Baby pages continued

Of all the pages, I think this one is my favorite. The base page is Chocolate Chip with the upper right corner folded down. I then punched the folded down piece with the double circle punch. I stamped Wild About You on a piece of Very Vanilla and punched it with the large oval punch. I punched a hole in the oval and threaded it with some hemp twine. I used a glue dot to keep the corner in place. The piece in the background is just the previous page. I stamped the giraffe in So Saffron and the flower in So Saffron and Old Olive on Very Vanilla. It was mounted on a piece of So Saffron. I also added the mat for the picture which is also So Saffron and I distressed the edges. It's a simple page, but it's just so darn cute.


I really like this page, too. It's a So Saffron base with a Very Vanilla circle. The strip of cardstock along the bottom is Very Vanilla stamped with Canvas in Chocolate Chip. I added a piece of Very Vanilla grosgrain ribbon and a piece of hemp twine on top of that. The layout allows for a horizontal pictures to be placed around where the watermark is.

More Baby Pages

Here are pages 4 and 5 of the baby book. Page 4 has a Certainly Celery base with a horizontal strip of Very Vanilla where I stamped some of the cute words from Warm Words. I then added a Barely Banana strip that was stamped with one of the circles from Polka Dots & Petals (hard to see in the photo). I also added the cute little alligator from Wild About You in the corner. She can mount the photo vertically on this page.



Page 5 has a Very Vanilla base with two squares of Certainly Celery also stamped with an image from Polka Dots & Petals. She can mount the photo horizontally here. I also stamped the words "sweet little one" from Holidays & Wishes in Barely Banana on Very Vanilla (also hard to see in the photo). This was mounted on a piece of Barely Banana and accented by a piece of Pewter HodgePodge Hardware with a piece of Very Vanilla grosgrain ribbon.

The pages look a little odd with no pictures, but I placed pictures on the pages before adhering them to ensure that they would look good.

Stay tuned for more pages in the coming days. 5 down, 15 to go.

Scrapbook pages!!!!!!!!!!

I can finally share these with you. I didn't want to post these pictures of the baby book I made for my sister until I gave the book to her. I didn't want her to see them until her baby shower. My sister isn't a scrapbooker, but who doesn't need a baby book, right? I think that she's not a scrapbooker because she doesn't really have anything to scrapbook. But with her first child due any day now, surely she'll have pictures to scrap. So here is page one of the baby book. It's an 8x8 book. The main page is 8x8 in Brilliant Blue. I then layered Creamy Cardstock after adding the Very Vanilla Grosgrain ribbon across the corner. I added a Brilliant Blue picture mat with a Very Vanilla Round Tab saying It's a Boy. I also added a spot for her to put the baby's details. And last but not least added the lion from Wild About You in Creamy Caramel and added the Brilliant Blue Photo Corner.

Here's page 2, Mommy & Me. The main page is Bravo Burgundy, with a Very Vanilla mat for the photo. I added a little HodgePodge Hardware. I then stamped Mommy & Me using Short Order Alphabet in Bravo Burgundy. I layered that piece on Bashful Blue and added the Photo Corners. Oh, and the cute little birdy from Wild About You.


Here's page 3. The main page is Bashful Blue with a Very Vanilla mat. I also added a piece of HodgePodge Hardware on this page. I stamped Daddy & Me in Bashful Blue along with the elephant from Wild About You. I then layered it on Bravo Burgundy and added the Photo Corners.

3 down, 17 to go. I'll save the others for another day.

Baby Shower Gift

I have a baby shower to attend on Sunday for my sister. Of course that means I had to do something creative. This is one of her gifts. I can post this now because I don't think she'll be reading my blog before then (if at all) as she will be here in a little bit. I got this clear paint can at the Flower Factory, which is a member's only wholesale craft store. I cut the strip to fit along the bottom of the can. I added the animals from Wild About You by stamping them and punching them out with my 1 1/4" circle punch and layering them on coordinating cardstock punched from the 1 3/8" circle punch. I cut the circle to fit the top using my Fiskar's Shape Cutter and circle templates. I stamped "welcome baby boy" using Everything Baby and attached the Rubber Duck. I filled the paint can with a bunch of the little items from her registry. Oh and I added 15 feet of "It's a Boy" ribbon to the handle.
And of course I had to add a paint can opener so she can get the goodies out of it. Too cute. I hope she likes it.

