My Contributions To VSN This Weekend

Splitcoaststampers had their mini Virtual Stamp Night yesterday. Well, since I am down in Florida, I don't have a good stash of stamping supplies for playing. I thought I would give some of the challenges a try using My Digital Studio.

The theme for this VSN is Opening Ceremonies for the Olympics. This challenge was to use flag colors from one of the participating countries as a starting point for a card (or in my case, an 8x8" scrapbook page). I chose the flag of Estonia. The stamp set used is Baroque Motifs, and the page's main color is Baja Breeze.

Canada is the host country for the Olympics, and they have red mittens that all the torch-bearers are wearing. The same mittens are sold out all over Canada. In honor of the torch-lighting ceremony, we were challenged to make a card with red and also use yarn. Well, MDS doesn't have digital yarn, but I think I did quite ok otherwise. I created the mitten from punches, and I used stitching instead.

This challenge was called "Spotlights on Ice". We were to choose our favorite ice sport and use the spotlighting technique. Normally spotlighting uses images punched with circles, but doing this digitally is surprisingly difficult. Therefore my spotlight is square. I used Paint Shop Pro to color my square cropped image. The stamp sets used are Winter Post and Best Wishes & More. As for the hodgepodge of colors, there was a bonus for using all the colors of the Olympic rings (blue, yellow, black, green, red).

Thanks for stopping by!

My Matryoshka Birthday

Have you seen this cute stamp set of the Russian nesting dolls that fit inside each other?? This is the perfect set for watercoloring! The details on these stamps are so fine, it was a challenge for me to color right before I got my first set of reader glasses.

I created little mini envelopes to simulate the nesting action. The set also includes a beautiful decorative strip stamp, which looks like an ornate border for a tablecloth or napkin, once it's colored.

This is a birthday card for my brother-in-law, who visited one of these nesting doll factories on a business trip to Russia. Hope he likes it!

Stamps: My Matryoshka; Paper: Watercolor paper, Brocade Blue, So Saffron, Old Olive, Whisper White, Tall Tales DSP, Summer Picnic DSP; Ink: Black Stazon, So Saffron, Read Red, Brocade Blue, Pumpkin Pie markers; Accessories: Aquapainter, Scallop Trim Corner punch.

Thanks for stopping by!

Is It Spring Yet?

I've seen lots of cute cottages and bird houses using the new Mini Milk Carton Big Shot die from the Occasions mini. I haven't had the opportunity to get one of these dies myself, so I came up with a lower tech version of a bird house for my Big Shot class, showcasing the Birds & Blooms bird.

I created the house part of the bird house out of a 2-4-6-8 box with Kraft cardstock. I ran the cardstock through the woodgrain Texturz plate from Texture Plates Kit #4. The edges of the house were sponged with Close to Cocoa ink. The roof was 'weathered' by the direct-to-paper technique using Chocolate Chip and Whisper White ink.

The Birds & Blooms bird was diecut out of Pacific Point cardstock and sponged on the edges.

Stamps: None; Paper: Kraft, Close to Cocoa, Mellow Moss, Pacific Point; Ink: Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Pacific Point, Whisper White craft; Sponges, Scallop Trim Border punch, Little Leaves die, Birds & Blooms die, Texture Plates Kit #4, Big Shot.

Thanks for stopping by!

Snow Bear

Normally bears are hibernating in the winter, but this one, for a stampin' friend BearCollector, is playing in the snow! This is a shaker card, made by punching snowflakes out of polyshrink sheets.

I watercolored the bear on watercolor paper and created the shaker portion of the card using an acetate sheet and the Coluzzle. The background is created by brayering glossy cardstock with Bashful Blue ink, sponging the sun with So Saffron, and creating snow on the trees with a gel pen. The snow drifts are embellished with Dazzling Diamonds glitter.

I got the idea for this card from a similar card on SCS by 'laureljeanne'.

Stamps: Under the Stars; Paper: Bashful Blue, Night of Navy, Glossy White, Whisper White, Watercolor paper; Ink: Bashful Blue, So Saffron, Black Stazon, Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel; Accessories: Aquapainter, Coluzzle, Acetate sheet, Mounting tape, Polyshrink sheet, Snow Blossom punch, 2-way glue pen, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, White gel pen, Circle punch, Sponge dauber.

Thanks for stopping by!

