Paisley Piecing

I'm back and finally stamping! My husband and I spent the long weekend at the Armageddon Expo in Christchurch with our store, Action Figures Online. It was a great weekend, but tiring - and I didn't get to stamp at all Thursday-Monday! The good news is, when I got home last night, all my goodies that had arrived last week and hadn't even been opened were waiting for me!

I love the Polka Dots and Paisley stamp set and the matching paper is gorgeous! I knew I wanted to use both this morning, and this is what I came up with. Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the paisley image on scraps of patterned paper and card stock. This is a great way to use up all those little pieces of card you may have lying around. If you're anything like me, you keep every tiny scrap - you never know when it might be useful!
• Cut out the three different parts of the image from all your different colours. Layer them together in different ways then glue together with the 2 Way Glue Pen. This is called Paper Piecing and it can give you lots of great looks with your stamps.
• Stamp the sentiment in Old Olive on your square of Whisper White card stock. This was in my scrap bin too, my white layer measures 4" square.
• Punch a hole using the 3/16" handheld punch in the middle of the "o" in joy. Attach a silver brad through the hole.
• Pierce a border around the layer using the Mat Pack. I used the second line of holes for this border.
• Tie a piece of Old Olive Wide Grosgrain around the layer, then attach to an Old Olive card base with Stampin' Dimensionals. Using Dimensionals helps to accommodate the back of the brad and the ribbon.
• Attach your paper pieced paisleys (try saying that three times fast!) in any pattern that looks good to you. Use Dimensionals to give one or two some height.
• Trim your ribbon ends and you're done!

This was a really easy card, it takes a little time to cut out the shapes but I use the Stampin' Up! paper snips and they make all my cutting so much more precise. They have a really sharp tip, perfect for getting into the tight spots.

I hope everyone had a safe and fun long weekend. I'm off to tackle all the unpacking and the mess we made before we left on Thursday!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Polka Dots & Paisley stamp set.
Old Olive, Pretty in Pink, So Saffron and Petals and Paisley Designer Paper scraps.
Old Olive and Basic Black ink.
Old Olive Wide Grosgrain ribbon.
Silver Brad.
3/16" Handheld punch.
SNAIL adhesive.
2 Way Glue Pen.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
Mat Pack and Piercing Tool from the Crafter's Tool Kit.
Paper Snips.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Stripes, Stripes and more Stripes!

I had so much fun making this card today, I started just fooling around with the tree image and somehow ended up with this! Here's what I did:

• Stamp the image from Lovely as a Tree on Very Vanilla card stock with Stazon ink.
• I coloured the branches with a drop of Certainly Celery reinker and a blender pen. Just drip the reinker onto the inside lid of your inkpad, it makes a great palette and you get such a vibrant colour using them this way!
• The tree trunk was coloured using my Chocolate Chip ink pad. See my previous post on Watercolouring with SU! inkpads if you want to learn how to do this.
• I cut the corners of the image and the Certainly Celery piece it is layered on by partially punching with my 1/2" Circle Punch. Layered this onto Chocolate Chip and added Silver Brads.
• Then I decided I wanted some striped background paper, so I made my own! I used a metal ruler and my Stampin' Write markers in Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery and Chocolate Chip. I kept the lines varying widths. The effect is fantastic, it looks like a printed paper.
• I tied Wide Chocolate Grosgrain ribbon around this layer before adhering to a Chocolate Chip card base. If you haven't tried the Wide Grosgrain yet, you're missing out! It's a dream to work with.
• The sentiment was created by inking the saying from So Many Sayings (this is a level one hostess set - and it is so useful!) with my markers, stamping onto Very Vanilla and punching out using the Word Window punch. I then cut a 1" circle out of Celery and the Designer Label punch out of Chocolate Chip. Layered these together and added two silver brads.

I love my Stampin' Write markers - I'm always finding a new use for them. Here's a tip - if you stamp an image and a small part doesn't transfer well to your card stock, use the same colour marker to fill in the missing part. The writing tip of these markers is perfect for touch-ups!

Have a wonderful evening,
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Lovely as a Tree and So Many Sayings stamp sets.
Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla and Certainly Celery card stock.
Stazon ink. Certainly Celery reinker and Chocolate Chip ink pad for colouring.
Wide Grosgrain ribbon in Chocolate Chip.
Silver Brads.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
3/16" Handheld punch.
Designer Label, 1" Circle and Word Window punches.
Ruler.
SNAIL adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Like it a Latte!

