Merry Christmas!

Wishing you a Wonderful Christmas and a great rest of the year!!

Here is a card I made with MDS using the Welcome Christmas stamp brush set, Festival of Prints and First Edition digital DSP. I was able to easily change the color of the stocking, ornament and star and add an outline of digital stitching to the Very Vanilla cardstock layer. You can't really tell from the photo but I added a touch of Dazzling Details to the star making this a hybrid project! Experimenting with an MDS trial version might be a great activity to pursue if you have some downtime this holiday season. 

Please email me with any of your papercrafting or MDS questions or leave them in a comment below.  

Chalkboard Christmas

Chalkboard is very hot right now in graphic design. Once you look for it you will see it everywhere. This look can be easily created with paper and ink. Earlier this year my upline, Brian King, showed how to create some great cards that contain chalkboard elements. You can see that blog post here.  Recently I saw a cute chalkboard Christmas sign and decided to do something similar for my Christmas card. Last year I made my cards with Stampin' Up's My Digital Studio (MDS) and was very pleased with the results so it seemed like a great way to do my cards again this year. With MDS I had all the "supplies" I needed, literally at my fingertips and I was able to create my card in a few hours! Plus once I had it created there was no craft area to clean and I could print as many copies as I needed, either through Stampin' Up's Print Services or on my own printer! If you have not considered using MDS in your papercrafting you should! Yes there is some learning involved but you can download a free trial if you want to test it out and Stampin' Up has produced almost 100 short instructional videos, each focusing on one small aspect of MDS. You can click on the My Digital Studio tab above to see these videos. If you think you might be interested I would encourage you to look at the Getting Started with a Card video first.  I think this video will give you the best introduction to MDS whether or not you are a card maker. After that you can check out MDS Overview and Getting to Know MDS.  A detailed list of FAQs will give you lots of good information. Stampin' Up! has tons of digital downloads and introduces new ones each week (see the link on the right side on this page for the most recent downloads) plus MDS comes with plenty of content to make lots of great projects right from the start.

Here is the card I made. 

A chalkboard look can be created in MDS simply using Basic Gray digital cardstock and white digital ink but digital chalkboard is also available from a number of places. Stampin' Up! has a chalkboard background in three of its digital download kits (Convention 2012 Photobook Template; Back to School and Hello World). You can purchase one of these kits and use the chalkboard that is part of the kit or if you know how, digital chalkboard can easily be made in Photoshop or similar software and saved as a JPG. Once you have it as a JPG you can use it in MDS, just like any other element. That is how my chalkboard element was made. I then cropped a piece to the size I wanted and created text boxes with the words merry and Christmas in white "ink". Some of the fonts I used appeared chalk-like from the start. For the others, MDS allows you to easily reduce the opacity of the "ink" creating more of a chalk look. For text MDS uses the fonts already on your computer. If you want more there are tons of additional free fonts available on the Internet for download. I then added a star and a tree trunk from two stamp brush sets (as they are called in MDS) that came with the software. I placed my finished chalkboard on a digital Cherry Cobbler background and added digital DSP. If you would like to try experimenting with digital chalkboard I will be glad to email you a copy of the JPG I used. Just email your request to cottagepapper@bellsouth.net.


Supplies Used in MDS:

• Stamp Brush Sets: A Holly Jolly Christmas (star); Holiday Blitz (tree truck)

• Cardstock and DSP: Cherry Cobbler; Festival of Prints Digital DSP; Christmas Cocoa II Digital DSP; First Edition Digital DSP

• Ink: Whisper White

To order click on the ordering tab above just under the header. You can email me privately with any of your papercrafting questions or ask them in a comment below!

A Royal Birthday!

Today is a special day and to celebrate this special day, three of us are participating in a blog hop. What's so special about today you ask? Well, it's Brian King's birthday! Brian is our Stampin' Up! upline and "King" of our "InKing Royalty Team". We hope that you enjoy our little blog hop dedicated to Brian as he celebrates his special day. I'm number 2 in the list; the full blog line-up with links to all of our blogs is listed at the bottom of this post. I hope you'll click on each link to see the special cards that we've made for Brian. And, when you're done, you may want to check out Brian's blog. He always has something amusing to share with his readers.

