Hello Stampin’ Friends!
Today I put together a birthday card for the first very special man in my life…my Dad! His birthday is coming right up and like fine wine, he just keeps getting better with age! At 87-years-young, he’s a true classic, indeed!
Tag: die cutting
Rustic Crate For Fall-Themed Cards
Hello Stampin’ Friends!
I have a quick, fall-themed card today that was inspired by a card sketch by The Paper Players.
I look forward to the fall season each year, in fact, one might say it’s my favorite season of the year. Well, until spring rolls around. As soon as the temperatures begin to warm, the birds begin to sing, the flowers start to pop up from the ground, I’ll be saying spring is my favorite season! I guess I should just call it a draw between spring and fall!
At any rate, I saw this week’s sketch on The Paper Players (Challenge PP663) and thought I’d give it a go. I highly recommend going over to their website to see not only my take on their sketch, but many other talented cardmakers as well!
Card sketches are oftentimes my saving grace. A great place to start and let my imagination and creativity do the rest! And, a contest… well, if you have a competitive nature at all, make up a card and join in the fun!
Ready, Set, Let’s Go Again!
Hello Stampin’ Friends!
I’M BACK!!!! It’s been a long time since I sat in front of my computer and typed out a new blog post, but I’ve missed y’all so LET’S DO THIS!
If you read my previous post from almost three years ago, it explains my long absence. My neurologist headache specialist recommended that I avoid “screens”, so I’ve been doing my best. However, I really enjoyed this creative outlet and so I’m going to try it again, just keeping my posts shorter and less chatty. My hope is that I can manage this without an increase in my chronic migraines.
So here we go!
Stampin’ Up continues to push out new and inspiring products with the new Holiday Mini Catalog. The big brown truck delivered to my door a few days ago and so I’ve been doing a little playing around with my new goodies!
First up is the new bundle Around the Bend. The fun curves in this bundle make layering so much fun. The dies are fabulous, mixing curves with little sprigs of leaves and a few different flowers. This set is a must for the avid card maker! Soooo many possibilities!
Curvy Celebrations: It’s Almost Here!
Hello Friends!
Are you ready for some fresh stampin’ inspiration? Get ready for Curvy Celebrations! It’s almost here…just a few more days!
In anticipation of the new January – June, 2021 Mini Catalog’s release on January 5, 2021, Stampin’ Up is offering an early release bundle from this catalog! It’s just in time for the holidays and the WHOLE variety bundle is only available during the pre-order period which begins on November 3 and runs through January 4!
The Quite Curvy Variety Bundle is shown below.
After January 4, you will no longer be able to get the Curvy Christmas stamp set, or the Classic Christmas DSP – these two items are EXCLUSIVE to the preorder period.
The Quite Curvy stamp set, which is very versatile for many occasions, and coordinating Curvy Dies, will continue and be in the new catalog.
Remember, if you order products in a bundle, you’ll save 10% off the purchase price!
The Curvy Christmas stamp set is fabulous for it’s country rustic images, but add in the Curvy Dies, and suddenly you’ve taken your project from cute, to WHOA-worthy!
Here’s an up-close look at the Classic Christmas 6″ x 6″ DSP. I’ll be using it in tomorrow’s blog post!
Just look at that curved border edge on my project today, and the curved sentiment that runs so perfectly along it! May I say, WHOA? I’m loving this set so far and can’t wait to share more of it with you! These dies make it sooo easy to dress up a card to FABULOUS, especially when paired with that gorgeous Brushed Metallic Cardstock!
My color choices were inspired by Color Throwdown Challenge 617 (#ctd617):
To get that chartreuse green, I had to pull out some retired SU cardstock, Lemon-Lime Twist. I also chose to use my Wink Of Stella glitter pen to jazz up my Lemon-Lime Twist sprigs!
So with no further ado:
LET’S GET INKY!
Poinsettia Petals – They Don’t Have To Be Red
Hello Friends!
It’s raining outside which means – the smoke is clearing! I’ve been praying hard for rain, as I know so many others have as well. I’ve not heard official reports as yet, but I’m guessing the showers we’ve been getting since last night have really knocked the heat out of the fires we’ve been experiencing. A very welcome change for all of our amazing firefighters! Hopefully the thousands of displaced families will be able to go back home soon.
I met some lovely pups at the animal shelter this week, many of whom are there due to their owners having to evacuate and unable to have their pets with them. The pups were all so eager to get out of their cages and soak up some affection, which I was happy to provide. Hopefully they and their families will be reunited soon. I can only imagine what’s going through the minds of those fur babies. It was obvious that some of them are quite accustomed to being lap dogs and are missing their people badly, as I’m sure their people are missing them too. I’m looking forward to returning to the shelter next week and hopefully finding that some, if not all, of the evacuees have gone home. I enjoyed my time at the shelter and have committed to volunteering there at least one day a week.
At any rate, the rain has me back in my craft room and I chose to play with the Poinsettia Petals products once again.
I’m a country gal and my jeans are nearly always dirty by the end of the day. I frequently have to scrub the dirt from under my fingernails as well. I find myself frequently trying to “grunge up” my cards just a little bit for a more rustic look; today was no different.
