AC Cardstock

Holiday Tags Reveal – pt 2

I really like this tag. The mistletoe cut is from a collection I found at Creative Fabrica. The embossing was done using an old border folder and the “merry Christmas” was done using the Foil Quill. Half pearls and some metallic thread and a glittered star round out the rest of the details for this tag. It would also work as a panel for a future card — maybe next year’s card… we’ll see.

Digital image from Creative Fabrica. The plaid is from an old Carta Bella Christmas/Winter collection. I did use an old background stamp for the base of the tag and added some cuts in the plaid for trim. The digital image is propped on a wobble and it’s fun to watch it shiver and shake!

Over the course of the years, I’ve tried to include one tag that has some interactive component – music, lights, wobble, motor, etc. This year, I opted to use a chibi light on a reed switch circuit. The last time I tried that particular circuit I couldn’t get it to work… this year, it worked on the first try! I’ve had some fun with it and the bar magnet was a perfect tool for the on/off switch! I’ll be using that circuit again for sure. The tag shape was created using shapes in the SCAL library. I used two layers of foam tape to allow for the depth of the switch and battery. Since the switch is generally in the off position, the battery lasts much longer than if I was using a regular circuit and a switch at the battery.

These tags are always fun to make. Hopefully, next year, we can bypass the pneumonia and other issues and just have time to play and create! I’m looking forward to it!

Annual Holiday Tags Reveal – pt 1

this year was a bit different than previous years’ reveals. I wasn’t able to finish all 12 tags due to illness… so instead of doing several different posts this year, I’m going to do just a couple. So let’s get started:

Lots paper piecing this year — most files were already on the computer, found for free online or inspired by something on Pinterest.

This first tag is a go cup – all the facial features were created using simple shapes in SCAL. Love being able to use up a ton of scraps as well this year. The embossing folder is from Crafter’s Companion – likely retired by this point in time.

I’ve always liked this bear stamp — I’ve used it for several different projects including birthday cards. For this tag, I added some digital paper from an old Echo Park collection and a bit of the paper yarn I made last fall. The sentiment is foil quilled and the SCAL software makes it to easy to complete a print to cut; foil to cut project!

A third tag is a fun piece — I’ve created something similar a couple of years ago, but I do like this version of the “peeker”. A little bit of ribbon, some Nuvo drops and a white paint/gel pen for details. Fun way to use your scraps again.

Using a file for a laser ornament — the file was from Creative Fabrica. Super easy to do and I just used 2 extra layers of paper to get the look I was after. All paper is from AC cardstock – with texture.

Poinsettia’s are a favorite of mine… they come in all sorts of colors and I thought that the white on white would be a perfect way to display this one. The file is from Maison Gregoria, reduced in size to about 2 inches across finished. Tag shape is made from simple shapes and a little bit of gold pen on the panel edge adds a little more texture to this tag.

We’ll stop there for now…. Just a few more to go and I’ll share those tomorrow.

teacher appreciation – November

These got put together pretty quickly. T was needing something for his “team of 25” at work. These were pretty easy to put together in SCAL — I did however forget how heavy all those apples would be — and that T would need to pack them about 1/2 mile into his office from the gate — We did find a way to pack them in hopes that he wouldn’t bruise them too much. That duffle bag sure came in handy.

Background paper from an Autumn Collection in my digital files, I think. I used Fairy Sketch and Ink Free from my Fonts library on the PC. The tag is printed on a white base and I was able to 12 to a page and still have room for the registration marks to cut using the Print 2 Cut option in the SCAL software. Tags were cut using the Skycut C24.

Hoping you’re finding some creative time doing something you love! Enjoy! Keep nurturing your soul in a creative way.

Gobble, gobble, gobble

I’d wanted to use this file to create the Halloween version, but couldn’t get to it soon enough for this year’s display…

image credit Simply Crafty SVGs

so I decided to see if a Thanksgiving version would work. I think it does! I’m looking forward to putting it out next week!

I left the file at it’s original size, changed out the words for the spines of the books – using vinyl. It’s a fun box to make and pretty easy to assemble. The finished size is about 5″ x 4″ x 6″. A little big for the tiered tray, but will be a good companion piece all in all.