When I started to think about a card for Brian I immediately thought it should have a royal theme. I thought a crown would be a good choice. Stampin' Up had a great stamp set called You Rule! that contained a crown. Though the set is retired it is still available as a digital download but Brian had made a fantastic card with that set and I knew I couldn't improve on it. Then I thought about possibly creating a crown with punch art. After looking at my punches I didn't see anything that I thought would work but then I thought of the Banners Framelits Dies that are available from the new Celebrate the Everyday catalog which begins January 4. Demonstrators can order from this catalog early and I had ordered this Framelits set. It seemed perfect! I could cut three sets of three different sized banners and layer them to create a crown. I originally planned to use the Brushed Gold cardstock throughout but then I remembered the Champagne Glimmer Paper (FYI it is cardstock weight even though it is called "paper") and it seemed perfect for the crown. Brian is not a fan of glitter but I think Glimmer Paper on occasion meets with his approval. When I think of royalty I think of deep purple so I pulled out some Elegant Eggplant to use with the Glimmer Paper. I had planned to use the You Rule sentiment stamp in MDS from the set mentioned above and also use another stamp from that set and in MDS create the sentiment  "King, You Rule".  As I was working in MDS I realized I could just use a font in MDS to create the sentiment! I also used the font to print "Happy Birthday" on the inside of the card. Here is my card.

The next stop in our blog line up is Lynn Kolcun at Stamping with Avery's Owlery. Thanks for visiting and be sure to click on the last link and leave a comment on Brian's blog to wish him a happy birthday :-)

1. Kelly DeTommaso at Kelly's Creative Corner

2. Katie Ferguson at Cottage Paper 

3. Lynn Kolcun at Stamping with Avery's Owlery

4. Brian King at Stamp with Brian -- Don't forget to leave him a comment to wish him a happy birthday. 

Supplies Used:

Cardstock: Bermuda Bay (131197); Champagne Glimmer Paper (127885); Elegant Eggplant Cardstock (105126); Brushed Gold Cardstock (102935); Very Vanilla cardstock (101650)

Ink: MDS Elegant Eggplant

Tools: Banners Framelits Dies (available January 4)

Accessories: Basic Rhinestones Jewel Accents (119246); Stampin' Dimensionals (104430)

To order click on the ordering tab above just under the header. You can email me privately with any of your papercrafting questions or ask them in a comment below!

More Great Buys from Stampin' Up!

If you are still looking for supplies for all your holiday papercrafting projects Stampin' Up! has one more great opportunity for you!  On Tuesday morning at 1:00 AM at CST they will restock the Clearance Rack with all kinds of goodies!! If you have never shopped the Clearance Rack you need to go see what is available. Unfortunately I can't tell you exactly what items will be added since I will find out at the same time you do - but I can tell you there will be some great items you will want to have and they will be at some great prices! There will be stamps, cardstock, Designer Series Paper, punches, buttons, embossing folders, ribbon and more.  How do I know all of these items will be there? Because they are there now!! Plus there will be even more on Tuesday morning! Click here to go straight to the Clearance Rack. While you are there remember that Valentines Day is not far off and currently there is a number of great items listed that are specifically for Valentine papercrafting.

Another great, easy holiday papercrafting idea is to make packaging tags.  Many of the ideas for cards can be scaled down and used to make gift tags and which can be made very quickly!




This  is a card I made with fellow demonstrator Dianne Eure. Several of us regularly get together at Dianne's house to make cards. Dianne comes up with the design - sometimes her own and sometimes inspired by another card she has seen. She comes up with some really great cards. I keep telling her she needs to start a blog and that if she doesn't I am going to start putting the cards on my blog!! Well she has officially run out of time. This card makes a great impact. It involves a lot of punching but is really not difficult to make and the idea can easily be used to create tags. Each individual square with the sparkly circle could be placed on a square tag. (Note that the white squares can be easily cut with a paper cutter if you don't have the Squares Collection Framelits.)

Here are some quick tags I made with washi tape. Washi tape is very versatile. It can be an addition to a card or used to make the entire card. Plus it can be used to wrap the gift itself! I generally wrap my gifts in wrapping paper that looks like Kraft paper (Kraft shipping paper is usually too heavy) and washi tape looks great on the packages. The tag on the left was made by tearing the tape and adhering it directly to the tag. The tag on the right was made by adhering the pieces of tape to a piece of white paper and then cutting the sides into a tree shape. The tag in the middle was easily made using two markers to color just one stamp.


                                      

Don't forget to check out the Weekly Deals before you place your order. Go to the Stampin Up store and click on Weekly Deals.  Note that they change every Tuesday.


