Clique Kits October Wrap Up

Happy Friday Clique Kits fans!  Erica here with you today and I am excited to be bringing you the October wrap up!  This is a new post that will happen each month where I take you back and highlight some fun and exciting moments that happened over the month and also give you a peek at what is coming up!  We had an exciting month starting with the kick off of our very first Varsity Team (design team).  They have all done an amazing job so far and we can not wait to share more of their amazing talent with you!  You can check out the Varsity Team HERE and remember to follow their blogs and grab their special discount code to use in the Clique Kits shop!  We also have our October Challenge going on right now that you will want to link up to for your chance to win this fabulous prize sponsored by Fancy Pants Designs!

We hope you enjoyed all the amazing projects, tutorials, and inspiration that the Varsity Team shared with you so far this month!  Now lets take a look at a few of the amazing projects created this month by our fabulous Varsity Team!

 

Danielle created this gorgeous layout and shared how she used created custom backgrounds using the Clique Kits exclusive cut files!  Click on her layout to go directly to her blog post.

 

Sophie pulled out this amazing tassel tutorial that you just have to check out!  I love how she added them to her layout and it adds so much interest to her page.  Check out her full tutorial HERE.

 

And last but not least Aliza takes us for a walk through her hometown with this fabulous mini album she created using the October 2014 kit!  For more tutorials and projects using the October kit please head on over to the Clique Kits blog!  Another highlight this month was our Designer in the Spotlight Kelly Purkey!  We were all so thrilled to have her share a little bit about herself on our blog!  If you missed the Q&A with Kelly you have to check it out HERE!

 

Of coarse no month would be complete without our Clique Kits Blog Share and this month was our biggest blog share ever!  Our subscribers and Varsity Team wowed us this month sharing their projects using this months kit.  In case you are not familiar with our monthly Blog Shares let me give you the details!  Each month our subscribers have the option to join the Clique Kits founders and Varsity Team in sharing what they have have created using the current Clique Kit.  There is always an optional challenge to go along with the blog share and a winner not only for one randomly chosen blog share hopper but also for one of our subscribers.  Subscribers participating in the blog shares are also awarded honor credits that can be used in the Clique Kits store!  Each blog share is 5 honor credits and each credit equals $1.00 and these credits can be rolled over!  Just a perk of being a Clique Kits subscriber!  We would love to see your name in our next blog share line up so subscribe today!

As I wrap up this post I want to leave you with what is coming up for November!  We are so excited to be bringing you our November kit HOMECOMING and subscriptions are now open and each new subscription will include a free paper pack from Studio Tekturek.  This kit is jam packed with a full paper collection from Lemon-Owl, vellum from Studio Calico and cut apart sheets from Websters Pages Nest collection.  The embellishments in this kit are not only beautiful but unique and this month we have a special treat for you with cut files from 17turtles!

We are so excited to be teaming up with 17turtles to bring you some custom cut files that coordinate beautifully with this months kit and also they will be sponsoring our November Challenge!  Stay tuned to the blog as the Varsity Team begins sharing projects using the November 2014 Kit Homecoming!  I leave you today with two promo codes that run from today until the end of November! Enjoy 25% in the Clique Kits shop using CKNOV25 and take 25% off your order at 17turtles with CK17TURTLES25.  Make sure to also stop by the 17turtles blog and Facebook page for more inspiration!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  We look forward to a creative November and we hope you will join us!  Enjoy your weekend!

 

 

Art Studio: Moonlight Misting with CDs

Hello All!  Wendy here to share up my first post for Clique Kits!

On a side note, I’m honored to be the Design Team Captain for Clique Kits and we have SO much planned in this first Clique Kits design team term.  We are packing lots of amazing product and planning lots of techniques for you too!

I have a passion for mixed media and I’ve always had the artistic bone to dabble with paint. So, with my first post here on the Clique Kits blog I wanted to bring you a fun technique with using something you can probably find around your house (or in your car).

Now in the days of the highest tech of the latest phones and mp3, CDs are becoming perhaps quite obsolete in your playlist.  I know I transferred all my CDs to my iPod that I use on Bluetooth in my vehicle.  So, I have no need for all the CDs left behind…until now…so search your stash of scratched CDs and/or some you plan to trash and let’s create!  Shall we just call it creative recycling. Yes.

I wanted to have a moonlight effect to my layout as creating a page about New Orleans (aka ‘The Big Easy’).  So, immediately I thought to use the CD to create a ‘moon’ on my layout.

I chose to use a black cardstock as my base for a little extra pop to the white misting ink.  Lay down the CD on your cardstock.  Make sure to put a scrap piece of paper on the hole of the CD or your circle will have a hole in it after misting.

Mist away…and there you have your misted ‘moon’.  Allow to dry completely.

