Friday, December 25, 2009

Happy New Year!

Happy Holidays Everyone! For those of you stealing a few minutes away today, thanks for stopping by. I hope you are enjoying the day with family and friends.

I started my business this year and wanted a card to send out to all of my wonderful customers that supported me as I got it under way. I needed about 15, so I wanted a pretty simple design to mass produce.

This DSP is from the Bella Bleu pack. I had seen them used together in the current mini catalog and just hadn't had a chance to put them together. I tried them with Kraft, but there wasn't enough contrast for me, so I pulled out the Soft Suede. It seems to have become a winter favorite of mine *wink*.

The circle was cut and embossed with my Nesties. Have I mentioned how much I LOVE them??? I discovered one more little trick last night. I left the circle in the die after I embossed it and stamped my images. This allowed me to stamp within my embossed area. You can use this technique if you want to sponge or chalk inside the embossed edge. So many options with these guys.

If you're one of my wonderful customers, your own personal card is on it's way!

I hope they like it....TFL!

Stamps: Serene Snowflakes & Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Very Vanilla & Soft Suede Cardstock; Soft Suede Textured Cardstock; Bella Bleu DSP
Ink: Night of Navy Classic Pad & Whisper White Craft Pad
Accessories: Navy Satin Ribbon, Corner Rounder, Clear Rhinestone Brads & Circle Nestabilities

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Mojo 118: Warm Suede Thoughts

I have officially put Christmas behind me and moved on to New Year's. I finally have some free time to play, so I settled in with this week's Mojo Challenge.

It was easy to get started on this one. I wanted to use the metallic prints from the Christmas Cocoa DSP. They pair ever so nicely with the Soft Suede.

I used my new circle nesties for the circles. I must say I love these. I embossed the smaller circle, but I don't have the tan mat yet, so I improvised. I'm hoping the embossing is a little more pronounced when I get it. The snowflake was pretty on its own, but I had to bling it up. I used some small clear rhinestones and they are the perfect touch!

I had the hardest time finding a sentiment to add to the card. I have a Happy New Year's stamp, but it was too small. After going through e-a-c-h stamp set I have, I settled on the sentiment from an oldie but goodie: Like it a Latte. I learned that you never know when you'll pull out that older stamp set ;)

Hope you like it....TFL!

Stamps: Serene Snowflakes & Like it a Latte (Retired)
Paper: Soft Suede & Whisper White Cardstock; Christmas Cocoa DSP
Ink: Soft Suede & Chocolate Chip Classic Pads
Accessories: Brown Satin Ribbon, Paper Piercer & Mat Pad, Brown Brad, Clear Rhinestones, Circle Nestabilities

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Merry Moments Tags

Who doesn't love cookies??? My family truly does!! Each year at this time, we tend to make more cookies than we could ever possibly eat over a 3-day period. I'm hoping to actually share some of these sweet treats with some friends. These tags will dress up the treats perfectly.

I have been seeing tags all over the blogosphere, so I had to give them a try. I don't have any tag dies, so I improvised. The larger one was cut into a rectangular shape and I used a corner rounder on the edges. The smaller tag was cut using my *brand new* Oval Nestabilities....love these! I will finally be retiring my Good Ol' Creative Memories cutting system for good ;)

The DSP is from the Merry Moments pack. I accessorized each tag with my Snowflake Punch. I left the Chocolate Chip snowflake as is, but blinged up the Very Vanilla one. I used my two-way glue pen to add some Dazzling Diamonds to the large flake and used some Stickles on the smaller ones. It adds just enough sparkle!

There's still time to whip up some of your own tags, so give it a shot! TFL!

Stamps: Season of Friendship, Serene Snowflakes & All Holidays
Paper: Real Red, Chocolate Chip and Very Vanilla Cardstock; Merry Moments DSP
Ink: Chocolate Chip Classic Pad
Accessories: Snowflake Punch, Round Tab Punch, Corner Rounder, 1/16" Circle Punch, Scallop Edge Punch, Oval Nestabilities, Sponges, Brads, Button Latte, Chocolate Chip 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon, Linen Thread, Two-Way Glue Pen, Dazzling Diamonds, Diamond Stickles, Mini Glue Dots & Dimensionals (Pop Dots).

