A Dreamweaver Giveaway!

Welcome to April. This is a very sad post to write as of the end of this month, I will not be "officially" on the Dreamweaver Design Team. Don't misunderstand me, I am still totally in love with Dreamweaver products. However, because of all that is going on with my life right now (school, work, grandkids...), I wasn't feeling like I was able to devote the time I wanted to and that Dreamweaver deserved. It has been an incredible 2+ years and I will forever be grateful to Lynell and Pam for all their encouragement and inspiration. (And who knows, nothing is forever so maybe I'll be back!)

There's a silver lining to this news. Now that I'll have a little more time to just create for fun and not for design team deadlines, I'll hopefully be able to post a little often, including throwing in some stamping and other crafty stuff. And that definitely means more Dreamweaver posts, including taking part in the monthly challenges. I LOVE ME DREAMWEAVER PRODUCT!!!

And now for the Giveaway part!

Each week for the entire month of April, I will feature one or two of my favorite projects created with Dreamweaver stencils and giveaway one of the stencils used!

For this week, since it is April 1, I thought I'd share a couple of cards that use the LG 737 Umbrella stencil.




Paste-embossed on acetate with the original Dreamweaver embossing paste and then colored with pigment inks. Raindrops were silver-paste embossed and sprinkled with glitter.



Silver paste-embossed and colored with Dreamweaver alcohol inks

The umbrella stencil is an incredibly versatile stencil and works great for those who like to zentangle or "stentangle" as I like to refer to it!

Want to win the Umbrella stencil? Well, that's so easy to do! Just leave me a comment on what Dreamweaver product you love the most, a technique you would love to try, how you would use the stencil...anything as long as it somehow relates to Dreamweaver or stencils. I will draw one name at random from all the comments posted before midnight, Monday, April 7.

The winner will be announced next Tuesday, April 8 along with the next giveaway!

Think of this as my way of trying to encourage more of you to get behind the versatility and creativity of Dreamweaver stencils! Remember to check out the Dreamweaver Design Team blogs for additional inspiration as well as the Dreamweaver Facebook page for exciting news and more giveaways!

Thanks for supporting me these past 2+ years. I hope you'll continue to stop by and say hi!

Hugs,
Cherylynn

Live Laugh Love

Today the Dreamweaver "B" team is playing along in the "Tiny Treats"challenge!!! Our original assigment was to think party favors, wedding favors, end of school year treats, teacher appreciation gifts, baby shower favors, co-worker treats, in other words...small tokens of appreciation for those you care about.

My project isn't very tiny in size but it really only took a TINY amount of time!!!! (How's that for bending the rules?!)

I love all of the vinyl home decor you see right now. However,  I hate the price of the vinyl stickers. I was at my local craft store the other day and they wanted $10 just for the words LAUGH LIVE LOVE. That got my to thinking and led me today's creation.

I picked up an inexpensive photo frame at Michael's and the using the Dreamweaver LIVE LAUGH LOVE stencils I already owned, paste embossed the words LIVE LAUGH LOVE onto the glass using Glossy Black Embossing Paste. How simple is that? Whole thing took me less than 15 minutes. Once it was dry, I inserted photos of my ADORABLE granddaughter and voila! a cute and inexpensive Mother's Day gift for my Daughter-in-law.

And here's a close-up so you can see how clear the word comes out when using the paste!

I hope this projects gets you to thinking about different ways to use your Dreamweaver stencils. The projects don't need to be complicated or time-consuming. Anybody could do the project I created today and who wouldn't love receiving one of these as a gift?

And if you're not into the glossy black paste, you could do the same thing with glass etching cream for a frosted look. I think that would be really fun on clear glass coasters!

I hope this post has inspired you to create something for the May challenge.  Don't forget to link your creation on the Dream It Up! blog for a chance to be this month's prize winner, and be featured on the Dreamweaver Facebook page!

For additional inspiration, remember to check out the rest of the "B" team:

Dream It Up!

Lea Kimmel

Louise Healy

Stacey Rumsby

Terrece Siddoway

Caroline Duncan

Pam Hornschu

Until next week, happy creating!

