Creative Impressions - the Brightest STAR!

This was a fun little tag to do using an easy to do framing technique.  I'm really drawn to stars right now and found a short little "star" quote to frame my tag elements.  I'm adding more and more hand drawn elements to my work.

I started with a #8 tag and blotted Distress Oxide inks in Broken China, Wilted Violet and Fossilized Amber.

I inked an extra tag and die cut a coordinating heart for a layering element.  Creative Impressions black matte frame and folk star are layered over a bit of cotton fabric.  I also created a base with Creative Impressions new velvet and sequin ribbon.  I call it "Gypsy ribbon" because it makes me think of the colors and sparkle of gypsy caravans.

These super cute Creative Impressions clips are always a fun detail to add.  I use these a lot in my planner with a ribbon or washi tape tag.

Add your own words and phrases to a hand drawn frame.  I wrote the phrase with a tail at the beginning of the first word and end of the last word.  I use Uniball Signo 207 Micro and Ultra Micro pens.

Connect the line to make the shape of the frame you want.

Retrace the frame so that the line doesn't quite line up.  Give it a little squiggle if you like for interest, or some x's or stitch marks.

Find some time for some Creative Impressions today.  Create and impress!!

A Creative Random Act of Kindness

Quick post this morning to wish you all a beautiful day and remind you of the power of a random act of kindness.

I covered a scrap of card stock with sticky adhesive and then applied Creative Impressions red and black gingham ribbon.  Die cut the daisy using Tim's Tattered Florals die.

The stem is Creative Impressions black leaf ribbon with white paint smeared over it.

Bo Bunny Vintage Shadow 4 x 5 1/4 panel ties in with Creative Impressions brads & dragonfly touched with some Pewter Distress Paint.  The grays & silver unifies the piece.

Look for an opportunity for one RAK today.  It's good for the soul!

Funky Flowers Again

More fun with layering!  I've added to my Creative Impressions flowers layers of cotton fabric, cheese cloth, and stamped Creative Impressions cork paper.

What can you think of to add funky layers to your flowers?

Funky Flowers

Hey, just a quick post to show some really fun flowers I've been playing with.  I'm experimenting with layering all kinds of stuff.  I'm using Creative Impressions Felt and Shimmer Blossoms, CI brads & clips, CI Web Ribbon, and adding bits of cotton fabric, and other scraps lying on my desk.

Hope you're having fun being creative today!

Ready for SPRING!!

As usual, I am WAY ready for spring and making it harder to wait because I start thinking about it really early.  But for those who want to know, the first day of spring is three weeks from today!!

I'm posting today a few cards featuring Creative Impressions twine.  I luv this stuff and use it regularly for sewing, tying off ribbons and tags, and layering with ribbons to give them more body when I tie bows.  Its got a great organic earthiness which I like to incorporate into my work.

In this first card I used CI twine in a natural color to embellish twill ribbon with sewn "x's", french knots on the little cotton frame and tying a knot on the yellow button to unify the whole piece.

This could be a valentine, but works well anytime.  I borrowed from the "hello" in the background paper and stitched the word on a simple cotton panel, outlined a Bits of Bling heart and x's at the corners to visually anchor the front panel.

I love using this paper piecing technique.  I take some strips of patterned papers, scratch up the edges and piece them over a black card stock panel.  Then, pulling colors from the patterned paper, I stitched stems and a border with CI twine and used Bits of Bling flowers and pearls.  

This is a similar card using flower brads with Bits of Bling as centers for the flowers.  A little pink Bits of Bling butterfly at bottom right finishes the piece.

Here are the papers I started with.  The top two are both sides of a double sided paper and the bottom to are coordinating papers from a paper stack I picked up someplace.

LOVE Makes the World Go 'Round

Anyone else beginning to think about Valentine's Day?  After all the last minute press to get out my Christmas cards, I look forward to getting a nice head start on making valentines!

Not much technique today, just a quick blog post.  A simple globe die cut, some alphabet stamps and a felt die cut "Love" from Creative Impressions Heart Felt Assortment are layered onto a 6 x 6 card.

So there's a simple valentine for you today.  My word this year is "simplify" and its already giving grace to my life.  When I find myself on Amazon, tossing stuff in the cart, I remember "simplify" and delete everything.  When I'm stressing over too many rooms to vacuum and wild dust motes that refuse to be tamed, I remember "simplify" and enjoy watching them dance in the ray of sunshine.  When I look at today's task list and know I'll never get through it all, I remember "simplify" and just pick three and let the rest go back to sleep till I'm ready for them.

Maybe I'll do a project soon using "simplify" as my theme and inspiration.

What's your word?

Creative Impressions Snowflake Pocket Tags

Happy New Year everyone!  We've made it through Christmas and bring it on 2018!!  I've begun the New Year by creating this sparkly cold winter pocket tag card.  Creative Impressions makes a variety of snow flake embellishments that layer beautifully to mimic the magic of fresh snow.  I love sending personalized birthday greetings to friends who have winter birthdays!

Hope you enjoy this tutorial.

I used masking tape to join two #8 manila shipping tags.

I folded them together and and adhered them with another line of masking tape.

I painted the tag front with gesso.  While the gesso was still wet, I pressed Creative Impressions Felt Snowflakes onto the tag.  Cream or white is best.

Now a layer of DecoArt Media Crackle paint.  Best to let this dry naturally to get a nice fine crackled surface.

I thinned a pea sized dot of Cerulean Blue DecoArt Media acrylic paint two pea dots of Ranger Multi Medium Matte.  I dry brushed this over the surface of the tag and felt snowflakes.

I layered up a mixture of Felt Snowflakes, Shimmer Snowflakes, and Snowflake Paper Fasteners.  I didn't use everything I prepared and I'll have some extras for another tag or a starting element for a new card.  I keep a "starter basket" of thing like this to get me going on new projects.

Arrange snowflakes on the tag in a random, snowflake falling fashion.  I added some silver glass glitter on the brads later for more sparkle.

Sweet message ribbons tied at the top add to the cold blue winter feel.

I sealed the bottom of the two tags, leaving the right side open for a gift card.

Creative Impressions silver frame over a rubon completes the birthday message.

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I'm a summer girl but appreciate these cold days when I want to stay inside and just create.  I've found a new way to organize all my Creative Impressions embellishments that I'll share on an upcoming blog post.  Stay warm, friends, and create art!!