Blackberries are in Season

Welcome back!  This is my second day sharing a project I created using the Bright Blossom stamp set along with the Summer Smooches Designer Series Paper.

This Summer Smooches Designer Paper just screams summer!  It is bright and inviting and ready for a party!  How lucky am I that it contains two prints in green too!  I love all the Stampin’ UP! greens!

This simple project uses what I call the blackberry stamp from the Bright Blossom stamp set!  I know it will be cute in any color, but since I’ve been thinking about summer I started thinking about some of my summer favorites and blackberries are definitely on my list of favorites!

I think this would be a great gift for a friend filled with some ripe handpicked summer blackberries!  I know that I would love a gift of these as a little summer surprise! Can you just taste them bursting with flavor in your mouth? Are you ready for summer yet?

Stamps: Bright Blossoms
Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Concord Crush, Summer Smooches Designer Series Paper
Ink: Lucky Limeade, Concord Crush, Lucky Limeade marker
Accessories: In Color Glimmer Brads, Concord Crush 1/2” Stitched Poly Ribbon
Tools: 1-3/8 Circle Punch, 1-3/4” Circle Punch, Big Shot, Fancy Favor Box
Technique(s): Two-Step Stamping, Doodling

Thank you for visiting!  See you tomorrow for more fun with the Bright Blossoms stamp set and more Summer Smooches!  Enjoy!

Collaged Butterfly Gift Card Holder

I want to take some time to share with you one of the things that I have been creating.  I’ve been waiting to hear the outcome of the contest I entered before I posted this most recent project. I am overjoyed to say that I placed first in the Seaside Crafts contest!  What an exciting day it turned out to be!  Free Stampin’ Up! product put a big smile on my face for sure!  I have to send out a big THANKS to all the members of the group that voted for this little treasure!

This project features the technique of collage stamping. I used some of my favorite stamps with one of my newest stamps from the 2011-2012 Stampin’ Up! Catalog along with one of the items I picked up through Seaside Crafts – Clear Business Card Holders.  I turned these plain business card holders into a unique gift card holder.  I labored over what colors to use but when I was done, I found this Amazon gift card that fits the colors perfectly.  Don’t you just love that!  Next time I think I find the gift card first. *smile* This gift card holder can easily be turned into a gift that keeps on giving by including several Whisper White note cards. Perfect for any occasion.

Stamps:  Artistic Etchings, Establised Elegance, Silhouette Sentiments (Hostess – Retired 2011)*
Papers:   Whisper White, So Saffron, Basic Black
Ink:  Jet Black Stazon, More Mustard, Soft Suede, Sahara Sand 
Accessories: none  
Tools: Lace Ribbon Border Punch, Sewing Machine with Black Thread, Perfect Polka Dots Textured Embossing Folder, Beautiful Butterflies Bigz Die, Big Shot, Mini Glue Dots, Snail
Techniques Used:  Sponging, Collage Stamping

*All products can be ordered directly through me or my online Stampin’ UP! website with the exception of items labeled as retired.

Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy!

 

 

This project will be featured in my Collage Stamping technique class in September.  Interested and live in the Allen, TX area?  Contact me directly for details.

Signs of Spring

I’m not much of a gardener, so what little flowers you’ll see around my landscaping are probably weeds or what a bird may have flown in. This card depicts what you could find in my “garden” that show me spring is on the way!

Stamps:   Nature walk, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Papers:   Whisper White, Crumb Cake
Ink:  Old Olive, (Daffodil Delight, Crumb Cake, Concord Crush and Tempting Turquoise Stampin’ Write Markers)
Accessories: Hemp Twine, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Crumb Cake Seam Binding
Tools: Paper Snips, Spritzer Tool, Mini Glue Dots, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Aqua Painter, Snail
Techniques Used:  Tearing, Ribbon Fringe

How did I do that?  I used a bunch of markers on this little project so the flowers themselves and the egg are not quite true to any of the Stampin’ Up! colors but a blend of colors (The egg is Tempting Turquoise and Concord Crush and the flowers are Daffodil Delight with a hint of the Old Olive left from the stamp). Then I used an aqua painter on the leaves and the egg to give a slight, I mean slight, watercolored look.   The egg is popped up with a section of a dimensional and snail along the bottom half to give a rounded appearance. Don’t you love that?  I do!

