True Friend Thanks

Hi everyone. Time for another sneak peak from the upcoming Spring Mini Catalogue – this simple card uses the new True Friend stamp set and Apple Cider designer paper. I love the muted colours in this paper, it’s so perfectly named! Here’s the step by step:

Ink the flower image with Really Rust, Chocolate Chip and Close to Cocoa markers, as well as a blender pen loaded with Wild Wasabi ink. Stamp on Very Vanilla card stock.

Sponge the edges of the focal image with Creamy Caramel and Close to Cocoa ink. Layer on Close to Cocoa. Add two Antique Brass brads in the top right corner.

Layer two strips of Apple Cider paper on Close to Cocoa card stock. Adhere to a River Rock card base.

Attach the focal image using Stampin’ Dimensionals and tie a piece of Chocolate Chip wide grosgrain ribbon around the top of the card.

Stamp “Thank You” from the Occasional Greetings set in Chocolate Chip ink.

Create the medallion. I saw this made with other stamp sets by a couple of Demonstrators in the USA earlier in the year, it works really well with this set too. Stamp the largest flower image with Close to Cocoa on Really Rust card stock. Punch out the center using a 1” Circle punch. Punch the entire image using the Scalloped Circle punch. Punch the small star from Close to Cocoa card stock and layer a scrap of the Apple Cider paper behind the star. Add an Antique Brass brad then layer the scalloped circle on the star layer using Stampin’ Dimensionals.

Adhere the medallion to the card using a double layer of Stampin’ Dimensionals and it’s finished!

Quick tip: Although I may add my ribbon quite early on when making a project, I never trim the edges until I’m finished, just to avoid any fraying. It helps to have a dedicated pair of ribbon scissors (I love the Stampin’ Up! Paper Snips for this) tie a piece of your favourite ribbon to the handles to keep them separate from your other scissors.

Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Sets: True Friend, Occasional Greetings
Ink: Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip
Card stock: Close to Cocoa, River Rock, Very Vanilla
Paper: Apple Cider
Punches: Scalloped Circle, Small Star, 1 3/8" Circle, 1/16" Handheld
Accessories: Markers, Chocolate Chip wide grosgrain ribbon, Antique Brass brads, Sponge Daubers, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

UStamp Class Kit - Photos Added

Quick update: I've just added a post with photos of the awesome UStamp class kit, you can see them here. I have a date with my husband, comfy couch, popcorn and some trashy TV tonight, will be back with a post tomorrow after I finish designing my UStamp project for the classes!

"Always" on a Sunday

Always is probably my favourite set from the upcoming mini catalogue. I just love the beautiful sentiments, and all the images are gorgeous! Finally having time to stamp this morning, I thought I'd try this amazing set - hope you like the results! Here's how to re-create this card:

Cut an oval from Very Vanilla card stock. If you don't have a cutting system to cut an oval this large, have a hunt in your kitchen cupboards, or even the fridge - you'll be amazed at all the shapes you'll find that you can trace around.

Stamp the bird image in Stazon ink. Stamp it again on scrap paper or a post-it note and cut out to make a mask. Adhere the mask over your image and stamp the branch image in Mellow Moss multiple times, sometimes stamping twice before re inking. Sponge Mellow Moss around the bottom of the oval and Soft Sky around the top.

To create the scalloped edge around the oval, punch out lots of 1/2" circles and adhere behind the oval using SNAIL adhesive.
Stamp the circular always image in stazon on Very Vanilla card. Punch out with the 1 1/4" circle punch. Layer with a Mellow Moss 1 3/8" punch out and adhere to a Purely Pomegranate scalloped circle using a Stampin' Dimensional.

Stamp the small flower image in Soft Sky and punch out using the 1/2" Circle Punch, adhere inside the "a" in the always image.

Create a colour blocking effect on your Basic Black base card using rectangles of Designer Paper and stamped images. I used this gorgeous paper from the soon to be released Holiday Harmony pack and also stamped the large heart image from Always on Soft Sky card with Mellow Moss ink. Adhere with SNAIL.

Stamp the sentiment using Stazon ink and the Stamp-a-ma-jig for placement if necessary.

Tie a length of Mellow Moss taffeta ribbon (love this gorgeous stuff!) around the card. Cut the "legs" off a Styled Silver fancy brad (new Hodgepodge Hardware to be released Aug 1st) and wrap the remaining prongs around the ribbon knot.

Add two silver brads from the Hodgepodge set to the top right corner of the card.

Create two scalloped edge pieces using the Slit Punch (punch repeatedly overlapping each punch slightly) one from Purely Pomegranate card stock and the other from a scrap of the Designer Paper. Adhere together then cut a strip off your base card and adhere so the scallops show in the gap.

Adhere the oval layer and the scalloped circle layer to the card using Stampin' Dimensionals and you're done!

If you would like to book a workshop (Wellington Region) and see these products in person or would like to order any of the supplies seen on my site (New Zealand orders only please) please email me.

Hope you have a fantastic Sunday, enjoy your Sunday roast if you're having one!




Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Set: Always
Ink: Stazon, Mellow Moss, Soft Sky
Card stock: Purely Pomegranate, Mellow Moss, Very Vanilla, Basic Black
Paper: Holiday Harmony
Punches: 1/2" Circle, 1 1/4" Circle, 1 3/8" Circle, 1/16" Handheld, Slit, Scalloped Circle
Accessories: Styled Silver Hodgepodge Hardware, Mellow Moss Taffeta Ribbon, Paper Snips, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Where's Sarah?

Sorry for the lack of updates - I've been so busy the last couple of days I haven't had time to stamp. There's so much to be done when you move house, let alone moving from one end of NZ to the other!

I have found a couple of time saving things this past week though. First, I'm finally using my slow cooker (crock pot) to its full potential! On the advice of my Mum (Hi Mum!) I bought Alison and Simon Holst's "100 Great Ways to Use Slow Cookers and Crock Pots" and I LOOOOVE it! Full of great simple but delicious recipes, just throw everything in the slow cooker and forget about it till dinner time. Easy!

The other thing we've started this week is getting our groceries delivered! I tried it as a way to stay on budget, and it really helped. Everything turned up bright and early this morning, no waiting in line or being tempted by the specials aisle! Shanan and I only have evenings and weekends together, our time is too precious to spend in a grocery store I reckon! Gotta love online shopping.

I should be back with something to share tonight if inspiration strikes. For now, I've just watched an Oprah special on de-cluttering - something my craft space needs terribly right about now! I'm off to have a tidy-up so I have a clear, calm space to create....even if it only stays that way for five minutes!

Artful Spotlight

Hi all, I've been very slack (on the stamping side of things at least) today and didn't actually finish any projects! My microwave is sparkling clean (long overdue!) and I made a really yummy dinner though, so hubby was happy! No sneak peak today as a result, but I thought I'd share this card with you. I made 20 of these as swaps for a get together of Stampin' Up! demos - and in the end I was too sick to even go! I did get to swap though, and received some wonderful cards.

