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Friday, November 24, 2017

5 products every crafter needs + the EH anniversary sale!

As you read this post (well, if it is still Friday) I am at the Ellen Hutson LLC warehouse in my comfy joggers, eating donuts, listening to Christmas music and running around like a crazy little chicken as we work to get anniversary sale orders out the door! Our whole staff at EH looks forward to this day every year. We eat too much, we laugh so hard and we go home exhausted & grateful. We are grateful for each other and all of our wonderful customers that make it all possible!

You might not be able to be there to party with us but you can take advantage of the 20% off sale this weekend and send us an order to keep us busy! So grab yourself a hot cocoa (or coffee if you like that sort of thing), get comfy and order some crafty fun! Not only can you take 20% off your order with the code celebration17, but there are also some fun hot buys and bunches of things have been added to the sale section.

And in case you don't know where to start, here are 5 things I think every crafter needs (especially because I am currently obsessed with them)...


Scor-Pal
My Scor-Pal is getting used SO much these days! I use it for cards of course, but I am having tons of fun creating little boxes and packages. And a Teflon Bone Folder is the perfect accessory!
MISTI Stamping Tool
And while we are talking tools, I couldn't live without my MISTI! I probably say it all the time but it has changed the way I stamp for the better!
Nuvo Moonstone Glimmer Paste
I love glitter and Nuvo Glimmer Paste is the so fun to use! Moonstone is my favorite because you can tint it with reinkers and layer it over any ink or paper for color. For those afraid of the glitter mess, the paste is nice because it keeps the sparkle contained.
Pretty Pink Posh Wild Rose
The Pretty Pink Posh Wild Rose stamp set is becoming a new staple for me! I love the design of these flowers! They are fun to color with Copics, to watercolor, to glitter...and they are good for cards year-round.
Right At Home Holidays Are On The Way
And I have a new set that I am very excited to use for some holiday projects, Right At Home's Holidays Are On The Way. Stop by again soon to see what I'm working on.

Have a great day and happy shopping! Hugs!
Carly

Thursday, November 23, 2017

copic colored glitter + ellen hutson llc is turning 11!

Ellen Hutson LLC is celebrating 11 years and we are hopping today to celebrate!!! The theme of today's hop is "My Favorite Essentials by Ellen Set" and I think there are many of us who can agree that it is so hard to choose!!!

I decided to go with one of my most used and loved die sets, Wild Garden. And I also chose one of my favorite techniques, something I learned from Julie - coloring glitter with Copic markers!


This technique combines the Burnished Velvet glitter technique with Copic coloring...

  • Apply double-sided adhesive to cardstock, leaving liner paper on one side. I usually use Be Creative Tape but *gasp* I was out. Turns out Stick It works well too but has slightly more distressed edges.
  • Remove the liner paper without touching it because the oils in your fingers will keep the glitter from sticking. Apply black cardstock flowers from the Wild Garden set, to adhesive.
  • Apply glitter, shake off excess and burnish into adhesive with fingers to create sparkly, velvet texture.
  • Use brush nib on Copic marker to gently color. Take care not to over-saturate and wipe any stray glitter off marker before capping.

The sentiment is the Essentials by Ellen Many Thanks die, cut 3 times, layered and topped with Nuvo Black Ebony Crystal Drops.


The next stop on this happy hop is the fabulous Amy Tsuruta's blog, Tsuruta Designs. Have fun hopping and make sure to swing by the Classroom because there are prizes!

Hugs!
Carly

supplies:
Essentials by Ellen Dies, Wild Garden
Essentials by Ellen Dies, Many Thanks
Copic Markers BG11, BG32 & BG34
Solar White
Licorice Twist
Stick It
Nuvo Black Ebony Drops

Wednesday, November 22, 2017

the stamp market made with love blog hop

Baking cookies and packaging them up was always a huge part of our family Christmases. Snickerdoodles and gingersnaps for my Grandpa Chris, fudge for my Grandma Virginia, and Chocolate Crinkles for all of us!

I still love making sweet treats for my friends & family and I'm so excited to use the new Made With Love set from The Stamp Market. (Small side note...I've just recently discovered The Stamp Market and their stamps & dies are ADORABLE! Plus they are so sweet!) Ok, let's talk sweet treat packaging!
First of all there are some adorable stamps in this set that are perfect for creating little seals. I love seals on glassine bags of cookies. In fact, I stocked up on glassine bags for my wedding and I'm still working to use them up...I've been married for 10 years, LOL! 

To create a seal, just stamp and die cut (or punch). Then run through a Xyron to make into stickers.

I'm also crazy for the sweet tags you can create! The tag dies are fun shapes with notches & perforations. There are cute dots & stripes to add to them too, my favorite! I think I will be using these bunches so stay tuned.
In case you missed any stops on our little hop, the list is below and keep hopping on over to The Stamp Market! There is a $50 giveaway, YAY! Make sure you leave a comment on each hop stop and make sure to follow The Stamp Market on Instagram. The winner will be announced on Saturday. 