I cut my mat layers and when I laid them out, everything just looked too “clean”. I generally turn to my ink pads and sponges to ink up the edges, but this time I decided I wanted a little imperfect “gilded” edge to my DSP. I tried my gold gilding marker, but it wouldn’t apply evenly and didn’t look as I had imagined.
So, I found some metallic paint (I think I got it on Amazon some time ago), and a flat brush and sort of smeared that around the edges of my DSP. I intentionally applied it thin so I could see the DSP underneath, and rounded the inside corners a bit.
The paint has just enough metallic shimmer to it to highlight the gold foil paper without being “matchy-matchy”. I think it adds that little bit of rustic-ness that I was looking for!
I chose to use So Saffron Stampin’ Blends (dark and light) to color the poinsettia petals which were stamped in Early Espresso.
Has anyone else noticed that poinsettias come in just about every color of the rainbow the last few years? As such, one could make the poinsettia any color, as they’re certainly not limited to red, pink and white any longer!
LET’S GET INKY!
Materials:
Stamp Sets Used:
- Poinsettia Petals
- For Unto Us
Metal Dies:
- Poinsettia Dies
- Beautiful Boughs
Punch:
- Label Me Lovely
Embossing Folder:
- Scripty 3D
Paper:
- Whisper White CS (card base) – 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ – fold in half at 4 1/4″
- Poinsettia Place DSP – Mat 1 (Brown pinecones) 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″ Mat 2 (poinsettias) 5 3/8″ x 3 3/4″
- Gold Foil Paper – 3″ x 2 1/2″
- Garden Green CS
Ink:
- Early Espresso
Accessories:
- Gold Glitter Enamel Dots
- Gold Cord
- DecoArt Metallic Venetian Gold Paint (available on Amazon)
PUTTING IT TOGETHER:
- Apply metallic paint to edges of DSP and let dry.
- Run gold foil paper piece through Stampin’ Cut & Emboss machine in Scripty 3D embossing folder.
- Stamp one each of all three poinsettia petals stamps in Early Espresso.
- Use So Saffron Stampin’ Blends Combo to color petals.
- Crop petals out using Poinsettia Dies and adhere together using liquid glue or mini glue dots in the center of each.
- Apply Gold Glitter Enamel Dots to center of poinsettia. Using the Take-Your-Pick tool to apply these small dots is the easiest method (personal opinion!)
- Crop fir boughs from Garden Green CS using Beautiful Boughs Dies.
- Stamp the sentiment from For Unto Us on Whisper White scrap and use Label Me Lovely Punch to cut out.
- Adhere paint-edged mat 2, to brown pinecone mat 1.
- Adhere sentiment label to gold foil embossed piece, and adhere that to mat stack about 1/2″ from top and centered.
- Adhere the end of a 6″ piece of gold cord to back of mat stack approximately 1/4″ from left edge, wrap over the front and adhere other end to back as well.
- Tie a small bow with a piece of gold cord and use a mini glue dot to stick it to the cord on the front of the card approximately at the bottom edge of the gold foil piece.
- Adhere fir boughs and place poinsettia in the center.
DONE!
A country-rustic, not-red poinsettia for Christmas!
I hope I’ve inspired you to get a little inky today.
It’s time for me to go feed my horses and get a little country-grungy cleaning their stalls!
Until next time,
Janet
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Whale Done Tri-Fold Peek-A-Boo For A Double-Digit Birthday
Hello Friends!
One of our grandsons is hitting the big double-digit birthday soon, 10-years-old, and I want him to know that he’s “Kind of a BIG deal”! Whale of a Time was the perfect fit for this occasion! I chose to use my favorite fancy-fold, the tri-fold peek-a-boo, to highlight his big 10 years!
As I recently used this fancy fold in another post, I will simply refer you back to that post for the video and step-by-step instructions of how to create this card here.
Of course, I used a different array of products to make today’s card, so a listing of those are below but the instructions are otherwise the same.
This past week has been incredibly difficult with so many throughout our state being evacuated from their homes due to the wildfires to the north, south, east and west of us. So much loss all about us… there are no words. At this point, our ranch is not in harms way and a friend of ours inquired if we’d be able to accommodate horses for people who’ve had to evacuate. Thus far we’ve taken in 8 horses. I pray that those horses and their families, as well as so many others, have homes to return to when all is said and done.
The smoke has been dense, burning the eyes, nose and throat when outside for very long. I’m sure the hospitals are being inundated with those who have asthma, COPD, and other breathing disorders. My thoughts and prayers have been significantly directed toward all the firefighters, first responders, and of course, all the people who have lost loved ones, their homes, their pets, and livelihoods. I thank God above that there are people who are willing to put their lives on the line day in and day out for the safety of the rest of us. I don’t like the smoke we’re experiencing here and yet, there are those who are rushing into the fires where the smoke and heat are truly horrendous. To those true heroes, I say Thank You and May God Bless You!
LET’S GET INKY!