Haitian Relief

The devastation in Haiti is just incredible, and Stampin' Up is reaching out to help. From now until February 28, 2010, $2 from every I {Heart} Hearts stamp set purchased will be donated American Red Cross’ Haiti Relief and Development Fund. The Red Cross is already well-established in Haiti, and this money will be used to provide immediate relief and long-term support through supplies, technical assistance and other support to help those in need. See the Make a Difference flyer.

Product Name	Item #	Price
I {Heart} Hearts – clear-mount (block D recommended)	118571	$18.95
I {Heart} Hearts – wood-mount	117010	$26.95

Please consider helping out this worthy cause. You can purchase this set now by clicking "Shop Now" in the upper right of my demostrator website.

Thanks for stopping by!

Punch Art Leprechaun

Here are the details on the punch art leprechaun that we made at the recent punch art class.

Punches used: Scallop circle, 1-3/8" circle, Tag, 1/2" circle (Blush Blossom), 3/16" crop-o-dile (Pretty in Pink), 3/4" square punch trimmed down, Word window punch. The black strip of cardstock measures 1-3/8" x 3/4". The Basic Black Stampin' Write marker was also used.

We sandwiched a York peppermint patty between this little guy and another scallop cardstock piece.

Thanks for stopping by!

Another MOPS Project

Here is another project we will do at our MOPS meeting.

The treat cups are a lot of fun! This is the new Heart Treat Cup from the Occasions mini (flyer here), coupled with the Sweetheart stamp set. This stamp set coordinates with the Full Heart punch to make little favors like this one super easy! And I used the new yummy satin ribbon too.

Close-up view.

Stamps: Sweetheart; Paper: Real Red, Pretty in Pink, Very Vanilla, Bella Rose DSP; Ink: Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Full Heart punch, Heart Treat cup, Pretty in Pink satin ribbon, Lollipop stick.

Thanks for stopping by!

Another Valentine's Day Mailbox

I'm going a little Valentine's crazy, having fun making projects. The little altered mailboxes I have been seeing are cute, and I have a metal mailbox my son made for me at school a looonnnnggg time ago. So why not alter that?

Since it was a blue mailbox, I went with a blue Valentine's look. I covered the box with Western Sky Designer Series Paper and scalloped Blue Bayou cardstock.

The lovebirds are from the Love You Much set, which I paper pieced. I used the Curly Label punch for the birds' matting.

Stamps: Love You Much, Love It; Paper: Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Blue Bayou, River Rock, Western Sky DSP; Ink: Chocolate Chip, Blue Bayou, Soft Sky; Accessories: Scallop edge punch, Curly Label punch, Blue Bayou ribbon, River Rock ribbon.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cute Gift Card Wallet

I made a gift card holder, which kinda looks like a wallet, for friend who just had a baby. I got the dimensions, which are listed below, from Gina K's Stamp TV.

Cut a 4-1/2 x 10" cardstock base and score at 3", 4", 5", and 8".

To decorate the inside, you need the following sizes of patterned paper: two 4 x 2-3/4", two 4 x 3/4", and one 4 x 1-3/4". For the outside, you need two 4 x 2-3/4" and one 4 x 1-3/4". The inside fold that holds the gift card is held together with sticky strip (make sure you run the adhesive as close as you can to the bottom of the card, so it doesn't interfere with the gift card). You can then cut a very narrow amount off the top of the flap so the card can be inserted into this little pocket you have formed.

Stamps: So Many Scallops; Paper: Sage Shadow, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Whisper White, Spring Fling DSP; Ink: So Saffron; Accessories: Corner rounder, Scallop circle punch, Sticky Strip, Dimensionals.

Thanks for stopping by!

Sale-A-Bration Blog Tour!

Sale-a-bration is the most wonderful time of the (Stampin' Up) year! Earn free product at every turn... each $50 order... hosting a workshop... joining the Stampin' Up family... There are some super cute items in the Sale-a-bration brochure, and new this year, you can also choose selected items from the main catalog too (see inside back cover of the brochure)! So therefore a blog tour to highlight some of the wonderful products you can choose...

Welcome to Stampin' Addicts Sale-a-bration Blog Tour. And once you are finished with the tour, make sure you check out the Stampin' Addicts website for samples, challenges, and positive stamping chatting.

If you have been following the blog tour in order, you've just seen Melina's wonderful creations featuring Thank You Kindly. At my stop of the tour, I am featuring Things I Love, a stamp set including images of all the things a girl cannot live without... chocolate, shopping bags, and shoes!

