Hearts, Flowers and Butterflies

 A couple of weeks ago I posted a sneak peek of this card.  Today I want to tell you a bit more about it. It could be a Valentine or just a card to send some love at any time of the year.

  

I used the Martha Stewart Pansy punch around the page set for the white mat.  This is one of my favorite new punches.  You can get a lot of different effects by experimenting with these punches (here is a LINK to the post showing the ribbon borders I made with the pansy punch recently).

  

I also used a heart cut from metallic cardstock with my Cricut and embossed with the Cuttlebug Textile Texture embossing folder, a dark purple mat layer and some new brads from Creative Charms. Be sure to pay attention to the placement of the heart when you emboss it so that the design will be nicely centered.

  

I'll be posting some more projects using the Creative Charms embellishments soon.  I used the little flower beads on the heart mobile at the bottom of each string of hearts (here is a LINK to that post).

  

The white mat was cut to the required starting size of 3.25 x 5 inches and punched (do the corners first and then line up the corners with the guides and punch the sides).  The purple mat is about 3.5 x 5.25 inches.  I adhered these layers together and then punched two small holes with my Cropadile so I could add the butterfly brads.

  

After I placed the brads I adhered the dark purple mat to the card front, placing it near the top of the A2 (5.5 x 4.25 inch) card.

 

  

I added a purple heart shaped gem at the top of the heart cut.  I had originally planned to use the small flower bead in the earlier photo but I changed my mind as I put the card together. The wide border at the bottom of the card is the perfect spot for a stamped sentiment.

I stamped "Hugs & Kisses" in white ink at the lower right side of the card.

  

Here is the close view of the butterfly brad. These are metal with a three dimensional effect and a nice dotted texture on the butterfly wings.  If you send a card like this through the mail you will probably want to use a padded envelope or other protection to be sure that are not flattened in transit.

A couple of notes...

Thanks to all of the Blogoversary gift winners for your quick responses with your mailing addresses.  I will try to get to the post office in the next day or so - tomorrow a big storm is predicted so I may not be able to get out to the post office.

Another Fire Update - I spent the day helping with the babies and meals and errands.  I am sorry that I haven't been able to respond to all emails or comments but I will catch up as soon as I can.  I will be doing as much as I can to help our neighbors in the coming days but will be here with some crafty posts as well.  Thanks for all of the thoughts and prayers.  If you would like to send a card to the family I know that they would be greatly appreciated.  The children in particular would love to get cards.  Please email me at capadiadesigns@gmail.com and I will send more information and an address to use to send the cards.  Thank you.

Blogoversary Gift Winners

The following people will be receiving my Blogoversary gifts:

Tablecloth - Katherine
 I've been visiting your blog since pretty early on and I have learned so much about my Cricut and how to do what I want to do - I don't do it very often but I know how because of you! How's that for complicated? I just officially followed your blog but I've been getting the Rss feed through Google Reader and I visit pretty much every day. I'm thrilled to read new 'how to's but it doesn't matter to me when you post stuff - I'll keep reading. : ) I do want to say that I visit your blog if I get stuck doing something on CDS before I visit anyone else's!  
Thanks for sharing all of your lovely designs over the years, too. I have enjoyed them very much! 
Congratulations on your 2 year Blog-aversary!!!

Bracelet - Scraphappyana Creations
wow, that's a very nice piece of glass etching it is beautiful. You are a very talented lady Diane. And thanks for sharing everything with us.

Cards in folder - Jean
Diane,
Congrats on 2 years of blogging!!!!
It certainly doesn't seem that long. 

Marbled paper - Sheila 
What a wonderful way to celebrate your 2 year blogaversary! Congratulations once again. And I thank you for your willingness to share with us your talent.   

Ribbon Box  - mahuntington 
I enjoy your daily posts, but I know first hand about "burn out" and I'm afraid if you keep this up you will soon be heading there. You have an amazing talent, but trying to come up with a new idea daily is too much for anyone. None of us would mind if you skipped days now and then. I love your surprises and even though some sites have special days set aside I like your site done the way you do it now. Congratulations on your anniversary.
Mary Ann (pixie grammy)

Scrap-Ma-Bob - chriswooten57
congrats...and thank you for letting enter to win a prize...i would love to have a scrap ma bob. 
i love your blog...your projects are just beautiful....you are so sweet to share and teach us.....how to use our gadgets..
i am nothing without your help here...
you are so sweet, thank you....