I used Artfully Asian as the set for this card. The background is stamped using Old Olive ink on Old Olive card, stamping onto scrap paper once for a more tone on tone effect. The scallops are made using the Slit Punch. I used the spotlighting technique to highlight my favourite image from this set.
Spotlighting is really easy and a great way to draw attention to a certain part of your project. All you do is stamp the image twice, colour one in and punch out a circle over the part of the image you want to spotlight. Adhere it to a larger circle, then to your uncoloured image and you've finished your spotlight! Instead of leaving the base image for this one plain, I coloured it white using a Watercolour Wonder crayon and an Aqua painter. It gave it just a little more pop.

The Soft Sky, Old Olive and Basic Gray layers are sponged in the same colours. That's a piece of gorgeous Rose Red Prints paper for the red layer, and I pierced a border around the main image. The wee tab at the top is made using the Word Window punch and is finished off with a Silver brad. I just love the sentiment that comes with this set, it's a lovely thought.

Hope you like this card, I promise to try and get something new created for you tomorrow!


Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Set: Artfully Asian
Ink: Basic Gray, Old Olive, Soft Sky
Card stock: Old Olive, Soft Sky, Basic Gray, Rose Red
Paper: Designer Series Prints in Rose Red
Punches: Word Window, 1 3/8” Circle,1 1/4” Circle, Slit, 1/4” Circle, 1/16” Handheld
Accessories: Watercolour Wonder Crayons, Aqua painter, Crafter’s Tool Kit, Silver Brads, Sponge Daubers, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Bloomin' with New Goodies!

As promised, here's the first of my cards using the new products from the upcoming Spring Mini Catalogue. Isn't that image beautiful? This card uses stamps from the Bloomin' with Beauty set. I did lots of sponging and masking on this one, here's the step by step:

• Stamp the vase image in Stazon ink on Whisper White twice. Stamp it again on a post-it note or scrap paper before cleaning your stamp.



• Cut the vase part of the image out of your scrap paper. Adhere your mask over the image as shown below and colour the vase by sponging River Rock ink using a sponge dauber.

• Colour the flowers of your second image by sponging with Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose and Purely Pomegranate ink. Sponge the leaves with Old Olive and cut out the coloured part of the image. Adhere on the image with the sponged vase using Stampin' Dimensionals.



• Here's my favourite tip for die-cut stamp sets: When you peal off the backing paper as you mount your stamps, make sure to keep it, it's the perfect mask for your image! Adhere the backing paper mask over your coloured image and sponge around the edges using Soft Sky ink. Continue the sponging around the edges of your Whisper White square, paying particular attention to the corners.



• Sponge heavily at the base of the vase, again with Soft Sky ink, to ground the image.



• Distress the sides of your card stock using the distressing tool from the Cutter kit. Mount on a slightly larger piece of Purely Pomegranate card.



• Adhere a piece of Designer Paper from the upcoming Holiday Harmony pack on a Purely Pomegranate card base. Stamp "Bloom" in Purely Pomegranate ink.



• Stamp the bee image on Whisper White card stock and also on the designer paper. Colour lightly, cut out and adhere with half a Stampin' Dimensional.



• Create a bow using the new Satin ribbon in Purely Pomegranate and a ribbon slide from the beautiful new Styled Silver Hodgepodge Hardware kit. I LOVE this hardware, it's so so so gorgeous. Adhere the bow using a mini glue dot.

• Lastly, run a two-way glue pen lightly over the flowers and bee wings. Dip a toothpick in Dazzling Diamonds glitter and tap the glitter lightly on the glue. This gives you a "barely there" sparkle for sophisticated shimmer. It's always so hard to take a good photo of glitter, but hopefully you can see a little in the photo above!

Aren't these new products gorgeous? They will all be available from August 1st. The satin ribbon also comes in Chocolate Chip, I can't wait to play with that! If you're in the Wellington area and would like to see these products in person (all while earning free stamp sets and shopping dollars!) please email me to find out all about having your very own fun and free Stampin' Up! workshop!



Stampin' Supplies:
Bloomin' with Beauty stamp set.
Whisper White and Purely Pomegranate card stock.
Stazon, Soft Sky, Purely Pomegranate, River Rock, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose and Old Olive ink.
Holiday Harmony Designer Paper.
Styled Silver Hodgepodge Hardware.
Purely Pomegranate Satin Ribbon.
Sponge Daubers.
Cutter Kit.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL Adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up! Some supplies not available until August 1st, 2008.

New SU! and Stamp Indexing

Bright and early this morning, my new courier (who is already surprised how often he has to come to my house!) bought me two big boxes, jammed packed full of Stampin' Up! goodies! I still have a couple of things on back order, but today I'll have lots of sorting and arranging to do. Included in my parcels are lots of brand new products from the upcoming Mini Catalogue so expect to see lots of sneak peaks starting from today!

I have 17 new sets to mount (12 of them I got for FREE from Stampin' Up! email me if you'd like info on how you could get freebies too!) which you might think would take forever....but here's the GREAT news....all the sets in the new mini catalogue are DIE-CUT! That means Stampin' Up! have cut them out for us, all you have to do is pop them on the blocks and you're ready to stamp!

Regular readers will know I have a lot of sets. So many that I haven't even counted (I think it would be a scary number!) With so many stamps, it's vital to have a good index of what you have. So I thought I'd show you mine. It's not pretty, but it's very functional.

I have a plain lever arch file (I've been meaning to pretty it up for awhile now!) and every time I get a new stamp set, I photocopy the sticker sheet before I do anything else. I also usually update my spreadsheet at this time.

It's very important for my system that I photocopy only one stamp set per page and that each and every set has it's own page protector for this reason: At the moment my sets are organised alphabetically, that means that every time a new one comes in (which is often) I need to be able to quickly slot it in to the correct position. It also means that if I ever decide to use a different method of organising my index, perhaps by subject or theme, I can easily do so because I don't have to separate sets from the same page.

If I don't know what set I want to use when I sit down to create, I can easily flick through until something inspires me. The stamp set shown is a new one, available August 1st, called Always. Isn't it gorgeous?!? I can't wait to use it. If you don't have a Stampin' Up! demonstrator and would like to order this beautiful set (or anything else you see on my site for that matter!) please email me.

Usually, it only takes me a second to photocopy each sticker sheet - but this morning was a bit different! I decided to use Shanan's laser printer as it's faster than mine, but forgot to allow for the "cat curiosity" factor!

This is Gabriel, he's a Lilac Point Balinese and is three years old. Balinese (a longer coat Siamese) are very well known for being mischievous, playful and above all curious. Gabriel loves my printer, and always wants to watch when I use it, but the laser printer seems to hold a special fascination. I think it's because the paper shoots out all of a sudden, unlike my ink jet which does it bit by bit. So every time I wanted to do a new sticker sheet this morning, it meant lifting him down and trying to get it positioned on the scanner before he wanted to jump back up! Of course, I could have just locked him out of the room - but there's one other thing Balinese are known for...their meow!

I'll be back later today with a few wee sneak peeks and will also update the UStamp class kit page with photos of the kit. Until then, Happy Stampin'!

Post-it Note Cover

I went shopping recently and bought a ton of organisational stuff for my stampin space/office. Among my purchases was this 3" square Post-it sticky notepad that I'm keeping by my laptop for little notes and lists. I just had to make a cover for it and pretty it up a little!

