Video Archives

Folding Flap Sliding Box Tutorial for Silhouette

1 Comment / Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

I know so many of my posts these days are Silhouette tutorials. I hope that they are so helpful for those of you that are “making” with your machines.

This cute little box is created with an “envelope” folding flap. Here’s how to put it together.

1. Cut out the silhouette files. The main body of the box I cut out in white and the flap in kraft paper. The accent papers are in pink.

2.This box is double enforced—that is, I created it so that the sides of the box are stronger by doubling up the paper. So you have to fold all the score lines on the box and then glue down the extra flaps. Do this to all four flaps.

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3. Then put glue on the glue flaps and attach the sides of the box together to finish the box.

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4. To create the flap, glue down the accent pieces to the main flap. Be sure to match up the small, half circle notches on the accent paper and the flap.

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5. Fold the flap around the box and attach using the notch. You can use a clear sticker or use the notch to hold the flap together.

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And that’s it! There so many uses for this cute box from favor boxes, small gifts, or even as a card.

Happy creating!

Carina

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Star Decor Instructions for Silhouette

Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

I’ve had a lot of questions about my Metal Star Accents and in particular if I was going to make a base for this. So here they are! I have a 5 pointed star and a 6 pointed star made completely from paper! You can use the accents on them but will need to resize them to fit your star (The metal star accents were created to be used with a METAL CRAFT STAR that you can purchase from your local craft or scrapbooking store. They will need to be resized to fit on these paper stars.) If you are looking for links to all of these products, I have put them at the end of this post. You can also check out my Silhouette shop for more products like this.

Putting together these paper stars is pretty easy. You can, of course, sized down your star. The photo to the left shows you how large the star is if you cut it at it’s original size in the file. It requires a Cameo (12 x 12 papers) but if you size it down you could make a smaller star on your Portrait.

Here’s how to put it together:

1. Cut out five pieces of the same sized triangle shape on your machine for the 5 pointed star and six pieces of the 6 pointed star.

2. Fold at all the score lines. (Use the photo here as as guide).

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3. Glue the flap of the star and connect it to another point of the star.

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4. Continue adding points to the star until you come to the first point.

Note: If you plan on adding the metal star accents, I would do this at the 2nd step while the star is flat. You can use modge podge for a glossy look or simply use a hot glue gun, pop dots, or a glue stick to put on the metal star accents.

Hope you have fun making these!
Carina

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Travel Stories Album for Silhouette

3 Comments / Scrapbooking, Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

Watch the Travel Stories Album video for an introduction into my Carta Bella Paper line and how to put together the album using SVG files from my Silhouette Shop! The final size of this album is about 5.5 inches x 11 inches (with a few things pocking out like tabs and pages).

I am so excited about this album especially because I love some of the little add ons. In particular, I adore the filmstrips that go in this collection and plan on using them not just for the album but for lots of other projects.

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IMG_5764_1_web I hope you get a chance to play about with this paper line and/or the silhouette files! I also hope you have a GREAT excuse to make an album (aka, an amazing summer adventure perhaps?).

Happy Crafting!

Carina

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TravelStoriesDeepPocketAlbum TravelStoriesHalfPocketwithLayeredBracketNotes TravelStoriesHotAirBalloonLayoutAlbum TravelStoriesPhotoFilmStrips TravelStoriesSidePocketAlbum TravelStoriesTabbedAlbum

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3D Intricate Cutout Boxes for Silhouette

1 Comment / Scrapbooking, Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

3dlatticebirdbox These little intricately cut out boxes are one of my favorite projects right now! I can imagine them hanging in some overhead branches for a party or as little electric candle holders on a table. Any way you decide to use these, you will love the effect!

Here is the quick tutorial (and tips) for putting these intricate cutout boxes together.

1. Cut out the silhouette file. The main body of the box is about 2 inches deep, wide and tall. It fits on an 8.5 inch x 11 inch paper.

2. Fold all the score lines and glue all the flaps to create the main body of the box.

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3. Fold up all the “circle” pieces at the top of the box. For dimension, you can finger press the triangle piece at the top to give it some curvature. You can also create a straight box by folding all the triangle pieces flat and putting a ribbon through all the pieces at once. However, if you want the box to have dimension, “sew” the ribbon through each of the holes individually. Hint, fold UP the circles at the top. There will be slight gaps between the triangles once the ribbon is tied on.

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Other notes: This box can be scaled larger or smaller. Cut at a slower speed on your machine for to catch all the fine details. A sticker mat will also help the cutting process on these!

Hope you have fun making these!
Carina
(for all my silhouette designs, visit my silhouette store at http://www.silhouettedesignstore.com/?page=view-artist&artist_id=252689).

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Wiltshire Daisy Around the World Quilt Pattern—Free Pattern Download

1 Comment / Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Riley Blake, Sewing, Sewing Patterns, Stuff I Love, Tutorials, Wiltshire Daisy Fabric Line / carina

IMG_5413_1_web_blog The Wiltshire Daisy™ Around the World Quilt has been my Sunday sewing for quite a few weeks now. This is one of those quilts that it didn’t seem to matter how I photographed it, it still looked better in person than through the lens of my camera.

And I am SUPER excited to share with you a really great contest that I’m teaming up with Emily Taylor and Riley Blake for you to do!

First of all, everyone WINS because each of us has a free quilt tutorial for you to download. Mine is the Wiltshire Daisy Around the World Quilt and Block (scroll down to the bottom of the post). Riley Blake’s Tulip Chain Quilt and Emily’s Florabella Fancy Quilt are so adorable! To make it easy for you guys, for a short period of time, you can just go to the PatternJam site (click here) and download all three patterns at once.

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Second, we are throwing an amazing contest so that you can win the FABRIC TO MAKE YOUR QUILT AND $100 VISA GIFT CARD. I know, right?

Here’s what you get to do:

Go to PatternJam.com and customize the Floribella Fancy Quilt, Around the World Quilt, and/or Tulip Chain Quilt using the Emily’s Florabella, my Wiltshire Daisy, and/or Riley Blake’s Solids. It’s seriously so fun to do! There you will see instructions for making the quilt using the Pattern Jam software and you can pin it to the contest Pinterest board. The most pins wins the contest so make sure and spread the word and get people to pin your quilt!

Here are a few steps to help you if you want to enter:

1. Be a part of the Pinterest Board—http://love.patternjam.com/design-contest/
2. Go to PatternJam.com and register: https://patternjam.com/ by clicking on GET STARTED NOW.
3. Click on DESIGNER PATTERNS> Choose Either Around the World, Tulip Chain, or Fancy Florabella.
4. Once you have chosen a quilt, then choose FABRICS and choose either the Riley Blake Solids, Wiltshire Daisy, or Florabella fabric (or a mix of them).
5. Once you have designed a quilt, save it to your library. Click on MY ACCOUNT and you can see your library and PIN it from there.
6. Join the contest board here.

If you just want to download my Wiltshire Daisy Around the World Quilt, you can do that below:

The Pinterest Contest goes until April 24th! So go and make some fabulous quilts!
Carina

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Cute Animal Nesting Boxes for Silhouette

1 Comment / CRAFTS, Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

IMG_5153_1_web I know it’s been a lot of Silhouette posts on the blog lately so I promise to have some fabric and scrapbooking posts soon! This week’s releases for Silhouette are these darling little animal nesting boxes and layered gift card tags. Below is the tutorial for putting together these boxes. I create a lot of nesting boxes for my Silhouette Shop and generally they are all put together like the tutorial below.

Each svg files set comes with two boxes that nest together (the smaller one fits into the bigger one).

These make darling gifts, easter items, or fun spring decor (filled with candy!) for your home. When I finished making mine, my kids spent quite a bit of time just playing with them and stacking them.

To make these boxes, all you need is kraft paper, solid scrapbooking paper, pop dots (optional), glue (I use a hot glue gun and glue stick), and your cutting machine.