Supplies Used

Stamp Set: Seasonal Sayings clear mount (128009); Wishing You (131751)

Cardstock and DSP: Real Red (102482); Whisper White (100730); Silver Glimmer Paper (124005); Red Glimmer Paper (121790); Champagne Glimmer Paper (127885); Cherry Cobbler (119685); Soft Suede (115318)

Ink: Versamark (102283); Cherry Cobbler Marker (119681); Old Olive Marker (100079)

Tools: Merry Minis Punch Pack (126882); 1" Circle Punch (119868); Squares Collection Framelits (130921) 

Accessories: White Embossing Powder (109132); Season of Style Washi Tape (132155); Basic Pearls (119247); Linen Thread (104199)


To order click on the ordering tab above just under the header. You can email me privately with any of your papercrafting questions or ask them in a comment below!

Cyber MondayAdditional Items Added to Holiday Sale!!

As a result of its very successful Holiday Sale Stampin' Up! decided to add a few more 30% off items to the sale for Cyber Monday only! The added items are on sale from midnight MST on Sunday until midnight MST on Monday. They have included some great items to use during the holidays. The most exciting item is the Envelope Liners Framelits Dies. These have been a very hot item this fall. They are great for all your cards. They come in three sizes and perfectly fit the three sizes of Stampin' Up! Envelopes.

As part of the sale promotion I wanted to make a card but I had to make the card before I knew what the additional sale items were since I was going to be away from home on Sunday when the additional items were announced to the demonstrators. I decided to make a Christmas card with the hope I would be lucky and one of the items I used would be added to the sale.  Here is the card I made.





While none on the additional sale items were used on the card there were some very similar items. First notice I lined the envelope with the striped paper from Season of Style Designer Series Paper.  I have been lining envelopes for a while though I had not yet ordered the Liners Framelits. They have been on my wish list since they first came out but they had not yet made it to my actual order - at least until now!! They will be perfect to use to make liners for multiple envelopes for holiday cards. Next I used the small Rhinestone Basic Jewels to accent the little ornaments. The Large Rhinestone Basic Jewels are now part of the sale.

You can see the original sale items by clicking on the Holiday Sale icon on the right side of this page and following are the additional sale items.

These products are 30 percent off for 24 hours on Cyber Monday:

Envelope Liners Framelits Dies (item 132172) $26.95 sale price $18.87




Expressions Thinlits Dies (item 132171) $24.95 sale price $17.47




Holly Jolly Greetings Simply Sent (item 132159) $14.95 sale price $10.47




Snowflake Season Simply Sent  (item 132176) $14.95 sale price $10.47




Extra-Large Gift Box (item 132147) $3.95 sale price $2.77




Large Rhinestone Basic Jewels (item 129324) $4.95 sale price $3.47

In addition to the above sale items Stampin' Up! is having Weekly Deals with each week's deals being posted on Tuesday. Weekly Deals for this week. I would like to particularly point out the following items.

• Regals Markers set which includes the colors - Always Artichoke Cajun Craze, Cherry Cobbler, Crushed Curry, Elegant Eggplant, Garden Green, Island Indigo, Night of Navy, Perfect Plum, and Rose Red. These are $21.71 which is 22 cents each.
  
• Cherry Cobbler Chevron 3/4" Ribbon which is $6.21. This is great for card making and to wrap packages.

Supplies Used

Stamp Set: Wishing You (Wood 131748) (Clear 131751)

Cardstock and DSP: Cherry Cobbler (119685); Gumball Green (126840); Whisper White (100730); Season of Style DSP (132340) Digital (134858)

Ink: Cherry Cobbler (126966)

Tools: Stylish Stripes Embossing Folder (132174)

Accessories: Rhinestone Basic Jewels (119246); Gumball Green 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon (126848)


To order click on the ordering tab above just under the header. You can email me with any of your papercrafting questions or ask them in a comment below!

Truly Grateful

Last week I made a card for a special friend. I decided to use the set Truly Grateful. I really love this set and think it is very versatile. The acorn and wheat sheaths are probably limited to fall but the text, log end and chevron design can be used anytime of year. Since I was sending this card in November, fall colors fit right in.  The twist is that it is a birthday card! This person has had some life challenges in the last year. My family and I really are truly grateful for his friendship and for all the lessons we have learned from him about dealing with these challenges. Truly Grateful just seemed like the perfect sentiment for him and his birthday!  Here is the card.

For this card I used the birch paper ribbon included in the Thankful Tablescape Simply Created kit (133463) for one of the background layers but you could also use the Frostwood Lodge DPS Digital Download (125609). That paper includes a birch bark pattern which you can print it out and use on your cards! I have found that the best paper to print on for creating DSP is Hammermill Color Copy Digital Cover.  

