Running With Scissors…

Hello again!  Happy weekend to you!  Today I’m sharing an anniversary card I made with Flourishes’ Lace Heart and Flourished Words.  The designer paper is my new BasicGrey Two Scoops.  The paper in this collection is so pretty I had a hard time deciding which to use, but I liked the way this pattern complimented the delicate flourished swirls in the heart.

The heart and words were stamped in Craft Elegant Eggplant (pigment ink), although they look black in the photo.  After embossing the heart I sponged it with Pretty in Pink and Apricot Appeal classic inks.  I concentrated more ink around the edges of the heart, gradually lightening toward the center to create a glow.  When I was done with the sponging I wiped the heart with a tissue to remove ink from the embossed areas.  The sentiment oval was done in the same manner.  The colored cardstock is Lavender Lace and So Saffron sponged along the edges with Elegant Eggplant and More Mustard.  The size of this card is 5 1/4″ square, which may give you an idea of the size of the heart.  Not too big, not too small but, oh, so beautiful!

I hope you have a pleasant weekend coming up.  I’ll be working on those baby shower invitations and if I’m lucky I’ll do some other stamping as well.  I’m not too sure about that, though, because we’re also going furniture shopping and visiting friends, among other things.  There’s always so much to try to stuff into one weekend.  I’ll see you soon!

Stamps:  Lace Heart, Flourished Words

Paper:  Lavender Lace, So Saffron, Whisper White, BasicGrey Two Scoops

Ink:  Pretty in Pink, Apricot Appeal, More Mustard, Elegant Eggplant Craft and Classic

Accessories:  Ribbon, gold cord, Brenda Walton self-adhesive rhinestones, large and small oval punches, clear embossing powder, Scotch brand dimensional mounting tape

I’d like to take a moment to share a project that’s been occupying my stamping thoughts for quite a little while.  These are a few of the 50 baby shower invitations I’m in the process of making for a friend.  Production stamping is not my strong suit but she asked me so nicely…

This is the same design I used for my Valentine Gift Card Holder which I explained in a recent post, minus the inside pocket.  I traveled a winding road to arrive at this destination.  I was so concerned about providing her with something that would make her not regret she’d asked me yet would also be achievable for me.  I know I overthink things too much but it seemed like there was so much to consider from her perspective and mine.  I began by reminding her of how many very cute invitations she could get at Wal-Mart for a fraction of the cost she was willing to pay me.  This gave her the briefest, almost imperceptible pause but she stood firm and so I set to work.

I hoped, with this fold design, to minimize layering and give the card some “fun appeal”.  I used Hammermill 110 lb. cardstock — a nice, bright white — not the best for stamping but it worked quite well with the soft look of this wheel in Barely Banana.  I wheeled the flap of each envelope, too.  That’s 200 passes with the wheel (yikes!) but still quicker, easier and more cost effective than designer paper.  All the other stamping is done on Whisper White, but the layers underneath are Hammermill.  I’ve made panels of Whisper White stamped with the “date, time, place, rsvp” to line the inside of the card, and stamped the inside of the scalloped border with pink polka dots (SU!’s Itty Bitty Backgrounds).  To add a touch of color to the layers I ran the Pretty In Pink pad along the edges of the pieces which will be on the card front.  I also stamped the back with the Stampin’ Up! copyright and initialed every card.  Finally, I cut card-size panels of Hammermill for placing over each card front in their envelopes for protection in the mail.

All tolled, in addition to the 200 passes with the wheel, I’ve cut 350 pieces of cardstock and designer paper, stamped 350 times, punched 250 times, tied 200 ribbons and cords, made 100 score lines, trimmed 50 scalloped borders, colored 50 images, applied 50 lengths of Sticky Strip, and signed my initials 50 times.  Whew!

I have these pieces yet to assemble and my personal goal was to have them done by the end of this month.  I believe now I’ll deliver them on Monday.  This hasn’t been an arduous or unpleasant task but I’m simply not good at putting everything else aside in favor of one project.  The rest of it will move along quickly, I think.  Still, I’ll have to focus…

I’ll be back with more stamping this week so I’ll see you again soon!  Have a wonderful day!

