2 Yummy | Ice Cream Truck

My girls freak out each time they hear the ice cream truck music blaring through the neighborhood. They stop everything they are doing to collect their money for a delicious treat. And I remember doing the same thing when I was their age! How to: 

• Download the ice cream SVG cutting file I created HERE.  Cut it out of white cardstock.  
• Use your cuts to cut around the papers you want to show through the page, cutting about 1/4" larger so you can adhere them to the back of the cone.  
• Once everything is in place, add some water color around the outside of the cone to make it pop on the page.  
• You may even consider doing this step before you add the pattern paper.  
• Add a few embellishments on the cone and don't forget the cherry on top! 
• Layer elements (tag, spoon, washi tape, vellum under your photo. 
• Add your photo on top, using foam dots.  
• Lastly add your title and other embellishments.

So...what do you think? Leave me a note to let me know.  Visit me on the American Crafts blog too. 

 Supplies: Dear Lizzy Fine & Dandy collection: (370061) – Fabulous Fun Paper, (370064) – Stripey Straws Paper, (370065) – Shenanigans Paper, (370070) – Pretty Packages Paper, (370071) – Let’s Party Paper, (370072) – Fine and Dandy Paper, (370077) – Dazzling Paper, (370081) – Happy Day Paper, (370082) – Gleeful Paper, (370096) – Plastic Bows, (370087) – Printed Cardstock Phrases & Accents, (370091) – Accent & Phrase Stickers, (370099) – Die Cut Cardstock Shapes, (370108) – Washi Tape Designs, (370100) – Toothpicks, (370115) – Wooden Spoons, (369209) – Printed Foil Letter Stickers Thickers; Elements collection: (370760) – Pink Large Tags, (373341) – Pink Jewel Brads, (373344) – Star Brads; (AM710-81) – Textured Cardstock 12"X12" White, (368185) – This to That Adhesive Foam Dots

All Good Things Are Wild & Free

My daughter loves flowers so we took a trip to the flower fields at dewberry Farm in Brookshire. She walked through the fields pointing and picking and smelling. It was a super fun day that I'll treasure forever.

To create this layout I combined a mists with water and painted in (and outside of) the lines for the flowers.  Once dried, I applied gesso in a thin layer over the section I reserved for the title so that the title would pop on the page and not get lost in the sea of color.

I also used the water colors to color the white alpha chipboard so that certain words would stand out. 

I simply painted the color directly onto the entire chipboard sheet, just coloring the letters I wanted. It worked out great. 

I filled in the rest of the title in with alpha stickers and then added Little Bits phrases  as small details that help tell the story better. 

And of course I framed up my photo and added a few embellishments to tie the page together.

The Just Add Color is so fun and wonderful to play with.  Get your colors out and get your hands on this collection...STAT!

 

Supply List:

Just Add Color collection: Star Struck Paper, little bits 4x6" stickers (Orange, Ice, Gulf, Plum, White)

Color Chaos collection: Gulf Strandz Paper, Scallop Strandz paper, Treasures & Text Cardstock Stickers

Ciao Chipboard Alphas: Amorie White

Ciao Chip Elements: Symbols, Whatnots

Feathers: Pony

Enamel Dots: Ice, Milk White

Bella Bows: Milk White Bows

You Make Me Happy Card

It's pastel week on the American Crafts blog and I was asked to create a card.  I thought it only fitting to use the new embossing folders to create my card background and add a bit of watercolor to attain that dreamy effect.  

How to: 

• Cut a card base so that it measures 4"w x 6"h when folded in half.  
• Unfold it and insert the front of the card into the embossing folder.  
• Run it through your embossing / manual die cut machine. 
• Next, take out 3 different colors of mists and add a little bit of water to them to help achieve a more muted and pastel water color look.  
• Choose random sections of the embossed background and start painting them in.  
• Once you like the pattern, apply a sentiment to the top and any extra embellishments you desire. 

