Monday, February 28, 2011

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Mountain Vista

This week's Stamp of the Week from Repeat Impressions is called 629-I, Mountain Vista.  You can find it on this page.  It is available for THIS WEEK only (through Sunday night) at 50% off the regular price.  You can find the details on how to purchase it on the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built.  You can also find the great cards made by the other Rock Stars on the blog.  Or, you can follow these links:

I stamped the image with Memento black ink and colored with Copics.  I added Diamond Glaze to the sun and Star Dust Stickles to the water.  (Here is another angle, so you can see the sparkle better.)  I stamped the sentiment, also from Repeat Impressions, on the bottom and added double scored lines across the middle.  The striped paper is from Die Cuts With A View Mediterranean Cafe. The black matting is shimmery.  I punched the photo corners (with a Stampin' Up! punch) out of the same shimmery paper.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Sunday, February 27, 2011

White Birthday

I love Clean and Simple (CAS) white cards.  Here is just another example.

The black border is punched with a Martha Stewart punch.  I used Papertrey Ink Aqua Mist ribbon to thread through the punches areas.  I scored lines with my Scor-Pal above and below the punched border piece.  The butterfly is punched with a Martha Stewart punch from Papertrey Ink Aqua Mist cardstock and I sponged some black ink around the edges.  I added black gems for the body.  The sentiment is also from PTI - Birthday Basics set. 

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Simple Sympathy

I was in need of a sympathy card yesterday, so I went with my "go-to" set for sympathy cards - Thoughts and Prayers from Stampin' Up!

This card is similar to others I have done, but since I have nothing else to share with you today, you get it again:)  It's certainly not exactly like any I've done before, after all!  I inked up the stamp itself with Stampin' Up! markers - Certainly Celery and Almost Amethyst.  I misted it with water before stamping to give it a smooth stamping.  I added tiny pearls to the center of each flower.  I matted with Almost Amethyst cardstock.

EDITED TO ADD:  Glenda - yes, I misted the stamp after I colored it with markers.  You need to moisten the stamp after coloring with markers because they dry so fast.  Normally I just "huff" on them and that works fine.  This time I used a mister (filled with water) to moisten it and make it stamp nice and evenly.  If you colors are dark enough, you can mist it again and get another (light) stamping from one coloring.  Hope this helps!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Friday, February 25, 2011

My First Letterpress Card

The Design Team members of Creating Memories in Time received Letterpresses from Lifestyle Crafts.  I'm so excited!!  I've been waiting for mine since I saw it demonstrated at CHA and was told I'd be getting one.  It came yesterday.  However, I'm now babysitting our newest grandson, and don't have as much crafting time as I used to!  (It's wonderful, though - I love it!)

Anyway, I took a few minutes last night and made this card.  What the Letterpress does is to "de-boss" the design and put the ink in the debossed area.  It's great for mass production, too, as you place the design pieces (the "plates") where you want them and stick them in place.  Then you add the ink and run it through your die cutting/embossing machine.  (I'm using my BIGkick.)  I know that's not much explanation, but I'm hurriedly doing this post.  I hope to have something more to share with you tomorrow.  For now, this will have to do.  The flowers and the sentiment are both done with the Letterpress.  I added the ribbon and the matting, which is from Papertrey Ink.  I just used regular cardstock, but the starter kit comes with thicker, plusher paper.  I was just kind of experimenting quickly.  You can find the Starter Kit in the Creating Everlasting Memories eBay store, here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Glitter, Stencils and Sticky Paper

We have a challenge in our Yahoo! group this month of using a brass stencil in some way.  I chose to use glitter.

The stencil I used is from Stencilabilities.  The technique I used is this:  You soap up the stencil so it doesn't stick permanently, but you use double-sided sticky paper to adhere the stencil to a piece of cardstock.  Then you use glitter (I used my multi-pack of Martha Stewart glitter) and carefully use it to "color" your stencil.  When finished, you remove the stencil and sprinkle clear glitter over the rest.  I matted this piece with some green shimmery cardstock and mounted on foam squares.  The two different patterned papers are both from a Green Matstack from Die Cuts With a View.  The sentiment is a rub-on from Stampin' Up!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

Time for a new WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge from Repeat Impressions.  Every two weeks, we have a new sketch from Wendy and we get to work creating our cards using the sketch.  We invite you to join along!  Just make a card using the sketch, upload to your blog or an on-line gallery, and link to the Repeat Impressions blog.  You can find all the details on the blog, The House That Stamps Built.  One random winner for the month will win a $25 gift certificate.  Here is the sketch:
And here are links to the other Rock Stars' creations.

