Archive for March, 2009:
Taking a Trip and Mapping a Scrap!
Aloha, all!
Harry and I are finally back from a well-needed vacation to one of our sister islands, Moloka’i. We had been there for a short trip about 15 years ago. This time we spent more time and still didn’t see all that we wanted, despite the size of the island (small).
With a Stampin’ Up! workshop on my schedule for this evening, and with the hostess having requested that the Make and Take be a scrap page, I just had to get a quick scrapbook done to get ready for the demonstration! I decided on a 6" x 6" scrapbook as easier for me to complete a whole book in a short time and easier for the workshop attendees to finish a page in the 20 to 30 minutes we’ve allocated for the Make and Take.
To begin, while having a quiet evening in Moloka’i, I sketched out 4 scrap maps. Scrap Maps are basically outlines for placing your pictures on a page. In the case of a 6" x 6" scrapbook page, a 4" square photo is about the largest you can put on a page. To have more than 1 photo, you need to scale the sizes down even further. If you’re used to larger pages, these sizes may seem too small. But they really do work up well.
The photo above is of one of the set of pages in our new Molokai’ 2009 scrapbook.
And here is the Scrap Map that I used to lay out these pages. I interspersed the 4 maps throughout the scrapbook, rotating and flipping them at will! In some cases, I had to adjust the exact sizes to make sure that the photos fit. Scrapbooking is an art, not a science, and creative adjustments are always in order!
For the Scrapbook itself, I used one of Stampin’ Up!’s 6" x 6" looseleaf binders, and the Summer Home Simply Scrappin’ set. As you can imagine, with a 6" x 6" scrapbook there are, well, "scraps," left over! So I’ll be showing off a few cards made from those scraps tonight.
Tomorrow I’ll show off one of the projects that I’m demonstrating at tonight’s workshop. The ladies will be using materials from the Sunshine Garden Simply Scrappin’ kit. Hopefully, by the end of the week, I’ll be able to show off some of the scrap pages that were made at the workshop!
If you’d like a copy of the scrap maps I made up, including some ideas for rotating them to show off different orientations of photos, just call (808.854.6145) or e-mail me and I’ll send a copy off to you!
Subscribe to the comments for this postIt’s Easter Season – Part III: Back to Basics
Aloha, all!
When I joined Stampin’ Up! as a demonstrator, one of the sets that I was encouraged to feature is the one called, "Loads of Love." OK–I could relate to that, as I’d recently lived in rural New Mexico where pickup trucks were the norm. And I’d recently moved to rural Hawaii, where pickups are the norm. So why not? BUT I would rather have not, as I’ve never owned a pickup. Nonetheless, this set, as well as "Loads of Love Accessories," has really grown on me. For one thing, I love to do watercolors, and this set is definitely a watercolor fill-in type of set.
I’m not sure how much longer this set has as far as its Stampin’ Up! life. But it’s definitely in the current catalog, and it definitely has an Easter accessory. So here that pickup truck is again!!
This time I used Classic Stampin’ Pads and an aquapainter to color in the truck and accessories on Stampin’ Up! watercolor paper. As always, I started with light colors and moved up to dark. For the hubcaps of the tires, I used the new 3/16" Jumbo Brads, in the silver color. And, of course, the driver is a read head, as am I!
Big excitement is that I’m going to demo this very card at a workshop at the end of the month! If you have any suggestions for how I could change the card to make it a bit more exciting, feel free to chime in!
Robin
It’s Easter Seasion – Part II
Aloha, all!
Once I got started on Easter cards with the swap that I showed off here on Monday, I just couldn’t stop. I had to go find out what else I had in the way of Easter stamps that I could use for greeting cards.
Sock Monkey to the rescue!! OF COURSE SOCK MONKEY would show up! I had decided at the beginning of the Stampin’ Up! year in August 2008 that I would send a Sock Monkey to my grandchildren through this year. Easter is no exception. That Sock Monkey Accessories stamp set has just the CUTEST BUNNY EARS!
But this all started up at the same time that I finally received my very own personal set of the Circle Scissors Plus and Glass Mat. OK, how do I do the Sock Monkey and the Circle Scissors Plus fit together? Well, by putting that Monkey in a Circle, of course!! What I did here was cut the stamped image out with the Circle Scissors. Then I cut a small strip of a circle with which to outline the image, and then I mounted all on one of the Stampin’ Up! Carousel Notes. He’s finished off with some of the Designer Series Paper from "Walk In the Park" which will be features in the Occasions Mini Catalog which will debut on April 1, 2009.
