just helen

Howdy Doody, Miss Caroline!

I brought home some of My Mind's Eye Miss Caroline, the Howdy Doody collection, from CHA a couple of months ago.  I have been dying to  play with the line, but have been distracted by other projects that, once completed, served another purpose...like the Technicolor Deviled Eggs (for the boy's Risk party), Jello Cookies (for a fireside) and the Cake Batter Krispie Treats (for a school bake sale).  I can always use cards, but I've gotten quite a stash right now, so I was putting it off.  Cards are about the only thing that I have room to make right now.  But when I realized that I had found one of the fonts that My Mind's Eye used on the packaging and for the embellishments, I couldn't resist playing any longer!  Don't worry...I'll share!

Again, I am revisiting the 6" X 6" patterned paper pad...my favorite for making cards!  I really loved the Howdy Doody line, partly because of the warm color, but mostly because of this...

 

 I do believe that this was my favorite patterned paper at the whole show!  Please, don't anyone take offense - there were dozens of collections that I will be more than happy to play with.  But this one was especially appealing.  Who can explain what makes you love a design?  I don't know for sure.  Maybe it's the flowers, maybe it's the colors...whatever it is, this is so visually appealing to me!

 So...if you've noticed that some of sentiments look familiar, it's because they are like the "miss caroline" on the packaging.  So I decided to make my own little sentiments using that font.  Isn't this a cute font?

I was so happy to recognize the font!

 

You can go to Type Depot to download Matilde for free!  Inside the file (that you have to unzip), there are the little bubbles/borders (EPS files) that you can also use.  I have both Illustrator and Photoshop, and I'm not sure how to do it without them...anyway, I made up a Matilde Sentiments and Bubbles 2  for you to download...free, of course!  I printed up the file and used some of the sentiments on the cards.  Here is what one looks like cut out:

The colors feel warm and summery! 

Some of my favorite cards are very simple in design...

This is what the Matilde Sentiments and Bubbles look like -

Another card with the sentiments...

You will notice that I haven't used much of my favorite paper...don't worry - I will!  Tomorrow I will post the other half of the cards I made.  It was fun to play with - definitely worth the wait!

Paradise, Little Yellow Bicycle Style

At CHA this January, I wandered into the Little Yellow Bicycle booth and caught a glimpse of their new line, Paradise...loved it!  Then I got my hands on some...love it even more!  

Love the colors, love the texture and I really love the flower.  It is always fun to have new product to play with, and I love the embellishments that are part of the Paradise line-up.  I know how to make a pleated flower from scratch, but it is so easy to make one using LYB Paper Flower Kit, like the one  on the above card.  I also really like the embossed stickers, especially the words that are great to use on cards and layouts.

Then of course, I needed to make my own flower that goes along with the line!

I really do love the flower!

There are some really cute chipboard die-cuts that I have around here somewhere, but I am getting ready for a scrapbooking garage sale and I seem to have misplaced them.  I have layouts that are almost done...will post those another day!

 

Love, Love Me Deux

That's right...part deux... or, er, two!  I'm back to my desktop to finish posting more of the cards from the My Mind's Eye "Love Me" 6"X6" paper pad.  There is still more than half the pad left, so there might be a part three on the horizon!

Pinks, reds and grey, with accents of turquoise compliment the touches of lace and traditional hearts.  The line is not overly feminine, but romantic all the same and I found it was very easy to work with.  I didn't need to do a lot of "mixing" with products from other companies, but when I did, the colors were easy to transition with other palates.

 I love twine.  I have a hard time restraining myself from using it.  Frequently it involves tying it around the card; other times, it's in a bow.  I even got ambitious and crocheted with it.  I think it has taken the place of ribbon on all my cards...next thing you know, I will chopping buttons from the supply list - wait...never!  Anyway, I try to interject different applications simply for the sake of making it different. 

Before you think I cut out all those little pieces, let me just say that I kind of took a shortcut...

I cut right along the top of one of the rows, and then let the cutting begin.  It took a few minutes, but wasn't too bad.  The twine across the top was easy and the message simple.  If you haven't noticed, I've been trying to use up some of my old Making Memories "Tiny Alphas", but alas - or good luck, depending on how you look at it - I still have a ton of letters!

"Love" is a simple saying, but can be directed either to a romantic theme or something more general.  Ranger's Glossy Accents were added to the letters and let dry ( on a sheet of plastic) prior to adhering them to the card.  The hearts were cut out and mounted with foam mounting tape.

The letters curled a little while drying, and when I went to straighten them, they cracked.  It's all good!  I like the distressed look!

I think that the last card today is my favorite, mostly because I added a strong accent color to the palate...and I got to use a "Stickies" from the K&Co. Smash Collection.

I do love the fabric tape - this one by Liantuo.  I keep thinking that  I need to make my own!

Love that Doodlebug Design red flower button and the Mollettine Creative Peg (clothes pin with a heart) from The Container Store.  Don't forget the inside!

I know, it's a corny message...but isn't that a good thing at Valentine's Day?  On to tomorrow's  project.  A little recycling of an old item will make it like new...and fun, too!

 

The Continued iPad Experiment - Valentine Style

So...I suppose any time you try to do something new, there is going to be a learning curve. I have had my iPad for a year now. This year, for Christmas, Tom and Mike gave me a keyboard. It makes composing sooooo much easier! But then I was trying to figure out an easier way to post. Going directly to Typepad would only let me do html...not rich text. Then I found a Typepad app in the Apple store. Let's see if I'm okay with how this works. Right now, all the pictures seem to end up at the bottom of the post, but for now...that will have to do. Maybe I can go to my desktop to re-arrange.

A couple of posts ago, when I was crocheting hearts, I used a piece from the My Mind's Eye "Love Me" 6"X6" pad. Well, one project was definitely not enough. I love the whole pad. Since I'm not sure that I can separate the pictures, I will just list them!

The first card was made with vertical strips of the patterned paper, and I pulled out one of my paper arts flowers out of my stash, added the K&Co. brad and a bit of ribbon and vintage lace. I left it blank so that I can choose the sentiment for the receiver.

The second card is pretty simple, but I like things simple. Don't forget...the inside can be pretty, too!

Well, that seems to be all the photos that this app will let me do. But don't worry...I'll post the other four tomorrow!

Doodle-icious!

I got my hands on some of the new Doodlebug "Sweet Cakes" Valentine collection.  I have been a fan of Doodlebug Design since I met Cynthea Sandoval when she was a new exhibitor at (and my memory is not my strength) CHA when it was still HIA...what was it?  Ten years ago?  Anyway, I love that her colors are strong, bright and that they have remained constant over all these years.  It makes it so that I can use the "vintage" Doodlebug in my collection right along with the latest releases.

I used this design a while ago, but I still love it in the pinks and reds.

I kept this one blank so that I can pick an appropriate sentiment when I decide who I will give it to.  I love the embossed design on the doily!

The baker's twine is from The Twinery; the button is Doodlebug - old-school!

I love to make my own 3-D embellishments, and a little glitter glue (Stickles) makes it fun.

There's more...

I love it when I get a sketch that I like enough to use over and over again...

Yep...another Doodlebug button.  Isn't it nice how they still coordinate?

Here's a little card with some scraps...

And here's the last one I've done...so far, of course!

Remember that heart I crocheted in yesterday's post?  Well, it put a bee in my bonnet and I found out how to make this flower on...where else?  YouTube!  You can check out the tutorial here.

The mini gingham fabric tape is from e2DAILY.  You can find the twine here.

Now I've got some tags and some cards.  I'd better start thinking about packaging and then I can start with the sweets and treats.