A Little Ombre / NAC #85

Pin It
Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday! Hope you're having better weather than we are today. It was in the 80's this weekend and today it's rain and possible snow. Seriously, Mother Nature!!! I wonder if I click my heels 3 times....

Tuesdays mean a new challenge with the Nacho's. Today we have a sketch challenge for you. My card is fairly clean and simple, just a little time consuming. Here's what I came up with-

Have you tried the Ombre Trend that everyone's doing these days? Most I've seen have big strips of colors. I went a little smaller, but still managed to get 7 of our pinks across my card going from dark to bright to light. I simply stamped each flower 3 times, punched them out, then layered them. The 3 with the rhinestones were popped up with dimensionals the others are just adhered with Tombow. Too Easy. A little sponging around the edges a simple sentiment and I was done.

Here's this week's sketch-

For the inside, I stamped 3 times without re-inking to get a similar effect.

That's all I have for you today. I hope you liked my clean and simple card for this week's challenge. What will you create with it? I can't wait to see! As always if you have any questions about any of my cards or projects, don't forget to leave me comment below so I can get back to you.

Thanks for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

Pin It

Ornamental Mosaics / NAC #59

Pin It
Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday! OH NOES!!!! I typed that to get it ready to post for 12:01 Tuesday am like I do every Monday evening and realized that due to the Holiday weekend I had missed 12:01 by 19 HOURS!!!! Ok, so I hope you had a good Tuesday and a safe and restful Holiday weekend. *SMH*

So it's Tuesday and that means it's time for another Nacho Average Challenge. It's a Sketch Challenge this week and I'm so excited with how it turned out. Love when that happens. :) It's my first Holiday Card of the season, here it is-

Here's this week's sketch-

I have to admit that little ribbon had me stumped for a quite a while. I really had no idea what I was going to do with it. I just couldn't figure out what to do with it at the bottom of my card! I even tried turning it on it's side. I had ideas for the card, as long as there was no ribbon. :( Then I turned it once more till it was upside down and BAM! I knew what I wanted to do. WOO-HOO! I used my Mosaic Madness stamps and coordinating punch to make ornaments. I was so excited when I saw this set as part of our preview that it was the first 2013 set I purchased! It's so versatile. I added a little Bling because, well, everything's better with Bling and stamped my sentiment from Petite Pairs which is another favorite set.

Here's the inside-

The design across the bottom is another Mosaic Madness stamp. I colored it with my Cherry Cobbler and Old Olive Stampin Write Markers. So simple but such a pretty effect.

You know what else is pretty? My Sweet Little Nacho! 

Look at my Pretty Little Patriot Princess. She's 6 whole months old now. I can't believe how big she's getting. Ooooooohhhhhh, I love this little girl and miss her like crazy.

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked today's card and I hope it inspires you to try looking at something a little differently. Most of all, I hope it inspires you to play along with us at Nacho's this week. 

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

Pin It

Postage Due / End of the Week Technique #48 / Telescoping Card

Pin It
Hey y'all. Happy Friday! I know I'm posting a little late today and I'm sorry about that. You know how you take a day off and you think you're going to do a few things and get some rest and then you're so busy you're more tired and more behind than if you'd been at work. Yeah, it was that kind of day. But it was still a good day so it's hard to complain. For those of you that follow me regularly (of course I wish that was all of you) I went to see the orthopedist about my painful arches yesterday. It's severe Plantar Fascitis. There was some question about whether or not there might even be some tears. However since my insurance deductible is so high I wasn't willing to do any imaging at the present time. We're trying one more round of oral steroids and I'm in a walking boot for the next 3-4 weeks. Yes I said boot, and it's not even a cute riding boot or over-the-knee kind. Augh! The worst part is I need them for both feet. I've got to see if I can find the old one from when I fractured my ankle and then I can really look cool! Until then, I'm using it mostly on the one that hurts the most and can alternate feet as tolerated. :(

I made today's card earlier this week for a friend of mine. (Hey Bren!) She's a reservist in the Army and had was going to go remote to Washington state for 6 months. Booooooo! So we were having dinner on Tuesday night, so we could spend a little time together before that happened. She is just getting started with stamping and I love seeing her joy when she tries a new technique or when she sees something she likes and gets excited about maybe making something like that. So, I made her this card as a going away card. Wanna know something Amazing. She's not getting called up for 6 months it's being extended to 9 months! I know you're probably thinking I'm a little weirder than usual for thinking that's Amazing. The Amazing part is that she's not going to Washington, she's been reassigned here. That's right! She's not leaving. Woo-Hoo!!!! *HappyDance* Know what that means? We get to spend more time together stamping! :) My going away card turned into a staying here card. Dinner, Good News & she Loved her card...it was a really good evening!

Here's today's card-

Card featuring
Telescoping Technique & Postage Due Stamp Set

I was so excited to finally get to use this stamp set. It's just so pretty and was one of my favorites right from the start. I love the look of collaged cards but have no faith in my ability to produce them. Sad, but true. This set already has the collage done for me so I knew I couldn't go wrong. I used my Stampin Write Markers to color directly on the stamp to get all the pretty colors. So Saffron was used as a base because yellow is my friend's favorite color. I decided to try the Telescoping Technique because it gives such a cool effect. Here's a closer look at the focal point-

This is actually a fairly easy technique and it's one I will try again. I do think though, that when I do it next I will choose a background that isn't so specific like a smaller all-over background, maybe a floral. Here's why I say that. You know I'm just a little OCD right? Right, who doesn't by now. :) Well, because it's difficult to make sure that your framelets are in the "exact"same position on both images it's hard to ensure that multiple separate images will line up precisely even. I know most people would never notice this but the framelets aren't even spaced all around. The top one is situated a little to the top and the one beneath that is situated a little to the bottom. I had to do that to try and get all of the images to line up and still the postage stamp is not lined up just right with the bottom one. Did you notice any of that? Most likely not, but I did and it 's something I'm going to have to work on to see if I can figure out a way to make it a little more precise. I know I shouldn't be so picky, trust me it's not fun sometimes. The good news is my friend liked it and didn't notice and to be honest, if someone had given me this card, it wouldn't bother me at all, it only bothers me with my own. *SMH*

I sponged the edges of the card base and all the layers with a little Crumb Cake Classic Ink to soften it up and because it just felt like it needed to look a little older and loved, maybe like something someone found in an old trunk. The sentiment is from Petite Pairs one of my favorite sentiment sets. It's stamped in Soft Suede.