This is really very simple as the instructions show. A couple of cuts, a couple of scores and you're done with the construction - not rocket science at all! Because it's always handy to have the measurements when you want them though, I've made the above template. To save it to your computer click with your right mouse button and choose "save picture as". You'll notice the measurements are in inches, that's because the pad itself was 3" square and I was being lazy!

The really fun part of these covers is in the decoration. Here's how to recreate mine:

• Cut a piece of Designer Paper from the Spring Silhouettes pack to fit the front of your cover. Adhere with SNAIL adhesive.
• Stamp "Delightful" from the It's All Good set in Purely Pomegranate on Whisper White card stock. Punch out using the 1 1/4" Circle punch.
• Cut a 1 3/8" circle using the relevant punch from Soft Sky card stock. Layer behind the Delightful image using SNAIL adhesive.
• Punch a Scalloped Circle from Purely Pomegranate card stock and attach the Delightful image using Stampin' Dimensionals.
• Dot around the Scalloped Circle using a Signo White Gel Pen.
• Stamp the berries image from Oh, So Lovely (level one hostess set - you could substitute the cherry blossom image from Artfully Asian or email me to ask how you can get a Oh, So Lovely set for free!) using Stazon ink on Whisper White cardstock.
• Colour the leaves and berries using the Watercolouring with inkpads technique. I used Purely Pomegranate and Old Olive inkpads with a blender pen.
• Cut out the coloured portions of the image. This seems really fiddly, but I find the Stampin' Up! paper snips make light work of this task.
• Stamp the berries image again on your cover using Stazon ink. Colour just the stems using the fine point of an Old Olive marker.
• Attach the cut out coloured images using small pieces of Stampin' Dimensionals.
• Tie a length of Purely Pomegranate Double Stitched ribbon around the cover. Attach your Scalloped Circle piece using Stampin' Dimensionals and you're done!

It's the 3D elements that make this cover special. Why not make one of these as a gift for someone? It's the little things that brighten our days! Best of all, this size notepad fits perfectly in one of these boxes from a couple of days ago, how cute would it be to package this in a matching box?

I hope you enjoyed this super simple tutorial and that you'll have a go at making one soon!

Just a bit of housekeeping...

I wanted to let you know that my email newsletter went out to those subscribed last night. If it's not in your inbox, it will be in your junk mail! If you haven't received it and think you should have, please email me and I'll send you a copy. If you're not on my mailing list and would like to be, please email and I'll add you to the list. I am considering putting a newsletter link right here on the blog, will keep you posted about that!

Did you know.... If you click the photos on my blog they get big? Real big! So big that you can see all my little mistakes and "happy accidents"!

I have a little project I want to get done today. Nothing really fancy, it's still in the "just in my head" stage, but hopefully will be cute! I'll be back with it this afternoon or later tonight. Have a great day till then!

Let the UStamp fun begin!

Isn't this box just the cutest thing ever? In the lead up to UStamp, Dawn has posted this box tutorial as a thank you to everyone for being so excited about the exclusive UStamp classes! If this is the quality of the freebies, can you imagine how amazing the classes are going to be?!?

Head on over to Dawn's Blog to download the tutorial and make your very own box. For more information about UStamp, visit the website!

I decorated my box really simply - the stamp set I've used is a brand new one, soon to appear in our Spring Mini catalogue! It's called "A Beautiful Thing" and is a set of 6. For my box I just stamped and cut out the flowers, and attached small scraps of Certainly Celery ribbon to look like leaves. The sentiment is inked using markers for the multi coloured look, and punched out using the large oval punch. I layered it on a Designer Label punch which is in turn layered with another of the same punch cut in half and adhered on the back to make a little white border.

Don't forget to head over and get the directions for making the box!

Happy Stampin'


Stampin' Supplies:
A Beautiful Thing stamp set
Certainly Celery and Whisper White card stock
Petals and Paisleys designer paper
Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive and Pretty in Pink ink
Corner Rounder punch
Designer Label punch
Large Oval punch
Certainly Celery ribbon
Stampin' Write Markers
1/16" Handheld Punch
Silver Brads (from the Vintage collection)
Stampin' Dimensionals
SNAIL adhesive
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

I’m so excited to introduce you to.....

UStamp!!! Have you ever wished you could go to University for Stamping? I know I have! Well, now you can!

In a world first, Dawn Rapsas and Heather Summers have put together UStamp – and the first class featuring EXCLUSIVLY Stampin’ Up! products will be offered in September! The classes will feature detailed video and photo instructions of more than 10 amazing projects, with all the resources you need to make everything at home! Best of all, there are no time limits, you do everything on your own time – perfect for fitting in with the busy lifestyle we all have these days!

UStamp is for everyone – Beginners, Experts, Stampers, Scrapbookers, Demonstrators and Non Demonstrators! There will be resources galore, weekly chats, PRIZES!, an exclusive gallery with photos from the UStamp Dream Team and lots, lots more!

Registration is open now at UStamp. The cost until the end of July is $20CAD. That’s roughly $26NZD. A downright bargain! After July 31st the price reverts back to the usual class price of $25CAD. Payment is via PayPal or major credit cards – please see the UStamp site for more details. Also, please make sure to mention my name as your referring link!

Class Kit: Because the class kit for the course is only available to US and Canadian participants, I will be offering a kit for New Zealanders with alternate products that will work well with the projects on offer. My samples and projects will be created with this kit, and it will feature BRAND NEW products from the Spring Mini Catalogue! Wooohooo! I’m still working on the details, stay tuned for more information on the kit contents and purchasing details. I’ll make sure to work in a special saving for you all of course!

I’m so pleased to have been asked to be on the UStamp Dream Team representing New Zealand, I can’t wait to share this exciting journey with you!

New Look!

After weeks of disarray and illness things are finally on track! I decided now would be a great time to give the blog a new look. I wanted something clean and simple to help bring out the wonderful colours of Stampin' Up! ink and card stock. Hope you like it.

My stamping space is finished and I'm ready to bring lots of exciting new projects to you! I also have some very exciting international stamping news to share with you soon! Stay tuned!

Whimsy in Sky

Hi everyone! Well, we're finally coming to the end of our motel stay - thank goodness! I just can't wait till Monday night, being able to sleep in your own bed is a simple luxury I've been missing! Of course, as soon as the bed is made - I'll be getting to work on my craft room! I was out scouting for new furniture today - it will be a work in progress for awhile, but will share pics when I'm done.

The above card is one I made way back in April, but hadn't shared until now. I won't do a step by step as it was so long ago, but the key points are:

• The Butterfly was inked using the "Rock 'n Roll" technique.
  
• A lot of the layers are popped up for dimension.
  
• The small ladybird and the sentiment were inked with Markers so I could omit the portions of the images I didn't want to stamp.
  
• The sentiment was split in two and positioned using the Stamp-a-ma-jig.

A pretty simple card, but I just loved that butterfly and wanted to make it the focal point. I'm pretty sure I gave this to one of my lovely hostesses, it's not in my box of finished cards anymore!

Quick note: For those of you who have emailed on my Xtra email addy, I haven't been able to reply yet. Xtra blocks sending emails through their system while on wireless hotspot connections, so I'll get those answered ASAP after Monday.

Until then, Happy Stampin!


Stampin' Supplies:

Garden Whimsy, Polka Dot Background, Short & Sweet stamp sets.

