Encre, papier, ciseaux

Treating Colleagues on Halloween

I hadn't put together treat bags in a while so a few weeks before Halloween, I decided I would put something together for a few colleagues. I had ordered the Fry Box Bigz L die with this in mind and I was pleasantly surprised when I first used it to discover that out of all the box dies we've ever had, this might be the easiest die-cut to assemble. Seriously, you only have four scored lines to fold and a straight line of sticky strip to put on each side and that's it! My only concern was the round scored line at the bottom of each side wasn't showing up well enough on the Designer paper in my first couple of tries and the fold was not as crisp as I wanted it to be. So for the next boxes, I used the stylus from the Simply Scored and went over the scored lines a couple of times before folding up the box. Made a huge difference and the box were just to my liking.

Want to see what they looked like? I used retired Designer Series Papers from a couple of years ago (Pick Your Poison) and a cute Halloween set called Monster Munchies that I snagged up from the Clearance Rack after it had retired. Back when I was living in Quebec City, all of my colleagues and friends were French-Canadians so I never really used English sets much, but in Montreal, it's split about half and half on our floor, with everyone being bilingual anyway, so this opens up the door for me to use whichever language I want. It was the perfect opportunity to use this cute set. Especially since "Bone appétit" is kind of bilingual right there!

 

 

 

 

 

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Monster Munchies
Cardstock: Very Vanilla
Designer Series Paper: Pick Your Poison
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento
Accessories: Fry Box Bigz L Die, Chevron ribbon (non-SU!), Circle Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Cellophane Bags, Black Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon, Decorative Label Punch, Crop-a-Dile,
Stampin' Write Markers (Pumpkin Pie, Basic Grey, Basic Black), Pumpkin Pie Eyelets

 

Featuring Stampin' Up!'s Endless Wishes - Framed Flakes

This card was born out of the Just Add Ink #237 and Merry Monday #132 challenges. I think I've made at least one brown and vanilla snowflake card every year I've been a stamper since discovering this classic and elegant combo. When I saw the Merry Monday challenge, I was eager to get my 2014 version done! I reached out for the Endless Wishes photopolymer stamp set (available on page 32 of the Holidays catalogue.

When I saw we needed to add dry embossing to the card, I immediately thought I could frame the snowflakes with the large frame from the On Film Framelits set. I added ink to the Framelits die before running it through the Big Shot with my cardstock (Crumb Cake ink on Crumb Cake cardstock) to give the details more definition. Then I remembered that this week's Just Add Ink challenge was to use a clear block to stamp on a card, so I decided it would look awesome in the center of the frame, so I inked my block with Crumb Cake ink as well and stamped the image, embossing the ink with Iridescent Ice Stampin' Emboss powder before the ink dried for a touch of shimmer.

The outside of the Very Vanilla cardstock was dry embossed with the Filigree embossing folder (p.15 of Holidays catalogue). Then I wrapped a piece of Baked Brown Sugar thick baker's twine around the frame and tied a Very Vintage Designer Button. The idea for the sentiment block came from pieces that were hanging loose on my desk: I spotted a journaling tag from the Retro Fresh set (last Spring's Occasions catalogue), which just happened to have a Baked Brown Sugar frame on a vanilla background and to be just the right size for my card. Don't you love when creating takes care of itself like that? I created a sentiment with two stamps from the same set and added 2013-2015 In Color Sequins around the frame and in the center of the big snowflake.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Endless Wishes
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake, Baked Brown Sugar
Ink: Baked Brown Sugar, Crumb Cake
Accessories: Very Vintage Designer Buttons, Baked Brown Sugar Thick Baker's Twine,
2013-2015 In Color Sequins, Stampin' Dimensionals, Clear Block, Very Vanilla Medium Envelope,
Filigree Textured Impressions Embossing Folder. Retro Fresh Designer Journaling Tag,
Iridescent Ice Embossing Folder

 

 

 

Want more inspiration with the Endless Wishes set? See an additional card HERE!