I love this stamp set! I don't drink coffee that often (stamping is enough of an addiction without adding in caffeine!) but we'll often have a hot chocolate on these colder evenings. I love that you can make this set whatever you want, coffee, tea or hot chocolate. Here's what I did for this card:

• Stamp Polka Dot background in White Craft ink onto Pretty in Pink card. Let it dry, or, if you're impatient like me, heat embossing with clear or white embossing powder. I used clear. Layer this piece with Regal Rose card.
• Stamp the cup image onto Whisper White card stock with Close to Cocoa ink. I ran my black marker around the edge to get the two tone image before stamping. I followed the same procedure when stamping the hearts with Pretty in Pink.
• Stamp the marshmallows in your cups with Stazon ink. Stamp them again onto scrap card, then cut them out to make a mask for your image.
• Lay the marshmallow mask over the image, then stamp the foam over top with Stazon. This makes the foam look like it's behind the marshmallows.
• Colour in your image. I used Watercolour Wonder Crayons for the pink marshmallows and my Uniball Signo gel pen for the white marshmallows and foam.
• Cut out your cup images and your hearts.
• Layer your polka dot piece on some designer paper from the Spring Fling pack.
• Adhere a torn piece of Pretty in Pink card stock behind the designer paper before adhering to your card.
• I layered Regal Rose wide grosgrain ribbon with Whisper White grosgrain before tying my knot. You can get so many different looks by layering our ribbon this way.
• Stamp the sentiment with Stazon ink and stick everything together using SNAIL adhesive and Stampin' Dimensionals.

I layered the right hand side cup with dimensionals, and also popped up the heart on that cup. It looks great in real life.

Hope the weather isn't too cold where you are,
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Like it a Latte and Polka Dot background stamp sets.
Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose and Whisper White card stock.
Spring Fling Double Sided Designer Paper.
Stazon, Close to Cocoa and Pretty in Pink ink.
Regal Rose and White Grosgrain ribbon.
Black Marker.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL adhesive.
Watercolour Wonder Crayons.
Aquapainter.
White Gel Pen.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Basic Boho

Boho Backgrounds is one of my favourite sets from the new catalogue. It's so versatile and at $35.95 is a bargain! This card was one of the make and takes for my workshops this month, it was great to see everyone having such a great time making it! Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the flower image in Purely Pomegranate randomly over half of a Very Vanilla card base.
• Stamp the greeting in Old Olive on Very Vanilla, and layer with Chocolate Chip.
• Stamp the medallion image three times, twice with Purely Pomegranate and once with Old Olive.
• Cut out one Purely Pomegranate medallion with the Scallop Circle punch.
• Cut out the Old Olive medallion with the 1 1/4" Circle punch.
• Cut out the remaining medallion using the 1" Circle Punch.
• Layer the cut pieces together with SNAIL adhesive, and mount onto another Scalloped Circle, cut from Chocolate Chip.
• Layer the sentiment on a rectangle of Old Olive, layered with Chocolate Chip.
• Attach the medallion with a Stampin' Dimensional.

I love the Scalloped Circle Punch, it works so well with so many images in the catalogue. These colours look fantastic together too, I think I'll use this combo for some of my Christmas cards this year!

Hope you have a great week,
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Boho Backgrounds stamp set.
Old Olive, Chocolate Chip and Very Vanilla card stock.
Old Olive and Purely Pomegranate ink.
Scalloped Circle punch.
1 1/4" & 1" Circle punches.
Stampin Dimensionals.
SNAIL Adhesive.
All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Fun & Fast Birdy Revisited

This card was created for one of my workshops last week, and was based on this one:
http://thinkingstamps.blogspot.com/2008/04/fun-fast-birdy.html

I was all out of Black Gingham though (don't worry, I've ordered more!) so changed a few things. The basic instructions are the same, I just changed the colours to Whisper White, Regal Rose and Basic Black. I didn't use eyelets on this one and instead made the panel longer to accomodate the gorgeous new Regal Rose Wide Grosgrain ribbon.

The background wasn't stamped this time, instead I used some of the Berry Bliss designer paper - the colours in the pack are so pretty, it might be my favourite paper at the moment.

Can you tell how much I love that bird stamp yet? It's so fun and easy to colour, it just makes me happy!

Hope you have a great weekend,
Sarah

Stampin Supplies:
Fun & Fast Notes stamp set.
Regal Rose, Basic Black and Whisper White card stock.
Stazon Black inkpad.
Regal Rose Wide Grosgrain ribbon.
Crafters Tool Kit or Mat Pack.
Watercolour Wonder Crayons in Rich Regals.
Aquapainter.
All supplies available in the current Stampin' Up! Idea Book & Catalogue.