Materials:
Stamp Sets/Bundle Used:
- Whale Done Bundle
- Blossoms In Bloom (happy birthday sentiment)
Metal Dies Used:
- Layering Circles
- Smooth Sailing (seaweed)
- Playful Alphabet (10)
Paper:
- Pretty Peacock (carebase – 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″)
- Granny Apple Green (Mat 1 inside & out 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″ – cut 2)
- Whale Of A Time DSP 5 1/4″ x 4″ – cut 2 (calypso coral for card front & seahorses for card inside)
Ink:
- Tuxedo Black Memento Ink
Accessories:
- Whale Punch
- 2-inch Circle Punch
- Seabed 3D embossing folder
- Stampin’ Dimensionals
PUTTING IT TOGETHER:
As mentioned above, there is a video of this process in my earlier post here. Please refer to it; the written instructions are otherwise below.
- Fold cardbase in half and set aside.
- Adhere the DSP to the Granny Apple Green mats and set aside to dry.
- Using the 5 1/2 x 5 inch piece of Pretty Peacock CS, score the 5 1/2 -inch side at 3/4″. On the non-scored sides of that piece of cardstock, measure to 2 3/4″ and mark lightly with pencil.
- Use a paper trimmer to connect the pencil dots, to create the triangular flap.
- Use the 2nd largest (plain) circle from Layering Circles Dies, and cut the hole in the center of the “flap”.
- Emboss the flap using the Seabed 3D Embossing Folder.
- Use the largest scalloped circle die and the 2nd largest plain circle die from Layering Circles Dies to cut the scalloped “ring” from DSP to go around the hole on the front of the card flap. Adhere this ring to flap front around hole.
- Now bring in your card base… THE CREASE WILL BE ON THE RIGHT FOR THIS CARD (it opens backwards).
- Crease the flap on your score line and insert the card base with open side into the crease of the flap. (Remember – your card base will be backwards from usual, i.e. open side on left/crease on right). Make sure the top and bottom of both flap and card base are even.
- Punch a circle from a Post-It note using the 2″ circle punch, making sure the adhesive edge of the Post-It note is on the punched circle (so it will stay in place).
- Lay the punched circle in the center of the hole on the flap (will be on the front of the card base) to guide where the hole needs to be punched for the “peek-a-boo” hole.
- Remove the flap piece and place the card front, with the Post-It Note circle attached, in the 2″ punch with the Post-It Note circle aligned with the punch and punch your hole.
- Now when you lay the flap back over the card base, your holes should center up.
- Adhere the DSP inside sentiment panel (seahorses) onto the Granny Apple Green mat for the inside panel. Lay that in the card base with even borders (where it will be glued down, but don’t glue it yet!), close the card and lightly trace the circle onto the white panel with a pencil. (This marks where to adhere your numbers).
- Remove the inside panel, adhere the numbers cut with the Playful Alphabet dies and stamp the sentiments. “Hoping all your birthday fishes come true” from Whale Done, and “Happy Birthday” from Blossoms In Bloom.
- Now lay the Calypso Coral DSP with Granny Apple Green mat (that you glued earlier) on the card base front. Hold it in place and carefully open the card keeping the DSP stack in place. Lay the 2″ circle Post-It Note in the center of the circle again, lift the cardbase off, and punch the hole in the DSP stack.
- Adhere the DSP mat to the card front, lining up the holes. Stamp the “You’re Kind Of A Big Deal” sentiment on the right upper corner of the Calypso Coral DSP card front.
- Adhere the inside DSP stamped panel to the card base.
- Apply some adhesive to the straight edge of the flap (behind the score line) and apply to the back of the card so that the flap folds over the open edges of the card base.
- Use the seaweed die from Smooth Sailing Dies and cut four of those from a piece of the DSP that’s mostly Granny Apple Green. Adhere those to the card fronts.
- Punch the whale from a piece of DSP using the Whale Punch and apply to front of card using dimensionals.
DONE!
Stay safe out there!
Janet
Though I didn’t use the ribbon or sequins from the Whale of a Time Suite, I used everything else. Therefore, I listed the suite, as well as the bundle, as when ordered either in the suite or bundle, you get a 10% discount versus buying everything separately.
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Country Home With A Little Halloween Magic
Hello Friends!
Since it’s too hot to do much outside today, I’ve spend my day playing in my craft room. I still have lots of products from the holiday mini catalog that I’ve yet to explore and so today seemed a good day to bring out some of those new toys and “break them in”!
I’ve been wanting to use the Halloween Magic Dies for a non-Halloween card since I got them. There are two nesting labels included in those dies that are quite elegant-appearing and so I opted to use them today to create a layered opening for a gate-fold card. All of the die-cuts featured on this card are from the Halloween Magic Dies with exception of the small, Cajun Craze flowers (Small Bloom punch), and the center sentiment label which is also a punch (Timeless Label). So, let’s do a little Country Home with some Halloween Magic!
I love a little bling, so out came the Wink of Stella to glitter up the Crushed Curry Flowers, Champagne Rhinestones for the flower centers, and Gold Embossing Powder to make the sentiment shine!
LET’S GET INKY!
