Till The Cows Come Home

Happy Thursday crafty friends!  I am just loving Eyelet Outlet's latest brads!  Today I'm bringing you a real fun and easy card with our new Cow Brads.

I love how realistic looking these guys are and I wanted to put them in a realistic scene, so I downloaded this beautiful pasture photo from FreeImages.com called "Lonely Tree."  

After uploading the photo to Cricut Design Space, I attached my sentiment directly to the photo and for some whimsy and dimension, I added this cute ranch gate from Cricut's Country Fair cartridge.  

If you're in or around York, Pennsylvania this weekend, come on by the Heirloom Rubber Stamp Show and pick up some amazing products from Eyelet Outlet's booth or visit us on the web at EyeletOutlet.com.  

Down on the Farm

Have you seen the awesome new brads in the Eyelet Outlet Fall Release? There are some really great ones this time, and I confess that the series of farm animals are some of my (Lauren's) favorites. There are Roosters, Cow and Goat Brads, and Pig and Sheep Brads. There's even a cool Truck Brad that coordinates pretty well and of course we already had Ducks and Chickens (and Eggs!) and a bunch of other Animal Brads so the possibilities are pretty endless. I stuck with just the farm animals this time, though, and made a set of Artist Trading Cards.

I love the smaller size of ATC's. They are typically 2.5x3.5" ...the size of standard playing cards. In fact I've used some old playing cards as the base on which to build these.

I also like that ATC's are often created as a series of related cards, because you can choose one set of supplies, but make a bunch of different ideas.

For each of the cards in the farm series I've featured one of the new Farm Animals inside a vintage slide mount, then added them to a playing card covered in torn bits of ledger and map paper, as well as bits of dictionary pages with animal definitions on them.

I've added strips of Red Dot Washi and Skinny Gold Pattern Tape as accents.

Finally I used my old school Dymo Labeler to create an appropriate farm animal pun for each card: "Legendairy" for the Cow Brad, "Fowl Play" for the Rooster and Chicken, "No Kidding" for the Goat, "Sheep Thrills" for the Sheep and "Hogs and Kisses" for the cute Pigs.

I hope you'll be inspired to try out a smaller format like ATC's; and be sure to remember that Eyelet Outlet Brads are the perfect accents for this size!

Lauren Bergold

can be found here on Wednesdays

on her own blog the rest of the week,

and at Jingle Belles-- with Stephanie-- every Friday! 

March of the Toys

So many of the Eyelet Outlet brads are perfect for realistic cards ... but today, I'm looking at my brad collection through the eye of creating my own Toy Story.

I started with March of the Toys Designer Paper from the Carta Bella Toy Box Collection and then created my own Toy Box Parade.  I started with a few pieces of Building Block Washi Tape to help ground the parade (remember you can click on the pictures to see a larger view).

Next I went through my entire brad stash and pulled out any that I thought would be found in a Toy Box.  

I added a winter sled (one of the new Fall Brads), a fun little convertible car (doing a wheelie for my brother), a motorcycle, cartoon fish, a stuffed giraffe, a fun Monster, a Toy Army Man ... and of course some building blocks.

I finished with a dump truck (one of our favorite toys because we could play in the dirt and rocks), another wheelie car, a stuffed lion and round brads for some bouncing balls.

I had so much fun creating my card, there will likely be more toy-themed designs in my future.

Products used:

• Building Block Washi Tape
• Building Block Brads
• Winter Sled Brads (New in the store)
• Army Men Brads
• Fun Fish Brads
• Monster Brads
• Car Brads
• Baby Animal Brads
• Motorcycle Brads
• Truck Brads
• 8mm Summer Brad Mix

Did you know we have a Pinterest Board to showcase Eyelet Outlet Design Team Creations?

You can visit me in blogland at Ingenious Inkling,

and you can find Lauren & I making holiday cards

all year long at Jingle Belles

Oh the Move!

Today, I am featuring the little red pickup Truck Brad that was released by Eyelet Outlet this fall.

It is a sweet little brad that can be used to encourage others and bring a smile to their face!

Paired with the Sun & Cloud brads and Pine Tree brads,

you can create a scene!  

Keep the engines revving by adding this pickup truck brad with an old map.

Mark the spot with a bling heart...

and you'll make someone's heart go...zing!

Truck on over to pick up your own package of truck brads, pine trees and suns!

