered buttons are in real life!  I poured the glitter on last night but didn't shake off the excess glitter until this morning, and it the buttons turned out so pretty that I just sat there and stared at them for about a minute.
Supplies
Stamps: Lighten Up Sentiments, Fillable Frames #4, Baby Button Bits (all PTI)
Ink: Berry Sorbet (PTI), Certainly Celerly (SU), Raspberry Fizz (PTI)
Paper: Berry Sorbet (PTI), Raspberry Fizz (PTI), Ocean Tides (PTI), Breeze (CTMH), Home Pink Glitter Book (My Mind's Eye), Chloe's Closet DP (Making Memories), Mosaic Memories Paper Stack (Recollections)
Other: Limitless Layers Oval Die Collection (PTI), Buttoned Up #1 Die (PTI), Scallop Edge Border Punch (SU), Dazzling Diamonds Glitter (SU)
**This layout was inspired by one in Crystal Wilkerson's Ella E-book Template Collection.

Saturday, March 3, 2012

PTI Make it Monday 55: Take 3

My friend is having twins - one boy, one girl.  So exciting.  I decided to make a card for her using PTI's Make it Monday Challenge to smaller frames into larger frames.  This time I stuck exactly to the challenge (unlike my unique interpretation on the last project).  The card is super sparkly in person, but not so much in the photos.  We've had snow several days in a row and the sky remains grey...not so good for pictures.
Here's a close up.  The sentiment reads "double the love", but the pink is hard to see in the pictures.  Oh, and my friend has already picked out names, which is why the sailboat has a "K" on it. 

Supplies
Stamps: Bitty Baby Blessings, Mat Stack 1 Collection, Fancy Flourishes, Polka Dot Basics, Star Prints, Background Basics: Retro (all PTI)
Ink: Bashful Blue, Basic Grey, Pink Pirouette (all SU)
Paper: Spring Rain (PTI), Sweet Blush (PTI), White, Grey
Other: Butterfly Punch (Martha Stewart), Dazzling Diamonds Glitter (SU), Dimensionals (SU)

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Make It Monday 55: Take 2

Okay, so I was a little liberal with this take on the challenge.  When I was looking through my stamps to find frame images, I ran across PTI's On My Couch set.  I know couches and chairs are not frames, but at least they're all things you'd find in a living room. :) Anyway, when I looked at the couches and chairs, I started wondering what they would look like double stamped like Dawn had done in the MIM video.  My curiosity got the best of me, so I inked them up, and I loved the "frame" they created.  I figure I'm still applying the basic concepts of the challenge...making a larger frame out of a smaller image, hiding lines made by double stamping the image, and getting more mileage out of my stamps.  And really, I just thought it was too neat not to share. 
I work with teenage girls at church, so I made little tags with their names on them to go on a gift.  Although some of the tags have the same colors, each tag has a different background.  I'm pretty happy with how they turned out. :)
As you can see in the close up, I stamped the chairs in opposite directions with the feet touching.  It looks really neat when you use the filled in/patterned chair and couch pieces as well.  I'm working on a card that shows that, but for this project I needed to use the chair outline because the outlines have the feet at the bottom, and I needed the image just a bit longer, so I could fit the name labels.
Supplies
Stamps: On My Couch, Fresh Alphabet, Background Basics: Retro (all PTI)
Ink: Raspberry Fizz (PTI), Certainly Celery (SU), Cool Caribbean (SU), Orchid Opulence (SU), So Saffron (SU), VersaMark
Paper: Raspberry Fizz, Aqua Mist, Lemon Tart, Spring Moss, Plum Pudding, White (all PTI)
Others: Key Tag Punch (SU), Ticket Corner Punch (SU), Caribbean & Pink Sorbet Twine (Twinery), Purple Twine, White Emboss Powder (SU), Heat Embossing Tool

With Sympathy

I made this card a while back for a friend.  I don't really consider myself a pink kind of girl, but it seemed soft and delicate, which is what I was hoping to convey with this card.  I still think sympathy cards are the hardest to make. 
The next picture shows the colors most closely to what they look like on the actual card.
I added the rhinestone button to the center of the flower and cut a velvety flower in half that I had on a bunch of hydrangeas in our bedroom to make the leaves.  I was pretty happy with how it turned out.
Supplies
Stamp: Round & Round (PTI)
Ink: Walnut Stain Distress Ink (Tim Holtz), Chamomile Tea Dye Ink (PTI)
Paper: Cream, Mosaic Memories (Recollections)   [I love this paper pack!)
Other: Large Scallop Border Die (PTI), On the Edge Die (Tim Holtz), Prima Floral Embellishment, Pink Ribbon, Rhinestones, Cream Parcel Tag, Rhinestone Button