Friday, February 29, 2008

Rosy Celebrate Everything

I love square cards. I am making them more and more. The thing I have struggled with in the past was trying to find envelopes that fit. I couldn't find envelopes for a 4" or 4 1/4" card and I find that a 5" card is too big for me. I finally found a solution at Walmart. They have a package of blank cards with matching envelopes in white or vanilla card stock in a 4 3/4" size. So that is what I have been using. It has worked out quite nicely.


On Splitcoaststampers I came across THIS card by "mmbc". This is my rendition.


Supplies:


Stamps: Celebrate Everything
Paper: Whisper White, Rose Red, Designer Paper (Basic Grey)
Ink: Rose Red
Accssories: 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon, Flower Fusion (Olive Flowers), Crystal Brad (makingmemories), Glue Dot, Stamp-a-ma-jig


4 3/4 x 4 3/4 card


Thanks for stopping by.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Scalloped Happy Birthday

I received the So Many Scallops Sale-a-bration set with my last order. I thought I'd get some ink on it :). It is sooo nice that the stamps are die cut and all you have to do is peel and stick them on the wood block.
This was a very simple card to make:

* I distressed and sponged the edges of the Pale Plum card stock and Almost Amethyst Designer Series Paper with Elegant Eggplant. I also distressed the 1" strip of Elegant Eggplant card stock and the two circles.

* I stamped in Elegant Eggplant with "celebrate the season" stamp on Pale Plum card stock. I liked the dotted scallop on the stamp. Then I used the Scalloped Circle Punch

* I stamped again with Elegant Eggplant with "happy birthday" stamp on Almost Amethyst. I then punched it out with the 1 1/4 Circle Punch. I punched another circle in Elegant Eggplant with the 1 3/8 Circle Punch.

* I adhered those three layers together and added it to the top of the Eggplant card stock strip and Plum Ribbon with a dimensional.

* To complete the card, I added two Rhinestone Squares.

All done. Thanks for stopping by.

Supplies:

Stamps: So Many Scallops
Paper: Elegant Eggplant, Pale Plum, Almost Amethyst, Almost Amethyst Designer Series Paper
Ink: Elegant Eggplant
Accessories: Distresser (Cutter Kit), Sponge Dauber, Plum Ribbon (Gale's), Dimensional, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, 1 3/8 Circle Punch, Scalloped Circle Punch, Rhinestones (Finishing Accents by Darico)

4.25 x 5.5 card

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Sparkle, Little Stars


I saw THIS card on Just Give Me Stamps and loved the Star stamps Laurie used from Verve Visual. I don't have that set, but I used the Classic Stars Jumbo Wheel that I received in my last order from Stampin' Up!. I tried to do something similar. Also in that order, I bought some Taken with Teal card stock and ink. Not my favourite colour, but I'm trying to go outside my comfort zone once in a while. By the way, (it is hard to see in the picture) I applied Crystal Effects to the small, popped up stars to give them a shiny effect.

Supplies:

Stamps: Stitched Background, Warm Words, Classic Stars Jumbo Wheel
Paper: Night of Navy, Taken with Teal, Bashful Blue, Whisper White
Ink: Night of Navy
Accessories: Paper Piercer, Mat Pack, Distresser (Cutter Kit), Crystal Effects, Dimensionals, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, 1 3/8" Circle Punch, Navy Ribbon (Gale's)

4.25 x 5.5 card

Thanks for stopping by.

Monday, February 25, 2008

Weekend Sketch Challenge #36

Once again I got around to doing Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge. This one took me a long time to complete for some reason. It just didn't look right. I tried adding ribbon and that just didn't look good. I finally went with a line of brads down the left side of the card. The main image square also took me a long time to figure out what to do. It took me about three tries of stamping various images. Well, this is the end result. Don't the colours remind you of a creamy cappuccino? Mmmm. I'd rather have a latte, though. :)

Supplies:

Stamps: Stitched Exotics, Stitched Background
Paper: Naturals Ivory, Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa, Whisper White
Ink: VersaMark, Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa
Accessories: Embossing Buddy, White Embossing Powder, Distresser (Cutter Kit), Sponge Dauber, 1/16 Hand Held Punch, Vintage Copper Brads, Dimensionals

4.25 x 5.5 card

Thanks for stopping by.