Materials:
Stamp sets used:
- Country Home
Metal Dies:
- Halloween Magic
Paper:
- Very Vanilla (8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″) – score and fold at 2 1/8″ and 6 3/8″.
- Very Vanilla – small scrap for sentiment to be punched out with Timeless Label Punch.
- So Saffron (5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″)
- Crushed Curry – scraps for 4 flower outline cuts using Halloween Magic Dies.
- Cajun Craze – scraps for 10 Small Bloom punched flowers.
- Mossy Meadow – scraps for 10 leaf clusters cut using Halloween Magic Dies.
- Plaid Tidings DSP – 4″ x 2″ to crop with smaller label die from Halloween Magic Dies.
Ink:
- Versamark
Accessories:
- Small Bloom Punch
- Timeless Label Punch
- Wink of Stella marker
- Champagne Rhinestones
- Stampin’ Dimensionals
- Gold Embossing Powder
- Heat tool
PUTTING IT TOGETHER:
- Score and Fold the Very Vanilla card base as noted above.
- Lay the smaller of the two labels in Halloween Magic Dies in the center of the front, making sure the center of the gatefold is running down the center of the die. Use some craft tape to hold the die in place on ONE side.
- Open the gatefold with the die still taped to one side, and run through Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine.
- Close the gatefolds and keeping the die lined up with the side you just cut, tape the die to the opposite side (uncut side).
- Open the gatefold and run through Cut & Emboss Machine again.
- When closed now, your opening should line up perfectly on both sides.
- Tape the larger label die from Halloween Magic Dies to the center of the So Saffron panel and run through Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine. Save the center label you just cropped out for the inside of the card.
- Run the cropped So Saffron panel (with the hole in it) through the Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine in the Tasteful Texture 3D Embossing Folder.
- Cut that embossed panel in half lengthwise at 2 1/16″
- Use a metallic gold paint pen (I like the Uchida DecoColor Premium paint pens – available on Amazon) to highlight the openings on both the Very Vanilla and So Saffron edges.
- Adhere the So Saffron panels to the Very Vanilla gate-fold fronts.
- Crop out 4 of the outline flowers using Halloween Magic Dies from Crushed Curry CS. Use a Wink of Stella marker to add glitter to them.
- Crop out 10 outline leaf clusters using Halloween Magic Dies from Mossy Meadow CS.
- Use the Small Bloom Punch to punch out 10 flowers in Cajun Craze and slightly curl petals for dimension.
- Arrange the flowers and leaves around the So Saffron “frame” and adhere.
- Use the So Saffron label made in step 9 on the inside, centering it under the window made by the gatefold.
- Crop a piece of Plaid Tidings DSP with the smaller label die from Halloween Magic Dies.
- To get that center in your gatefold window, close the gatefolds and after applying some adhesive, lay it in the middle of your gatefold. It’s the same size as the opening, so it fits perfectly.
- Stamp the sentiment from Country Home on Very Vanilla, in Versamark and sprinkle with gold embossing powder, tapping off the extra. Set it with heat tool.
- Use the Timeless Label Punch to punch out the sentiment. Apply sentiment label using dimensionals to the center of the Plaid Tidings Label.
- Apply Champagne Rhinestones to the center of the flowers.
DONE!
I’m looking forward to cooler weather again; fall will be a welcome change! My last several projects seem to reflect this by the colors I’ve chosen to use! Come on cooler temps!!!!
Until next time, my friends,
I HOPE YOU GET INKY!
Janet
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Adding Nature’s Touch & Getting Back To The Future!
Hello Friends!
A couple days ago, my husband, Dean, brought me some rolled-up, dried-up tree bark from a madrone tree, with the suggestion that maybe I could find a way to incorporate it into my cardmaking.
Madrones grow quite prolifically around here and make the best firewood; they’re a hardwood and burn quite cleanly.
They have a smooth, rusty-orange-colored “exfoliating bark” which peels, curls and falls off as part of the natural process; they shed quite aggressively as demonstrated in the pictures below.
You see, when I first began my Stampin’ Up business, in brainstorming various ideas to make my business stand out from others, I had the idea to use “natural” elements and incorporate Stampin’ Up products into them; and not just cards. After all, we have lots of “natural elements” growing all around us. My husband is a retired taxidermist who enthusiastically prodded me in that direction.
This idea was solidified when we were out clearing roads on our property following a particularly bad snowstorm that downed literally hundreds of trees on the ranch. My attention was drawn to wild honeysuckle vines growing up and through many trees around us. They had a twisted, grapevine sort of look, and I wondered aloud to Dean, “Do you think that would dry and make a good wreath, something like a grapevine wreath?”
Well, there’s one way to find out! He helped me pull a couple long lengths of honeysuckle vine from a tree. I brought them home and using a 5-gallon bucket turned upside down as a form, wrapped the honeysuckle vine around it until I was happy with the “thickness” of it. I then used another piece of honeysuckle vine to “weave” through and around the “wreath-on-a-bucket” to hold it all together and tied it off with some florist wire. I left it sitting on the front porch for about a week, letting it dry, and when I removed it from the bucket “form”, it held it’s shape great and looked quite similar to a grapevine wreath.