1. Cut out all your pieces on your machine. IMG_5099_1_web

2. Fold all the score lines on the boxes and lids. Put glue on the glue flaps (I used a hot glue gun for this) to put together each box and lid.

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3. Assemble the faces of the animals. Place black squares behind the eyes (all in the svg file), pink behind the cheeks, white behind the whiskers. Use a glue stick for this part. For the frog or any other animal that requires a separate “background”, glue the animal to the background with hot glue. Note: The chick’s feet are placed ON TOP of the face not as the eyes and cheeks are.

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4. Glue the ears or feathers to the top of the lid. Once these are glued on, glue the small strips of paper to the lid to cover the ears and other portions of the lid. Glue the assembled face piece and other accent papers to the box.

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5. Add the tail or any other accessories with pop dots or glue.

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And that’s it! Assembly does take some time but the end result is really darling. Charlie calls each set the ‘baby’ and ‘mommy.’ The animals ‘nest’ together so if you wanted to put a baby bunny in the mommy chick you could. The ears or feather simply fold down (there are score lines) when you place the baby in the mommy.

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I haven’t included instructions for the layered tags here because there are basic instructions for them in the description (they are simply cut out and adhered together with pop dots or glue).

Hope you are having wonderful spring weather! Craft on!
Carina

(Links will be provided when they become available in the silhouette store on March 30).

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Nesting Animal Boxes

nestingbunnyboxes nestingkittyboxes nestingchickboxes nestingfrogboxes

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Layered Gift Card Tags

bunnygiftcardtag butterflygiftcardtag gamecontrollergiftcardtag happybirthdaygiftcardtag ringsgiftcardtag tulipgiftcardtag

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Pop Dot Shadow Box Sliding Card for Silhouette

6 Comments / Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

IMG_5037_1_web I’ve been loving the last few weeks of projects I have made for my Silhouette Store. I managed to finally finish Gilmore Girls for the second time and catch up on Community while making this last batch of cards.

This week I’ve added more Shadow Box cards to the shop but these are (drum roll) sliding cards! (If you are looking for the folded cards tutorial, see the blogpost below).

These fabulous cards allow you to slide off the shadow box part of the card. You can write a message directly on the shadow box or a secret message on the sliding card behind the shadow box. They are easy to put together and SOOOO cute!

Here’s a little 19 second video so you can see how these little cards come together.

Here’s the tutorial:

1. Cut out all the pieces in your svg file.

2. (See below) Fold the sleeve piece that has a glue flap. Glue the flap to the opposite side of the sleeve together to create a place for the card to slip through.

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IMG_5014_1_web 2. Once the sleeve is glued together, use it as the base of your shadow box. Glue down any “colored” objects first to the layers. For example, center and glue the clouds on top of the cloud shapes. You can use pop dots for these as well. You can see in the elephant and giraffe example above I used pop dots on the animals but glued the clouds flat.

3. Use pop dots to layer the pieces so that the card piece with the thinnest outside layer is on top and the thickest at the bottom. Place pop dots on corners and middles to keep the card stable. (See photo in previous blogpost to see how I place the pop dots.)

4. Once the shadow box is finished, slide in the “card.” (See photo to the left.)

5. Glue the accent pieces to the outside of the card. (see below.)

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Helpful Tips:
+ For small or intricate cuts, I put my speed at 9 on my Silhouette Cameo instead of the typical 3. This is especially useful for the “baby” wording on the onesie card.

+ The bow on the cake card is not complicated. All you have to do is use the two score lines nearest the ends of the bow and pull them in to match to the middle score line. Use the tiny, thin piece to wrap the center of the bow. I used hot glue to make sure everything dried quickly and held together nicely. I also placed the bow on the second tier of the shadow box.

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+ You can use any color cardstock for these shadowbox cards. I’ve used kraft paper in all my examples but white, black, gray, and any solid color would work wonderfully for a unique take on these cards.

+ These cards are sized for a gift card. You will need to tape in the gift card or hot glue the sliding card portion to create a pocket.

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Hope you have fun making these and have someone special to send them to!

Happy Cutting!—Carina

(Links will be available on March 23, 2015)

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Pop Dot Shadow Box Folded Card for Silhouette

19 Comments / Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

The new shadow box cards I have in my silhouette shop are amazingly simple to put together. Instead of glue flaps, the shadow is simply created by pop dots. Pop dots can be found at your local craft store for about $2.99-$3.99. The effect you get with this little guys is fantastic!

All of the cards are meant to fit into an A2 envelope with the finished size being about 4 inches x 5.5 inches. It is a little smaller than the traditional A2 sized card (4.25 inches x 5.5 inches) but it is to compensate for the size of the shadow box and helps get it into the envelope.

All of my cards are FOLDED, which means you can place a message on the inside of the card. Of course, you can also forgo the pop dots and glue all of the layers down for a cute layered effect without the shadow.

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So here are the simple instructions:

1. Cut out all the pieces in your svg file.

2. Glue down any “colored” objects first. For example, center and glue the bunny to the piece with the bunny shape. You can use pop dots for these as well. In my examples, I glued them flat (without shadow).

3. Use pop dots (see image below) to layer the pieces so that the card piece with the thinnest outside layer is on top and the thickest at the bottom. Place pop dots on corners and middles to keep the card stable.

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And that’s it! Simple but elegant! Look for more of these designs this coming week!

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Accordion Number Album Instructions for Silhouette

3 Comments / Digital Diecuts, Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

Today I released several new silhouette designs in my shop. Here are the instructions for the Accordion Number Album. I love this album because you can mix and match it so many ways and it makes an amazing gift. It is fairly simple to put together.

1. Cut out all the pieces in the file. You will want to cut out three of the folded pieces with the glue flap and one of the cover. If you want to place a “color” (in my case white) behind the number, use scrap pieces of paper and simply place behind the bracket numbers.

2. Glue the number brackets to each of the “pages.” Glue a plain bracket to the front cover. Each page will hold two numbers (1 + 2, 3 + 4, 5 + 6). If you plan on putting a photo between numbers, cut out six of the template instead and only place one number on each page.

3. Fold at all the crease lines of the cover and pages.

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4. Place glue on the flaps of each of the pages and attach the pages to each other so that the numbers are in order.

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5. Finally glue the flap attached to the number “1” page to the cover.The flap will fit perfecting in the center of the cover.

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And that’s it! Add photos or journaling for a simple and elegant album!

Happy cutting!
Carina

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Words of Love Banner and Video

Carta Bella Paper, DIE CUT PROJECTS (SILHOUETTE & CRICUT), Holiday Projects, Scrapbooking, Video / carina

It’s been since before Christmas since I posted. The first of the year is always so crazy. This year I was headed to Atlanta for my new company MiniLou. It was my first year of missing CHA in long time.

Soooo, to introduce my first line to come out this year, I put together a little video. Words of Love is my Valentine’s line and it should be hitting your local scrapbooking store this month. It’s a classic red and black line with a bit of pink and gray.

I hope you enjoy the video! I am having issues with my video uploading to YouTube blurry so I am working on getting an HD version of this video up soon.

If you want the free download banner template, you can download it here:

BANNER TEMPLATE FREE DOWNLOAD

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Open When Envelopes—Last Minute Meaningful Homemade Gifts

5 Comments / Holiday Projects, Scrapbooking, Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

Last week I came out with a brand new series of envelopes called OPEN WHEN. It’s a wonderful meaningful gift, and I am making a set of envelopes with box for Josh for Christmas. If you want to see the instructions and everything in the series, go here: https://carinagardner.com/silhouette/carinas-open-when-series/. If you want to look at the current printables for this series, go here: http://www.carinagardnershop.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=56&Itemid=2

(Photo to the left is one of the printables from the Open When: You Are Bored. You just staple onto the card a piece of bubble wrap.)

This post is just to show you a few examples of what I am doing (although to be honest, I’m not done yet). I love that you can make a set of envelopes for someone and put A LOT into the envelope or just a note. Really, the most important part (in my opinion) is the hand written note. Every single one of the envelopes I’m making for Josh includes a note and a photo. I also included some of the printables, a treat, and anything else I think will be fun for him to open.

