Category Archives: cards

Beautiful crochet lace

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I can’t believe it took me so long to use this lace!  Sometimes I’m stubborn about using something new like that.  I should have gotten over it sooner.

All of the images in the Just Believe stamp set are gorgeous, but I found myself returning to that same fabulous wildflower bouquet image so I challenged myself.  Yeah, I do that…sometimes with rather disastrous results.  I’m happy to report that this time the results were kinda cool – at least I thought so:

Just Believe Thanks in Jewel colors

  • Just Believe, En Francais and Vintage Vogue stamp sets
  • Whisper White, Concord Crush, Always Artichoke and Riding Hood Red card stock
  • Always Artichoke and Concord Crush Classic ink pads
  • Riding Hood Red and Concord Crush Stampin’ Write markers; Blender pen
  • Corner rounder, Crop-a-dile, Big Shot and Top Note Bigz die
  • Victoria Crochet Trim and Antique brads

I did NOT have to use the Stamp-a-ma-jig for the sentiment in the middle of the label because with our beautiful Clear Mount stamps I could see just where to put it!  I like that 🙂  I also fell in love with this color combination so watch for it again.

This has a real vintage feeling with the brad and that gorgeous crochet lace ribbon.  It’s really soft and easy to work with, and I’m looking forward to using it for some of my holiday projects.  There are some beautiful new products in the Stampin’ Up! Holiday Mini that will be available to the general public on September 1 – be sure you check with your demonstrator to be sure your copy is on the way!

Missed it by that much…

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Anybody else an old Maxwell Smart fan?  I loved Get Smart back in the day, but I thought the movie was dumb.  Some things shouldn’t be re-done.

Anyway, what does all this have to do with the price of tea in China?  (My we ARE digging out the old chestnuts today!)  I had the ColourQ 45 Challenge colors listed on my craft table all week and finally finished the card yesterday, only to realize that I’d just missed the posting deadline.   Well, I missed being considered for Colour Queen, but of course I can still upload to the site.  Would you vote for me?

ColourQ45 Believing is Seeing

  • Just Believe stamp set
  • Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise, Early Espresso and Wild Wasabi card stock
  • Wild Wasabi and Early Espresso Classic ink pads
  • Regal Rose and Rose Red Stampin’ Write markers
  • Big Shot and Lattice Embossing folder; Stampin’ Dimensionals
  • Pretty in Pink 3/8 inch taffeta ribbon and Pearls Stick-on Jewels

I couldn’t get into the Tempting Turquoise in the Colour Q scheme, and I thought I would be really sneaky and just put a teeny tiny border in to satisfy the requirements.  Who would have guessed that it would work so well??  I was astonished to say the least.

Today’s ribbon treatment does NOT involve sticky, tacky adhesive, thank you very much.  There’s a simple running stitch on one side of a 2 inch scrap of ribbon, pulled together and knotted to make a half-rosette.  A pair of those are on either side of the sentiment and I am very pleased with they way they turned out.  I’m sure someone has done this before but I haven’t seen it done so for now I am claiming this brilliant concept.

You know you’re gonna need this stamp set…

Bubbly Circles Under the Sea

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I am fascinated with color.  I love to explore the moods of individual colors and color combinations, to mix and match different tones and hues of the same colors.  You know where this is going, don’t you?  Yep – blues and greens.

Circle Circus Blues and Greens

  • Circle Circus and Word Play stamp sets
  • Whisper White, Baja Breeze, Wild Wasabi and Rich Razzleberry card stock
  • Baja Breeze and Wild Wasabi Classic ink pads
  • Whisper White Craft ink pad and White Embossing powder
  • Big Shot and Elegant Lines Embossing Folder
  • Scallop Border and XL Decorative Label punches
  • Brights Designer Buttons and white crochet thread

Don’t you love the Razzleberry with Baja and Wasabi?

