Encre, papier, ciseaux

The Making of Harry Potter

This will be the first page for the Harry Potter Warner Bros. Studios tour I took while I was in London. Tickets were a little pricey considering that the studios are an hour outside of London so you have to cover bus fares to get there, but I was lucky enough that the friend I was traveling with immediately agreed to add this to our schedule for the week. I'm glad we went - it was amongst my favorite places we visited. It was very impressive to see the decors, costumes and props in person. So much work went into bringing the Harry Potter world into life. And they did a really good job putting everything together to make this an interesting tour. There was a lot of reading material along the way so I managed to learn all kinds of fun tidbits about the movies and cast.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Basic Black Core'dinations, Copper Foil Sheets (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Wizardry (Reminisce); Harry Potter (Creative Imaginations)
Die: Hogwarts Crest (Harry Potter)
Accessories: Cranberry Crisp Stitched Ribbon (Stampin' Up!);
Harry Potter Alphabet Stickers (Creative Imaginations)
Black Soot and Antiqued Bronze Distress Crayons (Ranger)

 

Pumpkin Spice It Up

Inspiration: Freshly Made Sketch #355 + Stamp Ink Paper #168 (leaf + plaid + die-cut) + Just Us Girls #459 

I found the Pumpkin Spice It Up stamp set in my stash, which was released as an exclusive stamp set last year during Stamptember, and I decided I wanted to ink up the little girl I had not stamped on a card yet. I also have this great Lori Whitlock for Echo Park paper called Celebrate Autumn that I was just dying to dig into. Since this card will be going to someone who speaks English, I was able to pick one of the cute sentiments from the same set and heat-emboss it directly on the plaid paper, using the Rose Gold embossing powder from Simon Says Stamp. It looks amazing paired with this paper, as it looks either reddish or gold depending on which way the light hits the embossing powder, so it complements the paper beautifully. I have to say, my stamping would be a lot easier if I always made English cards! Not having to dig through other stamp sets to find something suitable really cut down on the time it took to finish the card. I did a bit of paper piecing on the little girl, using the linen pattern for her coat and the plaid pattern for her dress. I was tempted to do the bow as well, but I was afraid it would be overkill since I was already using two patterns for the background. The ribbon I used is the Merry Merlot & Copper Reversible Ribbon sold in the Stampin' Up! 2018 Holidays Catalogue. It is really pretty and I like how easily it pairs with more than the suite it belongs to in the catalogue.

 

 

 

   

 

Supplies
Stamps: Pumpkin Spice It Up (The Greeting Farm for Simon Says Stamp)
Cardstock: Lost Lagoon, Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Paper: Celebrate Autumn (Echo Park)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento), VersaMark
Accessories: Pumpkin Spice It Up Dies (The Greeting Farm); Rose Gold Embossing Powder (Simon Says Stamp);
Oak Woodgrain A2 Envelopes (envelopes.com); Markers (Copic); Dotted Scallop Rectangles Dies (Elizabeth Craft Designs);
Stampin' Dimensionals, Merry Merlot & Copper Reversible Ribbon, regals Enamel Shapes (Stampin' Up!);
Stitched Rectangle Stackables Dies, Outside In Stitched Rectangles Dies (Lawn Fawn)

 

Flurry of Snowflakes

Inspiration: Clean&Simple #89 + ColourQ #168 + TGIF #178

This card came together pretty easily. The sketch with the three stars seemed like a perfect opportunity to pull out the Beautiful Blizzard bundle. I looked at past ColourQ combos and drew inspiration from #168, interpreted with current colours (Balmy Blue, Cherry Cobbler, Merry Merlot and Crumb Cake). I had a leftover piece of burlap ribbon that I had cut apart so it's a little slimmer than the ribbon on the spool, that I stapled in place under one of the snowflakes. The borders of the main piece and the card were frosted with a bit of White Frost Glimmer Paint and a dauber for a subtle touch of shimmer. Clear faceted gems were added to two of the snowflakes as well.

Sentiment reads, "If a hug were a snowflake, I'd send you a flurry."  

