A 'Fresh' Flower

I love the sketches at Freshly Made Sketches. They are fun, modern and 'fresh' :) After doing a Christmas card on Monday and prepping a few Christmas classes I needed to do something different.

Even though it's fall, I wanted to do something bright and cheery. So I pulled out my Melon Mambo Embossing Powder, one of my fave stamp sets Just Believe, our lovely Hostess Cheerful Treat Designer Series Paper and made this fresh, flowery card. Don't you just love the Limeade DSP with Melon Mambo polka dots? I love this DSP ~ so many fabulous patterns to choose from!

Tips & Tricks:
*Love the new colored embossing powders? Rub some Embossing Buddy over your card stock before embossing to avoid little flecks of embossing powder in places other than your image.
*When using a lot of the same colors for bases and backgrounds, use Stampin' Dimensionals to pop up your images a bit and to add contrast.
*Sometimes I make a card without an intended recipient. So I leave it blank and then it can be anything I want it to be :)

Can't wait to stamp something a bit more seasonal again tomorrow but I've gotta mix it up sometimes. 'Til then, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!

Accordion Flower Mojo

I have loved these accordion flowers since I first saw them, but I've never had the guts to try them. Finally I did, and I LOVE the results! Especially on this Mojo Monday sketch. I don't know why I waited so long because now that I've made the accordion flower, I realize how easy it is and I will most definitely make more soon! Maybe I'll even try making the accordion flower wreath sometime in the near future! :)

Wondering how to make them? Cut a strip of 12" x 1" DSP (I used Holly Berry Bouquet in the Holiday Mini). You can make bigger flowers by cutting a wider strip of DSP and smaller flower by cutting narrower strips of DSP. Using your Simply Scored Scoring Tool, score your DSP every 1/4" along the whole 12" length. Fold the DSP like an accordion. Using Sticky Strip, stick the two ends together. Fold the flower in making a small circle in the middle and fanning out the outside and voila! You've got an accordion flower :)

Tips & Tricks:

*Wondering how to adhere your lovely accordion flower to your card? I used Crystal Effects, one of our strongest adhesives! You could also use Tombo Multipurpose or a glue gun. I also adhered the Real Red Designer Button with our Crystal Effects.

*I love the pizzazz our Red Glimmer Paper adds to any card. Even here, as a small accent, it adds so much.

*Wondering why I used a French greeting on my card? I have many francophone customers and as such I've acquired a few French stamp sets. Sometimes I like to use them on my cards to add a little je ne sais quoi :)

As you can see, I'm back to Christmas. We'll see what the future will bring ~ Fall, Christmas or Hallowe'en. Or maybe something springy :) 'Til then, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!

A BIG Congratulations!

Today is Election Day in Ontario. One of my friends is running for the Liberal MPP position in our riding. I've supported her throughout her campaign and she has done an absolutely amazing job! Our riding is historically very conservative, but I really hope that all of her hard hard work these past months pays off and she wins.

Whether she wins the seat in this riding or not, she should be congratulated! She has done an amazing job for us here for many years and I know she will continue to. She should be congratulated for her passion, for how much she cares about schools, health care, youth, seniors - everyone! And she should be congratulated for doing everything she possibly could to win. So using the colors in the Pals Paper Arts Challenge today ~ we were challenged to use Lucky Limeade, Pumpkin Pie and Rich Razzleberry ~ I made her this lovely 'Congratulations' card. I will send it to her regardless of the outcome today.

Tips & Tricks:
*What is more fun than ruffling In Color Ruffled Ribbon? Easy to do! Just adhere under your card stock on one side with tape or Snail, run a strip of Snail along the top side of your card stock, ruffle randomly, snip ribbon a bit longer when done and adhere to the back side again. Easy!
*I just love the embossed look but we don't have embossing powders in Rich Razzleberry or Pumpkin Pie. So I stamped in Classic ink on a scrap piece of card stock, covered the entire scrap with VersaMark, sprinkled it with Clear Embossing Powder and embossed with the Heat Tool. I then cut my flowers out and adhered with Stampin' Dimensionals.
*I just love the look of square cards and that they coordinate with our Medium Square Envelopes. The Scalloped Square from the die fits perfectly on this square card!

