One more tag…

Posted on August 18, 2014 by mauistamper

This one is from Collage Tag Class a couple of weeks ago:

Stamps: Kinda Eclectic
Color Palette: Crumb Cake, Hello Honey, Blackberry Bliss, Coastal Cabana, Very Vanilla
Accessories: Big Shot and Apothecary Accents Framelits, Vintage Faceted Buttons, Tea Lace Doilies, Jute Ribbon, Elegant and Bitty Butterfly punches, Crumb Cake Seam Binding, Coastal Cabana Thick Twine

This is an “everything but the kitchen sink” kind of tag. In class, everyone had a lot of fun adapting and improvising – which is the name of the game!

One little detail I should point out: I pulled out the stitching on the side of the jute ribbon (yeah, I’ll admit it – it was a pain) in order to unravel the ribbon to create this fringe. It was worth the trouble.

Shop for supplies HERE.

A Tag Makes the Package

Posted on August 16, 2014 by mauistamper

I’m in love with all of our 2014-2015 Host Stamps – this one is I Like You, and it’s a natural to color with Blendabilities!

I chose Rich Razzleberry for the flowers to compliment the retired ribbon from ages ago, and added a bit of Daffodil Delight and Old Olive for accent. It was a very quick, easy tag to put together and I think it makes the package!

Shop for Blendabilities HERE

A Sweet and Feminine Tag

Posted on August 11, 2014 by mauistamper

One of the tags we made in the Collage Tags class a week ago was this Blush Blossom confection:

Stamps: Dictionary, Gorgeous Grunge, Kinda Eclectic, Mixed Bunch, Flower Shop, Four You
Color Palette: Blush Blossom, Whisper White, Soft Suede, Old Olive
Accessories: Big Shot and Ovals Framelits, Blossom, Pansy and Petite Petals punches, Little Labels Punch Pack, Antique Brads, White Bakers Twine, Old Olive 1/8″ Taffeta Ribbon, 5/8″ Organza Ribbon, Stampin’ Sponges

Everyone’s tags turned out a little differently – because everyone stamps a little differently! Collage is such a fun technique, but it does take a LOT of different images to work.

The flower is punched and stacked. I used a birthday greeting on this one, but it would be a beautiful bridal or baby shower tag too. Have fun with it!

August 2014 DIY Easel Calendar: For the Birds

Posted on August 1, 2014 by mauistamper

It’s summer, glorious summer! Here’s my August 2014 Easel Calendar page:

I’m so glad For the Birds carried over into the 2014-2015 Annual Catalog. I love these whimsical little images!! And if you’ve got a sharp eye, you’ll realize I’ve colored this with my Blendabilities. They are my absolute go-to choice for coloring!

Take a look and see what Cheryl and Crystal have done with their calendars this month. I’m sure you’ll enjoy our mini-tour!

Oh, and here are the Weekly Deals good through Monday August 4:

Inspire.Create.Share.2014: Collage Tags

Posted on July 16, 2014 by mauistamper

Shhh…don’t tell…this is a Convention Swap sneak peek:

Stamps: An Open Heart, Project Life Point and Click, Project Life Day to Day, Postage Due, World Map, Gorgeous Grunge
Color Palette: Naturals Ivory, Mossy Meadow, Calypso Coral, Soft Suede, Crumb Cake, So Saffron, Encore Gold
Accessories: Circles Framelits, Aqua Painter, Linen Thread, 3/4″ and 1/2″ circle punches, 1/4″ hand held punch, 7/8″ Cotton ribbon, 3/8″ Stitched Satin ribbon, Thick Bakers Twine, Stampin’ Dimensionals

Although there are a lot of different elements to this tag, none of them are difficult to execute. I did fussy-cut the bird (LOVE THE BIRD) but World Cup soccer came to the rescue there. (I’m grateful it happened when it did as it was my entertainment while I was sick for 5 days, but I’m glad it’s over. Sheesh. That was a lot of Futbol.)

I’m really excited to see the tags the other swappers have to share! Convention is always such a great source of inspiration.

If you live – or will be visiting – Maui, I’m offering a Collage Tag class on Sunday, August 2nd from 1 to 3pm. We’ll make this tag and two others – let me know if you’d like to join us!

Hip Hip Hooray!! It’s July!!

Posted on July 1, 2014 by mauistamper

Happy Star-spangled month to you!

Every year I tell myself I’m going to do something besides Red-White-And-Blue for July, and every year I cave in and go patriotic. It’s just one of those things!

Stamps: Yippee Skippee and Gorgeous Grunge
Color Palette: Real Red and (recently retired) Midnight Muse
Accessories: Rhinestones and Stampin’ Dimensionals

Take a look and see what Cheryl and Crystal have done with their calendars this month. Hope you enjoy seeing our DIY Calendar mini-tour!

