Accents of White - CTMH Technique Blog Hop

 You may have arrived from visiting Katy Taylor, be starting here, or have just stumbled in! Welcome!! Follow the links to hop from blog to blog for techniques, tips, and artwork!

This month we are featuring Accents of White in our monthly Technique Blog Hop. The White Gel Pens are fabulous!! I did not use any kind of white pen before we started carrying these, but I know many others have been clamoring for them for years. Close To My Heart is so awesome about listening to our requests, but they also wanted to make sure to find a quality product and reasonable price point.

Z1513 White Gel Pens

Like I said, this is all new to me.  One place I found coloring tips was in THIS video from CTMH's Facebook Live workshops. All their videos (and my few) are now listed on a separate blog PAGE. Please let me know if you find any broken links. It REALLY helps to see coloring technique in a video.

I also checked for other videos but did not find too much. One person said there was not a general consensus about storage of white pens. I am storing mine horizontally because they fit in my old Marker Cubby. The only other thing I do is wipe the tip off before and/or after use. I have not had any issues.

WHAT I KNEW BEFORE this blog hop was that you can use them to lighten the part of an image that receives the most light (from the imaginary light source). First I tried this on the Bear's scarf, but it just looks like icicles to me (great technique, wrong application). On the Reindeer, I tried this on the hat. I don't think it looks "right" either but you get the idea. 

WHAT I LEARNED was that you can go over parts of an image...on the Reindeer, I went over the *s that were stamped in black to change them into white *s!  I also added white to the ties on the neckerchief, so they look more like loops. 

The best part about this technique is that you can use it to fix mistakes! I went outside of the lines a bit on the Panda's scarf but going over it with one of the white pens made it disappear!! (I stamped on White Daisy Cardstock.)

It's so nice that the pens come with all three sizes! It doesn't take long to realize that SIZE MATTERS.  On the Fox, I did faux stitching on the scarf. The smaller size on the middle stripe looked too small. I like the other, thicker lines. (I also tried accenting the eyes - apparently this is not a thing. 😄 Neither above nor below improved the look.)

You can also see the difference on the Penguin's scarf. Left:  The first pen was too big. Right:  This time the smaller pen worked much better. I also like the one \ added vs the V marks.

When I added dots to the pom poms, I thought if the large hat ball looked good using the 1.0 size, then the smaller side balls would work well with 0.5. Nope. The small dots are too hard to see IMO. Which is another tip:  START SMALL. You can always go over accent marks with a larger pen.

I thought adding extra lines to the Panda's collar made it look furrier.  I also filled in the holes for the strings so that they looked like...holes. 

I embellished my card using the Snowflake Loose Sequins. It was really nice to have the Quickie Glue and Pick-Up Tool!  You do need to be quick with the Quickie Glue! It was perfect for sequins but if you need more than a dot, it will dry before you get anything attached. The Pick-Up Tool is out of stock right now but coming back soon! You can find it on page 91 in the Core Catalog.

My card pattern is from the Hip Hip Hooray Workshop, a VIP exclusive! I colored the adorable critters from If Snowflakes Were Kisses images using the TriBlend Markers. 

Here are colors I used:

for Wisteria - Hydrangea Blend

for Glacier - Vintage Blue + Aqua Blue

for Mulberry - Antique Pink + Dusty Purple*

Muted Brown

Ice Grey Blend

*There is no official matching formula, yet, so I used the Swatch Chart to figure out the mix. Also, here's the Marker Color Chart link.

For more White Gel Pen ideas, check out the Wonderland Cardmaking Kit , (but check it out soon, they're almost gone!) Then join us for the Facebook Live event where I'm sure we'll hear even more about these.

Head over to see what Melissa Robinson has created. She also has the list of all this month's participants in case you get lost or find a broken link.

How do or will you use White Gel Pens? Please leave a comment below!!

PRODUCTS USED

  

Z4390 If Snowflakes Were Kisses

D2059 Stamp Set only, no dies

X7274B Wonderland Paper Pack

Z4319 Snowflake Loose Sequins

 

Z1512 Quickie Glue Pen 

TriBlend Markers

Silver & Gold Technique Blog Hop

Welcome to The Scrap Buzz and this month's edition of the Technique Blog Hop. You have arrived from visiting Judy. Keep following the links to visit all of the participants. If you get lost, a Colette list can be found on Melissa’s page. This month we are featuring Silver & Gold.

