April SOTM Blog Hop - Typed Note

Welcome to this months stamp of the month blog hop. This month we are featuring Typed Note. This is a circle hop, so keep hopping until you reach the blog you started at. If you did not start here, you should be coming from {Justine Hovey}. Next in this hop is {Michelle Johns}

I wasn't sure about this stamp set, so I went to Pinterest to get some inspiration. 

I found this image and had to make this with the stamp.

To make this, I took a strip of White Daisy cardstock and folded it so it could make the image stand on its own. I embossed the name. The versamark marker wasn't as thin as I wanted, so I don't like how it looks. And it is my handwriting. 

I uploaded the image of the typewriter into Design Space so the Explore would cut the image out. I sized it wrong, so I did have to cut a white edge by hand. But it wasn't much. 

I also came across this image, and I wanted to remake it.

I used a bunch of new product on this card. I wanted to use a couple different flowers like the do in the image, but I couldn't find flowers in the size I needed. I hand cut the flowers. Not sure why. The banner is from Artiste, #MBBEE2. 

I have more projects using this stamp set this month, so come back later.

I hope you enjoyed my projects. Next in this hop is {Michelle Johns}.

You can order you own supplies to make these projects at {nikkageers.ctmh.com}


Recipe:

Typewriter Place Card

Stamps -
   S1504  Typed Note

Paper-
   X5929  Whisper Cardstock
   1385  White Daisy Cardstock

Ink-
   Versamark Pen (non ctmh)

Other-
   Z2068    White Embossing Powder


Cherish This Moment Card

Stamps-
   S1504  Typed Note
   C1612  Shower Flowers
   D1646  Finding The Words

Paper-
   X7195B  Jackson Paper Packet
   1385 White Daisy Cardstock
   X254  Cards And Envelopes

Ink-
   Z2105  Black Ink Pad
   Z2643  Canary Ink Pad
   Z2162  Honey Ink Pad
   Z2165  Juniper Ink Pad
   Z2123  Goldrush Ink Pad

Other-
   Z1790 Artiste Cartridge

Cricut Explore Tutorial - Partial Die Cut A Window

Greetings. I have been working on this tutorial for a while. Just had to figure out how to do it. And now that I have, I can share with you.

I have been seeing this technique using real dies to make a window card. It involves partial die cutting and scoring. It was tricky to do in Design Space, but here it is.

You will need a rectangle (#M47638) , shape you wish to cut out (mine was a heart #M46EAC) and a score line (#M48E16). I forgot to bring in the score line, so I had to add it later.

You need to rectangles so duplicate the one you have.

Size one of the rectangle, I did 4.25 x 5.5. It can be the whole card or just a strip.  Then size the heart to your finished size. Select the rectangle and the heart and slice.

Take the sliced heart and make it a tad smaller. You need to make sure that the heart is not touching the rectangle or it will weld together. You need the space between the images small so it won't be noticeable on the finished project. 

Take that second rectangle and place it over the heart were you want the fold line to be. Size the rectangle so it fits inside the area needed. 

Select all and weld.

This is how it should look. Solid on the one side, where it folds, and the heart should be separate from the rest of the card. If you heart welds shut, go back and make the heart slightly smaller.

Add the score line to where it needs to fold, select all and attach.

Now there will be a small gap on the project around the image, but it should be small and barely noticeable. Some images may not work with this, as they have spots that can't be shrunk slightly without welding to the rectangle. This method is partly trial and error. 

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. If you would like to check out my other tutorials, visit my {tutorial page}.

To make sure you don't miss out on any new tutorials, artwork or members only specials, as it is easy to miss posts on Facebook and I don't post to all of them, join my {Facebook group}.

Subscribe to my {Youtube Channel} for updates on new Create Your Card videos.

I offer one on one classes for Cricut Design Space. Stop by for more {details}.

I have used Close To My Heart Art Philosophy Cartridge Z1686. You can order your own at {nikkageers.ctmh.com}

No Fooling Challenge At Heart 2 Heart

wrrereeee

Welcome to this weeks challenge at {Heart 2 Heart}.

