B is for Birthday

I was in a birthday card mood today and created a small stack of birthday cards, so you'll be seeing a few birthday cards this week.  We can never have too many ideas for birthday cards so I'm guessing you won't mind.

The first card is a very simple card, great for a quick card when you are on your way to a party or realized you forgot somone's birthday and need to get a card in the mailbox before the mailman arrives!



 The ingredients for this card are:

• Stamp Sets:  Party Hearty, Full of Life
• Card Stock:  Very Vanilla, Bermuda Bay, So Saffron
• Designer Series Paper:  Sweet Pea
• Classic Stamp Pad:  Bermuda Bay

As I said, this card is as easy as it looks.   Cut your Very Vanilla to  size and stamp the b is for birthday stamp using the Bermuda Bay and then layer it onto a slightly larger piece of Bermuda Bay cardstock.  I distressed the card stock with my fingernails.  I glued a piece of Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper to the front of the card and added the image to the left hand side.

For the inside, I layered some of my scrap pieces and stamped the birthday sentiment from Full of Life. 

See, pretty simple. 

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!
Charity

Olympic Fever

I know some of you out there have been wondering, where is an Olympic Bear?  Well, wonder no more!  I have indeed created a bear inspired by the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.   This bear is dressed for a debut in the Opening Ceremonies, ready to compete for Team USA.  I tried my best to recreate/mimic the Team USA gear for the Opening Ceremonies.  This bear is taking her place on a card stock frame that I received free from a friend and are samples from a popular printer manufacturer. 

As I have done with other bears, I used the Bear Essentials to cut the clothing, cutting extra pieces in the complimentary colors to add the collar, pockets and embelleshments to the clothing.  In terms of color choices, select the colors that best represent the uniform/costume you are trying best to mimic.  For example, you could just as easily create a figure skating costume or skiing uniform.  You could even add some equipment like skis.

You need to use either your favorite circle cutter or punches to create the Olympic Rings.  I looked up on google the colors of the rings: blue, yellow, black, green, and red.  I was using scrap pieces of card stock for my rings and again, it is just important to select your colors to best mimic the shades of the rings.  This will be subject to your opinion and tastes

Since my frame had a company logo in one corner that I needed to hide, I stamped the snowflake from Best Wishes and More and then punched them with my 1 3/8 punch.  I glued these around the frame adding an oval and scallop oval at the bottom where I hand wrote the 2010 Winter Games, Vancouver. 

If you like this project and think you would like to do a similar project with your child for either Mother's or Father's Day, please email me and let me know.  I'm thinking of adding this to my class schedule for Mother's and/or Father's Day.

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!
Charity

That's a Whole Lot of Candles Grandpa!

My father-in-law is celebrating his 65th birthday later this week, a perfect chance for me to use the Sale-A-Bration Whimsical Words set.  The more the candles, the bigger wish, well, he has a really big wish coming this year, at least according to his grandchildren!

For this card you will need:

• Stamp Sets:  Party Harty, Whimsical Words
• Card Stock: Crushed Curry, Bermuda Bay, and Whisper White
• Classic Stampin' Pads:  Crushed Curry, Bermuda Bay
• Tools and Accessories:  Stamp-A-Ma-Jig

This card is very simple, but a little time consuming.  I wanted to stamp 65 candles on the front of the card and I used my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to help me line them up.  I stamped more candles in the first two rows so that I had space for the sentiment in the lower right hand corner.  I stamped the sentiment in Bermuda Bay onto Whisper White and then layered this at a slight angle onto another piece of Bermuda Bay.  This went in my lower right hand corner.  I stamped the little presents from Party Hearty using Bermuda Bay onto Bermuda Bay card stock and then cut around the presents.  I wanted these to pop up a bit but I was out of Stampin' Dimensionals so I used some sticky strip folded over on itself a few times. 

I think I might try another version of this design but I might tear the upper edge and brush it with some Chocolate Chip ink to make it look like the card caught fire from all the candles.  Lots of potential with this sentiment. 

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!
Charity 

Gentlemen, Start Your Engines!

Liam's birthday is coming up in March so I've begun work on party planning- designing favors, invitations, etc.  His choice for party theme: Disney's Cars/Race Car.  Stampin' Up!® doesn't have any current sets that I thought would work for a race car theme so I'm going to be relying on punches, die cuts, paper snips, and card stock.

Today's project was the party favors.  Liam and I both thought it would be fun to have a car made using the matchbox die.  Get it?  A matchbox car!  Our plan is to find a car to fit into the box and give that out as the party favor along with a few stickers.  Here is the prototype of our special matchbox car for his party. 

Since Lightening McQueen is Liam's favorite character, this car will eventually be made using Real Red, but my card stock is on order so our prototype was made using Brilliant Blue.  Again, this is our prototype so I will post the final version with full measurements and a template in a few days.

