Encre, papier, ciseaux

Baby Card Envelope

I needed an envelope for my friend's baby card, so I decorated a vellum envelope and pinned it on my gift bag using mini clothespin on which I glued a thin strip of champagne glimmer paper.

My friend's sister had informed me that the theme of the baby's room was owls, so I pulled out my owl punch to do a little wink to that. The vellum envelope was run through the Big Shot using the Large Polka Dot Embossing Folder.

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Cardstock: Vellum, Whisper White, Basic Grey, Calypso Coral, Gold Foil, Crisp Cantaloupe
Accessories: Owl Punch, Envelope Punch Board, Large Polka Dot Embossing Folder,
Mini Clothespin, Champagne Glimmer Paper

 

Miracle

I received this beautiful picture of my friend's baby and I wanted to keep it, so I created a layout around it. The Cut & Paste papers from My Mind's Eye were the perfect colours to go with the picture. I had the pleasure to meet Maélie last week and she's such an adorable, easygoing, smiley baby. Can't help but be taken by her!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Baroque Motifs
Cardstock: Crumb Cake
Patterned Papers: Cut & Paste (My Mind's Eye)
Ink: Soft Sky, Whisper White White, Basic Black (Craft)
Accessories: On Board Alphabet, Typeset Alphabet Dies, On Board Chipboard,
Stampin' Emboss Powders (Clear, Pool Party), Silver Gel Pen, Photo spéciale Die (Florilèges),
Sequins, Frosted Finishes Embellishments, Mint Macaron Lace Trim, Banners Framelits Dies,
Silver Glimmer Heart Sticker

 

Quack Quack

Inspired by some Dare to Get Dirty challenges and Mojo Monday sketch #409.

I like that this baby card is sweet and gender-neutral. I used the adorable ducky from the Something for Baby stamp set (available in the current Stampin' Up! annual catalogue). I used the Eclectic piercing templates to add piercing around the duck and the tag.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Color Combo: So Saffron + Tango Tangerine + Pool Party +
Calypso Coral + Basic Grey

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Something for Baby, Du coq à l'âne
Cardstock: Pool Party, Whisper White, So Saffron, Tangp Tangerine
Designer Series Paper: I Am Me
Ink: Basic Grey
Accessories: Stampin' Write Markers, Chalk Talk Framelits Dies, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Circle Punch, Star Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, Stars Embossing Folder,
Scallop Trim Border Punch, Envelope Punch Board, Paper Piercer and Piercing Templates,
So Saffron Ribbon, Silver Heart (leftover from SS kit)

 

Hello, Baby

Some presentations from Leadership were streamlined, including one by Shelli where she showed the cutest scrapbook layout ever. I was totally taken with her project, so I snapped a picture and made a mental note to reproduce the layout when I had the chance. I finally got around to it last week. Most of what you see on the pages is taken directly from Shelli's project, but I did adapt a couple of details.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Little Sunshine, This and That Date Rotary Stamp
Cardstock: Lost Lagoon, Whisper White, Sahara Sand
Designer Series Paper: Sweet Dreams
Ink: Sahara Sand, Hello Honey, Lost Lagoon, Crisp Cantaloup
Accessories: Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Lucky Stars Embossing Folder,
Sweet Dreams Designer Buttons, White and Calypso Coral Baker's Twine, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Heart Punch, Pewter Stampin' Emboss Powder, On Board Chipboard,
Word Bubbles Framelits Dies, Sweet Dreams Designer Washi Tape, Stampin' Write Markers

 

Life In Pink

This project came about a little differently. I was going through a pile of stuff to put away and found a Make 'n Take project from a few conventions ago. It was a decorated chevron pocket that I had never used. Looking at the sentiment, which in French reads, "Life in pink," I thought the sentiment would be great on a girl baby card. Instead of pulling this set (already retired) to make a brand-new card, I figured I could reuse the elements from the pocket to turn them into a card. Recycling and saving time!

So the card background is actually the pocket that I cut apart to turn into patterned paper. I already had the sentiment with the glimmer paper circle and the olive banner with rhinestone and chevron ribbon, so using the Freshly Made Sketch #187 as inspiration, I cut a tag with the Apothecary Accents Framelits dies out of vellum and added heart-shaped holes in it using a die from the Mini Treat Bag Framelits set. The leftover vellum hearts were glued at the top of the card and decorated with rhinestones.

I used the Something for Baby stamp set to stamp the onesie and hanger, and used the matching Baby's First Framelits dies to cut out of the images.

 

Retiring items featured:

• Crisp Cantaloup Cardstock
• Apothecary Accents Framelits Dies
• Chevron Tag a Bag Gift Bags
• Calypso Coral Chevron Ribbon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Something for Baby, Agréables pensées (retired)
Carddstock: Calypso Coral, Crisp Cantaloup, Old Olive, Whisper White, Vellum
Ink: Calypso Coral, Pool Party
Accessories: Baby's First Framelits Dies, Mini Treat Bag Framelits Dies, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Silver Glimmer Paper, Circle Punch, Apothecary Accents Framelits Dies, Rhinestone Basic Jewels,
Calypso Coral Chevron Ribbon, Chevron Tag a Bag Gift Bags

 

Hello, Baby Boy and Girl

Initially, the idea behind those cards started with a colour combo from a challenge posted online last week - Sahara Sand, Lost Lagoon and Pistachio Pudding. I loved the soft, muted look of the combo, but really struggled to make something that I liked with it. I finally had to leave the project aside before I could come back to it and make it work. As I was putting together the card, I decided I was curious to see what the card would look like if I tried it in a girl colour scheme, so I paired Sahara Sand with Calypso Coral and Crisp Cantaloupe.

