It Isn't Tuesday? or Playing Kissy Face

I know, I know. I said I'd have a post for you Tuesday about a technique I did and how I married it with this flower for another card. I was too tired and distracted with other things and it kept getting pushed to the bottom of the "to-do" list. Better late than never, right?

Okay, here's what happened. I have a group of teenagers that I make cards with once a month. They're temporary residents at Jesse's House, a shelter for girls who need to be away from their homes due to domestic violence or abuse. They're a sweet, polite group of girls, and I wanted to offer them something to do on Sunday afternoons, which can be long, and to show them how to use cards to encourage someone in their lives.

But here's the deal: I'm not hip or cool. While that's no secret to those who know me, I wanted the girls NOT to have that impression of stamping. So I tried my best to come up with a card that was pretty cool. Turns out they liked it, so I guess I succeeded.

What did I do? Well, I took the Extreme Elements set and stamped it on Whisper White card stock. A technique came to mind as I was doing this that made me rethink the card entirely. I eyed a scrap piece of card stock that had been embossed with the Square Lattice Textured Impressions Folder for the Big Shot. I wondered if the "kissing" technique would work using the paper instead of a stamp.

Don't know about kissy face in the stamp world? Well, "kissing" with stamps involves taking a solid image, inking it, pressing it on a patterned stamp, and then stamping it on paper. The pattern on the stamp that "kisses" the original stamp stays on the original stamp and some cool stuff happens.

So, I tried inking my stamp, stamping it on the debossed side of the scrap, which transferred the pattern, and stamped it on the base for my card. Squeal--it worked! And it looked cool and hip, at least in my mind.

I used Old Olive classic ink, and for the flower, cut from the Fun Flowers Bigz Die for the Big Shot, I chose Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise, Daffodil Delight and Pumpkin Pie, all from the Brights Collection. The sentiment is from Friends Never Fade. It made the perfect sentiment for this card, although a few of the girls asked if I had any "Mom" or "Dad" stamps. Made me sad.

None of the girls had ever stamped before, and now they're hooked. I'm going back in April and want to do something else hip and cool, but I might have used up all of that on this card. Any thoughts on what I could do that teenaged girls would like? Have a great weekend!

Sympathy with Watercolor Trio

I'm tellin' you, I'm not thrilled that I've had to make two sympathy cards this month. Then I found out on Sunday that the mother of a friend of ours passed away suddenly. I already had one of the Medallion sympathy cards on hand that I created for this month's Stamp-A-Stack, but I had no idea I'd be using it so soon. I'm not superstitious, but I hope this ends the pattern.

My friend Deb lost her mom to cancer about 10 days ago, and since we are now separated by many miles, I wanted to get a card in the mail to her as soon as I heard the news.

I do not own any of the sympathy specific stamp sets SU! has manufactured, so I reached for Watercolor Trio (retired). Using Elegant Eggplant and Old Olive, I stamped a few stems and incorporated a non-SU! sentiment.

I continue to find uses for my Square Lattice Textured Impressions Folder for the Big Shot. It's just so nice to be able to quickly add some dimension to a card with this tool.

I also decided to decorate the interior, so I pulled out one of the leftover frames created by the Big Shot when you cut out a Top Note Bigz Die. This one is in Very Vanilla, and there was just enough margin on each side to stamp the flowers again. Don't throw away those scraps--you never know when they might come in handy!

Take the time to get a card in the mail to someone you know who has lost a loved one. It doesn't matter how recently they experienced the loss; the grief is fresh for a long time, and knowing that someone hasn't forgotten about their pain can be very meaningful.

Sweet Treat Holder

There are many fun ideas floating about the internet for packaging treat size candies for Valentine's Day. One I enjoyed making was designed by Sue Bendinsky, fellow demonstrator. I like that it didn't rely on any diecuts from the BigShot. It's just folded card stock, which means it's easy for kids and parents to make together!