A Fresh Start for a Cool Cat

Today's post is bittersweet. It is a card I designed as a tribute to Lisa Taylor and her incredible store, Stampin' Cat Studio in Salem, Oregon. After 10 years, Lisa has made the difficult decision to close the store so that she can move several states away and begin a new chapter in her life with her special someone. You can read all about it in her own words here.

So when Lisa announced her decision to close, I decided to design a Dreamweaver stencil class centered around the LL 3020 Retro Sitting Cat as a tribute to Lisa. Last week I shared one of the cards from that class:

And this week I am sharing another one, which not only uses the LL 3020 stencil but was also designed with Lisa specifically in mind:

Tribute card for Stampin' Cat Studio

The card uses both black and silver embossing paste, flocking and glitter as well as two other stencils: LX 7009 Paisley and LG741 Kitty Words.

Remember, if you don't have a local store where you can purchase these and other incredible Dreamweaver product, you can always find it online at Stencil with Style.

Please be sure to check out the other Dream Team blogs this week for some additional inspiration. Remember, this is an extra special challenge month because not only is the theme pretty wide open "A Fresh Start" which can be interpreted in soooo many ways: fresh colors, new beginnings, i.e., birth, move, wedding...., fresh clean layout, new technique....the list is endless.

For more info on this months challenge, please click here to be taken to the Dreamweaver blog post with all the details.

Starting next week I am going to be posting on both Tuesday and Thursday. I have lots of fun things to share with you and one day a week just isn't enough. I hope you'll come back to check out what I've been up to.

And remember, if its easier, you can always subscribe to my blog posts by clicking on the subscribe button on the right. That way you won't have to type in the long, long, long URL for this blog (my apologies there, all the short names were taken!)

Until then, happy days to you all!

Cherylynn

A SCS Tribute

It is a sad time here in Oregon for us papercrafters. Within the next couple of months, we will be losing a very cool stamp store, Stampin' Cat Studio, in Salem, Oregon. Lisa Taylor, the proprietress for the past 10 years, has made the difficult decision to close the store in order for her to begin a new wonderful life with her very special man.

All of us here had been hoping a Buyer would step in and save the store. Alas, the economy has worked against us and unless someone comes forward quickly the store will close before the end of March.

So in tribute to Lisa and all she has brought to the Salem area papercrafters, I created a stencil class in her honor. The class, called "COOL CATS" uses Dreamweaver's LL3020 Retro Sitting Cat stencil and LG741 Kitty Words.

Today I am sharing one of those cards and next week when I return from CHA, I'll share one I created specifically with Lisa in mind.

Until we meet again, I hope you are having a healthy and creative life!

A Fresh New Stencil

Since CHA is just a few days away, I thought I'd share a fresh and new stencil that Dreamweaver will be debuting.

(See how I as able to twist the January Fresh Start Challenge to suit my whim!)

Today I am sharing the new LG748 Bold Thank You stencil seen below and available for purchase at either your local stamp store or online. Remember, if you don't have a local store, you can always find the entire Dreamweaver line at Stencil with Style.

I had a lot of fun using its companion stencil, LJ920 Bold Happy Birthday when it came out last year that I couldn't resist doing something fun with the new stencil.

 

So instead of creating a brightly colored Twinkling H2O background like I did before, I went a bit more whimsical and played with the Piggyback Paste Technique to create this:

LG748 Bold Thank You and
LJ804 Big Dots

For the main image I first stenciled Thank You with Dreamweaver's red paste and set it aside to dry. While it was drying, again using the red paste, I embossed the Big Dots onto a piece of black cardstock. After the Thank You was dry, using the Piggyback technique, I overstenciled the big dots over the Thank You using black glossy paste. A fun and whimsical way to say Thank You!

Want to see more fresh new stencils? You can see them all HERE! And for even more inspiration, don't forget to check out the other Dream Team blogs. All of the links can be found in the right hand column.

Okay, I'm off to start packing my bags for CHA. I'll be back next week with the "skinny".