What do you think? Do you have a favorite between the two?

By the way, I can't believe the Scallop Edge punch is retiring. I think I'm in denial. It was such a staple and go-to for me, I'm going to really miss it.

 

Retired items featured:

• Little Sunshine Stamp Set (Occasions Catalogue)
• Daydream Medallions Stamp Set
• Scallop Edge Punch
• Starburst Framelits Dies
• Word Bubbles Framelits Dies
• Pistachio Pudding ink Ink and Cardstock
• Crisp Cantaloupe Ink and Cardstock

 

 

 

Colour Combos:

Sahara Sand + Lost Lagoon + Pistachio Pudding

Sahara Sand + Crisp Cantaloupe + Calypso Coral

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Little Sunshine
Cardstock: Sahara Sand, Lost Lagoon, Pistachio Pudding, Crisp Cantaloupe,
Calypso Coral, Very Vanilla
Ink: Sahara Sand, Lost Lagoon, Pistachio Pudding, Crisp Cantaloupe, Calypso Coral
Accessories: Word Bubbles Framelits Dies, Starburst Framelits Dies, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Floral Frames Collection Framelits Dies, Venetian Lace Trim, Lost Lagoon Satin Ribbon,
Scallop Edge Punch, Vanilla Medium Envelopes, Stamp-a-ma-jig

 

Stampin' Up!'s Retiring List: Baby, We've Grown - My Baby

The colours of this card were inspired by a beautiful flower bouquet inspiration picture I saw online. The soft candy colours inspired me to make a baby card, which was perfect because the Baby, We've Grown stamp set is on the retiring list. The design of the card comes from the Just Add Ink challenge #260. I decided to make a long tall card (3-1/4" x 6-1/2"). The bunny image was stamped on watercolor paper with Black StazOn ink and watercolord using reinkers and a blending pen.

By the way, this might be the set of In Colors I'm most sad to see retired to date. The last time I was this sad was the year of Wisteria Wonder, Lucky Limeade, Calypso Coral, Island Indigo and Pool Party, but then four of those five colours made it in our regular collection, so I didn't have to stay sad for long. I've used the current In Colors quite a lot and I'm sad to see them go. Don't forget the cardstock, ink, reinker and matching accessories are only available until stocks run out, so order any extras you might want as soon as possible.

 

Retiring items featured on this card:

• Baby, We've Grown Stamp Set
• In Colors cardstock and ink: Strawberry Slush, Coastal Cabana, Pistachio Pudding
• Fancy Fan Embossing Folder

 

 

 

 

 

Color Combo: So Saffron + Strawberry Slush + Pistachio Pudding +
Coastal Cabana + Peach Passion

 

   

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Beau petit chou (Baby, We've Grown)
Cardstock: So Saffron, Pistachio Pudding, Coastal Cabana, Strawberry Slush, Peach Passion,
watercolor paper
Ink: So Saffron, Pistachio Pudding, Coastal Cabana, Jet Black StazOn
Accessories: Fancy Fan Embossing Folder, 1-3/4" Circle Punch, 2-3/8" Scallop Circle Punch,
Stampin' Dimensionals, Blending Pen, Pistachio Pudding Ruffled Ribbon, White Envelope

 

Baby Talk

Today's card is just something fun and quick I put together when playing with my new Little Sunshine stamp set and Best Year Ever Designer Paper (offered for free during Sale-A-Bration!).

The heart was stamped and embossed first in Pool Party Stampin' Emboss powder, then in Calypso Coral powder. There's a matching punch that goes with that image, which I sadly don't own just yet, so I used the heart Thinlits from the Mini Treat Bag Thinlits set. Matching buttons, from the Best Day ever Accessory Pack, were added to the hearts,and the Coastal Cabana ribbon comes from the pack as well. The "hello baby" bubble was stamped in Crushed Curry then die-cut with the Word Bubbles Framelits dies.

The border image from the stamp set was inked with Stampin' Write markers and stamped on white cardstock. A piece of Crushed Curry ribbon (also from the Best Day Ever Accessory Pack) was added to the left side along with the funky Calypso Coral pompom trim.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Little Sunshine
Cardstock: Whisper White, Sahara Sand
Designer Series Paper: Best Day Ever
Accessories: White Envelope, Calypso Coral Pompom trim, Best Day Ever Accessory Pack,
Word Bubbles Framelits Dies, Sweet Treat Bag Thinlits Dies, White Medium Envelope,
Stampin' Dimenaionals, Pool Party and Calypso Coral Stampin' Emboss Powder

 

Retro Fabulous

This card came together really quickly. I thought the ColourQ combo #271 had a certain retro flair, which prompted me to get my retired She's All That stamp set out. I picked out the pregnant lady image because I need an English baby card in my collection and I used the Dot Dot Dot stamp (sadly, also retired) to add polka dot in the background, to keep with the retro theme. Pairing the colour challenge with the sketch from Create with Connie and Mary #333 helped design the card really quickly.

