Miss You

This card was inspired by the sketch from this week's Freshly Made Sketches challenge.  I find sketches very helpful in making a card come together quickly.  I used the Festival of Prints DSP from the Stampin' Up! Holiday Catalog. It is very versatile and can be used for more than just Christmas projects.  The flower was made from Cherry Cobbler tulle ribbon - I have been having fun using this new embellishment.  It makes a very pretty bow with little effort, and I have also used it to make flowers such as the one here.  Thanks for stopping by!  

Fall is in the Air

I really like fall colors and the changing season.  Here in Northern Colorado, we have officially entered into fall this week and I am loving the crisp air, and occasional sprinkling of rain.  This card is one of our class projects from last week's Stamping Class, "Fall into Stamping".  The maple leaf was especially fun to make and features the following steps to make this gorgeous leaf:

1.  Stamp Maple Leaf design with more mustard.  I used the Wonderfall stamp set. 
2.  Sponge the edges with Cajun Craze ink.  
3.  Next, the fun part:  Crumple up the leaf and 'stomp' (but not too hard or ink will go everywhere) with the Cajun Craze ink pad to create the leaf veins.
4. For a little glam and sparkle, sponge randomly with Champagne Shimmer Paint.   

And, because I always buy popcorn from the Boy Scouts each year and have about 50 unpopped popcorn bags hanging around, we made this matching fall gift.  Basically, a belly band is made from Early Espresso cardstock, layered with some Orchard Harvest DSP, and tied in a neat little bow with Island Indigo ribbon.  the colors Island Indigo, More Mustard, and Cajun Craze really do work well for fall and are different from the traditional fall color combinations.  And, the key to jazzing everything up is a little sparkle from the Champagne Glitter paper.  

Grateful Butterfly

There is something about butterflies that adds both a touch of elegance and nature to a card.   They are so universal and work for so many different types of cards!  Here is another one of my swap cards I made for the Denver Regional this month.  Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps:  Papillon Potpourri
Paper:  Basic Gray, Rose Red, Whisper White, Floral District DSP
Ink:  Basic Black and Versamark
Techniques: Butterfly is heat embossed with Black embossing powder, houndstooth embossing folder for background, and framelit has paper piercing along the border.

Denver Regional SU! Conference

I had a great time today at the Denver Regional Stampin' Up! Conference.  It was a more low-key atmosphere than convention and I really liked getting to meet the Stampin' Up! team in person.  I also had a blast hanging out with my two friends Darci and Joanne who share my passion for stamping and paper crafting.  I learned all kinds of new ideas (including about 10 new ways to use Shimmer Paint)!  Bring on the glitz and sparkle for the holidays!

This card features River Rock and Basic Black colors.  It is difficult to see in this picture, but the butterflies are embossed in black embossing powder which helps them to really stand out and provide additional texture.  River Rock is one of the colors I use the least, but I really like how it pairs with black. I am glad that I used a color outside of my comfort zone.

Today I also learned that the stamp set 'Papillon Potpourri' is the most popular stamp set from the 2012-2013 Stampin' Up! Catalog this year.  I like it because it has so many different types of butterflies and also coordinates with the new Elegant Butterfly punch.  This card was made in less than 10 minutes start to finish!  So easy!

Papillon Potpourri Stamp Set
Item # 123759 (clear mount) - $14.95 or
Item # 123757 (wood mount) - $18.95

Don't forget - if you are in the Northern Colorado Area, I am having a Stamp Class "Fall into Stamping" Friday September 21 at 7 pm in Loveland, CO. I will be featuring some products from the Holiday Catalog that will get you in the spirit of fall.  As the weather is finally starting to change, it will be the perfect time relax and get crafty!  Email me for details (see the top of my home page to send me a quick note!)

You Are Fabulous!

I got this fun stamp set at convention, and really like it!  It is a very confidence-boosting sentiment perfect for sending a card to a great friend.   I embossed the main image in white embossing powder, and it gave it a kind of 'chalkboard' look, which was also a theme at convention.

 After I took this picture on the balcony of my new house, it blew away!  I went racing after it, and thankfully was able to rescue it from the rocks outside the patio below.  I need to keep working on my light box...

Christmas in August

I have been in the mood to create Christmas cards lately, and didn't get to use much of my Christmas supply last year.  I figured I would get a head start this year and make some Christmas cards and gifts early.  This card was inspired by a sketch from Freshly Made Sketches.  This is my first time to play along with this sketch challenge and have enjoyed seeing all the possibilities a single sketch can inspire.  Thanks for stopping by!

Snow Much Fun with Blue!

Wow, a high quality camera can really make a difference.  I got a Nikon D3000 camera and it is great!  It is the newer version of the Nikon D40, which was my previous model.  What I like about it the most is that it has a 'guide mode' where it helps me take better pictures.  Say hello to brighter, crisper pictures!