Here's a look at the inside-

I kept it pretty simple here. Ok, except for the flower. :) I carried the theme through from the front and stamped the rest of the sentiment in Soft Suede and then sponged the edges in Crumb Cake. But you know how I love my pretty insides. In order to make sure that no "ghosting" occurred when I stamped my flower I masked the heck out of the rest of the stamp prior to stamping it. It's colored in with my So Saffron Stampin Write Marker and stamped full strength. I let Tink have a little fun and it's just so striking when you see it in person.

Sometimes I hate that glitter doesn't always show up in pictures. I just outlined the flower and then skimmed my Two-Way Pen over different sections of it to get this effect.

Because I was giving this card away I went ahead and stamped the outside of the envelope too. I would really like to start doing this more often. I guess I need to just suck it up and buy more envelopes, huh?

Card and Matching Envelope featuring
Postage Due Stamp Set

For this week's Technique, here's what you'll need-

Card stock and Stamp set of your choice, Inks, a cutting system (I used the Labels Framelets and my Big Shot), Dimensional Foam (I used Stampin Dimensionals).

Here's what you do- I've embedded a video for you below. You can search for others as well.

1- Choose your image and stamp it twice. You can ink it by using one color and a pad or by inking it up with markers like I did to get all the different colors. In case you're wondering, the bike is Early Espresso, the postage mark Not Quite Navy, the #3 Wild Wasabi, the flower So Saffron and the Script is Crumb Cake.

2- Once you have your image stamped twice decide which framelet you're going to use. I used the Labels Framelets. You will also need to decide how many layers you want. I have seen it with 4 like mine and also with 3. It's absolutely up to you. Don't you love having the creative freedom to change one small thing and make something totally yours? Think of all the different design possibilities just by changing the framelets you use and/or the number of layers. WOW!!!!

3- Place your framelets where you would like them on your design. I found it easier to go ahead and place all 4 framelets. This allowed me to make sure my spacing on each image was equal and then I could take out the two I wouldn't be using. I used the 2nd to the largest framelet and the 3 next smaller ones.

4- Take out alternating framelets. Use a sticky note to hold your framelets in place and then run it through your Embossing/Cutting Machine. I used my Big Shot. This will give you a larger cut surface to work with-

5- Repeat this with your second stamped image. Now you have 4 different layers. Apply Dimensional Foam to the back of each piece and layer them onto each other until you have all of the layers adhered to one another.
6- Attach this to your card base or layer, whichever you may be using. Embellish as desired. If I were to make this particular card again, I think I would add a ribbon layer, maybe a soft seam binding under the focal point. It's really up to you how simple or elaborate you choose to make your card.

7- Smile when you look at your finished creation and smile even bigger when you think of the joy it will bring it's recipient. Love that Part!!!

Here's a video from SplitCoast Stampers that's pretty good about showing the steps for this technique-

So what do you think about this technique? I'm looking forward to trying it again maybe with a different set too. I hope you liked today's card and technique and that it inspires you to try something new today. If you make something using this technique, I'd love to see what you come up with! If you liked today's card/technique or have questions about it, I hope you'll take just a moment to leave me a message below. I read them all and they really do make my day! If you'd like to +1 or Pin today's card, I've put the buttons on my blog for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too! :)

That's all I have for you this week. My daughter's wedding is tomorrow so it's sure to be another busy day. Unfortunately, I don't thing my new boot will go well with my dress so I will likely not be wearing it for most of the day, but will be sure to come home and put my feet up as soon as possible. I'll be back on Monday with more to show you. I hope you have an Amazing weekend full of lots of time for Family, Friends, and of course Creativity!

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan

Pin It

Christmas Sweet-Hearts / SSC #269

Pin It
*Don't forget to check out this post for my Blog-Versary - Give-Away. It will be open until Midnight August 23, 2012.* 

Hey y'all. Happy Thursday! I hope you're having a great week. The best part? The weekend is just a day away. Gee, I really love having a Monday-Friday job and being able to say that and having every weekend off. The best part, no off hours or weekend shifts. Woo-Hoo. Next best part, my evenings and weekends are usually free to stamp and play. :)

I've been trying to get to today's card all week, but just haven't been able too. Other creative things kept getting done instead. How does that happen!?! Anyways, I finally got it done and am so excited to show it to you. Here it is-

Holiday Card featuring
Scentsational Season and Be of Good Cheer DSP

For today's card I started with a base of Very Vanilla c/s. For the next layer I ran a piece of W.W. c/s through my Big Shot with the new Chevron E.F. I attached this and a piece of Be of Good Cheer DSP to some Cherry Cobbler c/s. A piece of Gumball Green ribbon was added to cover the seam between the two top layers and was secured with SNAIL. This whole panel was attached to the base with Dimensionals. I used two pieces of Rose Red c/s, that matched the snowflakes on the DSP, as mats. My two sweet Gingies are stamped on scraps of V.V. c/s with Soft Suede Classic Ink and attached them with Tombow. These two panels were mounted with Dimensionals. Don't you hate when you have a plan and then forget to do it? I had planned on embossing my sweetie's with the Sugar and Spice Embossing Powder and remembered it as I was gluing the inside pieces to card base. AUGH!!!!