Darling Dahlia

This is a card made with the emphasis on the Dahlia folded accent. I wanted to try this technique to highlight the beauty of some of our new Double Sided Papers -they are truly gorgeous! The paper used on this card is from the Le Jardin pack. Here's the step by step:

• Construct the Dahlia medallion. Instructions are here: http://thinkingstamps.blogspot.com/2008/04/technique-spotlight-dahlia-fold.html
• After putting together your Dahlia, use SNAIL adhesive to layer it on a piece of Mellow Moss card stock. Carefully cut around your medallion, then repeat the process using Always Artichoke.
• Lay your medallion on the foam mat from the Mat Pack, or a foam mouse pad would work. Pierce a hole through the center using a piercing tool or large darning needle. Add a Green Rhinestone Brad to the center.
• Cut a piece of Le Jardin paper for the left hand side panel. Sponge the edges with River Rock before layering onto a piece of Mellow Moss, also sponged with River Rock.
• Cut a piece of Very Vanilla for the right hand side. Stamp the frame image from Frames with a Flourish with Always Artichoke ink, using the Stamp-a-ma-jig Stamp Positioner to line it up correctly.
• Use the Stamp-a-ma-jig again, this time to stamp the sentiment from Life Definitions into the frame using Mellow Moss ink.
• Make a mask for your framed image by stamping the frame onto scrap paper, and putting 2 Way Glue on the back - allow to dry until this is just tacky.
• Stick your mask over the frame, and stamp the background in River Rock. I've used the retired French Flair background, but the images from Carte Postale or the matching wheel would look fantastic.
• While the mask is still in place, lightly sponge around the frame and the edges of the card stock in River Rock.
• Remove the mask, layer onto Mellow Moss card and add two silver brads.
• Punch the photo corner with Mellow Moss and River Rock card. I've dotted around the River Rock layer to mimic the dots on the frame, but you could omit this step.
• Tie a piece of the gorgeous new Mellow Moss Taffeta Ribbon around a strip of River Rock layered on Mellow Moss. Adhere with SNAIL adhesive.
• Adhere the Photo Corner element and the Dahlia with Stampin' Dimensionals.

There are lots of steps to this card, but they are all really simple - give it a try, you'll come out with a beautiful card sure to make someones day!

If you would like to see the Dahlia fold demonstrated, or learn more about masking or the Stamp-a-ma-jig at your very own workshop, please give me a call or send an email for my available dates.

Happy Stampin'

Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:

Life Definitions, Frames with a Flourish, French Flair Background (retired)

River Rock, Mellow Moss and Always Artichoke Ink.

Very Vanilla, River Rock Textured, Mellow Moss, Always Artichoke card and Le Jardin Double Sided Paper.

Green Rhinestone Brad.

Silver Brads.

Mat pack.

Mellow Moss Taffeta Ribbon.

Stampin' Sponges.

Photo Corner Punch.

2 Way Glue Pen for adhering mask.

SNAIL adhesive.

Stampin' Dimensionals.

Stamp-a-ma-jig Stamp Positioner.

Always Artichoke Stampin' Write Marker.

1 3/8" Circle Punch (for Dahlia)

1" Circle Punch (for Dhalia)

All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Technique Spotlight: Dahlia Fold

With all the beautiful new Double Sided papers in our 2008-2009 Idea Book and Catalogue, now is the perfect time to try a tea bag folding technique...the Dahlia Fold. This makes a beautiful flower medallion. I've taken some photos to show how this is done, just click on them to make them larger. The paper used here is from the Le Jardin pack.

You'll need 8 circles to make the full Dahlia. I've used the 1 3/8" Circle Punch. Decide which side of your paper is to be the main pattern and keep this side at the back for the first three creases/folds.

Take your circle, and fold in half - but only crease the BOTTOM half of the circle, as shown by the dotted line.

Fold your circle in half again, creasing the full length of the second dotted line.

This part is a little tricky, but you'll soon get used to it. Make a fold from the two points where your creases meet the outer edge of the circle. The solid line on the left of the circle is where you should fold, the right side has been folded already.

Turn your circle over, and fold both sides towards the middle like you're making a paper dart. Repeat the above steps until you have 8 dart shaped pieces.

Cut a smaller circle, here I've used the 1" Punch, you could also use the 1 1/4" Punch. Fold in half, then in half again to make some guide lines.

Line the 8 pieces of your Dahlia on this circle, adhering with SNAIL or 2 Way Glue Pen.

To see a card featuring a finished Dahlia, please see this post: http://thinkingstamps.blogspot.com/2008/04/darling-dahlia.html

In Colour Birdy

I wanted to try colouring an image with all the new In Colour ink pads. I used the technique shown in this post:
http://thinkingstamps.blogspot.com/2008/03/watercolouring-with-su-inkpads.html I used a blender pen instead of an Aqua Painter for this image though. It blends the colours together beautifully. If you look carefully you can see I used Wild Wasabi and River Rock on the flower so all six new colours are there!