I hope my friend wins and enjoys this card regardless of whether she wins or not. 'Til next time, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!

A Big Shot Christmas

Well, after a small 'Christmas hiatus', it's back to the holidays and it's a Big Shot Christmas for me and this Freshly Made Sketch. It's a new challenge I've been wanting to do and finally got around to today :) What I love about this challenge is that the sketches are fresh and clean but my cards don't have to be. It's not about simplicity and the challenge encourages lots of bling and other embellishments. But the cards have to remain clean - which I think my style fits to a tee.

I also wanted to show you all how to make a card with the Big Shot only! Dies, embossing folders, and *gasp* NO STAMPS! Lol! I used the Stripes Embossing Folder as well as the Stocking Accents Originals Die (found in the Holiday Mini). I did use the Scalloped Edge Punch as well as the Real Red 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon. But no stamps ;)

 

I consider the Big Shot a vital part of my business which is why I'm so pleased that during the month of October, anyone who joins the Stampin' Up! family get a FREE Big Shot! (If you already have the Big Shot you can choose $125 worth of free product instead). So for only $215 CDN (no tax or shipping!) you get over $400 in product and a Big Shot! What an absolutely awesome deal! Actually, if you were thinking of getting the Big Shot, spend only another $65 or so and  get another $400 in product! What are other advantages of joining Stampin' Up!?

* You can customize your own stamp sets, ink pads, ribbon, papers and more!!! 

*There is no commitment to have parties and no penalty for stopping- you can just take advantage of a great deal and leave it at that.

*A 20%+ discount that you can use for the next 6 months or longer!

*30% off your first order within your first 60 days! WOW (min. $200)

*Staring Dec. 1st, you'll get to pre-order products from the upcoming Occasions and Sale-A-Bration Mini...you'll get the products FIRST and get a discount!

*Receive a free subscription to an exclusive monthly magazine.

*Receive two free months subscription to your own business website.

*Opportunity to earn free products and incentive trips.

*If you choose to stay, you only need to place $400 in orders by the end of March 2011 and then each quarter after that. Your personal orders will count too !

*Free catalogues every time they come out.

*The chance to order products before anyone else!

*By joining with me, you'll be joining one of the top groups in Canada, the INKredible Canadian Divas. We are a group of over 650 ladies all across Canada who share their passion for stamping and love to share ideas! 

Should you choose to purchase the Starter Kit, go to http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/stampingwithmonica/startyourownbusinesshttp://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/stampingwithmonica/startyourownbusiness. Click on 'Join Now' using password stampingwithmonica. If course feel free to contact me with any questions! 'Til next time, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!

Pretty Vintage Vogue

It feels like all I've been doing the last few weeks is Christmas and Hallowe'en projects. I did do a bright, cheery card last week but I feel like I've been ignoring the beautiful new 2011-2013 In Colors and had to pull them out again. As well as the gorgeous Ruffled In Color Ribbon. I also pulled out a stamp set that is beautiful, that I love, but tends to go ignored from time to time, Vintage Vogue.

The layout for my card was inspired by this week's Mojo Monday Challenge. It's a little out of my box with the angled ribbon and multiple different sized layers but I think I'll use it again! Aren't these colors just lovely and cheerful? Great for another dreary Ottawa day.

Tips & Tricks:

*Although the new Snowburst Embossing Folder is quite busy, it's perfect to add a bit of texture to an intermediate layer.
*Don't you just love the In Color Printed Brads? They're perfect for flower centers, accents and pretty much anything else!
*So many stampers are afraid to cut out images... why? I just don't get it! It adds so much when you can layer the gorgeous flowers and images. And even if you can't cut perfectly, your card will still look great. Look at my images - I'm certainly no excellent cutter... but were those the details you were looking at?
*Something was missing from this card. I thought of adding the Dazzling Details glitter glue onto the flowers but I didn't think it would look right. So I took out my too-often-ignored Vanilla Smooch Spritz and spritzed the finished product, including the ribbon! Love. It. Such a small touch, but adds so much :)

I really love how this card turned out - now I have to figure out who to give it to. I don't have any birthdays coming up! I'm sure I'll find someone special soon enough. 'Til next time, keep letting stamps bring out your creativity!