For my card, I started with the Vase of Tulips stamp, found on this page.  I stamped with black ink and embossed with black embossing powder.  I colored with Copic markers and matted with black cardstock.  I mounted on foam squares.  The patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View.  I added pearls, per the sketch. 

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Blue and Lavender Challenge -and a Blog Award

I made this card for a swap challenge for my Yahoo! group.  The challenge was to use blue and lavender.

My image is from Stampin' Up!'s Fishy Friends set.  I stamped it with Memento black ink and colored it with Copic markers.  After coloring, I misted it with Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist - Glacier.  (Among other places, it's available in the Creating Everlasting Memories eBay store.  Here is a link to the store.)  I matted with blue SU! cardstock.  I also misted the white piece across the center with the Glimmer mist.  The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's set called Pond Life Sentiments.  The purple patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View.  I sponged SU!'s Brocade Blue ink around the edges.  The main image panel is mounted on foam squares.

I also want to thank my friend, Vicki, for giving me a blog award.  She has awarded me a Liebster Blog award.  It is to bring new visitors to beginning blogs.  Thanks, Vicki!  I don't usually pass these awards on, but I did want to acknowledge the award.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Monday, February 21, 2011

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Raggedy Ann and Andy

Monday has arrived again, and so has another Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week!  This week's stamp is 902-I Raggedy Ann and Andy.  You can find it on this page.  For this week only, through Sunday evening, you can purchase this cute stamps for 50% off.  To learn all the necessary details, please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built.  You can find all the creations by the RI Rock Stars there, also.  Or just follow these links:

For my card, I stamped the image and colored it with Copic markers.  I embossed the bottom of the image panel with a Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder, then scored lines with my Scor-Pal.  I added the ribbon and matted with Stampin' Up! Riding Hood Red cardstock.  I mounted the image on foam squares.  The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions, also. 

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Happy First Birthday, Sweet Amelia!

I got some My Mind's Eye "Lush" products just before we left on vacation.  (We were in Cocoa Beach, Florida from Saturday to Saturday.  What a great week!) This is the card I made using some of them.  It's for our granddaughter's first birthday, which is the end of March.

All of the parts of this card are from the Lush line except the textured off-white under the 1.  The letters are lightly flocked.  The ribbon is velvety and has a scalloped edge.  So pretty.  I had to search through a lot of stamps to find the "sweet."  I finally found this one on a Hero Arts stamp.  (The Creating Everlasting Memories eBay store will probably begin carrying the Lush products soon.)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Pink Birthday - SCS Sketch Challenge

I made this card last week when I needed some quick cards and was looking through my stickers/rub-ons drawer.  I used last week's SplitCoastStampers Sketch Challenge.

I came across this "label" from Martha Stewart that I got clearanced a while back at Michael's. The borders were on it, and so was the flower. I just stamped the sentiment - from Papertrey Ink's Birthday Basics set. I used my Martha Stewart scoring tool to score the lines on the side. The patterned paper is from an older pad from Stampin' up!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Friday, February 18, 2011

Another Daisies Birthday

I love daisies, and after seeing several daisy cards in the SplitCoastStampers gallery last week, I had to dig some out and use them!

I started with a piece of patterned yellow paper - from Die Cuts With a View Citrus matstack.  I matted it with black.  Then I took a strip of white and matted that with black, also.  I added the daisies (by Martha Stewart from Michael's) and stamped the sentiment (from Papertrey Ink's Birthday Basics set.)  That's it!  Simple and cheery, don't you think?

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Faux Pressed Flowers

I saw a "headline" for a tutorial on "Faux Presssed Flowers" but I didn't read the article and I don't remember where I saw it.  So, I have no idea if this is what the tutorial showed or not! :)

All I did for this card was to take a largish paper flower, glue it on the piece of ivory cardstock, and run it through my BIGkick using a Textile Cuttlebug folder.  I sewed on a button for the flower center using some DMC floss.  I added a sheer ribbon, then matted that piece on Rich Razzleberry cardstock, and then on an ivory card base.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Repeat Impression CASE Challenge - Casing Ayana

Another Wednesday challenge from Repeat Impressions.  This week we are CASEing a card by Ayana, and here is a peek at it. 
In a nutshell, here is what we'd like you to do.  Make a card using Ayana's card for inspiration, then upload to your blog or an on-line gallery and link to the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built.  One random winner from the CASE challenges for the month will win their choice of a whole sheet of unmounted rubber!  Please check out the RI blog for more details and to see the Design Team's creations.