This was shortly before Easter and so I simply went and bought silk tulips which I arranged around the wreath and topped with a burlap & ribbon bow, and a cross.
That wreath has been tulip-clad since, coming out of the closet in the Springtime to adorn our front porch.
HOWEVER, Dean reminded me of my initial “business plan musings” when he brought me that dried-up madrone bark; and my mind drifted back to that honeysuckle wreath.
First things first though, I had tree bark to contend with! The bark was quite brittle, so rehydrating seemed the first step toward making it useful!
I put some water in the kitchen sink and placed the rolled-up bark in the water.
It only took a few minutes until the bark was pliable enough that I was able to flatten it in the water.
I pulled it out of the water and laid it on some paper towels between waxed paper, and then placed my good ol’ dictionary on top for weight.
I checked on it a few days later and it was mostly dry. So, taxidermist husband suggested that I use some glycerin to moisturize and help preserve it.
I dabbed some glycerin on the bark with a cotton ball and put it back in the paper towel/waxed paper sandwich with the dictionary on top.
When I checked on it again a couple days later, it was dry but still fairly pliable. I left it open to air for a couple days to see if it would curl back up, but it didn’t! It stayed flat and pliable YAY!
Next test was to see what I could do with it.
Stamp on it – yep, worked! It took a little extra time for the ink to dry, but eventually did. Staz-On would probably work great, though I’ve not tried that yet!
Metal dies? Yep, worked like a charm!
So, here are the results of my first tree-bark embellished card!
Unfortunately, the leaf die I used is from a retired SU die set, “Seasonal Layers”, but I will be following this project up with others using the “Gather Together” bundle. After using it, I also realized that the gold thread is retired, but the gold cord from Wonder Of The Season Ribbon Combo could easily be substituted.
Hmmm… I haven’t tried embossing the tree bark yet! That will be the next test I guess. I’ll have to repeat this process and try embossing it while it’s still somewhat moist and then see if it will dry with the embossed impression!
I have since pulled that aforementioned honeysuckle wreath out of the closet and stripped it of its tulips.
I’m going to see over the next few days, what I can do with it using Stampin’ Up products and natural elements only! (wish me luck!) I currently have some Myrtle tree branches soaking in some “Never Say Die” plant preservative that Dean had in his taxidermy supply which I plan to use as a “green” element if the plant preservative works! So far, I don’t see the branches soaking the preservative up, but time will tell and I’ll keep you posted!
And now…. GETTING BACK TO THE FUTURE!
The rest of my initial business plan a few years ago consisted of “stamp camps” at our cabin (still waiting to be built) up on one of the mountains on our property which has a spectacular view overlooking forested hills and valleys, which we would access by horseback (for those who wanted to… those who didn’t could be brought up by vehicle or hayride (?) depending on the season!)
Oh my! Dean may regret bringing me that tree bark and reminding me of those initial ideas! I have two horses now…. but if there was enough interest, SURELY I would need at least four more, RIGHT!?! And just another idea….ride a horse up, and zipline back down!!! WooHOOOoooo!!!
What do you think?
Let me know in the comments below…. Do I need to press Dean to get that cabin built??? More horses??? and who’s game for a zipline????
A weekend spent stamping, horseback riding, ziplining, collecting honeysuckle vines for your own wreaths, more stamping, eating, relaxing on the deck around a firepit….hmmmm…. the possibilities are endless!!!
I think the next weekend after stamp camp would be spent telling stories on each other, sharing pictures, laughing, and scrapbooking those memories…
They would be stamp camps to remember for sure!!! LOL!!!
BUT, BACK TO TODAY….
LET’S GET INKY!
Materials:
Stamp sets used:
- Autumn Goodness (pumpkins/fruit image)
- Pallet Thoughts (sentiment)
Dies / Punches used:
- Seasonal Layers – retired (leaves)
- Layering Circles
- Triple Banner Punch
Paper:
- Early Espresso – card base – 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ (score at 4 1/4″ and fold in half)
- banner mats – (1 5/8″ x 4 3/8″) ; (1 1/8″ x 3 7/8″ ); (7/8″ x 3 1/8″)
- sentiment mat – 2 1/4″ x 1/2″
- image mat – 3″ x 3″ – crop with Layering Circles die
- Gilded Autumn DSP – mat 1 – 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″
- Regals 6×6 DSP – Cajun Craze DSP 1 1/2″ x 4 1/4″ ; Old Olive DSP 1″ x 3 3/4″
- Neutrals 6×6 DSP – Crumb Cake DSP 3/4″ x 3″
- Very Vanilla – 3″ x 3″ and crop with 2 1/2″ circle die; 3/8″ x 2 1/4″ for sentiment strip – hand crop reverse banner ends with snips.
Ink:
- Early Espresso
Accessories:
- Stampin’ Blends – Pumpkin Pie, Cinnamon Cider, Granny Apple Green, Daffodil Delight, Cinnamon Cider
- Gold thread – retired
- MADRONE TREE BARK! 🙂 (could substitute Cinnamon Cider CS – but not as much fun!) LOL
- Basic Black Stampin’ Write Marker – hand draw the veining on the leaves
Putting it all together!
