Altenew 10th Anniversary Blog Hop Day 1 + Giveaway (over $3,500 in Total Prizes)

Hello friends! Wow - ten years as a successful small business for Altenew - that is HUGE and worthy of great celebration! I couldn't be more happy or proud of all the hardworking folks at Altenew, and am thrilled to be a part of the festivities!

You may have come from Svitlana, but if not feel free to start the fun at Altenew!

Hello 10 Years

I chose to feature a set I hadn't had the chance to use very much - In the Woodland Stamp/Stencil/Die set. The stencils operate a little differently than many coordinating stencil sets, where these stencils intentionally leave a lot of white space on the flowers. I love this look, and need to keep it in mind for future coloring projects. You know these are blush red flowers, but they also keep the light & airy look if you're going for that vibe.

I regretfully forgot about the Bee Kind Stamp and Die Set (which I think is a great deal for $11) until flipping through my small stamp set album looking for another set. So glad I found it! Perfect to pair with any floral set, AND you can put them on springs to make them "buzz" back and forth. I hid where the spring is attached to the card base by cutting a second bee die in white cardstock, punching a hole through it, and putting the wire spring through the hole.

How cute are these buzzing bees?!

The pinstripe background on the card base is from the unfortunately out-of-stock

Striped Circle Stamp Set.

One reason I love using alpha dies is the ability to create specific and personal greetings. "Hello 10 Years" is used from mixing and matching 3 different products: All About You Word Die Set, Celebrate with Cake Die Set, and the Tall Alpha Die Set. The Tall Alpha Die Set is one of my most-used alpha dies because of their slim size, which allows you to fit multiple letters/words on the front of an A2-sized card. Along with being slim, they are also tall so they stand out. 

Finally, I love a lot of layers and elements on a card and think it looks luxurious. One of my design tips when adding many different elements (especially from different sets like this card) is to try repetition where possible. In terms of color, I used light blue for the 3 centers of the flowers and the "hello" sentiment, gold/yellow for the leaves, bees, and "10", and blush for the flowers and "years." 

Hello to celebrating 10 years, Altenew!! We can't wait for the next decade!

Giveaway Prizes

Over $3,500 in total prizes! We are giving away a $50 Altenew gift certificate to 10 winners, a $20 ArtistrybyAltenew gift certificate to 5 winners, and an online papercrafting class($39.99 value) from Altenew Academy Online Class to 14 winners. There are also 28 awesome companies/crafty friends who are celebrating with us, and they are offering the following prizes:

• Altenew: 10 x $50 Altenew Gift Certificates

• ArtistrybyAltenew: 5 x $20 ArtistrybyAltenew Gift Certificates

• Altenew Academy: 14 x Online Papercrafting Classes($39.99 value each)

• Crafter's Companion: 1 x Gemini II Die Cutting and Embossing Machine ($329 value)

• LDRS Creative: 4 x $50 LDRS Creative Gift Certificates

• Online Card Classes: 5 x Online Card Classes ($25 value each)

• Jennifer McGuire Ink: 1 Share Handmade Kindness goodies bag ($100 value)

• Honey Bee Stamps: $100 Gift Certificate

• Hero Arts: $100 Gift Certificate

• Lawn Fawn: $100 Gift Certificate

• Pink and Main: $100 Gift Certificate

• Scrapbook & Cards Today: $100 Gift Certificate

• Taylored Expressions: $100 Gift Certificate

• Gina K. Designs: $100 Gift Certificate

• CraftStash: $100 Gift Certificate

• Brutus Monroe: $100 Gift Certificate

• Picket Fence Studios: $50 Gift Certificate

• Pelletier Craft Studio: 3 x $25 Gift Certificates

• Michelle's Cards and Stamps: AUD $100 Gift Certificate

• Spellbinders Paper Arts: 2 x $25 Gift Certificates

• Scrapbook.com: $50 Gift Certificate

• My Craft Room: $50 Gift Certificate

• Krafters Cart: $50 Gift Certificate

• A Cherry on Top: $50 Gift Certificate

• Simon Says Stamp: $50 Gift Certificate

• My Favorite Things: $50 Gift Certificate

• Pinkfresh Studio: $50 Gift Certificate

• Bumbleberry Papercrafts: £25 Gift Certificate

• Seize the Stamp: CHF 25 Gift Certificate

• MarkerPop: $25 Gift Certificate

• Auzz Trinklets N Krafts: AUD $25 Gift Certificate

Be sure to leave comments by 04/16/2024 for a chance to win one of 68 prizes! To make the hop more exciting, start your comment with "Hi from (city or country where you're from)!" 68 winners will be chosen at random from the comments left on any of the blogs in this hop and will be announced on the Altenew Card Blog on 04/19/2024.

