May 10, 2011 | Cards, Summer Mini 2011, UDI Color Challenge |
It’s time for a new color challenge – are you ready?
This weekly color challenge helps me keep track of what day of the week it is. I know it’s Monday when I have to write my post for the Utah Diva’s Color Challenge so it can post early Tuesday morning. This week we have a bright summery color combination – Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight, Concord Crush and Whisper White. Here is the inspiration piece that we have this week from Gretchen:
Click on this link to go to the Utah Diva’s Color Challenge blog. There you can see the creations from the entire design team and add a link to your creation if you decide to play along.
This week I went simple – very simple – based on a design I saw in a magazine –
This card is basically Stamps, Ink and Paper – so it comes together very quickly. The base is Daffodil Delight. Then the Whisper White panel is just corner rounded and stamped with two images from the new Love & Care Hostess stamp set in the Stampin’ Up! Summer Mini catalog. I used Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight and Concord Crush to stamp the flowers, some are stamped multiple times between reinking which gives the variations in shading. I added one of the sayings in the Word Play stamp set – this one is on sale this month! At 30% off this is a set you need to make sure to buy this month. By chance the one little flower ended up in the middle of the big G so I added a tiny Rhinestone to the center of it.
Here is a quick peek of the inside – where I stamped flowers in the corner…..
Take a minute to visit the UDI site and play along with us this week.
Stampin’ Up! Supplies:
- Card stock: Daffodil Delight, Whisper White
- Ink: Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight, Concord Crush
- Stamp sets: Love & Care, Word Play
- Accessories: Corner Rounder Punch, Basic Rhinestones, Stampin’ Dimensionals.
To order Stampin’ Up! Supplies to make this project click here.
May 9, 2011 | Cards, Punch Art, Summer Mini 2011, Thank You |
Hey everyone – I decided to take the weekend off from blogging – I spent Saturday with my mom (also saw my dad, my niece & nephew, my brother and my sister-in-law). Sunday I was home and all my boys were here – they cooked dinner last night and mostly cleaned up. Just a nice relaxing sort of day.
Have you seen the new Triple Layer Punches in the Stampin’ Up! Summer Mini Catalog? I bought the Blossom Bouquet punch and it is so much fun – it is called a Triple Layer punch because it punches out three coordinating images from one punch – actually I think this one you could consider it to punch 4 – two of the layers actually punch out two pieces – the inside of the flower and the outside rim are actually separate. So here is a card I made for some of my classes this month based on a card in the Stampin’ Success magazine (the magazine that us demonstrators get).
I added an inside panel that is stamped with the Bold Blossom stamp set that coordinates nicely with the Blossom Bouquet punch. You can make lots of different flower combinations with this one punch. Let’s see if I can point out the different pieces – the first image you can punch is the large flower – in this card I have it as the background of each of the three flowers – one is Peach Parfait, one is Early Espresso, and one is Crumb Cake. The second image you can punch is a smaller flower with a flower ring around it – in this card there is a Crumb Cake ring on the Early Espresso flower. And it doesn’t look like I used the smaller flower on this card – but wait a minute and you’ll see it on my next version of this card. The third image is a small flower with the tear drops punched out and the ring again – on this card there is one in Daffodil Delight and one in Old Olive – the tear drop flower that is. The small circle punch is from the Bitty Punch set.
The great thing about crafting is that there really aren’t any mistakes – if something doesn’t happen the way you planned it is just a chance for you to get more creative – to come up with a different idea – no one else will know that you started out with a different plan other than yourself. And sometimes the new creation is something you like better than what you originally set out to do. So I took this card to a class on May 1st and ran into not one but two chances to get more creative – first I forgot the 3/4″ circle punch that I used to punch out the little flower stamped image – but who wants to cut that flower out – not me (well on some occasions I would but not this time) and forget trying to cut out a circle – its not going to happen. So what was the solution – to use the small flower image that is punched from the Blossom Bouquet punch. Problem number 2 – while demonstrating the punch – on the third image you have to make sure you push down until you hear the third click – if you don’t you get a partially punched tear drop flower – but after looking at it – I decided it would make a pretty flower just the way it was so i used it on a card too. So here is my second version of this card:
On this one I used the small flower twice – once underneath the Old Olive and once on the Early Espresso with a stamped flower in the center of it. And here is a close up of the partially punched flower –
See how the little tear drops didn’t punch out on one end. So what I did was put a dimensional under the center so it would pop up and allow the cut end of the tear drop to hang down. I actually like how it looks.