Design Studio Private Consultation - Colleen Kramer
You are super generous!! (What most excited me was the hour of private help - oh the joy!). I will start my list of questions immediately. :) 


If I had an email address for you I have sent a message asking for your mailing information.  Please contact me as soon as possible so I can send out the gifts.
Thanks to everyone who commented and helped me celebrate two years of blogging.


UPDATE ON THE FIRE:
I am sorry that this announcement was delayed.  I spent the day helping our neighbors as they try to put their lives back together. With four children (five, three and twin babies) it is an enormous task to try to keep some sort of normal routine and deal with all of the practical concerns.  They appreciate all of the messages of comfort and hope you have sent.  A few people asked about a fund to help.  Our neighborhood and our town have rallied around and we will be able to take good care of the family.  Food, clothes, toys, baby equipment and offers of housing and more poured in all day.  They do have insurance and will be able to replace most of what was lost but it will take a long time to rebuild.  Thank you all for your concern.  If you'd like to send a card you can contact me for more details.

Please keep our neighbors in your thoughts...

We went out early this afternoon to do some errands and came home to find our street full of fire trucks and emergency vehicles.  Our neighbors a few doors up the street have suffered a major house fire.  The family of six (and the dog) is safe but the loss is devastating.  The three alarm fire took several hours to control and fire companies from many surrounding towns responded.

The neighborhood is pulling together essentials to get the family through the next few days while things are sorted out with the fire department and insurance company.  We are so thankful that none of them were injured.  I think we are all still in shock - it is hard to believe how quickly something like this can happen.


I will post the blogoversary gift names when I can tomorrow.  I am sorry - I am too exhausted to do this properly tonight.

A Night at the Theater

We have escaped the incredible snow storm that much of the country is experiencing this weekend. Apparently our very cold temperatures are keeping the snow away!  I hope that those of you who are snowed in are getting a chance to do lots of crafting.

I took things pretty slow most of today - I am still not feeling 100%.  We had a treat planned for tonight that I didn't want to miss.  My father-in-law and brother-in-law sing in a great group called the Festival Chorale.  The director is also the choir director and organist at the church my husband's parents and sister attend (and they sing in that choir too).  The concert tonight was a Pops concert with the theme "Night at the Theater" and it included Broadway, opera and movie songs.

I took just a few photos - the conditions are not great for photography in the hall.  When we got home, I imported the photos, rejected all of the hopelessly blurry ones, did some quick editing and created a mini collage.  This is one of the things that I really enjoy about doing digital projects.  They are quick and easy and you can try lots of different things without making any mess at all!

I just learned how to make digital glitter so I put a red glitter border around the collage.  The gold mask was part of the table centerpiece (yes, "Phantom of the Opera" was one of the shows included!).  I'll email this collage to my in-laws (now that they finally have a computer!) since I think the photo of them is really sweet.

Blogoversary Update - Thanks to everyone who left comments or sent emails.  I appreciate your kind words and feedback.  I will be drawing the names for the Blogoversary gifts tomorrow - I'll approve any comments that appear overnight and then close the list.  It will take a bit of time to sort everything out so look for the names to be posted sometime during the Super Bowl!

A lot of you have been asking about the digital scrapping software I use.  The Creative Memories StoryBook Creator Plus 3.0 program is wonderful and very easy to use with lots of online help.  If you have a consultant be sure to get in touch with them for a hands on demonstration.  If you don't have a consultant and you are interested in the software, you can order the software through my CM personal website (here is a LINK to the page with more information about the program).  If there is enough interest, I may do some online classes on this software in addition to the Design Studio classes.

Changing Hearts...again....

I just can't seem to leave the hearts on the Love Struck cartridge alone!  The cuts as they appear on the cartridge are lovely but you can do so much more with them when you apply some "Design Studio Magic" to create many variations.

I started with this heart (the same heart I used for the etching project on the mirror tile - here is a LINK to that post if you missed it).

This time, instead of hiding the outer line to create a negative space cut, I hid a lot of the center lines to create a solid area.  Remember, to hide a line, left click directly on the line to select it (it will turn pink), then right click and choose "hide selected contour" from the bottom of the drop down menu.

