Baroque Motifs Card

I hope everyone had a wonderful Holiday. I wish you all a Happy New Year!

I got so behind on posting cards during this busy time of the year! But here is one of the holiday cards I did this year. We made this one at November's stamp club. If you can't tell, I just love this Baroque Motifs set. It is so versatile! I have used it for elegant wedding cards, for a background for a chip board journal, for this Christmas card, and a lot more.

Although this is a holiday card, this same layout could be used with different colors and a different sentiment to change the whole look. Imagine Soft Subtle colors and any other sentiment and you would have a completely different card using the same layout!

For this card, the large swirly image was stamped on Handsome Hunter card stock in Craft White Ink and then the Iridescent Ice embossing powder was sprinkled over it. It was heat embossed (tip: don't overheat when embossing the Iridescent Ice powder or the glitter in it will melt and then not sparkle). The picture doesn't show it real well, but the image is sparkly.

The tendrils were made by cutting very narrow slivers of the Brushed Silver card stock using a paper cutter. The narrow slivers are then wrapped tightly around the end of a small paint brush or any other small tool to curl them. The tendrils were then glued in place. Then flowers punched out of Rose Red and Bravo Burgundy card stock using the 5-Petal Punch were placed over the tendrils. There are several Stampin' Up! sets that have flowers that "fit" the 5-Petal Punch, in this case a flower from Looks Like Spring was used (the sets that have a flower that fits the punch include In the Spotlight hostess set, Be Happy, Priceless, Simply Said, Looks Like Spring, Heartfelt Thanks, Ginormous Flowers, and Office Accoutrement). The little dots in the center of the "poinsettia" were made using the silver end of the dual colored Paint Ziggy marker.

The Merry Christmas sentiment is from the Holiday Wishes set. It was stamped on Rose Red card stock in Craft White ink and embossed with the Iridescent Ice embossing powder. The Rose Red was layered onto the Brushed Silver card stock.

Theresa

**All materials for this card came from the Stampin' Up! catalog. The new Spring/Summer catalog begins January 2nd. See a preview of the catalog below.

Spring/Summer Catalog Preview

Thinking outside the box! Holiday card from nonholiday stamp set!

You can often stretch the versatility of your stamp sets by looking past the obvious purpose of the images and think of what other images you can get from them. I saw this idea somewhere out there in cyberland (sorry, can't remember exactly who I copied this idea from to give proper credit). Who knew a flower image (from Pick a Petal) could become a gingerbread man?!

This card also used other nonholiday sets such as Seeing Spots and Everyday Flexible Phrases. The white gel pen was used to draw on the gingerbread decorations and the dots and swirls on the tag (LOVE that gel pen)!

All materials used on this card are available from the Fall/Winter Stampin' Up! catalog that expires at the end of this month. Here are links to the list of stamp sets that are retiring from the catalog:

• Retiring List (by page number)
  
• Retiring List (alphabetical stamp name)

Theresa

True Friend Waterfall Card!

This type of card is called a "waterfall" card because they are often done in the portrait orientation and when you pull the ribbon the panels appear as if they tumble from a waterfall. This card is shown in a landscape orientation but could also be done in portrait by just turning the last panel 90 degrees.

The long blank panel that appears as you pull the ribbon serves as a good place to write your message to the recipient.

Shown below are a few other "waterfall" cards I have done in the past. The birthday themed card was an invitation to our youngest birthday party a while ago. The details for the party were printed on the panel that appears as you pull the ribbon to get the waterfall action.

This one was a Halloween themed waterfall card I made a couple years ago.

Here are the directions and materials list for the True Friend Waterfall card. The others are made exactly the same way just substituting card stock colors and stamp images.

Waterfall Card Technique:

Materials:

5 ½" x 4 ¼" base layer (Always Artichoke)
5 ¼" x 4" Designer Paper (Brocade Backgrounds)
4 pieces of 2 1/8" x 2 1/8" cardstock (Always Artichoke)
4 pieces of 1 7/8" x 1 7/8" to stamp images (Natural Ivory)
9" x 1 ¾" strip (Natural Ivory)
4" x 5/8" strip (Always Artichoke)
2 eyelets (Earth Elements, Old Olive)
Always Artichoke Classic Ink Pad
Crop-a-dile hole punch/eyelet setter
5" Very Vanilla ¼" wide grosgrain ribbon
Adhesive

