Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration Reusing Christmas Items to Get a Head Start on 2015!

Good morning!  Well, we’ve had our first little blow of winter and it did not go well.  Despite just getting a little snow the roads were bad and school situation was crazy.  Thankfully we’re all safe and hoping the school district and county learn from these issues for the next snow we get.  The snow was perfect for the post we’re sharing today.  Over on the Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration blog we’re sharing ideas of ways to reuse Christmas items for next year.  I love all the great cards and such we receive as gifts but I can’t keep it all so typically I have to throw it all way, but not today.  I decided to save a few of my favorite items and recycle them into new projects (and get a head start for next year!!) 

 

The first project I have for you is a beautiful Christmas card I received from my friend, Patti Chesky (I’ve always loved her creations), check out her blog HERE.  I decided to take this card and turn it into a gift bag.  All I did was add a piece of Always Articoke cardstock that was embossed with the Perfect Polka Dot Embossing Folder, a piece of DSP from the Trim the Tree Speciality Designer Series Paper, as well as some of the Cherry Cobbler ribbon from the Holiday catalog.  This bag turned out so pretty and I’ve already stashed it with my gift packaging supplies so I’m ready to go.

Here’s the picture of Patti’s original card.

 

 

I decided to do a second project as well.  I received this beautiful gift bag from a friend.  With all the glimmer in the paper I knew this would be perfect for the background of a card, so I just cut it down.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the final card I used Crumb Cake cardstock for the cardbase and then matted the gift bag piece with Early Espresso cardstock.  The greeting is from the Bright & Beautiful stamp set and it was cut out with the Big Shot and Apothocary Accents Framelits.  I added a couple pieces of Early Espresso Baker’s Twine to tie the greeting to the card front and then added a couple Garden Green Candy Dots on the greeting piece so they look like they’re what are attaching the baker’s twine to the greeting piece.

 

This card is simple and elegant and I can’t wait to use it next year to send holiday wishes.

Make sure to check out all the other great cards the design team is sharing for ideas on how you can reuse some of the items you have lying around before you throw them away.

Enjoy!

Diana

Fab Friday Sketch Challenge: Bright & Beautiful

Happy Saturday!  Did you survive Black Friday shopping?  Black Friday is one of my favorite days, I love heading out with a friend in the middle of the night and strategically planning our stores so we can get the deals and cross as many gifts off the list as possible (usually I’m about 95% done after this one weekend which is awesome!)  There are just two more days left in the month and the 30-Day Gratitude card challenge and since Thanksgiving is over I’m moving on to Christmas cards for my last two posts.  Today’s card was designed using the FabFriday Sketch challenge layout and uses some of my favorite items (stars, yeah I know!).  I started with Cherry Cobbler for the cardbase and then added a layer of Early Espresso (it’s been a long time since I’ve used this color, don’t know why).  To this I added a piece of Under the Tree Speciality Designer Series Paper (can’t believe I’ve had this DSP package since July and this was the first time I’ve used it, oh my!) and matted the DSP with Garden Green cardstock.  This DSP is also awesome since it’s extra think which makes it perfect for making gift boxes and other 3D items where you need something to be more sturdy.

For the star I used the Bright and Beautiful stamp set and stamped the middle size star with Early Espresso ink on Cherry Cobbler cardstock and the small star was stamped with Versamark ink on Garden Green cardstock and heat embossed with the Heat Tool and Gold Embossing Powder.  Both the stars were cut out with the Big Shot and Star Collection Framelits and attached to the card with dimensionals (each star has dimensionals.  The greeting is from the Lots of Thanks stamp set and I used my Stampin’ Write marker to just in the part of the stamp that I needed (love being able to do this, makes the stamps even more versatile).  I used Paper Snips to trim the sides of the paper and sponged around the edge with Garden Green cardstock before attaching it with dimensionals.

There are so many different options with this sketch and I love to see what everyone comes up with based on the same sketch as a starting point

Below are easy ordering links for the products used on today’s card:

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

 

Enjoy,

Diana

Paper Players Card Sketch: Bright & Beautiful with Lots of Bling!