This preview shows the difference between the original cut on the right and the adapted cut on the left.  The cut on the left reminds me of the doilies we used to make Valentines when I was in grade school.  (I imagine kids are still making Valentines with that type of doily).

 After I hid the center lines, I adjusted the size of the heart to fit on the front of an A2 card nicely.

I used the Shape Properties box and entered values that are 3/4 inch less than the A2card size (5.5 x 4.25 inches) to allow a comfortable margin and/or enough space to mat the heart.

When I first cut the heart and placed it on the card base, I realized that I needed the blackout shape to create better contrast and make the design "pop."  I adjusted the blackout to the same dimensions.

When the blackout background is added the interior cuts show clearly.

I had the "love" cut from my Cuttlebug "Love Language" emboss combo set sitting on my table from another project.  I liked the way it looked so I decided to cut the "love you" phrase in solid pink glitter cardstock for my card front.

The cardstock I used for the heart has a tiny bit of green in the design and I originally thought the green card would be best for the base.  When I "auditioned" the two cards, I preferred the look and higher contrast of the blue base.

I wanted to use this Martha Stewart punch around the page set for my card.  I find it a bit frustrating that the proportions of the base cuts to make the punch around the page work do not match up with an A2 card.

I have posted the chart with the dimensions before - here is is again for handy reference (remember you can click on the image to see a larger version).  I think the newer punch sets now come with the guide sheet enclosed.

The 3 1/4 x 5 inch dimension leaves a wider margin top and bottom than side to side.  I decided to move the cuts to the lower area to make an even margin on three sides.

I punched four corners and three sides but I didn't punch across the top because I wanted the heart top to be emphasized.

I trimmed away the excess section of white card.

Once the card was trimmed I was ready to adhere the unit to my card front.

I tied a ribbon around the card front, centering the bow.

I added a heart shape jewel for a bit of sparkle and to fill in the space between the ribbon and the heart top.

 

Someone recently asked about the inside of my cards.  Sometimes I leave them blank or add a simple liner.  For this card, I took a piece of white cardstock cut at 5.5 x 4.25 inches, used the punch on one corner and two sides and adhered the card to the bottom of the card.  This is another way to deal with the mismatch between the punches and the card size.

 

(I was not able to get to the questions and answers today - I think I am coming down with a bit of a bug.  I'll try to catch up with them tomorrow.  Please stay safe if you live in the areas that are getting a big snowstorm tonight - it looks like the storm will miss us for a change...)

Another Valentine

I made this card a couple of weeks ago.  I used the Love Struck cartridge (once again) for the heart but changed it a bit in Design Studio.  I will post all of the details later on Friday - I need to have an early night tonight (but I didn't want those of you who count on the morning emails to find an empty "in" box!).

I also will try to answer some of the questions that I have received through comments over the past few days - there are some that came in direct emails that may be of interest to other people, so I'll do a bit of Q & A.

If you are in one of the areas expecting snow (yet again!) stay safe and warm - I hope you can enjoy some snowed in crafting time!

Magnets and Mobiles for Sweet Treats Thursday

It's another "Sweet Treat Thursday" at the Cuttlebug Challenge Blogspot.  Our challenge this week was to use  hearts from at least three different Cricut cartridges to create items with a Valentine's theme.  Be sure to hop over to Cuttlebug Challenge to see all of the fantastic projects and visit each designer's blog to get more specific details on how they were created.  Today I will tell you how I made the items for the challenge.

The first thing I tried was some magnet material.  I was at Staples looking for some vellum and noticed that they had the thin printable magnet sheets so I decided to try them out.  I thought that I could cut out decorations for these little mailboxes that could be changed for the seasons and holidays.

I used my Creative Memories Storybook Creator Plus 3.0 software to choose some cute dotted papers from the With Love Digital Kit and set up the page with three papers.

I carefully planned out the placement of a variety of hearts from the Sweethearts, Wedding, George and Plantin Schoolbook cartridges to maximize the use of the magnet material.

The Staples magnet material is for inkjet printers.  I had the full page set up but somehow I made a mistake in loading the magnet or setting up the print menu so I did not have a full edge to edge print.

I needed to revise my cuts to fit in the areas that were actually printed. I added some cuts from Paper Pups to the long narrow piece.

I used multi cut 2 with the regular blade at 6, maximum speed and pressure.  I also used a new mat to be sure that the adhesive was consistently strong.  The magnet material cut very easily - it is actually quite thin.  The small cut at the bottom was due to a "loading" error on my first test cut.

