Rebel Inker

Such a Girl!

2009-02-11T06:11:00.004-06:00

This layout was done with my ultra-girlie rock-star DD in mind. It actually started with the flower. I got up early Saturday morning while I was on retreat, got my coffee, sat down at my table, and looked at my supplies. For some reason I felt like making a flower, so I did. And then, of course I needed something to do with it. The page evolved from there. I didn't have any photos with me that fit the theme, but it will feature black-and-white pics.

The three 'buttons' on page 2 are just circles of CS stacked, sanded, and embossed with Iridescent Ice. The middle button also has some Dazzling Diamonds on it. Not thrilled with how that one turned out, but obviously used it anyway.

What I love most about the page is the gloss embossing along the top. It balances the bold stripe along the bottom, and looks really cool in person. (The photo doesn't begin to do it justice.) I'll probably be doing that more--embossing my base papers. Love the textural effect.

Here's a detail pic of that flower. If it looks familiar, you've been paying attention! Whoo! It's a version of the flower I did for my Thanks-a-Daisy card (short tutorial on that post).
Ingredients (all SU! except where noted):
Designer Paper: Flowers For You (retired)
Cardstock: Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Whisper White, Kiwi Kiss, So Saffron
Stamp: from Baroque Motifs
Ink: Versamark, Pink Passion, Old Olive
Punches: Large Oval, Photo Corners, 3/4" Circle, Scallop Edge, Curly Label
Other: Markers, sponge wedges, daubers, clear embossing powder, Iridescent Ice embossing powder, Dazzling Diamonds glitter
NON SU: Cricut to cut the title

And finally, here's a sketch for the page.

Thanks for visiting!

I Love Lucy

2009-02-10T10:10:00.003-06:00

It's the crud time of year, I guess. First my DD was sick, and now DS is home sick. Nothing like cleaning up after sick kids to squash the creative mojo. Ah, the joys of motherhood.

Since I haven't even had the gumption or energy to even unpack my stuff from retreat, let alone USE it, I'll share one of the layouts I got done while I was there. Check it out:

It's dedicated to our border collie (betcha can't guess what her name is!). She's moody and silly and sweet, just like Ms. Ball's character (though minus the red hair, false eyelashes, and lipstick).

Patterned paper is from the Modern Milan slab by Me & My BIG Ideas. I used my Base Camp Cricut cartridge for the letters, hand-cut the heart. Circle, Round Tab, and Scallop Edge punches are from SU! Baja Breeze, Riding Hood Red, Kiwi Kiss, and Whisper White cardstock also from SU!

Thanks for visiting!

On retreat

2009-01-31T17:26:00.002-06:00

Just thought I'd post a quick 'Hello' while I get a wireless signal. I'm currently sitting in a room with nine other ladies; Cricuts are humming, the smell of Un-du is making us a little loopy, the Eagles Reunion 1 tour plays on the television, and we are all industriously working to put these piles of photos into scrapbook pages.

I'll post a couple of photos on Monday of what I've been working on.

Thanks for visiting!

Thanks-a-Daisy

2009-01-28T13:37:00.004-06:00

Using up more scraps! This one is for today's demo challenge as SCS. Part of that challenge was NOT to use white or vanilla, which I found remarkably difficult.
What's really neat about these petals is that you can use your Large Oval, Wide Oval, or Round Tab punch to make them! You'll get slightly different petal shapes with each, so choose your favorite.

Ingredients (all SU!):
Paper: Regal Rose, So Saffron, Bashful Blue, Barely Banana, Urban Garden
Stamp: from Short & Sweet set
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Bashful Blue, Pink Passion, So Saffron, Kiwi Kiss, Creamy Caramel
Punches: Large Oval, 1" Circle
Other: Pretty in Pink 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, antique brass brads, sponge daubers, stampin' sponge wedge

Here's how to make the petals:
--Cut a strip of cardstock about an inch wide and score a line lengthwise down the center. Fold away from the score. This will create a little bump on the inside of the fold, which will resemble the center rib in a daisy petal when you're done.
--Put the folded cardstock in your punch with the folded edge inside the punch. If using an oval punch, line up the fold ABOVE the half-way point, and punch!

It's okay if your petals are slightly different sizes--that adds to the organic realism!

Thanks for visiting!

I'm a featured project! And a couple of reminders...

2009-01-27T18:20:00.006-06:00

Whoooo! I just noticed that my Vase of Flowers is the SUB gallery featured project this week at Splitcoast Stampers! Wow! That's too cool! Unfortunately you can't see it if you don't have access to the demo forums there, so to the right is a screen shot of the Featured Upload portion of the SU galleries page. I've been a member there more than three years and this is the first time I've had this honor. Whoo!

While I'm here, how about a couple of quick reminders?

Deadline to order the February Scrapbook Class-in-a-Kit is technically tomorrow, but I'll be packing for retreat and then GOING on retreat (same place as last time, I'm so excited!), so if your order is in my Inbox by the time I get home on Sunday, you'll be fine.
Deadline for the paper share is Sunday.

Okay, I'd better get this posted while I can. We're iced in and my Internet connection is flickering in and out.

I hope you are all staying warm! Thanks for visiting!

A Tulip (or two) For You

2009-01-26T06:31:00.005-06:00

I was chatting online with my youngest sister, Erin, on Saturday about papercrafty-type stuff (she used to be a demo, too), and she mentioned that she never uses black cardstock. And that got me thinking... Hmmm... I don't use black much either. I have a whole pack, but I don't remember when or why I purchased it. So I sat down to stamp, determined to include black in my design. And this is what resulted.

Actually, I was also intent on using the tulip, too. I'd made it last week, and still had yet to do anything with it. I checked a flower-meaning site and found that tulips are general purpose flowers. They don't really mean anything in particular, just make people smile. Hence the generic 'For You' sentiment.

I managed to use a single stamp set (Fresh Cuts) for the whole card. Five stamps come in this set, might as well use them together, right? I used three of the five.

Ingredients (all SU!):
Stamps: Fresh Cuts
Paper: Kiwi Kiss, Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Basic Black, More Mustard, Very Vanilla, Urban Garden
Ink: Kiwi Kiss, Orchid Opulence, Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa, Basic Black
Punches: Wide Oval, Large Oval, Small Oval, Tag Corner
Other: Top Note die, Chocolate Chip marker, pewter jumbo eyelent and mini brad, sponge daubers, 5/8" Old Olive grosgrain ribbon

And just because I know you'll appreciate it, here's a mini tutorial on how I made the tulip.

What you'll need:

Wide Oval punch
Large Oval punch
Small Oval punch
Scrap of flower-colored cardstock
Scrap of stem/leaf-colored cardstock
Sponge daubers and ink for shading

1. Punch one of each oval in your desired bloom color. Here I'm using So Saffron.
2. Put the wide oval punched shape back in the punch as shown, and punch out a DQ-type shape that is about 3/4" at the widest point of the curve.
3. Snip the middle out of the small oval punched shape.
4. Grab a sponge dauber and an ink pad and shade the edges of your pieces as shown. Here I've used Apricot Appeal.
5. Glue your large oval shape onto the wide oval shape, centered in the U made in Step 2, and with the bottom edges even. (You can see that I also added darker 'veining' with Really Rust and an aquapainter)
6. Glue the small oval 'ears' to the back, centered in the V's created by the two larger oval shapes.
7. Cut a straight stem and two leaves from your green cardstock (I'm using Kiwi Kiss). My stem is 1/4" by 3" (or thereabouts). For my leaves, I cut a 2"x3" rectangle, folded it in half length-wise, and cut a long curve through both layers first on one side, then the other.
8. Use a sticky note (cut a hint of a curve on the sticky side) to shield half of a leaf so you can ink the other. Repeat with the other leaf, and add shading to the stem.
9. Assemble your tulip.
Tadaaaa.....!

Here's a super-simple alternate tulip. Not as 'WOW' as the tulip above, but still a tulip. I plan to do a dozen of these along the bottom of a two-page scrapbook layout. Basically, you take a Wide Oval shape and punch off the top with your Scallop Edge punch as shown below. Easy!

Thanks for visiting!

Love You Lilies

2009-01-25T07:36:00.006-06:00

My son used to love origami, so we would sit for hours making swans and frogs and cups. It's a terribly good use for a small square piece of paper! The flowers on this card are inspired by those paper-folding sessions. It's SO easy, I'm sure someone else has done it before--essentially it's just the start of a balloon fold on a scallop square punched from cardstock. I've put together a photo tutorial for you--find it at the end of this post.

Here are the card details:

Ingredients (all SU!):
Paper: Pink Pirouette, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, Bella Rose
Stamp: grass from Inspired by Nature
Ink: Apricot Appeal, Bashful Blue, Kiwi Kiss
Punches: Scallop Square (flower), Scallop Circle (sponging clouds), Scallop Edge (edge of layered piece), Small Oval (sentiment), 3/4" Circle (collar thingie on the flowers), Ticket Corner
Other: Sponge dauber, Stampin' Sponge wedge, Regal Rose marker (hand-written sentiment), Styled Silver hardware, 5/8" Old Olive grosgrain ribbon.

And check this out! Love this photo.
Since the flowers are 3-dimensional, I decided to try them in a little vase. Instead of folding down just one 'flap' (step 6 below), I folded down both. Poked a hole in the point, stuck a wire through, and finished each flower with some Garden Green cardstock. Last, I finished the vase with some Celery and Pretty in Pink ribbon.

Now... as promised, here is the short photo tutorial.

1. Punch out a scallop square from your desired bloom color. Here I'm using Pink Pirouette. Ink the center with a contrasting color (I used Apricot Appeal). This will be the inside of your flower. Score carefully from one diagonal corner to the other and from second scallop to second scallop, as shown by the blue lines in the photo. (Scoring is not absolutely necessary, but if done carefully, makes for a crisper finished flower.)
2. Turn the scallop square over and score on the back side as shown.
3. Fold in half diagonally on scored line so that the inked side is out (mountain fold).
4. Open and fold in half on one scored line from Step 2, making a rectangle, with inked side in. Open and fold again on the other scored line from Step 2, again with inked side in (valley folds). Open.
5. Holding the scallop square ink-side up, push diagonal folds up and to the center while collapsing the blossom, as shown.
6. Fold down one 'flap' on the remaining score line created in Step 1. This is the front of your flower, and your flower bloom is now done. All it needs is a stem! As a stem transition (i.e. 'collar thingie'), I cut a 3/4" green circle in half, folded a half into quarters and glued the edge closed to make a cup. Then I glued the pointy tip of the flower into the cup.

Thanks for visiting!

Hanging Heart Pouch

2009-01-24T09:09:00.004-06:00

I know, I know. I said I'm not a hearts-and-roses type of person, and I'm not. But sometimes hearts and roses are nearly unavoidable, especially when it's for a challenge to make a heart-shaped pouch and the only two current DSPs you have are Bella Rose and Urban Garden. Since Urban Garden didn't really fit the theme, I went with the Bella Rose.

This idea originated, I believe, with Barb Mullikin. You can see her blog post with details on construction here. I don't have that BigShot die (bummer!), so mine is cut by hand. The up side is mine doesn't have unnecessary score lines to hide.

Here's another view of mine (click on both photos to see a larger version):
The body is cut from Pink Pirouette cardstock. For the embossed dots, I measured and marked very lightly on the inside where I wanted my dots, then squeezed each mark in my Crop-A-Dile (A3 setting with the pin on the outside). I also have the Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder that would have worked well, but this was for a SUO challenge (Stampin' Up! Only).