Stamps:  Greetings Galore, Hugs & Wishes, Leaves & Swirls jumbo wheel, Sweet Spots (all Stampin’ Up)

Paper:  Hammermill white cardstock, Whisper White, Me & My Big Ideas designer paper

Ink:  Pretty in Pink, Basic Black, Barely Banana, markers for coloring

Accessories:  Ribbon, scallop circle punch, 1/2″ circle punch, 1/16″ hand held punch, double rectangle punch, Fiskars scallop edge scissors, Sticky Strip, Scotch brand dimensional mounting tape

If you’re a regular visitor at Splitcoaststampers you probably know how hard the site owners and other folks behind the scenes work to provide a pleasant community for everyone.  I can testify first hand to how sincerely and selflessly dedicated they are to this task.  The benefits of becoming part of the SCS community are huge in terms of resources of all kinds:  a gallery full of ideas and eye candy and where you can share your own work, challenges in which to learn and play, step-by-step tutorials, forums full of information on all topics where you can ask for or offer help, spread your news, shed a tear.  As you become acquainted with SCS you wind your way deep and deeper, discovering more each time you visit.  The next thing you know, you’ve made a new friend.  To that I can testify as well.

All of these benefits are free.  Some of them are priceless.  Will you take a moment to answer some survey questions for the folks at Splitcoast?  It’s very quick and easy.  I did it last night.  The survey will be available until Thursday, January 31.  They’re only asking in an effort to give you more of what you’d like to see.  It’s all explained here where a link to the survey is provided, too.

Just for fun, I’ve included a couple of cards I uploaded some time ago to my SCS gallery.  This card was my first effort with the Stampin’ Up! Wild Rose set when it was brand new.  More details can be found here.

This one I called “Extreme Sheen” and it was made in response to the Ways to Use It Challenge #88 — using Lumiere.  The flowers were stamped on black cardstock, then painted with a mixture of Lumiere and Pearl Ex.  The background is Stampin’ Up!’s Paisley in Bordering Blue.  Hmmmm…I think I need to bring that background out to play again soon.  Please click here if you’d like to see more cards made for this challenge.  If you’d like to see a list of all the challenges you can participate in, even if you do it silently without ever uploading your card, please click here.

Thank you so much for your time!  I hope you have an absolutely marvelous day!

This little matchbook style gift card holder is something I designed way back before Christmas.  With too much going on at that time I didn’t have a chance to share it with you then, so I thought I’d make a gift card holder for Valentine’s Day.  Did you know that Valentine’s Day is the second biggest day of the year for gift giving?  I guess all those roses and chocolates really add up!

There’s something about Real Red and Chocolate Chip that looks so yummy to me.  Probably because it reminds me of chocolate covered cherries — my husband’s favorite — the kind with the liquid filling, not the creamy filling.  Anyway…I just love combining these colors for Valentines.  I used Chocolate Chip textured cardstock and Au Chocolate designer paper for this project.  Yes, still trying to use up that Au Chocolate paper from last year.  There are a couple of patterns I don’t care much for but since it’s double sided I have lots of choices and, oh my, I do love polka dots!

One thing I like about this design is the way the main image panel acts as a little flipper closure that holds so securely.  I designed this to be made from an 8 1/2″ x 11″ sheet of cardstock.  In order to do that I had to cut it just a tiny bit smaller.  The closed card size is 5 1/4″ x 4″.  This miniscule difference isn’t even noticeable, however.  The scalloped polka dot panel is actually an extension added to the card base.  Here’s the how-to:

Cut cardstock 4″ x 11″.

Score on the right side at 5 1/4″ and 10 5/8″.

Cut extension piece 4″ x 1 1/4″.  I covered my extension piece with designer paper and then trimmed with scallop scissors.

The photo below shows the pieces cut, scored and the card base folded:

Apply a length of Sticky Strip (red liner tape) to that little folded up edge at the bottom of the card and adhere the extension as shown in the first photo.  Make your main image panel and apply Sticky Strip to the back upper half only of the panel.  Close the card and position the main image panel on the front so it overlaps approximately half of the extension.  If you position it too low the card won’t flip open and closed as easily.

Now, for the inside.  This view shows the gift card holder open, with the front flipped back and out of the picture:

Cut pocket/liner 3 3/4″ x 7 1/4″.  Score at 2″.  Decorate as desired. 

Apply Sticky Strip to the inside 2″ edges of the pocket.  Fold pocket closed.  Insert gift card.

On the front of my card I used the double rectangle punch to create slots to tie ribbon through.