 

 

 

 

  

Colour Combo: Cherry Cobbler + Merry Merlot + Balmy Blue + Crumb Cake + White

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Tourbillon de flocons (Beautiful Blizzard)
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Merry Merlot, Whisper White
Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Merry Merlot, Balmy Blue
Accessories: White Frost Glimmer Paint, Sponge Dauber, Blizzard Thinlits,
Clear Faceted Gems, White Medium Whisper, 5/8" Burlap Ribbon

 

Halloween Takeout

Inspiration: Simon Says Stamp Monday (It's a Wrap) + In[k]spire Me #368

I used my new Tim Holtz Halloween papers to make cute little take-out boxes. The Takeout dies come from the Stampin' Up! 2018 Holidays catalogue. I also used some adorable faux wax sceal stickers from Recollections. I was convinced those were actual wax sceals when I bought them - until I got them out of the package at home and found out they are puffy stickers! The effect is that convincing! (And the price is way better than wax sceals would be!)

I tested out my Black Soot Distress Crayon on one of the boxes, running it around the edges and smudging the crayon with my fingers. I really like the smoky look you get using this medium. It might be the easiest way to distress edges without getting harsh lines.

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Salutations effroyables (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Pumpkin Pie (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Halloween - 2018 (Tim Holtz Idea-ology)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Faux Wax Sceal Stickers (Recollections); Black Soot Distress Crayon (Ranger);
Stampin' Dimensionals Takeout Thinlits Dies (Stampin' Up!)

 

Dancing in the Rain

Inspiration: Global Design Project #156 + MFT Color Challenge #101

This card was inspired by the CASE the Designer challenge. I liked how the sample showcased had a white dry-embossed background, so that became the starting point of my design. I didn't want to use a folder with a full repeating design, but try to find something that was not full, like in the original design. My choices were limited in my current folders, but I did notice Softly Falling and figured I could work with it. As I was going through stamps, I noticed the umbrella girl in the Beautiful You stamp set and an idea was quickly born.

I stamped the lady in Tuxedo Black Memento ink and colored her with Stampin' Blends markers. I stamped the umbrella on a scrap of paper, colored it and handcut it, to be later popped up on mini Stampin' Dimensionals. I stamped a sentiment from the set ("Life may not be the party you were expecting, but while we're here we might as well dance.") and then I embossed my pattern.

My original idea was to use the fine-tip glue to add glitter to the rain, but my glimmer paint caught my eye on my desk and I decided to apply White Frost glimmer paint to the raised details with a sponge dauber instead. If I was to make the card again, I'd probably try something else or maybe apply the paint differently. I ended up with a result that's a little too blotchy to my liking, but hey, let's call those clouds for the time being.

 

 

 

 

 

Color Combo: Pool Party + Bermuda Bay + Poppy Parade + Powder Pink

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Resplendissante (Beautiful You)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento, Pool Party, Poppy Parade, Bermuda Bay
Accessories: White Medium Envelope, White Frost Glimmer Paint,
Stampin' Blends Markers, Slowly Falling Embossing Folder, Clear Wink of Stella Brush

 

You Will Be Missed

Inspiration: Clean & Simple #88 + Simon Says Stamp Wednesday (Pop It Up)

I wanted to restock my card stash with a "You Will Be Missed" card. I just got my hand on the Little Agenda Trains set from the latest Mama Elephant release and the little girl leaving on the train seemed appropriate for a miss you card. I like that this stamp set can work for Christmas if you want it to, but there's a bunch of images that will make the set appropriate for any holiday of the year. Here, I had the little conductor boy hold balloons as a gift for the person leaving.

The only "you will be missed" sentiment I had was written on three lines and not really convenient for the layout I had in mind, so I used my typewriter to type it on patterned paper. Initially, the sentiment was going to be on the image panel to reflect the sketch, but the top of the card was getting crowded and I found that the design worked better with the sentiment strip at the bottom. The gold stamp is a clear sticker from the Better Together collection that goes with the paper and it worked well with the theme, so I added it to the corner.

