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Thursday, May 9, 2013
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
a REAL artist and her work!
I am not artistic (but always wished I could be!) so I rely on rubber stamps to help me be creative. Today I would like to introduce you to the very talented Ms. Laura Fox who just sold her first professional piece of art at an art auction (or some type of event!) held at her school at The University of Wisconsin. Apparently all of the art students submit work to be displayed and Laura's painting was the first to be sold...within 10 minutes of opening! So congratulations Laura...I hope this will be the first of many successful sales of your wonderful works of art. I am very happy that I have my very own hand signed Laura original!
p.s. you have seen Laura's work here on my blog before...but in the form of cards which she helped me design and create. This is the first time I have shown her original paintings!
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Retired now...but still cute! SAB Patterned Occasions
Alas, this darling "Patterned Occasions" stamp set is now retired as it was one of the special stamps available during the SAB "free set" with purchase special. I liked all of the images in that set....they always pick the cutest stamps as the freebies to tempt us!
This card was one that I featured at my March 3-4-$5 quick and easy card class which I often call "Simply Stampin" since it features fun, fast and fabulous but easy cards. The bandaid iamge was from "Patterned Occasions" (no longer available) and the red label outline stamp is one of a group of Single Stamps available individually. That batch of stamps was originally slated to "retire" as of 3-31-13 but were carried out for two more months due to "popular demand" so I intend to keep using it for as long as I can. I love having a stamped outline to match the tabbed label framelit!
To compose this card was very simple. Stamp the "label" in Real Red ink and then stamp the band aid in Crumb Cake ink. I "cheated" and took a Real Red marker to go over the "recover rapidly" sentiment on that image. The red was dark enough to cover the Crumb Cake ink from the original inking of the stamp so when I stamped it I got the band aid in Crumb Cake and the sentiment in Real Red but only had to stamp it once. Slick, eh? Yea, I like to simplify (cheat?) that way! ;-)
Using the matching "framelit" to cut it out, I then layered it under a piece of Early Espresso card stock, cut the base layer at 3.5" x 1 3/4th in to make a rectangle, used a 1" circle punch to "punch out" circles from that piece then adhered the stamped image to the dark card stock layer, lined up the punched out circles under the taps and voila! A perfectly layered focal point and no wasted card stock because I took the circles out of a part of the rectangle that is covered by the other layer! Using a tiny heart punch and Real Red card stock, I punched out the heart and layered it over the heart in the band aid image to give it a little bit of "zing".
The stamped and die cut image was centered onto a 4x5.25" layer of Real Red card stock which was textured with the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder befoe adding a bit of Crumb Cake seam binding (not quite ribbon but close and so easy to work with!) then adhered it to a folded white card stock base. You can't see the inside but I stamped "Feel Better!" from Sassy Salutations inside for a quick and cute get well/recover rapidly card.
I was inspired by a card I saw on Dawn O's great blog (DOStamping) back on March 8th. You can have a look at her clever and inspirational card here if you would like to take a peek! Thanks to Dawn for the great idea. I changed it up a bit but she definitely gave me the idea for my card.
Thanks for checking in....hope that you liked the card! I am sorry to say that I needed to send one of these to my sweet mother who fell recently and broke her leg...poor Mom! Prayers for her healing and strength appreciated! I will be going to visit her soon but in the meantime, I hope she likes her card!
Stampin' Up! product used to make this card:
Patterned Occasions stamp set (SAB...now retired)
Basic Label outline stamp
Basic Label framelit (part of the Apothecary Accents Framelit set #127003
Small Heart punch #117193
1" circle punch 119868
Real Red ink #126949, Real Red card stock #102482 & Real Red marker #100052
Whisper White card stock #100730
Early Espresso Card stock # 119686
Crumb Cake card stock #120955 and marker #120967
Crumb Cake Seam binding #122332
Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder #117335
Sassy Salutations (inside greeting, "Feel Better") #126708 cm 126707
Basic Label Clear-Mount Stamp Set 132669
Friday, April 5, 2013
"OH, HELLO"...again!
