A Challenging Challenge - Paper Players # 79-Tag It

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Hey y'all. Happy Friday to you. I hope yours is starting out better than mine. I have what I fear is more than the beginning of the first cold vs sinus infection I've had in about 6-8 months. It started yesterday and now the coughing and real yuckiness is setting in and me with stampcamp and 2 weekend shifts ahead, not cool. Like I said, hopefully your day is going better than mine. With that in mind, I have a card that at least brings a smile to my face and hopefully will bring one to your face as well, and having just checked the site I found out I'm going to get it in just in time.

If you follow me at all, one of the things I resolved to do this year was at least one challenge a week. I saw this one over at Paper Players and thought it would be nice. In fact, as soon as I saw it I knew exactly what I wanted to do. Does that happen often for you? You see a challenge or a sketch and immediately know just what you want to do. Not me. Nope. No Sir-ree! I usually have to sit there and channel my inner Pooh-Bear (come-on you know you want to do it with me) and Think, Think, Think, Think, before something comes about. This time I knew what I wanted, I had just never done it before, so I wasn't sure how easy it was going to be or how it was going to turn out.

Then, as so often often happens, I got busy and all of a sudden it's Thursday night and I still have a card to design for Saturday's StampCamp and with work on Friday that's the only time to do it so that's my priority and I got it done (wait till you see it next week, sooo pretty!) but I still wanted this card and this challenge, so I set out to try and get it done.

First - It had to have a tag. I didn't have any tag's, I was going to have to make one. Oiy! That involved measuring. The OCD in me was not going to have fun with that. Second, the tag I wanted to make was a "bookmark". Now we have a "Bookmark" die, which I've been meaning to get, unfortunately it wouldn't have helped here because my chosen image wouldn't have fit on it.

Second - I had to make sure the tag was the right size to hold my image plus a "border" tag plus I wanted it to sit on my card at an angle to actually be a part of the card. I couldn't very well just slap it on the card, now could I?

Third - I wanted to do some shading and masking on the tag, something I had never done before. I blame Michelle Zindorf and all her brilliant work all over the web. I could see in my minds eye what I wanted, but with limited resources at home (read mostly markers not pads, and no brayers) I had my doubts.

Fourth- What in the world was I going to do for the actual "card" background itself? I would have to figure that out if and when I made that far.

So at about 9:30 last night my journey began and 2 hours later after multiple attempts at getting this "tag/bookmark" just right I came up with what is perhaps, one of my all time favorite projects.

I hope you like it as well-

What do you think? I started with a base of Island Indigo one of my All -Time Favorite Colors. I'm from Florida and it takes me back home every-time I look at it. Then I took a piece of Whisper White c/s and made sure it was wide enough to stamp my image on. I ensured this by first stamping my image with my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig and laying it over the W.W. c/s to get the appropriate measurements. Do you have a Stamp-A-Ma-Jig yet? They are an essential tool for your stamping toolbox. Even if you're not an OCD stamper like me. Once I had my measurements I set out to cut my tag and the underlying base/border tag. I don't think they turned out too bad. (:

Next came that sun. Who knew a little yellow sun could be so hard. Geesh! When we were kids, they seemed soooo easy! This only took me 4 tries. I punched a hole with my 1 3/4" circle punch on a post-it note and used that for my template. I used Daffodil Delight Stampin Write Marker to ink up a sponge and sponged around the circle and then  lightly inked up a sponge with a Pumpkin Pie Stampin Write Marker and went just around the edges. You have to be very careful, because attempt 3 got a "streaky-glob" (very technical term, streaky glob) of Pumpkin Pie and was rendered unusable. I would also recommend using extra post-it notes to hold down the bottom and sides of the first one to help keep it from lifting up and to make sure you don't get any color off the side of the post-it especially if you're using a small square instead of a big one. Ask me how I know.

After I finished my sun I inked up my stamp, which is unfortunately retired. Stampin Up has others you could use that would also make a beautiful card and/or bookmark including the Open Seas set that I used for the background of the card base. I chose this particular stamp however because my boyfriend and I often talk about sailing away on a sailboat to get away from the stresses of our lives and, as his job keeps us apart for long stretches at a time I made the bookmark, thinking I would think of him whenever I used it.

