VCMP Weekend!

I'm blogging from my phone :) in an attempt to post my entries for the VCMP!! 

Here's my cards for today. I'm going to have to work backwards from Sunday, in between chores.... 

My first for this weekends' sketch. 

Tiddly Inks digi, DCWV HarvestGathering may stack, Darcie embossing folder, Copics for coloring and a Dazzles sentiment. I'm already loving fall colors. Is it too soon??

I can't figure how to link in this app.. So if you'd like to play along with the Virtual Catdmaking Party for Operation Write Home, head on over to their blog, Stars & Stamps. Http://operationwritehome.org/starsandstamps 

Labor Day Weekend VCMP!

Welcome everyone! I'm so excited to be participating in the Operation Write Home, Labor Day Weekend Virtual Card Making Party! Woohoo! If this is your first VCMP, let me just tell you how much fun you are about to have! Every few hours, another link will be posted over at the starting place on the Stars & Stamps blog. You can visit each stop and play along by making a card to go along with the challenge on that page. Are you ready for your first challenge? Go!

My challenge is to make a winter or Christmas themed card for OWH following  a sketch! My card turned out to be Christmassy, because of the papers and sentiment that I picked, but you could definitely do this with a general winter theme by using any wintery themed papers or colors that you desire! Here is the sketch for you to follow:

I made this one up because it was such a good opportunity to use up my last little bits of some of my favorite papers. The 1" squares were done with a punch, although cutting 1" squares could also be done with any trimmer. (I must thank Paula for her awesome photo shopping skills and helping me with the sketch today! Thanks, Paula!!!) Here is my card:

Running the mat with the inchies and white cardstock through an embossing folder was kind of an afterthought, but I do like how it turned out, with just a little bit of added dimension.

Here are a few more tips if you are going to try this!

Inchies are best when punched or cut from paper with small patterns.

When assembling the card, start by placing the inchie at the top center onto your card first! Then place the other inchies around it, to complete the pattern.

Don't get hung up on the inchie squares... I think that it would also be fun to use other inch-sized shapes to complete a similar pattern... maybe some hexagons or even some snowflakes! 

Maybe some of your stops along the VCMP will include a little bit of incentive! As for me, I will be picking one of the InLinkz participants at random to receive a little blog candy. I've got an adorable, brand new acrylic snowflake stamp that needs a new home. Isn't he cute?

Single Snowflake by CTMH

Can't wait to see what you all come up with! Play along by adding your card below and thank you so much for stopping by!

VCMP - Cards out of scrapbooking sketches!

To join in the rest of the VCMP, click the image!

Welcome, all you card-making rebels on National Scrapbooking Day!

I'm giving you permission to go ahead and go make a scrapbook page. *sigh* But we all know that Operation Write Home is all about the CARDS! Today, you're in luck. I'm going to share a fun little thing that got me into making cards in the first place! I'm so excited!

 Last week, I had another card-making party with a group of young ladies from my home town. I love working with scouts, young men and ladies' groups - they always make the very best "Any Hero" letters and cards! I always ask if it's OK to take photos of my ladies while they are working, and I love to keep little snapshots of every party I have. I thought it would be fun to make a page for my album with a few photos from last week's event!

So first, I went in search of a nice scrapbook page layout. I use lots of sketches from Pagemaps. (They have great card sketches there too... and it's their Birthday celebration this month, so please do stop by and say hello!)

Here is my page about my girls. They made such cute hero cards and wrote such nice letters! I can't wait to get them mailed off!

So, we all know what happens when you are done making a scrapbook page! You're left with a few inches of leftover papers, a scrap of ribbon, a few stickers or embellishments and maybe there is still some floss on your needle from where you did a little stitching!

I used to have a tendency to save these pieces for "later"... meaning that I ended up with all sorts of odds and ends that just kind of got jumbled in a basket together. Eventually they got mixed in with other pieces and parts that didn't coordinate, and then I just had a basket of mess that I never really did anything with. So here is your a-ha moment for the day! While you've still got this matching pile of scraps, make a quick card out of it, and be done with it!

Best of all, there is no need to go in search of another sketch or argue with your muse about ideas. Since you already went through the trouble of arranging your pretty scrapbook page, just stick with the same layout idea, or something very similar! Here is the card that I came up with, to show you an example.

I used part of the same sort of layout, putting a sentiment where my photos once were. I used the last of my scrap of ribbon and a little bit of leftover floss for stitching. To the left edge, is a scrap of marquee sign that I cut from the bottom of my journaling element. I even used up some tiny pieces of patterned paper and a leftover sticker and a few die cut stars. To be truthful, I probably had enough leftover scraps to make two cards like this.

Using scrapbooking sketches to make cards can be a fun way to challenge yourself, not only to use up your scraps, but to make very detailed, fancy cards. Scrapbook layouts are also fun to turn into cards because they sometimes give ideas about incorporating fun elements such as stitching, layering, and fancy border punches. Just put sentiments or images where the titles or photos are supposed to be, and think... smaller!

What a way to stretch your sketches!

Don't you think that you could also make a fancy card out of scrapbook sketches like this...

... or this ...

... or this?

Your scrapbook layout sketches don't have to be the 8.5 x 11" kind, but that size seems to be good for making cards because it is the most similar to our preferred A2 card size. And doesn't the one above give you fun ideas for incorporating things like staples, stitching, stamped swirls and a border punch?

If you would like to play along, I'll leave an Inlinkz thingy so you can share your creations. You don't have to make a scrapbook page, but if you do, share both! I will pick a random participant to send the last of my MFT stamps to. I've still got a bunny and an alphabet set to give away and I'll even sort through my other goodies and see if I can find some fun papers to throw in too. :)