Do those circles make everything pop or what!? Want a demonstration? Just call (808.854.6145) or e-mail me (robin@robinscraftroom.com) and we’ll get something set up right away!!
It’s Easter Season–Part I
Aloha, all!
My first taste of Easter Season was in a recent swap in which I participated. The swap was run by an online group called SUDSOL (are you a Stampin’ Up! Demo? This is the group for you–just click on the button bottom right). This was a real swap with real paper and ink and glue, not just a photo on a website! I got it sent off to the swap coordinator this afternoon, and I should have my swaps back from the group by the end of next week, and I hope to be able to share a couple of them with you.
For now, here is the card that I made for the swap. The theme of the swap was the new Occasions Mini Catalog, from which you can already order the Easter-related stamps. And this card shows off one of those stamps: the "Egg Hunt" wheel! Also featured in this card are two products that you’ll be able to order beginning April 1st: The new Designer Series Paper called, "Walk in the Park," and the new AWESOME punch, Oval Scallop. This should complete the set of scallop punches that Stampin’ Up! has planned for the year (I don’t know that for a fact, but I’m having a hard time coming up with other shapes that might be features besides the square, round and oval–rectangle? triangle? trapezoid? Hmmm. None of those seem to me to fit with what’s happening right now in the way of stamping and punching. But one never knows!)
The colors in this card are Cameo Coral, Apricot Appeal and Certainly Celery, I just love Apricot Appeal because there are ribbons and brads that go with it, and it satisfies my personal "need" for something yellow-ish to add to my projects. Yes, you can still earn that wonderful roll of So Saffron Ribbon from Sale-A-Bration. But it will disappear from the catalogs once Sale-A-Bration is over at the end of March (want more information? Just contact me and I’l help!)
Of course, once I got going on one Easter card, I had to go into my stash of stamps and try some others. Later in the week I’ll be going back to some oldies-but-goodies and getting you some more Easter cards to copy!
Oh, and I used the Sizzix Texturz plates, Stampin’ Up! Backgrounds I to texturinze the So Saffron Card stock and the DSP. Can’t leave that out!!
A Downline Recommendation
Aloha, all!
You all know that this is the BEST TIME to become a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator. Not only can you get the Starter Kit at a discount AND get any stamp set from the Spring/Summer 2009 Catalog in addition FOR FREE; but you can also sign up to make the payments in 3 easy installments! Just lick on the link to the right for more information.
As I mentioned last weekend, one of my downline team is in Maryland–and I’m in Hawaii. Here is a recommendation from Deb about how I do as a long-distance upline:
Because of Robin I became a SU demonstrator last February. She had recently signed on and told me about the benefits. She was absolutely right. She was with me every step of the way with the forms necessary, what info to include and how to handle the recruiting process. After the paperwork was done she always sent me little notes interpreting the info from SU for me. She still does that. She took the time to make sure I understood what they were writing about. It takes a while to get what some of the info means to you. Even now that I have been signed on for a bit over a year she still follows up to be sure I am getting the most from being a demonstrator. I think she is a wonderful upline and I am lucky to have her. I also check her blog regularly to see what she’s creating. We are traveling to meet at convention this year and I can’t wait.
So don’t let any distance keep you from signing up with me as your upline! I really do support ALL my team, wherever they happen to be!
Have a great week!
Robin
A Template for the Circle Scissors
Aloha, all!
I read Patty Bennett’s blog this week about how she created templates for the Circle Scissors Plus that Stampin’ Up! is now offering as an accessory. I finally received mine from Hilo’s best FedEx guy this week, and I have been SOOOO anxious to play with it. But there it sat, with its accompanying glass mat, just daring me to open it and try it out! So reading Patty’s blog made me want to get it out of its box and do something–SOMETHING–with it!
So my first try to was make the templates that Patty had made. What Patty did was to make circles of various sizes in pieces of card stock. Have a picture you want to cut in a circle? Try the card stock circle holes to see which one worked! Absolutely the greatest idea!!
