Hijacked!!! Tattered Florals Challenge by my MOM!!

Hijacked!!! Tattered Florals Challenge by my MOM!!, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

This is Cynthia's Mom. I've hijacked her blog to post my take on Tim Holtz's challenge to use his Tattered Florals die cut.

I used corrugated cardboard to make the headband and covered it with white cardstock that I colored with Distress Inks in purples and greens.

I die cut the Tattered Florals to make ear muffs. (Thinking outside the box just like my daughter did!!)

I added pearls in the Tattered Florals centers for a bit of bling.

Then I made the choker with another Tattered Florals flower and adhered it to some black ribbon edged with gold.

Everything got sprayed with Pixie Dust...I mean Perfect Pearls mist. ;-)

She's ready for the Red Carpet!!


Thanks for visiting the hijacked blog!!

"Di" aka Cynthia's MOM

Tattered Florals Challenge

Tattered Florals Challenge, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

So.

Tim Holtz issued a challenge on his blog. He challenged us to make something with the Tattered Florals die cut.

I decided that a card with flowers on it just wasn't good enough.

I decided to think outside the box.

I decided....to make a cake.

And here is my cake.

Made with Tattered Florals flowers in a Hawaiian wedding theme.

Or crazy birthday theme.

Or whatever.

I stepped so far out of my comfort zone on this thing, I'm in another time zone!!!!!!!!!!! =D

Anyway. Lots of flowers, lots of Distress Inks, lots of Distress Stains, lots of Stickles, and a whole lotta creative use of paper!! =D


Thanks so much for checking my Tattered Florals Cake out!


~Cynthia

Oooo! Madras Plaid!!!

Oooo! Madras Plaid!!!, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

I had so much fun making this card!! =D

I saw this card over on Lisa's blog...I'm in Haven. (She has the most beautiful CAS cards!!) I decided to shamelessly copy it, you know...as I so often do. ;-)

A while ago, Tim Holtz shared a little tip when using an embossing folder that tends to rip the paper. He suggested using a piece of Grunge Paper as a diffuser or buffer to prevent this.

So I tried.

And failed.

And tried again.

The Grunge Paper tends to diffuse the embossed parts so much that I couldn't get a nice crisp embossed image.

*sigh*

I used it anyway. It's just that wood grain background so no big deal.

Then I got to making the plaid, like on Lisa's card. Lisa had taken a class so she didn't share the instructions. No matter.

I was just playing at this point, so I reused the first failed embossed wood grain paper attempt.

I simply dragged (or is it drug??) Distress Ink pads across the bumpy cardstock. First from side to side, then I shifted the paper and dragged (drug?) the inks across again...so the lines of ink go left to right and top to bottom when you're done.

THEN I got the bright idea to spray it with a bit of water.

OK. Can I just say here....way cool???

It looks like and has the texture of Madras Plaid fabric!!

I die cut the big star and stamped smaller stars on the back of the plaid, then cut them out.

I stamped the banner, cut that out, and used a square punch to make the banner tail.

A little bit of extra effort on this one, but it was so much fun to get all inky!! Plus, the birthday boy is super special to me, so he's totally worth the extra time! ;-)


Supplies:
Paper: Recollections (white card blank and various left over pieces)
Stamps: Stampabilities (Happy Birthday 01); Rubber Stampede (Star Trio)
Inks: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Bundled Sage, Peeled Paint, Stormy Sky, Salty Ocean, Chipped Sapphire)
ETC: QuickKutz (Star die cut); EK Success (Pop Dots); Glue Glider Pro; Tim Holtz/Sizzix (wood grain embossing folder)



Sorry I haven't been posting in a while. I've been having a wonderful, inky time in Carolyn Dube's workshop, Use Your Words. It's nice to focus on a different aspect of creating, in this case, art journaling. It's a free class and you can join at any time. Check it out on my blog roll--her's is the first listed: A Colorful Journey | Mixed Media Art.


Stay inky!!


~Cynthia

The Snowy Day

The Snowy Day, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

Yes, we had some snow today!! It only lasted about 3 hours, but it covered the ground with almost 2 inches before it began to melt away!

The snowflakes were HUGE! And it was such fun to watch them fall...and take lots of pictures too! =D I think I have enough to make a mini album!

Have a wonderful weekend!!


~Cynthia

Last V Day Card

Last V Day Card, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

This is my last Heart Day offering. I had to wait until my Mom opened her card because she sometimes reads my blog and I didn't want to spoil the surprise. ;-)

I got the inspiration from Laurie on her Soapbox Creations blog. I loved the colors she used and thought I could change it up for Valentine's Day.

I ran a piece of red cardstock through an embossing folder, then cut a smaller piece of white cardstock and stamped the leaves and tree on it.

I added faux stitching around the edges then adhered some little hearts I punched from red cardstock.

Finally I stamped the sentiment and punched the ends with a square punch to make banner tails.

