Fun to Stamp

Grateful Greetings + Autumn Traditions

For today's card I started with a base layer of Always Artichoke.  I then add a strip of Elegant Eggplant to the left side and then a strip of Autumn Traditions DSP stripe.  I tied some Elegant Eggplant ribbon around the middle of the stripe.  Let me just pause and say how great I think it is that this paper has Elegant Eggplant in it.  I think it is so pretty and just makes this paper unique from most fall colors.  OK back to the card.  I stamped the Grateful Greetings in Always Artichoke at the top of a piece of Natural Ivory card stock and then used my stamp-a-ma-jig to add the "truest measure" wording in Chocolate Chip.  I layered that piece with dimensionals onto a piece of More Mustard and added that to the base card with dimensionals.  And because I didn't have a small "fall" image stamp, I cut one of the leaves out of the Autumn Traditions DSP and added it to the focal point with a dimensional.  I finished it off with an Always Artichoke button and some linen thread.  

I hope to do some more "Fall" stamping today, if not, you will be seeing some more Christmas cards tomorrow.  :-)

Autumn Traditions Circles

This is such a quick and easy card that none of us have any excuse not to send out Thanksgiving cards. The biggest surprise is that I didn't use my Big Shot on this card.  I know.  I can hardly believe it myself.  What I did was stamp En Francais at the bottom of my Soft Suede card with VersaMark ink.  I punched out some 3/4" circles out of Autumn Traditions DSP and distressed them with a sanding block.  Each one is raised with dimensionals on my Elegant Eggplant strip that I roughed up the edges with my Cutter Kit.  At the end of the Elegant Eggplant I tied some Always Artichoke ribbon and added a button with some hemp.  The final step was to put my Grateful Greeting just underneath the Elegant Eggplant using Soft Suede ink so it would stand out on the VersaMark Background.  Super Simple!

Thanksgiving Acorn

Hi Gang.  I hope you enjoyed the cards from my last Christmas Card Class.  As promised, I have some fall cards to share with you this week.  I thought it was time I actually made some fall cards since I have been focused on Christmas for so long.  Christmas is fast approaching so we will get back to some more Christmas cards next week, but Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays and I do not want it to rush by without celebrating it.  This first card was little tricky in that I did not have a pattern.  I saw something similar and wanted to try my own hand at it.  I cut 1 layer of Chocolate Chip out of the To Note Die and ran it through the Big Shot again with the Perfect Details texturz plate.  I then cut it in half.  I also cut out two of the Top Note Dies in Creamy Caramel.  I then used my scissors to trim the Creamy Caramel edges along the dotted line at the bottom and around the corners but tried to make the side more straight.  (I was trying to maintain the point at the bottom.) I stamped a few leaves from the Lovely As A Tree set on the Creamy Caramel layer in Chocolate Chip and sponged it.  I also sponged the Chocolate Chip "cap" layers.  

I adhered the "cap" to the top of the Creamy Caramel layers sandwich style.  I then went back and scored the bottom Creamy Caramel layer where the "cap" meets in the back. (See photo two) This is to allow the card to open more easily.  

Next, I tied some Old Olive grosgrain around the Creamy Caramel layer into a bow.  If you need help with tying bows or knots, see my tutorial here: Tie the Perfect Bow or Tie the Perfect Knot.

I then stamped the greeting from Grateful Greetings in Chocolate Chip on the inside.  I also stamped "Grateful" in Chocolate Chip on a scrap piece of Natural Ivory card stock and punched it out using the Modern Label punch. I added a gold eyelet to the top and tied it to the Old Olive ribbon using some natural hemp.  The second half of "Grateful Greetings" is on the inside of the card.

I hope you enjoy.  I will see you tomorrow with another fall card.

 

Christmas Card Class Card 6

This is the final card from the class and the one that was probably the most time intensive but isn't he so worth it!  I love how this card turned out.  On a Bashful Blue base I stamped the polka dots with VersaMark ink.  Next I took a piece of whisper white stock and stamped the polar bear in bashful blue ink.  He was then masked and I stamped the little iceberg and the sign.  The iceberg is Basic Grey and the sign is Certainly Celery.  Next came his fishing pole in Real Red and grey.  And for his hat, I stamped it in Real Red and cut it out and added with a dimensional. This layered was mounted on a piece of Certainly Celery.  I also added a small strip of Basic Grey that was trimmed with the scallop punch.  I mounted all of this with dimensionals on the Bashful Blue base and finished it off with a piece of Real Red polka dot ribbon. I wonder if polar bears are as cute and cuddly in real life as this guy is. Something tells me they are not.  I hope you enjoyed this series.  I want to share some fall cards with you and then go back to some Christmas cards.  I love Thanksgiving.  I think it is one of my favorite holidays and is highly underrated.  Hmm, might we see a pattern between our society now and a lack of thankfulness? 