The bubbly circle cracks me up.  No particular reason, it just makes me laugh.  Maybe I watched the Little Mermaid with my daughters too many times, but I keep thinking of all those undersea creatures talking underwater.  It seemed to me at the time that they needed little bubbles floating up when they talked, but that could just be the effects of being a SAHM with three active kids.

I love our Linen Thread, but I couldn’t bring myself to use it with all the crisp white on this card.

Back to the Circle Circus

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When is a circle more than a circle?  When it collaborates with others to form a topiary:

Circle Circus matter of Moments

  • Circle Circus and Elements of Style stamp sets; Vintage Vogue wheel
  • Whisper White, Daffodil Delight, Cajun Craze, Crumb Cake and Certainly Celery card stock
  • Cajun Craze, Crumb Cake and Certainly Celery Classic ink pads
  • Modern Label punch, XL Decorative Label punch (Holiday Mini), various circle punches
  • Big Shot, Top Note die and Lattice Impressions folder
  • Hemp twine, Antique Brads, Stampin’ Sponges and Stampin’ Dimensionals

I had the brilliant idea to twist two strands of Hemp Twine together to make the trunk of the topiary, but my execution was flawed – there’s not enough space between the “topes” and you can hardly see it.  This card is finished, but I’ll be back to the drawing board to try that one again.

The new XL Decorative Label punch makes a pretty terra cotta planter, doesn’t it?  I cut it in half and sponged it with Cajun Craze and Old Olive.  I was trying to get a moss-stained look but I think it would be more effective on a lighter color of cardstock – next time I’ll try Peach Parfait.  Oh, and please don’t judge Daffodil Delight – that’s operator error with the camera.  It’s a lovely buttery shade, not that bright yo yo color!

Circling around the Mojo

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It’s been ages since I’ve played a challenge.  I’ve had a lot of specific projects on my inspiration board and there wasn’t room for anything else.  Last night I finally had a chance to browse through some of my favorite blogs – talk about a pleasure! – and when I got to Mojo Monday I decided I’d done enough looking and headed up for some ink-to-the-paper stamping!

Mojo Monday 151 Circle Circuis

There’s a lot going on here, so bear with me:

  • Circle Circus and Fabulous Phrases stamp sets
  • Cornelli Lace Jumbo Stampin’ Around Wheel
  • Whisper White, Real Red and Basic Black card stock
  • Real Red and Basic Black Classic ink pads
  • Real Red 1/8″ taffeta and 5/8″ satin ribbon; Basic Black 5/8″ satin ribbon
  • 1 3/4″ Circle, Modern Label and Scallop Edge Border punches
  • Big Shot and the Square Lattice and Vintage Wallpaper Embossing folders
  • a small hand-held circle punch and Stampin’ Dimensionals

I’m sure I forgot to list something!

I’ll tell you the truth:  that greeting is adhered with Dotto repositionable adhesive.  I’m not certain I like it, but time will tell.  The stamped Real Red image from Circle Circus is hand cut (gasp! I know…) because I wanted it to fit Just So on the black circle.  It had to be done.  I used tiny black circles of cardstock for the faux brads on the sentiment because the real thing overwhelmed the project.    There are a lot of discarded bits and pieces on my craft table left over from this project, but it was satisfying to finish.

I didn’t buy Circle Circus when it was released as a preview set a year or two ago.  Because it was a sneak peak, there were Circle Circus cards everywhere and I grew weary of it.  I finally gave in and bought it with this year’s new catalog because I saw something really creative and had a brilliant inspiration to make that idea better.  (It’s coming, it’s just not done yet – Mojo Monday got in the way.)  I’m glad it’s on my shelf now.  You’ll see it again soon.