The ingredients for this prototype are:

• Card stocks:  Brilliant Blue, Very Vanilla, Basic Black
• Dusty Durango Stampin' Write Marker
• Tools and Accessories:  Big Shot, Matchbox Die, Hole Punch/Crop-A-Dile, 3/4" Circle Punch

As I mentioned, I'll post a full tutorial and measurements later in the week, but I'll give you a little insight on how this guy came together.  I cut the matchbox and assembled per the normal instructions.  I created the top by cutting a piece of card stock to the same width as the box and then scored it so I could fold and glue to the top of the box.  Similiarly, I did the same to create a spoiler, trimming and cutting until the proportions were correct.  I cut the "whites" of the eyes free hand with my paper snips, starting with a piece of Very Vanilla card stock that matched the dimensions of the car front.  I punched two black dots uing a Standard Sized Hole Punch (retired), but you could also use the Crop-A-Dile.  For the wheels, use the 3/4 inch Circle Punch and then the standard size punch to add a Very Vanilla circle to the center.

Liam loves it and fortunately, I got the photos before he played with it.  Now, Tim will have the mission of finding a car to fit inside!

Come back later in the week for the tuturials and a sneak peek of the invitations!  Then, mid March, the full details of the party. 

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!
Charity

Kiss Me, I'm Irish!

So I may have a problem, I seem to be mildly obsessed with the Build A Bears! I'm always trying to think of new ideas to make the most of these bears. My latest idea: a little Leprechaun! Eventually, this cute little guy will find his way onto a St. Patrick's Day card but I wanted to share him with you first.



For this bear, you will need:

• Glorious Green card stock
• Whisper White card stock
• Basic Black card stock
• Creamy Caramel card stock
• Crushed Curry card stock
• Stampin' Up! TM Bear Die
• Beary Essentials Die
• Beary Merry Die

Using Beary Essentials, cut a coat and pants using Glorious Green. Trim the pants to be short pants like a Leprechaun would wear. You will also need to cut two triangular shapes (there is a name for this type of triangle but my geometry vocab escapes me at the moment!) to attach to the coat as a collar. You'll also need to cut a shirt using the Whisper White and a pair of shoes with Basic Black. Then, using your Beary Merry Die, cut four buckles using Crushed Curry and one belt using Basic Black. For the white tights/stockings, use the technique we've previously used on our bears, cut some legs from Whisper White using the Bear Die and adhere to the bear before dressing him. For the hat, cut a small square and round the top two corners. Add a rectangular brim and a black strap with buckle. Assemble and dress according to the photo.

When he finds his way home to a card or other project, I'll be sure to post the finished product. In the meantime, Happy St. Patrick's Day!

God Bless and Happy Stampin!

Charity

Reminder... RSVP for the February Technique Class

Our technique class is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 19 at 6 PM.  We will be making photo cubes using CD jewel cases and Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper (not shown in the photo).  These make great gifts or a fun candy dish for your desk at work. 

Workshop fee is $10, $5 with any purchase over $50 or when booking a workshop. All orders of $50 or more are eligible for Sale-A-Bration benefits!

There are still a few spaces available around the craft table!  Email me today to reserve your spot. 

If you can not make it to the class, you can also purchase a kit which will include all papers and CD cases, you just have to provide the stamps and the photos.  Kits can be delivered locally or mailed, shipping will be added to the $10 for all kits that I ship.  Payment can be made via paypal.

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!
Charity

A Pocket Full of Adventure

It's been some time since I posted a project using My Digital Studio and since I have been suffering from a horrible cold, I thought it would be a great project for tonight.  It won't require me to pull out any supplies other than my computer!

This is a very simple layout featuring photos from a recent trip to the park with Liam.  He and Tim met me for lunch and we enjoyed some time at a local park.  It was a cold day!  Thanks to his new very short hair cut, Liam kept his hood on the entire time.

The page was done using My digital studio and I started with a blank layout.  The page base is Brilliant Blue, the stamp set images are Cute Cues and Greatest Moments II, the embellishments are from Hoppy Memories. 

Just in case you can't read the journaling, Liam's feet are just barely visible in the bottom left photo (follow the white arrow), he climbed to the top of that very tall structure so that he could go down the BIG slide.  He loves adventure!

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!

Charity

Petal Card Box

First off, Happy Valentine's Day!  I hope you are able to spend the day with the people you love.  I have Valentine's ready and waiting for my husband and kids.  As some may know, my husband is diabetic.  Although there is a wonderful selection of sugar free candies now, they rarely package them for holidays so I have to come up with clever ways to package any candies that I do give him.  Over on Late Night Stampers, they post Blog Finds of the Day and one recent find was the Petal Card Box by Margaret Raburn using the petal card die cut.  Margaret did a great job with this tutorial so I won't try to recreate that, please just follow the link to her site for more details. 