Wild About Birthdays

I love the animals from Wild About You. They are so stinkin' cute. I can find any occasion to use them. I usually end up making a birthday card with them, though. I love the way this one turned out. The card base is Barely Banana and the bottom half is stamped with the solid circles from Polka Dots & Petals. The giraffe is stamped in Barely Banana on Very Vanilla and layered on Basic Black. I used the ribbon saving technique to add the Basic Black grosgrain across the strip of Very Vanilla. I then added the sentiment from Hugs & Wishes.

What a cute little birthday card?

Well I'm heading out of town tomorrow so I may or may not post this weekend. I'll try to get some posts in while I'm gone, but I'll be a little busy with a 3 year old's birthday party and a baby shower. However, I can guarantee when I get back I will have some great stuff to show you and I just might have some blog candy for you, too.

Ribbon Bow Tutorial

I'm a thrifty crafter. I love to save time, money, and supplies whenever possible. So, for you I have a ribbon bow tutorial that will save you precious ribbon. There's no need to wrap your ribbon all the way around your cardstock if you follow these steps.
Start with your length of ribbon, and tie a knot around your finger wherever you want your bow to be on the length of ribbon.



When you slide your finger off the ribbon, this is what you are left with. A nice little ribbon loop.






Take your scissors and put them through the loop. Angle your scissors and cut your ribbon.





And look, you have a bow.







Attach your ribbon to your cardstock by wrapping the ends behind and adhering with a glue dot. Finish your project!




Recipe
Stamps: Wild About You, Short Order Numbers, Canvas
Ink: Old Olive, Jet Black StazOn
Paper: Basic Black, Very Vanilla, Old Olive
Accessories: Basic Black grosgrain ribbon

World Card Making Day

Just a reminder that World Card Making Day is tomorrow!!!! You must RSVP to me before I go to bed tonight. We'll be making 5 cards and a 6th to donate to charity. Check out my header for a sample of what we will be making tomorrow. I'll see you at 2:00!

How cute is this?

How cute is this? I made this for a sweet little girl's birthday. She loved it and all her friends want one. Can you blame them? It's so darn cute. Do you know what it is? A name badge protector. I cut down a piece of Rose Red Prints Designer Paper for my base. I stamped onto a piece of Whisper White and colored my images in. I added a Photo Corner Punch for a little more color. I punched a bunch of holes across the top with my Crop-a-dile and added ribbons. I put a ring on it so she can hook it to her bag. The back is blank, but because I used the Prints DSP it has a cute flower print on it. Cute or what?

Recipe
Stamps: Short Order Alphabet, Unfrogettable
Ink: Rose Red, Jet Black StazOn, Old Olive, So Saffron
Paper: Rose Red Prints Designer Series Paper, Whisper White, Old Olive
Accessories: Name badge holder, Photo Corners Punch, Whisper White Grosgrain Ribbon, Chocolate Chip Grosgrain Ribbon, Sweet Shop Ribbon Originals

Stamp-a-ma-jig Tutorial

The Stamp-a-ma-jig is a great tool. It helps you to line up your stamped image. So if you are a crooked stamper maybe it's time you invested in a Stamp-a-ma-jig (SAMJ). To start stamp your main image.





The SAMJ comes with an imaging sheet. It is a clear plastic sheet. It is really smooth on one side and slightly textured on the other. You should use the smooth side for inks such as StazOn so that it doesn't stain your imaging sheet.



Line your imaging sheet up with the inside corner of the SAMJ.
Then take your image stamp and line it up with the corner of the SAMJ and stamp onto your imaging sheet.









Next, line up the imaging sheet with your stamped image where you want it. In my example I wanted the pumpkins in the back of the truck.
Then realign your SAMJ with the imaging sheet.







Remove the imaging sheet and again line up your stamp in your SAMJ and stamp.







My pumpkins are perfectly aligned with my truck.

Finish your project.



I hope I didn't confuse you too much or scare you away from using the SAMJ. It really is an easy tool to use once you get the hang of it.

October all ready?

I can't believe today is the last day of September. Well, the end of the month means the end of the current promotion. Today was the last day to take advantage of the Fall Frenzy promotion. But starting tomorrow starts the Holiday Glitz promotion. You can take advantage of this promotion one of two ways.

1. Purchase one of holiday stamp sets (below) and get the Holiday Glitz card kit (110286) for the special price of $24.95 each, or
2. Purchase the Holiday Glitz card kit (110286) for $28.95 each with no additional purchase required.

