On a lighter note …

Because I’m feeling rather sentimental today, I thought I would share one of my recent family stampin’ moments.

A few weeks ago my grand daughter wanted to make a special card for her father.  I let her loose in Stampin’ Central, the only thing off limits to her are my precious markers!  After a few minutes of watching the little tornado, I decided it best to cover her up and save her clothing from potential disaster.  Here she is hard at work choosing the perfect stamps for daddy’s card and in deep concentration to get those images placed exactly where she wants them.  She totally rocks that Stampin’ Up! apron! 

  

Notice the almost empty spool of sticky strip on the top of the mat … it will come into play later.

Like all good little demos, she takes time to focus on her admirers and flash them that gorgeous smile of enthusiasm.  She definitely loves what she does, and is more than willing to share!

 

 

 

Welllllllll ………

Until Auntie decides to get into the act – she wants her turn at a photo op too!

I suppose I do need to give kudos to Auntie, for supervising our little devil in disguise throughout this adventure. 

 

 

Remember back at the beginning of this post when I told you to not forget about that almost empty spool of sticky tape?  Leave it up to the mind of a 6 year old to find a way to recycle and repurpose an item that screams “trash bucket” to the rest of us.

A beautiful flashy bracelet that all of her friends would die for (no, this was NOT a gift for her father)!  There was no additional adhesive used for this creation.  All those beads stuck wonderfully to the residue left behind from the tape.  Now we know our Sticky Strip truly IS amazing stuff to work with!

Thanks for letting me share this with you.  I’m sure going to miss these precious moments when she and her family move across the country in the next few days.

Something Little

I wanted to play with the new designer paper I “won” at convention so I created these little notepad folders for each of my club members, as a small token of my appreciation.  They were each tucked inside a coordinating Stampin’ Up! reusable tote bag which was purchased at Momento Mall.  Of course, their special bags also included the merchandise they ordered for the current meeting.   This is the front and back of the folder – notice the cute Stampin’ Up! pen peeking out!

… and this is the inside.  A pocket on each side…one to keep your important notes safe and one to house a mini legal notepad. 

 

Project Recipe:

Stamps:  Apple Blossom (level 2 Hostess)
Paper:  Play Date DSP, Real Red, Chocolate Chip
Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Real Red
Accessories:  Brads, Modern Label punch, Large Oval punch, Scallop Oval punch, Scallop Trim Border punch, corner rounder punch, Dotted Scallop Ribbon punch, 1/4” grosgrain ribbon, dimensionals, sticky strip

Just Believe – SU New Catalog Blog Hop

Welcome to Stampin’ Addicts New Catalog blog hop.  Are you loving the new Stampin’ Up! catalog already?  I have really had to exercise some major self-control as I once again find myself wanting everything!   If you are loving this catalog as much as I am then you will definitely want to make sure you visit each and every stop on the tour, 26 in all, each showcasing a different product offered in the 2010-2011 SU Idea Book & Catalog. 

If you jumped on the bus at the beginning of the tour, you entered my blog after visiting DawnMarie at DMdesigns.  Didn’t you just love what she did with the Cottage Garden stamp set?  Bet you want to run right out and purchase it now!  If you started the tour from my blog, follow the link at the bottom of this post to continue on your journey.  If you get lost along the way, you can always jump right back on by visiting Stampin’ Addicts for the complete list of tour participants.  This blog hop will remain active through Sunday, August 1st.  Please check back often … and enjoy!!!

I am sharing a few projects I have made with the brand new stamp set “Just Believe”, found on page 109 of Stampin’ Up!’s new catalog.  I swear this set screamed my name LOUDLY when I came upon it.  Hopefully after you look at my creations, you will love it just as much as I do.  If you want to see the photos larger, just click on the images!

I originally used this criss cross card box design for a shoebox swap I participated in while at the Stampin’ Up! convention, had so much fun making it I decided to do it once again – this time including cards!     The piece of ribbon peeking over the top corner of the box is some of the new 1/2” stitched poly-ribbon.  This ribbon is absolutely wonderful to work with, and gorgeous to look at! 

Can you see I’ve also been playing with the new Basic Pearl jewels?  Love, love, love these!!!  They are self-adhesive – just run the tip of your scissors underneath and slide the pearl over – glue and pearl sticks to your scissors and allows you to place it exactly where you want.  If you look closely under the “friends” sentiment on the card, there is a row of 3 of the tiniest pearls in the package.  

This is the little note that slips inside the criss-cross card.  Once again, the 1/2” poly ribbon appears – this time shredded and looped through the top to use as a “pull”.

 

For my next project I pulled out tons of my new toys and had a great time playing with them all … you really do not want to see my stamping quarters right now!  On the main image I used my brayer and newly acquired skills to make a quick scenic background, added a few strategically placed leaf branches from the Two Step Bird punch and one of the new Bitty Buttons.  The scalloped borders are are pieces of cardstock punched from the brand new Dotted Scallop Ribbon punch – yet another new love of mine.
Last but not least … a candle holder!  Ok, so I am deathly afraid of fire and opted to use battery tea lights – but you get the idea.  I used the fancy favor box die to create the box, as well as the new scalloped rectangle clearlet to cut the sides – and even more fun new products!.  Be sure to stop back later this week, I will be posting more photos and details on this holder!
Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting me.  I hope you’ve enjoyed the creations I’ve shared with you, as much as I did making them.  Please stay on the bus and continue with the tour – your next stop will be Cindy, who will be showing you some fantastic ideas using the Countryside stamp set.