The Whisper White card stock base for this is 4.25" x 8.5", scored at 3" and 6.25" along the 8.5" length. Now I know I just said you don't need a BigShot for this project, and you don't. I just couldn't resist jazzing mine up a bit by using my Square LatticeTextured Impressions Folder. Don't worry; it'll be very cute without this element!

I used the Scallop Edge Border Punch along the edge, and my Small Heart Punch for the nine hearts. The hearts were punched from Pretty in Pink, Melon Mambo, and Rich Razzleberry card stocks. These are all in the Brights Collection, so they coordinate with Real Red, also part of that collection, perfectly. They are adhered with Mini Glue Dots, which makes placement quick and easy. A 16" length of 1/8" Real Red taffeta ribbon holds the package closed. That ribbon comes in 14 colors, so you could change up the color scheme here and still have plenty of options!

The "friend to friend" sentiment is from Love You Much. I think it's just right for valentines for kids at school. The pocket is held together with two strips of Sticky Strip, double-sided tape that's only 1/4" wide.

It's not too late to order supplies to make these cute holders before Valentine's Day! All the items you'll need are highlighted in this post. You'll have plenty to make for several classes of children, with leftover supplies. If a group of you wants to go together to purchase the supplies and share them, that can be arranged. You can shop online through my store or you can contact me directly by leaving a comment with an email address and I'll get you set up!

For easy list making, here's what I used:

Whisper White card stock 100730
Brights Collection card stock 119706
Scallop Edge Border Punch 119882
Small Heart Punch 117193
Mini Glue Dots 103683
Sticky Strip 104294
Love You Much stamp set 113756

Happy crafting!

A Card for Grandma's 90th

It's not often that you get to extend birthday wishes to someone who turns 90. My maternal grandmother had this milestone birthday Dec. 22, and we traveled from GA to IN the weekend before Christmas so that we could be there to celebrate with her and my extended family.

I knew I wanted to make her a card, but I don't have much experience making cards for these kinds of very special birthdays. I know she likes flowers, so I started with an image I've had on my desk for awhile, saving for a what I knew I wanted to be a special card.

It was the hydrangea image from Because I Care, the Level 1 Hostess set. I wove the strips of Whisper White card stock like I did for this card but I made a smaller square this time. I matted this on Baja Breeze card stock and added some 1/8" Old Olive taffeta ribbon. Then I mounted this with Stampin' Dimensionals on a Top Note Bigz die that I embossed with the Vintage Wallpaper Textured Impressions Folder for the Big Shot, and I made it shimmer using our new Frost White Shimmer Paint. It's a bit hard to detect in the picture, but it created nice visual interest and highlighted the dry embossing.

Because I know my grandma likes texture--she quilted and crocheted for years--I decided to emboss the Old OIive card base with the Square Lattice TI Folder. Love it!

On the inside, I decided to make use of the frame that remains after diecutting the Top Note shape. I stamped the sentiment from Fifth Avenue Florals and added the simplest Happy Birthday I could find in my stash--from It's Your Birthday (retired)--along with some numbers from a non-SU! set, and the card was complete.

Here's a picture of my grandma with all her grandchildren. I'm the oldest one, so that's why I'm sitting by her! For those of you who have heard me mention my sister, she's the blonde on the left. I'm so glad we made the 12-hour drive to be at this event. It kicked off our Christmas celebrations in memorable fashion.

Birthday Wishes like Falling Stars

I saw a beautiful card on Nichole Heady's blog (scroll to the bottom past all the Halloween stuff to view it), and I wanted to try to create something similar. I chose the stars stamp from Extreme Elements and inked it in rainbow colors from the Brights Collection. In order to include all the colors of the spectrum, the strip ended up being just over 6" long. Well, that wouldn't do for a standard card, but I have a stash of 5"x7" white card bases from another project and grabbed one from the closet.

My next thought was, "What am I going to do with all that white space?" It's always a struggle for me to create a sparse look, even though I really like it when others do it. I mounted the start strip on Basic Black card stock and chose a silver metallic Sharpie to hand draw a border around it. The silver prompted me to pull out some leftover strips of Square Lattice textured foil that I'd saved from this project.

