Thursday, January 27, 2011

Shake, Shake, Shake

Who doesn't love an interactive card? Shaker cards are fun to give and receive and easy to make once you understand the concept.
First, choose the best filler material. Be sure to use something that is not too big (it will get stuck between the layers) or too small (it will fall out any gaps and stick to the adhesive easily). Fake snow does NOT work well. Though great in an ornament, there is not enough weight to it for a shaker card. I used some small beads I had left over from an old project.
Next, proper adhesive. You will need something to create space between the cover and the back. I used foam adhesive found in the household area of my local grocery store. It should be sticky on the top and bottom, but NOT the sides. I buy mine in a width of 1/4" and depth of about 1/8" It can be cut it into two smaller strips when necessary.
The base of the card is Real Red. I stamped "Dasher" #116816 and the sentiment from "Four the Holidays" #116921 onto a piece of Whisper White and attached it to the front of the card. It is difficult to see in the photo, but he has some small Rhinestones #119246 on his antlers. I cut the Top Note Die #113463 from a piece of Chocolate Chip cardstock, then adhered a piece of window sheet behind the top note frame with some regular snail adhesive. I tied a piece of Satin Ribbon around the frame to dress it up a little. To create the shaker area, I put foam adhesive around the entire boarder of the card. Be sure to not leave any gaps or the filler material can come out. After I had the foam in place, I peeled the backing off and put the top note window frame on top.

Did this make sence, but you would love to see it in person? Contact me today to book your own workshop and I will show you and your friends how to make a shaker card. Book a workshop during Sale-A-Bration (now till March 31, 2011) and take advantage of the added benifits of this great promotion.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Peace & Joy & Love & Cheer

I am waiting on the delivery of my Sale-A-Bration order and will have all sorts of new things to show you soon. Till then I have a few more holiday projects that I didn't post yet. This is the scrapbook page we did at stamp club in December. It is so clean and simple. I just love it. It is perfect for the family photo.
The words are from the "Join in the Cheer" sizzlit decorative strip die #113452. It is a long thin die and cuts all the words at once. I ran it through several times with Real Red, Old Olive, and Basic Black. Then with some strategic cutting I pieced it together in multiple colors with a two way glue pen. The scallop ribbon at the bottom is actually 5/8" Grosgrain. I put it on a piece of adhesive paper and then ran it through the Big Shot with the Tasteful Trim Bigz XL Die #120893. This die was featured in the Winter Mini Catalog, but is still available as a carry over item this season. I then added a few pearl accents to the ribbon.

The ornaments are from one of my favorite holiday stamp sets...."Tree Trimmings" #116722. I stamped them in Real Red and Old Olive Classic Ink, cut them out and put them on dimentionals. I stamped the bowed string from the stamp set and then drew a line with my Stampin' Write Marker to the top of the page. The layout is displayed in a shadow box I got at my local craft store.
You can Order Stampin' Up! Products 24/7 at My Stampin' Up! Website. For every $50 in product you order from now till March 31, 2011 you can select a FREE Sale-A-Bration item found in the SAB catalog. You can download the catalog HERE or contact me to receive your own copy.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Great Time to Join Stampin' Up!

Would you like to:
* Earn Free Stamps and Supplies?
* Get a Discount on all Stampin' Up! orders?
* Earn some extra money?
* Be a part of my downline group with group gatherings for techniques and tips?
* Purchase all the new stuff before all of your customers?
* Get 15% off your starter kit?
* Get a Special Product Bundle Free, worth over $50?

Now is the time to join the Stampin' Up! family. Stampin' Up! is offering the starter kit at a 15% discount (normally $175) during Sale-A-Bration (January 25-March 31). Then they have added a special bonus bundle of over $50 in free products.

The special bonus bundle includes:
#121620 Color Coach
#120806 Something Special Simply Sent Kit
#117114 Live, Laugh, Love Stamp Set
#119883 Heart to Heart Punch

As always, the starter kit and bonus bundle are completely customizable. Many of the items can be replaced for equal or lesser value products. You will enjoy all of the regular benefits of being a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator........30% off your first order (within 45 days of joining), 20% of all orders, a monthly SU! demonstrator magazine "Stampin' Success", and access to the Stampin' Connection website with countless ideas.

CONTACT ME TODAY so I can tell you all the wonderful things about being a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator. You can sign-up 24/7 at My Stampin' Up! website. Simply click "Start Your Own Business" in the upper right corner. Then "Join Now" on the left hand side. By signing up online, you will receive your demonstrator ID# within 30 minutes and be ready to place your first order.

It's Sale-A-Bration time!!

It is time for Stampin' Up! most popular promotion of the year. What makes it so popular?

FREE STUFF!!