Christmas Cocoa Holder

I needed a gift card holder for Book Club and, of course, I waited till the last minute ;) In the hour between I got home from school and my son's football practice, I whipped this up.

The template is the same as the gift card holder on an earlier post. The DSP is from the Christmas Cocoa pack. This sheet of paper is flocked and has a velvety feel to it. It's a nice little unexpected surprise as you open the holder up.

This paper pack also features some metallic touches as well. I'm going to use these for some New Year's Cards. But, the nice thing is, the Real Red sheets have a Damask design, so they can be used for cards other than the holidays. This pack is only on sale through January 4th, so if you're interested in purchasing it, just let me know ;)

TFL!

Stamps: Season of Friendship
Paper: Whisper White Cardstock & Christmas Cocoa DSP
Ink: Real Red Classic Pad
Accessories: Real Red Marker, Real Red Ribbon, Scallop Edge Punch & Slit Punch

Monday, December 14, 2009

Night & Day Tin

I am lucky enough to have many different friends throwing goodies at me and saying, "What can I do with this?" This is one of those goodies. How many of us have plain old tins in our craft room just waiting to be transformed?

These are great as gifts for friends, teachers and if you are a teacher, for parent volunteers. They are easy and super inexpensive to make.

For my tin, I pulled out my SU! Night and Day DSP that I haven't used yet. This
was the perfect opportunity!

There is a great tutorial on Splitcoast for these tins: http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/alteredtin/. First, you need to measure the width of the tin and cut your paper to size. More than likely, a 12x12 strip will not be long enough to cover the circumference of the tin, so you cut a strip to fill the gap. You then adhere these strips with Tacky Tape or any strong two-sided tape.

Next, you choose a coordinating ribbon, trim to size and attach it to the lid. You can then decorate the lid in any way you wish. I added a flower that I saw over at Wendy Smedley's website: http://wendysmedley.typepad.com/possibilities/2009/11/week-of-gratitude-bouquet.html. These are adorable and it's yet another way to make use of our punches. It's a win-win.

Hope you like it....TFL!

Stamps: None
Paper: Night & Day DSP
Ink: None
Accessories: Circle Nesties, Scallop Circle Punch, Ribbon, Black Brad, 1/16" Circle Punch and Sticky Strip

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Bermuda Suede Birthday

I needed a birthday card for my 11-year-old nephew and this is what I whipped up. If you're like me, making masculine cards is a challenge. It seems to go against everything card making is about ;)

I knew what color palette I wanted to start with: Soft Suede and Bermuda Bay. I also knew I wanted to keep it simple, as he is 11 and is the card really important at that age??? It's what's inside that matters ;)

I stamped the presents as the focal image. I also stamped a second set, cut them out and popped them up on top of the original presents creating a 3-D look. I added some piercing and reversed the Polka Dot Soft Suede ribbon and I was done. Hope he likes it...TFL!

Stamps: Birthday Whimzy (Retired) & Darling Dots (Retired Hostess Set)
Paper: Soft Suede, Bermuda Bay and Whisper White Cardstock
Ink: Soft Suede, Bermuda Bay & Crushed Curry Classic Stamp Pads
Accessories: Paper Piercer & Mat Pack, Scallop Edge Punch and Dimensionals (Pop Dots)

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Very Merry Gift Card Holder

Who doesn't need a gift card holder for the holidays? This one is simple and easy to make. Of course, I couldn't have an upload without having a Kraft project to show ;)

I love the the Kraft, Real Red and Whisper White Color Combo. They work so well together and were my beginning inspiration for the project.

To make the holder, choose your base cardstock and cut to 4" x 6 3/4". Score the cardstock at 2 1/2" and 5". These will be your folds for the holder.
My ribbon goes through the folds of the card holder to tie it together. I created slits for the ribbon by placing my scored edge in my paper trimmer and cutting a 1/2" slit about 2/3 of the way across the score line. Just be sure you do the slits in the same spot on both score lines. This will allow you to pull the ribbon in on one end and out the other to tie the card holder closed.