I participated in a color challenge on Splitcoaststampers.com where Tempting Turquiose, Pacific Point, and Night of Navy blues were the selected combination.  And, since I love blue so much I just had to play along!  Online challenges are a fun way to expand creativity and try new things!

Spotlight on Sponging

I made this simple one layer card using the sponging technique I found at a tutorial located here.  I used baja breeze for the base color and then midnight muse for the darker color.  The flower is also stamped in midnight muse with the new Stampin' Up! foam pads - it leaves such a crisp image!  I left the middle without much sponging to allow for a lighter area. Placing two large sticky notes on each side of the sponging area provides the crisp clean edge lines.  This photo also demonstrates my first attempt with my homemade photo light box.  I was thinking of purchasing one, but the cost ($50-100) and the questionable reviews of the products left me wondering if there was a more cost effective way.  So, I found the following tutorial and made my own:  Make your own inexpensive photo light tent.  I spent about $10 for the cost of supplies, and most of the cost went toward the light bulbs.

Of course, the photo does not yet fulfill my expectations.  I used my cheap digital camera to take this photo, as my more expensive SLR camera fell onto the concrete out of my hands and now does not work.  I have ordered a new camera and am anxiously awaiting its arrival so I can see if the cards have a crisper image and to check the photo light box for adequacy.

What a Lovely Friend!

My friend Darci Johnson made this beautiful thank-you card for me, and I wanted to share her beautiful creation with you.  She used many new products from both the 2012-13 Stampin' Up! Catalog and the new Holiday mini catalog.

Stamps:  Lovely and Lacy
Paper & Ink:  Midnight Muse, Certainly Celery
Accessories:  Window Frames Framelits Dies, Lacy Brocade Embossing Folder - new from Holiday Catalog!

I am finalizing some details for classes this fall - stay tuned for a class schedule through December.  Also, if you are interested in joining this year's Stamp Club, I still have some spots left!

In Color Dahlias

I copied this idea from the display board at the Stampin' Up! Convention and made a Get Well card for my sister.  The dahlias are very easy to apply with a glue dot and make some fun flowers!

Thanks for stopping by!

Triple the Layer

I used Dawn Olchefske's Triple Time Stamping Technique to create this fun card.  See a video of how it was done at Dawn Olchefske's Triple Time Stamping Tutorial.

The World's Spectacular DSP was used for the background and then the balloons were stamped with Early Espresso using the triple time stamping technique.    The measurements for the paper are:

Designer Series Paper:
Small panel: 2 x 3 1/4 inches
Medium panel:  3 x 4 1/4 inches
Large panel:  4 x 5 1/4 inches

Early Espresso:
Small:  2  1/4 x 3 1/2 inches
Medium:  3 1/4 x 4 1/2 inches
Card Base:  8 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

This was very simple and quick to make!  Try it with different stamps and backgrounds!

I love background stamps!

My favorite new 2012-2014 'In Color' is Midnight Muse.  It is a little darker than Not Quite Navy, but not too dark.  I have used up the last my Midnight Muse paper with this all occasion card using the Stamp Background Ex Libris from Stampin' Up! This card is a thank-you card for my boss as today was my last day at work in my current management position, and I am very thankful for all the mentoring she has given me.

This background stamp has many uses, and I chose to use Versamark ink and emboss with Pewter embossing powder.  It gives it a very elegant look!  I die cut the flowers using the Fun Flowers die, ran them through the crimper several times and crumpled them to give some texture.

More details:

Stamps:   Ex Libris
Paper:  Midnight Muse, Rich Razzleberry, More Mustard, Very Vanilla
Ink:  Versamark and Midnight Muse
Other Accessories:   Pewter embossing powder, heat tool, Antique brads, Fun Flowers die

Thanks for stopping by!

Come see my 3x3!

Today's card is from my 3x3 Convention Swap contribution at the 2012 Stampin' Up! Convention.  I love watercoloring the flowers from the Bordering on Romance set by Stampin' Up!  The ribbon was created using Designer Series paper that was folded ribbon-like across a piece of sticky tape.

Paper:  Summer Starfruit, Real Red, Marina Mist DSP
I used a unusual color combination, and it worked well to make the flowers really pop!

Stamps:  Bordering on Romance and A Word for You

Ink:  Calypso coral marker, Real Red Marker, Cherry Cobbler marker for flowers, and Lucky Limeade marker for leaves - all layered and blended with blender pen.  So Fun!

See below for a step-by-step how-to!

Thanks for looking and keep checking back for more fun ideas with stamps and paper!

Back From Convention 2012!

I had a great time in Salt Lake City this past week making new friends and learning the latest in stamping techniques and designs.  I am planning on incorporating some of the new ideas from convention into upcoming classes and Stamp Club events this year.