I was so excited to find out my favourite bird image fits in the new Scallop Circle punch! You have to line it up really carefully, but it looks great. Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the bird image in Stazon. Colour using the above technique. I blended Soft Sky and Blue Bayou on the Bird, and Groovy Guava and Purely Pomegranate on the flower petals.
• Cut bird image out using Scallop Circle punch. Sponge around the edges with Soft Sky ink, and a tiny bit of Blue Bayou. Dot around the edge with a white gel pen.
• Stamp Polka Dot background on Groovy Guava textured card stock with Purely Pomegranate. Sponge the edges with Guava and Pomegranate.
• Use the 1/2" Circle punch to cut the corner detail on the Guava layer. Add silver brads to the corners of the Pomegranate layer.
• Layer onto Blue Bayou and Soft Sky textured card.
• Sponge three small flowers from the Pretties Kit with Groovy Guava. Attach to card stock with silver brads.
• Stamp the Get Well sentiment onto Whisper White card stock. Follow the same sponging and dotting guidelines as the focal image. Cut out using the Word Window punch and layer onto a Blue Bayou layer cut using the Small Oval Punch.
• Layer everything together, using SNAIL for the largest Guava layer and Stampin' Dimensionals for the Blue Bayou layer, bird image and sentiment.

I'm addicted to our new colours already! They are so rich and work well with each other or many of our regular colours. The new textured card stock is so lovely to work with too, it adds real dimension to your work.

Just a hint: When lining up brads on your work, use the clear template from the Mat Pack - perfect brad or eyelet placement every time!

Hope you're having a great week,
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Fun & Fast Notes and Polka Dot Background Stamp Sets.
Blue Bayou, Soft Sky, River Rock, Purely Pomegranate, Groovy Guava and Wild Wasabi Ink for sponging and colouring.
In Colour Textured Card. Whisper White card.
Stazon Ink.
Blender Pen.
Sponges.
Word Window, Scallop Circle, Small Oval and 1/2" Circle Punches.
3/16" Handheld Punch.
Signo White Gel Pen.
Pretties Kit.
SNAIL adhesive.
Stampin' Dimensionals.

All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Cocoa Scribbles

Scribble This and Tagger's Dozen were the first sets I ever bought from Stampin' Up! I'm so glad to see them back in the new catalogue. This was a card from one of my workshops last week. Once you cut out the flowers it's really quick and easy. Here's the step by step:

• Stamp the swirl image in Close to Cocoa ink on Pretty in Pink and Whisper White card layers. Make sure to go off the edge whenever you stamp randomly, it will give a much more appealing effect.
• Stamp the large flower image twice on Pretty in Pink card, and once on the Close to Cocoa card. Cut these images out, then use the white gel pen to add highlights on the dotted petals.
• Layer the flower together, securing with a Rhinestone Brad.
• Stamp the tag image on Pretty in Pink card and line it up in the Round Tag Punch to cut it out. Fold this over your layers and secure with SNAIL adhesive.
• Tie a piece of Pretty in Pink Grosgrain Ribbon around the layers before adhering to your card base.
• Attach the flower using a Stampin' Dimensional of Glue Dot and you're done!

This flower looks fantastic layered this way, it's a great way to make an easy accent for your cards or scrapbook pages. It's actually really easy to cut out too, not too fiddly at all!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Scribble This and Tagger's Dozen Stamp Sets.
Pretty in Pink, Close to Cocoa and Whisper White Card.
Close to Cocoa Ink.
Pretty in Pink Grosgrain.
Rhinestone Brad.
Handheld Punch.
Stampin' Dimensional.
SNAIL Adhesive.
Round Tab Punch.

All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Product Spotlight: Heat & Stick Powder

Have you ever received a card that left more glitter on your hands that on the actual card? Luckily, Stampin' Up! have a few different ways to keep the glitter where you want it, and off the floor, cat, kids, desk etc! The 2 Way Glue Pen and Crystal Effects are great adhesives for glitter and work wonders at sticking it really well to your project, but the king of them all has to be Heat & Stick Powder.

I always use Heat & Stick Powder when I'm doing a lot of glittering on a card. It works in a similar way to regular embossing powder, here's a short guide to getting the best out of this product.

First, stamp your image. You'll need to use a pigment ink, Encore works great, or something like Versamark or an embossing pad. Here I wanted to use Pink Passion, so all I did was ink my stamp with Versamark first, then with Pink Passion. The Versamark won't hurt your classic ink pad, and this way you can emboss with any of our wonderful colours!

Next, cover your image with Heat & Stick powder. Tap off the excess using a Powder Pal or piece of paper to catch it. Funnel this back into your container for next time! Before you heat the image, get everything ready for the glitter step, you want to be ready to pour the glitter on as soon as you stop heating.

