Clique Kits February Kickoff

All the February news and a Layout: Life is Lovely!

February is here and for the past two weeks we have been absolutely drooling in anticipation of the beautiful Bee You kit featuring the Hazelwood collection from 1Canoe2 and many gorgeous accompanying exclusives! Here are some highlights of what is in store for you when the postman delivers your box! (Not a subscriber yet? Click here and please hurry- there are a limited number of slots left before subscriptions will be sold out-at least temporarily!)

Here is a layout I did using the February Kit, add ons, and the We R Memory Keepers CMYK inks available in the shop right here.

Here are some close-ups.

If you are interested in how I used the inks and a Clique Kits stamp, I made a short video you can find here. The fun stamp I used was still available when I planned this post but has since sold out 😦

As a newbie to the You Tube world, I have only started to post videos, and am still on the learning curve for making and editing them. It is truly amazing though how much you can learn on You Tube!

Did you know that many of the Design Team Members and my own partner in crime, Erica Thompson (Erica Rose Creates) have their own You Tube Channels? They also try to upload their videos with tutorials, unboxings, and fun process videos to the Clique Kits channel. Don’t miss out on all this great, FREE content for your inspiration by subscribing to ALL of these great channels. One of our goals for this Spring is to increase our You Tube presence by providing frequent, quality content for our subscribers and fans to enrich their experience as a papercrafter. If you have a scrapbooking or other crafty You Tube channel we would love for you to share it with us in the comments.

New Product on the way

This is also an exciting time of year since the 2017 Creativation Trade Show just took place and we are anxiously awaiting new releases for you guys to take advantage of being able to add on to your kit boxes.

 

Here are just some of the brands and collections we fell in love with and hope to have arriving in the warehouse in February and March! Of course, we don’t want to be a spoiler and show you the beautiful products planned for upcoming kits since it would ruin the surprise, but we promise they will be amazing!

New Design Team Additions Announced Soon!

Other news…Clique Kits recently had a design team call to fill some spots being vacated on our design team when this term ends, starting with our April reveal. We are getting ready for the big announcement and reveal of the extremely talented and special ladies who will be joining us soon! Stay tuned and don’t go away…

Traveler Notebooks Shipping Soon!

Those of you lucky enough to get a pre-order in before they were sold out- the latest installment in our series of limited edition traveler notebook kits are getting packed to be shipped as we speak. As promised- they should be shipping in early February!

Traveler’s notebooks have been around in certain circles, but for the first time they have take the mainstream scrapbooking world by storm! We love this particular genre of documenting and memory keeping because it is so freeing. Go ahead and unleash your creativity whether it is mainly journaling, sketching, painting, mixed media, or using it as a daily layout or memory mini book!  There are no specific rules. Make it as clean and simple or as messy as you want. Many people are organizing different types of travelers notebooks for different uses and streamlining a multitude of projects in this manner. You will see Traveler notebook inserts listed as add-ons for future Clique Kits very often! We love how they easily accommodate the same products in the main kit, and even help to use up scraps as well as experiment with tools like stamps and inks, paints, and more. A great way to make sure you kill your kit. We will continue to offer some product suited to those of you who decorate your planners or document and store photos in your planners too. If you are a planner gal, don’t forget to check out the Planner Shop section of the Clique Kits store for some unique goodies.

USPS Raising Prices Again

Clique Kits, like most small businesses relying on the post office to deliver the happy mail, will be negatively affected by the latest price hikes. We are in the process of crunching the numbers to work out any upcoming changes to our shipping costs. We are reluctant to have to adjust subscriptions causing inconvenience for everyone, but may have no choice. Changes may unfortunately also affect the prices for shipping product from the shop, whether as add ons or regular orders. We will be completely transparent about these changes, if and when they happen. If our shipping prices change, we will send an email notification. Please subscribe to the newsletter/blog in order to make sure you are on the mailing list for all news and updates.

Introducing a New Clique Kits Event

Starting in February 2017 (yes, this month) Clique Kits will begin publishing a semi-annual online magazine and Look Book. You have probably seen a fashion look book. It is something like a catalog with photographs showing products as they may be used and presented in a way that inspires. Every 6 months our graphic design team will be working closely with designers to present projects and inspiration to help you get the most from kits during your term as a subscriber. We will feature not only kits, but store products and exclusives. There are many ways for YOU, our subscribers and followers to get involved in The Clique community, and the Look Book will be one more way. Stay tuned for the first ever call for submissions to our next Look Book to be published in August of 2017. The details will soon follow, but this publication will be available to the public and submissions from subscribers and other customers if published will be awarded  product credit and other prizes!

All in all, February is going to be quite a full month. And I didn’t even mention Groundhog Day or Valentine’s Day!  We love seeing all of your layouts with the January Kit and the January add on Valentine’s Day kit. More cute Valentine’s Day products can be found here.

