Blog Archives

Vanessa's Birthday Blog Hop

11/29/2019

Hello friends and happy BLACK Friday! Best of luck to you brave souls who dare to venture out on this day because I want no part of it! Those crowds are not for me! Today, you will find me shopping local at the Butterfly Reflections, Ink in New Hampshire for my very first time! Be sure to follow along on Instagram to see all the behind the scenes photos from the store and more. I'm excited because it is also the shop owner, Vanessa's birthday, so I will get to wish her a happy birthday in person. To celebrate, a large group of current and past Design Team members, along with some special guests, will be doing a blog hop on Instagram sharing cards that were inspired by some of Vanessa's favorite things: the color fushia, cute critters (she LOVES Hello Bluebird), coffee and pumpkin spice. Here is the card I created for her:

Card details:

This slimline card ( 8 1/2" x 3 1/2") was made from Berry Burst cardstock. The first matted layer is a 8 1/4" x 3 1/4" piece of Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock. I die cut the mountains in Blushing Bride cardstock using the Hello Sweetums Mountains of Fun dies. I die cut the trees using the Lawn Fawn Stitched Trees dies. I stamped all of the critters, trees and presents from the Hello Bluebird Frosty Friends stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored them using Copic markers. I added highlights to some of the images with a Uniball White Gel pen. I also added Lawn Fawn ultrafine glitter to the snowbanks and critters' hats. I added many of the images to the card using 3M foam adhesive. I stamped the sentiment at the bottom of the card in Berry Burst ink. Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the images for added sparkle.

Here are the Copic colors I used for coloring:

Here is the Frosty Friends stamp set by Hello Bluebird (available through Butterfly Reflections, Ink) that I used to create today's card:

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Be sure to follow along on Instagram to see what everyone else created for Vanessa's birthday!
Thanks for visiting and I hope you have a wonderfully creative weekend!

XO, Crystal

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Thanksgiving Table Placards

11/27/2019

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Hello friends and happy Thanksgiving Eve day! If you are traveling today (or anytime this week) I wish you safe travels and hope that each of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday with friends and family. Today I am sharing some simple table placards on the Butterfly Reflections, Ink blog that were made using the Pretty Pink Posh Winter Wreath stamp set and coordinating dies. Truth be told, Pretty Pink Posh also has an autumn wreath stamp set that would have worked for these placards too, but since I didn't buy that one, I was able to turn the winter wreath into more of a fall theme simply by using more traditional fall colors. I also didn't know the names of everyone who will be attending Thanksgiving dinner at my aunt's house, so instead of personalizing the placards, I used various sentiments instead.

Project details:

These placards are 3 1/2" square. I simply folded a sheet of 3 1/2" x 7" paper in half to form the note card. The base of each card is made from a kraft cardstock. I stamped the Pretty Pink Posh Winter Wreath in Memento Tuxedo black ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock and die cut it using the coordinating Winter Wreath die. I colored each wreath in with Copic alcohol ink markers. I cut a 4" x 1" strip of Lawn Fawn Gold Rush cardstock and adhered it to the notecard behind the wreath. I adhered the wreath to the center of the placard using foam adhesive. I tied a bow in Curry ribbon and adhered it to the top of the wreath using glue dots. I stamped various sentiments in Cajun ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock. I notched the right end of the sentiment strip before adhering it to the center of the wreaths. Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the flowers and leaves on the wreath for added sparkle.

Here is the Winter Wreath stamp set from Pretty Pink Posh (available through Butterfly Reflections, Ink):

Thanksgiving Blessing:

May love and laughter light your days and warm your heart and home;
May good and faithful friends be yours wherever you may roam;
May peace and plenty bless your world with joy that long endures;
May all life's passing seasons, bring the best to you and yours.

Happy Thanksgiving!