The 'button' in the center of the rosette is made in the faux chipboard style: four 3/4" circles stacked and glued, then edges sanded smooth (exactly like in my paper buttons video except I didn't punch button holes). After everything was nicely rounded, I pressed the entire top surface into my Versamark ink pad, dipped it in clear embossing powder, and embossed. Then I Versamarked, powdered, and embossed again, so it ended up nice and smooth and shiny! (the back side is not embossed--just to clarify).

One note on the detail of the tied-in-the-middle ribbon. It actually looks great, but it was an accident. I cut the first length of ribbon too short to tie through the tabs on both sides and still have a handle with which to hang it. So instead of wasting a piece of ribbon, I cut another short piece and tied them together. For once a goof-up that worked for me, rather than against me!

Of course I had to add some chocolate kisses, too. It doesn't hang well if there's nothing in it.

Ingredients (all SU!):
Cardstock: Pink Pirouette (body & button), Riding Hood Red (side tabs), Kiwi Kiss (leaves), Whisper White (scalloped detail)
Designer paper: Bella Rose
Punches: Scallop Edge, Round Tab, 3/4" Circle, 5-Petal Flower (leaves)
Other: 5/8" Old Olive ribbon, white gel pen, Old Olive marker, Crop-A-Dile

Thanks for visiting!

An SU paper share!

2009-01-23T11:28:00.007-06:00

I happen to love all the new papers in the Spring/Summer catalog, and I'm thinking, "Wouldn't it be nice if I could order a quarter sheet of each, just to see? And to use for scrapbooking and cardmaking?

So then I got to thinking that maybe there are others (in the US) who might be interested in participating in a paper share... What's a share? It's where a group of people pool their funds to purchase in bulk. I've done a 13x13 zip bag share twice before, and both worked out very well.

So here's what I'm thinking: I need seven more people (besides me), who would be willing to spend $28 (that's my cost--I'll make no money on this) plus shipping to you to get a quarter sheet of every single piece of Stampin' Up's current Designer Series Paper (not including the Patterns paper) and new Taste of Textiles paper. That's one-hundred-twenty-five (125) 6"x6" pieces of premium paper, 120 of them double sided! That's 245 DIFFERENT patterns, and more than 31 square feet of paper! You could wallpaper a small bedroom!

And here's a bonus! Since this order would be going in under Sale-A-Bration, if you'd like to order just $22 more from the SU catalog (for a total of $50), you can choose a free SAB item, and I'll ship it with your paper. The catalog is available online at my demo website (click Shop Now). You can view a PDF of the Sale-A-Bration brochure here.

Shipping for the paper share pack alone will run about $5.00. If you bump your order up, add $1.00.

Deadline: I want to have those papers in my hands ASAP, so let's see if we can get enough people to participate by Sunday, February 1st.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE: US residents only, please! If you're just wanting the paper pack, please send $33 via PayPal to:

If you'd like to bump up your order, please email me with your additional items and your SAB freebie choice, then I will email you back with your PayPal total.

FOR February SCIAK participants: If you've ordered or plan to order the basic February Scrapbook Class-In-A-Kit, you would need to order only $8.00 more to qualify for SAB, and just pay the SCIAK shipping. Email me!

Thanks for visiting!

New catalog in my hands

2009-01-22T19:42:00.004-06:00

Woohoooo! I'm very excited. I got my new Spring-Summer catalog today. I've already trimmed off the spine and comb bound it (so it can lay open flat), and I''m about to make tabs for each category. This baby will accompany me everywhere I go for the next month or so. (The purple strip is because I trimmed the cover too small somehow, and had to extend it. D'oh!)

This catalog release, SU is doing something they've never done before. Starting February 1st and running through April 30th, anyone who places an online order through a demonstrator's business website will receive a free full-size catalog with their order. Which is very cool.

I'll be waiting to put in an order for new stuff until February 1st, when Sale-A-Bration starts, but I've not a long wish list started. Here's what I have after my first pass through the catalog:

STAMPS

Thoughts & Prayers
Hoppy for You
Cute & Cuddly
Just Jawing (new last catalog, but there's some adorable new paper that matches)
Family Accessories Too ( new add-on set for All in the Family!)
Ocean Commotion
Playful Petals

PAPER (love 'em all!)

Rockabilly (matches Just Jawing!)
Parisian Breeze
Pink Flamingo
Raspberry Tart
Tea Party

BIG SHOT STUFF

Stampin' Up! Butterflies die
Daisies #2 die
Stampin' Up! Background Texturz plates

I love Sale-A-Bration because it falls right at TAX REFUND TIME!! I might be able to sneak a couple of these things onto my SCIAK order.... hmmmm... *grin*

Thanks for visiting!

The Charm of Wisteria

2009-01-22T12:56:00.006-06:00

HOW COOL IS THIS!??! Click on the photo to see a much larger version! This is an idea that's been rolling around in my head for months, since about a week after I made my Blogiversary Bluebonnet. I figured I could easily flip the basic construction, make it out of different colors, and have wisteria. I mean, Bluebonnets and Wisteria are even in the same subfamily, Faboideae. In making them from punches, it's just a difference in the way they grow, right? Right! It's constructed almost exactly the way my bluebonnet is constructed, just upside down, with a flip of the blossoms about 2/3 down.

I started the blooms yesterday afternoon, since I had a good-size scrap of Lovely Lilac out anyway for yesterday's card but didn't use it. So pulled out some Lavender Lace, Pale Plum and Whisper White, and started punching out 5-petal flowers. This morning I sat and assembled the blooms, then worked on the leaves (fold paper in half, cut a half-leaf-ish shape, run the folded shape through a paper crimper, and open--leaves come in all shapes, so you can't really mess it up). I thought I was using scraps of Certainly Celery and Garden Green, but the GG turned out to be Wild Wasabe (retired). The page base is So Saffron sponged with More Mustard.

I got it all assembled... and then I thought, "I need a bug--a really coooool bug." So I pulled out my large and small oval punches and punched four wings from Tempting Turqoise. I punched four large ovals from vellum, and glued them to the TT pieces. Used a sponge dauber to add Green Galore to the tops of the wings, letting the ink get on the vellum, too. Turned it over and used a Taken with Teal and YoYo Yellow markers to add crazy veining and a bit of yellow to the back side of the top wings. The body started out as a Word Window punch in SaharaSand, but I used my paper snips to cut him a narrow tail. The head started out as a 1/2" circle, but it was too big, so I trimmed it down with scissors. Details added with sponge dauber, white gel pen, and turquoise marker. Here's a close-up of the finished dragonfly:
By the way, the title "English Charm" and the date are not actually there. Again, they're added to the photo in Photoshop. The page on my work table has no title yet. All the actual materials are from Stampin' Up!

Thanks for visiting!

Happy Semi-Traditional Non-Standard Valentine's Day

2009-01-21T11:54:00.005-06:00

Valentine's Day cards are not my favorite thing to make, mostly because I am so totally not a hearts-and-roses kind of person. So how about a semi-non-traditional valentine card? (Click on the picture to see a bigger version!)

As far as hearts go, I have to make an exception for the heart in the Always set. It's just beautiful and will probably 'always' be one of my favorites (*snerk*). Here I stamped it on white cardstock with white craft ink, and embossed it with white embossing powder. Then I used sponge daubers and ink pads to tap color over the embossed image, overlapping the colors a smidge so they blended. Added the red accents with marker and cut it out. The rest is just squares and punches.

Ingredients (all SU!):
Stamps: Always, Happy Heart Day
Cardstock: Certainly Celery card base, Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise
Ink: Craft White, Lovely Lilac, C.Celery, T.Turquoise Markers: L.Lilac, T.Turquoise, Real Red, Night of Navy
Punches: Small Tag, Ticket Corner, Scallop Edge
Other: White embossing powder, sponge daubers, Real Red ribbon, hemp twine

Thanks for visiting!

Gotta Brag Scrapbook Page

2009-01-18T12:40:00.002-06:00

I realized this morning that I'd not shared a scrapbook page and sketch for a while. So here is my creation for my 'Bling, Baby!' January scrapbook challenge at SCS. It uses SU's Urban Garden paper pack, and happens to be one of the layouts we'll be doing on the video included in the February SCIAK kit.

You can't see it very well in the photo, but this page is really sparkly! There's iridescent glitter in the center of every flower along the top, as well as on the two larger flower accents.

Please note that the title and photo size thingies aren't really there. I added them to the photo in photoshop as visual placeholders. (I'll add an actual title with my Cricut when I decide what photos I want to put on it!)

INGREDIENTS (all SU!):
Paper: W.White, B.Breeze, K.Kiss, NQ.Navy, Urban Garden DSP
Ink: O.Olive marker and classic pad (leaf details)
Accessories: Five-Petal Flower punch, Photo Corners punch, Curly Label punch, white Signo gel pen, Dazzling Diamonds glitter

And here is the sketch for the page, available only here and in the 'Stampalooza's Scrapbook Challenge' forum at SCS.

Thanks for visiting!

Desk Calendar

2009-01-17T10:27:00.004-06:00

I'm certainly getting a lot of mileage out of scraps left over from the latest Scrapbook Class-In-A-Kit papers. This is another project done for challenge at SCS. The challenge was to create a desktop calendar using this tutorial as a jumping-off point. Stamp On This sells the coasters I used, along with some really useful little business-card-size calendars, but I've not ordered any for this year yet, so I had to make and print my own. And I think I like it better. This one has spaces for the days, rather than simply numbers, so you can make small notes or stamp in the days. (The spaces are just the right size to use the soon-retiring Occasions Collection hostess set to mark the days). Scroll to the bottom of this post for a link to a PDF file of the calendar.

Another cool design feature of a big calendar: You can have it slide out for ease of writing. Like this:
By the way, that blue square on the left is a photo mat. You can put a picture of your hamster there!

And here's what it looks like to people on the other side. Somewhat plain, but still interesting.

INGREDIENTS (all SU!):
Paper: B.Breeze, NQ.Navy, K.Kiss, W.White, Urban Garden DSP
Ink: NQ.Navy, K.Kiss, C.Caramel (distressing front medallion)
Stamps: Wanted
Accessories: Ticket Corner punch, Scallop Circle punch, Top Note die, 5/8" O.Olive grosgrain ribbon

And here's a link to a PDF file of the calendar: Stacey's Desk Calendar
Depending on your printer settings, you may need to choose 'Fit to Printer Margins' or 'Reduce to Printer Margins' in the Page Handling section of Adobe Reader's print dialogue box. You can even print all the months on one page from that print dialogue box, by choosing to print two sheets per page.

Thanks for visiting!

Diamond Daisy

2009-01-16T15:26:00.005-06:00

I *heart* my punches! Love 'em, love 'em, love 'em! This card was done for the January 14th Diamond Fold card challenge at SCS. I'd never made a diamond fold card before. I tried it first without scoring, and didn't even finish folding it before I decided I needed to take the time to measure and score. SU cardstock is pretty hefty, so it's tough to get the folds crisp and even otherwise. Here's a pic of the same card held flat (Ignore the thumb at the bottom--It's not part of the card!):
Isn't that a cool little daisy? I'm not sure what it is with me and punch flowers lately, but here's how I made this one: First I punched a Scallop Circle from Cameo Coral, found the center point and poked a hole. Then I used my paper snips to cut cone shapes out, snipping in about 1/2". Here's a quick pic:

After inking the petals with Ruby Red and a sponge dauber, I put just a tiny smidge of glue on the outside round part of each petal and dipped in Dazzling Diamonds (glitter). I used the Boho Blossoms punch to punch the 12-pointed flower from Summer Sun, then daubered Pumpkin Pie into the middle and added glitter to the petals. Used the Trio Flower punch and Rose Red cardstock for the smallest flower, dipped it all in DD. I used the Round Tab punch and Green Galore to get the leaf. The stem is just a strip of GG. Stitching details added with O.Olive marker.