No matter who you are, what color your skin is, what religion you practice, what state or country you live in, please remember that you are now and always will be welcome here. The Clique Kits community will always be welcoming and will promote love, kindness, and understanding. Life is Lovely!

-xoGia

Cut files and watercolors

Hello, Clique friends. I’m back today with a simple tutorial on how to use watercolors and cut files together. I’ve always loved the softness of watercolor paint. It is very versatile and you can obtain a different effect depending on how you use it. The November Swan Lake kit was perfect for the idea I had in mind.

I decided to use two of the exclusive November cut files:

For my first layout, I used watercolors to paint the cut out pieces so to match the tones in the Maggie Holmes Gather collection:

I then layered smaller and bigger flowers together to give more dimension to the page. The ephemera pieces included in the November kit are just lovely! I mixed up all the flowers I could find. Some I fussy cut from the patterned papers, others come from the add-on chipboard sticker sheet. The cut files this month coordinate perfectly with them.

I finished the layout with some colored twine to create a banner effect in the top left corner of the page.

I then added some of the same twine in the opposite corner to create continuity and achieve a cohesive look.

For my second layout, I used watercolors in a different way. My idea here was to create a backdrop of flowers to use for my daughter’s ballet picture.

First I used my Silhouette to create a stitching template for the vine kind-of-look. Then, I painted underneath the flowers to recreate the soft colors in the collection.

I kept my embellishments to a minimum as I wanted to draw attention to the background and picture.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my process. I would love for you to give these techniques a try and shows us your work in The Clique Facebook group. You can find the November Swan Lake kit and the awesome Prima Watercolor Set in the Clique store.

Thank you for stopping by!

Have a great day!

XO, Enza

 

Layering cut files.

Hello there, friends! I’m back today with a new project using the gorgeous Swan Lake kit. I’m totally in love with it. The colors, the ephemera pieces, the exclusives are absolutely beautiful.

Cut files have always been my favorite tool when it comes to creating a page. They add a lot of extra texture and dimension without being overwhelming. The Clique Kit store has many cut files you can choose from (some of them are free!). My inspiration for today’s layout came from the beautiful Dream Catcher cut file included in a previous kit, Moon Child, which is still available for purchase if you are interested.

Here is my layout:

As soon as I saw this patterned paper included in the November kit, I thought it would be perfect paired with the Dream Catcher cut file. I knew I wanted to add more dimension, so I decided to outline the image in my Silhouette software by using the Offset function, and create a small border around it. I repeated this step twice, so that each extra layer would be slightly bigger than the previous one (I hope it makes sense). I cut one shape out of white cardstock, one out of vellum, which I used as a middle layer, and the other from one of the patterned papers included in the kit. By simply layering cut files you can add a lot of texture and more interest to your page.

To add an extra element of interest, I also stitched the top portion of the cut file.

How adorable are these mini tassels from the Gather collection!!!!

I hope you felt inspired and will give this technique a try. Visit the Clique Kits store to check this month’s kit and all the fun cut files available.

Thank you for stopping by. Have a great day!

XOXO, Enza

 

Project Life – My process.

Hello Clique friends! Enza here with you today with a Project Life spread created with the gorgeous Swan Lake kit. The exclusive cards contained in the November kit are so beautiful and inspiring! They made it easy to put this spread together.

My approach to Project Life has changed over the years. I have tried to do it weekly, but that did not last very long. Although I would love to document our family’s adventures on a daily basis, I also find it very time consuming. Especially because I enjoy the embellishment process too much 😉
I have tried themed spreads, such as birthdays, holidays, specific events, which definitely helped in terms of time, but also did not say enough about our stories. The best way for me to keep up with Project Life and still have fun with it is by doing it monthly.

Here is the spread I’m sharing today:

I know, I know, I’m a little behind, but this spread came together so quickly, I’m confident I’ll be able to finish my 2016 album in a timely matter. At least, that’s my hope 😉

The Swan Lake kit this month includes exclusive Project Life cards that match perfectly all the other colors in the kit. I love the soft pinks and pretty aquas, but also the bold blue of the 3×4 card below and the Jillibean Soup tag included in the kit. They add more interest and a different texture to the page.

There is so much to choose from. How fun are these Dear Lizzy chipboard letter stickers and the little frames from the Maggie Holmes “Moments” paper?

Not to mention the gorgeous floral and ephemera pieces.

I enjoyed creating this spread. You can head over to the Clique shop to subscribe and get this awesome kit and all the other goodies in the store.

Thank you for stopping by. Have a great day!

XOXO, Enza

 

Art Studio – Today

Hello it’s Leeann here, and I have a fun painted background page to share with you all using the September Moon Child kit!

It’s also my last post for the cliques kits too. It has been the coolest team to create with. I adore there kits and adore all the creations I’ve made from them. Just the other day I went through all my pages I have created for them. And I had the biggest smile! Wow I made awesome pages and recorded awesome stories at the same time. I love every single one and that really makes my heart happy.