Supplies Used:

Stamp Set: Truly Grateful Clear Mount (131733)
Cardstock and DSP: Sahara Sand (121043); Chocolate Chip (102128); Whisper White (100730); Epic Day This and That DSP (130814); Soho Subway DSP (130140)
Ink: Crumb Cake (126975); Chocolate Chip (126979); 2012-2013 In Color Markers (126856); Subtles Markers (131263)
Tools: Woodgrain Embossing Folder (127821); Ovals Collection Framelits (129381)
Accessories: Naturals Designer Buttons (127554); Linen Thread (104199)

To order click on the ordering tab above just under the header. You can email me privately with any of your papercrafting questions or ask them in a comment below!

BIG Holiday Sale! (plus some thoughts on quick inexpensive holiday cards!)

Stampin' Up has announced it's annual Holiday Sale which is taking place now through Monday, December 2, 2013. There are over 50 unique items from both the Annual catalog and the Holiday catalog with some items 40% and 50% off. The items include stamps, cardstock, DSP, punches, Framelits, ribbon, embellishments plus digital items at really great prices! A large number of the items are perfect for your holiday papercrafting! My sale flyer can be viewed, printed or downloaded by clicking on Holiday Sale on the right of this page. 

If you would like to make some holiday cards, tags or decorating items but have not yet bought your supplies NOW is the time!! You can choose from six individual stamps plus three sets. One of the sets contains a great collection of eight sentiments, perfect for the inside of cards.  Then you can add silver and gold ink pads, silver glimmer paper, Silver and Cherry Cobbler Dazzling Details, Vintage Faceted buttons, and Gumball Green ribbon. From the Clearance Rack you can receive Cherry Cobbler Scalloped ribbon and Coor'dinations cardstock in Real Red, Cherry Cobbler, Gumball Green or Early Expresso. All of these are great color choices for the Holidays! If you need still more (don't forget envelopes!) you can supplement your supplies from the Annual and Holiday Catalogs.  You can view these catalogs on the right side of this page. You will be totally ready!

I decided to show your how easy it would be to make a very simple card using supplies from the Holiday Sale. Since I have not yet received my new sale supplies, I pulled together some of the sale items that I already had on hand. Here is my card.

This card uses the Holiday Ornaments Framelits Dies which are now 25% off and Silver Glimmer paper which is 30% off (I realize in this photo it looks like champagne glimmer paper, which would also look great, but is not on sale!).  These few items plus some cardstock can be the basis of many great cards and tags. If this card interests you but you don't have a die- cutting machine the Annual Catalog has an ornament punch. It is not on sale but it could be used as a substitute for the ornament dies and the coordinating stamps are included in the sale. One way to quickly step-up this card is to emboss your cardstock with an embossing folder before you cut out the ornaments. I did not do that since there is not an embossing folder included in the sale. Almost any embossing folder would work and there is one on the Clearance Rack - Lacy Brocade that would be absolutely perfect for ornaments!

Now for my card I did cheat a little. Stampin' Up! has a new product called card bases. They are standard card sized pieces of cardstock, precut and pre-scored. They are available in several great holiday colors including Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, and Old Olive. They are not on sale but if you are in a hurry or feel you are paper cutting challenged, they are a perfect answer to creating cards in a shorter time. Here is a great Stampin' Up blog post discussing card bases. Otherwise, if you would like to stick to sale items, you can get the Coor'dinations cardstock from the Clearance Rack at over 50% off. In addition to being used with embossing folders and sanding to expose the core of a different color, Coor'dinations can be used as regular textured cardstock, perfect for cards. Here is a link to the Clearance Rack where you can find it and other great deals on supplies for holiday packaging, cards and decor.  Between the Holiday Sale and the Clearance Rack there are lots of opportunities for great holiday cards!

Supplies Used:

Cardstock: Old Olive cardbases (135809); Cherry Cobbler cardstock (119685); Old Olive cardstock (100702); Silver Glimmer Paper (124005)

Tools: Holiday Ornaments Framelits Dies (127816)

Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you plan your cards and tags.  To order click on the ordering tab above just under the header. You can email me privately with any questions or ask them in a comment below!

