Color Challenge Again – Rainbow Row February 9, 2010

This is my second attempt at the Color Challenge this week on Create with Connie & Julie.  The colors are Old Olive, Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo and Pumpkin Pie.  A tough one for me and I wasn’t thrilled with my first card so I had to try again.

This is my attempt at creating Rainbow Row.  If you have ever been to Charleston, South Carolina that is where you find Rainbow Row.  A row of brightly colored houses along the water front.  Combine the bright colors from this color challenge with the Good Neighbors stamp set and you think of Rainbow Row.

The houses and trees are stamped with Black StazOn ink on Watercolor paper and then watercolored with an Aquapainter and classic ink.  Each was cut out – the roof tops are separate from the houses.  I attached all the pieces with Stampin’ Dimensionals to the front of a piece of Kraft card stock.

I based my card on a painting of Rainbow Row that I found online.  So I tried to add the stars and the moon and the shadows like they had in the painting – let just say I need to stick to stamping and not painting.

If you are a member of the Create with Connie & Julie class you can play along with the Color Challenge this week.  Good Luck to everyone that participates.  Prizes this week include Well-Scripted stamp set and Hugs Love Notes!  And if you aren’t a member – it’s not too late to join – we still have lots of great projects.  We’ve already shared over 18 tutorials, with step by step instructions and pictures that you are welcome to use in Stamp Camps and Classes.  In addition, we share daily projects that contain instructions, tips  and a full supply list for you to duplicate the projects.

I hope you have  a “Colorful” day today!

Vintage Scrapbook Page February 8, 2010

I’m continuing with the 52 weeks of stress free scrapbooking – and I have week 4 finished – that means 48 more to go…

I love how this one turned out. On the 52 weeks blog – Janna actually had two layouts – this was the alternate layout and I turned it on it’s side.  And used all Stampin’ Up! product to create my version.

I have never made a black & white page – I added one color – a combination of So Saffron/Crushed Curry.  The photo is my grandmother that died before I was born so I never knew her.  It is an old photo from 1930 – so it is black & white with the yellowing of a vintage photo so I decided the So Saffron would work well with it.

The base is a piece of 12 x 12 Basic Black card stock.  I stamped it with the large swirl image from the Baroque Motifs stamp set using VersaMark ink and then embossed with clear embossing powder.  The other black panel is created the same way.  I used some of the Night & Day Designer Series Paper was in the Stampin’ Up! Holiday Mini Catalog (now you can get it as a Digital Download for My Digital Studio).  I add a few strips of So Saffron card stock and create the edging with the new Scallop Trim Border Punch (you can get it FREE with a qualifying Sale-A-Bration order).  The patterned paper layered behind the photo and the title at the bottom is the Crushed Curry print from the Razzleberry Lemonade Designer Series Paper pack – it is a light print so it looks more like So Saffron.  There are small photo corners  punched from the Basic Black card stock and the Photo Corners punch.

The accent pieces are stamped with the Vintage Labels set (another one you can get FREE with a qualifying Sale-A-Bration order) – the curly label frame image was stamped with Crushed Curry or Basic Black ink on Whisper White, So Saffron card stock and a piece of the Night & Day Designer Series paper.  These were all punched out with the Curly Label punch.

Then I stamped each one with an image from the Charming stamp set which was featured in the Holiday Mini catalog but is still available during the Occasions Mini Catalog.  The flower was stamped with Crushed Curry ink.  The other two were stamped with VersaMark and embossed with white embossing powder.

I was very happy with how this one turned out.  I hope you like it too.  Now to work on week 5’s layout…..

Have a wonderful Stampin’ Up! Day!

Heart Treat cups and Butterflies February 7, 2010

Heart Treat cups aren’t just for Valentine’s day.  I decided yesterday to use them for something non-valentine’s and I combined it with the butterfly challenge for Late Night Stampers.  And let me tell you – I really love how it turned out and it gave me another idea – which I have to try out this week (more on that later if it comes together).

