Monday, February 29, 2016

White on White Sympathy

#stampinup   We stampers make cards for all occasions. If you're like me, you may have a stash of birthday cards, thank you cards, all occasion cards, and maybe even some leftover Christmas cards. But what I don't have in my stash is sympathy cards. I just don't want to make them ahead of time. Not that I'm superstitious or anything, but, when it comes to sympathy cards, I just don't want to pull any old card out of my "stash" of cards. I want to make a special card to remember a special person. (Yes, I do that for birthdays, too, sometimes....)

The "Rose Wonder" stamp set has a beautiful script and includes a "with sympathy" stamp. Pair that up with the matching Rose Garden Thinlits Dies, and you've got the makings for an elegant, special card.

Today's card is stunning in its simplicity. I started by cutting the large rose and leaves thinlits die from the Rose Garden set from Whisper White Card Stock. I adhered this to a Whisper White panel using the awesome Fine-Tip Glue Pen. Then I adhered this to a Basic Black mat.

I tied a length of Basic Black Stitched Satin Ribbon around these pieces before adhering them to a Whisper White Thick Card Stock card base, cut lengthwise.

I stamped the "with sympathy" sentiment in Basic Black Archival Ink on to a Whisper White scrap and also stamped the coordinating frame in Basic Black. I then used the matching framelit die to cut out the label.  I attached the label to the card with Stampin' Dimensionals.



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Friday, February 26, 2016

Another Fab Thank You

#stampinup   #saleabration2016   Today's card is based on the sketch challenge at the Fab Friday Challenge blog. I really didn't have a plan for this card except that I wanted to use the multi-colored chevron sheet from the Sale-A-Bration Wildflower Fields Designer Series Paper. That paper set my color scheme.



I cut a 2" strip of the Wildflower Fields DSP and backed it with a 2-1/8" strip of Lost Lagoon. I added a coil of Calypso Coral Thick Baker's Twine. I cut two 3/4" strips of the Old Olive striped sheet from the same DSP and flagged the ends with the Banner Punch. I cut a 1" strip of the Blackberry Bliss sheet of DSP and flagged the end with the Banner Triple Punch. I added these banners to the main element.

I went a little wild with my DSP choices, so I needed to tone down the rest of the design. I used Stampin' Dimensionals to add the DSP/banner element to a Whisper White panel that I'd backed with a Lost Lagoon mat. I stamped the "thank you" sentiment from the "Apple of My Eye" stamp set in Calypso Coral. I added this all to a Calypso Coral card base with Stampin' Dimensionals.

The card kind of created itself in a wild and crazy way. I think I like it!



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Thursday, February 25, 2016

Rosy Birthday

#stampinup   One of the first stamp sets I purchased from the Occasions catalog was "Rose Wonder." I usually don't go for big, over-the-top flowers, but the "Fear not, for I am with you..." stamp from Isaiah 41 sold me. I love that scripture! I also really love the font for all the sentiment stamps int this set. Plus, when you bundle the "Rose Wonder" stamp set together with the matching Rose Garden Thinlits Dies, you save 15% of the cost if you'd have purchased them separately. Who doesn't like a deal?!

This card requires some water coloring. I'm not a fan of water coloring--do you notice the word "coloring"? Yeah, I don't like to color and adding water to the recipe, well, that could spell disaster. But, I forged ahead and I'm pleased with the results.

I stamped the large rose image in Basic Black Archival Ink onto a Shimmery White panel. The Shimmery White Card Stock is great for water coloring since it allows the colors to move. I dipped my Aqua Painter into some Rose Red ink that I'd squeezed into the lid of the ink pad. I got the ink really wet, quite diluted, and I just messy water colored the rose. I cleaned my Aqua Painter and then used Garden Green to water color the leaves.

I set this aside to dry while I went to the Big Shot and cut out the Rose Garden frame for the flower. I used the fabulous new Big Shot Die Brush to get all the little teeny tiny pieces out of the rose. That's such a useful tool!! Once I'd prepared the rose frame, I used the Fine-Tip Glue Pen to place a very thin line of glue on the back, and then adhered it right over the stamped and water colored rose image. Cool, huh?

I added this panel to a Basic Black mat using Fast Fuse Adhesive because that ensures the two pieces are adhered tightly and don't warp due to the wet water coloring. I added these pieces to a Rose Red card base using Stampin' Dimensionals.

Finally, I stamped the "happy birthday" sentiment in Basic Black Archival Ink onto a scrap of Whisper White Card Stock and then stamped the frame. I cut these out with another framelit from the Rose Garden set and attached it to the card with Stampin' Dimensionals.