The bow is a little random. It's from the Tags & Tidings bundle from the 2018 Holidays Catalogue (Stampin' Up!). The concept of the bundle is that you stamp one image which contains 16 tags, which you can then all die-cut at once using one Thinlits plate. I used it on another card earlier this week and I stamped the whole thing in Emerald Envy ink on white cardstock. It turns out this color also matched the paper I was using on my train card and the little bow tag sitting on my desk caught my eye, so I added it. I love this bundle because small tag dies will be very useful, but the jury is still out on whether I want to keep the stamp together or cut it apart. It happened here that I worked two tags into two projects this week, but I have to wonder how often I'll be able to have one color of ink and cardstock work on various projects. I might be better served to die-cut blank tags and stamp the image I need individually in the right ink colour. I haven't made up my mind about cutting the stamp apart or not just yet, I just need to decide which configuration is going to make my life easier.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Little Agenda Trains (Mama Elephant); Étiquettes des Fêtes (Tags & Tidings - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Whisper White, Daffodil Delight (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Better Together (Amy Tangerine for American Crafts)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Night of Navy, Emerald Envy, Daffodil Delight (Stampin' Up! Classic Ink)
Accessories: Better Together Stickers (American Crafts); Markers (Copic); Typewriter (We R Memory Makers);
Little Agenda Trains Dies (Mama Elephant); Mini Stampin' Dimensionals, White Medium Envelope,
Brights Enamel Shapes, Ticket Corner Punch, Christmas Tags Thinlits, Neutrals Brads (Stampin' Up!);
Silver, White and Sparkly Gel Pens (Gelly Rolls)

 

My Heart Goes Out to You

Inspiration: Hand Stamped Sentiments #298

Unfortunately, I was in need of a sympathy card this week as my godfather's spouse lost her father. I could have looked in my card stash to find something already made, but since this is someone from the family, I felt like making something taylored-made for her. My last haul included the Forever Fall papers from Simple Stories, a beautiful fall collection in unexpected colors. Something about the patterns and colors of this fall collection lent itself well to a sympathy card. The haul also included some foil sheets, which I was curious to use with some of the adhesives I already have on hand at home. I had gold in mind, but the store was all out, so on a whim, I tried the Amber Watercolor sheets from Deco Foil, which has some nice shading to it, going from silver to amber. Here, I applied the foil to chipboard hearts, covered with the Cosmic Shimmer Flake & Glitter Glue (initially bought to go with their gilding flakes). The coverage I got was not even, but it was not the look I was looking for here, so I was fine with it. I used a Antique Bronze Distress Crayon to fill in the empty spaces and the outside borders of the chipboard.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Pensées empathiques (Love & Sympathy - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Midnight Muse (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Forever Fall (Simple Stories)
Ink: Night of Navy (Stampin' Up! Classic Ink)
Accessories: Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder, On Board Mix & Match Chipboard,
Burlap Ribbon (threaded in ribbon), True Gentleman Designer Buttons (Stampin' Up!);
Antique Bronze Distress Crayon (Ranger); Oak Woodgrain A2 Envelope (envelopes.com);
Forever Fall Cardstock Stickers (Simple Stories); Amber Watercolor Foil Sheets (Deco Foil);
Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables Lawn Cuts (Lawn Fawn)

 

Back to School

Well, that was fast! Six days after my niece started school, I was finishing a page about it for my album! I tend to send pictures to be printed by an outside source and scrapbook pictures months or years after the events took plage, but lately, I've been using my home printer more to print out specific pictures when the mood strikes or when I find inspiration. In this case, I had the perfect paper collection ready to be used - Back to School from Echo Park. My niece LOVED her first school week. So much so that she was actually bummed that we had a long weekend due to Labour Day and she kept stating the fact that she did not want to be home and wanted to go back to school! That cracked my sister and I up, as we are doubtful that attitude towards days off will last for long...

The papers from the collection were so well thought-out that it took me no time to put this layout together. My favorite part is the composition book design - so clever that Echo Park thought to include that! I figured I could turn a 4" x 6" card into a composition book and use the label for my title. I used a piece of black sparkly washi tape to do the binding, and I CASE'd myself on the gold medallion idea. I've had those wooden shapes from Stampin' Up! for a few years now and even though I've been using, it feels like the pack has no end (and I had everything in double because I got gifted two packs from Stampin' Up!). The pack includes those starburst shapes that I never knew what to do with. A couple of weeks ago, I made a Happy School Year card on which I added a gold-painted starburst shape. I liked the look so much that I reused the same idea here on the notebook, using the new Vegas Gold shimmer paint Stampin' Up! just released.