INGREDIENTS (all SU!)
Paper: S.Sun, C.Celery, G.Galore, C.Coral, W.White, Rose Red, scrap of Urban Garden DSP
Ink: Ruby Red, P.Pie, B.Breeze (sponged in center of white piece)
Accessories: Scallop Circle punch, Boho Blossoms punch, Trio Flower punch, Round Tab punch, O.Olive marker, D.Diamonds glitter

Thanks for visiting!

A CASE For You

2009-01-15T10:33:00.005-06:00

Yet another card for you! I'm trying to catch up on all the challenges and occasions I missed during the holiday chaos. This one is actually a CASE-the-Sale-A-Bration-Catty challenge (Copy And Share... Enthusiastically? ...with Everyone? ...with Evelyn?), and I chose a card on page 2. The flower consists of three scallop square pieces folded at intervals, sponged with Regal Rose, and stacked inside one another.

INGREDIENTS (all SU!):
Paper: Pink Pirouette base & flower, So Saffron Top Note, Kiwi Kiss green bits, Bella Rose brown piece
Ink: Regal Rose for flower shading and to stamp the sentiment
Stamp: from One of a Kind
Accessories: Old Olive 5/8" ribbon, Top Note die, Scallop Square punch (flower), Five-Petal Flower punch (leaves and sepals), O.Olive marker (leaf and sepal details), sponge dauber, hemp twine

Thanks for visiting!

Punched Posy Tutorial

2009-01-14T16:41:00.006-06:00

I thought I'd put together a quick tutorial on how to make the cute punched posy from this card. Here's what you'll need:

Five-Petal Flower punch (punch two from your flower color and one from your leaf color)
3/4" Circle punch (punch one from your flower center color)
Ink pads & sponge daubers for shading
Markers for details
Scissors
Liquid glue
Straight-edge and scoring tool

Now here's step-by-step instructions (click on photos to see larger):

1. Punch one five-petal flower from your leaf color and trim as shown (I'm using Kiwi Kiss).
2. Punch two five-petal flowers from your flower color and trim ONE of them as shown (I'm using Blush Blossom).
3. Punch one 3/4" circle from your flower center color and trim as shown (I'm using So Saffron).
4. Grab a sponge dauber and an ink pad in a darker color than your flower color (I'm using Cameo Coral). Daub ink on three adjacent petals on the full punched piece, making it darker toward the center and leaving the tips of each petal uninked. Do the same for both petals of the cut piece.

5. With your marker in the same (or similar) color as your 'daubed' color, add details to each petal.
6. On your full punched piece, you're going to fold the two uninked petals down over the inked petals. To do this, you can use a straight edge and scoring tool to very carefully score from outside 'v' to outside 'v' and fold the top, uninked part down.
7. Unfold the flower again and turn the piece over to the back side. Use your sponge daubers and marker to add shading and details to the two petals that will fold down. On this side, I added a bit of So Saffron to the very center with my sponge dauber, along with the Cameo Coral.
8. Refold the petals down, and dab glue on the underside. Fold the petals down and hold for several seconds until the glue adheres.

9. Snip the remaining two-petal piece in half. You will adhere these pieces to the back of the flower between the three lower petals. Just a freckle-size dot of glue and a bit of finger pressure is all that is needed. Find your flower-center piece and ink the edges (I used So Saffron carstock, and inked with Saffron and Caramel ink), then dot in details (I used a Cocoa marker for the dots). Glue flower-center to your flower.
10. Fine-tune the shape of your leaves with scissors, then add veins and details with a marker.
11. Cut a slim stem from a scrap of cardstock the same color as your leaves. Assemble your flower.
12. Add the flower to a card or scrapbook page!

Thanks for visiting!

Pretty Punched Thanks

2009-01-14T12:46:00.005-06:00

*big satisfied sigh* This card turned out SO WELL!! (If I may say so...) Go ahead... click on the pic to see a larger version. Isn't it sweet? And I used ONLY scraps to create it! (Honest!) I made it for this month's WICKED color combo challenge in the demo forum at SCS.

This was my first attempt at dyeing ribbon. I started out putting the ribbon on my Baja inkpad and using a sponge dauber to pounce it into the ink, but I got better ink coverage on the top, where I was pouncing, so I moved the ribbon to my work surface (on grid paper), and just added ink that way. The gradation was a happy accident (don't you love those?).

Check out this post for a tutorial on how to make the flower.

INGREDIENTS (all SU!):
Cardstock: Scraps of Blush Blossom, Cameo Coral, Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, So Saffron, Not Quite Navy
Stamp (sentiment): Short & Sweet
Ink: C.Coral, B.Breeze, S.Saffron, N.Q.Navy, C.Caramel, Craft White
Markers: C. Coral, C.Cocoa, O.Olive, Gray
Punches: Five-petal Flower, 3/4" circle, Ticket Corner, Large Oval
Other: White gel pen, silver brad, white 1/4" ribbon

Thanks for visiting!

February Scrapbook Class-In-A-Kit !!

2009-01-13T13:56:00.003-06:00

The next Scrapbook Class-In-A-Kit is FINALLY done! For a while there, I thought I might never get to love on my scrapbook supplies again. I just waved at them in passing for the last couple months, which just isn't quite the same, you know? Anyway, the February kit uses Stampin' Up's Urban Garden paper pack. It's one of my favorites, and will still be available in the new catalog! As a whole, the kit is feminine yet elegant, with three very different (and completely original) page layouts.

I've moved the order details to a dedicated page on my server. I've also included a list of add-ons--optional stuff I use in the video that you can easily add to your order. You can fill up a shopping cart here: http://www.staceylking.com/RebelInker/SCIAK.html

Order deadline is January 28th. Because of the new catalog and Sale-A-Bration almost coinciding, delivery times will be a bit longer than usual. It will take a few days longer for SU to process my order and ship it to me, with all the paper and supplies I'll need to put your kits together.

Thanks for visiting!

Deepest Sympathy

2009-01-10T23:05:00.002-06:00

My heart is hurting for my friend, Landra. Her husband passed away this morning. If you're the praying sort, please visit my personal blog to read about the Peña family and add them to your prayer list.

This is the sympathy card I made for the family. I couldn't find the 'With Sympathy' stamp that came in my Kindred Spirits set, so I just hand-wrote the sentiment. Paper strip is a scrap from Urban Garden. Tutorial on how to make the five-petal-punch chrysanthemum is here on my blog under 'DIY.' (Menu in the right-hand column.)

Thanks for visiting!

Luv my jeans!

2008-12-26T16:16:00.003-06:00

There's nothing better than a good pair of jeans that fits just right. And depending on the rest of your outfit, they can be dressed up or down for just about any occasion. (Luv my jeans!) This yummy jeans-inspired card (or set of cards, as the case may be) is no exception.

This was one of my gifts to my sister for Christmas. She likes to hand make cards, but sometimes has trouble with the 'inspiration and design' aspect of cardmaking--AND she's more Tex-ified than I am, and has been known to wear large belt buckles with her matching leather belt and boots. So I put together a few card kits for her, each with one finished card, plus all the pieces pre-stamped and pre-cut to make three additional cards. I included matching envelopes with the horseshoe and star motif stamped on the flap. I have to admit it looks a lot better in person, though.

Ingredients (all SU!):
Stamps: Bronc Buster
Cardstock: Not Quite Navy, Close to Cocoa, Brushed Silver
Ink: Versamark, White craft
Other: Markers, white gel pen, silver embossing powder, sponge wedge, 1/4" circle hole punch

Thanks for visiting!

Last craft fair of the season

2008-12-14T12:27:00.005-06:00

Yesterday was the last craft fair I'm going to do this season, and it was... awful.

It was a first year fair, but they seemed to have a good handle on it when I signed up in early November. It was held at a nearby high school and had more than 80 vendors between two gyms. The big problem was they didn't advertise well, didn't put out adequate signage (friends and family who knew it was there, but who were not familiar with the school, still couldn't find it), and didn't take into account the proximity of the entertainment stage in relation to nearby booths. Half the time every booth was super easy to find (once you actually found the gyms) because there was NO ONE there shopping. The other half, the entrance to the gym was blocked, all the aisles were blocked, and many booths were blocked, not by shoppers, but by hordes of kids waiting to dance or sing, and parents wanting to watch their kids dance or sing.

Needless to say, I didn't even make back my booth fee.

On the bright side, I made a new friend (Hi Kara!), and had a fabulous display! The fireplace was an eleventh hour idea (literally, 11:00 pm Friday night). Check it out!

My friend Stephanie, with whom I shared the booth, suggested I put some of my unsold stuff on Etsy. I thought it was a great idea, so that's what I worked on when I got home. Check out my new Etsy store! You can also see some recent additions in the Etsy store gadget in the left column ( <-----*pointing left*).

Thanks for visiting!

Top Note genie bag

2008-12-10T07:51:00.004-06:00

Got lots of oohs and aahhs over these last night. I made one for each of my PTA Board members in attendance at our holiday get-together/board meeting. They looked fabulous en masse there on the table. Shoulda taken a picture of that, but alas, in my effort to get everything else into my truck, I forgot my camera bag. Oh well.

Ingredients:
Papers: Baja Breeze and Whisper White cardstock, pearlescent vellum from Hobby Lobby
Sizzix Dies: Top Note, Snowflake #2
Stamp: Snowflake from this year's Country Living Holiday Collection (SU!)
Punches: Scallop Circle, Large Oval, Trio Flower
Ribbon: Silver tulle 'ribbon' (comes 6" wide, but I cut it down to 2")
Bag: #2 white gusset-bottom bags from Sam's Club

My own Top Note die is still on backorder (* S I G H *), so I borrowed this one from my downline. Thanks Carole!

Though this is a simple idea, it wasn't mine. I'm not sure who originated it (using the Top Note), but the earliest example I could find was by Angie Kennedy Juda at Chic n' Scratch.

Thanks for visiting!

Santa bookmark

2008-12-02T09:52:00.004-06:00

Gah. I was hoping to take pics for a tutorial on how to make this guy using SU punches, but it's not gonna happen any time soon. So I'm just gonna share the pic, and the supplies list, and maybe you can figure it out!

Ingredients:
Cardstock: Riding Hood Red, Whisper White, Blush Blossom
Punches: Scallop Circle (beard/mustache), Scallop Square (hat trim), 1-1/4" Circle (skin), 1" Circle (cut out of scallop circle), 1/4" Circle handheld (nose and hat ball)
Other: Black marker (eyes), Stampin' Pastels (cheeks & nose), jumbo paperclip, grid paper

Hat is an isosceles triangle one inch tall, and one inch wide at the base. For the hat trim, I punched a scallop square, then put the punched piece back in the punch to trim it down (you can get two hat trims from one scallop square punch). The mustache is cut from the piece I cut out of the scallop circle for the face (you end up with a crescent shape left over).

Thanks for visiting!

Reindeer Joy

2008-11-28T08:07:00.003-06:00

How cute is this?!? This project started with the guy with the snowflake on his nose. I had been experimenting with punches, figuring out how to make a reindeer face with the tag punches, and then how to make convincing antlers without hand-cutting them. He turned out so well that I had to make the others to keep him company. And then I discovered that as a trio, they took up a lot of space. Not to mention the fact that they took a lot of detail time to make. So a card, even a big card, seemed a bit too...disposable...for the amount of work--and the CUTENESS factor!!--that these guys entail.

