Reopening My Etsy Store...

Hello and Welcome!

I'm so glad you've decided to spend some time with me here today!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and are looking forward to the start of a New Year!

 

I wanted to quickly pop in and let you know that I have decided to open my Etsy store!

I had closed it several years ago, but decided that it was now time to try to reopen!

I will be adding inventory slowly as I have time and look forward to having a well stocked store shortly! If you're interested in a custom order, that is definitely a possibility as well...feel free to contact me!

For now, here's a few listings that have gone live over the last few days...

...birthday cards are always in high demand...

...and of course there's always a need for any occasion cards...

I hope you've enjoyed just a small sampling of my inventory!

Be sure to click on the link under my blog banner marked Etsy Store to check out the entire store!

Until next time...

Showstopping Calla Lilies...

Good Morning, Afternoon, or Evening depending on where you are visiting from!

I'm so glad you've been able to join me today!

Have you seen the new Calla Lily Collection from Heartfelt Creations?

It's absolutely breathtaking!

I've recently done a Facebook Live where I shared how easily these regal calla lilies come together!

If you missed the live, you can catch the replay here!

 The Calla Lily Collection truly is multipurpose as it's ideal for any occasion...from weddings, to Valentine's day, to birthdays, as well as sympathy condolences....this collection along with these stunning florals have you covered! It's also perfect to mix and match with other florals!

...let's take a peek at how this project turned out...

For this latest project, I opted to use one of the delightful swan illustrations along with the smaller bunched calla lily illustrations...and of course those elegant shaped flowers. 

 When I think of calla lilies, I usually think bridal...as they were super popular for weddings back in the day when I worked at the florist shop! I wanted to keep that kind of feel for this card, so I opted to use lots of lacy layers!

I've used the Rounded Window Frame Die that was released on Black Friday with both white card stock as well as the new Luxe Gold Cardstock! I've also used a favorite from the pocket dies...the Ornate Pocket Accents Die. These fanciful and intricate dies are perfect for creating super elegant backgrounds quickly and easily!

I do hope you've enjoyed today's share!

Until next time...

Creating Gorgeous Scenes with the Wilderness Retreat Collection...

Hello and Welcome!

It's so hard to believe that we're in December already, isn't it!

Are you ready for the holiday season? 

Today I wanted to share one last card with you created with the Wilderness Retreat Collection from Heartfelt Creations!

This is a small A2 size card, and comes together very quickly and easily once you have all of your images colored! I've chosen to use Zig Markers to watercolor my images, but you could use blendable pencils as well and achieve an equally gorgeous result!

...here's how the card turned out...

 I opted to cut a white mat for my card background using the Eyelet Rectangle & Basics Die.

I've then cut an oval into the mat using the Eyelet Oval & Basics Large Die. Next I have created the background sky by using the nesting die the next size down of the ovals from the Eyelet Oval & Basics Small Die and a sky like piece of patterned paper from the Wilderness Retreat Paper Collection. These two collections of dies nest together beautifully, and you'll always have the perfect size oval on hand for all of your paper projects! 

I've stamped all of my illustrations onto a mixed media paper using Ranger Archival Ink - Jet Black, as I wanted to watercolor them using my Zig Real Brush Markers. If you love to color, you will absolutely love this collection! I've stamped the cottage illustration from the Create a 'scape Backcountry Cling Stamp Set twice as I knew I wanted to die cut some elements from it to add some more dimension to the card. I stamped the Create a 'scape Trout Lake Cling Stamp Set once as I wanted to use some of the trees from the scene to add to the card scene I was building. I also stamped the cattails and the rocky ground from the Trout Lake Cling Stamp Set as well so I could add those elements to the front of the card giving it a scene with more depth. Lastly, I stamped the eagle and the duck illustrations from the Create a 'scape Nature Cling Stamp Set.

I've then die cut the the cottage illustration with just the outline die and have then used an oval to cut the rest of the image to release from the paper. From the second stamping of the cottage die, I've die cut the tree to use as an extra added embellishment. Don't throw away any of the rest of the colored illustration...you'll be able to store those to have on hand when you have another card to make!

Next, I've die cut the trees from the Trout Lake image and have trimmed them off the rest of the scene as needed so I could use them in the background. I've then die cut all of the other elements with the coordinating dies. 

And now the scene building fun can begin!