This weeks challenge is No Fooling, We want you to scrapbook something fun. 

While we still lived in California, we would take the 3 hour drive to the shore for some fun. Yes, three hours. We lived in the desert so making the trip to the ocean was worth the drive. This was the last trip we took before going back home to Michigan in 2013. We went to Santa Monica Pier and walked the board walk and ate at Bubba Gump's. I had mac and cheese with shrimp. Very weird. And I always seem to wear the wrong shoes for these type of things, so we had to search for some flip flops so my feet wouldn't fall off. It was harder than you think to find shoes on this pier.

One of the pattern paper from Wanderful has cities and states on it. I just cut out the part that said California.  The sequins are a sneak peak from the new mini that comes out in April. I think this is the Coral Reef set. I took out some from both this one and Oceanside and forgot which colors went with which. LOL. 

I used image #M42F4D for the mini banners. The text is Always Forever font from Dafont.com and I used my wonderful Explore to cut it. I did use bold to make it thicker. This font is pretty thin. I downloaded a bunch of thinner fonts to try with the writing feature, just haven't done it yet.

There is this really cool site call {wordmark.it} that lets you type in a word and it will show it using all the fonts you have on your computer. Pretty awesome.  The cool thing about this is you can see if the font you want has numbers or symbols. A couple of the fonts I have don't have numbers, so I couldn't do the 66.

The sketch is pattern 9 from Make It From Your Heart Volume 2.

I hope you join us for No Fooling challenge at {Heart 2 Heart}. You will need to use some Close To My Heart product, which you can order at {nikkageers.ctmh.com}.  You have the end of April to play along so come back when you get wonderful Close To My Heart products.

To make sure you don't miss out on any new tutorials, artwork or members only specials, as it is easy to miss posts on Facebook and I don't post to all of them, join my {Facebook group}

Subscribe to my {Youtube Channel} for updates on new Create Your Card videos.

I offer one on one classes for Cricut Design Space. Stop by for more {details}.

Recipe:

Santa Monica Layout

Stamps -

   D1555 All The Details

  

Paper -

   X7191B  Wanderful Paper Pack 

   X5929  Whisper Cardstock

   1385  White Daisy Cardstock

   X5757  Gypsy Cardstock

   X5668  Honey Cardstock

   1292  Crystal Blue Cardstock

Ink -

   Z2105  Black Ink Pad

   Z2117  Crystal Blue Ink Pad

Other -

   Z1686  Art Philosophy Cartridge 

   Z3042   Coral Reef Sequins (Available in April)

   Z2027  Mini Stapler

   9042  Make It From Your Heart Volume 2

5 Minute Tutorial - How To Make A Shaped Card

It's Sunday. I almost wasn't able to make it today. The pain from my surgery has been bad lately. But here it is. Today's tutorial is on how to make a shaped card. So let's get started.

Chose the shape you would like. I am using a balloon image for Artiste cartridge, #M45A50. You will also need the score line, #M48E16. Duplicate your image.

Once duplicated, chose one of the images. Under the Edit box, you will mirror you image. Which way you mirror will all depend on the type of image. I could have attached them next to each other, but was easier to do it on top.

If there is a cut out in the design, like the one here, you will want to use contour under the layers box so the back of the card is a solid image.

Line up your images. I find the easiest way is to move it against the edge of the mat, like pictured. Use the top if the fold is the other way. Make sure to overlap the images slightly. It will not weld if there is no overlap. Mae the overlap small though. You don't want to loose to much of the image because of the fold. Under the layers box, chose weld.

Here is you welded image. Take your score line and place it where you want the fold to be.

Remember to select all and attach. If you want to write on the card, whether it be the inside or the outside, it doesn't matter which side is which. Just fold accordingly. 

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. If you would like to check out my other tutorials, visit my {tutorial page}.

To make sure you don't miss out on any new tutorials, artwork or members only specials, as it is easy to miss posts on Facebook and I don't post to all of them, join my {Facebook group}.