Gently heat the image with your heat gun - I find this takes less time than embossing powder does. As soon as you see the powder melt you're ready. Pour the glitter over your heated image (turn your heat gun off first if you don't want to look like a sparkly snowman!) and tap off the excess, returning this to the container.

Your image will look like this. All that remains is to gently heat the image once again, just to set the powder. Then I like to take a stiff bristled paintbrush, and brush quite vigorously over my image. This gets rid of any stray particles of glitter.

The finished card! I kept the base of this one a simple square of Whisper White with the sentiment stamped in Pink Passion. The flower provided all the "wow" factor this one needed! I stamped and glittered two flowers, and stamped and embossed another two before cutting out different layers of each. The layers were put together using Stampin' Dimensionals for height.

I hope this will inspire you to try Heat & Stick Powder, you'll love being able to glitter a bold, chunky image, or a delicate image with ease!

Stampin' Supplies:

Fabulous Flowers Stamp Set.
Whisper White card stock.
Pink Passion ink.
Heat & Stick Powder.
Dazzling Diamonds Glitter.
Heat Tool.
Powder Pal.
Rhinestone Brad.
Stampin' Dimensionals.

All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Priceless in Blue

I promised a card using one of our new stamp sets, and here it is! This was one of the cards I demonstrated at workshops last week, using lots of our beautiful new releases. I apologise for the poor photo - I had to keep the blue tinge so the colours would be as true to life as possible!
Here's the step by step:

• The Butterfly was stamped using the Rock and Roll technique. This is a really simple one, but I'll try and get a tutorial up this week so you can see it in photos. All you have to do is ink your image in a light colour, here I've used one of our gorgeous new In Color releases - Soft Sky. Then simply move your image in a circular motion around a darker inkpad, here I've used Blue Bayou, trying to only get ink on the outer edges of your image. Try it - you'll see why it's called Rock and Roll!
• I stamped the butterfly again using the same technique onto a piece of scrap card then carefully cut it out.
• I then stamped the smaller swirl image behind the butterfly as a trail. Part of this stamp is dotted, so I pierced the dots for added interest.
• The sentiment is stamped in Blue Bayou - aren't this years new colours gorgeous?!
• I used the new Photo Corner Punch to make the corner piece with some of our new textured cardstock. This comes in packs of 24 12x12 sheets for $25.95, so it's a great deal. Before layering the corner together with dimensionals cut in half, I added three silver brads.
• The flower in the bottom right corner is from the amazing Pretties Kit. All the flowers are white, and are so easily coloured using almost all the colouring tools Stampin' Up! offer. Here I've just lightly sponged the flower with Soft Sky ink, then used a mini glue dot to attach a half pearl center.
• The second butterfly was attached with a mini glue dot and the wings were slightly curled.
• The card was layered together using SNAIL adhesive. The total card size is 4"x4" - it fits into a regular sized envelope for cheaper postage.

I hope you like this one, I just adore these colours together and this stamp set is fantastic to work with. The images are so versatile!

Happy Stampin'
Sarah

Stampin' Supplies:
Priceless Stamp Set.
Soft Sky and Blue Bayou textured card stock. Whisper White card stock.
Blue Bayou and Soft Sky inkpads.
Photo Corner Punch.
Silver Brads.
Handheld 1/16" Punch.
Pretties Kit.
Stampin' Sponge.
Stampin' Dimensionals.
SNAIL Adhesive.
Mini Glue Dots.
All Supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Touch of Nature

• 
  
  Touch of Nature is one of my favourite sets, it was in our last catalogue and I'm so glad to see it in the new one also.
  
  This is a card I made a few weeks ago, I was inspired by all those beautiful Autumn colours. Here's the step by step:
  
  
  • The Butterfly image was repeatedly stamped with Pumpkin Pie, Really Rust and Ruby Red ink onto watercolour paper. The whole piece of paper was then sprayed with a generous amount of water to make the images run. If you don't have a spray bottle, try wetting the paper with a damp cloth before stamping.
    
  • I dripped a combined mixture of reinker (I used the retired Cranberry Crisp, Ruby Red would be a great substitute) and water onto the card randomly, then sponged the edges with Pumpkin Pie and Really Rust ink.
    
  • The image panel was layered with Really Rust and Basic Black card stock, and I added Black Brads in all four corners. I tied a piece of Ivory Organdy around the card - this has since retired, but I'd recommend our beautiful new taffeta ribbon as a substitute.
    
  • The sentiment was stamped with Really Rust onto Very Vanilla. I used the corner rounder punch to finish off just two of the corners, doing the same for all the layers. This panel is popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals.
    
