Spray Pen Unplugged

Spray Pen Technique
 This little video will show you exactly how to use the super cool spray pen that CTMH sells. It's true you can probably buy some spray pens that are already mixed and ready to spray but they won't match your CTMH colors exactly! Beware!
As the demonstrator says, cover your work surface well so you don't have any spray messes!





Happy crafting!

Technique Thursday Bling it Up

Technique #2

BlingI know you want some diamonds for Valentines Day, or any other day for that matter! But what about using gems on your scrapbook pages or cards? “It’s too bulky” or “It costs too much” might be some objections but I have the answer for you. NO! It’s not very expensive at all and you get such a visual impact it’s totally worth it. And if bulk is TRULY your objection, then you can get bling stickers that are very, very close to the real thing. Or there is a product out that mimics pearl. It is called Liquid Pearl and comes in different colors and looks pretty. I don’t mind the tiny amount of bulk that bling uses. So let’s get started… 

First go to the CTMH website and check out your options. You can choose from Clear sparkles (diamonds)” or Opaque Adhesive Gems (pearls) or colored Sparkles. You'll find all of these on page 126 of the new Winter catalog from CTMH! There’s even colored “pearls” you can choose from. All these bling come in different sizes from pretty large to super tiny (Bitty Sparkles). I prefer to use the small and tiny ones but I have used some large “diamonds” and the effect is pretty great. Once you get your bling take it home and start sticking! They are self adhesive so it’s super easy to just lift off the sheet with your piercing tool or X-acto knife. I don’t use tweezers because inevitably the gems pop right out of the tweezers, never to be found again! Once you are done blinging your page, stand back and prepare for your friends to marvel at your talent!

Have Fun!

Technique Thursday Glitter Glue

So I have a new thing I want to try. I have so many little techniques that I like to try and if I get to share them with others, I’ll be more likely to use them! So here goes…

Technique #1
Glitter Glue

This one is pretty easy and I have recently fallen in love with Stickles. Stickles are a no-mess glitter glue (gg) and they come in many different colors; at least 35! With that kind of variety you can match most of your pages or cards you do. There are other kinds of gg out there you can get at Craft Warehouse, JoAnn Fabrics and Hobby Lobby, to name a few. I have found that the gg you can get in the dollar bin are not the best. They don’t flow out of the bottle nicely, and they glob up and don’t spread very well. I like Stickles the best so far!

The technique is really easy. You can gg over a stamped image, on a die cut or directly on the paper to create your own design. You can glitter on chipboard shapes, buttons, brads and stickers. It’s pretty endless as to what you can gg on and I’m ready to try them all! Glitter Glue really gives a fun sparkle to most anything without adding the bulk of gems.
Here I stamped a butterfly image from CTMH and went over it with two colors of gg. You need to wait until the ink from the stamp has dried enough so the ink doesn’t run or blend with the glue. After I applied the gg, I set it aside for a long time to dry. This is important, because if you mess with it too soon, you can smear the glue all over and it makes quite a mess. After it is completely dry, you can apply it to your project and voila! you are finished!

Check out my product page and see other cards I have used gg. Good luck trying something new!

Weeks of Wonder Masking

So you think you are getting the hang of scrapbooking yet? It's always so much fun to use new techniques when you are crafting. Cause who wants all their projects to look exactly the same? One great technique is called masking. It is super easy and gives such a great finished look to your project!
Close to my Heart has several websites that have some great techniques detailed in a step by step tutorial. They make it so easy to learn new stuff! Check out this CTMH website to see the great technique for masking.

http://www.jeanettelynton.com/2011/08/weeks-of-wonder-return-of-mask.html

After you see this blog go out and  try it for yourself!
Happy Scrapping!