These punches are fun but you do need to understand how they work so that you can use them correctly and get the results that you want. First the punch should be used sitting flat on the table – not held upside down in your hand like we usually do with the old punches. Then you need to slide the selector to the image that you want and notice that there are stoppers for the 1st and 2nd punch so that it doesn’t go down all the way. It helps to listen for the clicks and practice a bit. In order to close the punch and lock it you need to have the selector in the third position – if you don’t it won’t lock shut because it will catch on one of the stoppers. It comes with instructions but it helps to see someone else using it. I’ve already started demonstrating in my classes and workshops – call me today if you would like to schedule your own.
May 6, 2011 | Big Shot, Cards |
Today I’m going to show you a Scallop Circle Easel Card – at least that is what I think it is called. First the scallop circle because that is the shape of it and then an easel because it stands up by itself like an easel.
This is the one we made at one of my stamp club meetings – the girls saw the sample that my friend Fran Kennedy brought as a swap to one of my downline meetings and they wanted me to show them how to make it. Of course it uses the Big Shot – whatever did we do without the Big Shot. I used a Rich Razzleberry base for the card – what I did was cut a 5-1/2 x 8-1/2″ piece of card stock and fold it in half. Then lay it on the Scallop Circle die so that the scallop edge comes right to the cut (or open) side of the card and the folded side of the card is just inside about 4 scallops or so. This will create the base of the card which is a folded scallop circle. You take the top of it and fold it back on itself. Then cut a full scallop circle from the same color card stock and glue it to the piece you just folded back – matching it up to the bottom of the card. When the card is closed it is the shape of a scallop circle.
For the top of the card I cut a circle out of Whisper White card stock using the Clear Circle die and then for the inside I cut one from Marina Mist card stock. On the White I stamped from the Just Believe stamp set – in Old Olive ink – then sponged the bottom edge. Sponge around and along the top with Marina Mist to create the blue sky. Before gluing it down add the ribbon – I did not really tie a bow here at all. What I did was punch a hole in the white card stock – take the ribbon and create a loop (to look like the cancer ribbon) – then take the top of the loop and push it down to where the ribbon crosses – put a brad around all of that and insert through the hole. It creates the little bow like you see on the card. I just used some snail to hold the tails down on the back of the circle. Glue it to the front and add the butterflies that were cut from the Beautiful Wings Embosslit.
On the inside you have to add a “stopper” – that will hold the front when you stand the card up. I used the frame image from the Just Believe stamp set – stamp, cut, sponge and attach with Stampin’ Dimensionals.
Here is the card Fran made for her swap –
I hope you like today’s project.
May 3, 2011 | Big Shot, Cards, UDI Color Challenge |
Hello Tuesday! The Utah Diva’s Color Challenge is here again. This week we have a pretty color combination – Perfect Plum, Old Olive, Marina Mist and Basic Black. I also added Whisper White as my neutral. Here it the inspiration piece that we have this week:
Click on this link to go to the Utah Diva’s Color Challenge blog. There you can see the creations from the entire design team and add a link to your creation if you decide to play along.
This week I have a beautiful card for you – at least I thought it turned out that way.
How do you like it? It really turned out pretty. I started with a card base in Perfect Plum and it is stamped with the Sanded Background stamp in Perfect Plum. I actually tried several different things – including adding an embossed layer and a textured layer and none of them were working for me – when I finally settled on just stamping it was perfect. I pulled out the Big Shot – not sure what I did when we didn’t have it in our product line – this is the Scallop Oval Frame die. I cut one in Basic Black and one in Whisper White. The white center oval was stamped with the large flower image from the Just Believe stamp set in Old Olive. Then I sponged the bottom with Old Olive. Next I sponged Marina Mist around the rest of the oval to make it look like the sky.
I cut the white scallop frame into two pieces and attached each piece to the back of the black scallop frame so it just peeks out and creates a small frame. Add some doodles with the white gel pen around the frame. I tied a piece of Marina Mist Taffeta ribbon around the frame and placed the frame on the card from with Stampin’ Dimensionals so it was raised. Then I put the stamped oval inside and glued it flat to the front of the card – I did this so it had the illusion of being inside an actual frame like a picture on the wall would be.