Steps:

1. Stamp the 4 images from the True Friend stamp set in Always Artichoke ink on the small Natural Ivory squares.
2. Layer the stamped images onto the 4 squares of Always Artichoke cardstock.
3. Attach the Always Artichoke 5/8" strip of cardstock between ¾" and 1" from the right edge of the Designer Paper using eyelets set about ½" from the top and the bottom of the strip.
4. Score the 9" x 1 ¾" strip of Natural Ivory cardstock at 2", 2 ¾", 3 ½", and 4 ¼". Bend the cardstock at each score line.
5. Slip the long end of the scored strip under the Always Artichoke strip. Fold the other end and glue the 2" scored end to the center, far right edge of the Always Artichoke strip.
6. Glue a stamped layered square (the one you want to appear last in the waterfall) to the 2" scored section of the Natural Ivory strip so that the square meets the scored line at the left edge (not extending beyond the score line).
7. Glue each of the remaining layered stamped squares to each successive scored area of the Natural Ivory strip so the layered square meets each scored line at the left edge.
8. Punch a slot (Slot Punch) in the Natural Ivory strip at the far right. Tie the Very Vanilla grosgrain ribbon through the slot.
9. Layer the Designer Paper with attached images onto the Always Artichoke 5 ½" x 4 ¼" piece.
10. Pull the ribbon and watch the images appear.

These cards are fun to make and can be made to fit any theme you can think of!

Holiday gift card or money holder

This card is a good idea for the upcoming holiday season. It is a creative way to give a gift card or money. To make this card, cut a sheet of Whisper White card stock in half to form a piece that is 5.5" x 8.5" (or you might want to use 6" x 8.5" piece of card stock so the card is a little longer to hold money). Score the card stock at 3" and 6" along the 8.5" side. Fold at the scored lines to form a trifold card. Cut along an angle at the edge of the inside fold (see picture of inside of card). Glue along the right side of the inside fold to form the pocket that holds the money or the gift card.
For the front of the card, Real Red card stock (2 5/8" x 5.5") was stamped in Craft White ink with Background Basics stamp set. A piece of the Dashing Designer Paper with Real Red Grosgrain ribbon tied around it was layered onto the Real Red card stock which was then adhered to the front of the card. The 1 3/8" square punch was punched through the Real Red and Whisper White front of the card. The inside image (from Greetings Galore) was stamped on the inside so it appears through the square window. Tip: use a pencil to trace the square opening onto the inside of the card so you can align the inside image in the proper location (the Stamp-a-ma-jig helps to get the image exactly where you want it in the penciled square). Then erase the light pencil marking.

Color in the stamped image as you want with the Stampin' Write Markers, add Dazzling Diamonds glitter if you really want to make it sparkle! The small open-ended envelopes (page 169) work well for this size card.

Theresa

The Snowflake Spot Card!

It's November already! Time to get those Holiday cards started if you haven't already. This card was another one of our October stamp club projects. Again I can't take credit for the design of this great card. It is another one I copied (with minor changes) from the monthly swap I do with a small group of other local demonstrators (this was Laura Palmer's card swap).

This is a card that doesn't require a lot of stamping and no special techniques were used, but I love the color combination. The layering on the Basic Black really makes the Bashful Blue and the Certainly Celery (card stock and designer paper) stand out. And the Square Ice Brad (turned diagonally) in the center of the snowflake (from The Snowflake Spot set) really adds some bling to the card!

Speaking of Designer Paper, there is a GREAT special in this month - the Paper Party Promo! Between now and the end of November, you can get a FREE pack of Designer Series paper for each 3 packs you purchase. This includes the 16 monochromatic paper packs, the 2 Designer papers in the Holiday mini, and the other 17 patterned papers in the catalog (see page 170-173). All the Designer Papers are double sided (patterns on both sides) and thicker than typical patterned papers. You can see "swatches" of each of the paper packs HERE.

Supplies for this card (all available in the Stampin' Up! Fall/Winter Idea Book).
Stamp Sets: The Snowflake Spot
Inks: Bashful Blue
Card stock: Whisper White, Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery Designer Series paper
Accessories: Square Rhinestone brad (Ice)

Theresa

Autumn Fest Card

This is a card we did at October stamp club. I can not take credit for design of this card. I stole the idea from Sheila Selinksy, one of the demos I meet with monthly. This was her swap last month and I loved it and used it for stamp club (with some minor changes). There are no special techniques involved, but it gave us a chance to try out the Crop-a-dile for setting eyelets. Once you have used the Crop-a-dile, you will never go back to setting eyelets with a hammer!