*Tip* - Be careful not to push to hard when inking up a stamp with this much solid line detail. It's easy to  push too hard and actually get ink on the soft rubber, non-image, portion of the stamp including the areas around the edges, which can then transfer when you stamp your image onto your cardstock. Again, ask me how I know.

I actually ended up using my Stampin Write Marker to get the coverage I wanted, to make sure everything was inked up just right for this project. I then used my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, positioned my image where I wanted it and finally was on my way! You know what time it was? That's right. Happy Dance. But, only a little one. I still needed to do the VersaMark and Heat Emboss it. So, I got out my VersaMark pad but once again felt like I was getting a little too much coverage with the pad so I cleaned my stamp and inked it up with my VersaMark Pen, lined everything up with my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, and Voila! Too Easy! Clear Embossing Powder & a quick blast of heat and my glossy little boat was just waiting for ocean and a sky to be able to sail off into.

I used the circle I had punched out earlier to mask the sun and luckily this time had ink pads to work with. I used Pool Party and started by sponging the bottom of the card and ended up lightly sponging all over including the top. I then went over the bottom of the card with Island Indigo to add some depth to the water, and then sponged the edges of the tag with Island Indigo. I didn't get quite the delineation I wanted between water and sky but for a first time and at almost midnight and as tired as I was I wasn't willing to risk messing this up. I mounted this to my Island Indigo tag with Tombow and using my Crop-A-Dile punched a hole at the top with the largest hole punch. I ran a strip of our Chantilly Lace through this for my bookmark's ribbon and my "tag/bookmark" was finished"

Here's what just the tag looks like-

Wow! That being said and done,  I still needed to do the card base. Augh!  Back to my Island Indigo/ Whisper White combo. I pulled out my Open Seas stamp set (which I LOVE) so glad they kept that on as a write in. I hope they surprise us all and have it in this years big catalog! I used the manifest stamp and inking it in Soft Suede and stamping off once each time stamped on the Whisper White c/s. Then I did something almost unheard of. Calling All Trinity Stampers- Are you Listening? Are You Reading? This is something that has only been seen here once before.... and let me tell you I was so tired last night when I did this, that I channeled my inner Nike, and "Just Did It"

I Crumpled Cardstock!


Yes! You read that correctly. I Shannon Angel willingly and voluntarily crumpled cardstock. (Not only that, but I ended up liking the project so much, that I am going to change the sentiment, so I am going to have to do the base again ):  )  For those of you that don't follow me, you can read more about that HERE. The short of it is, Distressing, Distresses me! It stresses me out! I don't do it! But I did. (And I liked it!) I then sponged over the cardstock with the Soft Suede, Tombowed that to the Island Indigo base and could see the finish line... I was almost done.

I put two holes at the top corner of the card with my Crop-A-Dile and threaded my lace through them to secure my "tag" to the card and since it was a card I felt it needed a sentiment. I got out the "Love you, Kiss You, Miss You" stamp from the new P.S. I Love You stamp set from the Occasions Mini and stamped it in Early Espresso in the upper right corner. I wanted something small and subtle, I didn't want to detract from the main focus of the card.

What do you think? I am beyond thrilled with how it turned out! I actually went upstairs and put it in a frame. I'm going to change the base with another sentiment but didn't want anything to happen to it until I could get a chance to do that.

I hope this inspires you to try something new, whether it's a new challenge or a new technique like masking or heat embossing or playing with your Stamp-A-Ma-Jig or even just making your own tags. The whole point of this blog is to inspire to Just Try!

If you liked it, I would love it if you left me a comment. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)

Today's Supplies
Cardstock- Island Indigo, Whisper White
Stamps- Open Seas, Sail Away
Ink- Island Indigo, Pool Party, Soft Suede Classic Ink Pads, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie Stampin Write Markers, VersaMark Marker
Ribbon- Chantilly Lace
Punches- 1 3/4" Circle
Accesories- Crop-A-Dile, Clear Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Powder Trays, Sponges (3 per pack)

If you need supplies to recreate today's card or to make your own card, you can shop in my Online Store 24/7.

I hope you have a great weekend, full of time to spend with family and friends and of course time for creativity and designing.

Till next time-

Remember- It's not about waiting out the storm, it's about learning to dance in the rain,

Be Safe,
Shan Pin It

End of the Week Technique # 16 - Framelet Valentine Candy Holder

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Hey y'all. Happy Thursday! I hope you're having a good day. It's cold here in the DMV with flurries forecast for later today but for now the sun is shining.

