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So Thinking of You!

Aloha, all!

     One of my favorite Stamp Sets in this year's Sale-A-Bration catalog is So Happy for You!   There are FIVE stamps with greetings/sentiments and FIVE stamp sets with little images to mix and match with those greetings.  What a fun and versatile set for everyone!  As Sale-A-Bration comes to a close, I'm trying to use it as much as possible to show it off to all of you who might be thinking of placing an order that would allow you to get this great 10-stamp set FOR FREE!!

     So when it was time to come up with a card for this week's Divas Coffee Break Design Team, I really wanted to use the set.  My intention was to use the little butterfly in the set as well as the "Thinking of You" sentiment.  But I kind of got carried away and turned to my Sizzix Beautiful Wings Embosslit butterfly for a bit of dimension to the card.

     The colors in this card are Perfect Plum, Pretty in Pink and Certainly Celery.  The stamp set is one of my favorites from the 2010-2011 Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Catalog, the Level 2 Hostess (FREE!) stamp set, Fast and Fabulous.  This is 2-step stamping at its best!  Especially with the clear mount set, you hardly even need to use the Stamp-a-ma-jig stamp positioner to layer the "filling" stamp onto the "outline" stamp. 

     I did do a bit of a fun bit of masking for this card.  I first stamped the images for the Pretty In Pink flower, then cut a mask to cover it before I stamped the Perfect Plum flower.  The other bit of fun for this card is that Perfect Plum scalloped border made with the Scallop Trim Border and Corner Punches.  In the sketch that follows, as always the measurements are suggestions EXCEPT FOR THE MEASUREMENTS FOR THE SCALLOP TRIM BORDER!  If you're going to make that border, these exact measurements will allow you to make the corner and border punches to come together well.

     I hope I don't scare you off from making those scalloped borders.  They're so much fun, but they are kind of persnickety about having those measurements just right for the number of scallops you're trying to attempt.  For sure, whatever you do creatively this week, I want you to have fun with it!

     And don't forget to visit the Divas Coffee Break Design Team blog today – and maybe even enter one of your OWN cards in this fun color challenge.

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Get Well Wishes!

Aloha, all!

     As I'm writing this I'm starting to develop a bit of a cold and I sure could use a Get Well Card myself!  But as this gets published for the weekly Divas Coffee Break Design Team challenge, I'm likely all better and on my way to a family wedding!

     The Divas Challenge this week is another color challenge.  For awhile, these color challenges really, well, challenged me!  There were some that I just could not figure out how to do and I wasn't very happy with the results.  But the color challenges of late have been very interesting.  In fact, this very color challenge is the same set of colors that I used last week in my Fun and Fast Notes Baby Carriage card – Baja Breeze, Regal Rose, and So Saffron.  In last week's card there was a bit of Pear Pizzazz, too, which I've left out of this card.  Other connections here are that I'm using the same set of Designer Series Papers – Nursery Suite – and the same Stamp Set – Fun & Fast Notes!

     But it's not a baby card!  It's a Get Well Card!  This is one of my favorite images from the stamp set.  It's fun for all kinds of cards, not just get well cards.  But the flowers in the teacup always remind me of flowers that I send to people who aren't feeling well, so I mostly use it for Get Well Wishes!

     The fun paper here is the Regal Rose Scalloped Paper from the Designer Series Paper set.  This set is called "Specialty" paper because of the two sheets (2 of each included in the set) that have scalloped edges.  This sheets is a large circular sheet, and what you see here is just a small section of one side of the paper.  It's really much more versatile than it looks at first glance.

     To carry through the scalloped theme, I used the Scallop Trim Border and Corner Punches to mat the central stamped image.  To make this work out well, you have to cut your card stock to a very specific measurement.  Once I have that done, I punch the corners first and then the edges.  You'll see the measurements in the sketch at the end of the blog post.

     While I originally had the stamped element square on the card front, it occurred to me – just before I stamped the image – that a diagonal might be more interesting – and so I changed my design in mid-stamp!  It's fun when I'm playing around with something for the first time to adjust my design in mid-stream.  Finally I tied the whole card together with some Baja Breeze Seam Binding – lovely ribbon for this card!