XO, Crystal

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Santa's Wonderland

11/26/2019

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Forget about a white Christmas, I'm dreaming of a purple Christmas! It's only a few shades away from blue anyway, so it's really not that much of a stretch. Sure, it's anything but traditional, but it's fresh and fun and kind of whimsical. By using a slimline card (8 1/2" x 3 1/2") there is enough space to feature all of the images from the Santa's Wonderland stamp set on this winter scene.

Card details:

The base of this slimline card is made from Gorgeous Grape cardstock. The first layer is cut from the Lawn Fawn Watercolor Wishes paper. Using the Stitched Slopey Joes border dies from Heffy Doodle, I cut two layers of snow from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I lined one of the snowbanks with Lawn Fawn Chunky Glitter. I die cut the trees in the background from Lawn Fawn Stitched Trees Border Lawn Cuts in white cardstock. I cut the tree "leaves" from miscellaneous scrap paper in purple stripes and in white glimmer paper (center tree). I stamped all of the images in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on white cardstock and cut them using the coordinating Santa's Wonderland Nice & Neat dies. I colored the images with Copic markers and added highlights to the colored images using a white gel pen. I added the images to the card using 3m foam adhesive for dimension. Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the images for added sparkle.

Here is the Santa's Wonderland stamp set from Neat & Tangled that I used to create today's card:

What do you think? Have I sold you on a purple Christmas yet?!
Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

XO, Crystal

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Birthday Girl On a Coffee Run

11/25/2019

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Welcome back from the weekend! There's no better time to share a coffee themed card than on a Monday morning, because we all need it! Well, except me, I gave up caffeine (again) last week, and ugh, the withdrawals on days 4-6 were not pretty friends. . . But, this java girl has made my Monday slightly better with those boxes of donuts piled sky high! Give me ALL the Boston cream's!

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. Using the Scalloped Stitched Nesting Rectangle dies by Gina Marie Designs, I die cut a piece of Tangy Apple Sugar Cuts cardstock. Using the Stitched Nesting Rectangle dies by Gina Marie Designs, I cut a piece of Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock to mount to the green background. Using the Sweet Cane Sugar Drops, I splattered some ink on the white cardstock. I punched out a scrap piece of foil coffee scripted paper in a large circle and adhered it to the center of the card. I printed out the Birthday Girl stamp set from my computer onto Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I colored the java girl image with my Copic markers and printed the image out using my Scan and Cut. I adhered the girl to the card using 3M foam adhesive. I wrapped a piece of salmon ribbon around the card and knotted it just below her knee line. Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the girl for added sparkle.

Here is the Birthday Girl stamp set from RG Avenue that I used to create today's card:

Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative (and caffeinated) day!

XO, Crystal

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Let's Talk About Digital Stamping

11/22/2019

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Hi friends! Happy Friday! I hope you have fun things planned for the weekend ahead. Today I'd like to talk about digital stamping. While digital stamps are not new to the market, they seem to be increasing in popularity. Ever since I began designing cards recently for RG Avenue (who uses a LOT of digital images!) I have become a lot more adept at using this type of stamp and I have come to really like them. While I still have a lot to learn about manipulating the images, today we can talk about some of the basics of digital stamping.

What ARE digital stamps?

Digital stamps, also known as “digi stamps" are simply high-resolution digital images. The most significant difference between a digital stamp and a traditional stamp is that there is NO physical stamp. A digital stamp is just the image or images. Think of it kind of like computer clip art. These digital images can be color or black and white. They are downloaded onto a computer where they can be manipulated - resized or altered before being printed.

Below is an example of a digital stamp. No, you cannot tell the difference simply by looking at this image if this is a digital stamp or a physical stamp. This particular stamp set is called "Bold Bouquet" from RG Avenue. This stamp, like many others from RG Avenue, comes in both options - digital or physical.

What do I need?

One of the benefits of using digital stamps is that you don't need anything special! As long as you have access to a computer and a printer you have the two most important pieces. Any inkjet printer will work fine; you don’t need expensive, fancy equipment. But, if you do own a laserjet printer, this will work too.