Supplies: (all available in the Fall/Winter Stampin' Up! catalog)

Stamp Set: Autumn Fest (page 108), Itty Bitty Backgrounds (page 131), Holiday & Wishes (page 143). Canvas Background Stamp (page 138)

Cardstock: Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip, Elegant Eggplant, Whisper White

Inks: Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip, Elegant Eggplant, Pumpkin Pie, Ruby Red

Accessories: Earth Elements eyelets, Crop-a-dile, Chocolate Chip Tafetta Ribbon, Word Window Punch

Enjoy the card!

Theresa

Leaves Awash Treat Container!

I am finally posting the last of our September stamp club projects. You will sometimes see these little treat containers called "sour cream" containers since they are shaped like the single serving sour cream containers you might get at a restraurant. They are the perfect size to fit a couple pieces of candy in. I have used this type of container for SO MANY treats sent to school for kids birthdays and many other occasions. Imagine this particular one along the Thanksgiving table!

These are so easy to make. You start with a 1/4 sheet of card stock (5 1/2" x 4 1/4"). Stamp and decorate the card stock. In this case we wheeled the sheet with the Leaves Awash wheel on More Mustard card stock. Then we watercolored the leaves using the ink from the Always Artichoke, Really Rust, and Ruby Red ink pads. Tip: with the ink pad closed, squeeze the flexible bottom of the pad, then open the inkpad to find a pool of ink on the lid. Use your aquapainter to pick up some of the pooled ink to use for watercoloring the wheeled leaves. Another tip: if you are going to make a lot of these containers, to save time, wheel (or stamp) a whole 11" x 8 1/2" piece of cardstock and then cut into fourths.

Next, take your decorated 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" piece of card stock and run adhesive on the back (the undecorate side) along one short (4 1/4") side and one longer (5 1/2") side. Sticky strip is the adhesive that will REALLY hold these containers closed. Roll the unglued short end towards the short end with adhesive to form what looks like a toilet tissue tube. Then pinch the end of the tube with adhesive shut. Running that pinched end into the crimper gives a nice decorative touch.

Put a few little treats in the tube, then pinch the other end of the tube shut after you turn it 90 degrees. That end can also be crimped and punched. Some cooridinating grosgrain ribbon can then be added to put the final touch on this cute container.

Give it a try. These are fun to make!

Theresa

*all supplies can be found in the Stampin' Up! Fall/Winter Idea Book.
See the Holiday Mini Catalog. Items available Sept 1-Nov 28th.
OCTOBER SPECIAL - Holiday Glitz Promotion (see details here).

Autumn Harvest Masking and Brayering!

This was the swap card I created for a demo swap awhile back and then my stamp club made it at the September meeting. I love this new Autumn Harvest set from the Holiday mini! It comes with a jack-o-lantern face so it is also great for kids' and Halloween cards and scrapbook pages.

A couple different techniques were used with this card: embossing, masking, crayon resist, and brayering. A piece of glossy cardstock was used for the main image. The smaller pumpkin and gourd in the forefront of the image were stamped first in Chocolate Chip craft ink. Those two images had clear embossing powder sprinkled on them and they were heat embossed. Masks of those two images were made by stamping them on a post it note and then cutting them out. The masks were placed over the two embossed images and then the biggest pumpkin and the leaves were stamped in the Chocolate Chip craft ink and then embossed with clear powder. The masks prevent the already stamped images from getting stamped on so the bigger pumpkin looks like it sits behind the other images.

To give a few "highlights" on the images, a white crayon is used to very lightly scribble on the glossy cardstock before brayering with the Pumpkin Patch spectrum pad. The crayon resists the ink leaving those areas white while the rest of the area gets ink from the brayer. In this card, the white was too bright of a highlight, so the added step (before the crayon) was to brayer with the sponge brayer the entire glossy piece with Creamy Caramel classic ink. Then the crayon was used very lightly to form the highlights. Finally, the rubber brayer was inked up using the Pumpkin Patch spectrum pad and then the inked brayer was rollered over the embossed images. The crayon areas resist the Pumpkin Patch ink and remain Creamy Caramel colored. Additional shadows on the pumpkins were added by taking the Stampin' Write markers and scribbling on some Ruby Red and Creamy Caramel shadows quickly followed by gentle rubbing with a tissue to blend the marker colors.