Inspiration: Try Stampin' on Tuesday Tic Tac Toe #5 (school + red + dimension)

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Patterned Papers: Back to School (Echo Park)
Stamps: Au jour le jour Project Life, Skinny Mini Alphabet (Stampin' Up!);
À la petite semaine (Kesi'art); Inspire, Together (Heidi Swapp);
Parker Alphabet (Echo Park)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Cucumber Crush, Real Red (Stampin' Up! Classic Ink)
Accessories: Vegas Gold Shimmer Paint, Washi Tape, Project Life Corner Punch, Everyday Label Punch, Mini Stapler,
Designer Buttons, Garden Green Baker's Twine, Gold and White Stampin' Emboss Powders,
Essentials Wooden Elements, Binding Border Punch (Stampin' Up!);
Stitched Rectangles Stackables Lawn Cuts (Lawn Fawn); Project Life Nesting Dies (American Crafts);
Black Glitter Washi Tape (unknown); Decorative Scissors (unknown)

 

Landmarks

I wanted to use the fun Pack Your Bags papers from Carta Bella I recently got from my local store. I knew they would work great for my London trip pictures, and I decided to make a layout about London landmarks. I usually do my titles in French, but I was not too found of the possible equivalents, which didn't have the same punch, so I decided to stick with the English. The layout was inspired by a June 2018 Page Maps sketch, which I modified slightly to fit my needs. The globe paper had little globes showing landmarks from around the world, and I made sure to handcut the one showing London and add it to the bottom of the right page as an ornement. It just happens that all three landmarks shown in the globe are in my pictures as well.

On a side note, you see those little gold corners I added to some of the pictures? They were recently found at my parents' house as we were purging stuff from their basement. I believe they were given as a wedding gift to my parents, along with a beautiful linen album, for them to put their wedding pictures in. My mother was never good at putting pictures in album (most of the pictures that we have organized in albums were done by me - see, scrapbooker in the making!) so it was left unused. What cracks me up is that you can guess how old the package is based on the fact that it states "60 corners for 10 cents" on it. I've seen gold corners at a local craft store, those packs are close to ten bucks now!! Mind you, my parents have also shared with me that they lived on $3K salaries back in their days, so I guess you had to be able to buy stuff for 10 cents if you wanted to be able to live on that revenue. Anyway, those corners are still like new and they're actually better than the ones I've seen, as they have a beautiful shiny gold foil finish to them. Prepare to see them pop up some more in my future layouts!

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Detour (Bo Bunny)
Ink: Soft Sky (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Bazzill; Soft Sky, Island Indigo (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Pack Your Bags (Carta Bella)
Dies: Tasteful Trims Bigz (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: You Are Here New Bradz (Simple Stories); Dotties Blue (Queen & Co);
Say It in Crystals (Prima); White Boho Chic Tiny Alphas (Making Memories);
Treasure Thickers (Dear Lizzy)

 

Clowns and Balloons

Inspiration: Simon Says Stamp Wednesday (Stamp It) + Just Us Girls #157 (Hand-Drawn Elements) + The Card Concept #97

I have had a card concept rolling around in my head for a few months now and I never put it to paper because I didn't know which angle to tackle it from. There's this French-Canadian guy called François Pérusse who does little two-minute sketches for radio that later came out as albums starting in the early 1990s and it became a real phenomenon. The albums had a cult following and pretty much everyone from my generation can quote most of his stuff, à la Monthy Python or Princess Bride. One of the sketch is about two clowns who do "singing telegrams," getting paid to go ring a doorbell and sing people a message. They have this hilarious birthday song that is insanely fast and starts with "Hello, happy birthday with clowns and balloons..."

The idea came into focus today. I was drawn to the inspiration picture from The Card Concept - I really love the candy colors against the white background, so I started pulling out similar colours from the Designer Series Paper Stack and created a striped background on a white card base. Then I started going through my current stamps to find something fitting. I initally had settled on the Bubble Over stamp set. I started stamping the bottles in colorful hues, but I wasn't really getting inspired by the result. Then I spotted the Clowning Around stamp set on my desk. I had initially pulled it out to make a card based on the song I was talking about. Then I put the stamp set, and I pulled it out again last week after seeing an ooold card I made back when the stamp set was issued, probably a good decade ago, on which I had used my Perfect Layers tool to make a funky shaped main image and mat it. It inspired me to try to make a modern version of that card, and then I suddenly realized that I could make all of those various different ideas come together on a single project! The bright colors from the background I had just created were perfect for the clown and once I switched to that idea, the ideas started coming really fast.