Basic Gray, Soft Sky and Whisper White card.

Basic Gray and Soft Sky ink.

Markers.

Scalloped Circle, 1 1/4" and 1" Circle punches.

Silver Brads.

Crafter's Tool Kit.

Stampin' Dimensionals.

SNAIL adhesive.

All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Can't wait to get settled!

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to say hi and thanks for all the emails. The move is going great so far, just sitting in the ferry terminal now - my time is about to run out so I'll be off, but can't wait to be back and sharing with you!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Blissful Dahlia

Hi everyone! Well, this is what I was doing this afternoon when I should have been packing! Procrastination is a fantastic excuse to stamp! Between moving and preparing for the SU! Regional Seminar (lots of swaps to make!) you probably won't hear from me much until after the 26th of this month. I'll try and get another post up over the weekend, and do have some cards in my files I haven't shown you yet though, so who knows, I might be online more than I think.

I wanted to have a go at making another Dahlia fold medallion - they are just so much fun. For instructions on this fold (I tried to explain it in a way that made sense to me - I'm so bad at following directions!) please see this post: Dahlia Fold Here's the step by step for this card:

• Make a Dahlia out of Berry Bliss Designer Series Paper. I just love the colours in this paper pack!
• Layer the Dahlia onto Purely Pomegranate card and cut out. Repeat this step using Chocolate Chip card.
• Use a rub-on from the Urban West pack on a Clear Button. This is so much fun to do! It looks great on coloured buttons too. Because I chose a pretty solid design, it even covers the button holes. There are lots of designs in all of our rub-on packs that would work well for this step.
• Attach the button to your medallion using a mini glue dot. Nice and invisible!
• Stamp Tres Chic background on Pretty in Pink card with Close to Cocoa ink. Sponge the edges with Pretty in Pink ink. Layer onto Chocolate Chip.
• Stamp the polka dot type image from Boho Backgrounds onto Purely Pomegranate card using Whisper White craft ink. I let this dry naturally while I did something else, but you could heat emboss it or use your heat tool to speed up the process.
• Tie a length of Chocolate Chip ribbon around the Purely Pomegranate layer, then attach to the Chocolate Chip cardbase using plenty of Dimensionsals.
• Attach the Tres Chic layer with SNAIL then the Dahlia with Dimensionals and you're done!

This was pretty simple to throw together, the Dahlia can take a few minutes to fold, but it's so worth it. This would be a great card for lots of different occasions - it all depends on the sentiment used on the inside of the card.

Hopefully I'll have time to post soon, until then - Happy Stampin'!

Stampin' Supplies:
Tres Chic and Boho Backgrounds stamp sets.
Purely Pomegranate, Chocolate Chip and Pretty in Pink Card.
Berry Bliss paper.
Close to Cocoa, Whisper White and Pretty in Pink ink.
Urban West rub-ons.
Clear Buttons.
1 3/8" and 1" Circle punches.
Chocolate Chip wide grosgrain ribbon.
Paper Snips.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Love Notes

This month's promotion consists of some really cute products for a great price, so today I wanted to use one of them, Love Notes. Love Notes are these cute little square cards and envelopes - they are so much fun to create with! I used a colour challenge combo for this one - Regal Rose, Real Red and So Saffron. Stay tuned for more info on the promo at the bottom of this post. For now, here's how this came together!

• Stamp the hugs and kisses image from the Sealed with a Kiss stamp set onto Whisper White using Basic Gray ink.
• Cut out using the 1 3/8" Circle Punch. Colour with Real Red, So Saffron and Regal Rose markers.
• Layer onto a Real Red scalloped circle (I love this punch!) and dot the scallops with the White Gel pen.
• Colour "Love you" using markers and stamp on Whisper White. Punch out with the Word Window punch.
• Punch two Regal Rose Word Windows. Layer behind the Whisper White sentiment.
• I used a scrap of So Saffron prints paper from last month's promotion as my background. The Polka Dot background stamp would look really cool too.
• Tie scraps of ribbon around the background layer before attaching to the Whisper White love note. I had both these pieces in my scrap bag, the knot was even tied for me already!
• Punch two 1/16" holes with the handheld punch on Whisper White. Punch around these with the 1/4" circle punch and add two So Saffron brads through the holes. I love the way this helps the brads "pop" from the background!
• Layer everything together and adhere using Dimensionals for height and added interest.
• Stamp "Sending Love" on the envelope front, colouring each element with markers.
• For the inside of the card, I added a layer of background paper, then coloured the "Love" image with markers, cut it out and attached with a dimensional.
• Roughly trace around the envelope flap onto the patterned paper, then cut out with scissors within that line. I just eyeball this, it usually turns out pretty good. Adhere with SNAIL. You’re done!

It’s so much fun making these note cards, you can use up all those scraps of card stock you’ll have laying around if you’re anything like me!

eScape with Stampin’ Up! During June, you can eScape with Stampin’ Up by purchasing the special bundle of products. The bundle consists of the Circle of Friendship stamp set, the 1 ¼” Circle Punch and a pack of Love Notes and Envelopes – 10 each in Whisper White and Very Vanilla. Separately these products would cost a total of $92.15 – but this month only, the bundle has 25% off – get all three products for just $69.11! (plus postage) If you’re in New Zealand and would like to purchase the bundle and make some adorable cards for yourself, please email me at sarah.eternal@yahoo.com Please see the link at the right hand side of this post for more information!

Happy Stampin’
Sarah

Stampin Supplies:
Sealed with a Kiss stamp set.
Love Note – Whisper White.
Regal Rose, Whisper White & Real Red Card. So Saffron Prints paper.
Basic Gray ink.
Stampin’ Write Markers.
Word Window, 1 3/8” Circle, 1/16” Handheld, ¼” Circle & Scalloped Circle punches.
So Saffron brads.
Real Red and Regal Rose Grosgrain ribbon.
Stampin’ Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin’ Up!

Bluebird Thanks

Sorry for the lack of updates over the last week, I've been very busy organising our move. I might only be posting sporadically over the next couple of weeks, but once we're all settled again I'll be back with updates as often as possible!

This card was made with one of this years hostess sets - Spring Solitude. It's a really fun set with great images that can be combined to make lots of different images. Here's the step by step:

• Ink the branch stamp with Wild Wasabi, and go over the branches with a Chocolate Chip marker. Stamp overlapping images on Very Vanilla card.
  
• Stamp the bottom image, inking with Purely Pomegranate and the Chocolate Chip marker. Stamp the bird using Blue Bayou.
  
• Layer onto Purely Pomegranate card, and attach a scalloped accent punched from Chocolate Chip and Wild Wasabi card, using the slit punch.
  
• Stamp the sentiment on a Very Vanilla rectangle, then round the corners using the Corner Rounder punch. I used last years now retired punch on this element.
  
• Offset a circle of Fall Flowers designer paper on a layer of Wild Wasabi.
  
• Pierce the edges of the circle, the sentiment layer and the scallops. Fill in the pierced holes with the white gel pen.
  
• Stamp the polka dot background in Soft Sky on Soft Sky card and adhere to a Chocolate Chip card base.
  