The idea to mat the image with the Top Note die was a happy coincidence, as I found a Top Note die-cut in my Cherry Cobbler file while looking for cardstock in this colour. I think it looks even better than a rectangle mat would have. You'll notice the image in the sketch is not a perfect rectangle, and that shape worked perfectly with the retro theme, so I played on this when cutting around my image. To add the black mat, I pulled out a long-retired tool that I've always loved: the Perfect Layers rulers. I allowed me to get a perfect 1/16-inch mat around the main image even though it's not a traditional shape (it would have been harder to create a perfect mat using the paper cutter). The rounded Bermuda Bay strip is also a coincidence - I wanted to use textured cardstock in my file and found a piece that had been cut in a wave pattern. I liked the look so instead of cutting it straight, I kept the paper scrap as is to use on my project. A lot of happy coincidences made this card come together really quickly today and I'm really happy with the end result.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Color Combo: Cherry Cobbler + Bermuda Bay + Hello Honey + Crumb Cake +
Basic Black + Whisper White

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: She's All That, Dot Dot Dot, Fine Flourish
Cardstock: Hello Honey, Cherry Cobbler, Bermuda Bay, Basic Black, Crumb Cake
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Hello Honey, VersaMark
Accessories: Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, Brights and Regals Designer Buttons,
Top Note Die, Black Stampin' Emboss Powder, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Perfect Layers Tool and Craft Knife, White Medium Envelope

 

Featuring Stampin' Up!'s Something for Baby - Hi, My Name Is...

I wanted to add a gender-neutral baby card to my card stash, so I pulled out the Something for Baby stamp set, which was released this year in the new annual catalogue, along with matching Framelits dies.

I didn't want to hide the pretty patterned paper so I used vellum for the circle shape. I embossed the circle center with the Polka Dot embossing folder and ran my Whisper White ink pad along the edge to make it stand out.

I found this sentiment in one of my sets that reads, "Hello, My Name Is" and I thought it was perfect to go with the baby theme! I left it blank so the card could be personalized when used.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Something for Baby, Voeux pétillants
Cardstock: So Saffron, Whisper White, Pool Party, Lucky Limeade, Vellum
Patterned Papers: Hello Baby patterned papers (Simple Stories)
Ink: Lucky Limeade, So Saffron, Pool Party, Whisper White (Craft)
Accessories: Banner Punch, Sweet Dots, Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack, Stampin' Write Markers,
Baby's Firsts Framelits, Dimensionals, Starburst Framelits, Polka Dots embossing folder,
Circle and Scallop Circle dies, White Envelope, Rickrack, Starburst Framelits Dies, Handheld Punch

 

Stampin' Up!'s Something for Baby - Welcome Little Angel

Today's card is inspired by the following challenges: Color Throwdown #296 and Paper Craft Crew Card Sketch #97. Isn't the inspiration picture just fabulous? The color scheme really spoke to me and I kept thinking about a baby-theme project, although I'm sure this color combo could work for other themes as well. In a sense, I'm not surprised I was drawn to this color combo, as Kiwi Kiss and Cool Caribbean are at the top of my list of favorite In Colors. I can't believe that SU! didn't bring back either one of them when they changed their color families. I suspect it is because we had similar shades coming in the new families, but still, if we could vote for colours we wish would make a comeback, I'd certainly vote for those two. I'm torn between using the colors on projects since I like them so much and hoarding the small quantity of cardstock I have left for both shades. I know it's silly, but I'm sure some of you can relate!

That being said, I used the Something for Baby stamps set and matching Framelits (which are offered at a reduced price when bought as a bundle) for the accessories. This set doesn't include sentiments, so I pulled out the Baby, We've Grown stamp set for the sentiment. I stamped the "little angel" in grey ink and colored it with markers. Then, I used the Petite Pairs stamp set to add "welcome" before it. I used markers to omit the words I didn't want and only ink "welcome." The sentiment was framed with a die-cut made with the On Film Framelits dies.

A paper doily was folded in half and decorated with rhinestones of various sizes. A small Designer button was added to the baby bib, and a bow was made out of Kiwi Kiss organza ribbon (from a past Sale-A-Bration promo).

The card background was embossed with the Scallops embossing folder and since I was making a 5-1/4 x 5-1/4 square card, the embossing folder wasn't large enough to cover the whole width, so I stamped the safety pin image in the unembossed space at left.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Something for Baby, Beau petit chou (Baby, We've Grown), Quelques lignes (Petite Pairs)
Cardstock: Regal Rose, Pink Pirouette, Kiwi Kiss, Cool Caribbean, Whisper White
Ink: Smoky Slate, Kiwi Kiss
Accessories: Stampin' Write Markers, Subtles Designer Buttons, Kiwi Kiss Organza Ribbon,
On Film Framelits dies, Baby's First Framelits dies, Rhinestone Basic Jewels,
Paper Doily, Stampin' Dimensionals, Scallops Embossing Folder, White Square Envelope

 

Stampin' Up!'s Something for Baby - Lagoon Onesie

Okay, confession time... When I saw the Moonlight Paper Stack in the catalogue, I wasn't too impressed with it. In my defense, the way the papers are pictured doesn't show them very well, especially in the electronic version of the cattie. Then, this pack was part of the preorder and since I had an item I could get at 50% off, I was looking for a little something inexpensive to finish off the order with and decided to take a chance on the paper stack. Boy, am I glad I did! The papers are beautiful. All of them. Love the colors, love the designs, love the practical size... I'm hooked. Be warned: this won't be the last card you'll see using these gorgeous papers.