You’ll notice that I have included label printables in the shop. That’s because I know that not all of you have a diecutting machine. To be honest, the labels are a lot easier (and quicker) to use if you are throwing together this project (last minute, right?). The labels can be put on any A2 sized envelope and you can just fill them. It’s the perfect last minute solution!

(Photo to the right is from the Open When: You Are Happy printable set. The svg file from for the envelope can be found here.)

The Open When projects I’ve seen usually are given in sets of 10. But I think you should be able to include as little or as many envelopes as you want. You could even coordinate them and give more envelopes out during the year (for example, Christmas 5 envelopes, Valentine’s 5 envelopes, and your anniversary 5 envelopes).

For Josh, I selected 10 envelopes and am using my basic 10 envelope box. I love the prompts in the printables I’m hoping they will help me think of things that are special to just the two of us (and by the way, each of the descriptions in the printables have suggestions for other things you can put in your envelope).

Every “Open Now” gift should have an “Open Now” Envelope. Truthfully, I designed the printables (shown below) so that I could use all of the cards in any of the envelopes. It’s sort of “basic pack.” I’m planning on throwing some funny photos of the two of us from 2014 into this envelope—kind of as a way to celebrate the year. The “pie chart” card I’m going to write all of the things we did in 2014.

I’m so in love with my printable set for “Open When: You Can’t Fall Asleep.” One card allows you to staple a piece of dried lavendar to it (or any other scent you want). The silly cutouts are more of a joke then something the person has to do, but I like adding the popcycle sticks in the envelope just in case they do end up cutting out the animals.

The “Open When: You Want to Reminisce” is going to be the most fun to put together for Josh. I’m using all the printables as prompts but spending most of my time gathering up photos and things that we did together for the last 14 years.

You’ll notice that I’m slowly adding printables to the shop as I make them for myself. If you decide to do this project (for Christmas, a birthday, Valentine’s, and Anniversary, or whenever!), make sure and check my Silhouette instruction page because it has updated links to all the envelopes, boxes, and printables that go to this collection to see what is new!

Hope you are being creative and having a great time doing it this holiday season! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Carina

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Family Ornament Silhouette Instructions

1 Comment / Family, Holiday Projects, Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

5photofamilyornament Today I have a series of 3-D cut out ornaments coming out in my Silhouette Store. I love a great homemade gift, and these are perfect for that! They are so simple to put together and I love that you can customize the ornaments (or choose one) that fits your family size (The Photo Family Ornaments come in 3 sides, 4 sides, 5 sides, and 6 sides). Here are some of the instructions and helpful hints for putting together these ornaments.

Several Sided Photo Family Ornament Instructions
(Silhouette Store links: 3 Photo Family Ornament, 4 Photo Family Ornament, 5 Photo Family Ornament, 6 Photo Family Ornament)
1. Cut out the shape and then print/cut photos that are a little bigger than the windows in the ornament. Tape photos to the wrong-side of the ornament windows.
2. Crease/fold along all the dotted lines.
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3. Place glue on the tab and adhere it to the opposite side of the ornament.

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4. Use twine or ribbon to “sew” up the bottom and top of the ornaments. I like starting by placing the ribbon through the front hole of the ornament, then “whip stitching” by coming through the back of the hole and then placing the ribbon through the FRONT of the next flap/hole. Once you have gone through every hole with your twine, pull tight and tie a knot. You can leave one string long to hang the ornament or cut both strings short.

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Block Ornament Instructions
(Silhouette Store links: 4 Photo Block Family Ornament, Christmas Tree Block Ornament, Star Blog Ornament)
1. Cut out the shape and then print/cut photos that are a little bigger than the windows in the ornament. If you are making the photo ornament, tape photos to the wrong-side of the ornament windows. Add embellishments in layers to the ornament. (Pop dots are also a fun accessory.)
2. Crease/fold along all the dotted lines.
3. Place glue on the tab and adhere it to the opposite side of the ornament.
4. Place a piece of ribbon through the bottom and top of the box in the hols provided. Tie a knot at the bottom to keep the ribbon in place.

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Nativity Ornament Instructions
(Silhouette Store link: Nativity 4 Sided Ornament)
1. Cut out the shape and then print/cut photos that are a little bigger than the windows in the ornament.
2. Crease/fold along all the dotted lines.
3. Place glue on the tab and adhere it to the opposite side of the ornament.
4. Fold up the bottom of the ornament, placing glue on each flap to adhere the bottom of the box together.
5. Use twine or ribbon to “sew” up the top of the ornaments. I like starting by placing the ribbon through the front hole of the ornament, then “whip stitching” by coming through the back of the hole and then placing the ribbon through the FRONT of the next flap/hole (see photo above). Once you have gone through every hole with your twine, pull tight and tie a knot. Leave one string long to hang the ornament.

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25 Days of December Silhouette Album

3 Comments / Carta Bella Paper, Digital Diecuts, Holiday Projects, Scrapbooking, Tutorials / carina

Every Christmas I try to tell myself that THIS year it’s going to be more about family, love, and giving. But like all the rest of you, I find myself completely caught up with the busyness that consumes my time during the month of December. December happens to be a crazy time for designers ON TOP OF the usual craziness that happens during the holidays. For me, work revolves around CHA, new releases for first quarter, and the Atlanta GiftShow (for MiniLou). Despite all of this, I’m going to try (once again) to slow down during the month of December. And with you as my witness (See! I’m holding myself accountable to you!), I’ve decided to get on top of things THIS month to make December a little more cherry and bright.

First off, I already ordered my Christmas Cards (I think a sigh of relief escaped as I wrote that). They arrive December 2nd, and I plan on getting all my labels done this coming week. Yes, it is a relief to already have them printed, and no, I am NEVER this early. Second, I’m going to get all my holiday shopping done in November. Yes, you heard me. And no, I don’t have a plan for this yet. Any tips would be helpful!!! (Leave comments below.) And FINALLY, I went ahead and designed myself an entire 25 Days of December Album (that you can purchase in my silhouette shop), that I have already cut out and put together.

I have never done an album like this before, but have ALWAYS wanted to. I designed all of the albums and accessories to be super easy to cut out and use.

This year, I’m doing the 5 x 7 Album, but I also have available the 5 x5 Album and the 5 x 7 Horizontal Album. The 5 x 7’s are meant to fit a 4 x 6 photo per day. The 5 x5 Album is meant for instagram photos and fits a 4 x 4 photo beautifully (I love to use Persnickety Prints for my 4 x 4 photos).

Each album also comes with some different accessories. I plan on using the extra pocket pieces and fun shapes to add journaling and some of our holiday photos (and to stash my Christmas Card).

So if you are making this album, it’s pretty easy to put together, but here are a few hints to help you out:

1. You will need to cut 5 of each tabbed piece. That will give you 25 pages—one for each day. Cut one or two of the cover piece (no tab). I only cut one and used a pocket accessory for my back page.

2. Add as many accessory pages as you like. You can see in mine that I elected to put a few in the front and back of the album. Because I’m making this a “stress-free, expectation-free” album, I didn’t want to throw in pages that I then felt obligated to fill. However, I do think it would be pretty to throw in an extra shape or pocket page between each tab so that it goes to a specific day.

3. If you are looking to have this album “pre-made” in time for Christmas or you are making it for someone else, I recommend only adding “scraps” to the left-side of the page and leaving the tabbed side for the photo. (Like the second photo at the very top.)

4. Have fun or go simple with your paper choices. On mye tabbed sheets I elected to use kraft paper just because it was easy. I cut each tabbed sheet on an 8.5 inch x 11 inch piece of paper (one fits per sheet). I inked the edges a little bit to give it some dimension. (FYI, I use my newest Carta Bella collection Christmas Time for this book).

