Holiday CAS Week 3

Happy Holidays!

I know, its not even Thanksgiving yet but if you are a crafter and have any desire to make your Holiday cards this year, its already the holiday season. And that is one of the reasons Dreamweaver is having a Clean and Simple Holiday Challenge this month. Hopefully we'll inspire you with some ideas to create your own cards.

This week I am sharing 3 cards we are making in my Holiday Dreamweaver paste class.

This class features 3 different techniques but none of the cards take all that much time. From left-to-right order, the techniques are: Marbling, Using Paste as an Embellishment and Double Pasting.

Remember to check out the other Dream Team blogs (all the links can be found on the right) this week for additional holiday inspiration.

I'll be back on Monday with some more holiday inspiration. Why don't you set some time aside this weekend to work on your Dreamweaver Holiday challenge? You have nothing to lose and a stencil to win!

A "Shaving Cream" Cat

This card is so clean and simple but it was SO FUN to make.

As most of you know, I am a stamper and love techniques. I am not big on collage or a lot of cutting but I really love creating background papers and trying out new techniques.

So when making this card for my weekly Dreamweaver Challenge I was trying to think of some of my favorite stamping techniques that could be incorporated into my stenciling. Then it hit me:

SHAVING CREAM MARBLING!

And so here is my first attempt at the "shaving cream" technique ala Dreamweaver paste. Since it is the first full day of Spring, I went with Spring colors. The marbling doesn't photograph too well but it is really fun in person. I kept the card really very basic and simple because the marbling is so subtle that I didn't want to distract from it. What else would you have done with this image? Here is version 1, very CAS:

Dreamweaver LL3020 Sitting Cat and LG741 Cat Phrases,
White Glossy Paste and Black Matte Paste

And version 2 which just adds a strip from a sheet of Basic Grey Nook & Pantry Cookbook printed paper:

The "shaving cream" technique is very easy. I placed a "glob" (yes, thats the technical term) of white glossy paste on my non-stick craft sheet and then added drops of pigment reinkers. Without swirling it to much, I picked up the paste and spread it over my stencil. The cool part about this is technique is that because I used the Power Pasting technique, I was able to create 6 shaving cream cats before I ran out of paste.

Clean, simple, yes. Really fun to do, YES!

Now head on over to the other Dreamweaver Design Team blogs (links on the right) for more inspiration

Remember, you only have until March 31 to get your own CAS creation either linked and posted or emailed to Lynell. What are YOU waiting for?

Until tomorrow when I face another challenge!

Cherylynn

Classic Clean and Simple

In keeping with Dreamweaver's Clean and Simple Challenge this month, I thought I would share with you a very classic Clean and Simple card that can be used for a variety of occasions.

I think making the card took less than 5 minutes to make. It took longer to add the brown pearls than it did to do everything else combined.

Although the colors don't show well, this is my "Go To" color as of late: aqua and brown. It is so rich and fresh looking.

Okay, I know there are some of you out there that is saying, "Hey, I can do this with my score board." I own every score board ever made so I say this from experience. Yes, you can do this with a score board. BUT can you do it in one pass through your Cuttlebug/Big Shot/Wizard and in less than 10 seconds? And can you do it without having to measure,move your cardstock or read the little tick marks on a ruler? And can you do it and get even pressure everywhere? And can  you do it without tearing through your cardstock in at least one area? Well, if you said yes to all of the above, then you are way better with your scoreboard than I will ever be! Thats why I love using my stencil for this technique!!!

Unfortunately after I made this card I realized this stencil LG618 has been discontinued. I am so glad I have mine and will definitely be hanging on to it. I bet there are some very lucky local stores that still have this in stock so if you see it, you better grab it because it truly is a keeper!

UPDATE: I JUST REALIZED THAT YOU CAN GET THIS STENCIL IN A LARGER FORMAT! WHEN IT WAS DISCONTINUED, IT WAS RELEASED IN A LARGER FORMAT AS LJ882! THAT'S EVEN BETTER BECAUSE NOW YOU HAVE A LARGER AREA TO WORK WITH. HOW COOL IS THAT?!

And to make up my goof on posting with a discontinued stencil, I hope you'll come back tomorrow for a NEW card that showcases a NEW 2012 stencil!

Need more CAS ideas to help inspire you to create your own piece for the Dreamweaver challenge? Then head on over to the other Dreamweaver Design Team blogs. You can find the links on the right. They really are very talented group and I am honored to be on the Dream Team with them.

Until tomorrow, hugs and happy creating!