I really liked this week's Create with Connie and Mary sketch and figured I could take my retiring flower die out for a last spin. Which was what I intended to do when I pulled out my supplies, but then I got inspired to use the baby onesie from the Something for Baby stamp set as the big image instead, and then got the idea that I could add a pierced heart shape on the second piece of paper as the second piece from the sketch. I guess I was itching to use my new stuff. But after focusing on retiring stuff the whole month of May, I think I've done good and earned that right!

We have a new Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack, which I used to punch the little heart out of Silver Glimmer Paper. (On a side note, you might have noticed that the Silver Glimmer paper was on the retiring list and that it is now in the new catalogue with the mention "New" beside it. It's because SU! has changed the color of the Silver paper. I haven't seen the new one up close just yet, but my guess is that it is more grey than the current one, and we now have a Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper, which is more white, so more glittery options to choose from! Which is good because we LOVE our glimmer paper!)

Back to the card, the sentiment comes from the Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set. Three new In Colors are also featured on this card: Lost Lagoon, Hello Honey and Blackberry Bliss. I've used the matching satin ribbon to add a matching bow. I can already tell that Hello Honey and Lost Lagoon will be easy to include in a lot of color combos. Those two shades are instant favorites for me.

 

 

 

Color Combo: Smoky Slate + Lost Lagoon + Hello Honey + Blackberry Bliss

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Something for Baby, Voeux mignons (Teeny Tiny Wishes)
Cardstock: Lost Lagoon, Blackberry Bliss, Whisper White
Designer Series Paper: Moonlight Paper Pack
Ink: Lost Lagoon, Hello Honey
Accessories: Piercing Template and Paper Piercer, Silver Glimmer Paper, Teeny Tiny
Accents Punch Pack, Sweet Dots, Lost Lagoon and Blackberry Bliss satin ribbons,
Stampin' Dimensionals, White Envelope, Corner Rounder Punch

 

 

 

Stampin' Up!'s Something For Baby - Pear Carriage

Something old, something new...

I combined the retiring Etcetera Designer Series Papers with the new Something for Baby stamp set. You know what the best part of this set is? Matching Framelits dies to cut out the image!! Cutting out this carriage image would be much more work if I had to do it by hand! Luckily, the Baby's First Framelits dies let me do it in seconds, and much more precisely that I could have done by hand!

This stamp set only contains image, so you can pair it with any sentiment set of your choice for more options. (This also means that you can get it in wood-mount if you want, which I did and it made me happy!) I picked a sentiment from the Beau petit chou stamp set.

The frame behind the carriage image was created with the Designer Frames embossing folders. I embossed a piece of Night of Navy cardstock and handcut it. (This one doesn't come with a Framelits die...) I added patterned paper in the center, and tied a piece of Victoria lace trim in between my two pieces of patterned paper.

Matching paper was used in combination with the Envelope Punch Board to make a matching envelope. As much as I like to hoard my beautiful paper, I'm trying to fight the urge to do so and use sheets to make matching envelope so that I can limit my mounting amount of paper.

The design of the card was inspired by the Monday Lunchtime Sketch #316.

 

Retiring items used on this card:

• Etcetera Designer Series Papers
• Designer Frames Embossing Folders
• Victoria Lace Trim

 

 

On a side note, there's only a couple of days left to order from the 2013-2014 Catalogue (last day is June 4th). Stampin' Up! has discounted some of the retiring items so I invite you to have a last look at the retiring list to see if there's any last-minute order you wish to place. The 2014-2015 Annual Catalogue will be posting online tomorrow (June 2nd) so you can combine something old and something new on your order if you wish. How neat is that! Send me an e-mail if you're ready to order.

 

List of the Retiring Accessories

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Something for Baby, Beau petit chou
Cardstock: Pear Pizzazz, Very Vanilla, Night of Navy, Pool Party
Designer Series Papers: Etcetera
Ink: Night of Navy, Pear Pizzazz
Accessories: Starbursts Framelits dies, Stampin' Dimensionals, Victoria Lace Trim,
Mini Silver Brads, Regals Candy Dots, Designer Frames Embossing Folders,
Envelope Punch Board

 

Baby's Teddy

My sister needed a baby boy card for a shower, so I put this one together for her. I reached for a retired stamp set called Every Little Bit for the teddy bear image, which I've always thought was the cutest thing ever. I paired it with some brown flocking I had to create a fuzzy teddy.

Don't forget the Needlepoint Embossing Folders are on the retiring list, so get them before they're gone!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Every Little Bit, T'as un ticket, A to Z
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Soft Sky, Soft Suede, Whisper White
Ink: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, VersaMark
Accessories: Velvet Flocking (Doodlebug), Polka Dot Embossing Folder, Essentials Wooden Accents,
Ticket Punch, Stamp punch, Two-Way Glue Pen, Stampin' Dimensionals, Needlepoint Embossing Folder,
Baja Breeze Seam Binding, Pool Party Stampin' Emboss powder, Early Espresso Stampin' Emboss powder, Crumb Cake Envelope, Baked Brown Sugar Ruffled Ribbon, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Owl punch (heart)

 

Petite canaille

I love this picture of my niece - she looks so cheeky on it! And have you seen her cute polka dot sole shoes? The color of her clothes inspired me to pull out of Quatrefancy Specialty Designer Papers and pair them with the Mosaic Madness stamp set.