My first step was to find several pieces of card stock that I figured I might not use any time soon. My choice was Tangerine Tango. Not because I don’t like this color; but because I’m not seeing much in the way of Tangerine in my near future. And this "In Color" will disappear with the next catalog (rats!) and I have a bunch of it.
With the first piece of card stock, I realized I would need, not several, but only ONE piece of cardstock to achieve my goal. Because once I cut that 6" circle, I wondered why I couldn’t just ratchet the circle size down and cut a 5-1/2" circle inside the 6" circle; then a 5" circle inside that; and so on down until I got to the point where Stampin’ Up! has punches sized to make the circle.
This is what I ended up making: 
8 concentric circles with the outside 1/2" larger than the inside. I stopped once I got to 2" because Stampin’ Up! has a 1-3/4" circle punch, so no need for the Circle Scissors for that.
What you can do with these circles is lay them over a photograph or stamped image–or anything that you might want to cut out–to figure out what size circle you should be cutting. The two measurements that are on each circle are the outside size then the inside size.
And how do I store them? Easy! I have a walll decorated with Decor Elements flowers and several push pins stuck in in various places. In this section, I have several of the Brass Templates for dry embossing. I just added a push pin, and there now hang my Circle Scissors templates, too!
Finally, I have to say that I just LOVE my Circle Scissors Plus, and I haven’t even tried out the Plus (drawing) side! It only took me a few times of cutting to realize that I didn’t need to PRESS on the card stock. This tool just effortlessly cuts circles.
Would you like to know more about this great new Stampin’ Up! tool? Just call (808.854.6145) or e-mail (robin@robinscraftroom.com) me and I’ll answer any questions you might have!
Happy stamping–and cutting!!
Decor Elements and Special Photos
Aloha, all!
Wow, has it been busy here at the Craft Room! I got a BIG box of Stampin’ Up! products delivered last weekend, and I’ve had a ton of projects to do for an assortment of customers! I just can’t believe it’s already Friday! (Well, with the new Daylight Savings Time, it’s probably already Saturday for several of you!)
One of the items that came in that box from Stampin’ Up! was the second of two Hostess items that I’d ordered over the past month (others have been the hostesses other times I’ve ordered products). These are the Level 1 Decor Elements Hostess product called "Flower Finesse." You won’t see this as a hostess gift in the Spring/Summer Catalog–it’s only in the Decor Elements brochure. But you can order it as a hostess gift even if you don’t order anything from the Decor Elements catalog!
What I did with both of these Decor Elements pieces was to cut them in half, so that the flower and the leaves were separated. Then I placed one of the flowers in each of the top corners of the photo set and the corresponding leaves/swirls in the bottom corners of the photo set. You probably can’t tell from these photos, but one of the flowers is Black and one is Chocolate. Originally I had assumed that I’d use the Flower Finesse with other Chocolate Decor Elements item I had. But then I realized the best place for them was with the photos of me and my sister, Andrea, wearing black shirts, which I had framed in Black and White.
Andrea is my younger sister who is slowly recovering from an extremely serious stroke, and whom I’ll be visiting in May. I am SOOO glad that I talked her into having our portraits done when she visited me in 2006. We went to one of those mall places that do photos of children. They were surprised to see two adult women show up for the photo shoot! But we told them to treat us just like kids because we felt like kids. So there we are lying on the floor–just like kids!!
A quick message to all: Don’t forget to stop and enjoy one another even when times are hard. You never know what’s right around the corner that will change your life forever.
And, if you have a special photo that you’d like to set off with something other than a frame–consider a Decor Elements accent! I have lots of suggestions. Just call (808.854.6145) or e-mail me and I’ll get some information out to you right away!
Available Now! 3 Easy Payment Plan for New Demonstrators!!
Aloha, all!
The next two weeks are the best ever for signing up to be a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator and getting your own new business off the ground! Why?
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THREE REASONS (Just like a Shamrock has 3 leaves!):
- You can pay for your Starter Kit in 3 easy payments! (Note that you can use this payment plan through the end of April 2009; but you can’t get the next two benefits after March 31st.)
- You get a 15% discount on your Starter Kit through 3/31/09.
- You get an extra stamp set for your Starter Kit–ANY STAMP SET IN THE CATALOG!
WOW! For starting out, it just doesn’t get any better than this. And even if all you’re interested in is buying wonderful Stampin’ Up! products at a discount, this is still the best time to start out.