The rest of the card just involved punching the glossy cardstock layer with the Ticket Corner punch, layering, and adding the Chocolate Chip Taffeta ribbon (gorgeous ribbon, btw)! The Happy Thanksgiving sentiment is from the Holiday Wishes set and it was also stamped in Chocolate Chip craft ink and then embossed with clear powder.

I have to say this is one of my favorite cards. Hope you enjoy it!

Theresa

*All supplies for this card are available in the Stampin' Up! Idea Book and the Holiday Mini Catalog (the Autumn Harvest set).

Spooky Skyline Spinner Card!

It is hard to capture the fun of this card with just a still shot. The moon spins across the front of the card. I have made previous spinner cards with other themes as well - a snowflake spinning, a girl cartwheeling (the girl with her arms raised from the retired Girlfriends set), a spinning flower...

The best part about this card is that it is really easy but it will amaze and amuse anyone you give it to. In this sample, the background colors (Elegant Eggplant, Pumpkin Pie, and So Saffron) were sponged onto the Whisper White cardstock to make a sunset look. The Spooky Skyline jumbo wheel was then rollered in Basic Black ink across the sponged background.

The Word Window punch was used across the top to get the slot opening. Tip: use a ruler to draw a straight line starting at 3/4" from the left edge and stopping at 3/4" from the right edge on the back. Then punch 3 times overlapping each time following the straight line.

The moon is formed by sponging with the So Saffron on a scrap of white, stamping with the bats, then punching with the 1 3/8" circle punch. Happy Halloween is stamped using the Everyday Flexible Phrases set.

Two pennies are used to form the spinning mechanism for the card. Cut a piece of form tape into a 1/4" diameter circle. Place that small foam circle centered between the two pennies. The pennies are slipped into the punched slot so that one penny is behind and one penny is to the front of the slot. Test that your pennies freely roll back and forth in the slot. Then glue the stamped moon to the front penny.

The whole sponged/stamped white layer with spinning moon is layered onto the Basic Black card base using dimensionals between the layer and base so there is a gap that allows the pennies to spin.

Now just have fun watching your image spin back and forth (it can almost be hypnotizing)!

Theresa

*all supplies are available in the Stampin' Up catalog. Let me know if you need help finding anything.

Some Great Cards from a Swap

Each month I get together with some other local Stampin' Up! demonstrators and we share ideas and swap cards with each other. I'm saving my swap card until after Stamp Club this Sunday since we are making that one at club. But here are the ones I got at my last meeting with the other demos.

This first one was made by Laura Palmer. I love the simplicity especially when using the designer papers. It is shown here in both Certainly Celery and Rose Red. I love the gingham ribbon with it and the use of the Three for You Punch (the flowers). So Cute!

This card was made by Karen Russell. I think it is adorable. I love the bright colors and the use of the Wrought Iron punch as a border punch to make the waves.

This final card was made by Terri Sampson. This is such a cute baby card. The new Year After Year stamp set (the flower image and elephant image) are great and the use of the Word Window punch to reveal the message along with the gingham ribbon and brads makes it really unique.

Great Ideas! I hope you enjoy them.

Theresa

Trying something new - Slide Show of Recent Pictures!

I was trying something new! I will add this slideshow to the sidebar so you can refer back to it anytime.
Theresa

Happiness Card - Coloring with Pastels

This is the final card from our August stamp club meeting. Until recently I had not even taken my Stampin' Pastel chalks out for probably two years! What was I thinking? I guess I just kinda forgot about them! Then after putting together the last card (the poppin' pastels one), I figured as long as I had them out I should use them some more!

This card is simple enough but it uses several different tools. As I put it together I just kept thinking of a few more touches to add to it! The stamp set "Give Thanks" was used for this card. From the name of the set you might think it is a Thanksgiving set, but I was drawn to this set because I saw so many year around uses for it!