Jessica Frost-Ballas  - http://www.allthesparkle.com
The Stamp Market - http://thestampmarket.com

Have a happy day! XO!
Carly

Thursday, November 16, 2017

25 days of christmas tags!


I'm so excited to be joining in Tracey McNeely's annual 25 Days of Christmas TagsAnd I'm excited to share some shaker tags I made with my Fuse Tool and the Essentials by Ellen Concertina Tags die.

To start I die cut the tags from plastic. It can be hard to cut plastic using wafer thin dies but I found that the Avery Elle storage pockets work when left whole (so there are two layers of plastic). Using a metal adaptor plate helps too.

If any plastic is uncut by the die, just use scissors and use them to cut the tags apart too.
I used a pre-heated Fuse Tool to seal the bottom and both sides before filling with sequins from the top and sealing too.

Once my shaker tags were made, I used shapes die cut from Craft-A-Board to decorate. I love Craft-A-Board for the dimension it adds to projects and also because it is a great surface for Nuvo Mousse. I used Aquamarine and Pink Flambe mousse.

I didn't have the right shade of aqua cardstock so I used my Copic BG32 to color white cardstock. Then I used it to make little "to" strips and loops to attach twine.

Thanks so much for stopping by and come back soon!
Carly

supplies:
Essentials by Ellen Clear Stamps, Modern Christmas
Essentials by Ellen Dies, Modern Christmas
Essentials by Ellen Dies, Concertina Tags
Copic Marker BG32
Nuvo Mousse Aquamarine & Pink Flambe
Avery Elle Storage Pockets
Fuse Tool
Pretty Pink Posh Sequins Sparkling Clear Snowflakes, Heart Confetti, Sparkling Clear Confetti & Holiday Snowflake Mix

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

pretty pink posh's brilliant sparkle dot stamp!

Have you seen the new Sparkle Dot Patterns 1 stamp set by Pretty Pink Posh? It is so awesome and full of so many possibilities! I've only just started playing with it but I wanted to share...
The heart & star patterns are perfect to pair with the PPP Reindeer Friends set and the patterns are fabulous to use with Nuvo Drops.
I used the star dot pattern with Nuvo Silver Moondust glitter drops and then I create a shaker panel over the top, filling it with PPP Sparkling Clear Confetti Mix and Flat Silver Stars.

I stamped the heart pattern over an red inked background and filled it with Nuvo Ruby Slippers glitter drops. Then I added a panel with a heart window on top. The Hero Arts Infinity Nesting Heart dies match up to the heart dot pattern pretty well.
And I have a little reminder too...there is an embellishment sale happening at Ellen Hutson starting today, which means you can get 20% off sequins & Nuvo Drops!!! Head over to EH and use the code saveonbling17. You're welcome or I'm sorry for enabling, LOL!

Thanks for stopping by! Hugs!
Carly

supplies:
Pretty Pink Posh Stamps, Sparkle Dot Patterns 1
Pretty Pink Posh Stamps, Reindeer Friends
Pretty Pink Posh Dies, Reindeer Friends
Hero Arts Dies, Infinity Nesting Hearts
Nuvo Drops Silver Moondrops & Ruby Slippers
Copics E13, E33, E37 & R22

Tuesday, November 14, 2017

today...

Hi! I'm over in The Classroom at Ellen Hutson today sharing a card I made with the Pantone "Intensity" palette.

Come by and say hi!
Carly

Monday, November 13, 2017

3 ways to use glassine in your cardmaking...

Today I'm super excited to be guest designing for The Stamp Market!!! I'm over on The Stamp Market blog, playing with glassine and some of their gorgeous new releases. Please come on over!
xo,
Carly

Saturday, November 11, 2017

merry & very bright with new honey bee!

Do you have a favorite holiday "theme"? Is that a weird question? It might be but I do! *laugh*

I have a fondness for the word "merry" and I especially love "merry & bright", so you can imagine that I'm a little head over heels for the new Honey Bee Merry & Bright die set.

The set comes with beautiful skinny script words and also the shadows. The two combined make a great shaker card...
For this card I die cut the shadow words from an A2 panel. Behind the panel I adhered acetate and foam mounted it to a card to create a shaker. And on top of the acetate, I adhered the beautiful skinny "merry" and "bright" words. Since the die cuts are so delicate, I highly recommend applying a double-sided sticker-paper-like adhesive to the cardstock before die cutting, like Stick It.
I also used the skinny words on top of a glittery stripe background that I made. I used a vellum circle to ground them and give them a little more "weight". 
And the stripes were super easy to make...I applied painter's tape to an A2 panel of cardstock. Then I used an ink blending tool to create "Barbie stripes" in pink & purple pigment ink. I'm really loving Tutti Fruitti, Orchid and Sweet Lilac.
With the painter's tape still in place, I applied Nuvo Moonstone Glimmer Paste with a palette knife.
The paste dries quickly so remove the tape right away.