Back in the days, I used to ink the image with markers, huff on the stamp and stamp the image. In all honesty, while it was creating a fun colorful image, it also made for very muted colours because the markers were not as vivid as ink direct to rubber. The last time I ran into this problem, I placed the stamp in my stamping platform, inked one area with markers at a time and reinked with markers two or three times for each color getting a really crisp colour. But this stamp set is old and mounted on wood blocks. This might be the first time in my life I have been unhappy about wood-mount stamps (I've gotten used to unmounted, but I still very much love wood-mount). To get around the problem, I stamped the clown various times and paper-pieced him to get a vivid image in multiple colors.

Because the sentiment was long and obviously not something I had on hand, I decided to handwrite it, and for a fun look, I decided I would write around the clown! This was good timing, as this week's Just Us Girls challenge calls for hand-drawn elements. Finally, I went looking around for balloons, and the ones I had in Stampin' Up! sets matching the punch were unfortunately too big for the scale of my card, but I remembered that I had a few bouquet of balloons in MFT sets, and  I found what I was looking for in the Happy Hippos stamp set. The balloons were colored with Stampin' Blends markers. (I'm really happy to have alcohol markers that match my SU! cardstock and papers. Now that we have a wider range of colors available, I'm using them more and more.)

Finally, I added a tiny ribbon bow on the matching strip of paper, and I matted my funky image with a piece of black glimmer paper, using my Perfect Layers ruler. I wish I had not added the pants with Dimensionals and added the pearl and Candy Dots BEFORE I used the Perfect Layers, but I managed to make it work nonetheless - just with a bit more effort.

 

 

 

  

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies (unless otherwise noted)
Stamps: Clowning Around; Happy Hippos (My Favorite Things)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Black Glimmer Paper
Designer Series Paper Stacks: Brights, Subtles, 2018-2020 In Color
Inks: Poppy Parade, Pineapple Punch, Mango Melody, Balmy Blue,
Granny Apple Green, Petal Pink
Accessories: Brights Candy Dots, Pearl Basic Jewels, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Perfect Layers, Basic Black Stampin' Write Marker, Stampin' Blends Markers,
Pineapple Punch 1/8" Grosgrain Ribbon; Happy Hippos Dies (My Favorite Things)

 

Copper Leaf

Inspiration: Color Throwdown #509 + CAS(E) This Sketch #288

Fall is here, even though it hasn't felt like it lately with the heat wave we're still experiencing. That being said, the days are getting shorter and the fact that it's getting dark early is reminding me that summer days are over. I'm trying to get myself in the right mindsight and use my fall stamps before we get into heavily into the Holidays stuff. The CAS(E) sketch seemed perfect to use my big detailed leaf die.

I used the Copper Stampin' Emboss powder for the sentiment, which I love, but I have to say, the Copper foil paper is so shiny, the embossing powder looks very dull side by side to it. The card base was embossed with my beloved Tin Tile 3D embossing folder, and I dry-brushed some equally beloved Copper glimmer paint on it. You've seen me use this technique on a few recent projects and I honestly want to do it on every project because it looks so good!

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Feuilles en fête (Falling for Leaves)
Cardstock: Blueberry Bushel, Pumpkin Pie, Cherry Cobbler, Copper Foil Paper
Designer Series Paper: 2018-2020 In Color
Ink: VersaMark, Blueberry Bushel, Pumpkin Pie, Cherry Cobbler
Accessories: Detailed Leaves Thinlits, 5/8"/ Burlap Ribbon, White Medium Envelope.
Stampin' Dimensionals, Tin Tile 3D Embossing Folder, Bright Copper Sihimmer Paint,
Envelope Punch Board (Corner Rounder), Copper Stampin' Emboss Powder

 

Everlasting Love

Inspiration: CAS Colours & Sketches #288 + Try Stampin' on Tuesday #378

I wasn't really sure why I was going with my design when I started this card. I just knew I wanted to make cards for my Stampin' Up! downline and try to use the regular catalogue stamps before heavily diving into Christmas. I had not used Floral Phrases basically since buying it when it came out and I decided it could work well with the colours and sketch I picked. Midway, I started doubting if the stamp set would work for the long panel, as stamping the roses and sentiment did not fill as much space as I thought, I knew I wanted to add a ribbon, and I had stamped my sentiment higher than the middle with that purpose in mind, but it still felt a little bare, and so I had the idea of dry embossing a piece of cardstock the same colour as the panel so that I could add texture without visually breaking up the panel too much. I'm really happy with the touch of sophistication that little addition did for the card.