The bucket with apples image was stamp with versamark ink, sprinkled with black embossing powder, and then heat embossed. The blender pens were used to pick up the chalks in the Stampin' Pastels to color in the image. A silver brad was placed at the bucket handle (thought of that after making the card, so I had to take it apart and put back together again)! The white strip has the rows of paper piercing which are easy when you use the holes template in the Mat Pack (also comes with the Crafter's Tool Kit). Finally the Real Read card stock punched using the new Scallop Circle Punch along with the 1 1/4" circle punched layer adds a cute design detail. The "happiness" sentiment comes from the Warm Words stamp set.

Somehow the Creamy Caramel base with the Real Red accents and the Whisper White layers remind me of back to school. We laughed at stamp club that one could give this card to their child's new teacher and know the real meaning of the card is happiness for me now that my child is back in school with you!

Theresa

Useful Links:

Fall/Winter Big Ideal Book

Holiday mini catalog - Sept 1-Nov 30

SEPTEMBER SPECIAL: 30% off 6 different stamp sets, see details.

Demo Sign Up special: FREE set of ink pads!

Poppin' Pastels! Colors appear right before your eyes!

Happy Labor Day! I always hate to see summer end, BUT then again the kids return to school tomorrow so maybe the end of summer isn't that bad afterall! And perhaps this fall-themed card will help us ease into the fall season.

This card is another one we did at August stamp club. I love the Poppin' Pastels technique. The name will make sense as soon as you see this technique done. It is like magic with colors poppin' forth right before your eyes.

It is a super easy technique. In this card, the edges of a strip of Natural Ivory card stock were torn. Then the acorn and leaves images from the All through the Year stamp set were stamped on the Natural Ivory in Versamark ink. The images are barely visible in the Versamark Ink but here is where the "magic" occurs. Using the Sponge Daubers, you pick up a little chalk color from the Set of Pastels. Rub various chalk colors over the versamark images. The colors just "pop" as the sticky versamark ink picks up and holds onto the chalk pastels. After rubbing the pastels over the stamped images, you can take a tissue or cotton ball and rub over the whole area to remove stray chalk from the uninked portions of the card stock. The versamark images remain nicely colored. This is a fast and fun way to apply vibrant color to stamped images.

The More Mustard base of the card was stamped in More Mustard ink with the Linen background stamp to give a subtle textured look to the base. "Autumn" from the Season by Season set was stamped in Chocolate Chip classic ink. The Natural Ivory was layered on torn Chocolate Chip card stock. Chocolate Chip Tafetta ribbon was strung through Double Circle Punched holes and tied in a bow.

Enjoy!
Theresa

Three for You Punch Box

This will be real short - catching up on posting recent projects. This little lovenote card is simple, quick, and cute. This size card is great as a card on a gift or as a little note to leave hidden for someone special. I loved the story Judy told us at stamp club about these little cards reminding her of the little cards/notes that she and her husband left hidden around the house for each other and that she has continued finding some even now after he died a couple years ago.

The card was made using the Three for You Punch Box. The punch box comes with a large punch that punches the 3 flowers in a row, a stamp set (9 die-cut stamps - no trimming needed!), 3 ink spots (mini inkpads, 2 of which are new in colors - Wild Wasabi and Purely Pomagranate), and the large tin to hold everything.

Notice the texture of the Wild Wasabi card base. This is the new textured card stock that is available in a 12" x 12" assorted package of in colors. The 12" x 12" size card stock is perfect to use for these 3" x 3" love notes. Or if you like them pre-cut and pre-score with envelopes, the love notes are available also in the regular card stock in some colors.

The Wild Wasabi base of the card and the Groovy Gauva layer on it were stamped with stamps in the punch box in Wild Wasabit ink. The ribbon is the double stitched ribbon which comes in each of the new in colors.

Have a great Labor Day weekend!

Theresa

Some Useful Links:

Fall/Winter Idea Book/Catalog.

September Special - starts Sept 1. 30% off 6 different sets!

Holiday Mini - September 1 through November 30.

Recruit Special - Free family of ink pads (up to $57.95 value) ends Sept. 30.

Corner Rounder can be used to Scallop!

Wow! I am way behind posting stamp club samples. This one is the last one from July's meeting. I will also (within the next few days) post the 3 we made this month at stamp club.

Scallops are a big thing lately in papercrafting - scalloped circles, scalloped ovals, scalloped edges everywhere! You can buy individual punches to get scalloped shapes and I LOVE the new circle one in the catty - we used it on a August stamp club card so you will see that one soon! BUT those punches only give you that one particular size. What if you want a really big circle? You either have to buy yet another punch (and they only comes in so many sizes) OR you can learn to use your corner rounder to scallop ANY size shape!