I've been having a lot of fun stamping with this "Oh, Hello!" stamp set from the Spring mini. I wasn't sure I would use it all that often but it's turned out to be pretty handy and I love the oval framelits which coordinate with it, makes it so easy to cut out the oval chevron shape.
The clear mount version makes it easy to see where you are stamping so I was able to stamp a line of chevrons (the blue chevron line on the left side) without pulling out my Stamp-a-ma-jig (stamp positioner) so I like that! Same thing with the flower, stamping the flower and the "hello" sentiment...easy to position and stamp them through the clear blocks.
This card went together easily...the bottom layer is Midnight Muse, then a layer of Crumb Cake which was run through the honeycomb embossing folder after I stamped the line of chevrons down the side, also done in Midnight Muse. Then the top oval layer. I stamped the chevron "oval" on white cardstock in Crumb Cake ink, then stamped "Oh Hello" in Midnight Muse with the rose inked up with Gumball Green marker for the stem and Raspberry Ripple for the rose blossom. The white layer was diecut with one of the graduated oval s and layered on the next larger size oval diecut from Midnight Muse before adhering to the card base with stamping dimensionals. That gives a little "lift" to the focal image and helps the layer stick to the embossed surface more easily.
Product used to make this project:
Oh Hello WM 130730, CM 130733
Ovals Collection Framelits 129381
Honeycomb embossing folder 129378
Midnight Muse cardstock and classic ink
Crumb Cake cardstock and classic ink
Raspberry Ripple & Gumball Green markers 126856 (available only in the In Color 2012-14 collection set)
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Happy Easter!
Happy Easter!
It's still Easter, at least it is here in Central Standard time in the U.S.A. so it's not too late for a heartfelt Happy Easter wish to all of my stamping friends (and those of my family who aren't embarrassed by my little "stamping addiction to read my blog!")
This card doesn't say Easter on it anywhere but I love the sentiment from the stamp set Trust God which says, "Each one of us is God's special work of art" and that seems particularly appropriate on Easter Sunday.
I loved the swap card which I made for the St. Louis Regional conference held on 3-23-13. I thought I had finished my swap card making and hadn't planned to make any other cards but this idea got stuck in my head so off I went downstairs to play around with the idea which seemed to just come to life in no time at all! Usually it takes me hours (sometimes longer!) to come up with a swap card idea but for this card I was truly inspired as it came together quickly and quite miraculously I came up with a design layout that I loved, cut all the card stock, finished the stamping and other prep (Big Shot embossing folder and punched out butterflies) and assembled about 20 cards all in 2 hours! I guess Easter is definitely the time for miracles of all kinds!
Anyway, I was pleased with this card....loved the butterflies and pink polka dots and decided it seemed like a good choice to post for Easter Sunday! I hope that you like it too and that you and your loved ones enjoyed a happy and blessed Easter celebration! We attended church as a family (my husband, my youngest son and me) this morning but had a nice Easter dinner together yesterday with 2 out of 3 of our sons and their spouses/girlfriends...the only ones who couldn't make it are currently stationed in Japan which makes week-end travel a little difficult.
So here's the scoop on the card...did you think I would never get there? I used the Pretty in Pink polka dot patterned decorative paper as the focal point of the card, stamped it with the sentiment and layered it on Basic Gray card stock to make it stand out a bit. The butterflies were both punched out...the larger one from Whisper White and the smaller one from a scrap of the polka dot DSP. That layer was adhered to a piece of Whisper White card stock which had been run through the Embossed Tulip frame then layered on Pretty in Pink card stock. See? a little bit of layering but other than that a very easy card and I loved the end result!
Products used to make this card:
Trust God stamp set WM: 126700 CM126702
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Whisper White card stock #100730
Basic Gray card stock #121044 Basic Gray ink #126981
Subtles Collection Designer Series Paper Stack #117152
Pretty in Pink card stock #100459
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
A "DeLay'ed" Valentine Swap card
Many of my friends and customers are already aware of this but I rarely feel the need to apologize "for the DeLay"....I run at my own speed and since my maiden name is DeLay I sometimes do things later rather than sooner. If I feel like it, I will explain this by telling people that I come from a long line of DeLays. My sister takes it a step farther and writes a syndicated column entitled "DeLayed Reaction". If you enjoy humor and random trivia, look for her on the web at http://www.susandelay.com/ her style is a blend of Paul Harvey "the rest of the story" factoids with a touch of Erma Bombeck/Dave Barry thrown in so feel free to check it out and please tell her that you heard about her from her YOUNGER sister! ;-) Search her index listings in the column on the right for "rubberstamping" to get her unique perspective on arts and crafts. Trust me on this, don't go there on a full bladder.... make a pit stop first!