 

Love the look of an all-neutral Holidays card? Here are some additional samples:

 Christmas Inkspiration

Snowflake Week

 

 

Featuring Six-Sided Sampler - Fall Hexagons

This card is pretty straightforward. It was born from the My Favorite Things Sketch #198 and some leftover papers from my Autumn Flowers Designer Series Paper pack after making the box I shared yesterday. I'm down to a few scraps so I'm trying to finish off the pack. The stamped images come from the Six-Sided Sampler stamp set and so does the sentiment. I don't have a lot of English cards on hand and I've noticed those sell well at the office, so I'm making a conscious effort to slip an English card in my production once in a while.

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Six-Sided Sampler
Cardstock: Old Olive, Whsper White, Sahara Sand, Cajun Craze
Designer Series Paper: Autumn Flowers
Ink: VersaMark, Old Olive, Soft Sky
Accessories: Regals Sweet Dots, Hexagon Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Sycamore Street Designer Button, Baker's Twine, White Envelope,
Stampin' Emboss Powders (Pool Party, Clear), Bitty Labels Punch Pack, Regals Brads

 

A Happy Box

This week, I received my latest Stampin' Up! order, which included the Gift Box Punch Board. I had resisted preording it because I figured I probably wouldn't make that many boxes and I already have a lot of pretty boxes die-cuts on hand. But then all of those pretty boxes started appearing online and the general feedback was really good about this tool, so I caved and got one for myself.

When I opened up my order, it was already late but I was curious to see how the tool worked, so I reached for an old pack of retired Designer Paper to practice with and followed the instructions on the included sheet. I am happy to report it is super easy to use and that my first try was successful. I used a 12 x 12 sheet, which produces a box with sides that measure 4 x 4 inches. I left the box aside to decorate later.

Today, as I was looking at online challenges, I saw that the Dazzling Diva challenge #47 was "Wrapping It Up," so it gave me the little push I needed to get back to the box and pretty it up. I used a mix of retired elements with some current products as well. See those cute tags on each side of the box? They were created with the Project Life Framelits. They're new to me, but I can already tell I'm going to get a lot of mileage out of those Framelits, both in my scrapbooking and card-making.

You like that folded tag on top of the box? Some of the best ideas you just stumble upon... I was reaching out for Cajun Craze cardstock to mat my punched flowers and I saw a tag in my cardstock file that had been die-cut with the retired Two Tags die. This tag is meant to be folded in half, so it already has a scoring line. As I was playing around with the tag to see what I could do with it, it hit me that I could use the existing fold to wrap the tag over the edge of the box. I tried it and thought it looked so cute! Then I got the idea of adhere only the bottom part of the tag to the box, and to tie the top part in place with the Natural & Old Olive Two-Tone Trim. You can then untie the knot, flip the tag up and open the box without damaging it. Which I know the people I give gifts to like to do!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Yippee-Skippee!
Cardstock: Old Olive, Cajun Craze, Soft Sky, Whisper White
Designer Series Paper: Autumn Flowers
Ink: VersaMark, Cajun Craze
Accessories: Honeycomb Embossing Folder, Project Life Cards and Labels Framelits Dies,
Gift Box Punch Board, Natural & Olive Two-Tone Trim, Pool Party Stampin' Emboss Powder,
Wide Oval Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals, Lots of Tags Dies, Circle Punches, 1-1/4" Burlap Ribbon,
Neutrals Sweet Dots, Mini Labels Punch Pack

 

Visit to the Sugar Shack

Those pictures of my niece just crack me up. She was just starting to ham it up for the camera and make those oversize smiles kids do. Her hair is also the most tousled I've ever seen Must have been the hat, I guess... 

 

 

Lots of Hugs

My Dad and my niece are like two peas in a pod. I can tell my dad really enjoys being a grandfather and because he's always down on the floor playing with her, Megan loves to go up to him and snuggle, as evidenced by a bunch of pictures we have of them together.