I created the feathers using a triangle from the SCAL library and then colored them using markers. I doubled them up for a clean finish front and back. I added some stitching details and inked the edges before gluing them to the turkey body. These are tucked into the body piece before gluing the sides together, but could be glued to the back panel instead if desired.

For the top of the box I added a maple leaf (also found in the SCAL library), colored it with ink and then roughed up the edges a bit before gluing it in place. The lid to the box is held in place with a hook and loop dot.

If I were to do another one, I think I would change up the book cover colors a bit and add a couple of leaves draping them over the edges of the books as well as add a few more details on the spines about the books with some different wording. Lots of options and I do think I see a snowman in a future iteration of the this file.

On a side note: Sandy is closing her web store sometime next year. She has set up an etsy store and is moving a few things over to Creative Fabrica as well. So we won’t be losing access to her creative files and work. You’ll also want to follow her on YouTube for assembly videos.

Wishing you a creative day! Have fun and keep nurturing your soul….

November decor

As luck would have it, a few of our older decorations for the month of November need to go — they’re bent, torn and some are beyond repair. That being said, it just means it’s time to get started on some new pieces to replace the ones that are no longer usable.

Welcome to our newest additions:

I thought if might be fun to use the Easter Egg Gift Box as the base again for another pair of owls. Yep, similar to the Halloween themed owls found here. The Pilgrim Hat file is also from Simply Crafty SVGs and was resized to 47% of the original size. I had a metal buckle in my stash to use and her cap is simply a rectangle with a little shaping. I used a Spellbinder’s embossing folder (retired) for the panels and wings and then brushed ink over the top for a little more depth. A FUN NOTE: Our Miss Pilgrim was cut from white paper and then inked to add color. Eyes and beak are colored with markers.

Right now this pair is sitting on a shelf waiting to take their turn on the mantel or in the tiered tray as soon as October’s decor is put away in a few days. We’ll see where they end up.

Hope you’re finding some time to create in your space. Take care and we’ll connect again soon.

Sundrop Flower

A friend asked me to create this for her as part of her Halloween costume this year.

I used a couple of files from Maison Gregoria’s Creative Fabrica collection. You can also find her files on Etsy. The Astria file is pretty small to begin with and I enlarged the pieces by 300% in SCAL. The original coloring was done in Procreate and then printed. I added some embossing on the petals and then added the stickles in purple and some additional inking for a little more depth on each of the petals. The stamen is from the Orchette-Dahlia Paper Template file also enlarged by 300% for consistency. So much fun to put this one together. As a final touch, I added an Easy Light set from Pear Blossom Press to the top set of petals.


Additional Supplies:
Distress Inks, blending tool
Solar Paste
Glitter
Stickles
White, Green cardstock
Hot glue
Bearly Art Glue

Hoping your creative time is productive and you’ll find joy in the materials you’re working with as well.

Happy Owl-oween!

This was a fun project — with just a few tweaks to the original files, this box was a lot of fun to put together.

I used two files from Simply Crafty SVGs. The Easter Egg Gift Box for the body of the owl and the Hovering Witch Hat for the hat. Both files were reduced and can be cut using 8.5 x 11 cardstock.
I found a pattern image on Pixabay (the swirls) that I used as a pattern fill on the panel pieces for the body. The dotted pattern on the hat was created in Procreate and used as a pattern fill for the hat panels as well. These pieces were printed, then cut using the Skycut and SCAL software. All pieces were inked for a little more depth and to blend the edges to the base papers that were used.
The eyes, nose and wings were created using basic shapes found in the library.
I did choose to glue the hat in place and since this is just going to be a decor piece, I also glued the top to the bottom and added a few glass half marbles for a little weight, though it wasn’t essential for balance.
This ideas was inspired by some clipart I found on Pinterest. I have a few more ideas kicking around for some additional “birds.” We’ll see how that goes.

Hoping you’ve built in some time in your creative space for the month of October! Have fun and explore a few new ideas and make them come to life…

How about this version? Different colorway. Solar paste and stencils and using an embossing folder. He kind of grew on me…

October cards

How quickly September has flown by. The leaves are beginning to turn colors and fall has officially arrived. We’ve enjoyed cool mornings and pleasant afternoons and evenings.