Here it is and the treat cup is filled with buttons (retired ones) but you could put other things in there – a Simply Adorned bracelet, other small embellishments, money, candy or whatever fits.

And this is another way to create the trap door.  This project uses a little love note envelope to create a pocket.  The big butterfly is on a slider that you pull up and then  the back opens up so you can remove what you have inside the treat cup.

How fun is that?  It was really quick to put together.  I used for a Stamp Club Project this month.

The little butterfly embosslits is so fun to use and I love adding them to everything.  The little ones fit perfectly on this project.  I hope you like it.

I’ll have some great projects to share this coming week – so I hope you’ll be back.

Happy Stampin’!

Create Color Challenge February 6, 2010

It’s Saturday and time for another challenge at Create with Connie & Julie!  This week our challenge is a COLOR challenge – Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, Melon Mambo and Crushed Curry.  The featured items this week are from the Stampin’ Up! Sale-a-Bration brochure – Good Neighbors stamp set and the Welcome Neighbor Designer paper pack.

Congratulations to last weeks winners – Robin Gregor was first place and Sandra Hansen was second place and Jeannine Norder earn an Honorable Mention.  Thanks for playing along last week!

This was a hard challenge for me – putting these colors together is not in my comfort zone.  So I went through a few different versions before settling on this one.

I used the Welcome Neighbor Designer paper pack for the flower – I’m not sure how well you can see it in the photo but there is a layer of Pumpkin Pie, then Crushed Curry and then Melon Mambo.  All three sizes of the flowers have all three colors in the layer.  Then I added a Pumpkin Pie Corduroy Brad in the center.  The flowers are the Flower, Daisies #2 Bigz die for the Big Shot.

Then the designer paper pack is also the striped paper strip and the little butterfly.  I also used the Good Neighbor stamp set on this card – can you see it?  I used one of the trees stamped in Old Olive ink as the leaves under the flower.

Here is a full list of Stampin’ Up! supplies for this card:

• Old Olive card stock and ink
• Crushed Curry card stock
• Welcome Neighbor Designer Paper pack (SAB)
• Scallop Trim Border Punch (SAB)
• Whimsical Words stamp set (SAB)
• Basic Black ink
• Good Neighbors stamp set (SAB)
• Pumpkin Pie Corduroy Brad
• Big Shot Die Cut Machine
• Flowers, Daisies #2 Die
• Beautiful Wings Embosslits Die
• Stampin’ Dimensionals

And here is a look at the rest of the Create team:

Connie

Julie

Mary

Kerin

If you haven’t checked out the Create with Connie and Julie site yet now is the time to do it! We feature new Occasions Mini product every week.  There is a new project posted every day and there will be a minimum of two fabulous tutorials each and every week. We like to have lots of fun so we have challenges and prizes for our subscribers. Our sites stay up long after the session is done so you will always have access to the site and the tutorials. For more information and to see our Preview Week projects please visit the Create with Connie and Julie site.

Thanks for stopping by today!  Happy Stampin’!

More Valentines February 5, 2010

I have a few more Valentines to share.  These are swap cards that my upline, Wendy, got at the Leadership conference.  I was busy this week on projects for the Create with Connie & Julie class.  My project posted today on the class blog – but you have to be a member of the class to access it.  Tomorrow I’ll be posting my challenge project for the week.  And tonight is my stamp club so I was finishing up projects for that too.  I’ll share those with you next week so you can get a peek at the awesome projects we make at stamp club.  If you live near me I’m looking for more people to join my Stamp Club – I’ll be drawing for the new hostess schedule and our next meeting will be in March.