97

Recently a very special man I know celebrated his 97th birthday.  In recent years I noticed that as each birthday arrived he became more and more proud of his age! That started me to thinking about making him a card with his age on it just like you see on cards for kids.  When I came across these vintage metal numerals at a flea market I thought they were exactly what I needed for his card. Next I looked for Designer Series Paper to use with the numerals and this Birthday Basics DSP with all the numerals all over it seemed perfect!  The great thing about using DSP on a card is that your color combinations are already pulled together for you. It makes it all so easy!  While this collection of DSP is great for birthdays for all ages, at least one side of each piece can be used for any occasion, making it completely versatile. I then created a mat for the numerals using one of the Chalk Talk Framelits and then cut a second piece out of Brushed Silver cardstock to use as an outline on each end of the mat.

I bought my numerals last summer before the Holiday catalog came out but the Morning Post Numbers clear mount stamp set (131841) in the current Holiday Catalog would also work great on this card or on a similar card for kids or adults alike!


Supplies Used:

Cardstock and DSP: Summer Starfruit (126839); Brushed Silver (126839); Very Vanilla (101650); Birthday Basics (130145)

Tools: Chalk Talk Framelits Dies (129983)

Accessories: Summer Starfruit Ribbon (126846); Silver Mini Brads (122941)


Please email me any questions or ask them in a comment below!

Surprise "Royal" Visit!!!

On Saturday Jeremiah and Brian King paid a surprise visit to the Cottage! They had been to Huntsville Alabama to visit September Gray, fellow member of Brian's InKing Royalty Stampin' Up! group. Going to Huntsville from Atlanta involves a drive over Lookout Mountain. As they drove on their way Brian suddenly realized they were passing thru our area. He gave me a call and I invited them to come by the Cottage on their return to Atlanta which they did! 

We had a short but great visit. Surprisingly there was no real papercrafting talk. Most of the conversation involved food - how good September is at cooking it and how much we all like eating it, especially the not good for you kind! But, we did decide that we would try to schedule a future InKing Royalty group meeting on the mountain! I very much look forward to that since I know what great meetings Brian can host.    

While we have not yet had an official InKing Royalty group meeting, earlier this month Brian, his upline Pam Morris, and fellow demonstrator Katy McGoin hosted a wonderful meeting in Atlanta for members of Mary Fish's Stampin' Pretty Pals. While most of the attendees were from the southeast, some came from several states away. With the prize for farthest distance traveled going to Mary Fish herself! It was an all day event with swaps; make and takes; demonstrations; and games.  

Here are a few pictures taken that day.  I will have more in future posts.  This is a picture of Mary Fish with me. 

Here are the members of InKing Royalty who were in attendance plus Pam, Brian's upline, and Mary her upline.

Front row L to R: Pam, Chris, Allie, September.
Back row L to R: Jeremiah, Brian, Mary, and me.


This is the entire group in attendance.  What a great bunch of people they all are!!!

Best Stampin Up! Deal Ever!!!

This deal extended until midnight Tuesday October 22!!

As part of their 25th Anniversary Celebration Stampin' Up! has announced a fantastic promotion. If you become a Stampin' Up demonstrator between now and October 21 the sign up fee is $25.00.  Why this might be of interest to you?

• For $25-$27 (more about that below) you get $25-$27 worth of Stampin' Up! Product. Ok, so far that doesn't sound like much of a promotion but keep reading!
• You will receive a 20% discount on anything you order until the end of April or for as long after as you remain a demonstrator.
• If you place an order for $150 or more within 45 days of your joining you will receive an additional 10% discount for a 30% total discount.
• You will receive advance access to the Spring Catalog and Sale-A-Bration promotion with the Spring Catalog available around the first of December.
• You will be in the know about all the latest Stampin' Up! info and news.
• If you join under me you will be part of the most amazing papercrafting group ever - Stampin' Pretty Pals!! Mary Fish, www.stampinpretty.com, and Brian King (named first male Stampin' Up Rising Star), www.stampwithbrian.com, will be part of your upline. They are two phenomenal people.  Mary has a Stampin' Pretty Pals Facebook page which provides a way for all of us to communicate, share ideas, and ask questions.  In addition she holds monthly webinars to discuss all the Stampin' Up! news and the latest products. This last weekend Brain and his upline Pam Morris assisted by fellow PAL Kate McGoin hosted a fantastic PALS event in Atlanta. I addition to the quasi-local people, like me, who drove to Atlanta, six PALS flew in from all over the US.  I will be posting more about the event in the next few weeks but Brian has already posted lots of pictures and info on his blog which you should check out. I noticed that one of the commenters on his blog said, "I don’t want to be a demonstrator, but your weekend made me think about it."!
• All of this with no obligation on your part to do anything more!

