January 2010 Papertrey Release

Hi everyone, I had a great personal day yesterday. I took photos for you and I have the roll up recipe. I am back to work today but I'll revise my post from yesterday with photos/recipe soon. In the meantime.............

Papertrey had a great release this month. Here's a recap of my cards that can be found in my Papertrey gallery. Be sure to check there for complete supply lists.

First up is a sweet card with a sewing them made from Daily Designs & Sentiments by Alli Miles.

You'll notice my color scheme is inspired by my Valentine Inspiration Station. Note: This card is now up in my Etsy shop.

Here's a nice thinking of you card made from Through the Trees. It's a great set designed by Nichole that will come in handy for all of those hard to make guy cards.

And yes, it's okay to use ribbon on guy cards.

I combined Nichole's Background Basics: Petal Power set with Pine's Pretty Pastels patterned paper to create these super simple notecards. It's always nice to have some notecards like this in your stash.

To see the rest of my creations this month, visit my Papertrey gallery or scroll down to see my blog posts. Sooo, did you find something special at Papertrey this month? Let me know what ya got!

Winter scene birthday card...

This month I need a birthday card for my uncle. Since it's still snowy and blustery outside I thought a winter themed card would be appropriate. Nichole's new Papertrey set called Through the Trees was the perfect set to reach for. It's a great nature and guy themed set all in one.

To create my winter scene, I used two shades of blue Copic markers shown above, Clearly Creative Cardstock and a Brown Stazon Ink Pad. I stamped the trees image onto the clear cardstock with the Brown Stazon ink pad. I then trimmed my image to the desired finished size. Next I turned my stamped image over to work on the back side. It's really easy to make the blue background. Simply color back and forth across the clear cardstock. I used the darker marker on the top and the lighter marker on the bottom, using one marker for each half of my piece of clear cardstock.

When you place the colored image onto a neutral background like Rustic Cream Cardstock, the blue variations of the markers resemble drifts of snow........or perhaps a winter lake scene with blue sky in the background. Very beautiful and the shiny appearance of the card is very striking too.

For the rest of my card, I used patterned paper from Little Yellow Bicycle, Papertrey Enchanted Evening cardstock and ribbon, brown brads and a birthday sentiment from Vintage Picnic. For variations on this technique, use different colored markers to resemble a sunset or perhaps a rainbow.

Have a great day everyone! Today is the 19th which means it's my first personal day of my 12 Days of Me concept. I really am too swamped to take the day off but I've planned for it, and have been looking forward to it....so here goes!! Check back later, I might even pop in to let you know of my scrapbooking progress. :)

JustRite Garden Tour Blog Hop

JustRite Stampers is hosting a Garden Tour Blog Hop today for new sets releasing this month. The timing couldn't be more perfect because I am missing my beautiful flowers......and sunshine. It's been dreary and terribly foggy here for almost 2 weeks. Today the sun finally came out and I saw blue sky. For inspiration, I started thumbing through my pages of flower pictures that I have collected. Hydrangeas are one of my favorite flowers so that's the image I'll be working with today.

The image is from JustRite's new set called Plant A Little Love Borders and Centers. I wasn't quite sure what color scheme I wanted to work with so I looked at these samples below: ......but finally decided to use the colors that I love so much from the photo below. My favorite colors of hydrangeas are when they are turning colors like the ones below. The colors range from light greens to salmonly pinks. I really liked the blue wood paneling in the background too so I kept that in mind for my project too.

I knew I'd be coloring with my Copics for my image, so I wanted to match them up with some patterned papers. The two below are from K & Company.

I stamped the beautifully illustrated hydrangea image onto Kraft cardstock with Palette Black Noir ink. My Copic Sketch colors I used are shown below. I colored my image in a tapping motion, just dotting color onto the entire image randomly with the YG03 marker first. Next, I used the RV42 and R14 to add the shades of pinky/salmon. I did not color any one flower image in detail, I just used that dotting of color in a random pattern. Saves a lot of time that way. The other two greens were used for the leaves. I also used a white gel pen to dot on some color and then I used my fingertip to smudge it before it dried. This added a few highlights to the flowers.

Please note that I'm using only the hydrangea image today. The Plant A Little Love set comes with circle border sentiments, but I wanted to show you that you don't have to use the sentiments with your images. I did end up trimming my hydrangea image like you see in the photo below.

Next up, I wanted to get a little artsy-fartsy today so I got out my Claudine Hellmuth Studio paints. These are great paints that are really thick and do not need to be stirred. I love them and really want to experiment more with them. Igot mine from Ellen Hutson's online store, the link is at the left.

Using my craft mat, I mixed a tiny dab of the white and blue paints. I used my spray bottle to thin the paints down a little. I then sprayed my colored images with water. Since the Copic markers are alcohol based, my colored image did not run or bleed. Using a fine tip paint brush, I worked some blue paint around my colored hydrangeas. I used a little on the left and a little more on the right. While my paint was still wet, I used a needle tool to carve some vertical lines to resemble the wood paneling in my inspiration photo.