3. Glue is good. A stapler is better. ESPECIALLY on the pocket pages. The folds are pretty self-explanatory on the pocket pages. Once you fold them all in, I like to take a stapler to it. It adds some “scrappiness” to the album and helps secure the pocket in place. I’ve also used hot glue and a glue stick. They work great as well. Note: For the Mini Pockets, you may want to add a couple of extra staples right to the MIDDLE of the page to separate out the two pockets.

4. Use ribbon, twine, or O-rings to keep it together. If your album gets REALLY thick, you may want to consider O-rings (you can usually find these at an office supply shop). I wanted to keep my album “unprecious” and added different little bits of ribbon and twine. I want the kids to feel like they can handle and play with this album all through the season and beyond. Which brings me to my next point…

5. Have a plan. Especially when it comes to the photo part. Are you going to print at home or send out your photos? Are you going to print daily or weekly? Are you going to journal (or will it stress you out?). My plan this year is to print everyday at the end of the day. So I have a pack of 4 x 6 photo papers ready for December. As for journaling, this year the album is the “family” album. That means, I plan on having the kids write things they are thankful for or are doing for Christmas. Josh and I will add notes too. If you are doing a personal, reflective album, yours will be so different from mine.

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And that’s it! I hope you have fun making your book and you get to spend some time really showing off how wonderful the holiday season really is! If you are on instagram, you can follow me at @carinagardner. Make sure and hashtag #25dod (25 Days of December) so that we can all share in your journey in December!

Happy scrapping!
Carina

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25 Days of December Silhouette Album Read More »

RBD Post Quilt Market Designer Blog Tour: Carina Gardner

23 Comments / Fabric, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Primrose Garden Fabric Line, Quilts, Riley Blake, Tutorials / carina

IMG_2977_1_web I’m excited to be the next stop on the Riley Blake Design Blog Tour! I’m suppose to be introducing Primrose Garden, but for those of you who follow my blog, you know that I’ve been posting about this line for the last couple of months. It just barely hit stores so I’m excited to share the inspiration behind this line.

First of all, I designed this line at the same time that I purchased an old 1968 Jet Airway. The stove was original and turquoise (I may have purchased it simply for the stove…heehee). I started thinking about colors and patterns I would want in the trailer, if I were to, um, glamp it up:). I started thinking about making the glamper red, blue, and black (and I did furnish it with a lot of laminates from my Evening Blooms collection). I wanted something that felt fresh, clean, but had a traditional appeal. And that’s how Primrose Garden came into being! You can see that I created wallpaper for the glamper kitchen from the red master colorway from Primrose Garden (see link to Glamper pics below).

This is my first collection with an 18 inch doll panel! You’ll see more of these from me in future lines.

Because I don’t want to bore you with things I’ve already posted, here are some other links that will help you should you be thinking about sewing with Primrose Garden:

Primrose Garden LookBook (all the fabrics and doll panels!)
18 inch Doll Panel Fully Illustrated Instructions (Free Tutorial)
18 inch Doll Panel Quilt and Pillow (Free Download and Tutorial)
Carina Gardner Aurifil Thread (matches Primrose Garden!)

And if you are curious about my Glamper Renovation, you can see all the posts here. If you just want to go straight to the final photos of the glamper, you can see them here.

Thanks for visiting my blog! For more updates on fabric, quilts, and giveaways, be sure to check out my Facebook page and instagram feed!~Carina

<<<See the previous stop on this tour with Lila Tueller
See the next post with Lori Holt>>>>
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Visit the entire Blog Tour!

11/6 – The Quilted Fish
11/7 – Bella Blvd.
11/8 – Deena Rutter
11/10 – Lila Tueller
11/11 – Carina Gardner
11/13 –Bee In My Bonnet
11/14 – Fancy Pants Designs
11/15 – My Mind’s Eye
11/17 – Zoe Pearn
11/18 – Sue Daley
11/20 – Kelly Panacci
11/21 – Marin Sutton
11/22 – Lori Whitlock
11/24 – Melissa Mortenson
11/25 – Melly & Me
11/28 – Scott Jarrard
11/29 – Elea Lutz

RBD Post Quilt Market Designer Blog Tour: Carina Gardner Read More »

Primrose 18 Inch Doll Panel Instructions

4 Comments / Aurifill, Fabric, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Primrose Garden Fabric Line, Sewing, Sewing Patterns, Tutorials / carina

Screen Shot 2014-11-06 at 12.08.33 AM Thank you for purchasing the Primrose Garden 18 inch doll panel! While there are instructions on the panel itself, I find that illustrations always help me see how to put something together. Sooooo, I’ve put together some illustrations that coordinate with these doll panels for you! Feel free to download and use as you put together these dresses!

If you are looking for this panel, please check with your local quilt shop first. There are also several online retailers carrying this line

DOWNLOAD THE PRIMROSE GARDEN DOLL PANEL INSTRUCTIONS

If you are feeling extra sewerly today, you can also download the matching quilt and pillow instructions for this line. Or get the matching Auriful Threads.

Happy Sewing!
Carina

Primrose 18 Inch Doll Panel Instructions Read More »

Primrose Garden 18 inch Doll Quilt and Pillow Pattern—Free Download

9 Comments / Fabric, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Primrose Garden Fabric Line, Riley Blake, Sewing, Tutorials / carina

My new fabric line Primrose Garden will be hitting your local quilt shop this month! To celebrate my first ever 18 inch doll panels, I have a free 18 inch doll quilt and pillow pattern for you!

This is such a simple, easy project! It doesn’t take a lot of fabric and is such a fun gift for your 18 inch doll lovers (there are three in my house).

DOWNLOAD THE PRIMROSE GARDEN 18 INCH DOLL QUILT PATTERN HERE.

If the above link doesn’t work for you, please download it via dropbox here:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/bk9xgra9pllbxxw/AAAxk525S_vXVoT14QECRwQja?dl=1

If you get the Riley Blake Newsletter, you may have also noticed a red quilt that I put together. It’s design was based on one of the free patterns available at Riley Blake called Whimsy. I changed a few of my dimensions to make it fit my office wall but it’s basically the same design.

Sneak peek at the quilt below if you don’t get the newsletter:). So many more projects coming with this line!

Happy sewing to me:).
Carina

primrosegardenquilt_carinagardner_web

Primrose Garden 18 inch Doll Quilt and Pillow Pattern—Free Download Read More »

Mommy & Me Apron Tutorial with Jedi Craft Girl

1 Comment / Fabric, Remember Fabric Line, Riley Blake, Tutorials / carina

I’m back from our glamper trip at Quiltique and getting back on a schedule. Things have been a little hectic as I have been trying to finish out some fabulous things for Carta Bella’s summer lineup, creating some fun cutouts for Silhouette, and working on a new project that I’ll be launching in June. Oh ya, and quilting. That Little Ark fabric line has been sitting on my table beckoning to me, and I finally decided on a quilt to make after Charlie’s afternoon nap yesterday.

Today I have a wonderful tutorial for you from Amanda from the Jedi Girl Craft blog. This darling apron set is right up my alley—perfect for your little ones who want to be just like mom. Hope you get a chance to try it! Make sure and also check out Amanda’s blog. I spotted some pretty sweet tutorials using Riley Blake fabric that I might have to try out soon.

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The aprons are pretty simple to make. Here’s what you need:

Supplies:
3/4 yard main fabric
1 yard stripe fabric
1/4 yard pink fabric
1/4 yard pocket fabric
2 yards wide lace
2 yards medium lace
2 yards small lace

For Adult Apron:

Cut main fabric 13.5″ x 36″

Cut stripe fabric 3″ x 36″

Cut pink fabric 4.5″ x 36

For Child Apron:

Cut main fabric 9.5″ x 30″

Cut stripe fabric 2.5″ x 30″

Cut pink fabric 3″ x 30″

Sew the strip sets together using 1/4″ seams in this order. Zig zag each seam to prevent fraying.

Press seams in one direction.

Fold pink raw edge (hem) under 1/4″ and sew.

Lay the wide lace with right sides together along the hem. Sew along the edge of the lace about 1/4″

depending on the lace pattern.

