World Card Making Day - October 2, 2010

Pick a card - any card...(but be sure it is one that has never been published!).

October 2 is World Card Making Day. World Card Making Day began in 2006 and is celebrated annually on the first Saturday in October.  If you visit the Paper Crafts Moxie Fab World blog you will find a week of international inspiration beginning on Monday.  If you go to THIS POST you can see all of the cards from last year's inspirational tour and leave a comment for a chance to win a prize as well.  There are lots of activities planned in local shops and on the web. Be sure to visit Christina at Creations with Christina  - she is planning a day full of challenges and giveaways.

I wanted to let you know about the great contest that Paper Crafts Magazine is hosting.  There will be 20 winners - four in each of five categories (Birthday, Christmas/Season's Greetings, Hello/Thinking of You, Love and Thank You).  The prize is a package of card making products from 19 sponsors (including Creative Charms) and each package is worth over $600!  The winners will also have the opportunity to be published in the March/April 2011 issue of Paper Crafts.

You can get all of the details about the contest and see the official rules on the Paper Crafts site - here is a LINK.  I hope that I will have time to make an entry or two - you can enter in each category (but can only win in one!). 

The cards at the top of this post are some that I designed earlier this year.  If you would like to see how I made them and learn all about using "hide selected contour" you can see the original post HERE.

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Simple Turkey Card

 I was at Joann's recently and a saw a new line of embossing folders.  They are designed by Basic Grey and made by Sizzix.  There were quite a few sets available and each one was packaged with a small die.  I had a 50% off coupon burning a hole in my pocket so I decided to try these out.  The set I chose included the Diamonds and Snow Cap A2 embossing folders and a cute die that says HO3 ("Ho" to the 3rd power or "Ho,Ho,Ho"!).

I tried the Diamond embossing folder on a piece of heavy Bazzill cardstock.  The impression was very deep and sharp.  The look is very different on the two sides of the cardstock.. The side with the diamond lines embossed (above)  looks like an ice cream cone or waffle.

The side with the diamond lines debossed looks more like a quilt

So I had this piece of lovely embossed cardstock just looking for a home and decided to pull together a very quick and simple card.  I used an A2 card base in yellow textured cardstock and added an orange layer cut at 5 1/4 by 4 inches and then added my embossed layer which was originally cut at 5 by 3 3/4 inches.  Heavy embossing can actually make a piece of paper or cardstock "shrink" a bit so the layer might look a little smaller.

Whenever you are adhering a heavily embossed layer to a card it is a good idea to use a strong adhesive and place it close to the edge on all four sides (with some extra in the center for good measure).

I just made some ATCs (artist trading cards) for a swap and I had a few extra pieces left on my table.  These were also done in three layers - a green 2 1/2 by 3 1/2 base, an orange 2 1/4 by 3 1/4 layer and a top layer of printed texture patterned paper at 2 by 3 inches.  (I'll show you the ATCs that I made another day). 

The colors were very autumnal.  I looked at the seasonal embellishment sets that are new this month at Creative Charms and I could see that the turkey from the Thanksgiving Multi-Dimensional Chipboard Stickers would be a great fit in both color and size.

The turkey is layered with lots of detail and glitter.  The thickness of the chipboard makes it very substantial and it is a perfect focal point.  I like the card as it is but I might consider adding a stamp that says "gobble, gobble" (or something along those lines!).

That's all there is to this card - lots of simple layers, some deep embossing and a great embellishment.  You can use the same simple plan for many cards.  A Cricut cut and layered image for the center area would take a bit longer to make so if you are in a hurry, try a premade embllishment.  The advantage to using the Cricut for creating the center image would be the ability to customize the size to fit perfectly.

There were quite a few different sets of embossing folders - I think I'll have to add a few more of this type to my never ending collection! 

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Haunted House Card

I have had a few more questions about the cards I make by using "hide selected contour" to cut the design right into the card front.  I know I said I would do another video but I've had a few issues that have kept me from getting to do all the things I'd like to - in the meanwhile I thought I'd do a quick explanation again for those who asked about this.

This is another card I designed by altering an image to fit a standard card shape and using hide selected contour to "embed" the image in the front of the card.  The post with a longer explanation can be found HERE.

As I explained in the earlier post, you do have to be careful to watch the exact sizes of the shapes you use to make the card.  The "handles" around the shape I used for the base were not even with the cutting lines and this card turned out 1/2 inch too short (I had neglected to check the shape against the grid).  It was close enough to the standard A2 size that I could just trim off 1/4 inch for a 4 x 5.5 inch folded card.

This screen shot shows the original image on the left and an adapted image on the right.  I used the "handles" to stretch the width and height to fit an A2 card comfortably.  If I cut the image as shown I would have a card topper piece that I could adhere to any A2 card base.

By hiding the outer cutting line, I can create a card where the design is actually cut into the card front.

An easy way to align the shapes for a project like this is to use the outer edges of the bubbles or "handles" to make sure that the borders are consistent.  Here I just pulled the shape wider (with the center right handle) and longer (with the bottom center handle) until the edges of the bubbles were next to the rectangle that represents the card front.

