Use Your Scraps

For May I am featuring a class called Use Your Scraps. We all have a ton of scrap pieces of paper lying around. What to do with them? Here are three ideas for you:

Card #1 Long Banners

A simple way to use scraps is to make them into various length banners. For this card, I took some random pieces of Moonlight DSP and cut them into random lengths. The banners fill most of the card. Adding a punched sentiment and some candy dots completes the look.

• Stamps: Hello There
• Inks: Lost Lagoon
• Cardstock: Basic Gray; Moonlight DSP
• Accessories: Brights Candy Dots
• Tools: Scallop Punch; Hexagon Punch (banner ends)

Card #2 Hexagon Punch

The second card features my favorite scrap technique: hexagons. I love the repeat of patterns and colors in this card. A simple sentiment finishes the card.

• Stamps: Label Love
• Inks: Midnight Muse (retired)
• Cardstock: Gumball Green (retired); Summer Starfruit (retired); Print Poetry DSP (retired)
• Accessories:
• Tools: Artisan Label Punch; Hexagon Punch (banner ends)

Card #3 Short Banners

Lastly, I have a cute rainbow colored card featuring short banners. I love the play of patterns on this one.

• Stamps: Petite Pairs
• Inks: Rich Razzleberry
• Cardstock: Rich Razzleberry; Random scraps
• Accessories: Gumball Green Ribbon (retired)
• Tools: Banner Punch; 1" Circle Punch; 1 1/4" Circle Punch; Decorative Dots Embossing Folder

Retiring Series: Petite Pairs and Sweet Taffy

The new catalog is coming... But before we get there, I'm highlighting some of my favorite retiring stamp sets and retiring DSP. How can Petite Petals be retiring? This is such a great collection of simple sentiments. I will continue to use it even after being retiring! I did a simple collection of various sheets from the Sweet Taffy collection. I love the bright colors in this collection! So sad to see it go, but I've still got a few small pieces left.

• Stamps: Petite Pairs
• Inks: Bermuda Bay
• Cardstock: Bermuda Bay; Sweet Taffy
• Accessories:
• Tools: Petite Petals Punch

Fun n' Crafty Blog Hop March 2015

Welcome to the Fun n’ Crafty Blog Hop for March. This month we are all about birthdays. I love designed birthday cards as you can be as crazy or as subdued as you want to be! My card is very simple (just three layers), but packs a large color punch. I've been enjoying coloring lately and had to showcase the technique.

I started with a simple yet bold sentiment in the middle of my white piece. From there I stamped the birthday cake in random spots. I then filled in the empty spaces with the star stamp (from Perfect Pennants). I adhered the stamped piece to a layer of Back to Black DSP. Then came the fun part -- coloring! I picked a few bright markers from my stash and went to town coloring different bits of the birthday cake. After finishing, I realized that while the small hexagon pattern on the DSP was fun, it was too boring in black and white. I colored that as well in a rainbow pattern. Now the card is complete! With all the bright colors and bold images this card would be perfect for a teen birthday.

Do you want the birthday cake stamp? Well it's a part of the Big Day stamp set that's only available as a SAB reward. Through March 31st, spend $50 from any catalog and you get to pick on SAB item for free! It's Stampin' Up's best deal of the year. To make it easy, here's a package of products to order to be able to get that great stamp set!

• Perfect Pennants Stamp Set (Clear) $21.95 133230
• Brights Collection Markers $28.95 131259
• Total $50.90
• Free: Choose Big Day Clear 139112 or Wood 139109

Full product list:

• Stamps: Perfect Pennants; Big Day (SAB)
• Inks: Staz-on Black; Daffodil Delight; Rich Razzleberry; Gumball Green (retired); Summer Sun (retired); Pink Passion (retired); Tempting Turquoise; Tangelo Twist; Elegant Eggplant
• Cardstock: Strawberry Slush; Whisper White; Back to Black DSP
• Accessories:
• Tools:

Fun & Crafty Blog Hop

• Stacey L. of A Work of Carte
• Pam W. of Stinky Tofu
• Tobe B. of The Craft Sea <--- You are here
• Jennifer B. of Northwest Stamper
• Susan S. of Stampin' By The San Francisco Bay

Faux Tiled Petal Potpurri

For February's individual swap card, I wanted something floral. It's feeling like spring around here even if the calendar still says it is winter. The temperatures have gotten me in the mood for floral cards. My March-April theme class is going to be All About Florals. But before I get to those cards, I wanted a nice simple floral card for my swap buddy. I went with the faux tile technique for this simple card. First I scored a piece of Whisper White in one inch intervals. Then I stamped multiple flowers onto the piece. The scoring creates a faux tile look to the stamped images. You can see the tiling better in person. I added a piece of brown ribbon and layer of Baked Brown Sugar before punching out a sentiment. To create a layered sentiment look, I punch out the stamped sentiment and then punched out another of just Baked Brown Sugar. I cut the stamped punched piece down a bit to allow the brown paper to show. Finally I popped the sentiment up on dimensionals to give some depth to the card. I hope my swap buddy likes it!