Until then, happy creating!

Frosty Fun Finale

Happy Holidays!

Today's post is very short because to be totally honest, I am totally wiped out. Christmas done done me ie! That of course is a good thing because it means I spent time with my adorable, incredible, absolutely fantastic grandchildren!

This actually is an older card I made awhile back before I was on honored to become a part of the Dreamweaver Design Team. You see, I have been in love with Dreamweaver Stencils for quite some time and being on the Dream Team is just icing on the cake for me.

The card is very much me, clean and simple in design. Both the Snowflake ornament and the snowflake background were paste embossed with original Dreamweaver embossing paste and then sprinkled with crystal glitter. Very simple, very easy and very festive!

I hope something in one of the weekly Dreamweaver Dream Team posts has inspired you to participate in this month's Dreamweaver Frosty Fun challenge. The challenge this month is to create a wintery delight. As you've seen from this month's posts, it can be a card, an ornament, a vase....whatever your creative mind desires! There will be two winners, one for "Best Interpretation of the Challenge" and the other for "Best Usage of Dreamweaver products." Each of the winners will receive a brand new stencil design that will be released at CHA next month.

To enter just link up to Mr. Linky or if you don't have an online account, email your creation to Dreamweaver at lynell@dreamweaverstencils.com.

Thank you so much for visiting today. I wish you the bestest of new years and a wonderful, happy and healthy 2013.

Until next year when we "meet" again,

Cherylynn

A Quick and Frosty Gift

I have a couple of Christmas favorites. One of them is to make homemade, inexpensive gifts for neighbors and co-workers. And since time is always an issue, they have to be quite inexpensive.

Another favorite thing of mine is to bring the outdoors in for the holidays. I love the scent of pine, cedar....and the look and feel of snow.

So with that in mind, I thought I'd share you with a very quick, very inexpensive gift I made that I made for a neighbor.

The technique is identical to that done by both Lynell and Louise last week. When doing Christmas presents, I find it is easier to stick with the same stencil, just vary the vessel for variety. It makes clean up much simpler and hence saves me LOTS of time.

The cedar is leftover from a garland I made and the vase was on sale for $4! Considering I already had the stencil, the white paste and the glitter, this entire gift cost me less than $5! You can't beat that for inexpensive!

I know the holidays are a busy time but please take some time for yourself and wander over to the other Dream Team blogs for some more holiday inspiration. Hopefully you'll find a few minutes to participate in this months Frosty challenge because I've seen the new stencils and you definitely do not want to miss out on getting one for yourself!

Hugs to you all and hope your holiday season is bright and merry!

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!

Playing with Distressed Embossing Powders

The Dream Team are so excited to have the opportunity to play along with some unique Ranger Products in the Tim Holtz line...specifically, the Distressed Embossing Powders! Our own Louise Healy demonstrated how fabulous these are with the Dreamweaver Stencils when she created this card for a fun class at CHA Summer 2012:

Apparently, Tim Holtz agreed with all of us on this unique use of his product, so he very generously had Ranger (thanks, Patti!) send the team some samples to play and blog with. So...here we go!

Here's my post for today::

I know it doesn't exactly fall into the Festively Fall theme but I have a good reason. I have been busy working on a tutorial for the PaperCraft Planet blog for the polymer clay pendant featured last week. (See blog post below for a link to the tutorial.)

Today's card definitely falls into the Clean and Simple, yet Distressed/Grunged category. The supplies used are:

• Dreamweaver Steampunk Clock #LX7018
• Dreamweaver Matte Black Embossing Paste
• Dreamweaver Paste Spreader
• Ranger Embossing Ink
• Ranger Vintage Photo Distress Ink
• Ranger Black Soot Distress Embossing Powder
• Ranger Inkssentials Blending Tool and Foam Pad
• Ranger Heat-it Craft Tool
• Tim Holtz Ideology Watch face, gears, and Brads
• Kraft cardstock
• Black A6 folded card

After securing the stencil with removable tape on the kraft cardstock, apply Embossing Paste using Paste Spreader, remove and clean stencil; set aside to dry. When dry, realign the stencil and apply the Distress Embossing Ink in a pouncing motion with a sponge. Remove stencil and sprinkle on Black Soot EP (remember to shake first). Heat with the Craft Tool. Unlike traditional embossing powders, the Distress Powders don't change appearance all that much when heating, so use your best judgment, lightly testing an area with your finger if you're unsure. Remember, you can always heat again and even apply more ink and powder if you want to, but you can't remove the scorch marks if you burn your cardstock!

