Chalkboard Technique with Forever Young

I have been wanting to try this technique for, well, ever! I've seen it used many times and since I'm doing an All About Heat Embossing Class this Friday I decided to try it out. There's still some time to sign up for the class - we're doing 5 techniques!).

This card is a very special card for my new Godson, Zander, who was baptized today :) I don't have any religious stamps, as I'm not too religious. But to me, trees represent life and growth. I thought that the tree from the Forever Young stamp set and 'Dream' from Loving Thoughts would be appropriate. The tree in white and the white ribbon represent the purity that Zander's baptism has given him.

This week's sketch at Freshly Made Sketches was a very simple one, with just the one big element on the card. I did add the ribbon because my card needed it with the Oval Accent. And I always need to do things my way ;) I really love this technique because it's soooo simple, but makes a big impression. Here are some Tips & Tricks:

*For a crisp white embossed image, use Stampin' Up!'s Whisper White Craft Ink. It's a bit thicker than the VersaMark and will lead to a crisper white on the black. But careful not to goop your stamp up too much ;)
*I sponged the edges of my Basic Black card stock and the surface with some Whisper White Craft Ink. I didn't want the ink on my card stock to be too heavy, so I spread it out some more with a clean sponge.
*To trim my Oval Accent Die Cut to the right size, I first adhered it to the embossed Baja Breeze layer and only after did I trim it with my Paper Trimmer.

Zander's parents loved the card and were touched by the beautiful image. I hope when he sees it when he grows up he loves it too. I'm honored to be a part of his life :) Amazing what an impact a simple handmade card can make. 'Til next time, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!

Monica
Shop Stampin' Up! Online 24/7

Card Recipe:
Stamps: Forever Young, Loving Thoughs
Card Stock: Basic Black, Baja Breeze
Ink: VersaMark, Whisper White Craft
Accessories: Stampin' Sponges, Whisper White 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon, Big Shot, Square Lattice Embossing Folder, Oval Accent Clear Bigz Die, Stampin' Dimensionals

A Pretty Petites Birthday

I had ordered the Petite Curly Label Punch with my Spring Mini/SAB preorder (one of the perks of being a Demonstrator!) but didn't get the Pretty Petites coordinating stamp set until recently. When it came, I knew I had to break them out and use them together. Both of these items are Sale-a-Bration items, FREE with any order of $60 or more!

 

I based my card on this week's Sunday Stamps sketch. Of course I changed it up a big, but it's pretty close ;) I am loving the Poetry Prints Designer Paper Stack. There are some really girly papers in there, but there are some fabulous masculine papers there too! And this card fits the bill for a good men's card, I think.

Tips & Tricks:

*Even though there are fewer images suitable for masculine cards, you can use Designer Papers to fill the void! I like DSPs that have both masculine and feminine patterns.

*I am loving the new Large Basic Jewels. They are so easy to use instead of a button or brad. And much more cost effective ;)
*I didn't adhere the Linen Thread for the banner to the card. I just mounted my punched out images to the card with Stampin' Dimensionals and made sure that the Dimensionals covered the Linen Thread, holding it in place.

We will be making this card at my next Fast & Fabulous Card Class on Wednesday February 27th. Hope you'll be able to join us. 'Til next time, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!

Monica
Shop Stampin' Up! Online 24/7  

Card Recipe:
Stamps: Pretty Petites (SAB)
Card Stock: Midnight Muse, Very Vanilla, Poetry Prints DSP Stack
Ink: Midnight Muse, Gumball Green, Summer Starfruit
Accessories: Linen Thread, Petite Curly Label Punch, Big Shot, Square Lattice Embossing Folder, Stampin' Dimensionals, Large Basic Rhinestones - Jewels

Paper Pumpkin Welcome Kit

Have you heard? Stampin' Up! is starting a monthly crafting kit subscription service called Paper Pumpkin! Why Paper Pumpkin? Because you get a bunch of paper/accessories and in half an hour of creativity, you can transform it into something beautiful!

Every month for only $24.95 (shipping INCLUDED!) you'll get a kit that includes everything you need to make super cute projects. Ink, paper, stamps, accessories - the only thing you need to provide is adhesive. What an awesome idea! And because I went to Leadership, I have the first kit, the Welcome Kit, to show you!