Here's a closer look-

I used my Owl-Builder Punch to punch hearts out of C.C. c/s. I used them to make a sweet little Bow-Tie and a cute little Hair-Bow. Both were secured with Tombow and a small pearl. A little Dazzling Diamonds made the bow extra pretty and look like a little dusting of sugar on their arms and legs. I used more Gumball Green Ribbon as an accent since the Stamping 411 Sketch Challenge had an element there. It's kinda cute though, don't you think? The sentiment is from Petite Pairs, love that set.

Here's the sketch I was working with from Stamping 411. Make sure to check them out. They always have great challenges and give measurements to get you started. That's worth the price of admission for sure! :)

Here's the inside-

Inside of Holiday Card featuring
Scentsational Seasons Stamp Set and Petite Pairs

I've got an extra layer of c/s here since I hate to just stamp on the inside of the card. Plus it gives a little more color. I meant to stamp off once on these two sweeties and forgot. :( For some reason they came out looking darker than the ones on the front. I'm afraid they looked a little crispy. I love a little dusting of sugar on my Ginger-Bread cookies so I sugared them to make them look a little yummier.

Don't you just want to take a bite out of him? YUM!!!

That's all I have for you today. I hope you like my little Sweet-Hearts. Don't forget to check out Stamping 411. They'll have a new sketch for us on Saturday. I love hearing from you so if you have any questions or comments about today's card, I hope you'll leave me a comment. I read all of my comments and they really do make my day. :) If you'd like to +1 or Pin today's card, I've put the buttons on my blog for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too! :)

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Don't forget to come back tomorrow for a cute card and 3-D set. Also, today's the last day for you to stop by my Blog-Versary page and leave me a comment to be entered in my free give-away. Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the Peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan

Pin It

Everything Eleanor Sympathy Card

Pin It
Hey y'all. Happy Humpday! I hope you're having a great day, and week too. :) Just two more days until the weekend. Yea!

I don't know about you, but one of the hardest cards for me to make, even harder than the dreaded "Masculine" card is a sympathy card. There's really such a fine line when designing this type of card. You want something beautiful but not flashy and something sincere but not overdone.. you get the idea. They're just hard for me and I think for many of you as well. Unfortunately, this is not a card I have a ready supply of. I may have to do something about that. Well, Monday morning at work, my co-worker told me she was taking off the last few days of this week because her Best Friend had died last Friday. Awwww! I can't even conceive of that happening to me. Well, of course we know what I felt a need to do, right? Yep! Create a little bit of hand-crafted love for her. Isn't it great that SU has such beautiful sets to  help us with this difficult task? Isn't it awful that somehow those sets keep getting pushed back on my order form in favor of newer sets that I just have to have RightNow! That's right. No sympathy sets at home for me. So I had to figure out a new idea. Well, I went to have dinner with my Stamping BFF, April, isn't it nice that she offered to feed me? We were going to stamp too but got a little caught up in the Olympics. To be honest, I'm surprised I've gotten any stamping done this week! After a relaxing evening with friends I made it home around 9:30 and still needed to come up with a card. Why, Oh Why, is it that I don't already have these things prepared in advance!?!

Here's what I came up with-

Sympathy Card featuring
Everything Eleanor and Petite Pairs

This is a CASE of a card I made in Robin Merriman's Stampin at the Firehouse class. I changed a few small things, but the basic layout and focal image is hers. I thought it was a pretty card and would work well for what I needed. What do you think? I wanted the colors to be elegant but subdued. I think Night of Navy, Crumb Cake and Very Vanilla fit that bill nicely, don't you? This was the first time I used my Everything Eleanor stamp set. I got it for Free during SAB. I love how SU takes care of us!!! Anyways, I used Night of Navy as my base and topped it with a piece of Crumb Cake that I ran through my Big Shot with the Vintage Wallpaper E.F. This layer was sponged with Crumb Cake Classic Ink to make the embossing stand out more and then adhered to the base with Tombow. I stamped my images on a piece of Very Vanilla and mounted it to a piece of Night of Navy c/s. The original card didn't have a sentiment on the front and I tried double mounting the sentiments and stamping them on the inside, sometimes that works out, but it just didn't look right for this. So I started looking for punches to use and came up with the Oval and Scalloped Oval punches. They were just the right size and I think the scalloped edge ties in well with all the rounded edges on the embossed layer. A little C.C. sponging to soften these two layers and I adhered it to my center panel with two Dimensionals. I tried a few different ribbons and settled on the Very vanilla Seam Binding. The Victorian Lace was pretty with this too, you could see the colors through the lace...what a pretty effect, but a little too much with the punched layer. I simply wrapped it around my layer and tied it in a small bow. This completed panel was then adhered with Dimensionals.

Here's a look at the inside-

Inside of Sympathy Card featuring
Everything Eleanor and Petite Pairs.

I simply inked my images up and stamped off once before stamping them on this inside layer.

Ok, I said simply. I lie. O.K. I don't really lie, but it wasn't quite that easy. In fact what should have taken me about 30 minutes to do ended up taking over an hour. I don't know if I was tired or if I was worried about making "the Perfect card" for my friend, but it just wasn't happening. Does that ever happen to you? First off, it took me a few different takes to decide if I was stamping the front full strength or half strength, then to sentiment or not to sentiment, then what to use. During this time I inadvertently inked up my stamps in the wrong color, managed to ink up the edge of my fingers in Night of Navy and that was just on the front. Once I got to the inside I inked up my background image not once but twice in the wrong color! *Headdesk!* Finally it came time to stamp the sentiment. I had it mounted and inked up, had done a practice stamp and made sure I was lined up where I wanted to be, you know all level and everything and what happens? The stamp falls off the block. Augh! Well, luckily it fell on my grid paper. Other than the fact that my heart stopped, no harm no foul. I re-mounted it, re-inked it  went to stamp it and it fell off again and bounced, leaving Night of Navy ink on my inside and not where & how I wanted it. Let's just say AUGH! is not the word/words/phrases I was uttering in a loud voice. Ok, so it was my fault. This is a set I had mounted a while back and I didn't adhere the backing flat. It was a little tight and the stamp curved inward. So I peeled it off a little at a time, and trimmed around the edges so the sticky part would adhere to the block and decided to try again. It's a good thing I don't adhere my inner layers until I'm done stamping! I stamped the sentiment again, and got it right the first time and then making sure my Night of Navy pad was closed, inked up & stamped my background image  and then my floral image. Whew was I glad to be done!!!