Stamps:  Always, Holidays & Wishes (Stampin’ Up!)

Paper:  Chocolate Chip textured, Real Red, Very Vanilla, Au Chocolat double sided designer paper

Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Real Red

Accessories:  May Arts swiss dot ribbon and SU! gingham ribbon, double rectangle punch, scallop circle punch, 1 1/4″ circle punch, 1/2″ circle punch, Fiskars scallop edge scissors, Scotch brand dimensional mounting tape

While I’m at it, I might as well show you this card, too.  It’s a full size card, made from 12″ x 12″ cardstock.  I was fooling around, seeing how this design would work with a 12″ length and no extension piece.  I’d rather have the bottom fold come up a little further.  If I’d made the finished, folded size the same as the first card it would have added 1/4″ to the bottom fold.

This is just a friendly “feel good” card (not a gift card holder) I made from the retired Simply Delightful Simply Scrappin’ kit.  There’s absolutely no stamping on the front of the card.  Inside, I stamped “Wishing you a very happy day”, a Hero Arts stamp I use often because it’s suitable for so many occasions.

The ribbon is some of SU!’s new striped grosgrain — very soft and pliable.  There are only four colors in the catalog at this time, but I like how they’ve provided a color for each season:  Bashful Blue for Spring, Wild Wasabi for Summer, Pumpkin Pie for Autumn, and Real Red for Winter.  That’s one way of looking at it.  I certainly won’t restrict their use to those seasons, though.

That little butterfly is something I’ve had for so long and I can’t believe, with all the things that come and go in my stamp room, I’ve hung onto my little bag of butterflies all this time.  It’s made of wire with glitter-flecked gossamar wings.  I adhered it with Alene’s Tacky Glue.

Well, that’s enough rambling for one post, isn’t it?  I’ve got more projects to work on so I hope we’ll meet here again soon.  Have a wonderful week!

Do any of you remember that old margarine commercial in which the crown would suddenly appear on a person’s head when they bit into their buttered toast?  I keep hearing those trumpets whenever I look at this.  Now I’ll probably always associate the crowns in this Mardi Gras set with a margarine commercial.

There are four different crowns in this set and they’re all beautifully designed but, rather than making a card for Mardi Gras, I was looking for another way I could put these gorgeous crowns to use.  I believe it was actually the Harlequin background that gave me this idea.  It’s so much fun to play with this background, considering all the different accessory stamps Flourishes has provided for changing the look of it.  By the way, this is pretty much the full size of the background.  I thought I’d let you know since I was asked about it before.  I computer generated my own corny sentiment so I could turn this into a Valentine card.  While I was at it, I made up a few other sentiments, too, and printed them all out on the same sheet of white cardstock in several fonts and sizes so I can use them on more cards in the future.

There’s a lot of very nice detail in this crown but it was obscured somewhat when I embossed it with Jewel Gold powder on the black cardstock.  The sparkle is wonderful in real life, however.  I cut it out and mounted it on dimensional tape over the heart which I created by sponging ink through a stencil.  I tried to soften some of the stark contrast of these colors with lots of sponging.  I used Blush Blossom on the edges of the main image panel and the sentiment panel.  The kingly corners of those panels were done with the corner notch punch, retired from the SU! catalog but I’m sure it’s still available somewhere.

I’m hoping this will serve as a Valentine fit for a king, even with the ribbon and rhinestones.  It seems there’s a lot of bling associated with royalty, isn’t there?  I sure had fun with it!  Thanks so much for visiting today.  Take care and be well!

Stamps:  Mardi Gras, Harlequin and Accessories — both by Flourishes

Paper:  Basic Black, Real Red, Whisper White

Ink:  Basic Black, Ruby Red, Blush Blossom, Versamark, Blush Blossom marker

Accessories:  Offray ribbon, Jewel Gold embossing powder, Brenda Walton rhinestones, corner notch punch, Scotch brand dimensional mounting tape

This is a card I made over the weekend – just trying to be certain I use this Always set before it gets scooted to the side or buried under other new sets.   It’s a rare application of self discipline.  From among my new Stampin’ Up! sets I selected this one to mount first and I hope to make a few cards with it before moving on to the next one.