Isn't this pretty card? I might get the hang of water coloring after all!



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Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Orange You Glad I Didn't Say Apple?

#stampinup   The "Apple of My Eye" stamp set has some great, fruity images in it--citrus slice, apple, cherry, pear. I'm particularly taken with the citrus slice and I was particularly inspired by this card by Amy Koenders. I just love the bright pops of color and the simplicity of the card! I had to CASE Amy's card precisely--with no changes! We'll be making this card during an upcoming stamp-a-stack and I know my guests are going to love it.

Just like Amy, I started by stamping the sentiment from the "Apple of My Eye" stamp set in Calypso Coral onto a Whisper White panel. I adhered this to a Calypso Coral mat.

Next, I stamped two citrus slices in Daffodil Delight onto a Whisper White scrap and two citrus slices in Calypso Coral onto a Whisper White scrap. I punched all four slices with the 1-3/4" Circle Punch. I cut off a bit of one "lemon" slice and adhered to the the Whisper White panel with Stampin' Dimensionals. Then I added the next "lemon" and "orange" slice, in line, using Stampin' Dimensionals. I eyeballed the last "orange" slice and cut off a bit so that it would be even with the Whisper White panel and adhered it with Stampin' Dimensionals, of course.

Then, I wrapped Calypso Coral Thick Baker's Twine around the slices. I adhered the assembly to a Daffodil Delight card base, cut lengthwise. I tied a 6" piece of Baker's Twine into a bow and added a Basic Rhinestone Embellishment for a little bling--just like Amy did! OOO! I love this card!!!



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Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Hello Sunshine Paper Pumpkin Kit

#stampinup   #paperpumpkin   Oh my goodness! The February 2016 Paper Pumpkin kit is adorable!! Not only are the cards super cute, but the printed envelopes are fabulous!! I love the fact that the Paper Pumpkin kits are all-inclusive. You get all the supplies to make the cards, an exclusive stamp set, and at least one Stampin' Dot Ink Pad.

The 3-month Paper Pumpkin prepaid subscription is on sale! The regular price is $59.85 for 3 months ($19.95 per month, including shipping). During Sale-A-Bration, you get 3 months for $55 PLUS, you instantly qualify for a FREE Sale-A-Bration item!

Just click on the "Shop Online 24/7" button over there on the right side of my blog, enter item number 137859 and the item number of your FREE Sale-A-Bration item. Once you submit your order, you'll get a code to enter on the Paper Pumpkin website, which you can reach on the left side of my blog. I can always help you place your order!

Here are the cards I assembled in 30 minutes. I made all birthday cards because #imbringingbirthdaysback !



And here's the video that shows everything you get in a kit.



Hurry! Sale-A-Bration ends March 31, 2016. You won't want to miss out on this fabulous deal!

Monday, February 22, 2016

Kathy Kartak's Fun with Kits

#stampinup   I only have a few TV shows that are "must-see" TV--one of those on my list is "Big Bang Theory" (another is "Marvel's Agents of Shield," but that doesn't fit today's blog post.) There's a recurring feature on BBT called "Dr. Sheldon Cooper's Fun with Flags." It's just the silliest thing.  It always makes me laugh. When I was thinking of a title for today's blog post, I thought of "Fun with Kits" and started giggling because, well, you know where I'm going with this.

Anyway, I had the most wonderful time at my friend Kira's house on Saturday. She gathered a few friends and we made the "Tin of Cards" kit together. If you haven't tried them yet, Stampin' Up's kits are awesome. (If you have tried them, you already know what I mean!) The Mint Macaron striped tin is just the cutest thing to hold all your cards in!


We stamped and decorated the dividers that go in the kit and made all 16 cards that come with it. The kit comes with all the supplies you need to make 16 cards--4 of each of 4 designs--with lots of stuff left over to use on other projects.

You can follow the instructions, or you can use the instructions for inspiration. You can even have an "oops moment" when you stamp an image in the wrong place and then have to improvise to "correct" your "mistake." One of Kira's guests had an "oops moment," but I think the card she created is even better than the sample card. What do you think?
Here's some of the guests with their creations. They had loads of fun and loved the cards and tin. 

If you'd like to gather a few friends for a grown-up play date and make this wonderful project--or any of the projects in the Stampin' Up annual catalog or Occasions catalog, please contact me and let's set aside some time for fun, fellowship, and creativity I've put all the kits in the pictures below so you can see the awesome choices.
 
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