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Anyway, this card was made for a Valentine swap at Stampin' Up! demonstrator only conference back in mid-January. Let me tell you, I don't usually spend this much time and effort on a single card but I get a little crazy when it comes to making cards to swap with other demonstrators. Yes, I have a stamping problem...you can read all about it in some of my sister's newspaper articles, apparently I am always good for a laugh!
Since the card doesn't actually say Happy Valentine's Day, I figured it's ok to post it in late March because it's always nice to get a surprise in the mail, especially if it comes with a kiss, right? I can't take design credit for this one as I got a lot of help from the very talented Ms Laura Fox who is a wonderfully creative artist and my youngest son's sweetheart. She helped me out with the design phase of this card and did much of the stamping as well. Thanks, Laura, you rock!
Once it came together, this card really was quite simple to make....we used a base of Whisper White to set off Island Indigo card stock which had been run through the newly introduced "Honeycomb" embossing folder, then scattered with individual honeycomb "cells" of hexagons made from decorative paper (Twitterpated DSP). It's hard to see in the photo, but the Indigo layer was randomly stamped tone on tone with butterflies and bees from the Collage Curios stamp set. To get the honeycomb shaped cells I did not use an octagon punch (although I would love to have one!) but I was able to do it quickly and easily by running the lightweight decorative paper through the Big Shot with the honeycomb folder. This dry embossing stressed the paper fibers enough that I was able to easily pull apart the individual cells and adhere them to the honeycomb embossed paper. Voila! instant octagons! If you try this and it doesn't work, try using a cardstock shim, that should do it. Cute trick, eh? At least Laura and I sure liked it!
The white lace border is a fun new product...a self adhesive "lace" tape (not really lace but it sure looks like it!) which was just adhered to the cardstock to make a beautiful lace border. Pretty sure there were also some pearls attached somewhere on the white lace tape by the time we finished the card. ;-)
For the sentiment, I stamped "Sending a Kiss" in Baja Breeze (from the Petite Pairs stamp set) on white cardstock then punched it out with the Full Heart paper punch. It was layered on a slightly larger Baja Breeze cardstock heart stamped tone on tone with the fancy scalloped heart from the Hearts 'a Flutter stamp set and diecut with the scalloped heart framelit of the same name.
Finally, you may notice some little butterflies stamped on the pink decorative paper on the top of the card...these were done in Island Indigo ink onto one of the prints from the Subtles DSP.
Collage Curios stamp set WM #129099 CM#129102
Petite Pairs (sentiment stamp set) WM: 122495, CM:122497
Hearts a Flutter stamp set WM:#129249, CM #129252
Hearts a Flutter framelits #130159
Hearts a Flutter framelits #130159
Full Heart Punch #119883
Delicate Details Lace Tape: #130966
Twitterpated Designer Series Paper #125406
Subtles Collection Designer Series Paper Stacks #117152
Honeycomb embossing folder 129378
Island Indigo classic ink: #126986 cardstock:#122923 (warning: this "In Color" will retire at the end of May so if you want it, better get it now)
Baja Breese cardstock #111352
Whisper White cardstock #100730
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Oh Hello! cased with a color change up but still a cutie!
It has taken me over a month to get around to sharing this card sample which I used for a stamp club project a while back, I hope you will think it's worth the wait! This card is so elegant and fast that it's hard to believe it's a quick and easy card.