Oh snap! I still had to do the envelope. I can't even begin to tell you how many times I mounted and un-mounted those 2 stamps thinking I was done each time. One more time each and finally I really was done, over an hour after I first started.  *SMH* I think the time and effort were worth it though, especially after seeing the look on my friends face. Don't you just love it when they ask, somewhat incredulously, "Did you make this?" She loved it and couldn't believe I had not only made it but made it for her.

Here's the card and envelope together-

Sympathy Card and Envelope featuring
Everything Eleanor and Petite Pairs

That's all I have for you today. I hope you liked today's card and I hope it inspires you to make some sympathy cards to have on hand so you don't have to scramble at the last moment like I did. :) 

For those of you, like me, that are measurement challenged I have today's measurements for you. I've been trying to remember to put these on my posts, in fact I've been putting them in my B.B. for that reason, but often forget to post them. If I forget and you 'd like the measurements, leave me a comment and I'll get them for you.

Night of Navy Base- 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 scored and folded at 4 1/4

Crumb Cake layer- 5 1/4 x 4

Night of Navy panel- 4 1/4 x 3 1/4

Very Vanilla- 4 x 3

I love hearing from you so if you liked today's card or have questions about it, and have a moment to leave me a comment, you'd make my day. I read all of my comments. If you'd like to +1 or Pin today's card, I've put the buttons on my post for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too! :)

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are appreciated! I hope to see you back soon. I'll have this week's End of the Week Technique for you tomorrow. Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

Pin It

A Reason to Smile- SSC-266 / My Challenge #32

Pin It
Hey y'all. Happy Monday! I hope you had a fabulous weekend. Are you watching the Olympics? I'm loving them. Of course I want Team USA to win everything, but my grandparents on one side are from Canada and England so I want them to do good too. Oh, who am I kidding....I want everyone to do their best and be happy with how they performed, but I really do want us to win, but if not us then England and Canada can come in next and then the rest of the competitors. :) Oh yeah, I also really want World Peace. Why yes, I was channeling my inner Sandra Bullock on that one.

Well, I have another card featuring an all-new stamp set for you today. It's a sweet, fun little set and it's only available until midnight tomorrow. Don't wait too much longer or it will be gone. I used it yesterday for the first time while I was watching the Olympics, washing clothes and getting my week-o-stamping done. It made me smile and I hope it makes you smile too! Here's today's card-

Thank-You Card featuring
A Reason to Smile, Petite Pairs and Patio Party DSP

What do you think? I don't often get this type of stamp-set, two-step sets, because it pretty much puts my OCD into overdrive. :(  Even though I know the stamps aren't supposed to line up perfectly, I still have a hard time using them. I only had to stamp this one twice to get an image I was happy with. It's funny, sad actually, but funny too- I love the look of this type of set on other people's cards. *SMH* Just not my own. Are you laughing at me yet? If not, please feel free to start. Trust me, I do it all the time. Sprinkled with a liberal amount of head-shaking. I used the solid image stamp for the bottom, solid portion of the central flower and the center of it as well. The background is all stamped with one the smaller line images stamps and the bottom white square is stamped with the line image that's in the center. Both are stamped in Summer Starfruit. Not sure why I thought it was going to show up more. It actually does show up a little more in person. I used a base of Summer Starfruit and squares of Basic Black and Whisper White. The Polka Dot layer is from the Patio Patio DSP collection. I am determined to enjoy this Summer Starfruit color. Not sure I'm all the way there yet, but I'm getting close.

Here's the sketch I used for today's card-

It's another great sketch from those Fabulous ladies over at Stamping 411. They're off until September, so no Operator's Picks or other types of challenges, but they are posting a new sketch challenge each week for us to play with. And for those of my friends out there that are hopeless with measurements like I am they always give suggested measurements. I'll give them to you to here as well-
Base Layer: 8 1/2" x 4 1/4", scored and folded in half at 4 1/4"
Layer 2 and 3: 2  3/4" squares.  (the first one gets applied on the diamond, and the second is a square)
Layer 4: 2 1/2" square (attached on the diamond)

I swear I l.o.v.e. those ladies! What a great layout that you can keep clean and simple or fancy it up real easy. I used their measurements and just went 1/8" smaller on the squares to make my inner layers. Sooper-Dooper Easy.

Here's a close-up of the center layer-

I can't believe there's not glimmer or shine on the front. What was I thinking!?! Lol. The little blossoms on the base layer were actually added after the fact. I felt like it needed just a little something extra. I think it made the front. Love when that happens. It sure would have stunk to have had to start over because I messed up the base layer!!! *WHEW!*

Here's the inside (I couldn't let it go plain too)-

The sentiment is from Petite Pairs stamped in Basic Black. The flower on the bottom is just the line image stamped in S.S. I then took my Blender Pen and watercolored it in. A little bit of restraint from the Glitter Fairy aka Tink and this card was finished.

Here's a closer look-

I have to say I really like S.S. when it's stamped and colored. I think it's just such a strong color on it's own with the c/s. Oh well, I have two years to get there right?

Well, that's all I have for you today. I've got some pretty things for you this week including a "Masculine" card. Never enough of those in my ready to go box. So, I hope to see you back here real soon. I hope you liked today's card and I hope it inspires you to try something new today, whether it's a challenge or a new/rarely used stamp set or a color that just isn't your favorite. I'd love to hear what you thought of today's card. If you have a second to drop me a line, it would absolutely make my day.  I read all of my comments, so your thoughts or questions are always welcomed. If you liked today's card and would like to +1 or Pin it , I've put the buttons on my blog for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too! :)

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated!

Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

Pin It

End of the Week Technique #35 - Brayered and Embossed Checkered Background

Pin It
Hey y'all. It's Friday! (Oh Noes! I just said that to my self and now that awful "It's Friday" song is swimming around my head on auto-repeat! Help, someone quick...ear-worm!!!! AUGH ):  ) Oh well, I hope your week's been great and I haven't just shared my ear-worm with you. LOL :)

I have a really simple technique for you today. It can go from a simple background to a Wow focal point, depending on your color combinations and other card elements. I probably see this technique once a month or so during my blog reads. I first tried it last fall, with my upline Robin, I think it was at a team meeting, on a holiday card. I thought I'd try it today on a fun, bright, baby card.

Here's today's card-

Brayered and Embossed Checkered Background Baby Card
with Easy Events Stamp Set

I showed this to a friend the other day and she just loved it. I started with a base of Certainly Celery. Next came my checkered background using Certainly Celery and Daffodil Delight. I knotted a piece of our new stitched ribbon in Daffodil Delight and secured the ends under the card with a little SNAIL. My sweet little ducky is popped up with dimensionals. So quick and easy!

Here's what you need for this technique- Brayer, Big Shot, Stripes Embossing Folder, Ink Pads (I used two colors but you can also use just one color for a more tone-on-tone look) and of course cardstock, your choice of colors, I used Whisper White.

Here are the steps-

1- Pick out your colors. I chose two, but like I said you could choose one and it would still give a nice effect. (I'll try to do this soon and post it.)

2- Ink up your brayer with the first color and roll it on the inside cover of your Stripes Embossing Folder (this is the side that has "Sizzix" written on it. Make sure that you have even coverage on all of the raised portions.

3- Position your c/s, wherever makes you happy in the folder. (I lined mine up with the top and side so everything my lines would be straight, but then you all know I'm a "little OCD" hahaha) Carefully Close it and run it through your Big-Shot. Remove your c/s. 

4- Re-ink your folder. If you're going to use the same color, go ahead and re-ink your brayer. If you're changing colors, rinse your brayer and embossing folder, tap water is fine, until the water runs clear. This won't take long. Dry both well, then re-ink your brayer with your new color and ink the folder again.

5- Turn your c/s 90 degrees (1/4 turn), position your c/s and run it through again. You will now have the checkered, or plaid look you see above. Because I used such a large piece of c/s it didn't get colored completely when I ran it through, so I just inked it up again and moved my c/s up making sure to line up with the previously embossed areas so my spacing stayed even.

6- Enjoy your new background or accent piece. Smile when you think of the joy and smiles it will bring to the face of your card's recipient. (Always the best part for me!)

***TIP*** You may want to try running a piece of your c/s dry through your Big Shot with this embossing folder first. You may need to adjust which platform level you use on with your machine. I did this with one tab down. If you look real close, you can see a little "wrinkling, for lack of a better word" in some of the white spaces. I think my machine is a little tight. Everyone's is different. Next time I will do it with no tabs. It's still a beautiful card, but the OCD in me wants it perfect of course. :)

Here's my sweet little ducky-

Easy Events Duck and Labels Framelet

How Stinkin' Cute is he?!? Love him. I stamped him in Staz-On  on a scrap of Whisper White c/s. If you look closely you can see the sentiment below him. I had actually intended for it to be seen, but my water turned out darker than I had planned. *blush* *SMH* Don't you love it when people post things that aren't "perfect" and then admit it?!? I know I sure do.  I used my second smallest Labels Framelet to cut him out. He fit perfectly. It makes me so happy when things work like that. I used my Blener Pends and Classic Ink Pads  to color. Here's what I used- So Saffron, Daffodil Delight, and Tangerine Tango for my little cutie-pie. Certainly Celery and Baja Breeze for the umbrella, Baja Breeze and Marina Mist for the hat and Marina Mist for the water. Once I had the water colored in though I realized I had made a little "Ooopsie" or as we like to say "I had created a design opportunity." What to do, what to do? Yep, I channeled my inner Pooh Bear. Think...Think...Think and not my inner Eyeore (Oh, Bother!) I had a lightbulb moment, love when those happen. Let Tink come out to play. Well I did and I think the results are fabulous. You can still make out the "for baby" if you look close, otherwise it just looks like extra shading in the water. "Thanks Tink!" 

Here's the inside-

The sentiment is from Petite Pairs. Seriously, if you only get one sentiment set, get this one. I use it all the time. I think it's probably one of my best stamp purchases. I actually mounted them both on the same block and stamped just one time. ***TIP***  If you do this, please make sure to do a test stamp on your grid paper (or other scrap paper) to ensure everything is lined up just like you want it. I got lucky and had it right the first time. Yea, Shan! My precious little froggy is from last year's Ronald McDonald set. It's retired now, but it wasn't when I made the card. I colored him in with Wild Wasabi, that was an In-Color when I first did Stampin' Up years ago. A little love from Tink and he's so handsome you just know he's really a prince.  If these two cute little fellas don't make you smile, well then I'm just at a loss.

So what do you think? I hope you liked today's card and I hope it inspires you to try something new. If you liked today's card and would like to +1 or Pin it, I've put the buttons on my sidebar for your convenience. Your comments always make me smile, so feel free to let me know what you think. Friends and Followers are always welcome too! :)

That's all I have for you today and for this week. I hope you'll come back and see me soon.
Thanks for stopping by. You are so appreciated. Till next time-

Wishing you a weekend filled with Family, Friends and of course lots of time for creativity.

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storm to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan

Pin It

A Bright & Cheery Farewell - SFF 051812

Pin It
Hey y'all. Happy Humpday! :) Just two more days to go until the long holiday weekend and the un-official start of the summer. Woo-Hoo! Hope you're  having an amazing week.