- Stamp pumpkin image from Autumn Goodness stamp set on Very Vanilla CS and color with Stampin’ Blends.
- Crop image using Layering Circles Dies.
- Adhere image panel circle onto Early Espresso scalloped circle mat (cut with Layering Circles dies).
- Crop out small leaves and draw veining on them using Early Espresso Stampin’ Write Marker.
- Punch banner pieces using Triple Banner Punch. The widths of the CS/DSP may not fit the guides perfectly, so just make sure they’re center before punching.
- Adhere the three DSP banners to Early Espresso banner mats.
- Adhere the Gilded Autumn DSP mat to Early Espresso CS base front.
- Adhere banners, starting with largest (Cajun Craze) first, down a smidge from the top and to the left side of card front. Next, place Old Olive banner slightly higher and about midline on Cajun Craze banner. Finally adhere Crumb Cake banner slightly down from top of Cajun Craze banner and over top of Old Olive banner.
- Wrap gold thread around your fingers several times, slip off and adhere ends with glue dot. Apply with same glue dot about center over the Old Olive banner and with glue dot to the right side so the image panel will cover.
- Adhere the image panel over the ends of the gold thread and to right side of card front.
- Stamp sentiment on Very Vanilla sentiment strip and hand trim ends with snips. Apply to Early Espresso sentiment mat.
- Adhere sentiment under image panel.
- Scatter leaves on card front, adhering in place.
DONE!
I know it seems like a lot of trouble to go to with regard to the tree bark, just for a few leaves that could’ve simply been cut from cardstock, but this is just the first trial! And quite frankly, though I don’t know that the pictures really pick it up, the color is richer and they have a “woody” look and texture that I love. I’m going to continue trying to use it in various ways and see what I can come up with! So, stay tuned!
Until next time, I hope you get INKY today!
Janet
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Reindeer Reign Supreme For Christmas…Or, Is That An Elk?
Hello Friends,
Continuing with the Christmas theme today… I can’t believe Christmas is only four months away! I’ve gotten my shopping started, but far from finished. I do have a pretty good jumpstart on cards, however! I guess if I’m going to have my Christmas shopping done by the end of this month, it’s crunch time! Amazing how time slides right by…
Today I’m sharing a card that I put together combining items from three different bundles from the Aug-Dec Mini Catalog (holiday catalog). That’s just what I do when I can’t decide on a single set! Hmm… let’s see how I can combine these! Anyway, this is what I came up with. As detailed below, I used North Pole Wonder Dies (deer, snow & sentiment tag), Pine Woods Dies (trees), and Wrapped In Christmas (sentiments).
I’ve been using so much Misty Moonlight and Snowflake Splendor, I decided it was time to get a little more traditional with the reds and greens.
My reindeer actually looks more like an elk, as that’s what I’m used to seeing. I had to Google reindeer images to remind myself what a reindeer actually looks like, but I had already colored his chest hair darker (like an elk), whereas per Google images, a reindeer has lighter-colored chest hair. Oh well, in our neck of the woods, an elk is more appropriate! We’ve actually had to chase a dozen or so elk cows & calves out of our apple and pear trees in our yard several mornings recently. I wake up to the sound of branches snapping and elk “chirping” at each other. They’re fun to watch up close like that, but boy do they wreak havoc on the trees! Therefore, it’s up out of bed and a stroll out the door with a “get outta there ladies!”. They scatter readily, thankfully, up the hill with a leap over the fence and they’re gone until tomorrow morning! They’ve pretty well eaten up all the apples and pears already, so they’ll be on to greener pastures soon enough!
Dean managed to catch a couple pictures the other morning as they moved across the driveway and up the hill after being chased out from under the apple trees! A couple stragglers stopped to see if we really meant it, or if they could sneak back to the apples! Moments like this never get old…
It is frustrating at times, though. I love flowers and working in my flowerbeds, but then there’s this…
Yep, little buck just walked right up on the deck to check out my geranium. My plants don’t stand a chance! Later that evening, his big brother surveyed the scene from the hill behind our house, just waiting for me to finish watering so he could come help himself to whatever tender little morsel he chose! Dean took this photo and had to zoom in, so it’s a little fuzzy, but you can tell he’s just waiting for me to finish watering so he can come help himself!
Ahhh…. the country life! They eat my flowers and our apples, but at least they’re quiet!!!
But, back to my “elk” card! LET’S GET INKY!
Materials:
Stamp sets used:
- Wrapped In Christmas
Dies used:
- North Pole Wonder Dies (part of the Wishes & Wonder Bundle)
- Pine Woods Dies (part of the In The Pines Bundle)
Paper:
- Whisper White for cardbase (5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ – folded at 4 1/4″); Mat 2 (5 1/4″ x 4″); sentiment tag cut with die from North Pole Wonders (2″ x 4″); snow cut with die from Pine Woods (1″ x 5 1/8″); inside sentiment panel (5 1/4″ x 4″)
- Garden Green Mats (cut 2) for base mat on front and mat on inside (5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″)
- Tis The Season DSP – green (5 1/8″ x 3 7/8″); red (1 3/4″ x 3 7/8″); two green strips (1/8″ x 3 7/8″)
- Mossy Meadow pine trees – scraps for 2 large and 1 small pine tree cut with dies from Pine Woods.
