Joyful Stars Blog Hop

Hi!  Welcome to the July Joyful Stars Blog Hop! If you are coming from Cindy's Blog, you are in the right place! Not sure what a blog hop is? Its basically a big circle of blog posts on a similar theme and you 'hop' from one post to the next through the provided links, eventually reaching the point where you started.

This month, our theme was 'Anything Goes', so I decided to mix some old and some new. I started with the July sketch challenge from Paper Crafting Divas. I used some paper from the 'Clementine' Paper pack (which is one of my all time favorites and is sadly no longer available) as well as cardstock in Champagne and Saddle.

The sentiment is from For Every Occasion, which is probably the most versatile and useful sentiment set I own. If you make cards, you MUST own this set.

The pattern on the brown cardstock is from a new stamp set that isn't available until August 1, but it is really fantastic. It's three different border/background stamps which fit together, making it super easy to make your own patterned paper! I LOVE stamps that let me make my own patterned paper, and this stamp is fantastic. There's the ikat pattern I used here, a checker pattern, and a diamond pattern. I stamped the ikat pattern on the brown cardstock in Chocolate ink because I wanted it to stand out.

I also used some brand new Bronze Shimmer Trim which isn't available until August 1. You guys, I got a roll at Convention and I've almost used the entire thing in the two weeks since I got it. I adore this shimmer trim. I'm not really a glitter person, but I find myself reaching for shimmer trim all the time. As I said, the Bronze shade isn't available yet, but you can find it in silver and black. (OR, to order anything out of the new Idea Book before it's available, you can join my team for only $49, receive $155 worth of brand new product, and get a discount on all of the new products in the new Idea Book! Contact me for more information.)

Now, can we talk the flower design for just a moment. I really love the way it looks, and I have seen these shapes used so many times. Would you believe that I didn't realize how simple they are to make until about three months ago? It's true. (In case you are like me, and don't know, a full tutorial for this card is below and I'll share the secret). To finish off the look, I used a flower from the XXXXXXX assortment pack and a brown button tied with some bakers twine.

So that's my project for today! Hop on over to Joyce's blog, or keep reading for the full tutorial. Thanks for stopping by!

Card Recipe!

Use standard size card base or cut cardstock to 8.5" x 5.5" and fold in half to make 4.25" x 5.5" card
Cut dark brown cardstock piece at 4.25" x 5.5"
Cut beige piece at 4" x 5.25"
Cut 4 squares at 1.25" x 1.25" and 4 at 1.5" x 1.5" from 4 different sheets of cardstock. Stamp or sponge as desired. (I sponged all the cardstock pieces in Chocolate ink)
Use a corner rounder on two opposing corners of all 8 squares. Layer one small piece on one larger piece as desired and adhere to beige cardstock.
Attach shimmer trim.
Stamp sentiment in Chocolate ink
Attach center embellishment
Adhere beige piece to dark brown piece
Adhere dark brown piece to card base.

That's it! If you make a card similar to this or similar to the sketch challenge, send me a picture! I love seeing what you create.

To find out more about CTMH, to order any products from CTMH, to find out more about joining my team and receiving a ton of free product, or to learn about online and in person classes, Contact me! Also, don't forget to check out our July Specials!

Be Crafty!
Meredith