In the card above, the scalloped circle has a diameter of 3 3/8". You can't buy a scallop circle punch that big. So instead you can cut a circle using your coluzzle circle template (the third biggest circle). I will show the procedure with another card below.

One note though - in the sample above and to the right, I used the corner rounder that just retired at the end of June. With the sample below I used the new 3/16" corner rounder that is available in the new catalog. You get a little bit different scallop pattern - scallops that are a little wider with the old one compared to the new one. Both are a nice scallop pattern though, just slightly different.

The first step for these cards was to cut a circle. In both these card samples I used the 3 3/8" circle on the coluzzle which is the third from the largest on the template (that I marked with red sharpie on my template).

Next take the corner rounder punch and remove the corner guard (yes it comes off - some have never realized that)!

With the punch upside down so you can see where you are punching, punch along the edge of the circle. Line it up so the next punched scallop starts right where the last punched scallop ends. It might take a little practive to get the spacing just right.

After you have scalloped your circle, cut the layered circle just one size smaller. Stamp your image, color, sponge the edge if you like and layer it on the scalloped circle. The rest of both cards just involves layering and embellishment with ribbon and stamping a sentiment.

Supply List: (all found in the Stampin' Up! catalog)

Card 1:

Stamps- Year after Year, Hugs & Wishes

Cardstock: So Saffron, Rose Red, Whisper White, Rose Red designer paper.

Inks: Rose Red, markers - So Safrron, Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery

Other: White grosgrain ribbon, retired small corner rounder punch, Coluzzle.

Card 2:
Stamps- Year after Year, Hugs & Wishes
Cardstock: Whisper White, Lovely Lilace, Almost Amethyst designer paper.
Inks: Lovely Lilac, markers - Almost Amethyst, Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery
Other: White grosgrain ribbon, retired small corner rounder punch, Coluzzle.

Card 3:

Stamps: Autumn Harvest (Holiday mini, can't be ordered until after 9/1/07), Season by Season.

Cardstock: More Mustard, Old Olive, Really Rust, Whisper White

Inks and Colors: Basic Brown, Creamy Caramel, Water color crayons - Old Olive, Really Rust, Ruby Red, Creamy Caramel, Pumpkin Pie

Other: new 3/16" corner rounder punch, Chocolate Chip tafetta ribbon, Coluzzle.

Have fun scalloping!

Theresa

Helpful Links:

Fall/Winter Idea Book/Catalog

Upcoming Holiday Mini Catalog - starts September 1st.

Special for New Recruits - get the demo kit and get a FREE family of ink pads!

August Special - ENDS IN 2 DAYS!!! Get free Love Notes and Envelopes with Three for You punch box.

Shadowing Technique

Wow! Things suddenly got really busy around here and I realized I hadn't posted for a while. Today I will post another stamp club card we did in late July. This card involves a very easy technique called shadowing. It is simple but gives a very striking look to an image.

The card shown here uses the new stamp set, Baroque Motifs. I love this set - I find myself using it for everything lately. It makes fast elegant cards.

The large swirly image is first stamped in Blue Bayou Classsic Ink (one of the new In Colors) on a 5 1/4" x 4" piece Blue Bayou card stock. Some of the little flowers/asterisks are also stamped in Blue Bayou. The large swirly image is then stamped again (cleaned in between) in the Craft Whisper White ink. The white image is slightly offset from the darker blue bayou image. This creates the shadowing effect. Of course getting the white image lined up just slightly offset is really easy when you use the Stamp-a-ma-jig. The sentiment (Cherish from Baroque Motifs set) is stamped in Blue Bayou on white and is then layered on a piece of Not Quite Navy card stock which is a perfect compliment to the new Blue Bayou In Color. The corners of the Not Quite Navy are punched using the Ticket Corner Punch. The whole Blue Bayou card front is layered on a folded 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" Whisper White card stock base (half a sheet of 8 1/2" x 11" card stock) which leaves a 1/8" border of white is all the way around (can't really see the white border on the white background here).

Shadowing can be done with many different stamps and even with the Stampin' Around wheels! You can use different colors (try different craft colors and different "shadow" colors). Have fun with it!

Lunchbox Tins!