The French sentiment reads, "May you always love each other more than yesterday and less than tomorrow."

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Pensées florales (Floral Phrases)
Cardstock: Night of Navy, Crushed Curry, Gorgeous Grape
Ink: Night of Navy, Gorgeous Grape, VersaMark
Accessories: Gorgeous Grape 1/4" Mini Striped Ribbon, Gold Stampin'
Emboss Powder, White Medium Envelope, Swirls & Curls Embossing Folder

 

Pretty Poinsettia

Inspiration: Simon Says Stamp Monday (Stamp On It) + Clean & Simple #87

This is another card that I created while going blind. I grabbed a couple of random supplies - the Festive Farm Designer Series Paper and the Stylish Christmas stamp set from the annual catalogue - and I started working off of the sketch I had picked. It didn't start as intended, as I cut my white wood paper a quarter inch too narrow. Before I went back and cut another piece, I decided to see if I could make it work instead. That's how the sparkly border came about. And because my star-patterned paper was too long, I decided to turn it into a banner instead. Those unplanned changes actually made the card more interesting in the end,

The flourish from the stamp set was stamping with Champagne Mist Glimmer Paint, which I applied to the stamp with a sponge dauber. The little snowflakes from the same stamp set were also added to the patterned paper with the Grey Granite ink. Metallic pearls in silver were added to the center of the poinsettia. I'm really happy with how this card turned out - it's so different from the last card I have made with the same stamp set. This one has more of a vintage feel to it. I'm totally in love with this stamp set - it is just a little hard to use as you need to apply ink very very lightly if you want to keep the details of the Distinktive stamp visible. I was struggling with my Cherry Cobbler ink pad more than I had with the Poppy Parade one before. Not sure why...

The sentiment reads, "Happy New Year" and was borrowed from the Feathers & Frost stamp set just so I could have something in French, as Stylish Christmas has not been translated.

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Stylish Christmas, Plumes et givre (Feathers & Frost)
Cardstock: Garden Green, Whisper White
Designer Series Paper: Festive Farm
Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green, Grey Granite
Accessories: Sponge Dauber, Champagne Mist Glimmer Paint, White Medium Envelope,
Stampin' Dimensionals, Festive Farm Cotton Twine, Metallic Pearls, Detailed Leaves Thinlits,
Joyous Noel 6" x 6" Glimmer Paper

 

Lunch Box Notes

Inspiration: The Paper Players #408

My niece started kindergarden this week. I saw her this weekend and she was really excited to tell me about starting school. She said she loved it and she added that she was actually upset to have a long weekend because she really wanted to be able to go back! Her mom and I looked at each other when she said that, because we cannot help but wonder how long that will last... LOL! When I saw the Paper Players challenge to make little notes for the lunch box, I thought it was absolutely perfect, since my niece had mentioned she now had to bring her own lunches, and that school was not providing the meals like daycare was. Haha! Her mom is not a crafter, but I'm pretty sure she will be happy to slip little notes in her lunches if I provide some for her. I have very fond memories of little handwritten notes I would find from my mom in my own lunches. I had the luxury of eating home most of the time, so lunchboxes were actually mostly for school outings and special events (like when we were going skiing with school). Because she was not making lunches often, my mom made it a habit to slip in a little note in with the lunches, usually saying something short and sweet like "I hope you have a great day - be kind to your friends and don't break a leg! Love, mom." I've always loved receiving mail of any kind and those notes were no exception. I remember the first time I found a note in my lunchbox - my friends took notice and seemed bummed that they didn't have one. The next time we had an activity with school, half of the lunchboxes were suddenly filled with little notes! I think my mom unknowingly started a trend. :)

To make my life simpler, I could certainly have pulled some paper and ornaments and made a series of cards using the same supplies, but where's the fun in that! I saw it as a great opportunity to use paper scraps and stamps, and once I got going, I had a hard time stopping. Those little notes are addictive! I used to make a bunch of those to slip into customers' shopping bags. I was happy to find a new reason to make some mini cards again.