Friday, February 22, 2008

Sketch Challenge #164

Here is the card I made for the Sketch Challenge on Splitcoaststampers. I used the Nurse from the Clearly Wordsworth clear stamp set that I got last weekend. I've had lots of fun playing around with this set.

Just a few details about the card: I punched the window at the bottom of the card with the Word Window Punch. I used the Stamp-a-ma-jig to place the sentiment "feel better" on the inside of the card. I also pierced holes around the large and small piece of patterned paper. It is very subtle and hard to see in the photo. I finally distressed all the edges of the patterned paper.

Here is a close up of the sentiment in the word window.

Supplies:

Stamps: Nurse & Feel Better (clearly wordsworth)
Paper: Bordering Blue, Not Quite Navy, Whisper White, Oh Baby! Designer Papaer (Basic Grey)
Ink: Brown Stazon, Bordering Blue, Bravo Burgundy
Accessories: Navy Organdy Ribbon, Distresser (Cutter Kit), Silver Brads, 1/16" Hand Held Punch, Paper Piercer, Mat Pack, Blender Pen, Word Window Punch, Stamp-a-ma-jig

4 1/4 x 5 1/2 card

Thanks for stopping by.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Yeehaw, Cowgirl!!

Finally I was able to make it to my local scrapbook store for a very quick look-around. I've been wanting to go for a looong time. But it is not a place where I want to take the boys, so I don't go there very often. Well, I spent about half an hour looking, no, ogling, the Basic Grey patterned paper. When I did move on to see what was in the other parts of the store, I came across these clear stamps by clearly wordsworth. I have seen them on line and loved them, so I HAD to buy them. I just love the stick figure images. So far I have just used the cowgirl. Every time I see anything cowgirl/boy related, I think of my favourit-est cousin. So this card is dedicated to her, a cowgirl through and through. I will be sending it to her as well. By the way, I did buy some Basic Grey paper.

Supplies:

Stamps: Cowgirl and Yeehaw (clearly wordsworth)
Paper: Very Vanilla, Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Cool Caribbean, Mellow Designer Paper (Basic Grey)
Ink: Brown Stazon, Cool Caribbean, Close to Cocoa
Accessories: Twill, Vintage Copper Brads, Dimensionals, Paper Snips (to paper piece her dress), Two-way Glue stick, Sponge Dauber, Distresser (Cutter Kit)

4.75 x 4.75 card

Thanks for stopping by.

ETA: PLEASE DO NOT CLICK ON THE FIRST COMMENT IN THE COMMENT SECTION. I DID AND SOMETHING ABOUT VIRUSES POPPED UP. I WILL BE TRYING TO FIGURE THIS OUT AND GET RID OF IT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Spring....Wishful Thinking.

I needed to make a very springy card. I am sooo tired of winter. Today is another cold day. It is -40 when you factor in the wind....and I had to walk Zachary to school today because Byron took the van to the mechanic....and the cover of the Chariot/jogger cracked because it is so cold....and I'm tired of wearing long johns....in the house....But enough complaining!! It will get warmer....eventually. LOL


So here is my springy card. I used Cool Caribbean and Certainly Celery as the main colours. I LOVE these colours together and miss using them since Cool Caribbean was "retired" last year.


Supplies:


Stamps: Time Well Spent, So Many Sayings (retired hostess set), Canvas
Paper: Cool Caribbean, Certainly Celery, Very Vanilla, Designer Paper (My Mind's Eye)
Ink: Cool Caribbean, Certainly Celery, Close to Cocoa, Bordering Blue
Accessories: Vintage Copper Brads, Dimensionals, Blender Pen, Corner Rounder Punch, Paper Piercer, Mat Pack, 1/8" Hand Held Punch, Certainly Celery 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon


4.25 x 5.5 card


I hope you are enjoying some warmer weather wherever you are. Thanks for stopping by.