Once the Embossing Powder has cooled, rub over it with your finger to remove some of  the powder to give it a distressed look. Option: use a different colored EP, like Vintage Photo or Walnut Stain to have the black paste appear more prominent.

Using your blending tool, edge the embossed cardstock with the Vintage Photo ink and adhere the Watchface and gears where desired. Mount to folded card, sit back and admire your results!

Very easy, very distressed and very much done in classic Tim Holtz style.

For the next four weeks, on our regular Thursday posts, we will be featuring the wonderful things that you can do with Tim's Distress Powders and Dreamweaver Stencils. Leave comments on each of the team blog posts (links below) for an opportunity to win this fabulous prize package compliments of Ranger Ink and Dreamweaver Stencils:

And here are the links to all the blogs.

Ranger Ink Blog

Dream It Up!
Pam Hornschu

Laura Drahozal

Cherylynn Moser 

Louise Healy

Wendy Jordan

Cyndi Bundy

Terrece Siddoway

Kristi Van Doren

Georgia Sommers

Lee Kellogg

Liz Martin

Don't forget to play along with the Dream Team's monthly challenges for more opportunities to win some great stencil designs! October's challenge is Festively Fall, and November is CAS (clean and simple) Christmas! Link your creations on the Dream It Up! blog, or email pics to lynell@dreamweaverstencils.com. Join us on Facebook as well! Lots of inspiration, and lots of fun!

A Festively Fall Candle

Okay, so we all know how incredible and versatile Dreamweaver stencils are for making cards and scrapbook pages BUT did you know they are also great for home decor projects? WHAT you say? Well, today I will share with you a FAST and very, very EASY project perfect for your fall decorating or even your Thanksgiving table!



LL471 Leaf Icon Stencil
Gold and Copper Embossing Paste

Isn't this candle just beautiful? And to think I just took a cheap pillar candle by using the LL471 Leaf Icon stencil and embossing paste!

To begin, firmly secure a piece of waxed paper or palette paper onto your work surface.Then, just like as if you were using cardstock, tape your LL471 stencil onto the wax paper.

 

 

I pasted it once with gold paste and then a second one with copper paste. Now just set aside to dry. I usually let mine dry overnight because I want it to be completely dry. I don't use my griddle for this because I'm not sure how the waxed paper will react to heat, but if you're feeling brave, give it a try!

  

Now comes the "tricky" part. Once the pasted leaves are completely dry, gently peel them off the waxed paper. I usually use my palette knife to get started and then very gently pull it off the waxed paper with my fingers.

 

To attach to the candle I just gently rub it onto the candle with  my fingers and then give it a quick zap with my heat gun for the wax to soften and incorporate the paste image ever so slightly. You can also use glue or glue dots to adhere it as well.

 

Doesn't this open up a million more stencil possibilities for you? Just think of all you can do for your holiday decorating. Imagine doing this but sprinkling on glitter to the wet paste. Oooooh I can see the sparkle now. Or what about doing it with leaves, the Molten Magic technique and Metallic F/X? Oh the possibilities.

 

Here's a more glitzed up version, where I added glitter to the wet paste and then embellished with pearls for accent.

 

Which one version do you prefer?

 

Just think, you're Dreamweaver stencils have now become a sticker maker! Who woulda thunk it?

 

Just remember, this technique truly works best on solid images. If there are a lot of cutouts or bridges, it will make it just a bit trickier!

 

After leaving me some love, please  head over to the other Dream Team blogs to see what wonderfully fall creations they have in store for you.

 

Until we meet again, hugs and happy creating.