I've got another challenge card for you today. I love the sketches over at Sketch Frenzy Friday! Those ladies have some fabulous sketches and cards to go with them. I saw this sketch last Friday and knew it was one I was going to want to play with. On Saturday I went over to my stamping buddy April's house for a little relaxation and stamp therapy. She showed me a card she had done that morning in her stampcamp and I loved it! I used it as my inspiration for this week's SFF card. Thanks April!

Here's today's card-

SFF Challenge Card, Domestic Goddess DSP, Butterfly Punch, Petite Pairs Stamp  Set

Do you ever look at DSP in a catalog and not be overwhelmed by it and then see it in person and go "Awww, it's so cute! or I love it!"? I did that with this collection. I actually swapped some DSP I had for these and it's hard to believe now that I went the whole year without it! If you like it, don't wait too long it'll be gone in just a week. (I think it's going to be easier to get a feel for the look of our DSP in this years catalog though. They've done a great job showcasing them!) I've got two firsts on today's card. This is the first time I've used my sweet little butterfly punch. I'm so sad it's retiring. :( It's also the first time I've ever used Tangerine Tango. I love  how our colors and DSP's coordinate so well. The actual color that coordinates with this paper is Calypso Coral, but the Tangerine Tango matches and even Poppy Parade matches too. I added a thin little rim of Dazzling Diamonds around the edges of my butterfly wings and some rhinestone jewels to bling them up a little, I also popped them up with a dimensional instead of Mini-Glue Dots for a little extra height. (Am I the only one that thinks height always looks mis-spelled?) I stamped the sentiment from Petite Pairs in Daffodil Delight, sponged the edges in Tangerine Tango and then matted it with a piece of Tangerine Tango c/s. Both were punched with the Modern Label punch.

Here's the Sketch Frenzy Friday (SFF) sketch I used-

Great sketch and one that I'm sure I will use again. If you haven't checked out their site, make sure you pay them a visit. Better yet, play along with us all....just finish here first. :) I didn't stick to it strictly, choosing instead to use it as a jumping-off point but you can still see the sketch in my card. For those of you that have been around my Scaredy Cat site you know how hard it would have been for me to say that last sentence as recently as the beginning of this year. :) HA! I also mixed DSP papers something that just gives me such anxiety. I can't wait for that session at convention. LOL

Here's my friend April's card that was my inspiration for this sketch and today's card. (She doesn't have a blog, I'm trying to talk her into starting one) If you like her card, leave her a little love here and I'll make sure she sees it.

My friend April's card- my inspiration for today's card :) She used Poppy Parade and  Just Add Cake DSP

Here's the inside-

I kept it really simple. I used the rest of the sentiment from the front. (Love that font!) I cut a strip of matching DSP and added some Dazzling Diamonds to the little flower images in the DSP for my something pretty for the inside.

That's all I have for you today. I hope you liked my card (and April's too). If you did, I hope you'll take a minute to leave a comment. I love hearing from you and I'm sure it would make April smile too. If you liked it and would like to +1 or Pin it, I've put the buttons on my sidebar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too! :)

Hope you'll come back and see me tomorrow. I've got this week's EWT...you might be surprised by it. I know I was.

Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storm to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

Pin It

Sneak Peak and a Challenge

Pin It
Hey y'all. Happy Humpday. I hope you're having an Amazing week!

The sun is shining here in the DMV and the birds nested under my window are singing. Should reach low 80's today...Sweet! Although I hear my little friends all day, you know what I haven't seen yet? Butterflies. I love them, always have. I especially love when you are lucky enough to have one come and rest on your hand. How  Incredible is that? We must seem like such huge, moving, giants and yet they trust enough to come and settle on us. WOW!!!

What's got me thinking butterfly's? Mr. UPS left me a package on my doorstep yesterday and I went in, sat down and promptly started going through all my new sneak peak goodies. One of my goodies was the new Patio Party DSP which I got as part of a recruitment bundle. SU takes such good care of us. I got two new stamp sets, DSP and new ribbon too!

I don't know about you, but whenever I get my DSP I look at each page and flip every other sheet around so when I go to look for a DSP to use I can see all of my selections without having to flip them over. Saves me time and frustration. When I was looking at and setting up my Patio Party DSP, I saw a sheet with nothing but pretty little butterflies. I knew I had to use it. I even had two different sketch challenges in mind to use it with. :) How often does that happen? For me not very. LOL

Do you ever know just how you want your card/project to turn out and have it seem so simple and then not have it look or feel right? That's what happened to me last night as I was putting this card together. I chose my sketch, a very simple and straightforward one, and yet I struggled. In the end, I was happy with my card, but what I thought was a short straight path turned out to be, at least mentally, twisty and bumpy. Let me know what you think.

Here's today's card-

Sneak Peek, Patio Party, 2012-2014 In Colors

Love, love, love the New DSP, ribbons and In-Colors. This card is chock-full of sneak peeks for you. I started with a base of Primrose Petals and layered on the Patio Party DSP. It makes me think of a summer night where someone has run through a meadow and surprised the butterflies and sent them soaring. I adhered a new strip of 1/4in stitched grosgrain ribbon to the edge of the DSP with SNAIL and tucked and secured the ends underneath the DSP. For the butterflies I used my Beautiful Wings Embosslet and the new Midnight Muse, Raspberry Ripple, and Summer Starfruit from the new In-Colors and a few Baja Breeze ones for accents. They were mounted with Mini-Glue Dots to punched circles of Baja Breeze and Whisper White c/s. The banner is from the new Itty Bitty Banners. There's a set of framelets that coordinates with these, but since I totally forgot these were part of my freebies, I didn't order them. Silly Shan!!! I inked the stamp with our my Midnight Muse Stampin Write Marker to get just the sentiment, stamped it and then handcut the banner. A few butterflies and 3 little pearls to echo the sketch and the front was done.

