My Stampin' Obsession

Tart & Tangy Class!

2008-05-21T10:59:00.000-07:00

Are you ready for summer yet? I love this Tart & Tangy stamp set and the Summer Picnic designer paper in the Occasions mini catalog. It is perfect for all your summer cards.

I am holding a card/box class with another demonstrator, Terri Sampson, at my house on June 22, 2008. You will make 5 bright and cheery all occasion cards and envelopes perfect for summer featuring the Tart & Tangy set and Summer Picnic Designer paper. You will also make a great box to hold the cards and envelopes. If you are not able to attend the class (either live too far away or are not available that day), you can pick the "completed projects option."

Date/Time: Sunday, June 22, 2008, 2pm - 4pm

Location: 5643 Quale Ave NE, St. Michael 55376

Cost*: $15 fee includes all materials and instructions. Please bring your favorite adhesive to use for your cards. You will also get a $5.00 off coupon for any $30 merchandise order placed that day.

Completed Projects Option: For $20 we will make the projects for you and you can pick up the completed projects or have them mailed to you for $5 in postage ($25 total fee).

Register: Call or e-mail Terri or Theresa.
Mail the $15 fee by Monday, June 16th to the above address. Make payment out to your demo (either Terri or Theresa). You are not registered until you are pre-paid for the class. The class size is limited to the first 12 pre-paid, so don’t delay!

E-mail: Theresa Gentle (tgentle1@yahoo.com) 763-428-2764
or Terri Sampson (tasampson@yahoo.com) 763-227-3377

*Sorry, no refunds available if you register and then are unable to attend. However, you will receive the class materials for your use, or for an additional $5 fee, we will complete the projects for you.

Essence of Love Card card -Chalkboard Technique

2008-04-09T08:10:00.000-07:00

This card features the Essence of Love stamp set found in the Ocassions Mini. The chalkboard technique was used to color the images. This technique is a great way to gets bold color onto dark cardstock (thus the name chalkboard technique since it looks like colored chalks on a chalkboard).

To make this card, stamp your images in the Whisper White craft ink (pigment ink) on Elegant Envy card stock. Then take a sponge dauber and pick up a color from the Stampin' Pastels (chalks). While the white craft ink is still wet, dab or ponce (rubbing will smear the image) the stamped image with the dauber. The chalk will stick to the white craft ink. I used three daubers and the pastel colors of Summer Sun, Garden Green, and Orchid Opulence. To get a little finer detail on the stamped butterfly I used the pastel applicators instead of the daubers but still dabbed the pastel colors on the image in the same way.

After applying the chalks you will have excess chalk on the card stock making it look a little messy. You can clean up your image by brushing off the chalked image and surround area with a tissue. This will brush all the excess chalk away while leaving the chalk on the stamped image.

I layered the chalked image layer onto Summer Sun card stock. Summer Sun isn't a color I use a lot, but I really liked how it made the yellow flowers pop. If this is too bold for you, you could pick a less "loud" color like So Saffron or Barely Banana for both the chalking of the image and the layering.

The Word Window punch was used for the Think of You sentiment from the same Essence of Love stamp set. The Elegant Eggplant grosgrain ribbon was used to embellish the card.

I love this technique and it really is fun to see the image come alive with color! Give this technique a try. Bold images stamped on dark card stock work best.

Have fun!
Theresa

Some useful links:

Free Wheelin' Special (order by end of April)

Hostess Special (extra $25 in hostess money for $350 party)

Wild Wasabi card stock special (only $3.95 for pre-cut/scored textured card stock)

Occasions Mini catalog

Spring/Summer Big Catalog

Two punch shapes from one punch!

2008-04-03T11:46:00.000-07:00

The two cards above are my rendition and the original that I copied! Jenny Walker created the Certainly Celery card (another swap card that I loved and had to steal the idea)!

The cards contain a punched medallion shape you might not recognize at first glance. These cards show how you can use your scallop punch to get a medallion shape from it too! You can use the same technique and get two shapes from the 5-petal punch (my Groovy Guava card uses both shapes from the 5-petal punch). You can similarly get 2 shapes from the small and large star punches as well!

Here's how to get the medallion shape:

1. Punch a scallop using the Stampin' Up! scalloped Circle punch as you normally would. Attach a slip of paper to the back of the scallop (a piece of a post it note works well for this).