I attached the sky like oval to the center of the card as shown, while positioning the front card mat over top to make sure that it would all line up well. Then I've added the duck scene, making sure not to adhere the ducks all the way down, so they would appear that they are flying off of the page. Moving over to the other side of the scene, I've added in the treeline from the Trout Lake illustration. Once happy with all the placements, I've adhered the white mat over top of the card base using dimensional foam tape. 

Now begins the scene building on the front of the card!

I've adhered the cottage illustration to the card base using dimensional foam tape. I've popped up the single tree I die cut from the second cottage illustration just slightly off to the side of the other one to give the cabin a more treed in feeling. I've adhered the cattails to the bottom of the scene as shown, and have then snipped a portion of the rocky ground to layer beside, slightly overlapping the cattails. Lastly, I've added the soaring eagle to the top corner as shown using dimensional foam tape as well.

To complete the scene, I chose a preprinted sentiment from the paper collection and adhered it to the top corner opposite the eagle, and using a Designer Dries Clear Adhesive I've added some Crystal Ultrafine Transparent Glitter to the eagles wings, as well as the cattails and the rocky ground die cuts!

This gorgeous collection is perfect for creating those had to make masculine cards and is sure to wow the men in your life...but don't worry, the ladies will love all of the creations you make with this collection as well!

I recently did a Facebook Live with this collection, showcasing how quickly and easily these scenes come together...and how easy it is to create an A2 sized card that is still dimensional and ideal for sending through snail mail. You can also bundle several of these note cards together to make a wonderful gift for someone who has everything! They'll love having beautiful cards on hand to gift to their friends and loved ones!

And, just in case you didn't get to see the LIVE, just follow the link below!
 https://www.facebook.com/HeartfeltCreations/videos/554210878733232/

...here's the card we made together...

I do hope you've enjoyed today's share!
I hope you've been encouraged to build gorgeous scenic cards all your own!
With the stunning images and coordinating die cuts within the Wilderness Retreat Collection, the scene building possibilities are almost endless!

Until next time...

Introducing the Wilderness Retreat Collection from Heartfelt Creations....

Hello and Welcome!

I'm so glad we get a chance to visit today!

It's another new release on a Heartfelt Creations Wednesday, and I will be the first to admit that I love the new Wilderness Retreat Collection!
It is absolutely breathtaking!

...here's a little more about the collection...

Leave the busyness of life behind, with an awe-inspiring wilderness retreat! Breathe deeply, enjoy a starry sky, and immerse yourself fully in the tranquility of nature! Enjoy the isolation of a quaint little cabin in the woods, surrounded by statuesque trees, towering mountain views, and a quietly winding river! Enjoy a day trip that begins at the water’s edge! Push off the canoe and paddle your way to becoming one with the great outdoors…perhaps the ducks will share their favorite spot among the reeds, as the trout jump from the water, beckoning you to paddle further upstream! As the dusk begins to settle, listen for the howling coyotes in the distance and enjoy the deer grazing silently in the meadows. By now it’s time to head back to the cabin, lay your head on the pillow and dream about the new adventures tomorrow will bring! Join us as we take time to pause, slow down, and enjoy God’s beautiful creations with the new Wilderness Retreat Collection from Heartfelt Creations! Take a hike through this tranquil paper collection filled with illustrations of glorious wilderness scenes featuring old mills, babbling brooks, mountainside cabins, and a variety of wildlife! Rustic browns, river blues, sunrise yellows, and sunset reds create incredible backdrops for pleasing plaids, stunning stripes, and charming checkered patterns, perfect for all of your masculine themed creations! A wonderful assortment of wilderness themed cling stamp sets, along with coordinating dies, are sure bring all of your outdoor themed paper crafting creations to life, and allow you to create an abundance of different wilderness settings for all of your handmade greeting cards, scrapbook layouts, and memory keeping albums! Create breathtaking views with beautifully detailed illustrations of wilderness cabins, old work mills, fish filled rivers, howling coyotes, and soaring eagles. Create your own escape from reality, with the beauty and tranquility of the Wilderness Retreat Collection!

 

For my first project I just knew I had to create a card with the Trout Lake scene!
We love to fish and enjoy the beauty of the lake and surroundings, so I set to water coloring the lake and mountain images with my Zig Markers! Since I was water coloring, I did stamp all of the images onto a white mixed media paper so my colors would blend smoothly.