However, I will post my very simple version created to package Tim's sugar free peanut butter cups and truffles.  I didn't make it too fancy, but I do look forward to creating some additional boxes with far more embellishment.  For Tim's boxes, I used Kraft card stock and decorated with Real Red and I {Heart} Hearts.  I hope you enjoy and thanks to Margaret for her wonderful tutorial.

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!
Charity

Valentines for the Kids

As I mentioned earlier this week, it has been a busy week of projects for Valentine's Day.  Today has been no different.  I'm finally finished creating Valentine projects!  Now to post the fruits of my labor.  Today, I will post the Valentines for the kids.  Tim is in charge of picking up a small goodie for them and I'm in charge of cards.  Two of the cards should be familiar as I posted them earlier.  Liam's card was made during my Kid's Pick series and Phoebe's card was one of the first that I made using the I {Heart} Hearts set.  I did alter Phoebe's card changing the sentiment on the front from "thinking of you" to "just for you."  I selected this card for Phoebe because she really expressed a liking for it.  It certainly fits her style, a leather and lace kind of personality.  Liam's as you know perfectly suits his love of trains, something in his DNA from his Poppy, my father.  I have to admit that his card is one of my favorite cards using the Choo Choo set. 

So, cards were complete for Liam and Phoebe, but I needed something for Tessa and Isabel.  Tessa had made a request of me on Friday.  She wanted a card with her favorite colors- yellow and orange- and her favorite animal- a cat.  The catch, the cat needed to be made using hearts.  Inspired by some heart animal art during the Valentine Party at her school and armed with the Welcome Neighbor Designer Series Paper and I {Heart} Hearts stamp set, I set out to meet her request.  The full list of ingredients is:

• Stamp Set:  I {Heart} Hearts, Teeny Tiny Wishes (inside)
• Card Stock:  So Saffron, Pumpkin Pie (textured), Very Vanilla
• Designer Series Papers:  Sweet Pea and Welcome Neighbor
• Ink:  Only Orange Classic Stampin' Pad





• Tools and Accessories:  1/2 inch Striped Pumpkin Pie Grosgrain Ribbon, Heart to Heart Punch, Small Heart Punch, Rhinestone Brads

I stamped my hearts the pumpkin pie zig zag stripe paper from Welcome Neighbor and then cut them out.  This technique would work better with a more symmetric heart so my cat is actually a little on the chubby side.  Use three hearts of equal size to form the body and head.  For the tail, I trimmed around the scrap paper at the point of the hearts I had trimmed.  For the head, I trimmed the point off the heart.  For the ears, I punched two small hearts with the Small Heart Punch from the Pumpkin Pie.  I then cut three smaller hearts with the Heart to Heart Punch from the opposite side of the paper I used for the cat's body.  I used two for the inside of hte ears and one for the nose.  I added two standard sized hole punched circles with black dotes added for the eyes.  The whiskers were hand drawn with a Stampin' Write Marker.  I layered my cat onto Very Vanilla and then Sweet Pea DSP.  I added a loop of ribbon attached to the corner with a brad.  The card base is So Saffron with hearts stamped using Only Orange.  The cat image was glued to the front of the card. 

Now for Isabel's card. At 11, I wanted to avoid cutesy for her.  I hope I did that.  For her card, I used:

• Stamp Set: I {Heart} Hearts (mounted on clear blocks), Teeny Tiny Wishes (inside)
• Card Stock: Pretty in Pink,Very Vanilla, Taken with Teal
• Designer Series Papers: Sweet Pea
• Ink: Pixie Pink Stampin' Pad
• Tools and Accessories: 1/4 inch Striped Pretty in Pink Grosgrain Ribbon, Rhinestone Brads, Pinking Hearts Border Punch

To begin, I selected 3 of the hearts from the I {Heart} Hearts and mounted them together on my clear block.  This is one of the benefits of the clear mount stamps- you can arrange as you like on the block itself.  I stamped the images in Pixie Pink.  I layered this onto a piece of Taken with Teal card stock where I had punched the bottom edge with the Pinking Hearts Border Punch.  I tied a piece of Pretty in Pink grosgrain ribbon around the card stock.  On the front of my Pretty in Pink card, I added a piece of Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper.  Over that, I layered my images.

Tomorrow I'll share a fun box using the petal card die cut. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!
Charity

Paper Embellishments

Once again I am sharing cards inspired by techniques highlighted in the latest issue of Stampin' Success.  I'm pretty sure if my upline had shown this magazine to me on day one, she would have had me at "hello" and I would have signed up right away.  My March issue arrived yesterday and included an article on making paper embellishments.  If you like these techniques and live in the Bothell, Washington or the surrounding areas, I'd love to come do a workshop in your home teaching you and your friends some of these techniques.  If you use even one of these embellishments on a card, you will wow your friends and family with your card making skills.

