Cards with a Surprise, Part 3

Today's card is another version of the one in my previous post.  I can imagine how much fun it would be to receive a card like this, lift the flap and pull up the surprise inside it --- fun message and/or gift card!!!  I made this one for Christmas, but it could easily be adapted for most any occasion.

I love the soft colors in this color story.

Using coordinating stamps and punches makes for a quick job of adding a great tag to your card.  We have many options for other stamp/punch combinations for adapting the tag on your card.

Change out the design to use for a winter birthday by removing the ornament tag and replacing it with a birthday tag.  Did you notice that I added some scallop trim to the inside of the flap?  This really dresses up the card.

Don't forget to mark your calendars for some stamping fun!  
Click to see my upcoming classes and events.

Cards with a Surprise, Part 2

Here's another card with a surprise.  I made this one for Christmas, but it could easily be adapted for a birthday card or just a fun, special card for most any occasion.  What about a fancy invitation for a super special party?  This one has a flap that lifts up.  The bow is actually attached to the flap.

A card is attached to the inside of the flap.  When you lift up the flap, it pulls the card up so you can see the stamped or written message inside.  This could easily be adapted to include a gift card attached to this inside message card.  How special is that?

Don't forget to mark your calendars for some stamping fun!  
Click to see my upcoming classes and events.

Guessing Game, Part 3

Today, we continue my little guessing game with another card that was inspired by a previous project of mine.  One look and I'm sure you can guess how I came to be inspired for this card design, too.  This card has a special feature to it and lots of gorgeous glimmer.

Did you guess?  This card design was inspired by my Winter Frost framed project, shown in the last photo today. 

... ready... set... open...  The special feature for this design is a card that is attached to the top flap and slides up when you open the flap.  There is room below the stamped message to write a note and sign the card.  Love it!

 ... and my previous card...

Did you guess yet?  My design inspiration came from the lower left square.  Even when you design something yourself, it can still guide your design inspiration for future projects.  Fun, right?!

Thanks for stopping by today.  Come back soon for more design inspiration.

- Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogging world. 

- Click on the tab at the top of the page to see my class schedules and registration policies or click on the left for sneak peeks. 

- Come back soon and come back often for more creative inspiration.

Pop-Up Posies Spring Layout

I had so much fun at Hostess Scrapbook Club last night.  I am blessed with some beautiful ladies with whom to scrapbook.  We finished early and had time to just sit back and relax, chat, laugh, chat, and laugh some more.  I shared some new techniques, showed some new products, and shared some new ways to use old favorites.  All in all, it was a great evening.

For our layout, we used 12 X 12" Calypso Coral, to coordinate with the Pop-Up Posies.  This was a very simple layout, leaving room for our photos to be the stars of the page.

• First, we stamped flowers along the edges of where the side strips would be and along the lower edge of the page.  One of my scrappers turned her page on one side, to have the flowers across the top instead of the bottom of the page.  This looked super, too.  (The stamped flower colors are Rose Red, Tangerine Tango, and Regal Rose.)
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• Once we finished our stamping, we added a white CS layer (4 x 12") and then a strip of Calypso Coral (3 x 12") over that.  The DSP is from the In Color DSP Stack.
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• We stacked up 3 flowers for each of the layered Pop-Up Posies and used some of our In Color brads for the centers.
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• The mats (Pool Party) are 5 1/2 x 8 12" so 1 sheet of CS is all you need for the mats on this layout.
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• To add a nice little touch of white to brighten the layout, we cut a scallop strip using our Tasteful Trim die and tucked part of it under each mat.  

If these colors don't shout Spring, I don't know what will.  I hope you'll get some stamping done today --- a card or a layout maybe...

Shimmery Leaves

I have been enjoying the beautiful Fall leaves so much this year.  I always take great joy in studying the colors in nature.  To me, as an artist, it's all about playing with color.  Today, I have a layout for you, for Fall.  We made this at our last Hostess Scrapbook Club crop.

I used Soft Suede as the background and took the colors directly from our Orchard Harvest DSP.  I added a strip of Champagne Glimmer Paper, using the Tasteful Trim die, to the layers of DSP.

The 'v' cuts in the flag strips are done with a square punch.  I also stamped some leaves onto the background CS, for added texture,

After stamping and cutting out the leaves, I placed them in an old cake pan and spritzed them with my Frost White Shimmer Paint/alcohol mixture.  It makes a really nice finishing touch to the layout.

So, an easy layout for a beautiful Fall day.  I cannot believe we're into November already.  I'll be busy with a lot more Christmas projects soon, so come back and see what I'm doing.

