using leftovers and more circle cutter info

Thank you for all of your well-wishes. :) I think we're finally turning the corner with this nasty bug. Yay! Who wants to be sick during summer vacation, right? ;)

Here's a card that was made with some leftover flowers from this card. When I first started the original birthday card, I wasn't exactly sure how many of each flower I was going to need, so I just stamped/embossed/glittered/cut out a whole bunch and went from there. I ended up with several left over, so this is what I did with some of them (click to see larger):

This card went to my mother-in-law to thank her for her lovely Mother's Day gift. :) I wanted to enter this into the Hero Arts flower challenge, but with all that I had going on that week, I just never found the time to photograph it for submission. Hopefully you can see the purple Art Institute glitter a little better in this photo. However, please excuse the crooked sentiment... if anyone can stamp an acrylic stamp catawampus, obviously it's me. :P

And for Andi - as she had a question regarding the circle cutter update I posted. Basically, what you see is what you get - there are no other pieces of equipment necessary to use this tool, other than your paper and a cutting mat of some sort. The way it works:

Think of the Fiskars Circle Cutter like a drafting compass - one part stays stationary while another part moves around in a circle. There's a small dial in the center of the cutter which you turn counterclockwise to loosen the cutting arm, housing the cutting blade (click the picture to see larger, as I have labeled the parts of the cutter making it easier to understand... :) photo credit). The cutting arm can then slide back and forth, according to the diameter measurement of your desired circle. In the very center of the tool (too difficult for me to pinpoint on the diagram), there's a small arrow that points to the measurements you see on the cutting arm. Just slide the cutting arm until the arrow points to your desired measurement, and then turn the center dial clockwise to tighten. Your cutting arm is now tightly in place, ready to cut your circle of desired size. Then, place the tool on your paper, press down on the pressure handle to keep the cutter in place, firmly grasp the larger cutting dial (NOT the cutting arm), and turn to cut. This is where it was awkward for me at first... your hands are pretty much on top of one another for this process and it can get a little tricky holding the tool in place, yet turning it simultaneously. But after a little practice, it got easier and easier and now it's a snap. There is a little compartment for you to house the blade when not in use, which is great - keeps it sharp AND from causing massive blood loss during incidental handling. Ha! ;) There's a spare blade included as well. It works just fine on either self-healing OR glass cutting mats, but I prefer to use mine on glass (helps prolong blade life). They retail for about $19.99, so it was a great deal with a coupon! I do still use my circle punches all the time, but sometimes I want to mat those and don't have the right size punch to go about doing that. This has helped solve that problem. Plus, it makes circles all the way up to 8 inches in diameter... great for scrapbook pages, if you do those. ;) Anyway, I hope this was all clear as mud and somewhat helpful. :)

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you have a nice week!





**Note: I labeled this card as a "Quick and Easy" card, only because the flowers used on it were pre-made leftovers from a previously made card. Keep in mind that if you're making this card from scratch, a little more time is involved due to the heat embossing and cutting of each, individual flower.**

CARD SUPPLIES
paper - patterned paper is Basic Grey (purple) and unknown (turquoise)
stamps - Hero Arts Clear Design 'Thoughtful Messages' (flowers) and Clear Design 'Thank You Messages'
ink - Colorbox (black pigment - flowers) and Memories black (sentiment)
misc - black EP and heat tool, Sakura Quickie glue pen, Art Institute Glitter (Pee Wee 'Wonderland' kit), scissors, Hero Arts black Gemstones, and pop dots