Now I am ready to embellish the rest of my page.

I used the skyline paper from Second City in the October kit as the central focus among the misted moon.  I hand cut the skyline from the pattern paper and attached to the cardstock with pop dots.  This little bit of dimension really pops the skyline away from the misted moon for more emphasis and interest to the page.

I love the October Afternoon letter stickers in the October kit.  They were the perfect simple lettering for the title work on my layout.

I’m on the Gulf Coast where Mardi Gras kicks into full swing early in the year.  I love looking at all the different masks and decor so intricately detailed for display.  I really wanted to capture the vibe of the ‘Masquerade Ball’ (perhaps with intention on the name of the October kit) typical of New Orleans and Gulf Coast in the celebration of Mardi Gras.

As a finishing touch, I used the perfect accent of blingy stars matched up as an October Add-On to the October monthly kit.  And that’s it!  A simple technique that can bring some pow-wow to your next project!

Now I know you are dying to go and find a CD to work some magical misting on your next project! Right?! Ha!

I hope you were inspired and enjoyed my project!

Supplies

Clique Kits Product | October ‘Masquerade Ball’ Kit (Paper:  Basic Grey – Second City – Kelly Purkey – Ashland #sec-4705; Letter Stickers:  October Afternoon – Daily Flash – Flash Alpha Nightfall ‘Shop Front’ #SS-1121; Sequins:  CK Exclusive).

Other | Cardstock, Spray Mist -White, Rubons.

Geek Lab: custom backgrounds

Hi everyone, it’s Danielle here with you today from the Geek Lab! As you probably know, each month you get some fabulous exclusive cut files with your kit. I’m a total cut file addict and I always try to get the max out of the cut files and not just using them as they were meant to be. Today I’m sharing with you how I like to make complete backgrounds with cut files.

Let me start with the triangle border cut file, which I used on the layout I’m sharing today. I fell in love with this triangle design right away and I knew it was perfect for my picture of the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco. I copied the border a couple times and placed two of them starting on the left edge of the paper and two on the right, as I didn’t want them to cover up the entire width of the paper.

I used white cardstock for my background and backed it up with the Ashland paper.

Of course it might be easier when I had cut out the borders with the Ashland paper and place them on the white cardstock, but for some reason I like this effect better. You just need to complete the design now by placing the white leftover pieces back into it. There for I place (don’t glue!) the borders back in the shapes to exactly know where to glue down the white pieces.

When every piece is in place, you take away the borders and your background is finished. At the end of this post you’ll find some more designs of backgrounds made with this month’s cut files, that you can easily create yourself.

 

And here’s my finished layout that I’ve made with this background.

What I love about these October Afternoon alpha’s is the two different sizes, especially with long titles. With this title I would never have enough A’s to do the title with only the bigger letters, so this is a great solution.

Besides the triangle background, I tried to continue the triangle theme throughout the entire layout. You can find them in the flair button, the paper behind the photo, the element stickers and also the Pinkfresh Studio wood veneer chevrons can be seen as triangles.

As promised here are some more examples of how to use the cut files as backgrounds. The first one is the same as I used above, but using it vertically.

For the second one I made a tribal background design, using the feathers.

The third one is made with the skyline border and all I did was melting two of them together and placing them at the bottom of the page. You have a great design for any city or skyline picture now.

And the last one is a background with the lightbulb cut files.

For all of these designs I just use the grid that you can select in the Silhouette software, I don’t measure anything perfectly. Have fun creating and I can’t wait to see what you will make with these background designs or with ones you design yourself

Thanks for stopping by!

 

 

 

 

 

October Designer in the Spotlight: Kelly Purkey

Clique Kits is so excited to share that today we have the one and only Kelly Purkey stopping by to connect with our friends and followers!  Kelly Purkey is the designer behind the amazing Basic Grey Second City Collection featured in the October kit Masquerade Ball. As soon as we saw this collection when it was released by Basic Grey, we knew it was going to find its way in to a Clique Kit! It has so many features that we fell in love with– the bold colors, the trendy patterns like cityscapes, Subway maps, and cool geometric patterns such as triangles we are loving these days! We also loved that it is not a ‘themed’ line for Halloween but can be used for fall and Halloween layouts among the many other possibilities!

Kelly Purkey has designed some amazing stamp sets for her own brand, Studio Calico, and Simon Says Stamp as well as paper and embellishments. She has been spotted teaching this class with last April’s Designer in the Spotlight Amy Tan on Big Picture Classes. We will be on the look out for more of her great products and collaborations in the future!

And now read on to learn a little more about this designer, traveler, and amazing woman!