Not a difficult card to make and not that time consuming either. Even stamping all those leaves was quite soothing! ;-)


Supplies:
Paper: Bazzill (red cardstock ); Neenah (Solar White cardstock); Recollections (white card blank)
Stamps: Inkadinkado (Tree set); Craftsmart (sentiment)
Inks: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Black Soot, Gathered Twigs, Shabby Shutters)
ETC: Tim Holtz/Sizzix (wood grain EF); Emaginations (heart punch); Marvy (1-in square punch); EK Success (Pop Dots); Glue Glider Pro; Zig Two-way Glue Pen


Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you enjoy your day!!

~Cynthia

Cheep Hearts?

Cheep Hearts?, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

Ha ha! Get it?? Cheep?? Hearts??

Oh fine. I guess I'll just stick to card making. ;-)

I got the idea for this one somewhere. In the end, my card looked nothing like their card anyway, so I don't feel bad not linking to their creation.

Pretty easy to make! I stamped the bird, punched the hearts and die cut the speech bubble. Then I dusted the sky, chick and ground with chalk pastels. For a tiny bit of pizzazz I brushed the little hearts with a sparkle gel pen.


Supplies:
Paper: Recollections (white card blank and pieces); Bazzill (red cardstock); unknown red gingham check paper
Stamp: Craftsmart (chick)
Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Black Soot)
ETC: Emagination (heart punch); Quickkutz (speech bubble); Inkadinkado (Blending Chalks); Spica Atyou (sparkly gel pen); EK Success (Pop Dots); Zig Two-way Glue Pen


OK, that's it for me! Have a great crafty day!!


~Cynthia

Raining Hearts!

Raining Hearts!, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

Sorry for the seriously wonky colors on this card--it really is white in real life! (Camera operator error. Ahem.)

So I got the inspiration from Laurie at Soapbox Creations. I LOVED the sort-of tuxedo shirt layout. So cute!!

I punched the smaller hearts and die cut the larger two. Then I scored the lines and adhered the hearts.

Seriously...what could be simpler?? ;-)


Supplies:
Paper: Bazzill (red paper); Recollections (white card blank plus extra for the hearts)
ETC: Emagination (heart punch); Cuttlebug (double heart die cut); ScoreBuddy; EK Success (Pop Dots); Glue Glider Pro; Zig Two-way Glue


Today's the day! All the Valentine's cards must head out in the mail!! Gratefully, they're headed to cities that don't have any snow, so they should make it to their destinations on time. Be safe out there!!! :-)


~Cynthia

Jar of Hearts

Jar of Hearts, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

Today I'm CASEing the ever talented N@ Ali. She has the COOLEST cards on her blog Just Cards.

I was looking for a bit of direction and saw this card and decided it would be adorable for Valentine's Day!

I die cut the jar out of sparkly paper and a piece of acrylic packaging material. Then I cut the jar lid from crafting sheet metal. (The metal is purple on the other side. I just flipped it! Perfect!!)

I punched the hearts out then drew lines to where I wanted them to hang and adhered the hearts.

To assemble the jar I used the Glue Glider across the jar mouth to hold the acrylic piece, but also added a slim line of glue pen across the very bottom of the jar--trying to hide the glue. I think it works really well. It holds everything in place while not allowing globs of glue to show. Then I just adhered the metal jar lid using Glue Glider, since that's under the metal and that can't be seen anyway.

Then I stamped the sentiment.

Whew! That took longer to type up than it took to acutally make the card!! =D




Supplies:
Paper: The Paper Studio (kraft card blank); Bazzill (red cardstock); unknown sparkly paper
Stamp: Craftsmart (sentiment)
Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Black Soot)
ETC: The Memory Box (Tall Canning Jar die cut); Ten Second Studio (sheet metal); Emagination (heart punch); American Crafts (pen); Zig Two-way Glue Pen; Glue Glider Pro; acetate remnant


OK, so only a few more V Day cards to go! I really need to get them in the mail tomorrow so I had better get back to creating!! Thanks for stopping in...and have a crafty weekend!!!


~Cynthia

Hanging by a Heart

Hanging by a Heart, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

I'm back to CASEing Ardyth again! This time I used this card on her MASKarade blog for my inspiration. Go check it out! I'll wait. ;-)

It's such a cute layout. I think it would be perfect for so many occasions. Can you see cupcakes on little strings??

No? Oh. Maybe it's just me then.

Ahem.

So I not only went all CASE, but I went CAS too.

Stamp sentiment.

Draw line.

Attach heart.

The end.


Supplies:
Paper: Recollection (card blank and left over piece for heart)
Stamp: Craftsmart (VDay)
Inks: Tim Holtz Distress Stain (for heart); Memento (Tuxedo Black)
ETC: Emagination (heart punch); American Craft (pen); Zig Two-way Glue


I think I'll send this one to my nephew. It's not too girly, is it? ;-)


Thanks for stopping by--I appreciate your visits!


~Cynthia

Another Heart Card Down!

Another Heart Card Down!, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

Soooo, this card started as a CASE of another one of Ardyth's amazing cards.

Then it just went downhill fast.

I ended up completely ruining the card idea, so to make myself feel just a smidge better, I colored the mess with some alcohol inks.

I just drew random lines with pink and purple inks....and got a crazy inked-up circle.

So, you know, naturally I had to die cut a butterfly out of it, adhere it to a card, stamp a sentiment and call it a day.