2. Using the post-it note "handle" on the scallop, reinsert it into the scallop punch. Use the "handle" to rotate the scalloped circle by half of a scallop turn (the top crest of each scallop of the punched card stock will have the low of each scallop of the punch in its center). Punch and remove any remaining post-it on the back.

3. You end up with a shape that has the edges of a medallion.

Using the same technique, you can get additional shapes from punches like the 5-petal punch.

1. Below are two flowers punched from the Fall Flowers double-sided designer paper (same sheet, the patterns on each of the two sides).
2. After attaching the post-it handle, re-insert the flower into the punch and rotate the petals by a half-petal turn.

3. Shown below are the original flower shape and the resulting new shape after doing the repunching with the half-petal turn.
4. For my card below, the original flower shape and the repunched flower shape were layered on the medallion shape. A circle obtained using the Stampin' Up! 1/2" circle punch was placed in the center with an Old Olive brad (from the Earth Elements brads). The leaves on the cards were obtained by cutting apart a few of the petals of an Old Olive 5-petal punched flower. A scoring blade was used to get the vein down the center of the leaves.

I hope you find this useful to getting even more use from some of your punches!
Theresa

Isn't it supposed to be Spring? One of a Kind card

2008-03-31T12:35:00.000-07:00

OK, tomorrow is April 1st and it is snowing again! How can this be spring? Well, at least these cards are perfect for spring!

I am posting two very similar cards for this stamp set. I got the one in a swap with other demos (Laura Palmer's card is the Bashful Blue with Apricot Appeal). The other is my very slightly altered version (Sage Shadow, Blush Blossom, and Cameo Coral). I just changed the colors, stamped the biggest image several times as a subtle background, used eyelets instead of brads on the flowers, and I changed the scalloped bottom slightly. I really loved Laura's card so much, there wasn't much I could change!

These cards use the Boho Blossoms punch that coordinates with the One of a Kind stamp set. The One of a Kind stamp set (page 109 of the Spring/Summer Idea Book) has an image of three flowers grouped together that after stamping the image, it can be punched with the Boho Blossoms punch (page 180). The stamped images and the punch created all the flowers along the center of the cards.

The rounded corners of the layered sentiment and the scalloped lower edge of the card were both created using the 3/16" corner rounder punch. If you'd like to see a tutorial of how to create the scalloped edge using the corner punch refer back to my August 29, 2007 posting where I showed how to make a scalloped circle. The same procedure is used here but along the edge to make it scalloped.

I hope you enjoy!

Theresa

Don't Forget:

Free Wheelin' Promotion (free jumbo wheel with purchase of certain stamp sets)

112848 - page 91 Wonderful You stamp set and FREE Stems & Silhouettes jumbo wheel $33.95

112851 - page 80 Life's a Breeze stamp set and FREE Something Fishy jumbo wheel $29.95

112850 - page 66 Pun Fun stamp set and FREE Sweet Stars jumbo wheel $30.95

112847 - page 60 Year after Year stamp set and FREE See You Around jumbo wheel $30.95

112849 - page 83 Stitched Exotics stamp set and FREE It's Beautiful jumbo wheel $33.95

112853 - page 51 Enjoy Every Moment stamp set and FREE Daisy Dash jumbo wheel $29.95

Adorable Easter basket from Designer Paper

2008-03-20T11:54:00.000-07:00

I was going to post pictures of the swaps I got Monday night, but I just had to post this today in case you want to make some of these for Easter. I came across this idea when I was looking for a fun project for the kids in the 4th grade religion class Tom and I teach. These baskets were perfect.

And best of all, the project was simple and the kids loved it.

So here is the procedure to make these cute little baskets:

Step 1: You will need a square piece of double-sided designer paper (this piece is from the Designer Series Paper - Flowers for You). For this basket I used 6" x 6" piece of designer paper, but for a bigger basket 9" x 9" or 12" x 12" would work well too. A coordinating strip of card stock or designer paper (tempting turquiose in this sample, 1" x 8.5") will be used for the handle of the basket. Stamped and punched flowers (in this sample the One of a Kind Stamp Set and the Boho Blossoms Punch and the 5-Petal Punch) and brads (the Bold Bright brads in this sample) are used to embellish the basket.

Step 2: The square piece of designer paper is scored into thirds in each direction. So for this 6"x 6" piece of paper, you score at 2" and 4" and then turn the paper a quarter turn and score again at 2" and 4". You end up with the paper sectioned into 9 equal squares as shown below (the Lovely Lilac patterned paper is the reverse side of the same double-sided designer paper shown above). Fold inward along all the score lines.