Now how to join.  Pick product(s) which total(s) exactly $25-27 before taxes.  This can consist of many items or one item. It just has to total $25-$27.  Then email me and I will help you with the registration process. But you may want more stuff than that!  Once you have joined and your order is on its way you can immediately place another order - large or small - and you will receive your 20% discount!  Plus if you want a lot more stuff you can receive 30% off your first $150 order placed within your first 45 days.  What is not to love!!
To make things a little easier I have created a list of individual items which fall in the required price range.  There might be something on the list you have been interested in.  If so, what a perfect time to act - no calculator needed!  Here is my list. Please email me with any questions or put them in the comments below! Stay tuned for more about our fabulous event in Atlanta.

Sunburst

In June I attended a Shoebox Swap for Stampin’ Up! demonstrators hosted by my wonderful upline Brian King in Atlanta.  You can read about it on Brian’s blog.  I had learned how to make a Sunburst card the year before and decided that might be a good technique to take to the Swap.  Here is the card that I made for the Swap.

It was a hit at the swap and I quickly realized that even some demonstrators are not aware of how the card is made.  A number of people have asked for a tutorial on this technique so I decided to make a video.  Like many things this card is easy to make once you know the technique! 

A few weeks after the swap I wanted a card to send to one of the granddaughters who was at camp.  I decided to make a Sunburst card like I had made for the swap.  Since it was for a young girl I decided to step it up a bit!  I put pewter embossing powder on the You Make Me Smile piece (I would have done that for the swap if I had thought of it sooner!) and added some silver glimmer paper. 

Supplies Used:

Stamp Sets: Notable Notions (130285);

Cardstock and DSP: Pool Party (122924); Basic Gray (121044); 
So Saffron (105118); Whisper White (100730); I Am Me (130138)

Ink: Basic Gray (126981); Calypso Coral (126983)

Tools:  1 3/8” Circle Punch (119860); 1 ¼” Circle Punch 
(119861); 1 ¾ Scallop Circle Punch (119854); Sweet 
Buttons Embosslits (121813); Fancy Fan Embossing Folder 
(127751) 

Accessories: 1/8” Silver Mini Brad (122941) ; Stampin’ 
Dimensionals (104430)

Please email me with any questions or ask in a comment 
below.

Using the My Paper Pumpkin Welcome Kit

Earlier I posted a card that was a CASE of the card in the My Paper Pumpkin Welcome Kit. My Paper Pumpkin is a new monthly subscription offered by Stampin Up!  It is regularly $19.99 per month (which includes shipping) but as a promotion all subscriptions ordered before midnight Saturday (MDT) will be half price for the first two months.   You can see the card and learn more about My Paper Pumpkin here. 

Today I have a card that uses the Hey My Friend stamp that comes in the Welcome Kit. The monthly kits all contain stamps and ink spots that can be the beginnings of or additions to a collection of papercrafting  supplies.  I wanted to show what can be done long after the consumables in the kits are gone and forgotten.  Here is the card I made. 

This is how I made it. 

I “stamped” with my Chevron Embossing Folder using Chocolate Chip Classic ink on to Old Olive ink. This is my favorite new technique!  I love the look and it is so easy.  You can use any embossing folder.  Rub your ink pad over one side of the embossing folder.  For most folders you will need to decide which side you want to use depending on what look you want.  For the some of the folders, including the Chevron Folder, the sides are symmetric and either side will produce the same result.  Once you have inked up your folder, place a piece of cardstock into the folder and carefully close. Then press over the closed folder with your hand. You can use a brayer if you have one.  The Classic ink tends to bead-up on the folder resulting in the small brown dots in the zig-zags.  I have seen this done with VersaMark ink and since it is thicker, it does not produce the small dots.  I like both of these looks!  I then stamped the Hey There Friend stamp on Whisper White cardstock and layered it on Old Olive.  I popped up these layers on the Chocolate Chip layer with Stampin’ Dimensionals. The three brads on the bottom left are made with Candy Dots attached to Brad Bases.  Love Candy Dots!!

If you want to take advantage of the promotion and order My Paper Pumpkin use the promo code PumpkinDeal after you click here. If you don't have a demonstrator please list me as your demonstrator. 

Supplies Used:

Stamp Set: Hey There Friend stamp from Welcome Kit

Cardstock and DSP: Chocolate Chip cardstock (102128); Old Olive cardstock (100702); Whisper White (100730)

Ink: Chocolate Chip Classic ink (126979)

Tools:  Chevron Embossing Folder (127749)

Accessories: Neutrals Candy Dots (130934); Candy Dots Brad Bases (132293); Stampin’ Dimensionals (104430)

Please email me with any questions or ask them in a comment below.

