Color Theory: Triadic Color Combinations

Close To My Heartcolor, color scheme, color theory, color wheel, Stargazer, Triadic 10 Comments

A triadic color scheme is a lot easier to understand than it may sound. Just like some of the other theories we’ve previously discussed on the blog, triadic color combinations make use of three colors. This time, instead of being next to or opposite each other, triadic colors are three colors that are equally spaced around the color wheel.

If you aren’t sure if the colors you are choosing to work with are equally spaced, connect the three of them with a line—simply tracing them with your finger will do. If the shape you outline is a triangle with sides of equal length, then your colors are triadic.

To make it even easier, there are only four triadic color combinations on your basic color wheel:

Red, Yellow, Blue
Red-orange, Yellow-green, Blue-violet
Orange, Green, Violet
Yellow-orange, Blue-green, Red-violet.

Once you’ve chosen one of these combinations, jump on the Close To My Heart color wheel and pick from the exclusive colors that fall into each category.

(Download here.)

Another way to use this would be to start with a color you know you want to use, like Sapphire, and then draw a triangle to determine which other two colors to combine with it. Sapphire is in the blue zone, and we know from drawing a triangle (and from the list above) that yellow and red complete the color triad.

This layout makes use of the red, yellow, blue combination using Cranberry, Canary, and Sapphire. We used Sapphire heavily, as the main color, with Cranberry and Canary acting as accents.

While triadic color combinations do not achieve the same level of contrast as complementary colors, they do provide color variety that tends to look more balanced—making it a favorite among artists who love playing with color. Try out a triadic combination on your next project and let us know how it goes!

Recipe

12″ x 12″ Alphabet Page
Z4157 Stargazer Cardmaking Stamp + Thin Cuts, D1757 My Acrylix^® Stargazer—Scrapbooking Stamp Set, X7229B Stargazer Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5982 Canary Cardstock, X5975 Cranberry Cardstock, X5955 Pebble Cardstock, X5957 Sapphire Cardstock, Z2816 Cranberry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2832 Pewter Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2833 Pebble Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, X7229C Stargazer Complements, Z4143 Stargazer Dots, Z4145 Light Grey Ribbon, Z3630 Watercolor Pencils, Z4575 Black LePen™, Z1297 Edge Distresser, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z5038 Die-cutting & Embossing Machine, Cricut^® Artistry Collection, Sewing Machine

Cricut^® Shapes:
Artistry
font

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April 10, 2018Create, Memory Keeping, organization

Secrets of a Title Page

Close To My HeartChelsea Gardens, scrapbooking, Stargazer, title, title page 5 Comments

We often talk about the meaty parts of scrapbooking here, from visual storytelling to journaling prompts and everything in between. Today, instead of what comes in between, let’s discuss the very beginning, or at least front, of a complete scrapbook album—the title page!

The title page of an album is that very first page you see when you flip open the cover. It is there to provide a quick visual summary of the stories and memories beautifully documented inside. Regardless of your scrapping style, the title page is something that we all have in common. Without it, our albums look and feel incomplete.

So you know you need a title page for your album. How do you start? The very first, and probably biggest, “secret” to a good title page, is to create it last. After the inside of your album is done, then is when you should begin to think about designing your title page. There are several reasons for this. Creating the title page last allows you to pull from visual elements and themes illustrated throughout your pages and layouts, including topics, color schemes, and designs.

Waiting until the end to make your title page will also allow you flexibility in your story telling. If you make a title page first, especially one that includes photos and journaling, you run the risk of not highlighting something that you add in later.

A title page can also work as a sort of “table of contents.” If you choose to go this route, use some of your extra photos to map out what someone can expect to see as they flip through your album. You can arrange them in order, number them, and add short blurbs, like in our example, or create a collage without any words.

Or you can create a title page without any photos. Add a title and journaling that corresponds with the photos you include on the following pages. If the “table of contents” approach isn’t your thing, a quick name referencing the topic of your album, like “Disney Vacation 2018” or “Grandma Gigi” or “My Favorite Things,” can also do the trick.

As you’re designing your title page, keep in mind that it is an extension of your album, your memories, and you. However you choose to make it, match the storytelling style you use inside, and most importantly make it your own.