It added some great sparkle and dimension and grounded everything in the design. I stamped the birthday wish sentiment from Heard from the Heart and still felt something was lacking. This was when I wished for black ribbon, but I don't have that, so I made do.

Andrea Walford showed this grouping of ribbon on a card this week, and I really liked how it looked. It's easy to do and refreshingly different.

I know I've been very erratic in my posts lately. I'm sure you know how life can impede progress to the craft room door! Thanks for your patience. I'll have another post Monday using Extreme Elements. It's a complete departure from this look, and a great guy card. Y'all come back now, ya hear?

Trying New Things is Hard Sometimes

Oh my. My nephew Nik's birthday is Monday, and I sat down this morning, thinking I had a plan for his card and would just whip it together and post it on my way to work later today. I feel as though I have conquered the arch enemy of creativity by finishing this card!

Ten is a difficult age, especially for a boy. Things that were once cool start not to be cool, and yet you're not old enough to embrace the things of adolescence. So, I knew when I looked at the image I'd chosen that it wasn't going to work. It was just too juvenile. So I pulled out Extreme Elements and grunged up my card a bit. I'm so not grunge, so this was challenging.

Then I went back to my original image, the Builder Wheel trio of Candle Crazy (retired) and Birthday, to see if there was anything there I could salvage. At this point, I was feeling the clock ticking...LOUDLY.

I ditched the candles and even paired down the words from Happy Birthday to You as far as I could to remove as much of the Whisper White. That would work...I thought.

My next idea was incorporating the NUMBER of Nik's birthday into the card design, but in order to do that I had to call my mother-in-law to confirm that he is turning 10. I had made a mistake on my niece's birthday card in this category, but that's another story for another time...

Okay, yes, he will be 10 on Monday (at this point, this card might not make it there before he turns 11!), so I pulled out my retired Headline Numbers and stamped them on Basic Grey. Blah. So I ran them through the Big Shot in my Square Lattice Textured Impressions Folder (could we please come up with some agreed upon shorter name for this?!) and liked that look. I mounted them on the card using Stampin' Dimensionals and used the same to place the sentiment.

Done? Please? NO! The card looked unbalanced on the left side due to my placement of the word "Happy". I was NOT "happy" at this point. Glancing around my desk, I saw a piece of Silver Metallic card stock that I had embossed with the aforementioned folder and remembered I had the Big Shot Stars #2 Originals diecut in the shape of stars! Yes, yes, yes, I would finish this or DIE!

The stars adhered, the card was complete, and I am glad I pushed through all the obstacles my arch enemy used to try to deter me.

Now I have to cram some lunch down my throat, change clothes, and run this by the post office on my way in to work. Whew! Who said card making was relaxing?!

Just One More...

I know this is the third origami shadow box card I've shown you in a week, so I promise I'll stop now. I did use some new items from the catalog for this baby girl card for one of my customers...does that help?

See the sweet little half pearls around the shadow box? They are the second smallest size of three sizes in the package of 150 for $5! I used the Victoria Crocheted Trim again too, and I must say it's just one of the best ribbons SU! has ever offered.

I chose the "small wonder" sentiment from Whimsical Words because little Jordan entered the world weighing 4 lbs. 13 oz., three weeks premature. I'd say the phrase fits, wouldn't you?

The base is Very Vanilla, impressed with the Square Lattice Textured Impressions Folder, and the Designer Series Paper is retired Candy Lane. I used my Big Shot and the Billboard Sizzlits Decorative Strip alphabet to customize the card with the baby's name.

More new stuff to come!

Revvin' up a Customized Bike Card

When I was stamping with Nina Wednesday evening, we decided to make a separate card inspired by the interior of the motorcycle card I profiled a few days ago. It was really fun to create because we made it using the colors of her husband's motorcycle. Brilliant Blue is now retired, but she was tickled that I had some scraps available so that we could customize the card to match her man's wheels.