INGREDIENTS
Cardstock: Real Red, Chocolate Chip, Riding Hood Red, Creamy Caramel, Basic Black, Baja Breeze
Paper: Ski Slope
Punches: Tag, Small Tag, Five-Petal Flower, Round Tab, 1/2" Circle, 1/4" Circle, Word Window, Scallop Square
Other: White gel pen, Cricut, frame

Thanks for visiting!

Pocket Card of Goodness

2008-11-27T07:27:00.005-06:00

That's what I'm calling it, since Hot Pocket was already taken. This groovy little 'card' has two pockets on the inside to hold a packet of soup and a packet of hot cocoa. I have several set aside for teacher gifts. Here's a pic of the (potentially) warm num-yummy goodness contained in one little card:

I made two prototypes for this thing, one with separate pockets that you glue on, the other all one piece where you glue down a couple of flaps. While gluing the pockets was a lot easier on the one-piece design, cutting it out and scoring it was a royal pain in the rumpus. So I stuck with the three-separate-rectangles design. Gluing the pockets is a little fiddly, but overall it took a lot less time. Here's the cut and score measurements for each piece:

Snowflake stamp is from Season of Friendship. 'For You' stamp is from One of a Kind. D'Vine Swirls Cuttlebug embossing folder by ProvoCraft. Snowflake border punch is by EK Success (same company that makes SU's punches).

Thanks for visiting!

Snowman Cocoa pouch

2008-11-26T05:50:00.006-06:00

This is a super-easy project, so much so that our PTA might make these for our 85 teachers and staff. You can get two pouches out of a single sheet of cardstock (and if you're making more than one, it's better to score first, then cut it in half). Here's some measurements for you:

Once you've got your cardstock stamped and folded, you'll only need a stapler, a cocoa packet (or a soup packet), and a scrap of colored cardstock run through your crimper:

Here's some how-to pics on the creation of that paper bow:

Snowman stamp is from the long-retired SU set Let It Snow ('arms' hand drawn). He's colored with a combination of markers and aquapainter watercoloring.

Thanks for visiting!

Countdown to Christmas

2008-11-25T08:41:00.004-06:00

This turned out SO CUTE! I don't even LIKE Santa, but I was still tickled with how this turned out. I have a hard time calling this an Advent calendar, because the bearded dude has zilch to do with Advent. So it's just a Countdown-to-Christmas calendar.

And I can't take credit for the idea. I was inspired by Amy Sheffer's countdown calendar here: http://pickledpaperdesigns.blogspot.com/2008/10/here-i-come-wassailing.html

Mine consists of two four-inch coasters (from StampOnThis.com) covered with SU! Ski Slope paper, stamped with Baroque Motifs in acrylic paint, and bound with the numbers 1-24 in a Bind-It-All coil.

I made only three, and it took me about ten hours from start to finish, including dry time for paint and short breaks to stretch my back or pick kids up from school. I sold one at each of my craft fairs, and still have this one left.

Paper and the punches are SU! Number stamps are from The Paper Studio. 'Christmas' stamp is from Stampabilities.

Thanks for visiting!

Reindeer Gift Bag and Tag

2008-11-24T07:26:00.004-06:00

I totally snagged the look of the reindeer from some gift-wrap in the Current® catalog. He's made with punches except for his legs, which are just skinny strips of paper. Made with SU punches, this guy is too big for a card, unfortunately, so his uses are pretty limited, but he is danged cute, I think. (FIVE commas in that sentence! *grin*)

The tag is a head (minus the antlers) with another wide oval scored and glued to the back at the top. "To:" and "From:" is/are (?) stamped on the inside.

The snowflake paper is not SU, mostly because I tend to be kind of stingy with my beautiful SU papers and didn't want to 'waste' it on something that in all likelihood will be thrown away. The bag is from my LSS. Inside is a big piece of red tissue paper, folded nicely.

Ingredients:
Cardstock: Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel, Ruby Red, Basic Black
Punches: Wide Oval, Five-Petal Flower, Tag, Small Tag, 1/2" Circle, 1/4" Circle handheld, Ticket Corner
Other: Handled bag, snowflake paper (The Paper Studio), hemp twine, white gel pen, red ribbon, red tissue paper

Thanks for visiting!

Craft fair goodness

2008-11-22T17:07:00.004-06:00

I just got home from another craft fair and I'm really happy with how the day went! I shared a booth with my friend Stephanie, who is a Gold Canyon Candle rep (see link in the left column! FABULOUS candles!), and our spot was the first booth you got to when you walked in the front door. TOTALLY made up for the crappy spot I had two weeks ago. We both did really well.

I've got one more craft fair this season, three weeks from today. I sold out of quite a few things, so I've got some stamping and sewing to do! Stay tuned this week, though. I'll be posting pics and details on a bunch of the stuff I've been selling. (Yes, I've been holding out on you!)

Here's a front view of today's setup (before I rearranged it six more times!)

Thanks for visiting!

Digital Page: Spring Has Sprung

2008-11-17T07:26:00.008-06:00

I'm a graphic designer, so you knew it was only a matter of time before I started seriously dabbling in digital scrapbooking. I actually started this page about six months ago (when it was actually spring!), but re-visited it this morning and decided to share it.

Recently when albums were on sale at Hobby Lobby, I picked up five 8x8s. My intent is to make at least three duplicate albums--One for me, one for my mom, and one for DH's mom. I chose 8x8 because I can easily print that from my home printer (after I get the print head replaced) on high-rez paper.

While I do use purchased digital page elements sometimes, I usually prefer to make my own. Everything on the page above is 100% original, either photographed by me, or created by me in Photoshop or Illustrator.

Here's a sketch for you, derived from this page:

Thanks for visiting!

Craft Fair Fare

2008-11-12T10:54:00.003-06:00

I am knee-deep in craft fairs right about now. I had one this past weekend for which I was pitifully unprepared (though I sold more than I thought I would--Yay!). It was held at a church which hosts this craft fair every year, and it's a HUGE fair, filling two gymnasiums, hallways, classrooms, even sidewalks. My friend Carole and I shared a spot, and we were tucked away in one of those classrooms (the Monkey, classroom, actually, with a tiny table and toddler toys). We didn't get a whole lot of traffic (lots of people poked their head through the door, but only about half of those actually set foot in the room). By far my best-sellers were items priced $1.50 and under (stocking-stuffer things), with only a handful of higher priced items purchased.

Here's the scary thing: I only have nine and a half days of craft time left to prepare for the next one! (Aaaaaaaahhhhhhh!)

One of the applications required a picture to be submitted, so I hauled out some of what I have left and photographed it. Would you like to see some of the stuff I had with me? Wouldja? Huh? Wouldja? Yeah, I thought so... Here ya go:

Quick update

2008-10-22T06:29:00.002-05:00

Just a quick note to let y'all know that I'm here--I haven't forgotten! I'd been experiencing really crappy internet access and it took me a while to narrow it down to the modem. Replaced it and all is speedy again! I'll be sending invoices for the 13x13 bags sometime today. We had six birthday parties last week, are helping run the book fair this week and carnival on Friday, so it's been a little chaotic around here!

Bulk Buy for 13x13" zip-seal bags

2008-10-07T06:45:00.013-05:00

***11/12 UPDATE: All bag orders have been delivered to participants! Thanks!***

Hey gang... SCS has done away with their bulk buy forum, so I'm going to see if any of y'all (particularly those who are demos) would be interested in this. I need to order more 13x13" zip-seal bags, but they only come in lots of 1000 for the best price. I don't need quite that many so I'm hoping to share the cost with at least three, four or five other people. These bags are roomy, durable, come pre-opened in another zip-bag to keep them all together.

The cost would be $8.50 per 50 bags, plus shipping. 50 bags weighs 20 ounces, plus the weight of the priority mail box, so shipping for 50 bags will average about $7.00. 100-150 bags can fit in an $8.95 flat-rate box.

Please email me if you're interested. There are still 250 bags up for grabs. I have SENT paypal money requests to those who've contacted me as of 10/22 at 11:00 am Central.

Bags reserved so far:
S. Mings -- 100
P. Glisson -- 150
T. Oakley -- 50
C. Kerr -- 100
N. Benedek -- 100
A. Matasci -- 50

I'll also update this post with current status, so if you're interested, be sure to check back.

Blogiversary Blog Candy WINNER!

2008-10-06T11:39:00.006-05:00

This morning I copied down sixteen display names (everyone except my son) onto strips of paper, folded 'em up, and put 'em into my sadly-too-little-used beach comber hat. I put the hat on my head (upside down! Or would that be downside up?), swirled the slips around, and.... picked one! Wooohoooo!

So... without further ado... Ladies and gentleman (sorry, son!), please put your hands together for...

inkedx2

Congratulations! Please email me a shipping address (stampalooza * gmail * com)!

Thanks, y'all!

Blogiversary Fry Box

2008-10-04T15:16:00.004-05:00

This was a relatively quick project--an easy container for a teacher gift. I printed the fry box pattern onto my red cardstock using the draft mode on my printer. Cut it out and assembled it. The flower on the front is stamped with black craft ink on Whisper White, then embossed with black Embossing powder. I then used various bright markers to color it in. I thought it looked kinda plain still on the front of the box, so I added a 1/2" paper button (kind of a pain in the posterior to make), and added faux stitching to the yellow piece. The 'thread' in the button is a thin sliver of white paper.

For the 'fries', I ran strips of red CS through my crimper, and they're held together in a fan-ish shape with a small binder clip inside the box. Also in the box are a post-it pad, band aids, and a pack of soup mix. I thought this might be a good teacher goodie.

This pattern makes it really tough to make a 'belly band' around the box, so if I make another of these, I'll probably find/design a different pattern.

Ingredients:
Stamps: One of a Kind
Paper: Taken with Teal, Real Red, YoYo Yellow, Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black Craft ink, summer sun, various markers
Accessories: Black embossing powder, white gel pen, crimper

Blogiversary Blog Candy!

2008-10-03T11:38:00.005-05:00

Yesterday morning, before my day went sour, I opened up my stats in StatCounter and did a screenshot of the year's statistic summary. What interests me particularly is the first-time visitor number. Check it out:
I'm guessing about half of those came for my inkpad holder, and nearly another half for the five petal punch chrysanthemum (both available under the 'DIY' category in the right-hand column). Nonetheless, I am still really stinkin' excited about those numbers! Woohoo!

To celebrate, I'm giving away some good ol' Blog Candy! On Monday morning, I will put all the usernames of the WCPWFMB (Way Cool People Who Follow My Blog) into a hat and randomly draw one. The winner will receive the goodie package pictured below. All you have to do to enter that drawing is locate the WCPWFMB box in the left-hand column under my Cool Links, then click "FOLLOW THIS BLOG". That's all! Here's the booty:What's included:

Two Blush Doodle notecards and envelopes

Two Burgundy Friend notecards and envelopes

Four handmade gift tags

Four sheets Accents & Elements Christmas stickers (great for scrapbook pages)

Nine pieces scrapbook page candy in colors to match A&E stickers

So add yourself to the elite WCPWFMB and all this could be yours!

Blogiversary Bluebonnet!

2008-10-02T08:34:00.007-05:00

Ooohhh! I am SO proud of this one! This started as a 'small' embellishment for the kids-in-the-bluebonnets photos that nearly everyone who's ever spent a spring in Texas has. So I put this photo (which I took myself, crawling around on my elbows in a field by our library) in front of me, and looked at my punches:

I reached for my Five-Petal Flower punch (same punch used for my chrysanthemum). Each petal group consists of 3/5 of a five-petal flower punch--a two-petal group, then a single petal glued between them. Here's a close-up:
I used Ballet Blue cardstock, and sponged Lovely Lilac in the center before cutting petals apart. For the topmost petals, I used a combination of blue and white punched pieces. I sponged Ballet Blue in the center of white five-petal punches. The very tippytop white piece is just a corner of the new scalloped square punch.

