CTC #213: Floral Romance

Hi!

Welcome back to CASEing The Catty Sunday Challenge and Blog Hop.

Being a blog hop, all the blogs are linked in a loop, so you just keep hopping until you get back to where you started. The blog before mine was the lovely Elizabeth Gross. You may have started here, there, or anywhere on the hop - it really doesn't matter - but do make sure you see everyone's creations as they are always fabulous.

This week we are CASEing the Floral Romance section of the Occasions Catalogue. I'd sort of skipped over that section when I first looked at the catalogue, as I'm not big on Valentines and I don't make a lot of wedding cards. I realised what I was missing when I was made to look for this challenge. So many gorgeous things!

For the challenge, I settled on this pretty gift box. I don't have any of the product, but that's not really the point of CASEing. You don't have to copy exactly! Having said that, I did copy fairly closely, but I used alternate products.

My first thought when looking at this box was that I don't have the die used on the background. A quick flick through my Annual Catalogue reminded me that there was a similar piece in the Delightfully Detailed SDSP. I layered it over the top of some of the soft pink paper in the Petal Promenade DSP and then mounted it on some Smokey Slate cardstock that I'd run through the Big Shot with the Subtle 3DTIEF.

The main floral panel is also from the Petal Promenade DSP, cropped with a Stitched Oval Framelit. The leaves were cut using the Flourish Thinlits leaf from Mint Macaron and Soft Sea Foam cardstock. I love how the soft grey, pink and green work together!

I used a second piece of the Delightfully Detailed SDSP to create the border piece along the side of the inside. Silly me used the Very Vanilla side rather than the Whisper White side. Oh well, most people wouldn't even notice that! The hearts, like the vellum heart on the front, are cropped using the Support Ribbon dies.

Now you're off to Peta Stephen's blog so that you can continue your way around the Blog Hop.

Don't forget to join us in our Facebook group. It's where you can see what everyone has made for the challenge, and you can add your card to the group to join in the challenge too.

Bye for now,

Tina

Polished Stone Dragonflies

Hi!

Remember a little while ago I was playing around with the Polished Stone technique? Well, I found one more card in my 'To Blog' folder using the technique that I hadn't shown you yet. Here it is!

I used Night Of Navy and Mint Macaron ink to create the Polished Stone panel. Isn't it pretty?

Speaking of pretty - how's that Subtle 3D Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder? I've been using it so much, as it adds that little something extra on so many cards.

That's the last of my Polished Stone cards for now - hopefully I'll get back to the technique some more soon, as it's a fun one!

Bye for now,

Tina

JAI #372: Just Add Colour

Hi!

This week at Just Add Ink, Nikki has chosen a gorgeous selection of colours to inspire creativity. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them as soon as I saw the palette.

Aren't they just stunning? I pulled out my trusty sponge brayer, and off I went!

I started by using sticky notes to mask off the area I wanter to brayer. I held it all down with some sticky tape too - just to be sure nothing moved while I was using the brayer, as that would have been disastrous! I started by rolling on some Powder Pink ink from the bottom up, and then some Pool Party ink from around 3/4 of the way to the top, running down into my Powder Pink area. I finished by brayering some Tranquil Tide ink down from the top. I had to be really careful to go easy with the Tranquil Tide, as I didn't want the darker colour to overwhelm the paler colours. I was very pleased with the end result!

I die cut the large flourish from the Flourish Thinlits in Basic Black to add a lovely, strong point of interest to the card.

I always find the inside of Sympathy cards the hardest to do - I'm not sure why. I do think that the leaves provide a nice backdrop to the sentiment though.

The rest of the Design Team have had a blast with these colours. You can see their gorgeous cards over at the Just Add Ink blog, where you can also link up your entry for the challenge.

Bye for now,

Tina

Pop Of Pink Flourishes

Hi!

Today's card is one I made for one of my nieces for her recent birthday. She's a big fan of a certain AFL football club. Can you tell which one from the background DSP I used? It's a piece from the recently retired Pop Of Pink SDSP pack.

I used the Flourish Thinlits, which carried over, and also three new In Colours on the card. Yes, once again I have used my favourite Powder Pink and Berry Burst, but this time I added Lemon Lime Twist. It adds a real pop to the card I think.

Can you believe I've had these dies for a year and only ever used the flourish? It was well beyond time I used the flowers! They layer together so nicely, and the rhinestone nestles perfectly in the centre.

