Altenew: A Year In Review: Crafters’ Edition Blog Hop + Giveaway

December 21, 2022December 29, 2022 Karen Brown39 Comments

Hello friends! I am so excited to be participating again in Altenew’s A Year In Review! I really enjoyed looking back through my projects and selecting some favorite creations.

Rainbow paper weaving with Altenew's Garden Trellis Cover Die.

This first card was my most popular Altenew card on Instagram and I detailed how I created my rainbow paper weaving. You can see my original post HERE. I used Altenew’s Garden Trellis Cover Die as the base for my weaving.

Layered Stamping on a cute little bird: Bird of the Woods by Altenew.

This year, I was a bit obssessed with the Bird of the Woods Layering Stamp set and coordinating dies and I made a bunch of cards using this bundle! This POST was by far my most popular blog post of 2022.

Altenew's Precious Doodles Layered Stamping Floral Dies

I fell in love with the Precious Doodles Bundle…when “doodles” is in the title, I know it is going to be a favorite of mine! This is a darling stamp layering set and you can find my original post HERE.

Altenew Coloring Book watercolor page framed artwork.

I received so much positive feedback on this watercolor piece! I LOVE Altenew’s watercolor products and I used them on my framed project. I started with the Poppy from Altenew’s Coloring Book and I painted it with the 36 Pan Set and Artists Brushes. You can see my original post HERE.

I love mixed media, and this card was my 2nd most popular post on Instagram. You can see my original post HERE. I got really messy and used tons of fun products to create this masculine birthday card.

Clean and Simple + Gel Press Printing Rainbow Grid Card

If there is such a thing as CAS Mixed Media, then this is it. I love the clean white contrast with the rainbow colored gel press die cut squares and the giant black Altenew Mega Hello sentiment. You can see my original post HERE.

Altenew Craft Your Life Always Sunshine Kit card

I love all of the Craft Your Life releases but this Always Sunshine Kit was especially popular with my blog readers. You can read my original post HERE: I love coloring with stencils and that is the technique I used on this card.

I always love Altenew’s Craft-A-Flower kits and this Open Peony was my favorite Craft-A-Flower in 2022. You can read my original blog post HERE.

Altenew Timeless Tulips with coordinating ink blend background.

Who doessn’t love a floral bouquet? Altenew’s Timeless Tulips premiered in August and I think it is a gorgeous set with two big beautiful floral stamps. You can read my original post HERE.

Altenew Summer Wishes stamp, die and coloring stencil card.

I will finish with Altenew’s Summer Wishes Bundle which is oh, so fun! I created a cozy little beach scene comprised of an adirondack chair, umbrella, radio and flip flops. This is such a happy card and I know I will pull out this bundle year after year. You can find my original post HERE.

Prizes:

Over $500 in total prizes! Altenew is giving away a $100 gift card to 1 lucky winner, 3 $50 gift cards, and 27 $10 gift cards. Winners will be chosen from both blog hop #1 and blog hop #2. Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog HERE by 12/27/2022 for a chance to win.

Wait, there’s MORE!

We would also LOVE to see YOUR favorite handmade cards, layouts, home decor, etc. featuring Altenew products! Feel free to share them on social media or on your blog using the hashtag #AltenewBest2022. You may also add a link by clicking the blue button below.

FOUR lucky crafters will each win a $15 gift certificate to our store! Winners will be announced on the Altenew Winners Page on 12/29/2022. We are looking forward to seeing your beautiful creations!

Blog Hop Order:

Karen Brown You Are Here!

Claire Apostoloff Claire is Next!

I am so pleased that you took a moment to stop by! If you have time, I’d love to hear which project you liked best.

Wishing all my crafty friends a healthy and happy 2023!

Karen

cardmaking · papercrafting

Cardmaking with Glitter Cardstock

December 10, 2021December 5, 2021 Karen Brown2 Comments

Cardmaking with Altenew Glitter Cardstock in Pink Brilliance + Cosmos Layering Dies.

