I always have such a hard time making Christmas cards, because I can't stop trying new things. LOL! I usually make several different ones each year. I've been playing with some of my new things lately, but I have left many stamps completely neglected for a long time. So, I pulled out a set from last year called A Merry Little Christmas, and this is what I came up with:
I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do at first. I started with a 3x3 card that used a couple of stamps from Punch Pals but didn't like the way it turned out. One of the things I did on that card was to stamp the snowflake in a circle on the red paper. When I trashed that card and pulled out the watercolor paper for this one, I knew I wanted to use our Naturals Ivory cardstock to get a pretty close match to the wc paper color. I started stamping the snowflake and realized that stamping each one right next to the other would make a nice pattern, inspired by Nicole Heady at Paper Trey Ink.
Once the background was finished, I stamped the Santa & Kids on wc paper with Stone Grey StazOn Ink and colored them with Water Color Pencils, blending with an Aqua Painter. Santa's suit was originally just the red wc pencil, but it was too bright for this card. So, I added some (soon to be released) Riding Hood Red with a blender pen, then added a touch of black wc pencil and blended that too. It gave Santa that "fresh from the chimney" sooty look. LOL!
"Cherish" from Warm Words was stamped on Naturals Ivory, then punched with the Small Oval Punch. I punched a scrap of Always Artichoke with the Large Oval Punch. The scallop across the bottom was made with the (soon to be released) Scallop Edge Punch.
I didn't have any dark green ribbon, so I made some. I dragged some white taffeta ribbon across my Always Artichoke craft ink pad a few times, holding the ribbon on the ink pad with a sponge dauber. Since the craft ink was so wet, I wiped it several times with a paper towel until the excess ink was removed and the remaining ink was dry (well, almost dry). I tied it on the card front a little early and a tiny bit of ink got on the Naturals Ivory paper, but it's hardly noticeable. I would recommend letting the ink dry a bit after wiping it to avoid smudges.
The last thing I did, other than assemble the pieces, was to lightly sponge a little Creamy Caramel Classic ink around the main image. It just softens the wc paper a little more and adds to the card's vintage feel.
TFL! Let me know what you think.
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
New Club Openings:
Join the Stamp & Scrap Club today and enjoy great benefits such as a FREE 2008 Fall-Winter Catalog and FREE products during your hostess month. Learn new techniques to use on your pages. Spend time with fellow scrapbookers. Earn Hostess Rewards without having to clean your house!
This club will meet on the third Friday of every month, although our first meeting will be on August 29th. The second meeting will be on Friday, September 15. We will make a different scrapbook project or set of pages every month. The only commitment to join the club is that you will spend a minimum of $25 every month of the club's duration. My clubs are set on a 6-month cycle to follow with SU's new 6-month catalog cycle. At the end of each 6-month period, you can easily opt-out or continue for the next cycle.
Of course, I would love to have all club members here every month; however, if you can't be here for some reason, don't worry. All you have to do is place your order by the day of the club meeting, and you can complete that month's project another day.
Also, if you are not local to the Fayetteville area, you can still join the club! Email me for details.
If you are interested in joining the Stamp & Scrap Club or would like more information on this and other club opportunities, please contact me as soon as possible so I can start planning our first project!
Here is a sample two-page layout that you could make at one of our club meetings:
I would love to make these pages and more with you! So, join the club and join the fun!
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
I have two winners from my Open House yesterday! There was a door prize and a "pre-party" contest to guess the stamp set used on the door prize.
The contest winner is Marciava! She will get this sweet little candle for her correct answer: Sweet Thing was the stamp set used on the door prize.
(I used Bella Rose DSDP, Pretties Kit Flowers and halfback pearls, the Time Well Spent Hostess Stamp Set, and Riding Hood Red Classic Ink.)
The door prize goes to ... Leslie! Here are a couple of photos of what Leslie won:
And, the last one was the sneak peek photo:
Congratulations, Girls!
Remember to check back for daily updates on the retirement lists; and, get those orders in soon, before your favorites are sold out!
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
I wanted to do something fun and different with the snow-people in the new Hostess Set called Window Dressing. For some reason, the song "It's Raining Men" popped into my head. Of course, now I can't get it out. LOL! But, I love the card.
We will have a little Christmas in July at Open House tomorrow, and this card will be one of our Make'n'Takes.
I colored the snow-people with blender pens and the ink colors listed below. I also used the Rock'n'Roll technique for the large snowflakes, inking them first with Pink Pirouette, then "rocking" them in Riding Hood Red.
Recipe:
Window Dressing, Punch Pals, Warm Words
1/2" Circle, 1 1/4" Circle & 1 3/8" Circle Punches
Scallop Punch; Blender Pens; Stampin' Dimensionals
Bella Rose DSDP, Pink Pirouette CS, Riding Hood Red CS, Kiwi Kiss CS, Whisper White CS
StazOn Timber Brown Ink, Kiwi Kiss Ink, Pink Pirouette Ink, Riding Hood Red Ink
The other card that we will make tomorrow is one I posted about a week ago, called Oh My Flakes...