Recipe

Make It from Your Heart Vol. 3: Pattern 17
B1539 My Acrylix® Pen Pal Alphabet Stamp Set, C1704 My Acrylix® Stargazer—Cardmaking Stamp Set, X7230B Chelsea Gardens Paper Packet, X7227B Make Waves Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5967 Pacifica Cardstock, X5977 Crystal Blue Cardstock, X5968 Lagoon Cardstock, Z2895 Lagoon Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2817 Crystal Blue Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2841 Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2892 Pacifica Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3274 Clear Sparkles, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, X7229C Stargazer Complements, Z1297 Edge Distresser, Z3167 Cricut® Artistry Collection, Sewing Machine

Cricut® Shapes:
Artistry
½” Shape <Halloween> (p. 43, #M417CCA)

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March 22, 2018Create, Learn

Creating Interactive Cards with Thin Cuts!

Close To My Heartalien, cardmaking, cards, die cuts, die-cutting, dies, DIY, interactive, monster, Stargazer, Thin Cuts 7 Comments

Let’s get crafty and use those Thin Cuts we’ve been talking about all month long on some fun interactive cards!

Making Interactive Cards #ctmh #closetomyheart #astroboy #astronaut #boy #space #stargazer #star #moon #aliens #diy #cards #interactive #moving #parts #birthday #mission #control #gif

Making Interactive Cards #ctmh #closetomyheart #supergirl #super #girl #wow #stargazer #yellow #canary #aliens #diy #cards #interactive #moving #parts #hero

Today we are going to walk through making this astronaut in orbit card, since it is the harder of the two to make. Once you’ve got that one down, making others like it will be a breeze!

Materials Needed:
Z4157 Stargazer Cardmaking Stamp + Thin Cuts
Z4006 Monstrous Halloween Stamp + Thin Cuts
X7229B Stargazer Paper Packet
1385 White Daisy Cardstock
Z3271 Archival Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad
Z2863 White Daisy Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad
Z2807 Willow Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad
Z4143 Stargazer Dots
Z3132 Watercolor Paints
Z3177 Paintbrush Set
Z3318 Thin Cuts—Basic Circles
Z2068 Ranger™ White Super Fine Embossing Powder
Z555 Craft Heater
Z2446 ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ Black Marker
Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape
Z3342 Foam Dots
Die-cutting Machine
Washi Tape
Penny or Small Flat Button

Prepare and Cut.

To replicate our card exactly, you will need the following pieces:

1 standard card base
4″ x 5¼” Pacifica planets paper (Stargazer paper packet)
4″ x ¼” Poppy striped paper (Stargazer paper packet)
Trimmed zip strips to use as accents (Stargazer paper packet)
Astronaut die cut from White Daisy cardstock, stamped with Archival Black ink, painted in watercolor (Stargazer Thin Cuts)
Aliens/monsters die cut from White Daisy cardstock, stamped with Willow ink, pupils colored over with black marker (Monstrous Halloween Thin Cuts)

Step 1. Cutting the circle.

Place the 2½” circle die (the largest one in the set) ¾” from the top of the planets paper and centered, left to right. Attach it with washi tape to keep it in place as you run it through your die-cutting machine.

Step 2. Cutting the moon.

Once you’ve cut your first circle, use the inside circle to make the moon.

Flip the 2½” circle you just cut out over, to the side of the paper that looks like the surface of the moon. Attach the 2″ circle die to it with washi tape and run it through your die-cutting machine.

Step 3. Attaching the planets paper.

On the backside of your paper, add thin 3-D foam tape as shown here. You will need a small piece of foam tape near the circle to allow the movement later but make sure it isn’t too close to the circle or it will not work! Attach this piece to your card front.

Step 4. Adding the penny.

This step is pretty simple but also requires accuracy. With your card resting on a flat surface, gently tuck your penny (or flat button) behind the planets paper about half way. Be careful to not bump your card, the penny is not attached to anything at this point.

Step 5. Prepping the moon.

With your penny in place, it’s time to prepare the moon for attaching.

Flip your moon over to the planets side of the paper and add thin 3-D foam tape to the center only and attach it to the card. Don’t move the penny.

Step 6. Attaching the astronaut.

Remember our floating penny? Carefully attach a small foam dot to the center of it, between the two papers. Remove the adhesive from the top and attach the astronaut you’ve previously prepared.

Step 7. Embellish!

Add your sentiment, aliens, and all other embellishments to your card to finish it off!