Thanks, Friends

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Here’s the final card in my “Friends Never Fade/Greenhouse Garden” suite:

Friends Never Fade in Pear Pizazz

  • Friends Never Fade and Fabulous Phrases stamp sets
  • Whisper White, Marina Mist, Chocolate Chip and Pear Pizazz card stock
  • Greenhouse Garden Designer Series Paper
  • Pear Pizazz and Chocolate Chip Classic ink pads
  • Pear Pizazz, Chocolate Chip, Marina Mist and Pumpkin Pie Stampin’ Write markers
  • 1 3/4″ circle, 2 3/8″ scallop circle, and scallop trim border punches
  • Pumpkin Pie 1/4″ grosgrain ribbon

I love that artichokey-pineappley-image and I especially love seeing it repeated in the paper and the stamp.  What a perfect example of Stampin’ Up! coordination:  paper, stamps, colors…everything works together.  Back in my BSU (Before-Stampin’-Up!) days I would have gone crazy trying to put something like this together.  Oh, and I really love the font used for Fabulous Phrases.

A friend and I were talking about Thanksgiving the other day.  She reflected on how wonderful it is to set aside a day to be grateful for your blessings.  Although I’ve always thought of Thanksgiving in that way, something about our conversation put me in a different frame of mind about that concept of gratitude.  Our family focuses on our blessings at Thanksgiving, but I can’t really say I’ve made an effort to personally express my gratitude.  That seems like a very appropriate way to celebrate Thanksgiving.   I need more “thanks” cards.

Blue and green…my favorite combination

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You didn’t think I’d show you all the cards I made in one post, did you?

Friends Never Fade in Marina

  • Friends Never Fade, Inspired by Nature and Wonderfully Worn stamp sets
  • Whisper White, Chocolate Chip and Marina Mist cardstock
  • Greenhouse Garden Designer Series Paper
  • Marina Mist,  Pear Pizazz, Daffodil Delight and Chocolate Chip classic ink pads
  • Chocolate Chip Satin Ribbon (retired, substitute Early Espresso)
  • Stampin’ Dimensionals; brayer

I think I love the monochromatic designs in the Greenhouse Gardens Designer Series Papers as much as if not more than the beautiful multi-colored pages.  And in case you haven’t figured it out, blue and green is my all-time favorite color combination ever.  It doesn’t matter which blue or which green – but don’t go trying to find some hideous combination and make me look ridiculous, ok?  You know what I mean.

This is my debut of the Wonderfully Worn background stamp.  You know I’m a tone-on-tone kinda girl, and this stamp is perfect for adding just a little depth to a layer without being distracting.    Just to be thorough, let me remind you that the best way to cover a background stamp is to brayer it – it’s the easiest method for getting an even coat of ink.

You could so cut that yellow center out with the 3/4″ circle punch, but it wasn’t doing it for me so I trimmed it with my paper snips.

Friends Never Fade, Baggy

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Yesterday I had a short window of time to make some cards.  It seems like it’s been ages since I’ve had the opportunity to sit and let the mojo have its way.  I didn’t want to do a challenge or make a card for a specific purpose, I just wanted to stamp.  It felt really luxurious to begin that way.

I decided to play with the Friends Never Fade stamp set and Greenhouse Garden Designer Series papers.  Using the papers gave me a general color palette to work with but it wasn’t as restrictive as a challenge.   My time was limited but my results were very satisfying:

Friends Never Fade in Espresso

  • Friends Never Fade and Fabulous Phrases stamp sets
  • Whisper White, Pumpkin Pie, and Early Espresso cardstock
  • Early Espresso and Pumpkin Pie Classic ink pads
  • Early Espresso and Pear Pizazz Stampin’ Write markers; Blender Pen
  • Pear Pizazz 1/2″ ribbon, Linen thread and Crop-a-dile
  • Big Shot and Elegant Lines Embossing Folder

I love the look that hand-coloring a stamp gives, but it does get a little tedious.  This time I inked the flower image in Pumpkin Pie and then used the blender pen to remove the ink from the stem bits so that I could add Pear Pizazz with a Stampin’ Write marker.  I added the Espresso accent in the middle of the flower right over the top of the Pumpkin Pie because I’m lazy like that.  There are little bits and edges of Pumpkin Pie ink on the stem and I like the feeling that creates…a little edgy.

