Art Deco Die Cutting...

 

Hey!

Happy Monday! I hope the start of the week is treating you well. :)

I'm popping in today with a project that is totally inspired by my love for the 1920s art deco movement. If you're raising an eyebrow, think Great Gatsby and you're there already! *wink*

Now this focal point was created with a Spellbinders circle die and the tiny tie die from Top Dog Dies' Photo Prop Die Set. Yup, a few die cut ties placed under a die cut circle creates a focal point that makes me want to put on a 1920s flapper dress and do the Charleston. :)

• In order to space out the rays/ties evenly, I attached four behind my circle at 90 degree angles and then placed the remaining four inbetween each one (does that makes sense?)
• The splattered background was created by mixing gold Perfect Pearls with water and flicking it on to the card-base with a paintbrush. More water gives a more diluted splatter and less water intensifies the gold sparkles. Blast it with a heat gun if you're impatient in letting it dry like me! :)
• I added more dimension to the focal point by slightly lifting up the rays from the card base. This is easy if you only place adhesive behind the circular section of the focal point.

You're going to have to trust me when I say that the gold shimmers beautifully if you're holding this card for yourself. My photography hasn't captured it too well. Hopefully you get the idea with this close up anyway. :)

 

Well that's enough flapping and babbling from me today. Thanks so much for stopping by!




Products Used
The gold card is from my stash - I've no idea where it's from, but I've suggested an alternative. Sorry!

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Shake it like a Polaroid picture!

Hey!

Happy Monday! It's my first day of the half-term and I've already made good use of it by whipping up a project using some Top Dog Dies goodies and a heck-of-a-lot of patterned paper. Yup, you heard right - patterned paper! What's happening to me? LOL!

 

It really was only a matter of die-cutting time until the TDD Photo Mats Die ended up being a shaker card. I've done this style of card before (see here), but I had to manually work out how to create the Polaroid-style frame using a combination of Nestability dies. Thanks to the Photo Mat Die I could be shakin' this card like a Polaroid picture in no time! :)

• To give the shaker element more depth to allow those stars to move around, I die cut the photo mat a few times from a foam sheet and layered them. No foam? No problemo! Simply layer thick card die cuts. You'll need a few more layers than foam, but will achieve the same result.
• I tried sprinkling fine glitter in my shaker card. Please learn from my mistake and don't try this! There's simply too much static going off in that frame for the glitter to not just stick to the acetate. Chunky glitter may work a treat though, I just didn't have any in my stash!
• Don't restrict yourself to stars for a shaker card. Sequins, beads, tiny die-cut shapes, anything is worth trying out! 

Edited to add: I'm also going to enter this card into my friend, Taheerah's challenge, Cure for the Monday Blues Challenge #5.  

Now I'm putting a disclaimer out now: I created this card this morning before I saw Taheerah's challenge, but she's being sweet and letting me link it up seeing as my frames and some of the colours tie in with the challenge. Thanks, T! :)

That's it from me today. And that's probably the most patterned paper you'll ever see me use on one card LOL!

Oh and in case you're wondering, today's post title comes courtesy of Outkast's amazingly catchy tune, Hey Ya! which is now stuck in my head for the rest of today. :)

As always, thank you so much for stopping by!












Products Used

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Bee mine

Hey!

Well I'm sure it hasn't escaped you on this fine Wednesday that Valentine's day is approaching and if you're celebrating it,  you've got less than two days to whip something up if you haven't already!

Today's card is a super simple, punny Valentine's card using the Cricut Mini that can be made in a matter of minutes. Trust me, it'll take longer for the red Stickles to dry and to exercise your patience than to design, cut, and put this card together.

The adorable bee and coordinating, punny sentiment are courtesy of the Create A Critter 2 cartridge. I simply cut different layers of the bee on to different coloured card and assembled it. I couldn't resist adding googly eyes and some sparkle to the hearts. I added extra sparkles to my bee's wings too using my Wink of Stella pen but my pic doesn't show it. Imagine those sparkles, OK? *wink*

• The red hearts create a visual triangle that allow the eye to naturally flow around the design.
• I love googly eyes. They add such a fun element to a design and can give an object lots of character. Try adding them to anything, I guarantee it'll make you smile! :)
• I've saved this design on the Cricut Craft Room software for the future. To make the same design again will take seconds as I'll just open the project and get cutting. Easy! 
• I used red card on the hearts before covering them in red Stickles to ensure that the whole heart was red even if any of the card showed through the Stickles.

That's all from me today, and that's all the Valentine's projects shared with you. No more slushfests, I promise. However I can't promise that there'll be no more punny creations LOL!

As always, thank you so much for visiting today!

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I only have eyes for you...

 This is my second post of the day. Please scroll down or click here to check out the new Clearly Besotted Stamps Challenge. Thanks! :)

 

Hey!

I'm back again. Are you sick of me yet? Hope not LOL!

This post features a special card that features some Top Dog Die goodness. It's special because it's the card that I've chosen to give to my guy on Valentine's Day. Don't worry, we're not in any danger of him checking it out here beforehand! *wink*

Guys are hard to cater for at the best of times when it comes to card-making. Even more so when you're trying to show your love for them without wanting to create one mega-slushfest on a piece of card!

Well in order to avoid a slushfest, I started with the Top Dog Die glasses. I love these style of glasses. Total geek chic. Now simply add some hearts punched from a teeny border punch to those glasses and you've got yourself a card that is still CAS, but still conveys love. Throw in a punny sentiment for good measure, and we have a lovey dovey card for my guy. :)

• It's a little bit of trial and error when it comes to typing directly onto a piece of card. I practised first on scrap paper to ensure the layout of the text remained central.
• Type/stamp on a larger piece of card first if you're not confident at stamping centrally. You can always trim a piece of card down after stamping to centralise it.
• No typewriter? No problemo! You can download many typewriter style fonts free of charge and create your sentiment on a computer. 

We don't tend to go crazy on Valentine's Day, and I leave little cards for my guy all year round. However, we couldn't possibly let the day pass without giving a little token of love. There's a little more romance to this card than meets the eye...

See the sentiment? I hand-typed the sentiment using Olive. Olive is our vintage typewriter that has been passed down through my guy's side of the family. He lets me have it sitting pretty on my desk and I had the brainwave to use her on my card. It's a little way to thank him for letting me keep her, and to show that she's still loved. I think he'll appreciate the loving touch (I hope so anyway!)

Right then, the lovey dovey slushfest is over. Thanks for stopping by today! 

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