No matter where you live, if you’re interested in my being your upline, I can help sign you up and provide all the support you’ll need to be a successful Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator. I live in Hawaii and one of my downline lives in Maryland and is doing a bang up job as a demonstrator! She and I share ideas and samples regularly, and we are both truly enjoying this experience.
So: Here are the forms that you’ll need to complete, sign and send to me. But before you send anything, please call (808.854.6145) or e-mail me so that I can go over them with you before you send them.
- Demonstrator Application Form and Starter Kit Order Form
- Demonstrator Agreement
- 3 Easy Payment Plan Form
And, for those of you who may have been considering using the online application process, while you can still do that and get the Sale-A-Bration discount, you can NOT use the online process to arrange for the 3-payment plan. It’s got to be done by mail.
So time is of the essence! Let me know if I can answer any questions.
Happy Stamping!
Baskets & Blooms Die – New Project!
Aloha, all!
Fellow demonstrator, Nancy Student, alerted me to this great new use for the Stampin’ Up! Baskets & Blooms die for the Sizzix Big Shot. Thanks, Nancy!
As you know, Stampin’ Up! has commissioned several exclusive dies for the Sizzix Big Shot. One of them, Baskets & Blooms makes the cutest little round (or oval, depending on how you put it together) basket, and has lots of flowers and tags with which to decorate the basket.
BUT the basket only holds so much; and sometimes (like last night with my FCE group coming over) I wanted a basket that would hold MORE (like those yummy candy bars)! I knew we were going to have a long-ish program, so wanted there to be plenty of nibbling chocolate to last the length of the meeting. When I saw Nancy’s e-mail, I realized that my problem was solved. You can use the Basket that’s cut from the die to make OTHER KINDS OF BASKETS!
For today’s Basket (actually baskets, plural, because I couldn’t stop myself from making them) I used two of the basket die cuts and a strip of matching card stock (or Stampin’ Up!’s great new cover weight Designer Series Specialty papers from the pack named Parisian Breeze). Aren’t they just super?!
For the middle basket in the picture, I used one of the papers from the Designer Paper bundle in the 2009 Sale-A-Bration catalog, gluing it to some Whisper White Card Stock BEFORE I cut the whole piece with the Baskets and Blooms Die.
If you’d like to have a set of instructions for making this great project, send me an e-mail and I’ll send it off to you right away by return e-mail. And, if you place an order at my online store before the end of March (remember–a $50 order gets you some of that great Designer Series Paper or some ribbon or a stamp set for FREE!—I’ll not only send you the instructions, but I’ll also send you everything that you need to make the basket, including the die cut card stock in the color of your choice! This really is a good deal!! And now’s the time to take me up on it!!
If you’d like a taste of what my instructions look like, be sure to click on the Techniques and Tutorials tab at the top of the page and try one out!
And watch here for yet another new basket using this die in early next week!
More Fun with the Sizzix Texturz Plates
Aloha, all!
I have family visiting from the mainland this week. But I still managed to get some time in the Craft Room before they arrived so that I have something to share with you. Now that my Sizzix Big Shot has its permanent home, everything that ends up on the table in the Craft Room usually also ends up being run through the Big Shot! Today’s card is no exception. If you are on my newsletter mailing list or if you’ve recently clicked on the Techniques and Tutorials tab, above, you have already seen this card. But today I’m bringing it to the Front Page!!
When I look back at cards that I’ve made over the last couple of months, I realize that they would have been MUCH classier if I’d had some texture in the paper or card stock. Now, every time I stamp paper or card with rubber and ink, I ask myself, "Would this look better with a bit of texture?" And, of course, the answer these days is a very definite, "Yes!" (with the exclamation point there every time).
For this card, I used one of the Sizzix Texturz Plates from the Stampin’ Up! Backgrounds I set. Don’t you think it make the card so much more elegant? Click here for the recipe for making this card, along with a tutorial for tying that stress free knot.
Now off to do some touring with my cousin! And while I’m out and about in Hawaii, you don’t even have to track me down if you want to order something. All you have to do is go to my website and click on "Shop Now." Is that cool, or what?! On the other hand, if you want to ask a question or learn more about a product, you can try me on my cell phone (808.854.6145) or e-mail me and I’ll get back to you as soon as I get back to the computer.
Happy Stamping!