- I Do Love Chocolate! - It's really true! As far as I am concerned, it is a food group in itself. My husband didn't recognized the images on this card as chocolate, but my 2-year-old daughter did. What does that say??? Men just don't get it!

To create the chocolate cups, I punched out a Whisper White circle, ran it through my crimper, and trimmed it. And what color says girl more that pink? I used Fifth Avenue Floral for the sentiment.

Here is a list of supplies to recreate this project and earn this stamp set for free:
Pretty in Pink cardstock $5.50
Melon Mambo cardstock $5.50
Chocolate Chip cardstock $5.50
Whisper White cardstock $7.50
Razzleberry Lemonade DSP $9.95
Chocolate Chip classic ink $5.95
Melon Mambo 1/2" grosgrain ribbon $9.95
1-1/4" circle punch $15.95
Things I Love stamp set FREE

Or step it up and earn an additional free stamp set:
1-3/8" circle punch $15.95
3/4" circle punch $10.95
Crimper $19.95
Second SAB stamp set FREE

It's so easy to earn a free set or two, isn't it? ;)

- Waterfall Card - Ok, so I'm not a girly-girl, but I do like the shopping bag and definitely the shoes in this stamp set. The progression of the images in this stamp set lend themselves to a waterfall card so naturally - my first one!

I stamped "things i love" in Old Olive craft ink and embossed with clear embossing powder, to try to keep the large text a little more subtle. Since these images are a little smaller than what would fit on a standard waterfall card, I adjusted the dimensions. The center "waterfall" strip is 1-1/2 x 8" Old Olive cardstock, scored at 1-3/8", 2-1/8", 2-7/8", 3-5/8". Here's a couple pictures of this card in action; just pull down on the tab.

And some close-ups of each panel.

I added some special details to each panel of the waterfall. The chocolate panel is a scratch-n-sniff made by heat embossing with a mixture of cocoa and clear embossing powder (1:1.5 ratio). I added a kraft tag to the shopping bag and a rhinestone brad to the new shoes. The hearts in the YOU panel were embellished with Dazzling Diamonds glitter using a 2-way glue pen after stamping with brighter Ruby Red ink, so that panel really pops.

Stamps: Things I Love; Paper: Chocolate Chip, Taken with Teal, Old Olive, Very Vanilla, Kraft, Tall Tales DSP; Ink: Chocolate Chip, Versamark, Ruby Red, Old Olive craft; Accessories: Heart-to-Heart punch, Clear embossing powder, Unsweetened cocoa powder, Rhinestone brad, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, Eyelets, Crop-o-dile, Very Vanilla taffeta ribbon, 2-way glue pen.

- 6 x 6" Scrapbook Page - This set has the perfect sentiments for scrapbook pages. The images would coordinate nicely with photos of girls' day out shopping and a trip to the cafe. The focus of my page is my daughter.

I changed the color of the "things I love" items to sepia (coffee, mountain biking, kitty Liesl), to draw your eye to the main image of the page. And the hearts, blinged out with Dazzling Diamonds glitter, also draw your eyes to the main subject. I saw this layout on the display boards at Convention and loved it. Unfortunately I don't know the name of the creator to give credit. And I have to give props to My Digital Studio software. I designed the layout of this page with MDS, choosing and sizing the photos and picking the layout colors, before ever touching (or wasting) a scrap of paper. This was particularly helpful with sizing and cropping the photos correctly. This page basically creates itself; just add photos of your own favorite items!

Stamps: Things I Love; Paper: Kraft, Whisper White, Rose Red, Thoroughly Modern DSP; Ink: Rose Red; Accessories: Corner rounder punch, Large oval punch, Small oval punch, 1/2" circle punch, Kraft taffeta ribbon, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, 2-way glue pen, Dimensionals.

Next stop on our tour is Twila; hop on over to see what she has created for you.

The complete blog hop listing:
1) Heather - Vintage Labels
2) Stella - Happy Moments
3) Barbara - Happy Moments
4) Sarah - Good Neighbors
5) Joyce - "Welcome Neighbor" Designer Series Paper pad
6) Sharon - Whimsical Words
7) Marie - Whimsical Words
8) Cindy - Scallop Trim Border punch
9 ) Holly - Bella's Bloom
10) Yapha - D is for Dog
11) Jean - Elegant Thank You
12) Kim - Extreme Dirt Bike
13) Trina - A Flower for All Seasons
14) Holly K - Forest Friends
15) Allison - Hello Again
16) Sara M-B - Just Football
17) Lisa- Ribbon of Hope
18) Rhonda - Spring Song
19) Melina - Thank You Kindly
20) Heidi - Things I Love
21) Twila - Very Thankful

Thanks for stopping by!