I have to confess that this is not the EWT I had in mind for you today. I know... you heard that last week too. Truth is I had planned to do lots of stamping and crafting yesterday to get ready for this weekend, (like I said I was going to do in yesterday's post) and then a little miracle happened. Right as I was finishing that post and about to hit "publish" my Oh-So-Handsome Boyfriend, who I took the day off from work to be with (don't worry I got it covered early, all legit like) and who had a last minute schedule change at 5:55 yesterday morning and wasn't going to be able to get off work, was able to get off work! SCORE!!!!! He lives nearby but his work schedule is soooo crazy (we're talking 6 days/week 12-14 hour days) that our time together is at a premium, so I have to say, there was not a lot of design - creativity happening in my household after I hit publish yesterday.

That being said, the project I have for you is super cute, super easy and can be adapted to anytime of the year, not just Valentines Day. I was inspired to make a Valentine's Day Treat holder after going to a Stampcamp this weekend and using the "Pillowbox" Die and the Big Shot to make one. Since I didn't have that die, I needed to find another option. I could have used the TopNote and made one like THIS from Halloween, but I wanted to try something else. So I got out my thinking cap, looked around and what do you know, I found the inspiration I needed right in front of me on my table. It was on the cover of the new Occasions-Mini. I changed it a little, theirs is simply rolled (so I'm thinking it's probably not a treat holder) and mine is scored with the Simply Scored Tool. Do you have yours yet? I'm telling you it is a must have! I don't even fold cardstock for card bases anymore without scoring them on that first. It just makes the fold so much nicer.

Here's today's project-

Cute right? Wouldn't you love to find this on your desk at work, or on your pillow at home? It's so easy even your crafting-challenged significant others could do this or could help your little ones do it to give you a nice surprise. If they can crank the handle of the Big Shot, Score cardstock, Punch a hole, Tie a knot/bow they're home free. They get bonus points if they can stamp the image and punch it out! (:

I used DSP from my Brights pack and the largest Framelet and simply ran it through the Big Shot. So simple.  Next, I laid this on my Simply Scored Tool with the "points" in a channel. I then counted over 1/2 inch or 4 "channels" on either side and scored, and then reinforced those scores. Then, using my Crop-A-Dile I punched a hole through both sides at the top and took a length of about 12 inches of Pretty in Pink ribbon (although you could realistically get away with less) wrapped it around the outside and through the holes.

Here's what it looks like open-

As you can see 4 Kisses or Mini- Reese's Cups fit nicely, or 3 "Nuggets" You can use a little Snail to hold them in.

Once they were in, I tied my Pretty in Pink ribbon in a simple knot and flagged the ends. I stamped 2 of the images from the P.S. I Love You set in Real Red and Pretty in Pink on Whisper White and then punched it out using my Small Scalloped Circle Punch. A quick hole punched to the top and I tied some Cherry Cobbler Bakers Twine through that and around the knotted ribbon and easy as that my sweet treat is ready to bring a smile to someones face.

So what do you think? Will you be "accidentally" forwarding this link to someone you love so they can make  you something sweet for VD instead of buying something for you? I don't know about you, but I would rather get this, or something similar, that someone took the time to make for me than something from one of the big stores.

I hope you liked today's Quick and Easy EWT and I hope it inspires you to try something new and to remember that just because you don't have "exactly what someone else used" doesn't mean that you can't still make something your own. Just Try! If you liked today's project, I would love it if you left me a comment. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)

If you need supplies to make today's project or one similar to it you can shop at my ONLINE STORE 24/7.
Today's Recipe-
Cardstock- Real Red Pattern Paper Brights Stack
Ink- Real Red and Pretty in Pink Stampin Write Markers
Ribbons- Pretty in Pink Grosgrain, Cherry Cobbler Bakers Twine
Big Shot- Labels Framelets
Stamps- P.S. I Love You
Accesories- Crop-A-Dile, SNAIL


It's not about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to Dance in the rain.

Till next time-

Be Safe,
Shan Pin It

End of the Week Technique # 7 Fall Pumpkins

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Hey y'all! I hope everything's going good for you today and you are getting a moment to just sit down and relax while you take a quick peek in here.
Do you have the day off tomorrow? I hope you do and you get to sleep in! How nice would that be! I get the day off, and just have to work a few hours tomorrow night, so I can't complain too much.