  • The branch image was stamped in Basic Black onto the Really Rust layer, before sponging the edges and layering with Basic Black.
    
  • For the cut-out butterfly, I inked my stamp with Versamark, then heat embossed the image with Black embossing Powder. I carefully cut it out and attached with Mini Glue Dots.
  
  If you haven't tried sponging the edges of your projects before, I'd highly recommend it. It creates a depth of colour on your card that never fails to impress!
  
  Happy Stampin'
  Sarah
  
  Stampin' Supplies:
  
  Touch of Nature stamp set.
  Really Rust, Pumpkin Pie, Ruby Red, Versamark and Basic Black ink.
  Really Rust, Very Vanilla and Basic Black card stock.
  Heat Tool.
  Black Embossing Powder.
  Black Brads.
  Handheld 1/16" Punch.
  SNAIL Adhesive.
  Mini Glue Dots.
  Corner Rounder Punch.
  Stampin' Sponges.
  
  All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Fun & Fast Birdy

I was on pins and needles this morning, waiting for that bright red courier van to pull into my driveway and bring....my new catalogue purchases! They haven't quite all arrived, but I did get most of my order today.

Before I settle down to the task of finding a home for my new goodies- I just had to make a card with one of my favourite sets from the 2008-2009 Idea Book and Catalogue.

I've loved this little bird stamp since the first time I laid eyes on him, so I inked him up and away I went! Here's the step by step:

• Stamped the bird image from Fun & Fast Notes in Stazon Ink onto Whisper White card stock.
• Coloured it in using Rich Regals Watercolour Wonder Crayons and an Aquapainter. I'm kicking myself for waiting so long to order the crayons, they are amazing and I'll be buying the other sets very, very soon!
• I punched out the corner piece using the new Photo Corner Punch. It punches out both sizes at once!
• Pierced around my image and on the corner using the tools in the Crafter's Tool Kit. Don't forget, the piercing mats and template are also available for seperate purchase. I'm using mine a lot lately.
• After layering my image with Rose Red and Basic Black, I created a background using a stamp from the Itty Bitty Backgrounds set in Rose Red ink.
• Tied some Black Gingham ribbon around my layer, matted it then stuck it all down. I should mention, both the second layer of the corner punch and the bird image are attached using Stampin' Dimensionals for that cool 3D look!
• I added three black eyelets at the bottom of the card to add a little interest.

Did you notice the slightly different shape of this card? It's taller than it is wider, but opens with a top hinge. This is my favourite card to make lately, and it's so simple - just cut your piece of A4 cardstock in halflengthways and fold in half.

I hope you like this simple card. For any of you I haven't seen at workshops already this month, you can email or call me at any time to order your copy of the beautiful new catalogue. This is just one of the many gorgeous new sets on offer! Or, as always, you can view the online version and just phone me with your order.

I also still have some dates available in April and May for workshops, so please call if you'd like a chance to earn any of our NEW hostess sets for free!

Happy Stampin'!

Stampin' Supplies:

Fun & Fast Notes, Itty Bitty Backgrounds stamp sets.

Rose Red, Basic Black and Whisper White card stock.

Stazon Black and Rose Red inkpads.

Black Gingham Ribbon.

Crafters Tool Kit or Mat Pack.

Watercolour Wonder Crayons in Rich Regals.
Aquapainter.

Black Eyelets.

All supplies available in the current Stampin' Up! Idea Book & Catalogue.

From the Heart

I love this image from the Nice and Easy Notes stamp set - it just makes you feel happy! This card showcases a few of our retiring products - here's what I did.

The panels were each stamped with the Wild Hearts background stamp in Creamy Caramel Ink, and the edges were sponged with Caramel also.

The two strips of Gray were pierced with the piercing tool and mar pack from the Crafter's Tool Kit - then I did some faux stitching with the Signo Gel Pen.

The image was stamped on Watercolour Paper with Stazon ink - coloured with Stampin' Write Markers and then some colour was removed with an Aqua Painter to give that water colour effect. Using Stazon ink is really important for this, it ensures your image won't smudge!

The card and image panels were sponged around the edges with Stampin' Sponges. I added some Wide Grosgrain Ribbon from the Summer Mini catalogue and everything was stuck together using Stampin' Dimensionals.

I really like these colours together, the card came out looking soft and pretty - perfect for that image! The products used on this card that retire at the end of the month are Wild Hearts Background and the Nice and Easy Notes Stamp set. The ribbon will be back in our brand new 2008-2009 Idea Book and Catalogue!

I hope everyone had a great Easter - mine was very busy, but I'll try and sit down and do a step-by-step project for you soon!

Stampin' Supplies:

Nice and Easy Notes and Wild Hearts Stamp Sets.