 Lets take a look at my page and then a little how too.

“Today”

To start of, grab a white cardstock and select you desired paint colour. I look at a coordinating colour from whats in the kit. I painted 3/4 of the background.

I then paint the other 1/4 using white paint. As you can see it starts to mix. Once I’m happy with my painted background I use single short brush stokes of each of the colors over the finish background to add an element of pattern.

Next I wanted to add some random doodling and stamping.

Once you have completed this step you can then select photos and embellishments and scrap it!

Thank you so much clique kits for having me be apart of your awesome team.

I wish you all the very best… much love to all xxx

Art studio – I love this right now…

Hello it’s Leeann again with another fabulous project created with Septembers Moon Child kit.

Today we are getting a little bit of medium on. When it comes to using acrylic paint you  can just play with simply designs and brush strokes, if you don’t feel comfort painting the whole page. I’m finding less is more my kinda style. Anyway today it’s just simply brush strokes, mixed with some random ink stamping and scribble doodles.

So lets take a look at my page.

Here’s a quick how too to achieve this background.

Select a color and a thick flat brush and dip the brush into paint and then swipe onto some card stock. Repeat until happy with your design.

Allow the paint to dry, gather some ink, stamps and then randomly stamp.

Add some water color splashes.

Next doodle with a lead pencil for detail. Once happy then scrap your page.

Thanks so much for popping by and I hope you give this a go.

Geek Lab: September Printables

Hello! TodayI want to show you a card I made with September Printables. I used only a label and a circle but their color perfectly matched the blue butterfly and it was enough for me 😉 It is still quite complicated card because I rather make C&S ones.

Here are the printables I used, if you haven’t seen them before 🙂

 

and the whole September Kit:

Have a nice day!

Justyna

Art Studio – Bulletin Board Layout

Hey there!

I really wanted to channel my inner college student with this layout!  Somehow all these little sayings and words of encouragement throughout this fabulous kit reminded me of my college dorm bulletin board.  I used to cut out things from magazines and put random candid pictures up.  Honestly, I still kinda do that now in my office!

Those little bits of Pretty Little Studio word strips caught my eye as little fortune cookie papers.  Grouped together they look like I’ve had too much takeout!

I used a lot of those little dot stickers from Fancy Pants Designs as replicas of push pins.

The faux layering of elements is something that my real bulletin board already looks like.  Just sticking another saying up on top of another is achieved but adding little bits of patterned paper.

That squirrel was so cute I attached him to a piece of the exclusive journal cards.  Random staples on word strips add another level of informality.

By having the top of the 12×12 paper be 2/3rds of the KaiserCraft dot paper, that left the lower 1/3rd plain white.  It allowed the journal cards and pics to hang off the edge of the ‘bulletin board’ just as they would have been in my dorm.

It has been a blast being on this team for Clique Kits and I hope to see you around all my social media outlets and blog!  Create lively my friends!

Locker Room – Project Life process video

Hello all! It’s Justt here! Today I would like to show you the process video of a Project Life spread. This is my second video ever, it’s not perfect and my computer didn’t handle it 😛 so it is what it is. I hope you’ll still like it. There are also some photos below if the video is not enough. 🙂

I used september “Moon Child” kit. It’s perfect for the first fall works 🙂

The page is about my little godson and some goodies from Clique Kits ♥ Hope you’ll like it!

Hugs!

Study Hall: Hello Adventure

Hi there,

It’s my second to last post for Clique Kits and I wanted to try something new with this beautiful September Kit.  (I’m not sure how they always pull together the most fantastic kit every single time btw.)

So instead of a scrapping about a picture of something that was meaningful to me, I wanted to write about something that was meaningful in a scrapbook layout.  What I felt, emotionally and physically when I took this screenshot last winter!  I mean who wouldn’t take a screenshot if the temperature outside is -24?!?!

I just wanted a monochromatic layout with just blues, blacks and white; a chilled out version of a night scheme.

Starting with an 8 x 12 starry night background I placed it on the woodgrain full page.  Then adding strips of varring widths of paper, I layered on top of those. Using a few of those exclusive project life cards and Pretty Little Studio words along the way, it helped  round out the color scheme I was going for.

I couldn’t resist adding 4 full rows of Fancy Pants Designs Dot stickers.  It just added so much detail with very little work on my part.  ;0)

There is one paper in the grouping that had sentiments written by Kaiser Craft but I chose instead to line those strips with the accents seen between the words and not the words themselves. Just another element of layering I can’t hold back from.

I’ve been also trying to hold back and not use this Acrylic ‘Hello Adventure’ just yet, but I couldn’t help myself.  I also added some black stars from my own stash as well.

With journaling to finish it off, and add that something I wanted from the beginning, I’d say I met my goal with trying something new!

Thanks Guys!

-Kim