If you don’t have a Big Shot, please don’t pay any attention to the Elegant Lines folder because it will just make you flat-out crazy.  If you do have a Big Shot, I hope you’ve already ordered this folder – if you haven’t, what are you waiting for???

That funny little not-knot on the ribbon has been popping up on samples all over the place and I decided it was time I got with the program.  Do you remember Baloo telling Bagheera “Get with the beat, Baggy!” in the Disney version of Jungle Book?  That’s the phrase that always comes to mind when I’m trying to update myself.  (Can you tell how old my children are by the Disney movies I have watched so often they are committed to memory?   I can sing all of the songs, too.)

Enough silliness.  Time to get with the beat.

I believe this is my favorite…

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It’s a gorgeous day today and it started in the best possible way with Irene’s gentle yoga class at Kihei Community Yoga.  Everything gets put in the right place when I make the time for that class, and it helps me be energized and centered.  It’s a  perfect start for a busy week.

Today I’m sharing my absolute favorite Make-and-Take from convention.  If you’ve read my last post you won’t be at all surprised to find we used Just Believe (wood mount #116948 $33.95, clear mount #120453 $25.95) for this project.  Honestly, you need this stamp set!

Watercolor Just Believe from Stampin' Up! 2010 convention

  • Just Believe stamp set
  • Not Quite Navy and Bashful Blue card stock; Watercolor paper
  • Not Quite Navy, Bashful Blue, Old Olive and Pear Pizazz Stampin’ Write markers
  • Old Olive Satin ribbon; Brights Designer Buttons; Linen thread
  • Color Spritzer tool;  small spray bottle filled with water

I’m thrilled with the look of this card.  The image is colored with markers and then lightly spritzed with water before being stamped on watercolor paper.  Everyone at my table got different results depending on how they used the markers and how they spritzed the stamp, but each card was uniquely beautiful.   I still struggle with tearing – I’m too particular by nature to just give it a cavalier rip and let it go at that.  One of these days I’m just gonna let go and let ‘er rip and it will surprise us all!!

If you’re ready to let ‘er rip and put Just Believe on your craft desk, head on over to my Online Store and click that Shop Now button.  It will be one of the most versatile, well-used, beloved stamp sets you own.

Just Believe

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One of the free stamp sets we received at convention was Just Believe.  I have to tell you that I had mixed feelings when I saw the notice on the Demonstrator Website that told us that set would be part of our convention package.  Part of me was really excited because I fell in love with that stamp set the first time I laid eyes on it, and part of me was terribly disappointed because I fell in love with that stamp set the first time I laid eyes on it and I didn’t want to wait until almost the end of JULY to get to stamp with it!

The set is worth the wait, believe me.  (Get it?  Believe?  Ok, I know, you get it.)  We did some beautiful projects during our Make and Take session at convention, and since then I’ve continued to experiement with this set.  If you like this style at all, this set should be your very next purchase because you will reach for it over and over until it’s paid for itself ten-fold.

Here’s the swap we did:

Some things have to be believed to be seen

This is a simple, one layer 3 x 3 card and envelope.  We used the negative image from the Sizzix Originals Circles #2 die as a reverse mask to sponge the circle, then stemped the two images in Early Espresso.  I decided to step it up just a little for one of my hostess club projects this week:

Believed to be seen step-up

  • Just Believe stamp set
  • Pear Pizazz, Chocolate Chip and Whisper White card stock
  • Pear Pizazz, Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie and Daffodil Delight Classic ink pads
  • Chocolate Chip satin ribbon, Hemp twine, Designer Brights Buttons
  • Stampin’ Sponges, Hobby blade

The ribbon is threaded through a slit in the side of the card so that I could wrap it all the way around.  The Chocolate Chip ribbon is retired, but you should use the Early Espresso ribbon, ink and cardstock because that new color is absolutely gorgeous.  Never mind that coffee is my nectar of life…that deep dark brown is luscious.

I can’t wait to spend some more time with this set.