Step 3: Cut along the scored lines only to the intersecting score lines on two of the opposing sides as shown below.

Step 4: Glue the coordinating strip of card stock as shown below to form the handle of the basket.

Step 5: On each side fold the basket side sections upward and glue the flaps to the area where the handle was glued.
Step 6: To finish off the basket, just embellish with punched flowers and the brads.

I hope you enjoy this project. Give it a try if you have time before Easter. But if you don't have time now, I have seen this type of basket made in a picnic theme using the new Summer Picnic Designer Paper and the Tart and Tangy stamp set, both in the Occasions Mini.

Have a wonderful Easter!

Theresa

Some new Stampin' Up! specials

2008-03-18T09:27:00.000-07:00

I just want to let you know about some new promotions that are starting today!

The first one involves getting FREE Jumbo wheels with the purchase of the coordinating stamp set! There are six different stamp set/jumbo wheel packages from which to chose. Here is a list of the stamp sets and wheels that are part of this special. The price listed for the bundle is the price of the stamp set - the wheel is included for free. If you would like to see the stamp set or wheel in the on-line catalog, just click on the names.

112848 - page 91
Wonderful You stamp set and FREE Stems & Silhouettes jumbo wheel $33.95

112851 - page 80
Life's a Breeze stamp set and FREE Something Fishy jumbo wheel $29.95

112850 - page 66
Pun Fun stamp set and FREE Sweet Stars jumbo wheel $30.95

112847 - page 60
Year after Year stamp set and FREE See You Around jumbo wheel $30.95

112849 - page 83
Stitched Exotics stamp set and FREE It's Beautiful jumbo wheel $33.95

112853 - page 51
Enjoy Every Moment stamp set and FREE Daisy Dash jumbo wheel $29.95

Also going on right now is a special on Wild Wasabi Tectured cardstock. If you haven't had a chance to try some of the textured card stock, this is a great way to get some to play with! From now through April 30, you can purchase a specially-priced Wild Wasabi card stock pack for only $3.95 - that’s 16 sheets of pre-cut (4-1/2 x 11-1/2) and pre-scored (at 1-1/8 and 5-5/8) Wild Wasabi textured card stock that can be used to make all kinds of fun and easy cards and projects! Here are some PROJECT IDEAS for using this pre-cut and pre-scored Wild Wasabi card stock.

Finally there is one more promotion, this one is for hostesses! If you have been thinking of getting some friends together and having a workshop (you can hold it at my house or yours), this is the time to do it. If you hold a workshop and the merchandise sales total $350 or above, you get an additional $25 in hostess dollars. That is $25 on top of the regular hostess benefits. Here are more details of the Hostess Promotion.

Some useful links:

Spring/Summer Collection (the big idea book/catalog)

Occasions Mini Catalog (items available 3/1-5/31/08)

Theresa

Love & Happiness Rub Ons - Wow!

2008-03-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

Stampin' Up! introduced Rub Ons to the new Summer/Spring Collection (the big catalog) in January. If you have not yet tried these new Rub Ons, you really have to!

I love how this jar turned out. And it was so easy! The Rub Ons I used on this jar are from the free Sale-a-bration set of Rub Ons, Love & Happiness. This particular set of rub ons comes with 4 sheets, one of each of black, white, old olive, and chocolate chip, with LOTS of images and sentiments on each sheet. There are other sets of rub ons in the Spring/Summer big catalog (see the Rub Ons page 182) and the Occasions Mini (see the Rub Ons on page 15) as well.

Rub ons can be used on all kinds of surfaces - paper, glass, plastic, even on wax candles, for example, the candle shown here (I used the same set of Sale-a-bration rub ons, Love & Happiness).

To apply the rub ons you just select the image or images from the sheet and cut it out. Remove the white protective backing and position the rub on where you want to apply it. Take the included stick (basically a popsicle stick) and rub the surface of the plastic sheeting. Slowly peel back the plastic sheeting and check that the rub on has transferred (if there is anything that hasn't transfer just put sheet back in place and rub a little more). This is so easy and fast. The above jar (size is about 4 1/2 inches wide by 7 inches high) took me less than 30 seconds -really!

Since trying these, I find myself looking around the house for items to which I can apply rub ons!