I would gladly pay you Tuesday…

Posted on June 12, 2014 by mauistamper

for a RemARKable HAMBURGER BOX today! Ah yes, Welcome to the RemARKable Pinworthy Blog Tour, where anything can happen!

Is this the cutest thing EVER? (Sorry, I know I’m shouting.) I am enchanted, delighted, smitten with the Hamburger Box! My initial thought was to create a 3-D birthday cake on the top of the box, but that idea refused to leave the confines of my head. So I cheerfully stacked up a heap of 1 1/4″ circles, put a shredded ribbon across the top and topped it with what else – a flower:

Stamps: Four You, Chevron and Oh Goodie (Holiday Carryover list)
Color Palette: Island Indigo, Hello Honey, Wild Wasabi and Whisper White
Accessories: Hamburger Box Bigz XL, 1 3/4″ Scallop circle punch, 1 1/4″ circle punch, Petite Petals punch, Regals Designer Buttons, Crushed Curry Bakers Twine, 5/8″ Satin Ribbon, Perfect Dots TIEF

When the outside is this cute, you’ve got to step it up inside, don’t you think?

You were wondering where that Oh Goodie part came in, weren’t you? When a little goodie goes into this box, it’s going to be wrapped in cello so those banners don’t get all gooey.

Hope you’ve enjoyed – be sure to continue the tour to see what the other RemARKables are sharing with you for the first tour of the new catalog!

Your next stop is The Crafty Yogi, and I’m sure Audra will inspire you!

A Saffron Pear by the Pool…

Posted on June 7, 2014 by mauistamper

I’ve spent a couple of days since my return from Merry Olde England playing with color and today it’s all about my favorite combination: shades of yellow, blue and green. Specifically, I’ve chosen So Saffron, Pear Pizazz and Pool Party:

Stamps: Work of Art
Color Palette: So Saffron, Pear Pizazz and Pool Party, plus a little Coastal Cabana
Accessories: Daffodil Delight Seam Binding, Candy Dots, Large oval punch, Oval Framelits, Stampin’ Dimensionals

The chevrons in the Work of Art stamp set are super easy to line up. I generally have serious issues with that sort of alignment, but this as a happy surprise. I also broke all the color-coordinating rules in this one – sort of. I used Coastal Cabana Ink and Pool Party card stock. I chose So Saffron ink and a Candy Dot but I used the Daffodil Delight Seam Binding. Walkin’ on the wild side, I guess. Speaking of…

We spent the first week that we were in England in the Cotswolds, exploring a different town each day. We’d seen a photo of this door, and when we were in Stow-on-the-Wold my son said he thought it was nearby. We walked around the perimeter of St. Edward’s Church and there it was – how could we not take a photo?

It wasn’t as cold as we make it look, but remember, we’re from Maui. I put on a sweater when it gets to 76°. The weather was lovely, although I’m pretty sure it drizzled off and on this day. There were some glorious views through the clouds, though:

Even through the windshield you can appreciate the glorious blues, greens and yellows!! Enjoy!

Bloomin’ June

Posted on June 1, 2014 by mauistamper

Although parts of the country were extremely dry this year, we had more rain than usual on the Valley Isle. As a result, it seems that anything that could bloom is blooming. That includes my June calendar:

I’ve been slightly obsessed with birds recently. This one is looking for a little snack beneath the flower bed.

I used Petite Petals and Everything Eleanor for this calendar page, and did a little bit of masking to create some dimension amongst the flowers. These calendars are fun precisely because the area to embellish is small, and it’s more of a challenge than you might think to get the image balance right. A little sparkle makes it all work out…

You may be wondering where I’ve been…it’s been a while since I’ve posted. My family is literally spread across the world from Western Australia to Boston, Massachusetts. Mr. Maui Stamper and I got it into our heads that we should have a reunion, and that a nice middle spot would be in England. We had a fabulous time with the family, including loads of sight-seeing, great food, and of course photos. My son was tremendously amused when I tried to take a selfie with the Tower Bridge in the background, and once he started taking pictures of me taking pictures of myself…well, it was pretty hopeless:

At least I ended up with a photo – or three – of myself with the Tower Bridge in the background.

There are three of us posting these little calendar pages today – take a look and see what Cheryl and Crystal have done with their calendars this month. I’m pretty sure they’re not posting selfies.

the May Paper Pumpkin

Posted on May 20, 2014 by mauistamper

Have you tried My Paper Pumpkin?

I had some fun with the kit for May:

Love the stamps that come with these kits! They’re so fresh and fun. And I couldn’t resist making it REALLY 3-D:

I wanted to play with that chubby bird from Betsy’s Blooms. I haven’t used that set much lately but I’m fond of that goofy birds. Actually, I’m fond of birds in general.

Im also going to miss those Lovely Words. I like the font and I like the words themselves. But it’s time to make room for new things.