Thanks for stopping by!
Carly

Friday, November 10, 2017

hopping with ellen hutson!

I love this time of the month - new Essentials by Ellen! It's like a little bit of Christmas at the beginning of each month!!!

And I love that I get to join some super talented ladies to hop in celebration of this release! Before you hop on to my friend Carolyn's blog, I just want to share a quick way that I used all three new EBE sets together and with some of the past Leading Ladies...


I love how the ladies look so sweet together and how when stamped off the edge, it's like they are leaning in to say hi and remind you that "you are loved". Photo Lady, Cozy Lady and Crafty Lady make great buddies!

And Julie's new Abstract Paint Strokes is the perfect background for a sweet sentiment like this one from the new Totally Random Sayings Vol. 1. I think "you are loved" will be appearing on a lot of my upcoming projects. We all need a little more love right?!

Ok, I'll stop chattering. You're next stop if Carolyn's blog. Have fun hopping along!

Happy Friday!
Carly

supplies:
Essentials by Ellen Stamps, Leading Ladies - Photo Lady
Essentials by Ellen Stamps, Leading Ladies - Cozy Lady
Essentials by Ellen Stamps, Leading Ladies - Crafty Lady
Essentials by Ellen Stamps, Abstract Paint Strokes
Essentials by Ellen Stamps, Totally Random Sayings Vol. 1
Hero Arts Tide Pool
Avery Elle New Moon
Copics: skin E000, E01 & E02; hair Y21, Y35, YR30, E11, E13, E33 & E37; clothes BG10, BG11, BG32, BG34, T1, T2 & T4

Sunday, November 5, 2017

a mod christmas card + nuvo mousse

Hi and Happy Sunday! I just wanted to pop in share a quick Christmas card...
I love playing with Nuvo Mousse and I love the mod background I created with some of the stamps from the Essentials by Ellen Fat Pants & Modern Christmas stamps, both by the amazing Julie Ebersole.
Some quick Nuvo Mousse tips from me...

And a little help from your friendly crafty enabler (me), the Fat Pants & Modern Christmas sets are on sale right now as a sweet bundle

Hope you have a wonderful, crafty day! Hugs!
Carly

supplies:
Essentials by Ellen Stamps, Fat Pants
Essentials by Ellen Stamps, Modern Christmas
Essentials by Ellen Dies, Modern Christmas
Hero Arts Pale Tomato, Lime Green & Tide Pool
Nuvo Mousse Aquamarine & Mother of Pearl
Craft-A-Board

Friday, November 3, 2017

hopping with pretty pink posh!


There's a new Pretty Pink Posh release this week and I think it might be the best one yet! In fact, I'm a little obsessed with the new Wild Rose stamp set, as you will see in a minute but first let me tell you about prizes...

There are 4 $25 gift certificates up for grabs! Winners will be picked randomly along the blog hop (both days). Comments must be left by 11:59 PM PST on 11/7/2017 and winners will be announced on the PPP blog so make sure to leave a little "hello" along the hop to enter.

Ok, back to the Wild Rose set...I used my MISTI to create a cascade of Wild Roses and then I stamped in different inks & played with an assortment of mediums.

#1. VersaFine, Clean Color & Aqua Shimmer
I stamped with my favorite black ink for watercoloring or pretty much anything, VersaFine. I colored just one flower with Clean Color Real Brush Markers and used a Nuvo Aqua Shimmer glitter gloss marker to blend. Finally I added a layer of Glossy Accents over the top for dimension and shine. It's hard to capture but the glossy glitter is so yummy!

#2. Clean Color & Nuvo Mousse
I stamped the flowers again using a Copic-friendly ink (I find it works better with the Nuvo Mousse). Then I coated the entire panel with Mother of Pearl Nuvo Mousse. It's like DIY shimmer paper with the stamped image underneath. I used the Clean Color markers to color the flowers, over the mousse, blending with just a little water. The final touches were sequins of course, and Nuvo Glitter Drops flower centers and smudged on the panel too.


#3. Distress Oxides
On this card, the flowers are stamped in Distress Oxide. Then I used more Distress Oxide to watercolor in a messy, Carly fashion.

And I used one of the tiny, cute sentiments from the PPP Bear Hugs set. 

Thanks for stopping by and have fun hopping!

Hugs!
Carly

P.S. here are links to the dorable stamp sets from Pretty Pink Posh that I recommend you getting ASAP!
Wild RoseBear Hugs

And here are links to the other supplies I used:
-Bristol Cardstock
-Nuvo Aqua Shimmer Pens
-Glossy Accents
-Clean Color Markers Bright Yellow 052, Orange 070 & Light Carmine 021
-Nuvo Mousse Mother of Pearl
-Nuvo Glitter Drops Honey Gold
-Distress Oxide inks Spiced Marmalade & Worn Lipstick