Have you made other interactive cards using this or any other method? Tell us all about it in the comments below!

Recipes

5½” x 4¼” Mission Control: We have a Birthday Card
See materials list in post

5½” x 4¼” Super Girl Card
Z4163 Super Girl Stamp + Thin Cuts, X7229B Stargazer Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5982 Canary Cardstock, X5975 Cranberry Cardstock, Z3271 Archival Black Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2816 Cranberry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z4143 Stargazer Dots, Z3132 Watercolor Paints, Z3177 Paintbrush Set, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z1151 3-D Foam Tape, Die-cutting Machine, Penny

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March 6, 2018Create, Learn

Stacking Die-cuts In Your Favor

Close To My HeartBasic Stars, Stargazer, stars, technique, Thin Cuts 12 Comments

Thin Cuts come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Stars, hearts, circles, flowers, ovals, banners, tags, numbers, letters—just to name a few 😉 . Our goal this month is to remind you just how handy these tools can be in creating beautiful artwork that is versatile and, dare we say it—Die-namite!

All of our basic shapes Thin Cuts come in a set of four dies ranging in size, from 1″ to 2½”. In the page above we used our Basic Stars Thin Cuts to create something that literally pops off the page.

First we attached the largest stars to the page. You can use glue dots, thin 3-D foam tape, or both—which is what we did. Add the adhesive only to the center of the shape to keep it from going completely flat.

The smaller stars were stacked on top and then attached with a mini staple—not only functioning as an adhesive but as an added design element. You’ll notice that we only used three out of the four star sizes per stack. We found that doing more than three looked too bulky and didn’t visually work with our page. (If you remember from one of our previous posts, details in odd numbers look better than even!) Lastly, using nothing more than a finger, we lifted the corners up starting with the top layer.

Replicate this user-friendly technique with any of our basic shape Thin Cuts. If you want to achieve a similar effect with a Thin Cut that doesn’t come in a variety of sizes, follow the same steps and stack the same sized shapes on top of each other.

And don’t forget, our Thin Cuts are on sale this month! Save 25% on individual sets and 30% on select bundles! Click here to shop!

Recipe

12″ x 12″ #cool Champion Page
X7229B Stargazer Paper Packet, Z3351 Adventure Fundamental Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5957 Sapphire Cardstock, X7229C Stargazer Complements, Z3356 All-Star Complements, Z4143 Stargazer Dots, Z3329 Thin Cuts—Basic Stars, Z3132 Watercolor Paints, Z3188 Paintbrush Set, Z2027 Mini Stapler, Sewing Machine

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January 23, 2018Celebrate

Complement Day!!! (AND GIVEAWAY!!)

Close To My HeartChelsea Gardens, complements, compliment, die cuts, Gimme Some Sugar, giveaway, Make Waves, Stargazer, stickers 461 Comments

Did you know that we have over 1,500 national (unofficial 😉 ) holidays here in the United States? Observed annually on January 24^th is compliment day—a day specifically set aside to pay attention, acknowledge something nice about someone, and to then share your sincere observations with that person. What an easy way to brighten someone’s day and spread joy!

Since it would be near impossible to sincerely share a compliment with each and every one of you, we thought we’d put our own Close To My Heart spin on things and celebrate this holiday by sharing our Complements instead! We can think of no better way to do this than by showing you how easy it is to use them and by giving some away to our loyal blog readers!

For those of you new to the lingo, Complements are stickers and die-cuts designed to complement, or complete, our creative collections. Each of our collections features a coordinating paper packet and other embellishments, like sequins, gems, and trims, all following the same color scheme and design esthetic. This makes it easy for you to find coordinating products for any given papercrafting project.

With the launch of our newest catalog, Seasonal Expressions 1, we have four new creative collections for you to pick from. Take a look at how we made use of each collection’s complements in the artwork below. Then, decide which one is your favorite for a chance to win it, FREE!

Chelsea Gardens

Make Waves

You’ll notice that each card and scrapbook page was made without any stamping, using only our Complements for titles and embellishments. Cardmaking and scrapping can really be that easy!