This is another Stampin' Up! divided protector I had left from last year's catalogue and the 6x6 format was perfect to use the little paper packs I have, which usually don't work too well with regular 12 x 12 scrapbooking.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Typeset Alphabet Lower, Taffy Alphabet
Ink: VersaMark, Whisper White
Patterned Papers: My Mind's Eye
Accessories: White Stampin' Emboss Powder, Sponge, Apothecary Accents Framelits Dies,
Ovals Framelits Dies, Stampin' Dimensionals, Chevron Border Punch, Ticket Duo Punch,
Vintage Trinkets, Victoria Lace Trim, Lost Lagoon Satin Ribbon,
Project Life Journaling Pen, Retro Roses, Vanilla Satin Roses, Key Charm

 

Project Life: Hugs & Kisses

When I got going on my pocket scrapbooking, I remembered some of the scrapbook patterned papers I own have images on the back that can be cut down to size. I've always used it as die-cuts on regular pages, but I got curious as to what formats they were, so I pulled some of them out to check. One of the companies that have those papers is Bo Bunny. I think they have their own mini albums and pocket protectors, so the sizes are a little different to the Stampin' Up! and Project Life page protectors I had, but with a little tweaking, I managed to change their sizes so they would fit into the pockets. The colors were perfect to match my niece's PJs.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Gently Falling
ink: Pear Pizzazz
Cardstock: Early Espresso, Pear Pizzazz, Pretty in Pink, Cool Caribbean, Riding Hood Red
Embossing folders: Perfect Polka Dots, Woodgrain, Final Press, Chevron, Adorning Accents
Accessories: Hearts Punch, Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper, Stapler, Sycamore Street Satin Ribbon,
Owl Punch (heart), Lace Punch, Silver Ribbon, Subtles Designer Buttons, Heart Trim Border Punch,
Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder, Black alphabet Rub-ons, Striped Dots,
Project Life Journaling Pen

 

Project Life: Cutie Pie

This is my second go at Project Life. This picture of Megan is one of my favorites. She looks so adorable on this. Ironically enough, she was not feeling well that day since she was teething and she kept bursting into tears periodically. This picture was taken in between two crying bouts. The soft colours of the Project Life were perfect to go with the picture.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Tidy Alphabet, Typeset Alphabet Lower
Inks: Soft Suede, Pink Pirouette, Certainly Celery, Peach Passion
Accessories: Pistachio Pudding Ruffled Ribbon (SU!), Metal Ribbon Slide (Making Memories),
Corner Rounder Punch (SU!), White Stampin' Emboss Powder (SU!), Stamp-a-ma-jig (SU!),
Dazzling Diamonds Stampin' Glitter (SU!), Project Life Journaling Pen (SU!),
Circle Punch (SU!)

 

Project Life: Mom, my Pacifier!

This page is my first official try at the Project Life system. I had used pocket protector pages before and made my own insert, but this is the first page I made with actual Project Life cards. I will admit it is definitely a quicker option than traditional scrapbooking. I made this page after coming back from a trip outside of town and I managed to put this together in under an hour. (And what took me the longest was looking through the whole card pile to decide which ones to use!)

The pictures of my niece and sister were taken last year. My sister thought she'd take away the pacifier so we'd had nicer pictures and could see Megan's pretty face. Tears quickly ensued over the pacifier, so I'm not sure we achieved our goal! Look at her crinckled, frustrated face in the last picture... As her grandfather often says, "She doesn't speak but she makes herself understood!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Sweet Shoppe Alphabet Upper and Lower, This and That Remember This rotary stamp
Inks: Midnight Muse, Pumpkin Pie
Project Life Cards: Honey Edition
Accessories: Dazzling Details (SU!), My Way Punch (SU!), Sparkly Dots (?), Dots (Doodlebug Designs),
Project Life Journaling Pens (SU!), Rhinestones (SU!), Chevron Border Punch (SU!),
Corner Rounder Punch (SU!), Alphabet rub-ons (Doodlebug Designs, Making Memories),
2013-2015 In Color Sequins (SU!), Sweet Dots (SU!), Silver ribbon (?)

 

Many Memorable Sunburns

I started this layout years ago. I had selected papers to go with my picture and had written my journaling on a piece of paper. (If you've been following SU! for a while and you remember those Designer Series Papers and the Hodgepodge Hardware kits, then you know I'm not kidding when I say this layout has been years in the making!) Anyway, I didn't have time to finish the layout, so I put it in a project holder and left it aside for later. Well, when going through my patterned papers, I found the kit and decided it was high time to get it finished. Unfortunately, I hadn't sketched the layout I was planning to use so I had to reinvent a new layout based on the pieces cut to size I had on hand.