Downloading digital stamps:

Typically after you purchase a digital stamp you will receive an email with the digital file. Most digital stamps will come in .PNG, .JPG, .CSV or .PDF files. Some digital stamps might be provided in .ZIP files, so you will need to know how to unzip a file. Save the digital stamp file to your computer’s hard drive with an easily identifiable name (trust me, this helps to find it later)! Open up the saved file using either a word processing program such as Microsoft Word, or a photo editing program such as Photoshop Elements, LightRoom or a free website such as PicMonkey or GIMP. You can either print the image(s) out directly, or manipulate the image(s) before you print them out. You can add digital image to cards, scrapbooks, home decor and so much more!

Advantages of digital stamps:

Cost effective - on average digital stamps are less expensive than traditional stamps
More space - digital stamps are stored right on a computer and do not take up physical space
Immediate downloads - Unlike purchasing a physical stamp where it can take anywhere between 2 and 10 days to ship out in the mail, digital stamps are available for immediate download because the file is sent directly to your email upon purchasing
The ability to change the size/shape - with some slight editing, you can alter the size/color of your stamps to better fit your needs
E-Cutting machines - whether you have a Cricut or Scan & Cut, or any other electronic cutting machine, digital stamps don't need dies because most can be scanned through an e-cutting machine
No deterioration - unlike rubber which can dry up, or photopolymer which can stain, digital stamps do not lose their quality over time
Environmentally friendly - for those concerned about waste, digital stamps use less resources

Disadvantages of digital stamps:

3D images - You cannot "stamp" the images on wood/plastic/clay or other 3D type materials. Any product that cannot be run through a printer presents a challenge. It will be difficult to use digital stamps on fabric, very thick or very thin paper and cardstock, large pieces of paper, pre-formed boxes and many other items. With a little creativity ingenuity (and lots of time and patience) you might be able to find a way to work around this issue
Masking - unless you alter the stamp digital before printing, you cannot mask a stamp after the fact
Heat embossing - Because the ink is already printed on paper, you can't stamp with a Versamark pad to heat emboss the image. The workaround is to trace the image with a Versamark pen, but this result isn't nearly so precise and well defined
Computer knowledge - it does take a small amount of familiarity and learning to work with digital stamps
Licensing - Licensing arrangements can be confusing, so you need to read the terms and conditions for each image you purchase as sellers have different terms you must follow to avoid copyright issues (for instance - sharing with your friends is frowned upon!)

What types of paper to use for digital stamps?

Technically you can print on any type of paper that will go through your printer, but you will want to use specific paper designed for your coloring medium. If you are going to color your image with watercolor, you will want to be sure to run a sheet of watercolor paper (like Strathmore) through your printer to print the image on. If you would like to color your image with alcohol ink markers (Copic/Spectrum Noir, etc) or colored pencils (Prismacolor, etc) you will want to use a good carstock like Neenah Solar White or Strathmore Bristol smooth.

Where can I get digital stamps?

Many stamp companies are now offering digital alternatives to traditional/regular stamps. Along with RG Avenue, I highly recommend you check out Di's Digi Stamps or Power Poppy. Their images are simply stunning! The style of digital stamps can vary greatly. There are simple, almost cartoon-like images that are the easiest to design and color in. That doesn’t mean, however, that digital stamps can’t have more quality. Details such as lines on an animal to indicate fur are brilliant – as a crafter, you will color over it like normal, but the design will have more depth and a designer quality.

FREE digital stamps:

A simple Google search will yield many results for "FREE digital stamps!" I've provided a few links below for you to access courtesy of Papercraft UK magazine. You can click on the link and then download these FREE digital stamps. Try them and see if YOU like digital stamping!

Create Your Own Digital Stamp(s)!