- Cinnamon Cider scrap large enough for detailed reindeer (elk) die.
Accessories:
- Gold Cord (part of Wonder Of The Season Ribbon Combo Pack) – two 6″ pieces and one 4″ piece.
- Dark Cinnamon Cider Stampin’ Blends.
Putting it together!
- Adhere Whisper White mat to Garden Green mat.
- Adhere red DSP strip to left side of green DSP mat.
- Adhere both 1/8″ strips of green DSP to left side of red strip.
- Cut snow in Whisper White using North Pole Wonder Dies and adhere to bottom of DSP panel, clipping ends flush as needed.
- Cut tag in Whisper White using North Pole Wonder Dies and stamp with sentiment from Wrapped In Christmas, and flourish underneath, using Cherry Cobbler ink.
- Cut trees in Mossy Meadow using Pine Woods Dies – 2 large trees, 1 small.
- Cut reindeer (elk) from Cinnamon Cider CS using North Pole Wonder Dies.
- Use Dark Cinnamon Cider Stampin’ Blends to color chest hair, antlers and hooves.
- Adhere center tree – I cut the trunk of the tree off and placed the treetop at the top of the card panel, and the trunk on the snow hill. Otherwise, it’s too short and the tree has no trunk once the tag is placed.
- Adhere the tag over tree and to the right side of the card.
- Adhere the smaller tree to the right side.
- Adhere the second large tree to the left, covering the hole in the tag.
- Adhere reindeer (elk) over tree and tag. I lined the deer’s leg up over the tree trunk, as it looked funny to have the trunk sticking out from under the deer’s belly.
- Cut two pieces of gold cord 6″ long and adhere ends to back of card with tape or glue dots to make it appear you wrapped the cord around twice. (Doing it this way just saves ribbon/cord.)
- Cut a small piece of the cord, tie a small bow, and adhere with glue dot on top of cord.
- Adhere entire panel stack to front of card base.
- For the inside of the card, stamp the sentiment from Wrapped In Christmas in Cherry Cobbler ink on Whisper White panel.
- Adhere sentiment panel to Garden Green mat and adhere that stack to the card base.
DONE!
I’m having so much fun hanging out in my craft room and making cards. I love Stampin’ Up! products not only because of their superior quality, but because they make it so EASY to create beautiful things with color coordination, product coordination…. etc., etc., etc.
If you’ve found yourself placing large Stampin’ Up orders and have no intention of ceasing that, I would love to chat with you about becoming a demonstrator. Many demonstrators are “hobby” demonstrators only – no classes, no blog, etc. That’s how I started my business… I wanted the demonstrator perks of a product discount, ability to order new products earlier than the general customer, and access to the Stampin’ Up community. It took changes at work, and my upline (who happens to be my sister, Krista Thomas of regalstamping.com) counseling me on the possibilities I was sitting on, to finally say okay… I’ll look at this as a business rather than a hobby; and brightacrescreations.com was born.
If you’re placing orders to average $100/month or more, we should seriously talk. I would love to build a team of friends who have the same interests as I, and seriously, no pressure to “get out there and sell, sell, sell!!!” Our creative journeys are our own, but if you’re interested in sharing your journey with like-minded friends, Stampin’ Up is a great company in which to do so. Hobby demonstrator or business-minded demonstrator… I’d love to have you on my team! If you’re interested at all… just click on that “Contact” tab up above, and I would be happy to discuss the fun and adventures, as well as business end of things!
Stampin’ Up’s Statement of the Heart is this:
“To love what we do and share what we love, As we help others enjoy creativity and worthwhile accomplishments, In this we make a difference”
In a time when this country is so polarized and politicized, finding common ground in creativity, I do think we can make a difference. Reaching out to others with beautiful cards, scrapbook pages, or whatever else, handmade and personal…who doesn’t like happy mail? And, if we’re honest, who doesn’t like to sit back and admire one’s own creativity…Wow! I made that! We can make a difference by promoting positivity. For me, that’s where I find satisfaction; i.e. I just put my heart and soul into that envelope that I just dropped in the mail…hopefully the recipient feels that! Or, I opened the world of creativity to someone new and now they can feel that same satisfaction! In this, I can make a difference…
If any of this appeals to you on any level, please reach out to me… we could make a wonderful team! Together we could definitely better our best!
Until next time, I hope you get INKY!
Janet
Snow Wonder Tri-Fold Peek-A-Boo Card
Hello Friends!
Today I will be showing you how to make a tri-fold peek-a-boo card featuring Snow Wonder from the Stampin’ Up August-December Mini Catalog (otherwise known as the holiday catalog)! I am so in love with this little snowman! He has so much personality and seemed like a perfect fit to peek through our little window.