 



Let the Summer begin! (And a sneak peek!!!)

Welcome to July! This month the Dreamweaver challenge is Summer Fun. I can't wait to see what the other "Dreamers" come up with.

For me,  the timing of this theme is perfect because Summer doesn't begin in Oregon until after the 4th of July!

And for me, summer means Ice Cream! Yes, you heard me right,

I scream,

You scream,

We all scream for ICE CREAM!!!!

And so what better way to kick off my Summer Fun projects than with ICE CREAM!

Dreamweaver LM185 Ice Cream Cones, Original Paste and Metallic F/X

I began my paste embossing the LM183 Ice Cream Cones stencil with original paste, using the sculpted paste technique for the ice cream.When that was dry, I repositioned the stencil and applied Pearlescent Beige to the cones and dabbed the cones with Stewarts Stamp and Stick Glue pad.

After lightly heating the glue with the heat gun, I brushed on Dreamweaver Metallic F/X in Cocoa, Moonstone and Pixie Blue to turn my all vanilla cones into Neopolatin cones!

A fun, simple and ever so lighthearted card that I hope will bring a smile to your face and some ice cream to your lips!

Now hop on over to the other Dreamweaver Design Team blogs and check out their Summer Fun creations.

Happy Summer One and All! Let the fun times begin!

Speaking of fun times, CHA Summer is quickly approaching and Dreamweaver will be releasing some new holiday stencils. You will fall in love with these stencils, I know I did. And to tease you even further, here's a sneak peak of one of them:

If you love this part, you should see the whole stencil! It is gorgeous!!!

BONUS: Participate in this month's Summer Fun Challenge and this is the stencil you can win!

Black & White, One Last Time

Wow, can you believe it is the last day of May?! I know I have a crazy busy life but is it me or does everybody feel like New Years was just a few days ago! Where does the time go?

Well, since it the last of May, today is the last day of the Dreamweaver May Challenge: Black and White with a Pop (of color). So I thought I'd go out with some bold color (and perhaps more than just a pop!)



NEW STENCIL FOR 2012!!!
Dreamweaver LL 3026 Nouveau wisteria

This stencil is one of the brand new stencils JUST RELEASED by Dreamweaver, LL 3026 Nouveau Wisteria. To see all 17 of the new stencils, check out Dreamweaver's website.

One of my favorite things (thanks to Dee Gruenig) is to add color to white cardstock and transform it into whatever color I want it to be. (I read a quote by Dee once that said all we ever need is white cardstock and inks to color it).

Using my Ranger Ink Blending Tool (a stamper's must have), and Adirondack Red Pepper die ink, I sponged on the ink until I was satisfied with the saturation. Then I laid the stencil on top and embossed using Dreamweaver's glossy black paste.

Very simple, but very striking.

I hope you've had fun joining us this month of Black and White with a Pop. It has been a hectic month so I'm glad the theme allowed me to keep my cards clean and simple.

I also hope you all enjoyed the Sculpted Paste technique I did for Paper Craft Planet last week. Remember, you have a few more days to check it out and leave a comment to be eligible to win some free stencils.

And speaking of free stencils, CONGRATULATIONS TO BARBARA DIANE. Her comment:

Whimcees said...

Hello!

Thank you for the great tutorial! A few ears ago when the stencils were new and the "In" technique - I made cards with them all of the time! I especially loved stenciling with the paste - I took every class offered at a local store and owned hundreds of dollars in stencils! A couple of years ago I stopped making cards for awhile and gave most of my supplies and stamp sets and my stencils away. That was a mistake of course and on seeing your tutorial I could kick myself that my stencils are gone. I have kept one card which I have on my bulletin board by my workdesk and it is of LG 613 - the gold fish with border stencil. I would dearly love to win that stencil again and I intend to start to build another collection. I also love LL 586 - the butterflies are beautiful.I used a shaded orange on the fish and border against a dark blue paper - one of my favorite cards. Wishing you a happy Sunday and again, thank you for the tutorial - it reminded me of how much I loved this paper art technique and has inspired me to start again!