I have two cards for you, using the following items (asterik denotes items used only in one card):

• Stamp Sets:  Whimsical Words*
• Card Stock:  So Saffron, Taken with Teal, Certainly Celery*
• Designer Series Paper:  Welcome Neighbor, Thoroughly Modern, Sweet Pea
• Classic Stampin' Pads:  Chocolate Chip
• Tools and Accessories:  Clear Circle Rhinestone Brads, Circle Punches, Sticky Sheets, Pinking Hearts Border Punch*, Scallop Circle Punch, Scallop Trim Border Punch*, Old Olive Grosgrain Ribbon, Scallop Edge Border, Very Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware*, Label Punch, Big Shot* and Top Note*

Each card has two flowers, one made with the Scallop Circle Punch and one made with either the Scallop Edge or Pinking Hearts Border Punch.  I'll describe the Scallop Circle Punch flower first. 

To create this flower, punch several Scallop Circles from your paper.  Lightly moisten with a water using a spray bottle. Snip from edge to center.  Layer the Scallop Circles and crinkle the edges.  Put a rhinestone brad through the center and you have a flower. 

For the Edge Border flowers, I'll provide a summary of the instructions, but for a great photo tutorial and the source of my instruction, let me refer you to Julie's Stamping Spot.  To begin, you punch the edge of a strip of paper using your favorite edge punch.  Break the fibers of the paper using either a crimper or doing an accordian style fold technique (which is what I did).  Punch or cut a circle using a punch or circle cutter.  Also cut a circle from your sticky pages.  Stick your sticky page to the paper circle that you punched.  Then, beginning from the outside, make a rosette with your paper strip.  On one of my flowers, I alternated between more than one style of Designer Series Paper.  Finish with another smaller circle and a brad or just the brad.  On both cards, I used the Old Olive Grosgrain Ribbon for stems and leaves.  Use of ribbon either for flowers or as flower stems is also something I saw in Stampin' Success so you'll likely see more projects using ribbon to make flowers in the future.

Again, these embellishments are a great project for a workshop.  They are a simple way to pack a lot of WOW in a project.  Now is the time to host a show or place an order, Sale-A-Bration has plenty of great items to offer in terms of free merchandise.  Feel free to call me to book a show or place an order.

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!

Charity

A Trio of Valentines

Love is in the air!  I've been busy with my Valentine Cards this week, some for my husband and some for my kids.  Today I will be sharing a trio of cards.  All of which will end up in my husband's hands.  Since I usually have more than one idea combined with an inability to pick my favorite, he tends to end up with more than one Valentine.  But, he's a great husband and deserves each and every one of them. 

Like I said, today's post is all about love and I have three cards to share.  You'll see frequent use of the I {Heart} Hearts set which is currently part of a special promotion for Stampin' Up!®.  For every set purchased, they will contribute $2 to help victims of the earthquake in Haiti.  I know Valentine's Day is upon us but please consider this set for your collection as you don't need to wait until Valentine's Day to tell someone you love them.  Of the three cards I'm sharing today, one is pretty tame while the other two might be considered a little on the risky side.  Either way, they are all fun and certainly communicate romance and love between you and your sweetie.

The first card is our "tame" card.  The one that Tim can show people without blushing.  LOL  For this card, you will need the following items:

• Stamp Sets:  I {Heart} Hearts, Define Your Life
• Card Stock:  Real Red, Chocolate Chip, Kraft
• Ink:  Versamark and Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad
• Tools and Accessories:  Stamp-A-Ma Jig, Heart to Heart Punch, Black Embossing Powder

The card base is Chocolate Chip.  To begin, you will be selecting 3 meaningful phrases from Define Your Life, I selected "XOXOXO," "always", and "together."  I cut a piece of Real Red card stock just a bit smaller than my card front.  I stamped the sentiments in a pattern similar to a newspaper listing using my Versamark.  I made use of my Stamp-A-Ma Jig to line up the phrases each time.  On separate pieces of Real Red I stamped my three phrases again and then embossed in black.  I trimmed these to size and adhered to some Chocolate Chip before adhering to my card front.  Use glue dots or dimensionals to raise them up.  After, I stamped several hearts using I {Heart} Hearts and then cut them out using both paper snips or my Heart to Heart punch.  I glued these hearts to the front in between the embossed definitions.

Now for card number 2.  I actually created the center 4x4 image for a card swap back in August and described it in a previous post.  Since I had not yet added it to a card, I decided to finish it out as a Valentine's Day card. 

