More Inspiration from others...

Good Morning, and Happy St. Patrick's Day to ya!
     I have owned the Cricut Expression Electronic cutter for a long time and I know my machine inside and out. I believe I have maximized its potential in every way I can think of. I hesitated for years after its release to purchase, because I DISLIKE cartridges. I didn't want to be limited like that, and the cartridges were/still are SO expensive and I would only use one or two items from each cartridge. Eventually I purchased my Expression like new on Craig's list only after learning about and purchasing the Sure-Cuts-Alot-2 software. (before the whole mess began with provo-craft) Perfect! A way out of depending on cartridges!
     This week, I stumbled onto the Cricut Explore, and again, it is not new, its been around for a while. I tried out and determined I disliked the Cricut Craftroom software, and thought that this new line of cutters worked with something similar. In my mind, they most likely changed the name to Design Space. (money trap -  so I thought)
     What intrigued me was the Print & Cut feature that came along with it. I thought that would be really handy with my digital stamp collection I have been building slowly over the years. Instead of investing in all the die cuts that match all the stamps, I could use my Cricut to cut them out. How cool would that be? (I DETEST fussy cutting) Bingo! What a great solution! And I don't have to PAY to use the software with my own images! (Thank you cricut for getting on board!)
     So, like before, I searched Craig's list to see what I could find. I found a BRAND NEW Explore being sold for significantly less than the stores. I got so excited, ran to Tampa and scooped it! -it was purple too- (ahhh...heart melting) It was meant to be.
     OK, onto today's creations. I saw these two cards: CARD #1 and CARD #2.
And using my new purchase! Here are my creations from these inspiration.

Card #1 - I used distress inks to SMOOSH and SMOOSH and SMOOSH ink onto the background. I used my heat gun in between to get the look I wanted. The plants I grabbed from my Insightful Meadows from Unity stamps set. and the sentiment was I think from Hero arts. I simply outlined it in black pen.

Card#2 -  I loved the look I got when I attempted the faux mother-of-pearl technique on this card. I created a bigger panel with more distress inks and blended them heavily. Then cut them apart with my Simon Says stitched squares dies. and glued them to a white piece of cardstock and attached the Thanks.

The words "Thanks" were cut using my Explore! I cut THANKS several times, and layered & glued them together. I don't have a Thanks die cut. The Explore is very easy and fast. I think the design space is very limited compared to SCAL2, but is provides beginners with simple tools. I think I will continue to use SCAL2 and then import my SVG's into Cricut Design Space. Maybe with that said, I could/should upgrade to SCAL4?! There is a thought!

HLS March CAS Challenge

Hello again,

I am not sure how I missed this awesome technique. It is called the Faux Mother of Pearl look. Unfortunately, I don't own any pearl acrylic paint or liquid pearls as the true technique calls for, so I improvised with what I had. I had white embossing paste that I have only used a handful of times. So I thought "why not?" If it doesn't work, it doesn't work"

I have to say, I love the look, although I am not sure it is a true "faux mother of pearl" (if there is such a thing...lol)   This card was very hard for me, I do not do well with lots of white space! I am just so glad to be on spring break, and have enough energy to create Enjoy!

What's Within Reach?

Hello again!
I wanted to share with you some pictures of my craft space, but I don't like the videos crafters/bloggers post showing the inside of each drawer and every cupboard. I do not find those interesting or informative. They come across as bragging about their crafting supplies, and how much they have.

I tried to come up with a way to show the items I find helpful to have within reach of where I sit at my desk. Which tools and items to I go to the MOST! Those are the posts I think are interesting. I thought I would share my ideas.

Mind you, I am a very frugal crafter surviving on a teacher's budget. I buy ONLY what I need and I use everything, or I don't keep it around. I have been card making for 5 years, and I have been blogging on and off for only 3.

Several of these items I have created by hand, and I have posts on my blog showing you in detail how you can create one also. I will link to those if you are interested. Leave a comment, I would love to hear your thoughts! I believe you can click each picture to zoom in.

Ohh, yes, I do own stamps! you cannot see them in these images, they are to my left, and not in these photos. Here are the links to the hand made items I mention.

• Cassette holder - Click here
• Shelving - Click here
• Ribbon Storage - Click here
• Ink Swatch book - Click here
• Blending pad binders - Click here & here
• die cut folders - Click here

I adore Rubbernecker Stamps!

Do you have a company of stamps that just make you feel good? I do. I adore Rubbernecker Stamps. They are foolproof! They are designed with a watercolor feel, so even the most horrible stamped image comes out beautiful every time! I mean it!

I was dog sitting for a good friend of mine, and I brought a pile of pre-cut watercolor paper and this rubbernecker stamp set. I had more fun combining colors and stamping dozens of images to see the effect I got. They all came out beautifully. Here are a few of the images I finally got a chance to match with a background and mounted on folded card stock. Take a look:

 I took the time to re-set up my indoor light box in the corner of my craft room. I experimented with different colored backgrounds and tons of lighting. I STILL prefer my outdoor photos, but some days I am just not able to get outside due to temperature, or inclement weather. I turned up my exposure on my camera and brighten these photos up with my Microsoft Picture Manager. They still seem dark to me. What do you think? Huh.....so much to learn about this card making/paper craft obsession of mine!!  :)

Please leave a comment, it makes my day to hear from you!

My cricut and three new stencils!

Hello again,
I watched a video from somewhere and the blogger used a stencil to start their card. I have never really been intrigued by stencils, and I don't own any. But for some reason, this stencil triggered something in me. I really liked the card that was created, and suddenly I wanted a stencil, like now!!
I thought "Why buy one, when I can create one?"  MY CRICUT! I located a pattern that pleased me, and I downloaded it, opened it in my SURE CUTS ALOT 2 program and had my cricut cut it out....and POOF! I now have a few stencils!
Take a look!

           

 

I am not quite sure what to create with them, but I am SO pleased that I was able to create them. If I can create these, what else can I create? SO many possibilities! I had some laminated card stock from a previous project. It worked perfectly for these stencils. More creating to come!