Going Gray, Sage Shadow, Apricot Appeal and Pretty in Pink cardstock.

Stazon and Creamy Caramel inkpads.

Stampin' Sponges.

Stampin' Write Markers.

Signo Uniball Gel Pen.

Stampin' Dimensionals.

Very Vanilla 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon.

Watercolour Paper.

Aqua Painter.

Crafter's Tool Kit.

All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Pretty Stems

I love the "Stem Silhouettes" stamp set from the Summer Mini Catalogue. It is so versatile. This is a quick and simple card, this set makes it easy to get elegant results.

Ink the branch image with your Stampin' Up! markers. I used Certainly Celery first, then went over the berries with Regal Rose. Stamp onto Very Vanilla Cardstock then tie Light Pink Organdy and Silver Cord around the image before matting onto Pretty in Pink card stock.

Stamp another of the branch images along the side of the card using Versamark ink. Remember, this magical ink will give you a beautiful watermark effect - it's great for heat embossing too!

The sentiment was stamped in Mellow Moss ink at the bottom of the card. Layer everything together with SNAIL adhesive, and you're done!

I love these colours together, they are so pretty. Don't forget, Stem Silhouettes is only available until the end of this month. The Pink Organdy, and Silver Cord is also retiring at the end of March.

Stampin' Supplies:

Certainly Celery, Pretty in Pink and Very Vanilla card stock.
Versamark and Mellow Moss ink pads.
Stampin' Write Markers.
Light Pink Organdy ribbon.
Silver Cord.
SNAIL Adhesive.
Paper Trimmer.

All supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Watercolouring with SU! Inkpads

One of the things I like the most about Stampin' Up! are the inkpads. Not only do they come in the most beautiful colours, but the unique design allows for some really cool techniques.

Stampin' Up! inkpads are designed so they store your inkpad upside down, keeping the top nice and juicy and ready to stamp with. They also make a fantastic watercolour palette! Here's how.

First, stamp your image in Staz On ink. This ink is 100% waterproof, it will never smudge, and you can use it for so many things! More about the great qualities of this ink in posts to come! I've stamped an image from the Unfrogettable set in Staz On Black on Whisper White cardstock.

Next, while your ink pad is closed, gently squeeze the top and bottom of the pad together, to form a small pool of ink on the top of the pad.

Dip your aqua painter into the pool of ink, and colour in your image. It's that simple! To change colours, simply scribble on some scrap paper until your aqua painter runs clear again. You can layer colours until you are happy with the effect.

I hope you'll pull out your inkpads soon and give this super easy technique a try, you'll love the results!

Stampin' Supplies:

Unfrogettable Stamp Set

Black Staz On inkpad

Green Galore inkpad

Aqua Painter

Whisper White Cardstock

All supplies from Stampin' Up!

Masculine Gift Box

It's my Dad's birthday on March 1st, so I spent a little time this morning putting together this gift box for him to go with his present. It looks great when finished, but comes together really fast.

I started with a sheet of Creamy Caramel card stock, and printed a template from the Internet onto the card stock. This fry box template comes from a wonderful designer named Brenda Quintana, USA.

After cutting and scoring my box, I stamped all over it with the Linen background stamp in Creamy Caramel ink. Using the linen background with the same colour card and ink gives a gorgeous subtle result, and it really looks like you've used textured cardstock.

Next I sponged the edges of the box with Close to Cocoa ink. I used a stampin' sponge - these are great value, you get three in a pack and I cut each one into 8 wedges. I made sure to sponge a little inside also because the back of the box will show when put together.

One of my favourite things lately has been this "certified handmade" stamp from the Genuine Articles set. I stamped it on the back of my box in Chocolate Chip.

I wanted the box to have even more texture, but still wanted to keep it masculine. I used an image from the Stem Silhouettes set (Summer Mini Catalogue). Because I was going for a slightly distressed look, I inked my stamp with Close to Cocoa, then stamped once onto scrap paper before stamping on my box. This gives me a lighter image that blended better with the overall look of the box. I stamped the same image again right next to the first one, but this time stamped off twice before stamping my box.


After assembling my box using SNAIL adhesive, it was time to decorate!

I used an image from one of my favourite sets, Circle of Friendship. I stamped in Close to Cocoa on a scrap of Creamy Caramel cardstock, then punched out the image with my 1 1/4" circle punch. I created a mat for the image by punching some Close to Cocoa card with the 1 3/8" circle punch. Both circles were sponged with Close to Cocoa ink, then layered together using SNAIL.

I tied a piece of Chocolate Chip grosgrain ribbon around the box, then adhered my circle piece with mini glue dots. I love those little dots, they hold so strong! After that, it was just a matter of filling the box. I put in some pretzels, peanuts and chocolate covered raisins to make a little snack box for my Dad. I'm sure he'll love it!