• Attach three Pewter Jumbo Eyelets to the circle layer using the Crop-a-dile. Adhere Purely Pomegranate card behind them and fill with Crystal Effects. Tie a length of Purely Pomegranate ribbon around the circle, then adhere to the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.
  
• Attach the bird layer, and add two pewter brads to the sentiment layer before adhering with Stampin' Dimensionals. This is the inside of this card. I repeated images from the front, an easy way to tie the whole card together.

There are a few separate pieces to this card, but they go together really easily. I had a lot of fun making this one, that little bird is really cute!

Happy Stampin’
Sarah

Stampin’ Supplies:
Spring Solitude stamp set.
Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi and Soft Sky card.
Fall Flowers designer paper.
Wild Wasabi, Purely Pomegranate and Blue Bayou ink.
Chocolate Chip marker.
Jumbo Eyelets – Pewter.
Pewter Brads.
Crop-a-dile.
Purely Pomegranate double stitched ribbon.
Crystal Effects.
White Gel Pen.
Stampin’ Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin’ Up!

Thanks Mum!

Here's a card I made earlier in the week - I'm sharing it now because I think my Mum should receive it today! I hope so - if not, here's a card for you Mum! When I visited a couple of weekends ago, Mum had a copy of a cookbook I love and have always wanted (20c at the Salvation Army shop - can't beat that!) and she also let me brazenly steal the cutest set of plates right from her display shelf! They are adorable, dessert plates with chocolate truffles and other yummy things engraved in them. The cookbook is an old one by Alison Holst for Microwaves - it has some really great recipes in it, good microwave recipes can be hard to find!

I've noticed I'm using a lot of blues in my cards lately! I think it's because I'm so inspired by our new In Colours for the year. This one uses something very different though.....Not Quite Navy! This is a colour I had never used and I wanted to challenge myself to make something nice with it. I used the Colour Wheel tool to help me decide what to pair it with - Bashful Blue. I then noticed some gorgeous So Saffron paper on my desk from this months promotion - and I was ready to go!

I also used a stamp set I've never inked. I have had a play with this one before, courtesy of my upline Louise (Every demo worldwide got this set as a gift from Stampin' Up! last year - just a little bit before I joined! Isn't that a great perk to being a demo though, what's better than free stamps?!) It's called Time Well Spent and is one of our wonderful hostess sets this year. I just had to earn it, it's a wonderful set, and has soooo many images. Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the butterfly image from Time Well Spent randomly over a Not Quite Navy card base using Versamark ink. This will give a lovely watermark appearance.
• Stamp the large flower on Whisper White using Basic Gray. I meant it when I said Basic Gray is the new black - it's so nice to colour with.
• Colour with blender pens and Watercolour Wonder Crayons. I used Not Quite Navy, Bashful Blue and So Saffron. Cut out.
• Colour a flower from the Pretties kit also using your watercolour wonder crayons and a blender pen or water brush. This is my favourite way to colour these flowers, you can shade them exactly as you want them and it dries almost instantly.
• Adhere the flower to your stamped and cut out image, then punch a large hole using the Crop-a-dile and set a Pewter Jumbo Eyelet in the center. Add a clear Rhinestone Brad, also from the pretties kit, by threading it through the eyelet.
• Cut a Bashful Blue scalloped edge using the Slit Punch. Adhere behind a piece of the So Saffron prints paper which has a piece of Bashful Blue Striped Grosgrain ribbon tied around it. Adhere another strip of Bashful Blue behind the other side of the So Saffron - this is a cheats way to get a layered look. Perfect to use up little scraps of card.
• Attach the So Saffron layer to the card base. Adhere the flower using Stampin' Dimensionals.
• Stamp "Hugs & Kisses" from the So Many Sayings stamp set (level one - hostess) by inking with a Not Quite Navy marker on Bashful Blue card.
• Punch out using the Word Window punch and cut off one edge. Sponge lightly using Bashful Blue ink around the edges.
• Add a Pewter brad from the Vintage collection to the round end of the punch, and attach to your card using Dimensionals. That's the front done!

• For the inside, adhere a piece of Whisper White card stock. Stamp the butterfly in Basic Gray.
• Adhere a strip of the So Saffron paper, partially covering the butterfly.
• Stamp the butterfly again onto scrap card and colour with Watercolour Wonder crayons and a blender pen.
• Cut out the body of the butterfly, omitting the antenna. Adhere this over the first stamped image using Dimensionals for a 3d effect and making sure to line up the antenna where they should be.

I hope my Mum likes this little thank you, I had so much fun making it for her!

If you would like to find out how you can earn the Time Well Spent or So Many Sayings sets for FREE please send me an email. Stampin' Up! is also looking for demonstrators New Zealand wide - please email me if you would like to make your hobby a fun and rewarding business opportunity, I'd love to have you join my fun and enthusiastic team!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Time Well Spent and So Many Sayings stamp sets.
Not Quite Navy, Whisper White and Bashful Blue card. So Saffron Prints paper.
Basic Gray and Versamark ink.
Watercolour Wonder Crayons.
Blender Pens.
Slit and Word Window punches.
Sponge Daubers.
Pewter Jumbo Eyelets.
Crop-a-dile.
Pretties Kit.
Vintage Brads.
1/16" Handheld Punch.
Bashful Blue Striped Grosgrain ribbon.
Stampin' Write marker - Not Quite Navy.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

In Colour Carte Postale

Carte Postale is a set I've been admiring for a long time. It has been on my shelf, unloved, the last three weeks - but only because of time restraints! So here's my first effort with this beautiful set. I used a colour challenge combo, Certainly Celery, Blue Bayou and Soft Sky. Don't they look great together? Here's the step by step:

• Cut a Soft Sky circle and stamp the leaf image in Certainly Celery multiple times. Stamp in between inkings to get a shaded effect to the foliage.
• Stamp the bird and sentiment in Blue Bayou.
• Sponge the edges of the circle, Certainly Celery for the Bottom and Soft Sky for the top.
• Stamp the square flower image in Blue Bayou on Soft Sky and punch out using the 1 1/4" Circle Punch. Layer onto a 1 3/8" Certainly Celery circle, then onto a Blue Bayou Scalloped Circle.
• Add White Gel pen highlights to the bird, the flower and the scalloped circle.
• Layer a strip of Certainly Celery Designer Series paper onto Soft Sky. I love how this designs mimics the stamped foliage.
• Attach two Antique Brass Jumbo Eyelets at the end of the strip, and tie a length of Soft Sky ribbon through them.
• Stamp the flowers in Versamark onto your Blue Bayou card base.
• Adhere the strip with dimensionals, the circle layer with SNAIL and the scalloped circle with dimensionals and you're done!

This was a bit of a different layout for me, I so often use squares or rectangles. I've been making an effort this week to finish the inside of my cards nicely before putting away all my supplies - usually I leave it until I'm ready to send the card, but this is so much easier.