To get more of a wood grain look, I used the darker Papertrey tea dye ink and inked up my Hero Arts wood grain stamp. I placed my dry image onto the inked surface, image side down. By pressing my finger down only around the outside of the image, I was able to save my colored image and not get the wood grain on it. You can see the circle I drew in the photo below. I pressed my fingers only around the outside of the image. The areas where I did not press did not pick up the wood grain image. You can zoom in on images below to see a close up of the wood grain.

Next up, it was time to assemble my card. I ended up using distressed sheet music, a gingham ribbon I distressed with the tea dye inks and some PTI Vintage Buttons tied with Rustic Cream Twine.

Here are my completed cards below:And a close up of the pretty hydrangea image below:

And the accents here:

This was such a fun stamping session for me. The painting took a little extra time but it was well worth it. The artist in me got to play a little and I was able to to dig around in my stash for the perfect accents. I think that's what I love about line images so much. The art work is already done for you which allows you to play around with color, your supplies and fun embellishments. I hope you enjoy my cards today and just maybe you got a glimpse of Spring!

The Details: JustRite is taking pre-orders today (the 18th) for the new stamp sets.
Actual product will ship on Wednesday, Jan 20th. You can see all the sets HERE at the JustRite web site.

Also, did you know that JustRite is now hosting weekly Friday Challenges? You have until Thursday Jan 21st at 10 pm Est to participate in the first Challenge. JRC_001: Get Creative With Font! Use JustRite's font to make your own custom card sentiment, scrapbook page title, background paper, monogrammed or personalized 3D gift, home decor, you name it. JustRite wants to see how creative you can get with Font! In celebration of their first ever challenge, they are giving each of their blog readers a chance to add to their font collection by using this coupon code: FONT25BH to receive 25% off all JustRite font sets and the Horizontal & Vertical Stamper! This Coupon Code expires at midnight January 19. Happy shopping.

If you'd like to see other garden creations, please visit these designers' blog today. Please note, if my links aren't working, please visit the JustRite Inspiraition Blog for all of the designers' links.

JustRite Inspiration Blog
Debbie Olson
Sharon Johnson
Angela Barkhouse
Barb Schram
Sharon Harnist
Becca Feeken
Heidi Blankenship
Michele Kovack
Kellie Fortin
Kathy Jones
Jerri Kay Jimenez
Lori Craig

Tiny Treat Sacks

Good morning everyone! Yesterday was quite a day for us. We travelled to two different cities in search of a computer. We debated back and forth several times over a PC vs. a Mac. We finally ended up with a Mac and a new printer and a nice little dent in our pocket book! Everyone was up this morning like it was Christmas, waiting for Dad to install the new computer. Josey is looking forward to the free wi-fi on her Ipod. Jordan wants to play her Webkinz again. I'm looking forward to the 21-1/2" screen. Eric.....well, he's hoping for pancakes or something good for breakfast and a nice afternoon nap. All is well in the Wooderson household today. Now on to today's little project:

Here's a cute idea using some of the doo dads and items from a Valentine kit I had in my Etsy shop a while back. Sometimes you want to give a little treat that is super duper cute but you don't want to invest in a lot of money or time. These little treat sacks are perfect. I used small glassine sacks from Papertrey and slipped in a miniature candy bar. To embellish my sacks, I used a tiny lined notecard that was stamped with images from Pine's Simple Valentine set using the tea dye inks. I punched the top edge of the notecards with a Fiskar's scalloped border punch. The sentiment I used is from Heart Prints. Ribbon is Sweet Blush Swiss Dot. The doo dads were made by embellishing heart punches with Vintage Buttons and more ribbon.

I'm hoping to gradually make more of these Valentine goodies until I have a nice little stash when Valentine's Day comes around. Everyone loves to get a little treat, even if it's just a small gesture. What are you planning for Valentine's Day this year?

Ladies, sorry if you're missing out on my Etsy kits. I know they go fast and a lot of you are disappointed that you miss out. I'll be adding more and more items so check back often.

Love Notes Kit

This little Love Notes kit will be going up today in my Etsy shop. Just a fun little collection of goodies to create some embellished love notes for that special Valentine. Two adorable love note clips will be included with your kit. Use them to collect love notes or to surprise a loved one with a special Valentine message.

Kit contents include mixy-matchy elements, including Papertrey Simple Valentine patterned paper and ribbons, that can be combined in lots of different ways.

All packaged up in a clear top, rectangle tin. Perfect to keep for yourself or give as a gift. Kids would love to assemble all the little doo dads, ribbons, etc.