The recipe for this card is:

• Stamps: All in the Family, Teeny Tiny Wishes, Cheep Talk, and Define Your Life
• Classic Stampin' Pads:  Real Red, Soft Suede, & Basic Black
• In Color Stampin' Write Markers
• Card Stock:  Very Vanilla, Kraft, Blush Blossom, Real Red
• Designer Series Paper:  Bella Bleu
• Tools/Accessories:  Heart to Heart Punch, Modern Label Punch, Corner Rounder Punch, Watercolor Pencils

As described in the August post, I stamped my couple on the Blush Blossom, coloring them with the Watercolor Pencils and the Stampin' Write markers (the woman's nightgown).   I used the Bella Bleu for the blanket, making sure I crinkled it up a bit.  For this particular couple, I made sure the husband had glasses since Tim wears glasses.  The edges of the Very Vanilla square are brushed with Real Red.  I added the 4x4 swap to a Kraft card front.  Along the left side, I added a strip of Real Red card stock.  Prior to attaching the card stock, I had stamped the XOXOXO sentiment randomly on the card stock using Real Red.  I added a second strip along the bottom of the image.  Using my Heart to Heart Punch, I punched a single heart which I added to the front between the two strips.  

For the inside, I added two Very Vanilla squares and some more Real Red hearts.  You'll notice that I left it blank inside.  Since he's getting more than one Valentine Card, I thought I'd just write a note rather than stamp a sentiment.

Now for the third card, which is definitely a walk on the wild side!  I might even venture to say that this card is even on the sexy side of things.  It was inspired by a card  done by Jackie Barfield.  To create this card, you will need the following items:

• Stamp Sets:  Tote-ally Tess, I {Heart} Hearts, Teeny Tiny Wishes, Whimsical Words
• Card Stock:  Very Vanilla, Basic Black, Real Red
• Designer Series Paper:  Merry Moments
• Ink:  Soft Suede Classic Stampin' Pad, Versamark, Basic Black, Blush Blossom
• Tools and Accessories:  Pinking Hearts Border Punch, Basic Black Satin Ribbon, Heart to Heart Punch, Clear Embossing Powder, Dazzling Diamonds, White Shimmer Paint, Watercolor Pencils, Sticky Strip or Snail

I began by cutting a 3 3/4 inch square of Basic Black card stock and using the Pinking Hearts Border Punch, I made two punches along each side.  After that was complete, I trimmed approximately 1/8 of an inch more off each side.  For our Valentine Vixen, I stamped Tess in Soft Suede onto Very Vanilla. To disguise one area where the sleeve line would normally appear, I added a little red bracelet with some Dazzling Diamonds to give it some bling.  I colored the "teddy" using water color pencils.  I sponged Blush Blossom for the skin tone on the arms, legs and face.  She of course has to have a hand stamped card in hand to present to her sweetie!  This was adhered to the Basic Black medallion that I created.  I then threaded my ribbon through the slits in the medallion.  For the card front, I layered Basic Black and Merry Moments and wrapped the Basic Black around the card front.  I stamped hearts onto a piece of Real Red card stock with Versamark and embossed with Clear Embossing powder.  After punching with my Heart to Heart punch, I glued it onto the lower right corner of my card. 

For the inside, I added another heart onto the visible portion of the ribbon.  On the inside of the heart, I stamped Always from Whimsical Words (SAB set!).  On the opposite side, I added some scrap pieces of Merry Moments and card stock along with a Happy Valentine's Day sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes. 

I hope these cards have inspired you to make something wonderful for your special Valentine this year.  Consider going outside your comfort zone and walk on the wild side! 

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!

Charity

Get Whale Soon

Today, I have a get well card to share.  I made this card for a friend who had a minor heart attack recently and is on the road to recovery but I wanted to make him a card.  For this card, you will need the following items:

• Stamp Sets:  Pun Fun
• Card Stock:  So Saffron, Taken With Teal, Very Vanilla
• Designer Series Paper:  Welcome Neighbor
• Classic Stampin' Pads:  Bermuda Bay
• Tools and Accessories:  Big Shot and Top Note Punch, Watercolor Pencils

To create this card, I cut a Top Note from the Taken with Teal.  I then rotated it one turn counterclockwise and made a second cut to achieve the shape you see.  I layered this onto the So Saffron card stock with a piece of the Designer Series Paper from Welcome Neighbor.  I stamped my whale from Pun Fun onto Very Vanilla and then colored it with the Watercolor Pencils.  I distressed the edges of the square with my thumbnail and then layered it onto my Taken With Teal card stock. 

I hope it makes my friend feel a bit better as he recovers.

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!

Charity

Yellow Submarine

The more I look at the sweet treat cups, the more they remind me of portals in a ship or a yellow submarine.  So, here is the S.S. Lawson, a yellow submarine.

The recipe:

• Stamp Sets:  All in the Family
• Card Stock:  So Saffron, Very Vanilla, Basic Black, Bashful Blue
• Classic Stampin Pads:  Soft Suede, Bashful Blue
• Tools and Accessories:  Circle Cutter, Sweet Treat Cups, Circle Punch, Watercolor Pencils

To create your own submarine, you will need to cut a rectangle and then round the ends using your circle cutter (cut a 1/2 circle on each end).  Cut a smaller square and round the top two corners. Cut holes for the sweet treat cups in each end of the submarine and the top part of the sub.  Line up the submarine pieces and draw a light outline of the circles to act as a guide to stamp your family.  I stamped each of our kids in the lower sub portal holes and my husband and I in the top, coloring them with my water color pencil.  After, I sponged Bashful Blue all around the card front.  I then added the sweet treat cups on each of the windows and layered my sub pieces on top.   I cut some additional waves from Bashful Blue card stock, sponging a bit of the ink on the edges as well.  I added a periscope using my Basic Black and wrote the SS Lawson using my Basic Black Stampin' Write Marker.