If you are interested, really creative, and have a bit of artistic flair, you could make your own digital stamps! If you are good at drawing, all you need to do is sketch out a design in pencil that you can imagine someone coloring. Once you’ve done that and are happy with the design, simply go over the drawing with a black felt or fineline pen and scan it into your computer. Save it as a file and ta-da – you’ve created a digital stamp! If you’re savvy with a computer, you can then manipulate your drawing to make it crisp and perfect – and also alter the file type to offer crafters more possibilities. Share them on a craft blog or simple with your fellow creatives. Open an Etsy store and sell your designs like Magengo!

Now I will share the two cards I created for today using digital files from RG Avenue:

The purple arrows in the image below shows the two stamps I used to create the card you see (above). I printed out the entire sheet of flowers and colored the images with my Copic markers. I ran the sheet back through my Scan & Cut to cut the flowers out. *Note: If you don't have an e-cutting machine, yes, you could fussy cut the images out yourself. Then I proceeded to finish the card as I normally would by adding cardstock, a sentiment stamp, some plaid paper and rhinestones.

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For the second card, I used a digital stamp set from RG Avenue called "Fall Vibes:"

I hope this post has helped to answer some of the questions you might have about digital stamping. I'm still a beginner myself, but I'm happy to try and help if you have any additional questions.

Thanks for visiting and have a great weekend!

XO, Crystal

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November Create w/ Crystal

11/21/2019

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Hello and welcome to my Create w/ Crystal monthly cardmaking "club!" About five months ago, I asked some fellow crafty friends who would be interested in a FREE little "kit." Every month I send each member a small envelope of supplies that they will have to use to create a card. Everyone in the group will receive the exact same supplies. Once they have completed their card, they mail it back to me (in a self-addressed stamped envelope) and I share all their cards with you! The idea is to see how vastly different our cards can be, despite all using the very same products.

You will notice that some people submitted two cards and that's entirely okay by the "rules." They were given instructions to create whatever they wanted with their supplies. If they had enough for two cards, that's great. But, they can also submit scrapbook pages or any other papercrafted item as well!

Let's take a look at what they made with the November kit:

Made by Carol

Made by Crystal

Made by Donna

Made by Terry

Made by Glennice

Made by Marcia

Made by Moira

Made by Nancy

Made by Sherri

Made by Terry

What a wide array of ideas have been presented in these beautiful samples! I hope you have enjoyed seeing the talents of my crafty friends. Please leave them some love in the comments below!

Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

XO, Crystal

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Sweet As Pie

11/20/2019

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Hi friends! Today I am sharing this card on the Butterfly Reflections, Ink blog. The new "Sweet as Pie" stamp set by SugarPea Designs has my name written all over it. "Sweet" and "pie" in the same sentence? Yes, please! It's no secret that I L-O-V-E sweets and with Thanksgiving coming up next week, I'm thinking all things pumpkin and apple right now using this yummy set.

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Kraft cardstock. I cut a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of plaid paper similar to that of the Echo Park My Favorite Fall paper pack and adhered this to the card base. Using the Hello Bluebird Gallery Frame #2 die, I cut the frame from orange cardstock. I lined the back of the frame with a piece of Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I stamped the sentiment "You're as sweet as pie" in a brown ink directly onto the white base lining. Next, I stamped the images from the "Sweet as Pie" stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I colored the images using my Copic Markers. Then I die cut the images using the coordinating Sweet as Pie Sugar Cuts. I adhered the die cut images to the card using foam adhesive. Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the pies for added sparkle (and also because I completely forgot to stamp and die cut the matching whip cream in the stamp set)!

So, maybe you've noticed that the bottom edge of that left side pie plate is a little darker than the rest? Well, sure we can blame it on my coloring skills (truth), or we can just agree to say that it's a well loved pie plate that's seen a few family Thanksgiving's! Works either way!

Here is the Sweet As Pie stamp set by SugarPea Designs that I used to create today's card:

I hope you have enjoyed today's card! Thanks for visiting, you're all sweet as pie!