The whole thing comes in a super cute box with instructions. Right to your door :)

That's right - there's a D clear block in there! Your Welcome Kit (the first one you get after you sign up) has one in there in so you can stamp right away if you don't have one. And if you DO have one, well now you have another :)

Here's what I made with the supplies given: one card following the directions, one card reversing the design.

And then, adding a different ink color (Tempting Turquoise) and some White Baker's Twine/White Taffeta Ribbon, I created the following two cards (that's right, your kit makes 4 cards!)

The best thing about Paper Pumpkin is that you can sign up, stay with it a few months and cancel anytime :) You can get more information here on my Paper Pumpkin Page or if you LOVE it as much as I do, you can sign up at www.mypaperpumpkin.com. Remember to select me, Monica Hornof, Stittsville ON, as your Demonstrator and to selected the Canada tab at the top right.

Here's one more idea for you - use the materials that come in the Paper Pumpkin Kit to create a card holder for the cards:

I used chipboard from the kit and tore the piece in half. Then I punched out part of the adhesive embellishment leftovers for the top circle. The 'hey there friend' sentiment is also framed with embellishment leftovers... what a great way to get more mileage from your kit!

I'm sooo excited about Paper Pumpkin that the 2nd Friday of every month I'm going to be holding a Paper Pumpkin Palooza! Bring your Paper Pumpkin supplies and you can use my ink, Big Shot, stamps and punches to make your projects even more fun! This event is FREE for anyone who signs up for Paper Pumpkin with me :) You'll also get a few free embellishments from me (if you're out of town, I'll mail these to you).

Hope to be creating Paper Pumpkin projects with you soon! 'Til next time, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity.


Monica
Shop Stampin' Up! Online 24/7  

More Valentines with Spring Sampler

I'm going to keep this post short & sweet! My family has been sick for the last two weeks and it looks like my body is (finally) succumbing as well :( I was hoping I was super-immune, but apparently not. I shouldn't be surprised though... in our house in less than two weeks we've had the flu (yes, the REAL flu), croup (2x), horrible colds, gastro (2x). So I suppose I was due.

Today's cards are 3 others that I did for my Mom and Me Valentine's Class last week. This was such a fun class! The girls were all fantastic little stampers and we had a ball. I was impressed how efficiently we all worked. I'm looking forward to doing it again.

I incorporated the Pals Paper Arts Challenge in my cards, but especially this one below. The challenge was to use Primrose Petals, Real Red and Pool Party in our card. I think I accomplished that pretty well in the card below.

How cute is that little frog? I also couldn't resist using some of the Silver Glimmer Paper for one of my flags. It's just so sparkly :) I'm still loving that Stitched In Color Ribbon, too!

On my next card, I allowed the girls (and moms) to choose from a variety of images. It was easy with the Spring Sampler stamp set. They could make the cards a bit more girly, or more boyish if desired. I love this simple layout - it's one of my go-to's.

And how about that ribbon? It's from the Sale-a-Bration Sycamore Street Ribbon & Button Pack. You get one Sale-a-bration item for every $60 you spend and this pack has 15 yards of ribbon and 24 gorgeous buttons - each in three colors!

Finally, I decided to use my Hearts Embosslit for my last card. It's a bit embarrassing, but I haven't actually used this embosslit yet. So I broke it out for this super simple but super cute card. And yes, I couldn't resist using more of that Silver Glimmer Paper ;)

What's great about these cards is that you can use them all as something other than Valentine's cards. Sure they have hearts - but I like to tell my friends and family that I love them with a few hearts pretty often ;)

'Til next time, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!

Monica
Shop Stampin' Up! Online 24/7  

Card Recipe:
Stamps: Spring Sampler, Tiny Tags, Oh, Hello, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Pool Party, Primrose Petals, Whisper White, Real Red, Very Vanilla, More Amore DSP, Silver Glimmer Paper
Ink: Pool Party, Real Red
Accessories: Notecards & Envelopes, 1" Square Punch, Jewelry Tag Punch, Pool Party Sycamore Street SAB Ribbon, Primrose Petals Stitched Satin Ribbon, Big Shot, Hearts Embosslit, Basic Jewels - Rhinestones, Stampin' Dimensionals

More Amore Valentine's

Eek, I'm a day late! I'm trying to stay on track with my posts, but sick kids and a sick husband (and who's kidding who, he's like a sick kid too ;) ) have thrown me of my game this week. But I have some great cards for you today. Yes, cardS :)

I'm doing a mom-and-me Valentine's class tomorrow evening. We are using the Note Cards and Envelopes, the Spring Sampler stamp set and the More Amore Specialty DSP from the Spring Mini Catalogue. I can't tell you enough how much I absolutely LOVE the More Amore DSP. It is GORGEOUS and so easy to use. I especially love how easily the different patterns coordinate. Did I tell you I love it?

