H2H Challenges: Color of the Year, Melon

This year's Close To My Heart Color of the Year is Melon, so Heart2Heart Challenges is celebrating this new hue.

I knew that I wanted to use Melon with my new Floral Sentiments stamp set, so I did a quick color Melon color palette search to find this:

I think that Lagoon, Seabrooke (NEW), Melon (NEW), Papaya, and Raspberry were great matches and what I used to stamp the front of this slimline (3.5"x8.5") card.

I used first and second generation stamping with Lagoon and Melon inks; all other stamping was first generation.  I embellished my card with NEW Melon and NEW Teal Dots.  (I am loving all the new dot colors!)  I also cut the frame out of Melon cardstock with the Slimline card front Thin Cut.

Be sure to share your Color of the Year creations with us at Heart2Heart Challenges before the end of the month!  Please leave a comment before you go see what our Design Team created to share with you!

September Stamp of the Month Layout: Fall Is in the Air

Using the September stamp of the month, Enjoy These Moments, was a fun way to scrapbook photos from last fall, visiting our daughter at the University of Georgia.  (I set up my table to scrapbook during today's game, hoping to catch her on TV.  Unfortunately ESPN doesn't show the crowds and bands as much as the network channels do.)

The techniques I used are very similar to the card I made for her and posted recently.

I stamped the sentiment on a 2.75" square of White Daisy cardstock after inking in Candy Apple and rolling in Black.  For the bottom border, I random stamped the two larger leaves in Candy Apple, the acorns in Black, and then went back in and filled in gaps with the tiny cluster in Candy Apple.

Red shimmer trim and the new black and white dots (which come with hearts and stars too) made for fun embellishments.  I stamped "Saturday in Athens" with the (retired) Daisy Alphabet.  (You can still find this stamp set on my website, while supplies last.  All of my materials can be purchased HERE if you're interested.)

Don't be afraid to celebrate the season with your favorite team colors!

September Stamp of the Month: Black & Red Card

This weekend, I was inspired to create a fun card with the September stamp of the month, Enjoy These Moments, in Candy Apple and Black.  Now, you may be wondering why I would choose this color palette for fall, but if you know, you know!

I began with a Black 4.25"x5" cardstock panel.  I random stamped two of the leaves from the September stamp of the month in Candy Apple and the acorn cluster in Black around the edge of a piece of 4"x5.25" White Daisy cardstock.

For the actual card, I cut a piece of 3"x8.5" of black cardstock that I folded in half to make a small top-fold card.  I stamped the focal image on a 2.75" square of White Daisy cardstock, inking up in Candy Apple and rolling the edges in Black.  I added Candy Apple and Black shimmer trim to a piece of 2-3/4"x1-1/8" of White Daisy cardstock.  (I also added a few black enamel dots.)

On the inside of the card, I stamped a leaf in Candy Apple on the 2.75"x4" base.

So do you know why I chose my color scheme?

Our daughter is playing in her third and final season in the University of Georgia Redcoat Marching Band, and they had their second game/first home game this weekend.  I started thinking about football with the sentiment stamp!  I think this would be a fun card to recreate in other team colors, but of course red & black are my current favorites (with good reason).  What team colors would you use?

Remember, the September stamp of the month is only available this month!  Learn more HERE.

Craft with Heart Scrapbooking: One Wedding, Two Ways

My current Craft with Heart Scrapbooking subscription box arrived recently, and I can't wait to play with the beautiful layouts that are so easy to put together!  In the meantime, I wanted to share two layouts I made recently using past Craft with Heart Scrapbooking layouts.  I used the same pictures on both layouts, one for each of my daughters.

For the first layout, I added some (retired) Wildberry flower embellishments, but decided that the Wilderry leaves in the second layout didn't need additional color added.

It really amazes me how well you can make your photos work with premade layouts!  Give the Craft with Heart Scrapbooking or Cardmaking subscription boxes a try!  Learn more HERE.

September Stamp of the Month: Enjoy These Moments

Who is ready for fall?!?  Now that Labor Day has passed, summer is unofficially over, so let's bring on the cooler temperatures and the changing leaves!  The September stamp of the month, Enjoy These Moments, definitely celebrates the arrival of fall.

I wanted to try stamping the beautiful heart stamp without having to color it in and am please with the results of these two cards.  After stamping in Paprika for the first card and Sapphire for the second card, I fussy cut the heart quickly.  Making the Autumn Blessings was a little more challenging but not difficult.  After stamping, I used my paper trimmer to cut the bottom left and right edges, then fussy cut around "blessings," finally dovetailing the new edges.  A few white dots finished off both cards.  (The papers are from Crisp Air.)

Here's a close up of the Sapphire card:

I had also stamped the heart in Pine but didn't find it to be as pretty as the Paprika and Sapphire versions.  Which version do you prefer?  What other colors would you try this in?

Heart2HeartChallenges: I Like to Move It, Move It!

This week's Heart2Heart Challenge is I Like to Move It, Move It!  How do you make your projects move?

I had a lot of fun using the August stamp of the month, Enjoy These Moments, and the Crisp Air collection to create an interactive Dutch Door card.  (I used Peach, Sundance, Paprika, Mocha, and Toffee inks to ink up my focal image.)

The focal image panel (base of Pine cardstock) opens up to reveal the "door" that then swings open to reveal the main card panel where I stamped "thankful for you" in Pine and the leaf cluster in Paprika.

I stamped that beautiful heart stamp in Mocha on the inside of the "door" panel.