Supplies: Textured Cardstock (AM710-81) 12"X12" White, Rise & Shine collection: (370053) – Ava Embossing Folder, (370038) – Bits Die Cut Cardstock Shapes, (370034) – Remarks Epoxy Stickers, Heidi Swapp Color Shine: (HS01082) - Blush, (HS01080) - Seafoam, (HS00799) - Mine Green, Mister Hueys Color Mists (331047) - Taxi

A Good Day | Gossamer Blue Blog Hop | Bella Blvd Giveaway

Here we go again. It's time for the Gossamer Blue April Design Team blog hop.  I have to tell you that the April kit was soo fun to play with but I just got my hands on the May kit and it's sooo flippin' fantastic! Anywho, the GB DT is here to share some inspiration with the April kit so here goes...

The black and white and all those gold accents...LOVE!

I layered 2x2 blocks over the background and then stitched across side to side. A sprinkling of gold mist as well.

Then I glammed it up with a glitter title and the cutest little bird.

I have a Bella Blvd giveaway (two actually!) going on over on Instagram (@heatherleopard). A prize pack like the one above (6x6 paper, an assortment of Bella Bows, Crochet Hearts and enamel dots, plus a feather) will be awarded to two people. Winner will be announced Friday so make sure to head over there to play along.

Your next stop along the hop is to the awe-inspiring Jessica Lohof.

And here's the full list in case you are just stumbling on the hop.
Beshka Kueser | Brenda Weaver | Caylee Grey | Cindy Liebel | Diane Payne | Emily Spahn | Eunyoung Lee | *** Heather Leopard *** | Jessica Lohof | Jill Cornell | Jill Keller | Kasia Przybyt | Katie Ehmann | Laura Rahel Crosby | Magda Mizera | Melanie Blackburn | Michelle Wooderson | Michiko Kato | Rebecca Luminarias | Sabrina Alery | Yana Smakula

Happy hopping. Now go on and get scrappy!

Sk8er Girl

I was so honored to be invited to join the Bella Blvd team for the 2015-2016 year and I couldn't wait to start playing with Stephanie's newest collections.

I'm offering a giveaway on Instagram so make sure to follow me @heatherleopard over there to enter for a chance to win!

My Creative Team intro is up on the Bella Blvd blog today and I'm sharing 1 of 2 new layouts here.

The Color Chaos collection was the perfect pairing for this photo of my youngest when we went skating last month over Spring Break.

For those Bella Blvd fans who may be visiting me for the first time and don't know me, my signature style is all about pattern paper, color and creating fun backgrounds.  For today's layout, I simply hand cut paper strips, not caring if they were straight. Actually, I wanted them to be a little off. I cut them all to about the same length and width and then stitched them willy-nilly on white cardstock to create my background.

I put a simple white frame around my photo to help make it stand out when layered over the paper strips. Then added some embellishments over and around the photo.

Another thing about me is that I don't always think about the title when I'm creating my background and that happened here on this layout but it all worked out.  I used a combo of different chipboard and sticker alphas to create the title up at the top using a number in my title to give it a little edge.  My plan at first was to use just the "8" sticker but it just looked odd because it was smaller than the other and very flat.  My solution was to stitch around the outside of the 8 and then I added enamel dots to give it more weight.

You'll have to visit the Bella blog to see the other layout I created, or wait to see it here in a couple of days.  It involves paper weaving and it was a lot of fun to create so why don't ya just head over there now to see it and leave me and Becki some love.

One last thing before you go...make sure to follow me on Instagram. I'm giving two of these away. All the details are at https://instagram.com/heatherleopard/

Always Happy Home Decor

I wanted to add a little inspiration to my work area so I created this happy little framed sentiment. I used the American Crafts Shimelle True Stories collection. I put together a tutorial for you as well.

Supplies: True Stories collection: (370703) – English Breakfast Paper, (370705) – Lemon & Ginger Paper, (370736) – Enamel dots, (370743) – Die Cut Cardstock Shapes, (370750) – Pattern Masks

1. Gather your supplies.

 

2. Apply gesso to patterned paper using a stencil pattern mask. Set aside to dry.

 

3. Using foam dots, adhere sentiment over a coordinating patterned paper.

 

4. Once the gesso is dry, insert it into your frame. Adhere the sentiment from step 2 on the glass of the frame (or remove the glass from the frame).

 

5. Add embellishments to the outside of the frame.