The journaling basically recalls how, being a redhead, I've had my share of sunburns over the years. In the pockets, I recall my three most memorable ones. One was on my upper thighs, where I hadn't applied sunscreen on the edge of my bathing suit. It hurt so badly when I was sitting down! I still remember being at the restaurant in the evening and fidgeting in my chair. The second one was a sunburn behind the knees. You might not be aware of it, but the skin behind the knees bunches up every time you take a step and it hurts like H-E-*double hockey sticks* when you walk. Which you do a lot during a family vacation. Bad, bad memories. The third memorable sunburn I got in California on my shoulders. I got sunburned so badly that the skin cracked and blood trickled in the cracks. It looked like alligator skin, and three weeks later when I came back from vacation, you could still see the scars.

Needless to say, I've since learned to apply sunscreen very carefully and ideally, before geting dressed to avoid sunburns around where the clothes end.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Weathered wheel, Gorgeous Grunge, Collage Alphabet, On the Edge Lower Alphabet,
Sweet Shoppe Alphabet Lower and Upper, Whimsical Alphabet Upper, Spunky Alphabet
Cardstock: Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Midnight Muse, So Saffron, Whisper White
Designer Series Papers: ?
Ink: Old Olive, VersaMark, Midnight Muse
Accessories: Starburst Framelits Dies, Stampin' Emboss Powders (White, Pool Party, Tango Tangerine),
Champagne Glimmer Paper, Circle Punches, Big Designer Buttons, Designer Tape,
Distressing Tool, Definition Stickers (Making Memories), Pumpkin Pie Satin Ribbon,
Silver Hodgepodge Hardware, White Baker's Twine, Sycamore Street Satin Ribbons,
So Saffron Taffeta Ribbon, Horizontal Slit Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, Stapler,
Bitty Accents Punch Pack (flower), White Cotton Ribbon, Brads, Corner Rounder Punch,
Stampin' Write Markers, Designer Label Punch, Circle Tab Punch

 

Concert Tickets

This page was made with a leftover pocket page protector I had from SU! back when they issued those pre-Project Life years. I had a few pictures taken at the Maroon 5 show in Laval plus my ticket, so it was a quick way to turn those into a page.

The top left picture cracks me up. We were trying to take a selfie with four people in the frame so we squeezed in and it looks like I'm poking my head from underneath Gavin's arms and he's got me in a chokehold. The angle just looks wrong! That being said, it was a beautiful night, a great show with, as Gav put it, "the most civilized crowd ever" so all in all, very enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Patterned papers: ?
Accessories: Lace trim (SU!), Sweet Dots (SU!), Star mask (SU!),
Stampin' Spritzer (SU!), Pool Party reinker (SU!), Chevron Border Punch (SU!), Rhinestones (SU!),
Silver Metallic Paper (SU!), Star Punches (SU!), Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper (SU!),
Baker's Twine (Doodlebug Designs), Washi Tapes, White rub-ons (SU!), Journaling Tag,
Project Life Pen (SU!)

 

Tied Up in a Pretty Bow

Today, I'm sharing something other than a card or a page, for a change: pretty packaging! The project was inspired both by the Dazzling Diva challenge #45 and some new glassine envelopes I recently got. Stampin' Up! has sold glassine envelopes in the past in various formats and I've always loved the look and feel of them.

I first wanted to make Halloween packaging, since this Holiday is coming up, but when I saw the Holiday gift packaging challenge, I switched gears. I had this red cardstock bow (made with the Gift Bow Bigz L die) that had been sitting on my desk forever and it became the starting point of the design. I was looking for patterned papers with Real Red in them to match and found the Nordic Designer Series Papers (from the Holidays catalogue).

It's hard to tell from the pictures, but before I started embellishing the envelope, I ran it through the Big Shot with the Large Polka Dot embossing folder. The sentiment comes from the Christmas Bliss photopolymer stamp set (add-on to the catalogue - you can see the set HERE). I embossed the image in white powder on Soft Sky cardstock, added a strip of Designer Series Paper underneath and cut out the image using an Apothecary Accents Framelits die. Sequins from the Frosted Sequins pack (Holiday Catalogue, p. 22) were added to the envelope and the bow.