Stargazer

Gimme Some Sugar

Now that we’ve got your attention with our complements, it’s your turn to acknowledge something nice about them! In the comments below, tell us which collection is your favorite and why. For a chance to win it free, make sure you are also subscribed to this blog. It’s super easy—just push the blue “Subscribe to list” button on the sidebar! 🙂 After you’ve complimented us, we’ll select 12 lucky winners to receive their choice of Complements, FREE! We’re giving away three sets of Complements from each new collection and you can only win one, so make sure to share this giveaway with your friends! Don’t delay, all qualifying entries must be submitted by 11 a.m. (MST) tomorrow, January 24.

Complement Day #ctmh #closetomyheart #diy #page #scrapbook #scrapbooking #complements #compliments #stickers #flowers #floral #butterflies #butterfly #layout #today #Chelsea #gardens #memorykeeping #memory #keeping #photos #album #feminine #family #story #together #love #grows #portrait

Chelsea Gardens Complements

Complement Day #ctmh #closetomyheart #complement #compliment #sticker #embellish #embellishment #accessories #accessory #make #waves #floral #flowers #bashful #glacier #lagoon #pansy #shine #mermaid #girl #girly #fish #sea #ocean #water #polkadots #dot #diy #card #cardmaking #scrapbooking #mermaid #glitter #magical #beautiful #bashful #shine

Make Waves Complements

Complement Day #ctmh #closetomyheart #complement #compliment #sticker #accessory #embellish #embellishment #stargazer #star #gazer #space #galaxy #diy #page #layout #scrapbooking #scrapbook #photo #memorykeeping #memory #keeping #oneofakind #kind #blue #sapphire #red #yellow #lemon #primarycolors #primary #album #boy #girl #wonderful #awesome #star

Stargazer Complements

complement day #ctmh #closetomyheart #diy #page #layout #album #scrapbooking #scrapbook #photo #memory #keeping #girls #girly #friends #gimmesomesugar #gimme #some #sugar #kitchen #pink #flowers #floral #rustic #hearts #embellishment #embellish #complement #compliment #stickers #accessories #accessory #bashful #peacock #kraft #paper #fine #dandy #oranges #heart #peach

Gimme Some Sugar Complements

We believe that compliments should be given away freely every day, so make the extra effort today and really spread that love and admiration you have for the people in your life by sharing some sincere praise.

Can’t wait to hear from you!

Recipes

4¼” x 5½” We’re In This Together Card (Horizontal)
X7230B Chelsea Gardens Paper Packet, X7230C Chelsea Gardens Complements, Z4155 Chelsea Gardens Dots & Gems, Z1151 3-D Foam Tape

12″ × 12″ Today Page
X7230B Chelsea Gardens Paper Packet, X7230D Chelsea Gardens Coordinating Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X7230C Chelsea Gardens Complements, Z4155 Chelsea Gardens Dots & Gems, Z4154 Cream Ribbon, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape

4¼” x 5½” There Is Something Beautiful Card (Vertical)
X7227B Make Waves Paper Packet, X7227C Make Waves Complements, Z4142 Make Waves Sequins & Gems, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, Z4146 Make Waves Shimmer Trim

12″ × 12″ Shine Page
X7227B Make Waves Paper Packet, X7227D Make Waves Coordinating Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X7227C Make Waves Complements, Z4142 Make Waves Sequins & Gems, Z4146 Make Waves Shimmer Trim, Z1151 3-D Foam Tape

4¼” x 5½” One of a Kind Card (Vertical)
X7229B Stargazer Paper Packet, X7229C Stargazer Complements, Z4143 Stargazer Dots

12″ × 12″ One of a Kind Page
X7229B Stargazer Paper Packet, X7229D Stargazer Coordinating Cardstock, X7229C Stargazer Complements, Z4143 Stargazer Dots, Z4145 Light Grey Ribbon, Z1979 Marvy® Uchida® LePen™ Journaling Pen, Z1151 3-D Foam Tape

4¼” x 5½” Friends Card (Vertical)
X7228B Gimme Some Sugar Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X7228C Gimme Some Sugar Complements, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, Z1151 3-D Foam Tape

12″ × 12″ Fine & Dandy Page
X7228B Gimme Some Sugar Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X7228C Gimme Some Sugar Complements, Z4153 Gimme Some Sugar Cork Shapes, Z4144 Peacock-stitched Ribbon, Z1979 Marvy® Uchida® LePen™ Journaling Pen, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape

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Make It from Your Heart

Tag Archives: Stargazer

Color Theory: Triadic Color Combinations

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Secrets of a Title Page

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