Fold under and press. Top stitch in place.

Next place the medium and small lace along the seams of the fabric strips. Top stitch in place.

To finish the sides, fold raw edges in 1/4″ and sew, then fold in 1/4″ again. Back stitch at the

start and stop. This should also secure the raw edge of the lace and keep it from fraying.

Prepare the pocket…cut:

Adult pocket: 8.5″x 6.5″

Child pocket 6.5″ x 5.5″

Fold the top edge in 1/4″ and sew.

Press sides in 1/4″ and bottom 1/4″. Fold the top down about 2.5″ or to your liking.

It should look like this:

Pin the pocket into place. Of course you can sew 2 pockets or change up the shape. I am

right handed so I put the pocket on the right side of the apron. Pin in place and topstitch

leaving the top open.

Prepare the sash:

Adult apron cut (2) 5″ x WOF and (1) 5″ x 21″

Child apron cut (2) 4″ x 38″ and (1) 5″ x 18″ – you can adjust the length depending on how

long you want the ties.

The idea is to have a waistband portion (the shorter piece) in the center and two ties

(the longer pieces) on each side.

Sew the waist band pieces end to end with the shortest piece in the center. Press seams open.

Sew a 1/4″ gathering stitch along the top of the aprons. Pull up threads to gather.

Lay the gathered piece along the waistband piece like this – making sure to align centers.

Notice right sides are together.

Pin into place. Sew just this portion sewing over the gathering stitch.

Press the entire waistband under 1/4″ – all the way around, like this:

Fold the waistband over so folded edges align.

Pin into place. I leave my pins in and turn the apron over and sew using the front of the

waistband as my guide. That way the front of the apron looks perfect. The seam catches

the back of the waistband just fine. Continue sewing the entire way around the waistband

with a 1/8″ seam.

Done!!

You can find a printable version of this tutorial here Mommy and Me Apron Tutorial

Mommy & Me Apron Tutorial with Jedi Craft Girl Read More »

48 Hours in Texas and New Mexico

2 Comments / Carina Gardner TV, Fabric, Sewing, Sewing Patterns, Stuff I Love, Tutorials / carina

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48 hours in New Mexico and West Texas isn’t a lot of time to do much, but I made time to eat a lot of Mexican food and take pictures of the livestock (haha, see below). I flew into Lubbock, TX and drove to Portales, New Mexico—a charming little town that houses Eastern New Mexico University. There I was greeted by the host of Creative Living’s Sheryl Borden, who is probably one of the nicest people I have ever met. (photo above: It was too hard to pass up taking a photo of a pink bug. Slug Bug!)

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Sheryl and I taped three segments for her PBS show Creative Living. I believe the segments should air at your local PBS station (check your local listings) sometime in the third and fourth quarter of the year (more on this when I find out air dates). I’ll also post our segments on my youtube channel when I get my hands on the videos. (photo below: Sheryl and myself on her set). IMG_6696_web

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Obviously some super important explaining happening above. ^^^

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I always love to see behind the scenes of something like this and two members of Sheryl’s crew was nice enough to snap photos for me with my camera. The set has a full kitchen and living room area. IMG_6793_web

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Serious control room. ^^^ IMG_6807_web

The foodie in my was pretty happy on this trip. There is something so fun about discovering places I have never eaten before. A couple of places to mention: I loved the carne asada tacos at Taqueria Jalisco. I also stopped by the Taco Village and loved their beef tacos (near the airport—a plus!).

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I’m on my way home now and it should be a busy weekend including the Yard Sale at The Cottage! Be sure and check it out for some amazing deals. I also get to attend the wedding of a college girlfriend and maybe even stop in at our neighborhoods big band dance. I’m looking forward to getting home!

And although it has only been 48 hours, I’m excited to go home and snuggle my Charlie-boy and girls.

Carina

48 Hours in Texas and New Mexico Read More »

Evening Blooms Quilt Tutorial with Andy Knowlton

3 Comments / Evening Blooms Fabric Line, Fabric, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Tutorials / carina

Today I have a special treat for you! Andy Knowlton of
A Bright Corner created this beautiful quilt using my Evening Blooms fabric collection. To top it off, she has agreed to give you all a tutorial on how she made it. There is even a pdf download at the end (scroll to the bottom to download).

So without further ado, here is Andy:

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I love the timeless look of classic black and white and these fabrics don’t disappoint! This quilt is made entirely from half square triangles (HSTs) but don’t let that deter you! I have a fast and easy way to make a ton of HSTs in no time at all.
First I’ll show you how to make your HSTs then I’ll show you how to assemble one block. I’ll add a quilt layout diagram at the end and you’ll be on your way to finishing your own Evening Blooms quilt!
First of all, here’s what you’ll need:

1/4 yard of 7 various dark prints
1/4 yard of 5 various light prints
2 yards of white/background fabric
1/2 yard binding
3-1/2 yards backing fabric

From each of the prints (7 dark and 5 light) cut 3 squares that measure 8″. You’ll need 36 total.
From the white/background fabric cut 8 strips that are 8″ x width of fabric.
Subcut those strips into 36 @ 8″ squares

To create your half square triangles, pair up each print square with one white square. Match edges, keeping right sides together.

Sew around all four outer edges using a consistent 1/4″ seam.

Using your rotary cutter, cut diagonally through each block twice as shown in the photo.

Being careful not to stretch it, press each HST. I prefer to press the seam allowance toward the print. Trim the little tails off of each HST.
If you are consistent with your seam allowances and careful to not stretch the HSTs you should not need to square them up. If you find your HSTs to be varying in size, then square them each up to the same size (either 5.25″ or 5″ each).
Create all of your HSTs and then move on to the block layout.

Layout all of the HSTs you need for one block. Notice in the quilt layout diagram that not all blocks are the same. The dark and light prints are alternated for the main part of each block and the corner HSTs are different depending on where in the quilt the block will be located.

Sew together into rows using a 1/4″ seam.
Sew rows together, matching seams.

Your block is done!
Now use the layout diagram to make the next 8 blocks.
In the layout diagram I used just two prints – one dark and one light so you can clearly see the placement of each HST.
Evening Blooms layout diagram
You can find a printable version of this tutorial here Evening Blooms Quilt Tutorial

Evening Blooms Quilt Tutorial with Andy Knowlton Read More »

Episode 8: How to Use Sewable Interfacing with your Silhouette Machine

1 Comment / Carina Gardner TV, CRAFTS, Fabric, Sewing, Silhouette, Tutorials / carina

With all the new fabric files hitting my Silhouette Shop, I thought it would be helpful for you to see how I sew with the Sewable Interfacing. I show you a couple of my tricks for sewing with the stuff and how I set up my mat. Enjoy! -Carina

Episode 8: How to Use Sewable Interfacing with your Silhouette Machine Read More »

How to Make A Fabric Flower

1 Comment / Carina Gardner TV, CRAFTS, Fabric, Remember Fabric Line, Sewing, Sewing Patterns / carina

In honor of the Create and Make Class beginning NEXT week, I have a little treat for you! Siri and I made a quick little video showing you how to sew together one of the little flowers from the Little Playdate Outfit and Little Love Nest Ruffle Dress Sewing Patterns. It’s a fun video and I think you’ll love how simple the flowers are to make! Enjoy! Carina

How to Make A Fabric Flower Read More »

Remember Pinwheel Tutorial

Fabric, Remember Fabric Line, Sewing, Tutorials / carina

I know you are going to love this little project made with my Remember fabric! Andrea from Knitty Bitties made this lovely pinwheel table runner that I am swooning over. What’s that? You want a tutorial? Luckily for you, Andrea has one on her blog here: knittybitties.blogspot.com.

I love the way this pretty little thing is quilted together and the pinwheels are sweet. I can see making an entire quilt with these babies. But if you are like me and big projects start to wear you down, this is the perfect little project.

Speaking of projects, have you done any this summer? Or have you filled your days with library outings, pool time, and vacation?