Each Holiday Glitz card kit makes 15 cards and includes:

• Precut card stock and Designer Series paper (15)
• Whisper White Envelopes (15)
• Rhinestone brads (15)
• Real Red zigzag ribbon (15)
• Full-color instruction sheet (1)
  

Item	Page #	Stamp Set	Price
109234	45	Snowfall	$23.95
106786	36	The Snowflake Spot	$20.95
109266	35	Big on Christmas	$18.95
110359	5*	Love & Joy	$23.95

*Holiday Mini Collection 2007.

And Saturday Oct. 6th is World Card Making Day. Be sure to RSVP for my WCMD Stamp-a-stack. We'll be making 5 different occassion cards and one card to donate to Ronald McDonald House. To go along with WCMD, Stampin' Up! is offering 20% Simply Sent kits from Oct. 4-8.

If you'd like to take advantage of any of these offers let me know! And tomorrow I promise I will post a tutorial. I don't know which one, yet, but there will be one. So stay tuned!

Fun with Marbles

I had so much fun with these today. I bought these jumbo flat backed marbles in the floral section of the Flower Factory. They're irregular in shape, so some of them fit the 1 1/4" circle punch and some could fit the 1 3/8" punch. For the first two I used A Tree for All Seasons. I stamped my image with Jet Black StazOn and watercolored the image with my blender pens and ink pads. I think they're so cute. It was really hard to take a picture of them, though, since they just wanted to reflect the light. For the second two I used Season of Joy, which is available in the Winter Mini. After I punched my images out I adhered them to the back of the marble with Crystal Effects. I then attached a strong magnet again with Crystal Effects. These are so quick and easy to make. You should give them a try.

Fall Frenzy Promo

Just a reminder that the Fall Frenzy Promotion ends on Sunday. If you want to take advantage of this fabulous offer I need to place your order by Sunday. Once again here are the details of the promotion.

September 1-September 30, 2007

Join the frenzy this month with our Fall Frenzy promotion!
Spend $30 in regular priced merchandise and qualify to purchase one of each of the six promotional stamp sets at 30 percent off!

Item	Page #	Description	Discounted Price
105355	26	Bitty Boos Too	$12.57
109284	29	Haunting Halloween	$13.27
107383	30	Thoroughly Thankful	$16.07
109373	108	Autumn Fest	$16.77
109421	91	Elementary Essentials	$19.57
110366	17	Stem Silhouettes*	$22.37

*Holiday Mini Collection 2007

Another Simple Share

Sometimes we have to make a card for reasons that we'd rather not. Unfortunately today was one of those days for me. One of my sorority sister's husbands passed away on Sunday. I can't attend the funeral so I will be sending this card out. I think in situations like these simple is best. You don't want to lay it on thick. You don't want to use bright colors and you definitely don't want to get all fancy with glitter and ribbon and brads and eyelets, etc, etc.

I don't have the markers, so I eyeballed it with my ink pad to only ink the flower petals in Perfect Plum and the stem in Mellow Moss. I find the easiest way to do this is use the corners of your ink pad. I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig for the two step stampin' (flower outline) to make sure it lined up with the flower. I then took an oval negative and lined it up over the flower in the center of the card. I sponged the Pale Plum into the oval. I then stamped heartfelt across the bottom. Punched the corners of the white cardstock out with the ticket corner punch and mounted it on my Perfect Plum card base. Simply beautiful if I do say so myself.

Recipe
Stamps: Heartfelt Thanks
Ink: Perfect Plum, Mellow Moss, Pale Plum, Jet Black StazOn
Paper: Perfect Plum, Whisper White
Accessories: Ticket Corner Punch, Stampin' Sponges, Stamp-a-ma-jig

Christmas in September and Blog Candy Winner

Today was my Christmas in September class. I already showed you one of the cards we were making in a previous post. Here is the other. This month's featured stamp set was A Tree for All Seasons. Because there are only 4 stamps in the set and only one winter stamp we had to use the same stamp for both cards. I did change it up a bit with the sentiment stamp. We used "sparkle" on this one since we added a little glitter to the snow. I think this snowman is so darn cute. I didn't mind using him on both cards.


Recipe:
Stamps: A Tree for All Seasons, Warm Words
Ink: Jet Black StazOn, Creamy Caramel, Tempting Turquoise
Paper: Tempting Turquoise, Real Red, Whisper White
Accessories: Black gingham ribbon, Double Circle punch, Blender pens
Technique: Watercoloring

......and now the news you've been waiting for. The winner of the blog candy of some retired Stampin' Up! Red Embossing Powder is..............Linda SS!!!!!!!!!!! Congrats for being my first blog candy winner.

