I'm Back

Hello my friends.  Summer is over and here we are in September, back to school routines and forging ahead with work schedules.  It's taken me a while to get back to what I love but I am definitely back.

Last week, my husband and I celebrated our 11th year anniversary.  As usual, I wanted to make a card for him and was flipping through a cardmaking magazine called Card Creations.  I saw a card that I wanted to duplicate so I have to give a shout out to the person who designed it in the first place.  Her name is Jane Ralph and she is featured on page 17 in the latest Card Creations magazine that is out on newstands right now.  As soon as I saw it, I knew I wanted to do it.  Here's my take:

The main colour that I used is Poppy Parade (cardstock & ink) and I just love the way it turned out.  It doesn't take itself too seriously which is exactly what I wanted.  Anniversary cards don't have to be all stuffy and stiff with the usual flowers and romantic overtures.  And  yes, my husband loved it.

See you tomorrow!

Last Weekend of August

Hello my friends.  Yes, I have been away for a little while.  Trying to squeeze as much summer as I can before the girls head to school.  We didn't do anything for the month of July so we're pushing everything in right now! It's a crazy pace so I apologize for not blogging sooner.

Just a friendly reminder that my September classes will be starting soon.  If there's one that you really want to attend, it's not too late to contact me.  I'm looking forward to meeting all of you in a more intimate setting. 

I made this card a week ago but didn't put it on my blog.  Not because I didn't like it.  It is a very basic and simple card that I wanted to keep for moments like these when I wanted to showcase something fast and easy.  I used Peach Parfait (love that name) cardstock and ink.  The sentiment was stamped with a stamp from the stamp set "Word Play" (page 156) and the key image is from the gorgous stamp set "Established Elegance" (page 130).  I then used some brads (page 199) that seemed to match the paper perfectly.  The ribbon was actually a small piece of scrap that I found in my basket of odds and ends (but still from Stampin' Up) which just goes to show you - keep everything! You never know when you're going to need that little piece of paper, ribbon, etc.

Enjoy the weekend!

DSP - Sketches

Hello my friends.

For something a little different...I decided to use a sketch that I found in one of those cardmaking magazines.  A sketch? Simply put, someone has thought of the design for a card and you follow it in how you want your card to look like.  It kind of takes the guess work out of it.  For the times that you are just brain dead and today, I am.  You can always follow someone else's or you can make a sketch  for yourself before committing to gluing pieces of cardstock together. 

Here's what I came up with:  I used a piece of Domestic Goodness Designer Series Paper (page 52) and a 1 1/4" Circle Punch (page 112) .  I scattered the circles on a Barely Banana piece of cardstock as the base.  I put that piece of Barely Banana through the Big Shot (page 215) with a embossing folder called Perfect Polka Dots (page 219) I then used a piece of Crumb Cake cardstock to stamp my sentiment which came from a mini catalogue last year that unfortunately, is not available anymore.  But I still love it.

It was an easy card to put together - mainly because I didn't have to design it.  I just followed the sketch and used what is some pretty awesome Designer Series Paper.  Cardmaking shouldn't be creating the wheel...you're still creating but getting a hand in the process.

Can't Stop Distressing!!

Hello my friends.

Today I thought I would talk to you a little about a technique called "distressing".  You know when you hold an old letter in your hands, and it's faded, crumpled, off-colour or even torn? It looks like it has its own story to tell.  That is what distressing is like.  You can make your projects look old and faded.  In the design world, it's also called Shabby Chic.  I call it PRECIOUS.

Now, Stampin' Up has their own kit for making distressed projects (page 303) which is definitely on my wish list.  I mean, it's the SERIOUS way of distressing because it comes with a sanding block, an emery board and some other tools to make it more authentic.  But I wanted to see first, if I would like the look before I commit to a kit.  This is what I did.