It's simple place an order for $50 worth of Stampin' Up! product and receive a FREE Sale-A-Bration item. This year Stampin' Up! has 8 exclusive. There are 4 stamp sets, a Designer Paper Series collection, an Accessory Pack (buttons & ribbon), a Chalkboard Decor Element, and a DIGITAL CD of exclusive content. Exclusive SAB items can be found in the SAB catalog. If you do not already have a copy, you can download it here.
Sale-A-Bration runs from today thru March 31, 2011.
What if I want more than one of the items? Easy. Order more of the fabulous products from Stampin' Up! You will receive one SAB items for every $50 in SU! product you order during the promotion. Order $100 and receive two SAB items.
DOUBLE BONUS: Order $150 (by yourself or with the help of friends) and receive three SAB items as well as hostess benifits. You will receive a Level 1 Hostess Stamp Set and $15 in Free Stampin' Up! Products. The more you buy the more free stuff you get. You can even get a bonus FREE SAB item for collecting $300 worth of orders from your friends. Contact me for more details and a catalog to pass around to everyone.

How do I place an order? You can place an order through any Stampin' Up! Demonstrator. You can order online 24/7 by clicking "shop now" in the upper right hand corner of My Stampin' Up! Website.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Fortune Teller Treat Basket

Oh My Goodness! This is the cutest thing ever. I saw a tutorial on how to make this on the Stampin' Up! YouTube Channel. It is made from one of those little fortune teller things we used as kids. You work them with your fingers and people pick the numbers, so you can tell them their fortune. Well if you turn it upside down it makes the cutest little basket. It can hold a small number of jelly beans, M&M's or your favorite tiny candy.

We made these at Stamping Club as our 3-D item this month. Everyone got to select their color from the Hostess Level 1 Print Pack. It is a 6x6 pack of Designer Paper in this years In Colors. You can earn one for FREE with a $150 workshop. For more information, contact me today. We made the handle with the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch (#119275). The tiny tag is from the stamp set "Tiny Tags" (#118091 Wood-recommended, #118592 Clear). The images in the stamp set are very tiny, so I recommend getting this stamp set in wood mount, so you don't loose the images easily. It is stamped on Whisper White cardstock and punched with the Jewlery Tag Punch (#117190). A scrap of grosgrain ribbon and linen thread and done.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Stamp Club Valentine Scrapbook Page

Each month my Stamping Club makes one card, one 12x12 scrapbook page and one 3-D item. I showed you the card yesterday and the 3-D item will be posted tomorrow. That leaves the scrapbook page for today.
This month's scrapbook page featured the Lots of Love Letterpress Plate found in the Winter and Occasions Mini Catalog. It is best used with watercolor paper, but I have gotten good results with the naturals cardstock shown here. The Letterpress Plates give a DEBOSSED image. This means the image is pressed into the cardstock, as opposed to am embossed image where you raise the cardstock image.
TIPS: When using the Letterpress Plates it is advised that you use a clean cutting plate. This is because the plate will press into the cardstock to make the impression. If the cutting plate has a lot of scratches on it from previous cutting, they could transfer to the debossed image. Since the naturals cardstock is thinner than the advised watercolor paper, I placed a shim of cardstock between my project paper and the cutting plate. The sandwhich I used is (from the bottom up)...multi purpose platform, Letterpress Plate, project cardstock (face down), cardstock shim, clear cutting plate.
The letterpress plates are also best used with Craft Ink. You can use the Stampin' Spots to single out small areas. To cover the entire plate you may wish to make your own large craft pad with a Craft Ink refill and an uninked stamp pad. Since the craft ink dries slower, you have time to transfer the ink from the letterpress plate to the project. All of the areas without ink will still deboss into the cardstock. The decoration in the close up photo was made with two scallop circles. To learn how to make these easy accents, consider hosting your own workshop or joining my Stampin' Up! Team. They can be made in several sizes and have a limitless number of uses.
The bottom of the page features a Pinking Hearts Border Punch and an Extra-Large Tag Punch. The stamps used are from the "XOXO" stamp set found in the Occasions Mini Catalog.

Products Used:
Stamps: XOXO(#121909 Wood, #121973 Clear)
Cardstock: Natural White, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red
Ink: Rose Red, Pretty in Pink
Accessories: Big Shot, Lots of Love Letterpress Plate (#120983), Extra-Large Tag Punch (#119866), Scallop Circle Punch (#119854), 1-3/8" Circle Punch (#119860), Pretty in Pink Satin Ribbon (#117289), Dimentionals (#104430), 3/4" Circle Punch (#119873), Small Heart Punch (#117193), Bone Folder (#102300), Pinking Hearts Border Punch ((#117649)




Thursday, January 20, 2011

Greeting Card Kids Valentine

"Greeting Card Kids" immediately caught my eye when I looked through the catalog back in July. I purchased it right away. I have used it a few times, but have been waiting for now to use my favorite image in the set, the little girl holding a heart.

