February CP Guest Designer :: Carson Riutta

I started paper crafting almost five years ago when I met my soon to be sister-in-law. She is a wonderfully talented card maker who showed me the ropes and became my paper crafting companion. I love the accessibility of the hobby and that it allows me to collect so many beautiful bits and pieces. When I'm not crafting, I spend almost all my time with my 2 year old son and lovely husband exploring the Seattle area and all it has to offer. The area is still relatively new to us, so every outing is an adventure. You can keep up with all my latest projects and adventures on my blog at Pineandplum.com.

My all time favorite paper crafting technique is to create my own sentiments with the computer and add them to the projects by printing a rub-on transfer onto a transparency. It sounds complicated, but once you have it set up, it just takes minutes to create the perfect sentiment. I used it below to create "Love Letters"

When I first saw the products in the Fourteen Collection, I was immediately drawn to the frames and knew I would be using those first. For this card, my inspiration came from the heart frame. I simply layered a couple of beautiful papers behind, used my favorite stitch to add some texture and then arranged a number of stickers and chipboard until the card came together. I punched the glitter heart out of AC Glitter Tape with a small heart punch to add just a small touch of glam.

I love the dimensional quality of the chipboard accents and I wanted to play that up with this next card. The Polaroid frame is one of my favorite pieces from the collection and I wish I had about ten more in my stash. Behind the frame I layered a very graphic large chevron paper with a very feminine floral paper and was surprised how well it worked. The design is pretty simple, but I think simple can often be very striking, so I did my best to keep this card clean. I did add a bit of subtle stitching around the frame, again for some texture.

My last project is an envelope book I created to hold all the love letters my husband has written over the years. these letters are mostly small notes and cards that needed to be corralled so as not to go missing. I love the idea of having them all in one place, available to read through should I need a little pick me up or a reminder of how much he loves me.

I went a little overboard embellishing the front of the book, so I tried to keep the inside clean and flat. I plan to use the insides of the front and back covers as a table of contents. The envelopes are numbered and I'm hoping to record the dates of the letters enclosed and the occasion for which they were written. I adore the stitched flags from the collection and am so pleased with how they look standing alone on the flap side of each envelope.