I first saw this card on Angie Juda's blog (she is better known as Chic'N Scratch) and fell in love with it but didn't have the Primrose Pink Core'dinations card stock. What to do??? ;-) I decided to substitute the Cherry Cobbler Core'dinations from the Holiday mini) and hope for the best. It's not currently available but I am hoping to see it again in the next Stampin' UP! catalogue scheduled for release in June 2013. Well, when case'ing (that is "copy and share freely" in stamping lingo) a card this pretty, it's hard to go wrong & this was very popular with my stampers at several recent classes. CLICK on the hyperlink above the picture to see Angie's original card in Primrose Pink. I personally enjoy getting inspiration from seeing what other talented stampers have done and I believe that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery in the Rubber Stamping world. I also believe in giving credit where credit is due, so thanks Angie for sharing this lovely card on your blog back in late January 2013. Stampin' Up! demos who attended a Leadership Conference in Orlando in January received this lovely set as part of their registration so regular Stampin' Up!blog hoppers have probably seen a lot of this set.. The Core'Dinations card stock is a little different from Stampin' UP!'s usual heavier weight colored card stock which has color saturation through and through. Core paper is lighter weight and has a white inner core making it fun for projects involving sanding blocks or torn card stock to allow the white inner core to show through. In this card, the colored "Core" paper was embossed with the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder, then sanded with a the sanding block removing some of the color from the dry embossed images and showing a light pink to white underneath. This beautiful distressing technique lends to the "vintage" feel of this card.
For the white stamped circle, I used a piece of Whisper White card stock and stamped the "Oh Hello" sentiment in Gumball Green ink. Then I used a "marker direct to rubber" technique to color the rose and stem image stamp with Cherry Cobbler and Gumball Green ink. It's much easier than it sounds...just start with the lightest shade and use the flat side of the marker to color the raised stamp image. In this case, I used Gumball Green for the stem and Cherry Cobbler for the rose. This allows you to color both areas of the image and stamp only once....it works great and with the clear mount version of the stamp it's very easy to see where to line it up for stamping. If you work quickly the ink will stay wet but you can also remoisten the ink with a quick "huff" of your breath on the stamp. My preschool age nieces refer to this as "ha, ha"ing on the stamp....apparently that is the sound I make when I do it and I have to confess it sounds more polite than "huffing". ;-) When stamping the rose, my "reference point" was the comma on "OH, Hello" so I lined up the tip of the leaf next to the comma before stamping and it was perfectly placed every time! After stamping, the image was punched out with the 1 3/4" circle punch and ready to layer onto the card! It was hard but I even resisted the urge to sponge color around the edge of the white circle giving a much cleaner look to the card.
The green layer is just a strip of Gumball Green card stock measuring 2" x 4.25" which was run through the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder to lend a bit of texture. Then a small piece of Gumball Green Stitched Satin Ribbon was tied around the end before adhering the green strip to the Cherry Cobbler base. It's hard to tell in the photo but Stampin' Dimensionals were used on the top and bottom of the white circle to attach it securely to the embossed base. Quick and easy card! You can't tell from the photo but there is a piece of white cardstock (cut down to a 4" x5.25" layer) lining the inside of the card which was also stamped using the floral image on the inside corner of the card liner. The same flower was stamped again on the envelope for an extra touch. Cute, quick and simply elegant...does it get any better?
I live in the metro east area of St. Louis (on the Illinois side) and we had a late spring snowstorm last Sunday (on Palm Sunday) with 6 to 8 inches in my area and up to a foot of snow just a few more miles north of us. Right now, I am watching the piles of snow melt outside my window and feeling anxious for spring so I am happy that I remembered to post this rose today as I am ready to see some flowers blooming! Thanks for stopping in and please leave a comment to let me know what you thought of today's project, I would love to hear your feedback. Jan
Product used for this projects:
Oh, HELLO! WM 130730 CM 130733
Cherry Cobbler Core'dinations card stock no longer available in this color but try it in another color!
Primrose Pink 129322
Real Red 129320
Pool Party 129321
Stampin' Sanding System 129367
Gumball Green: 126861 Gumball cardstock:126840 Ribbon: 126848 In Color marker set: 126856
Cherry Cobbler marker 119681
1 3/4" circle punch: 119850
Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder: 120175
Perfect Polkadot embossing folder:117335
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