Hugs,

Barbara Diane

May 27, 2012 8:43 AM

was chosen using a Random Integer Generator:

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

12 

Timestamp: 2012-05-31 04:03:29 UTC

as the winning comment from last week's post so I am going to send her a FREE LL559 Horses stencil. (Note to Whimcees, please email me your snail mail address!!!)

I hope you'll all stop by next week when the Dreamweaver Dream Team will be pairing up with the Art Glitter Design  Team for a month of glitter goodness!

Please remember to check out the rest of the Design Team's blogs to see what they created for their final Black and White challenge.

Until next week, have a very colorful life!

A Tutorial AND A Giveaway

Instead of a new Black and White post this week, I'd like to share my Sculpted Paste Tutorial that I created for Paper Craft Planet.

After leaving a comment over at PCP, I hope you'll come back here and leave a comment here as well because I'M HAVING A GIVEAWAY!


Yes, you read that right, I'm going to give away one BRAND NEW LL559 Horses stencil to one lucky person who leaves me a comment here before midnight on Tuesday, May 29, 2012!

This is one of my all-time favorite Dreamweaver stencils and one that I think EVERYONE should own so I thought why not give one away to someone kind enough to leave me a comment!

The winner will be chosen from all comments left using a random number generator so don't stress about grammar or punctuation!

Please don't forget to check out the rest of the Dream Team posts this week. You can find links on the right-hand column.

And remember, you only have 1 more week to link your creation to the Dreamweaver blog (or email it to Lynell) to be entered to win this month's challenge. (And here's a little secret, there hasn't been a lot of entries yet this month so your odds are winning are significantly improved!)

Hugs and have a GREAT MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND!!!

Cherylynn

A Faux Cloisonne Rose

Welcome back! I have to admit I've msised blogging the past few days. I hate it when life gets in the way of my creating!

For the next few weeks I will be working with a limited amount of supplies. Suffice it to say, things are again in transition for me. This time though its all really good.

So bear with me while I stay in CAS (clean and simple) mode.

Today I want to share with you a card I made using the "Faux Cloisonne" technique and a beautiful Dreamweaver stencil, LG625 Flower and Leaves. This stencil is a great example of how timeless Dreamweaver stencils are. It is one of the "older" stencils, introduced around 2000-2001, yet it still is quite impressive over a decade later. I definitely have gotten my money's worth from this stencil.

I began by first embossing the stencil with original white matte paste. Once that was dry, I added color using my Shiva Paintstiks. I love the creaminess of these stiks. Again, another huge value since I probably bought them the same time I bought the stencil and I still have several years of use left with them!

Since the Paintstiks are oil-based, they take a bit longer to dry so after adding color, all I did was dip my project into my "vat" of ultra thick embossing powder and heated from behind. Because several layers of embossing powder work best for this technique, I then repositioned my stencil and tapped by Versamark pad over the embossed image and again applied UTEE. I repeated this a third time and ended up with this thick, glossy rich faux cloisonne look. I absolutely loved it.

I originally designed this card to have a beautiful designer paper for the background. However after the rose was finished and I went to assemble, the papers just distracted from the rose so I kept it very clean and simple and let the rose speak for itself. Why ruin a good think just because you can?

Please leave me so love and then go check out with the other Dreamweaver Designers have created for your viewing pleasure. And don't forget you only have a couple of weeks to create your own piece of floral love and link it up to the DW blog site in hopes of winning the great prizes for April.

Lynell Harlow
Pam Hornschu
Wendy Jordan
Laura Drahozal
Liz Martin
Georgia Sommers
Lee Kellogg
Cyndi Bundy
Kristi Van Doren
Jessie Hurley
Louise Healy
Terrece Siddoway

Thanks so much for stopping by. I'll be back on Monday, April 23 with something else I created out of the remaining unpacked items!

Until Monday, take time to stop and smell the roses!