I wanted to create a smaller A2 sized card which measures 4.25" x 5.5"...I wanted to be able to mail the card but still add a little dimension to it! The Wilderness Retreat Collection is the ideal assembling of cling stamps and dies to achieve this with, as the Create a 'scape system allows you to add dimension to each scene in various ways!

...here's a peek at my project...

I really wanted to the scene to pop on this card, so I opted to forgo the paper collection for the most part and set to designing my own scene with just a plain white backdrop.

Using the Eyelet Rectangle and Basics Die, I created a A2 sized card base from white card stock...and then die cut the smaller mat which nests into it also from white card stock. I then die cut the center of the mat where I was going to build the scene using the mid sized rectangle die also from the same collection.

I used the same rectangle die I had previously used for the mat to die cut a piece from within the Wilderness Retreat Collection to use as the background for the sky. I loved that it had a bit of yellowish hue among the blue tones so that it almost looked like this would be a sunset scene.

I trimmed out the trout lake scene, and then die cut the top of it only...which gives you that beautiful treeline! I die cut the mountains using the coordinating die as well. Then it became time to start my scene building.

I positioned my lake illustration on the back of the window of the die cut mat, trimmed off any bits along the sides that were not needed and then adhered the scene to the back of the mat using some Designer Dries Clear Adhesive. I then positioned my mountains behind the scene as I wanted them to appear, and glued just the sides, pulling them in a little bit towards the center of the card so that they would stand up slightly without having to use any dimensional tape or foam dots. I then adhered background from the paper collection to the back of the mat enclosing the scene in fully. At that time, I then was able to add dimensional foam tape to the back of the scene filled mat and popped it up off the base of the card.

I wanted this card to almost appear like a picture or snap shot, so I thought it would be fun to frame it with one of the eyelet rectangles from the set I'd already been playing with. I decided to adhere it onto the card base slightly off balance just to give the card a bit of interest. 

....and now came the fun of making the card even more dimensional...

I stamped the cattail and the tree stump illustrations onto mixed media paper and set about to water coloring them as well. I also stamped a second trout lake illustration and colored that one up fully too as I knew I would want to make the jumping fish dimensional, as well as some of the rocks in the lake! (Hint - Don't throw out the rest of your colored images after you've die cut the rocks and the fish...they will work to trim apart to add to other cards you are creating outdoor scenes on!)

I die cut all of the images with the coordinating dies and then proceeded to add them to the project. You'll see that for the rocks I've actually added them slightly offside of the original image when popped up just so that the rock piles appear larger and that there are more of them. The cattails I have adhered to the card base using Designer Dries Clear Adhesive and then added the tree stump on top of them using foam tape.

For the finishing touch, I chose a preprinted sentiment from the Wilderness Retreat Paper Collection, inked the edges using Ranger Archival - Paradise Teal, and then adhered it to the lovely little scene using dimensional foam tape.

Then came time to add just a hint of glitter! Using my Designer Dries Clear Adhesive, I added some Crystal Ultrafine Transparent Glitter to the cattails, the fish, the mountain tops and the the ripples in the lake. It was just the right amount of sparkle.

I love that this card has so many interesting dimensional features but will still be easily mailed without having to worry about any damage!

I do hope you've enjoyed today's share!
Be sure to pop on over to the Heartfelt Creations blog to take in the sights and scenes the rest of the design team have created with the Wilderness Retreat Collection!
You're sure to be awed and inspired!

Until next time...

Project Supplies
HCDP1-2108 Wilderness Retreat Paper Collection
HCPC-3895 Create a 'scape Trout Lake Cling Stamp Set
HCPC-3893 Create a 'scape Backcountry Cling Stamp Set
HCPC-3896 Create a 'scape Nature Cling Stamp Set
HCD1-7267 Create a 'scape Backcountry Die
HCD1-7269 Create a 'scape Trout Lake Die
HCD1-7270 Create a 'scape Nature Die
HCD2-7189 Eyelet Rectangle and Basics Die
RACP500 Ranger Archival Ink Pad - Paradise Teal
RACP468 Ranger Archival Ink Pad - Jet Black
478455 Zig Clean Color Real Brush Markers
409311 Color In Watercolor Brush
159723 Designer Dries Clear Adhesive
85-glitter Crystal Ultrafine Transparent Glitter

Unveiling the Sea Breeze Collection from Heartfelt Creations....

Hello and Welcome!
Can you believe it's another Heartfelt Creations Wednesday!

Are you ready to walk the beaches and take in some gorgeous sights with me...dip your toe in the ocean, climb the rocky stairs to the top of the lighthouse?