This month, I put a little TECH in the technique hop. My project is not paper, it's fabric and vinyl! DID YOU KNOW Close To My Heart offers heat transfer vinyl (HTV)? It can be found under Specialty Paper (although it's not paper). You can do things with vinyl that can also be done with paper, including cutting it with a Cricut, Silhouette, etc. HTV can be used for things where paper wouldn't work or be permanent such as, to decorate the front of scrapbook albums, personalize items, and MAKE SHIRTS! 

In addition to our Cricut Collections and other Cricut images, you can also upload other types of images to Design Space. DID YOU KNOW, Close To My Heart offers digital art in the form of SVGs? 

What is an SVG file? An SVG file, short for scalable vector graphic file, is a standard graphics file type used for rendering two-dimensional images on the internet.

To me, that translates as, “works with electronic cutting machines!”  You can find the images offered on your makers website by going to SHOP, then to the Digital Art category. Individual images are only $1, plus there’s no shipping! I used the Craft Queen image for my shirt and cut it from our Silver Glitter HTV. (Note:  I pre-washed my shirt.) In case you missed it, the coordinating die cut for the paper suites are now SVG (instead of specifically Cricut images), so they're now more usable to more people!

Sometimes a special promotion will include an SVG, such as the new Merry Making ornaments. Once you purchase an ornament product, the SVG files are added to your digital library automatically. You can have your glitter paper cut and ready to adhere to the ornaments as soon as they arrive!! I've heard a lot of questions about where to find Digital Art after purchase.  Access your digital library from your Maker's website by clicking on your name to open the drop down menu. From there, click on account. On the left side, (or new drop down menu), select Digital Library. All of your purchased images will be here. Click on the blue download icon to add them to your device.

The next question is always "How to do I upload Digital Art to Cricut Design Space?" Here's a step-by-step:

1. Open the Cricut App on your PC [or Apple device]. Start a NEW PROJECT.
2. Click on UPLOAD.
3. UPLOAD IMAGE with Drag & Drop or [BROWSE FILES] and select your downloaded image.
4. You may with to give your image a name (and tag with keywords). Click UPLOAD [SAVE].
5. Your new image will now show under Recent Uploads [Images]. Click on it and ADD TO CANVAS [INSERT].
6. Next time you want to use this image, click on UPLOAD, then look for it under Recent Uploads, or View All [Open Uploaded Images]. You can also search for it with one of your keywords. 
7. Resize your image as desired.
8. MAKE IT.
9. If the preview looks like all of the parts of your images are being cut separately, and not spaced correctly, CANCEL to go back to the [CANVAS], then select the entire image, and [ACTION] ATTACH. Continue with MAKE IT. (Note:  this is for single color images. For layered images, each color needs to be attached separately.)
10. For HTV, be sure to MIRROR [on CANVAS, EDIT, HORIZONTAL] the image so that it's backwards.
11. Put vinyl shiny side down on your mat. 
12. Use Vinyl setting on your machine. CONTINUE and cut image.
13. Weed the vinyl.
14. Follow Easy Press/iron instructions. Here is an online Heat Guide and a printable version.  For CTMH's vinyl FAQ sheet, click here.
15. Pre-heat Easy Press/iron.
16. Make sure there are no wrinkles in fabric, or other item is flat and stable.
17. Pre-heat the base item to which you are adding the vinyl.
18. Lay Vinyl on your base, shiny side up this time (so you can read it), check placement.
19. Heat the vinyl as directed. 
20. Heat the image from the backside of a shirt too.  This isn't necessary on an album.
21. Check adhesion. Reheat for a few seconds if needed.
22. Remove plastic backing when directed (hot or cold).

Think of all the fun crafts you can make for the holidays using HTV:  matching family shirts, monogrammed napkins, personalized gifts, and of course, albums! 

A few years ago, I made this video to show how to put vinyl on an album. The vinyl image shown in the video is from  These Are My People kit.

I have been asked to do a live video showing how to size images in Cricut for items like the Merry Making ornaments, so watch my Facebook page for that!  I think it will be a Zoom video because I think I can do the screen share thing! (We'll find out.)

 Before you go on to see what Katy is sharing, please leave a comment. If you do not have a Maker, let me know how I can help, and check out my website.