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Stampin’ Addicts “Last Chance” Mega Hop

Welcome to Stampin’ Addicts Retiring Sets Mega Hop.  We’ve all been busy playing with a few of the stamp sets that Stampin’ Up! has announced will no longer be for sale as of July 1st, 2010.  I’m so glad you decided to stop by and see what wonderful creations this group of gals … oh, and even 1 guy … have designed to share with you.  

If you started this tour from the beginning you came upon my blog after drooling over the beautiful creations Jennifer made with the Garden Whimsy set.  If you're starting the tour at my website, follow the link at the bottom of this post to continue on your journey.  If you get lost along the way, you can always jump back on the tour bus by visiting Stampin' Addicts for the complete list of participants.  This tour will run through Sunday evening (June 13) ... so sit back, relax, enjoy and come back often!!!

I have chosen to share with you a few samples I made with the stamp set “Le Jardin Botanique” and maybe … just maybe … convince you that you can’t live without it!  (giggle)

I recently splurged and took brayer classes offered by the “famous-to-the-stamping-community” Michelle Zindorf, and thought this set would be perfect for me to practice my newly learned technique on.  Remember … I’m a beginner so please be gentle with me!  In this first project I decided to make a 5 1/2” square card and try my hand at a landscape type artwork.  I’m definitely NOT a botanist, have no clue as to what kind of flowers, berries, whatever I am using – so just went with my imagination.  I thought those little berry leaves would make a fun “bush” (of sorts), nestled on a hill with a lonely tree and a bunch of random wildflowers.  After this project was completed, I proudly showed it to my daughter who lovingly told me it was beautiful and looked like a fantasy picture.  I’m hoping she meant that in a good way.  What do you think?

I enjoy creating different sized cards than the standard, so once again chose a larger 6 1/4” x 4 1/2” size to focus on the floral image from this set.  Since my brayer was still sitting on my desk, I thought it would be fun to play with it once more … this time brayering at an angle and only about 2/3 of the way up the main image panel (I’m definitely getting better at this!). 

I embossed the image to make it pop a bit, colored the blooms, highlighted a few petals and the stem with a white gel pen – then stamped a few random leaves on the lower corner.  Then I had to do it all over again because I “somehow” managed to drop the inked up brayer on the completed image.  <sigh>

Did you notice the fun corner treatment I used on the Really Rust background panel?  I used the very edge of the curly label punch and snipped off the corners of the paper … just enough to form that cute shape and let the designer paper peek through.  How fun is this! 

If you want a larger view of any of the images, just click on the photo.

 
Ok, so I’ve put away my brayer and taken out my spritz bottles for a change of pace … added some water and a few drops of re-inker and sprayed away on some whisper white card stock which had already been adhered to a heavy duty magnet sheet and run through the big shot.  I used 3 colors for this process, but the photo isn’t showing it well.  After it was dry, I stamped the images and colored the tree with an aqua painter.  I really like the effect of this technique.  This would make a quick, easy and useful gift for anyone … who doesn’t love magnets!

Thanks so much for joining me on the tour bus, I hope you enjoyed what I shared with you!  Please continue on the journey by visiting Krystal who will be showcasing some fun ideas using the Good Friends set.

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Fun with Stencils – Part 1

Once again I’m behind schedule with posting details of my blog tour projects … I think I should have an official motto … “better late than never”! 

I have really enjoyed playing with the stencils, love the different appearance they give to cards and paper projects.  These monogrammed note cards were very easy and so much fun to create, took only a few minutes from start to finish.  I began by using some painters tape to mask off the middle section of the Mostly Vintage decor stencils – post it notes will work just as well, tear them into little pieces and cover the areas you do not want in your design.  I used the 1 1/4” circle punch and punched from a sticky note to cover the middle image, it was the perfect size!  Now the fun begins … place your stencil over your cardstock, take a sponge and dab, dab, dab your ink until you reach the depth and color intensity you desire.  Carefully remove your stencil and admire your work!  (if you would like to see any of these photos larger, just click on the image)

Now it’s time to add your monogram – since I drive myself nuts about placement, I used my trusty Stamp-a-ma-jig for stamping the monogram letter.  I popped out the gems from a few brads and glued them on the cards using Tombow multi purpose adhesive and set them aside to dry.  After completing the number of cards I wanted, I gently removed all the tape from the stencil.  Now I masked off the outer sections and left the center circle exposed, placed my stencil over a corner of an envelope, grabbed my sponge again and dabbed some ink … voila, coordinating envelopes!

The tin container was purchased from Stampin’ Up! several months ago (or was it a year ago???), just waiting for me to finally do something with it.  It is the perfect size for 3 1/2'” x 5” note cards and envelopes.  The entire stencil image was used for this tin.  This time I used craft ink to sponge with, as the color was a deeper intensity.  I sprinkled the stenciled image with clear embossing powder, melted it and once again popped out a gem from a Rhinestone brad and glued it on.  Tucked the cards inside the tin and tied a pretty piece of ribbon around it.  A few tidbits of advice …
  1:  do not use rubbing alcohol to clean your tin of fingerprints (or whatever mess is left behind) – I found out the hard way that this will remove your embossing!   
  2:  Be very careful when sponging and cleaning the middle section of this stencil!  The design is very intricate and will rip.  I found the best way to clean it was to just run the stencil under hot water – the ink came off very easily.  Craft ink does stain the stencil, but I think it gives it that “loved” appearance.

Project Recipe:
Images:  Mostly Vintage Decor Stencil, Lovely Letters Alphabet Stamp Set
Paper:  Whisper White
Ink:  Old Olive Classic, Elegant Eggplant, Old Olive Craft
Accessories:  Circle Ice Rhinestone Brads, Old Olive 1 1/4” striped ribbon, Eyelet Border punch, Tombow Multi Purpose Adhesive, clear embossing powder