My littlest niece loves pink. So this is going to her house.

Take THAT stupid mojo!!!

=D


Supplies:
Paper: Bazzill (pink cardstock); Recollections (white card blank)
Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Picked Raspberry)
ETC: Cuttlebug (butterfly die cut); Spectrum Noir (alcohol ink pens); Glue Glider Pro


It's SUCH a gorgeous, sunny day that I don't really want to be inside. But I have managed to get most of my chores out of the way--still have to clean the fridge out--so I can finish up the last few Valentine's Day cards. Yay for progress!! =D

~Cynthia

More V-day CASEing

More V-day CASEing, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

This time my CASE victim, er, inspiration source is Meghan over on the Little Pink Bike blog. She's on the CASology Design Team and I have so enjoyed her creations!

This card caught my eye back in January and I thought it would be perfect as a Valentine's Day card.

Super cute and easy to mass produce! I think I used the Polaroid shape before--I just love it that much! ;-)

So I cut a piece of patterned paper the shape of the Polaroid photo, then die cut the square out, leaving a longer section at the bottom.

I cut squares out of white card stock, stamped a heart on it, then stamped the sentiment while holding the Polaroid on the card.

When the ink all dried, I adhered everything then added a tiny heart at the bottom of the Polaroid. (That's really in honor of Jules on the Always with a Heart blog because she ALWAYS hides a little heart for us and the card recipient to find!)

See? Fun and fast!


Supplies:
Paper: Recollections (white card blank); Neenah (Solar White cardstock); We R Memory Keepers (Anthologie--Everyday Moments)
Stamps: Stampin Up (heart); Craftsmart (sentiment)
Inks: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Barn Door, Festive Berries)
ETC: Spellbinders Nestabilities (Classic Square Large die cut); Emagination (heart punch)


Two down! I guess I'd better count how many I need, huh??!! ;-)

Craft happy, friends!


~Cynthia

Happy Sunny Birthday!

Happy Sunny Birthday!, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

First off, a HUGE WELCOME to my new followers!! Thank you for joining me on this creative journey!!

And now to the card...

I am loving this one! Totally not my idea--I was hanging out on Ardyth's blog (MASKerade) and saw this card. I immediately fell in love!

So of course I also had to immediately CASE it! ;-)

I stamped the flower using Versamark, then drowned it in clear embossing powder.

(If you look closely, you can see little black flecks in my nice clear embossing powder. Note to self: Buy *new* nice clear embossing powder.)

After heating the powder, I layered different orangeish Distress Inks, starting with the lighter color first. I went outside the lines, like Ardyth did, with the lightest color, then concentrated each successive darker color towards the center of the flower. I ended with the darkest ink only in the very center.

I cut the flower out, just barely outside the image edge. Then I adhered it to the card blank and stamped the sentiment.

Easy peasy! Thanks to Ardyth for the inspiration!!


Paper: Recollections (white card blank); Neenah (Solar White cardstock)
Stamps: Heartfelt Creations (flower); Endless Creations (sentiment)
Inks: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Dried Marigold, Ripe Persimmon, Spiced Marmalade, Rusty Hinge)
ETC: Versamark; unknown clear embossing powder


Happy Monday, all! I totally need to get crackin' on my Valentine's Day cards. How about you? Are you finished...or have you not even started?? ;-)


~Cynthia

Tim's Tag February 2013

Tim's Tag February 2013, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

It's the first day of February and you know what that means!! Time for Tim's Tag...or as I like to call it...Going Crazy With Distress Products!!!

And I really, really did.

And as usual, I did nothing like Sir Tim.

But I had a TON of fun and I think that's what counts the most, right?? =D

Head over to Tim's blog for the complete lowdown, but here's my take.

I slapped Distress Stains (Festive Berries and Fired Brick) all over a manilla tag and flicked water on it to create a distressed look. I distressed the edges then inked them up with Black Soot Distress Ink.

I stamped that big heart twice with Black Archival Ink (on the tag itself and on watercolor paper.) Then I stamped it again using Distress Ink (Fired Brick and Festive Berries.) I fussy cut out sections and layered everything up with Pop Dots. (Totally looks cool in real life...in a photo...not so much.)

I embossed a piece of Core'dinations Color Core with a Cuttlebug embossing folder. After I sanded it, the red color of the Color Core didn't match the tag color so I slapped more Distress Stains on it. YES. Totally matches!

I tied some Distressed twine and added the little label I had stamped. I stuck the Chit Chat word "adore" on that.

I used Alcohol Inks (Cranberry, Red Pepper, Watermelon and Silver) on a Fragment charm and adhered a small punched heart which had been covered with Glossy Accents.

For the final two touches, I punched hearts out of a strip of black cardstock and adhered, hanging it out off either side.

Then I stuck a length of Tissue Tape to itself, creating ribbon. Sweet idea there, Mr. Tim Holtz. ;-)


So so SO much fun on this one!! And my fingers got good and inky!! (Frighteningly, it's all RED Distress products on my fingers and I do look like I'm having some sort of medical emergency! Best get that scrubbed off pronto!!)


Thanks SO much for dropping by!


~Cynthia