I adhered the cut card to the bright yellow orange card base.  The design is cut in a piece of Core'dinations Onyx Gemstone cardstock.  I have to say - this is not my favorite card, but since I had taken it this far, I decided to "dress it up" a bit.

I added some clear gems at the four corners and then filled in all of the window openings with purple gems in two shades and sizes. 

The gems represent people (or ghosts!) inside the haunted mansion.  At first I left the top layer loose but, in the end, I decided to adhere the cut image to the liner along the bottom edge.

I added gunmetal Stickles along the roof lines of the house and used Icicle Stickles to make the clouds sparkle.  It actually does look cuter in person when you can see the glitter and shine of the gems.I think it would benefit from some embossing in the yellow liner - maybe I'll do another version...

I hope you had a chance to see the Harvest Moon last night.  It was a special night because there was a Harvest Moon on the same day as the Fall Equinox.  This won't happen again until 2029.  We have one tree behind our house that has already turned a brilliant red - the others will start showing more color soon.

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Friendship Card

Over a year ago, I was asked to do some cartridge previews for ProvoCraft.  Several bloggers were sent the original set of Cricut Ticket cartridges (Home Decor, Jubilee, Simply Sweet and Stand and Salute).  We all were first attracted to the Stand and Salute cartridge because it was very different from the existing cartridges and featured a much requested patriotic theme.  Some of my overseas readers said they were not very interested in this cartridge because it was "too American."

I am a firm believer that there are so many ways you can work with the images on a cartridge that nearly any cartridge will have some use to everyone.  By using Design Studio or the Gypsy you can totally transform the images and create something new.  I used a bunting image to create this design which can be varied in width to be a border or a full card topper.

 

Here is a LINK to the post with the files and a bit more explanation on how I created the design.

I came across the largest sample cut in my craftroom.  I had never used it for a card.  I have many bits and pieces from trial cuts and projects that changed direction along the way.  I am trying to use some of these up so there will be less "creative clutter" in my workspace!  The cardstock is from the DCWV Luxury Stack and has a subtle sheen and a very pale blue design.  My card base is textured purple Bazzill cardstock.  I added some Creative Charms gradient gem stickers in a purple shade at the base of each scallop along the edges.

This butterfly was also in the "waiting area" on my craft island.  I have some old bowls and other containers where I stash pretty things to keep them handy when I need a finishing touch.  The sequin trimmed butterfly is also from Creative Charms.  It is a very large, dimensional embellishment and I would not send this through the mail without a padded envelope or other protection.

I used a foam square from Creative Memories to attach the butterfly to the card.  The adhesive is quite strong and seems to be able to handle the extra large item easily.

I thought of this card as something I might send a fellow crafter and I wouldn't mind at all if the recipient gently detached the butterfly and passed it along to someone else by including it in one of their cards.  I used the phrase "kindred spirit"  from the Cuttlebug "Friends Forever" combo set and I cut it from Core'dinations Couture glitter cardstock.  I planned to use the tiny gems to dot the "i"s so I didn't worry about retrieving them from the Cuttlebug die.

 This card will soon be on its way - on a mission to brighten the day of another crafter.  I wonder if the butterfly will travel from friend to friend on a new card each time - who knows where it might end up?!


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Updates for Design Studio and the Gypsy

Updates are now available for Design Studio and the Gypsy.  The new cartridges announced last week have been added.  You can download the font pack update for Design Studio at THIS LINK.  You will need to be logged in to the Cricut.com site.  If your current program version is 1.0.40422.0 ( you can check this by choosing "About" from the Help menu in Design Studio), you do not need to install the program update.  Be sure to save the font pack update to your computer and then run it to be sure that the new cartridges will be installed properly.

To update your Gypsy, connect the Gypsy to your computer with the USB cable and run the Gypsy Sync program.  The update takes quite a while but you can let it run in the background while you are doing other things on the computer.  Celebrate with Flourish has finally been added to the Gypsy.  The Imagine cartridges are not included in the update.

I really like the look of the Nifty Fifties cartridge.  It has wonderful images that evoke the decade and there is a font with a shadow that also has the "look" of the era.  I used the font for the words "shall we" in the screen shot above.  I haven't had much time to look through the cartridges in detail but I will do a review as soon as I can.

What do you think of these new cartridges?  The "Shall We Dance" cartridge is the second Cricut Circle exclusive cartridge and will be sent to Circle members as part of their membership.  The other two cartridges seem to be available for online pre-orders.   I haven't seen either of these cartridges in a store yet.

I have a few other reminders today.

First, it is the last day of the Creative Memories sale.  Digital Artwork Downloads are 30% off and the prices of printed StoryBook Photo Books are also reduced $10-20.  Here is a LINK to the Digital Deals page on my Creative Memories site.  The Digital Download options can be found on THIS PAGE.

The Lettering Delights Dollar Days sale is still going on. Some new items were just added including Harajuku Girls graphics, paper pack and alphabet.  Above you can see a sneak peek of one of the projects I am working on using the "Frank's Friends" Graphic Set.



I received an email with a special code that will give you an additional 30% off for today only.  The code to enter at checkout is Just4Today.  You can support my blog by clicking on this box or the box in the left side bar to be connected to the Lettering Delights site and shop the sale.

I'll show you my Halloween project soon...I still have a some more to do on it and some other things that need attention too!

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