My inspiration for this card was this week's Freshly Made Sketch. I love the cut-off large element on the left. I used the Try Stampin' On Tuesday sketch for the next card.

Tips & Tricks:

*I was in a glitzy and glam kind of mood (plus I thought the kids would appreciate it) so I made sure to use the Basic Jewels - Rhinestones and Silver Glimmer Paper on every card. I find I can never give the Glimmer Paper justice through photos. It's so much more SILVER ;)
*The Notecards and Envelopes are awesome. For just $7.95 you get 20 3-1/2"x5" note cards as well as envelopes in Whisper White. Perfect for that quick card or a set of cards.
*I absolutely LOVE the laser-cut hearts in the More Amore DSP. So many ways I could use them...
*I embossed the DSP on the second card with the Square Lattice Embossing Folder. I love how it gives paper, especially DSP, a fabric-like feel.

*Wondering where the greeting is on the second card? I used the Wacky Wishes Hostess-only stamp set and stamped it *inside* the card :)

I hope my guests enjoy the cards. These ones are pretty feminine, but I do have some masculine ones up my sleeve, too. 'Til next time, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!

Monica
Shop Stampin' Up! Online 24/7 

Card Recipe: 
Stamps: Spring Sampler, Wacky Wishes, Delightful Dozen
Paper: Whisper White, Pool Party, Primrose Petals, More Amore DSP, Silver Glimmer Paper
Ink: Real Red, Primrose Petals
Accessories: Note Cards and Envelopes, Big Shot, Perfect Pennants Bigz L Die, Square Lattice Embossing Folder, Modern Label Punch, Full Heart Punch, Basic Jewels - Rhinestones, Stampin' Dimensionals

Kids' Canvas with Floral District DSP

Last Friday, I hosted a birthday party for my daughter (who turned 7) and ten of her 'best' friends. She actually had many more 'best' friends, but we were able to cap it at 10. Thank goodness. Because as fun as it is crafting with eleven 6-9 year olds, it is crazy and exhausting! Luckily I had a good friend helping me. Funny thing is, she's not super crafty, but she was the one doing all the stamping and punching with the girls :D I think she's good for the rest of the year now with respect to craftiness ;)

So what did we make? Well, my daughter wanted to make a card - so we made a Valentine's card for the girls' parents with the Dress Up stamp set as well as various Happy Valentine's Day greetings. But the bigger project was an 8x10 canvas. I wanted to keep the project simple. The girls were old enough to punch and stamp, but I also wanted to leave some room for their creativity.

Each girl got their initial in  Silver Glimmer Paper so that they could personalize their canvas. I focused the project around the Floral District DSP because it's so pretty and girly. I thought the girls would love it and I was right :) Here are a few Tips & Tricks I've learned along the way on stamping with kids:

*Keep it simple! Leave a lot of room for personalization. Every single girl had a completely different canvas when she was finished. Only two loosely followed my example. The other nine did their own thing. It's one of the things I love so much about stamping with kids - the uninhibited creativity.

*Have a lot of extra DSP and card stock on hand. I let the girls go crazy with the Full Heart and Blossom Punches, and crazy they went. They used nearly five full sheets of DSP! I kept cutting more to keep them happy. They were punching and gluing flowers and hearts everywhere!
*Do the ribbon tying for them. It will avoid wasted ribbon as well as frustration. Many adult stampers have a hard time with ribbon and bows, the kids will too (for the record, I adhered their ribbon and tied the bow where they wanted it).
*Offer them some personalization. The girls were THRILLED to have their initial for the canvas.
*You can never go wrong with bling. Silver Glimmer Paper and Basic Jewels were definitely popular!
*Use wood mount stamps. They won't fall of the block and are less likely to get lost.

To show you I'm not a one trick pony, I made the cake below for my daughter's birthday as well. She wanted a Barbie cake. She didn't tell me how she wanted it decorated but I think I know her pretty well because she said it was exactly what she'd imagined :)

I hope these little tips are helpful if you're ever stamping with kids! The girls had a blast and you know what? So did I! :) 'Til next time, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!