Subscribe to my {Youtube Channel} for updates on new Create Your Card videos.

I offer one on one classes for Cricut Design Space. Stop by for more {details}.

I have used Close To My Heart Artiste cartridge in this tutorial, which you can purchase at {nikkageers.ctmh.com}

How cute at Heart 2 Heart

Welcome to this weeks challenge at {Heart 2 Heart}.

This weeks challenge is How Cute. We want to see your cute creations. 

I was inspired by this pic from {frostedpetticoatblog.com}. I saw the gold unicorn and was inspired to use unicorn dreams, an old hostess only stamp set.  My mom just love unicorns so I had to get this stamp. Not sure if I am going to send her this card. I think the pink is close enough to mauve that she might like it. 

I made this watercolor background different than the others that I have been making. I used reinker to get a bolder color than just using ink pads. I wanted to bring in the green like the inspiration picture but the pink and green paper just didn't look right. I did stamp happy birthday in Sweet Leaf pigment ink and clear embossed it, but it is kinda hard to tell, even in real life. 

The first part of the picture that inspired me was the gold unicorn. I don't have gold glitter embossing powder, so I just did gold. To make such a solid, consistent embossed image, I embossed 3 times. Each time doing another layer of Versamark before I embossed.  The banner is from Artfully Sent, #MFCD58. I used the Cricut to cut out the unicorn. There is no actual cut for that. I scanned the image and had it cut.

I needed a good glue to stick down the embossed images since they get pretty heavy with 3 layers of embossing powder, so I used Liquid Glass. 

I hope you join us for this weeks challenge at {Heart 2 Heart}. You do need to use some Close To My Heart products, so place you order at {nikkageers.ctmh.com} and come back to play.

To make sure you don't miss out on any new tutorials, artwork or members only specials, as it is easy to miss posts on Facebook and I don't post to all of them, join my {Facebook group}

Subscribe to my {Youtube Channel} for updates on new Create Your Card videos.

I offer one on one classes for Cricut Design Space. Stop by for more {details}.

Recipe:

Unicorn Birthday Card

Stamp -

   D1583 Unicorn Dreams (retired)

   B1419  Joyful Birthday

Paper -

   X254  Card and Envelope 

   1385  White Daisy Cardstock

   Watercolor Paper (non-ctmh)

Ink -

   Z891 Versamark Ink Pad

   Z2500  Sweet Leaf Pigment Pad

   Z2296  Smoothie Reinker

Other -

   Z2088  Clear Embossing Powder

   Z2066  Gold Embossing Powder

   Z3017  Artfully Sent Cartridge 

   Z679  Liquid Glass

5 Minute Tutorial - Using Contour To Get Positive Image

I am finally back with a new 5 minute tutorial. I an be upright without too much pain. Hoping to get into the craft room in a day or two.

Normally, when I want to get a positive image from a negative, I will use slice. But sometimes slice is not an option. You can use contour instead to get that image. If you are not quite getting what I am talking about, the pictures will explain.

First, in case you didn't know, they have added a filter option for cartridges so you can now see all your cartridges.

Onto the tutorial.

Choose the image you would like. See how the flower are cut out. That is the negative. This image would be hard to use slice because of how the flowers are grouped together. I am using image #MCBA4F from Artfully Sent.

Choose contour under layers tab. Your whole image will turn blue. Select everything that is not your image you want positive, including the card itself. Your image should be the only one with a dark blue outline. Everything else will be the green outline.

Click off the image and you should be left with the positive image. So easy to do. This will not work the other way around. You will have to slice a rectangle to get a negative from a positive.

If you enjoyed this tutorial, you can see my other tutorials on my {tutorial page}.

To make sure you don't miss out on any new tutorials, artwork or members only specials, as it is easy to miss posts on Facebook and I don't post to all of them, join my {Facebook group}.

Subscribe to my {Youtube Channel} for updates on new Create Your Card videos.

I offer one on one classes for Cricut Design Space. Stop by for more {details}.