Here you can see the weeded red cuts.  I found out that the tiny hearts didn't really have enough surface area to cling well - the magnetic "pull" is not that strong with this brand of material.  I think it is intended for printing up larger solid shapes as magnetic business cards or advertisements.

I wanted to be sure about the cuts fitting in the magnet material so, even though I planned the cuts in Design Studio, I did a "trial" cut on plain white cardstock before cutting the pink magnets.

When I saw that the cuts were fine I did not unload the mat - instead I pushed "load paper" and carefully placed the magnet material in the same position as the paper.  By not removing the mat I knew that any "loading errors" would not impact my cuts.

Here are the pink cuts.  I couldn't resist adding in the tiny hearts to fill the space.

The larger hearts definitely stick to the mailboxes much better than the tiny ones.  These mailboxes came from Target but I have seen similar ones at other large craft stores.






I still like the idea of changing up the mailboxes with magnetic decorations but I need to try some other brands of magnetic material to see if I can find one that has a stronger magnetic quality.  There is magnet material available from Cricut so I will look into that for next time.  I couldn't find it locally and I didn't have time to order some for this project.

For my "big" project I decided to use lots and lots of hearts to make a mobile.

I used hearts from the Sweethearts, Wedding, George and Plantin Schoolbook cartridges.  I filled in the spaces with some smaller hearts that I can use for other projects.  Some of the hearts were slightly altered in Design Studio.

The paper I chose was from the K & Company "Sweet Talk" paper stack.

 I cut the same set of hearts from nine different papers from the stack.  When you cut the same items over and over be sure to rotate your mat to even out the wear and tear.  Pay attention to the paper designs that have a definite direction and be sure the top is "up."

The header of the mobile is from the Mother's Day mini cartridge.  I cut it at five inches.

 I wanted pink for the shadow layer but I didn't want the border designs on this paper to show so I used three sheets and cut the shadow from the center (I had several of these stacks on hand - there are only two of each sheet in a pack).

I could cut two of the top layers from a single 12 x 12 sheet.  I saved the cut out words (of course!) - they will show up just a little later...

When I put the layers together I used a glue pen around the letters and on the scallops and my ATG for the straight strips.

Here are the assembled sides of the topper.  Now I needed to figure out how to put it all together!

I set out all of the hearts and started working on a "random" order of the hearts to hang - mixing styles and papers of the hearts.  It took a while (I have the worst time with "random")!

I used a large needle and some silver cord and sewed through the top and bottom of each heart.  I cut the cord lengths at about 3 1/2 feet.  The tension of the front to back threading holds the lightweight hearts together.  If they were to slip at all, I could add a sticky back gem to the cord side to hold the hearts at the proper levels.

I tied one of these little flower embellishments at the bottom of each strand (I tell you more about these cute little flowers in a day or two).

The triangle shape works well - I just needed to add some holes and some ribbon.

I used my Cropadile to punch the holes and made sure to set the guide so they would be evenly spaced.  I punched them in pairs to make the fit work.

I cut ribbons at about 18 inches and tied bows to hold the panels together.  ( I trimmed the ends later).

Once the triangle was assembled,  I added more ribbons tied at the hole at the top of each panel.

 

I used a metal binder ring to hold the three ribbons and added an additional ribbon for hanging the mobile. 

To attach the silver strands to the topper I punched holes and added these pink brads - then I wound the cord around the brad several times and trimmed the ends.

I added one more set of seven hearts by suspending it from the hanging ring so it would "float" in the center of the other strands.

Here are a few more views - this mobile is about four feet tall so it is hard to photograph.

One more view with my red front hall in the background.

Finally - a little card to go with the mobile.  I trimmed the leftover pink from the bottom layer of the topper and adhered it to a piece of deep pink cardstock.  I used the Martha Stewart loop border punch on the top and bottom of the pink section.  The card edges are inked with the same red ink I used for the sentiment.

My stamping was a little light on the capital letters of "Be Mine" so I added a bit of Stickles glitter glue to even things out.  

I added the letters from the mobile header to the inside of the card - very bold and graphic.

I really like the contrast between the pink and girly card front and the bold stencil words inside!

Congratulations if you made it this far through all of the photos and explanations.  Please let me know if you have any questions or if I left anything out.  Happy Valentine's Day!