(And remember to pick up a few more rolls of washi tape!)

October 20-21, 2017 in Sacramento, CA!

Thanks for driving by today!

Dawn Mercedes, of Sunnyside Up

Give Thanks

It's Kim from Katydid Cards today!

I've wanted to use the Leaf Brads to make a fall-themed or Thanksgiving card for some time, but there are so many other goodies to work with, I'm just getting around to it now.  You still have plenty of time to get these leaves if you want to make a card like this for a Thanksgiving or Fall card.  There are a number of other leaf brads, quicklets, ribbon and washi in the store as well.

I decided to make a shaker card with these brads.  I immediately thought of a window.  It's so beautiful to look out the window on the autumn day and see the show Mother Nature puts on for us.
To do this, I snipped the brad prongs off the back and flattened any residual metal with the flat end of my paper piercer.  To ensure a nice smooth surface so the leaves would shake properly, I also added a dot of Glossy Accents to the back...worked like a charm! 

I created the tree background by using a digital stamp in brown on a sky blue background.  Then I added my window over it, with acetate covering the back.  I attached it using mounting tape to allow plenty of room for the leaves to move.

And here's what the leaves look like when they've all fallen to the ground.  Get the rake!

I created the greeting using another digital stamp, cut in a scalloped oval.  A slightly larger oval was used as a mat.  I covered it with Glitter Gold Washi Tape.  I also covered a strip of cardstock with the same washi tape and ran it through a Paper Crimper.  Who knew it would crimp so beautifully.

I used another digital stamp for the inside.  That panel was placed on a larger mat rimmed with more washi tape.  A perfect complement to the glitter on the front!

And speaking of gratitude and appreciation, I just want to tell you how much I appreciate you spending time here!  Thank you!

Kim from Katydid Cards

Who provided the inspiration for these cards?  Katy did!

Swept Off My Feet!

Halloween card-making is so much fun!  The colors are so bold and quirky.  Silly, punny and even downright corny can work for Halloween when it would fall flat for other holidays.  On top of all that, it is just fun to stretch your non-holiday stamps and supplies and use them in unexpected ways.

I've been sewing clothing for a Colonial era historical reenactment, and so I guess petticoats and bumrolls are partly what inspired today's card!  I looked through all of my stamps and found an image and sentiment that I thought would go with these witch's legs brads, and then sketched a bodice and some poufy purple hair to go along with them. 

The witch's bum is a small piece of tulle stitched and gathered and knotted, then positioned so that the broomstick barely peeks through from underneath...hopefully it looks like she is comfortably seated and flying off into the night. Of course, her little black kitten had to go along for the ride!

Bright purple glitter washi tape frames the design, echoed in her glittery purple hair and the colors of the designer paper bodice.  

Certainly silly and sure to bring some Halloween smiles and snickers (pun intended!)! Have a great weekend!

Seasonal!

Who is a fan of Fall with all it's colors and textures?

Eyelet Outlet has a great selection of autumnal brad.

Check out our online store and stock up!!

Supplies:

Leaf brads

Mini Leaf brads

Acorn brads (retired)

Squirrel brads (retired)

The weekend, we'll be in Akron, OH!

Come visit us and pick up our 12 new brads!!

You'll love them!!

Persistence

Good Morning crafty friends!  I'm crazy about all of Eyelet Outlet's new Fall 2017 Brad Collection, but the Pipe Brads have to be my favorite.   The spigot is amazing in its detail and I couldn't wait to create this card with it!

I think it's clear to see that when you order your Pipe Brads, you'll need to get some of our awesome Tear Drop Bling to go with them!  They come in 3 colors and make perfect sparkling water drops, don't you think?  This card also features some of our beautiful Brick Patterned Washi Tape.  

Thanks for coming by today and be sure to hop on over to Eyelet Outlet and see all of our new Fall 2017 Collection!

The Cutest Trick-or-Treaters on the Block!