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Faux Shaving Cream


This is a card that I made last week for the Faux Shaving Cream Technique. You can see the great tutorial HERE. It was fun and easy to do. I have never done the "real" Shaving Cream Technique, but I imagine that it is quite messy. I used a layout that I've done before so the card came together quite quickly. Love it when that happens.

Supplies:

Stamps: Fabulous Flowers, Wonderful Words, Bold Snowflake Wheel (to "swirl" on the large flower)
Paper: Bohemia Designer Paper (My Mind's Eye), Close to Cocoa, Whisper White
Ink: Close to Cocoa, Pretty in Pink
Accessories: Pretty in Pink, Antique Copper Brads, Sponge Dauber

4.75 x 4.75 card


Thanks for stopping by.

Friday, February 15, 2008

Wednesday Sketch Challenge

It's been so cold here in Manitoba for soooo long that I parts of me are constantly frozen. Right now it is -30 Celsius, but -39 with the windchill (not sure what that is in Fahrenheit... -89 maybe??? LOL). Right now my hands are freezing, so let's see if I can type.

This is the card I came up with for the Sketch Challenge on Splitcoaststampers.


Supplies:

Stamps: Fun and Fast Notes, Rough Texture Jumbo Wheel
Paper: Cool Caribbean, Old Olive, Not Quite Navy, Very Vanilla, Designer Paper (My Mind's Eye)
Ink: Old Olive, Cool Caribbean, Not Quite Navy, So Saffron
Accessories: Olive Satin Ribbon (Gale's), Crystal Brads (makingmemories), Paper Piercer, Mat Pack

4.5 x 4.5 card

Thanks for stopping by.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Happy Valentine's Day


I hope you are having a wonderful day. We just got back from our morning activities and I want to quickly post this before I make lunch. Zachary had a Valentine's Party which he thought was "awesome" and he is currently sorting the Valentine's which are his favourites. Caleb received a little treat bag from the caregivers at the Moms group I attend with him. For dinner this evening, I plan to make a cheese fondue and chocolate fondue. I've never done one with the boys before. They will be very excited.

This is the card I made for my husband for Valentine's Day. Hope he likes it :).

Supplies:

Stamps: Love Matters (retired)
Paper: Patterned Paper (unknown), Red Embossed Patterned Paper (Michaels), Whisper White, Sahara Sand, Bordering Blue
Ink: Black Stazon, Real Red, Bordering Blue
Accessories: Oval Coluzzle, Giga Oval Scalloped Punch, Dimensionals, Red Brads (makingmemories), Corner Rounder Punch, White Organdy Ribbon, Red Satin Ribbon (Gale's)

4.75 x 4.75 card

Thanks for stopping by.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Valentine's Altered Items

I have noticed in the blogging world that there are lots of you who are altering various items for Valentine's Day. I have decided to give it a try. I find that I enjoy it more when there is a purpose or reason for making the item that is being altered.

Altered Lollipop
Zachary, my oldest, is in Kindergarten so this is the first year that he has to hand out Valentine's. We thought we would try something special. I had showed him a picture of an altered lollipop and he really liked that idea. The picture shown is one that I made. He had to make 22 and he stamped them all. He also did some gluing, punching (with the SU! punches- they are easier to use than the Marvy punches) and wrote his name on the back of them.