Here's the Sketch I used. It's from Sketch Frenzy Friday and if you haven't given them a try, I highly suggest it. They have great sketches each week and a fabulous group of ladies on their Design Team.

I stuck pretty close to the sketch. My only differences was to stagger the circles and to use pearls on the flag instead of off to the side. I hope they'll like my offering.

When it came to the inside, I was totally stumped! I actually considered leaving it till later and just not showing the inside. If you have seen any of my posts, you know this is just simply not done! I just couldn't think of a sentiment or decoration. As I went through my stamp sets for a sentiment I could use, I found one in one of my favorite sets Petite Pairs and I was off and running again. Here's the inside-

Truth be told as soon as I saw this sentiment, I thought of my sister Lisa. She is my Rock! We keep each other going whenever times get tough and luckily it's not too often that we have to "raise each other up". Being with her is so easy, like watching butterflies effortlessly floating skyward. I don't think she reads this everyday, but if you're reading today Lis... Love You! You're the Best!!!!!

I stamped the sentiment using our new ink-pads. LOVE THEM! OMGosh, they are soooo amazing! Getting a complete set is on my wishlist. If there are any stamping fairy god-mothers out there who listen out for heartfelt desires...Hear Me! :)  I added more butterflies to the inside, alternating them so the embossed and de-bossed sides showed. I then added some sponging and a little Dazzling Diamonds for a sweet little glittery surprise and my card was done.

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked today's card and I hope it makes you think of someone special in your life and inspires you to create something new. If you liked today's card, I hope you'll leave me a comment. I love hearing from you! If you liked it and would like to +1 or Pin it I've added the buttons to my sidebar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome too! :)

I hope to see you back soon for this weeks End of the Week Technique.

Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan

Pin It

End of the Week Technique #29-Making Your Own Shimmer Spray and Shimmer Paper / Wedding Cake Card

Pin It
Hey y'all. Happy Friday! Woo-Hoo, the weekend is so close I can almost taste it! Unfortunately it tastes like rain. Oh well, maybe I can get some extra stamping done. Lemons into Lemonade and all that. :)

I have a special card for you today. Unfortunately I could not get a picture of it that really shows it off, so I apologize in advance.

Do you ever have someone really special or a really special occasion that you feel like you have to make an amazing card for? Not just your usual run of the mill amazing card, but one that's just a little more special than your normal cards? That's what brought this card into being.

My hairdresser Maria is AMAZING! I've been going to her for about 5 years and she is one of the few people my mom (the Queen of all hairdressers! Hi Mom!) approves of to cut my hair. There were many years, after I moved out of state, where I got a trim twice a year when I saw my mom, because I couldn't find anyone anywhere near as good. Then I found Maria. She was right out of school, working at a new salon we had found and I haven't even thought of going anywhere else! In fact she now does quite a few of my friends as well. (Hey Maria, You Rock!)

Anyways, Maria just got married, and is back from her honeymoon, and I'm going in today to see her. I wanted to make a special card for her, so I sat down to try and come up with something as Fabulous as she is. I've seen lots of different takes on "Wedding Cake" cards so I thought I would try my hand at one.


Here's today's card-

Wedding Cake Card

I really HATE taking pics with my BB! >:(  I have a new camera but I  have to plan ahead and take the pictures and then upload them and I just didn't have time to do that last night.

I used my my Ott Light to try and get a truer light but all this picture shows is the basic card- you can't see any shimmer and  it looks totally different than it does in real life. AUGH!

Here's a different pic -Sorry for the HUGE picture. I had to enlarge it so you could see the details and the shimmer

Wedding Cake Card with Homemade Shimmer Paper

This card is also a first for me, in that it's all one color. The only thing that's not white is the sentiment on the inside.

I started with a base of Whisper White 4 1/2 x 11 scored at 5 1/2. All the paper is regular Whisper White c/s. Next I ran a piece of 4 x 5 1/4 c/s through the Big Shot with my Tulip Frame Embossing Folder. Then using sticky notes I played around with different sized rectangles until I came up with three that I felt looked like a tiered wedding cake. I used those measurements to cut scrap c/s that I embossed with my EF, I think it's called Pretty Petals. I took all of this including another scrap of c/s for the flowers and spritzed them all with my Homemade Shimmer Spritz Spray. I punched out flowers from the scrap piece of c/s I had spritzed and used them to add extra decoration and dimension to my cake. I didn't even have to curl the edges, they came out of the punch with that little bit of curl to them. I used Mini-Glue Dots to adhere them.

***I've seen lots of different recipes for Shimmer Spray, most use hand sanitizer. I mixed mine using plain old rubbing alcohol.

Here's what you'll need for this technique-

Shimmer Paint - I used Frost White but we have other colors as well

Liquid for mixing and suspending the paint -you want something alcohol based because you want it to dry quickly and not saturate your paper

A small spray bottle- I used one that I got in the $ bin at my local big box store. The small ones that you use for airline travel is a perfect size for this

Spraying box and scrap paper for protecting your work-space and or furniture- I used SU's spray catcher and grid paper

This is so simple- 

1- Just mix a small amount of your Shimmer Paint in with a small amount of your liquid. You can adjust this to suit your preference. I used about 1 1/2oz of alcohol with a few drops of my Frost White Paint. Shake well and spray on a scrap piece of c/s until you get the color/consistency that you want.

2- Lightly spritz your c/s until you get the desired effect

3- Enjoy the look of your technique on your project and think of the smile it's going to bring to someones face! :)

Here's a few extra tips-

1- Because it's a liquid, even if you spritz lightly you can expect some curling of your paper. For this reason you want to use as little as possible to achieve your desired effect. You can use dimensionals to secure your c/s and  give a little tension to it to help flatten this out.