The New Occasions Mini Catalog caught me by surprise. I was so wrapped up in Christmas events, I didn't get much of a chance to look through it. Then I had a few moments to look through the Occasions Mini Blog Hop put on by some friends at Stampin' Addicts. Over and over I would see this FABULOUS embossing folder, the "Framed Tulip". I had to have it right away, and knew just what stamp set I wanted to use. It was time to pull out the little girl holding a heart.
We made this card for Stamping Club this month. The image is stamped in Stazon Black and colored in with Stampin' Write Markers. The Satin Ribbon is folded back and forth and held in place with some mini glue dots. The button can be found in the Bitty Buttons Collection.
You can order products online 24/7 at My Stampin' Up! Website. Simple click "Shop Now" in the upper right hand corner. Contact me to gather some of your friends and host a workshop of your own with projects themed for the current season.

Products Used:
Stamps: Greeting Card Kids (#119887 Wood, #120633 Clear)
Cardstock: Real Red, Pretty in Pink, Whisper White
Ink: Stazon Black, Stampin' Write Markers
Accessories: Framed Tulip Embossing Folder (#121809) , Big Shot, Pretty in Pink Satin Ribbon, Mini Glue Dots, Linen Thread, Bitty Buttons (#118761)

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

It's All About The CANDY!!

I love making all sorts of projects throughout the year, but for the craft fairs at Christmas time it 's All About The CANDY! These are 3 of my favorites from this year, then tomorrow I promiss to show you something for the current season.
The first has been very popular with many stampers this year. Pretzel stick bags are perfect for holding a row of M&M's or Skittle Candy. I got some twist ties to put at the top of mine and attached a simple tag made with the "Tags for Christmas" Stamp Set from the Holiday Mini. I really hope they bring this one back in the main Idea Book & Catalog next year. It has so many uses and cute sayings. Each stamp in the set fits perfectly into one of the Stampin' Up! punches.
The second project is a long time favorite, the peppermint patty. Though the circle wrapped patties are harder to find each year, they are perfect for this quick project. The images are all from the Jingle Bits stamp set. It was featured in the Holiday Mini and SU! has already told us it will be arround next year. Jingle Bits has a companion stamp set, a bingo board. I didn't get the bingo board this year, but have found many uses for these little images. I put one scallop circle on each side of the peppermint patty. I found some cute bags online to perfectly fit three of them with a quick twist tie and simple tag.

The last project today is for a real chocolate lover. I found the tutorial for this project on SplitCoastStampers. It is called the Matchbox Holder. One piece of Ghirardelli Chocolate fits wonderfully inside. These did take a little more time than the first two projects today, but were a favorite of people needing the perfect co-worker secret santa daily gift.
Many of the other projects I made this year were similar to last year. You can click on Craft Fair in the side menu to view them all.
If you are interested in learning how to make any of these projects, contact me. We can plan a workshop for you and your friends. We will make treats themed for the upcoming season.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Behind on Christmas Postings

I have some new things to show you later this week. Before the season is completely forgotten, I wanted to show a few of the items I made for my Christmas Craft Fair last month. Thank you to all those who came by my booth. I had a great time meeting all of you. Classes and workshops are available. For those interested contact me or view my calendar at http://www.fastamper.stampinup.net/


The first project is a Magnetic Tear-Off Calendar. I got these calendars online from a printer. They tear off to reveal the next month for the entire year. I glued some Designer Papers from my retired stash to the front of several 4 inch coasters. I then sanded the edges and added some Satin Ribbon to the top before putting on the calendar. There is a strip of magnet on the back so it can be displayed on your refridgerator or other quick view place.

Products Used:
Stamps: None
Cardstock: Various Retired Designer Series Papers
Ink: None
Accessories: Anywhere Glue Stick, Satin Ribbon (Various Colors), Snail Adhesive, Sanding Block, Magnet Sheets
As many of you know, I am in love with my Big Shot Die Cutting Machine. The Candy Wrapper Die quickly became one of my favorites. It is so fast to make candy boxes. It cuts the shape and scores the fold lines all at one time. A couple pieces of sticky strip and you are done. I tied some 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon to the ends of mine and added a little tag from the Delightful Decorations Stamp Set. The box holds about 6-8 hershey kisses or other small candies. I put a few pieces of Candy Cane Designer Series Paper on the sides of the boxes. After the craft fair was over I changed out the tag for snowflakes and hearts to make quick treats for some friends at church.
The Candy Wrapper Die is still available for purchase. It is on the carryover list of items from the Holiday Mini Catalog. Ask me or your demonstrator for more details.

Products Used:
Stamps: Delightful Decorations (#116517)
Cardstock: Real Red, Pretty in Pink, Bashful Blue, Wild Wasabi, Candy Cane Designer Series Paper, Whisper White
Ink: Same as cardstock colors
Accessories: Ornament Punch, 1/8" Real Red Taffeta Ribbon(#119251), Sticky Strip, Big Shot Die Cutting Machine, Candy Wrapper Die (#120890), Silver Cord (retired)