Occasions Mini Swap Cards

I thought I would share some of my favorite Occasion mini swap cards I received.

Love Bandit created by Christy Fulk (StampinChristy).

Vague Vintage, the French version of Vintage Vogue, by Shelley (pixegirl). I love the specialty paper Bride.

This set is called Garden from the Heart, by Toni Turbide (tltcreations). Lots of detail on this one including Pinking Heart border and corner punches, Medium jewelry tag punch, and Rhinestone brads.

Abundant Hope by Sandy Hoefakker (hoefasar). Details include Shades of Spring DSP, Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder, and yummy satin ribbon.

I {Love} Love wheel by Vicky Frescas (VickiJo). She used the Full Heart punch and also the Movers & Shapers die with the Heart accessory to get the hearts to fit inside each other. And I love how she tied the satin ribbon!

Tote-ally Tess by Juli Knudsen (JuliannKay). Tess's outfit was paper pieced and check out how she made the corner of the room!

Thanks for stopping by!

February Club Sneak Peek

Wanna see what I am working on for February's club?

Well, you didn't think I was going to show you the whole thing, did you? :D

Join us next month for great Valentine's and Sale-a-bration projects! Check out my calendar for all the details / dates / times.

Thanks for stopping by!

Punch Art Class

We had a lot of fun tonight making punchy animals and other objects. Unfortunately I don't have all the projects photographed. One project was the punch John Deere tractor I have shown before (look under Punch Art topic for more examples). And we made a York peppermint patty leprechaun.

We made a punch art dress using current In Colors. I'm not sure who gets credit for this idea; I have seen it in several places. Sponging the edges of the dress gives it a bit more definition.

Punches used: Tag punch, Word window punch, Small oval, Large oval, Boho blossom, Round tab.

And my favorite fun project is this Easter bunny side-step card, a CASE from Jackie Topa. The bunny edges are sponged in Pretty in Pink, and the eggs are sponged as well.

And a cute detail of this bunny is his tail. This is faux snow (or faux cotton) made by grating Whisper White cardstock with a cheese grater (another Jackie Topa invention). It comes out super soft!

Punches used: Small oval, Large oval, Wide oval, 1/4" circle, 1/2" circle, 3/4" circle, 1-3/4" circle, Heart-to-heart.

Thanks for stopping by!

Ramping Up for Valentine's Day

I was playing around with Valentine's Day projects this weekend.

I thought I would try my hand at a mailbox.

I printed a Better Homes & Gardens template on paper, temporarily adhered it to my paper with Dotto, and cut it out. The mailbox is held together with eyelets. The heart is made using the Heart-to-Heart punch.

I was thinking about changing up the door a bit by adding an eyelet or brad to the top so I can tie it closed.

And I thought I would give the Valentine's image from Wandering Words a whirl. Since this set is retired, I thought it would be fun to pull out some other retired favorite items. Another sewing-on-cards opportunity!

Mailbox ingredients - Paper: Pretty in Pink, Real Red, Sending Love Specialty DSP; Ink: Basic Black marker; Accessories: Eyelets, Crop-o-dile, Heart-to-Heart punch.

Valentine's Day card ingredients - Stamps: Wandering Words; Paper: Basic Gray, Riding Hood Red, Whisper White, Candy Lane DSP; Ink: Old Olive, Real Red, Basic Gray, Going Gray markers; Accessories: Crop-o-dile, Riding Hood Red taffeta ribbon, Crystal Effects, Sewing machine and thread.

Thanks for stopping by!

Your Fortune is in the Verse

I've been wanting to make these felt fortune cookies for a couple years now. And they are pretty easy.

Cut a 4" circle out of felt. Glue down < 4" of floral wire across the diameter of the circle and apply 4" of ribbon on top of the wire. Then fold felt up so you have a half-circle with the wire/ribbon on the inside of the bottom fold. Pinch-fold the center of the wire by folding the corners down. The wire will help the felt keep its shape.

We made these little babies in our MOPS group, so we added some New Year's Bible verses and some chocolates. All supplies are listed in my SCS gallery.

Thanks for stopping by!