     Here's the sketch for today's card.  Note the exact measurements for the punched mat.  In most cases, my measurements are just a suggestion – you'll have all kinds of reasons for changing the size and shape of my designs – and all good ones!  But not for using this particular punch set. 

     Whatever you're doing for your mid-week crafting, I hope you have fun with it!

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Addendum to my Flip Fold Video

Aloha, all!

     Last week I published a video tutorial demonstrating how to make my Mini Flip Fold Album.  (The video is on my Facebook page.  Just click here and you'll see it in my February 25, 2011, post.)  Those of you who have had a chance to view it may have noticed that I started out using lots of adhesive as I would with a "real" project.  Then I realized  that this was just a demo album which I had printed with the letters A, B, C and D to show you how I was putting the album together.  So it was a demo project; no need for all that adhesive!

     This afternoon I proved myself wrong in the latter thought.  I was cleaning up my table to make another video and was about to toss the sample project.  But wait – that was a piece of Confetti Cream Card Stock I'd used to make that sample!  And, yes, it had stuff printed on it.  But I could cover up the printing with some Designer Papers!  And so I did, and here is the final project.  The stamps on the cover element are from the Level 2 Hostess Stamp Set Apple Blossoms.  Love this layout – I used it in the first batch of thank you notes to those who bought my Card Layout eBook.

     But I digress.  On the inside, I didn't need to add any papers to the small flaps (that I like to use for journaling) because the paper is a nice light color.  But I did add a stamp from the Stamp Set, Artistic Etchings, to decorate the flaps a bit.  And I decorated the remaining pages of the album with some more of the Jolly Holiday Designer Series Papers – the paper is nice and thick and hides those printed letters beautifully!

     Those of you who might have paid really close attention to my video may have noticed that the last few "scenes" showed the pieces of card stock with the circled letters, but without the dashed lines that I had originally shown as the locations for scoring.  The story behind that is that I put the first set of papers together – adhesives and all – without remembering to turn on the camera.  Stupid, stupid.  Those pages I DID throw away.  They weren't going anywhere but in the trash, especially as I crushed them when I realized I done all that demo for nothing!  And it was a better job, too!  OK, take a deep breath, Robin.

     So – no dashed lines here that I had to cover up.  And I have yet another lovely album to give away as a gift!  Just need to add some photos.

     I hope you had a great weekend with lots of crafting time!  I'm about to get very busy with all the challenge projects that I have to get done before I leave on a trip next week.  But I'm going to have fun with them all – as I hope you do with all of YOUR craft projects!

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An Elegant Valentine Card

Aloha, all!

     It certainly is in the eye of the beholder whether a card is elegant – or not.  I felt that this card had a touch of elegance that is not typical in the kind of greeting card that I usually make.  Most of that feeling as far as I am concerned comes from the elegant products that Stampin' Up! has available for all of us as we get ready for Valentine's Day 2011.  And, of course, the design provided by the Diva Coffee Break Design Team added to the sense of elegance!

     Two of the products that I used in this card are new products in the Stampin' Up! 2011 Occasions Mini Catalog.  The first and most visible because of its sparkle is the brand new Red Glimmer Paper.  This paper comes in a pack of two 12" square sheets, and is a breeze to use with Stampin' Up!'s punches and Sizzix Dies.  The scallop trim border punch went right through this paper beautifully, as did the Sizzix Ovals Die, which I purchased from Stampin' Up!

     The main color in this card is Pink Pirouette, in the form of one of the embossed sheets in the new Love Impressions Specialty Designer Paper set.  This paper is card stock weight, and is filled with teeny embossed polka dots.  There is also a large motif of embossed hearts, and that is a part of the sheet that I also cut with the Sizzix Ovals Die.  I think it's so lovely with the embossed white hearts against the Pink Pirouette background!

     I'd also like to highlight the stamp on this card, which is from the stamp set, Filled with Love, that was featured in the 2010 Holiday Mini Catalog.  And, yes, it's still available!  But it's only availalble as part of the Filled With Love Bundle, which is only available until next Monday, January 24th!  There is more information about this bundle here.  This bundle includes papers and buttons as well as this fun Valentine Stamp set.  So don't delay purchasing it if you've been thinking about it!