The sun is trying to shine here in the DMV, although the weatherman says the rain is coming and worse, oh so much worse than that, he says the cold is coming too! It should be in the 40's tomorrow! *GASP* *SHIVER*

As much as I would like to deny it, I think I finally have to admit it.... Fall is Here.

With that in mind, today's technique is a project we did at last weekend's Fall Stamp Camp. We made some sweet little pumpkins. They are not the original idea I had for a project, but I was very pleased with how they turned out, my stampers loved them and in the end I think it was a much friendlier beginner project.

I made two. One ahead of time and one with my ladies. (Actually, I made about 5, trying different techniques, but these are the only 2 anyone is ever likely to see. LOL)

Here's a picture of them on my kitchen table. Aren't they cute?

 I used Pumpkin Pie for one and Cajun Craze for the other.

Here's a closer view-

You can't really tell from this angle, but the one in the front is a little squatter. I was experimenting with strip lengths. You definitely need at least 6 inches for this project. While cute, this one just isn't as full and round, and it was definitely harder to assemble.

I combined ideas from a couple of different sites and people for these to make them my own.
You'll need the following-
2 - 6 x 6 inch sections of cardstock. You will cut this down later into 12 - 6 x 1 inch strips
2 brads
Whatever stamp set you would like to use for the leaves and
1/4 inch strip of green cardstock (I used Old Olive) to make the vine
Embossing Folder (This is optional and you can use the embossing folder of your choice)

Tip- If you want to use an embossing folder you have 2 options. I tried using a 5 1/2 inch strip to fit the dimensions of the folder and it's really to short. Perhaps if you had less strips it might work, I'm not sure, I didn't have time to make more. Sorry.

Option 1- Put the cardstock in your desired folder and run in through your Big Shot. Once it comes out, shift the cardstock down and realign the cardstock with the embossed images. It should be fairly easy to see and align, at least it was with the dots. Run it through your Big Shot again. Do this until your cardstock is completely covered with your image.
I did this the first time, and it was fairly quick and painless. The difficulty comes when you cut your cardstock. It takes a little more effort to cut through the texturized paper. I found it doesn't cut as quickly
and cleanly.

Option 2- Cut your cardstock into 1inch strips, place them in your embossing folder and run them through your Big Shot. I preferred this method and laid 4 strips in the folder at a time so it took 3 passes to emboss the strips.

Experiment and see what works best for you.

1- Once you have your strips embossed and cut out, or just cut out if you don't want to emboss, line them up and place them in the small punch side of your Crop-A-Dile tool. It will punch through all layers at once. Flip it around to the other end and do the same.

2- Take one of your brads and insert it into the strips and open it up. The head will be on the outside of your pumpkin, the flanges on the inside.

3- Fan out your strips. Take your second brad and hold it flanges up this time. One by one start bringing your strips up and sliding the punched hole over the upright ends of your brad.

4- As you do this you will fan the strips you have brought up into a circle and you will see your pumpkin taking shape. You may have to shift your fingers around a little as you near the last of your strips. Just be sure to keep one finger on the inside of your pumpkin at all times holding the brad upright.

5- Once you have all your strips on the brad, open it up. It's okay that the flanges are on the outside. This will be the bottom of your pumpkin. Move your strips around until they are evenly spaced and you are happy with how they look. You may have to gently mold your pumpkin here to get the shape just right, but it should be pretty close to just right.

6- For my vine I just gently curled my 1/4 inch strip of Old Olive cardstock around a ballpoint pen and slid the pen out.You can make this as long or short as you would like. I adhered it to my pumpkin with a Mini-Glue Dot directly on top of my brad head.

7- Stamp and cut out your leaves. I used the leaves from the Day of Gratitude set. (One of my all-time favorites) I used Cajun Craze and More Mustard and for the More Mustard one I used the Rock and Roll technique where I stamped first in More Mustard and then rolled the edges of the stamp on the Cajun Craze pad. This gave me a two-toned leave. I adhered them with more Mini-Glue Dots and that's all it took. The most time consuming part was the embossing and cutting.