Q: How did you get started as a designer for the scrapbooking industry? Have you worked for other companies besides Basic Grey?
A: My first job in the industry was working in the American Crafts offices. I was hired to be an in-house scrapbooker and transitioned to be a product designer. The first line I got to work on was Metropolitan, back in 2006. From there I did some freelance work and then was hired to be a product designer + education coordinator at Studio Calico. They were a small company back then and it was fun to see them grow. After two years there I decided to start my own brand and have been lucky to license products to BasicGrey, Simon Says Stamp, and an upcoming partnership with Hero Arts.

Q: Tell us a little about your process and where you find inspiration for your collections. How do you go from an idea to a finished paper and embellishment line? Are you involved every step of the way?
A: I love to travel and I think you can see that in my products. There’s been elements of travel in both of my BasicGrey lines and I get so much inspiration from going on new adventures. A lot of ideas start with things that stand out to me on Pinterest. I will send the graphic designers at BasicGrey pins that I think will be great elements in a collection and together we turn them into patterns or embellishments.

Q: Who would you say your influences are? Favorite scrapbooking designers? Graphic artists?
A: My favorite scrapbooker and good friend is Ali Edwards. I love her dedication to telling the different stories in her life, good and bad. She inspires me with how she uses products and although her pages are simple, they always have a twist of something fun using products in a cool way.

Q: Second City is a nickname for Chicago. Can you tell us the story behind the name for this collection?
A: Chicago is a city that I call home. I lived in Chicago for a few years after I graduated college and was living there when we started working on the line. I love that city.

Q: Where and when are you most creative? From your blog it’s clear that you love to travel. How do you manage to create on the go?
A: I am 100% a night owl. It’s really hard for me to get work done during the day so after dinner is when I really start to get to work and can be the most productive. When I’m traveling, I try to prepare a mini album to take along with me to work on. I take a lot of Instax photos when I travel and have also been taking my little Selphy printer to print photos from my phone while I’m traveling. It’s easy to bring just a few supplies like stamps, washi tape, and stickers to finish off an album.

Q: Three things people probably don’t know about you…
A: I am a horrible driver and haven’t had a car for the past seven years. My favorite city in the world is Barcelona. My middle name is MeeHyun, which is Korean for beautiful.

Q: Right now:
Wearing: sweaters, it’s turned fall here
Reading: Lena Dunham’s Not That Kind of Girl
Listening to: Taylor Swift’s Shake it Off (it’s so catchy!)
Eating: almonds, blue cheese, and spinach
Loving: Gilmore Girls on Netflix streaming

It has been a blast talking with Kelly Purkey! We are super grateful she took time out of her busy schedule designing and globe trotting to spend a few minutes with the Clique! Please leave some love here in the comments and don’t forget to follow the Clique Kits Blog so you won’t miss out on any of the inspiration or future features with your favorite designers and scrap-lebrities! You can connect with KP here:

Website: http://www.kellypurkey.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kellypurkeyproducts
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kellypurkey
Instagram: https://instagram.com/kellypurkey

Click.Connect.Create.

Adding Sari Cloth to layouts

Happy Monday ya’ll!  It’s Jody hanging out in the Art Studio and I’m very excited to be back on the Clique Kits blog sharing a layout I created with our fabulous October kit, Masquerade Ball!  The colors in this kit really inspired me to be bright & bold, which is way outside my comfort zone. When I saw all the purple in this fabulous Second City paper line by Basic Grey, I immediately thought of our daughter Sari’s first dance recital a couple of years ago.  The song with “Wild Child” and her outfit was purple leopard print and totally wild!  Here’s my layout and tips for creating with the gorgeous add-on ~ Recycled Silk Sari Stripes!

Did you happen to catch my daughter’s name??  Sari, which is pronounced SAY-REE, similar to Sarah with an “E” sound at the end.  So she’s not to be confused with the lovely Recycled Silk Sari Stripes in our School Store lol!

I also added a large smattering of purple, yellow and black sequins to add some more texture to the layout.  I love using them on a variety of projects.  I find one of the best ways to attach them is using one of my go-to adhesives by Scrapbook Adhesives, DOTZ, which are similar to your commonly called ‘glue dot.’  These babies are sticky to the max!!

At first, I didn’t really know how I wanted to use the Sari Stripes on a layout.  They’re just beautiful and bold!  I decided the best way for me to use them on this layout is to add them in layers just like I do small pieces of paper or die cuts.  To make it easy to add layers in my layouts and cards, I always position my adhesive towards the middle of my piece to be adhered down.  This leaves plenty of room along the edges of my photo, patterned paper, etc. for me to tuck other embellishments behind.  To actually adhere the Sari Stripes, I tucked them where I wanted them and used my Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher to staple them right down.  This creates an interesting, dimensional and texture packed project!  Check out some close-ups!

Alright, now that you’ve seen these fabulous Recycled Sari Stripes up close, I encourage you to try them on a project!  You get 5 feet of each purple, gold, green, aqua, and red for only $2.50!!  That’s a steal!

