PPA 115

This weeks Pals Paper Arts Challenge used an lovely picture of a front door all dressed up of fall. I love the fall with all of it’s bright and earthy colors. As soon as I saw the picture I knew exactly what I would do. Some nice leaves! The parchment background on the card was scored vertically with Stampin’ Up!’s new Simply Scored scoring board. I have to say that I love to use it and it really is the best one I have used. I have a Martha Stewart Score Board and I never touch it anymore. You can’t really see it in the picture very well but it gives the paper a nice subtle pinstriped look. I also used the EK Tools Triple Layer Maple Leaf punch. I only used two of the layers to keep it a little more simple. The sentiment is from the retired Afterthoughts Clear Mount Set. Thanks for taking a look!

A “Blue” Christmas

So, I am not a huge fan of all red and green for Christmas as I think I have mentioned before. I like lots whites and blues with some traditional colors thrown in. Dark blue has to be my all time favorite color next to brown. It is a very bold and vibrant color and was the inspiration for this card.

As I was browsing through the Holiday Mini Catalog a few weeks ago I came across the Peekaboo Frames Bigz L Die. What an different and versatile die it is. You can make all different size window frames in 5 different shapes. They are great for stamping and image on the front and a little message inside. I used the Stampin’ Up! Merry Winter Clear set for the cute little snowman on the front of the top note window and the phrase on the inside inked in Night of Navy Classic Stampin’ Ink. I also brushed the window agains the stamp pad to give it a little separation from the Snow Burst Textured Impressions Embossing Folder. I like the little swirls too, they make it look a like a little wind swept snow is blowing around. The Merry Christmas is from the Delightful Dozen Clear Mount Stamp set. I love the card and hope you do too!

Stampin’ Up! Products Used:

Ink: Night of Navy

Stamp Sets: Merry Winter, Delightful Dozen

Card Stock: Night of Navy, Very Vanilla

Tools: Snow Burst Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Peekaboo Frames Bigz L Die, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL

Thanks Folio

To continue on with my 3D project theme I give you Thanks Folio! There are so many resources out there for great project ideas. For some reason I can’t remember where I saw this one. I’m sure that it will come to me! Anyway, this project would make a great gift for someone. It has 4 cards and four envelopes inside this neat folio that matches the cards. I have been in the process of using some of my old stuff to make way for my Stampin’ Up! stuff. I made this project with some leftover paper and card stock and some EK Tools punches. The envelopes were made using my new Simply Scored from Stampin’ Up! I have the Martha Stewart Score board but I will be ebaying that soon as I like the Simply Scored much better. Thanks for stopping by and taking a look.

Pals Paper Arts 114

This weeks Pals Paper Arts is a color challenge. The colors are Rich Razzleberry, Lucky Limeade and Pumpkin Pie. I was thinking that the colors remind me of a funky Halloween card so that whats what I did. I used the Stampin’ Up! Spooky Bingo Bits Clear Mount Set for the images and the Happy Halloween came from the Delightful Dozen Clear Mount Set. I really like the color combination together. I hope you do too. Thanks for looking!

Mojo 209

For this weeks Mojo Monday Sketch challenge I wanted to do a non-traditional Christmas Card. I love the browns & blues together, for some reason they remind me of the holiday season. I used some Early Espresso Card Stock for the card. The Snow Burst Textured Impressions Embossing Folder has such a nice depth to it and looks great on Very Vanilla Card Stock. I love shade of the Marina Mist Card Stock and I used the Scallop Trim Border Punch on the one edge. The snow man is from the Merry Winter Clear Mount set and the Merry Christmas is from the incredibly versatile Teeny Tiny Wishes Wood Mount set. The card has a nice frosty feel to it, I’m very happy with the way it came out. Thanks for taking a look!