God Bless and Happy Stampin!
Charity

I {Heart} Hearts

The minute I heard that Stampin' Up!® would be donating $2 from the each I {Heart} Hearts stamp set sold to help earthquake victims in Haiti, I would be ordering this stamp set. This is a great way to help in Haiti. 

My set arrived late last week and this is my first card.  You'll likely see more cards from me using this set later this week, especially since Valentine's Day will be here soon.  I purchased the clear mount version of the stamp set and I must say, I find them to be very well done.  Better than other unmounted stamps that I have used. 

For this card, you will need:

• Stamp Sets:  I {Heart} Hearts, Teeny Tiny Wishes
• Card Stock:  Taken with Teal, Very Vanilla, Basic Black
• Ink:  Versamark Stamp Pad
• Tools and Accessories:  Pinking Hearts Border Punch, Basic Black Satin Ribbon, Black Embossing Powder, Embossing Gun

For this card, I used the medallion type technique with the border punch with the Basic Black.  I cut my card stock square such that it stuck out just a bit from the center of the punch.  I centered my card stock and then punched, I rotated it counterclockwise and repeated on the next side, continuing until all four sides were punched.  A similar technique is described in the Resource area of Splitcoast Stampers.  Later this week, I'll try another step by step photo tutorial.  If you have any of the border punches, take some time to play with it and see what you get.  You might discover some tricks here and there.

My card base is Taken with Teal.  I tied a piece of Basic Black satin ribbon to my card front.  For the image, I stamped my heart with Versamark onto Taken with Teal and then embossed in black.  I cut out the card and adhered it to the center of my Basic Black medallion.  I then layered this onto the Very Vanilla square.  I then adhered to my card front using sticky strip and added the "Thinking of You" sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes.  I also stamped the sentiment using Versamark.

Scroll to the top of the blog to read the details about the special promotion with the I {Heart} Hearts stamp set and how you can help earthquake victims in Haiti.  This special is only available until Feb. 28.

God Bless and Happy Stampin!
Charity

Sweet Pea and Cheep Talk

For today's card, I wanted to play with some of the new products in the current Occasions Mini and our Sale-A-Bration products, combining them with some favorites from the Idea Book and Catalog.

The recipe:

• Stamp Sets:  Cheep Talk
• Card Stock:  Textured Pumpkin Pie, Very Vanilla, Taken With Teal
• Designer Series Paper:  Welcome Neighbor
• Stampin' Write Markers:  Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Soft Suede, Old Olive and Chocolate Chip
• Tools and Accessories:  Sweet Pea Stitched Felt, Pinking Hearts Border Punch

This card is a pretty basic card.  I used my markers to apply color directly to the rubber stamp and then stamped onto my page.  This allowed me to get the different colors for the birds and stem.  I stamped the birds onto a separate page of card stock and then cut them out before adhering them to the branch.  This was adhered to a piece of the Welcome Neighbor Designer Series Paper with the Pinking Hearts along the bottom edge.  I then did a final layer onto a piece of Taken With Teal card stock.  I also used a second piece of the Welcome Neighbor on the Pumpkin Pie card front.  The second piece of designer series paper is the reverse side of the paper used for the birds and branch.  I finished it off with a leaf and flower from the Sweet Pea Stitched Felt embellishments.

See, pretty simple and easy!

God Bless and Happy Stampin'
Charity

Scallop Edge Border Tutorial

As promised, a tutorial for the Scallop Edge Border without the corner edge punch.  The photos for this are not the best, but hopefully they will get the point.  Maybe I'll eventually be cool enough to upload a video.

1. Start with a 3 3/4 inch square.  You can do other sizes as well, the trick is that your sides have to measure in increments equal to the space of one single punch (1 7/8 inch).

2. You will see that your punch has two tick marks on the front edge (circled in red in my photo).

3. Line one edge of your paper against the back of the punch and with the tick mark toward your left (assuming the handle for the punch is pointing away from you).

4. Punch one side completely.

5. Rotate your paper clockwise and line up with the scallops perpendicular to the handle and too your left (again, the punch hand is pointing away from you).

6. Punch the entire side.  At the corner where the two punched sides meet, you will see that the scallops closest to the edge on each side are about the same distance from the corner and you get a bit of a dangling imperfect scallop right at the corner.  You can see this in the photo.

7. Repeat this until you have all four sides punched.  Each of  your corners should look about the same.  There will be a dangling imperfect scallop at each corner.