A Cute Little Gift

I created my first paper pin this weekend. This was surprising easy to make and super fun! The hardest part was driving to the store to pick up pin backs when it was snowing here. :( I learned this technique from 'sherristampsalot' at Virginia Regionals.

I didn't take too many photos, so I'll have to recreate this and post a tutorial later.

Stamps: Beary Best Friends; Paper: Basic Gray, Watercolor paper; Ink: Black Stazon, Pretty in Pink reinker, Versamark; Accessories: Wide oval punch, Iridescent Ice embossing powder, Earth Elements and Neutrals watercolor crayons, Aquapainter, Crystal Effects, Pin backing.

This pin was a gift, so I packaged it in this little matchbox, which was inspired by 'peggy-sue' on SCS. I LOVE this vintage-y look!

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes; Paper: Pretty in Pink, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Sending Love DSP; Ink: Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Matchbox die, Big Shot, Eyelet Border punch, Word window punch, Pretty in Pink corduroy buttons, Pretty in Pink grosgrain ribbon.

Thanks for stopping by!

Big Shot Club Opportunity

The Big Shot Club is starting up on January 19th. There are four sessions (one per month) where you will receive:

• Big Shot Starter Kit (contact me for specific details)
  
• 2-3 projects per meeting, each class focusing on different aspects of the Big Shot. Class outline:
  
• (a) Basic use of the Big Shot
• (b) Texturizing
• (c) Using alternate materials in your Big Shot
• (d) Advanced 3-D projects
• Level 1 hostess stamp set and $20 in free merchandise
• Installment plan of $57 per meeting

If you are interested, please contact me!

SAB and New Occasions Mini Start Today!

Today's the day - Sale-a-bration and the new Occasions mini start today!! There are some great spring sets and accessories in there. Grab a cup of coffee and sit down to peruse!

One exciting item to note - most stamp sets are now available in either wood-mounted or acrylic-mounted options.

If you are looking to save space and buy stamp sets at lower prices, clear-mounted stamp sets may be the way for you! All you would need is a set of Stampin' Up's high quality, four-sided grooved acrylic blocks (pg. 6 of the Occasions mini). With the money you will save on stamp sets, the blocks will easily pay for themselves.

In addition to the two brochures, there is another neat set of coordinating products available, the Sweetheart stamp set and Heart Treat cups.

The stamp set and cups coordinate with the Full Heart punch, for quick, easy, and cute treats just in time for Valentine's! More information is available on the right sidebar.

I thought I would share a more ideas for the Something Sweet stamp set, available in the Occasions mini.

- More Gumball Machines -

I ordered this set in the new clear-mounted version, and one neat thing you will find with this set - the rubber of the circle stamp is die-cut both on the outside AND on the inside. Don't throw that inside circle away! I used it as part of the background stamping. The candy pieces were stamped using the masking technique, and the "jar" part of the gumball machine was heat embossed with clear embossing powder.

Stamps: Something Sweet, Enjoy Every Moment, Priceless; Paper: Bashful Blue, Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White; Ink: Bashful Blue, Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Pumpkin Pie Striped grosgrain ribbon, Silver brads, Scallop edge punch, Clear embossing powder, Dimensionals.

- Spinner Card - I had a few more ideas for this stamp set. The New Year's Eve challenges gave me the push to get some of them done, while also challenging me to get out of my color rut. Love those challenges!!

Here is my first spinner card. There is a tutorial for this card on Splitcoaststampers (Resources section). The color combo I used here is Sage Shadow, Cameo Coral, and Chocolate Chip. I would never have tried this combo, and I think it looks pretty sweet - LOL!

- Beary Sporty Girl - There was several comments that the baby rattle handle looked like a baseball bat. So why not??

I stamped the baseball by running my marker around the gumball stamp for an outline and drew in the stitches with the Real Red marker. I don't have the Pretty in Pink marker, so I created the pin stripes on bear's pants with reinker and a calligraphy pen (my past and present paper hobbies collide - love that!). And for the record - she's a girl who plays baseball (according to DH, the ball is too small to be a softball). Tough girl!

- You Are My Sunshine - I loved Lyssa's weathered card from the blog hop, so I CASE'd it.

I texturized the center of the sunflower with the Big Shot texturz plate, and the base cardstock was "weathered" with Dusty Durango and Craft White ink direct-to-paper technique.

The supplies for these cards can be found on my SCS gallery, unless otherwise noted. Thanks for stopping by!