There’s not much in the way of fancy coloring or shading on this card, just a lot of fun parts all put together.  I pictured this as a somewhat elegant set but I thought I’d see if it would work in a more casual environment as well.  Its variety of stamps seem to let it go either way.  Do you see the swirly vine on the Linen Prints designer paper there on the right side of the card?  It matches part of the pattern on the bird.

The punched flower circles and the cut out flower are all parts of the lighter side of the set.  The larger flower was stamped in Cameo Coral and colored with my Close to Cocoa marker.  All the flower petals were glazed with my Sakura clear glaze pen.  I think you can see it a little bit in the photo.  What doesn’t show is the sparkle of Cinnamon Stickles in the center of each flower, including the flower on the bird’s breast.  Very pretty in real life!  The card base is Chocolate Chip, although it looks rather dark in the photo.  The only grounding of the bird is a little sprinkling of Itty Bitty Backgrounds.

I hope to share more of my new Flourishes projects next, before I pick up where I left off with this set.  I’ll see you again soon!  Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Stamps:  Always, Itty Bitty Backgrounds

Paper:  Chocolate Chip, Cameo Coral, Very Vanilla, Linen Prints designer paper

Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Cameo Coral, Close to Cocoa Marker

Accessories:  Non-SU! chocolate ribbon, Antique Brass Hodgepodge Hardware, photo corner punch, 1/2″ circle punch, Cinnamon Stickles, Sakura clear glaze pen, Stampin’ Dimensionals

About a week or so ago my old SU! Hostess Club gang got together for a party.  We’re not really a club anymore because everyone was doing more collecting than stamping, so now there’s no obligation to buy — just come and have fun!  I loved the design of the “double accordian gate fold card that stays closed without tying” (and makes its own border) — instructions here – so I made that our project of the day.  We made matching 2468 boxes, too.  I wanted to use my new Always set and give it a fun Valentine look:

I’m a little short on current SU! designer paper since it retires as fast as I can buy it, so we used some of last year’s Au Chocolat paper with Purely Pomegranate for contrast.  I also had to throw in some non-SU! turn mounts to have enough to go around.  It would be nice if we could buy some of those Hodgepodge Hardware pieces separately, wouldn’t it?  I guess it would be impossible to have everything in one catalog.

We did all the cutting and scoring with the Fiskars cutter sold by SU!  I added the eyelets and the scallop punch feature later.  The girls and I do entirely too much visiting to be able to get much done at our parties so the simpler, the better.  I let them do all their own cutting and scoring so they’d be better able to recreate this on their own.  It was tons of fun!

I don’t have any pictures of the construction of this particular 2468 box but it’s similar to the box in this picture:

Cut paper 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″.  Insert lengthwise in cutter and score at 2″, 4″, 6″ and 8″.  Turn and score across at 2″.  Slit the bottom as shown in the photo and trim away the last little 1/2″ bottom section.  Fold up and adhere closed like a box.  It’s pinched together at the top and closed with a little clippie.  Pretty simple stuff!  Happy Tuesday and happy stamping to all!

Stamps:  Always

Paper:  Purely Pomegranate, Au Chocolat (retired), Very Vanilla

Ink:  Purely Pomegranate

Accessories:  Chocolate Taffeta ribbon, turn mount, brad, eyelets, clippie, small corner rounder, scallop circle punch, 1 1/4″ circle punch, 1/2″ circle punch, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Scotch brand dimensional mounting tape

For the last couple of months the Splitcoast Dirty Dozen, current and alumni, have been playing a challenge.  It looks like it’s going to be a monthly thing.  First it was Elzybells, next it was penquins, neither of which I have.  This month the challenge rules stipulated we were to:

1.  Use a girl stamp, young or old.

2.  Keep it sweet.

3.  Make it a non-standard size card — something other than A2.

If you’d like to see a gallery full of the ideas this challenge brought about you can click here.

I have very few girl images and even fewer that might be considered sweet, but I thought with enough pink you can make just about anything look sweet.  The card is an odd size — 3 1/4″ x 6 1/2″ — which fits some freebie envelopes I received in the mail. 

I used a Hero Arts image, stamped in Close to Cocoa, colored with chalks and sprayed with matte sealer.  The pink background is SU!’s textured cardstock and the middle background is stamped with Pretty in Pink Canvas.  I allowed some bare spots for a worn look simply by not applying even pressure when I stamped it.  It’s overstamped with the pretty little flower sprig from SU!’s retired Noteworthy.  The self-adhesive flower with the beaded center is from Wal-Mart.