And here's a little sampling of what you can make from the kit contents. I used the journaling card from Elle's Studio to create a small Valentine notecard. The cute heart doo dad is already assembled so it makes an instant accent piece. I used Papertrey scalloped circle and heart punch for the base of the doo dad. A Pure Poppy Vintage Button and a snippet of Sweet Blush Luxe Satin Ribbon, tied up with Martha Stewart twine complete the doo dad. For the small envelope, I stamped it with elements from Lisa Johnson's Love Songs stamp set in Pure Poppy ink.
I chose the sentiment on the inside of my card to tie in with the word *together* on the front of the card. I am now singing that song in my head, it's a good one!!

There will just a handful of these kits listed in the shop shortly. Have fun! Valentine's Day is one of my favorite holidays so I hope you take part in creating some Valentine goodies this year!!

We're starting out day.......going to drop one red off at Grandma's house and then we're headed to the city to look for a new computer. I can't wait to get a new computer!!

Friday update...

TGIF everyone. Just a few updates this afternoon:

To answer a question: I get my velvet ribbon ric rac from various places. Cindy, at Star Lit Studio(link at left) has lots of fun ribbons and trims. Some I get from craft stores, some at Archiver's and lots of the ric rac comes from auctions/garage sales. Check your local scrapbook store too.

The 12 Days of Me Kit: I have not yet posted the second batch of kits in my Etsy shop yet. I have no access to a printer so I can't finish up the final little bit of printing I need to do. As soon as I can find a way to print, I'll get them done ASAP. There will be about 40 more kits available. For those of you who ordered a kit, it should be arriving very soon. I will be working this weekend on step by step instructions for you that will be posted here on my blog. Thank you for your patience. In the mean time, I hope you are setting the dates for each of your personal days. Go ahead and set one for January and make your plans. I'd love to hear about what you have planned for your special days, if you'd like to share here on the blog. I think others would like to get ideas also.

My first personal day is coming up on the 19th and I promise to take some photos of my finished scrapbook pages. This weekend, I need to get my photos developed and finish cleaning up my stamp area. The pre-planning is working out great!

Have a FUN weekend everyone!!

Rockin' the kingdom...

Hello everyone! Last night was the release party for the new January Papertrey products. I hope you had a good time. I'll be showing you my project samples later but today I have an adorable card for you.

As my little niece grows older, I'll be in more need of little girl cards like the one I have for you today. My girls have outgrown the little princess type cards so this one was really fun to create. I used the border stamp, princess sentiment and tiara from Daily Designs & Sentiments, a new release this month by Alli Miles at Papertrey Ink. I used White Shimmer cardstock to stamp all of my images. The shimmer is so pretty for little girl cards like this. I couldn't resist using Dawn's Say It With Style sentiment set to so spell out U Rock the kingdom. The words *the kingdom* were stamped with a Hero Arts alphabet. The pastel pinks and purples were inspired by Pine's Pretty Pastels patterned paper. I am in love with this paper, you'll see me using it for everything from girly cards to baby cards, Easter cards,etc. I finished off my card with a Sweet Blush Vintage Button, a pretty bow tied with Plum Pudding Swiss Dot Ribbon and purple rhinestone sequins on the tiara.

Be sure to check out all the other great images from Daily Designs & Sentiments, it's a fun little set. Have a rockin' day, my friends. Today I'm finishing day 5 of a week long subbing job at the high school. The kids have been great so it's been a low stress week...that usually doesn't happen with the little darlings. The girls lost their BB game last night in the tournament so we're now done with school basketball. It will be nice to have a long 3 day weekend since the girls have Monday off.

Then on Tuesday........the 19th.......I'm having my first *personal day* adapted from my 12 Days of Me concept. I know many of you have started receiving your kits and don't know exactly how to put them together. My intention was to have a full tutorial here on the blog with photos to guide you. Since my main computer went down, I've had a few delays dealing with uploading photos. So although I might not be able to get the photos I want, I will for sure be posting step by step directions for you. So stay tuned for that, I'll be working on the post over the weekend. Have a great day everyone!

Button Baby Bits...Blue Snail

Today I have an adorable baby card to show you using Baby Button Bits and Inside & Out:Baby. The adorable little snail image was one that Nichole showed you from my messy sketches the other day. If you've followed my blog, you know that I love the little snails. By adding buttons to make little wheels, the little snail now becomes perfect for a baby card. For my main image, I stamped the snail image onto White Shimmer cardstock using Spring Rain ink. I punched out the snail image using a scalloped square punch, then stamped the dotted square border from Borders and Corners: Squares . The Dark Chocolate Vintage Buttons were adhered with small glue dots. The rest of my card front uses Bitty Dot Basics patterned paper, Dark Chocolate Luxe Satin ribbon and a Fiskars border punch.

I embellished the inside of my envelope with more patterned paper strips and a sentiment from Inside & Out: Baby. By stamping the inside of the envelope, a card just seems so much more detailed.

I hope you're enjoying all the sneak peeks this month. Have a great day!