Antiquing and a Vintage Angel

Today I will share a vintage card with you and some of my latest antiquing finds.

One of the stamps that grabbed my attention when the new catalog came out was the angel in the Rejoicing with You stamp set.  I also like the beautiful font of the text stamps with it.  The set lends itself to an elegant but vintage look.  Here's my angel:

I embossed the angel and the text.  I wanted some gold edging, so I lightly brushed the VersaMark pad across the edges of the top layer of the card and embossed that too, using gold EP for all the embossing.  Notice that the angel stamp is designed to give and old, shabby chic look rather than a solid image.

To add one more touch of elegance, I tucked in a layer of scallop trim using the champagne glimmer paper.  By using crumb cake and soft suede with the elegant gold, the entire card takes on an elegant vintage look --- shabby chic.

Now, for some antiquing 'treasures.'  As you probably know by now, my husband and I love to go antiquing.  He loves to poke around in old tools and old books.  I especially like to look for unique finds that I can use in some way in my studio and/or make into something to use in my home.  Here are some of my latest finds:

All of a sudden, I seem to be drawn to old, grungy scales.  My husband bought a third one that he's keeping back for me for Christmas.  By then, I will have forgotten about it and it will be a pleasant surprise.  Aren't these scales neat?

The little shoes are not antiques, but I love them.  What is old is the ruler.  This one opens out like a fan and then the top 2 pieces flip out to make it longer.  I love it!

I hope you can see this old railroad lock.  It even came with a key, but the key doesn't work in the lock.  Oh well.  I didn't need to use the lock anyway.  It's rusty and grungy and I love it.  The old case on the bottom is one that was my father's.  I think he liked fun, grungy things, too.  He used this one to carry his music to and from his piano lessons.  Well into his seventies, he was still taking piano lessons.

This is an old red train case.  I actually use it for a good purpose.  It has needlework in it.

As you probably know, I love old spools.  I decided to use one to make a string holder and then had the idea to put three spools on it.  After staining the base, I simply glued on the spools using Crystal Effects.  It's a pretty strong adhesive.  I actually use these kinds of string and twine a lot, so it's handy and fun to have around.

This is an old box that a friend gave me for doing her a favor.  I really like it for showing off our latest buttons and goodies.

When I got these old movie reels, I didn't realize how trendy they'd become.  Back in the day, I actually used reels like these and yes, I know how to thread a movie projector.  I guess that dates me:)  The coffee grinder was a past find that I've enjoyed for a while now.  The old iron is one I got from my dad.

And lastly, here are some of my watering cans, along with an old minnow bucket.  The bucket belonged to my father-in-law and he used it a lot when he went fishing.  They're not all sitting together on the porch, but I brought them together for the photo.  They contain artificial flowers because, when I'm busy creating in my studio, I forget to water real ones:)

I hope you've enjoyed the little antique trip with me today and will try a shabby chic Christmas card.  Enjoy!

Worth the Effort

Ever since the new Holiday Catalog came out, I have wanted to make the card shown on page 19.  It's so elegant.  Here's my take on it. 

I added even 1 more layer (some Basic Black) to it, so it would work in one of my studio displays.  My other colors are Very Vanilla, Cherry Cobbler and Early Espresso.  The stamp set is called Evergreen.  I could not get it to show up in the photo, but I stamped off for the tree in the background (with Crumb Cake) and then stamped over it with our new Illuminate Glimmer Watermark Stampin' Pad.  Wow!  Say that 3 times in a row:)  It adds a subtle sheen that is gorgeous in real life.

Cards like this don't just go into a normal mailing envelope.  They are hand delivered or added to a gift box.  They are for someone very special.
This card was a lot more involved than your typical Christmas card, but well worth the effort.

Summer Smooches

Well, I've redone my 'photo shoot' area and hope it works better.  I've really had a time of it, trying to get the best shots possible so I can share them with you.

After a busy day yesterday with my boys, including a trip to the Children's Museum and a Team Meeting, I'm ready to share a project with you.

This is one of the cards we made at my Team Meeting.  It's done with an Island Indigo card base.

The other colors are Rich Razzleberry, Tangerine Tango and Lucky Limeade.  The tag (Tag punch) is stamped with the You're a Gem stamp set.  We stamped off to stamp the flowers on the tag.

Here's the stencil we used for the background strip.  (We used the stencil on the left.)  As you can see, it comes with TWO pieces, so you have lots of possibilities for how you can use them.  The little flowers were punched with the Boho Blossoms punch and then we added a pearl accent to the center of each.  We used the Tasteful Trims die for the scallop border and added Rich Razzleberry ribbon to the other side of the stenciled background piece.  

