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Posts Tagged ‘Technique’
Bliss Stamp Set: Shadow Stamping Technique
I think I might have mentioned that Bliss is my favorite Sale-A-Bration stamp set, right? I know I’m not alone! The little bird is the cutest accent piece, and it’s perfect for the vintage feel of this set.
Here is a simple card featuring the Designer Label Punch as well as the neutral-on-neutral technique I highlighted last week. The Scallop Oval Punch and the Large Oval Punch work perfectly together.
Favorite technique on this card though? Definitely the Shadow Stamping on the “bliss” word on the Very Vanilla oval piece.
**Shadow Stamping Technique**
- Stamp image once in dark ink color (Cherry Cobbler used here)
- Clean stamp, then stamp again in lighter color (Marina Mist used here)
See, pretty simple technique, but neat effect!
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Subscribe to the comments for this postWeekend Project: Valentine Treats for School
What are you doing this weekend? If you’re in the snowy & cold part of the US (which is about 80% of it right now) then this is a terrific time to stay indoors and get the elementary school Valentine treats out of the way!
Here’s a simple idea using the Filled With Love Stamp Set (it’s already sold out though, so you’ll have to adapt for another stamp set).
The design is simple and holds a flat lollipop (best with Valentine suckers, of course!).
Start with a piece of card stock wide enough and long enough to make a matchbook-type fold around the lollipop.- Fold into a matchbook type shape
- Punch a hole for the lollipop stick in the small flap of the matchbook
- Use a stapler to hold the matchbook together, stapling close to the fold at the bottom (you can just see my staple peeking out)
- Decorate the front, add the lollipop and decorate the inside
- Tie a piece of ribbon just below the matchbook to keep the lollipop from sliding out
This project was a Make N Take project from one of my January Stampin’ Up! home parties. If you’d like to schedule a home party in central Illinois and you don’t already have a demonstrator, send me an email!
To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!
Snow Day: Use What You Have At Home
According to the new, we’re supposed to stay home today. I guess that means we’re force to stamp, right? I mean, what else would there be to do? Certainly a magic FREE day shouldn’t be spent doing laundry or dishes! (leave me a comment if you agree 
If we can’t go out, and the UPS man isn’t going to deliver a box of NEW supplies today, then we’ll have to use what we have at home.
You probably have Ink Refill bottles, plus stamps, plus a piece of old felt lying around, right? Here’s what you can do today!
The technique here is a lot of fun, and perfect for stamps with a lot of rubber: silhouettes or other large surface area images.
** Felt Pad Technique: **
- Ink your stamp with a light color of ink and stamp directly onto a piece of felt from the craft store.
- Use your Ink Refill bottles (here Cajun Craze, More Mustard and Old Olive) to fill in the stamped image on the felt. (Optional: place your felt piece on a tumbled marble tile — this will help hold the ink in place and prevent muddying of colors with repeated use)
- Press your stamp onto your new ink pad to ink it, then stamp on card stock as normal.
This technique is perfect when you want to use a stamp that you’d normally color with markers, except that you need to stamp a LOT of them. I used the Felt Pad technique here for my calendars this year, since I usually make about 500 of them. That would have been a lot of markers!
I sent these to my stamping customers from last year, plus all the demonstrators in our LovenStampfuls team. Actually, that reminds me to tell you… the Demonstrator Starter Kit is ALWAYS a great bargain! You can get about $375 in Stampin’ Up! supplies for only $175… plus a discount on your own orders… hard to beat that deal!
If you are one of my customers or if you don’t have a local demonstrator that you work with, I’d be happy to talk to you more about the opportunity to be a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator (learn more on my website).
There’s another fun thing to do on a Snow Day… sign up to be part of the Stampin’ Up! family You can actually sign up right online through my website!
To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!
Neutral on Neutral: Using Layers as Design Elements
Have you seen this trend in stamping lately? I am a huge fan! The idea is to use layers of neutral card stock (Very Vanilla here) on top of Very Vanilla card stock to create a subtle design element. The effect is very classy and subtle.
This sample uses the Bliss stamp set, one of the FREE Sale-A-Bration selections, available when you order $50 or more of any Stampin’ Up! product until March 31st.
The Neutral on Neutral technique is further set off by the Framed Tulips Embossing Folder (see it online) for the Big Shot.
Okay, I admit it… my favorite Sale-A-Bration stamp set is Bliss. (download the mini catalog and see the others) That flourish is just gorgeous! I do find myself using the set with a variety of sayings though, since “bliss” has some limitations. I find that Sincere Salutations (see it online) is a good match for the style though, and it fits ANY occasion!
Leave me a comment… which one of the Sale-A-Bration stamp sets is YOUR favorite?
To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!
Remember Playing with Shrinky Dinks?
I absolutely loved them as a kid! As a stamper, I’ve played around with them quite a bit, too. But as a Digital Scrapbooker, it hadn’t occurred to me to use inkjet shrink sheets with creations from My Digital Studio!
Fortunately my friend Missy Shipman had a little tag she received from a demonstrator friend, and Missy shared the idea with me back in October at our Founder’s Circle Retreat.
Isn’t that sweet? I made a whole bunch of these as Christmas gifts this year, and added a little tag (out of card stock) that suggested using the personalized tags to label scissors or cell phones.