Before we get started, however, I would like to thank Susan Levasseur of WOWNolaCreations.com for sharing this fancy fold on her blogsite some time ago. I saw it there first and have CASE’d it several times since! I think this is my favorite fancy fold ever! So, a huge thank you to Susan! I actually shop for and buy stamps that will work specifically with this fold I like it so much!
I’ve put together a video below to walk you through step-by-step how to make this card. I’m still new at making these videos and for whatever reason, it rattles me just a little bit knowing I’m being recorded! I guess you could say I’m camera-shy (always have been)! One definitely learns one’s nervous habits quickly through this process! I’ll keep working on it, however, and be a pro in short order! (hopefully!!!)
I’ve also included a written tutorial that you can refer to.
So, with no further ado, LET’S GET INKY!
Materials:
Paper:
- Misty Moonlight cardstock (CS) for card base – 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 inches; score at 4 1/4 inches and fold in half.
- Misty Moonlight CS for “flap” – 5 x 5 1/2 inches.
- Night of Navy CS for mat under DSP – 5 1/4 x 4 inches.
- Snowflake Splendor DSP 5 x 3 3/4 inches.
- Whisper White for inside panel 5 1/4 x 4 inches; for “lace trim” on triangular piece (2) 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches; for scallop trim around circle 3 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches; for front tag 1/2 x 2 3/4 inches.
Stamps:
- Snow Wonder
Ink:
- Tuxedo Black Memento
Accessories:
- Winter Snow Embossing Folder
- Layering Circles Dies (largest scalloped and 2nd largest circle)
- Ornate Borders Dies
- 2″ circle punch
- Adhesive-backed snowflakes
- Stampin’ Blends: Crumb Cake Combo, Misty Moonlight Combo, Light Balmy Blue, Dark Real Red, Dark Shaded Spruce
PUTTING IT TOGETHER!
- Fold cardbase in half and set aside.
- Adhere the DSP to the Night of Navy mat and set aside to dry.
- Using the 5 1/2 x 5 inch piece of Misty Moonlight, score the 5 1/2 -inch side at 3/4″.
- On the non-scored sides of that piece of cardstock, measure to 2 3/4″ and mark lightly with pencil.
- Use a paper trimmer to connect the pencil dots, to create the triangular flap.
- Use the 2nd largest (plain) circle from Layering Circles Dies, and cut the hole in the center of the “flap”.
- Emboss the flap using the Winter Snow Embossing Folder.
- Use the largest scalloped circle die and the 2nd largest plain circle die from Layering Circles Dies to cut the scalloped “ring” to go around the hole on the front of the card flap. Adhere this ring to flap front around hole.
- Using the border die from Ornate Borders Dies, cut two strips of “lace” for the triangle edges of the flap. Adhere to edges and trim off excess.
- Now bring in your card base… THE CREASE WILL BE ON THE RIGHT FOR THIS CARD (it opens backwards).
- Crease the flap on your score line and insert the card base with open side into the crease of the flap. (Remember – your card base will be backwards from usual, i.e. open side on left/crease on right). Make sure the top and bottom of both flap and card base are even.
- Punch a circle from a Post-It note using the 2″ circle punch, making sure the adhesive edge of the Post-It note is on the punched circle (so it will stay in place).
- Lay the punched circle in the center of the hole on the flap (will be on the front of the card base) to guide where the hole needs to be punched for the “peek-a-boo” hole.
- Remove the flap piece and place the card front, with the Post-It Note circle attached, in the 2″ punch with the Post-It Note circle aligned with the punch and punch your hole.
- Now when you lay the flap back over the card base, your holes should center up.
- Place the Whisper White inside panel in the card base with even borders (where it will be glued down, but don’t glue it yet!), close the card and lightly trace the circle onto the white panel with a pencil. (This marks where to stamp your snowman!)
- Remove the Whisper White inside panel and stamp the snowman from Snow Wonder with his head close to the top of the pencil-lined circle. Stamp the sentiment above the snowman. Color with markers as desired.
- Now lay the DSP with Night of Navy mat (that you glued earlier) on the card base front. Hold it in place and carefully open the card keeping the DSP stack in place. Lay the 2″ circle Post-It Note in the center of the circle again, lift the cardbase off, and punch the hole in the DSP stack.
- Adhere the DSP mat to the card front, lining up the holes.
- Adhere the inside (white w/snowman) panel to the card base.
- Apply some adhesive to the straight edge of the flap (behind the score line) and apply to the back of the card so that the flap folds over the open edges of the card base.
- Stamp the front sentiment on the small piece of Whisper White and hand trim the ends into a banner.
- Apply to front of card with dimensionals.
- Scatter some Adhesive-backed snowflakes on front.
DONE!
I’ve got so many other ideas for this “Snow Wonder” snowman that I can’t wait to put some of them together to share with all of you! I will, however, try to intersperse them with other products as well! I feel like a kid in a candy store right now! I ordered so much from the holiday catalog, I don’t know where to start! (Terrible problem to have, right?!)
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me if you have comments or questions! Just click the “contact” tab at the top of this page and I’ll be happy to get back to you as soon as I can!
Until next time, I hope you get INKY!
Janet
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