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!

H2H Challenges: Product Challenge- Stamps

 This month's first Heart2Heart challenge is an easy product challenge- use stamps on your project!

I used the brand new, beautiful Floral Sentiments stamp set to create this card.  After stamping my floral border in Peach, Shortbread, Sapphire, Papaya, Rosemary, and Pine (first and second generation stamping techniques), I mounted my panel onto a piece of Sapphire cardstock then onto a piece of patterned paper from the Backyard Bliss collection.  The pretty little heart embellishments are actually from the Crisp Air collection.

Be sure to visit the Heart2Heart Challenges to join in the stamping fun!

Another July Stamp of the Month Sea Turtle Card

 It's your last chance to get the July stamp of the month, Voices of the Sea!

You only have a little bit of time left to get this beautiful stamp of the month HERE!

July Stamp of the Month Angelfish Card

The July stamp of the month, Voices of the Sea, is so much fun to create with!  I taught this card at my recent monthly card class.

Unfortunately shaker windows don't photograph as well as they look in person, but hopefully you get the idea!  I spritzed Turquoise gloss spray on the base of the window.  I fussy cut the angelfish stamp after coloring with several of my Spectrum Noir TriBlend markers then added some clear shimmer brush accents.

I used sequins from the silver sequins pack in the shaker.

Remember, the stamp of the month is only available during the month it is offered, so be sure to get yours before the month ends!  (Learn more HERE.)

Heart2Heart Challenges: Summer Fun

Happy summer from all of us at Heart2Heart Challenges!  We hope that you're having lots of summer fun!

That's exactly the phrase that I used from the Beach Party Scrapbooking stamp set to create this card (inspired by a card on p. 48 of the current July-September Idea Book) with stamped Thin Cut accents.  I had fun scissor distressing the different rectangles and adding a little Capri shimmer trim.

Tell me about your summer fun in the comments!  Be sure to visit Heart2Heart Challenges to see our design team inspiration and to add your Summer Fun project to our challenge.

I also can't resist linking up my card to the Color My Heart Color Dare Challenge #505 Tic Tac Toe.

July Stamp of the Month Seagull Card

Thanks to another CTMH Maker, I was inspired to create this seagull card featuring the July stamp of the month, Voices of the Sea.

I sprayed the lighter side of a Glacier cardsock panel with white gloss spray to try to mimic clouds.  I sponged Toffee ink on the lighter side of Toffee cardstock strips then tore them to create the sand.  I used my Gold Yellow, Brown Gray, and Earth Brown Spectrum Noir TriBlend markers to color the seagull (then fussy cut).  I also sponged the Toffee Stitched Rectangle Thin Cut frame with Mocha ink to help it pop just a bit.

The sentiment is also from the stamp of the month set, which I accented with a gold glitter gem and gold glitter paper.

Who would you send this card to?

"Sea" You Soon Card

 This card says it all!  I am traveling home today.

I used the Beach Party collection and Capri, Sapphire, Shortbread, and Mocha inks.  That cute little beach ball is part of the Beach Party rubber shapes.  (I made this card for my husband and left it for him when I left to travel with our daughter.)

"Sea" you all again soon!

Happy Anniversary Card

Today is our wedding anniversary, and it's the first time we've been apart on our anniversary.  I made this card for my husband prior to leaving on our trip and left it with our daughter to give to him today (or as close to today as she could).

I used the Beach Party paper pack, coordinating cardstock, and Scrapbooking stamp set to create this card.  I also used my Stitched Heart Thin Cuts and shaker window kit.  I stamped the sentiment with Capri and Bluebird inks with the For All Occasions stamp set (and the flip flops with the same inks).  I loved that the scrap of patterned paper that  I used featured a lady and a man floating in the water!  If you look closely, you can see that I stamped the sand from my Writing in the Sand stamp set with Shortbread ink onto the Shortbread cardstock.  Finally, I filled the shaker window with Candy Apple cardstock hearts and gold star sequins.  I also cut my gold shimmer trim in half (or close to have) with my paper trimmer for the thin borders.

I look forward to celebrating our anniversary together in person soon!

Beach Party Layout #1

Have you had a chance to look at the new Beach Party collection?  I hope that you can see all the possibilities for this collection for any kind of water fun, not just at the beach!  I used the paper pack, sticker sheet, Beach Party Scrapbooking stamp set and Thin Cuts, and the fun coordinating rubber shapes on this layout.

Here's a close up of the cute cluster to highlight the left page's photo.  Since I haven't printed my pictures for this layout (yet), I had to be careful not to stick them down at the top- I'll explain more at my scrapbook class on Facebook Live on July 21.

How do you like the combinations of stamped images with stickers?  The shading on the beach towel includes exclusive inks and watercolor pencils.

I will show you the finished layout once I get my photos printed and added!

Writing in the Sand Meets Voices of the Sea

Hopefully you're enjoying the beachy vibes happening right now.  (I know I sure am!)  I knew that I had to pair the July stamp of the month, Voices of the Sea, with the Writing in the Sands stamp set.  

I decided to pair Lagoon with Candy Apple because of the sea and the crab.  I used two of my TriBlend markers to color (and shade) both the shell and the crab, and then I fussy cut them out (and that crab was a bit of a challenge).  I added the "nautical" flag with the sentiment to balance the card and add that message.

I can't wait to try some more pairings with these two sets.  Which Voices of the Sea images would you like to see paired with Writing in the Sand?

Writing in the Sand Cards

When I saw the new Writing in the Sand stamp set in the NEW July-September Close To My Heart Idea Book, I knew that I had to get it right away!  I couldn't resist creating the cards featured in the new Idea Book (almost exact copies).

I used Lagoon, Sapphire, Shortbread, Toffee, Mocha, and Papaya inks and coordinating cardstock plus some gold glitter gems.  (Even the names of the colors sound pretty yummy, don't they?)

For these cards, I really only changed the sentiments and the gems from the originals in the Idea Book.

I will be featuring this stamp set as my July Facebook Live card class on Sunday, July 17.  Let me know if you'd like more information!