Did you guess which AFL team? Why it's Collingwood, of course!

Bye for now,

Tina

Decorated Photo Frame

Hi!


Today I have a project for you that was my sample for two different classes. The ladies in the groups were all pretty much non-crafters. I was asked to design a decorated photo frame for them to make, so I had to design something WOW, but that was easy for beginners to make.

When I first showed the ladies they were all a little freaked out. They thought it was going to be hard, but thankfully they trusted me that it wasn't, and gave it a go. They were all so happy with the end result. The kits had a variety of colours, and I had a huge selection of dies for them to choose from, so all the frames looked very different.

Most of the flowers were 'punch, brad and scrunch'. We punched 6-8 layers of cardstock or tissue paper, pierced them and added a brad. The layers were then scrunched up, and flattened out a little to give a dimensional look.

Sitting underneath the flowers were diecuts from the Flourish Thinlits. The word love is from the Sunshine Wishes Thinlits.

I was so pleased that everyone had a fabulous time making the frames, and came away with a great sense of accomplishment. Mine is now hanging proudly on the wall between my dining room and craft room where I can see it all day long.


Bye for now,


Tina

AWH Blog Hop: Easter

Hi!

Today I am participating in a blog hop along with the super talented ladies in the Art With Heart Team. We thought it would be fun to share some Easter projects, seeing as Easter is only about 3 weeks away!
Saleabration is a great time to join or place a $90 order to get extra free items – ask me how!
Blog Hops are full circles, so you can start hopping here and then at the end of each post is a link to the next one. There is also a list of participants at the end in case of any broken links. Now let’s get started!


I don't really send Easter cards, so after a lot of thinking about what I could do instead of a card, I decided to scrap a layout of an Easter from my childhood. I rummaged through my box of photos, and found this gem from around 30 years ago. My sisters and I are wearing blue and pink nighties, which tied in beautifully with the colours in the Falling In Love DSP.

I had to laugh, as my sisters and I each got a Humpty Dumpty egg. They are still around now, and my children regularly receive them at Easter. In fact, I went to a Chicks at the Flicks movie last night and received a sample one in my goodie bag!


I also laughed, as I had to date this photograph based on my haircut! I dragged out my old school photos, and based on those it had to be either 1986 or 1987.


I haven't journalled on this layout yet. I have typed up the text on a Project Life card, however what I thought looked blue actually turned out more of a green and didn't look right on the page. Sadly, my typewriter ribbon ran out, so I have to wait for my new one to arrive so that I can add the text.

I cut this 'sweet' from Cupcake Cutouts Framelits many months ago at my friend Kathryn's house. I cut it in Whisper White, which wasn't going to work on this layout. No problem - I just grabbed my trusty Sponge Brayer and my Sweet Sugarplum inkpad, and hey presto! A Sweet Sugarplum title! I love that the brayer has given it a textured look, very different from if I'd cut it with SS card stock.

Did you know that butterflies are a symbol of Easter? I certainly didn't until I Googled symbols of Easter while I was brainstorming for my project. The life cycle of the butterfly reflects the story of Jesus over the Easter period. You learn something every day!


That's it from me for now, but next on the list is Rachel Woollard. She's bound to inspire you with her creativity!

If you find a broken link or have come to this blog hop from a different entry point, you can view the participants below:

1. Judy May
2. Catherine Proctor
3. Ros Davidson
4. Rebecca Jacovou
5. Kathryn Mangelsdorf
6. Claire Daly
7. Kate Morgan
8. Monika O'Neill
9. Tina Gillespie
10. Rachel Woollard

JAI #323: Just Add F

Hi!


Are you ready for the new Just Add Ink challenge?

This week I set the challenge, and it's another of our alphabet challenges. This week we are asking you to add F to your card. It can be anything to do with F - feathers, Flirty Flamingo, or even frills.

I just went for one F this week, as I used the Flourishes Thinlits on my card. The colours I used are Night Of Navy and Emerald Envy. The navy didn't photograph very well - the colour combo is stunning in real life.

This card came about after I made a thank you tag to go on some customer orders. I used the smaller flourish on the tag and when I looked at it I thought it might make a good card. I'd like to thing that I was right!

What F things will you put on your card? You can see what the Just Add Ink team have created over on the blog. Can't wait to see what you create!


Bye for now,


Tina