It’s also been fun to create cards using old and new techniques that will be delivered the first part of the month. This first card is the October ministering card. I saw a similar idea on Pinterest — but put my own twist on it using Procreate to “paint” the image using some of the techniques I’ve learned in a couple of online classes. The leaves are a brush from Sandra Createinspain. There were lots to choose from in a recent online offering. The sentiment stamp was found in a collection from Fun Stampers Journey (retired). Using my stamp jig made it very easy to add the sentiment on each card front after printing the main image.

We have two birthdays at the beginning of the month. Mother and daughter. I had a difficult time choosing the designs, but I think ultimately, these will work just fine for them this year. The first card is print to cut — I used Impact font, filling each of the letters with a patterned paper from Creative Fabrica. Each letter is backed with a cut in black paper set slightly to one side to create a shadow. Birthday script is done in Edwardian Script and all pieces are printed using the SCAL software’s Print 2 Cut process. The dry embossed piece is distressed and adhered to a regular A2 card base. The embossing folder is from Fun Stampers Journey (retired). I love using some of my older products! It can be used either vertically or horizontally as used in this card.

Maybe in next iterations, I’ll add some additional inking for a little more texture and depth.

The last card for this post was designed in SCAL 6 – using basic shapes from the library. The flowers and leaves are printed in a base color with additional depth and details added using colored pencils and an embossing tool. The label was created using basic shapes — a rectangle and oval and then using the Mirror Symmetry command under the Effects tab to create the shape – I added some additional details using a Winsor Newton .01 gray pen, a background stamp (Stampin’ Up! retired), and inking the edges after some distressing using an emory board to achieve the desired look. The Happy Birthday banner has been shaped a bit and glued in place before adhering the piece to the panel that was embossed using a Provo Craft embossing folder — another item from the cupboard. I really enjoyed seeing this one come to life — adding additional color to each flower and leaf was a great way to add som more depth and the embossing tool added the texture that made a lot of difference in how the light impacts the design.

As always, the Skycut performed well and each print 2 cut design was spot on! I’ve had the machine for over 4 years and haven’t had to make any additional adjustments to the calibration after the initial set up for my machine!

3 Fall Tags 2025 – Tag 3

I saw something similar a few weeks ago on Pinterest and thought I would try my hand at doing something like it for my final tag in this challenge.

I drew and colored the bat in Procreate. After saving it as a png, I was able to do a little final editing in Photopea (an online photo editing program-free) before importing into SCAL. I did hand cut the white portion of the eyes so I could put a small piece of vellum behind that now open space with the goal of adding lights* to the tag.


For the remaining pieces of this tag, I used basic shapes from the SCAL library and added some fun papers using the Pattern command option. It’s so much fun to play with. The papers are from Echo Park (I Love Halloween Mega Collection). Everything in this matting was set to print 2 cut and the easy step by step process works magically each and every time! I added some inking to add a little more interest and texture before putting the tag together.

*The light is from Pear Blossom Press. I used the EZ-Light version. It’s an all in one unit with 3 lights each and the packaging also includes the batteries. The word PRESS is a stamp from TLC Designs. They’re perfect for interactive cards as well as indicating where the ‘button’ is on a light up card or tag.

These tags and several others can be found on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/eclipsecal
We have some amazing artists on the page and since I’m writing this a little early — my hopes are that we’ll have several of them participating again this year!

3 Fall Tags – Tag #1

It’s that time of the year again… the weather is changing, it’s football season and it’s finally getting cool again. I love Fall! Lots of good memories – leaves changing colors, bon fires, s’mores, hot chocolate and soup weather! And creating some fun tags of the season.

This year, I’m trying some new to me stuff including making sketches, using SCAL and some other software to design some elements as well as use tools and other stuff that haven’t seen the light of day for a while. This tag involves pulling a few things from the drawers and cupboards! I’ll bet you’ll be able to recognize a few of them!

Stamps (Stampin’ UP! retired), embossing powder (heat embossing), embossing folder (Cuttlebug, retired), inks and of course digital images from Sandra Createinspain. And to finish, some Mod Podge for a little shine and a bit of ribbon make up this tag.