Don’t forget to about the Clique Kits October Challenge!  Fancy Pants is this October’s sponsor and they have a great prize for one lucky challenge participant!  You can check that out and link your projects to win HERE!  Until next time friends ….

Click. Connect. Create.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yearbook: Unexpected Moments

Happy Tuesday Everyone! Can you believe tomorrow is October 1st? How did that happen?

Today I’m going to share a layout I created with the October Kit – Masquerade Ball. I love all the bright orange and purples in this kit. They are perfect for every day pictures and you could even mix them with some Halloween embellishments or a different paper line and scrapbook those Halloween memories! I just love how versatile the kit is when it come to themes. This is actually something the Clique gals consider when creating a kit, versatility!

I played around with the orange elements for this layout. One reason I did this was because my little nephew who is sleeping in this photo, LOVES orange. It’s his favorite color.

Photo Op: Those silly moments when something unexpected happens. My Mom & I took my nephew shopping and he fell asleep before we even got to the first store. So we took turns going shopping. When my mom was in Costco, I took this picture of my sleeping nephew and me while waiting in the car. It seems like such a silly moment, but I loved this moment of him just crashing in the car before getting to the first location. Though we did say the word “Cake” and he was awake.

I layered products on this layout. I also used some of the stickers and those great flair pieces that are included in this kit. I added different arrow elements pointing at Colin to bring focus to him.  I also used the 3×4 journal cut-apart from BasicGrey that says “I absolutely Love this” and I cut the top portion to create the heart curves.

Below you will also see a green pocket. I love the little pockets in the kit. They are neutral to make them one of a kind! I sprayed one with green ink and stamped “Rise & Shine” on it. I then placed a DIY tag with my journaling inside of it.

I also adore the alpha set in this kit! It is awesome to have a variety. I decided to sew these on the page with my sewing machine. I kept the tails of the thread longer for an extra element of texture on the layout.

Thank you for joining me today! I hope you are inspired to take photos of those little moments this week! Maybe something that happens often or something that is unique to the moment. Capture those memories to enjoy and share later.

If you love our kits, come on and join us! We are starting subscriptions in November 2014. International subscribers welcome!

Have a Scrap Happy day!

Art Studio: Masquerade Ball Kickoff!

Hi there and thanks for stopping by the Art Studio this lovely fall Sunday! I am super excited to be kicking off our October Kit Reveal Party showing my first layout using Masquerade Ball. This is a layout reflecting my new found keep-it-simple style which is made even easier by having a mojo box delivered to my doorstep once a month!

To create this layout I started out with American Crafts solid white textured cardstock which I can’t have enough of in my stash. You can have some added to your kit very inexpensively from the school store. I used some of the Basic Grey Second City ephemera from the kit. I also used one of the Clique Kits exclusive 4 x 6 cards included in the kit as a matte for my photo. I just love the rich colors in this kit.

This kit also includes 4 awesome die cut files to use over and over! I used the feather die cut in this layout cut from some of the Second City patterned paper and a piece of 6 x 6 paper from the My Mind’s Eye Jubilee collection also carried in the Clique Kits store. I love the fact that 6 x 6 pads come with so many papers and so many designs- a whole collection- even if they are small. It makes me feel more free to experiment with them for things like die cuts. I don’t feel like I am wasting a lot of money if a cut doesn’t work out or I decide to try a different pattern.

Last but not least, I still have 3 more things to highlight in this post! First, I love the black and gold twine in this kit. It is from a hip website called Knot & Bow that sells “a carefully curated collection of modern, nostalgic paper goods and supplies” featured in Martha Stewart Living and even on Oprah! Clique Kits was very excited to include it in our October Kit. Second, after laying out this page, I felt something was missing. So I pulled out some mixed media paint from Art Anthology. I chose to use the color orchid from the “velvet” paint line. It is so smooth and creamy- hence the name. It contains an acrylic gel medium mixed in already so it has a thicker body and dries somewhat glossy. After including chalkboard paint in the September Kit we heard from friends and fans that the Clique would love to see even more mixed media supplies in the kits and store. How about you? We love to get feedback from our followers and as we grow we incorporate your ideas!

Finally, I have to credit the online shop I Heart Studio (Wilna Furstenberg’s website) for my brushstroke title die cut. I cut my title from solid black cardstock for maximum contrast against my white background. You can get one also totally free! And while you are there, look around at all the amazing possibilities to make your layouts beautiful.

I know that those of you who are already subscribers are counting down to October 3-5th when Masquerade Ball is shipping. As of now we are sold out and highly recommend that if you are even considering subscribing you don’t hesitate to sign up now to start with the November Kit!

Click.Connect.Create.

-xGia