The pack of Specialty papers include a printed transparency sheet, which I used to create a shaker, that I filled with sequins from the Gold Sequin Trim (Occasions catalogue). I die-cut the transparency and a matching piece of Pool Party Core'dination cardstock (retiring) with a die from the Apothecary Accents Framelits dies. We just happen to have a matching piercing template, which I used to add stitching and create the shaker. An oval cut with the Ovals Collection Framelits dies was used to add journaling on top of the shaker.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Notable Alphabet, Mosaic Madness, Typeset Alphabet Lower (retired)
Cardstock: Strawberry Slush, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White, Pool Party Core'dinations
Designer Papers: Quatrefancy Specialty
Ink: VersaMark, Strawberry Slush, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Island Indigo, Pool Party
Big Shot: Ovals Collection Framelits dies, Apothecary Accents Framelits dies,
Accessories: Gold Sequin Trim, Glimmer brads, Island Indigo Chevron Ribbon,
Heart paper clip (from mini-album kit), Strawberry Slush ruffled ribbon,
Piercing template and paper piercer, Stampin' Dimensionals, Stampin' Write Marker, Brads,
Pool Party Stampin' Emboss Powder, Melon Mambo Stampin' Emboss Powder

 

A Mini Album that Packs a Lot of Punch!

Today's project was created using the Mini Memories Simply Created Album Kit. Believe it or not, the whole album was created in just two sittings, so basically two evenings.  This is really fast considering how intricate the final result is. I will say I am very impressed with this kit: at $17.95 (CAN), it includes a LOT of stuff! I added a few things from my stash, but the majority of the items come from the kit directly, and I even had a few leftovers to use on other projects.

The album shows my niece's progression during her first year.

The Occasions catalogue will remain current until June 1st, so make sure you get your own copy of this kit before it disappears.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Notable Alphabet, Perfect Pennants
Cardstock: Calypso Coral, Pistachio Pudding, Baked Brown Sugar, Crisp Cantaloupe,
Summer Starfruit, Gold
Ink: Calypso Coral, Pistachio Pudding
Kit: Mini Memories Simply Created Album Kit
Accessories: Sweet Sorbet Accessories Pack, Dazzling Details, Sponge,
Stampin' Write Markers, Typeset Alphabet Bigz, Adorning Details Edgelits and embossing folder,
Owl Punch, Circle Punches, Sweet Dots, On Film Framelits Dies, Blushing Bride Smooch Spray,
Watercolor Wonder Designer Washi Tape, Gold Sequin Trim, Chevron embossing folder,

An Aunt is Born

This page was inspired by a sample from SU! I saw somewhere online (blanking out on the actual source). It thought it was so adorable, I had to make one for myself. I used a picture that was taken the first time I met my niece when she was six days old. She is the first baby on our side of the family, and therefore I became an aunt for the first time when she was born. 

The page uses a mix of stuff from the current Occasions catalogue, and it is in a 8" x 8" format.

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Toujours + d'amour, ABC-123 Sketch Alphabet, Simply Serif Mini Alphabet, Parfaits Fanions, Beau p'tit chou, This and That To Do rotary stamp stamp
Cardstock: Pool Party Core'dinations, Whisper White, Summer Starfruit, Primrose Petals Core'dinations
Designer Paper: 2012-2014 In color Paper Pack
Ink: Pool Party, Primrose Petals, Summer Starfruit
Accessories: Essentials Wooden Accents, On Film Framelits Dies, Sweet Dots, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Stampin' Write Markers, Chevron Natural Ribbon, Retro Fresh Designer Washi Tape,
Starburst Framelits Dies

 

Featuring Stampin' Up!'s Baby, We've Grown - Baby Booties

Today's card is inspired by the "Inspired By" challenge (#107) and Viva la Verve Sketch (February #2). I really like how it turned out. I never would have thought to use black, white and Pool Party for a little girl's card, but I think it gives it a modern edge. I made sure to color the little bows on the booties in Strawberry Slush ink for a feminine touch.

There's a few elements I took from the inspiration picture: the color combo, the stripes and polka dots, and the hearts. The hearts were created with the Hearts a Flutter stamp set. I embossed the empty heart in black powder and the chevron heart with Pool Party embossDecing powder on matching Core'dinations cardstock. The white background was embossed using the Decorative Dots embossing folder, which is currently offered as a Sale-A-Bration item until March 31st. It's both classic and whimsical and you need to make sure you snatch up one for yourself! The second embossing folder I used is the Scallops embossing folder sold in the Occasions catalogue. I embossed a piece of Basic Black Core'dinations cardstock and then sanded the embossed details to change the color of the cardstock and make the design stand out more, and matted it with Smoky Slate cardstock.

Two banners were cut out of Neutrals Designer papers (the retired one from last year, but we have some fun designs in this year's catalogue as well) and I decorated them with rhinestones. I also added a white Candy Dot on one of my hearts.

Oh, and of course, I used my beloved Envelope Punch Board to create a matching envelope out of Designer paper. The tag on the envelope was die-cut using the Chalk Talk Framelits dies.

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Mon petit chou (Baby, We've Grown), Hearts a Flutter
Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White, Smoky Slate, Pool Party, Basic Black Core'dinations,
Pool Party Core'dinations
Designer paper: Neutrals Paper Stack
Ink: Soft Sky, Pool Party, VersaMark
Accessories: Stampin' Emboss powders (Black, Pool Party), Rhinestones, Neutrals Candy Dots,
Blending pen, Paper Piercer and Pîercing Template, Circle Collection Framelits dies,
Stampin' Dimensionals, Scallops embossing folder, Decorative Dots embossing folder,
Sanding Block, Envelope Punch Board

 

Little Angel

This card was inspired by a color combo challenge. I had a hard time putting things together in a way that I liked and even after embossing the background with an embossing folder, I still felt it lacked something, so I spritzed it with Silver Smooch Spritz and I don't really like the result, to be honest. Had I done the spritzing before adding the green Designer paper in place, I think it would laready have looked better. Now, it looks too busy and creates a distracting pattern. Oh well... You have to make tests and try stuff to see what might work and what doesn't.