XO, Crystal

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Gobble Wobble

11/19/2019

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Hello readers! Today I have a Thanksgiving themed card to share with you featuring the new release from RG Avenue called "Gobble Wobble." Honestly, I could care less about the turkey, for me it's all about the fixin's!
I'm a sucker for those ooey-gooey candied yams and fresh pumpkin (or apple) pie. I don't discriminate when it comes to pies. What about you? What makes you gobble 'til you wobble?!

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Sweet Cane sugar stock. I cut a 4 1/4" x 3" piece of Tangy Orange cardstock and splattered it with Sweet Cane sugar drops. I adhered this to the card base and layered a piece of Lawn Fawn Perfectly Plaid Chill paper over the bottom. I cut a 3 1/2" piece of burlap ribbon and adhered it to the center of the card notching the right end. I printed the Gobble Wobble digital image from my computer onto Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock and colored it using Copic markers. I adhered the colored image to the card using 3M foam adhesive. I added two gold glitter leaves to the right side of the turkey and a few randomly placed pearl jewels for added dimension. Lastly, I put a coat of clear Wink of Stella on the turkey for extra sparkle.

Here is the Gobble Wobble stamp set from RG Avenue that I used to create today's card:

Thanks for visiting! I hope you find the time to create something today.

XO, Crystal

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Gnome for the Holidays

11/18/2019

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Hello friends and happy Monday! Welcome back from the weekend! My weekend didn't quite go as planned because I've been plagued with some sort of stomach bug for the better part of the last week. It's hasn't been terrible, but enough so that it leaves me feeling less than my stellar self. I did, however, do a TON of cleaning and re-organizing in my craft room and that felt great! Yes, that also means, I've got over three shoeboxes of stamp sets and dies that will be looking for new homes, so the next time you're at stamp camp, you can do a little discount shopping! This works out well - you get "new" stamps and I get rid of "old" stamps to buy more NEW stamps. See, it's recycling at it's finest! : )

I have been seeing gnomes e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e this holiday season and I, for one, am here for it! For today's card I borrowed this Gnome for the Holidays stamp set by FSJ/Spellbinders from my friend Nikki the other weekend at our craft retreat, but this set was too cute, that I had to purchase it for myself too!

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. Using the Lawn Fawn Stitched Hillside Backdrop, I cut the frame also from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I placed a sheet of Bermuda Bay cardstock (retired) behind the frame and heat embossed snowflakes in white embossing powder directly on the blue cardstock. I also added a few white birch trees to the landscape that I cut using the Lawn Fawn Birch Trees Lawn Cuts. I stamped the images from the FSJ Gnome for the Holiday stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock. I colored the images using Copic markers and added highlights with a Uni-Ball White Gel pen. I adhered the images to the card using 3M foam adhesive. Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the gnomes and trees for added sparkle.

Here is the Gnome for the Holidays stamp set by Spellbinders that I used to create this card:

Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

XO, Crystal

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Birthday Girl Goes Christmas Shopping

11/15/2019

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Hello and happy Friday! I hope you have fun things planned for the weekend ahead! I'm looking forward to another weekend of designing cards for some upcoming classes. Today I am sharing a card that I created using two stamp sets from RG Avenue. One is a brand new release called Wonder Trees and the other is an older stamp set called Birthday Girl. I added a fun twist to the Birthday Girl stamp set because I colored her with more traditional holiday colors, so this birthday girl is actually going Christmas shopping!

Card details:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Rich Cherry cardstock. I cut a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of red plaid cardstock and adhered it directly to the card base. Using the Gina Marie Scalloped Stitched Nesting dies, I die cut a sheet of Neenah White Solar Smooth cardstock in the medium rectangle. I splattered Sweet Blue sugar drops on the white cardstock. The Birthday Girl and Wonder Trees stamp sets I used were both digital, so I printed out the images from my laptop and colored them with my Copic alcohol ink markers. I ran the images through my Scan & Cut machine to die cut them. I adhered the birthday girl with one of the trees to the card using foam adhesive. I colored in the sentiment and added it to the bottom of the card also with foam adhesive. Lastly, I added a coat of Dazzling Pat to the image for lots of extra sparkle.