Glitter and shine….sometimes it is fun to add a little sparkle to a card! Today I used some Glitter Cardstock to make an ultra girly card. I used glitter cardstock as the bottom layer on my blooms, flower centers and sentiment. I created this card to be part of Altenew’s Educator Instagram Hop and we’d love for you to “hop” along with us. You can start at @altenewllc and my IG hande is: karens_mini. Hope to see you!

My Process:

I started by creating my own color palette with watercolors. I took two full sheets of 9 x 12″ watercolor paper, taped them to hardboard panels and then applied watercolors (3 pinks, 2 yellows, 2 oranges and 4 greens) with Altenew’s 36 Pan Watercolor Set and an 18 Brush. I let the watercolor dry and then added a second layer for vibrant color. I let the panels dry overnight so they would die cut well.
The flowers and leaves are from one of my all time favorite die sets: Altenew Craft-A-Flower Cosmos Layering Dies.
The next morning I die cut the bottom floral layers from Altenew’s Pink Brilliance Glitter Cardstock. The bottom layer from the flower center was cut from Gilded Glitter Cardstock. The top two floral layers and greenery were die cut from the watercolor panels that dried overnight. I assembled the blooms with liquid glue.
For the background, I applied Embossing Paste over Altenew’s Narrow Brick Stencil and then let the panel dry.
The sentiment was die-cut from Altenew’s Essential Sentiment Strips.

I think the end result is a happy cheerful birthday card that I can’t wait to give my friend. Thank you for stopping by!

Karen

papercrafting

Altenew Educators "Anything But A Card" Blog Hop and Linky Party + Giveaway

June 28, 2021July 3, 2021 Karen Brown25 Comments

DIY Gift Topper

Hello fellow papercrafters! The Altenew Educators are hopping and this time we are creating \”anything except a card\”. I enjoy gift wrapping and decided to craft a gift \”topper\”. Altenew\’s Craft-A-Flower releases are always one of my favorites so I wanted to make a layered die-cut flower using this month\’s Peruvian Lily. I crafted my bloom from some handmade gel press prints and a bit of glitter cardstock.

$Gift Wrap Topper featuring Altenew\'s Peruvian Lily layering die.$

I wrapped my gift in Tiffany blue gift wrap, added some ribbon and then topped with my die-cut Lily. I think this makes for a beautiful gift.

Prizes:

$200 in total prizes! Altenew is giving away a $35 gift certificate to 2 lucky winners and a $20 gift certificate to 5 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by 07/04/2021 for a chance to win.

There’s MORE! What’s a hop without YOU?! We have included an Inlinkz at the Altenew blog for you to enter your gorgeous Altenew “Anything But A Card” creations. We will pick 2 of our favorite handmade creations from those who joined the linky party and they will each receive a $15 Altenew gift certificate!

Altenew will draw 7 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on 07/06/2021.

I am so pleased you stopped by!

Karen

Peruvian Lily

Uncategorized

Altenew Craft-A-Flower: Peruvian Lily Layering Die Set Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

June 7, 2021 Karen Brown37 Comments

Altenew Craft-A-Flower: Peruvian Lily Layering Die Set

Hello friends! Today is release day for Altenew\’s June Craft-A-Flower: Peruvian Lily. I just adore each month\’s kit because there are so many die-cutting possibilities. You can subscribe HERE for a specially discounted price (plus you won\’t miss a single kit) or you can purchase the Peruvian Lily or you can buy the Peruvian Lily + the gradient cardstock bundle.

Each month I usually make my own paper for my craft-a-flower kit…sometimes I watercolor panels, or ink blend but this month I was in a gel print mood. With gel prints, you never know what you are going to get so I start with colors in mind and then start printing. These are pretty basic prints but they look so pretty when die-cut. For June I was thinking either an orange or pink bloom with a blue background so I laid out some prints. I love the blue background…kinda Monetish and I ultimately decided on an orange and yellow lilly. I will be using the pink panels soon.

These dies were easy to line up and the lily is big and showy. The sentiment is one of my favorites from the Essential Sentiment Die Set.

