Sending Wishes and ScanNCut

Hi all!  Today I have a Stampin’ Up! card to share with you:

I used the set Butterfly Basics, Vanilla cardstock and inks from SU!  I stamped (with the help of my MISTI) the yellow airmail motif and the sentiment directly on the card base.  Then I stamped the fern image on a separate piece of vanilla CS.  Then I cut it out.  NO, not by hand!  With my new ScanNCut machine from Brother.

I got a great deal on it recently so I had to go for it!  I’m planning on using it mainly for stamping images and then cutting them out – that means I don’t need to buy matching dies for all my stamps.  Or in this case, there isn’t even a matching die!  So far it’s working great and I’ll have more info about it in later blog posts and possibly even videos.

I used the sketch from Freshly Made Sketches:

I hope you like it and TFL!

Framed Thanks

Hi all!  I have another card for you today that uses the MISTI stamp tool for positioning/stamping:

I used the Simply Sketched set from Stampin’ Up! and I watercolored the branches with Distress reinkers.  Here’s the video:

I hope you like it and TFL!

Perfect Pennants

Hi all! A while back, I got an order from Stampin’ Up! and I totally forgot about it until now!  I used the current sketch #88 from Papertake Weekly and came up with this:

I got the Perfect Pennants clear mount bundle and used a sentiment, as well as a banner die, from the bundle.  All the patterned paper is from the Watercolor Wonder paper pack and I used Daffodil Delight and Tangerine Tango inks on the square watercolor panel. 

I also used the Gold Squares One (along with the Classic squares) to do the debossed square panel.  In case you’re wondering, I showed the Gold Squares One in the haul video I posted yesterday.  I hope you like it and TFL!

A Little Something

Hi all!  I have another card today that was made for a couple challenges:

I used the Chalk Talk set from Stampin’ Up! as well as their Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder.  The orange layer was stenciled with the Memory Box Garden Vines stencil.  The sketch is from Freshly Made Sketches and the color palette is from Color Throwdown – Basic Gray, Certainly Celery and Tangerine Tango.  I hope you like it and TFL!

Ghostly Shine & Haul

Hi all!  I’ve got a card for you today made for the Simon Says Stamp challenge – Halloween or Halloween colors:

I used the ghost from Spookalicious and a sentiment from Sparkle and Shine.  The clouds were cut with MFT dies and the background stamp is Sunburst.

I’ve also got a haul video for you today – it’s my first order as a new demo (for the 3rd or 4th time! lol!) for Stampin’ Up!

I don’t have a SU! project for you today, but I will soon, so I hope you’ll check back if you’re interested in SU! stuff!  TFL!

You Crack Me Up

Hi all!  This is a reminder post that you still have 1 week to play along with the current All That Scraps challenge – Anything Goes!  Here’s my card for this week:

I used Cracked Lula and a sentiment from an old Stampin’ Up! set.  Lula was colored with Copics and colored pencils with OMS and the egg was paper pieced.

The sketch is from Lucy's Cards and the papers are from the Sweet Afternoon paper pad by Teresa Collins.

We hope you’ll play along!  Just remember to use a C.C. Designs stamp, including - AmyR, Mashi's Muffins, Sweet November, Lil Lads & Lolitas & Webbie's Words.   TFL!

Is that a cupcake…

on your head?  is the name of this adorable image from Stamping Bella:


The sketch is from Tuesday Morning Sketches and the sentiment and matching die are from Stampin’ Up!  She was colored with Copics and the patterned paper pieces were cut out with my Zing using Make-The-Cut.  Have I mentioned lately how much I love MTC?  I added some silk ribbon from PTI and machine stitching to finish this off.

This is also for the There She Goes challenge – sewing, and MarkerPOP - fur/hair. I hope you like it and TFL!

More new stamps and Skoober notecard

I haven't been posting much because I've been really sick lately, and also, I just got back from a trip to California on Sunday! It was a ton of fun and I hope to be scrapping all those pix real soon!

I had a nice surprise waiting for me when I got home - an order that I had placed before I left from Starving Artistamps, Inc. for a whole BUNCH of DoodleFactory stamps! Yay!!

I've seen the images on blogs here and there and finally decided I couldn't live without them anymore! I ordered the full sets of the DoodleFactory Animals, Creatures, and the Halloween images. And those wonderful people threw in the DoodleFactory Birds N Fish for FREE!!

I'm still in the process of mounting them all on EZ Mount, but had to make a card with li'l Skoober right away because he's just too funny!

I started with this notecard that I found at Michael's during my trip. It came as a set of 12 notecards with matching envelopes for only a dollar! Sure, they're only a little over 2 1/4" square, but they're still a great deal. As cute as they already were, I knew I could alter them with some stamping.