For the grass, I used Mellow Moss and a hobby knife to cut the grass blades. Added center veins with my MM marker, then dragged the pieces across my MM ink pad.
Finally, as I was putting the page together, it occurred to me that I needed a bug. It's a flower and grass... we need a bug. As I was trying to figure out how to accomplish that gracefully (somehow my Bugs & Kisses stamps just wouldn't do), I noticed that the trio of petals on my bluebonnet sorta looked like the back end of a bee. So I got out my trusty Five-Petal punch again. YoYo Yellow butt...er, ABDOMEN, white wings, and a black 1/2" circle for the head. Wish I had a 3/8" circle punch, though. Stripes added with marker.
Finished the page off with some Styled Silver Hodgepodge and some white Taffeta Ribbon, and viola! A HUGE bluebonnet embellishment on an otherwise very simple page.

Blogiversary Color Challenge

2008-10-01T21:25:00.004-05:00

I'm in the mood for a challenge, how about you? This is a color challenge, the color scheme is below. Doesn't matter what you make: Card, scrapbook page, alterable, etc. Just post a link via the comments to an image of your creation online so I can ogle. I've not done this yet myself, so I'll be working on it tomorrow.

Happy Blogiversary!

2008-10-01T11:15:00.004-05:00

Rebel Inker will be one year old tomorrow! I have several things planned for this multi-day 'celebration,' so stay tuned! We'll have projects, a challenge, a tutorial, and perhaps... oh, I don't know, some BLOG CANDY! (Pssst! Check out the new feature in the left-hand column, over there under my Cool Links. Way Cool People Who Follow My Blog. It may or may not have anything to do with blog candy. *wink*.... *wink*)

Well, it would be silly to have a blogiversary party without a card, so here's a birthday or anniversary card, appropriately using a scrap of Maine Blueberry (left over from the October SCIAK):
RECIPE:
Stamps: Boatloads of Love, Short & Sweet
Paper: Kiwi Kiss card base, Not Quite Navy mat, Bashful Blue large oval, Whisper White for boat and sentiment, scrap of Maine Blueberry
Ink: Boat stamped in Basic Gray and watercolored with various colors. Clouds stamped in Bashful Blue and watercolored with Ballet Blue. Sentiment stamped in Not Quite Navy. Bashful Blue oval distressed with Bordering Blue.
Accessories: Aqua Painter, silver brads, Large Oval punch, Small Oval punch, Ticket Corner punch, Night of Navy Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals, SU Markers for detail work

More fun to come!

Photographing scrapbook pages

2008-09-29T11:25:00.004-05:00

I've got something super-special in the works for this week! Stay tuned for my 'Blogiversary' celebration, starting Wednesday. In the mean time, several people have asked how I photograph scrapbook pages, so I thought I would share my secret with you!

Ta-daaaaaa!

October Scrapbook Class-In-A-Kit

2008-09-22T17:18:00.006-05:00

I've finally managed to get two of the October SCIAK layouts photographed AND off of my camera! So here's a peek at two of the six pages included in the Maine Blueberry kit. Each of these are half of a brand new layout.

Here's the first, featuring a huge new paper flower:

And here's the second, featuring a cool lace-up technique:

The October Scrapbook Class-In-A-Kit includes:
--All materials necessary to complete THREE two-page 12x12 layouts (for a total of six pages), including cardstock, designer paper, ribbon, brads, buttons, stickers, page candy, etc.
--Custom stamp made from SU rubber scraps
--Photos of completed layouts
--Video instructions on how to assemble the pages (so you can scrapbook at your convenience!)
--Extra paper

ITEMS YOU WILL NEED TO COMPLETE THE LAYOUTS:
--Scissors
--Paper trimmer (big enough to trim 12x12 paper)
--Adhesive (liquid glue)
--White craft (pigment) ink

COST OF KIT: $17.00 (plus $6.50 shipping for those out of town)

ORDER/PAYMENT DUE BY: September 26th

KITS READY BY: October 8th

PAYMENT: Send appropriate payment (including shipping if necessary) via PAYPAL to:

COMING NEXT MONTH: Autumn Vine from the Holiday Mini

Paper buttons video tutorial!

2008-09-13T20:18:00.010-05:00

I got a new digital hard-drive camcorder and made my first blog video tutorial on how to make super-inexpensive, super easy buttons that match your cards or scrapbook pages EXACTLY! Please tell me what you think of the video! I'm using the software that came with the camera (CyberLink PowerDirector Express). Not as impressed with it as I am with Pinnacle Studio (which I don't have on this computer or I'd use that!), but it may be because it's just... different (and not as fully featured, but it's the Express version).

The music in the video is Maroon 5's 'Makes Me Wonder'. Here's the YouTube version:

You can get a smaller, but better-quality Windows Media File version by clicking here.

Making the template: I cut one circle from scrap cardstock, fold it in half, mark where I want my holes to go, and pierce through them. I make a template for each size button, so when I make a bunch, the holes on all of them are reasonably the same.

Gluing the stack: I put glue on only three of the four blue circles. Then I stacked them with the non-glued one on top.

Order SU products online!

2008-09-09T13:47:00.002-05:00

Woohoooooooo! Online ordering from the Stampin' Up! website is now available! And it is TOTALLY FABULOUS! I am so impressed and excited.

I humbly invite you to check out my Demo Website to check it out. When you get there, just click on the SHOP NOW button in the top right corner.

Woooohhoooooooo!

Last day to order September SCIAK

2008-08-26T18:40:00.003-05:00

Just a reminder that August 27th is the last day to order the September Scrapbook Class-In-A-Kit. I'm excited to have received a wonderful response to this! For more details, CLICK HERE.

That Girl! (Demo Scrapbook Challenge)

2008-08-15T09:53:00.008-05:00

This month, the Demo Scrapbook challenge is to take any previous challenge sketch and re-run it, but with new stuff! This is my sample, using the April 15 sketch located here. In other words, I took my Tea Party! page and re-worked it. I actually did this on a scrapbook retreat a few weeks ago, and used the owner's Sizzix machine for the title, so I don't remember at all what die set it was.

Be sure to check out my 'DIY' category (menu in right-hand column---->) for tutorials on the Five-Petal Chrysanthemum (flower on left page), Loopy Punch Flower (flower on right page), and faux chipboard technique ('buttons' and flower 'brad' on right page).

INGREDIENTS
Cardstock: Kiwi Kiss, Riding Hood Red, Pink Pirouette
Designer Paper: Bella Rose
Stamps: Dreams du Jour
Punches: 5-Petal Flower, Large Oval, Small Oval, Photo Corners, Boho Blossoms, 1-3/4" Circle, 1" Circle
Ink: Cardstock colors, and Basic Black, Bravo Burgundy, Baja Breeze
Other: Aquapainter, Signo Gel pen, Clear embossing powder (for faux chipboard 'brad' in center of loopy flower), Crop-A-Dile, sponge daubers, Sizzix BigShot and alpha dies

By the way! This is one of the layouts (with just a few minor modifications) that will be included in my September Scrapbook Class-in-a-Kit.

Raving about retreat!

2008-08-03T17:32:00.005-05:00

I just got back from a FABULOUS weekend at a scrapbook B&B in Bowie, Texas, called Hobby House Hill. I totally can see why she's pretty much booked every weekend through 2012. The food by itself was worth going to stay for a few days!

Anyway. I got quite a bit done, and I thought I'd share two of the layouts I did while I was there:

SU's new Pacific Point (2008-2009 In Colors) was the PERFECT shade of blue for this layout. DSP is from Marcella K. Stamps are Boho Backgrounds and Baroque Motifs.

This one uses a sheet of my hand-stamped DSP (see DIY section). Big pink 'M' is from the dollar bin at Michaels (came in a package of two--silver stickles added to white dots).

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Box du Jour

2008-07-18T11:16:00.003-05:00

I made this little box for today's demo challenge at SCS. I think it turned out really cute! Card is 3x3; box is sized to hold cards and envelopes.

INGREDIENTS
Stamps: Dreams du Jour stamp set (coming soon to SU!), Doodle This
Cardstock: Whisper White, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, Pumpkin Pie, Rose Red
Designer Paper: Scrap from Bali Breeze
Ink: Bashful Blue, Basic Black
Accessories: SU Markers, 1/4" Celery grosgrain, Signo gel pen

Scrapbook Class-in-a-Kit

2008-07-17T16:31:00.001-05:00

Aug. 27: LAST DAY TO ORDER the SEPTEMBER KIT!

You know I love scrapbooking, right? This is a new program that I'm organizing for fall. It is essentially a monthly 'club' wherein you pre-order a class kit for a cost of $16-$20 each month (plus $5 shipping for those out of town). Each kit will contain:
--All materials necessary to complete THREE different two-page 12x12 layouts (for a total of six pages), including cardstock, designer paper, ribbon, brads, buttons, stickers, page candy, etc. You supply only adhesive, paper trimmer, scissors, pencil, and other very basic tools.

--Photos of completed layouts

--CD containing video instructions on how to assemble the pages (so you can scrapbook at your convenience)

--Extra paper

The first kit is $16.00 (US) and will feature Stampin' Up's new Bella Rose paper pack. Deadline for preorder/payment is August 27th, and I will have kits ready on/before September 10th.

Please let me know if this is something you might be interested in by visiting my demo website and emailing me or using the Contact Me form from there.

Addicted to Chrysanthemums

2008-07-17T16:17:00.008-05:00

I can't stop making these flowers! They turn out SO wonderfully, no matter what you do! I went a little loco with this one--it has seven rows of petals. The card is 5½" square, so you get an idea how big it ended up!

This is my creation for yesterday's SC185 Sketch Challenge at SCS. I'm not ENTIRELY happy with the rest of the card, but I'll keep looking at it and see if I'm inspired.

Ingredients: SU Cardstock in Summer Sun, Chocolate Chip, Really Rust, Mellow Moss, Old Olive; SU Classic Ink Pads in Pumpkin Pie, Ruby Red, Close to Cocoa, Mellow Moss, Old Olive; Five-Petal Flower punch; Large Oval punch (leaves); Ticket Corner punch; 1/4" Chocolate Chip ribbon; Pewter brads; Stampin' dimensionals; Stampin' sponges; Sponge daubers; Old Olive marker

Thanks for visiting!

Sisters

2008-07-14T09:41:00.006-05:00

Please click on any image to see a larger version!

Wow! This layout is somewhat of a departure for me. Does this paper look familiar? See here for the tutorial where I made it.

I've got a lot of 'Firsts' in this layout:
1) This is the very first time I have EVER glued a photo directly to the base layer. I'm a matter, no question about it, as you can no doubt tell.
2) I had never before done an entire page with just ONE photo.
3) I 'invented' (to my knowledge) a new punch flower (see tutorial).
4) Prior to this layout, I had never freehanded every bit of title text.
5) This is the first time I've used such elaborately stamped paper as my page base.**

Ingredients: Whisper White (base), Bordering Blue (title), Ballet Blue (flower), and Not Quite Navy (mats) cardstock, Small Oval and Five-Petal Flower punches, Silver Hodgepodge Hardware, 1/4" white grosgrain, SU! paper snips.

Did you notice that the title text is kinda wobbly and uneven? Yep. I picked up scraps of Bordering Blue and my papersnips and just started cutting out letters. So they're a little... UNuniform? Each letter taken by itself looks rather questionable, but put together, they look great, I think!