One final reminder, Sale-a-bration ends on March 17th. To ensure your order gets processed in time, contact me by March 15th.

You can order from the big catalog as well as the Occasions mini now and have those orders qualify for the free Sale-a-bration items.

Here are some useful links:
Spring/Summer Big Idea Book
Occasions Mini Collection
Sale-a-bration Mini (see the free items you can get for each $50 of your order)

Theresa

Embrace Life using Faux Silk technique

2008-03-07T11:41:00.000-08:00

At one of our monthly demo meetings, the make and take (by Sheila Selinsky) involved the Faux Silk Technique. I was so impressed and loved the way it looked! I copied her card for the most part changing the size and colors slightly and adding ribbon. I love the way it turned out. I hope you can see in the picture how the white background portion of this card has a wrinkled silk fabric look to it.

All that is required for this technique is some tissue paper, the type you use in gift packaging. You will want to cut the tissue paper so it is about an inch wider and an inch longer than the final measurements that you want it to be on the card. Just stamp on the tissue and watercolor the images. For this card, we used blender pens dipped in the puddled ink that you get when squeezing the ink pad. You don't need to spend much time with the watercoloring. I spent less than 2 minutes total just dabbing Groovy Guava on each flower and then adding a few Purely Pomegranate highlights to each.

Once you have colored the images, just wrinkle up the tissue paper. That's right just wad it up real well! Take a piece of whisper white card stock (5" x 3.75" for this card) and apply gluestick to the entire surface. Place the tissue onto the card stock and smooth it onto the glued surface. Don't smooth too well though. You want some of those wrinkles to remain. Miter the corners of the tissue (cut diagonally at each corner), and wrap the excess tissue to the back of the white card stock and glue to the back.

That is all there is to the faux silk technique! It adds wonderful texture and dimension to the card especially with the stamp set used with this card, Embrace Life.

The main image (the large flower from Embrace Life) was stamped with Versamark Ink and then embossed with the black embossing powder. It was watercolored using the aqua painter and again ink from the Groovy Guava and Purely Pomegranate ink pads. Ink from the Always Artichoke ink pad was used to shadow the flower and to sponge the edges.

The remainder to the card is just layering and adding the punched corners and double-stitched Purely Pomegranate embellishments.

I hope you enjoy!

Theresa

P.S. Another reminder: there isn't much more time before Sale-a-bration ends (order before March 15th to meet the deadline). And you can order from the big catalog as well as the Occasions mini now and have those orders qualify for the free Sale-a-bration items.

Here are some useful links:

Spring/Summer Big Idea Book

Occasions Mini Collection

Sale-a-bration Mini (see the free items you can get for each $50 of your order)

A Little Birdie Told Me...

2008-03-04T07:52:00.001-08:00

With time so limited lately, I tend to go for the fast and easy card with a little "punch." Can you tell I am hooked on using the designer papers for these fast cards? This paper is from the Flowers for You pack. This card is one that I made for a swap and also had as a make and take at a recent workshop. I think the set "A Little Birdie Told Me" is so cute.

It may be hard to tell from the picture, but the birdie is not colored in. He was first stamped onto the white layer. Then the birdie's body was stamped in tempting turquoise ink on designer paper which had a very subtle pattern to it (the reverse side of the paper used at the bottom of the card). The birdie was cut out and layered onto the birdie stamped on the white giving him a little more dimension and interest.

The double-stitched Wild Wasabi ribbon was used on this card as well as the small and large oval punches.

Don't forget there isn't much more time before Sale-a-bration ends (order before March 15th to meet the deadline). And you can order from the big catalog as well as the Occasions mini now and have those orders qualify for the free Sale-a-bration items. Here are some useful links:

Spring/Summer Big Idea Book
Occasions Mini Collection
Sale-a-bration Mini (see the free items you can get for each $50 of your order)

Theresa

So many Scallops...

2008-02-26T08:34:00.000-08:00

... So little time! Only 2 more weeks left of Sale-a-bration (ends March 17th). I love this Sell-a-bration set. There are so many occasions and cards for which you can use it.

Here is a really simple card. The use of the designer papers on cards (in this case, Fall Flowers paper, although these colors look more spring-like to me!) is a fast way to get lots of fun color on a card.

