Feb 5, 2011 | Big Shot, Birthday, Cards, Pierced Circle, Sale-A-Bration 2011, SU Buttons, SU Ribbon |
Good morning everyone! I think our rain has stopped – we had a little bit of snow/sleet on Thursday but it stopped and I was able to head out to a class at Tammy’s house that night. The rain is not helping the work that is going on at our house. We are having our old screened porch/deck converted to a large sunroom/small deck. The construction has been going on the days in between the bad weather – I’m hoping for nice weather all week so they can get it done. And hopefully all the construction isn’t keeping my birds away. I’m would expect to see them already shopping for bird houses to nest in but I haven’t seen much activity. It might be because the weather has been colder than normal or a combination of the two. This year I have added the woodpecker house and I have one more house to add but I haven’t put that one out yet. I’ll keep you posted as soon as the action starts.
On to my project for today. These are some cute cards featuring Sale-A-Bration stamps and accessories. I have been using these cards in some of my classes/workshops the last couple of weeks and everybody loves them.
The idea for this card came from the Stampin’ Success magazine that Stampin’ Up! Demonstrators receive each month. It is packed with ideas and articles for us to read. I decided to use the layout and then make more than just the one card that they showed but create more cards using the other stamps in the Punch Bunch stamp set. I gave everyone at my classes the choice of what they wanted to make. Each card was unique as every person used a different stamp and selection of the die cuts from the Ice Cream Parlor pack.
The card base is Old Olive. At the bottom is a die-cut strip, then above that is a piece of the double-sided Designer Series paper – some people chose to show the dotted side and others the pink side. Above that is a piece of the Ice Cream parlor ribbon – this ribbon has flowers printed on one side so when you tie it in a knot make sure you twist the end so the printed side shows. Stamp the image and punch out with the coordinating punch and add it to the front with Stampin’ Dimensionals. See below for the instructions on creating the pierced circle and do that before you add all the die-cuts and the buttons. One trick that you might want to know about the die-cuts – if you want to pop them up with Stampin’ Dimensionals – stick them to your jeans first to remove some of the adhesive on the back and then add the dimensionals to pop them up.
Do you see the pierced circle in the background? I love that idea but I thought there is no way I can make an even circle like that. I remembered that Stampin’ Up! used to have the brass embossing templates and many of those had piercing patterns on them too. We don’t sell those anymore so I wanted to come up with a way to do the same thing with what we do have. It just so happened I had one of the large die-cut scallop circles lying on my craft table and that gave me this idea. So here are the instructions on how to create a pierced circle:
Step 1: cut a die-cut scalloped circle using the Big Shot machine and one of the dies – you can vary the size of your circle by using a different sized scallop circle for your template.
Step 2: Place a piercing mat underneath your card stock and the scallop circle on top. Use a paper piercer and pierce in between each pair of scallops to create a circle – using the scallop keeps the holes evenly spaced.
Step 3: If you want the holes closer together add another hole in between each pair that you punched.
Ta-da! A pierced circle!
How easy was that? I’m going to use this idea on some other cards not that I figured it out and I’m going to take a look at my other dies to see if I can create some other piercing patterns. To save the templates cut them out of the cardboard backer from the Designer Series paper and it will last longer than using a piece of card stock.
Have a fun weekend!
Stamping Together at Monika’s Place – February 2011 Newsletter – CLICK HERE.
February 2011 Ribbon Share – CLICK HERE.
Jan 13, 2011 | Big Shot, Cards, D is for Dog, SU Buttons |
This was one of the cards that we made at Stamper’s Club Friday night. The card idea was one that I found on a blog somewhere but it wasn’t a Stampin’ Up! blog so I wanted to use the idea with our products. I liked the black and the white and needed to add a third color – I pulled out my Color Coach and this was one of the color combination’s for the Whisper White card – Whisper White, Basic Black and More Mustard.
The Bitty Button does not have thread in it but instead it is a thin piece of More Mustard card stock that is pulled through and tied in a knot. When you don’t have thread in the color you want just use a piece of card stock!
I made the dog and cat look like they were really white by watercoloring around them with a little bit of Sahara Sand Watercolor Wonder Crayon.
Stampin’ Up! Supplies:
- Card stock: More Mustard, Basic Black, Whisper White
- Ink: More Mustard, Black StazOn
- Stamp sets: Every Little Bit, D is for Dog, Friends Fur-ever
- Accessories: Big Shot die-cut machine, Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder, 1″ circle punch, 2-1/2″ circle punch, 1-3/8″ circle punch, Bitty Buttons, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Mini Glue Dots, Stampin’ Sponge, Watercolor Wonder Crayons – Neutrals, Aqua Painter.
To order Stampin’ Up! Supplies to make this project click here.