Plain white lunchbox tins are available at a lot of craft stores. They can be turned into beautiful treasure boxes with just a little bit of designer paper! They are fun to decorate and make great recipe card holders, greeting card holders, jewelry boxes...

My daughter (Cecilia) has been wanting one of the decorated lunchboxes to keep her treasures in for almost a year! Bad mom that I am, I kept saying yes I will make one for you and she picked out the papers, etc but then I would forget or postpone! Well, then she asked if I could make her friend (who loves pink) a decorated box to put some jewelry and trinkets in that she was giving her for her birthday. So then I had a deadline and made the box right away!

That of course led my daughter to complain (rightfully so) that I could make her friend one in just a few days but she has been asking for almost a year and hasn't gotten one! That was enough guilt - she now finally has one (see the green one below) well except for figuring out some decorative stuff on the front since she is so picky (or I should say she has definite opinions that are usually the opposite of mine)!


These lunchboxes are very easy to decorate and there are many different methods. Most are covered with patterned paper (i.e., Stampin' Up! Designer Series papers) and ribbon. If you are local in MN you can even trace a pattern I made for the top and for the paper around the latch. Some people attach the paper using sticky strip while others glue the paper down with mod podge and then coat the decorated box with mod podge to give it a protective coating. I use the mod podge. A useful hint on using the mod podge - make sure you use a generous coating on the box to glue the paper to the box if you want to apply the protective coating over the paper later. If you don't have a good coating under the paper, it will bubble up when you coat the paper afterwards. But even if you see some bubbling of the paper as you coat it afterwards, don't panic because most of the bubbling goes away as the mod podge dries! Also, you can get mod podge that is glossy or it comes in matte finish also. I used the glossy on all the ones shown here except Cecilia's (the green one). The glossy gives you a shiny (glossy) finish and the brush marks show up more. I think I kinda like the matte finish better and will probably use that from now on.

All the boxes shown here are fairly simply decorated with just two coordinating designer papers. The double-sided designer papers make picking coordinating patterns really simple! The Headline Alphabet was used for the lettering on these boxes (and I covered the stamped letters layered on cardstock all in modge podge also). Use your imagination! You could apply punched flowers, cut out stamped images, brads and eyelets (the new Crop-a-dile punch and eyelet setter punches through these boxes)!

My Very first Blog Post! Special Fold Lovenote

Hello Stampin' Friends!

I figured a blog would be a good place to share pictures of stamp projects along with directions. I am learning this blogging by trial and error so we'll see how I do on this!

If you want to make sure you get notification whenever I post a new entry, make sure you subscribe (top right, sidebar). Otherwise you can just check into this website every so often and see if I have posted. The address is: http://mystampinobsession.blogspot.com/

So, what will my very first posted project be? How about one of the cards we did at Stamp Club on July 29th! I have a small group that just started up for the new catalog year (5 plus me). Anyone is welcome to join us each month, so take a look at the schedule below (Events Schedule at the bottom of the page). I will also have another group starting up in January if you want to get on the list for that.

Special Fold/Designer Paper Lovenote:

I love using the double-sided designer papers especially for a project like this where both sides will be visible! Since the paper is heavier than the single-sided patterned papers, it works well without even layering it on cardstock.

These special fold cards can be made any size by adjusting the size of the square of paper that you start with. In this case, starting with a 6" x 6" piece of Petals & Paisleys designer paper results in a 3" x 3" little lovenote that fits perfectly in the mini square envelopes that Stampin' Up! sells.

The special fold used for this card is actually very simple but it makes a card that looks impressive. Looking at the card opened might help explain the fold.

Fold the designer paper in half to get a long rectangular piece. Unfold, turn 1/4 turn and fold in half again. When unfolded, the paper should have creases that make 4 squares. Turn the paper over and fold diagonally (meet one corner to the corner opposite to it). Do only one diagonal fold. Now collapse/fold the sheet so that the diagonal corners come together.

This fold is more easily seen in the picture below:

With the folding complete, you end up with the 3" x 3" lovenote. On the front of this particular one, I folded down one corner to expose the designer paper pattern of the inside. Then Baroque Motifs was used to stamp the little medallion on the front (in Tempting Turquoise and Regal Rose). A square rhinestone brad (from the fire colors) embellishes the medallion.

Well, you will have to check back soon to see more postings of exciting projects! Let me know what you think of this way of sharing stamping ideas!

Theresa