And here's my finished notecard (with the matching envy): I used the small version of Skoober which was the perfect size for this mini notecard. I cut the scalloped oval first, then stamped Skoober with Ancient Page ink. I colored a little with Stampin' Up! markers, then smoothed out the pen lines with a water pen, giving it sort of a watercolored look. I gave him a little shadow all around with my water pen and a grey marker. I then ran the oval back through my Big Shot to emboss and sponged the edges. I adhered it over the flower image that was on the notecard and then finished off the inside like this:

Other materials used: "Be Mine" stamp - Cornish Heritage Farms; heart stamp - Papertrey Ink; Tempting Turquoise marker and inkpad, Going Grey marker, and white cardstock - Stampin' Up!; scalloped oval Nestabilities die - Spellbinders.

I'm in the mood for love!

Today's card uses a genious idea by Leslie Miller, which is using a photo turn to keep a gate-fold card shut. I've always loved cards with interesting folds, but it bugged me that my gate cards wouldn't stay shut unless I tied some ribbon around them, which made it difficult for the recipient to re-close. So, thanks a bunch for the idea Leslie!

You've probably noticed a trend of me using Kitchen Sink Stamps lately, and today's card will not deviate from that trend!



I used another image from their "Thanks with Style" set that I adore because of my deep love for hearts and swirls. It took me a while to figure out which Nestabilities I wanted to use with the image. It didn't quite match any shape until I paired it with the new hearts set, and amazingly, it actually fits really well!

A couple more notes about this card: I did some machine stitching along the edges of the grosgrain ribbon to make it look a little fancier and sponged the edges of the patterned paper (which is Loveland from Scenic Route that I *adore*), the plain heart and the sentiment which was punched using Stampin' Up!'s word window punch.

Other materials used: white cardstock from Wausau; red cardstock and grosgrain ribbon from Stampin' Up!; red Brilliance ink from Tsukineko; photo turn and heart brad from unknown sources.

Playing with Amy's sketch

Today's card is based on Amy Rysavy's sketch and card design here: http://prairiepaperandink.typepad.com/amyr/2008/01/friday-sketch-2.html




As you can see, mine is a pretty close copy of her card in that I used the double-layered focal image with the ribbon going across the dividing line, and also the patterned paper bottom. But for my take on it, I used the little slot punch from Stampin' Up! to run the ribbon behind the ovals and tied in a knot on the side. I really like the simplicity and versatility of the sketch and know I will use it again in the future!

As with yesterday's ovals, I hand cut the stamped oval, but then used my Nestabilities for the scalloped oval.

Other materials: oval stamp from Sweet Love set - Papertrey Ink; sentiment stamp, cardstock, and organdy ribbon - Stampin' Up!; patterned paper - Imaginisce; spring pansy VersaMagic Ink - Tsukineko.

My second "real" post!

Can you tell I'm still pretty excited about having started a blog?

After doing my first "real" post, I decided to change the way I list materials. It's a lot more time consuming to re-list things already mentioned, so I'll only put unmentioned materials at the end.

Here's something I said would be a rarity - an "original" creation. I put original in quotation marks because I know I've seen similar ideas before, but I really didn't have any specific creations in mind when making this card.

You can't tell from the picture but the little dots above and below the sentiment are Swarovski crystals and I also used my clear Spica Glitter pen around the outline of the oval Papertrey stamp for a little more sparkle. I did a little paper piercing following the dots on the Stampin' Up! swirl stamp, and I distressed the edges with a distressing tool from Heidi Swapp.

I really wanted to add some ribbon or flowers or other embellies, but couldn't figure out where, so I just left it as it is. Maybe I'll revisit this one later.

BTW - I didn't cut the plain oval with my Nestabilities because this stamp doesn't exactly fit the Nestabilities shape. However, it was really easy to cut out by hand following the outside line of the stamp. I did mat with the Nestabilites oval scallop though, and even though it doesn't match exactly, it's close enough not to matter.

Other materials used (still from memory because I stamped this before I started my blog): sentiment stamp and cardstock- Stampin' Up!; purple ink - Tsukineko VersaFine ink.

First "real" post!

Ok, to give you a better example of what I'm doing, here's a card series I've been working on lately that's based on this beautiful sample by Leslie Miller: http://leslierich.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/2007/11/26/ruby-tuesday-a-breath-of-fresh-air/

I was inspired by her use of a swirl stamp as a stem and adding little Prima flowers to it. I also LOVED the idea of using puffy paint dots as centers! I have to admit that I was really regretting buying all those teeny Primas because I could never figure out what to use for centers. I mean really - who want to use a ton of those things if you have to put a brad or button in the center of every single one?! I thought the puffy paint idea was just plain genious!! Thanks Leslie!

Now here are my versions (mine are super simple): These first two, I used the entire stamp and the stem extended beyond the edge of the embossed rectangle.

Then I tried masking the rectangle so the stem wouldn't extend beyond the edge. I think I prefer this version better (although the sentiment didn't stamp quite right). I also added her ribbon look by cutting a couple slits so I could give the illusion that the ribbon was going under the rectangle.

Materials used (off the top of my head - I promise I'll try to write things down in the future): Foliage stamp - Fancy Pants; sentiments & organdy ribbon- Stampin' Up!; flowers - Prima; green ink - Tsukineko Brilliance Ink; Nestabilites rectangle by Spellbinders.