Supplies:

Stamps: Love Is (Close to My Heart)
Paper: White, Grey, Red (Michael's)
Ink: Real Red
Accessories:Circle Punches: 1 1/4", 1 3/8", Super Jumbo, Mega (SU and Marvy), Scalloped Circle Punch, Giga Scalloped Circle Punch (Marvy), Lollipop, Glue Stick, Glue Dots, Red Ribbon (Gale's)



Altered Candy Jar

At our school this week, it is Teacher Appreciation Week. On every day of the week various people are bringing snacks to the staff room for the teachers. I have to bring mine tomorrow. They asked for healthy snacks but since it was Valentine's Day I thought I'd throw in some Hershey Kisses. (I am bringing homemade bran muffins, cheese and grapes too. That's healthy!!) I thought I'd jazz up the jar for the Kisses.
Supplies:

Stamps: Heart and "Hugs to You" (Studio G), Much Appreciated (SU)
Paper: Heritage Collection Designer Paper (makingmemories), Real Red, Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black, Real Red

Accessories: Red Satin Ribbon (Gale's), Hemp Twine, Corner Rounder Punch, Scalloped Circle Punch, Giga Scalloped Circle Punch (Marvy), 1 3/8" Circle Punch, Super Jumbo Circle Punch and Mega Circle Punch (Marvy), White Uni-ball Pen, Dimensional, Horizontal Slot Punch, Sticky Tape, Glass Jar (unknown), Hershey Kisses

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Simple Polka Dots and Petals

I was on the Paper Pretties site and saw this card . I thought it would be very quick to make. And it was. I am into these quick cards lately for some reason.



I used the Stamp-a-ma-jig to make sure I placed the "Happy Birthday" in exactly the right place. In the past I have usually eyeball it but I would have to do a few tries before getting the sentiment straight. I finally smartened up and often use this tool to get the image in exactly the place I want it. Some of us it takes a little bit longer to figure things out. LOL.


Supplies:


Stamps: Polka Dots and Petals, It's Your Birthday
Paper: Whisper White, Elegant Eggplant, Courtyard Blossom Designer Paper (Chatter Box)
Ink: Bashful Blue, Elegant Eggplant
Accessories: 1 1/4" Circle Punch, 1 3/8 Circle Punch, Dimensional, Bashful Blue Brad, Eggplant Grosgrain Ribbon, Stampamajig.


4.25 x 5.5 card


Thanks for stopping by.

Monday, February 11, 2008

Fabulous Faux Silk Flower

I thought I would share another quick and easy card with you. On this one I used the Faux Silk Technique on the main stamped image. You can see the tutorial on SCS here.


I did something a little bit different from the first time I tried this technique. Instead of using Aquapainters to colour in a lined image stamp, I inked a bold image stamp, the large flower from the Fabulous Flowers set, and stamped on the tissue paper. I also crinkled the paper before I stamped rather than after. It has a little bit of a different look to it but I think it works.

By the way, make sure that once you have glued the tissue paper to the card stock, you wait until it dries before you stamp on it. I did not and stamped my sentiment "for you" and it ran a bit.

Supplies:

Stamps: Fabulous Flowers, For You (Studio G)
Paper: Naturals White, Basic Black, Bashful Blue, White Tissue Paper
Ink: Basic Black, Bashful Blue
Accessories: Glue Stick, Blue Stitched Ribbon (Michaels)

4.75 x 4.75 card

Thanks for stopping by.

Thursday, February 7, 2008

Quick and Easy Scalloped Happy Birthday

Just a quick post as the tomato soup cooks for lunch.


This card was also inspired by a card in the "Card Creations" magazine. It is by Teri Anderson.


I used my Giga Circle Punch on Whisper White card stock. I inked up the flower branch from Garden Silhouettes with Rose Red ink. Since I don't have markers in every colour, I proceed to wipe of the Rose Red ink from the stem and leaves with a kleenex and then coloured them in with a Chocolate Chip marker. (See you can make things work for you even if you don't have all the right supplies.) I stamped it on the scalloped circle along with "Happy Birthday".


On the Pretty in Pink Paper I stamped the same flower stem stamp with VersaMark ink to give it a very subtle effect. Didn't want it to look too busy. I used the Canvas background stamp with Rose Red ink on the Rose Red card stock. I taped the Rose Red cs on top of the Pretty in Pink cs and tied a ribbon around that layer.


To complete this quick and easy card, I added dimensionals to the scalloped circle and placed it on top of the ribbon. Done. Now it is off in the mail to a friend who is having a birthday next week.