I embellished the back flap of the envelope as well. All there is left to do is slip some candy or small gift inside and it is ready to hand out to someone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Christmas Bliss (photopolymer)
Cardstock: Real  Red, Soft Sky
Designer Series Paper: Nordic
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Gift Bow Bigz L Die, Apothecary Accents Framelits Dies, Button,
Frosted Sequins, Glassine Envelope, Large Polka Dot Embossing Folder, Stampin' Dimensionals

 

Project Life: Open Wide

Those pictures of my niece just crack me up. She's eating as though she's never been fed in her life! She's always had a good appetite, which I guess is a good thing since her parents do not have to fight with her to get her to eat. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Patterned Papers: My Mind's Eye
Accessories: Dots, Project Life cards, Corner Rounder punch, Stampin' Write Markers,
Alphabet Stickers (American Crafts), Buttons (Autumn Leaves), Washi Tape (SU!),
Champagne Shimmer Paper (SU!), Circle Punches

 

Wedding Cake Crew

When I saw the As You See It challenge #056, I knew it was the kind of design that leaves a lot of room for creative interpretation. I chose to be more traditional in my interpretation of the sketch in order to use paper scraps. Another old set I had stumbled unto when looking through my stamps was Big Celebrations and I decided to use the wedding image because I don't have a lot of wedding-theme cards on hand. I had also noticed when last using the Label Love stamp set (Annual Catalogue, p. 14) that I had never used the newlyweds sentiment yet. I embossed it with Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder on Silver Metallic Paper.

The main image was embossed in black powder and decorated with rhinestones, Dazzling Details and I colored the plate using the Silver Stampin' Dazzle Marker. The cute white button is from the Nordic Designer Buttons pack, found in the Holidays catalogue, threaded with black needlepoint floss. Frosted sequins from the Holidays catalogue were also scattered on the card for added pizzazz.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Big Celebrations, Un amour d'étiquette (Label Love)
Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White, Smoky Slate
Designer Series Paper: Neutrals Pack, Bride
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Nordic Designer Buttons, Black Needlepoint Floss, Silver Metallic Paper,
Stampin, Dimensionals, Frosted Sequins, Rhinestone Basic Jewels,
Artisan Label Punch, 2-1/2" Circle Punch, Envelope Punch Board, Lace Border Punch,
Black Organza Polka Dot Ribbon, Deco Labels Framelits Dies,
Heart Punch from Bitty Accents Punch Pack

 

Good as Gold Birthday

There was a fun Simply Sent kit offered last year during Sale-A-Bration. I was in the middle of my move to Montreal at that time and managed to snatch a copy of the kit for myself right at the end of the SAB promotion, but never got around to using it. I had opened up the kit to satisfy my curiosity and see the contents, and I had been surprised to discover the cards were note-sized. So the kit got put away and forgotten about until I stumbled unto it earlier today and decided to have a look at the contents again. I was looking at which online challenge I could pair it with for inspiration and decided on the Sweet Sunday Sketch #239 and Just Us Girls #261.

Looking at stamp options, I thought the single stamp Birthday Cake (now retired) would be pretty paired with the polka dot card. I remembered some old Love Notes die-cuts I still have so I went hunting for them. I inked the stamp with Stampin' Write Markers and then I had room left for a sentiment at the bottom, so I looked at my reference binder for an English sentiment I could use (I'm low on English cards) and thought the Carbs, Schmarbs from the Yippee-Skippee! stamp set would be perfect! A little piece of Bermuda Bay taffeta ribbon was added in between, and the gold die-cut pennant from the kit was added as well. I dug out a Calypso Coral paper scrap to add underneath as well.

The second card is the exact design meant to be reproduced with the kit's contents. I simply added a In Color Polka Dot brad from my own supplies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Birthday Cake, Yippee-Skippee!
Designer Series Paper: 2011-2013 In Color Paper Stack
Simply Sent Kit: Good as Gold
Accessories: Love Notes Die-Cuts, Stampin' Write Markers (Pistachio Pudding, Basic Black,
Calypso Coral, Bermuda Bay, Sahara Sand), Stampin' Dimensionals, In Color Polka Dot Brad

 

Some Things are Better Rich...

After a very productive day stamping yesterday, I'm still in a creative mood, so I started the day with a simple card based on the Viva la Verve sketch and color combo challenge. The colors I paired together are Hello Honey, Lost Lagoon (two new In Colors) and Pumpkin Pie. I also pulled out an old retired set that's still a personal favorite, Sip by Sip.