For my card, I stamped a row of daisies (4320-G, Wild Daisies), colored them, and scored lines with my Scor-Pal.  I used a piece of pink cardstock and cut the border with a Martha Stewart punch called Lattice Arch.  The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions, also.

OK - time to get busy on your cards!  You have until Tuesday, March 1 at 5:00 p.m. EST to enter.  Enter as many times as you'd like.  AND - you get double entries for using Repeat Impressions stamps!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Rub-On Birthday Wishes

I found these rub-ons (from My Mind's Eye) in my stickers drawer and figured it was time to use them.  I also needed a quick card!

The leaves and the three butterflies are all rub-ons.  I rubbed them on to a piece of ivory, slightly textured cardstock.  I love the look - they look like they were printed right on the paper!  The sentiment is a stamp from Impression Obsession, stamped in Tim Holtz Distress Ink.  I matted with a piece of Cranberry Crisp cardstock from Stampin' Up!  The card base is ivory.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Monday, February 14, 2011

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Tulip Bouquet

First off - HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY to you all!!!  Next - it's Monday again!  The good thing about a new Monday is that it brings another Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week!  This week's stamp - available at 50% off - is called 912-K, Tulip Bouquet.  You can find it here.  Please check out the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, to find out all you need to know to get your discount.  You will also find the other Rock Stars' creations on that page!

I started with a piece of slightly textured ivory cardstock with a torn edge.  I stamped my image with Versafine Vintage Sepia ink and embossed it with clear embossing powder.  I colored with Copics.  (Can't wait til I get some more - should be any day now!)  I stamped the sentiment with Sepia and embossed, too.  I added the ribbon and scored on both sides of it.  I sponged along the edges of all the layers.  The card base is Very Vanilla.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Mini Take-Out Valentine Box

Here is my other post using the Love Release dies from Lifestyle Crafts - formerly Quickutz.

The main die I used is the Mini Take-Out Box.  You can find it here.  (You can find links to the other dies on the second page of my blog.  If you look in my blog header, you will find it under CEM eBay Store.)  I also used dies for the banners on the top and sides, and the hearts on the sides.  I hand-wrote on the top banners.  The hearts and side banners are cut from a velvety ribbon.  I embossed the hears with a Swiss Dots folder. I added a thin silver cord for the handle.  Oh, and I used thin grosgrain ribbon around the top and the bottom.  (The box is pretty tiny.)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Saturday, February 12, 2011

XOXOXO - With Love

I have two more posts using the Love release from Lifestyle Crafts - formerly Quickutz.  You can find several of them in the Creating Everlasting Memories eBay store.  The links are in the second page of my blog - check in my blog heading and click on the CEM eBay Store page.

For this one, I used the XOXO border die.  You can find it here.  This die is LONG!  However, I was able to use it in my BIGkick - I just ran it through twice.  I cut the XOXO border from red cardstock and mounted it on foam squares.  I embossed the pink piece with a Cuttlebug folder and scored the lines with my Scor-Pal.  I sponged red ink on the edges.  The sentiment was embossed with a Cuttlebug folder, also.  The finished card fits into a legal size envelope.  (It's 8.5 x 4 inches.)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Friday, February 11, 2011

Bundle of Joy

I had fun making a few cards on Wednesday.  This is one of those cards.

I was digging through my stickers and rubons drawer and found this cute little teddy bear.  He is so soft - made of felt or something similar.  I cut the circle and the mat with Nestabilities.  I sponged a little blue ink on the white circle before I removed it from the die.  The "bundle of joy" stamp is from a Studio G dollar set.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Thursday, February 10, 2011

SplitCoastStampers Sketch Challenge

I made this card yesterday for the Sketch Challenge on SplitCoastStampers.

The embossing was done with two different Sizzix folders. The stamps are from an Impression Obsession set. I sponged some Taken With Teal ink around the edges of the sentiment. The balloon is cut out (even the string), colored with a Copic marker, and mounted on a foam square.

Edited to add:  This is for you, Becky.  The teal piece is embossed with a folder from this set.  The top white piece is embossed with a folder from this set.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

Today brings another Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch Challenge.  Here is the sketch for this week:
We'd love to have you join us in the challenge!  Just create a card using this sketch and upload it to your blog or on-line gallery.  Then link it up to the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built.  Also, visit the blog for more details and to view the other Rock Stars' creations.  Or, you can follow these links:

You have until 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 22 to get your card entered.  One random winner will receive a $25 gift certificate from Repeat Impressions.  If you use RI stamps, you will be entered twice!