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Beau petit chou, A to Z
Cardstock: Opulent Orchid, Going Grey, Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery, Whisper White
Designer Series Papers: Certainly Celery
Ink: Baja Breeze, Opulent Orchid, Certainly Celery
Accessories: Silver Glimmer Paper, Pennant punch, Bitty punch pack, Brads, Rhinestones,
Silver Smooch Spritz, White Envelope, Stampin' Write Markers, pearls, Subtles Designer Buttons,
Smoky Slate Chevron Ribbon, Oval Framelits Dies, Piercing Template and Paper Piercer,
Stampin' Dimensionals, Argyle Embossing Folder, Stardust gel pen (non-SU!),
White Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon

 

Stampin' Up!'s Baby, We've Grown - Family of Three (SAB Preview)

Today's card was made with the Baby, We've Grown stamp set. I hesitated getting this set if only because my Occasions catalogue wish list was really long. In the end, I decided this set really spoke to me and that it wouldn't be a bad thing to add an additional baby set to my collection since I'm getting quite a few requests for this type of cards and do not have a whole lot of baby images at hand.

I used a Viva la Verve sketch (December #4) as inspiration and combined the new stamp set with the Sweet Sorbet Designer papers that will be offered during the Sale-a-Bration promotion. The Crisp Cantaloup baker's twine is also part of the SAB offering, in the Sweet Sorbet accessories pack. (You're going to love those two items, they're beautiful!)

The main image was stamped on Whisper White cardstock with Basic Grey ink and colored with inks and a blending pen. The corners were rounded with a circle punch and the image was matted with Pistachio Pudding cardstock. At the bottom, I created a lace border using the Finishing Touches embossing folder and the Large Scallops Edgelits die. A piece of Crisp Cantaloup ruffled ribbon was added in between the two pieces.

In the center, I created slits in a piece of Sahara Sand Core'dination cardstock (for texture) using a kraft knife and inserted a piece of Summer Starfruit satin ribbon in it. Pool Party Candy Dots were added in between.

I used a piece of patterned paper and the Envelope Punch Board to make a matching envelope. If you look closely at the pattern on the paper I used, it looks just like owl feathers, so it was too perfect to pass up. The Envelope Punch Board is my new favorite accessory because it's the simplest tool that's ever been made available to make envelopes. The dimensions are all printed on it, too, which is my favorite part. Be sure to check it out if you haven't already!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Beau petit chou (Baby, We've Grown)
Cardstock: Crisp Cantaloup, Pool Party, Pistachio Pudding, Sahara Sand Core'dination, Whisper White
Designer paper: Sweet Sorbet
Ink: Basic Grey, Crisp Cantaloup, Pool Party, Pistachio Pudding, Sahara Sand, Summer Starfruit
Accessories: Sweet Sorbet Accessory Pack, Crisp Cantaloup ruffled ribbon, Subtle Candy Dots,
Summer Starfruit satin ribbon, Kraft knife, Circle punch, Envelope Punch Board,
Blending pen, Finishing Touches embossing folder, Large Scallops Edgelits die

 

Stampin' Up!'s She's All That - Congratulations on Your Baby

I sold my last baby card at the office and set out to make another baby-themed card this week. The new Hand Stamped Sentiments color challenge (# 172) just happened to be the perfect colour combo, so I paired it with the Retro sketch #88 and created this card.

I was looking through my stamp collection to find something baby-themed and stumbled onto an old favorite called She's All That. I like the retro silhouette and decided to bring it out of retirement momentarily. The image was stamped in Baked Brown Sugar ink and embossed with Iridescent Ice embossing powder.

I created the frame for my image out of Soft Sky cardstock with the paper cutter. I found my initial frame to be a little thick, so I took out a little more inside and that it how I wound up with the smaller frame. Instead of throwing it away, I got the idea of using both frames at an angle to highlight my image. I embossed the bigger frame using the retired Finial Press embossing folder, and I used Dimensionals to adhere it to the card.

 

 

 

     

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: She's All That, Polka Dot, Un petit plus
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Soft Sky, Crisp Cantaloupe
Ink: Crumb Cake, Baked Brown Sugar
Accessories: Button, Natural ribbon, Washi tape, Corner Rounder punch,
Needlepoint Border embossing folder, Pearls, Finial Press embossing folder,
Stampin' Dimensionals, Iridescent Ice embossing powder

 

Welcome, New Baby!

Still catching up on past projects... I really like this one. It might be showcasing one of my favorite coloring job. There's not a whole lot of colours, mainly neutrals, but I like how the shading gives life to the cute bunny.

The bunny image is from Purple Onion Designs, but drawn by Stacey Yacula. I stumbled unto her blog a few years ago and fell in love with her illustrations and sculptures. Her characters have a softness and sweetness to them that really appeal to me. So I was excited to see her designs translated to a medium I could use: stamps!