Now here's a close-up of the Hardware on the right-hand page:

And here's a close-up of my totally groovy flower:

And... here's the sketch (available only to demos with access to the demo challenge forum at SCS, and to visitors to my blog) I did for the July 15 Demo Scrapbook Challenge:

**By the way, a friend asked me about my using dye inks to stamp the background paper. Yes, I did use dye inks, and yes, dye inks are at a greater risk of fading over time. I have had Lavender Lace ink fade after two years in indirect sunlight. However, I have a box full of cards and goodies that I made ten years ago (when I first discovered SU!) that are still as vibrant today as when I stamped them. So I'm thinking (i.e. confidently hoping) that the ink formula hasn't changed much in ten years, and that storing stamped art away from harsh light (as scrapbooks generally are) will preserve the integrity of the ink color.

Pretty Bag Tag

2008-07-11T21:56:00.002-05:00

A quickie project for you. I made this bag tag for today's 3D demo challenge on SCS. Front and back are identical.

Ingredients (all SU!): OnBoard Accents (chipboard tag), scraps of Summer Picnic, Spring Break, and Prints Pack papers, Five-Petal Flower punch, Boho Blossoms punch, Pretties rhinestone brads, 1/4" Pumpkin grosgrain, 5/8" Olive grosgrain.

Used my faux chipboard technique to give the five-petal flower some substance. I had originally intended to put my initials in the top blue part, but it just looked too busy to my eye.

Five-Petal Punch Chrysanthemum

2008-07-10T13:29:00.013-05:00

Hey! Welcome to my blog! This post is getting a LOT of traffic lately, and I just wanted to invite you to check out the rest of my blog (at least be sure to check out my Chrysanthemum card here). If you use this technique, I truly do appreciate that you give credit and link to my main page. Thanks! --Stacey ;-)

The idea for this punch flower (about 3" in diameter!) actually came from the large flower stamp in SU's Fabulous Flowers set. It's a large mum, and all the petals are basically the same shape. I got to looking at it and had one of those eureka moments where I had to run excitedly to my craft table to try it. And it worked! The first one I made is pretty basic, and appears on my 'Sisters' layout, which I will post later for the July 15 Demo Scrapbook Challenge. For this tutorial, I've kicked it up a notch.

Here's what you'll need for one Five-Petal Punch Chrysanthemum:
-Five-Petal Flower punch
-Scrap of SU cardstock (I'm using Pretty in Pink)
-At least one ink pad in a related color (I'm using three: Apricot Appeal, Pretty in Pink and Cameo Coral)
-Quarter or sixth of a stampin' sponge
-Paper snips
-Liquid glue (I prefer Tombow's Aqua to the Multi for this)
-Piercing tool and pad (I use a pushpin and thick piece of fun foam)

And here's what to do:
1. For a flower with three 'layers' (as I am doing), punch FOUR Five-Petal Flowers. For a four 'layer' mum, punch SEVEN.
2. Find the center of each punched flower and pierce a hole. (The white piece is my template that I use over and over.)
3. Sponge some color into the centers of the flowers. As you can see, I used Apricot Appeal on one (for my central layer), Pretty in Pink on one (for layer two), and Cameo Coral on two (for layer three).
4. Set your central layer flower aside for a moment. For the remaining three flowers, snip them into petals by starting in a 'V' between petals and snip to the center hole. So you end up with one unsnipped flower, and all the rest snipped into petals (be sure to keep them separated if you use different colors).
5. Apply a small dot of glue to the inside points of the petals for layer two. Quickly press them ink-side up to the back , so that they are centered between the petals of the unsnipped flower.
6. Continue with a third layer of petals, applying a small dot of glue and adhering petals. If desired, continue with a fourth layer.
7. Here, I've added a Boho Blossoms punch flower in Apricot Appeal and secured it with a small brad from the silver Hodgepodge Hardware.
8. Here, I've added Small-Oval punch leaves (cut to a point with papersnips).

Here's a link to a card I did using a 7-layer version of this flower:

DIY Designer Paper

2008-07-09T14:35:00.007-05:00

Click on any image to see a larger version!

I saw a beautiful designer paper recently that came in a large pack of rather mediocre paper. So instead of buying the entire pack (for $20+), I decided I could replicate the general feel of the paper fairly well with stamps and ink. So I gave it a try and am very pleased with the results. This is nice heavy paper (since it uses SU! cardstock), so it's great for scrapbook page bases. It takes time, but cost me nothing (I already had the supplies), and it was so EASY! So easy, in fact, that I made another design, AND put together a very quick tutorial...

Here's what you'll need four two sheets each of two different designs:
-Four sheets of white (or other light colored) 12x12 cardstock
-At least three ink colors. I'm using Bordering Blue, Old Olive, and Rose Red
-Quarter of a Stampin' Sponge
-Stamps. I'm using Baroque Motifs
-'Sanded' background stamp
-Stampin'Around wheel, handle, and ink cartridge. I'm using Baroque Border with Not Quite Navy
-Wheel guide (optional but REALLY handy)

Paper One:
1. Sponge Bordering Blue around the edges of two sheets of white cardstock.
2. This is about what they should look like when you're finished sponging.
3. Stamp your design in bold colors. Here I've used Old Olive ink. The paper looks nice just like this, but I wanted something a bit more colorful.
4. I've added two more rows, one Rose Red and another Old Olive, and now I'm using my Sanded background stamp to distress the paper. I'm just bouncing the stamp on my Bordering ink pad, not bothering to ink the entire surface, and pressing it into white spots on the paper.
5. I've added Bordering swirls using the same stamp that I used for the Olive and Rose stripes. However, I stamped off once onto my workmat before stamping the image onto my paper (so the color is more subdued).
6. A close-up of a portion of the finished design.

Paper Two:
1. Assemble your Stampin' Around wheel in the handle with the ink cartridge and roll out rows of designs. The wheel guide is super handy for this.
2. Again, I distressed with my Sanded background stamp, using Bordering Blue and the same willy-nilly technique.
3. Again, I added muted swirl designs in Bordering, stamping off to tone down the color.
4. A close-up of a portion of the finished design.

Give it a try!

I've been tagged

2008-07-07T22:11:00.010-05:00

I've been tagged! I'm flattered that Dani Miller stampinwithdani.typepad.com finds my blog inspirational enough to tag me! Thanks Dani! Hmm... now I have to come up with seven random or little-known facts to share about me. *adjusting thinkin' cap* Okay, here goes...

1. I grew up military, I was in Germany when the Berlin Wall came down ('85-'91). Attended nine different schools from K-12. Graduated from Kaiserslautern American High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany.
2. I am a published author. Three romance novels (written under pseudonyms) and one anthology are now out of print.
3. My very first rubber stamp was home-made. I was in the fourth grade when I glued cut-up rubber bands to pieces of wood to make cool designs.
4. I'm a nerd! I earned my degree with a 4.0 GPA.
5. I hate to wear shoes (though I love buying them!). As a consequence of my barefoot preference, I have broken eight of my toes at least once each.
6. I hate roller coasters, but love white-water-rafting.
7. I have helped build an igloo in Alaska. (Lived at Eielson '79-'82)

Whew! That was actually rather difficult! Okay, now to tag seven more inspiring blogs...

Kris http://texaskrisstamps.blogspot.com/
Kimber http://kraftykkreations.blogspot.com/
Ann http://nannasinktopaper.blogspot.com/
Krista http://www.krista-kris.blogspot.com/
Jen http://iheart2stamp.com/
Aly http://alystamps.typepad.com/
Jill http://jillstamps.blogspot.com/

Home again, home again, jiggety jog

2008-07-07T07:49:00.002-05:00

I'm back from vacation. I'm in that weird frame of mind where you're reluctant to return to normal boring everyday life, yet eager to return to normal. Does that make sense?

While I was away, the mods at Splitcoast Stampers deemed my humble monthly demo scrapbook challenge worthy of its very own 'room' in the demo challenge forum! I'm very excited! Now all my challenges can be found in one spot! If you have access to the demo forums at SCS, you can check it out here: Monthly Stampalooza Scrapbook Challenge. Be sure to check out the other demo challenges while you're there!

I've been meaning to participate in more demo challenges, but now that I'm back from vacation, I'm gonna buckle down and commit to doing them (i.e, more than just my own!). I've added a line to my SCS signature that keeps track of how many I've done this year, so you can see how I'm doing.

Now... I guess I'd better excavate my craft table so I can make something wonderful to post here on my blog to make up for this pictureless ramble.

Orlando Budget, Baby!

2008-06-18T15:59:00.004-05:00

Isn't this great?! I'm so pleased with how this turned out.

This is an expense record book for our upcoming trip. Each page is a pocket for holding money and/or receipts. Printed on each pocket is space to record budgeted and actual expenses, with six different categories (Meals, Snacks, Fuel, Lodging, Entertainment, and Vehicle Maintenance).

Again, I thoroughly expect this to be abused on the trip, kicked around the floorboards, stuffed into the center console or glove compartment, etc. So I didn't use my good cardstock. I used the el-cheap-o stuff from a mega-pack I bought for my daughter to use (which is so flimsy, I had to use two layers for the front and back covers). The map was printed on plain printer paper from Google. License plate and letters were cut with a Coluzzle template. Ink and markers are SU!

Here's a pic of the inside:

Travel Game!

2008-06-18T15:41:00.002-05:00

So we're planning a trip to Florida this summer... and we're driving... and I'm trying to come up with some activities to keep the kiddos busy that don't take up a lot of space. This is one such endeavor. Two games in one tin--> Tic-Tac-Toe and Tac-Tix (very addictive online version found here.) Each game piece consists of two circles of kraft CS, one circle of the stamped colored CS, and one circle of self-adhesive magnetic backing, all stacked up to give them some thickness. I fully expect the games to be abused during the 40+ hours we'll be on the road, so I purposely kept it REALLY basic and easily replaceable. The game boards were printed from Photoshop on plain printer paper, cut out, with dried two-way glue on the backs. Both are stored on a single piece of acetate. Here's another pic:

I plan to make another version when we get home, with the game boards painted/decoupaged onto the outside of the tin, with better game pieces...

Say What? (June 15 Challenge)

2008-06-15T18:04:00.006-05:00

I've been in a beach-minded mood this month (preparing for a vacation in Florida this summer), so that's what inspired this page--the colors anyway. I don't have a stamp set that I thought really fit with the photos I intend to put on the page, but "Life's a Breeze" is going on my next order. I thought about making it a Father's Day theme with Loads of Love, but decided against that idea. TITLE ADDED DIGITALLY in Photoshop. Font is 'Bud Easy'. I also didn't have any SU DSP that fit with my color scheme, so I made my own (WW paper, markers, and an acrylic grid). Probably will fade over time, I know.

Ingredients: Sahara Sand base, Brocade Blue, Ballet Blue, Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Certainly Celery, and Kraft cardstock, SU Markers, 1" Circle punch, 1¼" Circle Punch, Photo Corners Punch, Small Oval Punch, Large Oval Punch, Five-Petal Flower Punch, brads, circle scissor, Celery and retired Bluebird quarter-inch grosgrain ribbon.
Techniques: Faux chipboard, DIY designer paper

Some detail shots below. Click to see larger version.

Loopy Flower

Chunky 'Button'

Blurry (sorry!) corner detail

Proof (kinda) that I striped the paper myself. If you look closely, you can see the green smudges.

Last, but not least, is the sketch I did for this challenge!

Thanks for looking!

Quick Change

2008-05-16T23:07:00.004-05:00

I dunno. The original layout just didn't seem to mesh with my artistic verve, so I pulled up the photo mats and started fresh. This one still seems a bit plain, but I'm chewing on it (Sheesh, not literally!).