Here are the directions:
- Print and cut shrink plastic (check a craft or office supply store) to about 2 x 3-1/2″
- Use the Corner Rounder to clip corners
- Punch 3/8″ hole with Crop-A-Dile
- Shrink with Heat Tool or in oven, then add Marina Mist 1/8″ Grosgrain Ribbon
If you don’t recognize the Designer Series Paper on this project, it might be because this paper is only available as a Digital Download, rather than as actual paper in a Stampin’ Up! catalog. (learn more about Digital Downloads)
The paper is called Summertime Splendor (see it online).
The possibilities are endless… I could see these as charms on a bracelet, charms for cards or scrapbook pages, dog tags… too much fun!
Be sure to check out some of my other recent My Digital Studio projects.
To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!
New Scallop Square Extended Totes
I think many of us have seen the sweet Scallop Square bags that can be created with the Big Shot Die Cut Machine and the Scallop Square Die from Stampin’ Up! (check out my bag from a year ago).
But this winter I decided that I needed a small tote that’s a little wider than the regular Scallop Square size. No problem! I’ve come up with a solution and created a Video Tutorial to show you how to make these bags on your own.
Here are 2 Video Tutorials for the Extended Scallop Square Tote. Part 1 includes directions on cutting your fabric with the Big Shot Die Cut Machine. Part 2 shows the sewing instructions for assembling your bag. Watch for Part 3, coming tomorrow, for directions on creating the Eyelet Flower Embellishment.
Yes, be very afraid, I have created a tutorial on sewing. **Disclaimer: I am NOT a seamstress, I just play one on tv**
And here is Part 2 of the Video Tutorial:
The finished tote comfortably fits a 4-1/4 x 5-1/2″ card, so this is the perfect tote for carrying a few swap cards at a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator Event, or for making a really special set of cards for a gift.
Stampin’ Up! Supply List: (order 24-7 through my Online Store)
- Big Shot Die Cut Machine (includes regular Cutting Mats) (113439)
- Scallop Square Die (115950)
- Sweet Stitches Designer Fabric (121818)
- Early Espresso Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon (115615)
As I’m posting this today, I’m also working on finishing 10 of these Extended Square Totes for the demonstrators on my LovenStampfuls Team who are headed to the Stampin’ Up! Leadership Conference in Nashville this week. Here’s hoping there’s not too much snow for those Southern gals!
To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!
Take A Spin: Cards for Guys and Kids
Really, no need to limit these to just guys or just kids, but I know those two groups are sometimes a challenge when stamping cards.
The new Take a Spin (see it online) stamp set from the new Occasions Mini Catalog (download a copy now) is a perfect solution!
I actually used several of the new goodies from the Occasions Mini Catalog for this project:
Always fun to play with new toys, right?!
And if you’d like to see the spinner card in action, check this out!
To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!
Blueberry Crisp… it’s not just a dessert
Although it IS a great dessert, it’s ALSO the name of this gorgeous Designer Series Paper.
For Stamp Club this month I wanted to make something that wasn’t red & green. This would make a terrific gift item for a family member or a friend. Just make, fill with photos and give!
This card can be made with any size card stock if you scale appropriately. There are 2 main pieces:
- Folder: 6 x 12”, scored in center to make binding
- Fold-Out Album: 5 x 5” (or any square)
To create the Fold-Out:
1. Begin by scoring in half to make a “+”.
2. Cut one of the score lines from the edge to the center point.
3. Fold all pieces together to make a 5 x 5” square and attach in folder.
The colors here are Pacific Point, Not Quite Navy and Sahara Sand with Very Vanilla. The stamp set is one of my favorites: Friends 24-7. It’s also available as a Digital Download for My Digital Studio!
To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!
Giving Thanks: My Digital Studio Style
I love this time of year for the opportunity to remember our blessings. The family calendar I’ve been working on lately has been another chance to reminisce about adventures from this past year.
If you haven’t seen My Digital Studio in action yet, you can check out some details here, including a short video.
Most of these elements are included in the 2000 digital elements included in the main My Digital Studio package. A few are Digital Downloads.
My new favorites from the digital downloads are from the Play Date package — the Designer Series Paper, the Play Date Quick Accents, and the Play Date Embellishments.
If you own My Digital Studio and you’ve never purchased a Digital Download, rest assured–it’s easy!
Technique: My Digital Studio, Digital Downloads
Use this link to browse on my website, then purchase the ones you want. Once you click ‘submit payment’ you’ll be taken to a screen where you can download immediately.
Or if you’re not on the computer where you use MDS, then log onto my ordering site from your computer with MDS. When you log in, there will be a tab under ‘my account’ for ‘digital downloads’ and you can download them at that point.
And if anything ever happens to the computer with the MDS downloads, you can always download them again the same way.
The files are easy to ‘install’. All you do is click on the file you downloaded and let the easy-installer put everything in the right place for you!
To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!
Pretty Peppermints for Perfect Presents
These would make great gift tags, or use them as a small gift by themselves!
The candy holder is made from the Two Tags Big Shot Die, and the tag trick is borrowed from a tag Make N Take from the Stampin’ Up! Convention several years ago.
I love the “spotlighting” technique for the words on the tag. The technique turns a relatively plain tag into a fun focal point. (Especially with a sticky pearl!)
I repeated the circle motif on the snowflake from the Sweet Seasons stamp set. The Circle Punches are the 1-1/4″, the 1-3/8″ and the 1-3/4″ Scallop Circle.
To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!
Don’t miss the Demonstrator Starter Kit at 50% off! Whether you want to start a business or purchase for yourself at a discount, NOW is the best deal on the Starter Kit! Only until November 30th
Don’t miss Stampin’ Up!’s Online Spectacular! Gift ideas for yourself or a friend, priced at up to 50% off! Shop online through my website now.