2- Make sure your hands are clean and try to only handle the freshly spritzed paper by the outside edges. Avoid putting your fingertips directly on the paper until it's fully dried or you may end up with some finger-tip sized areas on your project where there is no shimmer. It may appear like a greasy fingerprint smudge. Not attractive...ask me how I know. :)

3- Experiment with different color combinations by adding a few drops of your favorite re-inker to your Shimmer Spray.

4- Always shake your bottle well before spritzing to make sure the paint is well mixed.

5- Always do a test spray on scrap c/s or even the paper lining your spraying box before spritzing your c/s. If it's been a while since you last used your spray bottle it may not give you a fine mist but spray globs. Once again not attractive and go ahead...ask me how I know.

6- Always wait to stamp until your paper is completely dry before stamping on it, otherwise your ink may smear. I know this sounds like a basic concept but even though it seems dry it may not be. If you're in a hurry you can give it a quick blast with your Heat Tool.

7- Never, Ever, stamp and then spray. Yes, I tried that and it was A Big Hot Mess! See I found out all the don'ts so you didn't have too. :) You're welcome.

Here's a look at the inside of the card-

Sorry about the photo quality. Stupid BB and Ott light combination! I used the sentiments from Petite Pairs and mounted them both on one block and stamped them onto my dry c/s. 

(If you look closely at the picture you can see a few areas that are slightly spotted in appearance. This is because I didn't know about tip #5 above at the time I sprayed my c/s. Luckily it's so shimmery you don't really notice it in real life unless you knew to look for it. I got sooo lucky with that one!)

I added 3 of the shimmery flowers that I used to decorate the cake with and adhered them to the inside of my card for my "something pretty for the inside." I used Mini-Glue Dots to adhere them. The punch I used is retired but the floral stamp from the mini-punch bunch or from the Boho-Blossoms punches would work just as well.

Because I wanted the envelope to be extra special too, I ran it through my Big Shot with the same EF I used for the cake and then spritzed it too. 

You can really see the shimmer along the bottom half of the flap

Everything is such a soft shimmery white. It looks like I made everything with our shimmer paper. It's so beautiful and elegant. This is an amazing technique. It's so simple but makes even your extra-special cards into WOW! cards.

I'm so happy with this card. I really hope Maria likes it too.

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you like it and I hope it inspires you to try something new today.

If you liked today's card I hope you'll leave me a comment. I love hearing from you. Please feel free to +1 or Pin today's card if you liked it. I have placed the buttons on my sidebar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are always welcome as well. :)

I hope you have an Amazing weekend full of Family, Friends and of course plenty of time for creativity.

Hope to see you back here next week, when I'll have some new projects for you.

Till next time-

Remember- Life isn't about Waiting for the storm to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

Pin It

Faux Tile - Sympathy Card / End of the Week Technique # 28

Pin It
Hey y'all. Happy Friday! I hope you're having a great end of the week. I know I am and that I'm looking forward to this weekend! It's been a looooong week!

I have an all new End of the Week Technique for you today. It's #28. I can hardly believe I'm on #28 already, WOW!

This week's technique is Faux Tile. I did this card a few weeks back and now it seems like I'm seeing this type of card everywhere. We even did one last night at the stampcamp @ the firehouse. :) It's Super Quick and Easy and you can do it a couple of different ways.

Here's today's card-

Faux Tile card with Fresh Vintage & Petite Pairs stamp sets

I used Riding Hood Red for my base and then did my technique on a piece of Whisper White c/s.

Here's what you're going to need- A scoring tool, (I used my Simply Scored Tool with it's Diagonal Score Plate. I love both of these tools!) and a stamp set, solid images work best.

1- Decide how large you want your "tiles" to be - This is totally up to you. I think these were about 1 3/4". The card we made last night was 1". For ease of instructions we'll go with 1".

2- Score every 1" and then turn your card 1/4 turn and score again using the same measurement.

3- Decide which side of your card you want to show. I used the de-bossed side because I wanted the appearance of "grout-lines" just like a real section of tile. The other side creates a beautiful focal point as well. I'll post one of those cards soon too.

4- Next stamp your image and embellish as you desire. I used 3 of the stamps from the Fresh Vintage collection. I hope you were able to get this set during Sale-A-Bration. It' s so pretty!

5- I didn't do it on this card, but I have since seen cards where they shaded either side of the "grout-lines" for shadowing and dimension. I really like that look as well, but I have to say I really like the clean look of this sample too.

6- Sit back and enjoy how pretty your card is and think about the smile it will bring to it's recipients face. See I told you- Super Quick and Easy. The hardest part is deciding on your color scheme and stamp set.

I sponged the edges of my card with Riding Hood Red Classic Ink and knotted a length of ribbon, in the same color, around the Whisper White piece. For my sentiment I used one of the Petite Pairs sentiments on a piece of Whisper White c/s that I punched out with my Large Oval Punch, and mounted it on a piece of Riding Hood Red c/s punched with my Scalloped Oval Punch. This was mounted over my ribbon with two Stampin Dimensionals. I finished the front of my card with some tiny pearls as an accent and then mounted it to my card base with some dimensionals.

Here's the inside-

I kept it simple here- the rest of the sentiment from the front and 2 of the floral elements from the front all stamped in Riding Hood Red. I stamped off once with the larger stamped image to add some visual interest. A little sponging around the edges and my card was done.

I don't know about you, but I find sympathy cards hard to come up with. I didn't plan on this being a sympathy card, but once I was done I just felt like the card was soothing and so pretty but not "frou-frou" and I thought it might work well for that. What do you think? Are they difficult cards for you as well?

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked it and I hope it inspires you to try something new today. As always I would love to see what you create with this technique.

If you liked today's card, please feel free to leave me a comment. I love hearing from you. Also, feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've placed buttons on my sidebar for your convenience. Friends and followers are always welcome too. :)

I hope you to see you right back here next week. I wish you an Amazing weekend filled with Family, Friends and plenty of creative time.

Till next time-

Remember- Life isn't about Waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

Pin It