Simple Cards

You don't always have to go over the top on embellishments and layers to make a great looking card. Sometimes simple is better. For example, this Joy card all I've done is stamped my snowflake and the word Joy in Versamark and heat embossed them in silver. I made this a hinge fold card and added some silver elastic cord. Beautiful, right?
And in this Silver Snowflake card I've basically done the same thing but kicked it up a knotch by using Night of Navy cardstock instead of Whisper White.
You can also see a great example of a simple card by checking out my Christmas in September reminder. We will be doing a simple card for one of our projects tomorrow. Just a little something to think about the next time you sit down to make a card.

Just a reminder, I'm going to draw for my blog candy tomorrow so get your comment in before say 5 pm EST. Stay tuned to find out who the lucky winner is.

Christmas in September Reminder

Just a reminder that Christmas in September is this Sunday. Please RSVP by tomorrow so I know how many of each project to prepare. Here is a picture of one of the cards we will be making.

Sparkle!!!

I wasn't planning on stamping tonight. Actually I'm supposed to be running (since I am training for a half marathon), but I'm just not feeling it tonight. Instead I made this card for a special girl. Victoria is a young lady in Texas who has cancer. One of her teachers is working on a campaign to get cards sent to her from every state. After reading about Victoria on Courtney's blog I felt compelled to make a card to send. I sure hope she likes pink and green and flowers and glitter!!! The inside of the card says Better Get Better.

Recipe:
Stamps: You Make Me Happy (retired)
Ink: Gable Green, Pixie Pink
Paper: Gable Green, Pixie Pink, Very Vanilla
Accessories: Frosted Lace Stickles


And if you haven't done so already check out my post from earlier today. I'm giving away my first blog candy.

My First Blog Candy

What is blog candy you ask? It's a freebie. Up for grabs is an opened, but unused jar of Really Red Stampin' Emboss Powder. All you have to do is leave a comment telling me: if you are making your Christmas cards this year, and if so, what stamp set you are using and how many you are going to make.

I will pick a winner on Sunday, September 23rd using random.


That's all for now, as much as I'd love to stay and post some more (while my puppy is snuggling at my feet) I must continue to get ready for work. Have a good day everyone!

Masking Tutorial

I promised you a masking tutorial when I uploaded my Like No Udder card. Well, here it is!

Start with your stamped image. Here I'm using the elephant from Wild About You inked in Almost Amethyst, stamped onto a piece of Very Vanilla cardstock.






I then stamped the same image on a Post-It Note. This is your mask. You should stamp it close to the sticky strip as you will use the sticky to hold it down.





Next, you will cut out the part of the image. In this case I wanted to mask everything but the ear so I only cut out the ear. If you wanted to stamp over the image like I did in my Like No Udder card you would cut out the whole image to use as your mask.





Now you need to place your mask over your stamped image. Here I lined up the negative space of the ear over the ear that I had stamped on my piece of Very Vanilla cardstock. This is were the sticky strip becomes important. It will hold your mask over your image.





The next step is to stamp over your masked image. Here I am using the polka dot stamp from Itty Bitty Backgrounds. I have inked it up with a darker color, Night of Navy.







This is what you are left with. You can see that I inked the whole image, but most of that is stamped onto the Post-It Note mask. Now you can easily remove your mask.






Here's your image. You can see that the polka dots are only on the elephant's ear.





Finish your project. Here I added some sponging around my image. I also added a strip of Night of Navy along the side of my Almost Amethyst card base as well as a Round Tab punch of Night of Navy. I stapled some Very Vanilla grosgrain ribbon to my tab and added my sentiment in Night of Navy.



Try masking on your next project. It's a quick and easy way to add a interest to your image.

Recipe
Stamps: Wild About You, Everything Baby
Ink: Almost Amethyst, Night of Navy
Paper: Very Vanilla, Almost Amethyst, Night of Navy
Accessories: Round Tab Punch, Very Vanilla 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, Stamping sponges, staple
Technique: Masking, Sponging

Christmas in September

I appologize for not posting this earlier. I didn't realize I hadn't posted it until now. Christmas in September will be September 23rd at 2:00 at my house. We will be using the set A Tree for All Seasons. Please RSVP 24 hours in advance so I know how many to prepare for. Hope to see you there!