This card is pretty self-explanatory (just a little stamping, layering, and punching with the Scallop punch). There is just one little trick to explain though. Notice the little designer paper flower in the center of the stamped and punched scallop. Before adhering the strip of designer paper to the Soft Sky layer, using the 1/2" circle punch, punch one of the little flowers out from the paper in an area that will have the punched scalloped circles layered over it.

The Stem Sayings set that was also used with this card is a really versatile set. The sayings make great stems especially with stamped and punched images from the So Many Scallop set. But the sayings from Stem Sayings also make cute curvy sentiments like on this card.

The 5/8" wide Old Olive grosgrain ribbon wrapped and knotted around the designer paper gives a finishing touch to the card.

If you would like to see all the Sale-a-bration stamp sets you can earn for free before March 17th, check out the Sale-a-bration Mini catalog.

Also, there are more NEW items available starting March 1st in the Occasions Mini catalog. With the overlap of Sale-a-bration and the new mini catalog, you can order from the new mini and earn Sale-a-bration stamp sets too!

See the Big Catalog - the Spring/Summer Collection too!

Theresa

Sassy Stems "File Folder" Card

2008-01-15T08:12:00.000-08:00

So... Who is ready for Spring?! I know I am. But I guess we will have to wait a few more months (even longer here in MN). In the meantime, we can create some hopeful anticipation of Spring with our cards!

I call this a "File Folder" card because it opens at the bottom like a file folder - a new and different layout. This card starts with the card stock for the base (Wild Wasabi in this case) cut to 5 1/2" x 7 1/2". It was scored at the typical 4 1/4" mark but because it is 1" shorter than the typical half sheet of card stock, when it is folded upward, the one edge is 1" short of meeting with the other edge.

The corners were all rounded using the 3/16" Corner Rounder Punch. A piece of Uptown Designer paper (top corners rounded) was layered on the front. A sentiment (in this case from Hugs & Wishes Stamp set) was stamped in Basic Grey ink in the upper right corner.

The image from the now retired Sassy Stems stamp set was stamped in Basic Grey (waterproof) classic ink and colored in using Almost Amethyst, So Saffron, and Certainly Celery Stampin' Write Markers. This image was layered on So Saffron card stock.

I have two suggested ways to get the slit punch placement correct. One way is to glue the layered image in the desired location on the card front. Then mark with a pencil lightly a line to show the desired placement of the slit punch location and use that mark to help you punch in the right place. Another way is to punch the slit first at the top of the card before gluing the layered image onto the card. Then insert the layered image into the slit, place adhesive on the back on the layered image and press it onto the the card front.

The placement of photo corners punched out of Almost Amethyst card stock using the Photo Corner Punch finishes off this card.

I hope you enjoy the fresh Spring colors!

Theresa

All Supplies are from Stampin' Up! You can now order from the NEW Spring/Summer Big Idea/Catalog!

Sale-a-bration starts February 1st! Check out the stamp sets and Rub Ons you can get for FREE with your orders during Sale-a-bration! Sale-a-bration Mini Catalog.

Valentine's Tag Card

2008-01-08T08:38:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day will be here before we know it! Here is a possible card for that occasion although it could be used for a variety of other purposes too.

I actually designed this card a couple of years ago and just changed some colors to use it for one of the December stamp club projects. A funny thing when you make a card and go back to it much later - you don't always remember exactly how you made it! Getting the tag punched out right in the center had me stumped for a while. I had stamp club use a template and trace the punched out part to help them punch it in the right spot. BUT... it later all came back to me! Sorry, there is an easier way than how I had some of you do it! So now I will explain the easier way - better late than never, right?

Use an oversized piece of white card stock (in this case 3" x 2.75" worked well). Punch the tag out of approximately the center of that piece as shown in the first photo below (it does not have to be exactly the center). Now line up any inside edge of the tag on the 1/2" marking of the paper cutter as shown in the second photo below and cut. Shift to the next inside edge of the tag, line it up at 1/2", cut again. Once you have lined up each of the 6 tag edges at the 1/2" mark and cut, you end up with the tag "negative" with a 1/2" border all around it as shown in the third picture below.

Once you have created the tag portion of the card, the remainder is fairly self-explanatory. The base of the card is Bravo Burgundy. The now retired background called Word by Word was stamped in Pretty in Pink on Whisper White card stack.

Words from the Everyday Flexible Phrases set were stamped randomly around the 1/2" border of the tag in Pretty in Pink classic ink. The slot at the top of the tag was punched using the Horizontal Slot punch. Bravo Burgundy grosgrain was put through the slot and a piece of Pretty in Pink grosgrain was knotted around the Bravo Burgundy.