So here are the Valentines -

There are so many creative Stampin’ Up! Demonstrators all over the world.   It is so fun to see everyone’s ideas.  If one of these creations belongs to you please leave me a comment and I’ll add your name to your creation.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Valentine Swaps February 4, 2010

Well I don’t have any new creations for you today.  I have been busy with some other things so I don’t have a project that I made to share with you.  I do however have some swap cards to share with you.  I did not make any of these and unfortunately they aren’t even my swaps so I didn’t receive them and therefore don’t have them to look on the back and see who created it.  So if you created one of these swaps  ( or know who did) please leave me a comment so I can tell everyone it is yours.  My upline, Wendy Randall, had these displayed when I was at her house.  She probably got them all when she went to leadership in January.  I didn’t go this year – I know I missed a lot of great information, visiting with friends and learning new stuff.  I do plan to go to convention.

Enough jibbering – here are the cards.

Have a great day – I’m trying…. it is raining here again and we are supposed to get several inches by the end of tomorrow.  Ughh…

Simply Adorned Jewelry February 3, 2010

Did you notice the Simply Adorned Jewelry in the Stampin’ Up! Occasions Mini Catalog (or the Holiday Mini Catalog)?

We were finally able to order the jewelry at the beginning of January.  I got one charm and one chain and I love them!

I have the 1″ x 1-1/4″ rectangle charm and the 24″ chain.  I was worried about it bothering my neck – over the years I seem to have developed a metal allergy and most things make me start itching and I have to take them off – so far this chain has not bothered me at all and I have been wearing it.  The chains are Stainless Steel and come in two lengths – 24″ and 34″ and a bracelet that is 8″.

There are 3 large charms to wear on a chain and 2 small charms that you can add to the bracelet or the chain.

The great thing about the charms is that they are little lockets with windows and you can create stamped creations to fit inside.  Just image you will always have something to match whatever you are wearing!  And because these are small it doesn’t take long to stamp something to put inside.

The stamp set I used on this one is the Charming stamp set and it was originally shown in the Holiday Mini Catalog.  And yes it is still available.  The front of the charm has a beveled edge on the glass.

The back is flat but also glass so you can show a different image on the back side. The design on the back also uses the Charming stamp set and I created it very quickly actually from a scrap that I had lying on the table while working on a card.  I just cut it to fit inside my charm.

There is a new stamp set called Tiny Tags in the Occasions Mini that was designed to work with the little charms.

I’m excited about the jewelry and I am working on a class that will be in March.  We will create a dozen or more inserts and decorate the box that will hold the chain, charm and inserts.  This will be  a perfect Mother’s Day gift – or make two and keep one for yourself.  I’ll have more information on the class as the date approaches.

I have been busy finishing up projects for Create with Connie & Julie class.  I’m posting again this Friday – but you have to be a class member to see the project – so make sure you join – it’s not too late – we are about half way through and all the projects are out there.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Ribbon Share and Glassine Bags February 2, 2010

I did a ribbon share for the new Satin Ribbon in the Stampin’ Up! Occasions Mini Catalog.  Every participant gets about 3 yards of each color of Satin Ribbon – there are 9 colors available.  I like to present the ribbon shares in a nice way so this time I decided to use the new Glassine Bags that are also available in the Occasions Mini Catalog.  And this is what I came up with….

I cut each ribbon and then wrapped then around my hand.  Then tied a piece of crochet thread around each bundle.  Each bundle got a tag that was punched in the matching color card stock using the Modern Label punch.  I printed labels with the colors and item numbers to put on the tags.  Inside each Glassine bag I put either 4 or 5 bundles of ribbon then folded the flap over.  I put the two bags together and tied them with a piece of Chocolate Chip Satin ribbon.

Then I decided to create a tag and decided to use the Sale-A-Bration set Vintage Labels.  I have the Clear Mounted set and it was so easy to use and get the “for you” in the center of the label.  The label was punched with the Wide Oval punch and I sponged the edges.  I punched a 1/16″ hole in the top and tied it to the package with a piece of linen thread.

You could use the Glassine bags for any little gift or a small treat for someone special.  Add some ribbon and a tag and your set.