I kept the design pretty simple. I liked the images and colors, so I decided not to overembellish.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Sip by Sip
Cardstock: Pumpkin Pie, Hello Honey, Lost Lagoon, Crumb Cake
Ink: Early Espresso, Hello Honey
Accessories: Brads, Natural Chevron Ribbon, Crumb Cake Envelope,
Stampin' Write Markers, Stampin' Dimensionals

 

Featuring Stampin' Up!'s Wondrous Wreath - Pair of Skates

Happy World Cardmaking Day to you all! I've been getting my craft on today and managed to create five - that's FIVE cards today! I can't remember the last time I had such a productive day of crafting. One of the cards I created was based on the Deconstructed Sketch #171 and the Festive Friday challenge #41. The inspiration picture sparked ideas right away because I have both wreaths, wood and skates stamps, so I started looking through my paper stash and found the long-retired Wintergreen Designer Series pack.

I stamped the Hardwood background stamp on Certainly Celery cardstock and used a sponge to dab ink here and there to create a weathered wood look. I layered papers over it, then stamped the wreath using the Wondrous Wreath stamp set (found in the Holidays Catalogue on page 9). I then used the matching Wonderful Wreath Framelits Dies to cut the wreath out.

 

TIP: I learned a new tip from Stampin' Up! lately. They recommend cutting out the center of the wreath using the Framelits before you stamp the wreath. It will be easier to center the stamp around the center opening (since the stamps are made of photopolymer and therefore clear). If you stamp the wreath first and die-cut second, the metal Framelits has a slight border that prevent you from seeing if the die is perfectly centered or slightly off-kilter. And the second tip? Your stamps and Framelits dies all have a little tab on the side. Those tabs help you align everything perfectly. So when you die-cut the center of your wreath, use a pencil to make a mark on your cardstock where the  tab is, then use that mark for your stamping and when you die-cut the outside of the wreath. Those tips really help me create perfect wreaths every time.

 

The little skates are from the Bundle Up stamp set. I stamped them in Sage Shadow ink on white cardstock, hand-cut them then used the Silver Stampin' Dazzle marker to go over the blade to make it silver. I then used White baker's twine to hang the skates from the top of the wreath. I added a mini jingle bell on the bow.

When I finished, I was looking for a small sentiment I could add at the bottom of the card and found was I was looking for in the Christmas Tagables photopolymer stamp set. This stamp set is not featured in the catalogue, but it is still available for sale (you can see it HERE).

 

A little bit of washi tape and brads finished off the card, and I used Designer paper with the Envelope Punch Board to create a matching envelope.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Wondrous Wreath, Christmas Tagables, Bundle Up
Cardstock: Certainly Celery, Always Artichoke, Whisper White
Designer Series Paper: Wintergreen
Ink: Certainly Celery, Always Artichoke, Sage Shadow
Accessories: Silver Stampin' Dazzle Marker, Stampin' Dimensionals, Wonderful Wreath Framelits Dies,
Mini Jingle Bell, White Baker's Twine, Brads, Washi Tape, Envelope Punch Board, Sponge,
3-1/2-in' Circle Punch

 

Featuring Stampin' Up!'s Bright & Beautiful - Shooting Star

Today's card was inspired by the Fab Friday sketch #51. When I saw it, I knew it would be a perfect excuse to ink my new Bright & Beautiful stamp set. The simple layout was a great way to use the big star of the stamp, which takes up a lot of room on a card. I embossed the sentiment from the same set in Pool Party Stampin' Emboss powder and embossed a frame around the cardstock using the Big Shot and the Filigree Frame embossing folder (p. 15 of the Holidays Catalogue). I added a button from the Nordic Designer Buttons pack (p. 15 as well) in the center of the O for added interest.

The color combo comes straight from the Color Coach suggestions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Color Combo: Hello Honey + Pool Party + Basic Grey

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Éblouissants de joie (Bright & Beautiful)
Cardstock: Basic Grey, Pool Party, Hello Honey
Designer Series Papers: 2011-2013 In Color
Ink: Basic Grey, VersaMark
Accessories: Stampin' Emboss Powder (Clear, Pool Party), Gold Sequin Trim,
Filigree Frame Embossing Folder, Envelope Punch Board, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Stars Framelits Dies, Nordic Designer Buttons, Hello Honey Satin Ribbon, Pool Party Ruffled Ribbon

 

Happy Boo From Me To You!