Good morning!  This week is really flying by, my marathon is this Sunday so this week I've been focusing on getting ready for the big day and getting lots of rest (love an excuse for extra sleep)!  This also means I've had some extra time so I've been able to get some time in the studio to work on some projects on my to do list and just relax and play.  Today I'm sharing the card I made for this weeks Paper Players card sketch challenge, once I saw that the theme was Silver and Gold, I knew I had to play along.  I started with Lost Lagoon for the cardbase and then added a piece of Whisper White cardstock that was matted with Soft Suede cardstock.  I added a piece of Silver Fancy Foil Designer Vellum for the silver polka dots and then added a piece of Lost Lagoon 3/8" Silky Taffeta Ribbon around the cardfront. 

 

I used the Bright & Beautiful stamp set for the greeting (stamped in Lost Lagoon ink) as well as the stars.   For the star I stamped the medium size star with Soft Suede ink on Soft Suede cardstock.  I stamped the smallest star with Versamark Ink on Last Lagoon cardstock and then heat embossed it with the Heat Tool and Silver Embossing Powder.  Both these stars were cut out with the Big Shot and the Star Framelits.  I decided to add another star to the star stack and used some Silver Glimmer Paper for eve extra bling.  I used dimensionals between each star layer so it really has some dimension and texture.

 

I love the simplicity and elegance of this card and it has just the right amount of bling to help spread the holiday cheer.

 

Below are easy ordering links for the products used on today's card:

 

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

 

I hope you enjoy and have a great day!

 

Diana 

Sketch Frenzy Friday Card Sketch Challenge: Bright & Beautiful Christmas Greetings

Happy Friday!  I have to admit I’m glad this was a short week to help us get back into the school and work routine after vacation and summer break, we’re getting better each day.  I don’t know about you but I’m ready to fully embrace fall and the upcoming holidays and am beyond excited for all the great products in this years Holiday Catalog, I can’t stop using these fun new items.  For this weeks Sketch Frenzy Friday sketch challenge I decided to make a Christmas card using lots of fun goodies from the new catalog.  As you know I have love of all things stars right now so I was very excited to use the new Confetti Stars Border Punch as an accent and really drove the rest of the card.  I started with Cherry Cobbler for the Cardbase and added a piece of Basic Black cardstock that was embossed with the Big Shot and the Stylish Stripes Embossing Folder.  Next I took a piece of Gold Foil Paper and the Confetti Stars Punch and punched across so when I attached it to the cardstock the black shows through and the stars really pop. 

Next I used the Bright & Beautiful stamp set and stamped once with the medium star on Whisper White cardstock and Cherry Cobbler ink.  I used the smallest star and stamped on Basic Black cardstock with Versamark ink and used the Heat Tool and Gold Embossing Powder.  Then I used the Big Shot and the Star Collection Framelits to cut out both stars, easy peasy.  I used dimensionals to attach the smaller star so it pops and a Cherry Cobbler Candy Dot from the Regals Candy Dots was added to the center of the star before attaching it to the cardfront.

The last step is the greeting and I used the new super exclusive hostess set, Good Greetings, that

you can only get between now and October 31, 2014 when you host a party of $300 or more (an individual order of $300 or more would also qualify for this free stamp set).  This set has some awesome greetings and coordinates with the Endless Wishes and Endless Birthday Wishes stamp sets so make sure to add it to your collection.  The greeting is stamped on Cherry Cobbler cardstock using Momento Ink.  Do you like the shape of the cut out?  Wonder how I did that?  I used the Chalk Talk Framelits and only used part of the framlit to cut out my greeting (there are lots of great shapes you can create using the framelits if you use your imagination).  The greeting was attached to the card with dimensionals.

I really like the clean, elegant lines (with plenty of bling) of this card, plus it’s very mailable which is perfect for holidays.  I have to admit, typically I have our family Christmas cards completed by the end of August (minus the family picture) so I don’t have to stress about it but I haven’t made this years, or even know what I want to do, this may be a candidate, what do you think? 

Below are easy ordering links for the products used on todays card:

Stylish Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

$7.95

Confetti Stars Punch

$21.95

Gold Foil Sheets

$3.95

Chalk Talk Framelits Die

$24.95

Stars Framelits Die

$26.95

Bright & Beautiful Clear-Mount Stamp Set

$24.95

Regals Candy Dots

$5.95

Neutrals 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

$6.95

Heat Tool

$29.95

Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder

$4.95

Cherry Cobbler 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

$6.95

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

Make sure to check out all the other cards the design team is sharing and come play along, you have lots of options with this sketch layout.

Have a great day and wonderful weekend!