     The final touches are the bow based on a tutorial by fellow Stampin' Up! demonstrator, Mary Brown, on which I still need lots of practice!  It's held together and down onto the card with a Real Red Glimmer Brad.  The Glimmer Brads were also featured in the 2010 Holiday Mini Catalog, but they, too, are still available as part of the 2011 Occasions Mini Catalog.  The only expiration of which I'm aware at this point is the expiration date for the Occasions Mini, which is April 30, 2011.  I'm waiting to see if these become a part of the Stampin' Up! regular line up of products!

     Today's card is based on a sketch at the Diva Coffee Break Design Team blog.  But I'm providing the measurements for my card to help make it easier for you to copy if you'd like to be a part of this week's challenge.  Or even if you just want to make a card!  If you'd like a whole book full of all the sketch layouts I provided for you in 2010, it's now for sale as an eBook on CD.  Just click on the picture at the top of the column to the right for more information!

     And whether you decide to join us at the Diva Coffee Break sketch challenge, or decide just to make a card for yourself – have fun with it!

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Sweet Treats!

Aloha, all!

I know that several of you have purchased Stampin’ Up!’s Treat Cups, and I’ve been playing around with them myself.  In fact, I’m thinking that I’m going to have trouble giving these up if Stampin’ Up! doesn’t continue them into the 2010-2011 Idea Book and Catalog!

Since Valentine’s Day is coming up, I thought I’d share a couple of cards I made using the Heart Treat Cups.  Not only that, I’ve created one of my "one-page tutorials" for you to use for your own cards. The tutorial just covers how to get the heart cup placed on the center of the card AND how to create a layer on the inside front of the card so you can get to those treats without tearing the card apart.  I certainly wouldn’t want to tear this creation apart!

For this card, I used the new stamp set, Sweetheart, which is also featured in the Heart Treat Cups flyer.   I am having a lot of fun with this set!  But the Heart Treat Cup is not just for Valentine’s Day!  Think of using it for a wedding or shower invitation with M&Ms the bride’s wedding colors!  You can even order up personalized candies and decorate the cards with matching colors.

I also used two new punches for the scallop trim border around the bottom layer.  The Scallop Trim Border punch is available through the 2010 Sale-A-Bration Catalog (yes, you can GET IT FOR FREE!)  The Scallop Trim Corner Punch is available in the 2010 Occasions Mini Catalog.  Both punches are in the new punch style.  

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Fabulous New Stampin’ Up! Products – and the Stamping 411 Challenge!

Aloha, all!

I love these times during the year when I get my first shipment of brand new Stampin’ Up! products!  Now that it’s December and we’re less than a month away from TWO great new mini catalogs, we demonstrators get to pre-order some of the products so that we can be ready to show them off and answer any of your questions when it’s time for you to start placing your orders.

So here I am the day after I get my first pre-order for the  2010 Occasions Mini Catalog and the annual Sale-A-Bration brochure, and I have a great challenge from Stamping 411 to help me show them off!

This Christmas Card features the brand new Scallop Trim Corner Punch (from the Occasions Mini Catalog) and the brand new Scallop Trim Border Punch from the Sale-A-Bration brochure.  Yes, you can get a punch FREE during the 2010 Sale-A-Bration!  (And there’s more to this punch than meets the eye.  Later this week I’ll tell you more about Stampin’ Up!’s newest punch style!  For a few days, though I’m just going to share some of what I’m doing with the new products!)

I’m still learning how to use the new punches correctly, but I’m getting there!  I’m sure that by the end of the month – when customers can start ordering these – I’ll be in a great position to share tips and tricks for making perfect punches!

Oh, and there’s another beautiful new product on this card–the luscious 5/8" Satin Ribbon - in this card, I’ve used the Old Olive ribbon to accent the paper from the Christmas Cocoa Designer Series Paper set. 

And that brings me to a reminder:  the Holiday Mini Catalog products – including the Christmas Cocoa papers, the Petals-A-Plenty Textured Impressions Folder, and the Patterned Pines Hostess Set – are still available.  There are so many wonderful Christmas products for making those perfect cards and gifts!  You’ll want to make sure that you don’t miss out on this catalog, as many of its products won’t be available once the catalog expires on January 4th!  You can order online any time of the day or night, any day or night of the year! 

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