Here's some closer pictures- Here's the Pumpkin Pie one-

This is the Cajun Craze one-

You can see a little here that it looks like the paper is bent out a little more and it's not as full. This one was done with the 5 1/2 inch strips instead of the 6 inch strips. Still cute, just not as fat and sassy! You can really see the stamping on the leaf in this one though.

Well, I hope you liked today's offering. These would look super cute on a Thanksgiving table, or anywhere for a nice Fall accent. In fact one of my ladies was taking hers to her office.

I hope they inspire you to try something different today. As always, if something here inspires you, I would love to see it, please feel free to send me a pic! If you liked today's project, I would love it if you left me a comment. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)

You can shop in my online store HERE 24/7 to get the supplies you need to recreate these little cuties or many other projects.

Don't forget our FREE Big Shot offer has been extended, but only until tomorrow. You can get a FREE Big Shot or $100 in FREE merchandise, but you have to hurry!

I hope you have a wonderful day and a Safe Holiday! Hope to see you back here real soon for more ideas and projects.

Till then,

Be Safe,
Shan



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Not So Scary Treat Holder

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Booo!
Hey Y'all. Did I get ya? :-) Just one more week till Halloween, so I thought I'd do a Halloween post today. This is a Q&E, that's right a quick and easy, little treat holder for you to whip up for that special ghoul or goblin in your life. In fact I did this yesterday while talking to one of my best friends on the phone about coming to an upcoming stamp camp and she thought it was sooo cute! And guess what, she's so excited to learn how to make it. :-)

First though- I just want to say Thanks! Thanks, to everyone that has stopped by my little blog. I was at 206 hits this morning. Not a lot I know, but to me, soooo very exciting, so thanks again! Maybe we can get a little blog candy or something going for the next big numbers (hint, hint).

So, are you ready to see today's project? Ok, Here it is-

How cute is this? Ok, so totally not my idea? Wish I could claim it, but I can't, it's totally a CASE but I don't remember the person's name. If I find it, I'll come back and put it in here.

Anyways, this is really simple. Your base is Basic Black cardstock, just run it through your Big Shot with your Top Note Die. Your next layer is a piece of Old Olive cardstock. Lay it on the Top Note Die in the middle of die and run it through. Next, pick a piece of Designer Series Paper, I used a piece from our Frightful Sight DSP Collection. (You could use this treat holder throughout the year and simply change the color combinations and DSP.) My DSP was cut at 1 1/2 x 5 and placed at the center of the top note and I ran it through the Big Shot again. Now all that was left was the assembly.

I used Tombow adhesive to really get it to stick. SNAIL will not be sticky enough. You might also try  Sticky Strip, but Tombow worked for me. Adhere your DSP to your Old Olive layer and then I lightly sponged the edges with Grey just to add a little depth. Then, adhere those two layers to the base layer with Tombow, making sure to just put the Tombow around the edges (you want to make sure to leave room to put your goodies).

I then used my Crop-a-Dile to punch small holes in the center points and put in some Black Brads. I then flipped my Crop-a-Dile over and used the other side to punch a big hole up top to run some black ribbon through. The last thing I did was take my bone folder and gently, note that word - Gently, round the inside of my pocket. This gives it some dimension and allows it to more easily accept your candy offerings. Tombow and even Sticky Strip is strong but you have to remember it's only cardstock, so be gentle. I got my Kit-Kat in there with no problem and truth be told could have put something else in there as well.

This was so cute and so Q&E, I think I'm going to stir up a batch for work and class. Get it- Stir up a batch...lol. ok. :-)

So Tinkerbell, took the night off and Goth Tink was nowhere to be found. *tear* I'm kinda sad there's no glitter anywhere. Black Glitter is def going on the wish list.

Well, that's it for today. I hope you get out your Big Shot and your Top Note and start whipping these out for your ghouls and goblins and if you don't have a Big Shot, join my team and get one for FREE! That's right I said FREE! But you only have 1 week left, just 7 little days. If you join now, there's no obligation,  no commitment, just try it out, and you get a Free Big Shot or $100.00 in Free merchandise. What do you have to lose?

Hope you enjoyed today's project. If you liked it, I would love it if you left me a comment. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)  

Remember, you can shop in my online store 24/7, HERE to recreate this project or to create many others. Check back soon to see what else I have for you. As always if you make anything you see here, send me a link, or a pic, I'd love to see!

Be Safe,
Shan

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