I’ve been able to work on a few sewing projects but am now full swing into fall sewing pattern season. And winter scrapbooking designing season. But that’s another story.

Pinwheel-Table-Runner-Tutorial-2_web

Later this week, I am heading to a retreat with my BYU college roommates. It’s the first time we have had a chance to get together since, well, I’m not sure when. Follow my instagram feed if you want to sneaky-peeky into our doings. I promised to bring up scrapping and fabric supplies for some crafting fun. And while there will be some of that, I suspect there will mostly be a lot of catching up, reminiscing, baking, and then, um, eating.

Happy Sewing!

Carina

Remember Pinwheel Tutorial Read More »

Spring Quilt Market Review 2013!

Carina Gardner TV, Fabric / carina

Instead of my usual photo review of Quilt Market, I have a special treat for you! In one day, we did 15 interviews with different designers/products to give you a taste of Quilt Market in Portland. I had a such a great time seeing everyone’s new stuff. Here’s who I talk to in the video:

Joel Dewberry, Amanda Herring, Pickle Pie Designs, Patty Young, Amy McClellan, Cluck Cluck Sew, Camille Roskelley, Kim Christopherson, Heather Bailey, Rashida Coleman-Hale, Bari J., Shari Butler, Ruffle Fabric, Generation Q, and Miss Rose Sister Violet.

I hope you enjoy!

Happy sewing!

Carina

Spring Quilt Market Review 2013! Read More »

Our New Office

2 Comments / Carina Gardner TV, Family, Sewing Patterns / carina

Our tiny home had finally forced me to consider other options for all the inventory and tchotchkes in my office. So I started looking for space in October. I finally settled on an “in between” office…something small, affordable, and well, across the street from my house. I don’t know how long I can be in this space, but it is perfect for now.

Josh and I have been moving boxes for nearly two months now and trying to settle in. He finally finished building the last shelf today, and I’m hoping to get the CGTV channel set up so we can beginning filming again.

It’s been nice to have a quiet space to work (Although as seen in above picture—sometimes much of the family is trompin’ around this place. I’m trying to check the Art of Digital Design 2 forums in the picture). Josh and I switch off days in the office.

And, about that… You might be hearing from Josh once-in-a-while on the blog now too. Josh has officially joined my company and is taking over a couple of divisions (namely sewing pattern distribution and this). I sort of reached my breaking point in December after I had pulled 3 all nighters and averaged 2 hours of sleep a night. Between the baby and the growth at CGInc, I knew things needed to change. So we took the scary leap, and Josh left his law firm. My New Year’s hope is that we are stronger as a family and get to spend more time with our kids.

Because of this, I hope to be blogging a little more as well as letting you in on our day-to-day happenings. Things are always crazy around here as we juggle the company and the kids, but good. Oh so good. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Want to follow Josh on instagram? He’s @joshtgardner and he’ll probably catch me scratching my head over the computer or giggling as I try to record a new class (and thereby, having to re-record the segment).

From a very excited mommy designer,

Carina

Our New Office Read More »

Summer CHA 2012 Review

1 Comment / Carta Bella Paper, Scrapbooking, UPDATES FROM CARINA, Video / carina

Hello! I’m back from Summer CHA in Chicago and I’ve spent the last 24 hours downloading a heck-of-a-lotta videos and photos! You can see more photos (if you don’t think you’ll get enough here) on the Carta Bella blog.

Many of you will recognize the booth as my Quilt Market booth. It was fun to see it filled with paper this time around. It’s also fun to compare that baby belly after two months of baking (only a month left!).

Here Lindsay and I pose on Day 1 of set up. I hardly had to lift a box because everyone was so concerned (I think they just didn’t want to deliver a baby).

Set up was also fun because it was a Carta Bella and Echo Park team effort. It was nice to have that many hands putting together the two booths. Check out Andrea (CHA Coordinator for Echo Park and Carta Bella) putting up the Carta Bella sign (below) and Lindsay bolting together the walls.

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There were a lot of darling projects in the booth! This advent calendar was made by Deena Rutter who also designed Merry & Bright for Carta Bella (ships September 2012).

I made this Beautiful Moments lamp below. I HIGHLY recommend having a silhouette machine for this project. It turned out darling but took a lot of time to put together.

Samantha Walker put together this fabulous display of silhouette pieces using her Paris Girl Collection.

So many darling cards made by the design team!

Here are my All Hallow’s Eve bottles that you will see in the upcoming Halloween video Lindsay and I do. It should be posted sometime next week. Any guesses on what we dress up as?

I made this banner using the Alphabet Junction Collection by Melanie Ritchie.

Here’s Miss Melanie herself with her first collection! Love the Vanna White pose!

Me and my belly.

Shimelle (from 2Peas in a Bucket), with Melanie and myself. Too bad we aren’t having fun.

Here’s dinner with Lori Whitlock (designer for Echo Park) and Andrea (CHA Coordinator for EP and CB). Matt (THE sticker guy and serious foodie) chose this awesome place. The food was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. If you go to Chicago, it’s worth getting the beef tenderloin (and all the desserts) http://www.carnivalechicago.com/.

Look at the amazing light fixture! (Which also accounts for the bad photo lighting).

Well, there it is! A few photos from CHA and a little of what we were up to. I’ll admit, I was happy to get back home to my own bed. I’m at the most uncomfortable stage of this pregnancy, and it was nice to snuggle into bed last night. Josh and my girls are in Sun Valley at the Bar Convention (therefore making it possible to get all my blogging in before they come home). They should be showing up tonight so I will have my little darlings to snuggle.

Be back in a second with our tradeshow booth video!

—Carina

Summer CHA 2012 Review Read More »

Laminate Bag Tutorial

2 Comments / Dainty Blossoms Fabric Line, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Tutorials / carina

I’ve been meaning to post this tutorial for a month now. My kids took a neighborhood art class and the night before I had the hair-brained scheme that they both needed new art bags. After making them, I sketched up the steps for anyone else who is interested in experimenting with these said “hair-brained” schemes.

I’ve sketched up a similar tutorial for my girls’ ballet bag, but this time the bags are substantially larger, made of laminates, and have a single strap. I used the Dainty Blossoms™ laminates (shown in the photos).

Working with laminates was not as hard as I originally anticipated. I like to use Lila Tuller’s oil method for running laminates through my sewing machine. It works like a charm!

A few notes about the sketches for this tutorial:

* They are by no means comprehensive:). That means that I give you sizes, and you can customize as you wish.
* Yardage for the bag does NOT include the “cutout” (in my example I show an ‘S’). Either use a scrap of contrasting laminate or skip altogether (see more notes on this below).
* You may want to adjust the strap’s length for the intended use of the bag. My strap is meant to comfortably fit across the chest.
* I don’t use fusible material for the letters/cutout. I simply carefully laid the letters on the front of the bags and appliqué stitched the letters directly to the front. It was absolutely an experiment in progress since I had never used laminates like this before. Amazingly, it worked (but was not easy!)

After a month of use, turns out these bags are pretty strong and can take a beating. I attribute it to the laminates, which helped my wipe away all the paint my kid’s left undone in the bag. Perfect art bag.

Hope you also get a chance to experiment!

—Carina

Laminate Bag Tutorial Read More »

Double Ringed Pincushion Tutorial and Free Download

3 Comments / Dainty Blossoms Fabric Line, Sewing, Sewing Patterns, Tutorials / carina

If you head over to Riley Blake’s Cutting Corners today, you will find my brand-new Double Ringed Pincushion Tutorial.

All of my pincushions are made using my Dainty Blossom’s line for Riley Blake. I now have these pincushions scattered all over my studio 1. because they are useful, but also 2. because my kids like to play with the “donuts.” It works for me.

The actual pincushion is relatively fast to make. The stand is made from wood supplies found at my local craft store (spools, doll heads/spheres, and a flat circle for the base).

Head over the Riley Blake here to download the pdf instructions, pattern, and for a quick look at the instructions in the blog post. You can also download the instructions here.