• Stamps: Petal Potpurri; Label Love
• Inks: Perfect Plum
• Cardstock: Perfect Plum; Whisper White; Baked Brown Sugar
• Accessories: Brown ribbon (not SU)
• Tools: Artisan Label Punch; Scoreboard

Occasions Catalog and SAB Swap Cards

For every new catalog, my demo group participates in a big card swap. We each pick one of the new stamp sets and make cards. I get some great examples back every time!  Here's some great card made with new Occasions Catalog and Sale-a-Bration Brochure stamp sets.

Sale-a-Bration Birthday Cards

I love Sale-a-Bration time!  Spend $50 from any of the SU catalogs and get a free exclusive SAB product. Between pre-order and regular orders this January, I've gotten five free products from the SAB brochure. These two cards highlight two of my free products.

Card #1

For my first card, I wanted to have some fun with the sentiment from the Big Day stamp set. Each color is stamped once full strength and then two more times without reinking. We get a nice gradual lightening effect. But just a sentiment seemed much too plain for a card. So I made my own little strip of alternating DSP to step it up a bit. In the end, I needed even more to the card. I added the pom pom trim and everything came together.

• Stamps: Big Day
• Inks: Calypso Coral; Coastal Cabana; Hello Honey
• Cardstock: Calypso Coral; Best Year Ever DSP
• Accessories: Calypso Coral Pompom Trim
• Tools:

Card #2

For the second card I knew I want to plan with coloring. The Big Day stamp set is perfect for coloring. I had so much fun making this card. I want to make more using different colors.

• Stamps: Big Day
• Inks: Basic Gray; Calypso Coral Marker; Pool Party Marker; Regal Rose Marker (retired); Summer Sun Marker (retired)
• Cardstock: Coastal Cabana; Best Year Ever DSP
• Accessories: Calypso Coral Pompom Trim
• Tools:

October Month of Cards Week 4 - Challenge Edition

For October's big crafting goal, I am attempting to make a different designed card everyday.  Instead of flooding everyone's feed with tons of posts, I am just going to do a weekly wrap-up post with my cards. Today's featured cards are my takes on various card challenges from this week.

Day #20

• Stamps:
• Inks:
• Cardstock: Basic Black; Whisper White
• Accessories: Various gold washi tape (SU and My Mind's Eye); Gold Glitter Alpas
• Tools:

Day #21

• Stamps: Work of Art
• Inks: Tempting Turquoise; Chocolate Chip
• Cardstock: Kraft; Daffodil Delight; Random scraps
• Accessories:
• Tools: Blossom Punch; 1" Circle Punch; Petite Petals Punch; Banner Punch

Day #22

• Stamps: Circle Circus (retired); Wacky Wishes (retired)
• Inks: Midnight Muse (retired); Chocolate Chip; Baked Brown Sugar; Always Artichoke; Blackberry Bliss
• Cardstock: Kraft; Whisper White
• Accessories:
• Tools: Ovals Framelits; Corner Rounder

Day #23

• Stamps: Kinda Eclectic
• Inks: Tangerine Tango; Elegant Eggplant; Always Artichoke; Melon Mambo
• Cardstock: Basic Black; Random scraps
• Accessories:
• Tools: Starburst Framelits; Elegant Butterfly Punch; Pattern scissors

October Month of Cards Week 3 - Part 2 (Butterfly Edition)

For October's big crafting goal, I am attempting to make a different designed card everyday.  Instead of flooding everyone's feed with tons of posts, I am just going to do a weekly wrap-up post with my cards. I went a little crazy with my butterfly stamps and punches.  So I thought a separate post was in order...

Day #17

A simple one of stamping creates a striking visual.

• Stamps: Papillon Potpurri
• Inks: Chocolate Chip, Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Pacific Point, Rich Razzleberry
• Cardstock: Whisper White; Kraft
• Accessories:
• Tools:

Day #18

I grabbed a ton of random scraps and went to town punching butterflies.  It might be hard to see, but the butterflies are two layers.  They definitely pop in person.

• Stamps: Petite Pairs
• Inks: Pacific Point; Melon Mambo
• Cardstock: Whisper White; Kraft; random scraps
• Accessories:
• Tools: Elegant Butterfly Punch; Bitty Butterfly Punch

Day #19

I wanted to use my butterfly punches again, but in a different way.  The colored paper all have a subtle design to them. Layering the butterflies helped to change the design just enough to give this card it's own day.

• Stamps: A Word for You
• Inks: Chocolate Chip
• Cardstock: Kraft; Very Vanilla; random scraps
• Accessories: Brights candy dots; Gold Chevron Washi Tape (not SU)
• Tools: Elegant Butterfly Punch; Hexagon Punch (banner ends)

October Month of Cards Week 3

For October's big crafting goal, I am attempting to make a different designed card everyday.  Instead of flooding everyone's feed with tons of posts, I am just going to do a weekly wrap-up post with my cards.