Here's a shocking true confession: Until recently, I (Lauren) have not made Halloween cards every year. I think it was just because I didn't ever seem to have the right ingredients; by which I mean a selection of Eyelet Outlet Halloween Brads. Because now that I do, I ♥LOVE♥ making Halloween cards, and this one might be my favorite so far: 

When I was lucky enough to win my choice of Pretty Pink Posh stamp sets (via the Summer Blog Hop at Coffee Loving Cardmakers) I chose Holiday Pals because I knew they'd look adorable dressed up for Christmas with Eyelet Outlet Antler Brads and Elf Hats. But when I was looking through my Halloween stash, I realized they'd be equally adorable dressed up to Trick-or-Treat! From left to right I've given them: Witch Hats, Small Eyes, Mustache Brads, Witch Legs, Men's Hats and Eye Glass Brads. 

My top tip for adding brads to small fussy-cut creatures is to add the brads BEFORE you cut the critters out; that way you can use the hidden bits of cardstock as extra support! For example, I cut around these guys' HATS, rather than just their heads. I also suggest turning the brads a bit, if necessary, to hide them better behind the critters. However, if necessary, you can trim the brad legs with sturdy craft scissors. If bits of the brads can be seen through-- as in the case of the Eye Glass Brad on the Bulldog and the Mustache Brad on the Bunny-- use a pen that coordinates with your background to color the part that can be seen, so that you do not have to trim INSIDE the image to make it fit! In the case of the awesome Witch Leg Brads, they were just slightly too long for Miss Kitty, so I trimmed them with my sturdy craft scissors, and attached them to the front of the cat with gluedots.

All that was left to do is build a scene for the sweet Trick-or-Treaters to inhabit. I used patterned paper for the sky and the moon, Wide Brick Washi for the wall, Glitter Black Tape for the pavement, then filled in with Pumpkins, Kittens and Bat Brads to add a little more seasonal color!

Need more spooktacular inspiration? Check the blog each day to see what the Designers are up to, or click the Halloween tag to see all of the seasonal designs so far!

Lauren Bergold 

would happily give out pet-safe goodies, 

if cute bunnies, cats and dogs came trick-or-treating to her house!

Cool Cats

There are cute new Kitten Brads in the Eyelet Outlet store to go with the Cat Brads.  They both go perfectly with the Wide Cat Washi Tape.

My first card features this week's CAS(E) this Sketch!  I highlighted the Grey and White Cat in the Washi Tape with a punched circle, since he reminds me of my sister's cat Simon.

I stamped a fun kitty sentiment from Charmed Cat 2 by Paper Smooches and added one of the black cat brads to finish the design.

For the next card, I covered my entire card base with the Wide Cat Washi Tape.

I highlighted the same cute little grey and white kitty, but this time I added a black and a white kitten brad as embellishments, together with another Paper Smooches Charmed Cat 2 sentiment.

If you're a cat lover, Eyelet Outlet has lots of fun designs to stoke your creativity.

Products used:

• Cat Brads
• Kitten Brads
• Cat Washi Tape - Wide

Did you know we have a Pinterest Board to showcase Eyelet Outlet Design Team Creations?

You can visit me in blogland at Ingenious Inkling,

and you can find Lauren & I making holiday cards

all year long at Jingle Belles

Pink and Boo-tiful

Having fun creating with Eyelet Outlet Ghost Washi Tape for my Pink Halloween card.

There are lots of fun Halloween embellishments and tape in the Eyelet Outlet Store ... and even some no-calorie Candy Corn Brads.

Did you know we have a Pinterest Board to showcase Eyelet Outlet Design Team Creations?

You can visit me in blogland at Ingenious Inkling,

and you can find Lauren & I making holiday cards

all year long at Jingle Belles

All My Ducks in a Row

Hi.  Kim from Katydid Cards here with a card made using the adorable Duck Brads.

I have several cards in mind using these, but the idea for this card just made me smile so, of course, I made it first!  I started with the digital patterned paper and matched it with Tangerine Tango and Bashful Blue cardstocks by Stampin' Up.  If you like them, get them while they are still available...they are deeply discounted now. 

I wanted to give the plaid a bit of dimension, so I scored it on all the orange lines...it was subtle, but it did the job.  Then I sponged the edges of the plaid panel before attaching it to a larger mat.  The panel with the ducks looked a bit too plain, so I embossed that with the Argyle embossing folder.

Looks like your ho-hum average card, but upon closer look, you see the panel with the ducks is actually a flap which opens to say this:

And the statement continues on the inside.  Sad but true.

That wraps it up except to mention I added some yellow and white Baker's Twine to the end of the tab.

Kim from Katydid Cards

Who provided the inspiration for these cards?  Katy did!