I was looking through my pile of retired stamps for inspiration and found an older hostess set with Holidays image and I've always liked the Halloween owl in it so I decided to pair it with the new Motley Monsters Designer Series Papers.

The design is inspired by the My Favorite Things sketch #196. I had a pretty clear idea of how I wanted to use the wreath image for the main circle and add the owl on it, but I had a rough start and couldn't make the design work for me. I had initially stamped the wreath on Whisper White paper and die-cut it with the Wonderful Wreath Framelits dies. I had also stamped the owl on white cardstock and the result was very unimpressive, so I was unsure if I could make my original design idea work. The turnaround point was when I remembered I had Crushed Curry Stampin' Emboss powder and got the idea to use it on dark cardstock. The result is a hundred times nicer than my original images!

The owl was embossed with black powder twice, on Tango Tangerine and Crushed Curry cardstock, then punched with the matching punch.

See the cute eyes watching in the darkness on the Design Series paper? I really liked this part of the design, but there's not a whole lot of eyes on there so I had to arrange my pieces so they wouldn't hide the eyes. As I was looking for Halloween sentiments in my stamp collection, I found the retired Pumpkin Patch set, which had smiling pumpkin faces so I used a VersaMarker and these images to add two additional pairs of eyes. Can you tell which ones were added with Crushed Curry embossing powder?

The sentiment comes from the Monster Munchies stamp set. I embossed it in Crushed Curry as well and tied a piece of White & Tangerine Tango Two-Tone Trim (p. 45 of Holidays Catalogue). At the last minute, I spotted some leftover pieces from punching the owl out of different colors of cardstock, so I used the dots to decorate the wreath and a dot and heart to decorate the center of the O in the sentiment. I also had gold sequins scattered on my work table, and I added some to the wreath as well.

A matching envelope was made out of Designer Series paper using the Envelope Punch Board.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Monster Munchies, Meilleurs voeux, Pumpkin Patch
Cardstock: Tango Tangerine, Island Indigo, Crushed Curry
Designer Series Paper: Motley Monsters
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Envelope Punch Board, Owl Punch, Gold Sequin Trim, Circle Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Black and Crushed Curry Stampin' Emboss Powders, White & Tango Tangerine Two-Tone Trim,
Ticket Corner Punch

 

Featuring Stampin' Up!'s Making Spirits Bright - Raise a Glass

Today's card combines the Colour Me challenge #40 and the Monday Lunchtime Sketch #334. I liked the angled panel and the idea of stamping words repeatedly to create a border.

For the background, I used the Crumb Cake side of one of the papers from the Under the Tree Designer Specialty Papers. Remember you can use those for something other than a Holidays project if you use the generic patterns. I inked the edges with a sponge and Whisper White Craft ink, then added Iridescent Ice Stampin' Emboss powder around it for a bit of sparkle.

The drink image was stamped repeatedly in Crisp Cantaloupe ink and once in Calypso Coral ink, using the Stamp-a-ma-jig for perfect placement. The second part of the sentiment was stamped repeatedly in Calypso Coral ink on Crisp Cantaloupe cardstock.

A piece of Baked Brown Sugar thick baker's twine was wrapped around the panel and a Gold Basic Metal Button (page 41 of the Holidays catalogue). 2013-2015 In Color Sequins were added to the card as well.

 

Tip: I stamped a longer piece of cardstock for the main image, glued it on the cardstock at an angle and used my paper trimmer to cut off the edges. I kept the remaining pieces to embellish the inside of the card and the side of the envelope.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Et bonne année... (Making Spirits Bright)
Cardstock: Calypso Coral, Crisp Cantaloupe
Designer Series Specialty Paper: Under the Tree
Ink: Calypso Coral, Crisp Cantaloupe, Whisper White
Accessories: 2013-2015 In Color Sequins, Baked Brown Sugar Baker's Twine,Stamp-a-ma-jig,
Gold Basic Metal Buttons, Iridescent Ice Stampin' Emboss Powder,
Crumb Cake Medium Envelope, Sponge