Here's the inside view of this card. The bird is cut out and attached with dimensionals. This is going to one of my hostesses who loves Carte Postale. Hope she likes it!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Carte Postale stamp set.
Blue Bayou and Soft Sky card. Certainly Celery prints designer paper.
Blue Bayou, Soft Sky and Certainly Celery ink.
White Gel Pen.
Scalloped Circle, 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" Circle punches.
Crop-a-dile.
Jumbo Eyelets.
Soft Sky ribbon.
Stampin' Sponge.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Style Watch - Tapestry

Here's another of the cards I've been demonstrating the last six weeks or so. I wanted to design a card using the colours and products from the Tapestry style in our new catalogue. The colours are straight from that page, and they look wonderful together. Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the large swirl from Baroque Motifs on Very Vanilla card using River Rock ink. To get a shadow effect, I stamp lining up the corners of the card and wood mount, then stamp again in Old Olive making sure to move the stamp in from the corner a little. This is a really quick way to get a lovely shadow. You can't really go wrong with this gorgeous image!
• Stamp the small flower randomly over the vine using Groovy Guava ink. I coloured in the middle of the flowers using a Chocolate Chip marker.
• Round the corners of your image and a piece of River Rock card and adhere together. Tie a piece of Groovy Guava double stitched ribbon around the edge of the Very Vanilla Piece.
• Stamp a sentiment from Wonderful Words using Chocolate Chip ink. I like to then tear the bottom of the River Rock and sponge on a little Chocolate Chip to accentuate the torn edge.
• Adhere the entire layer to a Groovy Guava card base.
• Make a medallion by stamping the image in Groovy Guava, inking the dotted border with a Chocolate Chip marker before stamping. Stamp the small flower once more in Chocolate Chip.
• Cut both these pieces out, and layer together using a Rhinestone brad in the center of your flower. I've used both the circle and square brads, and they all look wonderful.
• Attach to a Chocolate Chip Scallop Circle punch out with a Stampin' Dimensional and stick to your card.

Using the catalogue colour schemes for inspiration is a wonderful way to jump start your creativity. I also like to look through the book for layout ideas and cool embellishment tricks. It really is so much more than just a catalogue!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Baroque Motifs and Wonderful Words stamp sets.
Groovy Guava, River Rock, Chocolate Chip and Very Vanilla card.
River Rock, Old Olive, Groovy Guava and Chocolate Chip ink.
Chocolate Chip marker.
Rhinestone Brads.
1/16" Handheld Punch.
Groovy Guava Double Stitched Ribbon.
Scallop Circle Punch.
Sponge Dauber.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Unfrogettable

With my workshops over for the month, I thought I'd share a couple of the cards I made during May over the next couple of days. This card was made using the Palette o' Prints designer paper from this month's promotion - but the good news is, this paper is also available year round in 12x12 size! Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the frog using Stazon ink onto Whisper White card. Stamp again onto a post it note, and cut out to make a mask for the stamped image. I like to keep my masks in the box with my stamps so I only ever have to cut out each image once!
• Adhere your mask over the frog, then stamp the toadstool making sure to overlap the images. When you remove the mask, the frog looks like he is sitting on the toadstool!
• Colour your image using a blender pen and ink pads as shown here: http://thinkingstamps.blogspot.com/2008/03/watercolouring-with-su-inkpads.html I used Certainly Celery, Rose Red and So Saffron.
• Outline the image using a Going Gray marker to help make the image "pop". Mat with Rose Red card.
• Add three gold brads to the top left corner of your piece.
• Cut two scallop strips using the slit punch and layer behind the frog image. Dot the scallops using the white gel pen.
• Using a black marker, colour just the "unfrogettable" part of the sentiment stamp. Punch out with the Word Window punch.
• Punch a 1" Certainly Celery circle and layer onto a Rose Red Designer Label punch out.
• Dot with the white gel pen and add two gold brads. Attach the sentiment using Stampin' Dimensionals for interest.
• Use a piece of Certainly Celery prints paper for the background on a Rose Red card. Attach the frog layer with SNAIL adhesive and the sentiment layer with Stampin' Dimensionals and you're done!

The gold brads on the frog layer help even out the heaviness of the scallops on the other side of the piece. I love these colours together, they are really eye catching!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Unfrogettable stamp set.
Rose Red, Certainly Celery and Whisper White card. Certainly Celery prints paper.
Rose Red, Certainly Celery, So Saffron and Stazon ink.
Blender Pens.
Gold Brads.
1/16" Handheld punch.
Neutral Markers.
Slit, Word Window, 1" Circle and Designer Label punches.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Asian Elegance

Artfully Asian is a set that's been on my wish list for a long time! I finally got it a week or so ago, and promptly made this card. I just hadn't found the time to upload it till now! It's a beautiful set, so fun for colouring - I know I'll be using it often. Here's the step by step:

• Cover a Mellow Moss card with Designer Series Paper from the Brocade Backgrounds pack. This is one of my favourite paper packs from the new catalogue, the designs are gorgeous!
• Stamp the Cherry Blossom image on Very Vanilla twice using Basic Gray ink. Basic Gray is the new black! For cards with a softer focus like this one, Basic Gray is perfect - it's waterproof too, so perfect for colouring.
• Colour the image. I used Watercolour Wonder Crayons (Rich Regals) and a blender pen. I love our blender pens, they give you the control of a marker with whatever colouring medium you use.
• Distress the edges of your cherry blossom image. I used the distressing tool from the Cutter Kit, another new purchase. It's so fast and easy, and much safer than using scissors. Layer onto a piece of Rose Red card, also distressed. Add two Rose Red brads in the top corner.
• Stamp the leaf image on Very Vanilla using Mellow Moss ink. I inked my stamp, then stamped off once onto scrap paper before stamping to get that soft effect. Stamp randomly, making sure to go over the edges for a true random effect.
• Scallop the edge of this layer using the Corner Rounder punch. I used the now retired larger punch we had in last year's catalogue, but the new smaller one will work perfectly.
• Using the 1/16" Handheld punch, punch inside each scallop for ever more detail.
• Layer a Mellow Moss piece scalloped in the same way behind this layer, attaching with snail. Layer another strip at the top and distress both this and the Vanilla layer.
• Tie a piece of Mellow Moss Taffeta around this layer. Add three Rose Red brads at either side then attach to your card base using dimensionals.
• Attach your main image also using dimensionals. I used two dimensionals layered on top of each other in the top corners of the image, just to accommodate the leafy layer which was already popped up.

This was a really simple card to put together, and I just love how the colours look together. I've left the front free of a sentiment and will stamp one on the inside when I use this card - it would be perfect for any number of occasions.

Have a wonderful and relaxing Sunday,
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Artfully Asian stamp set.
Mellow Moss, Very Vanilla and Rose Red card stock. Brocade Backgrounds paper.
Basic Gray and Mellow Moss ink.
Rose Red (Rich Regals) brads.
1/16" Handheld punch.
Corner Rounder punch.
Cutter Kit.
Watercolour Wonder Crayons - Rich Regals.
Blender pen.
Mellow Moss Taffeta ribbon.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Flower Power

When I'm going to be giving a card in person, it's sometimes fun to make one that is really 3D! This card was really easy to put together, and surprisingly fast. Here's the step by step:

• Stamp and cut out a variety of flowers. I used the stamps from Office Accoutrement for the largest and smallest blossoms, stamping in Ruby Red and Bashful Blue. The medium sized flowers were created by stamping Paisley in Pumpkin Pie on Whisper White, then punching out with the 5 Petal Flower punch.
• You can create a different effect with your solid stamps, such as the large flower, by "kissing" an uninked stamp with an inked pattern stamp as I have for the bottom blue flower. I inked Paisley in Bashful Blue, kissed my uninked flower to the Paisley stamp, then stamped as normal. You can get great results using this simple technique.
• Layer the flowers together in different formations, and attach to a Whisper White layer using SNAIL and dimensionals.
• Punch the Photo Corner from Pumpkin Pie and Bashful Blue, and attach three silver brads to the smallest layer before sticking together with a dimensional cut in half.
• Stamp "Happy" from the Polka Dots and Paisley set using markers to colour directly on the rubber.
• Layer onto Bashful Blue, and attach three tabs of Bashful Blue striped grosgrain ribbon before layering onto the Ruby Red card base.