Today we unveil the NEW Sea Breeze Collection from Heartfelt Creations...and with it's gorgeous imagery, you will feel like you are at the seaside!

...here's a little more about the collection...

Warm balmy breezes, glistening sun baked sand, and the sound of frothy waves lapping at the shoreline are the perfect assembling of elements to create a tranquil and soothing haven where a tired soul can find rest. The sights, smells, and sounds of the ocean somehow know how speak to your inner most being and conjure up feelings of fresh hope, renewed dreams, and a sense of well-being, as troubles are cast aside, drifting off to the bottom of the sea. A large, towering lighthouse stands vigilant, ready to bring those at on the water safely home while at the same time beckoning you to come for a closer look as you stroll across the gritty ground, bending low to gather tiny, opalescent sea shells as your meander along the shoreline. Enjoy the peace and tranquility that sea breezes carry as you immerse yourself in the beauty and solitude of the new Sea Breeze Collection from Heartfelt Creations! Roll up your pant legs and stroll through a captivating paper collection filled with hues of crisp ocean blues, light sandy browns, glistening corals, and stunning sunset oranges intertwined with faded yellows and fiery reds. Discover beautiful beach scenes displaying stately lighthouses, soaring seagulls, and elegant sailboats as you saunter through every page of this peaceful and calming assembling of artistically styled decorative papers. Stamp, color and die cut your very own seaside harbor retreats for all of your paper crafting creations with the wonderful assortment of cling stamp sets and coordinating dies, boasting detailed illustrations of sand engulfed fences, rocky lighthouse abodes, charming row boats, and pretty sea shells. So, shed your sandals, breathe deeply, and join us as we take in the soothing ambiance of the seaside with the breathtaking Sea Breeze Collection!

...here's a peek at how my first project turned out...

I spent several evenings in front of the tv doing some coloring with this collection!

I chose to color with my Zig Markers as I felt this was the perfect collection to do some water coloring! I am so happy with how the colored images turned out!

For the card base, I chose one of the premade 6" x 6" background card panels that had just a bit of imagery on it. I die cut a circle into the side of the card base and then die cut an eyelet circle frame to go around the opening. Using a Stack and Store Dauber, I inked the edges of the card panel using Ranger Archival Ink - Coffee. I adhered the circle from the card panel to the card base and then using pop dots I added in the lighthouse image. I stamped a second lighthouse image, colored up the rocks along the shore and then die cut them with the coordinating die. I then adhered them to the lighthouse illustration once again using pop dots. 

...here's a closer peek at the lighthouse scene...

I then adhered the rest of the premade card panel to the card front using dimensional foam tape. This way, it would pop up off the page and allow room for the dimensional lighthouse scene!

I stamped, colored, and die cut some clouds, seaside weeds and the lovely little seagulls...both those flying in the air and those below the lighthouse scene!

I adhered the greenery to the bottom of the lighthouse scene, and added the little feathered friends along the bottom! I staggered the clouds, applying them to the card base with dimensional foam tape.

I trimmed out a portion of a sentiment strip from the Sea Breeze Paper Collection, inked the edges with Ranger Archival Ink - Coffee, and adhered it to the top of the card as shown, and then proceeded to add in the seagulls in flight in and around the clouds. 

As a finishing touch, I added just a hint of shimmer to the clouds, as well as the greenery and the sand using Designer Dries Clear Adhesive and Crystal Ultrafine Glitter.

I hope you've enjoyed today's share!
Be sure to pop on over to the Heartfelt Creations blog to take in the amazing projects the rest of the design team have created for your inspiration!

Until next time...

Project Supplies
HCPC-3890 Sea Breeze Harbor Cling Stamp Set
HCPC-3891 Sand and Sunsets Cling Stamp Set
HCPC-3892 A Day at Sea Cling Stamp Set
HCD1-7264 Sea Breeze Harbor Die
HCD1-7265 Sand and Sunsets Die
HCD1-7266 A Day at Sea Die
HCDP1-2107 Sea Breeze Paper Collection
RACP468 Ranger Archival Ink - Jet Black
RACP451 Ranger Archival Ink - Coffee
478455 Zig Color Clean Brush Markers
409311 Color In Water Brush - Fine
85-glitter Crystal Ultrafine Transparent Glitter
352854 Metal Tip for Adhesive Bottles
159723 Designer Dries Clear Adhesive