Your next stop is the wonderfully talented Erica who has something fabulous to share!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Thanks for stopping by!
- Kelly

Favorite supplies used (affiliate links provided, thanks for helping support my blog):

Tall Alpha Die Set

In the Woodland Stamps

In the Woodland Dies

Bee Kind Stamp and Die Set

Love the New Colors from Altenew Alcohol Markers Release!

Hi Friends! Wanted to share a card I made with the newest set of Alcohol Markers released by Altenew called Firewood Garden.

I ended up turning this "Splendid Bouquet" into a bouquet of stargazer lilies lol! The petals looked a little plain (in retrospect, I think this is because I didn't put enough color on the main flower, but I was trying to differentiate it from the darker, smaller flowers in the background) so I added dots in the style of stargazer lilies. 

All three sets of colors in this Firewood Garden set are well matched - the dusty mauve, mustard yellow, and citron green are such a great combination to use. Sometimes when buying sets you end up with a few colors or shades you don't think you're going to use often, but not this case with this one!

Don't forget to stop by the Instagram Hop for more inspiration and prizes!

Thanks for stopping by!
-Kelly

Firewood Garden

Using Acrylic Markers on Dark Backgrounds - Fun to Play With!

Hello Friends! How long has it been since you've played with acrylic markers? It's been a hot minute for me, and I have to say I've forgotten how fun they are! 

I thought they would be perfect for a charcoal sympathy card, and I love the intensity they have on the very dark cardstock. 

It's a bit freeing from working with alcohol markers where you're spending a lot of time blending the colors and shading together. This is just pure coloring! You can still add details with these markers by layering a different color on top of your first color. Like the leaves for example, where I've added a few lines and dots to break up the solid color. 

If you're in the mood to try something new, I'd recommend picking up a set of the Altenew Acrylic Markers - they're quite inexpensive and come out to around a dollar per marker! There's a whole Instagram hop going on if you're looking for additional inspiration and/or prizes.

Thanks for stopping by!
-Kelly

Altenew February 2024 Release Blog Hop + Prizes!

 

Hello Friends! These cards were sneak-peeked in the January hop, and now that the Graceful Gardenias set is released, with the rest of the February goodies, I'd like to share a bit more about them. You may have come from the amazing Jaycee, but if not feel free to start at the beginning with Altenew.

Project Kit - Graceful Gardenias

This large gardenia (my favorite flower, I carried them down the aisle at my wedding and the smell was heavenly!) is detailed enough to be well-illustrated, yet open enough to add your own spin on coloring (see the light polka dots on the orange petals).

The sentiment really says it all, and I love that it's quite substantial. You could absolutely save these three lines for the inside of the card. But on the front, it's a nice secondary sentiment. The Fancy For You die is a staple in my craft room from an old release (but it's still in stock!)

Splitting the giant gardenia in two was a good way to get something for the top and bottom of my card (vs just the middle).

For a second card I inked up the other gardenia in the Graceful Gardenias set and wanted to make a quick card out of it.

I stamped the gardenia first on the base of the card, and then used the coordinating die to place over the stamped image and sponge ink around it. 

Then I added a bit more pizzaz to the gardenia by inking the polka dots a little darker on the orange petals. I rotated the gardenia die 180 degrees from the card base so you'd be able to see the leaves poking through.

Giveaway Prizes

$300 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $100 gift certificate to 1 lucky winner who comments on the Altenew blog, and a $50 gift certificate to 4 winners from all the comments on the designers' posts! Please leave comments by 02/13/2024 for a chance to win. Winners will be announced on the Altenew Winners Page on 02/15/2024.

You've reached the end of the blog hop (congrats!) but if you'd like to revisit any of the stops, here is the complete list:

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Thanks for stopping by!
- Kelly

Altenew Inspiration Challenge - Street Art Can Be a Great Resource for Cardmaking!

Hello Friends! I'm so excited to be hosting the Altenew Inspiration Challenge for the whole month of February!

It's a color challenge that's based on one of the most beautiful pieces of street art I saw this summer. Head over to their blog to read all about it and hopefully play along!

Here are some photos of how I was inspired by the street art:

Sure hope to see your creations in the gallery!

Thanks for playing!

-Kelly