On a side note, We R Memory Makers is bringing back the Perfect Layers. Stampin' Up! used to carry that tool and I was crushed when they discontinued it, as it was one of my favorite tool. Seeing it pop up made me want to dig my rulers out again. One of the thing I particularly enjoyed with this tool was matting images cut at weird angles, for a retro look. With uneven angles, matting with a paper cutter would be next to impossible, but with the Perfect Layers, it can be done in seconds and perfectly aligned. This was the inspiration for the little bee card.

I managed to finish my 6" x 6" Spring Garden paper pad from Doodlebug with the last card. Love when that happens! I was literally down to just scraps - didn't even have a big enough piece to make a matching envelope or make a 3" x 3" card front (had to piece to scraps and hide the seam with other pieces). My niece inherited all of her mom's and my old Little Ponies, so I think she will appreciate that card.

 

 

 

 

Note #1
Cardstock: So Saffron
Designer Series Paper: Storytime
Punches: Washi Tape, Heart
Framelits: Layering Squares
Accessories: Red Glimmer Paper, Envelope Punch Board, Mini Stapler

 

Note #2
Stamps: Happy Bee-day (Stampendous)
Cardstock: Rose Red, Whisper White
Designer Series Paper: Floral District
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Perfect Layers Tool, Envelope Punch Board (Stampin' Up!);
Silver Moondust Glitter Drops, Pencils (Prismacolor);
Glitter Gloss Aqua Shimmer Brush (Nuvo);
Uppercase and Lowecase Mini Alphabet Dies (Recollections)

 

 Note #3
Stamps: The Scoop (Avery Elle); Alphabet (Studio G)
Cardstock: Peekaboo Peach, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Designer Series Paper: Tasty Treats (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Layering Square Framelits, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Envelope Punch Board, Jelly Bean Sweet Shop Brads (Stampin' Up!);
Pencils (Prismacolor)

 

Note #4
Stamps: Fresh Fruits (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Pineapple Punch (Stampin' Up!)
Designer Series Paper: Fruit Stand (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Stampin' Pastels, Layering Square Framelits, Ice Cream Parlor Buttons,
Envelope Punch Board (Stampin' Up!); Stitched Rectangles Stackables Lawn Cuts (Lawn Fawn)

 

Note #5
Stamps: Circus Train
Cardstock: Lemon Lime Twist
Designer Series Paper: Bubbles & Fizz
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Stitched Rectangles Stackables Lawn Cuts (Lawn Fawn);
Pencils (Prismacolor); 2-1/4" Circle Punch (Stampin' Up!)

 

Note #6
Stamps: Mini Pony Party (The Greeting Farm by Simon Says Stamp); Circle Alphabet (Studio G)
Cardstock: Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Melon Mambo, Lemon Lime Twist (Stampin' Up! Classic Ink)
Accessories: Ice Cream Parlor Buttons, Cotton Twine, Brights Candy Dots,
White Square Envelope, Layering Square Framelits, Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Pencils (Prismacolor)

 

Lace and Pearls for the Newlyweds

Inspiration: Just Add Ink #424 (Add Texture) + Retro Rubber #94 (Anything Goes) + Simon Says Stamp Wednesday (Anything Goes)

During a trip to the craft store, a wedding-themed paper tole kit caught my attention. Wedding cards are not something I get inspiration for easily, and since the images from the paper told kit were super cute, I figured it might help me crank up a few wedding cards. I got going on the kit the very next day, but once I was done assembling it, I wasn't sure what to make with the finished pieces and I was running out of crafting time anyway, so I slipped them in an envelope and put them aside.

They've been sitting there for a while now, but while putting stuff away in my craft room, I noticed the Santa Baby paper pad - the pink caught my attention and made me wonder if those papers could pair nicely with the assembled kit. Now, as the name suggest, Santa Baby is a Christmas paper pad. But as with most collection, if you select the patterns you use carefully, there is a way to work them into a more generic project. So tonight, I decided to give this idea a try and thanks for a perfect sketch from Card Maps July 2018, I was able to assemble this card really quickly. The English Lace specialty paper might be my favorite touch of the design. That paper looks just like the real thing and it has such a nice satiny finish! It does half the job of making the project spectacular for you.

The sentiment comes from the Sweet Essentials stamp set from Stampin' Up!, which has now been retired for a few years. The sentiment reads, "To the newlyweds," and it had just the perfect size and font for my design.