I used Artfully Sent on this tutorial, which you can purchase at {nikkageers.ctmh.com}

Green With Envy - Heart 2 Heart Challenges

Welcome to this weeks challenge at {Heart 2 Heart}.

Tomorrow is Saint Patrick's Day, so this weeks challenge is all about Green. I am on bed rest from my surgery so no drinks for me. Yes, you heard right, a sober Irish. 

So I finally did the Bokeh trend. It is pretty simple. I used dye inks to do the watercolor background.  Used greens and green - blues. Use the all purpose mat or a stamp block to press your pad against to get the ink. Add water to the ink. Using waterpaper, get it all wet and start adding your watercolor. Wait til it dry to do the next part, or use a heat gun if impatient.
Make circle stencils using the presentation covers and image #M458E2. You can use just cardstock, but I want something that will last. Make sure to leave a border around your circles to get clean circles.  I used 5 sizes. 

Pigment ink will look the best for this. Even if you use other colors than white. Using white pigment ink, randomly add circles. The best look is to have the larger circles be lighter and the smaller circles be more opaque. The tiniest circle is actually an eraser dipped in the ink.  Heat once done to set the ink.

I made the background but couldn't figure out how to use it. Then I remembered I had a cake that had the same colors.  This is a Sunday sweets from {cakewrecks.com}. I love the Sunday cakes. They are amazing. But I digress. Love this cake. So I took the flowers to make my card. The Flowers are from Art Philosophy #M3EB66.

I embossed the sentiment in white embossing powder on the watercolor but it did not show at all. So I water colored a strip a White Daisy then embossed. This makes it blend more with the background but doesn't have the pigment ink so the embossing actually shows up.

Join us  at {Heart 2 Heart} for the green challenge this week. You have all month to play along. You will need to use some Close To My Heart product. Place your order at {nikkageers.ctmh.com} and come back to play.

To make sure you don't miss out on any new tutorials, artwork or members only specials, as it is easy to miss posts on Facebook and I don't post to all of them, join my {Facebook group}

Subscribe to my {Youtube Channel} for updates on new Create Your Card videos.

I offer one on one classes for Cricut Design Space. Stop by for more {details}.

Recipe:

Hello Wonderful Card

Stamps -

   B1443  Hello Wonderful

Paper-

   X254  Card and Envelope 

   1385  White Daisy Cardstock 

Ink-

   Z2153  Sweet Leaf Ink Pad

   Z2165  Juniper Ink Pad

   Z2197  Pear Ink Pad

   Z2195  Lagoon Ink Pad

   Z2163  White Daisy Pigment Ink Pad

   Z891  Versamark Ink Pad

Other -

   Z2068  White Embossing Powder

   Z679  Liquid Glass

   Z1686  Art Philosophy Cartridge
   Z2045  All Purpose Mat

Seasonal Expressions 1 Retiring List

Many items in this wonderful mini will be gone April 1st. Tho, all of the stamp sets are available for a year, unless they use a Cricut cut, then they are available forever. And even some of the embellishments will be available after March as they should be showing up in the new Annual Inspirations coming out later this year. 

So what is retiring? Here is a list of everything you must buy now before they are gone.

Heartstrings paper pack X7193B

Heartstrings Complements  X7193C

Heartstrings Assortment  Z3015

Workshop On The Go Heartstrings Cardmaking Kit 

Picture My Life  Heartstrings Z3046

Hopscotch Paper Pack  X7194B

Hopscotch Complements X7194C

Hopscotch  Assortment  Z3016

Workshop On The Go Hopscotch G1091

Picture My Life Hopscotch  Z3045

You're The Bomb C1617

Cut Above Birthday Treat Bag Z2056

Cut Above Valentine Treat Bag Z2056

Junebug Puffies Z3038

Stuck On You Puffies  3037

Happy Day Mini Clothespins Z3029

Lovestruck Mini Clothespins  Z3028

Also, the Hostess Only stamp sets will retire.  You must host a gathering to get these stamp sets.

Place your order today before they are all gone at {nikkageers.ctmh.com}