Stampin' Supplies:
Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa and Chocolate Chip ink.
Creamy Caramel and Close to Cocoa cardstock.
Linen background stamp.
Stem Silhouettes, Genuine Article and Circle of Friendship stamp sets.
Stampin' sponges.
1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches.
Chocolate grosgrain ribbon.
SNAIL adhesive.
Mini glue dots.
Mini cello bags.
Gold cord.

All supplies by Stampin' Up!

Petal Prints Thank You

There's nothing I like more than seeing the bright red van of the courier pull into my driveway! I received an order yesterday, containing, among lots of other goodies, my colour coach and the Petal Prints stamp set. This is a gorgeous set, so I just had to try it out this afternoon.

I used the colour coach to choose my colour scheme, what a wonderful tool! I know with this I'll get the most out of Stampin' Up!'s exclusive colours.
Petal Prints is a two-step stamping set, so I inked the base image using markers from the Soft Subtles pack, then stamped it once onto scrap paper (to get a lighter base colour) then onto my Barely Banana cardstock. I used the Stamp-a-ma-jig Stamp Positioner to make sure I stamped the top image in the right place, and this time, I didn't stamp off before stamping as I wanted a full force image. Here you can see one image completed, and the other before the outline image is stamped.

I matted my image on Perfect Plum cardstock, stamped the Floral background in Perfect Plum and matted that on Ruby Red, finished up with some paper piercing, organdy ribbon, and an embellishment from the Hodgepodge Hardware.

The sentiment is from the Sincere Salutations set, I find myself reaching for that set so often, it covers such a wide variety of occasions.

So here's the finished card! I really like these colours together, they are vibrant without being too overwhelming. I can tell I'm going to be using the colour coach everytime I stamp!

Stampin' Supplies:

Petal Prints, Floral and Sincere Salutations stamp sets.

Perfect Plum, Barely Banana, Ruby Red & Very Vanilla cardstock.

Perfect Plum & Ruby Red Ink.

Soft Subtles Stampin' Write Markers.

Crafters Tool Kit.

Ivory Organdy Ribbon.

Hodgepodge Hardware - Antique Brass.

Stamp-a-ma-jig stamp positioner.
Colour Coach.

All supplies from Stampin' Up!

Recipes

We all need a good supply of recipes...here's some of my favourites that I've mentioned on my site!

Baked Pasta with Meatballs
This is a recipe from a free cookbook I got while we were students in Dunedin - produced by Maggi, it's called Easy Meals for First Time Flatters. There's a surprisingly good variety of recipes in here!

Servings : 4-6
Preparation time : 15 minutes
Cooking time :about 45 minutes

200g Penne or Spiral Pasta

Meatballs
500g minced beef
1/4 cup dried breadcrumbs
2 tsp MAGGI Garlic Stock Powder
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tbsp olive oil

Sauce
2 tsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 pkt MAGGI French Onion Soup Mix (I always just use plain onion)
1 1/2 cups water
400g can tomatoes in juice, chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp MAGGI Garlic Stock Powder
1 tbsp tomato paste
freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups grated tasty cheese or mozzarella cheese


Step 1: Add the pasta to a large quantity of boiling salted water and cook for 10 minutes. Drain, then place the pasta in a greased 30cm x 20cm x 5cm ovenproof dish.

Step 2: While the pasta is cooking, prepare the meatballs. Combine all the ingredients, except the oil, and mix thoroughly. Shape into meatballs about 2cm in diameter.

Step 3: Heat I tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan. Add the meatballs and brown over a moderately high heat. Remove from the pan and add the meatballs to the pasta.Wipe out the pan. Preheat oven to 200°C.

Step 4: Prepare sauce. Heat 2 tsp of olive oil in the pan. Add the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes. Combine the soup mix and water, and add to the pan with the tomatoes.

Step 5: Pour the sauce over the meatballs and pasta, then top with the grated cheese.

Step 6: Cook in oven for 20-30 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is golden brown.


Jaffa Muffins
This recipe comes from one of those fundraising cookbooks from my youngest brother's school. I like these books - because the recipes are submitted by families they are usually tried and tested kiwi favs! This is a super fast sweet muffin recipe, takes about 20 mins from start to finish!

2 Cups Self Raising Flour
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/4 tsp Salt
1 Cup Chocolate Chips (I use dark)

1/4 Cup Oil
1 Cup Fanta (or other orange soda)
1 Egg

Preheat oven to 200°C. Mix dry ingredients together.

Whisk oil, fanta and egg together. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Mix lightly.

Place into greased muffin tins and bake at 200°C for 15 minutes or until golden brown.