I think it meets the criteria adequately.  I appreciate this challenge for prompting me to use another one of those stamps that I like enough to have hung onto yet haven’t used in quite a while.  I know it’s fun to see and purchase the new stamps on the market, but how about getting something old out once in a while?  Maybe use it with new papers or your new or improved stamping skills.  Try a new layout.  Wrap some pretty ribbon around it.  Do this while you’re waiting for the coffer to refill so you can make your next purchase.  Whatever you do, I hope you enjoy yourself while you’re at it.  It’s all about the stamping and our good fortune in having this creative outlet and so many friends to share it with.  I’m continually in awe of the unity of stampers.  Have you ever seen anything like it?  Wow!  Have a great day!

Stamps:  Hero Arts girl, SU! Canvas and Noteworthy, Great Impressions sentiment

Paper:  Close to Cocoa, Pretty in Pink textured, Whisper White

Ink:  Close to Cocoa, Pretty in Pink, Chocolate Chip, Craft White

Accessories:  Ribbon, brads, Wal-Mart flower, Scotch brand dimensional mounting tape

Hello!  Is the weekend finally here?  Really?  I don’t know why but it seems like I’ve been in a bit of a fog this week, a little out of touch, somewhat disconnected.  Maybe I’m pulling out of it now (I hope), but the week seems like a faint memory of something that barely happened.  I remember trying to stamp earlier in the week and failing at most attempts.  I made this card Thursday night so I could mail it Friday for a Saturday birthday.

Whenever I stamp a card just for fun I almost always try to turn it into a birthday card because between me and my friends at work, they’re the most frequently required.  The trouble is, most of my friends read my blog so it’s not very often I can surprise them with a card made specially for them.  So…hi, there, friend!  If you happen to peek in here before you check your mail — happy birthday!  You know who you are…

One good reason for having cards in reserve is that I never know if I’m going to have the time or the mojo to create at the last minute.  This one happened pretty easily because since I’ve had this Chatterbox paper I’ve wanted to pair it with this stamp.  You know how you get something stuck in your head…  The stamp is an old Brenda Walton design for All Night Media.  I was attracted to its folk art appeal and graceful, feminine lines.  I don’t know if it’s available anywhere now.  I colored it with markers and shaded with a sponge dauber and Apricot Appeal ink.  The image seemed too delicate for a lot of heavy layers and doodads so I kept it very simple — pretty papers and a pretty little image.  The card base is Stampin’ Up!’s textured cardstock in Old Olive.  I wanted the Olive just a tad bit softer so I touched the edges with my white Craft ink.

Now I’m looking forward to the freedom of the weekend and whatever that might bring.  Hopefully it will bring a few things I can share with you during the week.  Take care and have a happy Saturday!

Stamps:  All Night Media, WarmWords (SU!)

Paper:  SU! Old Olive textured, Whisper White, Chatterbox designer paper

Ink:  Timber Brown Stazon, Craft White, Apricot Appeal, markers for coloring

Accessories:  SU! pink taffeta ribbon, Scotch brand dimensional mounting tape

I’ve made a card with one of my favorites of Flourishes’ new releases, Harlequin and Accessories — that’s the diamond pattern in the background.  The set includes a number of different images that can be stamped in the empty spaces of the pattern and, of course, I had to do the flowers first.  There’s a matching larger flower stamped in the card base border, too.  The sentiment is from Flourishes’ Open to Love set.

I chose these particular colors to coordinate with the K&Company daisies from my local scrapbook store.  It’s a fresh and easy look that feels good after a long day at work — nothing complex, bright or busy — just soothing and natural.  Working with this background reminds me of the good old days before I became so immersed in designer papers.  I love the versatility of it’s design and I’m looking forward to experimenting with some of the other images.  I believe there are lots of possibilities with this set.  Now, if only I had a little more time on my hands…  I’m looking forward to the weekend when I can indulge fully in one of my favorite activities — you guessed  it — stamping!  Thank you for spending a minute with me today.  I’ll see you again soon!

Stamps:  Harlequin and Accessories, Open to Love

Paper:  So Saffron, Whisper White

Ink:  So Saffron, River Rock, Chocolate Chip

Accessories:  K&Company flowers, chocolate gingham ribbon, Scotch brand dimensional mounting tape