The technique used to create the main image may have some name, but I don't know what it's called. It's supposed to create the look of motion, and I think it's effective. To achieve this, simply ink your stamp well, start at the right of your card stock and stamp once. WITHOUT reinking, inch the image backward and stamp again. Repeat this until you can't get an image to print on the paper. That's matted on Basic Grey card stock that has had its edges roughed with a pair of scissors.

Nina took home a stamped image that she's going to color using her BB marker (I sold her husband my entire Bold Brights family of markers and inks for Nina's Mother's Day present!), cut out, and mount on top of the first image. (If you follow the link above, you'll see what I mean.) I think Scott's gonna love it!

The Square Lattice Textured Impressions Folder was used to create the BB large mat as well as the faux chrome strip--it's heavy duty aluminum foil! We decided to give it some grit by stamping the Wonderfully Worn background stamp on it with Basic Grey. Then it was cut in half and one edge torn and inked with BG. So grungy! Everything's mounted on a Whisper White base, which may be hard to see in the photo.

Motorcycle is an a la carte stamp; one of very few that SU! offers. What I think would be fantastic--are you listening, SU!?--is to carry it over to the next catalog (it's in the Summer Mini until Aug. 31) and create a set with some good sentiments. Here's a few I'd suggest: "You get my motor runnin'..."; "All revved up over you."; and "Born to be WILD".

What saying would you want for this image?

Amped Up Origami Shadow Box

I liked this look so much that I decided to play around with it again for a private class I hosted Wednesday night. I wanted to see if I could make the card more masculine, and when I presented it for the class, it didn't have the new Victorian Crocheted Trim. But then I added it today before I took the picture, so I guess it's not masculine anymore, is it!

I cannot believe how much the look of the card changed when I dry embossed the Very Vanilla card front with the Square Lattice Textured Impressions Folder for the Big Shot. Oh my--it just has so much more depth and visual interest. I think this would be an adorable baby card for a boy (with a different sentiment, of course).

Now for a closeup of that new crocheted trim! It lays beautifully and is delicate without being fragile. It has just the right body. You can also see the detail the Square Lattice added. Great combo!

I'm really feeling like I'm on a tear with my creativity, so I'm off to make another card. If you love what you see here, remember that you can click the 24/7 Shop Online button in the upper right corner and have anything you want delivered right to your door! Happy Friday!

Vroom, Vroom!

I have raised (well, almost) a boy, and that noise was one I heard a lot when he was little (he's not so little anymore). I really never thought I'd be using the sound to describe one of my newest stamps!

Motorcyle is one of the a la carte stamps that SU! is offering this summer in the Summer Occasions Mini for only $7.95! At first I thought I could do without it, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this stamp would work well for manly cards for boys of all ages.

I've been waiting for my first order from the new 2010-2011 Big Idea Book & Catalog to arrive before I inked this stamp, and I'm THRILLED with this first attempt with it! Perhaps that has to do with some of the other stamps and accessories I coordinated with it to make it really pop. I showcased the new Wonderfully Worn background stamp and the Square Lattice Textured Impressions folder for my new Big Shot die cutting machine for this card.

What really makes this card cool is the textured treatment I gave heavy duty aluminum foil. This really helps convey the feel of chrome. I also ran Bermuda Bay through the Big Shot using this same folder. I stamped the cycle in Basic Grey and used my .75" square punch to cut the image apart after I colored the fenders and gas tank with BB Stampin' Write Marker. I mounted each little square with a very tight mat of Basic Black to help it stand on its own against the foil. I also popped it up on Stampin' Dimensionals.

The sentiment is an old standby from It's Your Birthday...sure wish SU! would come out with another set that has a variety of birthday sentiments. Not wild about anything in the catalog.

While I was playing around with this stamp, I wondered if I could simulate movement by stamping the image from right to left (backwards) without reinking. I think it worked! But, since I tend not to leave well enough alone, I added another image that I'd cut out on top of the main cycle, again popped up. This motorcycle's all but doin' a wheely on the inside of the card!

This will be one of the cards I feature at my Stamp-A-Stack later this month. I have SO much new stuff, it's going to take awhile to highlight it all for you! Stay tuned! I'm just gettin' my crafting engine revved up!