Birthday Dresser

I know that my friend Sandy’s birthday is in October. I wanted to make her something special and a little different. I was looking around the SplitCoastStampers site the other day and I came across this really neat box with three drawers. I think it looks a to like a dresser. It’s perfect for hiding little surprises like chocolates. I have really been into blues and browns lately, I think it gives a nice rich clean look. The project was pretty straight forward and very easy to follow. It didn’t take long at all and I think the end result is great. Sandy really seemed to like it and I was very happy that she did. I used the Stampin’ Up! sets Happiest Birthday Wishes and the Retired Birthday Bliss. The paper is Marina Mist as well as the ink. I had to go out and get some 12 x 12 paper to do the project, I’ll have to order some from Stampin’ Up! next time. I also used the Scallop Trim Border Punch for the “runner” on the top. The knobs were made from tiny wooden Thread spools that I had and some Rhinestones for a little bling. Thanks for taking a look.

Techniques Workshop Take 2

Last night was my favorite night of the month! We went to our Techniques Workshop hosted by the super talented Sandy (stampwithsandy.com). For this class we covered three different techniques using heat embossing. The first one was just basic heat embossing using VersaMark and the gorgeous Stampin’ Up! Pewter Embossing Powder. The stamp set is from the Holiday Mini and is called Bright Hopes. It’s perfect for heat embossing because it has that regal look about it. The second project was Stained Glass. For this one we stamped onto Vellum with VersaMark and heat embossed with Black Embossing Powder. We then use the Stampin’ Up! Write Markers to color in the image. The stamp set is Delicate Doilies and is perfect for this technique. For our third project we did Emboss Resist. For this we used the Gently Falling stamp set from the Holiday Mini. First the Very Vanilla Card Stock was sponged with multiple colors and then stamped with VersaMark. We heat embossed using Clear Embossing Powder. To complete the effect we sponged on some Early Espresso and then went over the clear embossing with a paper towel. The effect is quite stunning. Pictures of all of the cards are posted below. I can’t wait for next month’s class!! Thanks, as always to Sandy and thanks for looking.

Pumpkin Card Box.

I have been really into 3D Projects this weekend. I am really loving all that you can do with some card stock and some glue. I think I will call it engineering paper instead of paper crafting form now on, has a little more of a manly ring to don’t you think?!?! Anyway, I decided that sets of cards are a great idea for holiday gifts. Who couldn’t use a nice set of Thank You cards. These were made using the Retired Stampin’ Up! Set Afterthoughts and the Wood Mount Set For All You Do. I also used some Brights Stack DSP and the Scallop Trim Border Punch. They have fall like cheery feel to them. Thanks for stopping by!

Little Square Inspiration.

I was looking around the Stampin Pretty blog (www.stampinpretty.com) and I came across a tutorial on how to make a Pizza Box for 3 x 3 cards. I sat down and made these two set over the weekend. The first one is made with the Stampin’ Up1 Retired Punch Bunch Clear Mount Set. I like the color combination because I think that anything that is black with cream or white tends to have a very elegant look about it. The second set is Holiday theme. I like the red and kraft paper together, I think it gives it a very homey feel. I use an EK Tools Postage Stamp Edger and some old Seasons Greetings stamp that I have had for ages. I also made the envelopes! I’m really happy with the way the projects came out and I can’t wait to make some more. Thanks for the tutorial Mary!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom’s birthday. She is the best mom anyone could ever ask for. I know a lot of people say that about their moms but she really is. I wanted to make her a really special card and I was looking around on the Stampin’ Pretty (http://www.stampinpretty.com/) blog yesterday and I came across a link to Mikki’s Creative Corner (http://mikkiscreativecorner.blogspot.com/) and a tutorial for a Tri Shutter Card. This is one of the coolest cards I have seen in a long time. I love the way it looks and the instructions were nice and easy to follow. I made mine with White Card Stock and a Deep Purple. I used some printed paper that I had (waiting for my DSP from Stampin’ Up!, think how much better it will look when I get that!) and some EK Tools Punches that I have. The sentiment is from the Stampin’ Up! Retired Afterthoughts Set. I’m so happy with the way it come out, I hope mom likes it!