At the last minute, I decided to add Ivory Seashell crystal drops around the center square to give it more interest and definition. It was a good call, because it gave the card more focus. Only thing is that it was getting late and I kept thinking, Try not to put your hand into the existing row of wet drops. While I avoided dragging my hands in the wet drops, I did manage to drag some packaging on it as I was gathering my supplies at the end. I was a little mad at myself for screwing up after repeating to myself the whole time not to touch the wet drops, but I got lucky with my boo-boo: the packaging touched the first row of drops I had made, which was already starting to dry a bit by that time, so you can barely tell. Actually, the top row is a little crooked, but in all honesty, it is were I started and my pearls got more even as I went along, so whether or not I had dropped that packaging on them, they were already not perfect before. So now I'm leaving the card alone for the rest of the night and I will take pictures tomorrow, when the drops are good and dry!

 

 

 

    

 

Supplies
Paper Tole Kit: Wedding Couple (Anita's - DoCrafts)
Stamps: Tendres basiques (Sweet Essentials)
Cardstock: Pink Pirouette, Smoky Slate
Patterned and Specialty Papers: Santa Baby (Prima); English Lace (Tonic)
Ink: Basic Grey
Accessories: Lacy Borders Dies (Lawn Fawn); Metal-Rimmed Pearl, Essentials Jumbo Clip (Stampin' Up!);
Ivory Seashell Crystal Drops (Nuvo); White Square Envelope (envelopes.com)

 

Christmas Cheers

Inspiration: Lawn Fawnatics #35 (Coffee, Tea and Treats) + Sunday Stamps #186

I was really inspired by the sketch from Sunday Stamps and excited that I could easily work the new Reverse Stitched Scalloped Circle Windows in it! The design of this one came really easily. I used the new Really Rainbow Christmas paper from Lawn Fawn, and added a piece of white Grosgrain cardstock (also part of their new release). The texture of this new paer is so cool!

I decided to play up the colors and emboss my sentiment with Melon Mambo embossing powder on turquoise paper. I also played up the rainbow colors in my little elves and their drinks, and with the colorful gems I added around them. This is definitely not your typical Holidays card!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Holiday Helpers (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Highland Heather, Daffodeil Delight, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Paper: Really Rainbow Christmas, Woodgrain Cardstock in Neutrals (Lawn Fawn)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); VersaMark; Highland Heather (Stampin' Up! Classic Ink)
Accessories: White Gel Pen (Gelly Roller); Gems (Little Things by Lucy's Cards);
Melon Mambo Stampin' Emboss Powder, White Medium Envelope, Mini Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Markes (Copic); Holiday Helpers Lawn Cuts, Reverse Stitched Scalloped Circle Windows Lawn Cuts,
Lacy Borders Lawn Cuts (Lawn Fawn)

 

 

A Note of Good Luck

Inspiration: MFT Sketch #400

When I saw the MFT sketch, I immediately saw a piano keyboard. I immediately had this image of stamping the white background with the Musical Background from Taylored Expressions and embossing it with clear powder for a subtle tone-on-tone design, and then add an image from the Critter Concert stamp set in the bottom corner. It's a very litteral interpretation of the sketch, but this idea kept running around in my head, so I finally gave it a try to see how it would turn out.

I used the Little Music Notes to create a score out of Silver Foil Paper and I use it to add my die-cut sentiment, which reads "Good Luck." I also pulled out the new Black Foil Sheets from the 2018 Holidays Catalogue to die-cut the treble clef, hoping the shine would make it stand out against the black cardstock underneath. I was a little perplexed when I received the black foil sheet in my preorder. I was expecting them to be shinier. I would call them black glossy paper more than black foil paper, if that makes sense. To me, foil has shimmer to it, but this is more glossy. Not a bad product, you just have to be aware of what you are buying. I use a TON of silver and gold foil paper, but I don't know if that one stands out as much on the project.

I wanted to do something fun for the envelope, so I pulled out one of those Mirror A2 envelopes I recently purchased, and decorated it with matching images and die-cuts.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Critter Concert (Lawn Fawn); Musical Background (Taylored Expressions)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Basic Black, Mango Melody, Silver and Black Foil Papers (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: VersaMark; Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Critter Concert Lawn Cuts, Little Music Notes Lawn Cuts (Lawn Fawn);
bonne retraite chance journée Dies (simple à souhaits); Markers (Copic);
Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder (Stampin' Up!); Mirror A2 Envelope (envelopes.com)