World Card Making Day ~ Kit 2 ~ Watercolor Hello

World Card Making Day continues with the second kit I will be giving away. Missed the first post about the giveaway and blog hops?  CLICK HERE

This card was made for StampNation's photo inspiration for Japan.  It's a Clean and Simple (CAS)  card that I adore.  CAS isn't always easy for me.  I like my layers and embellishments, but a CAS card done right can be very striking.

In the video I will show you three different ways to get this striped watercolor look as well as showing you how I get the background piece positioned perfectly. 

***Note- If you are reading this post in an email or reader you may need to go to my blog to view the video below.  Click on the post title to go there now.  :)

Isn't it fun to play with color?  I want to try this in greens and blues next.

Don't forget to check out my GIVEAWAY post with links to the two blog hops I was in on Saturday.  There are lots of prizes to be had.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Stamp: Oh, Hello 
Ink: Pink Pirouette, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red 
Paper: Whisper White 
Accessories: Deco Labels Framelits, Elements Cute Clips, White Embossing Powder 



Aquapainters ~ Set of 2



Deco Label Framelits



Elements Cute Clips
Clearance ~ WSL!!!



Inspired Birthday

This summer is flying by fast.  Today I needed a break from laundry and ironing, so I went down to the hobby room with a few challenges to try.  :)

My first inspiration came from the lovely photo below at Hand Stamped Sentiments.  As soon as I saw it I wanted to use it to make a card.  :)

 

HSS

I took the colors from the photo as well the little bow on the girl's shoe.  The colors I used were So Saffron, Pear Pizzazz, Strawberry Slush, with just a touch of Baked Brown Sugar. 

The stack of 3 books made me want to find a sketch that had strips or blocks that I could fill with color.  Mojo Monday didn't let me down.  :)



MM304

Isn't it perfect?   I thought about making the card rectangular so that more of the background paper would show, but the whole point of this week's challenge is to make a square or round card. 

To add the round portion I stamped the flower from Oh, Hello stamp set using Strawberry Slush and Pear Pizzazz markers onto a Tea Lace Doily.  To make the stamped image stand out I punched out a white 2 1/2" circle and adhered it to the back of the doily before putting it on the card.

Even the inside is decorated on this one.  I used a background stamp and versamark to create a background.  Then I stamped a Happy Birthday sentiment (retired SU) and cut that out with the window's framelit. 

Let me tell you, working with two challenges to make a card was way more fun than fighting with my iron.  :) 

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Stampin' UP! Products Used
Ink: Pear Pizzazz, Strawberry Slush
Paper: Afternoon Picnic DSP, Twitterpated DSP (retired), Pear Pizzazz CS, Baked Brown Sugar CS
Stamps: Oh Hello, Retired Happy Birthday
Accessories: Tea Lace Doily, Basic Rhinestones, Windws Framelits, Strawberry Slush Ruffle Trim Ribbon



Quilted Thanks

Aaahhhh.... all is right in my world again.  The rain has returned to my corner of SouthWest Washington.  In truth, I think most of western WA is wet today.  :)  That means I got to play in my craft room!  YAY! 

With my recent return to quilting it only seems fitting that I should choose a "quilty" stamp set.  In all honesty, it was an accident, but it does look like a quilt pattern to me now that it's done. 

For the colors in my card I joined the challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments.

These are not colors I would normally choose.  Mostly because I don't care for Summer Starfruit, but I stamped off before stamping it on my Whisper White cardstock, and I liked the color much better.  It was nice to be able to use Bashful Blue again before it retires.  That's the biggest reason I chose this color challenge for my design. 

The forecast tomorrow is for sun, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed for another rainy day in the craft room.  Otherwise I will have to be outside pulling more weeds.  :(  At least the rain will make them easier to pull.  :)

Either way though, I have a video ready to go for tomorrow, so be sure to come back and check it out.  Looking forward to seeing what YOU do with this challenge.  Let me know in the comments below if you decide to enter. 

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Card Recipe: (all items SU)
Stamps: Oh, Hello
Ink: Bashful Blue, Basic Black, Real Red, Summer Starfruit
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black
Misc: Basic Black  1/8" Taffeta Ribbon 



Oh, Hello




Basic Black Taffeta



Gift of Gratitude

Back in March I went to stamp camp and made this card.  When they showed us the sample I knew I would be making it for my mother-in-law.

In the meantime my mother in law sent me a special gift in the mail.  It was a stamp press and a beautiful set of monogram stamps.  I wanted to send her an extra special thank you.  So, along with the card above, I made her a set of notecards with her initial.

I even added some punched out flowers to the inside of the notecards.  I thought she would like these sweet little flowers.

All three cards were different, but they all used the same colors and stamp.  (the stamp she gave me) It was almost a step-it-up kind of card set.  I wanted them to look like they belonged together, but I wanted to have them range from basic to decorated.  I wanted her to have a card she could send to men or women.

 

When I was done I wrapped the cards with a Basic Gray satin ribbon and shipped them out to her.  She said it was like Christmas at her house when they arrived.  What a wonderful feeling to have blessed somebody else with my creativity.  It's the gift that truly gives back.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North




Oh, Hello Clear Bundle



I'm Here For You ~ Mojo288

If you read yesterday's post you know that I have been mostly absent from my craft room the past few weeks.  I find when I go a week or more without creating that my mojo is stunted.  What do you do when you lose your mojo?  The easiest way for me to find mine is to start with a sketch.  The sketches at Mojo Monday never seem to fail me.

It took some time and MANY mistakes, but I'm pleased with the end result.  Thank you Mojo Monday for making it possible to create beautiful cards. 

The real reason I went into my craft room yesterday is I had a card due for the Design Team at StampNation.  Yikes.  I usually don't wait until the last minute, but it's been crazy here for the past month.  The challenge was to use 2 stamps to make your sentiment. 

In order to line up the stamps where I wanted them to go I used my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig.  The "always" comes from Affection Collection by SU and the "I'm here for you" came from a Breast Cancer Awareness fundraiser from A-Muse studios. 

One last look at the card for you.  I hope I get to go back to the craft room today.  Although I think what I need to do next to spark my creativity is to CLEAN UP MY MESS.  It's so bad I couldn't find my scissors with the big red handles yesterday.  :)

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Card Recipe:
Stamps: Affection Collection; Oh, Hello; Misc. (sorry I don't know the name of the stamp set)
Paper: More Amore DSP; Very Vannilla; Basic Gray; Primrose Petals
Ink: Basic Gray; Black Staz-On; Pool Party; Primrose Petals; Real Red
Misc: Punches; Basic Pearls; Delicate Designs Embossing Folder; Corner Rounder

Happy Birthday, Friend

For some reason this card makes me smile.  Perhaps it is because I know the friend I am sending it to will smile as well.   I inked up the flowers from the Oh, Hello stamp set with Regal Rose and Wild Wasabi markers.  Then I stamped them directly onto my doily. 

To make the image pop, I punched out a 2 1/2" Whisper White circle and adhered it behind the doily.  The nice thing about this is you can still see the Twitterpated DSP behind the lacy edges.

The strip along the bottom was made by stamping in versamark onto Regal Rose cardstock and adding clear embossing powder on top, then heat set it with my heat tool.  It's a fun way to make your own paper patterns.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North




Oh, Hello




Tea Lace Doily



Twitterpated DSP