Dec 23, 2010 | Big Shot, Christmas, Fabric, Holiday Mini Catalog 2010, Recipe, SU Buttons, Tags |
I have been making this recipe for many years – it is always a big hit. I recently made it at my Holiday Gift Making weekend that I had back in November and several people wanted the recipe. I am making some more for Christmas – to have out our family events throughout the holidays and thought I would share it with you. In the past I have given it as gifts to teachers and neighbors. It was such a great teacher gift – a ready made appetizer for a teacher to take home for the holidays. I made them when Kyle was in Kindergarten (he is now a freshman in college) and wrapped them up in a dish with crackers and a spreader to give to his teacher. Several years later when ever we would see this teacher (she no longer worked at the school) she always commented on how she remembered that gift and how good it was.
Today I decided to wrap up a few for gifts – I actually divided one larger cheese ball into two smaller ones to wrap them.
I used several items from the Stampin’ Up! Holiday Mini catalog. First the Deck The Halls fabric – I cut a large square and then folded it into quarters and used the Big Shot and the Scallop Square die to cut the fabric. I lined the fabric up on the die so that the cut edges after I folded it up where getting cut and the folded sides were inside the die so they didn’t get cut. This gave me a large scallop square of fabric – basically the size of 4 of them together – but one large piece of fabric. I hope that made sense.
My cheese balls were rolled in almonds
and then I wrapped them first with wax paper and then with plastic wrap. Then I put it in the center of my scalloped fabric square. I took two opposite points and folded them across the cheese ball then took the other two points and brought them together at the top. I used a large needle, some Linen Thread, and a Big Designer Button from the Deck the Halls pack – I used the smallest Always Artichoke button for these. I used the needle to pull the Linen thread through the front of the button, through both layers of fabric to the back, through both layers of fabric again through to the front and through the button. Tied that in a knot and then added a tag from the Tags til Christmas stamp set. Tied it in a bow and trim the ends. It dressed them up nicely!
Here is the recipe:
Almond Chicken Cheese Ball
1- 1/2 cups cooked chicken
1 Tbsp A-1 steak sauce
2 – 8 oz. packages cream cheese, softened
Combine above in a bowl. Mix well.
1/4 cup minced green onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/3 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped almonds
Mix green onion, 2 Tbs parsley and celery with the cream cheese mixture. Mix well, form 2 balls – refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Roll in “leftover” parsley and almonds. Serve with crackers.
Here are some of my notes:
-I have been using canned chicken – just drain it well.
– I usually leave out the celery – my family doesn’t care for it.
– This time I left out the parsley because I didn’t have any – it’s mostly for looks.
– Forming the balls is messy on your hands. I get out waxed paper and put a ball in the middle of each piece. Then roll that up and cover it with plastic wrap to put in the fridge.
– I was able to freeze one – but don’t add the outside parsley and almonds before freezing and do wrap in wax paper first – because when it defrosts it gets “wet” and the wax paper seems to absorb some of that. Let it defrost in the fridge and then roll in the parsley and almonds before serving it.
Happy Holidays!!
Sep 28, 2010 | Big Shot, Birthday, In Colors, SU Buttons, UDI Color Challenge |
Welcome to week 3 of the new weekly Color Challenge over at the Utah Diva’s International Blog. All I can say about this weeks color inspiration – is where can I get some of those? I need one now! Look at what Gretchen has for us this week – 
Yummy! I was kind of late with this one and didn’t have any ideas at all so I started to play with the colors and throw a card together and before I was done I threw it right in the trash – well not exactly I saved all the pieces that I hadn’t messed up already. So it was time for a do over because that first idea did not work out at all. I left and ate some dinner and came back with a new idea. This one turned out cute – I just wish I had some chocolate to put inside – well I actually do have some chocolate – Greg brought some back to me from his trip to Paris – but I have it hidden in a secret place so I won’t eat it too quickly. Anyway here is my second attempt at a creation with these colors:
I’m going to add some more details later with step by step pictures on how I make my mini milk cartons – mine come together perfectly every time but I have a little trick. And I’ll tell you how I made the frosting for the cupcake too! Come back on Wednesday for the details on both of those. Now it is your turn to play with these colors – then go to the UDI blog and add your creation to the linky section. I can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Stampin’ Up! Supplies:
- Card stock: Concord Crush, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla
- Ink: Chocolate Chip, Stampin’ Write Markers: Concord Crush, Crumb Cake; Ink Refill: Concord Crush
- Stamp sets: Birthday Bakery
- Frost White Shimmer Paint
- Mini Library Clips
- Big Shot Die-Cut machine, Mini Milk Carton die
- Large Tag punch, Small tag punch, Heart to Heart Punch
- Bitty Buttons
- Concord Crush ribbon
- Concord Crush Designer Series Paper
To order Stampin’ Up! Supplies to make this project click here.
I’m going to post my Bingo information in a separate post later this morning – so check back on my blog in a little while.
And one more thing – I will be at the Baltimore Stampin’ Up! regional on Friday – if you find me and tell me that you are one of my blog visitors I’ll have a surprise treat for you! I hope to see you there!