Happy sewing!

Carina

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Double Ringed Pincushion Tutorial and Free Download Read More »

Dainty Blossoms Camera Strap Tutorial—Free Download

2 Comments / Dainty Blossoms Fabric Line, Tutorials / carina

Want to bring life to your camera strap? Here’s a quick and easy tutorial of how to make one. There are step-by-step photos and then I suggest embellishing it with something fun! This strap is made with Dainty Blossoms™ to infuse a little spring into this long drawn out winter.

What else do I like about this project? It’s a short, quick-and-easy project. I sometimes like a tiny project like this because I feel inspired and fulfilled when I finish it, but it only took me an hour.

Download the pdf here.

Hope you get in a little stitchin’ time too!

XOXO-Carina

Dainty Blossoms Camera Strap Tutorial—Free Download Read More »

Dress Up Quilt—Free Quilt Pattern

2 Comments / Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Tutorials / carina

As promised, the Dress Up™ Quilt Pattern in a more “bite-sized” pdf. You can also see it shown in our 6th Newsletter Issue.

I wish I had more fun things to show you, but other than a fun stop down at Riley Blake earlier this week (to grab some Paris and Company for a photoshoot & talk about a new line) and the quick recover of my kitchen table in Dainty Blossoms™ laminate (shown through instagram on my facebook page), I’ve been doing the thing I dread most…my taxes.

There’s something about having to sit over my computer crunching numbers for my tax consultant that makes me feel like Bean (boring, boring, BORING!)—that’s the second grader in me speaking.

Thankfully, we are making the transition in software this year, and I’m hoping that it limits the time I spend hunched over my computer in March.

Wait, did I say March? My how time flies when you are having fun!

Enjoy the quilt pattern!

XOXO—Carina

Dress Up Quilt—Free Quilt Pattern Read More »

Well Traveled Mini Travel Album

DIE CUT PROJECTS (SILHOUETTE & CRICUT), Digital Scrapbooking, Tutorials / carina

More fun to inspire you today! Check out Creative Team member Laurel Flechtner’s tutorial for creating a Mini Travel Album!

Enjoy! Carina

Mini Travel Album

NAME Laurel Flechtner

FROM Norfolk, Virginia, USA

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO MAKE THIS PROJECT OR WHO DID YOU MAKE IT FOR? We took a trip to NJ & NYC to see family and I always make mini-albums of each of our trips.

MATERIALS

Carina Gardner Well Traveled Paper Set 1

Carina Gardner Well Traveled Paper Set 2

Carina Gardner Well Traveled Paper Set 3

Carina Gardner Well Traveled Paper Set 4

7 Gypsies black binder ring

Cricut & Sure Cuts A Lot 2 for cutting album pages

Adobe Photoshop CS5

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Cut and adhere a front and back paper for each page of the album.

2. Select, print and adhere photos

3. Add embellishments and journaling

Well Traveled Mini Travel Album Read More »

Issue No. 5 of the Newsletter—Spraguefest and Tutorials

3 Comments / Fabric, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Jessica Sprague, Scrapbooking, Sewing Patterns, Stuff I Love, Tutorials / carina

Wheww! Here it is! Our fifth issue of the newsletter. This thing just gets bigger and bigger! This one is 39 pages long with a huge section on Spraguefest, an introduction to Susan, a quilt pattern, a coupon code for Designer Workshop, and tutorials galore!

Be sure and check out the calendar at the end…it’s a sneak peek into the “big stuff” coming up the next few months here in the studio.

Here’s you link to Newsletter Issue No. 5:

https://carinagardner.com/newsletter/carina-gardner-newsletter-issue-no-5/

Enjoy!

Carina

Issue No. 5 of the Newsletter—Spraguefest and Tutorials Read More »

Pinfeathers Rosetta Wreath- Free Download

5 Comments / Fabric, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Sewing, Tutorials / carina

My sister-in-law walked in as I was making this wreath and said, “Weren’t you just complaining about the number of wreaths you have?” Ummm, yep. I might have too many wreaths. But this one is just SOOO cute! (justification, justification).

So this is definately a time-consuming project but with only a couple of steps. I recommend doing it in front of a really good movie (We were watching Howl’s Moving Castle when I made this one).

The final result is so adorable that I could get a little crazy with this idea—cone shaped trees, ornaments…okay, I’m just going to stop right there.

Download the instructions by clicking on the photo!

Have fun! -Carina

Pinfeathers Rosetta Wreath- Free Download Read More »

Exciting New Upcoming Events!

2 Comments / Design Lessons, Digital Scrapbooking, Scrapbooking, Stuff I Love, Tutorials, Workshops / carina

There are two spectacular events that I plan on attending in the coming months. The first is Spraguefest!
This is an annual event hosted by Jessica Sprague to further build (the already awesome) community. I know there are going to be a lot of awesome people at this event, and I’m pretty excited to attend! I’m teaching a class on color (it’s going to be messy!).

Spraguefest is October 7-10, 2011 and there is a registration fee of $80 for classes and materials. I know there are going to be goodie bags (yum) and some fantastic teachers! This year we are in Las Vegas and I’m sure that whatever happens in Vegas will stay in Vegas. That means a lot of late night craziness. Oh alright, maybe some daytime craziness as well (I might have done a little dance in the street last year).

The second event is my brand new Paper and Digital Designer Workshop! Think elegant girls-trip-meets-intense-design-school. Yep, it’s going to be that kind of weekend!

We’ll be in Salt Lake City working on your paper and digital designer skills (and possibly your shopping skills, manicure skills, nunchuck skills…). It’s going to be a super intense experience that will help you explore your creativity! We are staying at the Little America Hotel , who will also be catering nearly the entire event. The Little America is well known for being a luxurious Four Diamond Hotel and their menus and decor are impressive! Get ready for a glammed-up girls weekend that will also define your design career!

Registration for this event is capped at 20 people and is first-come, first serve.

Check out our workshops page to learn more and register!

I hope to be able to hang out with you at one or both of these events!

Exciting New Upcoming Events! Read More »

Bike Basket Tutorial

3 Comments / CRAFTS, Fabric, Sewing, Tutorials / carina

Check out my bike basket tutorial on Celebrations blog! I made these for our bikes for the Gardner family reunion/triathlon. A triathlon, you say? Yes, I feel like I should explain that it is not a REAL triathlon. It kind of goes something like this:

Run, Eat, Bike, Eat, Swim (it seems like we should eat after that too)

Really, it’s an amazing extended family event to help us all get in shape. And we do eat between all the event (Run at 10am, Lunch, Bike at 2pm, Dinner, and Swim at 7pm).

Anyway, back to the bike basket. In order to have Siri and Felicity participate, I ordered them bike connectors. Felicity and I did 8 miles. Josh and Siri made it the entire 12 miles. I was pretty proud we made it as far as we did because it was a horribly, hot day and I managed to get sunburned (go figure!).

Thank goodness for the baskets holding our water and goodies!

Fabrics shown here are from my Pinfeathers collection.

Bike Basket Tutorial Read More »

Carina Gardner Quarterly Newsletter (Issue No. 4)

2 Comments / CRAFTS, Fabric, Scrapbooking, Sewing, Sewing Patterns, Stuff I Love, Tutorials / carina

FINALLY! We’ve finished our fourth issue of our newsletter! Better late than never, right?

I think this is our best issue so far. First of all, there are a LOT of photos. And tutorials. And photos. And an announcement (which links to ANOTHER digital magazine). And did I mention photos?

It’s seriously delicious!

Susan has already posted a bit on getting ready for this crazy photoshoot (see it here). I can tell you right now that we had so many amazing photos that I’m not going to be able to resist posting them.

But first, click on the newsletter to the left here and take a peek at all the fun we were up to in the studio.

https://carinagardner.com/newsletter/carina-gardner-newsletter-issue-no-4/

More photos to come!