Christmas Card Class Card 5

This picture doesn't do this card justice.  It is very difficult to capture the impact that dazzling diamonds glitter can have on a card.  I ran a piece of Brocade Blue card stock through the Big Shot, no surprise there, to create the base.  I stamped my greeting from Many Merry Messages at the bottom of a piece of Whisper White stock in Basic Black.  I then stamped the trees from Lovely As A Tree in Basic Black above the greeting.  Next, I added a post-it-note circle where I wanted my moon to be.  I then masked off the "ground" and sponged about the live in Brocade Blue ink.  I then removed all of the masks to reveal the moon and the ground.  I did sponge a tiny bit of Brocade Blue on the moon to give it a little texture.  The thing that brought this card to life was the dazzling diamonds glitter that was added along the ground and in the trees.  I then mounted this piece onto Basic Black card stock and mounted the entire piece with dimensionals onto the Brocade Blue base.  This card would be beautiful in just about any color. See you tomorrow for the final card from the class.

Christmas Card Class Card 4

This is the second card of the class that uses Delightful Decorations.  I love this color combo.  This card was modeled after this one I posted a couple of weeks ago.  The card base is Taken with Teal.  The next layer is Whisper White with a layer of Holiday Lounge DSP and some Sahara Sand card stock.  The ornament was stamped in Sahara Sand on Whisper White.  I also stamped the sentiment on Whisper White using Taken with Teal and Basic Black.  All of these layers are added with dimensionals.  That's a lot of dimensionals!  I know.  But it makes all of the difference in my opinion.  I finished this one off with some white taffeta ribbon.  Oh, the background!  I almost forgot.  I ran it through the Big Shot to repeat the circular pattern.

Christmas Card Class Card 3

Berry Christmas also made an appearance at the class in the form of this little bird.  I just can't get enough of him.  I ran the Soft Suede card base through the Big Shot in the poinsettia impression folder.  I then added the Christmas Cocoa DSP to the side (we also did some with the striped paper that was yummy).  Next, we stamped the holly branch and greeting in Soft Suede and added some Real Red berries.  We rounded the corners of the Whisper White and added a Real Red grosgrain tab to the top.  This piece was adhered using dimensionals of course.  And the little red bird finishes this card.  He is cut out of the same DSP and is also added with dimensionals.

Holiday Gift-Giving Guide

Dates: November 1, 2009-January 4, 2010

Details: You'll love the convenience of the Stampin' Up! Holiday Gift-Giving Guide! With gift ideas for kids, teens, neighbors, and more, it's your one-stop shop for all your holiday needs.

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Christmas Card Class Card 2

I must admit that this is one of my favorite cards from the Christmas card class.  I think it is the old time Christmas feel with the traditional colors that appeal to me.  If you have seen my house at Christmas you will understand why. Chocolate Chip for the base with some texture added by the Big Shot is always in order.  I stamped Dasher in Chocolate Chip on a piece of Kraft stock.  I added a small strip of Old Olive DSP at the bottom of that.  I used my small oval punch to make the Real Red tab at the top and added a gold brad to it.  I finished it off with a piece of Sleigh Bells ribbon that I made into a tab on the side.  The whole tag is added with dimensionals.  See you tomorrow.

Delightful Decorations

It has been so long.  Sorry about that.  Life has just been a little crazy around here the last few weeks.  The football championship game is this Saturday so that should clear up 3 activities a week around here which will hopefully give me more time to blog.  I wanted to share the cards from my Christmas card class this last Saturday and thought I would start with this one.  

I cut the square scallop with my Big Shot out of Basic Black stock.  I also ran a piece of Whisper White stock through the poinsettia impressions folder and layered it on a piece of Real Red stock which is the actual piece that opens.  I stamped the ornament from Delightful Decorations in Real Red ink on a piece of Whisper White stock.  I then covered the entire image with VersaMark ink (directly to the paper with the stamp pad).  I then added Iridescent Ice embossing powder to that and heat set it.  I punched it out and added to the card with two dimensionals.  The finishing touch was a ribbon in Old Olive.  I really like this card and hope you do as well.  I'll be posting the other 5 cards consecutively this week so come back tomorrow for the next one.