Play It, Sistah!

2008-05-15T19:26:00.004-05:00

Didn't I say that my brain is more in scrapbook mode than card mode lately? And isn't this page fun?! This is the first single-page layout I've done in a very long time. Uses scraps of Bali Breeze paper, SAB rubons, assorted punches, cuttlebug dies, chipboard, bling, and a prima flower. Title was printed from Photoshop at the same time that I printed the photos (font is Badonk-a-donk). I had some creative fun assembling the various flowers.

Particularly Challenging

2008-05-15T12:50:00.005-05:00

This month's challenge was quite a challenge for me, too. I'll explain. I'm part of a group of ladies who do a monthly scrapbook class. My friend Carole (who is my downline) generally puts together two 2-page layouts using one package of designer paper per person. My job is to make the cutting guides for those pages, and I have also been teaching card-making with various stamping techniques. Lately my brain has been more in scrapbook mode than card mode, so this month we're trying something different. Instead of cards, I plan to do two additional layouts. Now the challenge is that the only DSP I can use is whatever's leftover from Carole's layouts, and the cost of the non-DSP supplies for both additional layouts can't be more $5.00 or take too much time to assemble.

Add in a boatload of end-of-year school activities, PTA meetings, and a class to teach at UTA, and play-time to come up with wonderful cheap ideas has been non-existent.

DSP: Bali Breeze
Cardstock: Sahara Sand, Vellum, Purely Pomegranate, Old Olive
Ink: Creamy Caramel (for distressing), Old Olive
Stamp: Sanded
Punches: Horizontal Slot, Boho Blossoms, Five-Petal Flower
Misc: On Board Blossoms & Basics, Purely Pomegranate Satin Ribbon (from the winter mini), pewter brads

This is a close-up of the chipboard flower (in honor of the chipboard sale!). I cut a square of Old Olive, and stamped it with the Sanded BG in Olive. Traced the chipboard piece on the back of the square.

Quick tips for covering chipboard with paper: Put your paper face down on your workspace, then your chipboard piece face down on the paper. Trace around with a pencil, and say if it's a flower, put a dot on the back of one petal of your chipboard flower, and a matching dot on that traced petal on your paper--to help you line it up correctly later. Cut out your shape, glue to chipboard, trim, sand edges.

I've been eyeing my vellum for a while, so I thought this might be a good use for it. Elegant and subdued, but still fun.

This is a close-up of one of the ribbons at the top of the Sahara Sand pieces. I used the Horizontal Slot punch, then threaded 5" pieces of Pomegranate satin ribbon through each. Stapled in place (I used a long-arm stapler to come up from the bottom and staple). Then I put a strip of DSP over the staple.

And here's the sketch I did (and largely ignored!) in the making of this layout:

THANKS FOR VISITING MY BLOG!

It's a Tea Party!

2008-04-16T09:38:00.006-05:00

Click on any of these pics to see a bigger version!

I'm about to post the April 15 DSBC, but wanted to post pics and details here, first. This is a 'cutesy' page, and I guess I was sorta channeling the creative juice of Mary Engelbreit. You can't see it very well, but the squares at the bottom of the left-hand page are watermarked with the cherry stamp. I used faux chipboard for the center of the big loopy flower (I was going for the jumbo-brad look?) and the black paper buttons--except I used all colored cardstock instead of kraft. Title added in photoshop because I don't have pics in mind yet for this layout.

Materials used: Certainly Celery base; Summer Picnic DSP; Real Red, Basic Black and Whisper White cardstock; Celery and Red markers; Versamark ink pad, Signo white gel pen; Photo Corners, Large Oval, Small Oval, 1" circle, 3/4" circle, and 1/16" handheld punches; Crop-A-Dile; Hemp twine; pretties kit brad

Scroll down to the next post to see the sketch.

DETAIL PICS:

Below, a detail of the big loopy flower. I stacked three 1" red circles and glued them together. Then I punched a hole in the center of the stack using the larger punch of the CAD. I then glued one more red circle on top. The hole is for the head of the brad that's holding the loops of the flower together. Plaid stripes and faux stitching added by hand with gel pen. Red circle is attached to the black loops with glue dots.

Below, a detail of the other flower. These are the small ovals left over from making the loopy flower above. I initially punched the 1/16" holes thinking I'd actually put the petals on the post of the brad. But I didn't like how that looked, so I glued them to a 3/4" red circle. Swirlies added by hand with gel pen.

Below are the paper buttons. Love how these turned out. Punched eight 3/4" black circles, glued two stacks of four, marked my holes with a pencil, then punched them with the small punch on the CAD. Sanded the edges just a bit, added hemp twine and frayed it.

Thanks for looking!

New Demo Scrapbook Challenge --sketch

2008-04-16T06:26:00.004-05:00

It's my turn to do the April 15 Demo Scrapbook Challenge! It's gonna be a day late, though. This has been a crazy week, with a science fair AND a PTA meeting already (not to mention last-minute tax filing). So my sample layout is only about half finished. But here's the sketch anyway! (Stay tuned for pics of finished layout!)

Off to work on this.........

Scallop Punch Mum tutorial

2008-04-05T17:02:00.004-05:00

One more flower tutorial today. Click on the pic above to see a bigger version.

1. Assemble your materials and punch one scallop punch and one five-petal flower. (Also whatever flower center you want to use, if any).

2. Ink your punched shapes as desired.

3. On the back side of your scallop punch, use a straight edge (a scrap of cardstock works great) and a pencil to lightly draw lines from from each 'v' between scallops to the 'v' directly opposite. Snip each line about one centimeter (about half way to the center).

4. Locate and pierce a hole in the center of each of your pieces. You can see my five-petal flower template in the pic.

5. On your scallop-punch piece, gently curl every other petal down, or toward the back, with your fingers. Curl the remaining petals up, or toward the front. Gently curl all the petals of the five-petal piece up.

6. Stack and hold it together with a brad.

Hope you enjoyed this!

Loopy Punch Flowers tutorial

2008-04-05T15:28:00.009-05:00

Here's a quick tutorial on how I did the loopy flowers on my scrapbook layout 'She's Got Talent'. You can click on the pics below to see a slightly larger version of it.

We'll go ahead and punch all our oval loops for both flowers. To start with, punch ten small ovals in your cardstock, leaving enough room between to punch the large oval around each. You can use the punched-out ovals for another project (I keep all my extra pieces like that in a soon-to-be-altered Altoids tin).

Now, before we punch the large ovals around our small ovals, we're going to need two different punch styles. For our loops-only flower, we'll need seven oval loops punched off center, so that there's more cardstock on one side than the other. For the remaining three, we need the oval loops punched centered over the smaller oval. I hope the image above makes it a little more clear than my explanation.

Using the Large Oval punch, make SEVEN off-center loops, and THREE centered loops. Set the three centered ones aside for now.

Pierce a hole in the center of the thicker end of each of the off-center loops. If you're using a larger brad (which may be necessary, depending on the thickness of your cardstock), you may want to use the 1/16" circle handheld punch to make these holes.

Punch various pieces for your flower center, locate the center of each, and pierce/punch a hole. I have templates for each, so that I can consistently find the center of a whole batch of little flowers.

Now start to assemble your flower, first stacking your flower centers and inserting brad.

Arrange your loops as you put them on the brad. SU cardstock is really thick, and you'll end up with nine layers right at the center, so you won't have a whole lot of brad left to bend over. If it happens that you have NO brad left to bend over, take your loops off and dab a tiny spot of glue over the pierced hole of every third piece or so as you put them back on, and then a dab of glue on the end. Let dry. The glue will hold the pieces on your brad. You might also want to put a tiny dot of glue in various places where the loops overlap, to keep them in place (so they don't spin out of place on the brad's post).

Here's the finished version of this loopy flower. Lets make the other one.

Retrieve the three 'centered' oval loops you punched earlier. We'll also need a five-petal flower punch and some flower centers.

Cut your loops in half and add some color with sponge daubers, if desired.

Find and pierce the center of your five-petal flower, then turn it over. Adhere five of the half-loops, as illustrated in the picture above. Assemble on your brad with your flower centers.

Here's the finished version of that one.

You can also add five more 'loops'.

She's Got Talent!

2008-04-05T11:24:00.005-05:00

This is my creation for the Demo Scrapbook Challenge for April 1st. It was Susan's turn to do the sketch and she did a fabulous job! The inspiration from the page grew out of the flower on the bottom right. I had made it a few weeks ago when my new small oval punch arrived to go with my large one. On Thursday when I sat down to do the challenge, I had scraps of the two shades of gray laying on my work surface from a previous project. I thought "Hey, that flower would really 'pop' against the gray. What color would be a good background if I did that?" And I went from there. In the pic above, the title and 'journaling' were added in Photoshop (my tentative plan is to use the pages for pics of my daughter in next Friday's talent show).

I had some fun coming up with different-looking flowers using just punches (more economical for classes than the pretties kit). Later today I'll post more detailed photos and instructions for those flowers.

Here's Susan's sketch:

Make a Splash

2008-03-22T14:52:00.003-05:00

I am just tickled with these pages! I used my March 15 Demo Challenge sketch as a starting point, though rotated the page layouts. See the sketch at the bottom of my previous post.

Base is Soft Sky inked with Tempting Turquoise. Basic black for the photo mats, all punched with the 1/4" square punch. Signo gel pen for margin text. Bashful Blue CS and a hobby knife for the stylized water swirls (sponged a tad with Bashful Blue ink). Only Orange and YoYo Yellow for the flowers, punched with 5-Petal and Boho Blossoms punches.

The title was done in Photoshop. I used a portion of the water from another photo in a clipping mask inside the text. Font is Showcard Gothic. Added a few outside strokes, printed on photo paper, and cut out. Popped up on dimensionals.

Thanks for visiting!

Santa Elena Canyon layout

2008-03-14T23:41:00.005-05:00

This is my sample for the March 15th Demo Scrapbook Challenge at SCS!

I used Spring Break DSP again (versatile stuff!), and for the first time ever ran a scrapbook page through my sewing machine. I started out using hardware store jute twine on the big flower, but decided against it when I put my photos in. The twine is sheddy and stinky, and ended up being too bulky. The only stamps used are the retired Letterpress alphabet.

I think the hardest part of this layout was cutting out the letters for the title! Easy stuff.

Stamps: Letterpress alphabet (retired)
Paper: River Rock, Blue Bayou, Old Olive, Spring Break
Ink: Classic Olive & Bayou, Craft Olive
Accessories: Felt Flowers, 5-Petal Flower punch, Photo Corners punch

Oh, and here's the sketch I did for the challenge:

More Stamps for Sale

2008-03-06T11:02:00.006-06:00

Cleaning out again, and have another batch of retired stamp sets to offer...

Along the Same Lines -- 2005-06 Level 2 Hostess set. Words mounted separately on side. $10.00

Alphabet Soup -- 2006 Sell-A-Bration set. $7.00

Best Blossoms -- SOLD

Fresh Fillers -- SOLD

Gently Falling -- 2006 Sell-A-Bration set. $7.00

Boho-timous Layout

2008-03-03T13:54:00.002-06:00

This is a layout done for a scrapbook sketch over in the demo forum at SCS. It's odd, but having a challenge makes my brain work better. And this one was especially easy because those dark blue mats are just untrimmed 8-1/2x11" pieces of cardstock. No measuring necessary!

Of course I've misplaced my coluzzle circle template, so I had to cut all those circles by hand (for the green ones I traced around the top of a EP container, for the white 'photo' ones I traced around the bottom.) They're a little wobbly in places, but they work!