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Félicitations (SU!), Poppy (Purple Onion Designs)
Cardstock: Ballet Blue, Pumpkin Pie, Certainly Celery, Whisper white
Designer papers: Little Yellow Bicycle
Ink: Basic Black, Ballet Blue
Accessories: Washi tape, Yellow baker's twine, markers, Scallop Square die,
White envelope, Stampin' Dimensionals, Ballet Blue brads

 

2013 Artisan Entry Blog Hop – Day 1

 

Welcome to Day 1 of the 2013 Artisan Entry Blog Hop! Every year, Stampin' Up! holds a contest where demonstrators can submit ten of their best samples in the hopes of being selected to become part of the Artisan Design Team. The ten winners are announced at Convention, but the 20 chosen finalists have been notified by phone last week. Some of us who entered but did not make the finalists list have decided to get together for a blog hop to share our entries with you.

Although it was disappointing to not make the cut, I am still grateful that for the first time this year, I was finally able to enter the contest. In the past, Quebec demos had always been excluded from the contest due to some local legislation and I have been pushing for years to get SU! to find a way to include us in the process since I really wanted to enter. It finally happened this year - albeit a little at the last minute. Due to some delays in getting everything set up, the information was posted on the French Website three weeks before the deadline. I knew making ten amazing projects in three weeks would be a stretch, but there was no way I was not entering after waiting all this time. (I had to check "entering Artisan contest" off my bucket list, you know!) I spent three weeks crafting like mad and spent a small fortune with UPS (urgh!) to get it to Utah in time, but knowing that I had so little time to prepare when other demos had a little over four months made me keep my hopes in check.

With that long introduction, let me present to you the first of the ten projects I put together for the Artisan contest.

 

The first project I would like to share is the first of the three scrapbook pages we had to make. I picked some pictures of my niece taken at five months. My sister has been taking a picture of her with the stuffed owl I bought her every month to document her growth. When I saw the numbered paper in the Soho Subway paper pack, I thought I could just circle the 5 in the series to make my title. It became the starting point of the page. To highlight the number, I handstitched with linen thread around the number. I then created a frame with two oval Framelits dies and added the oval frame to the page with cut Stampin' Dimensionals, and embellished with a dahlia, lace trim and safety pin.

The splatter in the background was stamped with a stamp from the first Paper Pumpkin kit. The title was stamped with the Morning Post Alphabet. (The little hand pointing to the word also comes from this same alphabet set.) At the bottom, I added cross stitching with linen thread to the punched scallop ribbon. A little embellishment was made with the Label Love stamp set. (The English version says "Cutest Baby Ever" whereas the French says "A perfect baby," which works so well because my sister always says she has the "perfect baby"). I stamped and embossed the sentiment twice with Early Espresso powder, punched the center with the Scallop Circle punch to create a window and layered the two tags together with DImensionals. A flag from the Boutique Boxes kit and Summer Starfruit ribbon were added. Speaking of the Boutique Boxes kit, the Vanilla scallop edge also came from said kit.

The little owl in the Aviary set matches the stuffed owl perfectly (it even has the same "deer caught in headlights" eyes), so I created a toppling tower with a topiary made with yet another die-cut from the Boutique Boxes kit, added the bird cage on top and a tag from the That's the ticket set. The center of the topiary was embellished with an accent made with the clay and press molds. The feather de-cut also comes from the Boutique Boxes kit.

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies 
Stamps: Aviary, Morning Post Alphabet, Label Love, T'as un ticket (That's the ticket),
splatter (Paper Pumpkin kit)
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Summer Starfruit
Patterned paper: Soho Subway
Ink: VersaMark, Island Indigo, Summer Starfruit, Early Espresso, Cocktail Cantaloupe
Accessories: Oval Framelits dies, In Color dahlias, Victoria lace trim, Vintage trinkets,
Stampin' DImensionals, Gold embossing powder, Boutique Boxes kit, Clay and pressed molds,
Island Indigo Stampin' Marker, Linen thread, Scallop Ribbon border punch,
Early Espresso embossing powder, 7/8'' Scallop Circle punch, Summer Starfruit satin ribbon,
Very Vintage Designer buttons, Typeset Alphabet Bigz die, Large Oval punch,
Large Scallop Circle punch, Circle punch

 

 

 

 

Here are all the links to the participants' blogs in case you can't hop from one blog to the next properly:

1. Brenda Quintana http://qbeesquest.blogspot.com/
2. Joan Robertson http://www.dailystampede.com/
3. Lauri Ingram  http://lauri-paperville.blogspot.com/
4. Laura Mellinger  http://laurasworksofheart.blogspot.com/
5. Kandi Phillips  http://kandiphillips.blogspot.com/
6. Lisa Hensley  http://ponygirl40stamps.blogspot.com/
7. Anna Black  http://my-creation-station.blogspot.com/
8. Pamela Staples  http://www.sunnygirlscraps.com/
9. Tina Munzke  http://www.craftedwithclass.blogspot.com/
10. Cindy Major  http://www.cindymajor.typepad.com/
11. Mary Haugen  http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/maryhaugen/blog

Printer's Trey Picture Frames

What do you give people who have everything they need for Christmas as a gift? A frame with pictures of their favorite baby in the whole wide world. I used the extra printer's treys I was allowed to buy after last year's recruiting promo to make the frames. Even my sister, who's not really into scrapbooking projects much, got really excited to receive a frame with pictures of her beautiful daughter.

I should really make one for myself as well!