Day #13

I loved the look of monochromatic yet differently patterned papers mixing together.  The hexagon shapers add more visual interest to this card.

• Stamps: Six Sided Sampler
• Inks: Mossy Meadow
• Cardstock: Mossy Meadow; tons of green scraps
• Accessories:
• Tools: Hexagon Punch

Day #14

Trying to use more of my giant scrap collection.  I only had to cut this pattern paper pieces down a bit to fit on the card.  Not quite happy with the gaps, but I'll deal with it.

• Stamps: Petite Pairs
• Inks: Mossy Meadow
• Cardstock: Mossy Meadow; random green scraps
• Accessories:
• Tools:

Day #15

A fun layered rainbow of mosaic shapes.  I love the big washi tape on this card.

• Stamps: A Word for You
• Inks: Rich Razzleberry
• Cardstock: Kraft; Whisper White; random scraps
• Accessories: Gold Chevron Washi Tape (not SU)
• Tools: Mosaic Punch

Day #16

I decided to dive into my scraps again to make a fun birthday cake card. The scraps looked a little plain until I added the gold glitter tape. Very sparkly in person.

• Stamps: Sweet Essentials; Petite Pairs
• Inks: Melon Mambo
• Cardstock: Melon Mambo; Whisper White; random scraps
• Accessories: Gold Glitter Tape (not SU)
• Tools: Corner Rounder

October Month of Cards Week 1

For October's big crafting goal, I am attempting to make a different designed card everyday.  Instead of flooding everyone's feed with tons of posts, I am just going to do a weekly wrap-up post with my cards.

Day #1

I started the month of cards with a bang.  Instead of 1 card, I ended up making 12 cards with three different color schemes.  I promise the rest of the month will just be one or two cards a day, but today was special.

I found this ombre design on a random Pinterest page.  I recall seeing it, but don't think I actually pinned it.  With a little trial and error, I figured out my color schemes and measurements.  Each one of the four cardstock strips measures 4 x 1 1/4".  If you space them out correctly, they work on a regular sized card.  For some of the cards, I added a touch of bling with rhinestones and metallic dots.  I'll probably embellish the rest once I rediscover where I put my regular rhinestones...

• Stamps: Retired SU Sentiment (Happy Birthday); Work of Art (Thank You)
• Inks: Primrose Petals (retired, I don't have Melon Mambo ink), Island Indigo, Gumball Green (retired)
• Cardstock: Whisper White, Very Vanilla, Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink (retired), Strawberry Slush, Melon Mambo, Soft Sky, Bashful Blue (retired), Lost Lagoon, Island Indigo, Certainly Celery (retired), Pear Pizzazz, Wild Wasabi, Gumball Green (retired)
• Accessories: Rhinestones, Metallic dots (not SU)
• Tools: Butterfly punch

Day #2

I decided to play around with my Work of Art stamp set.  I had seen a ton of fun abstract cards and wanted to make my own.  I am not a huge fan of the placement of the stem and sentiment, but the flower section is well done.  I plan on making a variation of this card for day 3.

• Stamps: Work of Art
• Inks: Daffodil Delight; Pumpkin Pie; Wild Wasabi
• Cardstock: Daffodil Delight; Whisper White
• Accessories:
• Tools:

Day #3

My second attempt at an abstract flower card using Work of Art. I decided to mix all my purples together.  I managed to use all five of SU's purples in one card.  I think this one looks better in person than in pictures.  The colors doesn't seem to clash as much.  Still not an absolute favorite card, but fun and interesting to make.

• Stamps: Work of Art
• Inks: Daffodil Delight; Pumpkin Pie; Wisteria Wonder; Perfect Plum; Rich Razzleberry; Blackberry Bliss
• Cardstock: Elegant Eggplant
• Accessories:
• Tools:

Day #4

So simplistic, but I love the monochromatic effect. This card is just gorgeous!

• Stamps: Work of Art
• Inks: Basic Gray; Lost Lagoon; Coastal Cabana; Pool Party; Baja Breeze (retired)
• Cardstock: Pool Party; Whisper White
• Accessories:
• Tools:

Day #5

And to wrap up the first week of October Card a Day, I finishing with another Work of Art stamp. I was really loving that stamp set this week. The 2013-2015 In Colors have not gotten much love from me, but put all together they make a great rainbow.  The tag on this card is popped up on dimensionals to give it that extra visual interest.

• Stamps: Work of Art
• Inks: Tangelo Twist, Hello Honey, Mossy Meadow, Lost Lagoon, Blackberry Bliss
• Cardstock: Tangelo Twist; Lost Lagoon; Blackberry Bliss; Hello Honey; Whisper White
• Accessories: Rhinestones
• Tools: Scallop Tag Punch

As I've used the Work of Art stamp four days in a row, I need to switch it up for next week.