Florence Australasian Blog Hop

Hello and welcome aboard our Close To My Heart Florence Australasian Blog Hop. If you have arrived here from  Shaunna Richards' Passionate About Pages, then you are in the right place. If you landed here by accident, no problem, please join in by following the link at the end of this post. 

Florence is a stunning collection created by Close To My Heart that is featured in the 2016 Seasonal Expressions 2 Idea Book and is only available until the end of August 2016.  The Florence range includes the Florence Paper Packet, Florence Workshops Your Way Scrapbooking Kit, Florence Complements and Florence Sequins which work on their own, or together, to create stunning colour-coordinated page layouts, cards and off-the page projects quickly and easily.

I love the Florence Workshops Your Way Scrapbooking Kit- it contains enough products to create at least 3 traditional double-page layouts, 1 double-page layout featuring our gorgeous PML cut-apart cards and 8 optional cards featuring the spectacular  A Bunch of Love stamp set and coordinating Thin Cuts (both of which are available separately). 

My project today, was created after I had followed the instructions for creating all of the adorable layouts and cards! I decided to use some of the leftovers to create this quick, simple photo-ready, double-page layout using up some of the B&T Papers, Zip Strips, PML cut-apart cards, Florence Complements and Florence Sequins. 

I just love using up leftovers, don't you?  I always challenge myself to use up every scrap of paper and embellishment from the WYW Kits, and this page layout helped me to achieve this. Well, almost!

Here you can see how I have used up some of the leftover Florence Complements and Sequins to create clusters of embellishments to decorate my layout.

Clustering embellishments together in groups, rather than spreading them out, creates a more cohesive look and adds balance to your layouts. 

Thank you for visiting my Blog to check out my page layout featuring the gorgeous products from the Florence Workshops Your Way Scrapbooking Kit. I would love it if you would leave a comment below before you hop to the next stop on our Florence Australasian Blog Hop, Doris Taylor's Creative Inspirations to see what delightful projects Doris has to share with us today.

Remember, you can purchase any of the gorgeous Florence products from your CTMH Independent Consultant but they are only around until 31 August, so get in quick before they disappear!

Until next time!

Warmest crafting wishes,

Denise :)

August Stamp of the Month Australasian Blog Hop

Hello and welcome aboard our Close To My Heart August 2016 Purr-fect Halloween Stamp of the Month Australasian Blog Hop. If you have arrived here from Lauren Moore's CTMH Craftings, you are in the right place. If you landed here by accident, no problem, please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

Today, I would like to share with you a few projects that I have created featuring the August Stamp of the Month, Purr-fact Halloween. This stamp set is available only in August 2016 for $27, or for just $7.50 when you spend $75 or more.

Isn't this such a cute stamp set? I couldn't resist having a play with this adorable cat, icons and sentiments and seeing what fun projects I could create.

My first project is based closely on the CTMH artwork that  features in the Seasonal Expressions 2 Idea Book.  I always look at the CTMH artwork in the Idea Books first for inspiration, because the ideas are always so fabulous. Here is the original page from the Idea Book:

  

And here is my version of the page.  You will not be surprised that I also had to add another page to make mine a double-page layout!

But this stamp set is so much more than a Halloween stamp set!  If you don't celebrate Halloween, don't despair! This cute cat suits a variety of themes and occasions.  My next projects are all non-Halloween card designs that are whimsical and fun and they have nothing whatsoever to do with ghosts, goblins or things that go bump in the night!

For my first card design, I have used this gorgeous Pansy patterned paper from the NEW Adventure Fundamentals and teamed it with Emerald Cardstock, which is one of the 7 fresh NEW Adventure colours to launch today with the release of the 2016-2017 Annual Inspirations Idea Book!

 

This bright, fun card is based on a card design from page 23 of the NEW 2016-2017 Annual Inspirations Idea Book.  I teamed the cute cat with a sentiment from the adorable new Operation Smile stamp set, True Love.  The cat has been coloured in with Watercolour Paints using the Medium Round Waterbrush. Gold Shimmer Trim and Gold Sequins have added a little bit of shimmer and bling to this card.  What do you think? 

Ingredients: (you can find all of these products in my online shop)

S1608 Purr-fect Halloween August Stamp of the Month

D1711 True Love Operation Smile stamp set (sentiment) 

x254 White Card and Envelope (Value Pack)

Adventure Fundamentals 

Emerald Cardstock

White Cardstock

Watercolour Paper

Black Memento Ink Pad

Watercolour Paints

Waterbrush- Medium Round

Gold Shimmer Trim

Gold Sequins

Thin 3-D Foam Tape

3-L EZ Dots Adhesive

Non-stick Micro-tip Scissors

The second card is to give to your craziest bestie! It is a quick and easy card to create as it doesn't involve colouring or fussy cutting and the design can be adapted to use with a multitude of stamps.  I stamped in Memento Ink and used a number of patterned papers from the NEW Adventure Fundaments to create a fun mix of colours including Tangerine, Raspberry, Pansy, Willow and Blossom.  I used Black Cardstock and black Calypso Sequins to create an interesting contrast to the bright Adventure colours.  

Ingredients: (you can find all of these products in my online shop)

S1608 Purr-fect Halloween August Stamp of the Month

X254 White Card and Envelope (Value Pack)

Adventure Fundamentals 

Black Cardstock

White Cardstock

Black Memento Ink Pad

Calypso Black Sequins

Thin 3-D Foam Tape

3-L EZ Dots Adhesive

Mini Stapler ans Staples

Non-stick Micro-tip Scissors

The final card is a perfect Valentines or Anniversary card and is just the design for saying "I'll love you forever" to your special someone! I used the new Hearts Thin Cuts on this card.  They are so easy to use and give a solid heart and thin heart outline in three different sizes that work so well together (I've used 2 different sizes on my design).  Once again, I've used the fun patterned papers from the Adventure Fundamentals teamed with Gold Shimmer Trim and Gold Sequins. A simple, fun design that pops with colour!

Ingredients: (you can find all of these products in my online shop)

S1608 Purr-fect Halloween August Stamp of the Month

C1668 Baby Bundle stamp set (sentiment) 

X254 White Card and Envelope (Value Pack)

Adventure Fundamentals 

Black Memento Ink Pad

Watercolour Pencils

Gold Shimmer Trim

Gold Sequins

3-D Foam Tape

Thin 3-D Foam Tape

3-L EZ Dots Adhesive

Hearts Thin Cuts

Mini Stapler and Staples

Non-stick Micro-tip Scissors

Thank you for visiting my Blog to check out my page layout and cards featuring the August Stamp of the Month, Purr-fact Halloween. I would love it if you could leave a comment below before you hop to the next stop on our Australasian Blog Hop, Maz Wood's Inky Fingers.

Remember, the August Stamp of the Month, Purr-fact Halloween is only available throughout August 2016 from your Close To My Heart Independent Consultant for $27, or for just $7.50 when you spend $75 or more.

Crafty hugs,

Denise :)