A card like this would look good in so many different colour combinations - and it really looks like it took a lot more time than it actually did!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Office Accoutrement, Paisley Background and Polka Dots and Paisley stamp sets.
Pumpkin Pie, Bashful Blue, Ruby Red and Whisper White card stock.
Pumpkin Pie, Bashful Blue and Ruby Red ink.
Stampin' Write Markers.
Striped Bashful Blue Grosgrain ribbon.
5 Petal Flower punch.
Silver Brads.
Photo Corner Punch.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Baroque Fantasy

Hi everyone, hope you had a good weekend. We had a great visit down in Invercargill with our family, we hadn't been down since just after Christmas, so was a great trip. This is a card I finished last week, in between lots of fun stamping at workshops and delivering huge boxes filled with goodies to my wonderful hostesses!

I wanted to create a really whimsical design using that wonderful swirl image from Baroque Motifs - so had a play with embossing and my brayer, and this is what I came up with. Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the swirl image in Purely Pomegranate and Bashful Blue by first loading your stamp with Versamark, then the coloured ink you've chosen. This allows you to heat emboss with our wonderful dye inks! I stamped onto Whisper White.
• Heat emboss the swirls with Clear Embossing Powder.
• Load your brayer with Pumpkin Pie ink and brayer over the entire piece. The heat embossed areas resist the ink, and once you've finished brayering you can just wipe over the piece with a paper towel or tissue to get rid of the excess ink.
• Sponge the edges heavily using Pumpkin Pie, Purely Pomegranate then Chocolate Chip ink and a sponge dauber.
• Outline the swirls using a white gel pen. This seems like a tedious task, but it's actually quite easy and relaxing!
• Create the "Kind" label by stamping the sentiment onto Bashful Blue then sponging the edges with Purely Pomegranate. Cut out using the Small Oval Punch. Layer onto a piece of Pumpkin Pie cut with the Large Oval Punch. Dot around the Pumpkin oval with a black marker.
• Did you know our oval punches are sized to perfectly fit inside the Hodgepodge Hardware? I love this feature of the punches, it makes things so easy!
• I distressed my Hodgepodge label holder by colouring it with a black permanent marker like a Sharpie or a Vivid, then used a sanding block to scrub away some of the black in places.
• Attach your Hodgepodge label using Dimensionals and a Black grosgrain ribbon tie.
• Add three black brads in the upper corner, then layer onto a piece of Purely Pomegranate using Stampin' Dimesnionals for height.
• Layer onto Bashful Blue sponged with Purely Pomegranate and dotted with the wide end of your black marker.
• Attach the whole thing to a Basic Black card base and you're done!

This card is so vibrant in real life, the colour combination, white gel pen and black card base makes it look so dramatic! I hope you'll try brayering over a heat embossed image, it's a lot of fun and you can create some spectacular effects.

Have a great week and look out for more posts here very soon!
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Baroque Motifs stamp set.
Whisper White, Purely Pomegranate, Pumpkin Pie, Bashful Blue and Basic Black card stock.
Versamark, Bashful Blue, Purely Pomegranate, Pumpkin Pie and Basic Black ink.
White Gel Pen.
Sponge Daubers.
Black Brads.
Hodgepodge Hardware - Antique Brass.
Small and Large Oval punches.
Black marker.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
Heat tool.
Clear embossing powder.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Be Happy

What a busy weekend! It was great to have a weekend full of workshops and stamping, I hope everyone had as much fun as I did! After carting around all my supplies I had a big tidy-up today....but didn't quite get to sorting out my "scrap basket". I have a basket where I put all my bits and pieces of card as I work, it's been awfully full lately so I decided to make a card using only card from that basket.

This card measures approx 9.5cm square, it's a lot of fun to make these smaller cards sometimes, you can make those little stamps the focus of the card easily. Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the circles image from the Sprinkles stamp set on Soft Sky card using Real Red ink.
• Pierce a border using the mat pack for placement.
• Stamp the flowers from Fabulous Flowers in Real Red and Apricot Appeal. Cut out.
• Put a small red Rhinestone Brad through the center of the red flower.
• Attach the flowers using Snail adhesive and a Dimensional dot for the Red flower.
• Stamp the sentiment from So Many Sayings (level one hostess set) onto Whisper White card using a Real Red marker to just highlight the phrase you want.
• Cut this out with the Word Window Punch and attach to the Soft Sky layer using silver brads. Tie a piece of Real Red grosgrain ribbon around the layer.
• Layer the Soft Sky with Real Red then Apricot Appeal card.
• Stick onto a Soft Sky card base and you're done!

This is a quick and simple card - but don't these colours look great together? My photo is a little off, the ribbon and ink match perfectly in real life. I also wanted to show you how I finished the inside of this card...

It's always nice to tie the inside of your card with the outside, and it's usually as simple as bringing the colours and a stamped image together. It's those little details that make a handmade card so special to the recipient!

Have a fantastic week,
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Fabulous Flowers, Sprinkles and So Many Sayings stamp sets.
Soft Sky, Apricot Appeal, Whisper White and Real Red card.
Apricot Appeal and Real Red ink.
Real Red grosgrain ribbon.
Silver Brads.
Round Fire Rhinestone Brads.
Mat Pack.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Masculine Might

Often masculine cards are the hardest to make, especially cards for an adult male. The Wanted stamp set makes them easy though! I got a big box of goodies today, and just had to play! Here's the step by step:

• Make your medallion by stamping in Blue Bayou three times onto Very Vanilla card stock. Cut one layer with the Scallop Punch, one with the 1 1/4" punch, and one with the 1/2" punch. Layer the 1 1/4" piece onto a 1 3/8" punched Close to Cocoa circle. Sponge the layers with Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa and Chocolate Chip, working towards the edges with the darkest shade. Attach an Antique Brass brad in the center of the smallest layer, then assemble using Stampin' Dimensionals. You can find that brad in the Hodgepodge Hardware kit or the Vintage Brads pack.
• To create the Blue Bayou background stamp the paisley image in Blue Bayou onto Blue Bayou card stock. Sponge roughly around each paisley with Blue Bayou ink. Randomly stamp the paisley again, this time in Whisper White. Set with your heat tool. Stamp the smallest circle image in Creamy Caramel over the entire layer and sponge the edges with Close to Cocoa and Chocolate Chip.
• Stamp the sentiment in Stazon Black onto the Blue Bayou layer and attach to a Chocolate Chip card base.
• Cut a piece of Outlaw Designer Series paper. The patterns in this pack are gorgeous! Sponge the edges with Chocolate Chip ink.
• Stamp the horse image twice onto a Very Vanilla scrap. Once with Creamy Caramel and once with Close to Cocoa. Cut out.
• Assemble the card, attaching the horses and medallion with Stampin' Dimensionals.
• Set three Antique Brass Jumbo Eyelets with the Crop-A-Dile, using the template from the mat pack for perfect placement. Tie pieces of Hemp Twine through the eyelets.