Giveaway Prizes

$200 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 2 lucky winners and a $20 gift certificate to 5 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by 6/13/2021 for a chance to win. Altenew will draw 7 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on 06/15/2021.

Karen Brown < You Are Here

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoy this month\’s kit as much as I have.

Karen

Uncategorized

Altenew Certified Educators Instagram Blog Hop

February 26, 2021 Karen Brown1 Comment

Layered Floral Die-Cutting with Altenew’s Cosmos Kit

I am so excited to be participating in my first Altenew Educator Hop! I LOVE this month\’s Cosmos Craft-A-Flower Kit and wanted to create another bright springy card. Here is a LINK to my first card.

Mixed Media Background

I made a background using the recently released Narrow Brick Stencil. I mixed Texture Embossing Paste and Shimmer Spray which I then tinted with diluted purple Watercolor from the 36 pan set. I repeated this and added diluted pink watercolor to a second pile of embossing paste. I then ran this over the stencil in random locations. The two colors of brick are the same colors I used on the flowers.

Water Coloring Panels for Die-Cutting

On two panels of watercolor paper, I brushed on bold watercolors from the 36 pan set. I dried the panels and added a second layer so I had really saturated color. Here is a photo of the three panels I used to make this card.

Before I begin die-cutting I like to take a permanent pen and mark the layering dies with a #1 and #2 for each flower. It just takes just a minute but then it is so much easier to keep up with the little pieces. After I die cut, I also write the corresponding number on the back of the die-cut in pencil in case they get mixed up on my workspace.

Pink die-cut flowers with mixed media background

These flowers are so easy to assemble and make such a gorgeous showy flower. I used liquid glue and foam tape to assemble my card. To finish, I added Tea Party Enamel Dots.

We would love for you to hop with us! My Instagram Handle is: @karens_mini

There are beautiful cards and prizes too….check it out!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Karen

Uncategorized

Altenew Craft-A-Flower: Cosmos Layering Die Set Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

February 7, 2021 Karen Brown48 Comments

Altenew Cosmos Craft-A-Flower Layering Die

Hello and welcome to Altenew\’s Craft A Flower Blog Hop and Release! I am so excited to be participating this month as we craft beautiful Cosmos die-cut flowers (Cosmos/Gradient Cardstock Bundle). I was very inspired by this release and I think you will be too! You can subscribe HERE so you don\’t miss a single set.

Let\’s get started! I used one of my favorite color combinations on this card. I began by watercoloring several panels of watercolor cardstock in pink, coral, orange and green. I put several colors on each panel so there would be a lot of variation in color which I think adds a lot of interest. I like that watercolor paper is a bit thicker and has more texture and makes a rich substantial diecut.

Next, I diecut the components of my card. These Cosmos dies cut very well and layered easily. Before I begin die-cutting I like to take a permanent pen and mark the layering dies with a #1 and #2 for each flower. It just takes just a minute but then it is so much easier to keep up with the little pieces. After I die cut, I also write the corresponding number on the back of the die-cut in pencil in case they get mixed up on my workspace. Be sure to save all the left over cardstock for next month\’s Craft-A-Flower.

Altenew Cosmos Layering Die cut floral images.

I cut the Hello sentiment from black mirror cardstock which makes it really pop.

I knew I wanted a white background with some interest so I mixed embossing paste with Irredescent Shimmer Spray and then used a pallette knife to spread in random areas around my cardstock. I then sprinkled Crystal Clear Embossing Powder on the damp embossing powder and heat set. This adds a lot of shimmer and shine to the background.

I used liquid glue to adhere the flowers but concentrated the glue in the middle with no glue at the outer edges so that I could slightly curl up the flower petals for some added dimension. I also did the same with the grassy leaves.

GIVEAWAY PRIZES:

$200 in total prizes! To celebrate this release,Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 1 lucky winner and a $15 gift certificate to 10 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by 02/12/2021 for a chance to win. Altenew will draw 11 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on theAltenew Winners Page on 02/15/2021.

BLOG HOP LINK

You likely came from talented Teresa Litchfield\’s blog and I am your final stop!