Cherylynn

Springtime Magic

Last night was really cold here in Portland. The temperature dropped below freezing. Yet today, our high temperature should reach the mid-50s! That can only mean spring is on its way! So today I thought I'd share a fun card celebrating the magic of spring!!!

As you can tell, I'm still focusing on CAS (clean and simple) cards in keeping with the Dreamweaver March challenge (and because are so quick and easy to do!)

Don't you love the way I used the Dreamweaver LL514 Vertical Butterfly stencil to create an embellishment rather than just be the entire focus of the card. These stencils are so versatile! If you haven't tried playing with them yet you don't know what you're missing!

I hope you'll stop by tomorrow and check out all of the Dream Team weekly challenges. You won't be disappointed!

Until tomorrow, think spring!!!
Cherylynn

Easter Greetings

One of the great things about creating cards is that there are always upcoming holidays to inspire you! And since Easter is just about a month away, I thought I'd get started on making a handful of cards to send to my long-distance relatives.

The image is from Magenta and truly timeless! I love stamps that I can use year after year and never tire of them!

The images are colored with pencils (I know there is a lot of fuss on how great Copic markers are, and they probably are! BUT I still LOVE using my Primacolor pencils with Gamsol. I have so much control and it is so fast.)

What about you? What's your favorite way to color images? My two favorites are pencils and Twinkling H2Os!

Until tomorrow, hugs and happy creating,

Cherylynn

If friends were flowers...

In keeping with the Dreamweaver CAS challenge month, I used a fun sentiment from Amuse and combined it with one of my all-time favorite stencils from Dreamweaver for a really, really quick and easy card.

It's LL370 Lily O'Valley and its one of my faves because that's the flower for May which just happens to be my Birthday month. (And those of you who know me, know I LOVE MY BIRTHDAY!).

I just stenciled pigment ink over the stencil in a rouging motion with my stencil brushes and then overstamped the sentiment with Versafine Olympia Green.

How much simpler could a card get? I think it took me a whole 10 minutes from start-to-finish! I know everyone is really busy BUT when you can do a card as cute as this in 10 minutes, how can you NOT enter the Dreamweaver Challenge this month? It's really a no-brainer! So skip playing one game of Words with Friends and go create something. You'll feel so good afterwards. I promise you!

I'm off to teach at Stampin Cat tomorrow and Sunday I have my "sleep study"! Should be an interesting weekend. I'll be back on Monday with another CAS creation because all I've got this weekend is 10 minutes!

Hugs,
Cherylynn

A New Month, A New Challenge

After the Dreamweaver Stencils' February challenge of St. Pat's or Green, are you a little tired of green? Then this month provides the opportunity of doing any color you wish...including green.

However, you have to keep it clean...and simple! Yep. We are challenging you to create with your Dreamweaver products in a CAS style. This is our way of encouraging you to begin your "Spring Cleaning" a little early, and far more fun than sorting cupboards and washing windows!

I love clean and simple cards because they force me to focus on the focal point and the technique. There is not much room for error or "opportunities for embellishment". Today's card is just that: clean and simple with a focus on the technique.

The LG668 Dogwood stencil was first embossed with the original matte Dreamweaver paste. Once it dried, I painted over the embossed image with Twinkling H2Os (another favorite of mine)! Yes! You read that right, you can watercolor over your embossed imaged. Doesn't that open up even more doors for you and your creativity?!!! And the subtle shimmer from the "twinks" perfectly complements the beautiful stencil image.

Now it's your turn to play! Create your own Clean and Simple design (preferably with Dreamweaver Stencils' products) and link it to the Dream It Up! blog from your own blog, online gallery, or just send us an email to Lynell with a picture of your creation for her to show off on the blog. At the end of March, two winners will be selected to each win these stencils:

LJ899-Lrg. Thinking of You

LG742-Pointed Celtic Knot

For more inspiration, please visit the other Dream Team blogs...and please leave comments, we love that!

Dream It Up! blog

Pam Hornschu

Laura Drahozal

Louise Healy

Wendy Jordan

Terrece Siddoway

Kristi Van Doren

Georgia Sommers

Lee Kellogg

Liz Martin

Cyndi Bundy

Jessie Hurley

Curious as to who won last month's challenge? Anne Temple won for the best version of the challenge, and Sue Petersen won for the best use of Dreamweaver Stencils' product for the challenge! Congrats, ladies! And I personally will be sending a prize to Angela V. as well because she responded to my personal request for players!!!

Thanks for playing with us, and we hope to see more from all of our previous players!

Okay now go start doing some CAS creations! You know you can!!! I'll be back tomorrow and I hope you will too!

Cherylynn