My Paper Pumpkin Promotion Ending August 31, 2013

Would you like a fun ready-to-create paper project to come to your doorstep each month?  My Paper Pumpkin, new from Stampin Up! is just such a product.  It arrives with some paper fun that is perfect for beginners or those short on time!  It also makes a great gift for those who might be interested in creating but don’t have the time to create projects from scratch.

Each month you'll receive a unique, surprise kit with all you need to complete a papercrafting project.  It may be cards, journals, decor, or something else!

Each kit includes stamps, ink, paper, and accessories.  All color-coordinated, measured, and cut just for you!  All you need to supply is adhesive. Depending on your skill level and experience each kit will take about 30 minutes to complete.

Your Paper Pumpkin will be shipped on or around the 15th of the each month and you need to sign up on or before the 10th of the month to receive a kit that month.  Even though My Paper Pumpkin is a monthly subscription there's no commitment.  You can cancel your subscription at any time. In addition you can skip a month.  Each kit will contain 1 or more unique stamps and 1 or more ink spots (a tiny ink pad) that you will be able to add to or begin a collection of stamping products and use them over and over again on other projects.

No matter when you sign up the first kit you will receive will be the Welcome kit.  Among other things it contains a clear block for you to use with the stamps in all the future kits.  The Welcome kit and contents are shown on the back of the current catalog.  (Click here to see)  To show you some ideas for your Paper Pumpkin Welcome kit I made two cards.

Until August 31 new subscriptions to My Paper Pumpkin are half price for the first two months. They are regularly $19.99 a month, which includes shipping. During this promotion they are $10 for each of the first two months.  

If you like the original project for the kit and want to make more, you can generally duplicate the project with regular Stampin’ Up! Products.  I duplicated the components that came in the Welcome kit with the products I had on hand and duplicated the project.  I make a few changes in the original design of the card in the Welcome kit so that you can also see that the projects can be put together in many different ways.  Here is my first card - my CASE (copy and share everywhere) of the Welcome kit card.  I will show you the second card in my next post.

OK I realize may have gotten carried away with the Spot stamp – but you can see that the card is very similar to the original card shown in the kit.  Here is how it was made it.  

The card base is Basic Gray cardstock.  So Saffron ink was then sponged onto a Whisper White layer which was then stamped in Basic Gray ink with the Hey There Friend and spot stamp. The large green circle was punch out with the 1 ¼” scallop punch and then placed by in the punch and rotated a fraction of an inch and punched again. This creates more of a jagged edge. The green piece was then embossed with the polka-dot embossing folder. The small green pieces are ½” circles and the flagged strip is a piece of So Saffron that was embossed with the Stylish Stripes embossing folder. The button is a Very Vintage button sponged with Tempting Turquoise ink. (Yes the buttons can be colored with ink! It was left to dry overnight.) Linen thread was tied through the button holes.  

If you sign up in August your first kit the Welcome kit will cost $10 (including shipping) and will ship around September 12-14.  Your second kit will be the October, will cost $10 (including shipping) and it will ship around October 12-14.  Your third kit will be the November kit.  It will be full price ($19.99) and ship around November 12-14. If you don't want the November kit, you need to cancel that kit (set the quantity to zero) sometime after your October kit ships and before November 10.

To give you an idea of what to expect here is a summary of the kits for each month so far. 

March - Welcome Kit pictured on the back of catalog. It has the Hey There Friend stamp, a Basic Gray ink spot, Clear block D, embellishment pieces, cards and envelopes.

April  – Seriously Kit.  It has stamps which say Seriously, You Kick Booty, and Love Your Guts plus a Cherry Cobbler ink spot, embellishment pieces, cards and envelopes.

May – Good Life Brag Book Kit.  It has stamps which say The Good Life and an arrow with the words Love This plus a Basic Black ink spot, front and back chipboard covers, printed pages, sticker sheets, embellishments and metal rings to assemble.

June - Hello to You Kit. It contains the Hello to You, Heart and Chevron Stamps, a Soft Suede ink spot, punch-outs, embellishment pieces, cards and envelopes.

July – Party Pennants (mini banner) Kit.  It contains Polka Dot, Small Honeycomb and Diagonal Strip  background stamps, Pool Party and Summer Starfruit ink spots plus lots of punch outs to make banner.