8. Trim the imperfect scallop as shown for each corner.  Two snips per corner.

9. The end result is a scallop edge border all the way around.  Not quite as elegant as projects using the corner punch, but if you don't have a corner punch, it certainly works, as you saw in yesterdays post.

And the project from yesterday with the finished product, our Up inspired card:

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!

Charity

Squirrel!

OK, so there isn't a squirrel on this card, but it is inspired by the movie Up and even though the dog, Doug, said squirrel about a million times, I don't recall actually seeing a squirrel in that movie.  This movie is a favorite of my family, we love the dog and have been known to shout, "squirrel!" at random mid-sentence. 

As I mentioned, this card is inspired by the movie Up.  I had heard that Up was nominated for an Oscar and as I thought about it, I decided that the Good Neighbor set would make a great card which gives a nod to a great movie as well.  Thinking of the balloons used to move the house, I created a house carried over the neighborhood and trees by a bunch of balloons.  This idea would be perfect for a card to let people know that you are moving to a new home.  Could also work as a birthday card- so many balloons, your house floated up and away!  As a fan of the movie, I hope to see it win an award on Oscar night.

For this card, you will need:

• Stamp Sets: Good Neighbors
• Card Stock:  Kraft, Bashful Blue, Very Vanilla, Assorted Bold Bright scraps
• Designer Series Paper:  Welcome Neighbor
• Classic Stampin' Pads:  Close to Cocoa, Only Orange, Tempting Turquoise, Brilliant Blue, and Old Olive
• Chocolate Chip Stampin' Write Marker
• Tools and Accessories:  Old Olive Grosgrain Ribbon, Dimensionals, Scallop Edge Border, Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, Watercolor Pencils, Crop-A-Dile or Hole Punch

For this card, you'll want to use your Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to help line things up.  Start with your Bashful Blue card base.  Stamp a house and a few trees along the bottom in a monochromatic manner using the Close to Cocoa and Old Olive.  Leave an opening for your floating house.  Stamp some clouds in the sky with Brilliant Blue I stamped my colorful house onto Very Vanilla and then cut that out.  Adhere to your Bashful Blue such that is is floating over the neighborhood you created.  Punch out several balloons using a Crop-A-Dile or Hole Punch.  Glue your balloon bouquet above your house and then draw in a few strings with the Chocolate Chip marker.

For the scallop edge on the Very Vanilla, I measured my punch length so I'd end up with about the same "scallop" when I hit the corners.  I'll do a tutorial of this for you tomorrow so you can see detailed pictures.  I layered my Bashful Blue onto my Very Vanilla and then onto a piece of Welcome Neighbor. 

On the front of my Kraft card stock, I layered some of the Welcome Neighbor DSP and tied my ribbon around the front.  I then added my house.

There it is, a great "we've moved card," a birthday card or even an invite to movie night so you can all watch up!  SQUIRREL!

God Bless and Happy Stampin'
Charity

Rock and Roll Birthday

You've seen the invitations for Phoebe's Rock and Roll Birthday Party, now it is time to see the party!  This party is a great example of how keeping your craft supply closet well stocked can allow you to pull off a great party.  Other than a few additions for party favors, like temporary tattoos, most of the party items were things I had at home.

As each guest arrived, they were given a back stage pass that I made using Extreme Guitar and my marbled card stock from the invitations and some additional marbled card stock made using Bermuda Bay, Dusty Durango and Crushed Curry re-inkers.  On the back, I printed off "VIP, ALL ACCESS PASS TO PHOEBE'S 9TH BIRTHDAY.''  Each girl wrote her name on a pass.  This helped everyone know who they were talking to since we had school, soccer and church friends.

Next the favor "bags."  I made each guest a faux alligator purse using my matchbox die cut, using instructions from another demonstrator, Francine Yee.  This is a pretty fun technique and we will be making a similar project for our March class.  It is actually quite simple.  Once your pieces are cut, apply Versamark all over your card stock.  Sprinkle the clear embossing powder over the surface and shake.  Then, use a stylus to make random lines on the card stock creating the appearance of alligator skin.  I also added an extra "flap" and a Basic Black satin ribbon.  All the purses were made using Rich Razzleberry and Melon Mambo. I loaded each one with a tattoo, gel bracelet and a necklace made from a guitar pick.  I made the guitar picks myself using picks provided by our neighbor (he's in a band).  I punched each one with my Crop-A-Dile.

For activities, the kids got to do three craft items.  First, they made their own body glitter by mixing aloe gel and plain glitter.  We used old bubble containers for their body glitter.  Their next activity was a foam guitar that we found at a local craft store.  Simple craft foam in the shape of a guitar with plenty of stickers.  For their final craft, I let them make their own CD covers.  They decorated using the Extreme Guitar stamp set and Classic Stars jumbo wheel.  I also gave them some Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo, and Dusty Durango pages to use as the CD covers.  In addition, I had some of my marbled paper left from the invitations that they could use.  Once loaded in their CD jewel case, they can add a photo for a fun scrapbook page.  After crafts, they had fun singing and dancing with our Boogie game for Wii.