For my card, I used the RI stamp called Flowering Vine.  You can find it on this page.  I colored it with my new Copic markers.  (I just ordered several more yesterday with my Christmas and birthday money.  Can't wait to get them!  They should come by next week!!)  I cut the image and the mat with Nestabilities, as well as the circles.  The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions, also.  The patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View - a winter matstack, I believe.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Birthday For a (New) Teen

I'm finding time for stamping again, and it feels so good!  I got four cards made today - two for future Repeat Impressions posts, and two just because.

This card is for my next-door neighbor who will be turning 13 on Friday.  I can't believe he'll be a teenager already - I babysat for him when he was a newborn!  I used some Basic Gray paper that I got a couple years and never liked very much.  I stamped the large "HAPPY" (from Stampendous) on the paper and cut out the letters.  I stamped it again on white to use on the card and again on a scrap of white to cut out the centers of the two P's and the A.  I matted with a brown cardstock.  The "birthday" is from the same set as the "HAPPY."

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Monday, February 7, 2011

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Ballerina Pig

I don't have a card to share today, but I still wanted to make sure you knew about this week's Stamp of the Week from Repeat Impressions.  The stamp that you can get for 50% off this week only is called 909-G, Ballerina Pig and you can find it on this page.  Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for the necessary details on how to purchase this stamp at its special price, and also to find the examples from the Design Team.  Or follow these links to see the Rock Stars' creations:

 Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Birthday Card for a Kid

I took a few more minutes on Friday afternoon and made another card.  This one is for a child - but I have no one in mind:)

The plane, sentiment and banner are all from a set from Papertrey Ink called Fly Away.  I stamped each with Versafine Onyx Black ink and embossed with clear embossing powder.  I colored with Copic markers.  The patterned paper is from a Die Cuts With a View matstack.  I scored some lines on the top and bottom of the front (and the bottom of the back - oops!) with my Martha Stewart scoring board.  The plane and sentiment are mounted on foam squares, and I drew a line from the plane to the banner. 

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Thanks a Bunch

Another card just because I could:)

The orange "marbled" piece was in the box of "card parts" that I received.  There were actually a lot of different colored pieces like this.  They are done on acetate.  I cut a piece of textured off-white paper to fit the acetate, allowing a border.  I sponged Versafine Vintage Sepia around the edges and stamped the flower stamp (from Stampin' Up!'s Of the Earth) four times.  Then I adhered the acetate piece.  The sentiment (from Repeat Impressions) is stamped with Stazon.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Friday, February 4, 2011

A Card Just Because!

Gosh, it seems like forever since I got to make a card just because I wanted to!  I have had NO time lately, and it's not going to get better any time soon.  But, last night I took the time to make this card.

I started by stamping the flower image (from Gina K's Lovely Shelf) with Versafine Onyx Black and embossing with clear embossing powder.  I colored it with Copic markers.  (I got some for Christmas, but now I "need" to get some more!)   I cut the image out with a Nestability.  I filled in the flower centers with Nut Brown Flower Soft.  The matting is from Die Cuts With a View matstack called Cafe Mediterranean, also cut with a Nestability.  The strip across the center is the same paper.  It's punched with a Fiskars punch.  The sentiment is from a Papertrey Ink set called Year Round Puns.  Oh, how good it felt to stamp again! 

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Repeat Impressions - CASE Challenge

Just a short, belated post for today.  Today is Repeat Impressions challenge day.  The challenge is to CASE Robin.  Here is Robin's card.  (PLEASE NOTE:  This is NOT my card.  It's by the talented Robin Kirkpatrick, a designer for Repeat Impressions.  This is the card to be CASEd for the challenge.)
The details for this challenge can be found on the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, along with the other Rock Stars' creations!  Up for grabs is an entire sheet of unmounted rubber!

I got back from CHA late last night, and still have catching up to do.  I had a great time and got to meet some wonderful people!  I'm not sure I'll have anything to share with you tomorrow, but I'll give it a try. :)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

February Calendar Page

Wow, February!  Gosh, spring will be here before we know it!  Well, maybe in another couple months! LOL!  At any rate, it's time for my February calendar page.

The hearts are cut with a Sizzix Sizzlits die.  I stamped a heart from Inkadinkado on the pink and also sponged a little Versamark around the edges.  Then I embossed with white embossing poweder.  The bottom matting is shimmery white and is embossed with a Swiss Dots embossing folder.  The sentiment is from Inkadinkado, also.

If you would like to make your own calendars, you can find a link to my Excel file on a separate page of my blog.  You can find the page in my blog banner, called 2011 Calendar File.  I also have my cutting instructions file there.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!