Cherylynn

A Bright and Sunny Way to Start the Day

Sometimes the old tried and true is just what the Dr. ordered. And this card is the perfect example of that! One of the first techniques I ever learned using Dreamweaver product is to color the image with pigment ink and then layer on Translucent paste and sprinkle with Crystal/Prisma glitter. Its very much like the first time you used a heat gun for heat embossing, the WOW factor is amazing!

Here is a card that uses that technique that we made at  Saturday's Spring Fling and that we'll also be making at Stacy's Scrap Shack in Lincoln City, OR on May 5.

It is so bright and sunny. Such a great way to start a morning!

April Showers

HAPPY APRIL!

A couple of weeks ago I shared this card:

I had so many positive emails and requests to teach this card that I felt obligated. But I wasn't completely happy with the results above, so with a little tweaking, this is what I changed to:

They both are very similar, just a slight change of color and popping the sentiment! Which one do you prefer?

A Clean Message

I began the adventure of being on the Dreamweaver Design Team with one goal in mind: to help inspire others to take the plunge and play with Dreamweaver product.

I would never consider myself a great designer or a talented artist. I can live with the fact that I make creations that are pleasing to look at. Nothing more than that.

So this last month of creating CAS (clean and simple) projects for the Dreamweaver Design challenge has been fun and fairly easy for me. I hope in someway I have inspired at least one person to look at their stencils in a different light.

With this all being said, I bring you to my "last" CAS simple card for this month. (Add footnote here, there will be many more CAS cards out of me, this is just my last "formal" one for March.)

Dreamweaver stencils used: LG687 Geese and LG696 Comfort Combo

One of the facts of life I have come to learn is that as we get older, we need less Birthday cards and more not so happy cards. So today I thought I'd share one of my favorite sympathy cards to make. Its fast, its easy and it has a very comforting feel to it.

Both the sentiment and the goose were pasted with Black Matte paste. Notice though that I only pasted 1 goose. The stencil actually has 3. By covering the "unwanted" geese with removable tape (or post-it notes), I was able to only paste one goose onto my card. I think it gives it the solemn feeling I was striving for.

Please take a moment or two and check out the other (way more talented than I) Dreamweaver Design Team members. Their links can be found in the right hand column.

And then get yourself busy and create your own CAS card and get it linked up to the Dreamweaver blog before midnight on March 31. Remember, if you can't link it up to the blog, then just email your image to Lynell and she'll upload it for you!

This month of CAS has been fun for me and I thank you for stopping by and visiting with me in cyberland!

Hugs,
Cherylynn

Strength

Welcome to Dreamweaver Thursday!

Since I love Dreamweaver's March Challenge theme of CAS (Clean And Simple), I am just going to keep going with it!

Today I am sharing a card I made for a special friend who has more to deal with in life than I can comprehend. She has incurable cancer. The good part is that it is very slow growing. The bad part is that she has to live every day knowing that it is growing inside of her and will someday take her life.

If you didn't know her story, you would never know what she is living with. She is such an upbeat positive person, a role model and mentor for me. Her strength is inspiring and so to let her know how much she means to me, I made this card for her.

Dreamweaver LL3024 Cherry Blossom and LS69 Strength Character

Both stencils, LL3024 Cherry Blossom Shape and LS69 Strength character are from Dreamweaver Stencils. The strength character was paste embossed with matte black paste on a white linen cardstock. And the Cherry Blossom shape was done using the double-glitter technique on Dreamweaver's Double-sided Mounting Paper.

(If you haven't tried the double-glitter technique, I highly recommend it. There is something very therapeutic about playing with and rubbing your fingers all through a pile of glitter!)

This card was very quick and easy to make. And since I was making it with someone in mind, it made my heart happy while creating it!

Why don't you take just a few minutes sometime this month and make a CAS card for someone who inspires you? And before you send it off, remember to take a picture so you can enter it in Dreamweaver's Monthly Challenge. Wouldn't that be the ultimate? Creating a card for someone and winning a prize for doing it!

Need some additional inspiration, check out the other Dream Team blogs. You'll be glad you did!!!

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

Hugs and happy creating. I hope you'll stop by tomorrow to see what other CAS project I have come up with!

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

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