Aug 7, 2010 | Big Shot, Birthday, Designer Series Paper, Stamper's Club, SU Buttons, SU Ribbon |
Did you see the stamp set in the Stampin’ Up! Catalog on page 55 called Got Treats? Can you image all the little treats you can create with it – birthday, Halloween, Christmas, Valentines, St. Patrick’s Day, Treats for any time? I hadn’t even considered buying the Milk Carton die-cut for the Big Shot until I saw this little stamp set. Now I can image all sorts of possibilities with it even using different stamp sets. I ordered the Mini Milk Carton die and the Got Treats stamp set and decided to play this week. I created a little project for my Stamper’s Club meeting last night.
The little carrier idea is in the catalog but I also saw it earlier this year on another blog and on Stampin’ Connection. There are several different versions out there. You basically make a little box to hold two mini milk cartons and then glue two together with a handle in between. I decided to use the Play Date Designer Series paper for my color inspiration and for decorating the little carrier. This one has a birthday theme but you could use this for so many different celebrations besides a birthday. Or make one for your desk to hold little office supplies – I want to try that next – I think there was something similar on display at convention.
Here you can see my four mini milk cartons. On my Got Treats stamp set I mounted the words separate from the images so that I could mix & match and use them together or apart. So on one cupcake I have “Got Birthday?” and on the other I have “Got Treats?” and then one is on the top and the other on the bottom.
I did have to play around with my Big Shot and the die to get my sandwich just right so the cut lines cut and the score lines scored. Because there are slight variations between Big Shot’s yours may not be the same as mine. For mine I used this – Standard Cutting Pad, piece of colored card stock, Mini Milk Carton die, card stock to be cut (one layer), Standard Premium Crease Pad. Only cut one at a time so you get all the score lines and cut lines for each one that you cut.
Have a sweet weekend!
Stampin’ Up! Supplies:
- Card stock: Real Red, Old Olive, So Saffron, Tempting Turquoise, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
- Ink: Real Red, Old Olive, So Saffron, Tempting Turquoise Stampin’ Write markers
- Stamps: Got Treats Stamp set
- Big Shot Die-Cut Machine, Mini Milk Carton die
- Scallop Square Punch, Large Oval Punch, Corner Rounder Punch, Jewelry Tag Punch, Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack
- Linen Thread, 1/4″ Real Red Grosgrain Ribbon, 5/8″ Old Olive Grosgrain Ribbon
- Play Date Designer Series paper
- Brights Designer Buttons, Subtle Designer Buttons, Silver Brads, Mini Library Clips
- Paper piercer, Mat Pack, Stampin’ Dimesionals, Multi-Purpose Liquid Glue
To order Stampin’ Up! Supplies to make this project click here.
Jul 1, 2010 | Designer Series Paper, Stampin' Up! Events, SU Buttons |
I have had numerous requests for more information on how to make the little nugget purse. So that is what I have for you today. This project was presented on stage at the Chattanooga Half-Day regional last fall by Susan Barron. These were so cute and Susan was very nice to give me the measurements.
Here is a picture of my purse again.
Each little purse hold 2 nuggets.
Designer Series paper is 3×4-3/4 , score long side a ½” on each side. Score 1”, 1-1/2”, 2-1/2” on outsides only. Look at the drawing to see where you clip the sides to create the tabs and cut away the top tabs to create the lid. The 2 corners on the lid are punched with the corner rounder.
- Add a 6” piece of ribbon for the handle. It works best to attach the ribbon with glue dots in between the side flaps.
- Add a button to the front for decoration and a ¼” piece of a Velcro dot under the lid to hold it shut.
- Use 3” x 1” pieces of Designer Series paper to cover the nuggets.
- Stick the nuggets inside the purse.
I hope that gives you enough to make your own.
Here is one more picture – this is the DSP after it is scored and cut.
Have a great day!
The idea for this card came from the Stampin’ Success magazine that Stampin’ Up! Demonstrators receive each month. It is packed with ideas and articles for us to read. I decided to use the layout and then make more than just the one card that they showed but create more cards using the other stamps in the Punch Bunch stamp set. I gave everyone at my classes the choice of what they wanted to make. Each card was unique as every person used a different stamp and selection of the die cuts from the Ice Cream Parlor pack.
The card base is Old Olive. At the bottom is a die-cut strip, then above that is a piece of the double-sided Designer Series paper – some people chose to show the dotted side and others the pink side. Above that is a piece of the Ice Cream parlor ribbon – this ribbon has flowers printed on one side so when you tie it in a knot make sure you twist the end so the printed side shows. Stamp the image and punch out with the coordinating punch and add it to the front with Stampin’ Dimensionals. See below for the instructions on creating the pierced circle and do that before you add all the die-cuts and the buttons. One trick that you might want to know about the die-cuts – if you want to pop them up with Stampin’ Dimensionals – stick them to your jeans first to remove some of the adhesive on the back and then add the dimensionals to pop them up.
Ta-da! A pierced circle!