Have a great day today!

More 3×3’s February 1, 2010

I made some more little 3×3 tags over the weekend.  I use these as little Thank You’s on my orders.  I used up some leftover supplies from other projects – I had 3×3 already cut with some of the layers all ready to go – so I just added the stamped images and assembled.  Put a hole in each corner and added some string to tie them to the order bags.

Stampin’ Up! Supplies for this one:

• Old olive card stock
• Basic Grey card stock and ink
• Whisper White card stock
• Pocket Sillouettes stamp set
• Stampin’ Dimensionals
• 1/8″ hand held punch
• white crochet thread

I may have already shown this one – it is one of my favorite little designs so sorry if it is a repeat.

Here is another one that I made and as it turns out most of it is retired.  I thought the stamp set was still current but it was retired at the end of the year.

Supplies used are:

• Kiwi Kiss card stock
• Rose Red card stock
• Whisper White card stock
• Sweet Stems stamp set
• Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set
• Black StazOn ink
• Stampin’ Write markers – Old Olive, Rose Red, Regal Rose
• Raspberry Tart Designer Series paper
• 1/8″ handheld punch
• black crochet thread

And my last design uses a brand new stamp set from the Occasions Mini catalog – the Picnic Parade Hostess set – it is so cute! 

Stampin’ Up! Supplies for this one:

• Tempting Turquoise card stock
• Old Olive card stock
• Whisper White card stock
• Picnic Parade stamp set
• Black StazOn ink
• Stampin’ Write markers: Old Olive, Tempting Turquoise, Sahara Sand, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, Creamy Carmel
• Wide oval punch
• Stampin’ Dimensionals
• 1/8″ handheld punch
• White crochet thread

I thought this one turned out cute!  And the little animals are so happy looking.   Thanks for stopping by today.

I hope you’ll come back again.

I {Heart} Hearts Scrapbook Page January 31, 2010

I finished my week 3 scrapbook page for the 52 weeks challenge – so there are 49 more weeks to go!  Now to work on week 4.  For this page I ended up using several new products from the Stampin’ Up! Occasions Mini catalog.  It ended up as a Valentine Page in non-traditional colors.

We celebrate Valentine’s Day a bit differently.  For many years now I have used this more as a celebration of all my boys.  I cook a surf & turf dinner – crab legs, lobster, steak.  I can spend the same or less and give all of us a fancy meal instead of Greg and I going out alone.   One year while Kyle and Tyler were in Cotillion we did a formal dinner with all the different silverware and dishes so they could practice what they were learning.

At the end of dinner we have a scavenger hunt for them to find treats and things around the house.  I usually create hidden codes or clues that they have to figure out.  We started this when the boys were first in Cub Scouts and learning about secret codes.  The codes got harder as the boys grew older.  About this time of year they start to ask if we are still having our scavenger hunt this year.  And this year Greg told me Tyler invited his girlfriend over to spend Valentine’s with us.

Here are the list of Stampin’ Up! Supplies that I used on this page:

• Chocolate Chip card stock, ink and Stampin’ Write marker
• Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper Stack (Occasions Mini Catalog)
• Not Quite Navy card stock and ink
• Old Olive card stock and ink
• Whisper White card stock
• Circle Scissor Plus and Glass Mat
• Full Heart Punch
• Modern Label Punch
• Extra Large Two-Step Bird punch (Occasions Mini Catalog)
• Small Heart punch (Occasions Mini Catalog)
• I {Heart} Hearts stamp set (Occasions Mini Catalog)
• Well Scripted stamp set (Occasions Mini Catalog)
• Cutter Kit
• Big Shot die cut machine
• Movers & Shapers Die and Punch Windows Die
• SU Backgrounds 1 Texturz Plate
• Twill Tape
• Staples (not SU)
• Date stamp (not SU)

I hope you like the non-traditional colors of my Valentine Page.

Have a great day!