Stamps: Boho Backgrounds
Ink: Bayou Blue, Pumpkin Pie, Soft Sky, Old Olive
Paper: Same as Ink, kraft, Spring Break DSP
Punches: Round Tab, 5-Petal flower, 1/2" Circle, Photo Corners

Here's the sketch I worked from:

Tangy Turquoise!

2008-03-01T17:28:00.007-06:00

This is a card I did yesterday, and I'm just tickled with the way it turned out! It consists of a Tempting Turquoise card base sponged with TT ink to give some tonal variations. Over that is a piece of Cuttlebug-embossed acetate (overhead projector film rescued from the recycle bin at my kids' school). Faux-chipboard orange pieces are adhered to a distressed piece of Pumpkin Pie. Faux-chipboard word window with eyelets adhered at bottom. See tutorial below on making the faux chipboard elements. (For each 'chipboard' element on this card, I used three pieces of kraft CS and one non-kraft piece rather than four kraft pieces).

Stamps: Tart & Tangy, Celebrate Everything
Paper: Tempting Turquoise, Pumpkin Pie, W. White, Kraft, Summer Sun, acetate
Ink: Summer Sun, Pumpkin Pie, Tempting Turquoise
Accessories: Word Window punch, 1-1/4" Circle punch, Cuttlebug & embossing folder, Crop-a-Dile, eyelets.
Techniques: Rock-n-Roll, faux chipboard

DIY Chipboard Shapes (or 'Faux Chipboard')

2008-03-01T16:46:00.013-06:00

I've grown partial to chipboard shapes for cards and scrapbook pages lately. They come in various large assortments (from SU! anyway), but what if you want 30 large chipboard photo corners for a scrapbook class? You'd have to order six packs of OnBoard Blossoms and Basics at $15 each. YIKES! And you'd have a whole lot of extra shapes that you'd need to figure out how to use.

This was my dilemma recently. I'm certainly not spending $90 for 30 chipboard photo corners, so I had to come up with another solution. I really didn't want 'flat' photo corners, but.... What if I stacked up four or five punched shapes and glued them together like plywood? That would give me the bulk of chipboard without the expense. All I'd need would be my photo corners punch, a bottle of glue, and three sheets of kraft cardstock.

IT WORKED!

Here's How I did it: First assemble your supplies (I'm using scraps for now), and punch out four identical shapes.

Now apply liquid glue to top of one your pieces. Not too much or it will squish out the sides. Be sure to dab glue in any corners. (I prefer the Tombow Mono Aqua glue over the Tombow Mono Multi for this project. The Aqua dries STIFF and non-tacky, more like chipboard. The Multi remains flexible and sticky.)

Now carefully lay another punched shape on the glue and slide around so that it is exactly on top of the previous shape. Repeat two more times. You'll end up with a thick, rigid shape, very much like chipboard.

What's cool about this is that it works with just about any punch you have (obviously the corner rounder, ticket corner and such won't work).

(Incidentally, I don't plan to glue all 30 photo corners. I plan to put the punched shapes in the kit bag and have each participant glue their own.)

Give it a try!

Cool Summer Picnic

2008-02-16T13:38:00.008-06:00

Click on the pic to see a larger version! I am really pleased how this turned out. It's the first time I've attempted a scrapbook layout using ONLY Stampin' Up! products. The DSP is from the Summer Picnic pack in the 2008 Occasions Mini (available March 1st). You might not be able to see it clearly, but the light blue paper has a white dotted pattern.

The white photo cards AND the photo corners are held on with 2-way glue (I let it dry before sticking down), so those things can easily be removed and real photos put in and adhered permanently with different adhesive when I'm ready to do that. Also, I used chipboard circles from the OnBoard Accents pack, but you could just as easily punch 1-1/4" circles out of kraft cardstock.

Stamps: So Cool
Papers: Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, Real Red, Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Summer Picnic DSP
Inks: Creamy Caramel, Real Red, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Bashful Blue (all used for inking edges of elements)
Markers: RR, OO, PP, BB, Basic Black
Punches: Round Tab, Photo Corners, 1" Circle, 1/2" Circle
Other: On Board Accents (chipboard circles), pewter brads, Pumpkin Pie ribbon, 2-Way glue pen, Mono Multi, Glue Dots, Stampin' dimensionals, Crop-A-Dile, sanding block

Here's the preliminary sketch I did before starting. As you can see, the design evolved.

Always Subtle

2008-01-25T10:46:00.000-06:00

This card was interesting to make. I don't normally put this many steps into a card--especially when I'm making 20+ of them, but this design had to be professional quality. I started with Very Vanilla and trimmed it down to the size I wanted, then stamped the berry branch from the Always set in Versamark. Heat embossed with white embossing powder. That was stunning by itself, the white-on-vanilla look, but I wanted to increase the contrast a bit. So I used a stippling brush to swirl Creamy Caramel ink over the cardstock for a subtle emboss-resist effect. I punched the corners with the ticket corner punch, then matted it to a piece of Creamy Caramel (after punching those corners as well).

Those pieces sat around for about a week while I decided how I wanted to finish them. When I finally narrowed it down, I sat down and stamped out a bunch of hearts from the Always set in Mellow Moss on white. Then I carefully cut them all out, leaving off the dots around the outside edges. Though you can't really see it in this pic, the edges of the center heart are distressed with a sanding block. It's mounted on a dimensional. The others are just glued directly to the vanilla piece. Tied hemp twine around the vanilla/caramel piece. Tied a bit of Mellow Moss around the twine knot, trimmed the ends, then glued the whole thing to a Mellow Moss card base. One of the small sentiments from the Always set can be stamped inside.

So here's a summary:
Stamps: Always
Paper: V. Vanilla, W. White, Mellow Moss, Creamy Caramel
Ink: Versamark, Creamy Caramel, Mellow Moss
Accessories: White embossing powder, stipple brush, heat gun, sanding block, Mellow Moss ribbon, natural hemp twine, dimensional, liquid glue

Still here

2007-12-10T08:24:00.003-06:00

Sorry it's been nearly two months since my last update. A car accident and kidney surgery have really gotten in the way of my stamping time! More stampin' project updates coming soon, I promise!

2007-10-13T22:15:00.000-05:00

Another design for my November SAS. I love this card, and will very likely use this design for my personal holiday cards!

Stamps: Season of Joy
Paper: Whisper White, Certainly Celery, Real Red
Ink: White Craft, Certainly Celery
Accessories: R.Red, C. Celery markers, 1/4" R.Red ribbon, ticket corner punch
Non SU!: Cuttlebug snowflake embossing folder and slider die

Cheerful Wishes

2007-10-13T22:04:00.000-05:00

This is one of the designs I have planned for my November Stamp-A-Stack. I don't see this stamp set used very much, but I think it's cute.

Stamps: Wishing You Cheer
Paper: Whisper White, Bashful Blue, Night of Navy
Ink: Versamark, Basic Black, Bashful Blue, Night of Navy
Accessories: Irridescent Ice EP, 1" Circle punch, tag corner punch, N.Navy marker, 1/4" Brocade Blue ribbon (retired)
Non-SU!: Cuttlebug swirls embossing folder and snowflake die.

Craft Fair Swap

2007-10-13T20:53:00.000-05:00

These are set to go out in Monday's mail for a craft fair ideas swap (there are three more). It's another version of my gratitude journal, this time with Daisy D's Vintage Paisley paper and SU!'s In the Spotlight hostess set. Barely Banana, Pumpkin Pie, and Very Vanilla cardstock, Stampin' Write markers, Really Rust ink around the Barely Banana, Versamark on the tab, 1/4" square punch and round tab punch.

An inkpad holder for $6?

2007-10-13T13:59:00.005-05:00

Yep, that's how much this thing cost me. Of course it required some careful measuring and a bit of effort, but two sheets of foam core are all I had to buy. And I still have half a sheet left over. It honestly took me three times longer to put together instructions and pattern pieces to share than to actually make the thing. (Can you tell I'm still working on completing my color collections? I'm about to order the rest of the Bold Brights. Then the Soft Subtles for Christmas!)

***PLEASE do not even consider using these instructions to build inkpad holders for sale! I clearly ask, both in the PDF file and below, that you not use my FREE instructions for monetary gain. I chose to make these instructions freely available for personal use only. Please do not abuse my gift. ***

You can download a PDF instruction file here. This file is COPYRIGHTED, so please do not distribute it! Please only use these instructions for your personal, non-commercial use. Do not use it for ANY commercial gain. PLEASE DO NOT ASK ME TO EMAIL IT TO YOU.

Check out Jamie's holder made with my tutorial!
And here's Tiffany's modified version for her ribbon!
And here's Annie's holder!
Check out Kimberly's holder, and her modifications!

Additional views:

True Friend Gratitude Journal

2007-10-04T11:03:00.000-05:00

I've been playing around with ideas for the craft fair swap I'm in. This is one of those mini-composition books (Walmart, 77¢). I figured they'd make wonderful little gratitude journals.

Stamps: True Friend
Paper: Cat Stripes from Déjà Views, Old Olive, Almost Amethyst, Really Rust
Ink: Versamark, Basic Brown (inking edges of paper)
Other: SU! markers, generic glass beads and head pins, ¼" square punch, round tab punch

Retired SU! Stamps for sale!

2007-10-04T08:29:00.007-05:00

I'm cleaning off my stamp shelves, deciding what I want to keep and unmount, and what I can do without. Here's the first batch of 'To Go' sets. Prices do not include shipping. (Figure about $5 for Priority mail within the US, and I can fit two, possibly three sets into one envelope).

Birthday Best -- Largest three blocks are 2.25 x 1.25 inches. $6.00

Olive You -- All blocks are 2.25 x 2 inches. Words are mounted separately on the ends of the blocks. $8.00

Painted Posies -- SOLD

Send A Celebration -- SOLD

Blush Doodles

2007-10-02T12:05:00.001-05:00

Okay, so it took about 20 minutes to get something ready to post. This is a card I did last week. I've been in a stamping slump for a while, so this card, while very simple, still took me several hours to make. Couldn't decide what colors I wanted to use with the Blush Blossom flower. Couldn't decide whether I wanted to add ribbon or not...

All supplies from Stampin' Up!
Stamps: Doodle This
Paper: Blush Blossom, Blue Bayou, Whisper White, Soft Sky
Ink: Versamark, Groovy Guava, Blue Bayou, Old Olive
Markers: Blush Blossom & Pretty in Pink on flower, Old Olive
Other: Clear embossing powder, silver brads

Blackbean and Corn Chili

2007-10-02T11:23:00.000-05:00

This is totally unrelated to stamping, but since I don't have other stuff ready to post yet, I thought I'd share a recipe I recently sent to a friend.

This is made in one pan, so cleanup is easy. You can make it as bold as you like. My kiddos like it spicy. I frequently make a double batch and freeze half in single-serving containers (easy lunches for DH and me). Best of all, if you use low-salt versions, it's really healthful. Low fat, low cal, high protein.

STACEY'S BLACKBEAN AND CORN CHILI

INGREDIENTS
1 lb lean ground turkey or beef
1 envelope burrito, taco, or chili seasoning (this is where you determine the heat factor)
15-oz can blackbeans
15-oz can whole-kernel corn
15-oz can diced tomatoes (the kind with seasoning or chilis are great, but not necessary)

DIRECTIONS
In a deep nonstick pan (I use my dutch oven), brown the ground meat. If you use lean meat, you won't have much fat, so pouring it off is unnecessary. Add envelope of seasoning and stir. Dump in corn, beans, and tomatoes (all UNDRAINED--just open and dump) and stir thoroughly. Heat through. Add additional cayenne, chili powder, garlic and/or onion salt to taste.