I used Pool Party as the cardbase, Wisteria Wonder as the layer on top of that and then Pear Pizzazz as the main cardstock on top.  I put that piece through the Big Shot with a Lattice embossed folder and then stamped with the "Love & Sympathy" stamp set which I think is essential to have on hand for those moments that come unexpectedly.  It's always a good idea to have a card on hand for those kind of times.  I embellished with a piece of Chantily Crochet Trim (page 194) and antique brads (page 198) that bring the whole Shabby Chic look come together.  I torn the edges a bit and worked on the fibers of the paper by using a pair of scissors along the sides to give it a more worn look.  I like it.  I like it a lot.  But I didn't stop there.

There's a wonderful stamp set in the new catalogue on page 130 called "Established Elegance" and it's perfect for using with this technique.  Here's what I did:

This stamp set includes 10 old fashioned stamps that are really cool to work with.  As you can see, I distressed everything, the cardbase (Concord Crush), the second layer (Pool Party) and the small piece of Designer Series Paper (from the Timeless Portrait collection page 78).  I embellished with a piece of linen thread (page 194) and an antique brad.

Yeah, I think I'll invest in the kit.  I love, love, love this look! What do you think??????

My apologies

Hello my friends....

You must have been confused about yesterday's post and then there was no video.  I spent a whole day trying to upload it and turns out that it was too large to post.  Sigh. 

Back to regular blogging.  Which is fine.  After all..it's Try It! Thursday.

Stay tuned...

Big Shot - Versatile Wednesday

Hello my friends.  It's Wednesday and we're nearly at the end of the week.  Hope it's been a good one for you so far.

I wanted to do something a little different today.  I actually did a video...not sure if you will understand it since I'm jumping all over the place.  I did have a outline/script of what I wanted to say but since I was at a disadvantage of doing the video with one hand, there was a lot of ad libbing because I lost my place several times.  So, it might seem a little hurried, fuzzy and repetitive.  In advance, I apologize but  bear in mind that this is my very first video.  We'll see how this goes...if I should hang up my movie star/directing ambitions or not.  I'm thinking I should just nip it in the bud LOL.  Or get an assistant but my 7 1/2 year old was in bed....

The topic for today is the Big Shot...if you need any clarifications or if you have questions, please let me know! As I said in the video, it works with cardstock (paper), chipboard, fabric (great for making quilts), cork sheets (like the material you see used to make bullentin boards), magnet sheets (for magnets!) and sheets of wood.  All of these materials can be purchased from Stampin' Up.  Its truly a versatile tool and an awesome investment (it's cheaper than most industry die cutting machines so please don't be turned off because of the price) - it will last you for a very long time.  It will never go out of style.  It's simple to use and there are no batteries to worry about or having to figure out where to plug it in because it's all manual. 

If you want to see how you can create more projects with it, I'll be happy to show it in a future video.

Thanks for reading and this time, for seeing!

Young Vermillion - Ta Da! Tuesday

Hello my friends.  I'm not sure if this is so much a Ta Da! as it is:  here's one stamp that you CAN invest in.

If you're new to the stamping world or you're trying to get your feet wet in cardmaking and don't want to commit to an entire stamp set, you can purchase single stamps from the "a la carte" section of the 2011-2012 Idea Book and Catalogue.  The stamp that I purchased is found on page 20 and it's called "Young Vermillion".  These single stamps are great for just trying your hand at stamping or even just to add to your collection of pretty stamps to use on a daily basis.   I think this is going to be one of my favourites.  It's stunning.

Here is what I did with it:

Ink:  Chocolate Chip
Cardstock:  Melon Mambo as the cardbase, Very Vanilla cardstock for stamped image, background paper is from the Brights Collection Patterns Designer Series Paper Stack (page 186)
Accessories:  Melon Mambo polka dot ribbon, beveled windowpane (page 198), and scallop trim border (page 211)

I know exactly who I'm sending this card to, someone who is recovering from surgery.  I think it will brighten her day to get something like this in the mail.  I know it would if it was me!