Diana

Hand Stamped Sentiments Color Challenge: Bright & Beautiful

Happy Wednesday!  We've reached the mid point of the week and boy do I have something special for you.  Today I decided to play along with the Hand Stamped Sentiments color challenge which totally had me thinking of Christmas so I decided to share a sneak peak at a brand new stamp set that will be in the new Holiday catalog that's released next week (and give you the opportunity to get this set for FREE, see later for all the details).

For this card I started with Baked Brown Sugar for the card base and then added a layer of Garden Green cardstock under the Whisper White layer.  On this I used the new Bright & Beautiful stamp set and used Stampin' Write Markers to color in the greeting before stamping and then used the Encore Gold ink to stamp the two small snowflakes on the Whisper White Piece.

For the main focal piece I stamped the largest star on Baked Brown Sugar cardstock with the same color ink and then cut it out with the Big Shot and Star Collection Framelits.  Next I took a piece of Cherry Cobbler cardstock and stamped the next size down star in Versamark ink and then embossed it with the Heat Tool and Gold Embossing Powder.  I added a Garden Green candy Dot from the Regals Candy Dots and attached the smaller star to the larger one using dimensionals.

I really liked how this card turned out and it's got lots of elements to help really make it stand out, so it would be a great holiday card (have you decided on what cards your making for the holidays???  I'm behind and haven't even started). 

Now I know I told you have the opportunity to get this brand new stamp set for FREE before it's even released for sale.  Here are the details:

Now is the perfect time to buy a Big Shot (if you don't already own one because between now and August 31 when you purchase a Big Shot you can select one of 5 stamp sets and coordinating framelit bundles for FREE.

When you purchase a Big Shot in August, you will receive one of five free stamp set/framelits bundles below, your choice!  Now if you already have a Big Shot don't worry, we have something for you as well, you can still purchase these designated bundles at an amazing 15% off! This is one deal you won't want to miss, it's only available from August 1-31-as these bundles are one-time only exclusives.

Two Choices:

1) Buy a Big Shot and get a free bundle below.

  and/or

2) Buy a discounted bundle below at a 15% discount.

Bundle	Item Number	Stamp Set	Framelits	Discounted Price
Sumthin' with Bubbly Words Bundle WM	138923	Sumthin' Sumthin'	Word Bubbles	$33.75
Sumthin' with Bubbly Words Bundle CM	138920	Sumthin' Sumthin'	Word Bubbles	$31.25
Decorative Goodies Bundle WM	138924	Oh My Goodies	Deco Labels Collection	$42.25
Decorative Goodies Bundle CM	138921	Oh My Goodies	Deco Labels Collection	$35.95
Celebrating Chalk Talk Bundle WM	138925	Day of Celebration	Chalk Talk	$43.25
Celebrating Chalk Talk Bundle CM	138922	Day of Celebration	Chalk Talk	$37.25
Flowery Daydream Bundle WM	138911	Daydream Medallions	Floral Collection	$54.25
Flowery Daydream Bundle CM	138910	Daydream Medallions	Floral Collection	$45.75
Bright & Beautiful Stars Bundle WM	138644	Bright & Beautiful	Star	$50.75
Bright & Beautiful Stars Bundle CM	138200	Bright & Beautiful	Star	$43.95

NOTES

• Purchase a Big Shot and receive a free bundle (choose one of the five exclusive bundles available)
• There is no limit to the number of times a customer may participate.
• The Bright & Beautiful Stamp Set is part of our holiday catalog (you get a sneak peak).
• Don't forget to check out other great bundles already available in the current catalog, as well as clearance rack and weekly deals (when your order is $150 or more you also qualify for FREE Hostess Benefits for additional savings).   For example, the Magnetic Platform is a must have tool for the Big Shot and Framelits and if you purchase both you're almost near the right purchase amount to qualify for hostess rewards.  (Could this deal get any sweeter?)

I know the Big Shot is an invaluable tool in my Stampin' Studio and I know you'll enjoy it as much as I do, plus you get me as your personal guide to teach you all the tricks and tips to make the most out of this amazing tool!
Below are easy ordering links for the products used on todays card:

Big Shot

$99.95

Bright & Beautiful Stars Clear-Mount Bundle

$43.95

Regals Candy Dots

$5.95

Stampin' Dimensionals

$3.95

Baked Brown Sugar 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

$6.95

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

$8.50

Garden Green 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

$6.95

Cherry Cobbler 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

$6.95

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

 

I hope you enjoy and I would love to help you with your new Big Shot purchase, just let me know if you have any questions or need assistance in placing your order.

 

Happy Stamping,

 

Diana