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Designer paper: More Amore (Spring Catalogue 2013)
Cardstock: Pool Party, Primrose Petal
Accessories: Bigz Alphabet Typeset, Dazzling Details, Baja Breeze seam binding

 

Polka Dot PJs

This is my latest scrapbooking creation. I had some pictures I had set aside on my desk and every time this one caught my eye, it reminded me of the More Amore suite from the Spring catalogue. The colours just match so well! I decided to just give it a go. Looking at how much space I needed for my design, I decided to go with a 8½ x 11 page, which I hadn't done in forever (and when I slipped the page in my current 8½ x 11 album, I realized I only have two other pages in there!). I also used a lot of embellishments from the Artisan Embellishments kit. It was easier to splurge on using those on a page, knowing they'd remain in my album. haha! Do you ever feel like that, that if you use a more expensive embellishment on a card, that card has to go out to someone who'll REALLY appreciate it?

I want to point out that the title was created with two brand-new alphabet sets that coordinate with one another. They're called ABC-123 OUtline Alphabet & Numbers and ABC-123 Sketch Alphabet & Numbers. The first one is an outline alphabet and the second is a full one, so they can be used independently or layered to fill out of the letters. (Check it out on page 131 of the annual catalogue, you'll see what I'm talking about.) I got it during the preorder and I'm already in love with it. The size is PERFECT!  For cards OR for scrapbooking. It's just small enough that I can spell longer words, but still substantial enough that it doesn't get lost on a page. I can tell I'm going to be using this one a lot. My only peeve is, Why doesn't it come in wood-mount? I didn't even realize that when I placed my order and thought I had messed up with the ordering when I received my order. A quick leaf through the catalogue let me know there was only clear-mount available. Oh, well... I still love this alphabet enough to overlook the fact that it only comes in clear. I truthfully just prefer wood-mount for alphabet sets because it makes it easier to use with the Stamp-a-Ma-Jig (which is a must for me).

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: ABC-123 OUtline Alphabet & Numbers, ABC-123 Sketch Alphabet & Numbers
Cardstock: Pool Party Core'dinations, Primrose Petal Core'dinations, Very Vanilla
Designer papers: More Amore
Ink: Pool Party
Accessories: Artisan Embellishments kit, Lace border punch (non-SU!),
Paper Doily, Classic Jewels Pearls

MDS - Our Best Christmas Gift

This digital page was made months ago. It was made with the use of a MDS CD I had received. This picture of my niece was taken by my sister, for Megan's first Christmas.

 

 

 

Featuring Little Additions - Little Boy Blue Clothesline

 This card was CASEd from an original creation by Mindy Backes. I changed her original colors for a mix of blue and yellow, and switched the sentiment so that I could use a French set. This card was made using the retiring Little Additions set. I will admit to being really sad about seeing this set go, as it is my favorite baby set SU! ever had. I will be holding on to that one for sure! Just love the cute baby pieces, especially the tiny onesie!

Retiring:

• Little Additions stamp set
• Designer bras
• Designer buttons

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Petits plus (Little Additions), Jolies pensées (Curly Cute), Polka Dots
Cardstock: Daffodil Delight, Whisper White, Basic Black, Brilliant Blue, Brocade Blue
Ink: Daffodil Delight, Brocade Blue, Brilliant Blue
Accessories: White baker's twine, Brights Designer buttons, Night of Navy organza ribbon,
Stampin' Dimensionals, White enveloppe, Basic Black marker, Brights Designer brads

Scrapbooking with SU!: My Daddy Loves Me

This scrapbook page was made using the same Simply Scrappin' kit that I used for yesterday's card. I thought the love-themed kit would work well with this picture of my brother-in-law looking at his baby like she's the most beautiful little girl in the world. (And she is pretty darn adorable, I have to say!)

I snagged the vintage tags from Clearance Rack before Christmas. They look beautiful in person, they have a gold sheen to them, as if they have been sprayed with gold Smooch Spray. Just beautiful! The first word of the title was stamped with the Simply Serif Mini Alphabet set (annual catalogue, p. 145). It's a great set in a cute font that will work well for both pages and cards. The journaling was handwritten using our Many Marvelous Markers (p. 157), which I never fail to use every time I stamp. Get them during Sale-a-Bration and you'll receive two freebies of your choice with it!

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Simply Serif Mini Alphabet, Simple Alphabet
Cardstock: So Saffron
Simply Scrappin' Kit
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Paper Piercer, Love Notes die-cut, Markers, Vintage Tag,
Stampin' Dimensionals, White taffeta ribbon

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Welcome, Baby Girl

This card was a special request from a coworker who needed a card for a baby girl shower. She wanted something pink, so this is what I came up based on a sketch that was available at that time.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Bienvenue bébé (SU!), Babycarriageabella (Stamping Bella)
Cardstock: Soft Sky, Vintage Violet, Whisper White
Patterned Paper: Sweet Miss Caroline (My Mind's Eye)
Ink: SU!
Accessories: Pennant punch, felt embellishments, corduroy button, Gold embossing powder,
Nestabilities dies, markers, Dazzling Details, white polka dot taffeta ribbon,
white envelope, Liquid Pearls, pearls, Stampin' Dimensionals

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Megan & Marraine

I got the Keep in Touch Digital Content CD as an hostess gift in my last order and played around with it a little bit. I was eager to scrapbook the pictures of my sweet new niece, Megan, and since those pictures haven't been printed out yet, making a digital page was a good option. Turns out the colors from this kit were a perfect match to the pyajamas she was wearing when I first held her, too.

Isn't she just the cutest little bundle of joy?

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Digital Content CD: Keep in Touch (hostess)