August – Pedal Praise Kit.  It contains a bicycle and Thanks So Much stamp, Baked Brown Sugar and Bermuda Bay ink spots, punch-outs, embellishment pieces, cards and envelopes.

If you want to sign up click on the My Paper Pumpkin kit on the right column. Be sure to enter promo code PUMPKINDEAL. You will need to choose a demonstrator and if you don’t already have one I would appreciate your choosing me.  lso please let me know by email as I am not notified by Stampin Up! until your kit ships.  

Supplies Used

Stamp Set: Hey There Friend and Spots from the Welcome Kit

DSP and Cardstock:  Basic Gray cardstock (121044); Whisper White cardstock (100730); Old Olive cardstock (100702)

Ink: Basic Gray spot from Hey There Friend Welcome Kit; So Saffron Ink pad (126957); Tempting Turquoise ink pad (126952)

Tools: 1 1/4” scallop punch (127811); ½” circle punch (119869); Stamping Sponges (101610); Polka Dots Embossing Folder (117335); Stylish Stripes Embossing Folder (132174)

Accessories: Very Vintage Buttons (129327); Linen Thread (104199)

Please email me with any questions or ask them in a comment below. 

Kite Card

Last spring I made a kite card for the birthday of one of my granddaughters.  During the time I was making this card another of my granddaughters was visiting. She was intrigued by the card and ask me if I would make a kite card for her birthday.  I said of course! Her birthday is coming up and here is the card I made for her.   

With the correct dimensions in hand, kite cards are not really difficult to make - certainly much easier to make than they are to photograph!  

Start with a 10" X 4" piece of cardstock.  Score it at 5".  Then put a small pencil mark at 3" and 7" along the two long sides of the card and at 2" along each short side.    Then score from each 3" mark to the 7" mark on the opposite side as shown by the dotted lines.  Since you are scoring on a diagonal line it is difficult for your eye to line up the grooves of the Simply Scored.  I find the easiest way to do this is to put a piece of removeable tape (love that stuff!) down one of the groves in the middle of my Simply Scored.   Then line up two of the small pencil marks making one leg of the X along that groove.  The tape helps you make sure the groove at the top mark is the same groove as at the bottom mark.  You can also do this with a bone folder and a straight edge.  Fold the center score of the card backwards so right sides are together and burnish with a bone folder.  Open the card flat.  Then crease forward each of the score lines that create the X and burnish each one.  Once all score lines have been done, fold the card closed pushing the side pieces inward.  Your piece should now resemble a house.  Cut off the triangle pieces by cutting from the 3" (or 7") mark to the 2" mark in the center of the bottom of the of card. If you cut through both front and back layers at same time the front and back layers should line up when closed.  Make a tail out of Baker's twine or string and attach it to the back of the card.  I used some retired Stampin Up! Rope Twine that I untwisted and then attached a strand of the twine with Glue Dots.   

To create a piece of DSP to attach to the front and triangles to attach inside folded pieces, cut a piece of DSP 4 1/2" X 3 1/2".  Keep in mind that you may want to use a piece that does not have a direction.   Score at 1  3/4"  along the 3  1/2" side and fold it down the middle.  Along the 4 1/2" side place a mark at 1 3/4".  With the DSP folded along the score line cut through both layers from the mark to one end of the fold as shown in the photo, cutting off 2 triangles.  Then cut from the mark to the other end of the fold, cutting two more triangles as shown.  You will now have a kite shaped piece to attach to the front of the card.  I also cut a 2nd kite shaped piece out of another piece of DSP using the first piece as a template.  I attached this 2nd piece to the back of the card over the kite tail.   I cut another piece from Whisper White cardstock and attach it to the inside of the card for my message.  Using the 2 smaller triangles as templates, cut the larger templates to the same size as in the photo.  Attach the DSP triangles to the card as shown.  Embellish as desired. 

Supplies Used:

Stamp Set: Blue Ribbon wood (125981) clear (125981)

DSP and Cardstock: Pool Party cardstock (122924); Whisper White cardstock (100730); Silver Glimmer Paper (124005); I Am Me DPS (130138)

Ink: Tempting Turquoise (126952)

Tools:   Simply Scored (122334); Bone Folder (102300); 1 1/4" Circle Punch (119861); 1 3/8" Circle Punch (119860); Stampin Dimensionals (104430); Glue Dots (103683)

Accessories:  Early Expresso 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon (119959); Pearl Basic Jewels (125577)

Please email me any questions or ask them in a comment below!