Enjoy!

Nested Hearts Gift Set

Happy Sunday!  I’m sharing with you my third project using the FREE Sale-A-Bration Bliss stamp set.  This elegant 3-card gift set contains 4-1/4” x 4-1/4” hand deliverable cards with  matching envelopes. Hand deliverable because I 3D-ized the envelopes too!

I was inspired by a similar gift set found in the Stampin’ Up! 2010-2011 Catalog on page 10. Of   course, I add my own little tweaking to make it my own while keeping the elements that attracted me to it – like that scrumptious scalloped edge! 

I love creating a box that uses some of the elements of the card to enhance the overall display while still hiding the overall card design.  The nested heart belly band does the trick by hiding a cute element of the card beneath but using the Bliss design element as part of the overall beauty of the set itself.

All the heart elements were punched twice, stamped, distressed and carefully separated to create 4 light weight hearts and add fun detail to the cards, envelopes and box itself. I love that layering effect, don’t you?

My color choices were a bit different from the traditional Real Red, Basic Black and Vanilla that you typically see with the Newsprint Designer Series Paper.  But I am very pleased with how the Concord Crush is off the beaten path but still creates a beautiful softness.

Stamps:   Bliss, En Francais 
Papers:  Very Vanilla, Concord Crush. Newsprint Designer Series Paper
Ink: Concord Crush, Sahara Sand
Accessories: Hemp Twine Antique Brads, Basic Pearl Jewels, Very Vanilla Seam Binding, Vintage Trinkets (mini safety pins), Mini Glue Dots 
Tools: Extra Large Scallop Punch, Full Heart Punch, Scallop edge Punch, Heart to Heart Extra Large Punch
Techniques Used:  Distressing, Tearing

Use these cards for a hand delivered thank you, wedding cards, valentines, thinking of you or get well.  I know the recipient will be wowed by your creativeness!

This coming week, I’ll show you how you can make your own custom half box for your creations.

Enjoy!

Father’s Day Gift

With Father's Day approaching, there are many fun challenges out there to make masculine cards! I created this one for Shelli Gardner's Father's Day challenge over at So Shelli and for the masculine card making challenge over at Late Night Stampers Yahoo Group.

This is the first time I created this project with the Parisian Breeze Specialty Designer Series Paper. This paper is the perfect guy and gal paper all in one. Love that it has flowers, but the stripes are perfectly suited for a masculine card! It is just a little bit thicker than the textured cardstock that I first used to create this project, and it was just wonderful to work with. I just love this project and it is a perfect gift for men or women. The photo above is shown with a matching Father's Day card.

Inside this oversized matchbook you'll find three full size cards that contain a monogram and matching envelopes (Shown outside). This is one of those projects that you absolutely have to use Stampin' UP!'s quality envelopes!

When you need a card, just tear it off the perforated strip and take an envelope from the back. Close up the matchbook and it is ready for storage untill you need another one! If you make more than one, the monogram showing through the front is a great way to show what is on each card. So fun!

Project Recipe:

Stamps: Lovely Letters, All Holidays, Great Friend (Occasions Mini Catalog)

Paper: Parisian Breeze Specialty Paper, Chocolate Chip 12 x 12, Whisper White

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze

Accessories: Chocolate Chip Corduroy Buttons, Soho Designer Brads, 1 3/4" Circle Punch, 1 3/8" Circle Punch, 5/16" Jumbo Brads, Crafter's Tool Kit, Crop-a-dile, Cutter Kit, Household stapler.

Enjoy!