I really love this one too. The photo doesn't do the colors justice.
They really pop off the white paper, but they're not too bright (having stamped-off at least once for the Riding Hood Red and Wild Wasabi).
I'll be back with more samples soon!
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
I had SO much fun making this card for my SIL!
Recipe: Bitty Birthday, Sassy Suzie, Boho Backgrounds, Priceless; Pretty In Pink Certainly Celerly, Close to Cocoa, Whisper White; Corner Punch; On Board Blossoms and Basics.
It's called a wiper card, a really fun type of pop-up. I can't believe I've never made one before now. I used Jan Tink's directions, which you can find on her blog, here. The link takes you to her post, but you can also get the PDF instructions by clicking the "wiper card template" link in the left column on her blog. Check it out, she has TONS of great samples. Jan is one very talented lady!
In fact, I also used her instructions to make part of Heidi's birthday present. It is a Carousel Notes Purse made from the Carousel Notes that were in our 2008 Occasions Mini. Unfortunately, the Notes are retired, but hopefully they will put something similar in the new catty.
So, back to Heidi's purse...
This is the front, which I CASED almost exactly from Jan's sample. It was just so pretty. The Afternoon Tea DSDP is also retired from the Occasions Mini. However, you can use any papers and color combos you would like. In fact, you could make your own Carousel Notes by cutting out a five-inch circle of cardstock and using our Corner Rounder Punch to make the scallops!
Here is the purse opened:
It is also very similar to Jan's, but I did change the embellishments to customize it a little. I made the flowers with our 5-Petal Punch, and the centers are Build-A-Brads. I forgot to photograph the Carousel Notes inserts, but if you look closely you can see the little green tabs (made with the Round Tab Punch) that are attached to the Carousels as pulls. You can see the inserts in Jan's instructions.
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
Ok, this one is also a little dated, since Thomas will be 5 this October...
Most of the elements on this page are from our Special Delivery Boy Simply Scrappin' Kit. This kit will retire in August because it contains Wild Wasabi and Soft Sky, both from the retiring In Color Collection. The other colors on this page are Apricot Appeal and Whisper White. The little rectangle at the bottom is stamped with an image from the Sweet Thing set in Wild Wasabi. Sweet Thing is also on the retirement list. The journal box was printed from the computer, just using PowerPoint to set up the text box and an SU font from the Write Me a Memory Journaling CD II. I typed in the info and left a little space for the row of stars from a retired hostess set called So Many Sayings. The green in the program was so close to Wasabi that I didn't even have to adjust it. The tiny stars in the corners of the journal box are also from the So Many Sayings row of stars. I just inked up one on an end and stamped very carefully. It worked just fine. You could also use the little star in Simple Serif Alphabet. The only other thing on this page that's not in the Scrappin' Kit is the Vintage Eyelets that I added to the photo corners. TFL!
Happy Scrappin'!
Jen
I love these photos of our parents having a blast at Emily's 3rd birthday.
I can't believe this was FIVE years ago!
We made a similar page at a Scrapbooking 101 Class last year. Unfortunately, the alphabet is retired, but the other two sets are still current. They are Doodle This (flourish and flowers),and Polka Dots & Paisley ("joy" & "happy").
Polka Dots & Paisley is going to retire in a few weeks, so grab it while you can!
Everything is stamped in StazOn Timber Brown and colored with SU WaterColor Crayons. It's really hard to see here, but the photo mats are whisper white stamped with the Linen Background (pretty in pink ink).
We just won't tell Tom that he's on the web (in the background) wearing a birthday hat! ;)
Happy Scrappin'!
Jen
This is a 12x12 Progressive Scrapbook Page that we did at Stamp Club awhile back.
We started with making the embellishments. The balloons and flowers are from the Big Bold Birthday set. They were stamped and cut out, and some were also stamped with the little flower from the same set. The balloons were popped up with Stampin' Dimensionals. We also stamped that flower three more times and used the 1/2" Circle Punch to make the little photo corners (also on Dimensionals). "Birthday" from the Happy Everything set was stamped then punched with the Small Oval Punch, and mounted on a piece of Perfect Plum cardstock (punched with the Large Oval). The photo mats are all Whisper White on Wild Wasabi. To make the tags, we stamped "happy" in Perfect Plum and the flower in Wild Wasabi on Whisper White. Then, lined up the Small Tag Punch three times. We used the Tag Punch to make the three Perfect Plum tag backgrounds. Everything was adhered with SNAIL (Tombow) Adhesive. Once the pieces were all adhered to the 6x6 page, we centered that near the top of an 8 1/2" x 11" sheet of Perfect Plum cardstock. That was adhered to the 12x12 Pretty in Pink and the rest of the photo mats and embellishments were added.
Stamps: Big Bold Birthday, Happy Everything
Colors: Perfect Plum, Pretty in Pink, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White
Punches: Tag & Small Tag, Small & Large Oval, 1/2"' Circle
Happy Stampin' and Scrappin'!