The "Love" word in the center of the tag is also from the Word by Word background stamp. The area of the background stamp with that word (the very corner of the background stamp) was inked up in Bravo Burgundy and a scrap of Whisper White card stock was placed over that corner and then it was trimmed with scissors to get just "Love".

The tag and the word "Love" were layered using pieces of foam tape to give the card some dimension.

Theresa

Happy New Year! Criss Cross Card

2008-01-03T06:59:00.000-08:00

Here is a new twist on pocket cards. These cards are called Criss Cross cards, and they are fun to do. They are a great way to showcase the beautiful 2-sided designer papers. These cards have all kinds of uses, for example, slipping in a gift card, invitation information, or a photo in the pocket.

The Splitcoaststampers website has a great Criss Cross Card Tutorial that gives directions and dimensions for making these cards. However, I made some changes to the method in making my card to save on card stock and the weight of the final card. In the Splitcoaststamper (SCS) tuturial, 2 pieces of 4 1/4" x 11" card stock are used, and you end up doubling up the back layer of the card. There are also 2 large triangles of card stock that get cut off and not used. I used just one piece of 4 1/4" x 11" card stock, the back of the card is not a double layer and there are no scraps in the cutting.

Shown in the photo below is the single 4 1/4" x 11" piece of card stock (shown in white below, but Always Artichoke was used in the Frosty card above). As the photo shows you score a 3/8" tab at the far left (click on the photo to enlarge to see detail better). Score again 5 1/4" past that first score line (scoreline will be at 5 5/8" total distance from the left edge).

Then cut diagonally from score line to score line.

Turn the cut triangle with the tab over and upside down and place at the right end as shown in the photo below.

Glue the 3/8" tab to the back of the large central region of the card. After gluing this tab to the back, you will have the two triangular portions to layer the patterned paper on and to then criss cross.

The rest of the directions to complete the card pick up at Step 6 of the SCS Tutorial. Another minor change in my card is that the card band that wraps around the card is 1" wide rather than 1 1/2 wide shown in the SCS tutorial.

Once you make one of these cards, you will be hooked and want to make lots of different color combinations!

Theresa

**The NEW Spring/Summer catalog is on-line!

**January Customer Special - Valentine's Bundle - get the ribbon for free!

**January Hostess special too! Hold a workshop of $350 or more and choose any one stamp set from our Spring-Summer Preview Brochure 2008 FREE (up to a $29.95 value)!

Supplies for the Frosty Card (all Stampin' Up!):

Frosty stamp set (retired)

In the Spotlight (retired)

Wishing you Cheer (the Happy New Year sentiment was obtained by inking only that portion of the larger sentiment with the Bashful Blue marker)

Always Artichoke card stock

Certainly Celery card stock

Wintergreen Designer paper (retired)

Bashful Blue classic ink pad

Always Artichoke classic ink pad

Stampin' Write markers (Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery)

Scallop Circle punch

Round Tab punch

3/16" Corner rounder punch

Baroque Motifs Card

2007-12-31T09:36:00.000-08:00

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!

2007-12-05T10:16:00.000-08:00

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:

Theresa

True Friend Waterfall Card!

2007-11-26T09:30:00.000-08:00

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:

Stamp the 4 images from the True Friend stamp set in Always Artichoke ink on the small Natural Ivory squares.
Layer the stamped images onto the 4 squares of Always Artichoke cardstock.
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.
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.
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.
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).
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.
Punch a slot (Slot Punch) in the Natural Ivory strip at the far right. Tie the Very Vanilla grosgrain ribbon through the slot.
Layer the Designer Paper with attached images onto the Always Artichoke 5 ½" x 4 ¼" piece.
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

2007-11-13T11:01:00.000-08:00

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!

2007-11-01T12:03:00.000-07:00

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

2007-10-30T11:56:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-10-11T09:48:00.001-07:00

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!

2007-10-03T11:12:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-10-01T13:21:00.000-07:00

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

2007-09-19T11:11:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-09-11T07:54:00.001-07:00

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

2007-09-06T12:04:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-09-03T11:14:00.000-07:00

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

2007-08-31T14:16:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-08-29T08:17:00.000-07:00

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

2007-08-20T07:35:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-08-09T11:24:00.000-07:00

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

2007-08-03T17:29:00.000-07:00

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