To finish I added some butterflies cut with the Beautiful Wings Embosslit cut from Perfect Plum card stock. And the little pearls. I really love using the basic pearls – and the easiest way to pick them up and place them is to use the tip of the paper piercer. It works like a charm. I hope you like this card today!
Take a minute to visit the UDI site and play along with us this week.
Stampin’ Up! Supplies:
- Card stock: Perfect Plum, Basic Black, Whisper White
- Ink: Old Olive, Marina Mist
- Stamp sets: Just Believe, Sanded
- Accessories: Big Shot Die Cut Machine, Scallop Oval Frame die, Beautiful Wings Embosslit, Marina Mist Taffeta Ribbon, Basic Pearls, Paper Piercer, White Gel Pen, Stampin’ Dimensionals.
To order Stampin’ Up! Supplies to make this project click here.
Apr 29, 2011 | Cards, Summer Mini 2011 |
Have you seen the new Stampin’ Up! Summer Mini catalog? In the very back is a stamp set called Strength & Hope. It is my favorite from this new mini and I have another sneak peek for you.
If you are a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator you may think this looks familiar. If you look in the last Stampin’ Success magazine there was a 3D project where they decorated a jar (or bottle) using the Strength & Hope stamp set. I thought the design was very pretty and decided to do the same design in a card. And this is how it turned out.
My mom sent me an email from a friend of hers that wants people to send cards to a lady that is fighting breast cancer. This stamp set is the perfect thing for this. I just have to decide which card to send her – this one or one of the others that I made.
Base is Early Espresso. Then a strip of Whisper White stamped with the word block and then the flourish image. It is layered on a piece of Pear Pizzazz that was punched on both sides with the Scallop Trim Border punch. I added little dots with the White Gel Pen. I stamped the ‘H hope’ and punched it out with a circle punch and added a little flower punched using the Itty Bitty punch with a pearl in the center. It is Blushing Bride card stock by the way. The butterfly is stamped in Baja Breeze, cut out, and a little pearl is added.
A couple more bits of news – the Stampin’ Scrub is back! For the past few months the Stampin’ Scrub has been unavailable and now it is back and ready to order. So if you have been waiting to order one you can do it now.
And May is National Scrapbook Month and Stampin’ Up! is having a promotion that is starting 2 days early – that would be TODAY! So you can order from the Occasions Mini, take advantage of the April special and the May special all at the same time – if you hurry – that’s Friday and Saturday. So what is the May Special – 30% off selected stamp sets, 30% off selected My Digital Studio Digital Download bundlges, 30% off selected My Digital Studio Professional Print products, and a special My Digital Studio starter kit.
Click on the picture below to see a larger picture of the list of stamp sets on sale. The My Digital Studio downloads are available through my online store and you can select your My Digital Studio Professional Print products through your My Digital Studio software.
Have a great rest of the day!
Apr 27, 2011 | Big Shot, Cards, Occasions Mini 2011 |
Old Olive has always been one of my most used and favorite Stampin’ Up! colors. And when I saw a card created by Mary Fish I knew I wanted to make one like it. The Clearly For You stamp set is in the Occasions Mini Catalog and it was the set that we got at our Leadership Conference back in January. This is another stamp set that I hope ends up in our next catalog – it is great for project with the Simply Adorned Charms or the Beveled Windowpanes. So here you go – a card devoted to Old Olive!
The card base is Old Olive, then there is another layer of Old Olive that all the squares are attached to. The squares are punched 1-1/4″ squares from White Naturals card stock. Each square was stamped with images from the Clearly For You stamp set and sponged with Old Olive. Attach all the squares to the Old Olive layer – which was also sponged – and then use the Color Spritzer Tool and the Old Olive Stampin’ Write Marker to spritz the whole thing. The flower accent is Old Olive card stock cut with the Big Shot and the Fun Flowers Bigz XL die. The flowers are sponged, crumpled, and spritzed. In the center of the flower I added the smallest size of the Beveled Window Pane. I thread through some ribbon and tied the bottom with Linen Thread. Pick your favorite color and make a monochromatic card to show it off.
I’ll have updates on the birds coming up later today and tomorrow.