Jen
I haven't scrapbooked nearly enough lately. So, of course, I wanted to use some new things on a scrapbook page right away. One of the items I ordered on our demo pre-order was a new Simply Sent Card Kit. I wanted to show you that these kits can also be used for fun scrapbook pages (just as our scrapbook kits can be used for lots of great cards). I also used a new hostess set called Window Dressing...
The photo is a couple of years old, from when Emily discovered that she can literally climb the walls!
The large white and green flowers are cut from a sheet of Cutie Pie Double-Sided Designer Paper. All the other flowers are from the new Simply Sent Kit called Flower Power. I stamped the little girl from Window Dressing in the center of the largest flower, then lightly sponged some Almost Amethyst around her, and added "Hi!" with the Simple Serif Alphabet. Simple Serif and Short Order are the two alpha sets used for the title. I used our new Scalloped Edge punch to make the title box. It's hard to see here, but there are Rose Red brads in the four corners of the photo. The ribbon is Eggplant Grosgrain.
The cardstock colors are Almost Amethyst, Rose Red, Certainly Celery and Whisper White.
Stay tuned for more scrapbook pages and projects!
Happy Stampin' and Scrappin'!
Jen
Unfrogettable is another retiring stamp set.
It might be hard to tell in this photo, but I used the SU! Small Tag punch on the front of the card to make a little window. Then, I used it to punch a hole in a scrap of Regal Rose cardstock, and punched it again with the larger Tag Punch. That made the pink frame for the window. The sentiment is actually stamped on the inside of the card. I centered it by closing the card and stamping though the window. The background paper is from the Certainly Celery 12x12 Double-Sided Designer Paper pack. I stamped the frog image on whisper white cardstock and colored her with Stampin' Pastels.
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
I don't think I've ever used these colors together before (Certainly Celerly, Blue Bayou, Whisper White and Basic Black), but this card was really fun.
I used the Flannel Plaid background (retiring), Much Appreciated (retiring) and Elementary Essentials (going dormant - available but won't be in the new catty). Next time, I would stamp-off the ruled paper stamp to make it a little lighter, so the "thank you" shows up better. I also used our Spiral punch for the torn paper look.
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
The Snowflake Spot is one of my favorites that will retire in less than a month. This is a great set for making cards and scrapbook pages, as well as pretty 3-D projects and even One Sheet Wonders. It is definitely one I will keep for a long, long time. If you like it too, hurry and place your order before it's gone forever!
I also LOVE this new sentiment set I bought in the new catty sneak peek. It is called Heard from the Heart. I used the Christmas stamp on this card. The other three stamps in this set have phrases for "happiness," "kindness" and "wishes." I'll try to post cards with these soon.
The dotted circle is from a fun little set called Think Happy Thoughts. This one is not retiring. It also works great as a small monogram frame!
Since I was mixing the old and the new on this card, I also mixed the retiring and new In Color Collections. I took a minute earlier to look at all 12 colors together. Most of them work really well together in various color combinations. So, if you like the current colors, be sure to add a few packs of paper and any inks you don't have to your next order. We only have until August 8th, then those colors (Blue Bayou, Soft Sky, Wild Wasabi, River Rock, Groovy Guava and Purely Pomegranate) will disappear forever with the retiring stamp sets.
So, this is my Christmas combo card:
Recipe:
Whisper White, Wild Wasabi, Pink Pirouette and Riding Hood Red Cardstock / Wild Wasabi, Pink Pirouette and Riding Hood Red Classic Ink Pads / The Snowflake Spot / Heard from the Heart / Think Happy Thoughts / 1 1/4" & 1 3/8" Circle Punches
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
The red rose is a symbol of the Army wife. I thought this would be a sweet card to send a fellow Army wife. The sentiment reads, "Army Wife Strong."
I cheated a little, using "wife" from the retired set Expressive Flexible Phrases, but you could also stamp that out using the Simple Serif Mini like I did with "Army" and "Strong." I cut all three words by hand, roughly following the random line of the letters, so there's no need to attempt a straight-line cut. Oh, I also used a non-SU! punch for the scallop circle. The rest is all SU!, though. The card base is just plain white, so it's easy to write a note inside. The ribbon is our Pink Taffeta. Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
I am having a blast with my new toys! I can't wait for the new catalog to open so you all can play too! I will start with these two wedding cards that I made with our new Bella Rose DSDP and our new In Colors. They are just slightly different in a few ways. First, one opens vertically and the other opens horizontally. The focal point/sentiment colors are the same but layered differently. One has a ribbon band with no background mat, while the other has no ribbon but does have a brown mat from one of the other sheets in the Bella Rose papers. Here are the photos with the basic recipe:
Recipe:
Kiwi Kiss Cardstock and Classic Ink
Red Riding Hood Red Cardstock and Classic Ink
Pink Pirouette Cardstock
Chocolate Chip Classic Ink
Bella Rose 12x12 DSDP
Stampin' Dimensionals
Punches=1 1/4" Square & Circle ; 1 3/8" Square and Circle; Scallop Circle
Chocolate Twill Tape (retired from 2008 Occasions Mini, but hope to see it in the new catty)
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I also photographed closeups of the middle of each card so you can see the differences a little better.
Happy Stampin'!
Jen
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