With the right accessories it's possible to make a "guy card" that still has lots of embellishment and interest, without making it too girly! The twine is the perfect replacement for ribbon on any masculine card, best of all, it's really cheap!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Wanted stamp set.
Chocolate Chip, Blue Bayou, Very Vanilla, Close to Cocoa card stock.
Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Blue Bayou ink.
Outlaw designer paper.
Jumbo Eyelets.
Crop-A-Dile.
Sponge Daubers.
Hemp Twine.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
Scallop Circle, 1 1/4", 1 3/8"& 1/2" punches.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Guava Appeal

Sorry for having such a long gap in posting, it's been a busy week so far! The trial versions of all the software on my new laptop have expired, so until my new Microsoft Office Pro pack arrives, I've been locked out of all my files and my Xtra email account. A bit of a pain, but hopefully I'll have it all fixed up soon.

Thanks to all the ladies that made last Saturday's workshop such a success, it was great to see you all! This weekend I have a lovely group on Saturday, and two groups at Mornington Kindy on Sunday, so it's going to be a great weekend full of stamping! If you'd like to come on Sunday, please let me know, I'm sure I can arrange it.

The above card is a slightly more time intensive version of a card I showed last Saturday. I love Groovy Guava and Apricot Appeal together, it looks fantastic. Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the large flower from Fabulous Flowers three times on Whisper White card stock. I inked with Apricot Appeal, then sponged Groovy Guava on the edges of the petals with a Stampin' Sponge directly on the rubber. This gives a nicely diffused effect where the colour graduates.
• Cut out three different layers of the flower. Edge the petals with the 2 Way Glue Pen and cover with Dazzling Diamonds. I use a powder pal to return all the excess glitter to the tub. No waste and clean-up is a snap!
• Construct the flower using a Stampin' Dimensional in between each layer.
• Stamp Polka Dot background in Groovy Guava on a piece of Apricot Appeal. Sponge the edges with Apricot Appeal. Layer onto Groovy Guava.
• Stamp the sentiment on Whisper White, inking with Apricot Appeal and again sponging with Groovy Guava before stamping. Ink the edges of this layer with Apricot Appeal then Groovy Guava just on the very edge. Layer onto Groovy Guava.
• Create a scalloped accent piece using the Slit Punch. This punch is such great value at only $13.50! I love the scallops it makes. Just punch continually along a strip of card stock, slightly overlapping each punch slightly. Sponge the edges with Groovy Guava.
• Add two Jumbo Eyelets (I used Pewter) to the Polka Dot layer. Cut the holes and set with the Crop-A-Dile. I use the clear template from the Mat Pack to make sure my spacing is even, it's a great wee tool.
• Attach two Rhinestone Brads through the eyelets. I chose the yellow brads from the Fire pack.
• Tie a length of Apricot Appeal ribbon around your dotted layer before attaching to your card. Assemble the card as shown in the photo and you're done!

I love that hint of sparkle the Dazzling Diamonds glitter gives, it's beautiful. I hope you'll try Apricot Appeal and Groovy Guava together, it's such a nice, warm look.

I'm off to work on my Mother's Day parcel to be posted tomorrow (Hi Mum!)

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Fabulous Flowers and Polka Dot Background stamp sets.
Apricot Appeal and Groovy Guava card stock.
Apricot Appeal and Groovy Guava ink pads.
Stampin' Sponges.
Apricot Appeal Grosgrain ribbon.
Jumbo Eyelets, Pewter.
Crop-A-Dile.
Slit Punch.
Rhinestone Brads, Fire.
2 Way Glue Pen.
Dazzling Diamonds glitter.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

In Love with In Colour!

Well, I come back from the long weekend then promptly disappear again! My internet has been iffy at best this week, yesterday I couldn't get online at all! I finally had time to sit down and upload this for you, even though I should be finishing my preparation for the huge workshop we'll be having tomorrow!

It's wet and cold here today, perfect stamping weather, and this is what I came up with using some of our gorgeous new colours! Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the branch and berries image from Touch of Nature with Basic Brown ink onto Very Vanilla card. Using the stamp-a-ma-jig, stamp the bird image with the branches overlapping.
• Stamp the bird again onto scrap paper or a post-it note. Cut around just the bird to create a mask, and adhere with temporary adhesive - I used the 2 Way Glue Pen.
• Ink the leafy branch image with River Rock ink and stamp onto scrap paper once, then onto your image, over top of the bird. Repeat, then stamp the image full force at the top, bottom and side of the bird. You'll go over the branches and berries a bit, but once we colour it won't matter.
• Remove the mask from your bird image. Colour the image using ink pads and a blender pen using this technique: http://thinkingstamps.blogspot.com/2008/03/watercolouring-with-su-inkpads.html
• I'm not sure if this kind of bird could come in blue, but that's the beauty of stamping, you create what you want to see! I used Soft Sky and Close to Cocoa to colour the bird, River Rock for the leaves and a touch of Purely Pomegranate and Close to Cocoa on the berries.
• My bird turned out a little dark, so I created highlights by dotting and dashing with the white gel pen. It gives a really great effect!
• Sponge the edges of your image using River Rock and Soft Sky, concentrating your sponging in the corners.
• Layer your image with River Rock then Chocolate Chip card. Create a scalloped edge using the corner rounder and adhere at the back of your piece.
• Using the Crop-a-dile punch holes for the Jumbo Eyelets. This took is amazing!!! So many times I'd be stuck not being able to punch holes after layering a piece - not anymore! The Crop-a-dile punches through all these layers and more with ease.
• Set the jumbo eyelets with the Crop-a-dile, I used Antique Brass eyelets, then tie a piece of Soft Sky Double Stitched ribbon through the holes.
• Layer the entire piece onto a piece of River Rock, using Stampin' Dimensionals to accommodate the back of the eyelets and ribbon. Distress the edges of the layer, I used the back of my scissors - but have just ordered the Cutter Kit with the Distressing Tool - this will be much safer, can't wait to try it out!
• Layer a strip of paper from the Le Jardin pack onto Chocolate Chip card.
• Stamp your Soft Sky card base with the large swirl from Baroque Motifs. I used Soft Sky ink, Versamark would give a lovely effect too.
• Assemble your card using SNAIL adhesive and you're done!

I know just who this card is going too - but I'm keeping it quiet, they might be reading this right now!

Have a safe and warm weekend,
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Touch of Nature and Baroque Motifs stamp sets.
Soft Sky, Chocolate Chip, River Rock and Very Vanilla card stock. Le Jardin Designer Paper.
Soft Sky, Close to Cocoa, Basic Brown, River Rock and Purely Pomegranate ink.
Stampin' Sponges.
Jumbo Eyelets.
Crop-a-dile.
Soft Sky Double Stitched ribbon.
Blender Pen.
Corner Rounder punch.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL Adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!