After stenciling, we stamped little flowers, using the Bright Blossoms stamp set.

Important info:

The Summer Smooches products are available for April only.

On June 1, part of the products will again be available --- in the new Catalog --- but the fabric brads and stencils will retire.  Order them before the end of April, so you don't lose out!!!

Next classes:

April 20:  Friday 3-4-5 --- 

Come and make 3 cards for $5.  Stay a while longer and make 6 cards for $10. --- or 9 cards for $15.  There will be a variety of choices available, so come and join the fun!  Pay $5. to register on or before April 18.  You can pay for additional sets once you're here.  If you place an order at the time of the class, you can make 3 cards for FREE.  We'll take the fee off your order:)

April 21:  Saturday Brunch Bunch ---  

We're making beautiful Spring/Summer wreaths.  You will need to bring your Simply Scored tool with you.  I have decided to include the wreath base in the price of the class.  If you have already purchased the Simply Scored tool from me, order the diagonal plate and take the class for 1/2 price!!!  If you have not ordered the Simply Scored tool, order it before the class and take the class for 1/2 price!!!  In one of my next posts, I'll share with you your choices for DSP for your wreath.  They are going to be really pretty!!!

I hope to see you at a class soon.

Beautiful Island Indigo

I just had to try yet another card today --- with my beautiful Island Indigo.  This time, I've used the Movers and Shapers die, so I could have a window for my card.  I needed a window, so I could hang my birdhouse.  I've combined Pear Pizzazz, Lucky Limeade and Pool Party with my Island Indigo card and I think it speaks of glorious Spring.

I've tried to photograph the card from several angles, so you could get a better idea of all the details.  I stamped the doily using the Hello, Doily stamp.  I actually stamped it again, at the edge, to give the effect of layers of a doily falling gently over the edge of the card.

I used Baker's Twine to hang my birdhouse.  I decided to add a little bling to it, using a rhinestone over the 'door' of the birdhouse.  The scalloped strip peeking out under the pleated ribbon was cut using the Tasteful Trim die.  I trimmed the front of the card a quarter inch shorter, so the Pool Party strip (attached to the inside) could still be seen when the card is closed.

I stamped the branch and birdhouse image several times, so I could cut out pieces and layer them, using glue dots.  The image is from the Up in the Air stamp set.

I stamped the image again on the inside of the card, along with the sentiment which is from the Friendly Phrases stamp set.
I used Lucky Limeade, Island Indigo and Pool Party markers to color in the image.  It is stamped and embossed, to make the coloring easier.
I'm entering this card into a 411 sketch challenge.  Here's hoping they like it:)
If you've never tried the Movers and Shapers die, you should check it out.  With the variety of shapes that you can use to cut a window, along with them being on movable magnets, the possibilities are endless ..... and so..... the fun is endless:)

Everyday Enchantment Layout

After all we had going on over the weekend, it was absolutely wonderful to get together with my Hostess Scrapbook Club last night.  We had a super busy evening!  They are a wonderful group of ladies and I love, love, love working with them.

We added some stamping to our mini albums we'd started in January, started a surprise calendar project and made a complete layout.  I also demonstrated how to use the new framelits dies and our newest embossing folders.  They were a hit!

I like to throw out a challenge once in a while to my scrappers, so I challenged them to bring back their calendar next month and show us how they completed it at home.  I sent them home with coordinating scraps to help them with the challenge.  They will earn a little prize if they bring the calendar and/or the mini album back to share with us!

Here's the layout we made, using the Everyday Enchantment DSP, the flower fusion and little leaves sizzlits, the Bordering on Romance stamp set and the tasteful trim die.  We colored the focal piece with inks and the Aqua Painter.  They did a super job on their coloring..... so much fun!!!

This gorgeous color story is bringing on a case of spring fever here!  Doesn't this make you yearn for spring?
Here are close-ups of some of the details.  We used one of the bitty punches from the punch pack to punch the flower centers.
The inks used for the coloring are peach parfait, calypso coral, poppy parade and lucky limeade.

Tips:

• When you color with the Aqua Painter, keep it as dry as possible.  
• Most people who have trouble coloring this way are having trouble because they have their brush tip way too wet.  It takes only enough moisture to move the color around a bit.  
• Keep a paper towel handy to blot up excess water and to clean your brush tip before switching to a new color.

Tips: 

• Use a square punch to create the v-cut in the 'flags' for the banner.  
• Use hemp twine or linen thread to hang your banner.

Above:  left page...
Below:  right page...

Does this make you want to go scrapbook something?  Well, go ahead... get going... and have fun!!!