Here are the pieces that I used to create my card (but sub the bottom left piece for Pine cardstock).

Top row: 8.5"x5.5" cardstock, sidefold card base (Paprika cardstock), 4"x5.25" Crisp Air leaf patterned paper, 4"x2.75" Crisp Air Paprika patterned paper

Bottom row: 3.5"x9.5" cardstock, topfold card base (sub Pine for Paprika cardstock), 3.25"x4.5" leaf patterned paper, 3.25"x4.5" White Daisy cardstock panel

Cut off the front of the card 2.5" from the top to keep a 3" card front panel.

Have fun creating projects that move!  Be sure to check out all of our Design Team's creations and join us at H2H Challenge's I Like to Move It, Move It!

Craft with Heart Scrapbooking

Close To My Heart offers two different, beautiful subscriptions: Craft with Heart Scrapbooking and Craft with Heart Cardmaking.  (Learn more HERE.)  I really love reaching for them when I'm not feeling very creative, because almost all of the work has been done for me.  All you really need is your favorite adhesive (plus a journaling pen for scrapbooking).

I modified this first layout to fit my photos of a hike that we took right before the world shut down in March of 2020.

This second layout commemorates my brother-in-law's birthday celebration (and especially time spent with family).

These kits come together so quickly and easily.  Give them a try!
 

First Day of School Layout

It's really hard for me to believe that this year is my 30th start to school as a public educator!  Because we had such an unusual start, I decided to add a 6x12 flip flap to be able to write about what happened and still celebrate our start.

I decided to use Linen, Black, and Grape as my color scheme to match my photos.  I also selected Pattern 36 from Make It From Your Heart, Vol. 3 as my layout guide (although of course I put my twist on it).  

I knew that I had a lot of journaling that I wanted to include but not let it be the showcase of my layout, so I typed up my experience to then "hide" on the left page.

I used both the retiring Daisy Alphabet and August stamp of the month, Teach Love Inspire, as stamped accents on my layout.

I also used a variety of acrylic shapes in black and white to accent the page.  The black patterned paper is from the retired Love Story (Black), and the Linen chicken wire paper is from Backyard Bliss.

If you have a lot of journaling, especially if it's somewhat private or sensitive, consider adding it below a flip flap element.  If you need any help with this, please let me know!

Backyard Bliss Birthday Card

This card uses pieces of the same card that I posted yesterday, but with a twist to celebrate a special birthday!

I cut a small Stitched Square Thin Cut from Papaya glitter to make my "present" shaker window.  I stamped the sentiment and bow (fussy cut from Papaya cardstock) with the You Deserve It All stamp set.  The little heart border uses the heart from the August stamp of the month, Teach Love Inspire.

After filling the shaker window with (retired) Blue Belle sequins, I colored the bow with Peach shimmer brush and my Coral Blend Spectrum Noir TriBlend marker to add some sparkle and dimension.

Hopefully the recipient enjoyed the card!  Remember, the August stamp of the month is only available this month!  The Backyard Bliss collection is available until the end of September.

August Stamp of the Month Appreciation Card

The August stamp of the month, Teach Love Inspire, isn't just for educators!

This cards uses the Backyard Bliss collection and Stitched Brackets Thin Cuts.  It was easy to color the image with two Spectrum Noir TriBlend markers.  A little Papaya shimmer trim and a zip strip piece finishes this off quickly!

Teach Love Inspire Gift

As an educator, the August stamp of the month, Teach Love Inspire, really speaks to my heart!  I made a little teacher gift for our daughter who begins teaching two segments of Public Speaking at the collegiate level as a TA in her Masters program at UGA.  (Please give her a little virtual, heavenly whisper of encouragement!  She starts teaching today!)

This little sticky note holder is made with a 4x6 acrylic frame.  Rather than standing up tall to hold a photo, it lies at a small angel.  I used the Smarty Pants collection (retiring at the end of the month) with the stamp of the month.  I fussy cut and colored the images with some of my Spectrum Noir Tri-Blend markers.  I stamped her name on the note on the corkboard with the Prairie Alphabet.  I also randomly stamped images from the set on the actual sticky notes themselves.  (I'm not sure when she'll notice the sticky note of encouragement I added to the back/underneath side of her note pad holder.)

I'm looking forward to creating a lot more with this stamp set!  Remember, the August stamp of the month is only available through the end of the month!

H2H Challenges: In the Backyard

Summer is the perfect time for Heart2Heart Challenge's latest, In the Backyard!  I decided to use the Backyard Bliss collection to scrapbook photos from a recent wedding we attended.  I think the colors work well with my photos!

I have been wanting to try to recreate the heart layout features on p. 25 of the retiring idea book (available through the end of this month only).  Instead of using 2" squares, I used ten 2.5" squares which were then cut in half on the diagonal.  (It actually took more than 10 to get the patterns, etc., to work nicely.)  I used all of the patterned paper in the Backyard Bliss collection.

I used my new Floral Sentiments stamp set, Papaya glitter paper, and Crisp Air embellishments to accent my pages.  I used Papaya, Sapphire, Rosemary, and Pine inks with my stamping (and Papaya for the distressing).

On the far right, the photo hides my journaling and another photo, which I am not sharing here to respect our friends' privacy.  The journaling definitely includes the "who, what, when, where, and why" details.  I would like to think that I will always remember the moment, but future generations won't necessarily without the added journaling.

Please leave a comment before visiting the Heart2Heart Challenge blog for our designers' inspiration and to join us for either (or both!) of our August challenges!  Thank you!