Kraft-y Hearts Blog Share Day 1: Everything Old is New Again....

Hi All! Welcome to the July Kraft-y Hearts Blog Share. This month we Kraft-y Hearts (that'd be Lynn, Jody and I) decided to shake things up a bit, so we're branching out beyond the Stamp Of The Month (though you'll get a taste of it in the projects I've created.) This month's blog share is all about stash busters and sneak peeks--out with the old and in with the new. Today's projects were created with Close To My Heart items from the current Spring/Summer Idea Book. Let's take a look:

I love the title of this month's Stamp of the Month: Sweet Life! (Ain't it the truth!) The countryfied fruit was just begging to be watercolored, so I decided to create some 3 x 4-inch note cards to use as gift enclosures. Well, you know how it goes when you're having fun. Next thing I knew, I'd created a whole note card set and then some! (You'll get a peek at the box tomorrow.) 

Here's the 411: The card bases are cut from Kraft cardstock at 4 x 6 inches and scored at 3 inches. The Cocoa, Outdoor Denim, and Olive cardstock layers are cut at 3 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches, and layered under 3 1/4 x 2 1/4-inch pieces of patterned paper from the Dakota collection. (Although technically not retiring until the end of the month, the Dakota paper pack has sold out.) The images are stamped on Colonial White cardstock using brown Stāz-On ink. After the ink dried, I colored the images using watercolor pencils and a water brush. I then fussy cut around the images and adhered them to the patterned paper. I added the matching sentiment to each in Olive, Cocoa, and Outdoor Denim Exclusive Inks. A little bakers twine, corner rounding, and dimensional adhesive finished them off. I actually made 9 cards (3 of each design), but found than only 6 will fit in the box once you add envelopes, which I did. I made the envelopes from Kraft cardstock as well, but didn't quite have enough patterned paper to line them. 

Here's a couple of close-ups of the cards:

Here are the cards and envelopes:

And another peek at the cards:

 I hope you enjoyed Day 1 of the Kraft-y Hearts Blog Share. Remember to shop your stash. It's amazing what you can find! Stay tuned for tomorrow's Blog Share, where we'll show you how well the old and the new can play together. Until then, hop on over and visit Lynn and Jody for some AMAZING inspiration!

A Little Weekend Mojo

Are you ready for the long weekend? Have some crafty plans? Just thought I'd throw out a little inspiration for the weekend while I played along with the Mojo Monday challenge:

Here are a couple of cards I did based on the square pattern:

I'll give you the particulars for the "Pocket Full of Smiles" card here. If you would like to see "You Make Me Smile" up close and read about it, please visit me at The Feast.

For this 4x4-inch card, I used kraft cardstock for my base and the Dakota B&T paper pack for the rest. 

For the front, I cut barn red cardstock to 3 3/4-inch square, and did tone-on-tone stamping with a flourish from the Baroque Boarders August Stamp Of The Month set in Barn Red exclusive ink. The flags are cut from the Dakota papers and embellished with a pearl badge button from the Wrangler assortment pack.

The pocket was stamped using the Rugged Dude my acrylix stamp set. To make the pocket, I first did a 4th generation reverse stamp on white daisy cardstock using Outdoor Denim exclusive ink. I then flipped the stamp to the "right" side and stamped a second generation stamp in the same blue. The stitching is a first generation stamp in Chocolate exclusive ink. I used little antiqued gold brads from the Metals assortment for the rivets on the pocket, cut it out and popped it up with foam adhesive. Here's a close up:

I tucked a little tag inside the pocket for some fun. The tag is cut from Dakota paper and kraft cardstock and measures 2x7/8-inches overall. I used a little Burlap ribbon for the pull, and stamped the sentiment (which is from one of the exclusive Cricut Artiste collection stamp sets) in Barn Red exclusive ink. I added some tiny staples for added interest.

For the "smile" sentiment, I again layered Dakota paper and kraft cardstock and added a little Burlap fringe on the back. "Smile" is from the "It's Your Day"set that has been released to celebrate National Stamping Month (which starts tomorrow!). This double stamp set is available for $5 with any $35 purchase. I added tiny staples again for some fun. (I don't have the tiny attacher, by the way. I used a funky little pocket stapler that my dad gave me. I'll post pictures of it soon!)

Hope you enjoyed a little mojo to head into the weekend! Have a fantastic and safe Labor Day!

Truly Amazing

The wild west is back! Yep it's time to dig out those prairie skirts circa 1981, grab your Stetson and get crafting! Close To My Heart has released two new western-themed paper collections. Today's card features the Dakota collection.




This collection includes weathered wood grains, bandana paisley prints, stripes, and houndstooth in stunning rich reds and blues.

For the main sentiment, I used stamps from the April 2012 Stamp Of The Month. The background and "You Are Truly" banner are stamped in slate ink (the background is a second generation stamping). "Amazing" is from the same stamp set and is double-stamped in barn red. All the stamping was done on Colonial White cardstock. I mounted "Amazing" on a banner made from the blue bandana paper and popped it up with foam tape.
Here's a close-up:




The second sentiment, "true story," is stamped on Colonial White cardstock in sky blue ink. I then double matted it on two pattern papers and added a couple of antiqued copper brads for a little flair. The stamp is from the "It's Your Day" double stamp set.
Here's a close-up:




Hope you enjoyed a quick look at Dakota. Now put on your happy boots and get out there and create somethin'! (Just so you know, I'm resisting adding y'all at the end....)




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