Supplies:


Stamps: It's Your Birthday, Garden Silhouettes, Canvas
Paper: Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red
Ink: VersaMark, Rose Red, Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Chip marker
Accessories: Dimensionals, Striped Ribbon (Michael's), Giga Circle Scalloped Punch (Marvy)


4.75 x 4.75 card


Thanks for stopping by.

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Friends Forever

Every once in a while I will buy a "card making" magazine, usually by Paper Crafts. I often get ideas from Splitcoaststampers and my favourite blogs, but it is nice to have something paper in my hands. I put post-it notes to mark the ones I would like to CASE.

I made a few cards this weekend that were CASEd from "Card Creations: Quick and Easy" by Paper Craft (02/05/2008). I'll show them to you as the week goes on.

The element that stood out for me on the card I saw in the magazine, was what the designer did with the ribbon and the horizontal slot punch. I was able to do the same thing. I just narrower ribbon and threaded it through the slots two times. It was a very "quick and easy" card.

Supplies:

Stamps: Bellas, So Many Sayings (retired hostess set)
Paper: Very Vanilla, Mellow Moss, Rose Red, Annie Griffin Inc. Designer Paper (from Michael's)
Ink: Brown Stazon, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Mellow Moss, Close to Cocoa
Accessories: Horizontal Slot Punch, Blender Pen, Dusty Rose 1/4" Ribbon (Gale's)

4 3/4 x 4 3/4 card


Thanks for stopping by.

Sunday, February 3, 2008

Pierced Scallops

I'm sitting here thinking...hmmm...how do I start this post. I think I am exhausted. Yesterday we bought the boys skates and they tried skating for the first time today. I haven't been on skates for years. The skates that I have are from junior high or high school, whenever it was when my feet stopped growing. So these are ooold figure skates. Not enough support. My ankles ache right now, as well as my back. But, I have to say, we had a lot of fun. I thought the boys, especially my oldest, would be quite frustrated with always falling down and not skating perfectly in the first try. But they were sooo happy to be out there and are begging to go again soon.

Here is a card for you. The detail I like best about this card is the paper piercing on the scalloped edge. Hope you like it.

Supplies:

Stamps: Nature Stamps by Rhonda Farrer (Autumn Leaves), Holidays and Wishes
Paper: Naturals White, Sage Shadow, Designer Paper (unknown - from the scrap pile)
Ink: Old Olive
Accessories: Corner Rounder Punch, Paper Piercer, Mat Pack, Olive Satin Ribbon (Gale's Warehouse), Sponge Dauber

4.5 x 4.5 card

Thanks for stopping by.

Saturday, February 2, 2008

Weekend Sketch Challenge #33


Today is one of those days that I feel like I've accomplished a lot. I wish I had days like this everyday. I did some cleaning, baked bread and a cake, practiced the piano, got my passport photos taken and bought skates for the boys. Oh yeah, how could I forget!! I even made a card which I will post at another time.

Today I want to show you the card I made for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge. This is the first time I've made a card in this shape....so big. It's nice that it will fit in a business size envelope. Now hmmm, who is going to be getting this card for Valentine's Day??

By the way, the stamps I used are acrylics by Close to My Heart. Before I did the large heart image in red, I tried it in black. Black Stazon. Here is a tip: If you don't want your acrylics to be badly stained DO NOT use Stazon ink!!! Now my stamp is permanently black. Oh well. Now I know.

Here is a close up of the tag at the bottom of the card.

Supplies:

Stamps: Love Is (Close to My Heart)Paper: Floral Designer Paper (Michaels), Textured Designer Paper (Michael's), Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa, Real Red
Ink: Real Red, VersaMark
Accessories: 1/4" Red Ribbon (Gale's Wholesale), Hemp Twine, 1/4" Circle Punch, 3/8" Circle Punch, Dimensionals, Sparkly Red Embossing Powder (Stampendous)

9 x 3 7/8 card

Thanks for stopping by