Carina Gardner Quarterly Newsletter (Issue No. 4) Read More »

Pinfeathers Birdie Lace Up Tutorial

1 Comment / Fabric, Sewing, Sewing Patterns, Tutorials / carina

Get ready for a whole lot of fabric fabulous-ness! It’s been a lot of midnight sew-a-thons around here to show off this fabulous fabric. Susan and I have been hard at work! Here’s the first tutorial from the studio!

This is a really cute skill-building toy for preschoolers as little fingers will work on gaining their fine motor skills by lacing the strings through the holes! It also makes a darling decorative display item in the home or is a great project for a child’s birthday party.

Materials

Carina’s Partridge Bird Pattern-Free Download
1/3 yard heavyweight fast2fuse, thin piece of cardboard, or heavyweight Wonder Under.
1 fat quarter for a single-sided bird or 2 fat quarters (for an alternate fabric) for a double sided bird
Colorful shoelace or cording 1/8′ to 1/4″ diameter. Length will be vary depending on the size of your bird.
Fabric glue
Paper punch

Instructions

1. Your first step is to download the PDF of the partridge from Carina’s Partridge Bird Pattern. At this point you can decide how large you want your lace up project to be. The smaller the child the larger you may want to make the bird so that they will have something substantial to hold in their hand and lace up!

2. Adjust the percent for the size you need and print your bird.

3. If you are using the Fast2Fuse, you will fuse your fabric onto the Fast2Fuse according to the manufacturer’s instructions on the Fast2Fuse packaging.

4. Trace the bird patterns onto the fused fabric and cut them out.

5. Use a good hole punch to punch the holes for the lacing.

6. Knot one end of the the shoelace and lace it through the first hole pulling it to the knot.

Alternate method

You can also make a Pinfeather’s Birdie Lace Up using a very thin piece of cardboard. Tracing the bird onto the cardboard, you cut out the bird’s shape. Then trace the bird pattern onto the fabric. Use spray fabric glue to glue the fabric to the thin cardboard bird. Use a hole punch to punch holes. Finally finish the project with step #6.

Pinfeathers Birdie Lace Up Tutorial Read More »

Reversible Ballet Bag Tutorial

6 Comments / Fabric, Family, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Tutorials / carina

I woke up this morning and ached for a bit of sewing. Just a little. I just wanted a quick little project that would brighten my two little girls’ day. Here’s what I came up with:

Using the samples I have from Love Nest™ (due out Jan 2011), I made both Siri and Flissa a reversible ballet bag. It was ever so easy and would also make the perfect church handbag, travel bag, goodie bag,… (you get the idea).

You don’t need much fabric (remember, all I have are tiny samples). It does help to have two fun coordinating fabrics so that you can flip the bag inside out for a little change-a-roo.

When I say “simple” I really mean it. You basically need 4 pieces of fabric (a piece for the outside, a piece for the inside, and two straps). My girls love it and I loved getting in a little project this morning.

Here are my little notes if you want to make this bag with a few extra pieces of fabric you have lying around your house:

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Here’s a picture of the birdie-brown bag reversed out (the blue flower calico print) and a peek into Flissa’s heart-circle baggie.

I think I counted 10 straight lines to sew to make this bag. In the words of Ina, “How easy was that?”

XOXO-Carina

Reversible Ballet Bag Tutorial Read More »

Coquette Quilt-Free Pattern

3 Comments / Fabric, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Tutorials / carina

It’s taken me a little longer than I wanted it to, but here it is! Instructions for putting together the Coquette™ Quilt. It’s meant for the beginner to intermediate quilter. I love this quilt because it is very forgiving for us newbie quilters. None of the seams line up and all of the blocks are nice and big.

The final patchwork is very pretty and sweet without being pink. Not that there won’t be a lot of pink in the future….

I have to admit that this is the first big quilt I’ve made. I desperately have been wanting to make a queen-sized quilt for my own bed and have been waiting for Coquette™ to come along.

What a little flirt of a quilt! The two of us snuggle very happily now as I watch Glee or Project Runway (I’m so excited about tomorrow’s finale!)

Of course, you can mix and match fabrics (especially if you are having trouble finding Coquette™ at a local quilt shop near you). It’s a very easy patchwork with fairly large blocks.

Download the instructions for this quilt below. I hope you have as much fun with it as I did!

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Coquette Quilt-Free Pattern Read More »

How to Make a Halloween Countdown Calendar-Free Download

3 Comments / CRAFTS, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Holiday Projects, My Minds Eye, Scrapbooking, Tutorials / carina

It may seem a bit early, but Halloween has come to my house this last week. I’ve been happily crafting with my Haunted™ Paper Line. Lots of white pumpkins and scarecrows are visiting my living room (Photos coming soon!).

Here’s a fun project that you really need to do (and can easily do) in advanced. You will specifically need the Haunted™ Line because the reason it is so simple is because the journaling page in this line has this Halloween Countdown already to go! (simply cut it out!)

Once this fun little calendar is finished, all you’ll need to do is let your kids stamp a fun shape (The Haunted™ Acylic Stamps will be what we are using. I’m thinking we will be using white ink and that creepy, crawly spider.) or just draw a mark on each day as you countdown to a very spooky Halloween! It will be a fun way to start October 1st!

I have the tutorial for you to download below (seriously, this is a 20 minute project at best and the hardest part is making sure you have a photo of your family to add!) and you can certainly expect some more haunted crafting happening ’round here this week. Those cute, um, I mean spooky crows just love getting photographed!

How to Make a Halloween Countdown Calendar-Free Download Read More »

How to Make a Butterfly Chandelier-Free Download

31 Comments / Family, Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables, Scrapbooking, Stuff I Love, Tutorials / carina

I made this fun little chandelier for my girls’ room a month ago using my Back to Basic’s digital line. It’s been a cute addition to their room, and it was pretty easy to make. Check out the tutorial below.

Want to cut it with your silhouette machine (or any other machine that cuts Illustrator files?). Download the ai file here (not for commercial use or resale).It’s already set up with 6 butterflies to a sheet.

ILLUSTRATOR FILE DOWNLOAD

If you want a pdf version of all six butterflies already setup for you (if you need to cut them out by hand), don’t worry! I’ve hooked you up too.

PDF FILE DOWNLOAD

Download the tutorial with instructions here:

How to Make a Butterfly Chandelier-Free Download Read More »

Hybrid Card Tutorial

Design House Digital, Tutorials / carina

I’ve been meaning to post this awesome tutorial from CT Member Joyce. This is a fantastic tutorial showing off how easy it is to take digital products and turn them into cards. Take it away, Joyce!

1.Create your cardstock pieces with a program like Photoshop Elements. I created 4×4, 5×5, and 4×5 shapes and clipped the patterened papers to them. I flattened the image and printed it onto white cardstock.

2. Next I trimmed my patterned paper pieces and used my Quickutz Epic
to cut out the butterfly and label shapes from the patterned paper. I
gathered up a few more supplies like green cardstock, butterfly
ribbon, Maya Road stick pins, and some buttons.

3. I embellished my butterfly by adding 3 tiny buttons to the front,
foam tape to the back, and stick pins pushed into the foam tape for
antennae.

4. I cut my green cardstock to 5×10 inches, folded in half at the top,
and layered on my elements. Brown patterned paper trimmed to a 4.25″
square, then yellow patterned paper that was cut into a label diecut,
and butterfly in the corner. Another embellishment technique I used
was to add a butterfly flight trail with my punch tool and dot the “i”
of precious using a rhinestone.

Now I have the perfect unisex card for my next baby shower! The Basics
papers are so versatile you can create something for most any occasion!

Hybrid Card Tutorial Read More »

How to Brighten a Skimpy Wreath

Stuff I Love, Tutorials / carina

I love a white wreath on a black door and I found a really skimpy wreath marked down at my local craft store. Luckily there was also a few white flowers marked down. If you want a cheap wreath (and don’t want to create one from scratch), this is the best way to go!

Start with a wreath with the colors in it you want. I liked this wreath but I wanted something fuller.