And, last the cake.  I used a template I found on line.  I enlarged it for use with my sheet cake pan.  I made my own butter cream frosting and fondant.  The fondant is made using marshmallow and it had much better taste than the traditional fondant I've tried in the past.  I originally intended to achieve a purple color for the body but it didn't mix too well resulting in a cool tie dye look so I went with it.  Turned out great.  All he kids loved it.

For foods, I served homemade pizza and nachos.  Tim made mocktails for them.  We renamed kids drinks like Shirley Temple to Hannah Montana.  The kids all got a kick out of ordering their drinks from our bartender.  For decorations, we had pink and black streamers around the house and a disco ball.

The kids had a great time, I hope you enjoyed our party ideas!

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!
Charity

Bra & Panty Card

I've seen these cards are few times and decided it would be fun to try one for myself.  I didn't have a template, nor had a I book marked any sites for one so I opted to do a search.  The first two sites that came up on google had the template I was looking for, the third site, well, let's just say I didn't adventure to that one.  ;0)  To save you some embarrassment, go to the Stamp Owl site for the template I used.

For this card, you will need:

• Stamp Sets:  Flight of the Butterfly
• Card Stock:  Blush Blossom and Very Vanilla.
• Ink:  Blush Blossom and Perfect Plum Classic Stampin' Pads
• Designer Series Paper:  Merry Moments
• Tools and Accessories:  Pinking Hearts Edge Border

I cut my card stock to just over 4 by 7 inches.  I folded in half to get 4 x 3.5 inches and then traced my template onto the cardstock and cut it out.  I sponged some Blush Blossom along the edges, front and back to get some dimension.  Also using my template, I cut my bra and panties from the Merry Moments Designer Series Paper.  Before I attached the bra pieces, I punched the edge of a two small strips of Very Vanilla card stock.  I rubbed my card stock along the edge of my table to break the fibers to allow me to put the lace along the edges of my DSP. 

I was feeling adventurous for the underwear side.  One of my favorite Friend's episodes is the one where Rachel and Phoebe get tattoos.  Rachel ends up with a heart on her hip but Phoebe chickens out and ends up with a blue dot but says it is the "earth as seen from space."  That would be me, chicken out with the one blue dot.  Then, when Ross finds out Rachel got a tattoo, she exclaims, "I got this tiny little heart and Phoebe got the whole world."  I love that line.  So, when I was making this card, I was inspired to add the hint of a tattoo. 

God Bless and Happy Stampin!

Charity

Kid Pick Designs - Liam

This is the final card in the Kid Pick Designs, my personal challenge to myself where I allowed my kids to pick a stamp set at random and then I made a card for them.  My train loving little boy picked Choo Choo. 

For this card, you will need:

• Stamp Sets:  Choo Choo
• Card Stock: Very Vanilla, Bashful Blue, Real Red
• Designer Series Paper:  Sweet Pea
• Classic Stampin Pads:  Basic Black, Crushed Curry, Brilliant Blue, Real Red
• Tools and Accessories:  Heart to Heart Punch, Paper Snips

This card uses a few paper piecing techniques.  I stamped the parts of my train in each of my colors and then cut them out.  I selected a piece of Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper that most resembled a grassy hill and cut it shape, overlapping to achieve the look of rolling hills.  I glued my train on top.  I punched a heart using my Heart to Heart punch and placed that on the flat bed train car.  I used the smoke puff stamp to spell out I Love You in smoke. 

This became a perfect Valentine's Day card and Liam is looking forward to me giving it to him.  His response:  "Cool Mommy.  Is it for me?"

God Bless and Happy Stampin'!
Charity

Kid Pick Designs - Tessa

It's time for Tessa's card.  And for those who know her, you will be surprised to find that she did not pick a stamp set with a cat.  Instead, she picked Love You Much.  I know, sometimes she surprises me as well.

For this card, you will need the following items:

• Stamp Sets:  Love You Much
• Card Stock:  Kraft, Very Vanilla
• Designer Series Paper:  Welcome Neighbor (Sale-A-Bration Item!)
• Inks:  Pretty in Pink Classic Stampin' Pad
• Tools and Accessories:  Brocade 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon

For this card, I began by adhering my ribbon down the center of my card.  On either side of the ribbon, I used my sewing machine to pierce the paper about 1/4" away from the ribbon.  I then added the Welcome Neighbor DSP on top of my ribbon.  I stamped the heart from Love You Much onto the Very Vanilla card stock and then distressed the edges of the paper before adhering on top of the piece of DSP.  I finished with the "friend to friend" stamp in the lower right hand corner.

Tomorrow is our last card of Kid Pick Designs, Liam's pick.

God Bless and Happy Stampin'
Charity