I used the Slit Punch to create the gift card slots. I laid a gift card down and marked the edges 1/8" longer on each side. Place the edge of the Slit Punch on this line and punch. Erase your pencil marks and you're good to go. If you don't have the Slit Punch, you can adhere the gift card with some adhesive or glue dots. They will work just as well ;)

These are much more fun that the gift card holder you get with the card. Impress someone this season and make theirs unique!

TFL!

Stamps: Season of Friendship & Short & Sweet
Paper: Kraft Cardstock
Ink: Real Red Classic Stamp Pad & Whisper White Craft Stamp Pad
Accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, Signo Gel Pen, Slit Punch and Ribbon

Sweet 'Ol Santa

Some may think that following 80 different blogs is a bit much....but, I tend to disagree *hee hee*. How else would I have found this cute little ol' guy??

Angie Juda over at Chic 'n Scratch is amazing! She is constantly reinventing herself. How she can sit down with 8 punches and come out with this is just mind boggling. She has a fantastic video on how to assemble him at: http://chicnscratch.typepad.com/chicnscratchlive/2009/11/punch-art-santa-video.html.

I added my Santa to a snack pouch. These are super easy to make and if you need a lot of them, the perfect choice. Pick your cardstock and cut to 2 3/4 x 8 1/2. Score at 3 3/4 and 4 3/4. Fold at the score lines and staple at the top. We will be covering your staple with some Designer Series Paper. Pick one that coordinates with your cardstock and cut to 2 1/2 x 3 1/2. My mat for Santa was cut to 2 1/4 x 3 1/4.

I've been growing my collection of punches over the years and love to find new ways to use them. I must say...this is the most I've ever used at one time! If you're interested in your own Santa and don't have the punches, I'd be more than happy to put a kit together for you. Just pop me an email.

TFL!

Stamps: None
Paper: Real Red, Garden Green, Pretty in Pink, Blush Blossom Basic Black and Whisper White Cardstock; Merry Moments DSP
Ink: Creamy Caramel & Basic Black Classic Stamp Pads
Accessories: Chocolate Chip Marker, Signo Gel Pen, Chalks, Sponges, Ticket Corner Punch,
Scallop Circle Punch, Small & Large Oval Punches, Full Heart Punch, Word Window Punch, 1/4" Circle Hole Punch, 1/2" Circle Punch and the 1 3/8" Circle Punch

Snowflake Joy

My friend Yolie gave me a box full of transparencies and told to create something fun with them. I took on that challenge and stumbled upon this card at: http://lovetostampandscrap.blogspot.com/2009/08/welcome-to-stampin-addicts-holiday-mini.html.I kept pretty true to the original design, but switched it up a little.

If you've never used acetate (transparencies), it's very easy. You cut it in exactly the same way you would your paper with your paper cutter. I scored it with my scorer and finished it off with my bone folder.

I stamped the snowflake images with a Stazon ink pad. You will need this type of ink or a Stampin Up Craft ink for the acetate surface. The Stazon dries very quickly and is what I prefer to use.

This is the inside of the card. Since you are using a clear card base, when adhering your focal image to the front of the card, you will be able to see the adhesive on the inside. You can fix that by adding a focal image on the inside of the card in the exact same spot as the image on the front cover. Problem solved!

What a fun and unique card to give someone! I still have a ton of transparencies, so I see many more acetate cards in my future.

Hope you'll try it out too. TFL!

Stamps: Serene Snowflakes & Delightful Decorations
Paper: Bashful Blue, Night of Navy, Brushed Silver & Whisper White Cardstock; Acetate (Transparencies for the card base)
Ink: Bashful Blue, Brocade Blue & Night of Navy Classic Ink Pads; Stazon White Pad
Accessories: Ornament Punch & Dimensionals (Pop Dots)